warn both the judge and his astute sister-in-law that they were in grave danger. That being the case, Longarm decided to be as truthful as he possibly could, but also a little evasive.
“There is someone who has a grudge against Judge Getty,” he offered.
“I’m sure that a lot of people he has sentenced have ‘grudges’ against Franklin.”
“Yes, but this one particular individual has to be considered mentally unstable and quite dangerous.”
“Who is he?”
“I don’t exactly know,” Longarm said. “His name may be James Smith and I have a rough sketch to show you. But beyond that, he’s sort of a mystery.”
“Why would he be a ‘mystery’ to Franklin if he’s sentenced him in court?” Lavinia asked.
Longarm cleared his throat. “It’s not that he’s actually sentenced this man, but that he might have been too lenient on this man’s enemies, allowing them to post bail and then possibly retaliate.”
“Retaliate? In what way and against whom?”
Longarm wished that this old woman wasn’t so sharp. She was very good at pinning him in a corner and not letting him loose. Longarm felt quite sure that she would see right through him if he tried to lie or become too evasive.
“Miss Lavinia,” he began. “I can’t tell you everything because my immediate superior had ordered me not to divulge any more information about this case than is absolutely necessary.”
“But you’ve just said that Franklin’s life may be in danger! How can you withhold information that is vital to us after telling me that our lives are in peril?”
“Let me show you the sketch while I elaborate,” he said, worried that Lavinia was getting very upset. “Here, look at this drawing.”
“My,” Lavinia said, “he is a handsome young fellow. Really, he doesn’t appear dangerous at all.”
“This is only a sketch,” Longarm reminded her. “And I’m not even sure that it’s a very good one. The important thing is to warn both you and the judge and perhaps talk you into leaving for a while.”
“You mean, go hide someplace?” Lavinia asked, looking quite taken aback.
“Think of it as taking a short vacation,” Longarm told the woman. “There must be places that you and the judge would like to visit for a while. And then when this whole business has passed over, you can come back rested and without anything to worry about.”
“Lavinia, what is Marshal Long doing here!” Judge Getty said, appearing in the doorway wearing pajamas and a bathrobe. He appeared as cross and rumpled as one might expect from an old man when his regular afternoon nap had been interrupted.
“Judge Getty,” Longarm said, coming to his feet and spilling his tea in his lap. “I’m sorry for this intrusion, but we have a problem.”
“You have a problem,” the judge said, glancing down at the deepening stain on Longarm’s pants.
“I’ll get a dishrag and we’ll have you tidied up in no time,” Lavinia said, hurrying into the kitchen.
“What are you doing here?” the judge demanded.
“We believe that your life is at risk,” Longarm said, feeling the antagonism and mutual dislike rising up strong between them. “I’ve come to warn and protect you until the danger is past.”
“What danger!” Getty scowled. “Marshal, what in blazes are you talking about!”
“The Marble Gang,” Longarm said bluntly.
“I’m not worried about them! They skipped bail. I expect that they aren’t even in Colorado.” Getty scrubbed his face with both hands. “All right. All right. Perhaps I did err in allowing them to make bail, but it was an error on the side of humanity and they’d hardly have reason to want to kill me for such a benign mistake in judgment.”
“Not them,” Longarm said as Lavinia returned to the room and handed him a damp dishrag. Longarm used it to vigorously scrub at the large, dark tea stain, making it look as if he’d pissed in his pants.
“Then who!” the judge demanded.
“We’re not sure,” Longarm said, dragging the sketch out again from the inside of his coat pocket. “Perhaps his name is James Smith and he looks like this.”
Judge Franklin Getty studied the sketch, then, with a dismissive snort, handed it back to Longarm. “I’ve never heard of a Mr. James Smith or seen this young fellow. You’ve made a mistake again, Marshal! You people are always jumping to the wrong conclusions so that you can use the power of your office to oppress the poor and harass the innocent.”
It was all that Longarm could do not to give the old fool a piece of his mind and tell him just how much damage his pudding-headed thinking had already done.
Instead, Longarm swallowed his temper and said, “We think that this man suffered at the hands of the Marble Gang and might blame you for allowing them to be free on bail, which they skipped.”
Judge Getty’s jaw dropped and he started to say something, but Lavinia stopped him, saying, “Franklin, we both need to listen to this handsome Marshal Long. I’m sure he has better things to do than to come over here and cause us needless alarm.”
“Don’t be too sure of that, Lavinia.”
“Listen,” Longarm said, growing impatient. “I suggested to Miss Lavinia that you and she might want to take a short holiday until this business is cleared up and we can be sure that your lives are no longer in danger.”
the judge stormed. “We’re not running away to hide. If there really is a danger—which I very much doubt—then it’s your job to protect and serve us!”
