“They went too far and killed some troopers not long ago, and now the government has posted a bounty on their heads. Seven thousand dollars, dead or alive.” Charley waited for them to catch on and be filled with the same excitement he felt, but they stared at him as if he were a block of wood. “Well? Don’t you see? That seven thousand dollars can be ours.”
For the first time, Melissa and Tony looked at one another without a trace of hostility. Both burst out laughing. Tony rocked on his heels, while Melissa covered her mouth with her hand and tittered with abandon.
“I don’t rightly see what’s so hilarious.” Charley was miffed. “Seven thousand dollars is nothin’ to laugh at. We’d split it three ways. I could buy a farm somewhere. Tony would have enough to make a start in San Francisco. And Melissa, well, you could use your share toward the millinery you talked about ownin’ one day.”
Melissa had stopped tittering. “I would get an equal share? Be an equal partner? For real? You would take me with you and let me help out?”
“That’s fair, isn’t it? You could do the cookin’ and stuff like that. But I’d never put you in danger. Once we catch up to the Hoodoos, Tony and me will take over and do what needs doing.”
“I would insist on pulling my weight,” Melissa said. “I’ve never freeloaded in my life. An honest day’s pay for an honest day’s work, my mother always said.”
Tony stood up. “Listen to the two of you. Talking about shares and what’s fair. As if we will ever see any of that money.” He snorted. “Even if by some miracle we found them, the Hoodoos aren’t about to throw down their guns and give up. We would be dead before we lifted a finger.”
“Not if we do it smart,” Charley insisted. “Not if we can take them by surprise. One by one, say, when they’re least liable to expect anything.”
“You are matto, my friend. Insane. I have read the newspapers. Their leader is Brock Alvord, a most clever desperado. The rest are deadly killers, Kid Falon most of all. The newspapers say he murdered his first man when he was ten, and he has been killing ever since. Your effort to help means a lot, but you must be practical. Besides, we could not find the Hoodoos if we hunted for them forever.”
“I know someone who might be willing to help,” Melissa offered. “He’s had a lot of experience tracking and hunting and the like. But we’d probably have to offer him a share of the bounty.”
“Who is he? What does he do?” Charley supposed they could divide the money four ways instead of three. It would still leave him with enough for a sizeable down payment on a good piece of land.
“His name is Enos Howard. He used to shoot buffalo for a living. He buys potatoes from me now and then, and from what he’s told me, he’s been all over, from Montana to Mexico.”
Tony was skeptical. “If this Howard is so good, why did he give up hunting buffalo?” He shook his head in amusement. “Will you listen to me? I am as crazy as you two. Why are we still talking about this?” He picked up the valise.
“Wait!” Charley blocked the doorway. “What harm can it do to go see Howard? If he’s as good as Melissa says, he could be just what we need.” Charley turned to her. “Do you know where this hunter lives?”
“I know where we can find him at six tonight. A saloon on Sixteenth Street. He always goes there after he eats his potatoes.”
Tony tried to slip past Charley to reach the latch. “I wish you both the best. But there is a mule train heading west in an hour, and I have paid to ride with a mule skinner on one of the wagons.”
“You would pass up a chance at close to two thousand dollars?”
“I cannot spend the money if I am dead.” Tony set down his valise again. “Tell me. These Hoodoos. How long have they been stealing and killing?”
“Five years or better, or so I’ve heard.” Charley didn’t see why Fabrizio was making such a fuss.
“Haven’t you wondered how they can go on stealing and killing for so long? Why hasn’t a marshal or a sheriff arrested them? I will tell you. Because the marshals and the sheriffs are scared of them. They are cattivo, these Hoodoos. Vicious. They kill for the thrill of killing. Kid Falon once shot a man for snoring too loud. It should teach you something.”
“It does. We better buy guns before we head out.”
Tony’s eyes narrowed. “You are doing this on purpose.”
“Doing what? All I want is for us to have enough money to do the things we’ve always dreamed about. We’re sure not going to earn enough shovelin’ hay or sellin’ potatoes or trough water. A chance like this comes along once in a lifetime. We should take it before someone else beats us to it.” Charley paused. “Six o’clock isn’t that far off. Can’t you lie low until then? I’d like you to be there when we talk to Enos Howard.”
“The mule train leaves in an hour.”
Charley glanced at Melissa for support. “Talk to him. Show him he’s makin’ a mistake he’ll regret the rest of his life.”
“Me?”
“You’re smarter than me, Melissa. Heck, you’re both smarter than me. I know that. So he’ll listen to you. Tell him it can be done. Tell him it’s worth the risk to stick around a day or so, or as long as it takes for us to get ready.”
Melissa gazed at Tony but said nothing. Tony gazed at Charley for the longest while, then sighed.
“If it means this much to you, I will tell the mule skinner to go on without me, and I will catch up with him later. I can always take a stage to Santa Fe and get there before they do.”
“I knew you would change your mind!” Charley whooped for joy. “Wait and see! Both of you will thank me before this is done!”
They separated after agreeing to meet in front of Kincaid’s Beer and Billiards on Sixteenth Street at ten minutes to six. Charley pushed the team as fast as he could, but he still didn’t arrive at the livery until twelve thirty. Mr. Leeds was waiting out front, and to say he was in fine spirits would be a lie.
“Let me guess. You couldn’t find Klimek’s potato farm and wound up going all the way to Canada? Or did you decide to take a tour of Kansas City and St. Louis on your way back?”
“Neither.” Charley hopped down and began stripping the harness.
“That’s it? No feeble excuses for why you’re so late? A wheel didn’t break? A horse didn’t throw a shoe? The earth didn’t open up and swallow you and the wagon whole?”
“Nope. I stopped to talk with a couple of friends.”
Leeds made a sound that came out as a “Har rummph!” Then he opened his mouth, closed it, and opened it again. “As the Lord is my witness, I don’t know what to make of you, Charley Pickett. You squander my time, and when I confront you, you freely confess. You’re either one of the most honest young men I’ve ever run across, or else you’re a simpleton.”
Charley had a thought. “You’ve lived here a good long while, haven’t you, Mr. Leeds?”
“How does that pertain?”
“I was just thinkin’ that you must know a lot about a lot of people, given how you keep up with the latest news and all.”
“I try. Every citizen owes it to himself to stay well informed. It wouldn’t hurt if you kept up with things too. You’re never too young to do your part to make your community a better place to live.”
Charley hadn’t meant that at all. Afraid Leeds was about to launch into one of his long-winded spiels, he quickly asked, “Ever heard of a man called Enos Howard?”
Mr. Leeds scratched his chin. “Howard? Howard? Where have I heard that name before?” He snapped his fingers and nodded. “Of course! The buffalo hunter. The one involved in that fracas with the Blackfeet on the upper Missouri River. The Battle of the Chalk Cliffs, I believe it was called.”