no question in Luke’s mind that Wolford’s men were responsible.
“Well, that’s a mighty serious charge,” Wilkes said.
Another man in the crowd said, “That ain’t all they’ve done. My barn burned down last week, and I know good and well somebody set that fire. I rode into town and told you all about it, Royce.”
“You did,” Wilkes said, “but you also told me you didn’t see who done it.”
“It had to be Wolford’s men! You know that!”
“I’m a lawman,” Wilkes boasted, his chest puffing out pompously. “I got to have proof. And somebody thinkin’ they saw something ain’t proof.”
“Are you callin’ us liars?” Peabody demanded.
“I’m sayin’ maybe you were mistaken.”
Luke suggested, “Why don’t you at least ask Wolford about it? See if he can account for the whereabouts of his men yesterday when Mr. Peabody’s livestock was being slaughtered.”
Wilkes shook his head stubbornly. “I ain’t gonna bother an important man like Mr. Wolford—”
“It’s no bother,” a new voice said.
Everyone swung around to look. The crowd parted, and Vincent Wolford himself sauntered up to the porch.
“I heard there was a gathering of some sort and decided to come see for myself what it was about,” Wolford went on. “I’d be glad to answer any questions you have for me, Sheriff.”
“I don’t have any questions,” Wilkes said.
“I do,” Peabody snapped. “Did you send your men to kill my livestock, mister?”
Wolford gave a solemn shake of his head. “Of course not, Mr. Peabody. Why in the world would I do a thing like that?”
“To try to run me off so you can grab my land!”
“I wanted to make you a fair offer for your land, but you wouldn’t even consider it,” Wolford said. “As far as I’m concerned, our business is over.”
“Where were your men yesterday morning?” Luke asked.
“Burnett, Howell, and Prentice?” Wolford shrugged. “I’m not sure. I don’t keep track of their whereabouts every hour of the day. As long as they do the jobs I give them, that’s all I really care about.”
“Did you give them any jobs yesterday?”
“As a matter of fact, I didn’t.” Wolford smiled. “I didn’t even speak to them. So you see, even if there was anything to these ludicrous accusations—and I assure you, there isn’t—I can’t be held responsible for them.”
Wilkes nodded. “Looks like that clears it all up. Sorry to bother you, Mr. Wolford.”
“Oh, it’s no bother, Sheriff, I assure you. All I want to do is carry on my business and get along with my neighbors.”
Wilkes turned back to the farmers. “You’ve said your piece, now it’s time for all of you to go back home and stop botherin’ folks.”
“Are you runnin’ us out of town?” Peabody asked. “Don’t we still have a right to go where we please?”
“No, you don’t,” Wilkes snapped. “Gatherin’ up in mobs like this is against the law. So if you don’t break it up and leave, it’ll be my duty to arrest you . . . and I’ll get the soldiers to help me, if I need to.”
“You’d better do what he says, Linus,” Luke told the old-timer.
“You mean let them get away with it?” Emily asked.
“Getting arrested isn’t going to help anything.”
Peabody scowled darkly, but he said, “All right, we’ll go. But this ain’t over, Sheriff. We’ll get justice somehow.”
“You step out of line and you’ll be sorry,” Wilkes warned.
With a lot of angry muttering, the crowd turned to leave town. As the wagon rolled past the last buildings, Emily said, “Like I told you, nothin’s gonna change.”
“At least Wolford knows we’re on to him,” Peabody said. “He’s the one who’s really to blame for everything.”
“And all he’s gonna do is laugh at us,” Emily said as her shoulders slumped in despair.
And if he did, it would be a painful one. Luke was sure of that.
CHAPTER 22
Emily was cool toward Luke on the ride back to the farm and for the rest of the day. He wasn’t sure why she was upset with him, unless it was because he had talked her grandfather out of setting off a showdown in town. Maybe she didn’t understand he didn’t want anything to happen to her . . . or maybe she did, and that just made her angrier.
Whatever the reason, she didn’t have much to say to him around her grandfather, and they didn’t get a chance to talk alone. Luke turned in knowing nothing was settled and the situation was likely to get worse before it got better . . . if it ever did.
Sometime during the night he came awake instantly, smelling smoke. It was too strong to be coming from the fireplace or the stove. He sat up. No lights burned inside the cabin, but a flickering red glow came through the cracks around the front door and through the thin curtains hung over the windows.
The barn was on fire. It was the only explanation that made sense.
And he knew it hadn’t caught fire by itself.
“Emily!” he shouted. “Linus! Wake up!”
Peabody bolted from his bunk. Emily bolted from hers and cried out in alarm. “Something’s on fire!”
“The barn!” With his nightshirt flapping around his legs, Peabody grabbed the rifle from the chair where he had placed it to be handy and headed for the door.
When he flung it open, the garish red light from the blazing barn spilled into the cabin. He rushed outside with Emily right behind him.
Still struggling to get out of his bunk, Luke swung his legs to the floor and stood up, using the back of a nearby chair for support. He picked up his revolver off the chair and grabbed one of his crutches propped against the wall next to the head of his bunk.
Hoofbeats pounded outside. Someone shouted, and Peabody’s rifle cracked.
“No, no,” Luke panted as he hurried toward the door as fast as he could. He knew without having to think about it what had happened. To get back at Peabody for trying to organize the farmers against him, Wolford had sent his men to the farm to set fire to the barn.
And those killers were still out there, where they threatened Emily and her grandfather. That thought made Luke’s blood run cold.
As he reached the porch, he heard Emily scream, “Grampaw!” In the garish light of the fire, Luke saw a man on horseback nearly run down Linus Peabody. The old-timer threw himself out of the way just in time, losing his balance and sprawling on the ground. The rider wheeled his horse around and pointed a gun at Peabody as Emily ran toward her grandfather.
She leaped to shield him as the rider pulled the trigger. Luke fired at the same instant. Flame spat from the barrel of his revolver. The impact of the bullet jarred the man on the horse, knocking him forward.
“Emily!” Peabody cried out. “Oh, my God, Emily!”
Luke suddenly realized he was off the porch and didn’t think about what he did next as he cast the single crutch aside and broke into a stumbling run toward Emily and Peabody. The nightmarish glare of the fire revealed Emily’s body lying stretched on the ground while her grandfather hovered over her.
Hoofbeats thundered again as two more riders lunged out of the jagged shadows cast by the firelight. The newcomers seemed intent on trampling them. Still stumbling, Luke raised the revolver and thumbed off two more shots. He didn’t know if he hit either of the attackers, but they veered sharply away.
The man he’d wounded yelled, “I’m hit! We gotta get out of here!”
