Chapter 7: Blood on the Border

William was nervous as hell when he and Hoyt walked back across the street to the laundry.

“Hoyt, you gotta help me. I’m lost already.”

“Just stop worrying, William. We’ll go in here and change clothes, then we’ll escort Sandra and her momma across the street to the hotel. I’ve already told the man to save us a big table, that we’d be back for supper.”

Miss Whitman met them as soon as they walked in. “William, I’m so glad you and Marshal Hoyt came back early. Y’all can go in this little room over here and change clothes. Your new ones are in there. Just leave your dirty clothes in two piles and we’ll take care of them tomorrow. I have to tell both of you, I’m so excited for Sandra. She’s dreamed of a handsome cowboy falling in love with her since we moved here two years ago from Tennessee.

“When my younger daughter, Amanda learned that Sandra had met a handsome cowboy, she asked Sandra if she could live with you and her. I thought that was so sweet of her. She was back in the laundry room when y’all came in earlier and you didn’t get to meet her. She’s fifteen but she looks every bit as grownup as Sandra, if you know what I mean. I hope she don’t bother you too much, but she’s going to eat supper with us too.”

“That sounds good to me, Miss Whitman. I hope I don’t mess up. Like I told Hoyt, I’m nervous about this.”

“You’ll be just fine, William. You have Sandra smiling like I’ve never seen her before. She’s totally taken with you and I hope everything works out between you and her. If Amanda gets too rowdy with you, just let me know and I’ll calm her down. She gets so strung out wanting to meet a cowboy too, that I’m having a hard time telling her that her time will come.”

“I’ll just have to leave it up to you and Sandra when it comes to her sister. I’ve never even been out to supper with a girl before, let alone her momma and sister too.”

Hoyt and William went into the room to change clothes. “We need to get some new boots too, William.”

“I’d sure like to have a pair, but I need to save this reward money you halved with me ... How much was it, anyway? I never even counted it.”

“Twelve hundred and fifty dollars, for your part.”

“HOYT? Are you sure about me having this much of your reward money?”

“You helped me earn it, William. Besides, if you do inherit the Hargrove spread, I may want to come stay with you when I’m over this way.”

“You got a open door welcome, Hoyt. You can even live there if you want to ... that is, if it all comes to be.”

As soon as they stepped out of the room wearing their new clothes, Sandra rushed over to William and took his hand.

“William, I’m so excited about this. I still can’t believe you just walked in here and wanted to meet me. I told my sister, Amanda about you and now she wants to meet a cowboy too. She even asked me that if you and I do fall in love and get married, could she live with us. I hope she doesn’t make a nuisance of herself tonight, but I told her that if we happen to see each other again, that maybe you could take us riding on a horse.”

William looked at Hoyt to see him nodding, yes.

“I don’t see why not. I don’t have but one horse but we can get two from the livery so you and Amanda can ride with me.”

“Thank you, William. Here comes Amanda now and I want you to know, I love my younger sister. I hope you like her too...

“Amanda, this is Marshal Hoyt over here, and this handsome man here is William Banks, the cowboy Momma and I told you about who asked us to have supper with him.”

Amanda Whitman was every bit as tall as her sister, and looked every bit as old as her seventeen year old sister, Sandra. Hoyt was smiling and nodding, when William looked at him with his eyes opened wide.

“Amanda, I’m pleased to meet you. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you and Sandra were the same age.”

“William, I am so happy for my sister, and I really do hope you and I can become good friends too. I want to learn how to ride a horse and now that you and Sandra are going to be friends, I hope you’ll teach me all about it.”

Hoyt and William were up early the next morning, and after breakfast at the hotel, they walked down to the livery to check on their horses.

“William, you need to find out if it’s true about Mr. Hargrove adding you to his will and kicking his daughters out.”

“Where would I go to find out about it? I wouldn’t know where to start.”

“After we check on our horses, we’ll walk over to the courthouse. If no one there can help you, maybe they can tell you who he used as his attorney. Surely someone other than the Hargrove sisters knew about it, if the old man really did change his will. She didn’t say, but that could have been the reason her and her sister went to all trouble of robbing the stage, killing the old man and the others too. They must have had those gamblers come in to make it look like they were a part of it all along. We’ll probably never find out the real truth about it all. With Loria dead, and Clara and Jack the only two out of the bunch still alive.”

“You’re probably right, and if the old man did change his will before they killed him, then someone, somewhere should know about it, huh?”

From the livery, they walked over to the courthouse. They were told they’d have to see the court clerk about things such as a man’s will being on file.

“Mr. Banks, there has been no will filed for William Hargrove as yet. If you don’t know where a copy of his will is being kept, you may check with Mr. Basil Cardine. He has been Mr. Hargrove’s attorney for years.”

“Hoyt, will you go with me? I’m nervous as hell right now, and I doubt I could spell my own name if someone asked me.”

“Look at it like this, William. If it turns out that Clara was lying, you’re no worse off than before. At least you’ll have a respectable job starting Monday. You could work yourself up to Marshal in a few years and then you’d be making as much in three months as you were making a year as a cowhand.”

“I know you’re right, but this thing keeps eating at me and I can’t stop wondering, what if.”

“Sir, is there any way you can verify that you are, in fact, William Banks?” Basil Cardine asked, as William and Hoyt sat across his desk from him.

“Well, my friend here is Hoyt Malone. He works for the Marshal’s Service and he’s the one who uncovered the whole deal about the stagecoach robbery and the Hargrove sisters being behind it all. Besides that, I’ll start to work Monday for the Marshal’s Service, myself. You could ask Marshal Jed Walker about Hoyt and me, if you need anything more.”

“I must say, that’s more than sufficient proof. I’ve heard about you and Mister Malone uncovering the plot which the Hargrove sisters had for taking their father’s ranch and stealing the money from the stage too. If you’ll sign this affidavit swearing that you are in fact, William Banks, I’ll read you the basic points of the last will and testament of William L. Hargrove. I have a copy of the will here, that I can present to you, in order for you to take control of all the deceased’s bank funds, stock certificates, and remaining assets...”

They were walking back to the hotel to get their belongings, “ ... William, it looks like you’re set for years to come now. I hope this sudden change in your life from a broke cowboy to a rich cattle rancher don’t change who you are. Just be yourself and if you and Sandra do make it, make sure it’s because of you, and not your money. From the way that girl latched onto you yesterday, simply because you’re a cowboy, I doubt she’ll change that much, even if you and her marry...

“I’ll be back through this way, after I make a run down into Mexico to see if I can hunt down the two Lynaugh brothers who’re supposed to be holed-up over there. If you and Sandra do make plans to get hitched, give me time and I’ll bring Janie and my other two women over for your wedding.”

“Hoyt, since you’re heading down to Longhorn country, be on the lookout for about 500 head of Longhorns at a good price. It’ll take that many to graze the brush off that place since Mr. Hargrove just gave up on it. Now that I know it’s mine and I have the money to do it, I want to build it back up like it used to be before those girls sold off most of his stock.”

Hoyt left for Mexico soon after he saddled Chelley and loaded his packhorse. He stopped by the laundry on his way out and picked up his clean clothes. “Miss Whitman, you stand a chance of getting yourself a good son in law. William is as good and honest as they come.”

“Thanks, Hoyt. I am so proud of Sandra. She’s changed from a girl to a woman already, making plans as to how she’d gonna love her man.”

“What about Amanda? What will she do if Sandra marries William and moves out on the ranch to live?”

“If I know my youngest daughter, she’ll be right there with them, if they do happen to live on a ranch.”

From what William told him, Hoyt knew it would take a good six days down to Nogales on the border, about the same ride as St. Johns to Phoenix.

He’d brought a long-legged packhorse with him this time, since he’d be traveling across flat country instead of the mountains. A sure-footed packmule is a must in the mountains, but out here on the flats, he preferred a horse. This one was good at matching Chelley’s long strides and they were making good time.”

The second day out of Phoenix, he crossed the Santa Cruz River and followed the meandering stream all the way to Nogales, skirting Tucson without stopping.

The Lynaugh brothers, Edward and Lloyd, have outstanding warrants for rustling cattle and driving them across the border – from both sides. They were wanted for murder in Maricopa County. They had killed a rancher and his son when the rancher caught them stealing horses from his ranch.

A murder conviction could get a man life in prison – horse thievery is also a capital offense, and can get a man 10 years in prison – unless the vigilantes catch him first – then he could get a long rope and a short life.

Hoyt had been to Nogales once, years ago, not long after he went to work for Charles Mason. They went to visit friends of the Mason’s, who owned a ranch a few miles south of Nogales. They bought a hundred head of Longhorn cows and two bulls, then drove them back up to Apache County. Hoyt was hoping that Mr. Mason’s friends would remember him as he rode across the border into Nogales, Sonora, Mexico.

Though it has been eight years, Luciano Lopez recognized Hoyt as soon as he rode up to the corral where the man sat with his son Ramiro, who was six years old back when Hoyt met the family.

“Hoyt Malone! You have finally come back to visit The Rancho Lopez! You must remember Ramiro? Look how he has grown in eight years.”

“Luciano, I wasn’t sure you would remember me, it’s been so long.

“Ramiro, you are a man now. You have really grown since I saw you last.”

“Si, but you are the one who has really become a man. “Your arms are as big as my legs now. Tell me how you grew so much into a man?”

“Hard work, my friend. It was all hard work.”

Luciano told him, “Wait until you see Adelita. She is now a woman and the boys her age are about to drive us crazy, wanting to come courting.”

“What was she – twelve when I was here? She would be twenty now. She was a beautiful young girl back then, too.”

“She is riding her horse over to the hay storage barn on the back pasture now. You should ride over there and surprise her. She always told us that you would come back to marry her one day,” Luciano said of his daughter, and laughed.

“Luciano, I never knew that. She was just a Tomboy back then and I was fifteen at the time. I was afraid to even speak to her until we were about to leave with the cattle.”

“I remember that too, Hoyt. In two years time, she was a woman-child. Then a year later, she left the child and became a woman when we lost Petra.”

“My friend, I didn’t know you lost your wife! I am so sorry for you, Ramiro and Adelita.”

“It has been five years now, Hoyt. Though we still miss her, we have lived our lives the way she told us she wanted us to before she left here. I will never remarry, but I do have a companion living with us. Adelita approves of her and Ramiro really approves of her daughter!”

“Papa, you make it sound as if I am chasing her, when she is the one who chases me.”

“Yes, but the rabbit is never far ahead of the hound when the chase ends.”

Ramiro told him, “Hoyt, just wait until you meet Alyce, you will see why I am never far from her.”

“Then don’t let her get away. It took me too long to realize the woman for me had been right in front of me for years.”

“Are you married, Hoyt?” Luciano asked.

“No. But I’m getting close.”

“Then go see Adelita for me now, before she makes a big mistake in her life.”

“What do you mean?”

“One of Lynaugh’s sons is chasing her and I’m afraid if he catches his rabbit ... the rabbit will not survive.”

“Which Lynaugh? They’re the reason I’m here.”

“Edward’s son, Ward. He is back there with Adelita now. We saw him ride past just a few minutes ago. She told Ramiro that she doesn’t want him, but he won’t take no as her answer.”

“See to my packhorse,” Hoyt told him, raking his heels across Chelley’s flanks.

Hoyt could see a hay barn in the distance. He remembered it now and dug his heels into Chelley’s flanks. He could see two horses in front of the barn and from what Luciano told him, this wasn’t good.

Pulling back on the reins, Chelley slid to a stop and Hoyt dropped the reins in front of him. Turning toward the barn, he heard a scream, then a string of cuss words like he’d never heard coming from a woman before.

“You God Damn son of a bitch, I told you that I don’t love you and that I don’t want to be around you. Get your damn slimy hands off me, you sorry bastard. Don’t you hear me? I don’t love you!”

“I’ll show you what my kind of love is about, you teasing bitch. When I get through with you, you’ll beg me to come back and take you again every day!”

Hoyt entered the barn to see Adelita backed against a wall with the man tearing at her clothes. He walked up behind Lynaugh and Adelita saw him.

“HOYT!” she screamed his name and Ward Lynaugh turned around just in time to catch a fist to his gut. Before he fell to the floor, Hoyt had beat his face into a bloody mess.

He wasn’t through. He pulled the man up by his hair and threw him back against the wall where he beat him until he passed out.

“HOYT! Don’t kill him. His family will come hunt you down and kill you, too. You have saved my life, now help me gather my clothes so i can go home ... GOD! You big handsome brute. I have dreamed of you, and here you are, rescuing me from being raped by a no-good son of a bitching outlaw.”