HELL HATH NO FURY (A Jess Williams western novel) (24 page)

             
“Annie, are you sure you still want to go through with this?” Jess asked.

             
Annie looked up at Jess with watery eyes and a sorrowful look. “If I don’t, I’ll never be the same. I’ll never forgive myself if I don’t or can’t do it. I have to try Jess.”

             
Jess looked back at Cliff and he was standing there grinning at Annie now, but he at least had enough sense that he didn’t try to move. “Alright,” said Jess, “I’m going to go over there and get him ready to face off with you in a gunfight. Make sure you remove that hammer strap this time.”

             
Annie removed her hammer strap and kept staring down at Cliff. She felt more hatred for him then she ever thought she could have in one’s whole lifetime. She kept going over and over the day when he raped her and she could still smell his awful breath and his body odor as if it was that same day. She looked around and there were at least twenty people on the boardwalk on both sides of the street waiting for the show and its outcome. Jess walked back to where Cliff was standing, his hands still tied behind his back. Jess pulled his bowie knife out of his back holster. He walked around behind him and removed Hunt’s pistol from his holster.

             
“Hey, I’m going to need that,” exclaimed Hunt, the grin gone from his face now.

             
“Shut your mouth,” exclaimed Jess. “You’ll get it back when you need it. Now, here is how this is going to happen. When Annie is ready, I’ll give you your gun back and put the hammer strap on. Then, I’m going to walk over there out of the line of fire and between the two of you. When I tell you, you can remove your hammer strap and face off with her. If I even think you’re doing something wrong, I’ll kill you myself without any hesitation, understand?”

             
“So, you mean that your woman really is going to face off with me?” asked Hunt.

             
“That’s exactly what’s going to happen,” replied Jess, as he cut the leather strap from his hands. Hunt brought his hands up in front of him and rubbed them to get the blood flowing through them again.

             
“I thought you was kidding about the woman. Hell, she ain’t got a chance in hell going up against me,” replied Hunt sarcastically.

             
“I guess we’ll see about that pretty soon. Besides, I’ve been giving her shooting lessons and she’s mighty fast for a woman,” replied Jess.

             
“Yeah, well how fast are you with that fancy gun you got there?”

             
“Do you really want to know?”

             
“Yeah, it’ll give me an idea of what I’m up against,” replied Cliff, in part because he wanted to know how fast the infamous Jess Williams really was and because he was stalling for more time so that he could get the feeling back in his hands.

             
Jess took a twenty-dollar gold piece out of his front pocket and handed it to Hunt. He looked at it and smiled. “Oh, are you paying me to shoot your woman now?”

             
“No, you idiot, you said you wanted to see how fast I was, so hold the twenty-dollar gold piece up in front of you and chest level and drop it anytime you feel like it,” replied Jess, a cocky grin on his face now.

             
Cliff seemed a little confused as Jess stepped back several feet and waited for him to drop the twenty-dollar gold piece. Hunt held the gold piece up about chest level and looked at Jess. “Make sure you don’t miss and hit me by mistake,” exclaimed Hunt.

             
“I never miss.”

             
“You mean to tell me that you are going to hit this twenty-dollar gold piece after I drop it and before it hits the dirt?”

             
“That’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

             
“But you won’t know when I’m going to drop it.”

             
“That’s kind of the idea.”

             
“I don’t know of any man alive that can make that shot.”

             
Jess smiled and cocked his head. “You’re looking at him.”

             
Cliff held the gold piece up at chest level for over a minute, looking at Jess and then back to the coin between his fingers. He was staring at Jess when he released the coin from his grip. The coin didn’t fall more than a foot when the slug from Jess’ pistol hit it, putting a hole straight through it. Jess had slicked his pistol out, shot a hole in the coin and holstered his pistol before the coin hit the dirt in front of Cliff Hunt. Cliff stared down at the coin and then he looked over at Jess with a look of amazement. “Mister, I ain’t never saw anything like that before,” replied Hunt, the smile on his face replaced by a sheer look of fear.

             
Jess simply grinned at him. “You want to see it again?”

             
“Hell, I never really saw it the first time,” exclaimed Hunt.

             
“Well, you keep that in mind when your facing off with Annie, because I’ll put three slugs in you before you even think about making a wrong move,” exclaimed Jess. Jess looked down at Annie, who had been watching the little show he put on for Cliff Hunt. Everyone in the street and on the boardwalk had watched it and they couldn’t believe their eyes. Chase Penrod was certainly surprised by it and it started to affect his thinking about matters too.

             
“Annie, are you ready to face off with him?” hollered Jess. Annie didn’t speak, she couldn’t. She had a lump in her throat and she couldn’t even swallow now. She was trembling with fear. She simply nodded at Jess to let him know that she was as ready as she was ever going to be.

             
Jess walked behind Hunt, who was still staring down at the twenty-dollar gold piece with the hole in it, not wanting to believe what he had just witnessed. Jess placed Hunt’s pistol in his holster and placed the hammer strap on and tightened it good. “Alright, after I get over to my position over there, you can slowly remove your hammer strap and face off with Annie. You know, the woman who I taught how to draw and shoot a pistol,” said Jess, trying to put fear into Hunt’s mind, which was definitely working. Jess didn’t like to show off his shooting skills, but he had done it for only one reason and that was to put Cliff Hunt off his game a little and it had worked very well. Cliff Hunt’s confidence was gone at this point.

             
Jess got to his position by walking backward and away from where Hunt was now standing. Cliff glanced at Jess and then he stared down at Annie, trying to unnerve her, which was all too easy at this point. He could tell that Annie was scared because of the look in her eyes. He decided to try to get under her skin by taunting her.

             
“Jess here tells me that you want to kill me for raping you and your mother and killing your father. Is that right?” Hunt asked Annie, who was crying uncontrollably now. She couldn’t even find the words to respond yet.

             
“Aw, why are you crying? I bet I know why. You miss me and want some more of what I gave you the last time, don’t you?” goaded Hunt.

             
Annie let out a scream and put her hands up to her face to wipe away the tears, but she still could not speak. Her head was now hanging down.

             
“You know what?” said Hunt. “That’s sounds like the scream you made when I put a slug into your father.” Annie’s head lifted a little and she glared at Hunt who was smiling back at her.

             
“I remember the way you screamed when I was having my way with your mother too,” said Hunt, still trying to goad Annie into making a mistake. Annie finally lifted her head up and stared straight down at Hunt. She wiped her tears off with her left arm.

             
“I hate your rotten guts for what you did to me!” screamed Annie, at the top of her lungs, as she tried to steady herself.

             
“I remember that scream too. It was the same scream you was hollering when I was having my way with you after finishing up with your mother,” sneered Hunt.

             
Jess was watching all of this and he was whispering under his breath. “Come on, Annie. You can do this. Reach down deep for the strength that’s deep inside of you. Remember that day and feel that rage and use it,” he said, to no one but himself.

             
Annie’s facial expression started to change from a look of fear to a look of darkness that she had never displayed before and Jess noticed it immediately. He saw that telltale look in her eyes that said she was ready. Annie walked forward toward Cliff, who was taken aback by it. She had closed the gap between the two of them and she was now standing no more than ten feet from him now and glaring at him with eyes that had seemed to turn from a beautiful blue color to the color of coal. The tears had stopped now; rage replacing the fear.

             
“See, I knew you missed me. You just wanted to get a closer look at me. Like what you see?” goaded Hunt.

             
“Not really. I just wanted to get a close look at your eyes as the life drains out of your worthless body, you no good son-of-a-bitch,” replied Annie, a firm tone to her voice now.

             
Cliff Hunt’s grin turned to a look of foreboding as he realized that he might be in trouble now. He went for his gun and he got to cock it and almost raised it when a slug from Annie’s pistol hit him straight in the chest. He stumbled backward and Annie began screaming as she shot him two more times before he hit the dirt. She stood over him and shot him again and again and again, once in the crotch, once in the chest and the last shot to the head. She was out of bullets, but she continued to cock her pistol and pull the trigger over and over again, all the while screaming loudly, letting all the rage get outside for the first time since that fateful day. Jess didn’t immediately go to her. Instead, he wanted her to let go of all the hatred and rage that had seethed inside of her for so long. He thought back to the day he had sat on Jim and Sara’s steps the day after his family had been brutally murdered and he knew how he felt and he understood it all too well. Finally, Jess walked over to Annie, who was still screaming and pulling the trigger on an empty gun.

             
Jess slowly reached up and took the gun away from her. Annie looked up at him with tears in her eyes and relief took over her body. She put her arms around him and sobbed until she had no tears left. She whispered into his ear. “Thank you, Jess.”

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

              Annie was still clinging to Jess as the crowd began to slowly dissipate into the saloon, shops and the few homes located on the main street of Buford. Jess had tried a few times to get Annie to let go, but she wouldn’t have it. He glanced over at Chase Penrod and saw that Hal was still pointing the cut-down shotgun straight at him. Jess also seemed to notice something different about Penrod’s demeanor.

             
“Annie, I have to go and take care of this Penrod fellow before he does something stupid and we ain’t exactly in a good position here in the middle of the street with your arms clamped around me,” pleaded Jess politely.

             
Annie finally let go of the grip she had on Jess. “Oh, alright, I guess so,” she said not wanting to let him go.

             
“Annie, are going to be okay?” asked Jess.

             
Annie started to cry again, but she stopped herself. “Actually, the strange thing is, I haven’t felt this much at peace with myself since the day before—well—you know.”

             
“Yes I do know, and I’m happy for you. Now why don’t you go inside and get some coffee while I deal with this Penrod fellow. Hal and John will watch over you until I’m finished.” Annie stepped forward and kissed Jess straight on the lips and he didn’t move, which made Annie feel good inside. Then, she walked up the steps of the boardwalk and into the saloon, but not before stopping and glaring at Chase Penrod.

             
Jess was standing in the street looking at Penrod, who was now standing alone, since Hal and John followed Annie into the saloon. “Well, Mr. Penrod, we might as well get this thing over with, don’t you think?” asked Jess.

             
Penrod put his hands behind his head and walked down to meet Jess, mostly because he didn’t want Jess to think he might be going for his gun. “Mr. Williams, I’ve always respected your work and your ability with a pistol, but I’ve never seen anyone draw and shoot a pistol that fast before, ever. I’d like to shake your hand and be on my way, if you wouldn’t mind?”

             
“So you’re not worried about your reputation anymore?”

             
“Hell, I won’t have a reputation if I try to draw down on the likes of you. I have no chance of even getting close to beating you. I’m not the smartest man in the world, but I certainly know when I’m outgunned.”

             
Jess looked deep into Chase Penrod’s eyes and he found the truth. Jess figured that this was one time that he could trust a man for his word, even though he was a stranger. “I guess I can see my way to let this one go.” Jess stuck out his left hand to shake Penrod’s hand.