Once the door was closed and Longarm had heard the lock snap shut, he settled down on the bench he had pointed out to Padgett and Mercer. Since he had it to himself, he was able to partially stretch his legs out and put his head back. He wished he still had his hat so that he could tip it down over his eyes.
That wasn’t all he thought about. He replayed the attack in his head. Could Cy have followed him, clouted him over the head with something, then tried to push him off the train? It was possible, Longarm supposed. He hadn’t gotten a good enough look at his assailant in the darkness to know for sure how big the fella had been.
But there was someone else whose whereabouts were unaccounted for at the time of the attack, Longarm realized. With the door to the senator’s compartment closed, Miles Padgett could have turned the other direction after telling Mercer he was going to visit the facilities in the next car. Padgett could have stepped out there on that rear platform, seen Longarm standing there, and walloped him one. The question was—why would the senator do such a thing?
Considering why Longarm was on this train, he wasn’t going to rule out anything.
Sleep claimed him while he was pondering.
The night passed without further incident. Longarm slept fitfully, and when he stood up as the train was pulling into El Paso not long after dawn, his muscles were stiff and sore and he was almost as tired as when he had first dozed off. Still, he had spent worse nights on the trail in the past. A few cups of strong, hot coffee, some bacon and flapjacks, and he’d start feeling human again, he knew.
Senator Padgett and Leon Mercer seemed well rested. Padgett was his usual bluff and hearty self as he and his assistant stepped down to the platform of the El Paso depot followed by Longarm. “What a glorious morning!” Padgett exclaimed.
That was true enough, Longarm supposed. The air was clear and cool here in this pocket among the mountains where El Paso was nestled alongside the winding Rio Grande. It would be hot as blazes later in the day, but right now the temperature was downright pleasant. The craggy heights of Mount Franklin loomed to the north of town. Once El Paso had been known as Franklin, and Billy Vail had served with the Ranger company that had been headquartered here in those days. Longarm had heard his boss spin many a yarn about the adventures he’d had in the Rangers with his old pard, Roaring Bill McDowell. Wild times, Longarm thought.
But these days could be pretty wild too.
“You go on and register us at the hotel, Leon,” Padgett told his assistant. “I’m going out to the track with Caesar.”
“I’m sure Cy could handle that, Senator,” Mercer said.
Padgett shook his head. “I want to see that Caesar’s settled in for myself.” He smiled. “I know you think I can’t manage anything without you, Leon, but I assure you I’ll be all right. Marshal Long will be with me, won’t you, Marshal?”
“That’s right,” Longarm said. “After everything that’s happened, I don’t plan to let you out of my sight very often, Senator.”
And Padgett could take that any way he wanted to.
“Good morning, gentlemen!”
The lilting greeting made Longarm, Padgett, and Mercer all turn. They saw the Cassidy sisters coming down the platform toward them. Even this early in the morning, after a night spent in a cramped train compartment, they both looked elegant. Janice was dressed in a dark gray traveling gown and matching hat, while Julie wore a denim riding skirt and a short jacket over a white shirt. Longarm wondered idly if the twins ever wore each other’s clothes, switching identities, as it were. Given the differences in their personalities, he doubted it—but as he had told himself the night before, anything was possible.
He also wondered if Julie had told her sister about what she and Longarm had done on the platform that had later on nearly turned into a death trap for him.
Padgett tipped his hat as the young women came up to them, as did Mercer. Longarm didn’t have a hat to tip, so he settled for nodding and saying, “Mornin’, ladies. Did you have a pleasant night?”
“Very pleasant,” Julie said, and Longarm saw the faint twinkle in her eyes.
“I slept very well,” added Janice.
“I’m on my way out to the racetrack to see that Caesar is suitably ensconced in the paddock,” Padgett said. “Would you ladies care to share a buggy with me?”
“That’s very kind of you, Senator,” Janice replied, “but all I want to see now is a hotel room. Freshening up on a train just isn’t satisfactory.”
“You look lovely, my dear,” Padgett said. “No one would ever know you just disembarked.”
“That’s very kind of you, Senator, but I’m still going to the hotel.”
Julie said, “I’m not. I have to tend to Matador, so I’ll be glad to accept your kind offer, Senator.”
Padgett beamed. “Excellent! Leon, see about engaging a buggy for us, will you?”
“Of course, Senator,” Mercer said. He hurried away, disappearing into the depot lobby.
Longarm cast a glance along the train. To the rear, the horses were being unloaded from the stable cars. There were a dozen animals on the circuit, so the area just to the north of the station where the unloading was taking place was busy. Hooves clattered on ramps as trainers led the animals down from the cars. The jockeys were bustling around as well. Longarm spotted Cy, who had a bruise on his jaw where Longarm’s fist had landed. Longarm wondered if Cy was going to say anything to Senator Padgett about the fracas in the baggage car the night before. He doubted it; Cy was already in the senator’s doghouse for losing the race in Albuquerque, and admitting that he’d been brawling with a federal lawman would just make things worse for him. If Cy didn’t say anything about it, Longarm didn’t intend to either.
Padgett turned to Longarm and asked, “Will you be coming with us, Marshal?”
Before he could answer, Janice took his arm. “Or would you rather help me get settled in at the hotel, Custis?”
Longarm had to grin as he gently disengaged his arm from her grasp. “An offer like that’s mighty hard to refuse, ma’am … but I reckon I’d better stick with the senator for now.”
Janice sighed dramatically and said, “You men! Always worried about something that’s not even going to happen! Why, no one would bother the senator. He’s too important for that.”
“Just a matter of policy, Miss Janice. Fella like the senator’s got to have somebody looking after him.”
“Damn it, you don’t have to make it sound like you’re my nursemaid, Marshal,” snapped Padgett.
“No offense, Senator. Didn’t mean it like that.”
Padgett was a little mollified. He nodded and said, “Here comes Leon. That must mean he’s found a buggy and a driver for us.”
Sure enough, Mercer had engaged an open buggy and a gent named Juan to handle the team. The party went through the depot lobby, and Padgett, Julie, and Longarm climbed into the buggy. Nearby, the bags belonging to Padgett and Mercer, along with Longarm’s war bag and Winchester, were being loaded into a flatbed wagon by a couple of porters. Mercer would take the baggage to the hotel and register, as Padgett had ordered. He turned to Janice, tipped his hat again, and asked, “Would you like to have me take care of your bags as well, Miss Cassidy?”
“That would be very kind of you, Mr. Mercer,” replied Janice as she favored him with a dazzling smile. “In fact, I’ll even ride to the hotel with you on the wagon.”
Mercer’s eyes widened in surprise, and he stammered, “Th-that’s not necessary, ma’am. I’m s-sure you’d be more comfortable in a carriage.”
“Nonsense.” Janice linked her arm with his. “I’ll be glad to join you. I’ve always thought you were such a dear man.”