Doing Time In Texas, Book 2

by James E Ferrell

  Well?” Thomas asked as Willy walked up to the car.

  “It’s all set. We bring the trucks here to the cannery and they will be picked up,” Willy replied.

  Willy got in the passenger side and said, “Thomas, drive the car across the street and park beside the bus station.” With that done Willy said, “Sit here for a minute. I will be right back.”

  Taking a small satchel out of the trunk, Willy walked into the terminal where he placed the bag in a locker and hung the key from a chain around his neck. Dropping it down his shirt he headed back to the car. Thomas leaned against the car watching him through the plate glass window.

  “Go to the diner and get this thermos filled with fresh coffee. I’m going to the rest room,” Willy said.

  “Willy, just to let you know, the two in Huntsville will give me the third degree. They want to know everything you do and who you talk to. I don’t feel we will be safe once you get the money for the deliveries,” Thomas said.

  Willy replied, “Relax, Thomas, everything is set. I figured they would plan a double-cross. They know you are the Shine Ghost and are no doubt looking at the money the mob has on your head. They are not only blackmailing you but will surely kill you for your share.”

  “I guess it really don’t matter because there are two killers waiting for me. So, what difference does it make who gets me?” Thomas said.

  “Thomas, Ed and Bart know you are the Shine Ghost. If they find that there is a bounty hunter looking for you, those two will sell you out to him. I will keep you safe and after this deal is over, I can help you disappear. So, don’t worry. Just help me keep an eye on them. Let’s get going. Just drive the speed limit going home,” Willy said. Willy let Thomas drive while he slept in the back seat. While Thomas drove, he said little and kept his eyes on the road. The return trip was a dry one for Thomas and quitting smoking was a lot harder than he had thought it would be.

  “We need gas. There is a station about three miles down the road. I am going to stop there and fill up,” Thomas said.

  Dozing in the back-seat Willy considered the baby and what she or he would be like. The past few weeks had caused him to consider if the way he was living would end as violently as Stewart or some of the other men that had got crossways with the Irishman. Bonnie had bought him a wedding band and he found himself liking the feel of it. He was glad that under the circumstances it had happened that way. He knew now that he loved her. Closing his eyes, he prayed silently, ‘O God, I know that my brother believed in you. If you truly exist take care of Bonnie. Shield her from what I’m about to do.’

  It was dark when they pulled into Texarkana for another tank of gas and supper. Thomas said, “Wow! I’m hungry!” He seemed to be reaching out to Willy, but Willy didn’t know how to handle that. After several attempts to befriend Willy, Thomas went back into his shell and withdrew like he had done all his life. Nothing else was said and after supper Thomas climbed in the back seat and stretched out.

  Looking in the rear-view mirror, Willy said, “Thomas, were you around Huntsville when the ranger was killed a few years back?”

  Shocked by the question Thomas said, “I was very young, early teens. I remember it. I was up in Austin visiting my old man, why you ask?”

  “Nothing. Just wondered,” Willy responded.

  “Thomas, is there a place you can go where no one can find you?” Willy asked.

  “I campout on the Trinity and know that river like the back of my hand,” Thomas said.

  “Then I will drop you there. Stay on the river and hide from anyone that may come along the river, whether you know them or not. We will determine a meeting place where I can drop groceries and such off to you. I will check for messages daily so find a hiding place where we can meet and leave each other messages. You must change your usual camping place. Watch the drop off spot. Come out if you see me waiting there,” Willy said.

  C35 - Too Good to Be True

  Gino LaSalle sat in his office in Chicago and discussed the phone call he had received from Memphis. “Joey, what you think? Is Baker on the up and up?” he asked.

  Joey looked at the man across the Mahogany desk. “The word on the street is, Willy was cheating McDonald and got caught. If he can get his hand on that much booze, then I would have to believe that he is stealing it from McDonald.” Joey cleared his throat. “I’ll tell you this, Baker is the only one in that organization I trust dealing with. Stewart’s organization fell apart and I don’t believe we can ever depend on them again for anything,” Joey said.

  “Sounds like too good a deal to be true to me. It might be a double cross. McDonald may be setting me up like he did Stewart,” LaSalle said. Putting his highly polished shoes on his desk he thought out loud. “Well, all we have to do is bring a sack full of money to Baker and drive the trucks back to Chicago,” Gino said.

  Joey looked at his boss for a minute and said, “I trust Baker. He has always been straight with me. He is smarter than the rest of that bunch.”

  “Roundup the boys, Joey. We better take more than drivers on this little trip. With this deal I could make more money in a single day than we have made all year long,” LaSalle stated.

  “Gino, this could start a shooting war. What will you do if McDonald finds out you got his goods?” Joey said.

  “That dirty crook put me in a nine-line bind when he killed Stewart. I will simply tell him I made a business deal with one of his people. How would I know Baker was pulling a double-cross? McDonald had me over a barrel. This will take him down a notch or two. If he wants war, he will get it. That double cross McDonald pulled on Stewart needs to be returned in kind. Make the plans, Joey. We need to be able to travel fast when I get the phone call. Pick out the best of our men and keep them close for a few days. I have been waiting to get the upper hand on McDonald and maybe this Baker fellow will be a good man to know. Joey, when we have the meet, you meet Baker. He trusts you. The two of you will go inspect the trucks. If the merchandise is okay, then I will bring him the money in the warehouse just like he wants. If we don’t like what we see, then we take Willy and his friends out and do McDonald a favor.”

  Gino rolled his cigar in his mouth and said, “Snuffing out this Baker character might smooth ruffled feathers, but on the other hand, Baker might be a new man like Stewart we can do business with. You got any word who did Alvin and the albino?”

  “Nothing yet! The Shine Ghost has to be the answer. Whoever he is, we know he’s not working for McDonald. He has to be a tough character to deal with Stump and the albino together,” Joey said.

  C36 - Day by Day

  Ginny sat in the bleachers and watched her boy at bat. This was the Saturday morning practice before the evening game under the lights. Small town ball games were always exciting and drew most of the town folk. Young heroes were made, and the games gave the town something to look forward to and discuss all week.

  Darien, Georgia, was no exception and the games included every boy in town. Ginny’s husband Ben stood in the dugout grinning at the boy they loved so very much. She loved the early morning practice for it was always cool. She also enjoyed watching her son and his father enjoying the game they loved. Behind her smile there was a dark cloud that was never far from her thoughts. A mother below her on the bleachers hugged a teenage daughter and fussed over her hair. Moments like this caused an ache in her heart every time a reminder shot a fiery arrow through her heart. Never knowing the fate of her daughter had aged her beyond her forty-two years. It had been eight years since Bonnie had disappeared and it had taken years to be able to stop the grieving. Life had become a dreary existence; mechanically she got up every morning and went about her work.

  She was tired of working in the cafeteria and since her husband had been laid off it had been a stretch to make ends meet. Her eight-year-old needed a lot of things that she and Ben could not supply. Ben had looked everywhere and there was no work. Odd jobs, here and there around town were all the work he could find. Ben, like
Ginny, had never forgotten his little girl and the pain was etched in his face. They didn’t know if she was alive or dead and that was the worst of it. After Jerry was born, they had consumed themselves in raising him. Jerry was a good boy and he and his dad were great friends. Ginny missed the girl things that she and Bonnie had enjoyed. She had to constantly put Bonnie out of her mind. Putting the grief away was easier said than done and a family never could give up hope. ‘As long as there is hope, I will continue, but without hope I will lose my mind,’ Ginny thought.

  The crack of a bat brought her head up as a ball sailed out of the park. Ben threw his hat in the air and began to do a dance and said, “Boy, you do that in the game tonight, and you will be a hero!” Jerry grinned as he trotted the bases to boos, lucky batter and chiding from his friends. After practice, the three walked arm in arm down the main street of Darien, Georgia.

  “You guys want to see a movie this evening?” Ginny asked.

  “What do you think, Champ? Want to do the matinee with your mom?” Ben asked Jerry.

  Jerry quickly smiled and asked, “Can we have popcorn and a coke?”

  “What’s a movie without popcorn and a coke?” Ben asked grinning.

  C37 - Digging Up the Past

  "This is Baker alright,” Lightfoot said looking at the picture and spread sheet that had been passed across the table to him. “This guy’s real name is Willy Baker, recent from Chicago but a not too distant resident of Huntsville prison.”

  “We sent the sketch you made of Baker to the local prisons and low and behold this popped up from the mug shots the very same day,” Captain Eastman said. Walking around his desk he tapped the mug shot. “Baker spent three years in Huntsville prison and is now back, but why?”

  “This is a very short rap sheet. Looks like he decided to take on the whole world at once and I suspect he has graduated to bigger things after three years in prison. I would think he is a hardened con now,” Lightfoot said.

  “He is the only logical suspect for the killings in Huntsville,” the captain stated.

  “Okay, so how does he tie into these murders?” Lightfoot asked.

  Eastman replied, “He has mob connections in Chicago. There has to be a reason he is down here. Do you suppose he is representing the mob here?”

  “Captain, this picture of Baker really bugs me. He looks familiar. Why would he come back to a town where he had been incarcerated for three years? I don’t see this guy as part of a candy store robbery. He wouldn’t waste his time on small change,” Lightfoot said.

  Handing a small local paper to Lightfoot the Captain said, “Take a look at this” An article had been circled in the paper. “Willy Baker and Bonnie Wilkerson got married here a couple of weeks ago,” Eastman said.

  “On the other thing you asked of me. I checked the sheriff out from top to bottom and cannot find the items we are looking for. The man lives like a pig. His backyard is a junkyard. I was stung several times when I bumped into an old beehive leaning against an old car. The back yard is covered with poison ivy. It was more dangerous sneaking through his backyard than in Normandy!” Lightfoot said.

  “What about the victims? Have you anything that would link them to the sheriff?” the captain asked.

  “Captain, Huntsville is a small community. Everyone knows everyone. From what Cage has gathered, the sheriff’s had trouble with everyone in Huntsville at one time or another,” Lightfoot said.

  C38 - Getting Use to The Good Life

  The sun came up with a vengeance as Willy pulled up to the ranch house. Stepping from the car, puppies gathered at his feet and every step was taken with caution. Susie sat on the porch watching to make sure he didn’t step on any of her pups. He had never had a dog as a boy and had taken a liking to the puppies. Resting against the inside of the screen door Bonnie smiled at him. “I’m keeping that one for you. He seems to be the smartest and minds the best,” Bonnie said.

  “We better start getting rid of a few dogs, don’t you think? Your flower beds are wrecked and after dark you can’t walk barefooted in the yard,” Willy said. Sitting down on the steps, he rubbed the heads of the pups as they clamored for his attention.

  Looking out over the meadow Bonnie breathed a peaceful sigh and said, “You love it here as much as I do, don’t you?”

  Standing up, he looked out across the meadow in thought. “If you are happy with this place, then I am to,” he said.

  “Willy you never had much of a childhood. Don’t you think it would be great to raise a family here?” Looking for the response she longed for, Bonnie stood leaning against the screen door.

  He considered what she had said. Shaking his head as if to clear an agonizing thought he said, “Come take a walk with me.” For a while, the two walked hand in hand. Occasionally, Willy hurled a stick at an aggressive looking cow.

  “Bonnie, I really like it here just like you do. Just keep everyone clear of the barn for a couple of weeks and I will have my business done,” Willy said.

  “I’ll try, but my ranch hand wants to clean out the barn of last year’s hay and start putting up hay from the south field,” she said.

  “No trying to it, Bonnie! You must keep him clear of the barn,” Willy responded.

  “He said he will be really busy over at Annie’s place for a couple of weeks anyway,” she said.

  The walk in the cool morning air was invigorating and Willy put his arm around her waist.

  “It won’t be long until I will not be able to get my arms around you,” Willy gently but teasingly said.

  Looking up into his face, Bonnie put her hand on his cheek and said, “I never knew love could be like this. This is the love that my parents shared. Don’t you feel it, Willy? I wish you would reconsider what you are doing for the baby’s sake. All our life we have been looking for fulfillment and it’s here on this place. We have found it,” she said. ‘The Bible says that God will restore the years that we have wasted. Let’s make a life here for the baby and us.”

  “Bonnie, what I’m doing is for you,” Willy said.

  Putting her fingers over his mouth she stopped him and said, “Don’t say that, Willy. If anything happened to you, those words would be with me the rest of my life. If you get put in prison or killed, I couldn’t live with what you just said. Right now, I will leave this ranch for you. If…you say you will drop what you are doing and make a life for us somewhere else. We will pack our bags and be on the road in one hour. You are a smart man, Mr. Baker, but I believe you are in over your head this time.”

  Willy looked at Bonnie and caressed her face and hair. He said, “I’m sorry for what I said. I am doing this for reasons I can’t explain to you. I’m trying to pay a debt that can never be paid. I can’t explain it but, win, lose or draw, it will be the last time I step over the line. I want you to know that you are on my mind all the time. I have never met a person that has treated me the way you have. I love the way you walk, the way you talk and those magnificent eyes. Yes, I love it here and I will never leave of my own free will. Trust me that I will take every precaution to ensure that never happens.”

  With tears in her eyes she melted in his arms. She felt so safe in his big strong arms and wanted never to be turned loose. Praying silently as they clung together, she asked God for his safety. Standing in the field a strong gust of wind made the grass bow and push against Bonnie with a ghost like hand. The clap of thunder signaled the approaching rain.

  “We better head back,” Willy said as a gust of wind pulled the hat from his head and sent it scooting across the grass; like a stone skipping across a pond. Bonnie laughed as he chased his expensive hat across the field. Then just as suddenly the rain came. Together they raced for the house laughing. Stepping up on the porch he stood looking at the drenched Bonnie pulling up the rear. Standing out in the rain, she stood laughing while the rain coursed over her. “You better take those wet things off before you catch cold,” he said with a grin. Jumping from the porch he lifted her in his arms and
ran through the water fall that came from the edge of the roof. On the porch he stood with her in his arms. She clung to his neck and kissed him as the water dripped from his black hair. “I had a hard drive last night. Any chance I can get a breakfast?” he said as he pushed back his wet hat and kissed her on the forehead.

  “Let’s get out of these wet things and I’ll make your breakfast. It will cost you some kisses after you get rid of that rough beard,” Bonnie said laughingly.

  “Sounds good to me! It looks like it will rain for a while.” As if on cue the rain swept across the meadow, and calves ran kicking up their heels in the first rain they had seen in their young life. Bonnie and Willy enjoyed the cleansing rain and the noise it made on the tin roof. Each day they grew closer. Bonnie had never felt so content and prayed that it would never end. If she could just reconcile the past with her mother and father, then she would be completely happy.

  The wind swayed the tall pines showering the tin roof with heavy drops of rain.

  “You are quite the cook! I could get fat being married to you,” he said.