who was walking around, staring down at each of the dead men in turn. “They can go—can’t they, Cisco? I’ll tell you the whole story and sign whatever needs signing. I assure you Slash and Pecos were acting in self-defense.”
“That’s all I need, then.” The handsome town marshal glanced over his shoulder at Slash and Pecos. “I’m sure Chief Marshal Bledsoe needs you more than I do. If there are any holes left in the affidavit after I’ve talked with Jay about what happened here, I’m sure we can fill them in when you return. Good luck, gentlemen.” Walsh smiled his broad, handsome smile once more, turning to face the two cutthroats, adding, “It was nice to meet you both. Don’t worry about Jay.”
He switched his warm smile to the copper-haired beauty standing beside Slash, flushed more than ever. “I’ll take very good care of her while you’re away. Rest assured.”
Slash could almost feel the electricity popping around inside of Jay as she stood beside him, exchanging nauseating grins with the badge-toting fancy Dan. Slash just stood there, silently fuming, clenching his fists at his sides, until Pecos reached out and grabbed his arm, and gave it a tug.
“Come on, Slash. You heard the lady. Ole Bleed-Em-So’s waitin’ on us. If we don’t want him bleedin’ us, we’d best hightail it.”
Slash had been in a trance of sorts. When Pecos gave him another nudge, pulling him out of it, he said, “Yeah, yeah. Right. I reckon we’ll be on our way.”
As he glanced at Jay once more and stepped around the tall, handsome Cisco Walsh, the marshal glanced at him again with that infernal, charming smile and said, “Again, it was nice to meet you fellas. See you around.”
“Good luck, boys,” Jay called.
“Good luck, boys,” Slash growled to himself as he picked his hat up off the hall floor, where it had tumbled when he’d first hit the carpet. “See you around . . . my ass!” Setting his hat on his head, he added, keeping his voice low, “Not if I see you first, you starch-drawered hooplehead!”
Pecos had retrieved his own hat and, donning it, caught up to Slash. He walked along beside him, scowling at him. “What the hell’s got into you?”
Slash tried to respond, but only a growl bubbled up out of his throat.
“What is it?” Pecos prodded as they started down the stairs. “You think Jay’s got somethin’ goin’ with the marshal?”
“Ain’t it obvious?”
Pecos frowned, shrugged. “No. I mean, they’re obviously friends. Like Jay said, they met back in Dodge. Before Pistol Pete. But old friends—that’s all they are.”
As they gained the bottom of the stairs and began sidling through the swarming crowd, heading for the front door, Slash said, “How do you know they were just friends? How do you know they’re still just friends?”
Pecos threw his head back and laughed.
“What’s funny?”
“You.”
“How am I funny?”
Pecos snarled when they stepped through the batwings and started across the Thousand Delights’ broad front veranda.
“You’re jealous. Why, you stiffened up like a conquistador’s suit of armor as soon as that big rake walked into the room. It was obvious as the nose on your face.”
“Well, of course I’m jealous. Did you see that tailor’s dummy? Some women like ’em . . . you know . . .”
“Tall and handsome as a freshly minted penny? Men who know how to dress an’ comb their hair? I’ll be damned if he don’t bathe at least once a week, too. Oh, yeah—women are all over that!” Pecos chuckled as they headed for the freighting compound and the corral in which they kept their horses.
“Wears a badge, too.” Slash shook his head and added through gritted teeth, “Big fancy pistol . . .”
“I bet he rides a big black Thoroughbred, too,” Pecos teased his friend. “A stallion, no doubt. With fire in its eyes. Hah!”
“Oh, stop makin’ fun of my misery,” Slash railed as they approached the barn and corral to the left of their business’s main office. “Can’t you see she’s gone for that . . . that badge-totin’ fancy Dan?”
Pecos stopped in front of the barn door. “Oh, she is not.”
“She is, too!”
“No, she’s not.”
“Is too!”
Pecos placed a hand on Slash’s shoulder. “I seen the way she looked at that fancy Dan, as you call the jake. But I’ve seen the way she looks at you, too, and, believe me—because if I’ve learned one solid thing in this life, it’s the hearts of the ladies—when Jay’s eyes fall on your rancid countenance, for some reason or another they light up even brighter than they did for Cisco Walsh.”
Slash frowned, canted his head to one side, skeptically. “Really?”
“And she gets an even pinker flush in those pretty cheeks of hers.”
“Ah, hell—you’re just sayin’ that so I’ll get the hump out of my neck.”
“No, I’m not. She’s gone for you, Slash. Pure and simple. You keep that ring in a safe place till you’re ready to put it on her finger.” Pecos paused. “Take one more word of advice?”
“Go ahead—you’re on a roll!”
“Ask her soon. She’s not gettin’ no younger. You can’t expect her to wait around forever, wonderin’ if you’re ever gonna pull the trigger.”
He lifted the wire loop from the corral gate and drew the gate open. “Come on. Let’s see what kind of nastiness ole Bleed-Em-So’s got in store for us now.”
CHAPTER 7
Chief Marshal Bledsoe thought it prudent that he and the two former cutthroats keep their arrangement as secret as possible. The marshal didn’t think it would reflect well on the federal government if folks knew it had amnestied two career criminals in return for their service, that is, running down owlhoots every bit as bad as Slash and Pecos once were—and worse—and killing them.
The eastern newspapers would have an ink-fest if they found out that Uncle Sam had amnestied two career criminals and turned them into paid assassins.
Apparently, Bledsoe and even the president of the United States thought it made sense, though, given the nasty cut of the outlaws who currently ran off their leashes on the still relatively lawless western frontier. Who but two cutthroats would be better qualified for running down and bringing to justice—or flat-out killing—their own?
Bledsoe’s sending Jack Penny and a whole pack of nasty bounty hunters to kill them, and then Slash and Pecos in turn killing the bounty hunters, with Penny now included, had been a pretty good test of their abilities. Even at their advanced ages, though neither Slash nor Pecos saw their mid-fifties as being all that advanced.
