Rattler's Law, Volume One

by James Reasoner

  Dennis, Chuck, and Eddie Barrow were hopping down from the wagon.

  Cully strolled over to them. "Morning, boys. What brings you back to Abilene?"

  "We been up to see Harley," Dennis replied.

  "How is he?" Cully knew that, while Harley Barrow recuperated from his gunshot wound, he would be staying at Dr. Keller's, with guards on duty around the clock. When he had recovered sufficiently, he would go to the jail to await trial.

  "Oh, I reckon he'll be all right. He sure is mighty sorry 'bout ever'thin' that happened, Deputy."

  Cully nodded and glanced over at the wagon. "Where'd you get this? I thought both of your wagons got busted up yesterday."

  "This's one of the ones we left out on the prairie when we lit out for town," Dennis replied. "Them fellers was too busy chasin' us to go back and get 'em."

  Cully frowned. "So you've still got whiskey to sell after all."

  All three of the Barrows shook their heads. "We done poured it out," Dennis declared solemnly. He seemed to have taken over Harley's job as spokesman for the group. "We don't want nothin' more to do with makin' and sellin' whiskey. We's honest, respectable farmers now."

  "We're raisin' pigs," one of the twins said. Cully wasn’t sure which one he was, but he had his arm in a sling.

  "Yeah, I know," Cully said. "So, what are you doing here at the café?" Even as he asked the question, the answer came to him.

  The other twin reached into the back of the wagon and brought out a large ham. "Since we's upright citizens now, we've done decided to come courtin' Miss Alice after all," he announced, then glared defiantly at Cully. "And if'n you don't like it, Deputy, that's too bad. We figger it's time to let the best man win."

  "And that'll be me," the twin with the broken arm added. With his good arm, he pulled a large package wrapped in brown paper from the back of the wagon and scoffed, "Bringin' a ham to a gal! Ain't that the stupidest thing? Ever'body knows you go courtin' with bacon!"

  "Ham!" his brother insisted. "That's the way to a gal's heart!"

  The other twin glared at him. "We'll just see!" He turned and broke into a run toward the door of the cafe, carrying the package of bacon.

  "Hold on there, dammit! Not fair, not fair! It was my idea—"

  The door of the café slammed behind both of them, cutting off the argument. Cully glanced through the window and caught a glimpse of Alice Hammond's horrified face before she turned and darted into the kitchen.

  Dennis jerked his head toward the café. "Ain't you goin' to get in there and stand up for your rights, Deputy? I thought you and that redhaired gal was sweethearts."

  Cully shook his head and tried not to laugh. Alice was just going to have to cope with this by herself. "I know when I'm licked," he replied, throwing his hands up in defeat. "I'm not going to try to compete with a couple of smooth operators like your cousins."

  "They are a pair of sweet-talkin' romantic devils, all right." Dennis grinned. "And you ain't got no pigs, so—"

  "What's the point of trying?" Cully agreed. "So long, Dennis. You boys stay on the straight and narrow, you hear?"

  He turned and headed toward the Grand Palace, a broad smile on his face.

  Augusta was just stepping through the hotel's front door when he got there. Close beside her was Joshua, his arm linked with hers. Cully shook his head slightly. It looked as if he was too late, and besides, he didn’t even have any pork with him, he thought wryly.

  "Good morning, Cully," Augusta greeted him.

  Cully touched the brim of his hat. "Hello, Augusta. Morning, Joshua. Reckon you've come to see Miss Hall off."

  "That's right," Joshua replied. "We've already sent her luggage to the station." He looked more like himself this morning in his sober dark suit and string tie.

  "Why don't you come with us, Cully?" Augusta asked. "I'd like to say goodbye to both of you."

  He shrugged. "Sure, why not?" He fell in step on the other side of Augusta. The three of them strolled down the boardwalk, but none of them spoke.

  The silence became a little awkward, and Cully was glad when they reached the Kansas Pacific depot. As they emerged onto the platform where the train was waiting, Augusta turned to face them and said, "Thank you for everything. You've both been so nice to me...nicer than I've deserved."

  "Nonsense," Joshua said heartily. "You were simply acting on your beliefs in everything you did, Augusta. There's nothing wrong with that."

  "As long as you don't get carried away," Cully added.

  Augusta smiled. "I suppose you're both right." She stepped over to Cully and rose on her toes to brush her lips against his cheek. She murmured, "Goodbye, Cully."

  "Goodbye, Augusta," he replied softly.

  Then she turned to Joshua, abruptly throwing her arms around his neck, and planting a kiss on his lips. Cully saw his brother's eyes widen in surprise, but that didn’t stop Joshua from returning the kiss and hugging Augusta tightly to him for a long moment. When she finally took her lips away from his, she said, "I've got to go now. But...I'll be back someday."

  "Goodbye," Joshua whispered. He found her hand, let his fingertips trail over hers as she turned away and walked briskly to the car. Augusta didn’t look back as she climbed aboard the train.

  Joshua drew a deep breath and blew it out as Cully grinned. "Quite a gal, isn't she?" Cully commented.

  "Indeed," Joshua agreed. "The most frustrating mixture of beauty and stubbornness I've ever encountered."

  "Amen to that." Cully laughed. "Although I reckon you ought to be saying that, not me... You really think she'll be back?"

  "I'm sure of it." Joshua smiled faintly. "One of these days, some poor unsuspecting drunk is going to be set upon by that lovely little fury. And she'll make him

  see the error of his ways."

  "Yeah. At gunpoint, more than likely." Cully and Joshua turned and walked off the platform

  as the train whistle blew. The wheels began to turn and the locomotive lurched into

  motion as the train

  rolled out of the station.

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  Thank you for taking the time to read Rattler’s Law, Volume One. If you enjoyed it, please consider telling your friends or posting a short review. Word of mouth is an author's best friend and much appreciated. Thank you.

  James Reasoner

  Take a look at: Rattler’s Law, Volume Two

  By James Reasoner

  IT’S UP TO A PART-TIME DEPUTY TO STAND UP FOR THE LAW AND DELIVER JUSTICE!

  Wild Bill Hickok may be gone, but Abilene is still a wild and woolly cowtown in need of a strong marshal to bring law and order to its streets. That man is Lucas Flint . . . a legendary lawman sometimes known as the Rattler because of his swift and deadly speed with a Colt .45. Together with his deputy, dashing young gunfighter Cully Markham, Lucas Flint will take on any challenge that threatens the safety of the town and its people that he’s sworn to protect.

  As a blizzard rages on the Kansas plains, an old buffalo hunter is caught in the crossfire between a Sioux war party and a clan of bank-robbing killers. A fortune in Confederate gold lures outlaws to Abilene. A young gunslinger bent on vengeance has a startling secret. A prize bull, a hard-bitten rancher, and a gang of thieves prove to be an explosive mixture for Cully Markham. A deadly Fourth of July celebration provides more than one kind of fireworks. A man sworn to uphold the law instead launches a reign of terror. A trio of mail order brides arrives in Abilene, but they bring flying lead rather than matrimonial bliss.

  Rattler's Law, Volume Two includes: Buffalo Hunter, Rebel Gold, Devil With a .38, Hell on the Hoof, Gundown, Killer With a Badge, Six-Gun Wedding, and Big Fifty Justice.

  AVAILABLE MARCH 2021

  About the Author

  James Reasoner has been te
lling tales and spinning yarns as far back as he can remember. He’s been doing it professionally for more than 40 years, and during that time, under his own name and dozens of pseudonyms, he’s written almost 400 novels and more than 100 shorter pieces of fiction. His books have appeared on the New York Times, USA Today, and Publishers Weekly bestseller lists. He has written Westerns, mysteries, historical sagas, war novels, science fiction and fantasy, and horror fiction.

  Growing up in the late Fifties and early Sixties when every other series on television was a Western made him into a lifelong fan of the genre. The Lone Ranger, Roy Rogers, Hopalong Cassidy, Matt Dillon, and John Wayne made quite an impression on him. At the age of 10, he discovered Western novels when he checked out Single Jack by Max Brand and Hopalong Cassidy (there’s that name again!) by Clarence E. Mulford from the library bookmobile that came out every Saturday to the small town in Texas where he lived. He’s been reading Westerns ever since, long before he started writing them, and always will.

  James Reasoner has also written numerous articles, essays, and book introductions on a variety of topics related to popular culture, including vintage paperbacks and the publishing industry, pulp magazines, comics, movies, and TV. He writes the popular blog Rough Edges and is the founder and moderator of an email group devoted to Western pulp magazines.

  He lives in the same small town in Texas where he grew up and is married to the popular mystery novelist Livia J. Washburn, who has also written Westerns under the name L.J. Washburn.