“You don’t?”
“Hell no, she’s a fine-looking woman.”
“Yeah, she is—”
“But remember what I said.”
“Yes, Pa.”
“You could get killed or get one of us killed, letting your mind wander at the wrong time.”
“I know, Pa.”
They sipped their drinks for a few moments and then James asked, “What do you think Thomas is gonna do, Pa?”
“I don’t know,” Shaye said. “I’ve had the feeling for a while that he’s ready to strike out on his own.”
“You really think he’d leave us?”
“Why not?” Shaye asked. “I expect you to go off on your own eventually too. Don’t you?”
“I don’t know,” James said. “I…I ain’t thought about it much.”
“Would you like to wear a badge again?”
“I—I’ve thought about it,” James said, “but I kinda thought we’d all do it together.”
Shaye touched the front of his shirt where a badge would go. He was wearing one of his new shirts, without the old pin holes in it from the various badges he’d worn.
“I guess I thought that too.”
“What do we do if he leaves?” James asked.
“We’ll just have to stand with the sheriff and his deputy,” Shaye said, “the two of us.”
“Deputy?” James asked. “I thought he had two.”
“One’s part-time.”
They fell silent again and then James said, “I don’t guess there’s any way we can find out how many there are.”
“There’s a couple of ways,” Shaye said. “We’d just need the sheriff to send a few telegrams to some of his colleagues.”
“Did you talk to him about it already?”
“No,” Shaye said, “but I told him I’d see him in his office tomorrow.”
“I’ll be there, too.”
“Good.”
“But—”
“But what, son?” Shaye asked. “Come on, spit it out.”
“We sure could use Thomas and his gun if Jeb Collier and his gang do show up here.”
“I know, James,” Shaye said. “We sure could.”
Thomas appeared in the doorway of the saloon roughly a half an hour after James did. He spotted his brother and father at the table in the back, got himself a beer, and sat with them.
“Nice to see you, Thomas,” his father said.
“Did you think I’d leave, Pa?”
“No,” Shaye said and then added, “well, not tonight anyway.”
“James,” Thomas asked, “what have you decided to do?”
“I can’t leave the sheriff to face Collier and his gang by himself, Thomas,” he said.
“Sounds like that has nothing to do with Belinda and her son at all,” Thomas said.
“It don’t.”
“Pa?”
“The question of whether or not the boy is Matthew’s can be solved later, Thomas,” Shaye said. “If there’s a gang on the way here, everyone in this town is going to need help.”
“So you’re stayin’?”
“Your brother and I are stayin’ to stand with the sheriff,” Shaye said. “We hope you’ll do the same, but we’ll understand—”
“I’m stayin’,” Thomas said, cutting Shaye off.
“Oh, thank God,” James said and slapped his big brother on the shoulder. “I knew you would.”
“You did, huh?”
“I’m gonna get Pa and me another beer and then we’ll drink to it,” James said. He got up and went to the bar.
“Pa, you know he’s sweet on the girl.”
“Yes, but it has nothing to do with his decision,” Shaye said. “I’m confident of that. I believe you’ve both made the right decision because you’re honorable men. I’m proud of you both.”
“Have you talked to the sheriff yet?”
“Yes, he found me here,” Shaye said. “I told him we’d be in his office in the morning.”
“You were that sure of us both?”
“Well…” Shaye said rather sheepishly, “I told him I’d be there and I hoped you boys would be with me.”
“And are we gonna wear badges?”
“If he offers them, I suppose so,” Shaye said. “Is that all right with you?”
“Actually, Pa,” Thomas said, “that’s just fine with me.”
38
The next morning all three Shaye men appeared at the sheriff’s office. Both Sheriff Cotton and Thad Hagen, his deputy, were there.
“Sheriff,” Shaye said. “I guess you got all three of us here, ready to help you.”
“Well, that’s fine,” Cotton said. “That’s just fine.” He stood up, then opened a desk drawer. “I got three deputy badges here. I know you’re used to being the sheriff, but I’d be honored if you’d wear them.”
Shaye turned and looked at his sons, who both nodded.
“We’d be proud to.”
Cotton brought the badges out, swore all three men in, and handed the tin stars over. Shaye made holes in his brand-new shirt pinning it on and knew they wouldn’t be the last.
“I’m proud to serve with the three of ya,” Deputy Hagen said and shook hands with all three men.
“Thank you, Deputy,” Thomas said.
“What about your other man?” Shaye asked. “The part-time one?”
“I explained to him and Thad this morning that we might be facing some desperados in the next few days and he turned his badge in.”
“He was scared,” Thad said.
“And you’re not?” Shaye asked.
“Well…”
“It’s all right to be scared, son,” Shaye said. “Keeps you sharp.”
“Yes, sir,” Thad said. “I guess I just wasn’t scared enough to quit on Sheriff Cotton.”
“Sounds like you got yourself a good man here, Sheriff,” Shaye said.
“Yep, I reckon I do,” Cotton said and Thad Hagen’s chest filled up until they thought it might burst.
“Well,” Thomas said, “we were wonderin’ what it would be like to work in a sheriff’s office this grand.”
“Now we know,” James said.
“We might as well get our duties straight,” Shaye said.
“Well,” Cotton said, “I figure if we’re waiting for a gang to show up and we don’t know what size it’ll be, that most of us should be on duty all day.”
“Sounds right,” Shaye said.
“Dan,” Cotton said, “if you or your boys’ve got any suggestions, I’d be glad to hear them.”
“Well,” Shaye said, “if you’ve got a nice high building here in town, we can have one deputy up there all day. He might spot the gang from a ways off and give us some warning.”
“That sounds good.”
“We can set up shifts,” Thomas said, “so no one is up there for too long a time.”
“Good,” Cotton said. “Anything else?”
“I’d say keep at least one of us on duty all night,” James said, “in case they ride in after dark.”
“Also good,” Cotton said. “That can work by shifts as well.”
“How many days we gotta do this?” Thad asked.
“I’d say they’re getting here any day now,” Shaye said, “if they’re coming at all. But Sheriff, I have another suggestion.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“If you could send some telegrams to some lawmen along the line, we might get some advance warning if the gang passes through one of their towns.”
“Good thinking,” Cotton said. “I’ll take care of that today.”
“Thomas, why don’t you and James work with Thad setting up shifts for the roof and the night work?”
“Sure, Pa.”
“I’ll walk over to the telegraph office with the sheriff.”
“We can all share this other desk over here,” Thad said, “since we’s all deputies now.”
Thad walked Thomas and James over to the extra desk while Shaye followed Cotton out of the building.