Turnback Creek (Widowmaker)

by Robert J. Randisi

  When he finally reached the buckboard and the prone figure of Cooper, he saw the sheriff’s carbine on the seat. He grabbed it and tossed it off into the distance, where it landed noisily. Out of nowhere, a cloud suddenly obscured the sun, and rain once again seemed imminent.

  “Can I get up now?”

  “Get into a seated position,” Locke instructed.

  “The ground is wet, John!”

  “I know,” Locke said. The front of his shirt and jeans were soaked. “Come on, sit.”

  Cooper sighed heavily and shifted into a seated position. Locke leaned against the buckboard, holding the rifle casually in his arms.

  “What’s this about, John?”

  “You know what it’s about, Coop,” Locke said. “You’ve been lying to me from the beginning.”

  “About what?”

  “Everything!” Locke snapped. “Your alcoholic condition, your ability with a gun, and—most of all—your intentions toward the gold.”

  “What intent—”

  “Stealing it!” Locke said, cutting him off. “You were planning to steal this payroll right from the start. The only thing I don’t understand is, why did you bring me in on it?”

  “You got this wrong, John.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Let me explain.”

  “Explain why you let my horse loose and left me afoot.”

  “I can.”

  “Explain why you’re nowhere near the Shillstone mine.”

  “I took a wrong turn.”

  “You sure did, Coop,” Locke said. “What happened to you? The law used to be everything to you.”

  “The law?” Cooper asked. “What did I ever get from the law, John? You saw what they did to me in Ellsworth. I learned a new word after that. Do you know what it was? Vilified. Do you know what that means?”

  “I know,” Locke said.

  “They ruined my reputation and my life,” Cooper said. “Do you know what the last eight or nine years have been like for me?”

  “Obviously not,” Locke said. “You cut me out of your life since Ellsworth.”

  “Because you were there!” Cooper said. “You saw me humiliated!”

  “Is that my fault?” Locke asked.

  “Actually, it is,” Cooper said. “I never asked you for help that day. Remember?”

  “I remember,” Locke said. “I also remember there were five men waiting for you at the end of the street. You might not have survived without me that day.”

  “That’s very true, John,” Cooper said. “And if I had been killed, it might not have come to this.”

  “This being stealing the gold, Coop?” Locke asked. “And conning me?”

  “I didn’t con you, John.”

  “Are you a drunk?”

  “I was,” Cooper said. “I’ve been a drunk for a long time, but I gave it up for this job.”

  “You were acting for my benefit.”

  “Not only yours,” Cooper said. “Everybody else, too. But it backfired on me. Molly started having doubts about hiring me, so I had to bring someone else in on it, someone she’d be impressed with and trust.”

  “Your old friend John, huh?”

  “I’m willin’ to share, John,” Cooper said. “I brought the subject up in Kingdom Junction, but you didn’t even entertain it.”

  “So, you admit you intended to steal it from the beginning.”

  “No,” he said. “Not from the beginning, but when I found how much was involved …”

  “And you needed another man to help with the gold.”

  “That happened afterward,” Cooper said. “Even after I sent you that telegram. I didn’t find out till later that the payroll was gonna be in gold. That sort of put a crimp in my plan, having to use a buckboard and all.”

  “So you intended simply to ride off with the payroll.”

  “Start up the mountain on horseback, and just keep going.”

  “When did you recruit the sheriff?”

  “After I found out about the gold,” Cooper said. “I read him right from the beginning. I knew that the gold would persuade him to help me.”

  “You needed him to get you away from me.”

  “Right.”

  “And you planned on killing him all along.”

  Cooper didn’t respond right away, then said, “I could tell you it was self-defense, that he tried to take the gold for himself.”

  “But that’s not the way it happened, is it?”

  “No.”

  “So, you killed him in cold blood.”

  “Yes.”

  “You should have made sure he was dead, Coop,” Locke said. “He pointed me right to you.”

  “I was wonderin’ how you caught up to me—although if one of the horses hadn’t come up lame …”

  “I still would have caught up with you,” Locke said. “No matter how long it took.”

  “Come on, John,” Cooper said. “There’s a lot of gold there. We just have to get over this mountain, and we’re home free.”

  “And how do you intend to do that with a lame horse?”

  “I assume you still have a horse.”

  “Actually, I found yours.”

  “There you go,” Cooper said. “We just hook that one up to the buckboard, and we’re on our way.”

  “And how long before you try to kill me for the gold, Coop?”

  “I wouldn’t do that, John,” Cooper said. “You’re my friend.”

  “That didn’t stop you from conning me and leaving me on foot.”

  “But I knew you’d survive,” Cooper said. “I’d never kill you. I’m not that far gone.”

  “Seems to me you’ve gone as far as you can, Coop,” Locke said. “Killing a lawman sent you over the edge.”

  “And you’ve never killed a lawman?”

  “Never.”

  “Well … gold, John,” Cooper said. This seemed to be the only argument left to him now. “Eighty thousand in gold, split two ways.”

  “No deal, Coop.”

  “What do you intend to do?”

  “Deliver the gold to the mine,” Locke said, “and you to the law.”

  “There ain’t no more law in Turnback Creek.”

  “Then we’ll go to Kingdom Junction,” Locke said. “I’ll turn you over to Sheriff Maddox.”

  “Maddox,” Cooper said, shaking his head. “He’d come in for a quarter of the gold, John. I could smell it on him.”

  “By the time I turn you over to him, the miners will have the gold,” Locke said.

  Cooper shook his head again. “I can’t let you do that, John,” he said. “I have too many plans for the gold.”

  “Then we have a problem here, Coop.”

  “More problems than you know, John.”

  It took a moment for Locke to notice that Cooper was looking up the slope as he said this.

  FIFTY

  When Hoke Benson, Eddie Rome, and their men came across the second horse, they saw that the reins had been grounded and knew they were in luck.

  “Somebody’s around here someplace,” Rome said, looking around.

  “Let’s spread out,” Hoke said, dismounting. “Anybody sees anybody, don’t sing out. Don’t let them know you seen them. Just come and get the rest of us.”

  Everyone nodded.

  Hoke and Rome stayed together and approached the horse.

  “Rifle’s still here,” Hoke said.

  “Don’t mean nothin’,” Rome said. “The sheriff’s rifle was gone, remember?”

  “That’s right,” Hoke said. “The sheriff’s horse is on this mountain someplace. Heck, maybe this is it.”

  “Well, whoever was riding it is around here,” Rome said. “He grounded those reins. Let’s see what’s up ahead.”

  The two men moved forward cautiously to the top of the rise, and suddenly they were looking down into a basin at two men and a buckboard of gold.

  “I know this place,” Rome said.

  “What?�
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  “The Devil’s Basin, they call it,” he said.

  “Why?” Hoke asked.

  Rome hesitated, then said, “I don’t remember. I just know I heard of it.”

  “Well,” Hoke said, “whatever it’s called, there’s our gold.”

  “And them two don’t look like friends,” Rome said.

  One man was standing and holding a rifle, while the other was sitting on his ass.

  “Let’s get the others,” Hoke said. “We got ’em now, Rome. We got ’em, and we got our gold.”

  They retreated and found the rest of their men.

  “Let’s mount up,” Hoke said. “I want them to see us at full strength.”

  “You thinkin’ they might just walk away and leave the gold?” Rome asked. “Without a fight?”

  “I didn’t think so before, but maybe,” Hoke said. “Maybe they will. Why don’t we just let ’em see us and find out?”

  FIFTY-ONE

  When Locke looked up, he saw seven mounted men at the top of the slope. He cursed himself for having left his horse up there.

  “Looks like we’re gonna need each other, John,” Cooper said. “We can take up our argument another time.”

  Locke knew he was in no position to take any other stance. “Coop,” he said, “stand up and move real slow to get your guns.”

  Cooper got to his feet. “I hope they let me get that far,” he said.

  “How bad is that horse?”

  “He cut the bottom of his foot pretty bad,” Cooper said. “What are they doin’? They’re just sittin’ there.”

  “They’re showing us their strength,” Locke said, “and, hopefully, giving you time to get to your guns.”

  The pistol and rifle had been tossed in the same direction. The rifle, being heavier, had not gone as far, and that was the weapon Locke and Cooper wanted the most.

  Locke held his breath the closer Cooper got to it.

  “What’s he doin’?” Hoke asked as Cooper moved across the floor of the basin.

  “I can’t see … wait,” Rome said. “He’s tryin’ to get to his guns. See that rifle?”

  “That’s Cooper,” Hoke said. “The other one is Locke. Looks like Locke had the drop on the old marshal.”

  “I can pick him off from here,” Turpin said, raising his rifle.

  “No,” Hoke said. “Let the old man get to his rifle.”

  “Why?” Rome asked.

  “Why not?” Hoke said. “They’re outnumbered seven to two, and they have no cover. What are they gonna do?”

  “They did okay when they were outnumbered five to two,” Rome said. “Remember?”

  “I remember,” Hoke said. “But this is different. This time, we got ’em.”

  Cooper reached his rifle and his pistol, too, which he holstered as he joined Locke by the buckboard.

  “They figure they’ve got us,” Locke said. “That’s why they let you get to your guns.”

  “Why don’t they make a move?”

  “Why should they?” Locke asked. “Where are we going to go?”

  “They don’t know we have a lame horse.”

  “If we try to leave with the gold, they’ll either start shooting or rush us. On the other hand, if we just try to leave without the gold, I bet they’d let us go.”

  “Why would we do that?”

  “To save our lives?”

  “I’m not leavin’ without that gold, John,” Cooper said. “I’ve got no life without it.”

  “Why should I stay here and fight for it, then,” Locke asked, “if you’re going to take it?”

  “I told you before,” Cooper said. “For half.”

  “I don’t want half, Coop,” Locke said. “I don’t even want it all.”

  “You won’t leave.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because that’s not the kind of man you are,” Cooper said. “Because these are the kinds of odds you like.”

  “Seven to two,” Locke said. “How much worse could it get?”

  At that moment, the sky opened up, and it started to pour.

  FIFTY-TWO

  It was a deluge.

  It was raining so hard no one could see. It was as if all of the rain that week had been leading up to this. Creek beds and mountain streams overflowed quickly from the runoff at the top of the mountain, and tons of water started down.

  “I can’t see a damned thing!” Hoke yelled.

  The rain was falling with such force that the sound of it was deafening.

  Rome leaned over and shouted into Hoke’s ear, “I remember why they call this Devil’s Basin!”

  “Why?”

  “ ’Cause it fills up like a son of a bitch when it rains!” Rome said. “They’re gonna drown, and we can just go down and get the gold.”

  “But the gold will be underwater, won’t it?”

  “The basin drains almost as fast as it fills when it stops rainin’,” Rome said.

  “So, all we gotta do is wait out the rain?”

  “Right,” Rome said. “It should do our work for us.”

  “What if they try to leave during the storm?”

  “My guess is they have a lame horse,” Rome said. “That’s why they were down there in the first place.”

  Their horses were starting to get skittish from the rain.

  “We’ve got to move these horses back and calm them down,” Rome said. “We have to make sure we don’t end up afoot.”

  “Let’s do it, then,” Hoke replied.

  As they started to lead their horses back from the edge of the basin, something suddenly bolted past them.

  “What was that?” Hoke yelled.

  “It was that other horse,” Rome said. “It’s runnin’ down there to drown with them.”

  “Let’s get our horses to safety,” Hoke shouted.

  Locke and Cooper had taken shelter beneath the buckboard, but they were already up to their shins in water. The water was running down from both sides of the basin, but not from where the road led in and out.

  “We could get away if we could get up this road,” Cooper said. “Maybe the horses will be frightened enough to move, even the one with a bad hoof.”

  “We’d never make it,” Locke said.

  “We can’t stay here,” Cooper said. “We’ll drown. This basin fills up fast when it rains like this.”

  “You knew about this?” Locke demanded.

  Cooper nodded. “I was warned not to come this way,” he said. “It’s called the Devil’s Basin.”

  “And for good reason, obviously,” Locke said. “We have to get out from under here.”

  The water was knee deep, and they could no longer remain under the buckboard.

  “I can’t see up the slope,” Cooper said, “but I hear something.”

  They both looked up. Visibility was nil, but suddenly a horse burst into view, eyes wide and nostrils flaring. It was flailing about in the knee-deep water, unsure which way to go.

  “That’s my horse!” Cooper said.

  “He got loose,” Locke shouted. “Grab him, and get the saddle off. I have an idea.”

  While Cooper grabbed his horse, Locke went to the team and unhitched the lame horse. Cooper brought his mount over without the saddle, and they hooked it up to the buckboard.

  They scrambled into the buckboard. Locke grabbed the reins and flicked them at the frightened horses. The lame horse had already wandered its way up the slope and out of sight. The other two, however, were not used to being a team. They were not pulling together, and the weight of the gold in the water was holding them back.

  “We should mount them and ride out,” Locke said.

  “I’m not leavin’ the gold!” Cooper shouted.

  “It’ll be at the bottom of the basin, in the water,” Locke said. “They won’t be able to get to it.”

  “The basin drains as fast as it fills, once the rain stops,” Cooper said. “At least, that’s what I’ve heard.”

  “Damn it, Coop.�
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  “Go ahead and leave,” Cooper said. “I’m stayin’.”

  “Our guns are wet, and so are theirs.” Locke tried again. “If they come down here, we can’t fight them off.”

  “I tol’ you, go ahead and leave!”

  “You’re still a stubborn old mule,” Locke said. “I’ve got another idea.”

  “Let’s hear it.”

  Locke told it to the ex-lawman, who listened intently. “That’s still leavin’ the gold.”

  “Not if they go for it,” Locke said. “If they think we got away with it, they won’t come down here or even wait for it to drain. They’ll just look for a way around so they can get back on our trail.”

  Cooper was unsure.

  “If we stay much longer, Coop,” Locke said, “we’ll drown.”

  “All right, damn it!” Cooper said. “Let’s try it.”

  They both got in the back of the buckboard and started unloading the gold.

  FIFTY-THREE

  With the weight on the buckboard lessened, even the mismatched team was able to pull it out of the basin. Once they reached the top of the slope opposite the seven men, they stopped. They couldn’t see anyone, and no one could see them.

  Since they were out of the water, they were able to get out of the rain by crawling back beneath the buckboard. They hobbled the horses so they couldn’t drag the thing right over them.

  “This better work,” Cooper said. “If I lose that gold—”

  “I don’t want to lose it any more than you do, Coop,” Locke said, cutting him off.

  “Yeah, but for different reasons.”

  “The right reasons.”

  “Right for who? At my age, John,” Cooper said, “I’m only concerned with what’s right for me.”

  “Well, I’ve heard that about old folks, Coop,” Locke said. “They get real selfish … and cranky.”

  “I’m cranky because I’m wet,” Cooper said. “Bein’ old’s got nothin’ to do with it.”

  The ground was soaked, with water running beneath them. They tried sitting on the one slicker they had, but it did little to help. All they were really able to do was clean their weapons and then keep them dry. When the rain stopped, they were going to need them.