Chapter Thirty-five
Before they were close enough to be seen from town, Wang and Elmer left the main road so they could circle around and approach town from the opposite side. That left Duff as the only one, and he rode into town leisurely, as if making a normal visit. Dismounting in front of Meagan’s Dress Emporium, he tied off his horse and saw in the mirror that was just inside the front window, somebody on the roof of Hart’s Bakery, the building just across the street. The man on the roof was aiming his pistol at Duff, thinking that he had an easy shot.
Duff drew his pistol, whirled, and fired. The man on the roof grabbed his stomach, then pitched forward and fell, heavily, to the boardwalk in front of the bakery.
From just up the street Duff heard another shot and, looking toward the sound, saw someone go down. The shooter was Elmer, who smiled and waved at Duff, then stepped in between two buildings.
Catching a motion out of the corner of his eye, Duff saw Wang, racing along the roofs of the town, leaping from building to building.
“MacCallister!” someone shouted, and three men stepped out into the street, all three with guns already drawn.
Even before the shooting began, one of the men went down, making a futile attempt to stem the flow of blood from around the throwing star in his neck. Duff shot the other two.
Duff started down the street toward the three bodies, when he heard someone behind him call his name.
“MacCallister!”
Turning, he saw someone coming out of Meagan’s shop. Meagan was in front of him, and he was holding his pistol to her head.
“Drop your gun,” the man called.
“Why should I do that?” Duff replied.
“Are you a fool? Can’t you see I have a gun pointed to this woman’s head? I heard that she’s your woman. Is that true?”
“Aye, ’tis true. Meagan is my woman.”
“I ain’t goin’ to ask you again to drop your gun.”
Jaco was the deputy holding Meagan, and he was positioned in such a way that only about two inches of his head was exposed. But two inches was all Duff needed, and in a very swift and smooth action, Duff raised his pistol and fired. The bullet hit Jaco above the eye, killing him before he was even aware of Duff’s action.
“Duff, in the livery!” Meagan shouted, even as Jaco was going down, but her warning wasn’t necessary, for Evans, the deputy who was aiming a rifle at Duff from the loft of the livery, dropped his rifle and fell, mortally wounded by a shot from Elmer.
* * *
“Son of a bitch!” Shamrock said, looking through the front window of the sheriff’s office. “All of ’em! MacCallister has kilt ever’ damn one of ’em! Me ’n you’s all that’s left.”
“Then the odds are just about right,” Houser said with a confident smile. Houser loosened the pistol in his holster, then opened the door and stepped outside.
“Captain MacCallister,” he called.
“Mr. Houser,” Duff replied.
“It would appear that I have no deputies left, yet the issue remains. You are wanted for murder and rustling, so it is now incumbent upon me to bring you to justice.”
“I suppose it makes nae difference to you, that I am innocent of the charges on the poster,” Duff replied.
“Most astute of you, sir, you are right. That you are innocent of these charges makes no difference at all. I’m afraid I’m going to have to kill you.”
“Are you that sure of yourself, Mr. Houser? It could be that you may be the one getting killed.”
“Oh, I’m quite sure. And, by the way, for your edification, sir, before I assumed the alias dictus of Brad Houser, I was known as Wynton Miller. Perhaps that name means something to you.”
“’Tis nae a name that is familiar to me,” Duff replied.
Duff’s declaration that he was unfamiliar with the name came as somewhat of a surprise to Houser.
“Well, it has been a while since I was known as such, and you, being a relatively recent immigrant, may not have heard of it. But, in some circles, I say with apologies for my pride, it does elicit a begrudging respect and, dare I say it, fear.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” Duff said.
“You have been busy this morning. So before we proceed any further, I feel it incumbent upon me to inquire if it is necessary for you to recharge your weapon. Have you sufficient bullets to engage?”
“I have two remaining. I need but one,” Duff said.
“Shall we count?” Houser asked.
“Aye. Elmer?”
“Yeah?”
“Would you count to three, please?”
“One, two . . .”
Houser started his draw on two, but Duff was not surprised by his move. The moment Houser suggested that there be a count, Duff suspected that it was but a ploy to give Houser the advantage.
Duff let his “hand think,” and even as Houser started his move, Duff’s hand was already pulling the pistol from his holster. Houser was fast, faster even than Bodine, because whereas Bodine had barely completed his draw, Houser managed to bring his gun up and fire. The reason he missed was that the bullet that plunged into his chest had pulled his aim off.
Houser got a surprised look on his face, then fell.
As Duff stood there with a smoking gun in his hand, he heard another shot, and turning quickly, he saw Shamrock going down. Looking back to the source of the shot he saw that Meagan was also holding a smoking gun, having shot Shamrock with Jaco’s pistol.
* * *
Six weeks later Percy and Sara Sue gave a party to celebrate moving into their new house. Everyone who had helped build the house was present, as were all the neighboring ranchers.
Ben Turley was there as well, along with his new bride, Mary Ellen. Turley was still foreman and, for now, sole custodian of Twin Peaks. Turley’s first act was to return all the cattle that had been stolen, and illegally confiscated, by Houser. The court had already negated Houser’s filing on the open range so that once again every rancher in the valley would have access to the grass and water.
Eventual ownership of Twin Peaks was now being decided by the court. A petition, signed by every other rancher in the valley, large and small, was submitted to the court, recommending that the ranch be owned by hands who had worked there, with Turley owning 51 percent. The preliminary indications were that the court would grant the petition.
“Oh, Sara Sue, your new house is beautiful,” Meagan said.
“Yes, it is, thanks to our wonderful neighbors,” Sara Sue replied. “And thank you for making this beautiful dress for the occasion.”
“Miz Sara Sue, you want me to bring out the cakes now?” Poke asked.
“Yes, Poke, that would be very nice of you, thank you.”
“How is it working out with Poke living with you and Percy?” Meagan asked as Poke went back into the house to get the first of four cakes that had been baked.
“Poke is a wonderful boy,” Sara Sue replied. “Percy and I were planning on having a family. Poke is just giving us a head start.”
“Yes, having a family is a wonderful thing,” Meagan said.
Meagan searched through the crowd until she found Duff, who was engaged in conversation with Webb Dakota, Burt Rowe, and Ben Turley.
“A wonderful thing,” she repeated wistfully.