“You boys quit pickin’ on your brother,” Ike said.
“I can’t help pickin’ on him,” Cletus said. “He’s so damn easy to pick on.”
Ray laughed.
“Pa, you sure they didn’t somebody else crawl into bed with Ma before this pup was borned?” Ray asked.
“If there had’a been somebody crawled in bed with Martha, whatever he whelped would’a never been born,” Ike said. “I’d’a kilt ’em both.”
“So, what you are sayin’ is, Billy is our kith an’ kin.”
“That’s what I’m sayin’.”
“Well, maybe so, but he sure is different,” Ray said. “Always worryin’ ’bout the other fella, and puttin’ ever’body else’s good a’fore his own blood.”
“Hey, Pa, what time does the train get in?” Cletus asked.
“I make it about another hour,” Ike replied.
“Then what do you say we stop by the Bull’s Head and have us a couple of drinks?” Cletus suggested.
Ike shook his head. “I intend that you boys get on that train. There’s a cattle buyer will be in Pueblo, and I aim for you to get us the best offer for our cows I can get.”
“We ain’t goin’ to miss the train, Pa,” Ray said. “And it was a long ride over here from the ranch. Don’t tell me you ain’t got no dust in your mouth that a couple of beers and a whiskey or two wouldn’t do for you?”
“All right, we’ll stop for a drink,” Ike replied. “But I’m goin’ to stay with you till I see you are all three on the train.”
Dismounting in front of the saloon, the four riders looped the reins of their horses over the hitching rail, then went inside. There wasn’t quite room for all four of them to stand at the bar, but Cletus and Ray made room by pushing a couple of men apart to open up a big enough space for them.
“Hey, what the hell do you think you’re doin’, mister?” one of the men said angrily.
“Larry, that’s the Clintons,” a man next to him whispered.
“I don’t care who it is. There don’t nobody—”
Before he could finish his statement, Cletus pulled his pistol and shoved it into the man’s face.
“You complainin’ about somethin’ are you, mister?” Cletus asked menacingly.
The complainer was a good-sized man who was perfectly willing to use his fists to defend his position at the bar. But he wasn’t willing to die for it. He stared at the gun for a moment.
“Sure, mister,” he said. “You want to stand up here that bad, you are welcome to it.” Turning away from the bar, he walked out of the saloon.
“Ha!” Cletus said with a barking laugh. “I sure made him back down, didn’t I?”
Turning around to lean against the bar, Ray looked out over the saloon at the bar girls who were working the customers.
“Hey, Cletus, think we got time to go upstairs with one of these here whores?” Ray asked.
“You ain’t got time to be messin’ with no whores,” Ike said.
“If we don’t go with no whores here, where can we go?” Cletus asked. “The only whores in Higbee that will go with us is the ones in the Hog Waller. None of Maggie’s whores will have anything to do with us.”
Billy laughed.
“What are you laughin’ at?” Cletus asked.
“I’ve heard about men who couldn’t get themselves a woman,” Billy said. “But when you can’t even get a whore, that’s pretty bad.”
“Yeah? Well, I don’t see you havin’ all that much luck with that Garrison girl, now, do I?” Cletus asked.
“What Garrison girl?” Ike asked quickly. “What are you talking about?”
“Nothin’, Pa,” Billy said. “We aren’t talkin’ about anything.”
“The hell we ain’t,” said Cletus. “You been sniffin’ round the general’s daughter like a male dog around a bitch in heat.”
“Boy, tell me that ain’t so,” Ike said. “After what’s goin’ on between Garrison and me?”
“Pa, this is between Kathleen and me,” Billy said. “It doesn’t have anything to do with her pa, or with you.”
“The hell it don’t,” Ike said. He pointed a long, bony finger at Billy. “I don’t want you to be havin’ anything to do with that girl. Do you hear me?”
Billy didn’t answer. Fortunately, he wasn’t required to because Cletus started laughing.
“What are you laughin’ at?” Ike asked.
“I was just thinkin’ about Little Billy here. As far as you’re concerned, he can do no wrong. Only, that ain’t the case no more, is it?”
The sound of a train whistle could be heard in the distance, and Ike tossed down the rest of his drink, then wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.
