Stranglehold Read online

  “I see you got yourself a knife there, Davey boy,” Elmer said.

  “He didn’t say nothin’ ’bout droppin’ no knife. All he said was that we was supposed to drop our guns.”

  Elmer held his hand out. “Give it to me.”

  Dave hesitated for a second, then he pulled his knife from the sheath and handed it to him. “What are you goin’ to do with it?”

  “Are you any good with this knife? What I’m askin’ you is, can you throw it?”

  “Hell yeah, he can throw it,” Neil said. “I once seen ’im pin a runnin’ rabbit to the ground with it. That rabbit was just real good eatin’ too.”

  Elmer handed the knife back. “Let us see how good you are. Throw it at somethin’.”

  “Throw it at what?”

  Elmer leaned in and whispered so quietly that only Dave, Neil, and Percy could hear him.

  “What?” Dave replied, shocked by Elmer’s response. “Are you serious?”

  “Yeah, I’m serious.”

  Suddenly, and without warning, Dave threw the knife at Wang.

  Wang caught the knife by its handle and in almost the same motion, threw the knife back. The blade buried itself nearly an inch deep into the table right in front of where Dave was standing.

  Every diner in the room had grown quiet from the beginning of the conversation, but they gasped when they saw Dave throw the knife at Wang. The gasp grew even louder when they saw Wang catch the knife and hurl it back.

  “Now, what do you think, boys? Is it all right with you three if Mr. Wang joins me ’n my friends at our table for supper?”

  “Uh, yeah. Yeah. Sure,” Dave said. “We didn’t mean nothin’ by it. We was just funnin’ a bit. That’s all.”

  Duff, who had put his gun away, looked toward one of the waiters, who, like everyone else, had been staring in complete shock at the events as they unfolded.

  “Waiter,” Duff called out to him. He pointed to the three cowboys. “Would ye be for givin’ m’ new friends here a drink ’n put it on my tab?”

  “What the hell? You’re buyin’ us a drink?” Dave asked.

  “Friends do that for friends, don’t they? And now that we’ve resolved these little differences between us, aren’t we friends?”

  “Yeah,” Dave said with a wide smile. “We’re friends.” He looked over at Wang. “Why, I’m even willin’ to be friends with the Chinaman.”

  The expression on Wang’s face had not changed during the entire conversation, and it didn’t change now with Dave’s affirmation of friendship. He did, however, nod in recognition, then he crossed to Duff’s table, the object of intense attention from everyone else in the room.

  Chapter Eleven

  Cottonwood Springs

  It had taken General Peterson but twenty-four hours to come up with the information Schofield had asked him to gather on Duff MacCallister.

  He stood in front of Schofield, rendering his report. “Duff MacCallister came to the United States from Scotland some few years ago. Since his arrival, he has become well-known enough that there is a rather significant amount of information about him in the newspaper morgue. He is a man of some considerable wealth, currently residing in Wyoming where he owns a very successful ranch just south of the town of Chugwater.

  “It is neither his wealth nor his success as a rancher that has made him well-known, though. It is his unerring marksmanship and his coolness in armed engagements that has earned him a degree of fame. He has been in a dozen or more battles and has shown himself to be more than proficient. Also he has two men who are often involved in the same confrontations. I haven’t been able to find out anything about them, but we must assume that they are worthy companions, for I don’t believe a man such as MacCallister would be associated with men who didn’t meet his standards.”

  “And what is MacCallister’s relationship with the mayor of Antelope Wells?” Schofield asked.

  “From what I have learned, he is not only McGregor’s friend, but he also has a great deal of respect for him. The two men served together in the Black Watch Regiment.”

  “Charles McGregor.” Schofield mouthed the name in such a way as to show his dislike for the man. “He is the one remaining obstacle to the successful conclusion of my goal to establish a new nation. And now you are suggesting that this man”—he picked up the letter so he could read the name—“MacCallister could strengthen McGregor’s resolve.”

  “Yes, sir, that is exactly what I’m saying.”

  “After the town of Antelope Wells falls into our hands, if McGregor should survive the battle, it will be necessary to eliminate him by way of public execution. His continued presence might well inspire an uprising of the people.” Schofield smiled. “We will replace him with our ally who calls himself Angus Pugh.”

  “How will we know who Angus Pugh is?” Peterson asked.

  “I’m quite sure he will make his presence known to us. Have you any information on when to expect this man MacCallister?”

  Peterson smiled. “Angus Pugh tells us that he has already reached Lordsburg.”

  Schofield stroked his chin as he contemplated his next move. “From there he will have to take the stagecoach, for there is no other way to get from Lordsburg to Antelope Wells. Have Lieutenant Mack take some men to Lordsburg and eliminate the problem.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Lordsburg

  While Elmer and Wang were getting the horses ready the next morning, Duff and Meagan were in the general store buying the provisions—bacon, canned beans, canned peaches, flour, coffee, and sugar—they would need for the two-day ride to Antelope Wells. Although Meagan had worn a dress while on the train, she knew a dress wouldn’t be functional for a long ride in the saddle. As a result, she was wearing jeans and a denim shirt. Her attire made her the subject of many a disapproving stare, though nobody said anything about it.

  Throwing their purchases in a cloth bag, they left the store and walked down to the stable, where Elmer and Wang were waiting for them with four saddled horses and two pack mules.

  “There are very few water caches between here ’n there,” the livery operator had told Elmer and Wang when he’d learned where they intended to go. “But the truth is they ain’t always got water in ’em, ’n there are damn few cricks in the whole Bootheel.”

  It was the livery operator’s warning that had convinced Elmer that they should buy the mules. While one carried their luggage and food supply, the other had two goatskins of water.

  “What the hell! You’re a woman!” the livery operator said as he saw them preparing to mount up for their trip.

  “Now see there, Duff, I tole’ you ’n Wang that they was somethin’ different about that one,” Elmer said, pointing toward Meagan. “Turns out it’s a woman, just like I was a-thinkin.”

  Meagan laughed and held up her hands. “I give up. You got me. I am a woman.”

  “There ain’t no call for a woman to be makin’ this trip. It’s too dangerous.”

  “How much danger can I be in, when I have these three brave men to protect me?” Meagan asked the liveryman. She made a clucking sound then rode away before he could respond.

  * * *

  “According to what the man at the hotel said, that’s him,” Lieutenant Mack of Schofield’s Legion said as he pointed at Duff and the little cavalcade that was with him.

  “I thought we was just comin’ after one man,” Sergeant Keaton said. “They’s four of ’em.”

  “And there are five of us. Besides which, one of ’em is a Chinaman, ’n accordin’ to the hotel clerk, one of ’em is a woman. So that’s the same as sayin’ that there are only two of ’em.”

  “How are we supposed to tell which one of ’em is the woman, when all four of ’em is dressed just alike?” Foster asked.

  “It doesn’t matter which one is a woman,” Mack said. “I intend for us to kill them all.”

  “The woman, too?” Welch asked in surprise.

  “Even though we are not in u
niform, we are at war, and this is a military operation. Any military operation during time of war has but one objective,” Mack said. “And that is to close with, and to capture or kill the enemy. They are the enemy.”

  “Where at are we goin’ to do it?” Keaton asked.

  “With those two pack mules, they won’t be moving very fast. The Notch is five miles south. We can beat them there, easy, and that’ll be a really good place for us to set up an ambush. We’ll be on them before they even see us.”

  They mounted up and turned their horses southward.

  “Hey, Lieutenant, do we have to kill all of them?” Pounders asked after a while. “I mean, right away?”

  “Of course we do Why do you ask?” Mack replied.

  “I was just a-thinkin’ ’bout the woman is all. Seems to me like if we wasn’t to kill her right away, that is, at least if we was to hold off on killin’ her for a little while, well we could”—Pounders paused in midsentence and flashed a wide, ribald grin, showing yellowed and misaligned teeth—“have us a little fun with her.”

  “Yeah, Lieutenant, what do you say?” Foster asked.

  Mack studied the hungry expression of the four men under his command, then he smiled. “I’m first.”

  “You can be first, long as we get to watch,” Pounders said.

  “Why, I reckon we’ll all be a-watchin’, won’t we?” Foster asked as they reached the Notch and reined in.

  Mack laughed. “Pounders, climb up to the top of the Notch ’n keep an eye open. Let us know when you see them coming.”

  “All right.”

  “Sir,” Mack said.

  “What?”

  “When you speak to me, you will say sir.”

  “Look, I know you’re sposed to be an officer ’n all, but this here ain’t no real army. I was in the real army not too long ago, ’n I run off. Why would I want to join any other army after I left the real army?”

  “How much were you making per month in the real army?” Mack asked.

  “Twelve dollars,” Pounders replied.

  “And what are you making in Schofield’s Legion?”

  A broad smile spread across Pounders’ face. “I’m makin’ a hunnert dollars a month.”

  “Then if you are making that much, don’t you think you could follow our rules?”

  “Yeah, damn right I can . . . uh . . . sir!” Pounders replied.

  “Then get up there and keep your eyes peeled.”

  “Yes, sir!” Pounders replied emphatically. He augmented his reply with a snappy salute, then he climbed up the side of the hill.

  * * *

  Duff and Megan were riding side by side. Elmer and Wang were behind them, each of them leading a mule. Traveling in relative silence, the quiet was broken only by the sound of the jangle of harness and hoof falls on the hard-packed road.

  Highly attuned to all sight and sound around them, Wang remembered the words of Master Tse of the Shaolin temple of Changlin. “It is not enough to merely observe nature. You must become nature. One who becomes nature is aware of any disruption in the natural order of things. Such a person can never be surprised by an unexpected event, for it is impossible for any event to ever be unexpected.”

  Approximately five hundred yards ahead of them and just over a relatively substantial hill on the right side of the road, the behavior of the birds was not in accord with the natural order of things.

  “Master Duff,” Wang called, using the respectful address.

  Duff had told him many times that they were friends, and no such deferential title was required, but he’d stopped when he realized that Wang was more comfortable with it.

  “Aye, Wang?”

  “There are some people behind the hill that is ahead of us. I believe that they mean us harm, for they are purposely keeping their persons in concealment.”

  “Do you know how many?”

  Wang looked again at the dispersal pattern of the birds. “I believe there may be more of them than there are of us.”

  “Meagan, perhaps you should—”

  “I will feel safer if I am with you,” Meagan said, interrupting Duff in midsentence. “Besides, now that we know they are there, we have the advantage of surprise over them, because they are unaware that we know.”

  “All right. You can stay with us.”

  * * *

  “I see ’em,” Pounders called down from above.

  “How far away are they?” Mack asked.

  Pounders carefully raised his head just enough to see without being seen. “They ain’t more ’n a hunnert, maybe a hunnert ’n fifty yards now ’n they—” Pounders paused for a moment. “What the hell?” he asked in surprise.

  “What is it? What’s wrong?” Mack asked.

  “They’s one of ’em that’s missin’.”

  “Maybe he turned back,” Mack suggested.

  “If he did, how come he didn’t take his horse? The reason I ask is one o’ the horses has an empty saddle.”

  “Which one of them is missing?” Mack asked.

  “Looks to me like it’s the Chinaman who ain’t there no more.”

  “Yeah, well, keep an eye on ’em ’n let us know when they are about twenty-five yards or so,” Mack said.

  “Hey, Pounders, you sure it’s the Chinaman that’s missin’ ’n not the woman?” Foster asked. “Don’t forget, we’re plannin’ on havin’ some fun with her.”

  “It’s the Chinaman,” Pounders called back.

  Mack and the others waited in silence for several more seconds.

  “Where are they now, Pounders?” Mack called up to his lookout. “Hell, they should damn near be here by now.”

  Mack got no reply.

  “What are you doin’ up there, Pounders? You got your thumb up your ass? Where are they?”

  Again Mack’s query was unanswered.

  “Foster, get up there and see what the hell Pounders is doing,” Mack ordered.

  “He’s prob’ly thinkin’ about that woman we’re about to have some fun with,” Foster said with a little chuckle as he climbed up the hill.

  “Well?” Mack said after a few seconds of hearing nothing from the second man he had sent up. “Foster?”

  “What’s goin’ on, Lieutenant? What happened to ’em?” Welch asked.

  “Go take a look,” Mack ordered.

  “No, sir. I ain’t goin’ to do no such thing! They’s got to be somethin’ funny that’s a-goin’ on up there, on account of we ain’t heard nothin’ back from either one of ’em.”

  Sergeant Keaton pulled his pistol and pointed it at Welch. “You’ll either do what the lieutenant says or I’ll kill you right here where you stand.”

  Under protest, but forced by the pistol in Keaton’s hand, Welch followed the same path up the hill that Pounders and Foster had followed. And like them, Welch didn’t make another sound.

  “They’s only two of us now!” Keaton said, his voice breaking with fear. “We’ve got to get out of here!”

  “What the hell happened to them?” Mack wondered aloud. Like Keaton, he was staring up toward the top of the hill, which from their position couldn’t actually be seen.

  “Oh, I expect they ran into Mr. Wang,” Duff said.

  “What? Where . . . ? Where did you come from?” Mack asked, startled by the unexpected appearance of someone who was supposed to be their quarry.

  Duff and Elmer were standing there, and both were holding guns pointed at Mack and Keaton.

  “Oh, come now, ’n haven’t ye had us under observation for the last several minutes? Are ye for telling me that ye didn’t see us coming up the road?”

  “I doubt they was a-seein’ all that much, what with Wang kind of gettin’ in their way ’n all,” Elmer said.

  “Aye, ye have a point there. Mr. Wang!” Duff called up the side of the hill. “Would ye be for sendin’ the blokes back down?”

  A second after Duff called up to Wang, there was a scraping, scuffling sound, and a man came sliding down the sid
e of the hill. Mack and Keaton saw Welch hit the ground in front of them.

  “Is he dead?” Keaton asked, his voice strained by fear.

  Two more came sliding down, and like Welch, they lay flat on the ground where they hit.

  “Damn. All three is dead!” Keaton said, but his declaration was disproved when the three men began to move.

  The last person to come down the hill was Wang himself, who slid down the hill in the sitting position. When he reached the bottom of the hill, he stood up quickly.

  By then Meagan had joined Duff and Elmer.

  Welch groaned, then sat up. “What happened?”

  “You tell me what happened,” Mack demanded, his voice laced with anger.

  “I don’t remember a thing.”

  “I don’t remember nothin’ neither,” Pounders said. “Leastwise, I don’t remember nothin’ after climbin’ up to the top of the hill.”

  “It was the Chinaman,” Foster said. “When I clumb up the hill, I seen ’im standin’ there over Pounders. I pointed my gun at ’im, only a-fore I knowed what was happenin’, seemed to me like ever’thing turned black, ’n when I come to, I was here ’n front o’ ever’one.”

  “What is it you’re a-aimin’ to do with us?” Welch asked.

  “Well now, that all depends,” Duff said. “Would ye be for tellin’ us what it is you have in mind for us?”

  “We didn’t have anything in mind, except for observation,” Mack replied. “You are strangers here, and we were just wondering about you. That’s all.”

  “Aye, ’tis wondering about us ye were, when every one of ye had a long gun in yer hands.”

  “What are we going to do with ’em, Duff?” Elmer asked.

  “I’ve nae yet made up my mind. Would ye be for tellin’ us who sent you to spy on us?”

  “We don’t have to tell you a damn thing,” Mack said resolutely.

  “Why don’t you let Wang take care of ’em?” Elmer said. “Oncet, when I was in China, I seen a Chinaman take the skin right off a feller, peeled ’im like he was peelin’ an apple he did. Damndest thing I ever seen. Well sir, iffen we was ter let Wang do that to this ’n here”—Elmer pointed to Mack, who he had correctly assumed was the leader of the group—“why, you’d see just what it is I’m talkin’ about. ’Course, we wouldn’t be gettin’ no information from him, on account of when you peel the skin off of ’em, they wind up dyin’. But whilst he would be layin’ there dyin’ without no skin, the others would commence a-talkin’ pretty quick so as not to have that same thing happen to them.”