by Zavo
“It’s good to see you as well, Luke. I always enjoy my stay at your hacienda. My companion is up in my room at this moment waiting for me. Colonel Sandoval is with me as well. I think he is bathing. Have there been any more unwanted guests since this morning?”
“So, you heard about it as well?”
“I was here when it happened. There is the potential for trouble, and I think perhaps you should come to my room to discuss. First I must ask who this fine looking man is? And another redhead to boot. I won’t be able to keep my soldiers away from here!”
Luke laughed and introduced me to Alejandro. He gallantly took my hand and kissed the back of it.
“Brigadier General Alejandro Reyes, at your service.”
“Unfortunately, Alejandro, Ben is not one of the boys. He was lost and stumbled upon the trail to the hacienda. He is staying with us for a few weeks, and then expects to move on.”
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Ben. If you ever decide to become one of the boys, I would be honored to partake of your charms.”
“I will keep that in mind, Brigadier General.”
“Now, Luke, I must speak to you.”
“Do you mind if Ben joins us, Alejandro?”
“Not if you think he is trustworthy. But we need to go now.”
I could sense the urgency in Alejandro’s response.
As we climbed the stairs to Alejandro’s room, I was overcome with a sense of foreboding. When we reached the room, he opened it and showed us in, then closed the door behind us. A large black man, the largest man I think I had ever seen, was sitting at a small table, sipping either whiskey or tequila.
“Luke and Ben, this is Ezekiel.”
As Luke and I were shaking hands with Ezekiel, a figure suddenly entered the room from the balcony.
“Ben, is that really you?”
It was Jake. I had finally found him. My heart began pounding in my chest, and I felt myself falling. I heard a thud, and then there was just blackness.
*
When I came to, there was an enormous pounding in my head. I reached up and with my fingers found an egg-sized lump on my forehead. Memory flooded back to me. Had I really seen Jake coming in from the balcony? Or was that the effect of too much tequila and wishful thinking? I was still in Alejandro’s room, and I was naked under the covers of his bed.
“Luke, Luke,” I shouted. “Where are you?”
I sat up in bed and swung my legs onto the floor. When I tried to stand, a wave of dizziness overcame me. As I eased back onto the bed, I heard someone at the door.
“Luke?”
The door opened and Jake walked in. He was alive. It hadn’t been a dream. He was real and standing in front of me.
“No, it’s me, Ben. It’s Jake. Everything is going to be all right.”
I couldn’t speak. I simply held out my arms and he came and sat next to me. I felt his face, his hair, and his arms. I leaned into him and placed my head on his shoulder. His familiar smells flowed over me, and I drank them in as if they were a fine whiskey. I picked my head up from his shoulder and stared in the blue eyes that I had not seen in months. The blue eyes that I thought I was never going to see again. He leaned in and kissed me, and I could taste his recently smoked cheroot on his tongue and lips. He kissed me deeply and slowly, as if it was our first time.
“I love you, Ben Masters.”
“I love you, Jake Slater.”
I scooted back on the bed till my head was resting on the pillow. As Jake undressed, I drank in the sight of his naked body: every hair, muscle, and curve. He crawled beside me and turned on his side facing me. I did the same, resting my head on his arm. Tears were flowing freely down my face.
“I thought you were dead, Jake. I saw you take two bullets.”
“That rancher, John Stewart, found me and nursed me back to health. As soon as I could, I set out for Abilene, taking the train so I would make better time. When I got there, I ran afoul of Seth and Nathaniel. Seth was claiming I killed his brother, James, who we knew as Sheriff Rawlins. They locked me up, and that’s where I met Ezekiel.”
I interrupted Jake, telling him of the death of Sheriff Rawlins and Monty Summers. I went on to tell of my time with Josiah, and the arrival of Seth and Nathaniel. I ended with my disastrous ride to Mexico, and my finding the hacienda.
“If it hadn’t been for them, Jake, I would never have known you were alive!”
“I don’t plan on thanking them anytime soon, Ben.”
“How did you escape from jail in Abilene?”
“Ezekiel and I initially overpowered Roy, Nathaniel’s Deputy, and then Nathaniel and Seth. We locked them up in one of the cells. Before I left town I went to the undertaker’s to confirm you were dead. Sheriff Rawlins was in one coffin, and as far as I could tell, you were in the other. Believing you were dead, and knowing Seth and Nathaniel would quickly be hot on my trail, I decided to set out for Mexico to build a new life. I accidentally fell in with a group of outlaws, which ultimately brought me to Mexico.”
“You, a Texas Ranger, were part of an outlaw gang!”
“It’s not as simple as it sounds. That’s a story for another day. Right now there are more important things I can be doing with my mouth.”
Jake leaned over and kissed me. After several more kisses, he ran his tongue over my cheeks and neck. From there he worked his way down my neck to my nipples. He worked both nubs for several minutes. He finally released the left one and licked his way through my chest hair to my crotch. He buried his face in my crotch hair and inhaled deeply. I was fully hard. Jake pressed my stiffer flat against my stomach and ran his tongue up and down the shaft. After several passes, he moved to my balls. He took turns with each one, sucking them into his mouth, rolling them around, and sucking on them softly. He released my left ball and licked below my sac, heading for my taint. After swabbing it thoroughly, he released my prick and took the large crown into his mouth. He rolled his tongue around it several times before swallowing my shaft.
As soon as he reached the root, he sawed back to the knob. He repeated this a half dozen times. Suddenly, he grabbed me at my thighs and placed my feet over his shoulders. He spit several times into his hand and spread it on his prick. He spit twice more and spread this on my hole. He parted my cheeks, and I felt his cock slide between them. He pushed hard just once, and he was through the ring of muscle and sinking deep into me. When he was fully inside me, he withdrew slowly and then plunged back in.
“Give it to me, Jake.”
He began pounding my ass. Each penetration was hard and deep. He spit into his right hand and slicked up my stiffer. He made a fist and began slowly stroking me in time to his thrusts. He paused to lift my feet from his shoulders and place them at his waist. I quickly slid them behind him and locked my heels in the small of his back. He released my stiffer, placed his hands flat on my stomach, and increased his thrusts. I could feel a powerful explosion building deep within me. I grabbed my cock in my left hand, added some more spit, and began stroking it furiously. Jake was hammering my ass relentlessly.
“I’m gonna blow, Ben!”
He sank into me a final time and held his cock deep inside me. I felt his spunk flowing. When Jake was spent, he grabbed my stiffer out of my hand and finished me off with a few strokes. As my seed plopped onto my stomach, Jake scooped it up with his fingers and ate it. He then pulled out of me and spread out on top of me.
“I sure missed being inside you, Ben.”
“We have a lot of lost time to make up for, Jake.”
As Jake leaned up and kissed me, there was a knock on the door.
“It’s Melchor, Ben. I’ve brought some supper for you and Jake.”
“Please come in, Melchor.”
He opened the door and came in carrying an enormous tray. He set it down on the bed between us. It contained a large platter with strips of steak, onions, peppers, beans, rice, and a stack of corn tortillas. There was a smaller platter of fruit: melons, pears, appl
es, and grapes. Ignacio came into the room close on Melchor’s heels. He was carrying a tray with a large pitcher of water, a bottle of whiskey, a bottle of tequila, and two glasses.
“Everything is the compliments of Mr. Mathers, Señors. Is there anything else you require?”
We both shook our heads.
“Very good. You will not be disturbed till the morning, when we will bring you breakfast.”
With that, the two men turned and exited the room.
“Where is Alejandro, Jake?”
“Well, you fainted when you saw me, and hit your head on one of the chairs. After assuring Alejandro and Luke you weren’t dead, they went downstairs to play cards while I attended to you. I had just gone downstairs to check on things and was returning to the room when I heard you hollering for Luke.”
He paused for a moment, and I knew there was something he had to tell me. But I was pretty sure I could guess. A man like Jake could not be alone for long.
“Were you starting to develop feelings for Alejandro, Jake?”
I could see the pained expression on his face as he thought how he should best answer.
“It’s okay, Jake. I was starting to have feelings for Luke as well. I was beginning to lose faith that I’d find you.”
He breathed a sigh of relief.
“Same here, Ben. I told Alejandro that I wanted to be with you, and not him. He took it well, but I know he was hoping for much more.”
“I still need to talk to Luke, but I’m sure he knows what my decision will be. But that can wait till later. Right now, let’s eat.”
When we were done eating, he took me in his arms once more and we fell asleep. We hadn’t been asleep very long when someone knocked on the door. It was Ignacio.
“Come in.”
“Ben, Luke told me to come and tell you that the two men from yesterday have returned. And they are not alone.”
“Thank you, Ignacio.”
Jake and I got dressed and left Alejandro’s room. We headed for my room on the second floor. It was at the front of the hacienda, so we would be able to see what was happening below. Seth and Nathaniel had indeed returned, and they were not alone, as Ignacio had indicated. They had discovered the trail to the hacienda. They had at least two dozen men with them, including one Comanche. They rode to within a few feet of the front porch. Some of the men were rangers, but the rest looked like common outlaws, along just for the thrill of the hunt. I quietly opened the window so we could hear. Luke, Donato, and six of the regular workers stepped onto the porch to greet them.
“Good Christ, Jake. Look how many men are with Seth. They outnumber us two to one.”
“Don’t worry, Ben. Let’s hear what they have to say.”
The men did not dismount, nor did Luke ask them to. But he was the first to speak. Right off, it was evident it was not going to be a friendly exchange.
“My name is Luke Mathers, and I own this hacienda. I understand you were here yesterday, looking for a man that you told Donato was a wanted outlaw from the States. What makes you think he’s working here?”
Seth simply stared at Luke without responding. Nathaniel looked as if he wished he was anywhere but here.
Seth spit a wad of tobacco onto the ground.
“Well, Mr. Mathers. When I discovered this place existed, it seemed the perfect place for a man of Jake Slater’s character to be hiding!”
While it was obvious Seth’s statement was meant as an insult, Luke did not rise to the bait.
Possibly thinking he had the upper hand, Seth started to dismount. Luke’s gun was in his hand before Seth had completed his move, and the man froze.
“I would prefer it if you and all your men stayed mounted, mister. I don’t take kindly to my help being roughed up for no good reason.”
Seth automatically reached for his own gun. As he did, six rifles were instantly trained on him. Nathaniel laid a hand on his arm, stopping him. I couldn’t hear what was said, but Seth eased his hand away from his pistol.
“My name is Seth Rawlins. I’m the sheriff of El Paso. This is Nathaniel Harrison. He’s a Texas Ranger and the acting sheriff in Abilene. Neither one of us appreciates you aiming your guns at us. We’re here on official business, looking for a ranger gone bad by the name of Jake Slater. He helped a prisoner escape from my brother, James, and once he was captured, he managed to escape from the jail in Abilene. He is also responsible for the death of James. Now, I have come many miles to find Jake, and I don’t aim to go home without him. I have a Comanche tracker with us, and we know Jake came to Mexico and has been living at Fort Loreto for many weeks now. We also know that he and Brigadier General Alejandro Reyes are here right now. Ezekiel James, another prisoner who escaped with Jake in Abilene, is also here.”
Seth paused a moment as if to let his words sink in. Luke made no comment, and his gun did not waver from Seth’s direction.
I turned to Jake.
“So, they’ve been spying on you for a good while now, Jake. And waiting for the right time to make their move. Of course they couldn’t do anything while you were at the fort. But here they feel they can.”
“We’ll be safe here, Ben.”
But his words sounded hollow to my ears. Below, Seth was continuing his diatribe.
“Now, I order you to turn Jake and Ezekiel over to me so that they can be brought back to the States for a proper trial and then a proper hanging. I know there is no formal agreement between our two governments, but in the spirit of cooperation, I’m asking that you do this for me.”
There was dead silence when he finished speaking. It was broken by the sudden coughing of one of his men.
“I’ll give you this much, Rawlins. Jake and Ezekiel are here at the hacienda. But, as this is Mexico, and my hacienda, what I say goes. Seeing how you and your posse have absolutely no jurisdiction here, I’m saying to hell with cooperation. It’s best you turn around and make tracks out of here. Before anyone gets killed.”
Even from the second floor, I could see the rage on Seth’s face. I thought for sure he was going to draw his gun again. But he managed to control his temper.
“That’s big talk for a man who’s outnumbered two to one. I’ve been watching this place for days, and I know how many men you have at your disposal. I’m through being nice about this. I’m giving you till tomorrow morning to turn over Jake and Ezekiel. Then we’re coming in.”
He turned and rode away with his men.
“We’ll be here waiting for you,” Luke shouted after him.
I went and sat on the bed as Jake continued to stare out the window at the retreating posse.
“When is this ever going to end, Jake? What would Seth do if he found out I was here? Or does he know? If he’s been watching the place, he must have seen me.”
“You’re not the only redhead here, Ben. But I did see your wanted flier on the wall of the jail in Abilene. It’s possible Seth knows you’re here. To answer your other question, this situation should end here and now. This is Mexico, not the United States. Neither Seth nor Nathaniel has any jurisdiction here.”
“I wish I could believe that would stop them. You know what type of man Sheriff Rawlins was. From what you’ve told me and what I’ve seen for myself, it sounds like his brother is of the same caliber. I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”
“Don’t worry, Ben. After everything we’ve been through, we still found our way back to each other. I have to believe this is going to turn out okay. Now, let’s go downstairs and talk to Luke.”
We met Donato in the hallway and he informed us that Luke had called an immediate meeting downstairs in the cantina.
“Have you let Alejandro and Ezekiel know?”
“Yes, Jake. They are already downstairs.”
As the three of us took a seat, I could see it was a somber group. Several bottles of whiskey were on the table, accompanied by a dozen filled glasses.
“You all know what just happened here and what happened yesterday morning. As
Donato put it, these men are bad sorts. They want Jake and Ezekiel, and they’ve been here twice asking for them. They would take Ben as well, but they don’t know he’s here. But they are not going to take any of them as long as they are under my roof. But, Jake, Ben, and Ezekiel, before we risk our lives to save yours from these men, I think you should tell us what brought them here. Now, I know some of you know these stories already, so please bear with us for the benefit of the rest.”
I turned to look at Ben, and he nodded slightly. I knew he was right. It was time to tell our tale to the group. I had a feeling that right here under this roof was where it was going to be resolved, one way or another.
“My name is Jake Slater, and I’m a Texas Ranger out of Abilene.”
There were a few raised eyebrows following this statement. But I forged on, the need to tell my story suddenly greater than my worry about these men judging me. The words began to pour out of me. There wasn’t a sound in the room but my voice. No one interrupted with a question or an exclamation of disbelief. When I was done, I felt an immense relief, as if a gigantic weight had been lifted from my shoulders.
“Thank you, Jake. Ezekiel, now it’s your turn.”
As Ezekiel launched into his tale, I grabbed Jake’s hand and squeezed it tightly. When Ezekiel was finished, I began to speak. When I was done, Jake addressed the group once more.
“Now, Ben, Ezekiel, and I realize that this is our battle, and ours alone. We had no right to bring this trouble to your doorstep. Sheriff Rawlins was a dangerous and crazy man. From what I’ve seen of his brother, Seth, it’s a family trait. I don’t want to be responsible for any of the men’s lives who work here.”
When Jake had finished speaking, he downed the whiskey in front of him. I refilled his glass. There was silence. Luke was the first to speak.
“Jake, Ben, and Ezekiel, I’ve known a lot of men in my day. Some bad, but most good. I fancy myself a good judge of character. Ben, from the moment you arrived I knew you were a good man. One that had been caught up in some bad circumstances. Jake, although I’m meeting you for the first time, if Ben has given his heart to you then I’m confident you’re a good man. And, Ezekiel, it’s obvious that Jake trusts you.