Chapter 7
It was only after they had traveled a full day and were resting their horses with a half-day’s ride left to reach the hideout, that Moon confessed. “Well, I’ll be . . .” Will started when he heard. “Why didn’t you tell me you were headin’ to Grassy Creek all along?”
Moon shrugged. “I figured you’d find out when we got there. That’s where I’m takin’ this meat—for Elmira,” he quickly stressed. “I ain’t gonna tell nobody where Grassy Creek is, but I can’t help it, if some lawman follows me to it.” He shrugged again as if blameless.
“I reckon not,” Will agreed. He understood and respected Moon’s position and his simpleminded idea of right and wrong.
After resting the horses, they continued on until reaching the Washita River, where Moon pulled up and waited for Will to ride up beside him. “I expect this is about as far as you oughta be ridin’ with me. I’m goin’ on up Grassy Creek, so you’ll have to follow me from here if you wanna see the creek. It’s easy to miss it if you don’t know what to look for. Just keep a sharp eye out for a rock ’bout the size of a washtub, shaped like an arrowhead ’cause that’s where Grassy Creek empties into the river.” He paused to make sure Will understood before continuing. “The creek comes down through the trees from a little slope that runs parallel to the river. It gets pretty narrow by the time you get to the cabin, and anybody up there can see you comin’.” He paused again. “You ain’t plannin’ on chargin’ up there, blazin’ away, are you?” Will assured him that he was not. “Good, ’cause I wouldn’t want ’em to think I led anybody up there, especially a lawman. No offense.”
“None taken,” Will replied.
“Even if you tried that, they’d most likely shoot you down before you got to the clearin’.” He gave his horse a nudge with his heels and started off along the river. “Take care of yourself, Will,” he called back over his shoulder. “I won’t likely come back down till after breakfast in the mornin’.”
“I will,” Will answered. “You do the same.” He gave him seventy-five yards, then started out after him.
The path along the river was narrow and well hidden by weeds and tall grass. The trees were so dense along this stretch of the river that Moon was soon out of his sight, causing him to be more careful to search for the rock. He almost rode past it, but reined Buster back when the horse’s hooves splashed through some water. Then he saw the rock, almost hidden by the grass growing around it, and realized that the narrow grassy bed was actually a creek bed, the grass growing on the bottom was obviously the reason for its name. The creek was squeezed in on both sides by the thick growth of trees on its banks. Moon had not lied when he had said that the only path up to the cabin was the creek, itself.
Although only late afternoon, the trees were so thick that their branches formed a ceiling overhead, making the creek seem like a dark tunnel as it gradually climbed upward. He continued on up the middle of the creek, that being the only path possible, until he thought he heard the sound of voices ahead, possibly challenging Moon. He stopped at once, alerted to the fact that he would certainly be challenged as well, should he ride a few yards more. Leading two horses, one of them saddled with the property of a late member of their gang, he would most likely have little time to explain. He had to admit they had found a hard place to attack, and he carefully turned Buster around and squeezed past the two horses he was leading.
Once he had returned to the river again, he decided the next thing he wanted to do was to scout above the site of the camp to see if he could get a look at the layout from behind to determine if the creek was the only way into it. Moon had said he wasn’t coming back until morning, so he was going to have to make camp where he could keep out of sight and wait for Moon to return. Moon could tell him for sure whether Ansel Beaudry and his gang were actually there. Eager to scout the woods behind the camp while the light was still good, Will went downstream until beyond the line of trees that hugged Grassy Creek. Then he rode along beside them for a distance he estimated to be beyond the outlaw hideout. He pulled his horses inside the tree line and tied them there while he continued on foot, working his way back to the creek. He could see at once that it would be hard to ride a posse or a platoon of soldiers into the backside of the camp. With some difficulty, he finally managed to push through the bushes to a stone ledge where he could see the log cabin sitting beside the creek in a small clearing. He could not see any back way into the hideout, at least not on horseback. Maybe a man on foot could climb over the ledge, and even that might be somewhat difficult.
At first glance, he wondered where they were going to put the other cabins Moon said were planned. The clearing looked only large enough now to support the one large cabin, a small barn, a smokehouse, and an outhouse for the two women, all located in a small pasture, already crowded with horses. Will counted a dozen horses, two of them he recognized as Moon’s. It is not going to be easy to attack this camp, even with a large posse, he thought, as he surveyed the log cabin wedged up against the creek. He shrugged then. My job is done, he thought, I found them. At least I’ll know for sure when Moon comes back down in the morning. Even though that was true, it didn’t feel right to ride away and leave it up to a posse, whether it be marshals or soldiers, to come and attempt to arrest Beaudry and his men. He shook his head and backed slowly away to return to his horses.
* * *
Ansel Beaudry sat at the big table in the center of the front room, a coffee cup half-empty before him. “Who the hell is this Oscar Moon jasper?” he asked Tom Daly. He glanced toward the kitchen door where he could see Moon inside talking to Elmira. “I thought you said nobody knew about this place.”
“Oscar ain’t nobody,” Tom replied. “He brought Elmira over here from Buzzard Creek. He helped build this place. You don’t have to worry about Moon. He ain’t gonna cause you no problems, and he’s right handy in bringin’ Elmira fresh meat, like that deer he brought with him. And it ain’t always deer meat, most of the time it’s prime beef. No, sir, Moon’s all right.”
Ansel glanced at Bo Hagen. “He damn sure better be, ain’t that right, Bo?”
“That’s a fact,” Bo replied.
“We’re gonna be spendin’ a lotta money in this damn squirrel’s nest ’cause I plan to be here for a while,” Ansel said. “So I’m gonna want me and my men to be taken care of like we were in a fancy hotel.”
Elmira walked in from the kitchen in time to hear Ansel’s last statement. “And that’s what I’m plannin’ to do,” she said. “We ain’t been set up here but a few months, but I ain’t heard no complaints from nobody. You boys were lucky you got here right after Tyler’s son brought in a heap of supplies, so we ain’t been short of nothin’.”
“He sure as hell didn’t bring enough whiskey, if them three bottles is all there is,” Luther Curry replied. “We’ll drink that up in two nights.”
“As long as you wanna spend your money on it,” Elmira responded, “that ain’t no problem. Tyler’s place ain’t but half a day’s ride from here. It’s over the border in Texas, so he gets all the whiskey he can sell.” She stood in the middle of the doorway, hands on hips, and grinned confidently. “Now, you boys ready to eat? ’Cause it’s on the table.” As they filed by her, she nodded toward Moon, already at the table, and said, “Don’t let Moon get a head start on you, he’ll be hard to catch.”
Moon didn’t look up to acknowledge her remark. His plate full, he was already working hard to empty it. Having spent a good many years dealing with folks who operate on the wrong side of the law, he was a pretty good judge of people, and it didn’t take long to determine he was in the midst of evil without conscience. While he didn’t want Elmira to be deprived of the money they would spend while they were there, it would suit him just fine if Will Tanner was able to bring a cavalry patrol down upon them. Consequently, he was making an effort to learn their names, so he could report them to Will. There was little doubt who the leader was, so it was Ansel Beaudry’s name he learned first.
Moon’s obvious concentration did not go unnoticed by Beaudry, who fancied himself a judge of people, too. “You don’t talk much, do you, Mr. Moon?” Ansel asked.
Moon looked up from his plate then, aware that all conversation at the table had stopped and all eyes seemed to be upon him, awaiting his answer. He was smart enough to realize that Beaudry’s tone was evidently a signal to his men that he was not convinced that Moon was to be trusted. He looked at Beaudry and grinned. “Not when I get a chance to set down at Elmira’s table,” he said, and took a big bite out of the biscuit he was using to load his fork. “Besides, I found out that too much talkin’ always seemed to let folks see how little I knew about everythin’.”
“’Bout the only way to shut him up is to set the table for supper,” Elmira stated, coming to his rescue. Beaudry hesitated a fraction of a second, then chuckled, causing the other men to laugh.
Their attention was drawn away from Moon then, when Darlene walked into the kitchen. “Looks like I’d best get me a plate before it’s all gone,” she commented.
“I expect you’d better,” Bo Hagen remarked. “You might have a hard night’s work ahead of you.” That brought another round of laughter.
“Only a jackass brays before he does any work,” Darlene shot back, turning the laughter back on him.
The mood seemed to be light and cheerful around the supper table, even though Elmira was concerned about pleasing Beaudry. He seemed to fancy himself as someone who expected to be catered to, and he had already complained about the crowded conditions. Even with two rooms available to house the five men, he thought he should have a private room, since he was paying a lot to stay there. She tried to explain that they were still in the building stage and Tyler Brinker was planning to build one or maybe two more cabins. “That doesn’t do me a helluva lotta good right now, does it?” Beaudry had responded, prompting her to offer her own room to him and make herself a bed in the pantry. She didn’t expect him to accept her offer, but he did, and she was forced to move most of her belongings out of her room. She first offered to let him share her room with her, but he replied that he wasn’t that desperate. She told Darlene that she wanted to tell him to haul his royal ass somewhere else, but she couldn’t. They needed the money, and these boys were carrying plenty. In their present situation, she didn’t even have a room for her son, Eddie. He was sleeping in the barn with Moon. She wasn’t surprised that Moon said he was leaving right after breakfast.
After supper, Bo grabbed one of the bottles of whiskey sitting on the sideboard and retired to the front room. He was joined at the big table by Cecil Cox and Tom Daly. Beaudry and Luther Curry remained at the kitchen table, finishing off the rest of the coffee while they speculated on the best towns to target after they had lain low long enough. In a little while, Darlene joined the three in the front room. “How ’bout it, honey?” She sidled up beside Bo’s chair. “You still brayin’, or are you plannin’ to put your money where your mouth is?”
He tossed a drink of whiskey back, then smirked at her. “I ain’t drunk enough yet. When you start to look halfway decent, I’ll let you know.”
“You do that,” she came back. “The drunker you get, the higher the price goes up.” She turned at once to Cecil. “How ’bout you, honey, you wanna play house? I’ll give you a gettin’-acquainted price.” He got to his feet right away and followed her back to her room.
Bo and Tom Daly were joined by Moon, who sat down for a drink before retiring to the barn for the night. Bo poured him a drink, and before long, they put quite a sizable dent in the bottle. The conversation naturally centered on the camp there on Grassy Creek and the plans that Tyler Brinker and Elmira had for it. “That’s a far piece from where it is right now,” Bo commented. “I ain’t been here but one night and I’m already gettin’ cabin fever.” He nodded toward the hallway door Darlene and Cecil had just gone through. “And ol’ Darlene looks like she’s about ready to be turned out to pasture.”
“Darlene can be right comfortin’ on a cold winter night,” Tom said in her defense.
“Maybe so,” Bo allowed, “but it ain’t winter for a spell yet.” He picked up the half-empty whiskey bottle and inspected it. “We’re gonna be outta whiskey before you know it. How far is it to get some more—that feller’s store—Brinker, was it? How far is that from here?”
“Half a day’s ride,” Tom answered.
“What else is over there?” Bo persisted. “Any women that ain’t old enough to be your mama?”
Tom and Moon both laughed. “Yep,” Moon answered. “There was two the last time I was over there. Brinker’s got a store and a saloon in the same big room. He’s in Texas. He don’t have to worry about the law comin’ down on him.”
“Now, that sounds more like it,” Bo declared. “I might take me a little ride over there tomorrow. We’re gonna need more whiskey, anyway. So we might as well go ahead and get it.”
“Whaddaya reckon Ansel might say about that?” Moon asked. “I thought you boys wanted to stay hid.”
“I ain’t in the habit of askin’ Ansel if I can do somethin’ or not,” Bo immediately flared. “If I take a notion to do somethin’, I don’t reckon I gotta ask anybody.” He paused to consider that. “You said there wasn’t no law anywhere around that store, right?” When Tom said that was so, Bo went on. “Then there ain’t no reason not to go, as long as I don’t lead anybody back here. You wanna go with me to show me the way?”
“Sure,” Tom said. “I’ll take you to Brinker’s. When you wanna go?”
“Hell, tomorrow’s as good a day as any, after breakfast, but not too soon after breakfast. I got a feelin’ I’m gonna wanna sleep a little of this whiskey off in the mornin’.” He looked over at Moon then. “How ’bout you, Moon, you wanna go with us?”
“Sounds temptin’,” Moon replied, “but I reckon not. I’ve gotta get back to my camp and make sure ain’t nothin’ been nosin’ around in it.”
* * *
Will was up with the first rays of light that crept through the branches of the cottonwoods along the Washita River and he wasted little time in packing up his camp and saddling his horses. Moon had told him he would not return until after breakfast, and he guessed that wouldn’t be very early, but he didn’t want to take a chance on missing him. He toyed with the idea of bringing his campfire back to life just long enough to boil a cup of coffee, but decided against it. When his horses were ready, he climbed up into the saddle and rode back down the river to a spot he had picked out the night before. About fifty yards downstream from the rock that marked the mouth of Grassy Creek on the opposite bank, he dismounted and led the horses back into the trees before returning close to the bank. He sat down with his back against a cottonwood, where he could see anyone coming down the creek to the river. A low mist hovered over the river, giving it a peaceful feeling. He might have enjoyed it had it not been for knowing what lay a hundred yards or so up that creek. Suddenly, the form of a horse and rider appeared in the mist. In a matter of moments, it took on the solid form familiar to him. It was Oscar, riding along the river now, leading his packhorse behind him. Will got to his feet and waited a few seconds to make sure Moon was alone, and when no one came out of the creek after him, Will returned to his horses. He guided Buster out along the riverbank, where Moon could see them. When he did, he signaled with a wave of his arm, directing Will to ride farther downstream. After riding about two hundred yards, Moon drove his horses across to join him.
“We was right,” Moon said upon dismounting. “Them’s your bank robbers up there, all right. Ansel Beaudry’s the big dog and he’s got a couple of dangerous-lookin’ gunmen with him, name of Bo Hagen and Luther Curry. Listenin’ to ’em talkin’, I think they was in prison with him. The other two—well, you know Tom Daly—and a little feller name of Cecil Cox.”
Will couldn’t help laughing. “Well, Moon, you did a helluva job. I’d best write those names down, else I’ll forget ’em before I get back in the saddle.” He got a piece of a paper sack and a stubby pencil from his saddlebags and asked Moon to repeat the names.
After Will wrote the names down and put them away in his saddlebag, Oscar scratched his chin whiskers thoughtfully. “That ain’t all,” he said. “There’s somethin’ else that might catch your interest.” Then he reported the conversation he had heard the night before between two of the outlaws. “So that’s what they decided they was gonna do,” Moon summed up. “Tom Daly is gonna take this Bo Hagen feller over in Texas to Tyler Brinker’s tradin’ post.” He paused to give Will an impish grin. “Course, you ain’t got no authority in Texas, but I s’pose that don’t make no difference to you, does it?”
“Not a whole lot, for a fact,” Will answered. His mind was galloping. His job was to find Ansel Beaudry’s hideout and lead a posse to arrest him and his gang, but this surprising piece of news offered an opportunity to make an arrest right away of two of the gang. As he and Moon had speculated, with all the time and distance hampering the arrest, by the time a posse was formed, it might be too late to capture any of the gang. He didn’t have to deliberate long. “When are they goin’?” he asked, and Moon said after breakfast. He also told him that it was possible that Bo would change his mind about leaving Grassy Creek when Beaudry found out what he was planning.
“Ain’t no doubt, Beaudry’s the boss,” Moon repeated, “but Bo Hagen ain’t the kind of man that lets people tell him what he can and can’t do.”
“This might be the only chance to arrest any of that gang,” Will said, “so I reckon that’s what I’ll try to do.”
“That’s what I figured you’d say,” Moon said, “so that’s the reason I had you ride down the river a piece. When Tom and that Hagen feller come outta Grassy Creek, they’re gonna ride down this way about fifty yards. Then they’re gonna take a little game trail up over the rise to the west.” He pointed to a spot upstream by a dead tree, even though the trail was not easily seen due to the overgrowth of bushes. Will nodded and Moon continued. “That game trail will cross an old Injun trail to the Canadian River, and that trail will lead you to Brinker’s place if you stay on it. I figure you’re gonna have to trail ’em a pretty good ways before you make a move on ’em, so if there’s some shootin’, you’ll be far enough away that they won’t hear it back at Grassy Creek.”
“You figure right,” Will said. “That’s just exactly what I’m aimin’ to do.” There was nothing to do now but wait to see if Bo Hagen was going to show up. Judging by Moon’s impression of Ansel Beaudry and his obvious position as the boss, Bo Hagen’s boastful claims that no man told him what to do might just be the whiskey talking. “What are you figurin’ on doin’ now?” Will asked. “You gonna take off for home?”
Moon hesitated for a moment before answering, not sure if Will was going to ask for his help in capturing Hagen and Daly. “Well . . .” he drew out, “I expect I at least oughta wait till we see if they show up to take the trail to Brinker’s. I was figurin’ on headin’ back to my camp up on the Canadian today. I don’t really have no business here right now with Elmira, and I’ve got some things that need took care of at my camp.”
Will couldn’t help being amused by Moon’s predicament, and he understood it. Moon considered Will a friend, but he couldn’t afford to have the people he routinely dealt with know that. If word got out that he helped a deputy marshal capture a couple of outlaws, it would be too dangerous for him to show his face in this part of the territory. He decided to relieve Moon’s anxiety. “I think it’s best if you’re not seen with me. You’ve been a helluva lotta help to me on more than one occasion and I’d hate to mess that up. This ain’t the first time I’ve had to arrest two or more outlaws at the same time. And after I arrest ’em, they might get word back to their friends that you helped me, so it’s best you don’t lend a hand.”
“I see what you’re sayin’,” Moon responded eagerly. “It might keep me from helpin’ you down the road sometime. I’ll do what you say. I’ll keep outta the way.” Sometimes his friendship with the young lawman bothered Moon. Although he didn’t like to think of himself as being a double-crosser, he had no trouble picking sides when it involved men like Ansel Beaudry. In Moon’s way of thinking, there was nothing wrong with operating on the shady side of the law, but Beaudry and his gang were downright evil. He reached in his saddlebag, pulled out a piece of smoked venison, and handed it to Will. “Here, I brought you some breakfast.”
Will took it gratefully. “Thanks. I ain’t had any breakfast.”
“That’s what I figured,” Moon replied. “Maybe that’ll hold you for a little while.” He was about to apologize for not having any coffee for him, but he was interrupted at that moment by the appearance of two horses at the mouth of the creek. “Uh-oh, there they are!”
Will watched the two riders as they turned downstream and followed the river until they reached the dead tree Moon had pointed to. Then they pushed through the bushes and were soon out of sight. “I recognized Tom Daly. Was that the one you called Bo Hagen with him?”
“Yep,” Moon replied, “that was Hagen, and Will, you’d best be real careful with that feller. He’s just naturally rattlesnake mean.” They both climbed aboard their horses. “That little game trail will lead you to the trail to Brinker’s,” he reminded him. He started to leave, but paused to say one more thing. “I ain’t got no idea how in the world Tom Daly wound up ridin’ with that bunch. He ain’t nowhere near as mean as they are. He’s a cattle rustler, he ain’t no killer.”
“That’s pretty much the way I see it, too,” Will said, “and thanks again, Moon. Be seein’ ya.”
“Be seein’ ya,” Moon replied, then he turned his horse downstream while Will crossed over to the other side, heading toward the dead tree and the game trail beside it.