They Rode Together (3 page)

Chapter seven

Butch told Bob to assemble the men, and they gathered in front of the main house after supper.

Lucy followed Butch out onto the porch. She was clean now, and her appearance had changed for the better. She wore an attractive dress, and everybody couldn’t help but stare at her.

Butch got everyone’s attention, explained the overall scheme, and then mentioned J.T. Tussle.

“Tussle is a salty character,” Sim Hains, a tall, thin, and older man that most of the others looked up to, spoke up.

“He is,” Butch agreed. “That’s why we’re going to kill him right off.”

The men were startled by Butch’s boldness.

“Why’s that?” Sim asked.

“He’ll never sell,” Butch reasoned. “But, his niece Jessica might. Especially under the right conditions.”

“What conditions might that be?”

“Tussle is preparing to make a cattle drive up to Kansas in a few weeks,” Butch explained. “But, if he’s dead and we take the herd, Jessica might be willing to sell.”

The men were silent as they thought on that. They glanced at each other, and then they looked at Sim to speak for them. He nodded and cleared his throat.

“What’s in it for us?”

“You boys can have the herd,” Butch said. “Those yearlings will be worth a lot of money in Kansas.”

“How many head?”

“Couple thousand, give or take.”

Sim smiled wolfishly.

“That’s a big herd.”

“And they’re all yours. All we’ve got to do is run them off and kill Tussle. What do you say?”

Sim glanced around at the men. They all seemed eager, so he turned back to Butch and nodded.

“When do we leave?”

“Sun up.”

“We’ll be ready,” Sim said.

***

Everybody was up early.

After breakfast they gathered enough provisions to last a few weeks, and they packed down three mules with the supplies. Next, they saddled their horses, and they cut out a few extra horses to take along in case a horse went lame. 

Butch tightened his cinch, climbed on his horse, and trotted over to Lucy, who was watching them from the porch.

“Three of the older men are staying,” he told her. “They’ll take care of things and help you if you need anything.”

“Thank you, Butch.”

“Bob is staying too. He’ll work on changing your name.”

“That sounds wonderful.”

“Until I get back, I don’t want you going into town. You could get into trouble if someone recognized you.”

“I’ll stay right here on the ranch,” Lucy promised.

“Good,” Butch nodded.

“How long will you be gone?”

“Hard to tell,” Butch shrugged. “As long as it takes, I guess.”

“And what am I supposed to do while you’re gone?”

Butch made a wide, sweeping gesture with his hand at all the land surrounding them.

“This ranch is half yours now,” he said. “I’m sure you’ll think of something.”

“It’ll be lonesome here without you,” she said wistfully.

“You’ll survive.”

“I’ll try, but I’ll still miss you.”

Butch didn’t reply. He studied her a moment, and then he kicked up his horse. The men fell in behind him as they trotted out of headquarters.

Lucy stood on the porch and counted silently. Including Butch, there were twenty-eight riders.

She watched them until they had disappeared over the hill. The men at the barn returned to their chores, and Lucy was left alone.

She walked away from the house a ways, stopped, and studied the landscape in all directions.

“Half mine,” she repeated slowly. A few seconds passed, and she added, “For now.”

Part 2

“Old Friends”

Chapter eight

A few days later, the town council held an unexpected meeting.

Rondo Landon rarely liked surprises, and he was skeptical when Ross came and told him.

“What’s this all about?” He asked as they walked down the street.

“All Fred Stilwell told me is to fetch you,” Ross replied. “He said they had something important to discuss.”

Rondo grunted, but didn’t reply.

Rondo was small and hard bodied, and he was also well known for the ivory-handled Colt that he always displayed on his right hip.

As for Ross, he had a tall and lanky frame, with tanned skin and brown hair. When he spoke he always displayed a rich, Texan drawl.

The meeting was taking place at the jail. This irritated Rondo, because the jail was
his
office, not the town council’s.

They passed Rondo’s house, and his wife Rachel was sitting out on the front porch.

She had long, brown hair with sandy looking freckles that covered her face. She also had a knowing smile that always made Rondo squirm, and she was giving him that look now.

Despite his foul mood, Rondo couldn’t help but smile back.

“Where are you two headed?” She asked.

Rondo gestured at the jail.

“Town council wants to hold a meeting.”

“Can I come?”

“Sure,” Rondo said, and she smiled and bounded off the porch.

The three town council members were waiting as they entered the jail. There was also another man there, and Rondo frowned irritably when he spotted him.

He was sitting in Rondo’s chair, his feet up on his desk.

He had a leathery face with a hard jaw and cold eyes. He was a tall man, and despite the smirk on his face, Rondo could tell that there was no kindness in him.

The mood was somber, and Rondo was suspicious. They’d had meetings before, but not like this.

“What’s going on?” He demanded to know.

Fred Stilwell stepped forward. He looked nervous as he cleared his throat.

“Rondo, we consider you to be a good friend. The first thing we want to say is that we really appreciate the job you’ve done. The way you handled Ike’s men was impressive.
Very
impressive.”

“Thanks,” Rondo said stiffly.

“But,” Fred added, “We’re extremely disappointed with how you handled the situation with Lee Mattingly.”

“What situation?”

The man behind the desk swung his feet off the desk, stood, and walked over.

“Allow me to explain,” he said in a hard, curt voice. “I’ve been asking around, and you did nothing as Lee Mattingly rode into town and murdered Ron Gallegan. And, to make matters worse, afterwards you encouraged them to leave. You should have arrested him and Brian Clark both.”

“Do I know you?” Rondo narrowed his eyes.

“My name is Rock. Rock Bullen.”

Rondo had heard of him, but he hid his surprise.

“It was self defense,” Rondo argued instead.

“That’s not for you to decide,” Rock replied, and added, “Your job is to arrest them.”

“If I want your opinion, I’ll ask,” Rondo replied curtly. “I know how to do my job.”

“It’s not your job anymore,” Rock said smugly, and he turned to Fred. “Ain’t that right?”

Fred looked fidgety as Rondo turned toward him.

“Is that true?” He asked.

“I’m sorry, Rondo,” Fred said wistfully. “But we’ve got to let you go. Ron Gallegan was a very important man back east, and everybody knows that you and Lee are friends. It just doesn’t look good, especially since you let him escape.”

A heavy silence filled the room.

Rondo just stood there with his face pinched in thought. Several tense seconds passed before he looked back at Rock.

“What are you doing here?” He asked.

“I’ve been hired to bring Lee Mattingly in, dead or alive,” Rock announced, and added, “Brian Clark too.”

“Who hired you?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“Well, good luck with that,” Rondo said flatly.

Rock made a grunting sound. Rondo wasn’t sure, but he thought it might have been an attempt at a laugh. 

Rondo was furious, but he managed to control his emotions. He nodded slowly as he grasped the situation, and he removed his sheriff’s badge that was pinned on his vest.

He started to toss it onto the floor, but decided against it. Instead, he walked over to the desk and put it down gently.

Rondo turned and looked at each member of the town council. His gaze was honest and direct, and each member dropped their eyes.

Next, he looked at Ross. He was just standing there, hands in his pockets, looking thoughtful.

Rondo turned to Rachel and held out his hand.

“Let’s go,” he said softly.

Rachel forced a smile. She took her husband’s hand, and they headed toward the door.

“There’s one more thing,” Fred called out after them, and his voice was hoarse.

“What is it?” Rondo stopped and looked back.

“Your house. We’ll need it for the new sheriff.”

Rondo nodded curtly.

“We’ll be out today.”

“I’m sorry, Rondo,” Fred said. “I really am.”

“Sure.”

As they walked out, Rondo heard Fred say, “Ross, we’d like to talk to you.”

Chapter nine

Rondo showed no emotion as they packed their belongings. But Rachel was furious, and she let her feelings be known.

“After all you did for this town, and this is how they repay you!” She seethed.

Rondo just shrugged.

“What will we do now?” She asked.

“I’ll get another job,” Rondo said flatly.

“Doing what?”

“I don’t know yet, Rachel.”

“My father would hire you back. He’d be glad to.”

“I know,” Rondo said softly, and added, “We’ll see.”

“But we’d have no place to live,” she continued. “There’s only the bunkhouse and the main house.”

“Yes, I know that,” Rondo said patently. It was silent, and he looked up suddenly. “There is something I’ve got to do.”

“What’s that?”

“Lee and Brian,” he explained. “They need to know about Rock Bullen.”

“Do you know where they went?”

“I have a general idea.”

Rachel’s face filled with worry.

“You could get into trouble,” she objected.

“They’re my friends. I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, but I don’t have many.”

“Ross is your friend.”

Rondo scowled at his wife and grunted in response.

“I know they’re your friends, but Lee and Brian also broke the law,” she pointed out.

“That’s not how I see it.”

Rachel frowned. A few minutes passed, and the silence was heavy as they finished packing.

“J.T. Tussle told me once if I ever wanted a job, to come see him,” Rondo said thoughtfully. “Mebbe after I warn Lee, I’ll go talk to him.”

Rondo paused and glanced at Rachel.

“I can travel faster alone, so I’ll leave you with your parents,” he decided.

Rachel didn’t like the thought of being left, but she knew that her husband was right.

“When will you leave?” She asked.

“Tomorrow.”

“How long will all this take?”

“I’m not sure. A few weeks, give or take.”

“That’s a long time.”

“I’ll hurry,” Rondo smiled.

“You’d better,” she tried to smile back.

They picked up their few belongings and headed toward the door. Rondo walked out briskly, but Rachel paused. She took a slow look at the empty house, and she tried not to cry as she turned and followed after her husband.

Rondo was standing rigid on the porch. Rachel looked up and spotted Ross walking towards them.

He had his hands in his pockets and looked fidgety.

“What are you doing here?” Rondo asked, and he couldn’t help but sound bitter.

“Aw, don’t be like that, Rondo,” Ross said wistfully.

“Are you the new sheriff?”

“They offered me the job.”

“And?”

“I told them I would think about it.”

“What’s there to think about?” Rondo asked sharply. “You wanted to be sheriff. Here’s your chance.”

“I wouldn’t do that to you.”

“Did you have anything to do with me being fired?” Rondo asked bluntly.

“Of course not.”

“Then don’t be foolish. Somebody’s got to be sheriff. Might as well be you.”

“You won’t be sore?”

“Not at you.”

“I appreciate you saying that. I really do.”

Rondo nodded, and Ross looked relieved.

“What are you going to do now?” Ross asked.

“We’re still discussing that.”

“If there’s anything I can do to help-.”

“Thanks.”

Ross just stood there looking uncomfortable, and a few awkward seconds passed.

“Well, I’ll see you around,” Ross finally said.

Rondo nodded.

“Sure,” he said softly.