Chapter 8

Hell! When was this stupidity going to end? Jason walked down to where the dead assassin lay in the bottom of the ditch. With a little discomfort caused by the minor wound on his arm, Jason rolled over the dead man to try to identify him. Yes, he was one of Henry Richards' riders, probably hoping to make a few extra dollars by ridding his employer of an especially hated neighbor.

Now what was Jason going to do? He had already destroyed Richards' house with a spectacular fire, so Jason was perplexed over what else he could do to convince the man to leave him alone. Jason was sure that the sheep versus cattle range war was just an excuse for something else, but he could not imagine what it could be. By now, any sane man would have backed off, but Henry Richards just would not let go of his passion to drive Jason Boyd out of the county, if not the state.

Jason figured that he would just have to muddle through until he could find out what was really behind this war. The other ranchers who were supporting Richards were probably just following along with an old friend and would back off now that they had been subjected to some violence to their own property. However, it looked like Jason would have to find his own personal solution with Richards. Possibly, that would come to a personal duel, but even that was unlikely, considering Jason's reputation with a hand gun.

Jason did not relish facing his wife, Janet, with the latest wound. A few inches to the right and she would have been a widow. That was not a happy prospect for a woman who had already been a widow once, and now she was expecting a child. The child was due toward the end of next month, and a cold blast of wind reminded Jason which way the temperature was headed. At least, thank God, they had a resident midwife. That was one problem he didn't have to worry about.

Oh, well, Jason was going to have to face the music sometime today, so he screwed up his courage and rode home to face his wife. He wondered if she had some kind of sixth sense about his wellbeing, because she met him at the door with a scowl on her face. "OK, Jason, why are ya so late getting home this time? ... Oh, my goodness, ya've been wounded! What happened!?! I worry so much about ya, an' now ya've done somethin' else foolish. I just know it!"

Jason told her what happened, and she really raked him over the coals about his foolishness and carelessness. "Honey, ya have got ta give up yer notions about bein' able ta do everythin' yerself! This is exactly what I was referrin' to when I asked ya ta start usin' bodyguards. Ifen ya had a man ridin' 100 yards ahead of ya an' another one ridin' 100 yards behind ya, this sort of thin' might not happen."

"I hear what you say, Honey, but I'd feel less a man if I had to have a lot of protection around me. I can take care of myself. I don't need a lot of bodyguards."

"Yeah, I can see that. Ya've already been nearly killed by a shot ta the head what laid ya up fer weeks, an' now ya was nearly shot in the back. In both cases, except fer the Grace of God, ya would be lyin' in the road an' dead ta me an' yer new child what's gonna be born right soon. Wake up an' grow up! There ain't no shame in doin' what it takes ta stay alive, especially when ya're about ta become a father."

"Oh, hell, Honey. I know you are right, but I just don't want to look to my friends like I'm scared of my own shadow!"

"Ifen they really is yer friends, they'll congratulate ya on finally gittin' a little bit of common sense. I swear, Jason, I don't know what I'd do ifen ya was killed!" With that plea, Janet started to cry.

That crying was what it finally took to break Jason's resistance to her good advice. "OK! OK, Honey! I'll do it. I'll make sure to have at least two bodyguards with me whenever I leave the vicinity of the house. But there ain't no way I'm taking them to the privy with me!"

Janet started to laugh at that and grabbed Jason into an embrace that he could not have broken if he had wanted to. They truly loved each other, and tried to take as much care of each other as was humanly possible. Jason wiped Janet's tears for her and kissed her with all of the passion that he could muster. That resulted in her dragging him to their bedroom where they spent nearly two hours working around her swollen belly. Well, it was not exactly work, but that is the common idiom for all the effort they put into their activities.

After supper, while they were still sitting at the table, Jason asked Arturo to appoint two men to act as his bodyguards, at least until this range war nonsense was over with. Arturo thought it over for a bit before suggesting that Bolivar and Jesus be the ones. Both were very good shots with a shotgun or a rifle and adequate with a pistol. Furthermore, Bolivar was about as expert as a man could be with the hand grenade. Jason accepted both candidates, and Janet looked very pleased.

The next morning, Jesus and Bolivar were waiting for Jason when he showed up at the barn. He wanted to ride out with Arturo to see if a range that had been previously used had recovered sufficiently so that it could accept sheep back on it. The point was that this range was close to the house and would be easier to service during the bad weather of winter. The bad weather consisted of rain, wind, and cold weather. It never snowed around there enough to be more than a problem lasting one or two days. Flash floods were a much more serious worry.

The four men rode out toward the range under consideration with Jesus leading and Bolivar riding drag. They were each spaced at about 100 yards, and they looked in every direction for trouble. Janet could not have asked for more conscientious bodyguards! The two bodyguards shifted to the position of flankers as Arturo and Jason examined the range. They agreed that the sheep should be moved here as soon as the weather started turning bad. There were enough trees and bushes to provide shelter for the animals, and there was a small shack for the men to shelter in as they watched after the sheep.

A couple of times, Arturo looked around and frowned a bit, but did not say anything to Jason. On the other hand, Jason was so intent on the business at hand that he never noticed Arturo's changes in expression. They finished the inspection after about an hour and rode back to the ranch house.

After supper, Arturo brought up the subject that had caused him some concern while they were out on the inspection tour. "Patrón, a thought has occurred ta me. I don't think that just two bodyguards are enough. I would be a lot more comfortable if ya took four men an' spaced them equally around ya. I fear that it would be too easy fer an assassin to get in through the open spaces in yer screen."

Jason started to protest, but Janet refused to let him get started with his rebuttal. Instead, she said, "Darlin' Jason, ya better listen ta a man who is tryin' ta look after yer best interests. It sure sounds ta me like he knows what he is talkin' about, an' I think that ya should follow his advice."

Jason again started to argue, but a stern look from Janet convinced him that this was one argument that he was not going to win. Jason resigned himself to the inevitable and agreed to Arturo's suggestion. "OK, I'm smart enough to know when I can't win. I have to make another trip into town tomorrow, so, Arturo, I would appreciate it if you would have the men handy to go with me when that comes up."

"Si, Patrón, I will do that. I already have in mind the two additional men I want ta assign ta ya. I haven't talked ta them yet, so I won't mention any names until I have talked ta them. But, no matter what, I'll have four men ready ta go with ya in the mornin'"

They talked of some other things related to ranch business with Janet paying close attention. Jason was anxious that she learn about managing the ranch in case it should ever fall to her again.