Longarm had been sitting like that for close on to half an hour when there was a tapping at the door. He Swiveled slightly to his right so his holster would be clear and he’d be facing toward the door. He expected it was Austin Davis, but he hadn’t stayed alive as long as he had by not allowing for the occasional surprise. “Come in,” he said. The door swung open and it was indeed Austin Davis, looking considerably cleaner and better dressed than when Longarm had last seen him. “Shut the door behind you and come have a drink,” Longarm said. “I’m sorry to say all I got is whiskey. No sody POP.”
“Then I reckon whiskey will have to do,” Davis said, “though I shore hope my old mother don’t hear I’ve gone bad.”
Longarm poured out a drink for both of them, and they made a toast to good horses and bad women, and drank down a satisfying amount of the smooth liquor. “Well?” Davis asked after a short pause.
“A well is a hole in the ground,” Longarm replied.
Austin Davis waved his hand. “Yeah, yeah. Turn it sideways and you got a tunnel. You know what I mean.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Well, what the hell has happened? Have you managed to really foul my deal up?”
“Your deal?” Longarm looked at him mildly. “When did we go to giving out title on arrests? I’ll have to wire Billy Vail about that one. Never had it come up before.”
Davis gave him a sour look. “You know what I mean. Tell me.”
Longarm talked for a quarter of an hour, laying out the proposition as he saw it and relating everything that had happened or been said with the exception of his conversation with Dulcima. When he was through he sat back, drew on his cigarillo and looked at his partner. “Well?” he said.
Davis looked thoughtful for a moment. “It sounds pretty good,” he said guardedly. “Though I think you took one hell of a risk going after Mull straight out like that. They might have thought it was fishy. Still might as far as that goes. And what makes you think Jasper White won’t tell Caster about the deal you made with him? By the way, I did just like you. I got to Caster through Jasper White.” He laughed a little. “Though I didn’t give him but twenty dollars. Reckon he thinks you looked easy.”
Longarm shrugged. “Forget about that. You say you think I took a risk. I did, and it might still be a risk. They might be sucking me in. I don’t know. But I started out on this job taking risks and it ain’t let up yet. A marshal’s job is about risks. That’s what we do. And I didn’t see where it would have done a bit of good putting the iron on Caster without taking down his boss. Caster is like a .44 cartridge, easily replaced with an other one.”
Davis rubbed his chin. “I guess …” he said slowly. “I just hadn’t run it out this way in my mind. I had figured to get Caster in hand and then have him ring Mull in.”
“Implicate Mull? How?”
“Why, on his say-so. What else?”
Longarm laughed. “That would last about five minutes in a court of law. As long as you’re getting him to implicate Mull, why stop there? Hell, get him to point a finger at the President of the United States. That old dog won’t hunt, Austin. Mull has got to implicate himself. He has got to be involved. And you were talking about Jasper White playing me for a sucker—Do you know what James Mull looks like? Do you?”
Austin Davis slowly shook his head. “No. Reckon I don’t.”
“So whether it’s a risk or not, I got to use Jasper White and the only way I had of getting him to help me was with money. I’ll take it away from him when I’m done and offer him a jail cell if he complains, but for the time being, I have to play the cards I was dealt. Caster has made it clear I ain’t ever going to set eyes on Mull. What would you have done?”
Davis shrugged and took a drink of whiskey. “I reckon what you did, I just might not have thought it up is all.”
Longarm gave him a long look. “Be careful, Austin,” he said. “You come damn near to paying me a compliment. You want to be leery of that.”
Davis smiled faintly. “Sorry. It slipped out.” It was clear to Longarm that the junior deputy had his mind busy trying to take in all the new information. Davis studied the floor for a moment, then looked up at Longarm. “And you say you got the bribe money right here?”
“In the bank, ready to go.”
“Well,” Davis said, “that means I don’t have to wire that cattleman’s association. Of course I hadn’t counted on you going as far as you did. I’d told them I figured to get the cattle through for three dollars, maybe two a head.” He paused and took a moment to light a small cigar. “I still feel like we’re riding over icy ground. This thing is going to be touchy as hell to bring off.”
Longarm drummed his fingers on the tabletop. “Yeah,” he said, “it’s going to be dicey.” He hesitated. It was about time to tell Austin Davis something he wasn’t going to want to hear. Longarm blew out a breath and looked at a far corner of the room. Then said, “And on account of that, you can’t be here. As soon as you move the cattle across the bridge I want you to head back for Mexico.” He detached his gaze from the corner and looked around at Davis.
His partner was staring at him, not blinking. Finally he said slowly, “What?”
Longarm sighed. “Yeah, you heard right. I want you to get clear of the area. It can’t be done with both of us. If you were a legitimate stock gatherer, you’d see the cattle into the quarantine pens and then you’d be on your way once you were paid off by me, the man that contracted with you to get the cattle in the first place. What would go on between me and Caster wouldn’t be none of your concern. And if you hang around, it ain’t going to seem natural. Your business with me is done.”
Austin Davis started slowly, but his voice rose with heat as he spoke. “Now you wait just a damn minute! You talking about what old dog won’t hunt? Well, that old dog just drug out from under the porch not only won’t hunt, that sonofabitch can’t move! This here is my deal, Longarm, and you ain’t going to cut me out of it. I got some little time invested in this proposition and I ain’t going to go sit with the Sunday school class while you get to preach.”
Longarm sighed. He truly felt sorry for Austin Davis, and not just a little guilty. He wished then that he hadn’t made such a big commotion about coming to the border to work with the man. This was going to make it seem like he’d cut him out just out of meanness. “Austin,” he said, “it can’t be any other way. I’ve thought and thought on this, dreading having to tell you, but I can’t see no other way. You were talking about fish—well, it would seem fishy as hell, us just doing some business, for you to be around. Oh, hell, I don’t mean you got to take straight off for Mexico. They would expect you to stay on this side for a while, drinking and whoring and whatnot. But I cannot see any way that you can be present when I put the iron on Caster and Mull. It wouldn’t make any sense.”
Austin Davis was staring at him stiffly. “I suppose it makes sense for you to come down here and take over the job?”