by Nancy Howard
Henry goes again to the bottom of the stairs and says loudly, “Brittany. Come down here. Jay is here for you.”
Brittany comes down the stairs again, this time with her bag in hand.
Henry looks at her, “What are you doing?”
She reaches the bottom step and says to him. “I'm leaving daddy. I, we want nothing to do with what your doing to the Sandersons.”
"I thought I told you that what I do in my business life, is none of your concern young lady. Now stop this nonsense and go back up and unpack that bag, you're not going anywhere, especially with him.”
“I won't. And oh yes I am going with him,” she says, stepping down and forcing her way past her father.
“So this is what you want?” He questions her curtly.
“Yes, yes it is.”
He pauses for a second, then says coldly, and nonchalantly, “very well. Get out and don't ever come back. Either of you.”
He says this and then calmly walks directly into his office, shutting the door behind him.
Jay and Brittany quickly go out the door to mount up and leave. Never to return to Rio Doso again.
Henry sets down at his desk and watches them leave, he puts his head in his hands momentarily, then gets up and walks over to the safe again. This time he retrieves the money that is left, and decides that it's time for him to leave too. The day before he let everyone on the ranch go, paying them what he could, as he realizes that he's played this out a much as he can. His land grabbing scheme has failed once again, as things have begun to quickly unravel for him.
JONES AND HIS GANG of four riders have arrived at the mesa, and could see it in front of them. It's about ten in the morning, as they wade their horses through the shallow water of the creek, crossing to the other side and onto John's land.
They ride around a bend and the up the side of the mesa to the top, to a huge expanse of grazing land. There are about two hundred or so head of cattle scattered about in front of them, and off to their right about a hundred fifty yards away is a grove of trees and scrub brush. It is where John and Gavin are waiting for them, out of their sight. Right away from that distance they recognize Jones, but didn't know the other four men.
John and Gavin are quiet, but Gavin whispers to John, “so much for him being a security man.”
“Yes he's security all right,” John whispers back. “He's making sure of Henry's security, by stealing my cows.”
Jones sets on his horse looking around, noticing the trees and brush. He's savvy to this type of thing. He has to be given his line of work, as he looks in that direction, it makes him uneasy. Thinking that it would be a great place for someone to hide and watch what they're doing, waiting to ambush them.
He was right, as the four other riders begin to herd up thirty or forty head of cattle to drive them back down the mesa. John and Gavin are mounted up, and ride around and out from behind the grove of brush and trees. Riding fast toward the rustlers, their guns firing. Jones immediately sees them coming and draws his six gun, and begins to shoot back at them. He misses as his horse rares up, but he continues to shoot at them anyway.
The rustlers look back after hearing the gunshots, and also see John and Gavin riding hard and fast in their direction, shooting at them. They quickly decide to make a run for it, as they disband quickly, and ride off in all different directions as fast as they can, not wanting to get shot or captured.
Jones has fired his six gun at Gavin and John and empties the chamber. So instead of getting caught himself, he puts his gun away, and turns his horse quickly around and heads off back down the mesa, crossing the creek. Riding as fast as his horse will go, he thinks that he will be safe on the other side, because it's Henry's property.
John and Gavin have stopped in the middle of the herd, which is scattered everywhere now, and turn their horses around, just in time to watch Jones ride off and down the mesa, in a full gallop.
“Want a go after him?”
“Yep.”
“What about those others.”
“Let em go. It's him we want,” John shouts to Gavin.
They head out as fast as they can, chasing after Jones. He is riding hard, and headed straight for the Baker ranch house.
Jones nearly rides his horse into the ground, pushing it hard, trying get away form Gavin and John. He needs to get back to tell Henry as fast as he can, and tell him what has happened. He rides up to the ranch house and quickly dismounts. He walks up on the front porch and knocks on the front door. No answer. No Brittany this time either. He wonders. He looks all around him, and sees that there's not a soul to be seen. No one. Even Jay's horse is gone. What the hell's going on? Where's Henry? He knows he has little time to find Henry and tell him what has happened, he's not sure how far behind him Sanderson and Sloan are.
At this point he says to himself, “I'm gettin' the hell out a here.”
Then he hears riders. He turns and he sees John and Gavin riding at full gallop, and they're on him before he has time to mount up. He tries to draw his gun to shoot them, but the chamber is empty.
Gavin is off of his horse on the run, and is right next to Jones. Jones is still trying to mount his horse and get away. Gavin drags him off, and Jones takes a swing at Gavin. It's a right hook that Gavin blocks, and then he hits Jones squarely in the jaw, knocking him back against his horse.
John has dismounted and joins the fray, getting there just as Gavin drives his fist into Jones' gut, causing him to double. Then John aids Gavin, as the two of them grab Jones, who is still violently fighting them, trying to get away. They wrestle him to the ground to where he is face down. Gavin drops down squarely with his knee in Jones' back to keep him from getting up. But he's still struggling hard against them, so John takes his six gun out and hits Jones in the head, knocking him out. He goes over to his horse and gets a rope out of his saddle bag, and hands it to Gavin, to tie Jones up.
John looks up and all around, noticing that there's not a soul in sight. He says to Gavin, “where the hell is everybody?”
“Huh,” Gavin looks up. “what do you mean?”
“I mean there's no one here, nobody at all. Stay here and watch him, while I check this out.”
John goes up onto the porch and knocks on the door. No answer, and like Jones he wonders what is going on? There's no Henry, no Brittany, no anybody. John then decides to walk the fifty yards to the bunkhouse, when he opens the door he finds it deserted too, no one in there. He wonders where Jay is? Out on the range? There's still livestock in the corral about four horses, and there are chickens running around everywhere.
“Find anybody,” Gavin asks, as John approaches.
“No. It's really strange. It's like everyone cleared out all of a sudden.
Jones is beginning to come too, and as the grogginess of the blow to his head wears off. Gavin sets him up.
Then John asks, “you know where everybody is Jones?”
“No.” He answers in a surly manner, not pleased at his predicament. His hands are tied up behind him and he's setting next to the porch railing.
“Were you here earlier today, “Gavin asks Jones?
“Yeah this morning.”
“Was anybody here then,” John questions him?
“I only saw Henry and his daughter when I was here.
“What time?”
“Hell how should I know. Maybe eight or so. I don't know. I didn't see nobody else. I'm tellin' you the truth, I was as surprised as you are when I got here, and found nobody around. That bastard owes me seven grand.”
John looks down at Jones and says,“Yeah for stealin' my cows. Right?
“Yeah.”
“Well you ain't gonna get paid Jones, cause were gonna take you to jail.”
Jones was quiet, to embarrassed to says anything. The smirks he exhibited toward Logan and Gavin, at the Sanderson party a couple of months ago, are gone due to his capture.
“What about the fact that nobodies around,” Gavin asks?
/> “Well Gavin we'll have to solve that mystery another day. Right now we need to get him into town and to the sheriff, so he can throw his ass in jail.” John says. Looking disgustedly at Jones.
On the way into town John and Gavin begin to chat.
“So Gavin it's really none of my business, but you and Logan seem to be on the road to bigger things.”
Gavin pauses before he answered, “If you're talkin' about us maybe getting married John, I will say this. Yeah we've talked about it, but we want to give it a little time. You know make sure it's for us, because right now we like things as they are.”
“I remember when you got here, you had a one minded attitude about catchin' Hogg and his gang of thugs.”
“That ain't changed. It's just that now Logan and me, we see that there's more to life than bein' bounty hunters. We like workin' and living here on the ranch.”
“Well Catherine and I sure are glad you two like it there. It has certainly has made the two of you more stable in life.”
“Yeah this is what she wants, John, I will tell you that. She wants stability and respect, and a family. I think she's found that, just as I think it's great what you and Catherine are doing for her, giving her the opportunity to run the ranch and all.”
"We love that girl. Cath and I do."
Gavin looks at him and shakes his head, “I know that, and so does everybody else."
John grins hearing him say that, “So what about Hogg? You never really answered me, we got sidetracked talking about Logan."
“Well sir. As Logan says, If they choose to come around here anywhere, they'll have me and her to deal with. We ain't given up the thought of bringing them to justice, and the only way that is going happen now, is for them to show up here.
John rides along side and listens, as he remembers this brash young man who came to the ranch looking for Logan, wondering why she took a job with him. He wasn't really sure he wanted to take John's offer. But he did it, because he wanted to be where Logan was. She wanted him near, and now that same young man, Gavin Sloan, is the ranch foreman.
CHAPTER TWENTY- SIX
Henry Baker quickly gathered some of his things and headed off to town. It is his plan to leave, and not return. He had let everyone from his ranch go the day before, as he planned to leave the Rio Doso area. All of his business dealings while appearing on the up and up, were a scam. There are no European investors, as he told Bill Chafield the bank president about. Telling him the bank would get paid its money for the land he'd bought, as soon as his investors could send him the cash.
Lately unbeknownst to anyone Bill Chatfield had become suspicious about Henry. He began to get concerned, because Baker was not paying off his land notes on a regular basis. He kept telling Chatfield about the hard times in Britain, and that it would be while longer. Bill had extended all of the credit he could to Baker, and the bank still did not get paid. So with his suspicions growing about Baker, he had the Sheriff do some digging around on him.
The sheriff sent telegrams and letters to as many law agencies, that he thought would have records on Henry. After over three months of waiting for an answer, the sheriff found out from the U.S. Marshall that Baker is a nothing but a con man, and that he runs an elaborate land grabbing scheme. He is not rich at all, as Logan and John have surmised. He left England because Scotland Yard was on his heels.
He has also ran this crazy land grabbing scheme in Oklahoma, before coming to New Mexico Territory. In his scheme, he would pretend to be very rich, and begin buying up large portions of land next to a large ranch, with his investor story. Thus securing himself and Brittany a place to live. While he rustled cattle from the large ranch, with the sole intention of running them out of business. Once he had that ranch in his possession, he could borrow against it's value, and payoff the land notes he'd signed for earlier. Then he would have cattle and land. He would be the biggest rancher anywhere. The problem is it never worked, not in Oklahoma, and not here in Rio Doso.
It was his intention to run this scheme until the end, because he did want to run John and Catherine out of business. He figured that if he squeezed them enough, they would beg him to buy their ranch. He figured that with Sanderson's Hill being a big cattle ranch, with only cows as a commodity, he would steal John blind. Then they, the Sandersons would have no way to making a living. He thought that they'd have no recourse at that point, but to sell out to him.
What Henry did is, he misjudged John's cunning. He hired Logan and Gavin to put the pressure on, and that's when Henry's scheme started to fall apart. That property out by the by the mesa was his best place to rustle the cattle, because the rest of the herd was constantly being shepherded by cowhands. But it was his full intention to have Tass Jones disrupt that eventually, and rustle those cows too. Hiring Jones was his last resort to hurt the Sandersons and gain Sanderon's Hill Ranch for himself.
His plan is to board the train and head for California. Henry knows that John will tie him to the cattle rustling that has been going on, on his property. He's sure too that he may never see Brittany again, but doesn't even know of her whereabouts now, since she left with Jay this morning. He knows it is for the best that she left with Jay.
As Henry drives his buggy toward town, up ahead of him he sees five riders blocking the road. He wonders who they might be? They were strangers to him, he'd never seen them before.
It's Bailey Hogg and his gang.
They sit on their horses and watch Henry get closer. They see that he's alone.
Henry stops in front of them, and says, “Can I get by gents? I need to get to Rio Doso, I have an important meeting there.”
Henry has no idea who he is dealing with. He can see they're a scruffy, dirty, and unkempt bunch, but that doesn't bother him at all. He has dealt with these types of men all of his life.
“Did ya hear that Bailey? Man wants to get by, says he needs to get to Rio Doso. He's got an important meetin' there he says,” Charlie Demp mocks.
“I heered it,” Bailey replies, grinning deviously. “Did you hear im boys? He talks funny.”
“Ya I think he sounds like one of them goddamned Englishers,” Doak says.
“Didn't we run them sonofbitches the hell out of our country a hundred years or so ago,” Bailey chides.
“Ya I hear we kilt a whole bunch of em too,” Charlie says.
“Well let's kill one more,” Bailey says. Then he draws his pistol and points it straight at Henry, readying to kill him.
By now, Henry realizes that his life is in extreme danger, and being the wheeler dealer he is, he says back, “Gentlemen, Gentleman, there is no need for that. If you let me pass, and follow me to town, I can make it worth your while.”
“What you tryin' to do Englisher,” Charlie questions?
“I'm merely trying to make you boys richer that's all.”
“Talk Englisher,” Bailey says, glaring at Henry. Just barely controlling his urge to kill him.
“I'm a very wealthy man, and when we get to town, it will pay you not kill me.”
“How so,” Bailey asks?
“Well for one thing if you want to rob the bank, I can get you easy entrance.”
“We don't need you to get us into that bank in Rio Doso, Englisher. We'll just walk in and kill everybody, then break into the vault and steal every dollar in it.”
“Then have it your way. Shoot me. But if you go into town with me you'll attract much less attention. I have heard that Sheriff Case is looking for the five of you. You are Bailey Hogg aren't you?” Henry questions them, now knowing who he's dealing with.
Hogg sets there for a few seconds and then says, “Ya I am Bailey Hogg, what's it to ya mister.”
“Nothing, nothing at all, I just think it would be wise for you to do what I'm suggesting, because like I just said Sheriff Case is looking for you.”
“Mister we know every other fuckin' law man in the territory is lookin' for us too. And it don't bother us one damn bit.” Then he points his g
un at Henry again and starts to shoot him.
Then Doak speaks up, “hold on a sec Bailey. He does have a point ya know. It could be easier for us to get into that thar bank, if we ride into that town with im.”
Hogg doesn't pull the trigger, and thinks again. “Okay, Englisher you win fer now, cause it don't matter what you do after we get to that town, and that bank. We gonna kill you anyway. We'll follow ya but if you try anythun'. Try to run from us or somethin' you're gonna die in a split second. Ya got that?”
Henry just looks at Hogg knowing all he's done is bought himself some time.
“Got it.” Henry responds faking fear in his voice. He also knows that he has saved his own neck for now. He knows that this is the Bailey Hogg gang that has ravaged the area for sometime. So he figures if he leads them into town, there's a reasonable chance that they could be caught. He knows that it will be to his advantage to cooperate with them, for now. And he knows the town will immediately recognize Hogg and his Gang. That they will quickly go get the Sheriff, whether they are with him or not. He also figures the town will be so busy trying to capture Bailey and his gang, that no one will notice him getting on the train and leaving.
On the outskirts of town they stop and Bailey asks, “What er we stoppin' fer? Englisher.”
“Henry looks at him and says,” No guns. If you have your gun on me then someone will notice right away. Trust me on this. If you want the money. Put your gun away.”
Hogg sat for a minute and thought about this and said, “What if we was to jus' kill you now Englisher, and just go into that town and rob that bank. Hell we ain't afraid a no goddamn sheriff. We gonna kill every livin' soul we come in contact with, in that thar town anyway.”
“And you could, but you could also get killed in the process, all of you, and not be able to have any money, and be rich.”
Hogg thinks on what Henry said for a few seconds, then says okay, and motions for Henry to go on as he puts his gun away. But again warns Henry about tricking them.