Red River Vengeance Read online

  Since it was fairly obvious that Perley was not inclined to answer his challenge, Jesse was determined to force him to face him in the street or acknowledge his cowardice. He was about to issue his ultimatum when Sheriff Paul McQueen walked in with Becky right behind him. “What’s the trouble here?” McQueen asked as he walked up to face the two strangers still standing.

  “Ain’t no trouble, Sheriff,” Jesse answered. “I ain’t got no idea why that young lady thought there was and went and got you for nothin’. Me and my friend, here, was just tryin’ to enjoy us a nice dinner. Then this feller”—he nodded toward Perley—“came in and started bellyachin’ about a cup of coffee.”

  “That ain’t exactly the way I heard it,” McQueen replied. “I heard you two were disturbin’ the peace. We don’t stand for any rough treatment of the women who work in this dinin’ room, or any rough language, either.” He looked at Perley then, knowing he hadn’t started any trouble. “Perley, you got anything to say?”

  “Not much, Sheriff,” Perley replied. “I think these fellows just forgot their manners. They’re new in town and don’t know how to act in a peaceful place of business. But there ain’t any need to lock ’em up, if they’ll just finish their dinner and get on outta here. That oughta be all right, wouldn’t it, Beulah?”

  Beulah Walsh, who was witnessing the confrontation from the kitchen door, shrugged and answered. “I reckon, if they agree not to cause no more trouble.”

  “Seems to me you ain’t hearin’ but one side of this argument,” Leonard Watts declared. “That feller, there, is the one oughta go to jail. He as much as called Jesse out, but we’ll finish up and get on outta here, anyway. Ain’t no need to put us in jail.”

  “Leonard’s right,” Jesse added. “We ain’t gonna start nothin’, but I ain’t gonna back down if he calls me out.”

  McQueen couldn’t suppress a little smile. “Well, that would be a different matter. If Perley called you out, you’d have a right to defend yourself.” He looked at Beulah to see if she was satisfied to let them remain.

  She nodded and asked, “You wanna sit down and have a cup of coffee or something, Sheriff?” He had already eaten there earlier, but she figured it would ensure the peace if he stayed awhile.

  “As long as I’m here, I might as well,” McQueen said. “I’ll just sit down over here.” He walked over and sat down at a table near the one that held the weapons. “I’ll make sure Perley don’t call one of your customers out,” he couldn’t resist saying.

  “I’ll get you some coffee,” Lucy sang out, and went into the kitchen with Beulah and Becky.

  Beulah fixed up a fresh plate for Perley, since the first one had begun to cool off. While she dished it out, Becky stopped Lucy on her way out with the sheriff’s coffee to ask a question. “I thought I knew why you winked when you said you had to clear your throat. Why did you take a gulp of that coffee when that man dared you to?”

  Lucy laughed. “’Cause it was just my spit in it. I was just glad he didn’t want me to taste the other fellow’s coffee. Beulah spit in his.”

  * * *

  “That fellow was really puttin’ the challenge out on you,” Sonny said to Perley, his voice low so as not to be overheard at the table where the two strangers were rapidly finishing up their meal.

  “It’s just mostly big talk,” Perley said. “He probably owns that gun on the table in the fast-draw holster, so he’s always lookin’ for some excuse to shoot somebody. I didn’t want it to be one of us.”

  “I reckon it was a good thing Becky went to fetch the sheriff,” Sonny said. “You mighta had to meet him out in the middle of the street.”

  “I wasn’t gonna meet anybody out in the middle of the street,” Perley insisted. “That’s one of the dumbest things a man can do.”

  “I reckon you’re right,” Sonny allowed. He had heard rumors of how fast Perley was with a six-gun, although he had never witnessed it, himself. And he once overheard Perley’s brother John telling Fred Farmer about an incident he had witnessed. Fred was older than the rest of the hands at the Triple-G and had been with the Gateses the longest of any of the men. John told him that Perley was like chain lightning when backed into a corner. He said Perley didn’t know why he was so fast, something just fired in his brain when he had to act. John figured because he didn’t understand that “gift,” he was reluctant to use it. Thinking about that now, Sonny thought he would surely like to have been there with John to see for himself.

  “Ain’t you afraid they might go braggin’ around town that you were too scared to face that bigmouth?” Link asked. Perley was his hero, and he didn’t like to think there was a flaw in his hero. The man called Jesse had openly laid down a challenge to Perley, and Perley just tried to talk his way out of it.

  “Doesn’t make any difference to me what they say,” Perley told him. “It’s just words, and words get blown away by the first little breeze that comes along. Sometimes you might get caught where you ain’t got no choice. There ain’t much you can do then but try to do the best you can. Anyway, it ain’t nothin’ but tomfools that pull a gun on another fellow just to see if he can get his out quicker. The folks that count are the folks you see and work with every day. And they know who you are, so it doesn’t matter what some stranger passin’ through town thinks about you. You understand that, don’tcha?”

  “Yeah, I reckon so,” Link answered, but he was still thinking he would have liked to have seen how fast Perley really was.

  CHAPTER 2

  When the two drifters finished eating, they left money on the table and walked toward the door. As they passed by the table where the three Triple-G hands were eating, Jesse reached down and knocked Perley’s coffee cup over, causing him to jump backward to keep from getting his lap filled. He just managed to catch himself from going over backward with his chair. “Damn, Perley,” Jesse mumbled. “Sorry ’bout that. That was kinda clumsy of me, weren’t it? I’ll be down at the saloon if you wanna do somethin’ about it.”

  Perley reached over and grabbed Sonny’s elbow when he started to jump to his feet. “No need to get excited,” he said. “I didn’t get any on me, and it needed warmin’ up, anyway.” He looked at McQueen and shook his head when the sheriff got to his feet.

  As a precaution, the sheriff walked over to stand beside the weapons table while Jesse and Leonard picked up their guns. “You two are gettin’ close to spendin’ the night in my jail. You’re damn lucky the man you been pickin’ away at is a peaceful man or you mighta been sleepin’ in the boneyard up on the hill.”

  “We ain’t gonna cause no more trouble, Sheriff,” Leonard was quick to assure him. “Come on, Jesse, we don’t wanna spend the night in jail.” They went out the door and McQueen followed them to watch them as they walked away.

  When the two troublemakers reached Patton’s Saloon and went inside, McQueen returned to the dining room. He was met at the door by Becky Morris. “You should have put them in jail,” she said, “especially when that dirty-looking one knocked Perley’s cup over.”

  “Perley’s after the same thing I am,” the sheriff told her. “And that’s to keep from havin’ gunfights in our street and endangerin’ the good folks in this town. I’m beholden to him for not answerin’ that saddle tramp’s challenge.” He glanced at Perley and nodded his thanks. He was well aware of Perley’s skill with a six-shooter, but he also knew that the young man’s lightning-like reflexes were not something Perley liked to display. He slowly shook his head when he thought about Perley’s dilemma. McQueen had never met a more peaceful man than Perley Gates. His father had placed a tremendous burden on his youngest son’s shoulders when he named him for the boy’s grandfather. McQueen could only assume that God, in His mercy, compensated for the name by endowing the boy with reflexes akin to those of a striking rattlesnake.

  When he realized Becky was still standing there, as if waiting for him to say more, he thanked her for the coffee. “I’d best get back to shoein’ that horse,” h
e said, referring to the job he was in the middle of when Becky came to find him. It brought to mind a subject that had been in his thoughts a lot lately. The town was growing so fast that he felt it already called for a full-time sheriff, instead of one who was also a part-time blacksmith.

  “Thanks for coming, Sheriff,” Becky said, turned, and went back to the table where Lucy and Beulah were already warning Perley to be careful when he left the dining room. “They’re right, Perley,” Becky said. “Those two are just looking for trouble.”

  And like John and Rubin like to say, if there ain’t but one cow pie in the whole state of Texas, Perley will most likely step in it, was the thought in Perley’s mind. To Becky, however, he said, “Nothin’ to worry about. We’ve already got the wagon loaded with the supplies we came after, so we’ll be headin’ straight to the ranch when we leave here. Besides, I’ve got Sonny and Link to take care of me. Ain’t that right, Link?” Link looked undecided. Perley continued, “So, I’m gonna take my time to enjoy this fine meal Beulah cooked. By the time I’m finished, those fellows probably won’t even remember me.”

  “I hope you’re right,” Becky said, and turned her attention to some of the other customers, who were waiting for coffee refills. The room returned to its usual atmosphere of peaceful dining.

  * * *

  Just as he said he would, Perley took his time to enjoy his dinner and some idle conversation with Becky and Lucy, plus a pause to stick his head inside the kitchen door to wish Beulah a happy birthday. Unfortunately, it provided enough time for his two antagonists to think of another way to entertain themselves at his expense. “We saw them two fellers ol’ Perley met with when they drove that wagon around to the side of the buildin’,” Jesse recalled as he and Leonard walked out on the porch of the saloon. “But he came from that inside door from the hotel.”

  “Yeah, he did,” Leonard replied, wondering what that had to do with anything.

  “Look yonder at that bay horse tied out front of the hotel,” Jesse said, a grin slowly spreading across his unshaven face. “I’m thinkin’ that’s ol’ Perley’s horse. I bet you he ain’t got a room in the hotel. He just tied his horse out there.”

  Still not quite sure what his friend was driving at, Leonard asked, “Maybe, so what about it?”

  “I’m thinkin’ about borrowin’ his horse for a little ride,” Jesse answered, his grin spreading from ear to ear now. “See if that don’t get his dander up enough to make him do somethin’ about it.”

  “Damned if you ain’t got the itch awful bad to shoot somebody, ain’t you? How do you know how fast he is?”

  “I know he ain’t faster’n me,” Jesse crowed. “I just don’t like his attitude—like he’s too good to have to stand up like a man.” He continued to grin at Leonard, waiting for him to show some enthusiasm for the caper. When Leonard remained indifferent, Jesse announced, “Well, I’m gonna take that bay for a little ride up and down this street a few times, till ol’ Perley shows his yellow self.”

  “What if it ain’t his horse?” Leonard asked.

  “Then I’ll just say, Beg your pardon, sir, and if whoever owns him don’t like it, we can settle it with six-guns.” Jesse didn’t wait for more discussion but headed straight for the hotel. Thinking it was bound to provide some entertainment, no matter who owned the horse, Leonard followed along behind him. He didn’t think it was a good idea, and Jesse’s brothers wouldn’t like for him to draw any more attention to them. But he knew better than to tell Jesse not to do something.

  When he walked up to the hitching rail, Jesse took a quick look toward the front door of the hotel. Seeing no one, he untied Buck’s reins from the rail and turned the bay gelding toward the street. “You’re a good-lookin’ horse for a jasper like that to be ridin’. It’s time to let you feel a man on your back.” He put a foot in the stirrup and climbed up. While he was throwing his right leg over, Buck lowered his head toward the ground and reared up on his front legs, causing the unsuspecting Jesse to do a somersault in midair and land hard on the ground in front of the horse. “Damn you!” Jesse spat as he tried to gather himself. “You like to broke my back!”

  It only made matters worse when Leonard whooped and hollered, “Hot damn, Jesse! You never said nothin’ about flyin’. Looks to me like that horse don’t wanna be rode.”

  “Well, he’s gonna be,” Jesse announced emphatically and got back up on his feet. “C’mere, you hardheaded plug.” Buck didn’t move but stood watching the strange man as he advanced cautiously toward him. “You fooled me with that trick, but I ain’t gonna be fooled this time.” The horse remained stone still as Jesse walked slowly up to him and took the reins again.

  Leonard bit his lip to keep from laughing, urging Jesse on. “Watch him, Jesse, he’s waitin’ to give you another flip.”

  “He does and I’ll shoot the fool crowbait,” Jesse said. “He ain’t as ornery as he thinks he is.” Buck continued to watch Jesse with a wary eye, but he remained as still as a statue. Trying again to approach the stone-still horse, Jesse kept talking calmly. “You just hold still, ol’ boy, till I get settled in the saddle. Then I’ll run some of the steam outta you.” With his foot in the stirrup again, he took a good grip on the saddle horn, then stood there on one leg before attempting to climb into the saddle. Still he paused, waiting to catch the horse by surprise. When he was ready, he suddenly pulled himself up to land squarely in the saddle. Buck did not flinch. He remained still as a statue. “Now, you’re showin’ some sense, horse.” He looked over at Leonard and grinned. “All he needed was for . . .” That was as far as he got before the big bay gelding exploded. With all four legs stiff as poles, the horse bounced around and around in a circle while Jesse held on for dear life. When that didn’t rid him of his rider, the incensed gelding started a series of bucks that ended when Jesse was finally thrown, landing on the hotel porch to slide up against a corner post.

  With the fuse on his temper burning brightly now, Jesse rolled over on the rough boards of the porch, his hands and knees skinned under his clothes. He scrambled on all fours to recover his .44, which had been knocked out of his holster when he landed on the porch. When he had the pistol in hand, he turned to level it at the offending horse. “Damn you, you four-legged devil, I’m sendin’ you back to hell where you came from!” He cocked the pistol at almost the same time his hand was smashed by the .44 slug that knocked the weapon free.

  Jesse screamed with the pain in his hand as he turned to see Perley standing in the doorway, his six-gun trained on him. “I’m willin’ to ignore your childish behavior when it ain’t doin’ any harm,” Perley said. “But you’re goin’ too far when you mess with my horse.” He glanced over at Leonard, standing in the street, to make sure he wasn’t showing any signs of retaliation. He wasn’t, after having witnessed the swiftness of the shot just fired. Perley looked back at Jesse. “I’m sure Sheriff McQueen heard that shot and he’ll be up here pretty quick to find out who did the shootin’. My advice to both of you is to get on your horses and get outta town before he gets here. If you do, I’ll tell him it was just an accidental discharge of a weapon. If you don’t, you’re goin’ to jail. So, what’s it gonna be?”

  “We’re gettin’ outta town,” Leonard said at once. “We don’t want no more trouble.” He hurried over to the edge of the porch. “Come on, Jesse, he’s right, it’s best we get outta town. You can’t go to jail right now.”

  Jesse was in too much pain to argue. He picked up his pistol with his left hand and let Leonard help him off the porch. “I might be seein’ you again, Perley,” he had to threaten as he went down the one step to the street.

  “Come on,” Leonard urged him. “Let’s get outta here and find a place to take a look at that hand.”

  Perley stepped out into the street to watch them hurry to the saloon, where their horses were tied. They galloped past the blacksmith’s forge just as Paul McQueen came walking out to the street. He paused to take a look at the two departing riders. T
hen, when he saw Perley standing out in front of the hotel, he headed that way. By the time he walked up there, Sonny and Link were there as well. “Wasn’t that those two in the dinin’ room before?” the sheriff asked.

  “Yep,” Perley answered. “They decided it best to leave town before they wound up in your jailhouse.” When McQueen asked about the shot he heard, Perley told him he fired it and why. “I did the best I could to avoid trouble with those two, but that one that kept pickin’ at me was fixin’ to shoot my horse. So I had to keep him from doin’ that.”

  “You shot him?” McQueen asked.

  “Just in the hand,” Perley replied. “I told ’em you’d be on your way to most likely put ’em in jail, so they decided to leave town.”

  “Good,” the sheriff said, “’cause it don’t look like I’m ever gonna get done shoein’ Luther Rains’s horse.”

  “Sorry you were bothered,” Perley said. “If you do get called out again, it won’t be on account of me. We’re fixin’ to head back to the Triple-G right now.”

  “I know it ain’t your fault, Perley. You don’t ever cause any trouble,” the sheriff said. To himself, he thought, but damned if trouble doesn’t have a way of finding you. He turned away and went back to finish his work at his forge. He had put his wife and son on the train the day before for a trip to visit her family in Kansas City. So he was trying to take advantage of the opportunity to catch up with some of his work as a blacksmith. Maybe if Perley stayed out of town for a while, he could get more done. As soon as he thought it, he scolded himself for thinking anything negative about Perley.

  * * *

  “He was gonna shoot Buck, so you had to shoot that feller, right, Perley?” Link was eager to confirm. His admiration for Perley had wavered a bit after having witnessed Perley’s reluctance to fight before. But now his faith was restored.

  “That’s right, Link. There wasn’t any time to talk him out of it. It’s too bad it takes a gun to talk somebody outta doin’ something stupid.” He glanced down the street to see a few people coming out into the street, curious to see what the gunshot was about, so he climbed up into the saddle. “Let’s go home before Rubin sends somebody after us.”