“James?” Thomas said.
“I understand what Pa is sayin’, Thomas,” James assured his older brother. “I’ll go along with it.”
“Good.” Thomas had looked at his father then. “We’re behind you, Pa.”
“I know you are, boys,” Shaye said, “and I appreciate it.”
When they crossed into Oklahoma Territory, it was with a plan, and a new name for their hunt: “vendetta.”
The first town they came to was called Lawton. If they continued due north, they would need to travel almost two hundred miles through Indian Territory before they came to Kansas. That was supposing the gang continued north and did not veer off and head in the direction of Oklahoma City.
They camped outside of Lawton, since there was no guarantee that Sam Torrence had indeed given up his badge and had not decided to spread the word that the Shaye men were wanted for assaulting a peace officer.
“You’re part of a gang that has robbed a bank and got away with a good amount of money,” Shaye said to his sons. “Where would you go?”
“To a big town,” Matthew said, “a city, and spend it.”
“Like Oklahoma City?” Shaye asked.
“Yes.”
“James?”
“I don’t think I’d spend it right away, Pa,” James said. “I wouldn’t want anybody lookin’ at me funny while I’m spending a lot of cash.”
“That’s good thinking, James,” Shaye said, “but I’m afraid you’re a little smarter than most bank robbers. How about you, Thomas?”
“Well,” Thomas said, “if I’m Ethan Langer and I’m supposed to meet up with my older brother, Aaron, I don’t think I’d spend a dime until I did—and I wouldn’t let anyone else either.”
“What about Oklahoma City?” Shaye asked.
“I wouldn’t go there,” Thomas said, “unless that’s where I’m supposed to meet my brother.”
“Well, with Aaron coming from South Dakota and Ethan from Texas, I think it’s more likely they’d meet somewhere in Kansas.”
“Kansas City?” Matthew asked, excited at the prospect.
“Too far east,” Shaye said. “Wichita, maybe, or Salina.”
“So we should head for Wichita?” James asked.
“If we guess Wichita and we’re wrong,” Thomas said, “we’re settin’ ourselves back, ain’t we, Pa?”
“There’s no time limit on revenge, Thomas,” Shaye said. “But we won’t commit to Wichita just yet. We got a long way to go, and there’s bound to be more sitings of this gang. Ethan and Aaron Langer are well-known thieves. Somebody’s going to spot them.”
“And they won’t lie to us the way Sam Torrence did, huh, Pa?” Matthew asked.
“Anybody who lies to us,” Shaye said, “who tries to hinder us, Matthew, will have to deal with us. Time to turn in.”
14
They rode into Lawton much the way they had ridden into Vernon—unshaven, unwashed, dirty. The horses were worn-out, and Shaye had decided they’d stay the night to give them—horses and men—a much-needed rest. He thought he might have been pushing them all too hard.
Lawton, Oklahoma, was a small but well-appointed-looking town. It seemed to be dragging itself toward the twentieth century, with streetlights and a trolley that went down the main street. There were some new brick and wood buildings, and the smell of newly cut lumber was in the air, a sure sign of a town that was growing.
They reined in their horses in front of a new-looking hotel called The Lawton House. To Shaye, it was a likely sign that a town was trying to improve itself when one of their hotels had the word “House” in the name—usually connected with the name of the town.
“Thomas, why don’t you and James take the horses to the livery. Matthew and I will get us rooms, and then we’ll go and find some good steaks.”
“Sounds good, Pa.”
Shaye and Matthew dismounted, removed their saddlebags and bedrolls, and handed over their horses. They were entering the hotel lobby as Thomas and James rode off, leading their horses.
“Good afternoon,” the clerk said as Shaye and Matthew approached the front desk. “Welcome to Lawton, gentlemen. Can I get you a room?”
“Two, if you have them,” Shaye said.
“Certainly.” The clerk was in his thirties, well-dressed, short and slightly built, but with an air that said he was much more than just the desk clerk. “How long will you be staying with us?”
“Just overnight, more than likely,” Shaye said.
The man turned the register around, and Shaye filled in the four names. He also took the opportunity to check the register to see if a bunch of men had checked in anytime in the past two weeks. He found nothing. When he turned the book back around, the man handed over two keys, to Rooms 3 and 4.
Shaye had decided that this time, in this town, they wouldn’t ask about the Langer gang as loudly and obviously as they had during their very short stay in Vernon.
“We have a nice little town here,” the clerk said. “You might decide to stay longer.”
“Looks like your little town is growing,” Shaye said, “but we’re really just passing through.”
“Well,” the man said, “maybe next time, then.”
“Are you the owner here?” Shaye asked.
“Yes, sir, I am.”
“Do you have facilities with baths?”
“We certainly do,” the man said. “In the back. How many shall I have drawn for you?”
“There are four of us. Can you accommodate that?”
“We have three tubs,” the clerk said. “I’m sure you can work out the logistics between you.”
“I think we can. Thank you.”
“Will ten minutes do?”
“No,” Shaye said. “I think we’ll eat first. We’re pretty hungry. Do you know where we can get a good steak?”
“Well, I do, but…”
“But what?”
“May I be candid?”
“Please.”
“I really don’t think you’d want to go into a restaurant looking—and smelling—like that.”
Shaye looked at Matthew, then at himself, and said, “You might be right. Ten minutes will work, after all.”
Shaye turned to Matthew and handed him the key to Room 4. “Wait for your brothers outside and give them the key.”
“Yes, Pa…. Pa?”
“Yes, Matthew?”
“We got to take baths again?”
“Yes, Matthew,” Shaye said, “we have to take baths again.”
Thomas and James dismounted and walked all four horses into the livery. The liveryman turned and smiled at them. He was tall and older, in his sixties, and was wiping his gnarled hands on a rag as they entered.
“Help you gents?”
“We’d like to put our horses up for the night, have them rubbed down and fed,” Thomas said.
“I take good care of animals I take into my charge,” the man said, “yes sir.”
“That’s good,” James said. “They need some care.”
