CHAPTER 15
Mackey noticed Billy draw up short when he saw Katherine on the porch of The Campbell Arms talking to Jerry Halstead.
Since they had been riding together for the better part of ten years, Mackey knew what his deputy was thinking before he said it. “What’s Katherine doing talking to that breed? Where’s Sandborne or Lagrange? One of them ought to be out here keeping an eye on things.”
Mackey grabbed his deputy’s arm before he jumped out of the saddle. “Easy, Billy. The boy’s not a breed. I know him.”
Billy looked at him. “How?”
“Same as you do. Look closer.”
Billy slowly stepped down from the saddle and hitched his roan to the post as he walked up the stairs to the hotel’s boardwalk.
Jerry Halstead turned when he saw Billy looking at him. He excused himself from his conversation with Katherine and stood to face Billy. “Guess you don’t know me anymore, do you?”
Billy took a few steps toward him like a man in a trance. “I’m not sure.”
“Sure you do. My father was white. My mother was Mexican. I grew up in Fort Concho with a young sergeant who made sure I could ride a horse before I could even walk. Taught me how to shoot straight even before I could spell my name.”
Billy broke out of his trance and hugged the young man with more enthusiasm than Mackey had ever seen from him. The two had always been close when Jerry had been a boy. As an officer, Mackey had made sure that the duty roster always kept Sim or Billy at the post while little Jerry was around.
For Mackey, the only thing better than seeing Billy let down his guard for once was seeing the look on Katherine’s face as she watched it happen.
Mrs. Katherine Campbell was tall for a woman, though not as tall as him and Billy. She was thin but strong, and her hair was light brown, which suited her fair complexion. A streak of gray had appeared in the middle of her hair, undoubtedly hastened by her experiences as a captive of Darabont. She had not made any effort to conceal the gray streak, and neither she nor Mackey ever mentioned it. If anything, he saw it as a badge of her courage during that horrible ordeal, an ordeal from which Mackey and the others had rescued her.
Katherine’s high cheekbones and bright blue eyes gave her a strong, yet friendly, countenance. Peaceful, Mackey thought, though far from innocent. She came from a good Boston bloodline and could trace her heritage as far back as the Mayflower.
Their affair had begun in Boston, back when she had been the young wife of a much older major and Mackey was a lieutenant awaiting his promotion to captaincy. They only had the pleasure of one summer together before his reassignment to the Arizona Territory came through, but those few precious weeks had formed the foundation of a love that had lasted ever since.
It was that love that had brought her to Dover Station in an effort to rekindle their romance following the death of her husband. It was an unrequited romance, because Mackey was already married when she arrived unannounced. It was that love that haunted Mackey when Darabont had taken her, and he cursed himself for being too selfish to send her back to her family back east.
She was made for carriage rides around Boston Common and hosting parties in her family’s town home on Beacon Hill. A refined woman like her had no business being in the harsh Montana wilderness, yet here she was, and he was the reason why. He had begged her to return to Boston after he had brought her back from Darabont and his men.
Yet, despite all she had endured, she refused to let him take away the life she had chosen for herself. Her life with Aaron Mackey.
She saw him looking at her, and her smile changed the way it always did when she looked at him. A softening to an expression they shared only with each other.
A smile that warmed him in away nothing else ever had and served to drive all thoughts of dead Hancock men and a house full of dead whores from his mind.
“Evening, Marshal,” Katherine said as Mackey climbed down from Adair.
He touched the brim of his hat before hitching Adair to the rail. “Evening, Mrs. Campbell.” They were always more formal with each other in public, even among friends.
He clapped the young Halstead and Billy on the shoulders as he passed them on his way to the chair next to Katherine. “Today’s what I’d call a happy day.”
“The happiest I can remember in a long time.” Katherine snuck a kiss on his cheek as he sat beside her. “I’ve missed you.”
He was glad to hear it. “I’ve missed you, too, but it was only a couple of days.”
“The fear made it feel longer than that this time.” She grabbed his hand under the tablecloth and held it tightly. “Did you do what you had set out to do?”
When he had been sheriff of Dover Station, it was difficult for him to hide many aspects of his job from her. If he broke up a fight or killed a man, she always found out about it. But now that he was a federal lawman, his duties involved more than just Dover Station. He wanted to keep that part of his life from touching her own. “I served the warrant,” was all he felt comfortable saying.
Katherine had learned that was all of the answer she was likely to get, so she accepted it. “You’ve already received two letters from Judge Forester in Helena this week. I opened them just as you asked me to, and they all say the same thing. That your place is in the capital, not here in Dover Station.”
Normally, Billy would have handled the mail, but since he couldn’t read, Mackey had asked Katherine to take all posts and telegrams on his behalf. He told Billy everything after he had a chance to read it over.
But Mackey had been expecting Forester’s annoyance. The old judge liked to think he ran the territory, not the governor. Forester didn’t like to be reminded that he was a presidential appointee, too, one from the previous administration. He could be replaced with the stroke of the president’s pen. So could Mackey. “My job is wherever the criminals are, and right now, most of the warrants he’s issued are for people in this part of the territory. He just wants me to kiss his ring.”
“He is a judge, Aaron. Don’t make him order you to go to Helena. I know that would only make you angry.”
Sometimes Mackey forgot how well she knew him. “I’ll send him a telegram, telling him I’ll make it out there as soon as I can.” He looked out at the men and women walking along the boardwalks of Dover Station. “But for now, we’ve got troubles brewing right here in town.”
Her smile faded, making Mackey all the sadder for letting that much slip. She didn’t miss much. “You mean there’s more trouble with James Grant, isn’t there? Trouble from the Hancock family.”
Mackey quickly kissed her hand before slipping it back under the table. “Sometimes, I wish you were dumb.”
“No, you don’t,” she said, “and stop avoiding the question.”
“I’m not avoiding it.” He looked at Billy and Jeremiah as they sat on the hotel steps and caught up on all they had missed over the past decade or so. “I’d just like to quit talking about it for a while. Maybe focus on some happier things.”
She rubbed his back, and it made him want to fall asleep. “I didn’t even know Sim had a son, but I got chills the moment I saw him. He’s the image of his father. Having Jerry here is almost as good as having Sim back, isn’t it?”
“Jeremiah’s his own man,” Mackey said, “but it’s nice to have a reminder of Sim around.”
“He told me about what he’s been up to the past few years,” Katherine said. “Life hasn’t been very kind to him.”
“He grew up in a nasty part of the world.” Mackey looked at the young man. There were times when he could’ve sworn he was looking at Sim and other times where he looked nothing like his father at all. “He’s here now, and it’s up to us to make him feel welcome. I want him to stay, but it’s his choice.”
“We’ll make to leave a good impression on him. Guess we’re becoming something of a refuge, aren’t we? First, the girls from Hill House, then Joshua, and now Jerry.”
“Don’t forget me,” he said. “You took me in, remember?”
“How could I forget?” She nuzzled into his arm and whispered. “God, how I missed you.”
He glanced around the street to make sure no one was looking. Their relationship had become less scandalous since his wife, Mary, had left town the year before. And with each new arrival in Dover Station, whatever scandal there had been seemed to drift into the past. “I missed you, too.”
Mackey looked up when Joshua Sandborne ran out of the hotel onto the porch. The expression on his face ruined Mackey’s mood.
After Darabont’s attack on the town, Mackey and the rest of his posse had found the boy wandering the burnt-out wreckage of the JT Ranch where he had worked. Despite a bad head injury, he had refused to ride back to town to the doctor. Instead, he healed on the trail and helped him defeat Darabont and his men. He had shown more courage at that time than half of the grown men in town.
Since then, Katherine had made the boy her right-hand man at the hotel. Mackey knew Joshua’s dream job was to be a lawman someday, but he wanted to give the young man something of a trade before he encouraged him to pin a star on his chest.
Mackey could tell the boy had something to say but didn’t want to interrupt the reunion on the porch. The marshal squeezed Katherine’s hand before he got up to see what was troubling the young man.
He guided him back into the parlor of the hotel. “What’s wrong?”
Sandborne handed Mackey a piece of paper. “One of Underhill’s men came around the back door and told me to give this to you. Said it’s from Mayor Grant himself, as if that’s supposed to impress me. But he said it was important.” He looked longingly out to the porch. “I didn’t want to interrupt all the happiness going on out there, so—”
“Quit thinking of yourself as a bother,” Mackey said as he opened the letter. “You live here now, same as all of us. You’re family.”
Sandborne nodded and looked away as Mackey read the letter.
It was on official Town of Dover Station stationery, another wasteful expense incurred by James Grant’s administration.
He recognized the writing as Grant’s own hand,
Marshal Mackey,
I hope this letter finds you well. I see you are enjoying a pleasant evening on the porch of The Campbell Arms with friends old and new, so I hate to intrude on your evening like this. Unfortunately, there are several items we must discuss at your earliest possible convenience. Please come to my offices in the Municipal Building this evening so we may review them.
Fondest regards,
Mayor James Grant
Mackey refolded the letter. For as long as he lived, he would never get used to the idea that James Grant had been elected mayor of Dover Station. He didn’t share that with young Sandborne, as his displeasure would only encourage the boy to challenge Underhill’s men.
“Is it bad news?” Sandborne asked.
“It’s not good.” He knew Grant had probably been waiting until he returned to town to talk to him about the three dead women in the house on River Street. He had pulled Billy into it now, and as Billy was his deputy, it involved Mackey, too. Given that Grant claimed it was an urgent meeting, Mackey was sure he was ready to make some grand revelation about the murders, undoubtedly to his own benefit.
He had served the warrant on Henry Hancock to stall Grant’s growing control over the town. If the drunk in the saloon had known Mackey had killed Hancock, Grant must have known it, too.
Grant thought he had the upper hand. Mackey had an idea.
He led Sandborne over to the front desk and picked up a pen. He wrote an address on the back of the letter and handed it to the young man. “I want you to deliver this note to my father. Tell him to read the letter, then look at the address I’ve written on the back. Then tell him this: ‘The general sends his regards.’”
Sandborne looked puzzled when he repeated it, but he got it right. “What does it mean?”
“Don’t worry,” Mackey said. “Pappy will know what it means, and that’s all that counts. After you give it to him, come back here and keep an eye on Mrs. Campbell. She’s your responsibility no matter what else happens. Get Lagrange and Jerry out there to help you. Understand?”
“Yes, sir.” He looked out to the porch. “Will your new friend be staying long?”
Mackey caught the hint of jealousy in his voice. He’d seen how resentment could eat away at a young man’s confidence and he didn’t want to see the same thing happen to Joshua. He was a good boy with all the qualities of being a fine man. Maybe even a fine lawman if he chose. But he was still young, and like most young things, needed training.
“Jerry Halstead is the son of an old friend of ours. He might be staying here for a while. He might even decide to call this place home. But you’ve got your place, too, and never forget that. The sky’s big enough for more than one star.”
The words seemed to make the young man feel better. “Thanks, Marshal. I’ll deliver this right away.”
Mackey watched him sprint out the front door, barely touching the steps as he went to deliver his message. He envied the boy’s youth until he saw Katherine looking at him through the window on the porch.
Then he was reminded of what was at stake and what he had to do next.
He walked out onto the porch and gave Billy the bad news.
Billy frowned. “Him wanting to see us that quick isn’t good for us, is it?”
“Meeting Grant is never good for anyone but Grant,” Mackey said. “But he wants us to go, so we’d better be about our business. He’ll only send Underhill and his boys after us if we don’t, and that might force something ugly.”
Jerry stood up, too. “Want me to come along?”
Mackey had thought better of it. “Best if you stay around here. Help Sandborne guard the place. If you see a dandy walking around, his name is Lagrange. He’s a Pinkerton man, but don’t hold that against him. We’ll be back as soon as we can.”
Billy and Mackey climbed down the steps and swung into the saddles of their respective mounts. He looked at Katherine, who blew him a kiss and mouthed the words, Be careful.
Mackey tipped his hat, then brought Adair around and rode up Front Street toward the Municipal Building.
Billy followed close behind.