“Well, if you’re so sure he’s yours,” Shaye asked, “what are you going to do about it?”
“I’m gonna take my woman and my boy and leave town,” Jeb said. “We’re gonna go somewhere and live together.”
“And would that be before or after you and your men hit the bank?” Shaye asked.
“The bank?” Jeb asked, looking puzzled. “Mr. Shaye—Deputy—if you know anythin’ about me, you know I just got out of Yuma Prison. I ain’t lookin’ ta go back.”
“Is that so?”
“Yeah, that’s so.”
“I’m glad to hear it, Collier,” Shaye said. “That will put a lot of minds at ease.”
“I only came here to see my woman and my boy,” Jeb said. “You know what it’s like to know you got a son and you ain’t ever seen him?”
“No,” Shaye said, “I don’t. I raised my three sons.”
“Then you’re a lucky man, Mr. Shaye,” Jeb said. He looked at Belinda. “Sweetie, I got to go and get myself settled in, but I’ll come back to see the both of you.”
“Tonight?” Belinda asked.
“The boy will be going to sleep soon,” Shaye pointed out.
“Well,” Jeb said, “I wouldn’t wanna be a bad father and wake him up, would I?” He directed his attention back to Belinda. “How about I come and take you to breakfast in the mornin’? Huh? How would that be?”
“Fine,” Belinda said, “that’d be fine, Jeb.”
“Good,” Jeb said, “good. Deputy, it was real nice to make your acquaintance.”
“Same here,” Shaye said.
Jeb left the yard and walked back toward town. Shaye looked at Belinda, who gave one last shrug before picking up the boy and going back inside.
64
The sheriff and his wife came out the back door and approached Shaye.
“She just walked past us without a word,” Marion said, “took Little Matt upstairs. What happened?”
“Collier says the boy is his,” Shaye said. “He says he’s going to take them away with him.”
“I knew it,” Marion said, pressing her face against her husband’s chest.
“What did Belinda say?” Cotton asked.
“Nothing,” Shaye said. “She just shrugged.”
“She’s afraid of him.”
“I don’t think so, Riley,” Shaye answered. “I didn’t see any sign of fear in her.”
“So…when did he say they’re going to leave?”
“He didn’t. He said he’ll be back to take her out for breakfast in the morning.”
“You think he’s headed for the saloon now?” Cotton asked.
“That’d be my bet.”
“Honey,” Cotton said, “go back inside. We’ll try to work this out, don’t worry.”
“We’re going to lose the baby, Riley.”
“Not if I can help it,” he said. “Come on, come inside.”
Cotton looked at Shaye, who motioned that he would wait out front while the sheriff took her inside.
When Jeb Collier entered the Wagon Wheel Saloon, he spotted James immediately.
“Hello, Deputy,” he said, turning his head.
James just nodded.
“Nice town.”
James nodded again.
Jeb walked to the bar, ordered a beer, and—when he had it in hand—turned his back to the bar and studied the room. He located each of his men and saw Thomas standing against the back wall. He’d picked Delay out as soon as he entered and now walked back to his table, where he was seated alone. It didn’t matter to him that he had told the deputy that he didn’t know him.
“You’re late.”
“I know.”
“Went to see the woman first, didn’t you?”
“That’s right.”
“The boy yours?”
“Yeah.”
“So what are you gonna do?”
“When we leave, I’m takin’ them with me.”
“And when are we leavin’?”
“After we take the bank.”
“You saw the deputies, right?”
“I see ’em.”
“You hung us out here so you could see the woman without any interference.”
“It didn’t work,” Jeb said unapologetically. “I met a deputy named Shaye at the sheriff’s house.”
“They’re all named Shaye, near as I can figure,” Delay said. “At least, these two are.”
“Father and sons?”
“That’s right.”
Jeb frowned.
“Dan Shaye?”
“That ain’t the half of it,” Delay said and told Jeb about Shay Daniels. He also told Jeb about his conversation with Thomas Shaye.
“You been busy.”
“I’ve had my mind on business, Jeb.”
“Don’t worry, Vic,” Jeb said. “My mind is on business.”
“With all this attention we’re gettin’, you still want to hit the bank?”
Jeb smiled and said, “More than ever. I got a family to support now.”
65
When Sheriff Cotton and Dan Shaye returned to the office, Thad was still seated out front, eager to do what he was told and make up for his mistake.
“I didn’t hear no shots, Sheriff,” he said.
“Good, Thad,” Cotton said. “Just stay out until you do.”
“Sure, Sheriff,” Thad said, “but what do I do then?”
“You’ll figure it out, son.” He turned to Shaye. “Shall we go into the saloon, Dan?”
“I guess that’s a likely next move,” Shaye said.
“What other one could there be?”
“To wait for them to make a move for the bank.”
“And leave them to the bank guards?”
“No, I don’t think so,” Shaye said. “I don’t know the training of the bank guards, but I do know the reputations of Jeb Collier and Vic Delay. They’ve done what they do many times before.”
“You don’t think the guards would be able to handle them?” Riley Cotton asked.
“I doubt it.”
“So if we just keep watching them,” Cotton reasoned, “they won’t be able to make a move.”
“There are eight of them and five of us,” Shaye said. “If they split up, three of them can hit the bank.”
“But if we watch Collier and Delay, they’d have to do it without them.”
“No,” Shaye said, shaking his head, “they won’t be able to do that. They’ll need Collier at least. He’s the brains. And they’ll need Delay, because he’s the killer. So they’ll need both of them.”
“So we’re back where we started,” Cotton said. “Why don’t I just order them out of town? That’ll force them into a move.”
“Yeah, it would.”
“So?”
Shaye turned and looked at Thad, at his bruised face.
“Maybe we got another way to force their hand,” he said, “and change the odds at the same time.”
“How?”
Shaye told him.
Cotton nodded and said, “Okay. Let’s go do it.”
“We’ll take Thad too,” Shaye said.
“Why?”
“He can identify them,” Shaye said, “and he owes them.”
Cotton turned to Thad.
“You wanna go in, boy?”
“Yes, sir!” Thad said eagerly.
“You gonna do what you’re told?”
“Every step of the way, sir.”
The sheriff looked at Shaye and said. “Let’s go, then.”
66
Cotton entered the saloon first, followed by Shaye and then Thad. James and Thomas both stood up straight at the sight of them, knowing something was about to happen.
From the back of the room Delay and Jeb saw the three extra lawman enter and also knew something was in the air.
“Jeb,” Delay said, lacing his hand on his gun.
“Wait,” Jeb said.
“We got a lot of cover in here,” Delay told him. “Lots of people. The lawmen’ll try not to hit innocent bystanders. We don’t have that problem.”