Mabel Hanks said, “He’s full of shit! This whole thing’s nothing but a lovers’ spat.”
“A lover’s what?”
“You heard me, Your Honor. He’s just mad at me ‘cause I wouldn’t leave my husband for him. I’ll admit he turned my head one night. He is good-looking and, well, I’m a poor, weak woman. But I saw the error of my ways in time and went back to my true love. He said he’d fix me for spurning his wicked advances, and as you see, he’s trying fit to bust!”
Longarm found something very interesting about his fingernails to look at as the judge raised an eyebrow and observed, “Now, this is getting interesting! What have you to say for yourself, Deputy Long?”
“I’m a poor, weak man? The question before you ain’t no morals charge, Your Honor. So I’ll save a lot of useless talk by offering no defense to her wild allegations. I brought her in for killing folks, not for… never mind.”
Hawkins stared at the woman thoughtfully for a long, hard moment. Then he nodded and said, “I’ve known Deputy Long long enough to suspect he wouldn’t hang a lady for spurning his wicked advances, ma’am. However, since you aren’t represented by an attorney, it’s the duty of this court to cross-examine in your behalf.”
He turned to Longarm and said, “leaving aside your improper reasons for arresting this lady, what in thunder do you have on her?”
“I’ll admit it’s mostly circumstantial Your Honor, but…”
“But me no buts. If she killed Kincaid and that other lawman, where are the damned bodies?”
“Your Honor, you can see we’ll never find body one, ‘less the killer tells us where they’re hidden. We do have the body of Sailor Brown, and this woman and her late husband were in Crooked Lance when somebody gunned him.”
“As was a whole valley filled with folks, damn it. What on earth is wrong with you? Where did you leave Your brains this morning? Don’t you remember Sailor Brown was a wanted man with papers on him? Hell, anyone who did kill him could come forward to claim the reward!”
Longarm looked surprised and asked the prisoner, “How about it, Mabel? As you see, there’s no charge to the bushwhacking of the old man. Can’t you ‘fess up just a little and help us clear things up a mite?”
“Oh, go to hell! You’ll not trick me again. You told me you’d marry up with me in Bitter Creek, remember?”
“Now, that, Your Honor, is the biggest lie she’s told so far, and since we first met, she’s told some lulus!”
“Let’s get back to the murders she’s accused of. Frankly, I’m surprised at you, son. You’ve never brought a prisoner in with such flimsy evidence to back your charges.”
“I’ll allow the killer was tricky, Your Honor, but I’m doing the best I know how.”
“This time your best isn’t good enough. Holding her for killing folks we can’t even say for sure are dead won’t keep her overnight. You got anything, anything at alL you can prove?”
Longarm looked uncomfortable as he suggested, “Maybe if we sent her into another room to be searched for evidence… Miss Kim might be willing to help.”
Timberline, leaning against the door, spoke up, “We patted her down for shooting irons, remember?”
“I know, but we never really stripped her down for a proPer search. Why don’t we send the two of ‘em in the next room… there’s no other way out of here and who knows what we’ll find stashed in her corset?”
The judge frowned and said, “Deputy Long, you are stepping on the tail of my robes! What are you UP to, son? You know I can’t order a search unless I order this other lady to search for some thing.”
Longarm said, “What I’m hoping Miss Kim will find on her will be, uh, documentary evidence, Your Honor. She and her husband were bounty hunters. There were no reward papers or telegrams in their packs when I arrested ‘em both.”
“That’s better. What am I to tell this other lady to look for in the way of papers?”
“Letters, telegrams, anything tying ‘em in to someone in Missouri. Maybe someone named James or Younger.”
The judge nodded and Kim got to her feet, saying, “Let’s go, Mabel. It’ll only take a minute.”
“Damn it! I don’t have nothing on me!”
“That may be so, dear. Why don’t we get it over with?”
The judge got to his feet and opened the door to his dressing room. The two women went in, with some grumbling on Mabel’s part, and Hawkins shut the door. His voice was ominous as he said, “Now that we are alone, let me tell you something, Deputy Long. I think you are wasting my time! You’ve been a lawman too long to bring a prisoner in on such flimsy evidence! Have you just gotten dumb, or was there anything at all to that fool women’s story about you bedding down with her?”
Longarm grinned and said, “Hell, she’s just a no-account adventuress, Your Honor. She did take that potshot at me in Bitter Creek, but you’re right. It’d be a waste of time to prove it and her midget husband probably put her up to it. He was the dangerous one of the pair. Without him, she’ll likely end her days in some parlor house. Not that she won’t give right good service in bed.”
judge Hawkins looked thunderstruck as he almost roared, “You knew you didn’t have the evidence to hang her?”
“Sure.” Longarm said, “She never gunned them lawmen. He did.” He pointed to where Timberline stood, stiffened against the door, slack-jawed. Longarm added, conversationally, “Don’t do anything foolish, Mister Younger. We both know I can beat you to the draw nine times out of ten!”
Timberline gasped, “What are you saying, damn it! I thought I was your deputy!”
