“Feed that horse some fresh hay,” Dan told the stable keeper. “I’ll pay for it. It’s a shame to treat a good horse that way.”
“That’s a fine palomino you rode in on, and I notice he has no spur marks on him,” the stable keeper noted. “Shall I tell the owner of that gelding that you’re in town?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Dan replied. “Several people have seen me, and Mervin already knows.”
* * *
Myrtle’s coffee was hot and served by the prettiest girl in town. “Which field is your father working today?” Dan asked. “I want to ask him for your hand in marriage, with your approval of course.”
“What do you mean, with my approval? I’ve been waiting for a lifetime for you to ask me to marry you, but you’re going to have to do it in a more romantic setting. You know danged well that Father will approve, so what are you really going to talk to him about?”
“Doe, I can’t ask you to marry me yet, because my work isn’t done. Two men are hell-bent on killing me, and I don’t even dare ride with you, but I think your father should know that your life is in danger anytime you and I are together. I’ve got to find those men and get them to start a fight so I can defend myself, and I can’t do that with you along.”
“Maybe I could help,” Doe said. “I’m a farm girl, and I’m pretty good with a rifle.”
“I know you want to help, but they won’t start anything here in town. They’ll wait for me to be alone somewhere.”
Doe was quiet for a moment, and then said, “I know where they’ll wait. They know that you’ll want to see your new home, so they’ll wait somewhere near there. I’ll have to go home tonight anyway, so why don’t you ride with me, and we’ll stop at your place. I’ll be safe there.”
“You’re right, Doe. If you ride home alone, you’re in greater danger than if I were with you. They’ll try to take you hostage knowing that I’ll come after you. Hap Bodden has a bounty on his head, and he can’t be seen here in town, so he’s hiding somewhere, and what better place than on my farm. He knows that I’ll be checking on the farm, and Milroy knows what time you get off work.”
Myrtle was listening to their conversation and chimed in. “I can close the restaurant by myself, so why don’t you leave early. They won’t be expecting you to go home before quitting time, and that way you can be in the new house before they know it.”
“That might make the difference,” Dan nodded. “I’ll be waiting beside the road just outside of town. Did you ride a horse to work? I didn’t see your buggy.”
“My horse and buggy are at Myrtle’s place,” Doe answered. “I keep it there now. It’s cheaper and handier than the stable.”
“I’ll put the top up. It looks like it might rain, and the cover will hide you and make it difficult for you to be seen. I don’t think they would snipe you with a rifle, but it’s better to be safe.”
“Will you join me after I pass where you’re waiting, or shall I stop?”
“You won’t see me, but I’ll be right behind you. Just keep going until you get to my place. You have a key, so let yourself in but don’t light a lamp.”
Customers came in and Myrtle greeted them. Doe said, “I’ll see you tonight.”
As Dan rode the palomino to Myrtle’s place to pick up Doe’s buggy, he noticed the telltale hoof prints of Milroy’s horse. Dan followed the tracks and sure as sin, the trail was leading to Dan’s farm. He thought of notifying the sheriff, but what good would that do, the sheriff wouldn’t do anything until a crime had been committed. But what if Milroy came back and saw the tracks of Dan’s horse? That would warn Hap Bodden that Dan was expecting him. Milroy was pretty good with a gun; he had served Sheriff Bodden for several years. But Dan wasn’t too worried about Milroy alone, but in combination with Hap, Milroy was a threat to be considered. If Hap were as good as his reputation indicated, he alone would be all Dan could handle. With two men shooting at him, Dan needed a way to know what to expect. Then it occurred to him. He had told Doe that he would be right behind her, and at the time he meant he would be following her on his palomino, but the buggy had a cargo space right behind the seat. No one would expect him to be there, not even Doe.
The buggy was stored in the shed, which had plenty of room for the palomino, and the roof overhang provided shelter, so Dan unsaddled his horse and put out hay and water for both his horse and Doe’s. He then put the top up on the buggy as he had said he would, but what he didn’t say was that he would be hiding in the cargo compartment.
Doe hadn’t said exactly when she would quit work, but as Dan expected he heard her coming just as the sun was setting behind a bank of clouds. His prophecy of rain looked accurate, so the cover on the buggy would not alert the two men laying in wait.
Without letting Doe know, Dan lay down in the cargo space and covered himself with the canvas that she kept there.
Doe hooked her horse to the buggy and set off down the road. After reaching the halfway point and no Dan, Doe was getting worried. A light rain was falling, and she whispered to herself, “Oh I wish Dan had been more specific; I have no idea what to expect.”
Little did she know that she had already passed the two men who planned to do her hurt. They, too, were in a quandary. They were expecting Dan to be following the buggy on his horse, and he would have been an easy target, but now they had to decide whether or not to wait for Dan or follow Doe.
“He must have sneaked by us,” Milroy suggested. “I think we should follow her.”
“She may be on her way home. What do we do then?” Hap asked.
“If she passes the road leading to the Duncan farm, then we’ll know that she is going home—but I don’t think she will.”
“Dan’s pretty smart, or he wouldn’t have eluded the law for five years. I think he’s laying back. If he is, we’re the ones to worry. You follow Doe, and I’ll wait here. If Dan is laying back, as I suspect, I’ll pick him off. It’s only a quarter of a mile to the Duncan farm, so you’ll hear the shot. If Doe goes into Dan’s house, follow her in and hold her hostage. Dan will come after her and when he does, we’ll kill him and get the hell outta here. I’ll have my revenge, and you can quit worrying. Hey, maybe I should go with Doe. I’d like some time alone with her.”
“Nah, I’ll keep her busy,” Milroy smirked. “I’ve wanted time alone with her for a long time. I’ll have her all tied up when you get to the house.”
Hap shook his head. “You’d better make damn sure Dan is dead before you touch Doe,” he said.
“That’s what I’m paying you to take care of,” Milroy replied.
“You’d better get going, or you won’t know if Doe made the turn into the Duncan farm.”
Doe stopped the buggy in front of Dan’s house and let herself in with her key. Dan heard a horse coming, so he didn’t get out but waited quietly in the cargo compartment. It was only one horse, and Milroy was riding it. When Milroy tried to get into the house, Dan was right behind him and hit Milroy on the head with the butt of his revolver. Doe was so astonished that she didn’t know if she should be frightened or happy.
“Don’t let up yet,” Dan said as he dragged Milroy in. “This isn’t over. The real threat is still out there. Help me tie this rat to a chair. We’ll let the law take care of him. Don’t light any lamps, and don’t make any noise. Hap is still out there, and he’s dangerous as a rattler. He’s worth five thousand dollars dead or alive, and he’s got to finish this job before he can go back to Spanish Fork. Milroy won’t talk, so you and I are the only people who know he’s here. He has to eliminate us. That buggy will tell Hap that you are in the house, but he doesn’t know where I am, and that’s to our advantage.”
Dan then turned to Milroy. “If you make the slightest noise, I’ll kill you. If you even breathe loud, you’re a dead man. Just looking at you brings back memories of my mother’s screams. In a trial, you might get off with a conviction of manslaughter, but you’ll never get to trial if you do anything to help the kil
ler you hired to kill me.”
“Dan! Somebody’s coming,” Doe whispered, as she looked though the window.
“It’s Hap. He knows you’re in here. He’ll ask you about me. Don’t tell him anything but keep him talking; I’m going out the back way. I want to take him alive if we can, but if I fail, shoot him. He will show you no mercy, so show him none.”
It was raining harder now making it easy for Dan to move into position. Hap was cunning as a weasel. He was at the door telling Doe that she had nothing to worry about; he only wanted to get in out of the rain.
“Is Dan with you?” he asked.
“Dan was in town last time I saw him,” Doe lied.
“Have you seen Milroy? He said he needed to talk to you.”
Pretending not to know who she was talking to, Doe asked, “Is Milroy a friend of yours?”
“He worked as a deputy for my brother, and I wanted to know how my brother died, so I came here to ask him. Do you know who killed my brother? Let me in so we can talk. It’s wet out here.”
Milroy saw a chance to get free, so he turned over in the chair to make a noise.
Hap heard the noise and tried to force the door open. It wouldn’t budge, so he started shooting at the latch. One more shot and the door would have opened. Doe didn’t dare look for Dan because Dan had said she should shoot Hap, and Hap would soon be in the house. She had never shot anyone before, and she wasn’t sure she could, but she had her gun ready and aimed at the door.
Dan hadn’t seen the house rebuilt, so he was unfamiliar with the surroundings in the dark. Hap was busy shooting at the door lock, so he didn’t hear Dan behind him. Dan bashed Hap on the head with the butt of his revolver.
“Doe!’ Dan hollered. “Open the door. I’ve got Hap under control.”
Doe hollered back, “Hap damaged the lock, and I can’t open the door, and Milroy is getting loose.”
“Well, bop him on the head with the rifle. If that doesn’t stop him, shoot him.”
Milroy heard Dan say to shoot him, so he stopped struggling.
Dan smashed his shoulder against the door, and it flew open. When the door flew open, it startled Doe, and she almost shot Milroy. Dan dragged Hap into the house and then tied and gagged him. Milroy was still lying on the floor tied to the chair.
“What can I do to help?” Doe asked.
“Pull down two of those window curtains, and we’ll use them as straitjackets,” Dan suggested.
“What! Those curtains are new. I just put them up two days ago,” Doe protested. “I’ll get the cargo canvas from the buggy.”
“All right, but hurry,” Dan urged. “I want to get Hap tied securely before he comes to. There’s a tie rope in the cargo compartment— bring that, too.”
“How did you know about the tie rope? And how did you get here so quickly?” Doe questioned.
“I told you that I’d be right behind you, so I rode in the cargo compartment.”
“Oh, for God’s sake! I was worried about you, and all the time you were safe in the buggy. You’re going to be terrible to live with,” Doe complained as she went out the door.
Doe and Dan worked together while they wrapped and tied their prisoners. Hap had recovered, but he was helpless as a worm in a cocoon.
Milroy looked at Hap in disgust. “Some gunfighter you are. I paid you a thousand dollars to get rid of Dan, and all you did was shoot at a door. I want my money back.”
“You can tell that to the judge,” Doe suggested. “I’m sure the judge will be interested.”
Allan Wampler walked through the open door. “What on earth are you two young people doing? And what have you got wrapped in that canvas?”
“Dad! Where did you come from?” Doe asked in complete surprise.
“When you didn’t come home, your mother got worried, so I came looking for you. I wouldn’t have found you if I hadn’t heard someone shooting. Say, isn’t that Mervin Milroy’s head sticking out of that canvas? And who is in the other canvas?”
“That’s Sheriff Bodden’s brother, Hap,” Doe confided.
“Hap Bodden, the gunfighter? What’s he doing here?”
“We’re going to let Milroy explain that to the judge,” Dan chimed in. “I’m glad you’re here because we need help getting these packages in the buggy. I’m taking them to the sheriff. I’d appreciate it if you would take Doe home because I’ve got to use her buggy.”
“I’m not going home! I’m going with you,” Doe exclaimed.
“I’ll ride along behind you just in case,” Alan offered, “but your mother is going to be worried.”
“Her mother has a good reason to be worried,” Hap growled. “You ain’t got me to that jail yet.”
“I kind of hope you’ll try to escape,” Allan answered. “You’re worth five thousand, dead or alive, and dead would suit me just fine. Milroy, you always were a damn coward, but I gave you more credit than to be stupid enough to come back to Videll after what you and Sheriff Bodden did. We ought to hang both of you, but we’ll let the law do it. Hap, you’re just as bad as your brother, and if you think I won’t shoot you, just try me. Dell and Dotty Duncan were friends of mine.”
* * *
Sheriff Scully’s eyes were big as moon pies when Dan and Alan dumped their prisoners on the jail floor.
Milroy looked for help from Sheriff Scully. “Let me loose! I was a deputy here, and I’m innocent!” he yelled.
“Untie them, and I’ll lock them up,” the sheriff said without offering to help.
“Not just yet,” Dan cautioned. “Cowards and gunfighters carry hidden guns, and I didn’t search them proper when I tied them up. We’ll search them good before we untie their hands.” Dan knew by watching Milroy’s eyes that he had called it right.
“Milroy, I’ve been waiting five years to settle the score for your burning my parents alive, so just open your mouth one more time, and I promise you it will be the last time you do. I’d sure like to know who gave me that lump on my head!” Then he turned to Hap. “Hap, if you have any idea about escaping, please give me the pleasure of stopping you.”
Both men were meek as mice as they were being searched. Milroy had a gun in his boot; Hap had one hidden under his arm and a knife in his collar.
* * *
The trial took less than two hours. The court claimed the thousand dollars that Sheriff Scully found on Hap, and paid the reward of five thousand to Doe and Dan.
On the way home, Dan whispered to Doe, “You still haven’t shown me the master bedroom.”
“Mom and Dad told me that they would like it better if I had a wedding ring first.”
The End
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