I'm Off to Montana for to Throw the Hoolihan (Code of the West) (19 page)

“Sugar Dayton! He was at my house last week claimin’ to be a rancher.”

“I’m sure he has cattle. Just who the cattle belong to is another question.”

“Why not chase the horses off?”

“I just discovered their location last week. I want to capture the gang, not their horses.”

“Why not get a hundred of your best men, surround them when they ride in to change horses, and capture them there?”

“Because there would be shooting and killing. The government would see it as an Indian raid on whites, and my people would be sent to live in the swamps of Florida.”

“So you want to go into the mountains, capture the whole gang alive, turn them over to the U. S. Marshal’s office, and have it all done with.”

Savage flashed a straight-toothed smile. “That’s what I want. Will you help?”

“I might. I’ve got some good reasons for not wantin’ that gang up there too. How many men can you bring with you?”

“One.”

“One?” Tap choked. “The great Crow Nation can only send two men?”

“If we are caught pursuing whites off the reservation, we will be hung. You know that. There are not many who want to run that risk. They say let the whites shoot each other.”

“They have a point.”

“They have never seen the swamps of Florida. I have.” Jesse Savage shuddered.

Tap poured himself another cup of coffee. “So it would be just you and another man?”

“My brother. How many can you bring? Surely a big ranch like this has many men.”

“Actually we aren’t hirin’ on many until next spring.”

“At least you have two men chained in the barn, an old man who cooks like a woman, and another who lives in the small house with no lights. That makes five and two: seven. Add to them the bearded man and boy up in the cabin in Badger Canyon. We could capture Yellow Sash with nine men.”

“Whoa. If I can pry Lorenzo out of that cabin with no lights, we’ll have two and two. Four men—that’s all.”

“What about the others?”

“The old man stays here to look after the place, and the two in the barn are outlaws themselves. They need to go to jail in Billings. And the man and boy in what you call Badger Canyon, they don’t believe in usin’ guns.”

“Only four? That will make it more difficult.”

“I didn’t sign on yet. I’m just thinkin’ about it. I’m not sure I can leave home for a while. My wife is about to have a baby.”

Jesse Savage’s eyes lit up. “That is good news. So is my wife. Mona, come here.”

The short, dark-skinned woman with beaded deerskin dress and moccasins stepped out to meet them. She had a gray army blanket draped around her shoulders. The way the dress hung, she did not look pregnant.

“Tapadera Andrews’s wife is about to have a baby also.”

The woman beamed.

“My Pepper is due any day now.”

“So is Mona.”

The woman’s voice was very soft. “I think it will be two more weeks.”

“Two weeks?” Tap peered closer at the petite woman.

“Perhaps I could visit with your wife?” Mona Savage offered.

“I don’t think that would be a good idea right now.”

“She does not like to talk to Indian women?”

“No, she enjoys visitin’ with Indian women. She doesn’t like talkin' to thin women, especially thin women about to deliver a child.”

8

T
ap Andrews needed only six hours of sleep per night to feel rested. He couldn’t remember the last time he had a full six hours.

He stretched out on the leather sofa in the front room right after breakfast and snoozed. When he finally o
pened his eyes, Chester Leroy Miller leaned over the couch with his round face only inches above Tap’s.

“Angelita, he’s awake.”

Tap leaped to his feet, searched for where he had laid his holster, and rubbed his eyes.

“You were asleep,” Chester noted in a weak, high voice.

Tap scratched his head, and tried to peer out the front window to get some bearing on the time of day. A thick cloud cover made the sun’s position uncertain.

The front door flew open with a bang. Ellen Mae, Marg
aret Louise, and Ruth Raylene Miller marched into the room, followed by Angelita and a small Indian girl dressed in buckskin.

“Good. You’re finally awake,” Angelita announced. “Now the play can begin in ten minutes. You’ll want to help Mama out to the barn.”

“What are you talkin’ about? And who’s that?” He pointed to the Indian girl.

“Her name’s Beautiful.”

“What is it?”

“That’s her name. Beautiful Savage.”

“Oh.” Tap stepped to the door and pulled his hat off a peg. “What’s this about a play?”

“I wrote it. I call it ‘The Settling of the West.’”

“When did you write a play?”

Angelita wrinkled her nose. “This morning.”

“What time is it?”

“It’s after 3:00."

Tap buckled on his holster. “In the afternoon?”

“Of course. Most everyone is already at the play. We’re wai
ting for you to wake up. Mama said we had to let you sleep.”

“Where is Pepper?”

“Upstairs, I think.”

“You can't have a play in the barn. I’ve got two bank ro
bbers in there.” Tap jammed his hat on his head.

“Of course we’ll have it in the barn. It’s a morality play I wrote just for them. Howdy helped us fix the barn up. Mrs. Mi
ller and baby Matthew are already waiting. Mr. and Mrs. Savage are coming. Now we just need you and Mama.”

“You didn’t invite the Odessas?”

“Yes, I did. But they said they had a previous commitment and would have to wait for the next performance. I’m thinking about a two-week run.”

Tap tried to push his eyelids off his eyes. “You actually saw Selena and Lorenzo?”

“Eh, no, I didn’t see them. But I talked to Miss Selena through the door.”

Tap patted Angelita’s head. “It’s good to know they’re still livin’.”

“At least one of them is. For all I know, Mr. Odessa is dead. For the life of me, I can’t figure out what’s so outstanding about being newlyweds.”

“It’s a good thing, young lady.”

“We’ll be waiting for you in the barn.” Angelita led the parade of children out of the house.

Tap and Pepper strolled across the yard toward the barn. She wore her brown dress with the white afghan draping her shoulders. Her hand clutched his arm.

“How can she write a play and get them acting it out all in the same morning?” Tap asked.

“She has a busy mind.” Pepper stopped to catch her breath, then continued, “I’m glad the Millers are here. She’d be wearing me out if it weren’t for all the children.”

“She even has the little Indian girl in the play.”

“That’s the only reason I agreed to hike out to the barn. Angelita says Mrs. Savage is quite far along too. At least I won’t be the only expectant woman there.”

Tap sighed.

“What’s the matter?”

“I was a little worried about the children being out there with Jackson and Bean—the bank robbers.”

“They’re securely restrained, aren’t they?”

“Sure, but they might start yellin’ and hollerin’.”

“Angelita said she promised them if they behaved themselves, she would give them some of the cookies she and Mr. Renten made.”

“Cookies? She’s goin’ to give ’em cookies?”

“Come on, Mr. Andrews. The way I figure, Lil’ Tap will be a cinch to raise after having Angelita around.”

The center of the barn was the stage. The black carriage was part of the plot, as were Queenie and Albert, who pullled back on their cotton rope headstalls, trying to l
ocate a quick exit.

Jackson and Bean looked on from the second stall. Crates and broken chairs formed the seating. Mrs. Miller had little Matthew Mark in her lap. Howdy Renten, clean-shaven, sat next to her. Then Mr. and Mrs. Savage and toddler squatted in the dirt near their feet. On the other side, a long, empty bench with cowhide pillow had been dragged out from the bun
khouse.

A young voice sailed down from the loft. “You two sit on the bench. The pillow is for Mama.”

Tap introduced the Crow couple to Pepper.

Pepper was curt. “Pleased to meet you, I’m sure.”

Both nodded back. 

“And now we present,” Angelita hollered from the loft, “‘The Se
ttling of the West,’ written and directed by Angelita Gomez.”

Pepper scrunched down on the pillow, then leaned over to Tap, and whispered, “That woman is
not
expecting.”

“She’s due in two weeks or less.”

“She’s lying.” Pepper felt a flush of tears trickle down.

“The Settling of the West” turned out to be a comedy. Most of the best lines were spoken by the “cute, charming, and yet myster
ious” Mexican maiden Carmelita Cantina, played by the “noted actress” Angelita Gomez.

Several times Tap heard Jackson and Bean hoot and laugh. When the children finished, there was enthusiastic applause. Freshly baked cookies were served, even to the captive aud
ience in the horse stall.

Pepper excused herself quickly and returned to the big house. Mrs. Miller took the baby and headed back to the bun
khouse. And Mrs. Savage and her toddler retired to the tepee. That left Tap, Howdy Renten, and Jesse Savage standing at the barn door, waiting for the children to gather all their belongings.

“Are we going after Dayton and that Yellow Sash gang?” Savage asked.

“I’m still debatin’,” Tap replied. He closed the big barn door as the children filed out.

“Andrews, we get our supper, don’t we?” Bean hollered from the barn. “Them cookies weren’t our supper, were they?”

“Two hours until suppertime,” Renten yelled.

The men walked out to the corral and stopped by the gate. Tap leaned his back against the top rail of split cedar. “It wouldn’t hurt to ride up to the Pothook-H and see what we’re facin’. After we count guns, we can decide if we ought to make a play. I just don’t want to be gone when baby comes.”

“Yes, your wife is very fat.” Jesse Savage grinned.

“Please don’t let her hear that, or you’ll never live to see your children grow up.”

“There is no dishonor intended. She is ripe. She will birth the child soon.”

“How do you know that?”

“My Mona said she could tell. She said not to worry. It will be at least three more days.”

“Three days?” Tap groaned. “Is your Mona ever wrong?”

“No. But she’s never been around white women much. My brother will be here tonight. We can leave in the morning.”

“As long as we’re back in two days. Does your brother know how to find you?”

“Yes, he’s been here before.” Jesse Savage stood on the bottom rail and stared into the corral. “Would you like to trade for those two foals?”

Tap glanced at Albert and Queenie. “Nope. When was your br
other at the ranch?”

“He came with a message from me many days ago, but he found no one here.”

“He looked all over?”

“I suppose so.”

“He didn’t happen to leave all the doors and gates open?”

Jesse Savage grinned from ear to ear. “He believes it will bring bad luck if he closes a gate or door.”

Tap kicked the ground near him with the toe of his boot. “Tell him next time he leaves a gate or door open around here, I’ll fill him with buckshot.”

“I will tell him. Are we leaving in the morning?”

“That depends on my wife’s health and whether I can enlist Lorenzo Odessa.”

After Savage departed, Tap accompanied Howdy to the coo
khouse. “You think this is just a ploy to get you away from the ranch so those Crows can form a little raiding party?” Renten asked.

Tap shot a look at the tepee. “Nope. A man doesn’t put his wife and children in the line of fire, no matter what color his skin is.”

“You sayin’ you trust them Crows?”

“I’m sayin’ whether the tribe is Mexican, Indian, white, or black, they got some trustworthy and some renegade. Some are smart and some are dumb. Some d
eserve a medal and some deserve a hangin’.

"I’ve spent my life judgin’ each man one at a time. It’s a pretty good system. Savage is a friend of Wade Eagleman, and Eagleman will put his life on the line for you. Did you ever n
otice how honorable men always seem to make friends with honorable men?”

“You mean like you and Odessa?”

“Yeah, and an old salty camp cook by the name of Howdy Renten.”

“I reckon you got me on that one.”

“Anyway, I won’t be doin’ anything before mornin’. I’ll talk it over with Pepper, and we’ll figure out somethin’.”