KILLER IN BLACK a gripping action-packed thriller (Johnny Silver Thriller Book 2)

by PAUL BENNETT

  ‘So we got Pa’s statement and Slim’s testimony. Why not confess, Senator?’ I said. ‘You might need protection. The man in black may feel he wasn’t fully briefed, that the contract was a lot trickier than you said. He may feel he’s due the rest of the money. I wouldn’t like to be in your shoes.’

  ‘If you were in my shoes I’d burn them.’

  Boy, did he know how to make matters worse!

  ‘Not going to look good for a prospective presidential candidate,’ I said. ‘Mind you, you’ll get a mugshot for free; use it on your campaign posters.’

  ‘It needn’t come to that,’ he said. He turned to Tucker. ‘I’m sure we can reach an arrangement, Sheriff,’ he said. ‘I’m a wealthy man. Name your price to get rid of these good for nothings and to drop the charges against me.’

  ‘I have six witnesses’ – he looked at Slim who nodded – ‘make that seven witnesses that you just tried to bribe a police officer. You’re in a hole, Senator. Stop digging.’

  ‘Think about it, Sheriff. You could retire, live the life of luxury.’

  ‘Enough,’ Tucker said. ‘I’m arresting you on a charge of conspiracy to kidnap a minor and accessory to the act.’

  Tucker went through the formal caution and then went over to O’Hara. He took out a pair of handcuffs and clipped one half around the senator’s right wrist.

  ‘Is this really necessary?’ O’Hara asked. ‘I’m no danger to you. On the contrary, I could make life sweet for you.’

  ‘I said stop digging, Senator. Now give me your other wrist.’

  O’Hara looked like a child who had lost his favourite toy. It was beginning to sink in. There was no way out. All his plans had turned to dust. His shot at the presidency was over. Even if his lawyers managed to get him off a conspiracy charge by some legal trickery, he wouldn’t get the nomination, let alone a single vote. His fine career path was now a dream – make that a nightmare. And the best part of it was that he deserved it. A lot of people would be happy to see him fall.

  Tucker placed the handcuff around the senator’s left wrist and led him through the house towards his car.

  ‘Sorry, Jackson,’ I said. ‘We didn’t mean you to suffer.’

  ‘I think it’s time to retire,’ he said. ‘I can keep Jerome company on that porch. Drink a little beer and talk about old times.’ He looked at me and nodded. ‘You did the right thing,’ he said. ‘No one’s been prepared to stand up to the senator. He needed to be taken down a peg or three. Boy, is this gonna cause a stink.’ He smiled. ‘Can’t wait. I’m gonna enjoy every minute of this.’

  I shook his hand. Said, ‘Look after yourself,’ and walked to the sheriff’s car. I’d travel back to town with him. I had other things to do.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  It was time to start saying goodbyes. Our work was over and soon we would all be going back to our own lives, the fellowship broken for a while. We’d all be back together, I hoped, for my wedding to Anna. A quieter gathering then, no one opposing us, no wrongs to right. Simply enjoy the moment.

  I walked along the main street back from the sheriff’s office. He’d been helpful again. Oh, how I had misjudged him when we first met. Maybe I hadn’t been all wrong; maybe he’d changed. Realized that the law had to be without fear or favour. That no man, however powerful, was outside the law.

  Jerome was sitting in the rocking-chair, looking melancholy.

  ‘You’re packing heavy today,’ he said, gesturing at my bulging jacket. ‘I hear you got the senator.’

  ‘News travels fast here.’

  ‘Especially when it’s good news.’

  ‘What else do you hear?’

  ‘How Jackson’s gonna take a well-deserved retirement. How he’s free now. Don’t have to take any crap any more – pardon my French. Can stand tall. Be proud of what he is rather than being reminded all the time of what he isn’t.’

  ‘What else do you hear?

  ‘How the town’s gonna be rich again, now we got this rhodium stuff. It’s the big time from now on – hotel’s gonna be too small. Maybe there won’t be room for an old man.’

  ‘There will always be room for you.’

  ‘That’s what the boss said. Local colour, he called it.’

  ‘And they said Americans didn’t do irony.’

  ‘So you’ll be riding off now,’ he said. ‘Gonna miss you.’

  ‘One last beer?’

  He nodded. ‘Be good,’ he said.

  I went inside and got two cold beers and a dish of peanuts. Took them out to the porch. Handed one to Jerome.

  ‘Don’t need the peanuts any more,’ he said.

  ‘Never too early to start training,’ I said.

  I unzipped my jacket and took hold of the sleepy bundle. Held it aloft for Jerome to see. ‘Cute or what?’ I said, passing the puppy to him.

  A tear came to his eye.

  ‘He’s never going to be “dog”,’ I said, ‘but he needs some love. Feels like you’re the guy to give him that.’

  ‘Reckon so,’ he said, taking the puppy from me and stroking it gently. ‘Good to have company on the porch again. He’s a fine dog. And you’re a fine man. Will I see you again?’

  ‘Reckon so,’ I said. ‘I’m not just going to ride off into the sunset. Red will need keeping on the straight and narrow while he builds his fortune. And I’m kind of going to miss this place. There’s good folks here. Be proud to call them my friends.’

  ‘Be proud to be your friend,’ he said, holding back a tear. ‘Gonna call the dog Silver, like you. He’s gonna be precious to me. Come back and see him when he’s fully grown.’

  ‘And when he can catch peanuts,’ I said. ‘Goodbye, old man.’

  I turned and walked away. I hoped he would still be here on my next visit. The town would be less rich without him. And the dog. Always got to be a dog there. They’d make a fine pair.

  I walked back to the ranch. It took an hour, but that gave me plenty of time for thinking. When I arrived back I saddled up Shadow and rode off to take the cross-country route we’d created to the Retreat. I was going to miss this horse. No riding to be done on St Jude and there certainly wasn’t a horse to match Shadow. I gave him his head and, after a brief canter to get his muscles working, we galloped the rest of the way. We both felt free.

  Rafael and Fey welcomed me and offered me a glass of home-made lemonade. It was good, just the right level of sweetness. There might be something to their way of life after all. It certainly beat the sweetcorn brew, but then that would not be difficult.

  We sat in three of the battered armchairs. Fey was wearing a simple shift dress in iridescent blue that matched her eyes. Rafael had on a white long-sleeved shirt and white drawstring trousers. He refilled my glass and nodded his head at me.

  ‘You’ve given us a pretty pickle of a problem.’ He sounded like Stan, but with a lighter tone to his voice. ‘What are we going to do with all the money from the rhodium?’

  ‘Nice problem to have,’ I said.

  ‘It might change our way of life,’ he said. ‘Will we be able to coexist with the mining that will be going on? Should we sell the land for a big fat profit and move on to somewhere that will be quieter?’

  ‘Maybe you can have the mining done in stages so that you can rotate your fields and minimize the disruption. With the money you will make, you could expand the Retreat. Cater for more lost souls.’

  ‘That would be good,’ said Fey. ‘There’s so much good work to be done in this country of ours.’

  ‘I must say I’m disappointed with the Blenkensteins,’ said Rafael. ‘I thought they were good Christians. That they wouldn’t have the sins of envy and greed. The rhodium would have transformed their lives, but they weren’t satisfied with that. Now look what has happened to them.’

  ‘Maybe the judge will be lenient and take their age into consideration. After all, it was O’Hara who hired the man in black and was prepared to do anything to get his hands on more land with rhodium.
’

  ‘Perhaps we could speak up for them,’ said Fey. ‘Show there’s no hard feelings.’

  ‘That would be a kind thing to do,’ I said. ‘There really should be more people like you around. I know Red would be sorry if you decide to leave – he’s very fond of Cameron, you know. She would benefit from having a mentor. Someone who had the same background as her and the experience of making mistakes and learning from them.’

  ‘Perhaps we should stick around,’ Fey said. ‘See how it pans out before making any life-changing decisions.’

  ‘As Johnny says,’ said Rafael, ‘it’s a nice problem to have. I don’t know how to thank you.’

  ‘Just carry on doing what you’re doing,’ I said. ‘And more of it. The world needs more people like you – gentle, kind, considerate for others. You’re a good example for the rest of us.’

  ‘And you, too,’ he said. ‘When I heard you were a bunch of mercenaries I was expecting the worst. You don’t fit the stereotype.’

  ‘Whatever you do in life,’ I said, ‘you should do for a reason. Money’s not a good enough reason. It’s people that count – but you know that. Justice is important, too. Defend the little guy in his battle with guys like the senator. It too often seems that if we don’t fight on their side, then nobody will.’ I stood up. ‘That’s too much philosophizing for one day.’

  Rafael shook me by my hand. Fey gave me a big hug. ‘You come back soon,’ she said. ‘Especially if you feel the need to get away from the harsh realities of the world for a while.’ There was a tear in her eye. ‘We’re going to miss you.’

  ‘And me you. Is Lucy around?’

  ‘She’s in the stables,’ Fey said.

  ‘I’ll stop off there on my way back. Look after yourselves.’

  ‘And the same to you,’ Rafael said.

  Lucy was grooming her horse, long strokes brushing its hair so its coat shone. She looked up as I entered and gave me a big smile.

  ‘Have you got time for one last ride?’ I said.

  She nodded and swallowed as if holding back an emotion. Maybe this wasn’t a good idea. She fixed reins on her horse and led it out into the sunshine.

  I climbed on to Shadow and we headed north towards the mountains. We rode side by side and then she stopped. I turned Shadow around and waited for her to say what was bothering her.

  ‘Do you really have to go?’ she said.

  ‘It’s time to return to our own lives. Our work here is done.’

  ‘Not all of it,’ she said. ‘What about me?’

  ‘What if I say you can come and visit with Anna and me?’

  ‘Will I like her?’

  ‘Yes. You can’t help but like her.’

  ‘I suppose so,’ she said. ‘You seem to have good judgement.’

  ‘Maybe a lot is down to luck.’

  She shook her head. ‘No. You don’t give yourself credit for the things you do and your reasons for doing them.’

  ‘Is this a fourteen-year-old talking?’

  She laughed. It sounded hollow. ‘I’ve grown up a lot in these past few weeks. The things that have happened will live with me for the rest of my life. I hope I’ll always have someone like you looking out for me. My knight in shining armour.’

  I shook my head. ‘That’s something I can’t live up to. I’ve done some bad things, killed a lot of people.’

  ‘Did they deserve to die?’

  I thought about it for a moment or two. ‘Yes. They were bad people.’

  ‘Then it’s good things that you’ve done. Lancelot killed bad people, too.’

  ‘And he stole Arthur’s wife.’

  ‘Galahad then. You can be my Galahad. Pure in heart. The best of the knights.’

  ‘I’m flattered, but that description doesn’t fit either. I’ve a lot of faults, some I’m ashamed to admit to. I hope you find your Galahad some time in the future. But don’t be too hard on those who will love you. Galahad is a hard act to follow.’

  ‘As are you, Johnny Silver. I’ll never forget you.’

  ‘Never’s a long time. The memory will fade, to be replaced by others. Sometimes in life it’s better not to look back.’

  ‘Not with these memories. I’ll always treasure them.’

  ‘I think you’re right. You have grown up a lot in the last few weeks. I wish you a good life, Lucy. You deserve it.’

  She turned her horse round and started to ride back. ‘Goodbye, Johnny,’ she shouted as she began to fade into the distance. It was a good way to part.

  Red and I went to the hospital. Jesse was sitting up in bed, his arm in plaster, his ribs strapped. The bruises had receded a little and he looked far better than I expected. His teeth had a gap where two had been knocked out, but I presumed that that could be fixed.

  We updated him on everything that had happened in his absence and he gave us a thoughtful look.

  ‘So the man in black got away,’ he said. ‘Not good news.’

  ‘He won’t trouble us again. Got nothing to gain by it – his paymaster is in jail and would hardly be in the mood to settle what he doesn’t owe for a contract that was never fulfilled. Would have been nice to catch him, but he’ll make a slip sooner or later.’

  Jesse considered this and his expression changed to a smile.

  ‘They’re letting me out tomorrow,’ he said. ‘Nothing else they can do for me. Would it be OK if I came back to work? Be a bit restricted with what I can do, but I’d get bored on my own.’

  ‘Got a new job for you,’ Red said. ‘Foreman. Broken arm won’t affect what you can do as that. A reward for your loyalty and compensation for what you’ve been through.’

  ‘Thanks, Red,’ he said. ‘I won’t let you down.’

  ‘There’ll be plenty to do,’ I said. ‘Mixing cattle-ranching and rhodium-mining is not going to be easy. Don’t want one to spoil the other.’

  ‘Your first job is to recruit some more hands,’ Red said. ‘Bring us back up in numbers.’

  He gave a rueful smile and shook his head. ‘I can dine out on this story for years. If anyone believes me, that is.’

  ‘Too fine a story not to be told,’ I said. ‘We’re leaving tomorrow. It’s been good knowing you.’

  ‘And you. Maybe you’ll come back some day?’

  ‘Who knows?’ I said.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  We had a visit from the sheriff early the next morning. We made a fresh pot of coffee and sat around the table, thinking of our imminent departure. We didn’t need to leave until early afternoon, but I guessed that time would drag. Sometimes it’s best not to have to say goodbye. I didn’t need anyone getting sentimental – I couldn’t trust my own reaction.

  ‘We found his Mercedes,’ Tucker said between sips of coffee. ‘He’d abandoned it about twenty miles away. Made out something was wrong – put the hood up and stood there looking down. Some poor guy stopped to help. He’s now in hospital. The man in black took his car. That was found abandoned, too. Looks like he took a train. Where to, we don’t know.’ He turned to me. ‘That’s not the worst of it. Mercedes is registered to a Marty Hamilton at an address in Denver. The address doesn’t exist. Neither does Marty Hamilton. No record of that name exists that comes close to his age.’

  ‘Only to be expected,’ I said. ‘He’s a professional. Hardly likely to use his real name.’

  ‘Vanished into the wide blue yonder,’ said Bull. ‘Not good.’

  ‘He’s unlikely to show up anywhere near us,’ said Red. ‘No one paying his fee any more.’

  ‘Would have been a better ending if he’d been caught,’ said Pieter.

  ‘I don’t like unfinished business,’ said Stan, our man who loved the neat and tidy.

  ‘Not much of a description to go on,’ Tucker said. ‘All he’s got to do is change the colour of his suit and take off his mirrored sunglasses and we’ve got nothing to go on.’

  ‘He’ll show up somewhere,’ I said. ‘He’s got to eat. Got to work to eat. He’ll be l
ooking for another contract.’

  ‘Guess you’re right,’ Tucker said. ‘And this time there won’t be you guys to thwart him.’

  Thwart? Maybe there were still deeper roots to his personality.

  ‘Gonna be kinda quiet without you guys around,’ he said.

  ‘Not for long,’ I said. ‘Pretty soon you’ll have all the workers mining for the rhodium. Construction workers, too – men to build places to stay and the infrastructure to deal with the rhodium after it comes out of the ground. Town’s going to be buzzing again. Do you think you can handle it?’

  ‘If I can’t, I’ll give you a call.’

  ‘You know you can always rely on Red, if you need him. Town’s going to need a new mayor – you could do worse.’

  ‘Hang on,’ said Red. ‘Do you mind not planning out my life for me? I might not want the responsibility.’

  ‘Be good for everyone – especially Cameron – to see a halfbreed running the show.’

  ‘Now you’re playing on my heartstrings.’

  ‘Hit a man where it hurts,’ Bull said. ‘You should be used to him by now.’

  ‘Don’t give away all my secrets,’ I said.

  ‘Time for me to be going,’ Tucker said. ‘Got a town to police.’

  He pulled out a small package from his jacket pocket. Something wrapped in brown paper. ‘I owe you these,’ he said. He unwrapped the paper and handed out something shiny to each of us. It was a badge that said “Deputy” on it. ‘Had someone pick them up from a toy shop. Still, it’s the thought that counts.’

  I pinned the badge to my T-shirt; the others followed suit.

  He turned to me. ‘You know, you’re not a bad man when you stop acting the wise guy.’

  ‘I’ll take that as a compliment,’ I said.

  ‘The last thing he needs,’ said Bull, ‘is someone paying him compliments. Head won’t get through the door.’

  ‘’Bye, guys,’ Tucker said. ‘Watch your backs.’

  We sat one last time on the porch, sipping cold beers in a manner that could only be called subdued.