“I'm here. How is your father?”
“Shot up, sir. Else him and me'd be gone after them. I wanted to trail them down, but maw said they'd eat me for breakfast. I ain't muchâwell, I never shot another man and I don't know if I could before he shot me.”
“You been to see the sheriff?” Chet asked.
“Maw said he was worthless as tits on a boar hawg.”
There were snickers.
“That's pretty bad. Since we can't leave until daylight, sit down. Has your dad been to a doctor?”
“No, sir.”
“Where do you live?”
“On the road they call Crook's Highway.”
Chet nodded at him. “That's over east of Camp Verde.”
“Yes.” The boy thanked Lea for his plate of food and silverware. “I know you're busy, but we sure need them horses back.”
“Oh, we understand. When did you leave home?”
“This morning, sir.”
“Day's ride over there,” Chet said, thinking out loud. “Well, I guess we'll be up before dawn and go see about his situation.”
“I'm going,” Liz said.
He looked at the ceiling for help. “It will be cold. Besides, I lost Susie's first husband chasing outlaws. I don't want to lose you.”
“You won't,
hombre
. You won't.”
“Jesus, find her some long winter underwear and britches. If she wants to freeze to death, I won't deny her that.”
“Where will those outlaws go?” she asked.
“Most of them go up to the Little Colorado Horse Head crossing. We chased some bank robbers up there last year.”
“I hope they aren't headed for Utah,” Jesus said. “We came close to freezing to death going up there.”
“When was that?” Liz asked.
“Some outlaws kidnapped Leroy Sipes north of the Arizona strip country and held him for ransom in Utah. We went up there, found more wanted killers, brought him and that bunch back, plus the lady at the mercantile, Ben Ivor's wife, Kathrin, who you met. She was fleeing polygamy and had gotten swept up by this gang. She was a victim of circumstances, and we brought her back, too. Ben was a widower and they do fine together. They have a new baby. My land man, Bo, found that orchard property for sale in Oak Creek, so I bought it. The Sipes were having a tough time making a living on their place and I hired them to go run it. We've been eating produceâmelons, apples, potatoes, peaches, and berries, ever since. We also have cabins up there. Good place to hide.”
“Another ranch.” She laughed.
“Hey, they brought us wagonloads of fruit to can last summer. Next year, Raphael, who you met at the Preskitt Valley place, is planting ten acres of beansâ
frijoles
, pinto beans, to supply the ranches. We're figuring out many things to be more self-sufficient.”
“You all don't do anything that isn't done well. But how did you assemble all these people?”
“Many of them had worked on the Verde River Ranch and that crooked foreman fired them. They all ate at Jenn's Café, and that's where they came from.”
“Tell me about your sister-in-law, May. I love her.”
“May was my brother's, Dale Allen's, second wife. His first wife died and she left him with three boys and a newborn baby daughter. Dale Allen married May, who was a banker's daughter, but I always thought he married her strictly to care for his young children. Her family was very mad that she married him, and disowned her.”
“I understand that part.”
“After Dale Allen was shot up in Kansas, his son, Heck, and May didn't get along. He was fifteen, so I brought him out here with me, looking for a ranch.”
“He is the one the stage robbers killed below Preskitt, when you were going home?”
“Yes, and I told you Marge came to my rescue. Tough days.”
“I bet they were.”
“Hampt, the real big guy, married May. They have the baby, Miles, now, too. In Texas, May lived in the big house, and was the quiet one, raising kids. She married Hampt and he caught her singing and playing a piano. We never knew she could do that, and she was with us several years. Hampt has been really good for her.”
“He is a gentle giant, isn't he? He cried at your family blessing.”
“That's true, but if he ever gets mad, he's a grizzly bear.”
“Your sister? Susie?”
“In Texas, she ran the house, fed the crew. Went with a sheriff at home, but they parted. She married a young man, Leif, who rode with me. He was riding with me when he had a horse wreck that killed him. Sarge, who handles the cattle drives to Gallup, is from the military. When she was widowed, he moved in and they got married and have the baby.”
“She is so nice.”
“In Texas, she always wanted me to marry a fat German farm girl who could farm and have lots of kids.”
She laughed hard. “You never minded her.”
“Nope. Now, tomorrow, wrap your hair up and we'll find you a larger hat. At first glance, I want you to pass for a teenage boy on this trip. Do you have a hand gun?”
“A new .30 caliber Colt. I can shoot it. The .44 was too big.”
“I don't doubt that. Wear it, Deputy Marshal. Brant, is that horse you rode in on solid?”
“No, sir. He's a Welsh pony. They took all the big horses.”
“Jesus will get you a good horse in the morning. Should I send a buckboard over to bring your father back to a doctor?”
The youth shook his head. “We have good neighbors. I am certain they would bring him.”
“Then it's settled. Before dawn, we ride out. Bring a tent.”
She shook her head. “Not for me.”
Jesus returned Chet's nod, that he would handle it.
“See you all early in the morning. Brant, Jesus will find you a bunk. Get lots of sleep.”
In bed later, she snuggled in his arms. “Thank you for taking me along. I won't slow you down.”
“Not a matter of that. I may not want to get out of a warm bedroll with you.”
“Oh, you silly guy. I am very excited. Thanks. You won't regret me being along.”
“You may have to hold the horses for us.”
“I can do that, too.”
He kissed her. Despite some misgivings, he felt proud she wanted to go with him. That way he wouldn't miss her.
C
HAPTER
9
Under the early morning stars, his men assembled the pack train. The breath of humans and horses came in clouds of vapor. Lea had fed them breakfast and they were on the way shortly. When they left, the sun still had not peaked over the mountains in the east. Liz wore a large-brimmed black hat Jesus found that fit her. She looked enough like a Mexican teenage boy to suit Chet.
Chet and Liz rode his strawberry roans and left in a trot. Cole had a spunky horse that bucked some, so he took the lead for Camp Verde Village. After passing through town, they began to climb the face of the north side. In a short while, they were in the pines, and Liz twisted in her saddle to look down at the great expanse of the river's route far beneath them.
Mid-morning, they took a short break. Jesus handed around some fried apple pies Lea made for the trip, and they washed them down with canteen water. Chet put Liz back on Baldy with a wink and they rode on. Mid-afternoon, with him pushing, they reached the Bates ranch. A woman in her thirties, wearing a black wool coat over a housedress, came out on the porch to greet them.
“You must be Chet Byrnes?”
“Yes, Mrs. Bates.”
“You sure got back here fast.”
“How is your husband?”
“He's making it.”
“Does he need to go to a doctor?”
She turned up her hands.
“This is my wife, Liz.”
“Nice to meet you, Mrs. Byrnes.”
“Your name is?” Liz asked as they went on the porch.
“Oh, I'm sorry. I'm Doris.”
She patted her arm. “Nice to meet you. May I see him, too?”
“Certainly. I sure hated to bother your husband, but I knew if he came there was a good chance he'd get those rustlers and our horses back.”
“He's good at that,” Liz said.
“I knew that. Andy, this is Byrnes's wife, Liz,” Doris said to her husband.
The pale-faced man sitting up with pillows nodded. “Sure hated to call on you two, but I just couldn't ride far after them.”
“I want your wife to take you to a doctor in Camp Verde. Who can we get to haul you there?”
Doris spoke up. “The Van Horns will take him.”
“Send Brant to get them. I want all the information you have on these rustlers,” Chet said to the pair.
“When they rode in here, I figured they were on hard luck. Three good old boys riding the chuck line, I thought.” Pain caught him and he winced. “Anyway, Doris fed them and then they pulled a gun to rob us. Made me mad and I ran for my .44.”
She made a face. “They gunned him down.”
“You have any names?”
“Curly, Fan, and Pick.” She shook her head. “Last name Smith.”
Chet nodded. “Describe them for me.”
“Long hair, whiskers. Curly had reddish hair, stood about five foot six inches. Fan had gray hair. I don't think he was that old. Five eight or so. Pick could have been Pike, I never heard it right. He's a bean pole, maybe six foot tall.”
“The horses and brands they took?”
“They all wore our KT brand on their right shoulder, mostly bays, one sorrel. Seven head. They took all our horses but that pony the boy rode over to your place.”
“The pony's at our Verde place. Brant's riding one of our horses. No problem. If need be, I'll trade for it. My nephews and nieces can ride the pony. Let's see when it's over.”
“Your wife can stay here,” Doris said.
Chet shook his head. “She expects to go with us. Thanks, anyway.”
The woman frowned in disbelief at him. “Does she know how cold and bad it can get up there?”
“She won't stay unless I tie her up.”
Liz stood there and nodded. “Thank you. I want to be with him.”
Doris shook her head.
“We will stay here tonight. Maybe sleep on your floor.”
“Oh, you are most welcome to stay here.”
“My men are checking for tracks. If they get a good trail to follow, we'll leave before dawn.”
“I'll send Brant to get a buckboard, then fix supper.”
“I will help you,” Liz said.
Doris started to say something, but instead nodded. “Thanks.”
Chet and Andy talked about cattle. His neighbors were feeding his cattle hay.
Jesus and Cole came in.
“They went north. That many horses leave lots of prints. We can follow them,” Cole said.
“Before sunup, we'll take up their tracks.”
The men agreed. Andy was napping. The women worked on food preparation. In the warmth of the stove, Chet sat on the couch in the warm room and catnapped.
The wind in the morning came off the North Pole. They were on the move before the sun crept up. Clouds were rolling in and Chet was concerned that it would soon be snowing. If it reached any depth, that could sure halt their tracking them.
He checked on Liz several times to be sure she was warm enough. She scoffed at his worrying. “I'm fine. I have lots of clothes on and if I fall off this horse, you will need a rope and pulley to get me back in the saddle.”
The men laughed. After a noon break, the snow started. Before dark on the short winter day in the rolling high country, they found an abandoned soddy with firewood and a fireplace.
“You own this?” Cole asked.
“I may. Bo buys these places all the time.”
“How far is your ranch from here?” Liz asked.
“Maybe twenty-thirty miles west. I'm not real certain. At least we have shelter tonight.”
She agreed and helped Jesus cook while he and Cole brought in the saddles and packs. The house had a particular odor he noticed as it warmed. It wasn't the horse gear, either. Smelled more like old socks to him.
“We may not be this lucky tomorrow night.”
She hugged his arm. “Stop worrying about me. I am a big girl and proud to be riding with you. I know a woman along has you concerned. Don't be.”
“Fine, you can just be one of the boys.”
“Good. I want to be.” They both laughed.
“How far are they ahead of us?”
“Not over two days, Jesus?”
“Two days. They aren't going as fast as we did today. Driving those horses slows them down.”
“Did they ever say how much money they got?” Liz asked.
“All I heard was they robbed them.”
Cole shook his head. “No, I never heard.”
Jesus rose from his cooking. “I bet they didn't get much.”
Chet agreed. “Not much cash in ranching cattle. We buy cattle from those folks, but aside from making a drive to some mining camp, cattle are not a large profit item.”
“What do people do for money?”
“Most do without.”
She nodded. “How many cattle do you buy in a year?”
“Over seven thousand head. Of course, some we ship are ours, but we've helped the small ranchers around the area by buying from them.”
“That is a big business. I am impressed.”
“Tell her about waiting for your money,” Cole said.
“We get a paper from the U.S. Government at delivery. It takes up to six months to collect on that amount.”
“Oh, so you have to wait?”
“Yes. That really worried me. Any time that much money is waiting and the U.S. Government is having so many financial problems, you can sure worry when they will pay you. But we're collecting on them now.”
“But selling that many cattle is big business.”
“I realize that, too, but we need to manage it well.”
“Oh, yes, but I see why you can buy these homesteads, too.”
“Deeded land belongs to you. Most are dry range homesteads and they have six hundred forty acres.”
“People come here to scratch out a living, huh?”
Chet shook his head. “What can they sell to make a living?”
“I see. Thanks. I know you may not be having fun now, but all this ranch building pleases you.”
“Damn near as much as having you along.”
She shook her head at him. “He has supper ready, so let's eat. Is it still snowing outside?”
“Like a goose picking,” Cole said.
“I figured so. Will we lose them?” she asked.
Chet shook his head. “No, we don't lose rustlers.”
They set out again the next morning. The clouds still shed flakes and the cold wind threatened to burn the skin on their faces. Chet had found a kerchief for Liz to wear over her face and winked at his Mexican bandit. “It seldom gets worse than this.”
“Don't worry. I am fine. I am with you.”
He shook his head. “Helluva place to be.”
By evening, they were on the Marcy Road and he made a decision to ride to the Windmill Ranch. “Let's go see Susie and warm up.”
No one argued with him. Long past sundown, they arrived at the ranch and Sarge came out to see who it was.
“Sarge, meet Liz. Boys, put the horses up in a shed. We can unload them later.”
“What are you all doing out here?” Sarge asked.
“Tell you in the house. We need to thaw her out.”
The ranch crew quickly came and took over the horses.
Chet stomped his snowy boots off, with Susie saying, “Get in here.”
“It won't take much pleading to get us to do that,” Chet said.
“Whatever are you up here for?”
“Horse rustlers. They shot a rancher down on the rim, robbed him, and took all his horses.”
“How long have you been out in this weather?” Sarge asked, taking their coats.
“A couple of days. We stayed in a soddy last night over east. Lucky it had firewood.”
“That was the Colby place. It's yours. We had firewood there in case we ever got caught over there.”
“We got caught. Liz, you thawing out alright?”
“I am fine. Thank you so much.”
“She's damn sure a trooper. Said we couldn't leave without her.”
“Well, you all are here and warm anyway. Did you lose their tracks?” Susie asked.
“We didn't think so. They were probably headed for Horse Head Crossing.”
“The mail delivery for Preskitt will stop here tomorrow. If he's seen them on the road, he'll recall them.”
“Good, we may stay a while till things thaw out.”
“Fine with me,” Cole said, and Jesus nodded in agreement.
“Whatever we have to do,” Liz said, and they all laughed. “I wanted to go along and it was cold, but you were cold, too. It didn't kill me, and I got to see your fine house, Susie.”
“Thank you. Me having female company is unusual. But it's good to have you here. We better fix some food.”
“I am ready,” Liz said. The bandanna around her neck, and still wearing the pants and wool shirt, she went with Susie into the kitchen.
Victor came in the house.
“Where is your new wife-to-be?” he asked. “We have the horses unpacked and your panniers in the bunkhouse.”
Chet got up off the couch and took him in the kitchen. “Liz, this is Victor. He was our guide and helped us find Reg's ranch.”
Victor spoke to her in Spanish and Chet understood enough to know she said her
hacienda
was at Indio Springs. He turned back to Chet, looking very impressed.
“She has a big
hacienda
down there.”
“She came to see me at Tubac. She wanted to buy a Barbarossa horse.”
“You sell her one?” Victor laughed.
“No. I got her instead.”
She waved her hands at them. “No, Victor. I got him instead of a horse.”
“I see. So glad you came to see us. Had you seen Susie's house before?”
“Not finished seeing it all.”
“They did a nice job looks like,” said Chet.
“Very nice,” Liz said, and stood beside him. “It is good to meet more family. You all are so nice to meâthe intruder.”
“No, Liz, you are one of us.” Susie shook her head from the doorway and went back in the kitchen.
Chet laughed. “Well, there you go, gal. The boss has accepted you.”
“Welcome to the Windmill Ranch, anyway,” Victor said.
“Thank you.”
The cold sun was out the next day. They decided to let it warm up one more day. The mail driver stopped and changed horses. He hadn't seen the robbers on the Marcy Road. He drank some of Susie's coffee, ate a Danish, then thanked them and drove on.
Tom Dance, the mail driver, was a legend. A few years earlier, as it neared Christmas, the mail had been held up many times between Gallup and Preskitt. After robbers scattered the mail so often, looking for cash or valuable things in it, folks feared they wouldn't get their holiday mail.
Dance offered to get it through. No one knew how many dead, attempted robbers he left by the roadside. But there were several, and after that the mail ran flawless from Gallup to Preskitt. The broad-shouldered Texan had handled it.
“If he didn't see them, are those rustlers gone?” Susie asked.
“They just weren't on his road. Three men and seven stolen horses don't evaporate,” Chet said. “Tomorrow, we'll look some more.”
He'd spoken with Liz the night before about her staying there. But she was resolved to go on. He wouldn't argue with her.
“Tomorrow,” Sarge said, “Victor and some of the boys want to help you find these rustlers. Cole and Victor can take two men. You, Jesus, and Liz, can take two more and meet them tomorrow night at Saint Johns. Spread out, you might better find them.”