He closed his eyes again against the tilting room and the pain in his head, then fought to wake up fully.
“Welcome back,” the Comanche Two Shafts said.
The smile on Shafts’s handsome face equaled the one radiating from his darker-skinned brother Neil.
“You really should’ve waited for us to get here before you started charging around breaking windows and picking fights,” Neil scolded Griffin.
Griff tried to sit up, but the ache in his head screamed so loudly he thought he might retch if he didn’t ease himself back down, so he did. “What happened?”
“One of Percy’s friends hit you over the head with a chair.”
Griff remembered now. He looked around. “So where am I?”
“Auntie’s room,” Neil said. “Very nice lady, that Auntie.”
Suddenly, Griffin thought about Jessi. How long had he been knocked out? Were she and Joth starting to worry? “What time is it?”
“Almost four.”
Griff cursed. “I have to get back. She’s going to worry.”
“The doc says you took a pretty good knock on the head. You’re not going anywhere until tomorrow,” the Comanche pointed out.
“The hell I’m not.”
Steeling himself against the pain he knew would come, Griffin forced himself up and bellowed, “Auntie!!”
Ten minutes later, Griff was being helped down the stairs by his two friends. He was more or less dangling between the twins with his arms around their shoulders, but with Auntie and the girls hovering around his descent like mama birds, he made it.
The main room of the saloon looked as if a tornado had gone through it. Broken and splintered chairs and tables were strewn about, as were broken glass and bottles. Griff tried to make some sense out of the destruction, but try as he might, he couldn’t seem to remember a thing.
“Did I do all this?”
“No,” Auntie told him. “Your friends here did. They came in just as you were going down. Paid me well for all the damage, though. Anytime they want to bust up the place again, they’re more than welcome.”
Griff was glad to hear it.
Griff rode to the ranch in the bouncing bed of Auntie’s buckboard. She’d come to guide the twins to the Clayton ranch and to tend to him, should he need anything on the way.
On the porch, Jessi used her spyglass to watch the approaching riders and buckboard. She didn’t recognize the two men on horseback but she could see Auntie holding the reins of the buckboard. Hoping she might have seen Griffin in town, Jessi swept the spyglass over the bed of the wagon and her heart began to pound. Was that him lying there?
She forced herself to stay on the porch, even though her whole being wanted to rush out to the road. She prayed he was all right, but if he wasn’t she didn’t want to know until the last possible moment.
When they drove up she saw that he was alive: battered, bruised, and still a bit disoriented, but definitely alive. Jessi looked down at him lying in the wagon and felt relief melt away her anxiety.
“Let’s get him into the house,” she said.
Jessi had no idea who the two men were, but she could’ve kissed them for bringing Griffin home.
Griff smiled lazily up at her. “Told you I’d be back.”
“Yes, you did, but look at you. Did you get run over by a train?”
His handsome face would be a sight in a few days. Swelling had already taken root around his left eye.
“Should see Percy,” he tossed back.
The two men gingerly raised him, and half-carried, half-walked him into the house while a wide-eyed Joth looked on.
On the way to the bedroom, Auntie related a condensed version of the story and after hearing it, Jessi didn’t know whether to kiss him too, or scold him for placing himself in such danger.
Griff was eased down onto the bed and as the softness of the mattress and the bedding enfolded him, he thought to himself, Now I can die. It felt so good to be home he promised himself he’d never leave again. Of course, the thoughts were just products of his addled brain, but the pledge sounded good to him just the same. He drank a bit of the bitter-tasting bark tea Neil swore would heal his aching head and then he drifted off to sleep.
Chapter 7
Auntie drove back to town, leaving Griff to sleep off the aftereffects of his sojourn, and Jessi and Joth to entertain Griffin’s friends.
“Thanks for bringing him home,” Jessi said genuinely, as she shook each man’s hand. “The name’s Jessi Clayton.”
They returned her shake firmly.
“Our pleasure.”
They introduced themselves as Two Shafts and Neil July. Both men were handsome giants, but Two Shafts had more bulk on his mountainous frame than his leaner brother. He had long dark hair that he wore free, and the powerful arrogant air of the Comanche. Neil, on the other hand, had a beard, and eyes as dark as his skin. Although Griffin had described them as twins, Jessi didn’t believe she’d have any trouble telling them apart. The two didn’t favor each other a bit.
Joth, who’d been watching the men with great interest since their arrival, suddenly burst out, “You’re the Terrible Twins!” Their names and faces had finally triggered his memory. “I have your posters on my wall!”
Jessi didn’t know how the men felt about exuberant children, but hoped they didn’t hold to the philosophy that children should be seen and not heard. “This is my nephew, Joth Clayton.”
Both men shook Joth’s hand.
Two Shafts asked Joth, “Why would you hang pictures of us? Are you a lawman?”
Joth laughed at the outrageous question. “No, I have a poster collection. Can I show them, Aunt Jessi?”
Jessi didn’t want Joth to overwhelm the men in their first hour here. “Sweetheart, why don’t you let them sit awhile and catch their breath—”
Neil stood. “I’d like to see it.”
Two Shafts grinned. “So would I. Lead the way, Sheriff. I’m impressed that you even know who we are.”
As the two followed Joth to his room, Jessi silently blessed them for their kindness.
Griff slept the afternoon away. Jessi tipped in to check on him a few times, and was pleased to find him breathing easily. As she watched him sleep, she surveyed the bruises he’d gotten defending her honor and realized just how much it would’ve hurt her had he been seriously injured or killed. She decided then and there that she would start embracing the light Griffin Blake brought to her life. At least she’d have the memories once he was gone. Bending down, she kissed his forehead softly.
That evening, Griff awakened. The roaring ache in his head had been reduced to a gentle throb, thanks to the bark tea, but Jessi wouldn’t let him out of bed until he promised not to overdo it.
“I promise,” he pledged, looking up at her as she sat on the edge of the bed. Seeing her face again gave him more pleasure than he ever imagined. He reached up and stroked her dark cheek. “I’m sorry if I worried you.”
She placed her hand over his, relishing his touch. “Apology accepted, but please don’t do it again. Or at least let me come next time. I would’ve loved to have seen Darcy’s face when you threw that chair through the hotel window.”
He gave her a lopsided smile. “That’s what champions do when they’re defending their lady’s honor.”
“Are you my champion?”
He paused a moment to look into her eyes, and then answered truthfully. “Yes. I think I am. Are you my lady?”
Her response was soft. “Yes, I think I am.”
“I can’t promise I’ll stay.”
“I know,” she replied. “I’ve accepted that fact.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
For a moment silence reigned, then Jessi rose and said, “Come on out when you’re ready. Joth and your friends have been waiting to see you.”
He nodded and she quietly left the room.
When Griffin came into the kitchen, the Twins greeted him with smil
es and teasing. “You look like you’ve been in a fight, Cheno.”
“Who’s Cheno?” Joth asked.
“That ugly cuss with the red beard.” Two Shafts explained, pointing at Griffin.
“Why do you call him that?”
“Because sometimes he acts like Juan Cortinas.”
Joth shook his head. “I’ve never heard of him. He an outlaw too?”
“Some American lawmen thought he was,” Neil replied, “but the Mexicans living on the Texas border thought he was a champion. They called him Cheno.”
“And since our friend here has a habit of doing good deeds, we call him Cheno too,” Two Shafts explained.
“Oh, now I understand,” Joth said.
Jessi did too. When she was younger, some of the Mexican hands employed by her father had spoken Juan Cortinas’s name with much reverence. He’d been a champion for the rights of the Mexican people during the land grabbing turmoil of the late fifties, and was also called the Red Robber of the Rio Grande. He had a red beard and gave the American authorities fits. Since Griffin had a red beard and had become her champion, she thought the Twins had nicknamed him very appropriately.
The three men spent the evening laughing, lying, and catching up on the doings of each other. They talked about old haunts, mutual friends still living, and the ones most recently dead. While Joth went out to the barn to say goodnight to Buttercup, Jessi heard outrageous stories of Griff’s train robbing adventures and the help the Twins had provided during some of them.
The bearded Neil July said, “His creativity was legendary, Miss Jessi.”
“No one could plan a robbery like our Cheno,” Two Shafts declared, smiling proudly as he sat in the chair with his arms folded over his massive chest. “One time he robbed a train by posing as a new-hired express agent. Even forged a letter of introduction on Kansas Pacific stationary—”
“Then signed the president’s name to it and reported to work,” his brother added, laughing.
Jessi asked, “What happened to the regular man? Didn’t he question a new agent just appearing out of the blue?”
“Nope. He wasn’t there.”
Two Shafts explained, “We grabbed the real agent on his way to work that morning, knocked him out, and left him tied up at a little whorehouse outside of town. The girls there promised that when he woke up he’d swear he’d died and gone to heaven, so we knew we didn’t have to worry about him showing up and raising the alarm.”
Jessi couldn’t suppress her laugh.
“Cheno showed up at the train to take his place, gave the conductor his letter of introduction, and all went well.”
“Yep, when the train cleared town, Cheno rolled the safe to the door and he and the safe hopped out. We took in almost eight hundred in gold that day, didn’t we, Cheno?”
“I don’t remember exactly, but that sounds about right.”
Griffin’s answer had been noncommittal because he had been watching Jessi and wondering how she felt about hearing the Twins’ litany of his past life and crimes. Granted, she already knew he was an outlaw, but would this change him in her eyes? Would she now want nothing to do with him? Whether a woman found him acceptable had never worried him before, but it did now.
The evening went on, however, as more lies were told and more laughter accompanied it.
It soon became time for Joth to head off to bed. Once he offered his goodnights, Jessi excused herself and went to hear his prayers and to tuck him in. When she returned, the men were still at it. She noted how much affection they seemed to share. It was as if three brothers had been reunited around a family holiday table. She found their interactions pleasantly surprising. Calico Bob and his gang never exhibited anything but hostility and mistrust toward one another. It was not uncommon to awaken in Bob’s camp and find one of the members of the gang dead, killed by a comrade during the night. The thought of Bob made her remind herself that in reality the men laughing around her table were not the harmless siblings of some Texas farm family, but men who made their living outside the law. Even though she was on the verge of inviting Griffin into her bed, the reminder reignited those small inner misgivings she’d had upon his arrival. Once again, she hoped she hadn’t made the wrong decision by letting these men into her life.
The discussion then turned to the reasons Griffin had called the Twins to Vale. “Miss Clayton has some varmints that need exterminating, and I need your help.”
He filled them in on Darcy’s land grab and finished by detailing the events of last night and this morning.
“So that’s why you were beating Percy like an old rug,” Two Shafts replied with understanding. “He shot up Miss Clayton’s house last night.”
“And your boy was in bed asleep when they opened fire?” Neil asked Jessi with quiet disbelief.
Jessi nodded, angry all over again.
Neil told her, “It’s good we didn’t know this earlier. My brother and I would’ve taken turns kicking Percy’s rear up and down the street.”
Two Shafts added, “You’d think he’d be smart enough to remember that boy up in Montana.”
Griff agreed. “I know, but evidently not.”
The Twins had a few more questions. Neil asked, “So, Percy works for this Darcy fellow? And he killed your pa?”
Jessi nodded.
“Well, Miss Clayton, how about me and my brother work for you? That ought to even things up, don’t you think, Shafts?”
His brother smiled. “I think so, yes, and I can’t wait to tell Percy.”
Griff grinned. He then looked to Jessi. “What do you think?”
Jessi replied, “I’d love to have you here, but I’ve no way to pay you.”
“Don’t worry about that, Miss Clayton, Cheno’s already taken care of that.”
“I have?” Griff asked, surprised.
“Yep.”
Neil reached down beside him, then placed on top of the table a small weathered carpet bag. He opened it up and showed Griffin and Jessi the contents. Jessi hadn’t any idea how Griffin might be reacting, but she was staring as if she’d just seen the birth of a two-headed cow. The gold layered on the bottom of the bag in Neil’s hand had to be two inches deep.
Neil left the bag in front of Griffin and explained, “We were in Austin when we got word that you were looking for us. In fact, we were in Rosita’s, to be exact. When we told her we were on our way to see you, she gave us that. She said she’d been holding onto it for two years, waiting for you to come back and get it.”
Griffin smiled. He had nothing but fond memories of the beautiful, saucy Rosita Wayne. “How is Rosita?”
“Spicy as ever,” Two Shafts replied, his eyes shining knowingly, “spicy as ever. She asked about you.”
Griffin avoided looking Jessi’s way.
Neil added, “She also said to tell you the banker said he added two hundred in interest.”
“Did the town get the school built?” Griffin asked.
“Yep, and were able to hire a back east teacher, too.”
The gold Rosita had been holding had been loaned by Griffin to a banker almost two and a half years ago, and it pleased him knowing the railroad’s money had gone for yet another worthy cause. The fact that he’d made a fat return on his investment only increased his satisfaction. He could tell by the confusion on Jessi’s face that she hadn’t an inkling as to what they were talking about and he mentally vowed to explain it all to her later.
Griff closed the bag and said, “Thanks for bringing the gold, but I still don’t understand how I’ve taken care of paying you.”
“We figured you’d give us the extra two hundred.”
A surprised Griff looked over at the smiling Neil, who said, “We love you, Cheno, and because we do, we will help you chop down this Darcy, but we have to eat.”
Neil had always been the blunt one, and Griffin knew that their request amounted to little when compared to the value of having them by his side. And as Neil stated, even old friends had
to eat. He reached into the bag and counted out the sum they’d requested, and while doing so, told the Twins, “Oh, by the way, I also invited the Preacher to this party.”
“The Preacher?” Neil echoed in a whining voice that reminded Jessi very much of Joth. “Why?”
Two Shafts added, “He always spoils the fun.”
Griff grinned, “Now boys, be nice. He’ll keep us all in line.”
“He certainly won’t let us pecos Percy when the time comes.”
“No, he won’t,” Griffin chuckled in full agreement.
Jessi’s eyes widened. To “pecos” someone meant tying rocks to their dead body and dropping it into a wide body of water. Jessi certainly thought Percy West deserved a horrible end, but she didn’t know whether to applaud the Twins’ solution or be appalled. One thing for certain: they were as outrageous as Griffin had led her to believe, and she liked them. “Who’s the Preacher?” she asked. Neil was actually pouting.
“Friend of ours,” Griffin told her.
“Friend of his,” Two Shafts corrected.
Griffin grinned and shook his head.
“Friends do not collect bounty on friends,” Neil declared sagely.
“He was just doing his job, Neil,” Griff told him.
“What’s his job?” Jessi asked curiously.
“He’s a bounty hunter.”
Jessi was more than a bit surprised. “You have a friend who’s a bounty hunter?”
“See?” Two Shafts pointed out. “She thinks it’s crazy too.”
“That bible toter put us in jail, Miss Jessi.”
“That was three years ago, and you were only in for two days,” Griff reminded them.
“It spoiled our reputation, though. We’d never had a bounty collect on us before—”
“Or since,” his brother declared. “I don’t know what’s scarier, that big scatter gun of his, or those Old Testament verses he’s always quoting.”
“A bible-carrying bounty hunter,” Jessi said. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of that before. You seem to have very eccentric friends, Griffin.”
“You’ll like him,” Griffin replied.
Neil whispered loud enough for everyone to hear, “No, you won’t.”