John Fitzgerald by Me, My Little Brain Page B

of July
when the kids were setting off firecrackers, all the dogs in town barked like
crazy. When I returned to the cellar, Frankie found my hand in the darkness and
held it tight.
        "Are the bad mans going to kill Mamma
and Papa?" he asked and it sounded as if he was crying.
        "Heck, no," I said. "If Cal
Roberts or any of his gang come around here they will
get their heads shot off. Mamma can handle a gun as well as any man and Papa is
a crack shot."
        We remained in the cellar for about half an
hour before we heard doors opening and footsteps upstairs. Then Mamma called to
us that we could come up.
        Uncle Mark was with Papa in the parlor and
he looked both worried and angry. "I'm putting two men in back and two in front ," he said. "And this time I'm giving them
strict orders not to leave. I've got men covering the Judge's and District
Attorney's homes."
    "Then it is
all right if I go with you," Papa said.
        "Your family will be safe enough
now," Uncle Mark said. "I believe Cal Roberts left four men to create
a diversion while he and Austin carried out the murders. Those four men can
hold off an army coming down Main Street. And there is no way to get at them
from the rear because it is open country. Anyone trying it would make a wide
open target and be cut down. The plan as I see it was for Roberts and Austin to
commit the murders and then circle the town and join up with the others. They
would then all ride out to the east. I'd need a troop of cavalry to stop them,
especially at night."
        "The men left to create the diversion will
know something is wrong when Roberts and Austin don't return," Papa said.
        Uncle Mark's face became thoughtful for a
moment. "You've given me an idea," he said. "If I ride Roberts'
pinto horse and Hal Benson rides Austin's gray horse the outlaws will recognize
the horses. Hal can wear the hat and jacket Austin had on when killed. I've got
a black hat and buckskin jacket at home like Roberts was wearing. If Hal and I
keep our heads down, the outlaws will think we are Roberts and Austin. This
will give us a chance to take them from the rear and catch them in a cross
fire."
        "What if Roberts has circled the town
on foot and joined his gang?" Papa asked. "You and Hal are certain to
be killed."
        "It is a risk we will have to
take," Uncle Mark said, "but a small risk. If Roberts did join his
gang, he would leave with them immediately, stealing a horse from the livery
stable. There would be no sense in remaining after his plan failed."
        Papa left the house with Uncle Mark. Mamma
made Frankie and me go to bed. I could still hear shooting when I fell asleep.
        The next morning Frankie and I put on our
robes and ran downstairs to the kitchen. Papa was drinking coffee. He looked
tired, as if he's been up all night.
    "What
happened?" I shouted.
        
    "Your Uncle
Mark's plan worked," Papa said. "Three of the outlaws are dead and
one seriously wounded. But Cal Roberts escaped."
        I felt the hair on my head get stiff as a
hairbrush. "That means he will organize another gang and come back
again," I said.
        "We don't know if he managed to steal
a horse last night and leave town or not," Papa said. "We will know
in a few hours."
    "How?" I asked.
        "Mark and the deputies are checking
everybody in town who owns horses," Papa answered.
        "What about
Dusty?" I asked, remembering Brownie's alarm bark of the night
before.
        "I've looked in the barn," Papa
said. "Dusty and our team are there."
    "What if no
horse is found missing?" I asked.
        "It could mean any one of several
things," Papa said. "Cal Roberts knows this country well. He might
have made it on foot to a nearby farm or ranch and stolen a horse last night.
He might have made it on foot out of town and stolen a horse from some lone
rider coming into town. However, there is also the possibility that Cal Roberts
might still be hiding out right in town.