Longarm left her not without some regret, and walked back to his boardinghouse. A wise man had once told him that you never got back those chances at a woman you let pass you by, but he was of the opinion that many more chances in the near future would just about finish him off.
He did very little the next morning except have breakfast at the Elite Cafe and then wander in and out of a few saloons, finally ending up back at his boardinghouse for lunch. It was curious and almost laughable to watch Lucy’s face as she served him. She averted her eyes in the most obvious way, and the faint blush she wore should have been a giveaway to a blind man. Fortunately, her mother stayed in the kitchen most of the time and none of the other boarders, half of whom were women, seemed to take any notice. For his part, Longarm played it straight, being polite to the young lady and treating her as if nothing had ever happened between them. He wondered, however, if there would be a repetition of the night before. It still dazed him to think of what had happened and how fast it had happened, Besides that, his ear was still sore.
In mid-afternoon, he walked down to the Federal Building and went up to Billy Vail’s office to see if there was any news. A telegram had arrived from Ross Henderson, and Billy held it with a slight frown.
Billy Vail said, “Here’s what he’s got to say. See what you think.” He cleared his throat and read aloud:
HAVE ARRIVED IN SANTA ROSA OKAY STOP HAVE ASKED A FEW QUESTIONS AND HAVE DETERMINED THAT THERE IS A FAMILY OF NELSONS STAYING HERE STOP THEY APPARENTLY LIVE ON A RANCH SOME FIFTEEN MILES OUT OF TOWN STOP DON’T KNOW MUCH ABOUT THEM NOR DOES ANYBODY ELSE EXCEPT THEY APPEAR TO BE WEALTHY AND DON’T WELCOME STRANGERS STOP ALSO THEY ARE SOME KIND OF FOREIGNERS MAYBE YANKEES MAYBE FROM FURTHER AWAY THAN THAT STOP HAVEN’T HAD MUCH COOPERATION FROM THE LOCALS STOP IN FACT I DON’T EVEN MUCH TRUST THE LOCAL SHERIFF OR THE TOWN MARSHAL STOP I WILL KEEP NOSING AROUND AND ASKING QUESTIONS AND GIVE YOU FURTHER REPORTS STOP
Billy looked up. “I may have left out a few stops but that’s the gist of it. What do you think?”
Longarm was alarmed. “Billy, he put in the telegram that he didn’t trust the local law. Now you and I both know that the odds are that the telegrapher he gave that message to is going to tell the sheriff and the town marshal. That was a damn fool stunt to pull.”
Chapter 3
Billy looked up from the yellow telegram and said, “By damned, you’re right, Longarm. When do you reckon that friend of yours, Lee Gray, is going to get there?”
Longarm shook his head. “He ought to be there sometime today if he moved on out. But I’m a little concerned about Ross. That’s kind of a stupid telegram to be sending from Santa Rosa. He ought to have sense enough to take the train up the line and send it from some point where the telegrapher wasn’t likely to be under the thumb of the local law.”
Billy Vail rubbed his smooth pink jaw. “I’m afraid you’re right. I’m beginning to regret sending that young man. What do you think? Maybe you’d better take off right now.”
“Let’s give it another day until we hear from Lee Gray,” Longarm said. “Let’s get a better line on what’s going on. I just can’t believe that Ross was stupid enough to say all that in an open telegram.”
Billy Vail, looking worried, said, “Hell, Custis. He’s just a kid. What do you expect?”
Longarm turned level eyes on his boss. “If he keeps making mistakes like that, that’s all he’s ever going to be —a kid. He ain’t going to get no older.”
“We don’t necessarily know that these folks are dangerous.”
“And we don’t necessarily know that they ain’t, do we?”
Billy Vail rubbed his jaw again. He was obviously agitated. “I swear. This is one of the most puzzling messes I’ve ever seen. What in the world have you done to get yourself into this? A wanted poster put out on a deputy marshal, and naturally it had to be on you. Oh, I didn’t tell you, by the way. The poster says they prefer you alive.”
Longarm said, “No, you forgot to mention that little point.”
“Well, I was getting so much mixed information that it kind of got by me. I thought it said dead or alive, but it’s preferred alive, or something like that. I think there’s a lesser amount for you dead.”
Longarm said sarcastically, “Well, then I’m not going to worry about it. I’ll just stay here in this office and then go home with you and you can protect me. Surely nobody can take me alive with you around.”
Billy Vail gave him a disgusted look. “You are undoubtedly the most insubordinate deputy marshal in the entire service. One of these days, I’m going to force the papers through and get you declared a chief marshal just so you’ll have to go through what I have to go through putting up with YOU.”
“The day ain’t coming, Billy, when they put a saddle on a desk and seat me behind it,” Longarm said evenly.
“There’s all kinds of things I’d rather be doing than having your job.”
“Yeah, you might have to think a little bit, and that would wear you plumb out.”
“Listen,” Longarm said. “Squabbling among ourselves ain’t going to do any good. I can’t think of a thing to do myself except wait. I’m as worried as you are and I feel like a damned fool that I didn’t go down there and tend to it myself. Now that you’ve told me I’m preferred alive, I feel some what better. This might just be a prank. This might be somebody’s idea of a funny joke, Billy.”
“Well, prank or not, it’s damned sure against some law, and whoever did it is going to be prosecuted just as hard as we can prosecute them.”
Longarm nodded. It was obvious that nothing was to be gained by them worrying together or blaming each other for having sent the young deputy into unknown territory. So Longarm took his leave shortly thereafter, and walked over to one of his favorite saloons to see if he couldn’t find a poker game. He was now even more puzzled by what Billy had just said, that the posters wanted him alive. Of course, no one would know what the posters really said until one arrived and they could look at it. Any fool would realize that it would be a much harder trick to take a deputy United States marshal and deliver him alive, rather than bushwhack him, sling him over a horse, and take him to whoever wanted to gloat over the body. It just plain didn’t make any sense. It was a dangerous pursuit trying to grab up a deputy marshal and deliver him anywhere if he didn’t want to go. And of course, the question
