Murder Range

by Alan David

  ‘It wouldn’t if you took the chance I’m offering you. Who would suspect that the boss of the Big R is Lobo Johnson the outlaw? It stands to reason, doesn’t it? Or are you struck on Stella Stadden?’

  ‘Leave Stella out of it. She means nothing to me. I helped her when she was in real trouble, and I’ll go on helping her until this thing is finished. But beyond that I’ve got no interest.’

  ‘I waited and prayed that you would come on to Big R range, Lobo. It didn’t seem possible that you ever would. But you have. You’re here now in the flesh. It must be Fate. We’ve been thrown together for some purpose.’

  ‘Well leave it until this trouble is settled,’ he advised. ‘I’ve got too much on my mind at the moment. If Page is doing what you say he is then I’m going to be real busy soon, dodging lead.’

  The girl stood up. She looked down at Lobo with an intense gaze. He could see the longing in her eyes, and realised that he was on treacherous ground. He got to his feet, towering above her.

  ‘Keep off the street when your father rides in,’ he warned. ‘It’s likely that there will be some flying lead.’

  ‘You’re the one who has to watch out.’ She walked to the door. ‘I’m going to tell my father that I don’t want you killed.’

  Lobo walked to the street door as Ginny set off rapidly along the sidewalk. He shook his head slowly as he watched her. When she had passed from sight he stood in the doorway and looked around the street.

  A drumming of hooves attracted Lobo’s attention and he stiffened when he saw a rider coming along the street. The horseman came straight up to the jail and hauled his mount to a slithering halt. Lobo recognised the rider as the man he had arrested on the previous day, who should have followed him into town when he rode in with Ginny Ridge.

  ‘You took a long time getting here,’ Lobo said sharply. He noticed that the gunman was not carrying weapons. ‘You were told to come in last night.’

  ‘I got lost in the dark.’ The man came on to the sidewalk. ‘Page told me to come and surrender myself, but he didn’t say when. I figured I’d come before the judge today, so there was no need to hurry.’

  The gunman entered the office. Lobo took a bunch of keys out of the right-hand drawer of the desk, took the man into the cell block and locked him in. When he got back into the office Gruber and Olly were there.

  ‘What was all that about?’ the sheriff asked.

  ‘A gunman I arrested yesterday. He was told to come in and surrender himself. The charge is obstructing a peace officer in the execution of his duty.’

  ‘Well that beats all,’ Gruber said, taking off his hat. The old lawman wrinkled his nose. ‘There’s been a woman in here within the last hour,’ he commented. ‘And it wasn’t Stella Stadden.’

  ‘Right. It was Ginny Ridge.’ Lobo did not further enlighten Gruber.

  ‘It looks like being another good day,’ said Olly. ‘What’s the deal, sheriff?’

  ‘I want Ben to remain in this office all the time Ridge and his men are in town. Pommel will be like a keg of gunpowder today. I don’t want any fire to start things popping. There will be some Ridge riders who feel they should avenge the deaths of the men you killed, Ben. Ridge will likely bring these men into town with him just for the hell of seeing if they can handle you.’

  ‘But I promised to see Ridge at noon in the hotel,’ Lobo said. ‘You know, I’m inclined to believe the story Ginny told me about her father being duped by Page. I’m going to try and talk some cold sense into Ridge. I’ll wait inside the hotel for him to show, and come straight back here afterwards. That suit you, sheriff?’

  ‘Yeah, Ben, though I don’t like it. You wouldn’t have a chance if they set up a gun trap for you. They’d cut you down if they caught you dead to rights.’

  ‘I wonder if Ridge did fire those riders before they attacked the Stadden place,’ Lobo mused. ‘If he did then his eyes should be halfway opened already. Ginny Ridge is real close to her old man. He thinks the world of her, so it stands to reason that he would take notice of what she says.’

  ‘Have another talk with her,’ Gruber ordered. ‘It would be a good thing if we can make a friend of someone on Ridge’s side.’

  ‘Is there anything else you want me to do?’ Lobo asked.

  ‘Not at the moment. You’ll have to be in court today to give evidence of how those gunmen died. You’ll say it was self defence, and Stella Stadden will corroborate that. You say you’ve arranged to see Ridge at noon?’

  ‘Yes. I’ll come straight back here after seeing him.’

  ‘The judge will open court at two-thirty this afternoon. It may be a tricky time with Ridge’s gunnies in town. Step lightly,’ Gruber said.

  ‘Yeah,’ Lobo grinned at Olly. ‘Be seeing you.’

  As he approached the hotel Lobo saw Stella. He thought how beautiful she looked. Her eyes were sad, and her chin wasn’t held as high as he had seen it. But she smiled a greeting and his blood quickened.

  ‘Good morning, Stella. How are you feeling?’

  ‘I’m restless and depressed, Ben. I want to go back to the spread. I could get a man in to help me run it, couldn’t I? What do you think?’

  ‘Well.’ He rubbed his chin. ‘If you got the right sort of man I figure it should be all right. But the best thing you could do is take a husband. There must be some young men in the neighbourhood who paid court to you.’

  ‘No one,’ she said simply. ‘I know one or two in a friendly way, but none came calling. We were always too busy. In any case they’re all peace-loving men. I couldn’t ask any of them to come over and run my place. Ridge’s riders would soon come swooping down.’

  ‘What kind of man do you figure on hiring?’

  ‘I thought a gunman would help.’ She spoke hopefully.

  ‘No.’ He thought awhile. ‘A gunman wouldn’t help you run the place. He wouldn’t soil his hands. He would only get himself killed. One man couldn’t fight off an army, no matter how good he was.’

  ‘My very words to you, Ben,’ she said softly. ‘Can I persuade you to come with me?’

  ‘Not a chance.’ His face was expressionless. ‘I’m all tied up here in town. I’m a stranger to this county and it really isn’t my fight. The townsfolk aren’t going to rally round and help Gruber. But I’m a paid lawman so I’ve got to stick. I’ll have to do their dirty work for them.’

  ‘They don’t want to get hurt,’ she reasoned. ‘They’re only human.’

  ‘And I suppose I’m not. If I stop a bullet I won’t bleed, and I shan’t feel it. Or is it that I’m a stranger around here, and if I get killed it won’t matter because there’s no one here who will miss me?’

  ‘No, of course not.’ Her voice faltered. ‘I can never hope to repay you for everything you’ve done for me. You could so easily have been killed. I realise now that I never should have asked you to help me. It never was your fight. If you are killed then it will be on account of me.’

  ‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘Even though I am an outlaw I could never take cold-blooded killing. There’s something in my make-up that compels me to fight if I see it. So this is my fight as much as anyone’s, and I’m going to fight Ridge and all this trouble. I may use some strange weapons, but whatever happens, Stella, remember that I’m only interested in ending the threat that lies over this range.’

  ‘What are you planning now?’

  ‘I figure on co-operating with Ginny Ridge.’ Lobo looked down into Stella’s troubled eyes. ‘Do you know that she’s the most powerful person on this range? Ridge would do anything to please her. So I’m going to hope that he will protect me just because she’ll ask him to.’

  ‘Why should she want to do that?’

  ‘That’s a long story.’ Lobo sighed. He recounted his conversations with Ginny Ridge. ‘I think I’ll be much safer in her pocket. She’ll be able to keep most of the wolf pack off my heels when the pace warms up.’

  ‘No, no.’ Stella shook her head desperately. ‘Can’t y
ou see that she would feed you to the wolves if it pleased her to do so? She’ll have you looking the other way when Page pulls a gun on you. I beg of you to be careful. I daresay you think this is a case of one woman talking about the other, but I assure you that it isn’t. Ginny Ridge is a bad lot.’

  ‘I’ll believe that when I’ve got the proof,’ Lobo said slowly. ‘When are you moving back to your place?’

  ‘As soon as I can find a man willing to live under the constant threat of Ridge’s gunmen.’

  ‘And if you don’t find anyone suitable?’

  ‘Then I’ll go alone. If those gunmen come again looking for trouble they’ll find plenty. I’m a good shot, and I shan’t be afraid to die. I’d take a few of them with me.’

  ‘I’ll look out for you, Stella,’ he said softly. ‘Wait until after the court today. Something may emerge. Ridge may see the light. The fact that he has been summoned to court should warn him that the community will only take so much from him.’

  ‘It won’t do any good at all,’ she said dismally. ‘Ridge knows the town is afraid of his riders. He knows the folk won’t stick together.’

  ‘We’ll see. Now I’ve got to be pushing on. I must see Ginny Ridge again before her father shows up. I’ll come and see you this afternoon. You’ve got to appear before the judge. I’ll come and pick you up about two.’

  ‘I’ll wait for you.’ She smiled wanly and turned away. Lobo watched her for a moment with tightening lips. Then he swung and entered the hotel.

  He learned from the clerk that Ginny had gone up to her room. Lobo catfooted up the stairs and rapped at the door.

  Ginny came to the door wearing a knee-length silken dressing-gown in light blue, held close at the waist by a narrow silken cord. Her neck and throat attracted Lobo’s gaze, and he noticed the creaminess of her skin where the sun’s rays had not caught her. She stepped back, revealing a brown knee when the edges of her dressing-gown fell apart under her movement.

  ‘Come in. I was just dressing. What’s on your mind, Lobo?’

  ‘You.’ Lobo entered and shut the door.

  ‘Help yourself to a drink,’ she commanded. ‘There’s a tray over there. Pour me a whisky.’

  Lobo obliged, and when he turned around with the two glasses in his hands she was standing before him in a shimmering, loose flowing dress of soft green material. The dressing-gown hung over the back of a chair.

  ‘Like it?’ she asked. ‘I had this made specially for my birthday next week. I’ll be eighteen. There’s a big dance over in Clear Wells next Saturday night. I’m hoping you’ll take me.’

  ‘I might at that,’ he said.

  She studied his hard face for a moment, and he could not help comparing her with Stella. Slowly Ginny came towards him, holding his gaze. She took the drinks from his hands and set them down. Her intense eyes never left his face.

  ‘Are you feeling what I can see in your face, Lobo?’ she asked softly.

  She leaned towards him and her hands touched his shoulders. Her eyes were alive with an inner flame. Lobo looked down into her face. Her lips were parted. Her breath was warm against his cheek. He felt yearning build up its fire inside him.

  ‘Kiss me,’ she ordered, and pressed hard against his chest. Her eyes closed and her mouth came up to his. He sighed and bent over her, grasping her tightly with his strong hands. She shuddered convulsively as their lips touched, and sagged in his arms, uttering little unintelligible noises in her throat.

  ‘Lobo.’ Her voice was muffled against him. The top of her head came level with his chin. ‘You do feel something for me, don’t you?’ she pleaded. ‘I’m sure you do. I can feel it in the beating of your heart. Tell me you feel for me, Lobo.’

  ‘I do,’ he whispered shakily. ‘I do feel for you, Ginny. But this is all wrong. I’m on the other side of the fence.’

  ‘It doesn’t matter. We’ve been over all that, Lobo. If you love me I can help you. You want to make a fresh start, Lobo. Well here’s your chance. You’ve honestly repented your wild life, and that’s why we’ve been thrown together, for me to help you get straight. I’m sure of that. You’ve got the nerve and the skill to break my father out of Page’s clutches, and by doing that you’ll be saving the lives of a lot of innocent people. That in itself will be atonement for your past wild life, Lobo. Don’t you see? The people of Pommel will appreciate you for helping them, and if they found out later who you really are they would shield you.’

  ‘You don’t understand. People have such short memories.’ Lobo shook his head slowly. ‘Have you ever thought what it will be like if we were married? Every footstep outside the door, every hoofbeat in the yard, will have you swinging round and me reaching for a gun. We’ll both of us he expecting a lawman or a posse. We won’t say it to each other, but it’ll be there in our eyes when we look our relief if the steps prove to be harmless. It will always be like that, Ginny, until the day they get me.’

  Footsteps sounded outside the door, paused, then there was a discreet tap.

  ‘Your father has just arrived, Miss Ridge,’ a voice called through the panels. ‘He wants you and Mister Johnson to call on him now in room twenty-five.’

  Chapter Eight

  REUBEN RIDGE WAS comfortably ensconced in the best room of the hotel, and Buck Page was with the obese rancher when Lobo escorted Ginny into the room. Page made little effort to greet Lobo affably, and Lobo felt himself grow hot when he saw Page’s eyes travel intimately over Ginny’s figure.

  ‘Are you all right?’ Page demanded. ‘You look a bit roughed up. No one in town has been getting out of line with you, have they?’

  ‘Of course not,’ Ginny snapped. ‘And if they had I expect the reason will be that I associate with polecats and sidewinders. Mister Johnson took very good care of me. I haven’t enjoyed myself so much in years.’

  Lobo returned Page’s almost hostile glance with a cool stare. Lobo felt something die inside him. Nothing caused trouble faster between men than a woman. Was Ginny doing this deliberately? Lobo wondered at that. The girl could be professing to love him to get her way and work some insidious evil. But the girl didn’t look evil. Lobo had to admit to himself that Ginny looked nothing if not beautiful. But beauty was only skin deep. What was going on in the brain behind the girl’s lovely face?

  ‘Page, take Ginny on to the sidewalk until I come out. I want to have a few words with Johnson.’

  Page turned obediently to the door and held it open. Ginny gave Lobo a significant stare and strode out with Page at her heels. He’s not fit to lick her boots, Lobo thought. He waited until the door closed before he looked at Ridge. The immense rancher had loosened his stiff white collar. His voluminous jacket hung over the back of the wicker-bottom chair in which he was seated. Ridge looked like a man in the last stages of exhaustion. He poured himself a drink of water from a large jug standing on the table at his elbow.

  ‘See here, Johnson, I’m not going to mince matters. I want you on my payroll. You are much too good a man to stand against me. You see, from my angle there are only two ways to deal with you. One is to make you a friend; that is, to employ you. The other is not to make you an enemy, and the only way I can do that is by having you killed. But that could prove costly. I lost six good riders on account of you being so fast with a gun, so I can’t afford to have you against me. What do you say? Will you come and work for me for two-fifty dollars a month?’

  ‘That’s a lot of money!’ Lobo ejaculated. ‘What would I have to do — rob a bank? That’s an awful lot of money. I would think you’ve got some unlawful venture on hand to be offering that kind of wage.’

  ‘I figure you’ll be worth it. I don’t want you against me. And there’s my daughter to consider. She hates Page. So I must have another man for her. She seems to have taken a liking to you, so I figure you could take care of her. You’ve already proved that you can take care of yourself.’

  ‘Don’t you think Page can handle me? He’s your top gunhand. It’s his job to p
ut me away if you say so.’

  Ridge glanced at the closed door. He lowered his hoarse voice to a raspy whisper.

  ‘I think Page is playing some deep game of his own. Those six men I fired; the ones you killed at the Stadden place, wouldn’t have carried out that raid without orders from someone.’

  ‘That figures,’ Lobo said quietly. ‘I’ve been hearing some interesting things along the same lines. I’ve heard that Page has been playing you against the rest of the country. It could be true at that. Page could be pulling a hide over your eyes.’

  ‘Thinking back,’ Ridge mused, ‘all the things that happened which were supposed to be the work of the other ranchers could have been rigged by Page. That means he’s after the Big R.’

  ‘And he’s going to make his try through your daughter.’

  ‘Well he won’t get far with her.’ Ridge laughed the noise a deep rumble in his chest. ‘She hates his guts.’

  ‘Why don’t you fire him?’

  ‘I don’t know about that.’ Ridge shook his head. ‘I need him to run things. Men think twice about causing trouble when there’s a gunman of Page’s calibre on the payroll.’

  ‘Is that why you want me as well? Or are you hoping that Page will turn jealous over Ginny and call me out?’

  ‘Are you faster than Page?’

  ‘I don’t know, and neither does Page. The only way we can find out is by fighting, and that means the slower of the two will never know. I’m not prepared to stake my life on the assumption that I am faster than Page. I don’t want to risk it for two-fifty a month. I’ve got plenty of money,’ Lobo grinned. ‘I’ve always found money easy to come by.’

  ‘But you’re risking it for the law for about half what I’m offering you.’

  ‘That’s different. There’s another reason for that which means more to me than money. I mean to see that innocent people don’t suffer in all this trouble. There’s been some brutal killings round here, and it’s been done either on your say-so, or by men acting on Page’s orders; men paid by you. I’m going to find out, if I should live so long, and help put a rope around the necks of the men responsible.’