“Is that you, Carver?” Boswell demanded harshly. “I been looking all over for you. Where in hell have you been? Has the Judge showed up around here yet?”
Lassiter showed his teeth in a tight grin. So the Judge had gone out of town today! That was a stroke of luck.
“Carver, what in hell you playing at?” Boswell demanded, and now Lassiter could see that he was tensing, becoming suspicious.
“It ain’t Carver, Boswell,” he snapped, thrusting his gun forward a fraction, and now the deputy stood on the brink of hell.
“Who’s that? Is that you, Judge?” Boswell demanded.
“Wrong again. This is Dane Lassiter, and you better not reach for that gun, Boswell. I got you dead to rights. Nothing would please me better than to blast you apart, you low killer.”
“Hell!” Boswell could do no more than curse. “Milton said he got you safe someplace!”
“He made a mistake, and now you’re gonna start wishing you’d never moved into this county, Boswell. What happened to Snap Wyman? Who killed him?”
“I don’t know.” There was truculence in the deputy’s voice. “But you’re the only killer on the loose around here. I’ve heard it said that you did the shooting. You’ve got it in for the local law department.”
“I’m not the only killer around here, Boswell. What about you? You shot my father in the back!” Lassiter’s tones were like molten lead dripping on ice.
Boswell made no reply for a moment, and was taken aback by the accusation. Lassiter saw him stiffen, and then the deputy moved backwards half a step.
“Where did you hear that, Lassiter?” he demanded roughly.
“The sheriff told me this afternoon. I got no reason to doubt his word. He told you to do it and you did. That’s why I’m here. You can pull your gun any time you like so I can kill you!”
“You must be crazy! I never shot your father! The sheriff must have been trying to trick you into something if he told you that.”
“He told me all about your business around here, Boswell, because he figured he had the dead wood on me. I was in a tight spot with no way out, so he opened up and told me everything. He even admitted that he was coming back here to kill off some more folk who stood in his way so he could lay the blame on my shoulders. But I got back in time to put a stop to that. Now you start your play. I’ve got some more killing to do around here and I want to deal with you first.”
“I’m not drawing against you! What kind of a fool do you figure I am? I don’t know the half of what you’re talking about. I ain’t murdered anyone. I’m a deputy sheriff, sworn to uphold the law, and that’s all I ever did around here.”
Lassiter recognised the fear in Boswell’s tones and tightened his lips. He narrowed his eyes to keep his vision sharp, and he was ready for any movement on the deputy’s part. But Boswell was taking no chances.
He slowly raised his hands shoulder high and stood motionless.
“You yellow dog!” Lassiter felt contempt strike through him, and he was on the point of triggering his gun. But he controlled himself and tried to find a spark of reason in his mind to put off the grim moment of killing. “You want to get off the hook?” he demanded.
“I ain’t done nothing! Why should I be on the hook?”
“Whether you did anything or not, I’ve been told you did, so I’ll accept that. You’re on the hook whether you like it or not. You’ll be dead shortly if you don’t string along with me.”
“What you got in mind?” Boswell was losing some of his fear, as if he could sense Lassiter’s reluctance to shoot.
“I want to know what’s going on around here. Who killed Snap Wyman? You needn’t look around as if you expect that new deputy to come sneaking up on me. I’ve got him prisoner and hogtied out there in the night. Looks like this is about played out for you, Boswell. If you’ve got any sense at all you’ll tell the Judge everything you know about Milton’s activities.”
“The Judge ain’t around. We been looking for him ever since sundown.”
“To kill him!” Lassiter moved nearer the deputy, and Boswell seemed to cringe away. “What about some truth now, huh? I’m not the man to fool around with!”
“Looks like you got me hogtied.” There as a grudging note in the deputy’s voice. “I can’t do anything but go along with you. But you ain’t likely to do a deal with me if you figure I killed your father! I didn’t do it, Lassiter! It wasn’t me. Milton did it! I don’t know why he tried to put the blame on me, but that ain’t gonna wash. I can prove that I wasn’t near your spread around the time your father was killed.”
“I’ll reserve judgement on that until I get more evidence,” Lassiter said grimly. “But you better come clean, Boswell. I want to know everything.”
“You give me a fair deal and we’ll trade hosses,” the deputy retorted. “I can see this game here is played out. Milton is a fool for thinking he can keep pushing it. When he didn’t get you yesterday I knew it was going sour on us. I want out, Lassiter. I figure you’ll get to the bottom of this, so let’s deal.”
“Not here.” Lassiter shook his head. “I’ve got to put you and Carver where you’ll be on ice until I can get hold of the Judge. But don’t try to get smart, Boswell, because I’ll shoot you dead the instant I catch you trying to get smart.”
“I’m no fool! I wouldn’t try my hand against you! I ain’t in your class!”
“Okay, so turn around so I can take your gun!” Lassiter closed in, and as Boswell turned away, his hands held high, Lassiter took the man’s holstered gun, sticking it into the waistband of his pants. He slapped the deputy’s body in a search for hidden weapons, and found a sheath knife on the man’s left hip. Taking the knife, he hurled it away into the night.
“What now?” Boswell asked in tones that suggested he had given in to defeat.
“We’re going for a little walk, and you better do exactly like I tell you!” There was menace in Lassiter’s tones, and he saw the deputy shrug his thick shoulders.
They started around the house and made for the spot where Lassiter had left his horse and the bound deputy, and Lassiter was faintly worried. He had two men on his hands now, and if he could not get to the Judge quickly then the deputies would become an acute embarrassment. But he had to hold them somewhere, and he was aware that as soon as the sheriff discovered they were missing there would be a hue and cry.
He thought about Paula as they went on. Milton looked to be giving the girl a hard time of it, and Lassiter toyed with the idea of going into the law office and springing the girl out of the sheriff’s clutches. But he figured Milton was only trying to learn the Judge’s whereabouts. He would have no suspicion of what Paula had done that day. Lassiter firmed his lips as he considered that. So long as Paula kept silent about her recent activities then she was in no danger.
“I got some company for you, Carver,” Lassiter said when they reached the spot where he had left his horse and the deputy. He could see Carver still lying where he had been bound, and a quick check showed Lassiter that the deputy had been unable to loosen the knots holding him. “There’s plenty of room on this rope for a couple more prisoners,” Lassiter went on as he made Boswell sit down with his hands at his back. He quickly tied the stocky deputy, and grunted his satisfaction after testing the knots “Mebbe I’ll bring Milton back here to join you.”
“What are you gonna do with us?” Carver demanded. “You’re in bad trouble now, Lassiter. You’re only making things worse for yourself.”
“My trouble is nothing compared with yours,” Lassiter retorted. “The pair of you better start talking this over. When I get back you better see reason. The game is up for Milton, and you’ve got just one slim chance to get clear before he goes down.” He began to move away again, and he spoke over his shoulder. “Don’t let me hear any sounds from either of you,” he warned, “or I’ll come back and put you to sleep with the barrel of my gun.”
They did not reply, and Lassiter had some feelings of urgen
cy inside him as he hurried back to town. He skirted the main street and went to the doctor’s house, knocking urgently, still wondering how to get help. But he figured the doctor ought to be able to do something, and he was relieved when the door opened and Doc Weller stood before him.
“Dane, you’re taking a chance coming in here. The town has been searched end to end for you. Come on in before someone spots you!”
“Thanks, Doc. It’s important that I see you!” Lassiter crossed the threshold and entered the house, and Weller shut the door quickly.
“What’s on your mind? Is it Frank? He’s okay. He’ll be all right in a few weeks. He’s in the jail, but he’s comfortable, and I see him twice a day.”
“And Charlie Logan?” Lassiter demanded.
“Charlie will pull through. He asked about you when I saw him this afternoon.”
“Can you tell me where the Judge is? I’ve tried his house, and I’ve spoken to the two deputies. It seems the Judge has left town.”
“He has.” Doc Weller led the way to his office. “Come through here, Dane. Listen, the Judge told me a thing or two this morning when I talked with him. I told him all you’d told me, and he decided he had to go to Junction City to get some advice. The US Marshal will be coming in here in a couple of days.”
Lassiter shook his head slowly. “That won’t be soon enough. I’ve got a lot to tell you, Doc. You’ve got to know in case anything happens to me. I’m slated to be dead tomorrow, and so are some more folk around here who are in Milton’s way.” He sat down beside the doctor’s desk and launched himself into an account of what had happened since that morning.
Doc Weller’s face showed scepticism at first, but when Lassiter fell silent, the medico nodded grimly.
“This is the hell of a business,” he retorted. “And you say Paula is in the law office right now? I’d better do something, and quick. The Judge didn’t realize this was going so badly.”
“Don’t do anything that would tip off our hand, Doc,” Lassiter said quickly. “Buck Milton is a real killer underneath, and he’s getting desperate. I think we should take him prisoner and lock him in his cells until the Marshal arrives. I’ve got the two deputies tied up. They’re out of action. One of them killed Snap Wyman, I guess, and when the Judge learns about that there will be trouble.”
“The trouble is that you’re a wanted killer, Dane, until we can prove otherwise,” Doc Weller said. “The men in this town had a high old time out on the range hunting for you. They won’t believe anything but what Milton tells them. You’re gonna have to lie low until the Judge gets back.”
“And the Judge has got to be warned, because he’ll walk into gunplay the minute he shows his face around here again. I’m to take the blame for that. But I agree that our hands are tied at the moment. Yet we can’t take any chances with Paula. If she happens to let slip to Milton what she did today after he left me down that well at the Redfern place, her life won’t be worth a plugged nickel. You’ve got to get her out of the law office, Doc.”
“I’ll go over there and talk to Milton, make the pretext that I want to check Frank and Charlie. If Paula is still there then I think my appearance might spring her out. If I can get her loose I’ll bring her back here and she can stay the night. I’d better keep an eye on her.”
“I’ll wait here until you return then,” Lassiter said thinly. “But I don’t have much time. I’ve got those two deputies hog-tied, and I’ve got to find somewhere to put them until they can be jailed.”
“You’re doing a hell of a lot for a man who’s got a murder rap hanging over him,” Weller said. He got to his feet. “I’ll get over to the jail now, and don’t worry. I won’t let anything happen to Paula.”
“Thanks, Doc. I’m glad I thought of you. There’s no one else I can turn to.”
“I’m thankful you came to me, because no one knows what kind of a man Milton really is. Of course there have been rumours about his law dealing in the past, but he’s always kept the county fairly clean of crooks.” The doctor opened a drawer in the desk and took out a small pistol, which he checked and dropped into a pocket. He smiled grimly as he met Lassiter’s straight gaze. “I’ve spent most of my life taking chunks of lead out of men,” he remarked. “But I can still shoot a straight barrel, and it’ll make a change to put a slug into someone for once.”
“Watch your step, Doc,” Lassiter warned. “Milton is no fool. He’s sharp all right, and if he gets the slightest suspicion that you’re not on the level then you could be in a lot of trouble. He’s gone past the limit already. Another murder won’t deter him. He’ll kill anyone who gets in his way.”
“I’ll be on my guard. Now you stay put until I get back. The sooner I get over to the law office the better. Help yourself to a drink while I’m gone, Dane. Go through to the kitchen and clean up, and help yourself to some food and coffee. You look like you could do with some nourishment.”
“It’s been a hard day all right,” Lassiter declared, shaking his head. “I wouldn’t want to go through the ordeal I suffered today again for anything in the world.”
“Stuck at the bottom of a sixty-foot well?” Doc Weller shook his head. “You’ll probably have nightmares about that for a few years to come, Dane.”
Lassiter nodded, and he was feeling the strain now. Having got to this point, he could feel relieved that help was forthcoming, and his relief detracted from his desperation. He walked to the door with the doctor, and went through to the kitchen as the medico departed from the house.
He was aware of his hunger, and helped himself to food from the doctor’s larder. There was a coffee pot on the hot stove, and he poured himself a cup, but all the time his senses were keyed up and he was listening for sounds of the doctor’s return. He had finished eating, and took another cup of coffee, before he heard the front door of the house open, and he dropped his hand to his gun butt and went to the inner kitchen door, opening it smoothly and peering across the hall. He saw Paula standing on the threshold, with the doctor closing the street door, and his relief overflowed and he hurried from the kitchen.
“Dane!” There were shadows in the girl’s eyes as she held out her hands to him. “I’ve had a dreadful time! But the doctor just told me what’s been happening. Thank Heaven you’re all right.”
“What happened to you after you left me?” Lassiter demanded.
“I went straight home like you suggested, but Father wasn’t there, and while I was trying to get into the house Hank Boswell came up. He told me about Snap getting killed, saying that everyone figured you were around and had done it.” Her tones tremored a little, but she bit her lip, steadied herself, and continued. “I almost told him what really happened to you, but I thought it better to keep quiet. The sheriff started on me when I got to the office. He wanted to know where my father was. I couldn’t tell him because I didn’t know! Father didn’t tell me he was going off. I couldn’t figure out where Mrs Annan had gone to. She wouldn’t have left the house while I was out.”
“You didn’t mention to the sheriff what happened out at the Redfern place, did you?” Lassiter demanded.
“No. I knew it had to be kept quiet. But it was difficult, having to listen to Milton lying about you.”
“If I had any doubts about you, Dane, then what Paula told me has removed the last of them,” Doc Weller retorted. “But what happens now? Can you hang on until the Judge returns with the US Marshal?”
“I fear not,” Lassiter said heavily. “Milton will be going out to the Redfern place to kill me tomorrow sometime, and before then he plans a few murders to pin on me.”
“We can’t let him kill anyone,” Weller said desperately. “I think I’d better get the Town Council together and have a talk with them. I’ll have to make them understand that you’re innocent of the charges against you, and if we can arrest Milton then so much the better. It’s the only way this can be done, Dane. You’ve got those two deputies, and with them out of the way, taking Milton should be eas
y.”
“I’ll take Milton for you any time you want him jailed,” Lassiter said stiffly. “I think mebbe I better come with you to talk to the mayor and the others, Doc.”
“No. I want you to stay out of sight. If you’re spotted in town then we could have a lot more trouble than we already got.”
“I’m worried about those two deputies I got roped up outside of town,” Lassiter retorted. “If they get loose and report back to Milton we’ll lose every advantage. While Milton thinks I’m down that well we’ve got the upper hand.”
“Why don’t you go pick them both up and bring them here?” the Doc suggested. “We could hold them prisoner. Milton ain’t gonna know what to think when they don’t show up. He’ll probably figure they ran out on him.”
“And we’ve got to take Milton before he goes out to the Redfern place,” Lassiter insisted.
“Leave it to me,” Weller said firmly. “I’ll get something done.” He turned and departed, leaving Lassiter staring at Paula.
The girl sighed heavily when they were alone, and came forward to push into Lassiter’s embrace. He held her tightly, filled with a variety of emotions, but relief was sitting atop all the others. She was safe, and that was all that mattered.
“I looked through the office window a short time back,” Lassiter admitted, and a sigh gusted through him. “I saw you being grilled by Milton. But I had to take Boswell first. Now I’ve got him, and I came to talk to the Doc before thinking about getting you out of Milton’s hands. Was he holding you?”
“He said he was going to, for my own safety. He kept asking where my father had gone, and wouldn’t believe that I didn’t know. I had to admit that I was out of town, and he questioned me about my movements for the day.”
“He knew you were on your way to meet me at Blue Ridge,” Lassiter said quickly.
“I know, and I told him I’d ridden in that direction, but didn’t say I was planning to meet you there. He threw that at me and I didn’t deny it. He warned me it was dangerous consorting with known criminals, and he kept asking me where you were hiding out. He’s got some men posted at Cross L in case you ride in there.”
Close Call Page 11
