Gus

by C. J. Petit

  “I’d be happy to help. Can you describe Will Brannon?”

  “A little taller than you, heavier, too. But he was a bit fat. Brown hair. He was good looking, but not much else.”

  “All right. I’ll take care of it.”

  “We really appreciate this, Gus.”

  “Glad to help, Rachel.”

  Rachel began to prepare dinner as Gus began to think.

  Gus wondered how he would approach this. A lot would depend on Mr. Brannon. But two years is a lot of time to be out of touch. They could be in Montana now.

  ____

  Lou had turned west after leaving the town and had headed north for fifteen miles. His horse wasn’t happy. He finally found the town of Warren. He wasn’t sure of what he would find there in the way of law enforcement. It was a small town. About half the size of Kinnick. He rode down the main street and didn’t see a sheriff’s office. He felt safe for the first time in hours. He wondered whether he could increase the size of his bankroll. He didn’t see a bank. He kept scanning for places that had a potential for money.

  Then he saw the savings and loan. That was better. No law to get in the way. He guessed that savings and loans carried less cash than most banks. Still, they should have a lot more than a dry goods store.

  Lou wanted to rest his horse first, so he went to the diner and had himself a big lunch. He didn’t know when he’d eat again. Being a murderer interrupted a normal lifestyle. He finished his lunch and led his horse to the trough.

  Then he led it to the savings and loan. He looped the reins around a hitching rail and went inside the small building. His hammer loop was off when he entered.

  “Good morning, sir. How can I help you?” asked the friendly clerk.

  Lou looked around. There was one other person in the place, and he didn’t look like a threat.

  He yanked his Colt out of his holster and pulled back the hammer.

  “Give me all your cash. Now!” he said in the toughest voice he could muster.

  The clerk’s friendliness vanished and was replaced with abject terror. The other man in the room heard the demand and pulled out a desk drawer.

  The clerk began reaching for money and stacking it on the counter. It wasn’t a large stack.

  “Where’s the rest of it?”

  “That’s all there is, mister. We don’t have much cash on hand.”

  Lou grabbed the cash and stuck it in his pocket and started backing out, keeping the Colt pointed at the clerk. If he had looked to his right, he would have seen the manager pull a Remington derringer from his center drawer. But as the manager cocked the hammer, even Lou was aware of the sound. He quickly turned and pointed his revolver at the man even as the derringer was being pointed at Lou. Lou fired. And missed at eight feet. The manager fired his derringer. And missed. Lou fired a second time. This round punched a hole in the manager’s right side, and the bullet exited and buried itself in the wall. The manager never got a second shot off. He fell over dead. Lou was a real, not imagined, murderer now.

  Lou turned and ran out of the building and jumped on his horse. Other citizens began pouring out of nearby buildings and watched as Lou shot out of town heading west. As soon as he cleared the town, he quickly turned south and kept going.

  _____

  Reverend Quincy had been humiliated, and he knew it. Other men might at least take some time to examine themselves to see whether they might be wrong. But not Calvin Quincy.

  He had pencil in hand and was writing next Sunday’s sermon. He changed it from a lecture on the evils of drink to one of how the Sons of Abraham were responsible for all the evil in the world. He wrote quickly. It was a topic he knew well.

  _____

  Gus finished his breakfast. Rachel had made him two sandwiches for his journey and wrapped them in butcher paper. They were on the table.

  “I’ll be off shortly. Now, if they went to Texas, the only town of any size within a day’s ride is Wichita Falls. It’s close to where I grew up, so I know the area. I’ll start there. I have one question. If I find her in a bad situation, would you want me to bring her home?”

  Eli and Rachel looked at each other briefly, then Eli asked, “What do you mean by bad situation?”

  “It can mean a number of things. Women aren’t treated well by some men. She may be married. If I find she’s been abused, do I take her home along with any children, or do I leave her there and just report back? It’s not right, but husbands have a lot of say-so over wives. He can beat her and nothing bad will happen to him. If I find that, I’ll more than likely get a bit ornery and make him unhappy. I need to know what you want me to do.”

  “If she’s happy and content, Gus, tell her we miss her, and ask her to write. If she’s unhappy or hurt, use your judgment on what to do about it.”

  “Okay. I’ll see how it goes.”

  “Take care, Gus. Will Brannon has a temper.”

  “So do I, Rachel.” He smiled at her and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He picked up the sandwiches and walked outside to the barn.

  He saddled Belle, knowing this could be a bad situation to be heading into. Domestic bliss is the exception rather than the rule. He put the sandwiches in the saddlebag. His Winchester was in the scabbard, and his two boxes of .44 cartridges were in his saddlebags.

  He mounted Belle and headed out of the ranch and toward Kinnick at a medium trot. He reached Kinnick in twenty minutes and turned south toward the Red River.

  He reached the crossing thirty minutes later and reentered Texas. He headed southwest, expecting to pick up a road to Wichita Falls sooner or later. He kept Belle at a pace that was comfortable for him and his horse. He took a break for lunch and to let Belle rest and drink just after noon. He finally caught a road when he was about five miles out of Wichita Falls. It was a pretty boring ride, though. Just empty territory with an occasional ranch house. He could see some cattle in the distance at times.

  He arrived in Wichita Falls around one thirty. He headed for the livery to drop off Belle.

  He stepped down and walked inside. The liveryman was mucking out the end stall.

  “Afternoon,” Gus said loudly, announcing his presence.

  The man looked up.

  “Howdy. What can I do for you?”

  “Need to board my horse for the night. She’ll need some oats, too.”

  “Fifty cents will cover it.”

  “I can live with that.” Gus smiled as he handed him two quarters. “Say, you wouldn’t know a man by the name of Will Brannon, would you?”

  “No, sir. Don’t ring a bell.”

  “Didn’t expect it to be this easy. Appreciate it.”

  Gus grabbed his Winchester and his saddlebags. He walked to the Dallas Exchange Hotel and got a room. He dropped off his saddlebags and Winchester then left the hotel to do some more searching.

  After the livery, his next-best shot was a local saloon. He walked down Sixth Street and found a good-size establishment called Wichita Jack’s. He walked in, feeling very much at home. It was bigger than most places he’d been in, but the smells were the same. There were only a few customers. He stepped up to the bar and asked for a beer. The bartender slid the cold brew to him, and Gus handed him a nickel.

  “Nice place.”

  “We keep it that way. You new here?”

  “Just passin’ through. Lookin’ for my cousin. He was supposed to be in Wichita Falls, but Aunt Addie wasn’t sure he was still here. You wouldn’t know him, would you? Name’s Will Brannon. A little taller than me and better lookin’, but who ain’t?”

  The bartender guffawed.

  “Yeah, I know him. Lives over on the corner of Tenth and Indiana. Comes by every once and while to toss a few back and spend some time with the girls. You lookin’ for some female companionship?”

  “Usually, but not this time, I think. Gotta find Will and tell him about his pa. It ain’t good news.”

  “Sorry to hear that.”

  “We all gotta head ther
e, friend.”

  “That’s the truth.”

  Gus finished his beer and left the bar to go to the corner of Tenth and Indiana. It was three blocks away. The houses were getting smaller and less well kept as he trod along Indiana Street. Finally, he reached Tenth Street. This posed a minor problem. There were four houses. Might as well start on the closest one.

  He stepped up to a small house that needed a new roof and a coat of whitewash. He knocked on the door and waited. It opened, and a youngish woman of about twenty-five opened the door. She had a baby on her hip and no life in her brown eyes. Somehow, he knew she wasn’t Sara.

  “Yes?”

  “Excuse me, ma’am. I’m looking for my cousin, Will Brannon.”

  “He lives over yonder,” she answered, pointing to the house diagonally opposite.

  “Thank you, ma’am.” He tipped his hat and turned around.

  Lord, I hope I don’t find their Sara looking like that, he thought.

  He crossed the street after waiting for a freight wagon to pass. This house was in about the same condition as the last, but the roof was in better shape.

  He knocked on the door and stood, expecting Sara to open the door. He held his breath as the door opened. It was obviously Will Brannon. He had put on some more belly weight, and his hair was disheveled like he’d just woken up. The house was a disaster inside.

  “What do you want?”

  “You’re Will Brannon.”

  “Yeah. What about it?”

  “I was wonderin’ if I could talk to Sara.”

  He started to laugh. “Sara? I haven’t seen her in over a year and a half. She wanted to get outta that ranch of hers real bad, and I figured we’d have some good times. But it turned out she didn’t like it here neither. She took outta here on that old nag of hers about a year and a half ago, headin’ back north. Glad to get rid of her, too. She weren’t no fun.”

  “Was she your wife?”

  “Wife? You gotta be jokin’. I told her I’d marry her to get her outta there. I ain’t gonna get tied down for nothin’.”

  “She say where she was goin’?”

  “Nope. Just took off. Doubt if she’d go back to that ranch of hers, though.”

  “Well, Will, you go back and get some sleep.”

  Will Brannon closed the door and did exactly that.

  Gus walked back toward the hotel. Sara Aronson didn’t get married, but got sold on a tale and finally left after six months. But where would she go? Will was probably right. She wasn’t going to go back to Kinnick. Too likely she’d meet someone she knew. If she had continued north, there were other towns he’d check out.

  He reached his hotel and went to his room. He stretched out on the bed and began to think about how to approach the search. He’d leave in the morning, press on through Kinnick, and stop at Chadwick and then go on to Hendrick. Those were the towns on the straight northern route. If Sara had veered either east or west, the search would be more difficult.

  He had dinner at the Railway Eating House. It was the best meal he’d had in a long time.

  The next morning, he got up early, had breakfast at a smaller café, and retrieved Belle. She seemed in fine fettle. They headed north toward the Red River. Gus stopped just ten miles short of the river for lunch. He had the other sandwich that Rachel had made him. The bread was a bit stale, but it was all right. He crossed the river ford at 1:20 and continued north, passing through Kinnick forty minutes later. It was almost three o’clock when he reached Chadwick. He wasn’t going to press Belle much further, so he went to the livery.

  He walked Belle toward the stable. He walked inside, and the liveryman spotted him and stepped his way.

  “Howdy.”

  “Morning, what can I do for you?”

  “Need to leave my horse for the night. She needs oats, too.”

  “That’ll run you fifty cents.”

  Gus handed him the money.

  “I’m looking for a young lady named Sara Aronson. She’s the daughter of the folks I work for.”

  The man shook his head slightly. “Don’t know anyone named Aronson in town at all. Only know one Sarah. She’s the wife of the butcher; name’s Sarah Winsome.”

  “How old is she?”

  “About forty, I’d guess.”

  “Well, that ain’t her. Guess I’ll press on to Hendrick tomorrow.”

  “Good luck. I see you got one fine-looking horse there.”

  “Thanks, she’s also my best friend.”

  Gus took his Winchester and saddlebags, wandered over to the hotel and checked in. He went to his room. Around four thirty he left the room, leaving his rifle and saddlebags. Might as well get something to eat.

  He walked to the café. His dinner was typical small-town food. The steak wasn’t bad, though. He finished supper and walked outside. Thought he might have a beer to chase down his dinner. He headed for the OK Saloon right across the street. Probably one out of every three saloons was named the OK Saloon in this state.

  He pushed open the batwing doors and walked to the bar. He ordered a beer and tossed the bartender a nickel. He wandered back to a table and sat down. He was the only one in the bar. He sipped his beer, which was better than he expected, and examined the saloon. It wasn’t as bad as others he’d seen. It wasn’t seedy or high class. It was just an average, small-town saloon, but cleaner.

  He finished his beer and put up a finger to the bartender for a second. The man brought it over and took away the first. Gus handed him another nickel. He was nursing the second when a working girl came down the stairs. The girl wore rouge, dark-red lipstick, and something over her eyes. She was a pretty girl, nonetheless.

  She swung her hips in his direction. She was quite well proportioned. He guessed her age at about twenty-two. She was showing a lot of cleavage. Nice cleavage, too.

  “Afternoon, mister. Care to buy me a drink?”

  “Sure. Order what you want and park.”

  She smiled and waved at the bartender. She did everything but wink and say, “Got another sucker.”

  “You’re new around here. Just get in?”

  “Yup. Just got in from Wichita Falls.”

  “You got any money, or should I leave?”

  “I can handle it.”

  “Good. I like you. What’s your name?”

  “Gus.”

  “That’s a good name.”

  “What’s yours?”

  “Susie.”

  It had been a while. Susie had bright, lively green eyes. He liked her.

  She slid her hand along his thigh and smiled.

  “You really do enjoy your work, don’t you?” he said.

  “Come upstairs and I’ll show you.”

  “How much is this gonna set me back?”

  “Three dollars for me and fifty cents for the drink.”

  “All right. Who gets the cash?”

  “Leave the change for the drink on the table, and I get the rest.”

  Gus tossed a silver dollar on the table and handed Susie three dollars.

  “Well, you get special treatment. Usually cowboys balk at the three dollars and go find a cheaper place.”

  Gus followed Susie up the stairs. She walked to her room and opened the door. He looked in the room and found it surprisingly clean and well furnished. He walked in, and she closed the door behind him.

  She immediately began taking off her dress. She was extremely voluptuous and moved exotically, showing every part of her form. She stepped forward and began to undress Gus. She pulled down his pants, and he stepped out of them.

  “Well, you are excited to see me.”

  Gus pulled her to him, and he surprised her by kissing her more gently than she had expected. He didn’t stop at her lips, either. He made her feel different. They didn’t usually do this. Susie was used to quick customers. This one was giving her a ride.