“I’ll bring one right back,” Thad said.
“And each one of us who comes to relieve the other can bring a fresh one,” Thomas said. “Good thinkin’, James.”
“Just don’t wanna die of thirst up here and have one of you boys find me with my tongue all swole up.”
Thomas slapped his brother on the back.
“I’ll see you in a while.”
He and Thad went back down through the hatch and James closed it behind them. He then took up a position at the front of the building. Before long he saw his brother and Thad leave the building and cross the street. He wished he had told Thomas to bring a rifle up with him, but made a bet with himself that his brother would think of that on his own.
He remained at the front of the building for a few moments, then decided it would be better to move around, make sure he could see on all sides. He started walking in a circle around the roof, found himself thinking about Belinda Davis, and shook his head to dispel thoughts of her. Like his pa said, that kind of thinking at the wrong time could get a man killed.
“What happened at your house last night?” Shaye asked. “I mean, between you and your wife and Belinda.”
“My wife doesn’t want to confront Belinda just yet,” Cotton said.
“Why not?”
“She’s afraid she might get mad and leave and take Little Matt with her,” the lawman explained.
“Doesn’t seem to me Belinda’s all that loving toward the boy,” Shaye said. “Every time I’ve seen him, it’s your missus that’s holding him.”
“You’re right about that,” Cotton said. “Seems we never had any young ones of our own. My wife does everything for that boy, from dressing him and feeding him in the morning to putting him to bed at night.”
“And what does Belinda do?”
“She goes out mostly. Does some shopping. Does…well, I don’t know what she does.”
“Where does she get money for shopping?”
Cotton hesitated, then said, “From my wife.”
“Man,” Shaye said, “that girl has been taking advantage of you and your wife long enough.”
“I know it,” Cotton said. “I see it now and so does my wife, but—”
“I know,” Shaye said. “You don’t have to try to explain.”
They continued walking, nodding to men they passed, tipping their hats to ladies.
“Has Belinda got a man?”
“What?”
“A beau?” Shaye asked. “Somebody courting her?”
“Not that I know of.”
“She can’t be shopping all the time,” Shaye said. “Where does she go when she goes out? She got friends in town? Other girls?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Sounds…doesn’t sound right,” Shaye said, shaking his head. “What if she’s got a fella?”
“And?”
“She’s using you and your wife to live off of, to take care of the baby while she goes and sees this fella, maybe on the sly. Maybe he’s a married man.”
“Well, most of the men in town are kinda stuck on her,” Cotton said. “I see the way they watch her when she walks around town.”
“Could be she wants you to take care of her baby, my boys and me to protect her from Jeb Collier, and then maybe she’ll go off with this fella she’s seeing.”
“If she’s seeing one.”
“Right.”
“I guess we’ll find that all out in due time,” Shaye said, “if we’re not going to confront her now.”
“I’ll…talk to my missus about it.”
“Fine,” Shaye said. “It’s your call, Sheriff.”
They walked a bit more and then the sheriff said, “By the way, the town will be picking up the hotel bill for you and your boys while you’re here. Won’t cost you a cent.”
“Well,” Shaye said, “at least that’s good news.”
40
It was several days later when the newly formed Collier gang rode into a Texas town called Highbinder. It wasn’t much of a town, really, but it had a lawman and a telegraph office. The lawman had received a message from the sheriff of Pearl River Junction to be on the lookout for a gang of men led by one Jeb Collier.
Sheriff Tate Coffey had no deputies and spent most of his days seated in front of his office, watching the street. Highbinder only had a few streets and there was rarely any trouble there. When this group of men rode in— eight in number—he knew it had to be the gang Sheriff Cotton had contacted him about.
Highbinder also had one hotel and one saloon and the eight men headed for the saloon first. If they went to the hotel next and checked in, he’d be able to take a look at their names. He decided to wait on sending a telegram to the sheriff of Pearl River Junction until he knew for sure that this was the gang in question.
Coffey was in his early thirties and had only been sheriff of Highbinder for a few months. It wasn’t a position he had ever particularly aspired to, but he was new in town when the last sheriff accidentally shot himself in the head. When the job opened, he tossed his hat into the ring and got it. Highbinder was little more than a way station between towns and the town council—essentially, the mayor and his wife—didn’t think they needed a man with special experience. All they needed was a chest to pin a star on.
Tate Coffey certainly qualified for that.
In the saloon the eight men spread out, most of them standing at the bar. Jeb Collier and Vic Delay sat at a table. The saloon was small, only five tables. Two of them had been occupied until Collier and his men entered. Their presence alone was enough to convince the others to leave. So at the moment only the eight members of the gang—and the bartender—were present.
“I tell you that sheriff was eyeballin’ us,” Delay said.
“So what?” Jeb asked. “That’s his job.”
“We stayin’ here overnight?”
“Yeah,” Jeb said. “Our next stop will be Pearl River Junction. I don’t want us all ridin’ in there at one time, but I ain’t worked out what I wanna do yet.”
“So we should get rooms at the hotel.”
“Yes.”
Lou Tanner came over and set a beer down in front of each man.
“Lou, send Leslie over to the hotel. We’ll need…” He looked at Jeb.
“Four rooms,” Jeb said. He and Delay would each have their own room and the others would share.
“Four,” Delay told Tanner.
“Right, boss.”
As Tanner sent Leslie out of the saloon, Delay asked Jeb, “What are you thinkin’ of doin’?”
“We’re too big a force to ride in together,” Jeb said.
“I think we should ride into town in three groups, maybe four.”
“You and me?”
“Separately,” Jeb said, “in case someone recognizes us.”
“I can ride in with Tanner,” Delay said. “You can ride in with your brother. Then my two men and your two men.”
“Sounds good,” Jeb said. “And we’ll stagger our times. Let’s send the others in first, then you and Tanner, and then me and Ben.”
