The Quest: Countdown to Armageddon: Book 6 (19 page)

     Tom pondered the information as though it were a tasty meal and he was savoring it for all it was worth.

     The barkeep continued.

     “Mister, if you want my advice, steer clear of Jack Payton and his gang. He’s got a reputation as one of the meanest men in Texas. If you ask me, I think he’s the meanest one in the country.”

     “I wish we could take your advice, young feller. But unfortunately, he appears to have something we’re quite fond of.”

     “If you’re talking about the woman, let me give you some more advice. Don’t tell him what you’re after until you have her back. If he finds out she’s important to you, he might just kill her out of spite.”

     Randy Maloney got up from his poker game, stuffed his winnings into the pocket of his jeans, and headed toward the door. As he passed within ten feet of Sara, she noticed he was no longer wearing his Ranger badge.

     Tom thanked the bartender for the information, and the young man slipped the silver dollar into his pocket.

     No need for the bar’s owner to know anything about it.

     Tom finished his water and said, “I don’t much like this place much after all. Are you ready to go, Sara?”

     “Sure,
Daddy
.”

-42-

     “No! Absolutely not.”

     “Sara, you don’t understand. If I go in there alone I can scout the place. Get some intel. Find out for sure how many men they have.

     “Hell, maybe I’ll get lucky and stumble upon Stacey while I’m in there. You can write me a note and I’ll pass it to her if I can do so without being seen. You can tell her to slip away and meet us east of town. She’ll recognize your handwriting.”

     “No, Tom. I know that you’re the sheriff and someday you’ll be my boss. But this isn’t sheriff’s business. This is personal, and you’re here not as a sheriff but as my friend.

     “So someday you may outrank me and have the authority to fire me. But that day’s not here yet. Right here, right now, we’re equals. I have just as much say so as you do. And I am not going to sit here and let you ride out to the Lazy R Ranch and confront that bastard yourself.”

     “You don’t understand, honey. If you go in there with me, they’ll take one look at you and decide to keep you too. And trust me, men like that won’t want to keep you because you’re a great conversationalist. They’ll have other things in mind. If there’s too many of them for us to handle, you could end up a slave just like your mom. And how is that going to help us?”

     “And what are you going to do, Tom? Are you going to just waltz in there and say, ‘
Hey, don’t mind me. I’m not here to case the joint, or to find out how many men you have, or to find out where you’re keeping the blonde woman. I’m just passing through and looking around, so don’t mind me at all…
’”

     “No. I’m going to go in and say I heard he had livestock to trade. And while I’m trying to negotiate a deal with him I’ll be looking around. And like I said, maybe I’ll get lucky and be able to pass a note to her. If I can, we’ll just camp here for a few days and see if she can get out and come to us.

     “Wouldn’t that make more sense than just going in there with guns blazing? And hoping that you or I or your mom don’t get killed in the process?”

     “And say you never see her? Do you have a Plan B?”

     Tom’s voice took on a slightly more conciliatory tone.

     “Yes. But you won’t like it.”

     “I don’t like any of this, Tom. Not one damn bit of it. So you don’t have anything to lose.”

     “If I don’t see her or can’t pass a note to her, I’ll go ahead and work a deal with him. I’ll trade him what’s left of my silver for a steer or a pig. Then I’ll have his trust, and he’ll know I have the means to pay for his wares.

     “So I’ll go one step further.

     “I’ll tell him that I heard in town he’s got some pretty women up there with him. I’ll tell him I have a hankerin’ for a couple of hours with a pretty woman.

     “I’ll tell him my preference is blondes. Not too young, not too old. Maybe a blonde in her thirties.

     “I’ll hold up a gold coin and tell him that if he has such a blonde, I’d be interested in renting her for an hour or two. I’ll tell him I won’t take her anywhere. I’ll just have fun with her in a barn, or a shed, or wherever we can have some privacy for a bit.

     “I don’t know what the going rate is to rent a woman for a couple of hours in this God-forsaken town, but I’ll bet a gold coin will do it.

     “And as soon as I’m alone with your mom, I’ll calm her down and assure her that I’m not there to abuse her. That I’m there to help. I’ll tell her you’re waiting outside of town for her and hand her your note. That way she’ll know I’m legit.

     “I’ll ask her if she thinks she can sneak away, and will tell her where to find us. And I’ll bring the note back with me so he don’t accidentally find it.

     “And once everything is settled, I’ll walk out of the barn with a big smile on my face and thank Mr. Payton for his business. I’ll tell him I’m looking forward to doing business with him again and then I’ll leave.”

-43-

     Sara considered the plan.

     “I don’t know, Tom. It may be the only way. But I still don’t like it.”

     Sara and Tom were startled by a voice from the woods.

     “Oh, it’s a heck of a plan, and probably the only one you’ve got.”

     They looked up as Ranger Randy walked out of the darkness and over to them.

     He continued.

     “Pardon me for saying so, friends. But you’ve got a lot to learn about laying low outside an unfriendly town.”

     Sara was happy to see him. She enjoyed his company and the stories he told. But now she was just a bit concerned about the tone of his voice.

     “How so, Randy?”

     “Well, first of all, you’re sitting here next to a campfire adjacent to a highway. There’s no moon tonight and the sky is pitch black. The campfire acts as a beacon and lights you up for a couple of miles in both directions.

     “Any bad man out there who wanted to could take you out with a couple of rifle shots and you’d never know what hit you.

     “Heck, you could be looking in their direction while they shot you, and you’d never see them. The campfire makes everything beyond it look totally black. That’s why I was able to walk up to within twenty yards of you. Close enough to listen to every word you said.

     “And if those bad guys didn’t want to shoot you, they could have done the same thing, heard your plans, and then stole away again into the night.”

     Tom said, “Well now I feel plenty foolish. Thank you for the advice, Randy. I’ll definitely take heed. I’m still trying to get this whole sheriffin’ thing down. Maybe someday I’ll get it down and actually be good at it.”

     Randy was surprised.

     “You’re not a career lawman?”

     Tom laughed.

     “No, I’m a rancher by trade, pretty much retired now. And I’m a cowboy by choice, because Texas runs deep in my blood. But the only reason Kerr County asked me to be their sheriff was because I was the only one foolish enough to accept the job.”

     Sara scolded him.

     “Oh, you hush, Tom Haskins. You’re a fine sheriff and a fine man. No one could do that job any better than you.”

     Randy said, “She’s right, Tom. I didn’t mean to imply you weren’t good at the job. But tracking men and stalking the bad ones is a talent you learn as you go, just like pretty much anything else in life. As time goes on you’ll learn things about this game that will make things much easier, and much safer for you.

     “But shoot, you’ve come up with a great plan for going in. So apparently you’re a fast learner.”

     Sara asked, “So… back to the campfire thing. How do we make ourselves less visible?”

     “First of all, get away from the highway. That’s how everybody travels these days. And most are on horseback or on foot, so they can sneak up on you.

     “There’s plenty of heavy woods right off the sides of the road. I know it’s a pain, but hike into the woods a quarter of a mile. The trees and brush will hide the campfire from anyone walking or riding down the highway.

     “Also, the fire you built is way too big. In the winter, you need a good sized fire to warm you. But the weather hasn’t turned cold yet. The only thing you need a campfire for this time of year is to cook your meals and boil your coffee. You can do both before sundown. Dig a hole in the ground three or four inches deep, just big enough to set your coffee pot into. Boil a pot just before dark and set it into the hole. The earth will help insulate it and it’ll still be lukewarm come morning light. Then put your fire out before darkness falls.

     “Also, never ever discuss your plans where there’s any chance of someone sneaking up on you and listening in. The best place to discuss your plans is on horseback as you ride, but not while you’re riding in heavy brush.”

     Tom soaked it all in. What Randy was telling him made good sense, and he’d learn from it.

     “Well, you’ve made me a little bit more careful and a bit smarter today, Randy. Thank you for that.”

     “Think nothing of it, Tom. That’s what friends are for. And like I said, hunting bad men isn’t something you’re born knowing how to do. You learn as you go. Heck, I’ve been doing this for years and I still learn new things all the time.”

     Sara was intrigued.

     “Randy, that’s the second time in five minutes you’ve said the word ‘heck.’ Pardon me for saying so, but nobody talks like that anymore.”

     He smiled warmly and said, “I do. I never take the Lord’s name in vain and never use a word that’s not used in the Good Book. I just don’t think it’s right.”

     “But the word ‘hell’ is in the Bible. Most people would use that word instead of ‘heck.’”

     “That’s true enough. But in the Bible it’s used to describe a vile and terrible place. A place I intend to try my best to never see. Most people these days just use the word to express their displeasure about something or somebody. And I can do that without using such words.”

     “I hope you have the chance to visit Kerrville and Junction someday. I’d like for you to meet my husband Jordan. You’d like him, and he’d like you. You both have a lot of the same traits and habits.”

     Randy grinned.

     “I’ve been through Kerrville a couple of times, but never stopped in Junction. I’ll make a point to next time I’m close by. I’d like to meet your Jordan. If he’s anything like me, he must be a heck of a man.”

     Sara laughed out loud.    

     Tom interjected.

     “You’re a good man and a good lawman, Randy. I’m glad we met.”

     “Me too. I hope we’ll be lifelong friends.”

     Sara stated the obvious.

     “We will. But first we all have to survive Castroville.”

-44-

     Frank Woodard and Chief Mike Martinez had a major dilemma to work through.

     Frank had the bullets from the crime scene where John Castro was shot. Both of them exited John’s body and lodged in the ground. It took quite a bit of searching, and quite a bit of digging. But both of them were recovered more or less intact and were in Frank’s possession.