The woman in the door cackled. She said, 'Yep, that do be soundin' like you, Frank. Y'all come on and ride on UP.'
Carson said in a low voice to Longarm, 'Take it real slow and don't make any sudden moves. There'll be at least three rifles dead on us.'
'Like I said, you're doing the leading.'
At a walk, they advanced their horses across the flat, open ground. It was at least fifty yards to the front of the big, rambling house. Longarm could feel the hair prickling on the back of his neck with every step of his horse. He could almost sense the rifles aimed on them with the hammers cocked. He desperately hoped that nobody got nerVOUS.
They were about twenty yards from the front porch when Frank Carson said, 'We better pull up here and let them get a good look at you.' He turned and said to the lady standing in the doorway, 'Bathsheba, my friend's name is Custis Long. I haven't known him very long, but he seems like a right enough fellow. Says he wants to buy some whiskey.'
She said, 'Well, that be up to Salem and them others. Y'all come on up into the light so we can get a better look at ya.'
They nudged their horses forward until they came to a stop right at the porch of the house. Now Longarm could see that the woman in the doorway was probably forty years old, although she looked older. She was small and had rough-hewn features and was dressed in working clothes. She said, 'Y'all step down and come on in. Salem says it's all right. You can tie up your horses and tend to them after you have a cup of coffee and maybe some supper. I've got some cold beef left I could heat up, and there's ham and some other fixin's. I'll make some biscuits.'
Carson said, 'Bathsheba, don't go through any trouble for us. We're just obliged for a night's shelter.'
She said, 'Oh, just hush up and get on in here. Salem and the others are sitting around the table right now.'
Carson and Longarm dismounted. As they started up toward the porch, Carson said, 'Well, you're on your own now, my friend. I ain't going to take no responsibility for your conduct, and I'm going to make sure that these here folks understand that. I'm going to tell them about you and Morton Colton and the trouble that you've had, and that's the best introduction you can get. Whether they'll sell you any whiskey, I don't know.'
Longarm said as they stepped on the porch, 'You going to stay here tonight?'
'Hell, yes. I ain't riding back through that country at this time of night.'
They walked forward across the porch and stepped through the door that the woman was holding open for them.
CHAPTER 5
Longarm stepped into a long, low-ceilinged room. To his right, he could see a set of stairs and he realized that the outline of the house was that of a two-story place. It seemed much bigger once he was inside. Directly in front of him was a large fireplace with a slow-burning log providing a small blaze. To his left, toward a door he guessed led into the kitchen, was a big, round table where three men were seated.
One of the men, the oldest and biggest of the three, stood up. He said, 'Carson, how be ya? Y'all come on over and sit down and take some whiskey. I reckon y'all could probably use a drink. I would expect you've been riding from town. Miz Bathsheba will fix y'all some vittles, so come on over and take a chair.' He sat down.
Longarm and Frank Carson walked across the wooden floor and pulled up straight-backed chairs at the table. The big man in the middle nodded at Longarm. He said, 'My name's Colton. Salem Colton. Man to my left is my cousin and the one to my right is my brother. Their names don't mean a hell of a lot, since you ain't going to be here that long.'
Longarm was pulling out a chair. 'Sounds fine to me. My name's Custis Long, and before Mr. Carson tells you, let me explain that I had a run-in with a man I reckon would be your cousin. Might even be a closer kin than that, for all I know. Name was Morton Colton. He was fixing to have me worked over by a couple of deputies in town and this gentleman,' he jerked his head toward Carson, 'managed to pull my bacon out of the fire. Now, I've got to tell you, I was a little surprised to find that he was carrying me to the kinfolk of the man I had the run-in with.'
Salem Colton laughed. He said, 'Oh, Frank knows the business. Let me put it this way: you or any other stranger would be a hell of a lot more welcome here than Morton would. We don't know about you, but we already know all we want to know about Cousin Morton who may be the most worthless, no-count son of a bitch that ever roamed these hills.'
Longarm smiled slowly. He said, 'Well, I've got to tell you, that gives me some relief.'
Salem Colton looked over to Frank Carson and said, 'Well, what did they go to buttin' heads about?'
Carson chuckled softly, that mild unhumorless sound he made. He said, 'Oh, Morton was up to his usual tricks of trying to cheat at a poker game and this gentleman, being a gentleman, didn't know he wasn't supposed to do anything about it. He's still of the opinion that cheating at a poker game is not allowed. He stuck a gun in Morton's face, blessed him out pretty good, and then told him he was lucky to get off with no more than losing his money. Showed him the door in other words.'
All three of the men laughed, although Longarm thought the two younger men didn't seem to find the story as funny as Salem did.
There was a big gallon jug sitting in the middle of the table, half-full of a clear liquid. About that time, the woman put a glass in front of both Frank Carson and Longarm. Salem Colton stood up, took the gallon jug, and poured them both a full measure. He said, 'Drink up, gents. This stuff is damned near a week old.'
Carson said, 'Prime stuff, huh?'
'Yeah, we don't keep it a hell of a lot longer than that.'
Longarm took a healthy swig, wanting to show his appreciation. It burned his mouth, burned his throat, and seared his stomach. It tasted like the kerosene you put in a coal oil lamp. He gasped slightly, his eyes watering. He said, 'My God! That's stout!'
Now all three men laughed.
