Chapter 6

Rushing out to the barroom, Ray encountered complete bedlam. Fire licked up the curtains and burned in spots on the floor. Sandy and Jim, along with some of the girls, used buckets and large pots of water to douse the curtains.

He hurried to help them, taking over for Mandy. “Go on in the back and keep filling the buckets! Go now!”

Mandy hurried away to follow his orders. Ray took a bucket from another girl and threw it on the curtain nearest him. Gunshots rang out and Ray grabbed Grace, the girl working beside him, dragging her to the floor with him. He saw Jim do the same with Sandy.

“Stay down as much as you can and get out the back door, Grace! Now!”

Grace was petrified, unable to move. Ray smacked her hard on the rear to get her going. She scrambled across the barroom heading for the hallway that led to the back hallway.

Ray crawled over to Jim. “Hey, you got any more guns in the back besides the one behind the bar?” he asked.

Sandy knelt over Jim, shaking him and calling his name. “He got hit! Jim! Please wake up!”

She pressed both hands over the wound in his chest. Ray saw a bullet hole in Jim’s forehead and knew that the older man was gone. He took Sandy by the shoulders.

“Sandy, you gotta get out of here. Jim’s gone. There’s nothing more we can do for him.”

Sandy caught sight of Jim’s head wound and let out a scream of anguish and fury. Ray pulled her away, but Sandy was strong and broke his grip, running behind the bar. She grabbed the two guns she kept there: a pistol and a shotgun.

She slid the shotgun across the floor to Ray. “I’ll be damned if I’ll let them take away everything Jim and I worked for and get away with killing him!” she shouted.

Ray scrambled to his feet, running after Sandy as she charged out the front door, opening fire on the men with guns outside. She had the element of surprise on her side. They never expected her to challenge them. Between her, Ray, and a couple of other men, they took out quite a few of the mob and ran off the rest.

Sandy threw her empty gun after the miscreants, hitting one of them in the back. Then she ran back inside and resumed fighting the fire. Some of the townspeople came to help while others just stood back to watch the spectacle. Rob and several deputies arrived, along with the fire department, and they were able to get the blaze under control.

As things settled down, Sandy knelt by Jim and cradled him in her lap, weeping loudly. Rob went down on his knees beside her, putting an arm around her. The sheriff was good friends with the saloon owners and his grief was great as he looked down at Jim. His eyes swam with tears as he held Sandy, attempting to comfort her.

Ray and the girls joined them, forming a circle around Jim, mourning the man whom many of them had regarded as a father figure. After a time, Sandy’s sobs abated, and she pulled away from Rob.

She wiped her tears away with a sooty hand, leaving a smudge behind on her cheek. “Rob, you better deal with who’s responsible for this before I do because I won’t show any mercy.”

“Now, Sandy, you got enough to deal with here without worrying about revenge. I’d say, based on all the bodies outside, that you got plenty of that. You might’ve even killed the guy who shot Jim. Don’t make things worse,” Rob said.

Sandy rose and turned away from him. “Sure, Rob.”

Rob’s jaw clenched at her sarcastic tone, but he kept his voice even. “Sandy, c’mon, now. You know that Jim wouldn’t want you doing something like that.” He got up and followed her behind the bar. “Don’t go getting yourself in trouble. These girls depend on you. I know you’re going through hell right now, but so are they. They lost him, too. You gotta be there for them.”

Looking over at the group of seven girls, two of whom clung to Ray, Sandy knew that Rob was right. Without her, the grieving young women would be out on the streets again. She wouldn’t let that happen. Jim had loved their girls and she had to honor his memory by keeping things going. How she was going to do that without the love of her life, she didn’t know, but she’d find the strength somewhere.

She downed a shot and said, “Some of them were from that new church. They were shouting stuff about killing the wicked abominations and crap like that. I recognized the pastor, but he got away. Too bad I didn’t put a bullet in his brain. I’ll testify to that, too. You let Reese know it.”

Rob gave her a sideways hug and kissed her temple. “Don’t worry, Sandy. I’ll take care of it.”

She nodded and tossed back another shot.

The undertaker came and took Jim away, which almost made Sandy break down again. She fought the urge, instead, concentrating on her little flock and gathering them around the bar.

“Listen up, everyone. I know how horrible this is, but we have to be strong and go on for Jim. He’d want us to keep this place open and be just as successful as we already are, if not more. We gotta stick together and not let these bastards win. Will you help me do that?” she asked.

Her girls were a feisty bunch. They all nodded and agreed with her. Ray nodded, but Sandy could tell that he was holding something back. She was too busy right now, but she’d get him alone later to find out what was going on with him. However, she had a funeral to plan and a saloon to repair. Squaring her shoulders, she got down to taking care of business, just like she had so many times in the past.

Wheels rolled up the ramp at the Chowhound saloon the next morning. He’d broken his house arrest while no one had been around so that he could go help his friend however he could. He’d slung his modified tool belt over his shoulder, put his braces across his lap, and had taken off, zipping down the wooden sidewalk before any of his family had caught him. He had no idea how many people were aware of his sentencing, but no one had tried to stop him as he’d rolled along.

Sandy saw him and did a double-take. “What the hell are you doing here? You’re not supposed to leave your house!”

Wheels said, “I had to come, Sandy. You guys are my friends. Jim meant a lot to me. I’m so sorry.”

Sandy teared up as she nodded. “Me, too. Please don’t make me cry right now, Wheels. I got too much to do.”

Wheels forced a smile for her sake. “Don’t waste time yelling at me then. Tell me how I can help.”

Sandy looked around. “Well, a bunch of the fellas are out back cutting boards to replace the floorboards. Some of the wainscoting has to be torn out. I’m not really sure what all. Ray’s sort of directing all that.”

“Okay. I’ll find him.”

“All right. I’m keeping food going in the kitchen to feed everyone with.” She patted his shoulder and went on her way.

Wheels glanced around at the damaged floor with dismay. Although he could pull himself around on a floor, he couldn’t kneel and hammer boards in place. Ripping out wainscoting in his wheelchair might not be safe, either. However, he could stand in one place and cut boards. A grin stole over his face as he looked down at his braces.

Quickly, he propelled himself down the back hallway, stopping at Wendy’s door. He didn’t think that the girls would be entertaining, but he still checked to see if the little flowered wreath she put on her door when she was busy hung on it. It didn’t, so he knocked.

Wendy pulled her door open. “Wheels! Why are you here? You’re under house arrest.”

“Yeah, yeah. I know. I need you to help me so I can help out with the repairs.”

Wendy rolled her eyes. “C’mon in then.”

Ray wiped sweat from his eyes and went back to work cutting boards. The saloon had been his home more or less for the last seven years and he’d loved Jim like a father. His father had run off, leaving his mother to raise him, but she’d been unable or unwilling to do a proper job of it.

In fact, she’d split her time between drinking and whoring, dragging Ray around to a different family member’s house every week. She’d dump him off and go sleep with men for booze and money. Ray had grown up quick, coming to understand many things about the world much sooner than any child should.

Soon after he’d first rented his room from Sandy and Jim, they’d taken him under their wing, just like they had the girls, making sure he ate and that he kept his room clean. In a strange way, they were all very much like family. Sandy and Jim provided stability to their girls and Ray, who in turn provided amusement and companionship for the bar owners. Jim had never slept with any of the girls, always remaining faithful to Sandy, his one true love.

Ray’s relationship with the whores was a mixture of friends and lovers with the emphasis being on the friendship part. Here and there he’d slept with two of them, but only when he hadn’t had a client in a while.

His best friend, Johnny Decker, had come into town as soon as Cy had told him about the incident at the Chowhound. He brought Ray another board and took away the one he’d just cut.

“Reinforcements,” Johnny remarked, smiling.

Ray smiled and nodded. “How long?”

“Same. I already marked them.”

“Oh. Yeah. I see now.”

Johnny couldn’t blame Ray for being distracted. He knew how close Ray had been with Jim. Therefore, he didn’t tease Ray about it.

“Hey, fellas, need some help?”

Ray and Johnny smiled when they recognized Wheels’ voice. When they looked up, Johnny broke into delighted laughter and Ray felt faint upon seeing Wheels standing not far from them.

Ray grabbed Johnny’s shoulder for support. “Am I hallucinating? I am, aren’t I? Wheels isn’t really standing, is he?”

Johnny and Wheels laughed.

“Naw, you’re not hallucinating, Ray. I’m standing. Watch this,” Wheels said.

Ray and everyone else incredulously watched his progress as he shuffled the few feet over to where the workhorses were set up. Wheels snapped off a salute as he came face-to-face with Ray.

“Corporal Ellis reporting for duty, sir,” he said, grinning.

Ray shook his head. “How?”