There was a second man. Unless the one who had doused the barn was already at the bunkhouse, there was a second bandit. He was dressed similar to the first, wearing all black. His hat was shaped a little different and his body wasn’t as thick as the first man, telling Johnny it was someone else.
He clenched his jaw, narrowing his eyes, his anger resurfacing. Who were these men? What did they have against his family?
He moved as quietly as he could, going toward the bunkhouse, trying not to be seen by the bandit. He didn’t want to have to shoot his gun. His plan was to get rid of the bandit quietly, go in the bunkhouse and wake up the men. Surprising them awake with a gunshot wouldn’t give them time to prepare. And if he waited too long, everyone would be in danger.
A flash lit up the night sky just as he was approaching the bunkhouse. The barn had been lit ablaze. Seeing this as his only chance to wake up the men and save his ranch he went into overdrive, running as fast as he could and tackling the startled bandit from behind.
He wrapped one arm around the man’s shoulders and spun him around quickly. It had the desired effect, confusing the bandit enough to give Johnny time to land a few punches. The bandit quickly went down, unconscious in a heap at Johnny’s feet.
Johnny was a little surprised by how fast it went. He jerked on the bunkhouse door and ran inside, yelling for the men to get up.
“Jack! Alex! Get up! The barn is on fire! The ranch is being raided! Get up and grab your guns!”
Both men shot out of their beds, scrambling for their property. Neither asked a single question.
Johnny darted back through the door, his intention to wake up everyone in the main house and ring the triangle bell to alert the rest of the compound of the danger.
But he wasn’t far out the door when shots rang out around him. He ducked and took cover behind a large pile of burlap sacks filled with compost. The smell was almost overwhelming but Johnny barely took notice of it.
He lifted up and shot in the general direction of the barn, assuming that’s where the shots had come from. The bullets wouldn’t have come from the bunkhouse in his direction, so he was certain it wasn’t his own men shooting.
More shots went through the air and by this time lanterns were being lit inside the house. He could see light moving from one window to another. The door opened and his father came out. Two of the live-in maids and the cook came out, huddled behind John Sr., who was carrying a rifle in both hands. He was holding it menacingly in front of him.
“Who’s there?” he yelled out.
“Pa!” Johnny called to him, lifting one hand and waving it quickly. “I’m comin’ over there. Tell the women to go back inside before they get shot! When we drive these men away, we’ll need them to help put out the fire. I don’t think they got to the house yet!”
Johnny heard a commotion behind him and spun around to see Alex and Jack chasing two men on foot. Alex lifted his gun, aimed and shot at the one in front of him. The bandit screamed out and fell to the ground, where he rolled around writhing in pain. The other continued to run, not even looking back.
By the time Alex and Jack got to the fallen bandit, the man was no longer moving.
“You think that’s all of them?” He hoped the ranch hands could hear him from where he was. He didn’t want to risk leaving the shelter he’d found if there were more bandits on the property.
“Don’t see nobody else, boss!” Alex called back, bending over the man and shaking his head. He began to go through the bandit’s pockets.
Johnny ran to the porch and gave the women a comforting look. “I need you ladies to gather your wits about you and not be afraid, all right? We’ve got to put out that barn fire. Get as many big blankets as you can get. We’re getting the water barrels. Bring us the blankets as quick as you can.”
The women nodded and disappeared back inside the house.
Johnny and his father ran to the barn without saying a word. The other men were running toward them, empty buckets in their hands.
Johnny looked up at the flames as they licked the night sky. The barn was far enough away from the forest of trees that they were safe from catching fire unless there was a sudden strong wind in that direction. The fuel accelerated the furious fire and it made a complete circle around the barn. Kit and Tiny were running in circles, barking and biting at the flames.
“Let’s get this fire out quick!” Johnny yelled. “Got a feelin’ that man’s gonna bring back a few friends!”
Chapter 23
It took an hour but the fire hadn’t set in enough to completely destroy the barn before the men were able to put it out. Johnny ran around the side of the building to look for any more sparks, trying to see through the smoke rising from the rested flames.
“Johnny!” he heard Alex calling out to him. “Over here!”
He could only see Alex because the man was holding a lantern. He was near the bunkhouse, crouched down next to a dark lump. Johnny narrowed his eyes but couldn’t figure out what the mass was. It looked like a big black bag. He hurried over and stopped just a few feet from Alex and the mass on the ground.
His heart wrenched in his chest and he had to turn away for a moment. It was Kit. His pet, his guard dog, his friend. The dog was lying on his side and he appeared to be gasping for breath. Johnny was immediately overcome with emotion, dropping to his knees next to the animal.
“Kit. Kit.” He moved his hands over the dog’s body as Alex held up the lantern over them, his eyes wet with tears as he stared down at the animal. Johnny’s hands ran over a wet area around Kit’s stomach. Johnny lifted his hand to see it was covered in blood. His heart sank. “Oh no,” he moaned. “Kit. You’re a good boy. Yes, you are. You are.” He repeated the phrase several times, cupping the dog’s face with his hands. Kit’s brown eyes looked directly into his. Johnny could barely see through his tears.
“It’s gonna be all right, Kit,” Johnny said softly. “You’ve been a good friend. A good dog. You’ve been a good dog. Good dog.” Kit’s breathing slowed until it stopped. Johnny was heartbroken. He leaned over until he was all the way over the dog, pressing his forehead against the side of Kit’s muzzle. “I’m so sorry, boy.”
“I’m sorry, Johnny,” Alex said quietly.
Before Johnny could reply, a shot rang through the air and he felt a bullet whiz past his face. He jumped to his feet and took off for the bunkhouse, which was directly in front of him. Alex was just behind him, running.
They both made it inside and Johnny slammed the door shut. He dropped to the floor with his back to the wall and scooted across, holding one of the pistols up. He’d given both to one of the maids to hold while he battled the fire with the other men. She’d gone inside and gotten his gun belt, bringing back only one of the pistols and helping him put it on while he worked.
Johnny’s heart slammed in his chest. He thought about his father and could only hope he was okay. He didn’t know if the shot he’d heard had actually hit someone. And if Kit was shot, how had they not heard it? There was no way no one had noticed him while they were putting out the barn fire.
Even if he had been hurt before the bandits left, how could he still be alive all that time just for Johnny to hold him as he died?
None of it made sense. He hated to feel out of control but everything whirled in his mind in a chaotic way. The men raiding the ranch had a reason, but he wasn’t privy to it. They’d set the barn on fire. They’d killed his dog. They were back for more.
What was going on?
“Can you see anything, Alex?” he asked loudly, moving away from the wall when three bullets came right through the bunkhouse door. Alex was on the other side of the room, peeking around through the window quickly. He looked at Johnny and shook his head.
He broke the glass out of the window with the butt of his gun and shot through the hole three times. “We’re not gonna be able to do much from in here, Johnny,” he said, looking around. “It’s too dark out there. Can’t see. We shoulda
lit up the place. Left the barn on fire. Something. It’s not gonna be light for another three hours.”
Johnny shook his head. There was nothing he could do about that. He could only hope that the other men were outside and could see what was going on. He knew he could count on the men and his father to keep the women safe. And if they spotted the bandits, they would shoot them dead without hesitation.
But there was a part of him that wished they could capture one of these men and find out who Juan Rivera was and why they were attacking his ranch. With that thought in mind, he scurried across to the back of the bunkhouse and lifted one of the windows. He took a chance and poked his head through the window, looking from left to right. He couldn’t see much but he didn’t see a lantern or any shadows that looked like men running around.
Johnny could, however, hear the sound of yelling, scuffling and a commotion on the other side of the bunkhouse. He could hear what sounded like two men grappling with each other, grunting, the sound of fists making contact.
He vaulted himself through the window and ran around the building. He was somewhat relieved to see Jack, and not his father, fighting with a man wearing black. It looked like the same one who had set fire to the barn, the first one Johnny saw when all of it started.
He dashed toward the two fighting men, slowing only long enough to make sure he was focused on the bandit and wouldn’t accidentally attack his own man. In less than a second he was in the fray, jumping on the bandit’s back, wrapping his arm around the man’s neck and leaning all his weight back. He was able to pull the man off his feet, which gave Jack a chance to whip the gun from his side and aim it. He didn’t pull the trigger though, and Johnny was grateful for it. He could easily have hit Johnny, too.
Johnny flipped the man over, glancing at Alex and saying in a firm voice. “I want to ask him questions. Help me restrain him. Get a rope from the bunkhouse.” He gestured with his head, jerking it in the direction of the building he’d just left. “Are there any more?”
“Not on this side of the compound. The gunshots have stopped. I think this might be the only one of the cowards left.”
The man under him was struggling still, his hands clutching Johnny’s arm, which was still firmly around his neck. It was obvious he couldn’t breathe by the way he was spluttering. Johnny gripped the wrist of the arm around the man’s neck with his other hand and squeezed a little harder.
“Go out, you dog-killer!” he yelled. “Go out!”
It was another full minute before the man finally stopped struggling and went limp. Johnny released his neck and put his hand over the bandit’s mouth. He was still breathing. “Let’s get him inside.”
There had been no gunshots for the entire fight, so Johnny felt confident the bandits were all either dead or that any remaining alive had fled. He grabbed one of the unconscious bandit’s boots and gestured for Jack to take the other foot. “No need to be fancy or wear ourselves out. Let’s get him over here and tie him up.”
They worked together to secure the man, who was still unconscious when they got him into the ranch house. Once inside, Johnny lifted him into a wooden chair, untied him and retied him so he was secured and couldn’t escape.
When the two men brought the bandit in, the women scurried away with frightened looks on their faces. He could hear Alex informing the others what had happened to Kit. His heart squeezed with sorrow and his chest tightened with anger. They had killed his dog. They would pay for that just as soon as he figured out why they were here in the first place.
“I saw him, Johnny,” John Sr. said, setting his rifle against the wall, barrel up, after releasing the unspent bullet from the chamber.
Johnny glanced at his father while he tied the knot around the bandit’s wrists. “Saw who, Pa?” He knew his voice came out rough but he couldn’t help it. There was something about this that made it seem like his father had caused it to begin with. Now his dog was dead and he had to rebuild the barn, which would cost money and time.
“Bekker. Captain Bekker. Well, he ain’t a captain anymore.”
Johnny’s eyes flipped to Gary, remembering their conversation when Bekker and his crew first came to town. “That’s who you were talking about.”
Gary nodded, leaning against the door jamb and hooking his thumbs in his gun belt. “Sure is, boss.”
“So you did know him, Pa?” Johnny asked, standing up straight, glaring at his father. “You did know him? These are his men.” He looked down at the man who was tied up. “You know this guy, too?”
His father looked ashamed. It made Johnny suspicious, a little fearful for his father, and caused him quite a bit of anger toward the man as well. John Sr.’s eyes dropped to the bandit and he slowly nodded.
“Luke. Luke Kesler. He was… he was here with Bekker a few years ago when they came through.”
“Why were they here?” Johnny asked.
John Sr. glanced around him at the ranch hands.
“They put their lives on the line because of this, Pa. They could have died. Their children, their wives could have died. Tell me what’s going on or I swear I will… I don’t know what I will do. I want the truth from you, Pa!”
“He’s a bad man, Johnny. He got everyone but me and another man killed in a raid during the war. He overstepped his bounds and ignored orders, which got all my friends killed. I swore I would tell the general and that’s what I did. I… I guess he’s vowed his revenge. He spent some time in the brig because of me.”
“No, Pa,” Johnny said, shaking his head, his heart hurting for his father who, it turned out, had only tried to do the right thing. “He spent time in the brig because of his own actions. You did the right thing. We’ll turn this guy over to the sheriff in the morning. Which is only a few hours anyway. You men go get some sleep. I think we’ll be okay for tonight.”
He was surprised when Gary, Alex and Jack all shook their heads. They glanced at each other before Jack said, “We’re here for you, Johnny. Besides, we gotta be alert if they come back.”
“Thanks, fellas,” Johnny said seriously. “I appreciate that.”
Chapter 24
All the men stayed up until dawn and rode with Johnny to the sheriff’s office, where they turned Luke Kesler in. For the next week, Johnny stayed on alert. The sheriff put up fresh Wanted posters for Bekker and the three remaining in his crew.
Luke refused to say a word and was eventually sent off with the Texas Rangers, and he would stand trial in Dallas. Apparently, Bekker and his crew had done nothing but criminal activities the entire time they were in the larger town and the authorities had been looking for them for nearly two years.
Johnny usually didn’t carry his revolver when he was doing regular things. But after the incident he began wearing one whenever he left the ranch house, even to work on the land with the hands.
He was relieved to know his father had done nothing wrong. He didn’t owe anyone money. He hadn’t gambled away the ranch. He had done what he was supposed to do.
Johnny rode into town for supplies four days after his ranch was raided. Each time he came to town he hoped to run into Flo, but she seemed to have disappeared just like Bekker and his men. He missed her. More than he thought he would. She came to his mind frequently and stayed there, torturing him because she wasn’t really there.
He looked around him, scanning the streets for her. He passed a dark alleyway between the dress shop and the hat shop and glanced down it without much hope of seeing Flo. He didn’t see anyone. He continued on to the general store and went in, leaving his wagon in the alleyway next to the building so Bekker and his men wouldn’t see it out front. He didn’t think they had a clue what his wagon looked like but he wasn’t taking any chances.
The inside of the store was cooler than outside, which he found refreshing. He walked straight to the counter, where Darren Carter was waiting with a smile. The man was small, with a shock of white hair on his head and the brightest blue eyes Johnny thought he’d ever seen.
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True Love Leaves no Doubts: An Inspirational Historical Romance Book Page 14