Julie glanced at him sharply. "You notice things, don't you, Ben? I don't why you insist on calling yourself stupid. It was an odd coincidence. I'd hate to think-"
"What?"
"That Pat and the Major would stoop so low as to play a trick like that on me."
Ben Rainer laughed. "Come now, Julie. You're imagining things. After all, McKay seemed like a nice enough fellow, and the minute he caught onto the situation he stood right up and told you who he was."
"I already knew who he was," she said quietly.
The big man looked shocked. "Julie!"
"I knew Pat was marrying a sea-captain from Baltimore. This man was from Baltimore and he called a map a chart. Mr. McKay is apt to become an important man around here, as Major Terrill's son-in-law if nothing else. Ben. I deliberately gave him the impression that he might be able to put one over on me simply by keeping his mouth shut. He refused to take advantage of me, which means that there's more to him than his dude clothes would make you think. Either he's honest, or clever enough to smell a trap and refuse the bait. Mr. McKay can change a lot or things at Ladder. Major Terrill's getting old, and Steve Leech, for all that he fancies himself as the Major's strong right arm, is only an employee. But with Pat married to somebody capable of pulling his own weight-"
"You think too much," Rainer complained. "You make my head hurt. Well, I'd better be on my way. Good night, Julie."
She saw him flush with pleasure at the endearment and struggle for words, standing there big dumb and red-faced with his hat in his hands. Something about the picture he made annoyed and alienated her, and she found herself thinking, He could at least learn to stop blushing like a baby. This was cruel and unjust, and she turned quickly away before he could read the thought in her face, ashamed of herself. She could feel him watching her as she went into the house. Not until the door had closed behind her did he mount his big horse and ride away. She leaned against the door long after the hoofbeats had died in the distance, wondering at the confusion of her thoughts.
After dinner, she was reading in her favorite chair by the window when a horse came to a halt outside, and footsteps came up the path and crossed the porch. A demanding knock shook the door. There was never any mistaking those boots or that fist, and she sat quite still in the chair, gripping her book, until the quick panic this visitor always aroused in her was fully under control. Then she laid the book aside, after marking her place. The knock at the door came again.
“Just a minute,” she called, and walked deliberately into the bedroom and stood before the mirror for a minute or two, smoothing her hair, which didn’t need it.
“Come in, Mr. Hannesey,” she said. “I didn’t know you were in town. This is a pleasant surprise.”
He came in, ducking his head to avoid the low door jamb. “Just riding through, ma’am,” he said. “Just dropped by to see if you was all right here.”
“ ‘Were,’ Mr. Hannesey,” she said, smiling. “ ‘To see if you were all right,’ is the correct form.”
He chuckled. “You tell me, ma’am. I never had much schooling.”
This was a game they played, his mock humbleness before her superior knowledge, but his eyes were never humble. She asked, “Why on earth wouldn’t I be all right here?”
“Why, ma’am, a pretty woman living alone is kind of a temptation in a land of men.”
She looked up into the gaunt, red-mustached young face and reminded herself never to forget that this man was no fool. For all his lack of education, he could threaten subtly while-apparently turning a compliment, he could remind her. that in this country the Hanneseys were almost a law unto themselves. There were few who could stand in the way of their taking what they wanted.
She smiled at the red-haired man facing her. “There’s flattery in that speech, I’m sure, Mr. Hannesey. You’ve got a long ride if you’re heading back to the ranch tonight. Perhaps you’d like a cup of coffee.”
He shook his head. “No, ma’am, thank you just the same. Just stopped in for a moment, like I said.” He looked around the room, as if searching for signs of whoever had been here before him. She had tidied the place before dinner, so there was nothing for him to see, but he said nevertheless, “Had some folks in to visit you today, didn’t you? What are you trying to do, ma’am, get some poor pilgrim killed?” ’
“What do you mean?” He shook his head again, smiling down at her. "Your don't want the life of a stranger on your conscience, Miss Julie. You don’t think We’d let you sell to some dude from the east, now, do you? This fellow that was here this afternoon, for instance-"
Her breath caught. "He bought nothing from me, Mr. Hannesey. I wouldn’t sell after I learned who he was. How did you know-"
“We’ve got ways of knowing.” Buck Hannesey grinned. “Just in case the fellow didn’t believe you meant it, I stopped to pass the time of day with him and Miss Terrill a piece up the road, just a little while ago.”
“What did you do, Mr. Hannesey?" Julie asked quietly.
“You’re interested, ma’am? You look kind of worried. No reason for you to be. I didn’t kill the dude. Just roughed him up a little. After all, it wasn’t as if you was really intending to sell him the place,you understand. We’d take that more seriously, a lot more seriously. If you get what I mean."
“I see.”
“How’s Ben Rainier these days, ma’am?”
“Why,” she said, “Ben’s fine, Mr. Hannesey.”
“Going to marry him?”
She laughed, and decided that the effort was only a modified success. “I don’t think. that’s any of your business,” she said.
He smiled at her relentlessly. “If you think-that, ma’am, you’re mistaken.” He cleared his throat. “Mighty big man, Ben Rainier. Make a fine target, if somebody felt like shooting.”
'In spite of herself, Julie found her glance touching the big revolver at the man’s hip. The holster and weapon were both worn with use, She raised her eyes. “Let’s be honest with each other, Mr. Hannesey,” she said. “We both know why you come here, so why don’t we just stop pretending that you’re interested in me and jealous of Ben? It’s a pretense that makes us both look foolish. Even Ben himself doesn’t take it seriously-”
“Then,” said Buck Hannesey, “he’s a bigger jackass than he looks, and that’s going some.”
"Please, Mr. Hannesey-"
She checked herself, as something changed in the face of the before her, and he took a step forward, putting his hands on her shoulders. It was the first time he had touched her. She stood quite still. He was no longer smiling.
“Don’t fool yourself, ma’am,” he said gently. “The Old Man sent me here with a bunch of flowers, sure. I don’t know what he expected to gain by it, you never know what goes on in his crooked brain. And maybe I came back the first time for a joke, but it’s no joke now. Already you like me better than that tame ox, Rainier, and you’ll like me better still' before we’re through. You’re something new to me, ma’am, and I’m still figuring you out, slow and easy. I’ve got lots of time. But don’t even play with the notion you’re going to marry Ben, because you’re not. I know that much already."
She could smell him now, the rank odors of tobacco and sweat and horses and whisky. She said, “You’re drunk, Mr. Hannesey. I must ask you to leave.”
He took his hands from her shoulders and laughed. “Sure,” he said. “Sure. But I’ll be back.”
He turned away. She checked him at the door. “Mr. Hannesey.”
“Yes?”
“Be so good as to close the gate tightly. The dogs get into my flowerbeds.”
She heard him chuckle. “Yes, ma’am,” he said, and was gone.
It was dark outside now. She heard him swing into the saddle and ride away. How did he know? she thought. How did he know exactly what had happened here this afternoon? Who told him?
After a moment, she laughed a little sadly remembering the lawyer, Brockhurst, and his expensive, shabby, too-
big clothes-the ill-fitting shell of some more prosperous existence-and the bottle he kept in the left-hand compartment of his desk. Poor man, she thought, I hope they paid him well.
Chapter 7
MCKAY AWOKE with a large lump behind the left ear but no pain worth mentioning, which was a relief after the blinding headache with which he had gone to bed. Because of it, he had no clear memory of his arrival at the Ladder ranch or his meeting with Patricia’s father. Dizzy with the throbbing of his head, he had excused himself immediately after dinner on the grounds of weariness, and sought refuge in his room. On the whole, he decided, he could have made a better first impression here, but then, the country could have made a better first impression on him, also. He rubbed the swelling under his scalp gingerly, and got out of bed.
Major Terrill was in the living when he entered. The older man rose to greet him, saying approvingly, “You’re up early. I’d given instructions to let you' sleep after your long journey, but since you’re here, we can have breakfast together.” He smiled. “My daughter, as you’ll discover, is not an early riser. This way, Mr. McKay... Perhaps I may call you Jim?”
“I’d be pleased if you would, sir,” McKay said, following his host into the dining room, noting that the furnishings of the great, sprawling ranch house would not have looked out of place in a fine house in Baltimore, nor would their owner, a tall, slender gentleman who showed no sign of age beyond his white hair and sweeping white mustache. Major Terrill was in riding clothes that made some concession in style to the frontier on which he lived, but which were well cut out of fine material.
Something about the whole picture he was seeing-refreshed by sleep and with daylight to help him-disturbed McKay this morning, where he had only been impressed by it the night before. He could not help thinking that the sweat-smelling, red-haired young ruffian who had him down in the road was probably closer to the realities of this rough land than was the erect, immaculate old gentleman before him. "You have a beautiful place here, sir," McKay said as they sat down at the table.
"I take no credit for it,” the older man said. “Patricia’s mother was largely responsible, it’s a pity she didn’t live to see it completed.” He sighed, as if dismissing a memory, and went on, "I'm glad to have this opportunity to talk to you alone, Jim. First of all, I want to say that I'm extremely grateful for the considerate way you've behaved. I know my Patricia, she's impulsive and headstrong like all the Terrills; and I know it's not in her nature to wait six months for anything. An elopement would have been more to her liking, I fancy. It must be you, therefore, that I owe the pleasure of seeing my daughter married from this house, and I thank you."
McKay said, “It’s my marriage, too, sir, and I saw no reason not to do it properly.”
The Major laughed. “Well, we’ll certainly try to oblige you. In the meantime I’d like for you to see the ranch and some of the surrounding country, it’s a big country, sir, a country with a future. We’ve made a start here at Ladder, but it’s only a start. I see an empire in the making, Jim, a cattle empire. Of course, there are obstacles-"
McKay rubbed the back of his head ruefully. “I believe I met one of those obstacles yesterday.”
“Yes,” the Major said. He made a grimace of distaste. “I don’t know how much Patricia has told you of the Hanneseys. They are scum, there’s no other word for them. Trash. Tennessee trash, I believe.”
McKay said, “Everyone refers to them as if they were a sort of tribe. How many of them are there?”
“It’s hard to say,” Major Terrill answered. “Such people are as prolific as animals. At present there’s the titular head of the family, old Lafe, who’s well over a hundred, they have to feed and dress and wash him like a baby-I doubt they spend much time at the washing. Then there are his two sons, Jacob, who’s a little weak in the head, and Rufus, who has a certain cunning and dominates the clan. Jake. has a wife and several children, mostly half-witted. Rufus has had over a dozen children by three different wives I’m told. Seven or eight survive. The oldest male is young Rufus, known as Buck, whom you met. There are several daughters, all married, some, I believe, incestuously. They are all busy producing more little Hanneseys under various names. There are also a number of other families of varying degrees of kinship. They all live together like a pack of wild dogs up in Blanco Canyon, which used to be a beautiful place before they defaced it. with their hovels and refuse.”
“That’s south of here, isn’t it?” McKay said.
“Yes. About seventy miles. I do not consider myself a harsh man, Jim,” the Major went on, “but I believe it would be a blessing to this county, if not to all Texas, if a flood should sweep the Whole fantastic establishment into the Rio Puerco. That any decent white woman would consider having business dealings with them, let alone even toying with the notion of marrying into that barbaric menage, is more than I can understand-”
McKay said, “When I spoke to her, Miss Maragon did not seem to be seriously considering either alternative.”
In the manner of the old, Major Terrill went on precisely as if he had not spoken, “Clem Maragon was a rough and outspoken individual with few social graces, but I considered him my friend, and I must say that I’m deeply hurt by his daughter’s attitude. I can only tell myself that I must have been completely deceived by the girl all the years she was growing up-certainly, if I’d known how she would turn out, I’d never have allowed her in the house.” He sighed. “It just goes to show that blood will always tell, sir. I understand that you met her yesterday. It’s a pity I didn’t write and explain the situation to you fully the minute I learned you were negotiating for the property-” The Major chuckled at McKay’s surprised expression. “Oh, yes, my boy! I’ve known about it for over a month. After all, whatever the state to which Mike Brockhurst has fallen, he was once a gentleman, and he can see the necessity for keeping the Hannesey riffraff from spreading like a plague over this country, as a matter of public interest. Besides, er, in spite of the remittances he receives from the east, he gets a little short of cash from time to time."
"I see," McKay said.
"Yes," the Major said. "It's a distasteful business, but you’ll understand the importance of keeping an eye on that young woman, since she seems to have become completely irresponsible. Well, as I was saying, Brockhurst let me know that Harper and Agnew had a client who was interested in Big Muddy, and Joe Agnew is an old friend of mine. He balked a bit, of course, but he came through with the name. It didn’t Seem likely that there would be two James McKays from Baltimore wanting to settle in this neighborhood. At first I was a little hurt that you hadn’t, come to me for advice, then-' Well, I was young once myself, and I know that a young man likes to have something fine and unexpected with which to surprise his bride-to-be. So I kept my own counsel, and didn’t interfere in any way, which may have been an error. If you’d known more about the situation, you might have been able to accomplish something for us yesterday. A little, more coffee, my boy?”
“Thank you,” McKay said.
“So it was partly my fault, too, but I don’t blame either of us too much. Actually, I doubt that the Opportunity you missed was as good as it looked. It’s my notion that the Maragon baggage was just leading you on. Patricia’s wedding plans have been common knowledge for some time. Doubtless the girl wondered if I was trying to play a clumsy trick on her, sending you there. She was trying you out to see how far you Would go. Under the circumstances, you acted absolutely right. As a matter of fact, you may have been of great help to me.” The older man winked at McKay.
“Having once falsely suspected me of such a device, she’ll be more reluctant to question the authenticity of a certain gentleman from San Antonio who is on his way here this minute with money and instructions-”
McKay said, “I remember, Brockhurst thought I might be the man.”
The Major smiled benignly. “I am speaking to you already as a member of the family, Jim. Nothing I say is to be repeated, but I’m su
re you understand that.”
There was only one answer that could be given, and McKay said, “Of course, sir. What about Pat?”
“Oh, Patricia knows. I have few secrets from my daughter and most of those don’t remain secret long. As you’ll learn in due time. Well, I must say, I am very glad you’ve decided to make your home out here, my boy! It would have been a blow to see my only child settle half a continent away. May I ask if it was Patricia alone that turned your thoughts toward Texas, or whether you had already had some notion of-”
McKay said, “Well, I hadn’t been thinking of Texas specifically, sir, but I knew that time was running out where you want to call it that, is a thing of the past. I suppose I could learn to find my way around a steamship, but it Wouldn’t be the same thing. I decided it was better to start completely anew, and the west seemed to offer the most Opportunity. That was about the state of my thinking when I met Pat.”
Major Terrill laughed approvingly. “If it’s romance you want, Jim, you can find it here. And as for the practical aspects, this country is growing and a young man with a little money to invest could grow with it. In fact, Ladder would welcome new blood, and this house, as you can see, is big enough for us all.”
McKay said, “That’s more than generous of you, Major Terrill, and I certainly appreciate the offer. Will you give me a little time to think about it?”
“I won’t hurry you a bit.” The older man smiled, rising.
“Naturally, I realize that you’d like to strike out for yourself, and it’s normal for a young man to want to get his wife out from under the parental roof to a home of her own. But think it over and let me know.”
“I certainly will,” McKay said. “If you’ll excuse me for just a minute, I’d like to get something from my room. I'll be right back.” Walking quickly through the house, he took out a handkerchief and patted his forehead lightly, feeling like a man who had just endured a lengthy formal ceremony which of course it had been, and there were more to come.
The Big Country Page 4