The Reckoning Read online

  Tucker wore a confused look. “She said she needed to tell you somethin’ about the men who killed our boys at Jefferson, Major. I thought you’d want to know that.”

  Manning shook his head and looked back at Tucker. “And you believed her? You idiot, who do you think that settler in Jefferson was talkin’ about when he said it looked like there was a woman with them?” He rubbed his chin. “But hold on a second. Now that I have her, maybe I can turn the tables on those boys outside.”

  Lorraine mentally kicked herself for being so impulsive. She’d always been smarter than that. She didn’t know anyone saw her back in Jefferson. Now Manning had her as a hostage, and Ike’s whole plan was in danger.

  Tucker looked dumbfounded. “You don’t think he was talkin’ about Miss Lorraine, do you?”

  “Idiot! She’s the only one he coulda been talkin’ about, you numbskull. Search her.”

  Tucker turned back toward Lorraine. “Pardon me, miss, but I got to frisk you.” As he started to lay his hands on Lorraine, more fire erupted outside.

  ****

  When Lorraine disappeared into the main house, Ike jumped up and in a limping run zigzagged toward it. He tried to be quiet, but shots rang out from somewhere ahead. He hit the dirt, gun up, and at the ready.

  Buster knelt right beside him. “There’s two hombres firin’ off to our front, and a couple more directly to the rear of the house.” Buster cradled his Sharps over a knee, took careful aim, and fired at one of the outlaws who was shooting wildly ahead of them in the dark.

  The shots from that direction stopped. A plaintive voice split the quiet. “I’m hit, Hank, I’m hit. They got me right in the stomach, Hank. Help me.”

  Another voice from the same direction said, “Shut up, you’ll give us all away.”

  Buster zeroed in on the second voice and fired two shots. Silence. A plaintive voice rose above the flats. “Hank, Hank? I’m bleedin’ out. Help,” then a hush descended on the impromptu battleground.

  Ike whispered, “Good shootin’, Buster. Any others?” Just then, shots rang out from the other side of the ranch house, enough so that there had to be more than one shooter firing. Ike said, “As long as we hear shots over there, at least Rob or the professor is still alive.” More shots from the far side, then silence.

  Ike said, “Let’s head to where those two hands just stopped talkin’. I don’t think they can hurt us much now.” The two rose to a stoop again and hurried in the direction the shots came from. When they got there, they found two bodies. Ike looked over at Buster. “They’re both done for. Likely these were just more raiders who came out here with Manning and pretended to be cow punchers. He’s gonna cost all his men their lives before this is over.”

  Buster nudged the nearest one with his boot. “They shoulda never up and done the major’s bidding. He ain’t worth it. They made a bad play when they set their hand against us. Let’s drop the rest of these varmints.”

  “First things first, Buster. I need to get into that house and see about Lorraine. Likely Manning’s got her now, just waitin’ for us to come get her.” Ike started to get up but ducked when more shots rang out off to his left.

  Buster said, “Looks like that’s gonna have to wait ’til we take care of that shooter. He’s got us pinned down here pretty good.” He reloaded his Sharps. “I’m gonna shift on over to his right and try to sideswipe him.”

  “I’ll try to draw his fire while you get in position.” Ike covered him as Buster ran low in a semi-circle toward the unseen man. When the wrangler returned Ike’s fire, Buster targeted the momentary flash from the barrel and lit him up. The night air was split by a groan, then silence. The mountain man crept back to Ike.

  “That’s a fair show of shootin’, Buster.”

  Buster reloaded. “You don’t survive in the mountains for as long as I did without bein’ handy with a rifle.”

  “I reckon that’s so, but you ain’t lettin’ me take any of ’em out, Buster. That ain’t right. I get the next one.”

  Buster said quietly, “You ain’t much good right now, Ike, what with your bad leg and your shot-up shoulder. But you’re doin’ just fine as my sidekick.” He smiled broadly at his last remark. “How’s your ammo?”

  “Holdin’.”

  More shots from the other side of the house.

  ****

  Inside, Tucker did a half-hearted job of searching Lorraine.

  “You keep your filthy hands off me, Tucker.”

  “Sorry, Mrs.” He turned to Manning, who still held his pistol on her. “Don’t think she’s got nothin’ else on her.”

  Manning motioned to the couch. “Sit down, Mrs. Blanchard. I expect you know more about me than you should, if you’re mixed up in the Jefferson shootout. What was it that Tucker said you were gonna tell me about last night?”

  Lorraine sat and cast a quick glance around the room. Emerald was huddled in a far corner. Didn’t she have the sense to stay out of this?

  Manning followed her gaze to his wife. “Emerald shouldn’t even be here, if that’s what you’re thinking. I told her to ride out this morning and stay in town, but she disobeyed and circled back. Maybe when my hotel went up in pieces, she changed her mind. You wouldn’t have had anything to do with that too, would you?”

  He must know what they’d been up to. Lorraine stuck her chin out a bit. “I reckon I did, you bastard. You should have seen how high it flew after we lit those fuses. I swear, I thought the thing was never gonna come down.” She laughed in spite of the barrel that was pointed right at her face. If she was going to get shot, she was going to get her digs in. “It was like the fourth of July, Manning, only in November. Looked like the folks in town enjoyed the fireworks too.” She broke into a laugh. “Just a guess, but that hotel of yours may not be ready to open when you thought it was gonna be.”

  A red flush spread over Manning’s face. He strode to the couch and aimed his pistol at Lorraine. Just then, Emerald spoke up. “Stop, Zeke. Put that gun down, and back away. As close as I am, even I couldn’t miss hittin’ you.” Manning looked over at her. Emerald stood nearby with a small derringer aimed at his head. His face twisted into a snarl, then he lowered his pistol to his side.

  Tucker reached for his gun, but Emerald beat him to the punch, whirled, and shot him in the shoulder. He dropped his pistol and grabbed at his wound. Emerald swung the gun back on Manning and walked to the center of the room. “I was tryin’ to shoot you in the face,” she said to Tucker, “but I got so excited that I missed. That’s the only reason you’re still alive—for now.” She motioned to Manning. “This ain’t such a good aimin’ pistol, but it’s still got a shot left, so you best behave. Drop it, Zeke. I mean it.” She cocked the small derringer again. “You shouldn’t have given me this pretty little thing. It’s liable to be the death of you. I knew I never should’ve married you back in Denver. I may have been just a saloon girl, but that’s still higher class than you ever been. Plus, you’re too old for a pretty young thing like me.” Emerald smoothed at her hair. A strange expression lit her eyes, and she gazed at her portrait.

  Lorraine sprang up off the couch. She hurried over and grabbed Tucker’s gun at the so-called sheriff’s feet.

  Manning stood still, looking at his wife, his six shooter down at his side. In one swift motion, he raised it at Emerald and fired. Emerald shot at the same time, and they both went down. She lay splayed on the carpet, staring wide-eyed at the ceiling, a red stain spreading over her dress from the center of her chest. Manning was down on his knees, gun on the floor, and a hand up to his neck. Blood seeped out between his fingers. Lorraine trained Tucker’s pistol on the ringleader and ran to where he kneeled. She kicked Manning’s gun away, pushed him down, and stood over him with her pistol aimed straight at his head.

  “Do it, Lorraine. Finish me off. Do it!” Manning screamed.

  She hesitated for a moment, then kept both men covered as she backed away to where Emerald lay. Lorraine stooped down beside her, h
er gun still trained on Manning. “You’re gonna be okay, Emerald. Listen to me. Emerald!”

  Emerald’s eyes were unfocused. She didn’t answer. Her breathing became labored, and her chest rose and fell in spasms. A small trickle of blood appeared at the side of her mouth. She broke into a small smile, then breathed her last as Lorraine held her hand.

  Lorraine kept her eyes on the two wounded men while she said a prayer over Emerald. Tucker still lay on the floor, but lunged for Manning’s pistol, swung it up, and fired. Lorraine felt a punch in her side and went down. From the floor, she fired Tucker’s gun in return and hit him in the forehead. He flew backward and landed with a thud. Manning still had a hand to his neck but was straining toward his gun.

  “Stop right there, Manning.” She fired a round over his head, and he became a statue. “I need you alive, you varmint. You’re our last clue to finding Sue. I never did cotton to you, even when you were bein’ all nice to me. Besides, there’s someone outside who wants to kill you even more than I do. I may just let him finish you off.” She cocked the pistol again. “Unless you want me to be the last person you ever see, don’t even twitch.” She lay back down with a hand on her side but still kept a motionless Manning in her sights. Sporadic fire continued to erupt outside.

  ****

  Ike and Buster had a one-two punch outside worked out now. Buster would circle around near a shooter under Ike’s covering fire, and when the shooter returned fire, Buster would take him out. It had worked on two of the hands so far. Ike took time to reload after they’d dispatched the last outlaw.

  Buster scooted back to their hiding spot. “How many you think are left, Ike?”

  “Ain’t as many as there used to be. Hasn’t been any more firin’ around us since we dropped that last bandit, but I’ve heard some scurryin’ around out there. Maybe they’re vamoosin’. But it don’t matter. I’m more worried about the shootin’ goin’ on inside the house. I got to get inside, Buster.” Ike raised to a crouch and in a jerky motion limped toward the front of the ranch house.

  Buster rose in the thin moonlight right behind him. “You ain’t gonna get rid of me that easy, Mr. Ike. I’m worried about her too. Let’s go.” He covered the dark land behind him with his pistol and backed toward the ranch house. Gunfire from the other side of the house continued to echo off the surrounding hills as Ike and Buster neared the front of the ranch house.

  Ike twisted the iron doorknob on the huge mahogany door. It gave way about a half inch, then stopped. He could see the wooden beam through the door’s small opening. “No way we’re gonna get through this door, Buster. There’s a big piece of wood inside holdin’ it tight. No hinges showin’ to shoot off, and nothin’ we can break through. Let’s try the windows and see if we can find a way in there.”

  The two comrades crept along the side of the house. Buster stood with his rifle at the ready, as Ike shattered a window with his rifle butt and tried to bust the inside shutters open with it.

  Buster said, “Awful loud, Ike.”

  He turned to Buster. “Don’t worry about the noise. If we ain’t got all Manning’s cowhands by now, we’ll be hearin’ from ’em soon enough anyway.” He fired through the wooden closure and shredded it. Finally, the shutter gave way to a blow from the rifle’s stock. “Lift me up, willya?”

  Buster boosted Ike headlong into the room beyond, and he hit the floor with a thump. Except for Ike’s loud entry, all was silent. He was in what looked like a dining room, with crystal and chinaware enclosed in fine oak display cases. Buster climbed in behind him. Quieter. They both assumed a crouch as they moved toward the open door that led into the main room.

  Lorraine lay motionless on the carpet in front of Ike, three bodies strewn haphazardly around her. Of the three, only Manning was moving. When she saw Ike, Lorraine rose slightly and reached a hand toward him. Tucker’s gun was in the other. Ike knelt down beside her and checked her wound. He tried to hide his worry, but the urgency in his voice gave him away. “We need to get you to town right now.” He reached down to pick her up when she suddenly fired over his shoulder. Manning slumped back on the carpet, sightless.

  Ike looked behind him at the dead raider. “Damn! Manning was my last link to finding Sue. Damn!”

  Buster stopped him cold. “He was gonna backshoot you, Ike. I was fixin’ to shoot him, but I’d a been a little too late. Lorraine just saved your life. Sounds to me like you ought to be thankin’ her instead of scoldin’ her.”

  Ike stared down at the lifeless Manning and put a bullet through Manning’s photo on his desk. He turned back to Lorraine and Buster. “You’re right. I am sorry, Lorraine. Thanks for savin’ my worthless hide. I’m…I just thought I’d be the one to dispatch…” He stopped, and his voice trailed off. He roused himself again. “Right now, we gotta get you out of here and back to town so the doc can have a look at you. Cover us, Buster. I’m gonna head for the barn and get the buckboard.”

  As soon as Buster and Ike came out of the ranch house, shots zinged just over their heads. Buster levered several shots from his Sharps in return. Shots from a different location rang out in the darkness, then silence descended over the ranch again.

  Ike heard his brother shout. “Ike! We shot all the ones that ain’t already throwed their hands in the air. Got the rest of the varmints on your side too.”

  Ike continued his stumbling run to the barn. “Grab the major’s safe and throw it on the wagon. I got to get Lorraine to town. Let the professor round up those varmints that are still alive and slap ’em in jail. You ride on ahead and tell Doc Early we’re bringin’ Lorraine in with a gunshot wound to the side. Tell him to be ready!”

  Buster and the professor hefted the heavy safe up into the wagon bed, while Rob saddled up and rode out of sight.

  Buster hitched the buckboard up, and Ike placed Lorraine gently in the wagon bed, then climbed in with her. “Get a move on, Buster.”

  The handyman snapped the reins hard, and the horses leaped into a gallop. Ike kept pressure on Lorraine’s wound, and as he did, she moaned. He eased up. There was little blood seeping from the bullet hole. He wondered if it was still inside her, but he didn’t want to lift her up to see.

  Lorraine reached for his hand and looked up at him with a wan smile. “You’re growin’ on me, cowboy. I just hope this isn’t the last time I get to tell you that.”

  Ike yelled at Buster. “Hurry up, dammit!” The ride to Cottonwood seemed to take forever. When they pulled up in front of the doc’s office, Ike gently wrapped Lorraine in his arms and bundled her inside.

  Doc was waiting. “Bring her over here to this table. Good. Now, clear on out of here and let me do my work, please.”

  Ike and Buster still stood there, staring at an unconscious Lorraine. Doc repeated himself. “Gentlemen, please wait outside in the waiting room. I’ll let you know if at any time I need your help.” The two backed out of his office and took seats on the little chairs outside.

  Rob was already waiting there. “Looks serious.”

  Ike didn’t respond, but Buster did. “It is.”

  Rob nodded, then said he would be back after helping the professor with the new occupants of the jail. Over the next several hours, Ike alternately sat with his head in his hands, jumped up and paced, or stood and stared out the small window at nothing.

  In the waiting room, Buster spoke up to no one in particular about Lorraine. “I know she was nice to me out of pity, ’cause I never really knew how to fix things. That’s one of the things I liked best about bein’ up in the mountains−it was a simple life, not a lot of things that needed work ’cept some bad hombres every now and then, and sooner or later they usually ended up on the wrong side of a bullet.”

  Doc Early came back in during one of Buster’s ramblings. He sat heavily next to Ike and wiped his brow. “She’s holdin’ on. I did get the bullet out, but I can’t tell if she’s heavy bleedin’ inside somewhere or not. We’ll just have to wait and see. We’ll know soon enough.”
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  “That’s not much to hang a hat on, Doc.” Ike got up and stared down at Sam.

  “I’m afraid that’s all we have to go on right now, Ike. That, and prayers, which wouldn’t hurt any. I could use your help in moving her to a bed I keep here in the office. I’ll stay with her tonight and let you know more in the morning.”

  “No need, Doc. I’ll stay with her, too.”

  Buster said, “I’ll have Margaret send some dinner over for the both of you.” He grabbed Rob and the professor by the arm, and they disappeared out the door. It was midnight.

  The next day passed with no change in Lorraine’s condition. That wasn’t good. Doc Early said the longer she was unconscious, the worse it was and said he’d be back in the morning. Ike sat next to the bed where Lorraine lay and silently held her hand. He was alone with her all that night and spoke in a whisper. “I ain’t never had a girl, least none as nice or pretty as you. You need to wake up, Lorraine. I don’t know how I could take you leavin’ me before we even got started together.” He squeezed her hand gently. A small smile crept across his face. “You know one of the things I like best about you? It ain’t your cookin’, or how you look out for other people, it’s your feistiness. Yup, your feistiness. Ain’t that somethin’. I’m tellin’…my girl…that what I like best about her is she’s ornery. I just hope you’re too ornery to die.” Ike prayed over her as she lay with her eyes closed.

  The next morning he was in a chair with an arm draped on Lorraine’s bed when he felt something touch his hand. Lorraine lay with her head turned toward him, eyes slightly open, and her mouth turned up slightly at the corners. Ike jumped up, grabbed her hand, and leaned close. “I knew the good Lord wouldn’t take you from me before you had a chance to change all my ways.” She squeezed back weakly and tried to speak.

  Ike interrupted. “No need to talk just yet. You’ll have plenty of time to be bossin’ me around. You just work on gettin’ well.” He frowned, worried about two women now. And he still didn’t know where the one he’d come to find was. He slipped out to find the doc.