Leaving Epitaph Page 15

  “But there was only supposed to be three of them.”

  “Sounds like a lot more than that to me,” Aaron said, “and if they got the drop on our men, it’s gonna be bad.”

  “So what do we do?” Ethan asked.

  Aaron waved his arm at the stacks of money on the table. “We pack this money up and go out that window,” he said. “There’s a roof out there. We can make it to the street and get our horses from the livery.”

  “But—”

  “There’s a lot of money here,” Aaron said, “and a lot more if it’s only split four ways.”

  Ethan hesitated.

  “What do we do, Ethan?” Branch asked.

  Morales was ready to draw his gun to back Aaron Langer’s play. He’d leave Ethan to his own brother, and he would take out Branch, if it came to that.

  “Ethan,” Aaron said. “What do we do?”

  The shooting in the saloon was getting impossibly loud. It sounded like a war.

  “Pack it up, Aaron,” Ethan finally said, “and let’s get the hell out of here.”

  54

  The lawmen were outnumbered, but they had the outlaws outgunned. Holcomb, Strunk, and Winston all let loose with their shotguns, both barrels, and then put their pistols to use. Men cried out and blood splashed onto the bar, the floor, and the walls.

  Shaye picked off several men from the balcony with his Winchester—levering and firing, levering and firing—before they knew what hit them.

  Matthew and James put their rifles to use from the floor level, then pressed their handguns into action. There was no hesitation from either of them. This was clearly a kill or be killed situation.

  Thomas, preferring his handgun to his rifle, used that weapon first, and didn’t switch to the rifle until his hammer fell on an empty chamber. Like his brothers, he never hesitated, but unlike them, he was calm, which surprised him. Not only was he calm, but he was deadly accurate, and every bullet he fired slammed into somebody’s flesh.

  The outlaws were confused, unsure where to shoot first. With no direction, they were easy pickings, even though there were more of them. A couple jumped behind the bar, where the poor bartender was cowering, but they were visible from the balcony and Shaye took care of them.

  From his vantage point, Shaye could see his sons in action. As proud of them as he was, he was actually watching to make sure they didn’t get hurt. He knew he was making a mistake—possibly a deadly one. In watching out for his sons, he was leaving himself open, but this was the first time they had been involved in a gun-fight. If one of them panicked, he wanted to be able to help them.

  He saw a bullet strike Will Strunk, who was standing next to James, and the deputy went down. To James’s credit, he just kept on shooting.

  As Shaye had taught them, his sons went to one knee, or to cover, in order to reload.

  In Thomas’s case, he upturned a table and ducked behind it.

  James dropped to a knee, as did Matthew, but Matthew was still a big target.

  Shaye did his best to protect his sons with his rifle, and then with his pistol, until the room filled with so much gun smoke that he couldn’t see them.

  He was about to rush to the stairs when the shooting abruptly stopped.

  His trained ear picked up the sounds of men moaning, empty shells striking the floor as some reloaded, rifle levers being worked and shotguns being broken over to reload.

  He didn’t wait for the smoke to clear, but headed for the stairs. Halfway down, he was able to see again. He anxiously sought out his sons.

  Thomas was standing up behind the table he’d overturned, calmly reloading.

  James was crouched over the fallen deputy.

  Matthew was still down on one knee, but he held his gun at the ready. Next to him, Deputy Winston was holding his hand over a wound he’d sustained to his arm.

  Sheriff Holcomb was moving among the fallen outlaws. There didn’t seem to be any left standing, but from the sound they were making, quite a few of them were still alive.

  “Pa,” Thomas said, still calm, “you’re hit.”

  “What?” Shaye looked down at himself and saw blood on his side. He hadn’t felt it, but a bullet had plowed a furrow in his left side and kept on going. He probed it with his fingers, then looked up at Thomas.

  “It’s not bad,” he said. “The bullet’s not there. You boys all right?”

  “I’m, fine, Pa,” James said, “but the deputy’s dead.”

  “Damn!” Holcomb said.

  “Sorry about your man, Sheriff,” Shaye said. “Looks like your other one is hit but okay.”

  “I’ll live,” Winston said.

  Shaye moved in among the fallen men and began checking them with Holcomb. He saw two who were alive, but blood bubbles on their lips said not for long.

  “We need one man to question,” he said aloud. “They’re not all here. The Langers aren’t here.”

  “There’s one over here, Pa,” Thomas said.

  Shaye went over and stood next to his son, and was soon joined by the sheriff. They looked down at the fallen man, who was holding his hand to his side and glaring up at them. His wound seemed similar to Shaye’s, except that the blood was deeper red and there was more of it. The bullet was still there.

  “Pa,” Matthew said, coming up next to him, “we gotta get a doctor over here.”

  “Your son is right,” Holcomb said.

  “If you talk,” Shaye said to the man, “we’ll get you to a doctor.”

  “Fuck you.”

  “Where’s your boss?”

  “Go to hell,” Red Hackett said. He’d started the whole fracas by going for his gun, and he was still alive. Shaye had no idea of the irony involved, though.

  “The Langers left you here to get killed while they took off with the money.”

  Hackett just continued to glare.

  “The money’s not here, is it?”

  “Get me a doctor.”

  “Where’d they go?”

  “I don’t know!” Hackett shouted. “They went upstairs a little before you hit us. Get me a doctor!”

  “I’ll get the doc,” Holcomb said.

  “Upstairs?” Shaye said, looking up. “Damn!”

  He ran for the stairs, followed closely by his sons.

  55

  Shaye and his sons checked all the upstairs rooms. There was evidence that the Langers had been in one of them. On the floor, left behind by accident, was a twenty dollar gold piece. Shaye knew that part of the haul taken from the bank in Epitaph had included gold coins.

  “The livery,” he said.

  He ran back downstairs, again followed by his sons. The sheriff had not returned with the doctor, and Deputy Winston was standing guard over the fallen man still holding his arm.

  “Where’s the closest livery?” Shaye asked.

  “South end of town,” Winston said, pointing. “Go outside, turn left and keep going.”

  “Tell the sheriff we’ll be back.”

  They all went out the door.

  When they reached the livery, the doors were wide open and some horses were wandering about. Apparently, the Langers, in a hurry to saddle their own mounts, had let some of the others loose.

  “We gonna follow them, Pa?” Matthew asked.

  “Not in the dark, Matthew,” Shaye said. “We’ll track them in the morning.”

  “We don’t know how many there were,” James said.

  “Ethan and Aaron for sure,” Shaye said. “If the doctor keeps that other man alive, maybe he’ll tell us.”

  They went into the livery, rounded up some of the loose horses, and put them in stalls.

  “A lot of horses,” Shaye said. “Most of the gang must have boarded them here.”

  They left the livery and closed the doors behind them.

  “We better get back,” Thomas said.

  “Before we do,” Shaye said, “I want to tell you boys how proud I am of you. You stood up like men tonight, and none of you b
acked down.”

  Matthew and James looked embarrassed.

  “Pa,” Thomas said, “let’s go back to the saloon. The doc’s gotta take a look at you too.”

  “All right, Thomas,” Shaye said. “Let’s go.”

  Outside of town the Langers slowed their horses, then reined them in. Morales and Branch stopped as well.

  “What the hell happened back there?” Aaron demanded.

  “You said there were only three lawmen,” Ethan pointed out.

  “Maybe they recruited some help,” Branch said.

  “And maybe you were trailed here from…what town did you hit in Texas, anyway?” Aaron asked.

  “A place called Epitaph,” Ethan said. “I never heard of it before, but—”

  “Epitaph?” Aaron said. “You robbed the bank in Epitaph?”

  “That’s right,” Ethan said. “It was a good haul.”

  “Did you bother to find out who the sheriff of Epitaph was before you hit it?”

  “Well, no, but—”

  “Do you remember the name Shaye Daniels, Ethan?”

  “Shaye…yeah, from a long time ago. He was, uh…”

  “Shaye Daniels was the best man with a gun I ever rode with,” Aaron said. “I wanted him to be my partner, but he walked away.”

  “And he ended up sheriff of Epitaph, Texas?” Morales asked.

  “That’s right, as Dan Shaye.”

  “Madre de Dios.”

  “How do you know?” Ethan asked.

  “Because I kept track of him, that’s how,” Aaron said. “I’ll bet he tracked you all the way here.”

  “Why would he do that?” Ethan asked.

  “You killed a woman,” Aaron said. “Even fifteen or so years ago he had his own code. God, if that was Danny Shaye back there…”

  They waited for Aaron to finish, but he didn’t. He just gigged his horse and they moved on their way in the dark.

  56

  By morning people were back on the streets and things had returned to normal for the townspeople. The tension level had eased, and they were no longer worried about catching a bullet.

  Sheriff Holcomb got the undertaker and some other men to clean the bodies out of the Somerset Saloon. Sam Somerset was extremely happy at having come out of the situation alive. He was offering the Shayes anything they wanted in his place for free.

  All the Shayes wanted, however, was to find out how many men had fled with Ethan and Aaron Langer.

  Thomas, Matthew, and James were waiting when Shaye came out of the doctor’s office with Sheriff Holcomb.

  “How is he?” Thomas asked.

  “He died,” Shaye said. “That belly wound finally got him.”

  “What did he say, though?” James asked.

  “Nearest he can figure, the Langers got away with their segundos, Esteban Morales and a fella named Ben Branch.”

  “You know them?” Holcomb asked.

  “I knew Morales a long time ago,” Shaye said. “He’s been riding with Aaron Langer for years. I don’t know Branch.”

  “What are you gonna do next?” Holcomb asked.

  “We’ll outfit and start tracking them,” Shaye said.

  “Well, I can make sure you outfit for free,” Holcomb said. “You may have saved this town’s bank.”

  “I’m not sure the town owes us that,” Shaye said, “but we’ll take it. Thomas, you and James see to that. Okay?”

  “Sure, Pa. What are you gonna do?”

  “Check the horses, make sure they’re sound. We’ve ridden them a long way.”

  “And me, Pa?” Matthew asked.

  “Stay with me.”

  Shaye turned to Holcomb. “I’m real sorry about your man.”

  “Thanks,” Holcomb said. “I guess the only silver linin’ here is he had no kin.”

  “If there’s a silver lining to having a man die,” Shaye said, “I guess that’s it.”

  “Stop into my office and say good-bye before you leave, will ya?” Holcomb asked.

  “We’ll do it, Sheriff,” Shaye said. As the sheriff turned and walked away, Shaye said to his sons, “Okay, let’s get it done, then.”

  Thomas and James went to the general store for some simple supplies, and talked while they shopped. Luckily, there was no pretty girl working in this store to distract them.

  “How do you feel about what happened last night?” James asked.

  “Relieved.”

  “Relieved?” James asked. “That you didn’t get killed?”

  “No,” Thomas said, “relieved that I was so calm.”

  “Well, I wasn’t,” James said. “I was scared out of my wits. Why were you calm?”

  “Because I knew this day would come, and I prepared for it,” Thomas said. “And because I made every shot count. I did everything Pa ever taught us to do.”

  “So did I,” James said. “I mean, I’m sure I missed a lot of shots, but I kept at it.”

  “You did good, James,” Thomas said. “Pa said so.”

  “What did you think of how I did, Thomas?”

  Thomas put his hand on his younger brother’s shoulder and said, “You did great, and so did Matthew.”

  “I was worried about Matthew,” James said.

  “Yeah, I was too,” Thomas admitted. “He’s still not as sure about this as we are. I thought he might hesitate.”

  “He didn’t, though,” James said. “He did fine.”

  “Maybe this will convince him that what we’re doin’ is right,” Thomas said. “Maybe we’re all finally together on this.”

  Matthew was very quiet as he and Shaye checked over the horses in the livery.

  “We’re going to have to replace mine,” Shaye said. “I think he’s got some ligament damage in the left foreleg.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Matthew? Are you all right?”

  “I’m fine, Pa.”

  Shaye straightened and looked at his son. “Do you have something you want to talk about? Like what happened last night?”

  “Last night…we didn’t have a choice,” Matthew said. “We did our jobs, I know that.”

  “Then what’s bothering you?”

  “I killed somebody,” Matthew said. “Lots of somebodies, I think. I—I just have a hard time accepting that.”

  Shaye regarded his son sympathetically. Why was it that some of the biggest men—physically speaking—were also the gentlest?

  “Matthew, I never expected you to follow in my footsteps,” Shaye said. “You’re not cut out to be a lawman.”

  “I know that, Pa,” Matthew said. He looked down at the badge on his chest. “But I’ll wear this until we catch the men who killed Ma, and then…well, and then I don’t know what I’m gonna do. Thomas wants to be a lawman. So does James, I think. I’ll just…have to figure out what I want to do.”

  Shaye clapped Matthew solidly on his broad back and said, “You’ll figure it out, Matthew. We’ll help you. Right now I need you to help me pick out a horse. All we’ve got to do is find the owner.”

  Shaye and Matthew walked the four horses over to the sheriff’s office, where they met Thomas and James, who were carrying burlap sacks of supplies. Shaye had chosen a young steeldust to replace the horse with the ligament damage. They divvied up the supplies equally and hung bags from their saddlehorns, then went into the office to bid the sheriff good-bye.

  “Ready to leave?” Holcomb asked.

  “Moments away,” Shaye said.

  Holcomb came around the desk and shook hands with all four of them.

  “Again, I can’t thank you enough for what you did for the town…for me. I don’t know what I would have done—”

  “You would have figured something out, Sheriff,” Shaye said.

  “I wish you luck catching up to them,” the local lawman said. “I know how important this is to you…to all of you.”

  “Thanks,” Shaye said. “They won’t get away from us. We’ll catch them.”

  “If you catch up
to them in this county,” Holcomb said to Shaye, “in my jurisdiction, you do what you have to do. Do you understand me?”

  “I understand,” Shaye said. He stuck out his hand. “Thank you.”

  Outside, they all mounted up, and James turned to his father. “Pa, did he mean what I think he meant?”

  “He did.”

  “What?” Matthew asked. “What did he mean?”

  “He gave us permission to kill them,” Thomas said.

  “He did?” Matthew looked at his father.

  “Yes, Matthew,” Shaye said. “That’s what he was telling us.”

  “But…he’s the law.”

  Shaye reached out and touched his son’s shoulder. “He’s the law, but he knows what’s important, Matthew.”

  “We all know what’s important, Pa,” James said.

  Shaye could tell by the look on Matthew’s face that this wasn’t quite true.

  “Don’t worry, Matthew,” he said. “It’ll be fine. I promise.”

  “Okay, Pa.”

  57

  As they reached the outskirts of town, Shaye continued the lesson on tracking he had begun earlier.

  “I’m no great tracker,” he said, “but if you keep your eyes open, the terrain will tell you when someone has already passed by.”

  Thomas and James listened intently. Matthew, on the other hand, allowed his mind to wander. He was still thinking about the men he killed, and that he might still have to kill. His gentle spirit could not come to terms with the act of killing.

  “We’ve also run into some luck,” Shaye said.

  “What kind of luck, Pa?” James asked.

  “Dismount, all of you.”

  Thomas and James obeyed immediately. Matthew did not hear the order.

  “Matthew!” James said, snapping his brother out of his reverie.

  “Huh?”

  “Dismount.”

  “Oh, yeah, sure.”

  When all three sons were dismounted, Shaye showed them the hoofprints on the ground. He went down to one knee, and they all joined him.

  “See there?” he asked, pointing.

  All three boys peered at the ground.

  “What’s that?” Thomas asked. “There’s somethin’ inside that hoofprint.”

  “Good eye, Thomas,” Shaye said.

  “What is that?” James asked.