A Colt for the Kid (14 page)

‘What’s Johnnie up to now?’ Belle demanded.

‘Bring what rifles you have,’ Hennesey snapped back, then to Seth Callum he said quietly: ‘Seth, somehow you’ve raised a son who is a bigger man than any one of us in the town. Any two for that matter.’

In the street, Johnnie saw the mob collected outside the store. Bohun was head and shoulders above the crowd and even at this distance the abject fear on the man’s face was distinguishable. Johnnie moved slowly up the street. He ached almost everywhere and the wound in his shoulder burned furiously. He reached the fringe of the crowd and a dozen voices shouted for a way to be cleared for him. He got to Bohun’s side and saw the condition of the man. Already his clothing was torn to shreds and his face clawed and bleeding. He was astride and lashed to a fence rail held by half-a-dozen men. One of them grinned at him.

‘Come to see the fun, Johnnie?’

‘You could call it that, I guess.’ Johnnie turned to a man who had been hammering in the top of a small barrel. ‘What’s in that?’

‘Tar, Johnnie. Tar, to pour over the judge. Someone’s gone to collect hen feathers. When they come we’ll pour the lot over Bohun then ride him round the town on the rail before we throws him out. Everyone will be hurrahin’ an’ yellin’ like mad. Be good fun for you to watch, Johnnie.’

‘I’d as soon see him kickin’ on the end of a rope an’ I don’t think that’s fun either.’

The man got up from his crouch over the barrel. ‘You mean to say you don’t want nothin’ done to this louse of a judge?’

‘I mean I don’t want anythin’ like that done. In fact, if my
shoulder weren’t half busted, I’d lam into the feller who thought of the idea.’

‘Well, I’ll be doggone. Lookit here, Johnnie—’

‘No. You listen to me.’ Johnnie knew that in arguing with this one man he was arguing with the whole crowd of men. ‘It seems to me that this town ain’t got much gratitude. You was all wantin’ Donovan put out of the way but none of you had the sand to go after him. One way or another, I fixed him an’ I’d have killed him without Bohun hornin’ in. I guess you know that.’

‘Sure we do, but Bohun was trying to kill you.’

‘Then I reckon I ought to have a say in what’s to be done with him.’

‘I reckon this town owes you that much, Johnnie,’ a voice called out.

Johnnie’s glance travelled over the whole of the crowd. He saw sheepishness, indifference, and on only a few faces, resentment.

‘Lend me your knife, will you?’ he said to the man beside the barrel.

The knife was handed over without a word. Johnnie made two quick slashes at the judge’s bonds then said in a harsh voice:

‘Get out of town and don’t ever come back.’

‘Some things from my house, Johnnie,’ Bohun pleaded.

‘You’ve got your life. That’s more than you deserve. Be thankful.’

He watched a lane open in the crowd and the ragged, waddling figure of the judge pass down it, then he turned and on limbs that would scarcely support him, walked back to the Silver Dollar. Inside, he grinned faintly at his friends then looked directly at Belle.

‘I ain’t had time to ask until now, Belle. How’s Lucy?’

‘Doing grand, Johnnie. The fever’s left her. You’d better
get into bed before it gets you.’

‘Sure, I reckon I could sleep for a month.’ He turned to his father. ‘Paw, we’ll get to know each other after I’ve had some sleep.’

‘Sure, son. We’ve plenty of time, now.’

‘The third room on the right, Johnnie,’ Belle said crisply. ‘Think you can make those stairs?’

‘For a real bed I could make a hundred stairs.’

They watched him drag himself slowly up the stairs, then Carter said:

‘So Donovan’s empire is finally smashed. I wonder what will happen to his stuff?’

Hennesey shrugged. ‘I’ll have his house locked up in case there are any relatives, but the range beef will have to look after itself.’

‘Hmm. That’ll mean thousands of mavericks next spring. A darn good chance for anyone aimin’ to start a herd,’ said Stevens.

‘That’d be a chance for Johnnie an’ me,’ Seth Callum put in eagerly.

Belle grinned. ‘Don’t you count on Johnnie being your second string, Paw Callum. I bet he’ll start a herd all right, and I guess he’ll let you work with him, but it’ll be Mr and Mrs. Johnnie Callum’s herd. You can bet on that.’

‘Who is Johnnie figuring on marrying?’ Hennesey asked in surprise.

‘Johnnie isn’t figuring it at all. I guess the notion hasn’t entered his head. But it’s in Lucy’s all right, and that’ll be good enough for both of them.’

Sam grinned at Seth. ‘I guess you’d better come and fit in at my place. We wouldn’t want to get in the way of Mr and Mrs Johnnie.’

Two Gun Marshal