He didn’t include Sheriff Zendt as part of the capture and interrogation. He began to think of the storm and the sheriff’s lack of raingear as confirmation that finding Dave Forrest was his duty alone.
_____
The wind had picked up dramatically by the time Jake and Sheriff Zendt reached Fort Shaw. The flashes of lightning and thunder were getting closer and more frequent, but so far, no rain had fallen. Jake was sure that it wouldn’t hold off much longer. That would make the twenty-five-mile ride much more difficult, but he was determined to go.
As they pulled up before the livery, Amos and Fred Stoker were already standing out front with big grins on their weathered faces.
When they stepped down, Amos said, “Howdy, Jake. I see you brought the sheriff with ya.”
“Howdy, Amos. I’m surprised that you remembered my name.”
“We been talkin’ about Mars and Vulcan since you left. How come you’re ridin’ that handsome sorrel?”
“I wanted to give Mars a rest.”
Fred then asked, “Are you gonna leave ‘em with us, or are you headin’ north after that feller ridin’ the gray gelding?”
Jake glanced at Sheriff Zendt before asking, “You saw him head to Woman’s Breast, or did he ride east on the road to Fort Benton?”
Fred snickered before answering, “He started off ridin’ south, but Amos was out in the corral around sunset and spotted him takin’ the road to the ghost town. His poor horses were on their last legs, but he kept pushin’ em. We figgered he was up to no good. So, are you gonna head that way before the storm hits or are you gonna leave your horses here and get a room at the hotel?”
Jake didn’t give Arv a chance to answer Fred’s question when he quickly replied, “I’m going to head north. I’m pretty sure that he’s set up in one of those abandoned buildings. With the storm, he’ll be holed up somewhere and I’ll be able to surprise him in the dark.”
Arv quickly said, “Jake, we should stick around and let that storm blow through. It could be nice and quiet in a few hours and we’ll both head up there in the dark. He’ll probably be sleeping.”
Jake shook his head as he replied, “Even if the storm is a few miles east, the moon will be full or another one might follow soon after. I know it sounds like I’m out for vengeance, but I’m not. I want to take advantage of nature’s gift of the storm.”
Arv looked at Amos and asked, “You don’t have any spare slickers around; do you?”
“Nope. We got some old tarps you could use. You could probably buy one at the sutler’s.”
Jake said, “Arv, it’s alright. Why don’t you just get a room at the hotel, have a good supper, and I’ll see you in the morning.”
The sheriff was about to order Jake to wait but when he looked at him, he suspected that Jake wanted to do this alone from the very start. He’d probably only asked him to come along to lessen Sara’s worries, so the storm was just an excuse.
He finally nodded and said, “Okay, Jake. I’ll hold off on having breakfast until you show up. Don’t keep me waiting.”
Jake shook the sheriff’s hand and said, “Thanks, Arv.”
He then checked the sorrel’s legs and knew he’d be able to handle another three-hour ride.
Before he mounted, Fred asked, “What did that feller do, anyway?”
“He killed my parents then when he was escaping from Helena, he killed two of the deputies that were chasing him.”
Amos whistled then said, “I’m kinda glad he didn’t stick around. I wonder how come we didn’t hear about it. They got a telegraph in the fort.”
Sheriff Zendt replied, “They used to take care of enforcing the law a few years ago, but things are different now. When it’s a civilian matter, the army only gets involved if there aren’t any law officers in the area.”
Jake mounted the sorrel then waved to the sheriff and the Stoker brothers before he turned his horse away from the livery.
As Arv and the brothers watched Jake ride away, Amos said, “I hope he shoots that bastard. He shoulda treated them horses better.”
Sheriff Zendt pulled his saddlebags and Winchester from his horse, then handed the reins to Fred before walking into town to get his hotel room. He thought he should feel guilty for letting Jake ride into the storm alone, but he didn’t. He just hoped that Jake was able to find his answer and share their belated breakfast tomorrow. What happened to Dave Forrest was almost irrelevant.
_____
Jake had donned his rain slicker then set the sorrel to a medium trot as the storm intensified. He wanted to get as close as possible to the ghost town before the heavy rains began. Then he’d have to slow his pace and if it was really bad, he’d have to keep the sorrel at a walk. The wind was whipping from the northwest but would shift suddenly to the north then back again seconds later. He hoped it didn’t spawn a large outbreak of tornadoes. He’d seen the damage they could do. He didn’t mind the rain as long as he didn’t spot a twister when the lightning lit up the sky.
He’d been riding for almost ninety minutes when the first heavy drops began to fall. He dropped his head as the rain
