Rosa's Land: Western Justice - book 1 (17 page)

“He told me about it. Said it was a fuss over a horse.”

“Well, it was a little bit worse than that. I never knew the ins and outs, but your grandfather despises him.”

“I don’t know, Ned. He asked if I’d try to make Grandfather listen to him. I think he was wanting to apologize. I told him to call on us. Maybe I can get Grandfather to forget the quarrel.”

“Well,” Ned said, “your grandfather hasn’t set any records for forgiving folks, but now he’s old and not too long for this world, I guess. Wouldn’t hurt to have a friend. He’s a rich man, and when trouble comes, all of us need to stick together. There’s enough bad men that the good men need to do their thing together.”

A week after the dance, Rosa answered the door and was pleased to see Charles Rhodes. She smiled and greeted him warmly. “I’m glad to see you, Charles. Come into the house. I told Grandfather you might be coming.”

Charles looked slightly sheepish. “Did you take his gun away from him?”

She smiled even wider. “No, but I told him he had to be civil.”

Rhodes shook his head. “I was in the wrong about that horse deal, and I’m just too stubborn to admit it when I’m wrong.”

“Well, you’re doing the right thing now. Come on in.”

They found Frank and Mateo, as usual, playing checkers.

Rhodes said at once, “Hello, Frank. I ask your pardon for calling without permission.”

“No, my granddaughter said you might be coming.” He got to his feet and stared at him and said, “Been a long time since we spoke.”

“Well, it was my fault, Frank. I was wrong about that horse, and I want to apologize to you. As I told your granddaughter, I don’t apologize good or easy, but I felt bad about it. Not many of us left. We need to stick together.”

Frank stepped forward and stuck his hand out. “That’s good enough for me. This is Rosa’s father, Señor Ramirez.”

“I’m glad to know you, sir. Your daughter graced the dance last week. The prettiest woman there.”

“Now, that’s enough of that.” Rosa smiled. “Will you have some refreshment?”

“I’d really rather you show me around the ranch and any horses you might have. I’m always in the market for a good mount.”

“He’s got lots of money, Rosa. Be sure you gouge him.” Frank smiled.

“Oh, Grandfather, I won’t do that. Come along, Charles.”

The rest of the afternoon was pleasant. She found herself liking Rhodes very much. True, he was a willful man. She had found that out from several sources, but he wasn’t that way with her. His manners were perfect.

When he left he said, “I thank you for making the way for your grandfather and me to bury the hatchet. Next time maybe I can come without a guilty feeling.”

“You’re welcome anytime, Charles.”

“I’ll take you up on that, and I’ll be back to pick up that bay stallion that I liked so much.” He swung into the saddle and rode away.

She watched him go and wondered what it would be like to be married to him.
That’s what all women do
, she thought.
When they see a man, they wonder if he’d make a good husband. This one’s rich, good looking, got good manners. Got a quick temper, they tell me—but so do I
.

She thought about him often the rest of the day and even dreamed about becoming his wife that night.

The next day she went riding on the edge of the property, just looking things over. She was returning to the house when suddenly she saw a man riding close.

He announced himself. “My name is Henry Beecher.”

Henry the Fox
, she thought.
He doesn’t look like an outlaw
.

Indeed, as she studied him, she saw he was well dressed. He had a gun at his side, as most men did in the Territory, but he had removed his hat when he spoke to her.

“I’m Rosa Ramirez.”

“I’m glad to know you. I’ve come to look over your horses. I’ve bought several from your grandfather over the years.”

Rosa did not know whether to mention she knew he was an outlaw.

He said, “I’m in the market for another mount.”

“My grandfather doesn’t do much business. That’s why he sent for me and my family.”

“Well, maybe you can show me a good horse. I’m partial to mares.”

“Come this way.” She rode down to the stables.

He kept beside her, speaking favorably about the ranch. She showed him the horses and named a rather high price on the mare that he liked.

He reached into his pocket, pulled out a sack, and said, “I’ve got these gold coins, just about the right amount.” He counted them out and put them into her hand.

She slipped them into the pocket of her riding skirt.

They talked for a while, and even though she knew he did terrible things, she found herself enjoying their time together. He was a bad man, everyone had told her that, but somehow he just didn’t look it. His face was pleasant. He was handsome with fair hair and pale green eyes such as she had never seen on a man.

He suddenly said, “I see they’ve told you about me.”

“Yes, I have heard of you, Mr. Beecher.”

“Just call me Henry. Well, I don’t deserve any medals, but half the things they say about me I didn’t do. Every time there’s trouble they say, ‘Well, that Henry’s been at this.’ I know my reputation’s bad, but I hope you’ll give me a chance to get to know you.”

She started to speak, but then more quickly than she thought a man could move, he reached forward, put his arms around her waist, and drew her close. He kissed her before she could even react. She finally struggled back and pushed him away. She was angry and said, “That was not a gentlemanly thing to do!”

“I’m no gentleman.” Henry laughed at her. “I’ll take the mare with me.” He went into the corral, put a loop over the mare’s head with a practiced motion, and led her out. As he left, he lifted his hat. “I’ll be seeing you, Miss Rosa.”

As soon as he was gone, she turned and saw Ned stepping out from behind the barn. He had a rifle in his hand. “I was just about ready to shoot him.”

“Is he really as dangerous as they say, Ned?”

“He’s worse. You know he’s smooth. Don’t let that fool you. Don’t ever let him catch you alone.”

Rosa thanked Ned and went about her way. All that day she thought about how a man could be that attractive and be such a villain.

Three days after the Fox bought the mare, most of the crew had gone to take a herd to better grass. Blinky had stayed back, along with Whitey Ford, the new hand.

Rosa was in the house talking with her father when suddenly they heard gunshots.

Then the door opened, and Blinky said, “It’s raiders! They’re after the horses!”

Instantly Rosa and Juan grabbed the rifles that they kept by the door and stepped out onto the porch. At least half a dozen men were opening the corral gate. Without hesitation, Rosa raised her rifle and sent off a shot.

One of the men hollered, “Shoot ‘em down! Shoot ‘em down!” and the men began shooting at the two, who took cover.

She was aware that Blinky and Whitey were dodging across the open ground, firing and looking for shelter. Suddenly she recognized George Pye and the two men who had tried to take their horses before. They had three more men with them and were leading some of the horses out. She was also aware that her father and grandfather had stepped outside, both with rifles, and they were pouring a withering fire. One of the outlaws cried out and grabbed his side. Then another one took a shot. Someone yelled, “Let’s get out of here!”

Rosa saw Pye raise his rifle and fire, and the shot struck Blinky who was knocked over backward. All of them on the porch kept up their fire, but the men got away with half a dozen horses.

Quickly Rosa ran to where Blinky was lying. The shot had taken him in the heart. He had probably died before he hit the ground. Tears came to her eyes, for the little man had been kind to her.

Whitey came limping back.

“Did you get hit, Whitey?”

“Just pinked me in the leg. Missed the bone.”

“Let’s get Blinky in the house, and then I’ll put a patch on it.”

They carried the body of the rider into the house. She washed Whitey’s wound and put a bandage over it.

There was nothing to do but wait for the crew to return. Three hours later they returned.

As soon as he stepped out of the saddle, Ringo Jukes saw her face. “What’s wrong, Rosa?”

“There were raiders. They killed Blinky and shot Whitey.”

Ned said, “Scatter out. They may come back.”

“I don’t think so. They took six of our horses.”

“We’ll nail things down here, and then we’ll go after ‘em.”

“We’ve got to take care of Blinky first.”

They buried Blinky the next morning, and it was a solemn chore. They had all liked the small man.

An hour later, Rosa called Juan to one side. She had saddled her horse, and she told him, “I’m going to Judge Parker’s to get marshals.”

“You can’t do that. Not by yourself.”

“They won’t catch me on this horse. She’s the fastest one we’ve got. Don’t tell Grandfather or Father until I’ve left.”

“Let me go with you.”

“No, they might come back. They’ll need all the help they can get here. I’ll be fine.”

Juan argued with her for a time, but she knew what she had to do … for all of their sakes. She mounted her horse, waved goodbye to her brother, and rode away from the ranch.

J
udge Parker leaned forward, opened an envelope, removed the letter inside, and spread it out. His wife sat across from him, and he looked up from time to time. She was cracking black walnuts on the face of an iron with a hammer and putting the nuts into a small jar.

Parker read the letter carefully then leaned back and stared thoughtfully across the room. Finally he said, “Dear, do you remember the woman named Eileen Riordan?”

“Of course I do. She’s the one who had the young son who wanted to become a marshal. How is the young man doing?”

“Well, we’re very pleased with him. As you know, she insisted we give him the worst jobs we could, hoping he would get tired of it and return home. But just the opposite happened. No matter how hard or dirty the work, or how difficult it was, Riordan got at it, always smiling, never complaining. We’re very pleased with him.”

“Well, that’s good news.”

“Actually, there’s better news than that. Heck usually wears young men out, the marshals that go with him. He’s tireless himself, and he thinks everyone else is. So, we sent him out on what should have been an easy job. You’ve heard of Sudden Sam. He’s a crook but not a vicious one. Never killed anybody. Never shot anybody that I know of. But he’s a burglar and a robber. Heck hated him because he robbed the widow of his partner of some money and two chickens. So, we sent him out. We decided Heck could go arrest him and bring him back—and he took young Riordan with him.”

“Did they catch him?”

“Well, they did, but he had two rough gunmen with him. They tried to kill Heck, and this young man shot the man that was about to do the job. Heck said he would have been dead for sure if young Riordan hadn’t been there. He was amazed that the young man was so quick with his gun. And so am I.”

“That sounds like he’s ready for something else.”

“That’s what I felt, too. So, a few days ago I wrote Mrs. Riordan a letter and told her all about her son. This is her answer: