Brother's Keeper (14 page)

EWTON
C
ASH RODE UP TO THE
Carter ranch house. It was the biggest house in the entire area, probably twice the size of Hardin’s

“What can I do for you, Mister?” asked the ranch hand.
“I’m looking for Terrence Hanley. Is he still working for the Carter spread?”
“Yep, he’s one of the few hands that Mrs. Carter kept after…well…you know.” Newton nodded.
“Yeah, I know all about what happened. Quite a thing don’t you think?” asked Newton.
“I was there and saw it. I never seen anything like it afore in my life. I was in the hotel sleeping off a hangover and by the time I got up and saw what was happening; it was over; except for when that kid shot Deke Moore right there in the middle of the street. He didn’t even give Deke a chance. That boy’s meaner than a basket of rattlers and twice as fast, I’ll say that.”
“Yeah, but he did have reason. You’ve got to give him that,” said Cash.
“I guess I have to agree with you on that. Anyway, Hanley is over in the barn working. I’ll tie up your horse for ya.” Newton thanked the hand and walked over to the barn. He found Terrence Hanley working on one of the stalls that had some loose boards. He was pounding away and didn’t hear Cash enter the barn. Cash waited for Hanley to stop and when he did, Cash spoke.
“Mr. Hanley?” Hanley turned around and looked at Cash.
“That’s me. What can I do for you, Mister?”
“I’m delivering a message from Cal Hardin. He would like to see you.”
Hanley narrowed his eyes as if to be able to look into Cash and find out why. “What in the hell does Cal Hardin want with me?”
“He wants to ask you to do a job for him.”
“Hell, I’m trying to keep the job I still got here. At least, I hope I still got it. Don’t know whether or not I’ll have a job tomorrow. Carter’s widow ain’t happy with most of us and she’s fired most of what’s left of Carter’s old crew, at least the ones who are still alive. What kind of job?” Hanley asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.
“He wants you to go and look for a man and take a message to him.”
Hanley put his hammer down and looked Cash over real good. “I’ve seen you before, in Andy’s Saloon, haven’t I?”
“Yeah, I’ve seen you in there a few times. We’ve never had any words, but I know who you are,” replied Cash.
“Cal Hardin seems to be a pretty nice fellow. I’ve never heard a bad word about him at least. Who does he want me to find?”
“He wants you to find that young man Jess who killed Carter and his men. He wants you to take a message to him.”
Hanley took off his hat and looked at Cash with amazement. “Do I look stupid? Do I look like a crazy man? I only ask because only a stupid man who is crazy in the head would go looking for that kid who took down Carter and that bunch that went into town looking for him. I knew those men and they were all damn fast with a pistol and that kid, if you can call him a kid, took out four of them and Dick Carter all by himself. And now, Cal Hardin wants me to go and have a chat with him? No way will that happen. You go find him. Go back and tell your boss I ain’t interested in getting dead just yet.”
“He said he will pay you well.”
Hanley look frustrated. “Why me? Why would he ask me to do it?”
“He said you would know how to find the kid.”
“I don’t know the kid. Don’t think I ever saw him.”
“You were the man Carter sent to find Sloan, weren’t you?”
“Yeah, but what does that have to do with the Jess Williams kid?”
“From what I gather, they look an awful lot alike. I guess they’re brothers.”
Hanley looked at the ground and shook his head. “Carter, you mean old son of a bitch you,” Hanley said softly, finally realizing why Carter had sent Hanley to find Tim Sloan. He thought for a moment and then he looked up at Cash with a grin.
“Tell Mr. Hardin I’ll be there to see him first thing in the morning.”
“I’ll tell him.”
“Good. And when you do, make sure you remind him about the part about paying me really well.”
Cash laughed. “Does this mean you’re stupid and crazy?”
“I’m sure beginning to see it that way lately,” replied Hanley.
Cash retrieved his horse and headed out back to the Hardin ranch. Hanley went back to working on the stall and wondering about the crazy notion that he was going out to find the very same man who Dick Carter had tried to kill. And now Hanley realized that he had found Jess Williams’ brother and gave him a message from Dick Carter and Hanley figured out what the message had probably said. And now, he was seriously considering going back out and finding Jess Williams?
I must be crazy
, Hanley thought to himself.

Whump!
“Jesus Christ!”
Murry jumped up from the ground throwing the

blanket down and trying to catch his hat, which had been covering his face. His hat hit the ground and he reached for his pistol and found his holster empty. He spun around to where he thought he had heard the cursing. He was trying to get his head out from the fog of sleep. He looked back to the campfire and saw Jess lying comfortably still.

“Don’t worry,” said Jess, without even opening his eyes, “it’s only Carl. He must’ve tripped over one of the rocks I placed around the camp.” It all suddenly came back to Murry as the fog of sleep began to lift.

“Goddamn it, Carl. I told you to watch out for the rocks and cans,” exclaimed Murry.
“Well I can’t see ‘em in the dark!” hollered back Carl, finally getting up and brushing himself off.
“That’s the whole idea, you idiot!” Murry hollered back. Carl let out a string of cuss words that neither Murry nor Jess could hear. Carl came back into the light of the fire. He looked down at the ground at Murry’s pistol.
“Well, at least I know how to keep my gun in my holster,” said Carl, only too happy to point out a flaw in Murry.
Murry picked up his pistol and dusted it off before placing it back in his holster. “I might need it now since you have alerted anyone within five miles of us as to where we are.”
“Well a man has to piss sometime!” grunted Carl as he lay back down.
Jess leaned up on one elbow and looked at the two. “Why don’t the two of you go back to sleep and finish your argument in the morning. It’s only a few hours to daylight.” Murry lay back down and tried to pry some of the blanket out of Carl’s grip. Jess closed his eyes and nodded back to sleep.
“Rise and shine, men.” Both Murry and Carl woke up to the aroma of fresh coffee, bacon and potatoes frying in a pan.
“That smells damn good,” Carl said, as he filled his cup with hot coffee. Murry poured himself a cup also and the three of them devoured the breakfast that Jess had made. Jess poured himself another cup of coffee and sat down on a boulder. Carl stood up and filled his cup again and looked back and forth at Jess and Murry. When neither of them spoke, Carl did. “Well…what’s the plan?”
Murry looked at Jess and then back at Carl. Jess could sense that another argument was about to begin and he didn’t want to hear it. He cut in before either of them could get a word out.
“I passed a small ranch back that way about three miles before I ran into you two yesterday. I plan to ride back there and see if I can buy me a packhorse from him. I’ve been thinking about it for some time now and I’ve decided I need a packhorse. Then, you two can ride the packhorse into that town you told me about and we can all get supplied up. How does that sound?”
“That’s sounds great,” Murry said.
“Yeah, that would be mighty nice of you,” added Carl. “We’d even be glad to pay you back for everything.”
“That’s not necessary. Just the pleasure of your charming company has been rewarding enough,” replied Jess, as he emptied his coffee cup. “You two stay here and I should be back in a few hours or so.”
Carl and Murry both nodded in agreement and began making another pot of coffee while Jess saddled up Gray and rode out back the way he had come yesterday. He found the ranch and the man who owned it was only too happy to sell one of his horses. Jess picked out what he thought was the strongest of the lot. Luckily, the rancher had a used saddle and saddlebags and Jess bought those also. He paid the rancher and headed back to the camp to pick up Murry and Carl. On the way, he thought about what supplies he would need for the packhorse. The more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea. The packhorse would allow him to carry a lot more supplies as well as a back up in case something happened to Gray. He would be able to carry more ammunition, more weapons, water, and even a dead body now and then. He got to camp and picked up Carl and Murry and they headed for the town where Carl and Murry had captured the man who had robbed them.

Terrence Hanley reined his horse up in front of the Hardin ranch. Newton Cash was sitting on the front porch having a cup of coffee with Cal Hardin. Hanley wrapped the reins around the post and walked up on the porch. Both Hardin and Cash stood up and Hanley shook hands with both men. Hardin called into the house and had Ruth bring out a cup of coffee for Hanley, which he gladly accepted. The mornings were getting a little colder now.

Williams kid?” asked Hanley.
“Yes. I asked for you because I knew that Dick Carter
had sent you to find Tim Sloan.”
“I took a letter to Sloan from Carter. I never read the
letter but I think I have a hunch about what it said.” “I’ll tell you what it said,” Hardin replied. “It was an
offer to pay Tim Sloan ten thousand dollars to kill his own
brother, Jess Williams. The letter told Sloan to contact me
because I am holding the money for Sloan and I am the
one who is to identify the body of Jess Williams if Sloan
does, in fact, kill him. Carter asked me to do this for him
because I owed him, which I did. I didn’t like the whole
matter but when you owe a man for helping you out when
you need it, then you have to repay the favor, no matter
what the favor is.”
Hanley had figured as much. “Has Sloan showed up
here yet to see you?” asked Hanley.
“He was here yesterday. He showed me the letter and
asked me if I would pay him the money I was holding. I
told him that I would. I don’t like it, but I will do what I
promised.”
“And yet, you want me to find Jess Williams and
what, warn him?”
“That’s exactly what I want you to do.”
“Doesn’t that go against the promise you made to
Dick Carter?”
Hardin smiled. “I promised Dick Carter that I would
identify the body and that I would pay the money to Sloan.
I didn’t promise anything else.”
“How will I know who this Jess Williams is when I
see him?”
“Just look for a young man who looks an awful lot
like Tim Sloan. They aren’t identical twins but they look
enough alike that you should be able to pick him out. He
rode out south of here heading for a town called Red Rock,
in Texas. That’s where he last heard his brother was. He
has no idea that his brother was in Holten, Texas, and he
also had no idea that his brother is here in Black Creek
right now, looking for him. That’s what I want you to tell
Jess Williams, if you can find him.”
“It won’t be easy. He’s already got a good head start
on me and how do we know he didn’t make a change in
plans by now?”
“We don’t. But he is dead set on finding his brother
and I don’t think he would let anything deter him. Just
keep after him and try your best to find him and tell him
what is going on. If you fail, I’ll understand. If you
succeed, I’ll pay you a bonus along with your pay.” “Exactly what is the pay?” asked Hanley; wondering
whether or not the job was worth it. After all, Hardin was
talking about more than just a few days. Finding Jess
Williams could take weeks or even months and he might
never find him at all.
“I said I would pay you well and I meant it. I will pay
you five hundred up front, another ten dollars a day plus
all your expenses.”
“What is the bonus if I am able to find him?” “Another five hundred dollars, paid upon your return.” Hanley took a moment to think about it. “That’s
mighty tempting. I might lose my job, however. Mrs. Carter ain’t going to like me taking off for who knows how long to do this job for you. Hell, she’ll probably fire me right off the minute I tell her about this. She ain’t exactly a
forgivin’ woman, if you know what I mean.”
Hardin smiled. “I know exactly what you mean. Old
man Carter wasn’t the easiest man to live with and she sure
wasn’t the happiest woman I’ve ever met even on her best
days. Don’t worry about a job though. If she fires you, you
come here to work for me as soon as you get back if you
want. Does that take care of all of your concerns?” “I guess you know how to make it easy for a man to
say yes, Mr. Hardin.”
Hardin shook hands with Hanley to seal the deal. “I
have two of my best long horses picked out for you. That
will give you the edge and help you to catch up with him. I
expect you to ride long and hard each day. I have all your
supplies ready and they will be packed up and ready for
you at first light.”
Hanley nodded. “I’ll ride back to Carter’s and pick up
a few things and be back here tonight. I might as well bunk
here tonight.”
“Cash will see to your needs. Thank you, Mr. Hanley,
for doing this for me. I will owe you a favor if you are
successful.”
Terrence Hanley rode out at first light heading south.
Jess had quite a head start on him but Hanley figured Jess
would be riding at a fairly normal pace. Hanley, however,
would be pushing the trail hard to close the gap. The two
horses that Hardin had provided were two of the most
magnificent long horses that Hanley had ever laid eyes on.
They were fast and they had endurance to spare. Hanley
would switch from one horse to the other every few hours.
He figured that he would ride from dawn to dusk every day
until he either got to Red Rock, Texas, or found a lead on the trail. He wasn’t sure that he would meet up with Jess on the trail but if he headed as straight as he could to Red Rock, he might get lucky. If not, he would try to find out whatever he could once he arrived in Red Rock. Hanley figured that as hard as he was riding, he might get there about the same time as Jess. He began watching the trail for any signs of a camp. He found one by a creek and he hoped it might have been Jess’ camp but there was no way to know for sure. He made a mental note of the hoofprints at the camp and he at least knew that it was a single rider. He pushed on hard until he couldn’t see anymore and made camp.