“So you became the judge.”
“That’s right!” Kane exclaimed, waving his flask in the air. “I just said to myself that I had only two choices, either arrest those that would come peaceably and then sentence them, or else gun them down and be done with them just like a man would do when he finds a rattlesnake in his backyard.”
“How many rattlesnakes have you killed so far?” Longarm asked quietly.
“Huh?”
“You heard me. How many?”
Kane stood up, eyes shining with pride. “I guess I’ve had to exterminate about twenty men so far—but that’s over the years, you understand.”
“And how many rattlesnakes do you suppose are still out there waiting to creep into your yard?”
Kane chuckled. “You’re trying to box me into something here, aren’t you, Custis. You’re trying to get me to stick my head through a noose.”
“No, I’m not,” Longarm said. “But I need to know what the future is going to hold. And then we need to decide what we ought to do next.”
“You don’t need to do anything except to get out of my town.”
“It’s not your town,” Longarm said tightly. “Nobody owns a town, they just own some property. That’s all.”
“There are men here who think differently and are will ing to kill to prove it,” Kane said. “I have to deal with them before they deal with me and
…”
Whatever else Kane was about to say was forgotten as Megan Riley stepped into his office.
She smiled, then turned to address Longarm. “Everything all right, Custis?”
“Yeah,” he replied, studying Kane’s face. “This is just a friendly meeting among old friends, right, Ivan?”
“That’s right,” Ivan said, slipping his flask back into his desk drawer. “And who is this beautiful girl, Custis? Here we were jawin’ about this and that, and you’ve been keeping her all to yourself.”
“Miss Megan Riley, I want you to meet Marshal Ivan Kane.”
“I’ve heard so much about you from my father,” Megan said, coming across the room with her hand extended. “It’s an honor, Marshal Kane.”
Kane beamed. “So, you’re Old Wild Billy Riley’s pride and joy!”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Megan said. “But I am his only child and his best friend.”
“How is he?”
“His eyes and his health aren’t what they used to be,” Megan said bluntly. “But he still gets around and can be pretty cantankerous. In fact, he’s still awful randy.”
Kane barked a laugh and the pair shook hands. “You’re just as frank as your father, but a whole lot prettier. Where are you staying, Miss Riley?”
“The U.S. Hotel.”
“I’d like to escort you to dinner one of these nights, if you’re going to be staying in my town.”
Megan glanced over at Longarm. “I haven’t heard yet. Custis, are we staying in Bodie?”
Custis looked to Kane. “Yeah, unless the marshal has some objection?”
“Hell, stay as long as you want!” Kane exclaimed. “But you need to be careful, Miss Riley. I’ll probably have to escort you about. I do my damnedest, but there’s still some bad men in this town and a pretty young woman like you can’t be too well protected.”
Megan, however, went over to Longarm and slipped her arm through his. “Custis is my protection, Marshal Kane. But I wouldn’t mind a little extra help, and I’m sure that Custis wouldn’t mind it either. Would you, darling?”
Longarm blushed. The little schemer was sewing him and Kane up together tighter than two weasels in a feed bag. “No,” he said tightly. “I wouldn’t mind at all.”
“Fair enough, then,” Kane said, reaching for his hat. “Why don’t I give you both a little walking tour of my town?”
“All right,” Megan said brightly, “that would be fun.”
“And maybe exciting too,” Kane said, with a wink of his eye.
Chapter 7
“Walk just slightly behind me,” Kane said to Longarm as they exited his office, “and keep your hand near your gun butt and your eyes moving.”
“Kee-rist!” Longarm swore. “If you’re that worried, then we’ve no business bringing Megan along.”
“I’m not worried as long as she stays behind us,” Kane said. “And while I don’t expect any trouble, you know as well as I do that a man can never be too damned careful.”
Longarm started to insist that Megan return to their hotel, but the girl must have read his mind because she shook her head. “I’ve heard so much about Bodie I’m not about to miss the chance to see it up close.”
To say that Longarm felt on edge as they started down the boardwalk of Main Street would have been a gross understatement. They passed the Mono Brewery and Saloon, where Kane ducked his head inside and studied the
