Longarm 422 by Tabor Evans

certainly
seemed
genuine when he spoke.
    Longarm just wished that he knew where the truth lay with the man.
    He picked up the cards again and once more resumed playing. But his thoughts were far from solitaire, allowing his mind to work on his problems unconsciously while he slapped the cards down and moved them from place to place on the table before him.

Chapter 39
    Longarm walked down to the railroad depot and sent a telegram to his Denver supplier ordering four more barrels of beer, and while he was in the vicinity, he asked that Cory Dreason be notified to get the carter to pick up the barrels when they arrived and haul them over to the Star.
    From there he headed for the Pickering and his room so he could wash up before he met Anne Gilbert for dinner.
    â€œMessage for you, Mr. Long.”
    He changed direction, turning from the staircase and heading for the desk. “Thanks, Jersey,” he said when the youngster handed him an envelope that could have been a twin to the one he had gotten before.
    â€œWhere’d this come from, Jersey? Who brought it?”
    â€œAndy brought it, Mr. Long.”
    â€œAnd who would Andy be?”
    â€œHe’s just a kid. Runs errands. Does odd jobs. I see him around,” the desk clerk said.
    â€œDoes Andy have a last name?”
    â€œOh, I’m sure he does, but I’ve never heard what it is.”
    â€œDo you know where Andy lives?” Longarm asked.
    â€œNo, sir.”
    â€œHow d’you think I might go about finding him then?”
    â€œYou see him hanging around on the street sometimes,” Jersey said. “Mostly over by the train station.”
    â€œAll right, thanks.”
    Longarm changed his mind about going up to his room and having a wash. Instead he spun on his heels and headed for the railroad depot to see if he could find this Andy.
    He stuffed the envelope—unopened—into his pocket. There really seemed no need to read whatever it contained. He felt sure it would just be another warning that he get out.
    That was almost a compliment. It meant he was annoying someone. With any luck at all, that someone he was pissing off would be the same person who was trying to ruin Helen’s trade by frightening her whores.
    Two birds with one stone.
    But first he had to smoke the son of a bitch out into the open.

Chapter 40
    â€œSure, I know who you mean,” the stationmaster said. “Andy Warner. I see him here all the time. He’s a good kid. Handy to have around. He does odd jobs. Runs errands. Like that.”
    â€œDid you see him today?” Longarm asked. “This afternoon?”
    The railroad man nodded. “Yes. Saw him here, oh, I’d say it’s been an hour or so. But he isn’t here now. He went off with a couple fellows.”
    â€œFor a job?”
    â€œI wouldn’t know where they were going or what they wanted with Andy,” the stationmaster said.
    Longarm pulled out a cheroot, hesitated, then offered it to the stationmaster and got out another for himself. He bit the twist off the end of his cigar, struck a match, and lighted both before he asked, “Do you know who these fellas were?”
    The railroader shook his head. “Don’t know their names or anything like that, but I’ve seen them around town. They don’t hang around down here, though. You mostly see them with George Stepanek. Do you know him?”
    â€œOh, I know George, all right. These men that Andy went with. You say they’re friends of Stepanek?”
    â€œI don’t know if they’re friends or what, but you see them together a lot. Them and there’s a third one. But I heard he got killed, so I guess it’s just two of them now to do Stepanek’s dirty work.”
    â€œWhat do you mean when you say ‘dirty work’?” Longarm asked.
    The stationmaster blinked. “I . . . I said too much.” He looked down at the cheroot in his hand as if