“You’re going to get yours one of these days. I’m going to get you one of these days, Longarm, hopefully in a poker game. I’m going to turn you every which way but loose. I’m going to take all your money, then I’m going to take all your property, then I’m going to take your nest egg that you’ve probably got buried in a tin can in your backyard, then I’m going to take all your women, and then finally I’m going to take every damned gun you’ve got and then challenge you to a duel.”
Longarm said, “Fish, you’ve got to quit taking these things personally. You’re a bigger man than that.”
Fisher spit toward the slat, but the wind whipped it toward the back of the car. “Folks have been picking on me all of my life just because I am skinny. I want you to know that I’m not skinny, just wiry, and there is a big difference, as you will find out before this trip is over.”
Longarm said, “That hurts me, especially after the way that I’ve been defending you here lately.”
“What do you mean, defending me lately?”
“Why, there in Taos. There were folks that said that you bayed at the moon and cheated at cards. I told them that you did not bay at the moon.”
Fisher gave him a look.
The train pulled into Springer about an hour after dark. Once they had come out of the mountains, it had warmed up considerably. At one time, as they were going through the highest pass, Fisher had felt compelled to wrap himself in a blanket, noting that slim folks tended to get colder than those with a lot of fat on their bones. They’d come chugging in on the train, switching off to a siding that went directly to the complex where the mining company’s headquarters were located in Springer.
After they had detrained and gotten their horses off, a young man dressed very much like Simmons came forward to Longarm and identified himself as Eugene Wyman. He drew Longarm a little way off from Fisher and said, “Marshal, your goods are being transferred now. What I am going to do is load them on one of our little mine burros. We’ve got a canvas contraption rigged up that will hold fifty pounds of ice in each pocket. We’ve got four vials each of the hot stuff per pocket. I do want to warn you. I don’t know how far you are going, but even with that fifty pounds of ice, it is not going to last much longer once it starts getting warm tomorrow. We will have some ice down there at the end of the rails when we send the crew, and we will be able to replenish your supply. You should have enough to last you through the night, but I’m sure Mister Simmons has told you that it’s a lot better to keep that stuff cold.”
Longarm said, “Mister Simmons has made his point and I’m much obliged to you. Why a burro?”
The young man smiled. “The burro is an old hand that we’ve had a long time. His name is Pedro and he is as surefooted as a mountain goat. I can assure you, Marshal, that the last thing that you want to happen when you’re carrying the kinds of things that you are carrying is for the animal to stumble with such a load. Anybody within half a mile would just as soon not have that animal stumble, and I think you will come to appreciate old Pedro before your trip is over.”
Longarm said, “I appreciate him now.”
“We should have you ready to travel in about half an hour. We’ve got a kitchen over here that is reserved for our workers. Maybe you’d like to take some supper before you set out.”
Longarm said, “That sounds like a capital idea. In fact we brought some provisions along with us, but I could use a hot meal anyway. We are going to be setting up as high as we can find a place, but I imagine it gets pretty chilly up on this high plain, even in the summer.”
“You know it. You’ll need more than one blanket.”
“Well, maybe you’ll loan us a couple, three more?”
“I’ll see that that’s tended to. Now, if you and your friend will follow me, I’ll take you over to the cookhouse, and someone else can see to your horses and when you come out, you’ll be ready to travel.”
Longarm said, “That suits me fine.”
Fisher was delighted that they were going to have a good meal before setting out across the plains of eastern New Mexico. He said, “I was beginning to figure, Longarm that hanging around with you was a quick way to ruin my health. At least we’ll have a meal before we probably get ourselves killed.”
Longarm said, “As skinny as you are, it doesn’t take that much to feed you.”
In the cookhouse they made a good meal of steak and potatoes and apple pie. By the time they were outside and mounted up, Fisher seemed content for a change. As they got ready to start out of the camp Eugene appeared, leading a small burro with a double pack on his back. He handed the lead rope to Longarm and said, “I’m sorry, Marshal, but I reckon that you’ll have to accommodate your pace to that of Pedro’s, and he is none too swift.”
Longarm said, “That’s quite all right with me, just as long as he is as surefooted as you say he is.”
“You can depend on that.”
“I take it that we just follow this set of narrow-gauge tracks?”
“Yes, sir. That’ll take you to exactly where you want to go.”
“See you in the morning.”
As they trailed slowly out of the camp and out of the town of Springer following the railroad tracks, Longarm could tell that Fisher was about to bust to know what the burro was for and what he was loaded down with. His pack was two well-secured canvas sacks that hung down on each side. The sacks were covered with canvas to hold in the cold of the ice and to keep it from melting any sooner than it had to. They had gone about a mile when Fisher said, “All right, damnit, what’s the burro for and what’s he hauling?”
Longarm answered, “Ice.”
Fisher asked, “What the hell is the burro hauling, Longarm? What’s in those big saddlebag-type canvas bags?”
“Ice.”
“Dammit, Longarm. Are you going to tell me the truth or not?”
Longarm swiveled around in his saddle to face Fisher. “I am telling you the truth. Lean down there and feel—real gentle, though—the side of that canvas and see if it ain’t cold.”
Fisher said, “I’ll do no such thing, but if it’s ice, do you mind telling me why in the hell you are carting ice with us?”
Longarm shrugged. “I thought we might make some ice tea or some lemonade.”
For a half minute, Fisher Lee swore loudly and effectively. Then he said, “All right, don’t tell me, see if I give a damn.”
Longarm said, “You don’t want to know.”
“Why don’t you let me be the judge of that?”
“Because after you know, you won’t want to know.”
“Then you’re saying that I don’t want to know.”
“Yeah.”
“Well, that’s a hell of a note. Here we are riding toward some kind of rendezvous with God only knows how many bad-assed characters, we’re going to be overwhelmingly outmanned and outgunned, we don’t know the terrain, and now you’re telling me there is some more bad news that I’d be better off not knowing. Hell, Longarm, you’re just a pure comfort to a body.”
After half an hour, they were well clear of the town and the moon was up good in the eastern sky. They crossed the small foothills of the mountains they had just traversed, and began entering the broad flat plains that stretched out in all directions to Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, and beyond. Off in the distance they could see, here and there, the buttes rising from the flat arid land. Some of them rose up sheer to heights of five and six hundred feet. Some were rounded and some jagged and rock-strewn.
Longarm said, “A butte is a marvelous thing. Don’t you agree, Friend Fisher?”
“One of nature’s works. I wonder if you, my high ranking government official, truly appreciate the butte and how it came to be?”
“Well, I don’t know that I ever studied on the question,” said Longarm. “I reckon an answer will come to me, given time. However, if you happen to know, I’ve got nothing better to do than to lead this burro and ride alongside this track and listen to what you do know about them.”