Vermijo Read online

  Yeah, Ace could be a mean sonofabitch when he wanted. The bartender closed his eyes as though making a decision. When he opened them again he flicked them to the right. Luke caught the look and followed their direction. There was a back door partially opened that looked to lead out to a small lot at the rear of the saloon.

  Luke heard the sound of heels scraping against the floorboards and from his left he heard Ace say, ‘You’re comin’ with me, kid.’

  ‘Why’re you on the prod, mister?’

  ‘‘’Cause I got me a powerful problem with pissant drifters like you, boy. Always did, always will.’

  Luke turned toward the rear door. ‘I don’t give a goddamn what you say or think,’ he said. ‘I’m leavin’.’

  Much as he hated to back down, what was to be gained by arguing with a drunk? But before he’d taken two paces, he heard Ace stumbling up behind him and felt himself shoved hard in the back. The drunk was determined to provoke a fight.

  ‘Don’t you dare turn your back on me, you snot-nose little bastard,’ Ace called out. ‘You ain’t goin’ no place.’

  Ace shoved Luke again, with a little more force this time.

  Luke staggered forward but still kept his back to the drunk. He said, ‘Do that again and I’ll…’

  Ace shoved him again, saying, ‘Yeah? You’ll what?’

  Luke stopped. He felt the anger boiling up inside him. He worked his fists at his sides, clenching and unclenching them.

  ‘You ain’t got the sand to face me, boy.’

  Luke turned on him. ‘Damn you. Don’t tell me I’m a coward.’

  ‘Why not? There ain’t an ounce of grit in that body of yourn.’

  Unable to contain his anger any longer, Luke shot a fist into Lockhart’s face.

  The blow forced the man backwards. He shook his head, said, ‘That it? That all you got? You hit like a girl!’

  Suddenly every bit of composure fell away and Luke rushed at him. He threw a wild roundhouse punch that Ace easily avoided.

  Ace countered with a strike of his own, and though Luke saw the punch coming his way, he wasn’t quick enough to avoid it. The blow rattled his head and he bit down on his bottom lip. Blood immediately spilled down his chin.

  Instead of moving away, Luke sprang forward. Something inside pushed him on.

  The two men came together in a clash of bodies that ended in a bear hug. Each pinned the others arms against their sides to prevent any punches.

  But even in his drunken state, Ace was more experienced and stronger than his younger opponent. Slowly he began exerting more pressure—squeezing harder and harder.

  Luke fought back as he felt his ribs being crushed. He wanted to cry out but bit back. There was only one way he could think of to get out of the hold, and he took it. He raised his right leg and dug his spur into the back of Lockhart’s knee, pushing the rowels spikes in as deep as he could.

  Ace howled. He had never experienced pain like that before. It felt like his whole leg was on fire.

  The back wall of the saloon was very close behind him.

  Luke continued to force his opponent backwards.

  Ace finally broke the hold and attempted a kidney punch that Luke easily dodged.

  Luke punched out again—putting his whole shoulder behind it this time.

  Lockhart stumbled back and only the wall stopped him from falling. His ears rang and he tasted blood in his mouth. He shook his head and watched his blood splatter to the ground. He looked up at Tyler through eyes filled with fury.

  ‘Oh boy,’ he said, low-voiced. ‘You shouldn’t oughta done that.’

  ‘You’re drunk, mister. Just let it be.’

  But even as Luke spoke, Ace put his hand on his gun’s handle. ‘Don’t take another step, kid.’

  Luke moved toward the back gate and raised his hands in surrender, saying, ‘Whoa, there. No call for gunplay, mister. Just keep that damn’ smoke-wagon pouched.’

  He kept his hand clear of his own gun.

  ‘I’m warnin’ you, kid. Take another step and I’ll drill you from belly to backbone.’

  Tyler kept his hands raised but did not stop walking. ‘Look, I’m going. Let that be an end to it.’

  ‘The hell you say!’

  Both men eyed each other for a long moment. Then Ace’s eyes seemed to flicker a little and he went for his Colt, his movements clumsy, almost as if he’d surprised himself.

  Two gun blasts shattered the air.

  One body fell.

  Ace Lockhart lay dead on the saloon floor.

  Luke held the still smoking pistol in his hand, his eyes full of horror at what he had just done…what he’d been forced to do.

  Miller took one look at the body, then he looked up at Luke and said, ‘Damn…he’s dead. You better get out of here pronto, kid.’

  Luke stared at him stupidly. ‘What?’

  ‘I said you better make tracks, kid. You just gone and killed Ace Lockhart.’

  ‘But... it was self-defense. He was fixin’ to shoot me. You saw it.’

  ‘I didn’t see anythin’. I was checkin’ my stock.’

  ‘You Goddamn lyin’ dog.’

  ‘Listen, kid, I only see what the Lockharts want me to see, you get it? Now just go.’

  Luke said, ‘Who in hell’s Ace Lockhart, anyway?’

  ‘Jim Lockhart’s brother... one of ’em, anyways.’

  ‘That don’t mean a thing to me, mister.’

  ‘Jim Lockhart’s the law in these parts, kid. An’ Ace wasn’t just his brother…he was one of his deputies.’

  Stunned, Luke pushed Miller out of the way and dropped to one knee alongside the body. Taking the man by the shoulder, he hefted Ace over onto his back.

  ‘Oh, sweet Jesus.’

  Ace’s right eye had been completely destroyed by the bullet. His face was slick with fresh blood. His jacket had fallen open to reveal a dull brass badge pinned to his shirt.

  Feeling sick now, Luke looked from the badge to the pistol still in his hand. He wanted to hurl it away. Instead, he holstered the weapon.

  ‘Why did he do that?’ His eyes went back to the badge.

  Miller said, ‘I ain’t got no comforting words for you, kid.’

  ‘He forced me to draw on him,’ he said.

  ‘That might be, but for all that he’s dead…an’ you killed him.’

  ‘I’ve never killed a man afore,’ Luke whispered. He looked down at his shaking hands. ‘Dammit, I didn’t want to kill him. I tried…I tried hard to stop him, didn’t I?

  Miller looked about him, knowing that the sound of gunfire would bring curious townsfolk. He felt pity for the youngster but knew well enough that he had to keep himself out of trouble with the Lockharts.

  He banged the dust off Luke’s hat and handed it to him, saying, ‘Listen to me, kid. You won’t find nary a person to help you in this town. You believe in God? Well you’d better pray the Lockharts don’t find you here. If they do, they’ll tear you to pieces and think nothing of it. Now get on your horse and ride like the Devil’s on your tail.’

  Three

  Sam Piggot stood in the deep shadows of the verandah and looked out across the land and spotted the three riders approaching his home. His home was built on the crest of a hill so the view from the main door was unimpeded. At that distance the riders were like black blobs distorted by the heat haze. He raised the glass of water to his mouth and took a long drink, then wiped away some droplets clinging to his mustache with his forefinger. The afternoon sun blazed down out of a cloudless blue sky and a gentle breeze rustled over the soil.

  Piggot thought about the upcoming meeting and it made him sweat. Not many men had that effect on him, but the Lockharts did, especially the eldest brother, Jim. Jim Lockhart had gotten under his skin and he cursed the man for making him feel the weakness, but damned if he was going to show it. In his time, Piggot had faced down Apaches, Mexican bandits and Anglo outlaws, but the Lockhart clan was a breed of their own. Suddenly the w
ater in his mouth tasted sour and he tossed the remains of his glass out onto the dirt.

  He stood and watched the riders draw closer. His eye was drawn to the breeze-driven black thunderclouds slithering their way above the Pajarito Mountains in the south. He waited until the riders were about two hundred yards out before he turned his back and went inside. His wife had drawn the drapes across the windows, which helped to keep the house comparatively cool during the daytime. He breathed in the smells of cooking.

  She also had insisted in baking an apple pie, as though she was treating these men as welcomed guests to the house. Nothing could have been further from the truth. He walked over to the stone fireplace and looked at the encased daguerreotype of his wife and himself taken on their wedding day. He ran a finger over his wife’s image. He wouldn’t have changed anything about his world, couldn’t think of a life without her. She made him feel as if he were alive.

  He walked to the back of the house and found his wife standing in front of the stove.

  ‘Honey,’ he said, ‘them Lockharts will be here anytime now.’

  She turned to face him and smiled. He was a tall man, wide at the shoulders, loose limbed and had a head full of brown hair. His mustache was of the same color.

  He took another step towards her and reached out and took her face in both of his hands. ‘I really would like you not to be here when they arrive.’

  ‘You’re that worried?’

  ‘For sure.’

  She placed her smaller hands over his and said, ‘You think there could be trouble?’

  He looked into her eyes. There were no signs of fear. ‘I don’t know, Kate. But when they wanted to come to our home to talk, it got me thinking. It don’t sit right with me. Anything official could be done in town.’

  ‘And you don’t think it is safe for me to be here?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘Should I fetch Adam?’

  ‘Adam? No, keep him out of this. I don’t want my hand mixed up in any of this.’

  Filtered sunlight fell across her face, emphasizing her high cheek bones, the slightly upturned nose, the light gray eyes he always joked were like those of a wolf, and the strong jawline. Piggot drank it all in.

  ‘Do you know what is it they want?’

  Sam shrugged.

  ‘But still it worries you?’

  He ignored her question and said, ‘I’ve already saddled Dotty, and she’s ready and waiting in the barn. Why don’t you use the northwest track and head over to your sister’s place? Come back before nightfall, or I could come to you.’

  She gently removed his hands from her face and interlocked her fingers with his. ‘Okay but I don’t trust Jim Lockhart.’

  His laugh came out more of a snort. ‘Name me someone who does.’

  ‘Or any of the Lockharts.’

  ‘Honey, that’s a given. There are just two of them and one of Lockhart’s deputies. More’n likely to be Jim and Carl. Ace’ll probably be staring at the bottom of a bottle this time of day. But, look, you’d best be on your way.’

  She let go of her husband’s hands and untied her apron and dropped it on the table. ‘Pie’ll be ready in ten minutes. Now don’t you go and forget and let it burn.’

  ‘Yes, ma’am.’

  She pulled him closer and kissed him on the lips.

  ‘Stay safe, Sam. Come and fetch me when the meet is over.’

  ‘For sure.’ He kissed her back, holding her a little longer. ‘Now get going.’

  Piggot turned away before she could protest and headed for the door. He heard Kate leave by the back door and let out a heavy sigh. The northwest track was directly behind the house and hidden from view. That meant Kate would not be seen by the Lockharts. He knew that she was smart enough not to set out at a gallop so the drum of hoofbeats could be heard by the lawmen. Piggot closed his eyes for a moment to gather his composure. He mentally counted to ten and when he was done, he opened his eyes and was ready.

  He opened the door and was in time to see the men drop out of their saddles. Jim and Carl came to meet him, the third man following close.

  He said, ‘You can take the horses round back to the barn and get ’em in the shade.’

  ‘No need,’ Jim Lockhart said. ‘We ain’t plannin’ on bein’ here too long.’

  ‘Please yourself,’ Piggot responded and waved the men inside. The third man, standing beside the horses had the look of a waiting predator. The heavy Colt on his hip, with a tied down holster, advertised his profession. He might have been wearing a deputy badge, but he was an out-and-out gunman. When Jim and Carl followed Piggot inside the man followed at a discrete distance and stood just inside the door. A silent presence.

  ‘This is the first time I’ve set foot in this house,’ Jim said as he stepped inside and looked around. It was a comfortable-looking place that had definitely been set out by a woman. The drapes, a fringed Mexican shawl tacked to the wall, the seat cushions and a couple of plants testified to that. He moved across the room and stopped to look at two framed daguerreotypes set on top of a small table. One was of Piggot as a young man and the other, Lockhart assumed to be his wife but at a much younger age, wearing a formal party dress. He dropped his hat in between the frames and took a few steps before saying, ‘And how long have we known each other? Four years now, is it?’

  ‘Something like that.’

  ‘And you’ve been the owner of the First National Bank longer than that. You’ve made a good living, many people respect you. I know I do. You don’t have many or even any enemies that I know of. And in my eyes that makes you an honest man.’

  ‘Good…then why do I think there’s a but coming?’

  ‘That’s a bit disrespectful, Sam. I don’t deserve that. We’ve come here as friends…and I hope that’s what we are. I mean, we aren’t murderers, are we?’

  Not far off it, were the words in Piggot’s head. Out loud he said, ‘Ah, of course not.’

  ‘That’s good,’ Jim said.

  ‘Well, you’ve asked for this meeting. What exactly is it you want to discuss?’

  Jim and Carl laughed in unison.

  Jim lowered himself into a comfortable-looking chair opposite Sam. Carl and the third man remained standing and watched as the two men engaged in conversation. Carl had always been the quieter of the brothers. Back when he was a young kid his parents fretted that there might have been something wrong with him. But as he grew up he changed and they stopped their worrying. Carl was just a naturally quiet person.

  Jim said, ‘No pleasant talk, Sam? Just like that. All right then. In few weeks’ time there’s going to be a new mine opening in the south range. It’s a silver strike with a massive vein that’s got to be the biggest Vermijo has ever seen. Hell, even bigger than Tombstone.’

  ‘A new mine? I’ve not heard anything about this.’

  ‘Well, I’m glad you haven’t. We wanted to keep it a secret.’

  ‘Well, that’s good news for the town. It’s going to benefit everyone…hey, what do you mean by that bit about keeping it a secret?’

  ‘Exactly what I said. We didn’t want all the country to find out before we could settle some business first.’

  ‘What kinda business you talking about?’

  ‘There’s going to be a lot of money to be made. More’n you’d ever thought or dreamt about.’

  ‘Oh, I can dream big.’

  ‘If we don’t get in first and control it all, then someone else will. Maybe some Mex outfit, maybe some Anglos. Carl was riding around when he came across some diggings that everyone had thought had been played out. But prospectors had opened up one of the mines again and uncovered a thick vein that ran about fifty feet. Well, that was as far as they had gotten.’

  ‘So there are already claimants?’

  ‘Not are but were.’

  ‘Oh?’

  ‘They met with a fatal accident when the ore hopper collapsed over the mine entrance. That was last week.’

  Carl spoke for the
first time, ‘Mining can be a little…dangerous.’

  ‘So I take it there are now new owners?’

  ‘Exactly.’

  ‘And what is it you want from me?’

  ‘We want you and the council to make sure that no one interferes with our business.’

  ‘But you’ve got…’ Piggot gestured at the men’s badges.

  ‘When we came to Vermijo the town was in a bad shape. Almost all the mines had closed down, the prospectors had hightailed it to Tombstone. The bank had been robbed for the second time. You had a sheriff back then and he had been killed trying to foil a payroll robbery and there was no one stepping up to take his place. Half the town lived in fear of more attacks by Apaches even though Cochise was long gone and then there’s the Mexicans raiding whenever they felt like it. The other half went the way of them prospectors. When me and my brothers arrived, we helped get the town in order and back on its feet. We became the law.’

  ‘Why are you telling me something I already know?’

  ‘As a reminder of what we’ve done for this town.’

  ‘And the town pays you quite handsomely for the honor.’

  ‘We brought order to Vermijo and she’s prospered under our control. But times are changing and what we need now is for everything with that mine to be legal and above board. The way I see it, this strike is going to be bigger than Tombstone’s. But what we don’t want is for it to get out of hand and have more prospectors flood the region before we can grab our share. And I’m not talking nickels and dimes here. That mine will be the making of us. I’m looking to the future here, Sam. One in which we can all make money and have a grand life. But we got to do it quick and do it right. There are just four people now who knows what happened to them miners and that’s the way it’s gotta stay.’

  ‘How sure are you about the ore?’