by Ralph Hayes
A deep frown. ‘Damn it, Dulcie! What the hell!’
She hung her head and her eyes filled with tears. ‘I’m sorry.’
He walked over to her and held her arms. ‘Jesus. Don’t cry.’
On impulse she reached up and kissed him softly on his mouth. He was taken by surprise, but quickly moved her away from him. He had been unthinkingly receptive.
‘Oh, God,’ he muttered, shaking his head.
‘I had to do that. I might not get another chance.’
Sumner turned away from her, getting himself under control.
‘You liked it, didn’t you?’ she said in a half-whisper.
He turned back to her. ‘Dulcie. That will never happen again.’
She smiled a lovely smile. ‘Are you quite sure?’
‘Nothing like that will happen between us. Now, or ever.’
She sighed heavily. ‘Why didn’t Papa send somebody else?’ To herself.
‘Never mind,’ he said sombrely. ‘Come on, saddle up. We’re losing time.’
Less than two hours behind them, Duke Latham and Sloan stopped under the shade of a tall willow tree beside a small stream, and let their mounts take water. They both retrieved their canteens to quench their own growing thirst. Latham turned to Sloan, making his saddle leather squeak under his weight. His face was sweaty from hard riding.
‘I’d bet my horse and saddle they’re just ahead of us. They’re probably trying to get to Atwood. That’s where we’ll catch them, in town or on the trail on either side. I can’t wait.’
Sloan stuffed his canteen back into a saddlebag. ‘Don’t forget who you’re confronting. This is Certainty Sumner. They say he’s good.’
‘Bounty hunters’ reputations are always blown way up,’ Latham said. Sloan noticed that as they came closer to their quarry, Latham was changing. His face seemed flushed a lot of the time, and he had a new, wild glistening in his eyes that was slightly disturbing to Sloan. Latham continued: ‘And I haven’t ever been beat in a draw-down, Ira. And we have two guns against his. Don’t worry, he’ll go down. Then that little bitch will be mine again.’
‘Well, I hope it’s worth it,’ Sloan offered.
‘Oh, it will be. You can take that to the bank,’ Latham grinned brightly. ‘Now. Let’s get riding. We might even catch them before Atwood.’
‘We’ll see, Duke,’ Sloan commented, studying Latham’s emotional face. ‘We’ll see.’
A couple of hours later, Sumner and Dulcie were riding along the border of a green woods, making good time, when suddenly Sumner reined in. ‘Hold it!’ he said to Dulcie, riding just behind him.
She came up beside him. ‘What is it?’
‘We’re going to have company.’ He pointed to a small group of riders in the distance.
Dulcie focused on them as they drew nearer. ‘Can we avoid them?’
‘No. It’s too late.’ He glanced over at her. ‘Button your vest up. And pull your hat down low.’
‘Why?’
‘Just do it, Dulcie.’
She followed his instructions as the riders came into closer view. There were three men, and they were rough-looking characters wearing guns. Sumner reined in and Dulcie followed suit.
‘They look like mestisos,’ Sumner said quietly. ‘Half-breeds. There’s a bunch of them in the Territory and Kansas. They do illegal trading with Indian tribes and traffickers. You keep quiet and let me talk.’
Dulcie nodded. ‘All right.’ In a tense undertone.
A couple of moments later the three men halted just twenty feet away from them, kicking up dust. Barring the couple’s path on the trail.
They were dark-skinned, bearded men, all husky-looking with hard eyes. The one in the middle had a scar across his jaw, his hair was braided behind his head, and he wore a bowler hat.
‘Greetings, strangers! Do you speak Spanish?’ In an accent.
‘Not really,’ Sumner answered for them. ‘Nice to meet you boys. But we have business in Atwood and must be on our way.’
‘Whoa! Not so fast, amigo!’ the same man exclaimed. He seemed to be their leader. ‘You have a minute for a friendly palaver, I’m sure.’
Sumner judged him to be Mexican, but the other two looked like part Pawnee or Apache. ‘We don’t have time for palaver,’ he said easily.
Already Dulcie was getting tense. She didn’t like the scrutiny she was receiving from all three of them.
‘You don’t understand,’ the first one continued. ‘We are traders, you see. You know. Vendadores. We buy just about anything. To sell at the big markets, you know.’ He looked over at Dulcie, and the grin slid slightly off his face. His companions kept their silence.
‘We have nothing to sell,’ Sumner told him.
‘Oh, sure! Everybody has something to sell! For the right price, you know. We ourselves have goods in our bags you might be interested in, in trade for something of yours.’
‘I told you. We have no interest. We must get on to Atwood.’ He started around them, spurring the stallion lightly, but one of the cohorts moved his mount into his path.
Sumner sighed. ‘Look. We don’t want any trouble. But we really have nothing to trade or sell. Now, if you don’t mind.’
‘Slow down, amigo!’ the Mexican laughed. ‘We don’t want to give you no trouble. We want to be friendly. Don’t you need blankets? I can sell a nice gold ring to the lady for half what it would cost at Fort Griffin.’
‘We’re moving on,’ Sumner said impatiently.
‘No, no. Listen. l’ll buy the lady’s horse for two hundred dollars. Three hundred for the stallion. You can hitch a ride with the next wagon.’
‘Get out of our way,’ Sumner growled at him.
‘All right, all right. How about this deal?’ The grin had left his face. ‘We’ll give you one thousand dollars for the girl, her horse and her saddle.’
‘You fools!’ Dulcie blurted out. ‘This is Certainty Sumner!’
‘Be quiet,’ Sumner told her quietly. ‘Now, we’re riding on. Don’t try to stop us.’
One of the half-breeds came up to the Mexican and whispered in his ear. The Mexican’s face changed, going very sober. ‘So. You are a notorious bounty hunter. We hate bounty hunters.’
‘I’ll bet you do,’ Sumner retorted. ‘But we’re still leaving.’
‘We could shoot you down and take everything. Including the girl.’
‘Not before I take at least two of you with me,’ Sumner said in a low, hard voice. ‘And you’ll be the first one to take lead.’
Dulcie held her breath as the Mexican absorbed that threat. Finally, after what seemed like an hour to her, the Mexican spoke again.
‘Hey. We was just palavering, si? If we can’t make a deal, you can be on your way. For your business in Atwood. And vaya con Dios!’
‘Thanks for the well-wishes,’ Sumner said acidly.
A moment later they were on their way again, and in a few minutes the knot of men was out of sight behind them.
‘I stalled as long as I could,’ Sumner told Dulcie as they rode side by side. ‘I didn’t want lead to fly, with you there.’
‘Are you glad I spoke up?’ she smiled at him.
He sighed. ‘Yes, Dulcie. You helped. Thanks.’
‘It makes me so proud. To be riding with you.’
He ignored her as if she hadn’t spoken. ‘We ought to be in Atwood by late night. Can you ride that long?’
‘I’d follow you anywhere,’ she said, not looking at him. Then they rode on in silence.
CHAPTER NINE
It was getting close to midnight when Sumner and Dulcie arrived in Atwood.
It had been a long, hard day, and Sumner had pushed Dulcie more than he had wanted to. But he felt it was important for them to reach this last landmark before day’s end.
Atwood was a bustling town in the daytime. But at about a half-hour before midnight the streets were dark and empty. There were three saloons along the main street, and they were still open, bu
t there wasn’t much noise coming from inside. Sumner looked the town over as they rode through. He had been there before, but it had been some time ago. He reined up in front of a closed-down general store and looked over at Dulcie. She looked very tired.
‘I’m sorry I had to push you today,’ he told her. ‘But barring trouble, you could be home tomorrow.’
She replied quietly. ‘It’s all right.’
‘My idea is to ride on through, and make a camp up ahead a bit.’
She sighed. ‘Wesley. We haven’t had the slightest hint that Duke is behind us. Please. I don’t want to sleep another night on the ground.’
Sumner leaned on his saddlehorn. ‘I knew I was being too hard with you. But we’ll be a little safer out on the trail.’
‘I just want to lay my head on a pillow tonight. How much difference could it make in safety?’
He finally nodded, reluctantly. ‘All right. But not at one of these main street hotels. I think there’s a small one over a couple of blocks. An out-of-the-way place. We’ll stop there.’
‘Oh, thank you,’ she said with relief.
They followed the next side street a short distance and found the hotel that Sumner remembered. It didn’t have the look of the bigger, better ones on the main thoroughfare, but it was what Sumner wanted. They hitched up outside, and went in.
It was a very plain interior. No potted palms and carpets there. A short reception counter took up most of the area, and a lanky clerk looked half-asleep behind it. He looked up when they entered.
‘Ah. Guests! May I help you, folks?’
‘We want to stay the night,’ Sumner told him.
‘Of course. We have some nice rooms on the second floor. Now. You are Mr and Mrs—?’
‘We’re not married, for God’s sake,’ Sumner frowned.
‘Oh. Sorry.’
‘Register us as Mr and Mrs Jones,’ Sumner said.
‘But you said—’
Sumner gave him a look.
‘Oh. I see. Yes, sir. Will that be two rooms then?’
‘No,’ Sumner said brusquely. ‘One room.’
Dulcie looked over at him quickly.
‘Ah,’ the clerk said, with a grin.
Sumner was irritated with the whole procedure. ‘Just give us a room,’ he growled.
‘Yes, sir. If you’ll just sign the book there. Or make your mark.’
Sumner scrawled his signature.
‘We have a boy that can bed and feed your mounts,’ the fellow added.
‘Fine,’ Sumner said curtly. ‘Tell him to bring my guns in.’
‘Yes, sir. And here’s your key.’
Then they were on their way up a narrow stairway to their room.
At that same moment, over on the main street, Latham and Sloan rode slowly along taking in the looks of the place. They stopped in front of a saloon called the Plains Oasis. Latham turned to his right-hand man.
‘They’re here. I can feel it in my bones, Ira. I’d bet money on it.’
‘I hope to hell they are,’ Sloan remarked in a tired monotone. ‘Let’s get ourselves a drink. My tongue is scraping my mouth.’
‘I should check these hotels on the main drag before I do anything else.’
Sloan frowned at him. ‘If they’re here, Duke, they’ll still be here tomorrow morning. And whether they’re here or on up the trail, we’ll have them in the first hour or so of daylight.’
Latham thought that over. ‘Hell, you’re right. We can get us a bed at one of these hotels as we check it out, and then get us a good rest before morning. Then I’ll check at the others. And the saloons just in case. But I know they’re here somewhere, Ira. I’d bet money on it.’
‘A good plan,’ Sloan agreed quickly, relieved.
‘I’ll be up before dawn, and get at it,’ Latham said to himself. ‘I want to do it myself. I’ll get you when I find them. And we’ll make our plans. If they’re out on the trail, we’ll catch them quick out there. But they’re here.’
‘Fine. Now let’s offer this saloon some patronage. I’m past ready.’
Latham nodded. ‘We can do that.’
At their hotel, up in room 214, Sumner and Dulcie had just looked the place over with distaste. There was a bed, a straight chair, a table on a wall, and an easy chair with the cover peeling off. No wall decorations, no carpet on the hardwood floor.
‘It beats being out in the weather,’ Sumner commented drily.
‘You just got us one room,’ Dulcie said quietly, studying his face.
He nodded. ‘Do you think I’d let you out of my sight now, when we’re so close to getting this done? No, you stay with me. You’re going to use the bed. I was going to go get my bedroll, but I think if I push these chairs together, I’ll be fine. You’ll sleep with all your clothes on. Just like on the trail.’
She was mildly disappointed. She didn’t even know what she was hoping for, but it wasn’t this. ‘I can remove my vest and blouse.’
‘No, you can’t,’ he said firmly. ‘I like you just the way you are.’
‘If I remember right, you seemed to like me very well without them when you had just shot Weeks and I came down the stair in my underclothes.’ She watched his face.
Sumner gave her an acid look. ‘Well. You are something to look at, Dulcie. And that’s the problem. No clothes come off tonight. When you get home, you can sleep any way you want.’
‘In the summer, I won’t wear anything.’ Observing him closely again.
‘Damn it, Dulcie. Just go to bed.’
‘Do you really want to spend the whole night here alone with me, with me over there and you way over here?’
‘Exactly. Now, you heard me. Let’s get some sleep.’
She slumped. ‘All right, Wesley. But I’ll be thinking about you.’
She got on to the old iron bed and drew a sheet over her. Sumner settled on the chairs and tipped his Stetson over his face. Within an hour they were both asleep.
It was several hours later, just before dawn, when Sumner awoke from a wagon rumbling past outside. He hadn’t even removed the Peacemaker. He looked beside his easy chair and was surprised to see Dulcie sitting on the floor there, her head on the arm rest, and asleep.
His face softened, and he touched her auburn hair and gently stroked it. She woke to the touch.
‘Dulcie. What are you doing over here?’
She yawned and even that gave her a sensual look. ‘I couldn’t sleep. I was happier over here.’
He sighed. ‘It’s almost dawn. We ought to get ready to leave.’
He got out of the chair and stretched, and Dulcie rose to her feet. ‘I can’t believe I’ll be home today,’ she said.
‘All being well, you will. Your daddy will be very happy.’
She didn’t respond. They washed in a bowl at a dry sink, and Sumner put the Stetson on. ‘I’m going to leave you briefly. I’ll get the horses brought around, and make sure he has my long guns down there. Then I’ll walk down to that close-by restaurant and bring us some coffee. Maybe a couple of biscuits. But I have to trust you to stay put.’
‘I will,’ she promised him. She looked beautiful in the burgeoning light from outside as the sun made its presence noticed.
‘I’ll be right back. Lock the door after me.’
Then he left the room.
Over on the main street, at a better hotel, Latham and Sloan were also just leaving their room.
‘You go get our mounts and bring them out front here,’ Latham was saying. ‘Then pound on a couple saloon doors and see if you rouse anybody. They might give you something. I’ll check at hotels. We’ll find them. Then it will be over.’ He paused. ‘I’ll meet you at that little restaurant down the street. And we’ll put our heads together there.’
Sloan nodded. ‘None of this should take long. Good luck.’
Then they separated outside. Sloan got their mounts and tried at a couple of saloons but got no response. Then he headed for the restaurant. Latham was frustra
ted at the main street hotels, but was referred over to the one where Dulcie waited for Sumner.
‘Why, yes,’ the desk clerk told him when asked. He was the same man who had registered them. ‘A couple like that did check in last night. An obvious gunslinger, and a girl. Registered as husband and wife.’
‘Are they still here?’
‘Yes. But I’m bringing their mounts around just now. The gentleman said he’d be back shortly.’
‘The girl is here alone?’
‘For the moment, yes.’
It was tempting. Dulcie was there and vulnerable. But Sumner could be back at any moment. And if not, they would never get away without a confrontation. And maybe on his terms. No, he would get Sloan and they would make a plan against Sumner that was to their advantage.
What Latham could not know was that, at that very moment, Sloan had walked into the restaurant where Sumner had just ordered a pot of coffee to go.
Sumner was sitting at a table, waiting, when Sloan entered. They saw each other immediately, and Sloan froze just inside the entrance. The only other customers were a pair of ranchers sitting at a rear table.
‘I’ll be a sonofabitch,’ Sloan muttered. ‘You’re Sumner, ain’t you?’
‘And you’re Ira Sloan,’ Sumner said softly. He rose carefully from the table. ‘Where’s Latham?’
The waiter had emerged from the kitchen, and delivered two plates of food to the ranchers. But then he and the ranchers were watching Sloan and Sumner.
Sloan was thinking fast. He knew Sumner was good. He needed an advantage. ‘He’s here.’
‘Really?’ Sumner said, ‘Where? Under a table?’
Sloan looked toward a rear door that led to the kitchen. ‘He’ll be here. And then you’ll be boxed in, bounty man.’
‘Well, then, we better get it over with,’ Sumner said in a deadly voice, his gunhand hanging loosely beside the Peacemaker.
Sloan took a stance. But then he glanced behind Sumner, where the ranchers and waiter had quietly moved aside. ‘Oh. You wanted Latham. Now you got him.’
Sumner didn’t really believe the diversion, but he turned his head for just a half-second. And in that small moment, Sloan drew his Schofield .45 and fired.