Resolution

“Think he can ever learn anything?” I said.

“Nope,” Virgil said.

“Think he’ll beat his wife again?”

“Maybe not,” Virgil said.

The bottle came my way again. I took a drink.

“We can speak to him ’bout that ’fore we leave,” I said.

“Yep,” Virgil said.

He drank some whiskey and gave the bottle to Rose.

“There’ll be sentries posted in town,” I said.

“Sure there will,” Virgil said.

“So we can’t creep up on them so easy,” Rose said.

“Nope.”

We were quiet. The moon had moved west a little. The sounds from the lumber camp had died down. We heard an occasional night bird back in the woods, and somewhere below us and west a coyote was howling.

“They’ll come to us,” Virgil said.

Cato nodded.

“Why?” I said. “They sit tight and wait and after a while people will start drifting away. Not enough food, no way to earn a living, boredom, fear, they wait long enough we’ll have nobody to protect, and in time Wolfson will get what he wants without shooting anybody.”

“Two things,” Virgil said. “Wolfson’s stupid. He got no patience. Can’t stand not getting what he wants. And this looks bad for Lujack. He can’t drive off a bunch of sodbusters? ”

“And us,” I said.

“Four men,” Virgil said. “Who’s gonna hire him next time?”

“I wouldn’t,” I said.

“No,” Virgil said. “You wouldn’t. Also, he’s an arrogant sonovabitch.”

“He can’t believe he can beat us,” Rose said.

“Okay,” I said. “I see that. So what do you think they’ll do?”

“Don’t know,” Virgil said. “But they’ll do something. All we got to do is be ready.”

Rose leaned back against the rock. He looked up at the stars and took a pull at the whiskey bottle.

“Ain’t got all that much else to do,” he said.

71.

Three of us were playing cards for not much money behind the rocks. Cato was among the rocks, watching.

'Somebody coming,” he said.

We all stood up and looked. A young woman was riding an old fat gray roan up the open slope toward us. She didn’t look comfortable on the horse.

“Billie,” I said.

“The little whore?” Virgil said.

“Yes.”

Virgil nodded.

“Okay,” he said. “It’s a start. You talk to her, Everett. She trusts you.”

I waited until she was closer, then I walked out around the stone outcropping and a little ways down the slope.

“Billie,” I yelled.

She looked over.

“It’s Everett,” I said. “Ride over here.”

She pulled the horse’s head left, using both hands, and banged her small heels on the horse’s ribs. I smiled. The horse lumbered slowly toward me.

“Nice to see you, Billie,” I said when she arrived. “Every-body treating you good?”

“I’m all right, Everett,” she said. “We miss you.”

“I miss you, too,” I said. “Where’d you get that horse?”

“Mr. Wolfson got it for me.”

“And sent you up to talk with us?” I said.

“He gimme a note,” Billie said.

She reached inside her dress and fumbled out a folded-up piece of paper and handed it to me.

“He says I should wait here for you to gimme an answer,” Billie said.

“Can you hold the horse there okay?” I said.

Billie’s skirts were hiked up to her thighs. Her legs were too short for the stirrups and stuck nearly straight out from the sides of the horse.

“I can ride a horse, Everett,” Billie said.

“I can see that,” I said. “You want to get off and sit, I’ll boost you back up when it’s time to go.”

“I’m just fine right here,” Billie said.

“Okay,” I said. “I’ll be back.”

I went around the rocks and sat down and opened the paper and read it aloud.

Virgil Cole,

I would like to meet with you and try to straighten out the trouble between us. Somewhere neutral, under a white flag. You can bring your men and I will bring mine. I’m sure we can work something out. Please tell Billie your answer.

Sincerely yours,

Amos Wolfson

“Lemme see it,” Virgil said.

I handed it to him, and he frowned over it as he read. Rose looked over his shoulder. Cato was still up in the rocks, watching.

“How’s the girl doing out there,” I said to Cato.

“Horse is eatin’ grass,” Cato said.

“She still got the reins?” I said.

“Yep.”

Virgil handed the letter back to me.

“Whaddya think, Virgil?” Rose said.

Virgil shook his head and stood and walked around the rock and leaned on the downslope side of it and looked down at the town. He could see Billie, and Billie saw him. But he gave her no notice.

“What’s he doing?” Rose said.

“He’s thinking,” I said.

'Hell,” Rose said. “I never done enough of that to know it when I see it.”

72.

From his side of the rocks, Virgil yelled to me.

'Come on out here,” he said. “We’ll talk to the girl.”

I went out, and we walked over to Billie.

“Hello, Mr. Cole,” Billie said.

Virgil tipped his hat.

“You take what I tell you back to Wolfson.”