* * *
Duff watched the train roll into the station and stop with a hiss of steam and a squeal of brakes.
“What about the hands who worked at Twin Peaks?” Dale Allen asked. “Have you made any arrangements for them?”
“I have dismissed them all.”
“Harlon, there are cattle there,” Burt Rowe said. “Someone has to look after them.”
“What is there to look after? Cows eat grass and drink water. Surely they can do that on their own.”
As Duff listened passively to the interchange, he saw a passenger step down from the train. The passenger wore a neatly trimmed Vandyke beard and was exceptionally well dressed. He was clutching a valise, holding it with both hands as if frightened that someone might take it from him.
“I have already made arrangements for Mr. Turley and Mr. Cooper to stay on, until the ranch is sold,” Martha said. “Mr. Turley has been the foreman for some time, and Clifford always set a great store by him. He also thought that Mr. Cooper was a good hand. I’m sure they will be of big help to whoever buys the ranch.”
“Mother, I had no idea you had done that, and there was no need for it. It is an unnecessary expense,” Harlon said, his irritation with her action making his voice quite loud.
“I believe it is necessary,” Martha replied quietly, but firmly.
“I’ll check in on them from time to time,” Rowe promised.
“All aboard!” the conductor called.
“Gentlemen, we appreciate your service at father’s funeral. And now, we must take leave of you.”
Martha took one last look around as if hesitant to leave.
“Come, Mother,” Harlon said, taking her by the arm and escorting her onto the train.
Chapter Five
As Houser stepped down from the train, someone approached him.
“Would you like a cab, sir?” the man asked.
“Yes, as soon as I get my luggage, I think I would.”
While Houser waited, he saw a small gathering of people around a young man and an older woman, who he took to be mother and son. From what he could observe the gathered men were telling the young man and woman good-bye.
“Mother, I had no idea you had done that, and there was no need for it. It is an unnecessary expense!”
It was the young man who spoke, validating Houser’s belief that they were mother and son. As his voice was quite loud, and with a tone of obvious irritation, it was the only line of dialogue that Houser heard from the conversation.
He was somewhat discomfited when he saw that one of the gathered men, a tall man with golden hair, wide shoulders, and muscular arms, seemed to be looking at him. The unblinking gaze made him a little ill at ease, and he clutched the satchel even closer to him.
“This must be your luggage, sir, as you were the only one on the train,” someone said. This was the man who, but a moment earlier, had solicited him for a cab.
“Yes, it is, thank you.”
“Shall I get it for you?” the cab driver asked.
“Yes, please do.”
The cab driver reached for the satchel, but Houser jerked it out of reach. “I’ll carry this,” Houser said.
“Yes, sir.”
Houser had the driver take him to the “nicest hotel in town,” where he took a suite of rooms. He wasn’t sure how long he would be staying in the hotel, and he wanted to be as comfortable as possible.
From the hotel, Houser, still carrying the satchel, walked two blocks to the Bank of Chugwater, where he asked to meet with the president.
“Yes, sir, what can I do for you, sir?” Joel Marsh asked with a businessman’s smile.
“I have a rather sizable sum of money that I would like to deposit with your bank,” Houser said. “And I want to know if you can handle an account this large.”
Marsh’s smile grew broader. “Oh, I think you will find that we are quite capable of handling any amount you might wish to leave with us.”
“Do you have a vault?”
“We have a Yale and Towne vault, sir. There is none better. Exactly how much money will you be depositing with us?”
“Eighty-five thousand dollars,” Houser said.
“Oh my, that is a rather substantial amount. Are you moving to Chugwater?”
“Yes. I shall be looking to buy a ranch while I’m here.”
“Twin Peaks,” Marsh said.
“I beg your pardon?”
“You are in luck, sir, as I have just been given the authority to sell Twin Peaks, a ranch that once belonged to Clifford Prescott.”
“You have repossessed it, have you?” Houser asked.
“Oh no, sir, nothing like that. Clifford Prescott, who owned Twin Peaks Ranch, died earlier this week. In fact I, just a few minutes ago, returned from his funeral. If you just arrived on the train today, you may have seen his widow, Mrs. Prescott. Her son is taking her back to Memphis, and it is he who is selling. He has offered the ranch, and all stock and accouterments, for sale for fifty-five thousand dollars.”
“You know the area. Is the ranch worth that much?”
“Oh, dear me, yes, that, and much more,” Marsh said. “And I told young Prescott as much. But he wants nothing to do with the ranch, except to get rid of it as quickly as possible.”
“How large is this place?”
“One hundred and ten thousand acres. Only Sky Meadow is larger.”
“Can you arrange for me to see it?”
“Absolutely. I’ll take you there myself.”
Elam, Texas
For a while, Sid Shamrock was the wealthiest man in Elam, and he lived like it. Rather than take a room in the hotel, Shamrock took a room in Miss Wanda’s House of Accommodating Women. Miss Wanda was a madam, and the six “accommodating” women who lived and worked there were whores.
“Ha!” Shamrock said. “I’ve always wanted to live in a whorehouse, ’n now I do.”
By living there, Shamrock was able to enjoy any of the girls he wanted, anytime he wanted. Such an arrangement cost him a great deal of money, but he had a great deal of money.
Shamrock was very generous
