Once a Ranger (20 page)

“No one was there but a haughty old woman,” Guthrey told him.

“Not one hand?” Zamora looked at the two like he didn't believe it.

“Not a one. They must have gotten the word. I wish I'd gone there first instead of to Tombstone.” The whole day's findings had left him disappointed.

“We did find that they paid the dead man Clark,” Baker added. “And Noble found two hides where they'd butchered two animals weren't theirs. Those are the books.”

“What next?” Zamora asked them.

“I guess we need to send a telegram to El Paso and see what happens.”

“I can do that,” Zamora said.

“Maybe add, since no one is in charge, the sheriff may need to gather the stock and sell it at public auction.”

Baker laughed. “That should get someone off their asses.”

Guthrey agreed, told his crew good night, and headed home.

The whole deal left a lot hanging out. Pierson and the men had fled just like McAllen had done in Tombstone. Gone as if they were smoke, and no word had reached town that he knew about. Guthrey would have another night to sleep with his bride, and the notion appealed to him a lot. Whew, this job had more loose ends to run down than a prairie dog town eradication.

TWENTY-TWO

T
HE NEXT DAY
near noontime, his tracker, Vance, brought in two horse thieves and six stolen horses.

Guthrey and Baker hurried down to the livery corral to meet him after some kid stuck his head in the office and shouted the news. “Your Injun deputy got two prisoners and a mess of stolen horses down at the livery. You better come quick,” he said.

His man stood by the corral with a half dozen men questioning him.

Guthrey joined them and asked him to start over.

“I trailed these men to the New Mexico border.” He motioned to the pair of white men in handcuffs seated on the ground. “I arrested them at dawn yesterday and brought them back here.”

“You did wonderful, Vance,” Guthrey said. “We will try to locate the owners of the animals and will charge these two with horse stealing.”

“He arrested us in New Mexico. He can't do that,” one of the rustlers grumbled.

Guthrey jerked both to their feet and spoke softly, herding them toward jail. “Can you prove that? No, you can't, and you are going to prison for stealing those horses. Better shut your mouth or I'll see you get two more years on your sentence down there in Yuma.”

“That's all, folks,” Baker said to the crowd. “The judge will handle them. Everyone get back to work or to minding your own business. The law in Crook County will take care of them.”

Guthrey figured, for the moment, they were past the lynching idea festering in the minds of those men who had come to see the culprits brought in. It wouldn't take much to raise a hemp party over horse rustling. His new hire was going to be great at this tracking down business. The thieves would soon realize horse taking was a surefire way for them to get three years in Yuma prison.

“What next, Vance?”

“Oh, a man told me that there were cattle rustlers over in the east.”

“What was his name?”

“I don't recall he gave me a name, but I know where he lives. May I go see about it?”

“Sure, check back with the office once a week. We may need you on something else. Do you need to rest?”

He shook his head to dismiss and concern. “When I am busy I forget about my wife.”

“I savvy. You did a neat job. Zamora will book them in. Be careful, hombre, and you find too many outlaws, you come get us.”

His man smiled. “I will be fine. I am proud to work for you.”

“I'm damn glad to have you. Keep your head down.”

Vance rode off. When Guthrey went back in the office, he shook his head.

“He's trying to forget his dead wife. He's off checking on some more rustlers.”

“He's some guy,” Baker said. “No packhorse anymore; he parked him. He simply lives off the land.”

“You think they were across the territory line?” Zamora asked under his breath.

“How can they prove that?” Guthrey laughed. “No, we have us a tough man. Rustlers better watch out.”

No news about Pierson or his bunch. Baker had heard some gossip that they all rode like hell to get out of Arizona when McAllen sent them word by a messenger.

A law office in El Paso sent back a telegram that the help situation on the ranch would soon be settled and promised that a new crew would be at the ranch in the next week.

Guthrey nodded. “I may have to see that happen. I'm going back to the house. Today they're laying out the house plans for Cally.”

“Must be a big house. You've bought lots of lumber already,” Zamora said.

“That's her business and she handles it well. I may ride up to the Bridges Ranch tomorrow and check on things if it's quiet here.”

“Go,” Baker said. “We don't have a problem we can't handle.”

“Good.” Guthrey left the office and walked back to the jacal.

“Can we go up and take in the dance day after tomorrow?” Cally asked when he came home.

“I don't know why not.”

“First I want you to look at the floor plans. Dresscoe will be here and show you the plans after lunch,” she said.

“You know what you want—”

“We are married and we should share in our future plans. It won't hurt to put your opinion on it.”

“Yes, Mrs. Guthrey.”

She threw her arms around his neck and, on her tiptoes, she kissed him hard. “That's why I married you, big man.”

“I always wondered why.” They both laughed.

Over lunch they discussed the business with his tracker and the telegram from El Paso.

“Can you solve this McAllen business?”

“I'm going to write the West Texas Ranger office and see who's in charge and what they think about my coming there with a warrant for his arrest. Rangers are kinda clannish when it comes to their own, and since I was one of them—well, they might help me.”

“Those other three came to your aid here.”

“That was pure friendship why they came. But I believe I can get the same kind of support at El Paso.”

“Oh, I knew that it was friendship, but folks here thought the entire Ranger force had come to help you. Those were exciting days. I just knew I'd lose my new husband in some shoot-out going after that many men. But they cut the pie and all of them did their part.”

“We were lucky and it went smooth.”

They went over the plans with the builder, Dresscoe, for a couple of hours. Walked the hot yard to check the stakes he had driven in the hard ground as corners. He promised the corral would go up quickly and be well back of the house instead of in the front yard.

A hot wind swept Guthrey's nose full of creosote scents. He suppressed his amusement at Cally's expanded plans for the structure. The floor plans were twice as big as he felt they started with, but it was her dream and they could afford it. He'd never be a dream buster toward his sweet wife. In all his years Rangering, serving in the depressing Civil War, then making those tough cattle drives to Kansas, and finally back at being a Ranger again, he'd never felt this good about his personal life as he had during the nearly three months since they were married.

He closed his eyes, reveling in thoughts of the success and pleasure he had found with her.

“You all right?” Her words jarred him to awareness.

He put his arm around her shoulder and they started for the house. He laughed. “I am as fine as a fiddle, and your new house will be gorgeous.”

“Do you really like it? I mean, what it will be?”

“Yes. I was raised in a jacal not much bigger or better than ours here. I've lived in tents and slept on the ground. This will be a nice house for both of us.”

“Good. I was worried you'd think I was crazy.”

“No way, lady. Build away.”

“I worried every night you slept on the ground at the ranch a rattlesnake would crawl up and bite you.”

“I never saw one around there.”

“Oh, we had them. I was really relieved when you moved into the bunkhouse after that.”

“I didn't figure you worried a moment about me back then.”

“I sure did, but I never figured we could work past my opening remarks to you for coming.”

He chuckled. “I was as lost as you were that day. Don't ever fret over that again.”

“What was your first thought when you met me?” she asked.

“Nice young girl who acted like she was Dan's mother.”

“Someone had to worry about him. He was so impulsive then.”

“Did I hear some thunder?” He peered out the open door.

“Monsoon rains. We haven't had many this summer.”

“No, and we can use a boatload.”

When the rain began, they danced around on the dirt floor. Two lovers lost in a cool afternoon that produced a good soaker.

* * *

I
N THE MORNING
they drove for the ranch, the buckboard rims splashing many puddles in the cool air, and arrived around lunchtime. Deloris ran out of the ranch house to greet them as her small, bashful children stood back in the doorway.

She and Cally talked while Guthrey put up the team. Then he joined the tour and saw all the things Deloris had growing in her garden.

The woman turned to him. “This is such a wonderful place to grow things. I am so pleased to be here.”

He nodded, and when he and his wife were alone, she spoke about the employees he'd hired. “She has done lots of work to grow all that in the heat. You said they were hard workers, but she is an angel.”

“She no doubt had learned those skills to survive. They were raising things on that place where I found them. I knew with all your irrigation system they could really show off.”

“Squash, tomatoes, and many more plants are doing well. I thought they would die when I left.”

He agreed and said, “The ranch house here is pretty small, but it seems like a good size for the Diazes, and I think you and I won't be here much after our house in town is built. Should I build us a place here for when we're away from Soda Springs or find one for us up on the mountain?”

“Can we afford both?”

“Sure. We can do that.”

“I may go see the gold crew this afternoon,” he said.

“I will stay and help with Deloris's lovely children. One day we will have our own.”

“You bet.”

* * *

H
E FOUND THE
men at the mine working. They showed him the vein of rich gold they were following.

“I believe we are finding more as we go down. The vein widens all the time.”

“Do you need more equipment?” Guthrey asked.

“In time, maybe. Get much deeper and we will need a pulley system to raise and lower things. Not yet.”

“Keep up the good work. I need to get back.”

“Hey, this has been fun rather than work. I never saw such a vein of rich gold. As long as it holds out, we'll be fine.”

Guthrey thanked him and rode out.

* * *

T
HE THREE MEN
were back at the ranch when Guthrey came in.

Dan was bragging about the rain and Noble about the cattle's good condition, and Guermo was proud to be there. Things sounded fine on the ranch as they made plans to sell more cattle. This time Guthrey instructed Dan on how to talk to the butchers and learn their needs, then for him to rent the pasture if the man had anything to graze, and at last drive them over there.

“I'm excited about doing that,” Dan said. “I can handle it.”

“I know you can.”

With that complete, he went back to the house. Since Guermo and Deloris had fully moved into the ranch house with their family, Cally had a hammock hung outside for her and Guthrey to sleep in that night, and they'd go on to the dance in the morning.

They took a shower after the sun went down and came back to sleep in their swing. The crickets were making a symphony; coyotes added lyrics and a hoot owl joined them. On his back in the hammock squeezing her hand, Guthrey mused about the one night they dumped themselves out on the ground while busy making love.

“Not tonight,” she stated. “But that was funny.”

* * *

I
N THE MORNING
Cally helped Deloris make breakfast for the crew. Cally had made friends with the children and they would be her friends for life, in his opinion. But he knew how bad she wanted one of her own as well—they were working at it.

They drove over to the schoolhouse, and many were already there by midday. The men sat in the shade and talked about rain, cow prices, and the disappearance of the old Whitmore Ranch's crew.

“Never worry. A lawyer says there will be a new one here shortly,” Guthrey said.

“What did you figure out about the undercover boss?”

“He left Tombstone shortly after we caught the raiders.”

“Kinda sneaky, wasn't he?” one rancher asked.

“We'd have never tied them to that if they hadn't left two more nooses lying around in their cabin exactly like the one they used to string up Peters. My new deputy, Vance, found those ropes in their camp and knew that was where the killers hid out.”

“He's pretty smart.”

“But the crew had already fled the ranch when you got there, huh?”

Guthrey nodded. “There was only one haughty woman at that place when we went down there.”

“What was she doing?” another asked him.

“Minding the house, near as I could tell.” Guthrey shook his head over the situation the ranch might pose in the future.

“What are you doing next?”

“I'd like for them to sell out, but I can't find a way to get that done yet. But I will.”

Heads bobbed in agreement around the crowd. “We're banking on you doing that.

“And Vance is doing a great job. He brought back two horse thieves this week and six stolen horses.”

“And we have law and order around here.”

Guthrey and Cally enjoyed the company of their neighbors as they ate supper, and they danced a lot that evening. He felt better that the crew at the old Whitmore Ranch had moved on. But what and who they'd send to run it left him wondering if the threat of the big ranch against the small ones would ever be over.

Dan had gone to Tucson to set up the steer sale. Cally thought he was being very businesslike about the entire operation.

“I'm glad. He needs to take over the administration of the ranch and expand it.” Seated with his back to the schoolhouse bench against the wall, Guthrey crossed his dusty boots, which were stretched out in front of him. Nice to be inside such a cordial place with friends.

“I think he's better. The deputy job did him good, and Noble is no slouch at talking sense to people.” She squeezed his right hand and it did not hurt. He needed to mend his ways about getting into fistfights with troublemakers. Maybe he'd learned his lesson.

They parted from their friends about midnight as the dance broke up, and they went to their tent. In the darkness, Guthrey unbuttoned Cally's dress for her and she changed into a nightshirt while he shed his boots and then undressed.