Chapter twenty-four
We rode at a brisk pace, and we followed single file behind Kinrich. Each one of us must have been thinking our own thoughts, for not a word was said.
Suddenly, Kinrich pulled up. We were on a steep ridge that overlooked a little valley, and below us was the dirt road that the stagecoach would be coming down.
“Stage should be here in about thirty minutes,” Kinrich said, and everybody listened close. “We’ll do it the same as always. Lee, I want you with me.”
Lee nodded as he looked down below him. He was going over every nook and cranny of the valley, just like Kinrich had done the day before.
“What does the kid do?” Ryan Palmer spoke up, and his voice was thick with sarcasm.
“Button's going to stay here and help Clark. After we’ve got the stage stopped they can bring the horses on down.”
Palmer snickered at me. But I was glad, because I didn’t want any part of holding up that stage.
“Button, come on down with us now, and then you can lead our horses back,” Kinrich said.
I followed them down the steep ridge.
The day before Kinrich had cut down a huge elm tree, and he told us to throw our ropes around it and drag it across the road.
That elm tree was heavy, and it took all our horses to pull it. But we finally managed to drag it across, and Kinrich made sure that we left it in a real brushy place so when the stagecoach came up to it they would have to stop instead of trying to go around.
“All right, Button, take our horses and high-tail it back up that ridge to Clark,” Kinrich instructed. “And make sure and keep them horses outta sight, you hear? We don’t want that stagecoach getting suspicious.”
I nodded, and I took their horses and led them back up. Me and Brian Clark tied them in a low, brushy place, and then we made our way back up to the top of the ridge.
“Better bring your rifle along,” Brian Clark said.
“Why?” I asked, fearful of the answer.
“If something goes wrong down there, then it’s up to you and me to cover ’em,” Brian Clark explained.
I didn’t like that thought, but I grabbed my Henry rifle anyhow and settled down beside Brian Clark.
I was nervous. But Brian Clark was an old veteran at such things, and he chewed lazily on a blade of grass while he rested in the shade.
Time passed slowly, and I started to wonder if something had gone wrong.
Finally, I looked over at Brian Clark.
“Reckon the stage is still coming?” I asked.
Brian Clark nodded and pointed.
“It’s been coming for a while. See that dust over yonder? I’ve been watching it ever since we tied up the horses.”
I felt stupid, and didn’t say anything more.
Brian Clark must have guessed how I felt, because he chuckled lightly.
“It’s all right, kid. You live as long as I have, and by then you’ll know all the tricks.”
We were silent then, and after a while I could hear the sounds of the stagecoach a-coming. I started to get sweaty and excited, and then the stagecoach turned into the valley.
What I was expecting I don’t know, but not much happened.
The stagecoach approached the fallen tree. They pulled up, just like they had to, and then the driver and a couple of passengers went forward to try and move the tree.
It was then that Kinrich made his move. From out of nowhere all five of them appeared, and just like that they had the coach surrounded.
“Don’t try nothing foolish!” Kinrich called out as he covered the driver with his gun. “We’re here for your payroll, and nothing more. You hand it over real easy like and no one’ll get hurt.”
Kinrich lined up all the passengers and disarmed them. Meanwhile, Cliff and Palmer got the payroll box down, and then I heard a movement from beside me.
“Come on, let’s get the horses and go on down,” Brian Clark said.
I scrambled after him, and by the time we reached the stage Kinrich was already putting the passengers back inside. Lee had cut the horses off from the coach, and with a shout and hit on the rump he ran them off. Meanwhile, Cliff and Palmer had broke open the pay roll box.
“Toss me them saddlebags, kid,” Cliff hollered at me.
I reached behind me, untied the saddlebags, and pitched them over to him.
As I did I noticed a quick, shining flash near the stage window.
I looked again.
What I saw was a hand from one of the passengers, and in that hand was a derringer that was pointed straight at Kinrich’s back.
Chapter twenty-five
There was no time to warn Kinrich.
My hand instinctively dropped. I came up firing, and the wood beside the window exploded and sent wood splinters flying everywhere.
There was a terrified scream from inside, and as the hand withdrew into the coach the derringer dropped to the ground.
Kinrich spun back around just in time to see the derringer drop. His face turned as hard as a stone, and a rage came over him.
Kinrich ran over to the stage door, jerked it open, and reached inside. He yanked out a lanky, pale-faced kid. The kid was terrified as he dropped to the ground.
Kinrich hovered over him, and he was so mad that his whole body shook.
“I told you not to try anything and you wouldn’t get hurt!” He screamed down at him. “Why didn’t you listen?”
Kinrich then proceeded to give the kid a thorough beating.
It wasn’t a beating with his fists. Instead, it was more like the kind of whipping I had received from Pa that day back home behind the woodshed.
I thought the kid deserved it, for only a coward would shoot someone in the back, outlaw or not.
After Kinrich was through with him he opened the door and threw him back in, head first.
Kinrich started to close the door, but on second thought he stopped and looked back in at the rest of the passengers.
“If there’s any more of you that have anymore bright ideas you’d best be forgetting ’em,” Kinrich said roughly. “The kid got off easy. Anybody else would have killed him.”
Kinrich got no reply, so he slammed the door shut and turned to us.
“Let’s go,” he muttered.
Cliff tossed the saddlebags over to Kinrich, and then everybody stepped up on their horse.
We rode hard until we were out of gunshot range, and then Kinrich slowed our pace. There was no need to ride hard, for it would be a long while until anybody found them.
I noticed that Lee was watching Kinrich. Lee had never witnessed one of Kinrich’s mood changes, and I could tell that Lee was amused and interested by it.
After a while, Kinrich pulled up.
By now Kinrich’s face had lightened up some, and it looked like he had come out of his shell.
Kinrich dismounted, and he took the money from the saddlebags and split it up while we all watched silently.
He split it evenly between all seven of us, and I caught a few disapproving looks when I received my share. But no one questioned it, for Kinrich was the leader, and whatever he did was final.
Now that the money was split up, Kinrich told everybody about the next job he had in mind. It would be in three months, and after Kinrich told everyone where to meet everybody went their own separate ways.
Ryan Palmer was riding a light colored dun horse. He rode by me as he left.
“From the looks of it, you’d better practice some more with that fancy Colt of yours before the next job,” Palmer laughed scornfully. “You sure did miss that feller in the window!”
“And I’d say he did it on purpose,” Kinrich shot Palmer a sharp look. “He did good, not killing him.”
Palmer’s eyes flashed angrily, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, he kicked up his dun horse and left.
Lee watched him leave with an amused look on his face.
“Sooner or later you’re going to have to kill that kid, Rondo,” Lee said.
I shook my head.
“Not me. I don’t want any trouble.”
“Well you’ve got it, whether you like it or not,” Lee commented as he reached inside his shirt pocket and pulled out a cigar. “It might be a year, or it might be even three or four years. But it’ll happen one of these days.”
Kinrich spoke up.
“Aw, Palmer’s a good kid; he’s just young is all. He’ll settle down.”
“Mebbe, if he don’t get himself killed first,” Lee said dryly as he bit off the end of his cigar. “Well, I gotta be going. See you in three months.”
Lee lit his cigar and rode out while me and Kinrich stood there and watched him go.
By now everybody else had left, and it was just me and Kinrich again.
“Where does everybody go when we’re in-between jobs?” I asked Kinrich.
“Oh, different places,” Kinrich replied as he stepped into the saddle.
I climbed up onto Slim, and together we rode out.
“Valdez, he works for a ranch down in Mexico. And Cliff, he works at a gambling house over in Santa Fe. Palmer, he just drifts around spending up his money. As for Clark, he owns a hotel down in El Paso. I wouldn’t know about Lee.”
Kinrich was in good spirits, and over the next few days he joked and kidded me like he used to.
I was feeling fine too. The job was over with, and it would be a while before we had to go out again. And during that time I wouldn’t have to worry about killing innocent folks or tangling with Ryan Palmer.
It was a peaceful three months. Almost every day I practiced with my six-shooter, and in the evenings me and Kinrich would play poker. Course, every few weeks Kinrich would fall back into one of his darker moods, but after a few days it would pass.
Like before, Kinrich left to set up the next job. He was in a bad mood when he left, so I didn’t mind him being gone. But when he returned he was laughing and smiling that boyish smile of his, and I was glad.
Before I knew it, we were leaving our little valley again.
This time, we were heading for the New Mexico Territory.
Chapter twenty-six
Like before, Kinrich’s mood changed for the worse.
He rarely spoke to me. At nighttime he would just sit beside the campfire smoking cigarettes and drinking coffee, and he would stare out into the darkness.
I was used to his behavior now, and I didn’t let it bother me.
It took us almost two weeks to get to the designated hideout. We arrived a day early, and the only other person that made it in that day was Lee.
Lee was jovial and in a good mood, and it was a welcome change after being around a moody Kinrich so long.
We set up camp and cooked some supper, and afterwards the three of us sat round the campfire.
There at first Lee and Kinrich made small talk, but finally Lee asked, “So, what’s the job this time?”
Kinrich refilled his cup with fresh coffee and leaned back.
“Well, there’s a no good Yankee feller that’s got himself a little trading post set up in town,” Kinrich explained. “He mainly deals with the trappers from the mountains. He buys their furs for next to nothing and then sells ’em back east for real big profits. But, I’m figuring them furs will sell just fine back in Texas.”
“They might bring more if’n
we
sold ’em back east too,” Lee speculated. “There ain’t much money in the South right now.”
“I know a feller in Texas that’ll buy ’em,” Kinrich replied, and added stubbornly, “and even if I could get more money, I still wouldn’t give them Yankees nothing.”
“It’ll be a bit odd, robbing a trading post,” Lee said with an amused grin.
Kinrich frowned as he took a sip of coffee.
“No different than robbing a bank.”
Lee shrugged, and then he turned to me.
“Rondo, have you been practicing anymore with that fancy Colt of yours?”
“Just about every day,” I replied.
“That’s good,” Lee said. “You need to keep yourself sharp. You never know when you’re going to have to defend yourself.”
“What do you mean?” I asked, confused.
“Nothing much; I’ve just heard some talk is all,” Lee replied.
“Oh? What kind of talk?” I asked curiously.
Lee took his time. He pulled out a cigar and bit off the end, and after he had lit up he looked back up at me.
“’Bout a month ago I was over in Santa Fe, and I ran into Ryan Palmer. It seems he’s still real sore over that clobbering you gave him, and he told me he’s dead set on killing you. Now, I told him he’d best be forgetting the idea, but he ain’t going to. He has a mighty strong disliking for you.”
Before I could say anything Kinrich looked up sharply, and his face was real thoughtful looking.
“So Ryan's still got a burr under his saddle, eh?” Kinrich asked.
“Seems like it,” Lee replied.
“Hmm,” Kinrich said. “I might have to do something ’bout that. I can’t have turmoil amongst my men, you know.”
“Are you going to give him another talking to?” I asked.
Kinrich shot me a dark look.
“You ain’t scared of him now, are you?” Kinrich asked sarcastically.
“No,” I replied truthfully. “I just thought you didn’t want any more trouble between us.”
“You leave it to me. I’ll think of something,” Kinrich replied smugly.
After that we rolled out our bedrolls and turned in.
I didn’t sleep very well. Kinrich was sure acting odd, and I was a bit worried as to what he was thinking.
The next morning Kinrich rode out to look the town over. While he was gone the rest of the boys drifted in.
Palmer rode in on his dun horse around mid-afternoon, and he looked cocky and arrogant.
I was uneasy. But Palmer acted like I wasn’t even there, and that suited me just fine.
Along towards dark Kinrich rode back in, and he was leading behind him two pack mules. Everybody wondered what they were for, but me and Lee figured they were for toting the furs.
That night after supper Kinrich got everybody together, and he carefully laid out the plan. He went over every detail and made sure that everybody clearly understood their part.
I reckon my job was the easiest, and I was sure glad to have it.
All I had to do was ride into town a couple of hours before the rest did and set out on the porch of the general store. That porch offered a good view of the trading post, and I was to cover everybody as they rode in and out.
When Palmer heard that he snickered and made a comment about me being sheltered from trouble.
I kept waiting for Kinrich to give him a good scolding. But Kinrich never did, and I was confused as to why he didn’t.
***
It was still dark when Kinrich woke me up the next morning.
“You’d best be getting on into town,” Kinrich said as he knelt beside me. “And remember: if anybody asks, you’re just passing through, looking for a ranch job.”
“I remember,” I replied groggily.
I got dressed. Then, after gulping down some coffee, I saddled Slim.
Kinrich stood by as I rode out.
“Remember, Button; things don’t always go as planned, so you be ready for anything.”
“I’ll remember,” I nodded.
As I trotted into town I thought my situation over.
I sure didn’t like the thought of having to shoot somebody, so I decided if I had to shoot that I would try to only nick them.
I also thought some more about Kinrich.
He was sure acting odd, and I couldn’t figure out why. By now I was used to his mood changes. But this was something different, and it made me uneasy.
Whatever it was, I just hoped that he would come out of it after the job was done.
When I reached the outskirts of town I pulled up Slim and looked the town over.
It was a small town. I located the general store and rode on in.
The town was still mostly asleep as I walked Slim down the main street. A dog sleeping by the hitching rail looked up momentarily as I dismounted, but that was all the attention I attracted.
I tied Slim good and tight, and then I awkwardly sat down on a bench by the front door of the general store. Already I was getting nervous, and I’m sure I looked guilty as I sat there trying to look normal.
The longer I sat there the more nervous I got. After a while the town folks started showing up on the street, and I could feel sweat starting to run down my face.
A few of the folks glanced curiously at me as they walked by. I tried to smile and look cordial. There were a few “hellos” and “howdys”, but to my relief that was all.
The morning passed slowly.
Finally, down the street, I saw Cliff and Valdez riding in. They were supposed to ride to the blacksmith shop, which was directly across from the trading post.
My heart beat wildly as I watched them ride up and dismount. Kinrich and the rest of the boys would be coming next, and it could happen at any moment now.
My mouth was dry as I sat there wringing my hands. I kept looking up and down the street as I waited for them to come.
Suddenly, I saw a lone horseman on a light colored dun horse walking slowly into town. There was sure something familiar about the rider, and I blocked the sun with my hat as I squinted at him.
I suddenly recognized him. It was Ryan Palmer, and he was riding straight towards me.
Something had gone wrong. Palmer was supposed to be coming into town with Kinrich and the rest of the boys, but I didn’t see Kinrich anywhere.
I took a quick look at Cliff and Valdez. They were both sitting in the shade beside the blacksmith shop, looking unconcerned.
I looked back at Palmer. He had his eyes on me, and I sure didn’t like the cruel, hard look he was giving me.
He rode up in front of the general store. He pulled up, dismounted, and tied his horse next to mine.
He stepped up onto the front porch, and as he walked up I could only stare at him in confusion.
“What are you doing here?” I asked in a low, urgent voice. “Where’s Kinrich?”
Palmer’s face was cold and expressionless.
“Plans have changed,” Palmer said matter-of-factly. “I’m here to kill you.”