Taming of Jessi Rose (34 page)

“In the safe.”

“Can you get your hands on them?”

She shook her head. “No, Reed shared many things with me, but not the combinations to his safes. Ros might have them, but I never did. I did try though.”

Jessi bet she did. “So, Minerva, if you don't mind
me asking, what exactly is your line of work?”

“I'm a confidence woman. I win their confidence and I take their money. Simple.”

“So, was this job a successful one?” Neil wanted to know.

“No. They bought me clothes and took me on trips, but Reed is a miserly son of a bitch. I never got access to any of the money. Now he doesn't have any, of course, so I was planning on leaving soon anyway.”

Two Shafts said, “Explain.”

“The poker game wiped him out. He was only a few days away from selling the mortgages he had in hand, but at the end of the game he had two choices, both bad. He could not cover his bet and be known as a welsher to those English investors, or he could pay up and lose the mortgages.”

“How badly did he need that money?” Griffin asked.

“Real bad. In two weeks time, everybody he does business with on both sides of the border's going to know the true state of his finances, and then all hell is probably going to break loose. He took in a lot of funds that he's not going to be able to account for. He was taking Peter's money and investing it with Paul—Paul went belly-up six weeks ago, and Reed was hoping the profits from the mortgages would cover it, but you came to town, Blake—you and your friends, and turned over the table.”

“So, you're leaving,” Griff stated.

“Yep, I never stay on a sinking ship, and Reed's bailing fast. He's in Austin now, trying to raise more cash.”

Preacher quoted, “
Let the wicked fall into their own nets
.”

Griffin nodded. “Psalm 142.”

Preacher looked pleased. “I'm impressed, again.”

Minerva viewed both of them with an odd look before
turning her attention to the Twins. “So, can one of you handsome marshals see me home?”

Neil asked, “Are we done?”

Griffin couldn't think of anything else. He looked around at his small war council, but everyone appeared satisfied, at least for now, so Griff nodded. “We're done. Escort her back.”

“Be glad to.”

Minerva stood and smiled up invitingly at the tall handsome Seminole. “Will you carry me, like you did last time?”

Neil grinned. “Sweetheart, you should know that I don't have a dime.”

She looked disappointed. “Pity. In that case, I'll walk.”

Jessi smiled and shook her head.

 

Both Neil and his brother escorted Minerva home, and after their departure, Jessi, Preacher, and Griff remained in the kitchen to talk further.

Griff said, “You were right, Jessi. Minerva dropped Darcy like a hot coal.”

“I'm almost sorry I broke her tooth now,” Jessi said. “Almost.”

Preacher looked up a moment as if thinking. “Let's see. Murder
and
counterfeiting. How many years do you think Judge Parker will give Darcy?”

“We can't can count that high.”

Jessi said, “Even if he's there for an eternity, it won't bring my father back, but at least I know the truth.”

When the Twins returned the discussion turned to the next nail in Reed Darcy's casket, Percy West. “I think we should bring him over to the sheriff's office and see if we can't persuade him to tell the truth,” Griff proposed.

“We're not letting him leave town afterward, are we?” Two Shafts asked.

“Nope, Preacher can have him when we're through. I'm sure Percy's wanted somewhere by somebody,” Griff told him.

So it was decided Percy would be next.

The next night, Griffin, the Twins, and Preacher rode into town. Since Percy had a habit of patronizing Auntie's, that was where they decided to begin the search. He was there all right, playing cards as always, and when he saw the four lawmen stride in, his jaw dropped.

“Yes, Percy, we've come for you,” Neil declared easily in response.

“You knew we would,” Shafts added.

“You're the law now,” Percy shot back, his bravado returning. “You can't just take me out and shoot me.”

Standing over the seated Percy, Griff said pleasantly, “Who said anything about shooting? We just want to talk.”

“About what?”

Neil reached over and slowly began turning over Percy's cards. “We think you might know something about Dexter Clayton's death that might help us find the killer.”

The turned-over cards showed Percy was on his way to a straight. Upon seeing this, the three other players hastily scraped their wagers out of the pot.

“What do you think?” Neil asked into his face.

Percy was staring forlornly at his now useless cards.

Two Shafts grinned. “I think he's thinking he wished you hadn't done that.”

Neil patted him sympathetically on the back. “Old Percy here plays cards like a professional, I'm sure he gets straights all the time, don't you Perce?”

“Get your hands off me,” he snapped.

Neil looked outdone. “You give a man a compliment, and what do you get in return? Bad manners.”

“I think he should come with us,” Shafts replied.

“The hell I will.”

Neil looked at his brother and said, “Whatever are we going to do with him?”

Before Percy could blink, Neil grabbed him by the front of his shirt and dragged the seated man across the table top. Money and cards went everywhere and the other players scrambled out of the way. Neil held the shorter Percy up at eye level. “Now, we tried to be nice about this, but I don't think you realize that you don't have a choice.”

Percy looked like a prairie dog staring into the eyes of a snake. Griffin walked over and relieved Percy of his firearm.

“You can put him down now, Neil,” Griff said.

Neil “tossed” instead of “put” and Percy landed with a stumble.

“Mr. Darcy ain't going to like this,” Percy said, eyes angry. “When he gets back day after tomorrow, there's going to be hell to pay.”

Griff waved Percy to the door with his own gun and gave both the onlooking Doyle and Auntie a wave and a smile as he and his friends marched Percy out into the night.

 

Jessi waited up for their return, and when they did, she stepped out onto the porch. Percy West's hands were tied to the pommel of his mount's saddle. She was pleased to see they'd returned with their prey. Aided by the light cast by the lanterns on the porch, Jessi watched them help West off his horse and head him up the gravel walk. “Welcome to the Clayton ranch, West. Looking forward to your stay.”

As the men neared, Jessi could see that he did not appear to share her sentiments.

Griffin slipped his arm around her waist. “I don't think Percy has too much to say right now, do you, Percy?”

“No.”

“See?” Griff told her.

“What'll we do with him?” Preacher asked.

“Well, let's truss him up for now and he can play with the Twins in the morning,” Griff replied.

Percy did have something to say now. “You can't just keep me here. Mr. Darcy's not going to stand for this.”

“Mr. Darcy has bigger problems. Did you know he's been paying you with counterfeit money?” Preacher asked.

Percy stared around. “That's a lie,” he declared firmly.

Shafts replied, “See? I told you all he'd be too smart to fall for that one.”

“Yeah, I'm too smart for that one.”

Neil shook his head. “Yeah, you're real smart. Let's go.”

Neil and his brother led Percy around to the back of the house, and once there, retied his hands behind his back, looped a rope around his ankles, and tied it with a sturdy and intricate knot. They pushed him over on the ground and left him there. When he began yelling about being freed and cursing about the ancestry of the people involved, he was summarily gagged and everyone went to bed.

When Jessi awakened the next morning, she got dressed and went outside to see how the guest had fared. She found the men behind the house and the irate Percy seated on the ground still gagged. “Good morning, everyone. Percy.”

Percy's angry eyes showed that he found nothing
good about the morning at all, but the others greeted her with a smile.

“Morning, Jessi,” Griff called.

“Morning. What are you planning for our guest?”

Two Shafts replied. “Well, we've asked him about your daddy's death, but he keeps saying he doesn't know anything, so after breakfast we're going to play a little game.”

“What kind of game?”

“It's a secret.”

Jessi grinned and Percy began protesting vehemently through the gag.

“Anybody know what he's saying?” Preacher asked, his green eyes shining.

“I think he's saying he'd love to play. Aren't you, Percy?” Griffin asked.

Percy had said no such thing, and again tried to make his true opinion known, but since no one could understand a word he was saying, they left him there and went inside to eat breakfast.

Later that morning, Jessi pulled the old rocker to the edge of the back porch so she'd have an unhindered view of the proceedings. She wondered why the Twins were digging a hole in the field behind the house. When Griffin came over and took a seat at her feet, she asked, “What are the Twins up to?”

Hs smiled and shrugged. “Your guess is as good as mine.”

Percy's gag had been removed and he yelled, “If you kill me, you all'll hang!”

“Who said anything about killing you?” Two Shafts asked, still digging from within the now knee-deep hole.

Neil chimed in, “We'd love to send you to hell, but Miss Jessi won't allow it, so we had to come up with something else.”

“You'll like this,” Two Shafts promised. “You really will.”

Preacher walked up and asked Griffin, “Do you have any idea what they're doing?”

“Nope, but I'm glad they're on our side.”

After about forty minutes of digging, Neil came over to Percy. “Stand up.”

“Why?” Percy asked warily.

“Do you want to play or not?” Percy refused to budge.

“Cheno, help our playmate up.”

Griffin assisted the sullen Percy to his feet, then Neil came over and stood beside Percy. “How much shorter do you think he is?”

Everybody decided Neil topped Percy by a good four or five inches.

“Then we're just about ready,” Neil stated, giving Percy a cold smile.

Two Shafts was still inside the hole, tossing dirt out of the top like a burrowing prairie dog. Jessi walked over and looked down inside. It was pretty deep, so deep in fact, Two Shafts had to lent be a hand in order to climb out. “Okay,” he said, once he was on firm ground again. “Untie him. It's time to play. Get in the hole, Percy.”

“No.”

Two Shafts unholstered his Colt and pointed it at Percy. “You have to.”

Percy had a look of panic on his face. He turned to Jessi.

She shook her head. “Don't look at me. This is their game.”

Griff grabbed one of Percy's arms and Preacher latched on to the other. Percy struggled, but they forced him to the rim of the hole just the same.

“Get in,” Neil ordered.

The still balking Percy yelled, “No!”

Jessi snapped, “Oh, stop yowling like a baby and get in the hole. You're holding things up.”

It took the men a few more moments, but they succeeded in forcing Percy into the deep, but narrow hole. Once there, he could not get out, not without help. The only part of his body above ground was his head.

“Now,” Two Shafts said with a grin, “the game begins.”

Neil picked up the shovel, dug into the large mound of dirt that had come out of the hole, and began to toss it back in.

“What the hell are you doing?!” Percy demanded.

Neil kept tossing dirt down into the hole. “Playing a game my brother and I just invented. It's called Bury Percy To His Neck.”

“You can't do this!” he yelled frantically.

“Sure we can.”

The filling of the hole continued while Percy cursed and threatened. To shut him up, Neil tossed a shovel full of the dirt in his face. “Oh, sorry,” Neil pleaded contritely. “Thought that mouth of yours was part of the hole.”

He kept shoveling. When Neil tired, he gave the shovel to his brother. Jessi now understood why they were called the Terrible Twins. As Griffin stated earlier, she was glad they were on her side.

A little while later, the hole was filled. They'd buried him from the neck down. The furious Percy West looked like a severed head.

Two Shafts used the flat part of the shovel to pat the dirt down nice and even around him. Percy flinched every time the shovel came down near his face. Two Shafts stepped back to view his handiwork. “What do you think?” he asked his brother.

“Not bad,” Neil replied as he walked around Percy's
head. “Not bad. But I still think we should've skinned him first.”

“I know, but Jessita wouldn't've allowed that.”

Neil then looked to his companions. “Well, folks, what do you think?”

Everybody chuckled.

Percy spent the balance of the morning playing the Twins' game. No one fed him or offered him anything to drink. Every time someone asked if he remembered what happened the night of the murder, he continued to deny he knew anything, so they left him buried. When he yelled out his hunger, he was ignored; when he yelled for a trip to the facilities, he was again ignored.

Griff hunkered down beside the young outlaw's head. “The sooner you tell the truth, the sooner this will all be over.”

“I'm not saying shit,” Percy spat.

Griff shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

By afternoon, the sun had risen high in the sky and it was hot as Hades. To keep Percy from dying in the sun, Neil went out and offered him a drink, then poured the rest of the bucket over Percy's head. He sputtered and cursed but clung to his avowed innocence, so Neil left him and went back into the house.