“You’re here?” Schuler said. He tried to laugh, but it came out as a weak bark. “So, you’re goin’ to protect me if he comes for me? There’s not one man in ten who wouldn’t pee in his pants if he comes face-to-face with Cletus Odom.”
“You think that’s what I would do, Schuler? You think I would pee in my pants?”
“I don’t know,” Schuler said. “Who are you?”
“Doesn’t matter who I am,” Matt replied. “You know where he is, don’t you?” he asked.
“What if I do?” Schuler asked. He tossed down the second drink.
“Tell me where to find him,” Matt said.
“I can’t,” Schuler said.
Matt slid the bottle of whiskey toward him. “Forget about the glass. I’ll give you the whole bottle.”
“Not for a bottle, not even for a case of whiskey will I tell. What good is whiskey to a dead man?”
“Schuler, I want you to think about something,” Matt said quietly.
“Think about what?”
“You are afraid of the wrong man. Odom isn’t here.”
“That doesn’t matter. If I tell you how to find him, then he’ll find me.”
“I’ve already found you,” Matt said.
“What?”
“Think about it,” Matt said. “I found Bates, and I killed him. I found Paco, I killed him. When I find Odom, I will kill him.” He paused for a long moment. “And like I said, I found you.”
“I—I’m afraid,” Schuler said, his voice so quiet that he could barely be heard.
“You should be afraid,” Matt said.
“Yeah,” a patron at a nearby table said, laughing. Ever since Schuler had come out of the back room, the patron had been watching and listening to the conversation. “Like the man said, he’s scared of—” the laughter died in his throat when he saw the expression on Matt’s face. It wasn’t one of passion, or even cold fury. He wasn’t sure what he saw—maybe something in Matt’s eyes. But he felt the hackles stand up on the back of his neck as he realized he was looking into the face of death. “My God, Schuler, he means it,” the patron said quietly.
The patron’s words stopped everyone in the room as if there had been a gunshot. A nearby card game came to a halt, the three men at the bar turned around, the bartender stopped polishing glasses, and there was a deadly silence in the room.
The clock ticked loudly.
Schuler’s bottom lip began trembling and a line of spittle ran down his chin.
“Now, I’m going to ask you again, Schuler. And I want you to think about it. And while you’re thinking, I want you to know that I’m here and Odom isn’t. Tell me what you know, or I will kill you where you sit.”
Schuler drew a deep breath and held his hands up. “All right, all right, I was with them, just like you said. But I didn’t know they was goin’ to be a lot of people killed. I wouldn’t of had nothin’ to do with it if I had known there was goin’ to be a lot of innocent people killed.”
“I know. I was there, in the express car, remember? I heard you tell Odom that you didn’t know that he planned to kill anyone. In fact, if I hadn’t heard you talking to Odom, I would’ve already killed you by now.”
“Just so’s you know,” Schuler said.
“Where can I find him?”
“Why you lookin’ for him? Why are you doin this? You ain’t the law, are you?”
“No. This is personal. One of the people killed was a little girl, about four years old. One minute she was riding on the train with her mother and brother, and the next minute the train wrecked and a large stake was driven through her heart.”
“No!” Schuler said. He closed his eyes and began shaking. “I didn’t know about the little girl,” he said. “I didn’t know about any of them.”
“Where is Odom?” Matt asked again.
“You got any money?”
“Why?”
“If I give you any information, I’m going to need enough money to get out of here. My life won’t be worth a plugged nickel if Odom finds out I told you where to find him.”
“How can I find him?”
Schuler poured himself a glass of whiskey before he spoke again. He drank it, then wiped the back of his hand across his mouth.
“It’s goin’ to cost you fifty dollars.”
Matt pulled fifty dollars from his pocket and handed it over. “All right. Here’s you money. Now, start talking.”
“Do you know Odom?” Schuler asked, taking the money and stuffing it down into his pocket. “I mean, do you really know him?”
“No.”
