CHAPTER 38
November skipped into December. They even saw some snowflakes floating around one cold day that far south. Ten days into the month he had the second consignment herd full. The Clark brothers were building the first chuck wagon for the O’Malley brothers. Harp stayed close to the fireplace making more plans for the crews he still had to hire.
His foremen assured him there were lots of hands willing to ride for him since he paid for the trip back and they might get put on permanently at the ranches. He put an ad in the local paper, for applications, and he got a hat full.
Some he knew, some he’d never heard of before. He answered that some come in on a trial basis and most turned out to be good workers. He began to build a team and hoped his brother would be home by Christmas. He’d wait to see if he made it before hiring any more.
He rode into town to see the progress on the chuck wagon. Ira went along pleased he would have the first updated one in town. They were standing in the shop admiring the work the brothers had done so far when all hell broke loose.
The shots struck Harp’s horse, which had turned around at the time the shot was fired. The animal reared in pain. Harp had his gun out and shot the man who was standing in sight with a smoking gun in his hand. The horse went over backward and Harp knew he’d been shot badly. He lay on his side pawing up hay and dust. Damn that. Now shooting his next best horse.
The man he shot dragged himself into a stall and wildly shot back. A second man turned and ran. Ira was so damn mad over them attacking him he chased him shooting, and his third shot stopped him. The man went facedown.
Harp told the man on the ground in the stall to drop his gun. Instead, he raised his pistol but before he could do anything, Harp shot him in the face. The interior boiled with stinging gun smoke, burning his eyes. What in hell was wrong with people? He did not recognize the man, and it made him so mad that they shot his horse. In the end he had to put the poor thing out of his misery.
The Clark brothers crawled out from hiding. They were shocked by the outburst. Both town marshals were there telling people to get the hell back and let them do their job.
Ira and the younger lawman dragged the shooter he shot out of the street and dropped him in the dust of the wide doorway to the shop.
“Who in the hell are they?” Harp demanded.
“Strangers,” the main marshal said. “I never saw them before.”
“Some SOB put a bounty on my head, but I guess the likes of them two won’t tell us anything. Looks like they both have already gone to hell.” Harp shook his head in disgust.
“I’ll have the funeral home plant them,” the marshal said. “Sure sorry it happened here, Mr. O’Malley.”
“My name is Harp.”
“Yes, sir, Harp.”
“That horse they shot, I wouldn’t have sold it for two hundred dollars. Ira, let’s go get what supplies you need and go home.”
“Yeah. They damn sure ruined our day.”
“I bet you’re mad. That was a good horse. We can drag it out of here and we’ll have this wagon done this week. I am glad you like it. We will get your others done as fast as we can, but we are getting several requests to fix other wagons,” the older Clark brother said.
“You find a good wagon, buy it for me. I need one more for next year’s drive.”
“Whew, you are busy.”
Harper nodded and they left to get Ira’s needs at the mercantile.
“You know, Harp, someone seriously wants you dead,” Ira said.
“I find him, I will end his life.”
Harp borrowed a horse from the livery, rode back to the ranch, and told the story to Katy.
“Who was it?”
“I guess someone whose toes we stepped on either branding mavericks or buying the last land.”
She hugged him. “I’d stop them if I could. Would Hiram like a new pocketknife for Christmas?”
“Yes. What are we getting for Mom?”
“I’m still thinking. Christmas was never this nice in my life. I got a good taste of it last year, but I am in the mood this year to make it fun and a really happy time here.”
“We always had Christmas, but it was a lot plainer growing up.”
“We are blessed. Someone just rode up,” she said. “It is Chaw. Wonder what he came for?”
“I’ll put on a jumper and go see.”
Harp did just that and went out on the porch to greet his foreman. “Hey, you have problems today?” They shook hands and Harp showed Chaw into the house.
“No, but I heard they shot at you in town today,” Chaw said.
“Both are dead. No one knew them. Hang your coat up and come in the living room.”
“Howdy Miss Kate,” Chaw said politely.
“Howdy to you. Miss Calamity all right?”
“Oh, she’s fine. We are doing wonderful.”
“What brings you here?” Harp had him sit down on the couch.
“One of my boys was over at Oscar’s Saloon. It’s a hole-in-the-wall riffraff hang-around. He stopped for a beer and overheard a man offering to pay for someone to kill you.”
“They tried this morning. Who was making the offer?”
“Ryle Beemish, who owns a place in your new land.”
“Hear that, Katy?”
“You know him?” she asked.
“No. Heard the name, but now I intend to meet him.”
“I’m glad I am not too late,” Chaw said. “We can stop him.”
“I really should get the law to do it. We go to lynching people even if we are hanging the right ones, we will get a reputation for forcing small outfits out and being killers. More than we already are.”
“If the law can’t, then by damn, we will.”
“Chaw, thanks. I’d made up my mind to find the one behind all of this, and I think you just did.”
“You have so much to do anymore. I am not sure how you can even think.”
“I’ll go into town and find that Kent Roberts, who testified at the trial. Let him handle this.”
“I feel bad I didn’t come sooner and tell you. This was my first chance. Hoot and I have met and we have plans to straighten out all the cattle that have been branded, owned by folks you bought out, and the rest of the livestock grazing our land.”
“Sounds great. Thanks. Tell Calamity we hope she is happy.”
“Oh, she’s happy now that the Erickson house is repainted and she has her new curtains hung. And I am sure happy with my job.”
Chaw thanked Kate for her offer to feed him lunch, but he wanted to head back home. Harp walked the living room floor.
“Well you know the problem now,” Katy said.
“How can I make it not look like the big landowner oppresses the small guys?”
She frowned at him. “He’s hiring killers to murder you. You shouldn’t feel bad.”
He hugged and kissed her. “I guess I need to try to forget it.”
“No. Go find that deputy and file your report. He can handle it.”
“I’ll do that tomorrow. I need to calm down some.”
“Good. I would like to have my husband back. You have not been yourself in a while.”
“I will try to restore him.”
“Better.”
The day dragged by and in the morning he and Tyrone rode to town. They found the new man Alan Jeffries who represented the Bexar County sheriff.
Jeffries listened and agreed that someone was hiring killers to get Harp. But, he said, proving it would be difficult even with a witness. Especially with it being one of his own employees offering to witness. A jury might consider he was being paid to lie.
Harp agreed. Jeffries promised he’d do some more investigating into the matter. Harp thanked him and they went back to the ranch.
“We never found much help there,” Tyrone said to him when they were cutting across country to get back.
“I felt the same, but you can only do so much without evidence backing up the story.”
“What can we do next?”
“Wait for Martin to hire someone else I reckon.”
“That don’t sound worth a hoot.”
“I agree. But I need to get on with my life.”
Tyrone nodded.
* * *
It was two days before Christmas when Harp went to town to get the mail and newspapers. He stopped by and checked with his banker. Jim welcomed him into his office and asked what he could do for him.
“Oh, I just stopped by to say Merry Christmas.”
“Same to you. Everything going good in your life?”
“Aside from some men trying to shoot me, I guess I am fine.”
“No lead on that?”
“Leads but not enough evidence. I don’t know how to end it.”
“I sure can’t help you.”
“I didn’t come by for that. Just wondered what you knew about what business would be like in the next year.”
Jim smiled. “The national debt, and the rush to get rich, will govern it. Some things look great. But that may be a paper fortune situation and collapse. People want to eat, and the beef business will continue. It’s all Texas can ride on to help us.”
Harp shook his hand and thanked him. He had to continue getting four herds ready to go to Abilene and keep settling the great land his purchase brought him. He headed back home to read his mail and newspapers.
He rode home without incident, a cold wind sweeping at him along the way. He began to wonder if his brother was even alive. While he knew Long was not a hand to write letters, no word in over three months was too long. A ranch hand took his horse and he went on into the house.
He had lunch with his father, mother, Lee, and Katy. He told them nothing was happening and spent the afternoon reading the newspapers, looking for a clue to the future. Later he talked to Reg about the books, and the bookkeeper confirmed they still had ample money to operate.
“I don’t think we will have to borrow any, either,” Reg added.
“Thanks. That is good news. If we do another trip north this next year and do good, we will be well situated in the business.”
“Oh, yes, we will.”
He thanked him, and Reg handily wheeled his chair back to his office.
Someone rode up and it was a youth. From the front windows Harp studied him and wondered what he wanted. He opened the door, and the young man reached in his pocket for a yellow paper wire.
“I have a telegram for you, Mr. O’Malley.”
“Thank you.” He took the paper and unfolded it.
HARPER O MALLEY WE ARE COMING STOP SAVE US SOME CHRISTMAS CHEER STOP LONG
What does it say?” Katy asked, and he handed it to her.
“He’s alive anyway, Harp, he’s alive.” She jumped up and down. “Oh, thank God.”
“What did you get?” his mother asked, rushing into the room.
“Oh, he got a wire from Long. It says we are coming.”
“Who is we?”
Hiram broke in, “What’s all the fuss in here?”
“Harp got a wire from his speech-making brother,” his mother said.
“What does he say?”
“We are coming. Save some Christmas cheer.”
“Did he marry a widow with ten kids?” Hiram asked. “Where was it sent from?”
“Fort Worth, yesterday.”
Harp was laughing. Who could we be? They’d find out when he and whoever he had with him got there.
“This is such great news. I couldn’t have a better Christmas gift,” his mother said. She was crying. So was Katy, and Harp had to admit the wire was pretty great news. They would have to simply wait to see it happen.
Thank you, Lord . . .