Chapter Thirteen
Sam was awakened by an insistent pounding on the door. He got out of bed and staggered naked to answer it. When he swung it open he saw his brothers standing in the hallway.
“Jesus,” Evan said, “is that the way you always answer the door?”
“When I’m awakened at an ungodly hour, yes,” Sam said. “What the hell is it?”
“We want to have coffee in the hotel dining room,” Evan said.
“Coffee here?” Sam said. “But we’re gonna have breakfast at Serena’s.”
“We won’t ruin our breakfast,” Evan said. “There are some things we have to talk about without Serena listening.”
Sam ran his hand over his face and said wearily, “What things?”
“Get dressed and we’ll talk downstairs. We’ll wait for you there.”
“All right, all right,” Sam said. “Just gimme five minutes.”
He closed the door, splashed some water on his face, got dressed, and strapped on his gun. He couldn’t imagine what his brothers had found out that they wouldn’t want Serena to hear. But if they were so eager to talk to him about it that they’d awakened him early, it must have been important.
He left his room and went down to the dining room.
“It’s not so much what we found out that we don’t want Serena to hear,” Evan said, “but where.”
Jubal laughed.
“We followed John Burkett to the whorehouse last night,” he said. “I made friends with him by keeping him from getting his head bashed in. I left and went to the saloon with him for a drink, and Evan stayed at the whorehouse. That’s what he doesn’t want Serena to find out about.”
Amused, Sam looked at his middle brother.
Evan shrugged and said, “It would have been impolite for both of us to leave.”
“Of course,” Sam said. “John Burkett is Lincoln’s son, right? Why would he talk to you, Jube?”
“He’s never seen me. In fact, I’d never seen him before last night. A couple of bouncers were going to take him apart at the whorehouse. I helped him.”
“And became his friend.”
“Right.”
“Why?”
“To see what I could find out from him.”
“And? Did you find out anythin’?”
Jubal looked at Evan, and then back at Sam.
“Yes, I did. John and three other men were sent to town to await the arrival of another man, a man his father has been waiting impatiently for for over three months, since he first sent for him. The man’s name is Jason Cord.”
“What’s so important about this Cord?”
“He’s a geologist, Sam,” Evan said.
Sam looked at Evan and said, “A geologist?”
“Interesting, huh?”
“Now what would Lincoln Burkett need with a geologist?” Sam wondered aloud.
“That’s what we were wondering,” Evan said.
“Gold,” Jubal said. “It’s got to be, and I’ll bet it was on Pa’s land.”
“Gold?” Sam said. “On the ranch? If that’s the case, why would Pa sell it?”
“Maybe he didn’t know,” Evan said. “Maybe Burkett did.”
“This might tell us why Burkett wanted the ranch,” Sam said, “but it still doesn’t tell us why Pa made the deal he made with Burkett. Did John Burkett have anythin’ to say about that?”
“No,” Jubal said. “He was pretty drunk to start with, and got drunker still. All he did most of the night was complain about the way his father treats him. His old man owns the whorehouse, Sam, and he keeps John out of it.”
“Is Burkett the owner of record?” Sam asked.
“I doubt it,” Evan said, “but we can check that today, at the courthouse. It would be interesting to know what businesses Burkett has bought out, and what deals he made with the owners.”
“My guess,” Sam said, “would be that whatever he’s bought he hasn’t done it openly. His name won’t be on the record of the sale. He’s not gonna want the town to know he’s buyin’ it up. Not yet.”
“Maybe if they did find out,” Evan said, “they wouldn’t be so eager to have him as a citizen.”
“Maybe somebody should let them know,” Jubal said.
“Yeah, but we need proof first,” Sam said. “After breakfast why don’t you go and look it up, Evan. Jube, you can stay with Serena until Evan comes back.”
“And what are you gonna do?”
“I thought I might go out and ride around the ranch a bit.”
“If Burkett’s men see you—” Evan started.
“That’ll be their hard luck,” Sam said.
“You think you’re gonna find gold on the ground, just like that?” Jubal asked.
“I don’t know what I’m gonna find,” Sam said. “I won’t know until I get out there.”
“You’re not going to see Burkett, are you?” Evan asked.
“I’ve thought about it,” Sam said. “I think I’ll play it by ear for a while, though. I’ll try to be back before dinner.”
“All right,” Evan said, “we’d better get over to Serena’s for breakfast.”
As they left Sam wondered when they had started referring to the Miller house as “Serena’s” and not “Dude’s.”
Serena wondered why Sam, Evan, and Jubal were so quiet at breakfast. She thought that they were probably planning something, but she didn’t want to ask them yet. They were talking mostly to her father, but it was all small talk, about the past, about their parents.
After breakfast they went into the living room with her father while she cleaned up the kitchen.
There Evan said to Miller, “Dude, has there ever been a gold strike around here?”
“Here? Hell, no. What makes you ask that?”
The three brothers exchanged glances and then Evan said, “Burkett’s brought in a geologist.”
“A geologist? What would he need a geologist for?”
“We figure there’s something on Pa’s land that Burkett knew about. Gold seems the most likely thing.”
“But why would your father—”
“We’ve already asked those questions, Dude,” Evan said. “Sam’s gonna ride out today and take a look around the ranch. Maybe he’ll find something.”
“Yeah, trouble,” Miller said. “You can’t let him go out there alone.”
“We don’t have a choice,” Evan said. “I have something else to do. Jubal’s going to stay here with Serena.”
“There’s no need for that,” Miller said. “I’m fine now.
Serena and I can go and open the store and stay there. I can take care of her.”
“Just the same,” Evan said, “Jubal’ll go with you.”
“Evan—”
“Do this our way, Dude,” Sam said.
Miller looked at Sam and then said, “All right.”
“I’m gonna leave now,” Sam said. “I’ll see you all later.”
“Be careful,” Jubal said.
“Always.”
