“There’s only two of ’em,” Logan said. “Wait, that’s Greer. Ha! Lookie there, boys! Greer’s got the drop on ’im! Good man, Greer, good man!” Logan shouted.
As the two riders approached the house, Matt was riding in front with his hands in the air. Greer was behind him, holding a pistol.
“What happened?” Logan asked. “Where’s Poole and Bragg?”
Suddenly Greer turned his horse and bolted.
“Shoot ’im! It’s a trick!” Greer shouted. “I ain’t got no bullets in this gun!”
Clayton raised his shotgun, but before he could fire, Matt drew his pistol and shot, taking Clayton first because he believed the shotgun presented the most danger.
Before Matt could turn his pistol on Logan and Poindexter, they darted back into the cabin and slammed the door.
“We’ve got the boy in here!” Logan called. “And if you don’t throw down your gun and put your hands up, we’re goin’ to ...”
“Logan! Where’s the boy?” Matt heard Poindexter shout. “He ain’t here!”
“What do you mean he ain’t here? We just left him.”
Matt smiled. “Good boy, Winnie!” he called. “Wherever you are, just stay there until I tell you to come out.”
“You was supposed to watch him!” Matt heard one of them say.
A full- sized man couldn’t have done it, and probably not even a small man. But Winnie had gone into the fireplace, then climbed up into the chimney. It had originally been his intention to escape through the chimney, but except for the very base of it, the chimney was much too narrow. Winnie had his feet on one side and his hands on the other, wedged in position and hanging on for dear life.
“What the hell! Where is he?” Logan shouted in anger and frustration.
“How the hell am I supposed to know?” Poindexter replied.
“Logan,” Winnie heard Matt call. “Do you remember what you did to four of Frewen’s cowboys? Do you remember when you set fire to the shack and burned them out?”
“I don’t know what you are talking about!” Logan replied.
“Well, that’s too bad,” Matt said. “Because I’m about to give you a taste of your own medicine. I’m going to set fire to the cabin. You can either come out, or you can stay in there and burn to death. And frankly, I hope you stay in there.”
If Matt Jensen actually did set fire to the cabin, Winnie knew that he would be trapped in here. Should he call out?
No, he decided. Right now Matt Jensen had the advantage over Logan and Poindexter. But if Logan and Poindexter had him, his advantage would be lost. If he surrendered now, he would not be killed in a fire, but Matt Jensen would certainly be killed. And after they killed Matt, Winnie was fairly certain he would be killed as well. On the other hand, Jensen might yet be able to save both of them.
Winnie decided to stay where he was.
Outside the cabin, Matt began gathering up some dead limbs and dry pine needles. When he got them together, he piled them up on the front porch, then struck a match to them. The dry pine needles flamed up as quickly as if they had been soaked in coal oil. The dried wood of the cabin caught easily, and within less than a minute the fire was leaping up to the porch roof.
“You’d better make up your minds pretty quick!” Matt called. “This whole thing will burn down in just a couple of minutes. Come out slow, with no guns and your hands up!”
Suddenly the front door opened and Logan and Poindexter came out, not slow and unarmed as Matt had demanded, but running, shouting and firing their pistols. Matt took both of them down with two quick shots.
“Winnie!” he called. “Winnie! Are you here, hiding somewhere? It’s all right, they’re dead!”
Matt heard coughing, and looking toward the front door he saw Winnie running through it, waving his arms to keep the smoke away.
“Winnie!” Matt shouted, and he darted through the flames that were already licking at the front porch, scooped Winnie up, then ran back out into the open area with him.
“Winnie, are you all right? I’m sorry, I didn’t know you were in there!”
“I’m all right,” Winnie said, coughing a few more times.
Winnie was covered with black soot from head to toe.
“What the hell? Are you sure? How did you get so black?”
“I hid in the chimney of the fireplace,” Winnie said.
“Like Santa Claus?” Matt teased.
“Mama has told me that in America Father Christmas comes down the chimney, but I have seen drawings of Santa Claus and from what I saw in the chimney, I don’t think that is true.”
Matt laughed, then wrapped his arms around Winnie and pulled him to him. That was when he saw Greer raising a rifle, aiming at them.
“Get down!” Matt shouted, shoving Winnie forcefully to the ground. Matt dropped to one knee just as Greer fired, and he heard the bullet snap as it popped just over his head. Matt returned fire and Greer fell back.
A couple of hours later, after stopping at the river to allow Winnie to clean up and also to retrieve his journal, the two of them rode through the front gate of Frewen Castle.
