not what I’m saying at all. After what Shade and his gang did to our town, I’d like to see that son of a bitch dancing at the end of a rope as much as anybody would. But I’m not sure it would be the wisest thing for Arrowhead if it happens here.”
“Because you’re afraid of his gang,” Flagg said.
“It’s not just me,” Wiley said. “All the businessmen in town are worried, and with good reason.”
Sam said, “You can’t be suggesting that we just…let him go.”
Wiley shook his head. “Not at all. We can go ahead and have the trial, find him guilty and sentence him to hang, but I think the sentence ought to be carried out somewhere else.”
“Like where?” Matt asked.
“I don’t know. Tucson perhaps?”
With a frown, Flagg sat down behind the desk. “I don’t know,” he said slowly. “I figured we’d just take care o’ things right here. I was about to go tell Cassius Doolittle to start hammerin’ together a gallows.”
“The town council and I just don’t think it’s wise,” Wiley insisted.
“Well, I reckon we’ll have to wait and see what the judge says,” Flagg said with a sigh. “If you can talk him into it, I’ll go along with whatever he decides.”
“Thanks, Cyrus. That’s all we’re asking.”
Wiley left the office, and Matt barred the door after him. He shook his head and looked disgusted as he turned back to the others.
“You can’t blame them for feeling that way,” Sam said, knowing what his blood brother was thinking. “They’re worried about their businesses, their homes, and their families. They’ve been through one attack by that bunch, and they don’t want to have to go through another.”
“I suppose.” Matt shrugged. “And in the end it doesn’t really matter where Shade gets hanged, as long as he winds up at the end of a rope.”
“You can count on that,” Flagg said.
The next day dawned bright and hot. The air was so clear that Willard Garth had no trouble seeing with the naked eye what was going on in the town from the top of the hill where he hunkered about half a mile away.
He used a spyglass anyway, just to give himself a better view. He was careful to stay in the shade of a scrubby pine tree, though. He didn’t want the sun to reflect off the glass and maybe warn the townspeople that somebody was watching them.
“Have they started building a gallows?” Jeffries asked. He was sitting below the top of the hill with his back propped against another pine tree. His legs were stretched out in front of him, with the ankles crossed casually.
“No, no gallows,” Garth replied. A frown creased his forehead. “I thought they would’ve started by now.”
“Maybe they’re just going to hang Joshua from a cottonwood limb, or something like that,” Jeffries suggested.
“They ain’t gonna hang him at all,” Garth snapped. “We see anything like that fixin’ to happen, and we’ll be down there on top o’ those damn townies before they know what’s goin’ on.”
They had been unsuccessful at finding anyone else they could force to go into the settlement and spy for them. Garth had made the same mistake Shade had made before him—he had gotten rid of prisoners when they might have still been of some use to him.
But brooding over that misjudgment wouldn’t do any good. All they could do now was wait to see what happened…and hope that they got a chance to free Shade before it was too late.
The rest of the men, except for Gonzalez, had gathered at the bottom of the hill to wait for Garth’s orders. They were playing cards, checking over their guns, or just sitting on rocks and logs.
Gonzalez had ridden off a short time earlier to check on some dust he had seen rising in the distance to the northeast. Garth had agreed when Gonzalez told him he wanted to go have a look.
Garth was still peering through the spyglass when Jeffries suddenly muttered, “What the hell?” A commotion started down the hill among the other
“Because you’re afraid of his gang,” Flagg said.
“It’s not just me,” Wiley said. “All the businessmen in town are worried, and with good reason.”
Sam said, “You can’t be suggesting that we just…let him go.”
Wiley shook his head. “Not at all. We can go ahead and have the trial, find him guilty and sentence him to hang, but I think the sentence ought to be carried out somewhere else.”
“Like where?” Matt asked.
“I don’t know. Tucson perhaps?”
With a frown, Flagg sat down behind the desk. “I don’t know,” he said slowly. “I figured we’d just take care o’ things right here. I was about to go tell Cassius Doolittle to start hammerin’ together a gallows.”
“The town council and I just don’t think it’s wise,” Wiley insisted.
“Well, I reckon we’ll have to wait and see what the judge says,” Flagg said with a sigh. “If you can talk him into it, I’ll go along with whatever he decides.”
“Thanks, Cyrus. That’s all we’re asking.”
Wiley left the office, and Matt barred the door after him. He shook his head and looked disgusted as he turned back to the others.
“You can’t blame them for feeling that way,” Sam said, knowing what his blood brother was thinking. “They’re worried about their businesses, their homes, and their families. They’ve been through one attack by that bunch, and they don’t want to have to go through another.”
“I suppose.” Matt shrugged. “And in the end it doesn’t really matter where Shade gets hanged, as long as he winds up at the end of a rope.”
“You can count on that,” Flagg said.
The next day dawned bright and hot. The air was so clear that Willard Garth had no trouble seeing with the naked eye what was going on in the town from the top of the hill where he hunkered about half a mile away.
He used a spyglass anyway, just to give himself a better view. He was careful to stay in the shade of a scrubby pine tree, though. He didn’t want the sun to reflect off the glass and maybe warn the townspeople that somebody was watching them.
“Have they started building a gallows?” Jeffries asked. He was sitting below the top of the hill with his back propped against another pine tree. His legs were stretched out in front of him, with the ankles crossed casually.
“No, no gallows,” Garth replied. A frown creased his forehead. “I thought they would’ve started by now.”
“Maybe they’re just going to hang Joshua from a cottonwood limb, or something like that,” Jeffries suggested.
“They ain’t gonna hang him at all,” Garth snapped. “We see anything like that fixin’ to happen, and we’ll be down there on top o’ those damn townies before they know what’s goin’ on.”
They had been unsuccessful at finding anyone else they could force to go into the settlement and spy for them. Garth had made the same mistake Shade had made before him—he had gotten rid of prisoners when they might have still been of some use to him.
But brooding over that misjudgment wouldn’t do any good. All they could do now was wait to see what happened…and hope that they got a chance to free Shade before it was too late.
The rest of the men, except for Gonzalez, had gathered at the bottom of the hill to wait for Garth’s orders. They were playing cards, checking over their guns, or just sitting on rocks and logs.
Gonzalez had ridden off a short time earlier to check on some dust he had seen rising in the distance to the northeast. Garth had agreed when Gonzalez told him he wanted to go have a look.
Garth was still peering through the spyglass when Jeffries suddenly muttered, “What the hell?” A commotion started down the hill among the other
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