by Dan Arnold
A few passengers stepped down from the train. Maybe some were coming to stay on in Bear Creek, others were just stretching their legs, stepping out of the way as several new passengers bound for Denver boarded the train.
I was leaning casually against a far corner of the ticket office, watching.
Two men stepping off the train drew my immediate attention.
Henry and Harvey Thorndyke looked especially road weary this afternoon. Each man carried saddlebags and a rifle, but that was all. Their clothes were dirty and travel stained. I could see their gun belts as well.
They looked around as if expecting trouble, but seeing none they started across the platform to head into town. They were walking in my direction.
I stepped in front of them with my head down so my hat concealed my face.
“Howdy boys, welcome to Bear Creek,” I said, raising my head to look them in the eye.
They jerked to a stop, clearly ready to draw their guns.
Henry smirked at me. “You really want to do this right here on the platform?” he asked. “Someone might get hurt.”
“Someone besides you,” Harvey added, with a sneer.
“Maybe, but you won’t ever know, because you’ll be dead. Look over your shoulder.”
Henry looked back at the train on his left. The nearest car was less than twenty feet away, and there were shotguns pointed at them from several of the windows.
All of the “passengers” who had boarded the train were my deputies.
Ed had been some put out he would have to actually board the train. He’d sworn to never have anything to do with a railroad ever again.
He was even more offended he was picked to pretend to be a woman. He was the only one small enough to wear the dress Becky loaned us.
Behind the outlaws, Tom stepped out of the door of the ticket office, holding his double barreled Parker shotgun on them. Henry and Harvey both looked around with a sick look on their faces.
“Put your hands up, boys. If you move a muscle or try for your guns, we’ll shoot you to doll rags.” I said.
Henry and Harvey slowly raised their hands. Tom and I disarmed them and put the handcuffs on.
“We didn’t expect to see you at the station. Aren’t you getting married today?” Harvey Thorndyke asked.
“Why, yes I am, but you’re not invited,” I said, giving him a shove.
***
Tom and I paraded them through town all the way to the courthouse. We’d only gone about a half of a block when we heard the train whistle, and, shortly later, the train left the station.
People swarmed around pointing and talking. It was quite a spectacle, but nobody came running from the newspaper office with a camera.
After we slammed the cell doors behind them, Tom grinned at me.
“There’s only one Thorndyke on the loose now,” he said. “You’ve managed to get all the bank robbers but one, and you captured these two hombres without a single shot being fired.”
“I’m glad of that. I really didn’t want to get shot on my wedding day.”
“Speaking of which, I guess we’d better get ready; the wedding is supposed to start in about an hour and a half.”
“Yep, you go on. I’ll meet you at the police station at three o’clock just like we planned. Hey, Tom . . . thanks for backing my play.”
“That is what a best man is supposed to do.”
“No, I mean being there at the train station.”
“Thank you for the invitation to that event, amigo,” he said, grinning. “I like to see the branches of law enforcement in support of one another.”
When he’d gone, I walked back to the cells and confronted the Thorndykes.
“What brought you boys back to Bear Creek on my wedding day?”
They looked at each other. “We came to kill you,” Henry said.
“You’re kidding, right?”
“Hell no, we ain’t kidding, you son of a bitch!” Harvey swore.
“Why? Why would you risk everything just to get me?”
Henry scowled at me.
“You ruined everything the first time you ever showed up in Thorndyke, interfering in our business. You got our father killed and our ranch stole from us. You got to pay for that. We figured robbing the bank right under your nose would be a pretty good start. It would gall you when you found out it was us what done it.”
Bob Logan had warned me they might try something like this.
“It was a stupid move. You led me right to your banker and your ranch.”
“Yeah, we heard you caught our banker and Russel over there,” he said, jerking his head toward the cell their partner, Tom Russel, occupied. “We got nothing left to lose now.”
“Y’all did it to yourselves. Your father brought about his own destruction. I only got involved in any of this because y’all tried to ride rough shod over anyone who got in your way. Y’all lost the ranch when you became outlaws. That was your choice; I had nothing to do with it.”
“Our pa built Thorndyke and the Diamond T from nothing, and we wasn’t about to let no squatters and rustlers take any of it away from us, piece by piece.”
I shook my head.
Turning to leave, I said, “What a waste.”
“It ain’t over yet,” Henry said.
“It is for you,” I said, walking away.
19.
“Dearly beloved, we are gathered together in the sight of God, to join together these two people; John Everett Sage and Lora Elizabeth O’Malley, in the bonds of Holy Matrimony,” Brother Wes Spradlin began the ceremony.
My mind drifted a little.
How strange it was to be standing there, wearing a fancy suit the Governor of Colorado had given me himself. I was standing there unarmed while a notorious gunman performed our wedding ceremony.
I remembered my first wedding to Katya and how it had gone badly. I remembered the birth of our son, Nicolae, and how Katya had taken him and disappeared from my life for nearly two decades, only to be found again right here in Bear Creek. I thought about how uncertain and often surprising life is.
I looked at Lora. She was stunning and radiant. Her wedding dress was the color of champagne, with fancy lace trim and several little pearls sewed onto it. Her hair was beautiful, and there were pearls in the veil as well. The pearls had been my wedding gift to her, brought back from California. Becky had done an amazing job of keeping my secret until Lora went to put on the finished dress and veil.
As I looked at her, everything else, all the worries and memories went away.
***
Eventually, Wes Spradlin said, “You may kiss the bride,” and I sure did!
When I turned and saw how many people crowded the church, all seats filled, and people standing in the side aisles and all the way out the back doors, I was stunned. Did these people really care that much about Lora and me?
I figured probably not, but everybody loves a good show.
It was time to head outside, to the reception.
As we started down the center aisle everybody cheered and clapped. Consuela was there with her family. Jacob and Sarah were with her.
I winked at them as we went by, and Lora gave them a big smile. I wondered what they thought of all this celebration and how different today was for them, compared to the day before.
Outside, a huge tent was set up over long rows of tables and chairs. There were other tents for cooking, and one tent was a makeshift saloon, with a bar made of boards and beer barrels. The food and drink had all been provided by the Palace and the Bon Ton.
I couldn’t wait to see the bill.
There was even a simple dance floor built of boards with the band all gathered at one end. Tom and Becky led us to a table at one end of the giant tent where the wedding party and the gunslinger/preacher were to be seated.
Tom was fairly bubbling with enthusiasm.
“Now then, you two just stand here, and say howdy to the folks for a while. Whooee! I’ll bet there a
re at least two hundred people here, and it ain’t even time to eat yet. Wait till the band gets warmed up and the beer starts to flow! Uh oh! Here comes that newspaper man with his camera. I’ll head him off, John.”
“No wait, Tom, it’s all right. I’d like to get a picture made of Lora and me. You and Becky should be in it as well.”
***
Within a few minutes we stood posed the way the photographer wanted us. He took a picture of Lora and me, then he took another with Tom, Becky, Lora and I, standing together.
When I saw the picture in the newspaper the next day, I was pleased and a little surprised at how snazzy we all looked.
While we were standing there, posed for the camera man, I spotteed Bob Logan near the front of the crowd getting ready to come and greet us. He was all polished up and looked nothing like a drifting cowboy, a bounty hunter, or a deputy sheriff, for that matter.
Today Bob was the epitome of the wealthy gentleman. That was the way Bob liked to live, high on the hog, till the money ran out. Then he would be back dogging somebody’s trail or hired out as a gun hand in someone’s personal war.
We grinned at each other as he approached.
“Lora, may I say you are the single most stunning bride I have ever seen. I am only disappointed in your choice of husband,” he winked at me as he kissed her on the cheek.
“Hello, Bob, so nice of you to come to the wedding. We’ve missed you, but I’m not in the least disappointed,” Lora replied dryly.
He and I shook hands. He looked me over, nodding his approval.
“Congratulations, Sheriff. I’m surprised you were able to get her to the altar. I thought you would surely slip up and expose your true nature by now.”
“Yeah, well, good men are hard to find,” I chuckled.
“Glad you admit it.” He turned back to Lora. “ He may be the groom, but clearly I am the best man,” he said.
“Sure, Bob, you’re a legend in your own mind,” Lora replied.
That comment made him laugh. He bowed slightly and said, “Mrs. Sage, you have proven yourself to be a fine judge of character.”
She beamed at him.
“Bob, you are the first person to call me Mrs. Sage, and I quite like the sound of it.”
***
We were greeted by the mayor, and accepted the warm wishes of dozens of people until the band finally struck up and it was time to dance.
And then we danced.
I was surprised at how good the music was. The first time I’d heard music in Bear Creek, it was a dreadful marching band.
It seemed as if everyone in town had come to our wedding, and it was nearly true. I thought briefly we’d better not have a fire, because the whole fire brigade was at the reception, along with the mayor, the judge, most of the county commissioners, and nearly all the police and sheriff’s deputies.
***
We’d arranged for Tom and Becky to take care of Jacob and Sarah, planning to meet up with them at church the next morning. Good thing, too. It’d been an eventful day.
By eight o’clock or so, I was plumb tuckered out. Well, that was as good an excuse to leave the reception as any.
Shorty brought the carriage around, and Lora and I piled in the back as the crowd cheered and whistled.
Shorty drove us home.
20.
The pounding on the door woke us up at about eleven thirty—on our wedding night.
I jerked awake, not sure where I was for a moment. Lora and I lay wrapped up in each other’s arms, both naked. I leapt to my feet, unsure what to do. Lora looked over at me standing there in the moonlight and she started laughing! I guess I must have looked kind of ridiculous.
I lit a lamp, grabbed my pants, and pulled them on quick, wishing I’d brought my guns. The pounding on the door didn’t stop till I was going down the stairs carrying the lamp.
When I opened the door, there stood Buckskin Charlie. He was still dressed in his Sunday finest, but with his hat in his hands and a mortified look on his face.
“Evening, Charlie, what’s the emergency?”
“Ahhhh, John, I’m so sorry to bother you like this, but . . . well, we discussed it and figured we just had to tell you tonight.”
“Tell me what? Get to the point.”
“They’re gone, John, been gone for hours.”
“Who’s gone?”
“Those Thorndyke boys; somebody broke them out of jail while we were all at the party.”
My head was spinning. It’d been a pretty eventful day.
“How in the hell did that happen?” I roared.
“I know, John, I’m sorry. Ed and Felix were at the jail. Felix was guarding the prisoners, and Ed had gone to get some sleep. Apparently they forgot to bar the door and somebody—Ed thinks it was the youngest Thorndyke boy—anyway, he walked right in and got the drop on Felix.”
“Is he okay?”
“Felix? He’s got a bad knot on his head, but I think he’ll be okay.”
Lora came down the stairs wearing a heavy robe and holding another lamp.
“Good evening, Charlie. I was about to make a pot of coffee. Won’t you come in?”
“Oh . . . uh . . . no, thank you, Miss Lora, I’m sure sorry to bother you like this.”
“Nonsense, Charlie, please come in. John, don’t make Charlie stand out there on the porch. You might want to finish getting dressed, before you take a chill.”
Stepping aside I motioned for Charlie to come in. Lora was right, being as I was both barefoot and bare chested, I did feel the night air.
I closed the door.
“Ed, we’ll need to get on their trail . . .”
He shook his head.
“I don’t think so, John. They’ve been gone for hours, and we don’t have a clue where they went. There are no tracks on the brick streets, so we don’t even know what direction they took when they left the courthouse. It’s Saturday night, so the saloons were doing pretty good business, and there were people out on the streets. We talked to a number of people, and nobody noticed anything out of the ordinary. I think they left on foot, one or two at a time, maybe headed in different directions. They took that Russel feller with them.”
“Alright, give me a few minutes to get dressed.”
As I got dressed, I thought about what Charlie had said.
He was right. There was no way we could pick up their trail in the middle of the night. Still, there were things I needed to know. I walked down to the kitchen and found Charlie eating a piece of Lora’s peach pie.
”The coffee is almost ready, John,” Lora said.
“Thanks, baby.”
“John, I don’t think there’s much point in you coming out tonight. We’ve pretty much done as much as we can do,” Charlie pointed out.
“I expect you’re right, Charlie, but I need to talk to Felix and Ed. Why didn’t Ed hear what was going on?”
“Ed was asleep in the dormitory down at the other end of the basement. His shift wasn’t really supposed to start till midnight. Felix was knocked out cold and then bound and gagged. He woke up lying on one of the beds in a locked cell. That’s where I found him. You can go over all this with those fellers tomorrow. We just figured you needed to know what happened, so’s you wouldn’t be ignorant if somebody asked you about it first thing in the morning.”
“You got that right. Good thing you went into the jail to check on things, when the party was over.”
“Well, that’s my job, and that particular party ain’t over yet.”
Lora poured us both a cup of coffee.
“Really, you mean folks are still dancing and what not?” She asked.
“I expect so. When I got to the jail and realized what happened, I sent Ed back there to gather up some of the other deputies and tell Tom about it.”
“The news will be all over town by now.”
Charlie shook his head.
“I reckon not. Ed said the party was rip-roaring when he got there. He took Tom aside
and told him, private like. Then he told one of the other deputies to quietly spread the word to meet back at the jail. That’s what they done. I doubt there was much of a stir.”
“How long ago did this happen?” I asked.
“I got back to the jail at about ten o’clock. They’d been gone for more than an hour by that time.”
“How did you get here, Charlie?”
“I walked. It only takes about fifteen minutes to walk down here from the courthouse. On the way down, I could still hear the music playing over at the party.”
“Charlie, I need you to stay here with Lora, while I go up to the courthouse.”
“Sure boss, but why do you need to go to the courthouse?”
“Walk outside with me for a minute, will you?”
I glanced over toward Lora, who had her back to us, as she added wood to the cook fire in the stove.
Charlie met my eye, and nodded his understanding.
“I just need to talk to Felix and Ed. I don’t want them worrying and waiting till tomorrow.”
Out on the porch, I told him why the Thorndykes had come to Bear Creek. They’d come to kill me.
“I don’t have my guns with me tonight, Charlie; I left them at the courthouse when I got dressed for the wedding. Lora has a shotgun in the wardrobe in our bedroom, but I don’t know if it’s loaded or if she could use it in a pinch. I need you to stay here and keep your eyes open, while I go get heeled.”
“Damn boss, I sure hate for you to be walking back into town without a gun.”
“Yeah, me too, but I should’ve planned better. Keep your eyes open, and take care of Lora.”
***
I’d just reached the corner of the first block of houses when I sensed someone was near.
“Easy, John, it’s just me,” Bob said. “I’ve been watching the house and the street.”
He stepped out of the shadows under the trees, into the moonlight where I could see him.
“I came straight over here when I heard what happened. I’ve been here nearly an hour, but other than our friend, Buckskin Charlie, the only traffic I’ve seen has been that which one would expect to see on a Saturday night.