Chapter 11

About midnight, Sean and Ezra were summoned back to Jameson. "Sit down, boys. I've heard good thin's about y'all. I kin use men like y'all, so I want y'all to be a part of my regulars. That's all fer tonight, I'll see y'all tomorrow mornin 'bout 10:00 o'clock."

"Great, boss, we'll see ya tomorrow."

Once they were out of the saloon, Sean said, "We better stay away from the Ranger barracks 'til we're through with this job. Let's find a hotel. We better git separate rooms. We don't want Jameson to think we've known each other too long."

They met for breakfast the next morning and wandered toward the saloon. They were a little early to report, but they went in, anyway. They found two men standing at Jameson's table with their guns out. Jameson and his two bodyguards had their hands raised. There was some talking, but the two Rangers couldn't make out what was being said.

Suddenly, the gunman on the right shot the bodyguard in front of him in the leg. The man collapsed on the floor in considerable pain. The gunman on the left said something, but got no answer. He then shot the bodyguard in front of him.

This was enough for Sean and Ezra; Sean said, "Ya take the one on the left." They both drew and fired; they were so close, about 30 feet, that they practically couldn't miss. Both gunman went down, dead before they hit the floor.

The bartender said something to the swamper, who ran out the front door. The bartender grabbed up some towels and rushed to the wounded men. He applied the towels as tourniquets and did what else he could do to help the wounded bodyguards.

Meanwhile, Jameson sat down and waved Sean and Ezra over to his table. "Much obliged, boys. Y'all got me out of a bad one, that time. Those two yahoos woulda shot me next. Yer quick action saved my bacon and I appreciate it."

"Shit, boss. We wuz jus' doin' our job. We couldn't let them shoot ya. Who were they, anyway?"

"They wuz a couple of Ortiz's muscle complaining 'bout last night's dust up. "Y'all musta made quite an impression on Ortiz. Y'all need to watch yer backs fer a few days. Fact is, I need two new bodyguards, y'all jus' got the jobs. That'll he'p me and keep y'all away from Ortiz fer a while."

"OK, boss. Anythin' special we should watch fer?"

"No, I'll tell y'all if sumpthin' special comes up. Otherwise, jus' keep me from gettin' shot!"

"Sure thin', boss. Ezra, ya take the left chair an' I'll sit here." They reloaded their pistols and sat in the indicated chairs.

About this time, a doctor showed up with a couple of stretchers and four assistants. "Howdy, Mr. Jameson. I'll take care of these two men like I always do. They look to me like they'll be out of circulation for some time."

Jameson waved a dismissal and went back to his paperwork. The doctor and his entourage left and things returned to normal. Sean and Ezra couldn't have asked for a better position to learn all about Jameson's business. The funny thing was, everything was completely legal and above board. He didn't do a thing that would have gotten him a $2 fine from the nastiest Justice of the Peace.

At noon, a delicious lunch was delivered to Jameson's table, and Sean and Ezra were invited to join in. The same pattern continued through supper, which Sean and Ezra were again invited to share. After supper, the saloon got too rowdy for business, so Jameson had a few drinks and the two bodyguards were treated to a couple of free beers.

Sean and Ezra accompanied Jameson to his suite in the best hotel in Corpus Christi. They were dismissed and told to be back at the hotel at 9:00 AM, ready to escort Jameson to the saloon. As they were leaving, Jameson again cautioned them to be careful: Ortiz was well known to hold a grudge.

Ezra joined Sean in his hotel room for a discussion of the current situation. "It don't look to me like Jameson is any more crooked than any other business man. We may be barking up the wrong tree."

Sean agreed, but commented, "We jus' may not of been 'round long enough to git the whole story. Let's give it a few more days afore we come to a decision."

"Ya're probably right, but I ain't certain. Maybe the real crook is this here Ortiz. There ain't no question but what he likes to strong arm people. Ya think that we might git Jameson to tell us soumthin' 'bout Ortiz?"

"That's sounds like a good idee to me. I'll try to pump him soon as I git the chance."

During a slack period the next day, Sean took the opportunity to ask Jameson about Ortiz. "Boss, I'm a bit bothered by this here Ortiz. I don't cotton to walkin' around worryin' about a hole suddenly appearing in my back. What is his angle?"

"Ortiz is a real crazy duck. He runs a protection racket among the Mexicans, I think mostly jus' cuz he likes to bully people. I hear that he has all the money he kin use, so he jus' runs his racket fer fun. Another funny thin' 'bout him, he won't hire anybody but Anglos. He claims that Mexicans is too lazy an' unreliable to be trusted. I think that he is jus' crazy."

"Thanks, boss, now I know what to expect. I ain't happy 'bout it, but I guess I kin live with it."

The next three days were a repeat of the routine legal and honest business that they had observed previously. The two Rangers were about ready to give up when there was a spell of excitement. On the way back to Jameson's hotel suite, there was a spatter of gunshots aimed in their direction as they walked under a street lamp. Jameson's hat went flying and Ezra pushed Jameson into a convenient alley.

Sean snapped off a couple of shots in the direction of the shooters, but he was sure that he didn't hit anything. Jameson cursed the damage to a favorite hat, but was otherwise unperturbed by the incident. They continued to Jameson's hotel and there, Ezra asked him if he wanted them to pay a visit to Ortiz. Jameson looked startled at the question and answered, "No, not right now, but I'll think on it."

The next day, Jameson brought up the subject of Ortiz. "Were ya serious, Ezra, 'bout goin' after Ortiz? Cuz, if you were, I'll support y'all. What would ya need?"

"That depends on how many men ya got. How much support kin ya offer?"

"There are four men y'all could depend on. That enough?"

"Yeah, boss, I think so. Where is Ortiz's headquarters an' what's it like?"

Jameson gave a good description of the location and condition of Ortiz's combined house and headquarters. It was a classic hacienda structure on the southern edge of Corpus Christi. There was a large open area surrounding the house. The house and grounds were enclosed by a low masonry wall, which was more decorative than functional. Ortiz conducted his business from an office on the first floor and lived on the second floor.

Ezra suggested that on Sunday, three days away, they should take a ride past Ortiz's house to check it out. Jameson agreed and they dropped the subject.

On Sunday, the two Rangers "cased the joint." They saw that this house was very much like the one they had attacked in Mexico the time they went after Garza. There was even the vines spiraling around the veranda supports. Ezra commented, "It looks to me like we don't need no he'p with this one. We kin hit it just like we did with Garza."

"I think ya're right. Let's hit it tonight."

"OK, pardner. I'm game."

They rode off and came back about midnight. Ortiz was so confident of his position that he had only two guards walking around the house. They hid their horses among some trees and slipped up to the wall on the side with the sturdiest looking vines on the veranda supports. When the two guards were out of sight, they ran to the veranda and climbed onto its roof.

They lay on the roof long enough to catch their breath and then carefully worked their way to the wall of the second story. They had worked their way almost all the way around the house when they finally found an occupied bedroom. One very corpulent man and two beautiful young women were sleeping on the huge bed. Each of the women had a wrist chained to a bedpost. Sean and Ezra didn't know if this was necessary or just part of a game, but they would act as if it was necessary.