Mountain Woman Snake River Blizzard (20 page)

Man and Kate walked to where their horses were tied.  “Well, that was interesting
,
to say the least,” he said.  “What do you think?”

“I read her as a sharp old gal in spite of her age.  I read
her as being truthful.  I think
we might look into this in a different direction.  I suggest we start with Elmer Knorr and do a little digging into him.  I wonder if he was married.”

“And I think
we should visit
Chief Kincaid
again,” Man added.
 
“
We need
more information on how Elmer was killed
,
and about the alleged shooting of Dutch
Günter
. 
In fact,
I think we need to go back to the police station and ask some pointed questions.”

They found Dunlap in the front when they walked in.  H
e saw
them, put a folder on his desk,
and hurried to where they waited.  Dunlap glanced over his shoulder and saw several policemen watching and listening.

“We can use Chief Kincaid’s office,” he said.

He
led the way down the
hallway, went to the table, and sat
, leaving the door open.  Kate sat across from him and leaned forward.  “What happened to the informer?”

“Theo had his
lawyer here not long ago
and got him out on personal recognizance
.”

“Where
is Chief Kincaid?” Man asked.

“I don’t know.  H
e left a few minutes before you can in.  He said he would be back shortly.
  Maybe to get the mail, or
to the telegraph office, or it’s possible he went after tobacco.
”

“We’ll wait,” Kate said.  “We have information for both of you.  Do you know how Elmer was killed?
 
I mean,
was he
shot, knife
d, hit on the head?
”

“I don’t know, but maybe the
chief
has that information,” Dunlap said.

“Another question,” she said.  “Do you have any details of the shooting of Dutch?  Were there any witnesses, did a doctor examine him?  We need to verify it happened the way we were told.”

Dunlap sat and eyed them for a moment.  “It appears you have
suspicions about both the murder and the shooting?”

Kate nodded they did.

“We have conflicting information and we need to s
ort it out and get to the truth,
”
Man said.

“We have one other question,” Kate
said.  “What do you know
about
a man named Bedford Nail?”

Dunlap leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest.  He didn’t speak for a long mome
nt.
“Well,” he said as he moved his chair
forward and put his elbows on the tabl
e
.  “Nail is always one step ahead of us.  He owns a dive near the docks.  It’s called the Pirates Cove.  He has booze, women and gambling.  Do you think he might be involved in
Elmer’s murder?”

“Just checking out leads,” Kate said.  “How far from the Pirates Cove was Elmer’s body found?”

“Again, I don’t know.  Fishermen brought the body in.  They said it was caught in their net.  So it was out in the water, but exactly were, I don’t know.”

“Tell us what you know about Dutch
Günter
,” Kate said.

“W
hat do
you want to know?”

“What does he do for a living would be a good start,” Man said.

“He operates a farm that is owned by the
Günter
family.”

“What about his character,” Kate asked.  “Is he known as a truthful, honest man?”

“That, I don’t know,” Dunlap said.  “I only know him on sight.  I do know he has been taken home several times after too mu
ch
drink.
  We have
had to pick him up off the street because he wasn’t capable of getting home alone.  He’s single,
I know that much.  H
is wife left several years ago.”

“Was Elmer Knorr married?” was her next question.

“I don’t
think so, bu
t I’m not sure.”

A noise at the door caused everybody to look.  Chief Kincaid came in and welcomed
the marshal
s with a smile.  “We have som
e information for you,”
Man said.

Kincaid
closed
the door
and sat beside Dunlap.

Man took the lead and gave him the information they
’d
obtained from Grandmother Gretchen.  He didn’t comment.

Kate followed up with the questions they
’d
asked
his assistant c
hief.

“Elmer Knorr was killed by a blow to the head.  It could have been a board or paddle, which was more likely. The slit in his skull was about a half inch wide and he was hit from behind.  T
he fishermen said they found him
in their net ab
out a mile off shore.”

“The m
arshals want to know how far it was from t
he Pirates Cove,” Dunlap said.

“From what was
reported, it was at least a mile
,” Chief Kincaid said.

“Tell us about Bedford Nail,” Kate said.

“A real pain in the, uh, well
,
never mind.  If it is illegal, Nail is involved one way or the other.  But, he’s sharp and has his dirty work done
so
he always has an airtight alibi.  He keeps a couple of lawyers on his payroll for him and his men.”

“If Elmer Knorr was in real debt to him from gambling, would Nail have him killed?”
Kate asked.

“
I
don’t know,” Kincaid replied
.  “If that was the case, Nail would never collect
with Elmer dead
.  However, as a lesson to others, he might have.  Proving it would be next to impossible.  As I said, he would have an alibi and one of a dozen men on his payroll could have done it.”

“Was Elmer Married?” Man asked.

“No,” Chief Kincaid said.

“Would Dutch
Günter
lie about being shot?” Kate asked.

The c
hief r
ubbed his chin.  “It’s possible.
I’ve
heard some of the tales he
’s
told.  But, why would he do that?   He should know it could start a
shooting war between the Knorrs and Günter
s
.
”

“Tell us about the shooting of Dutch,” Kate said.  “Who reported it?  Did he go to the doctor and did he confirm it was a gunshot wound and not caused by somethi
ng else
.”

“Dutch didn’t go to the doctor.  I talked to him and he said it was only a scrape.  He said he put medicine and
a
bandage on it.  He showed me the bandage.  It was about halfway between his knee and ankle.  He said he was walking from his house to the
barn, heard a shot,
and felt a burning sen
sation on his leg
.  H
e ran
into the barn and never saw anybody.  But, I see your point
.  Why would he lie about it?”

“For attention,” Kate speculated.

“W
hat brought on these questions?”

“A very informative interview with Grandmother Gretchen,” Kate said.

“You got in to talk to her?” the
chief
asked in amazement.

“
Yes
, we did,” Kate said.  “She’
s a very astute woman and
appears to
contro
l
the Knorr family with an iron fist.”

“We all agree on that,” Assistant Chief Dunlap said.

They stood and went to the door.  Man stopped and thanked the two
police officers
before they left.

“What now?” Kate asked.

“The telegraph office first to make a report and see if the two k
illers have surfaced,” he said.

He came out and
shook his head
.  “What do you suggest we do now?” he asked.

“I would like to get a look at that wound on Dutch’s leg.  I tend
to believe Grandmother Gretchen,” Kate said.
 
“
We both have seen gunshot wounds often enough to recognize one.”

They found Dutch in the barn. 
When they walked in, Dutch put down the hayfork and waited until
the marshal
s were close
.

Man introduced them both
. 
“
Are you D
utch
Günter
?”

Dutch sat on an anvil
stand
in th
e middle of the barn
.  “I’m Dutch.  What can I do for you?”

“We w
ant the details of the shooting,
” Kate said.

He repeated the story of walking toward the
barn, hearing
the shot,
and feeling
the bullet hit his leg.  He pulled up his pants to show them the bandage.

Kate
went
to Dutch as she said, “A gunshot wound is a nasty thing.  The bullet is covered with no telling how many germs.  I’ve seen men lose their leg by just a scrape of a bullet if an infection sets in.
 
I was told yo
u didn’t go to a doctor.  That’
s very unwise
on your part
.  Would you mind if I looked at the wound to s
ee if any infection has started?
”

“Please look,” he said.  “I don’t want to lose my leg.”

Kate pulled the bandage away and knelt to examine the wound.  It was a flat scrape about three inches wide.  She stood and said, “Dutch
Günter
, you’re under arrest.  She grabbed the pistol on his hip and Man hurried behind the startled man with his handcuffs.

“What’s going on?” he demanded.

“That is not a gunshot wound,” Kate said.  “You lied to a policeman and filed a false report.  But, I expect a fine and about thirty days is all you will get.  However, should a shooting war start between the Günter’s and the
Knorrs
, the charges will be much
more severe and you’
re looking at a few years of hard labor.”

“We’re taking you into town and turn
ing
you over to Chief Kincaid.  Since it was him you lied to, I’m sure he won’t have much
sympathy
for you.”

Man went to saddle a horse he saw in a stall.  “I hope you have somebody to look
after your livestock while you’
re away,” Kate said.

Man helped Dutch on his horse and led him outside to where R
ed Bird and Arabian were tied.

“Why did you lie about being shot?” Kate asked casually.  “If you have a good reason, the judge may have some sympathy for you.  In fact, if you have a really good excuse
and he believes it, he may
put you on probation.
 
But, I warn you,” she added, “you had better tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth when
you talk to Kincaid this time.”

They stopped in front of the police station and Man helped Dutch from his horse.  Several spectators wer
e gathering to see who the two m
arshals
had
brought into town.

Somebody said, “That’s Dutch
Günter
.  I wonder if he’s the one that murdered Elmer Knorr.”

Kate winked at Man.

Chief Kincaid met them at the door and ushered Dutch back to his office.

“He has something to tell you,” Kate said.

The chief pushed Dutch into a
chair, stood in front of him,
and waited.

“I lied
about being shot,” Dutch said
.
 
“I didn’t mean to do it, but, well, it sounded better than saying I tripped over a tool and scraped my leg on a piece of steel.  I didn’t mean to lie, but it just came out that way.  I’m sorry and I never even thought about starting a shooting feud.  If you’ll let me, I’ll tell everybody that I made up that story.”

Kate and Man backed to the door and left it to Chief Kincaid to handle.  At least twenty people were in front of the station when they walked out.  A reporter was in front with his tablet out ready to take notes.