“We all have our strengths,” Butler said.
“Yeah, mine’s noticin’ things,” Victor said, “and breakin’ heads.”
“I’ll keep that in mind if I need any heads broken,” Butler said. “What do you know about the sheriff, Jim Courtwright?”
Victor made a face.
“Don’t like ’im, but I don’t get along much with any law, so ya can’t go by me.”
“Let me know when he comes in, will you?” Butler asked. “Or anybody else you think looks a little suspicious.”
“I know most of Ed Cramer’s men,” Victor said. “I see any of them, should I stop ’em?”
“Yes,” Butler said, “and then see if you can find Luke or me.”
“Gotcha,” Victor said. “Good to have you on board, Butler.”
Butler left Victor at the door and made a circuit of the room. He didn’t know what he was looking for, except maybe something out of the ordinary. The penny-ante gamblers were throwing away their money, concentrating half on the game and half on drinking or flirting with the saloon girls.
Butler didn’t have a title, but he figured Short had signed him on as a troubleshooter. When he wasn’t playing in a poker game—like now, when there was no high-stakes game—he figured he’d just keep his eyes open.
At one point he ran into Bill Ward, who also seemed to be walking the floor, making sure everything was going along smoothly.
“Butler.”
“Mr. Ward.”
“Naw, naw,” Ward said. “Since you’re on our payroll now, you can just call me Bill. Seen Luke?”
“Last I saw him he was going upstairs.”
Ward shook his head.
“He loves it up there,” Ward said.
“Looks like you picked the right partner.”
“You and Luke just met, right?” Ward asked.
“That’s right.”
“Heard you had a little blow up with Ed Cramer today. Luke start that?”
“Luke was just sitting at a table talking to Cramer when a fella with a gun came down the stairs.”
“Was he wearing it?”
Butler shook his head.
“Had it in his hand.”
“There was no shooting?”
Was Ward double-checking the facts that Luke Short had given him?
Butler shook his head.
“I took it away from him.”
“Then what?”
“Then Luke warned Cramer to keep his people away from here,” Butler said. “Bill, are you checking to see if my story matches up with Luke’s?”
“No, no,” Ward said. “Well, maybe. Luke’s been known to play fast and loose with the truth when it suits him. He’s done wonders for this place, really brought the gaming part to life, but…”
“Trouble follows him?”
“I’m afraid so,” Ward said, “and I’m afraid Luke doesn’t know how to back away from it.”
“Bill, for men like Luke Short, Bat Masterson, Wyatt Earp—”
“You?”
“I’m not in that company,” Butler said. “But for men like them, backing away from trouble isn’t an option. They tend to meet it head on.”
“My point exactly,” Ward said. “I think push is going to come to shove between Luke and Ed Cramer, or Luke and Jim Courtwright. I just hope Luke comes out of it okay when it happens.”
“And doesn’t drag you and the White Elephant down?”
“I know that’s the last thing Luke would ever do—” Ward said.
“You’ve got that right.”
“—on purpose.”
CHAPTER 20
Everything was quiet for several days. Still no high-stakes game for Butler. If he hadn’t been on the White Elephant’s payroll he might have left town for lack of action.
And why was he on the payroll, he wondered? What he had told Luke Short was the truth. He did often stick his nose in other people’s business—but he had come out of those situations with some lasting friendships. Hopefully, that was what would happen here. On the other hand, people had also died.
Not only was it three days of no poker, but three days of no action of any kind. There hadn’t even been an argument in the saloon, or the casino, and when men got together to drink and gamble, there were always arguments.
Over supper in the White Elephant restaurant on day four, Butler said, “Has it ever been this quiet?”
“No,” Short said, “and that’s what worries me. When it’s this quiet it’s bound to change with a bang.”
“Maybe,” Butler said, “you really did make an impression on Cramer. You know, with your gun?”
“No chance,” Short said. “I don’t even know why I did it, except that I was mad. All I did was make him even more stubborn. It’s real easy to send someone to do your killing for you.”
“Then why hasn’t he?” Butler asked. “He’s had time to check me out.”
“All I know is the longer he takes, the more anxious I get.”
“Maybe that’s what he wants.”
“What?”
“To make us anxious,” Butler said, “jumpy. He wants us jumping at shadows.”
“You’re right,” Short said, “that’s just what he wants. Poor Bill Ward is a nervous wreck.”
“Well,” Butler said, “we just have to keep waiting. We can’t make the first move.”
“Why not?”
“We’d be in the wrong.”
“Not if we didn’t get caught.”
“So what are you talking about doing, bushwacking Ed Cramer?
“No,” Short said, “I’d never do that. You’re right. We have to wait.”
“And be on our toes.”
“I’ll talk to Victor and the boys,” Short said. “The ‘boys’ being the bartenders. We can’t have them getting careless.” Short hesitated, then added, “Careless is dead.”
Ed Cramer looked up as Sutherland came through the curtain into his office.
“You got him?” Cramer asked.
“I think so,” Sutherland said. “If it’s the same Butler, he’s worth a lot of money back East.”
“How much?”
Sutherland dropped the telegram on Cramer’s desk, then sat down. Cramer picked it up and read.
“That is a lot of money. Is this a legal bounty?”
“No,” Sutherland said, “best I can find out is that it’s private, from out of the East. I guess that’s where he comes from.”
“So, Mr. Butler has gotten a rich man from the East angry enough to put a price on his head.”
“Apparently Butler’s family was pretty prominent, active in politics, wealthy, and got on somebody’s wrong side. They’re all dead except for him.”
“So he’s on the run.”
