“Wait a minute. You said whoever knowed about Mull didn’t want it talked around. Yet here you are talking to me, telling me. That ain’t a very good reference.”
Jasper was sitting straight up in his chair, his back not even touching the back of the seat, just sitting upright on the front half. “Well,” he said, “what’s telling you? You already knowed. In fact was you caused Mister Mull to come down. And I’ll tell you something for nothing—Mister Caster ain’t overly happy about it. Nosir.”
“That what Raoul said?”
Jasper looked prim. “I don’t never say who I heard from. But that ain’t got nothing to do with my money.”
It occurred to Longarm that he hadn’t the slightest idea what James Mull looked like, and he very much doubted that Austin Davis did, either. And Caster had said that Mull was not going to be present at the time of the final transaction. That was going to make him a little hard to arrest. But if they had someone who could identify him when he stepped down off the train, then Austin Davis could keep close tabs on the man and they’d be able to lay hands on him when the time came. But Longarm didn’t want to tell Jasper that he didn’t know Mull. He didn’t want him to see that he was in a valuable position. For all Jasper knew, Mull was known to Longarm or would be seeing him as soon as he got off the train. “Hell, Jasper,” he said offhandedly, “Mull ain’t worth no hundred dollars to me. I don’t need no introduction to him. You want to try and rob me, go and get yourself a gun.”
Jasper frowned. “That ain’t the way I figure it at all. If I hadn’t made you known to Mister Caster, then Mister Mull would not be coming down here. You paid for one and are getting two. An honest man would see that.”
Longarm picked up his beer and sipped at it thoughtfully. After a moment he said, “Well, I don’t want to cheat you, Jasper, and I don’t want folks thinking that I have. But I can’t see paying no more than fifty dollars for Mull. You got to admit I done most of that on my own. Hell, do you even know James Mull? I bet you never laid eyes on the man.”
Jasper looked outraged. “Why, damned if that be so!” he said heatedly. “I’ve met up with him twenty times. I-” He paused. “Well, maybe not that many, but I damn shore know the man. Real skinny kind of feller like Raymond, though he ain’t built nowhere the way Raymond is. Tall and skinny. An’ always wears a suit with a vest. And a derby hat. Dresses like a real big shot.”
Longarm yawned. “Well,” he said, “I’ll give you fifty for him. You reckon that to be fair? He wouldn’t even be coming it weren’t for me.”
Jasper turned the matter over in his mind. “Well,” he said finally, “I would reckon him being the boss of Mister Caster, he’d fetch a better price. Say seventy-five.”
Now Longarm frowned. “Seventy-five? For a man I caused to be fetched? Hell, Jasper, I’m beginning to think this town is full of thieves. If I give you the seventy-five it has got to be with the understanding that you don’t tell nobody about this little talk we had. I don’t want it getting around that I’m such an easy touch.”
Jasper looked insulted. “Say, maybe you didn’t hear me when I said folks tell me things when they don’t want them getting around. I can keep a secret better than any man alive.”
“You’ll tell Raymond. He’s your partner. You’ll tell him.”
“Raymond ain’t my partner in everything,” Jasper said staunchly. “Just some little business we got.”
“Yeah, you’ll tell Raymond and Raymond will tell Raoul and Raoul will tell Caster. And Caster will jump my ass and say the deal is off because I let the cat out of the bag. Ain’t nobody supposed to know that Mull is coming.”
“Well, they won’t hear it from me,” Jasper assured him. “No, sir.”
Longarm pursed his lips and appeared to be thinking. “Tell you what,” he said. “I’ll give you the seventy-five, but I ain’t going to give it to You until Mull actually steps down off the train.”
Jasper started to protest. “Now, what’s that got to do with me? I ain’t got no say about him actually coming or not.”
“if Mull doesn’t come, Jasper, then I ain’t getting two for one, am I?”
Jasper thought about it for a moment, frowning, working it around until it finally made sense to him. “No, I mean yeah,” he said uncertainly. “I reckon you’re right. But how am I gonna get my money? You’ll be with Caster.”
“Tell you what—My foreman, the man who’s gathering the cattle for me, he’ll be in town in the next couple of days. Soon as he gets here, Mull is supposed to come. Raoul San Diego will more than likely be the one that sends the telegram. You’ll be in the know about that, won’t you?”
Jasper looked uncertain, but he said, “I reckon I would. I can make it my bid’ness to be in the know.”
“Then there you have it. I’ll send my foreman along with you to the depot. You point out Mull to him and he’ll have instructions to hand you the money.”
Jasper peered closely at Longarm. “You wouldn’t be trying to trick me, would you?”
Longarm gave him a patient look. “Jasper, I know who your friends are. A pair of brothers who are supposed to be worse than the smallpox. I don’t figure to get myself in bad with them over a matter of seventy-five dollars. I ain’t a gunfighter and neither is the man gathering the cattle. We’re just trying to do some business.”
The doubt vanished from Jasper White’s face. “Well, so long as you understand how matters stand.” He stood up. “When are yore cattle due in?”
Longarm shrugged. “Any day now. The sooner the better, so far as I’m concerned.”
“Well, our business is finished. I point out Mister James Mull, and yore man gives me seventy-five dollars. Is that right?”
“You better point out the right one,” Longarm warned. “The man you described could be a ribbon salesman calling on general merchandise stores. I ain’t paying no money for a ribbon drummer.”
Jasper was insulted. “Long,” he said, “I ain’t never cheated nobody on my facts and I ain’t goin’ to start with you, even if I do think you tried to pull a fast one on me. Nosir. If Mister Mull is on that train, he will be pointed out to yore foreman.”
Longarm shrugged and picked up his beer. “Then we got a deal, Mister White.” He raised his mug and watched
