The next day, we made Sweetwater as the sun was setting behind the small town. I arranged to sleep in the blacksmith’s loft, and after supper, as I walked her to her room, she said she’d have a hot bath waiting for me before breakfast. I’d slept in a lot of barns in my time, but I was never as lonely as I was that night. In the brief time she’d been in my life, I’d come to expect the comforting warmth of Sarah’s body in my arms, as I rested. That night, I had a fitful and empty sleep, which left me more weary than when I’d closed my eyes. I was sullen and short-tempered, when morning came.She was in the lobby when I got to the hotel, and handed me the key to her room. The room still smelled like her, and though I hated to admit it, her flowery scent did have an effect on me. Bathed and dressed again, I carried her bag down, and we went to breakfast. On a post near the door of the cafe, there was a sign that said, “NO GUNS.”“Order me a sandwich with broke eggs and bacon rashers, and I’ll get supplies. We won’t be in another town for a week.”“I thought we were headed to Big Spring next.”“I’m not welcome there, so we’ll turn northwest. It’ll be a four day ride to Gail.”“We can eat somewhere else.”“There’s no need unless you want that.”Her eyes changed, becoming cool, and after thinking for a moment, she confidently said, “Eggs and bacon. Do you want the bread toasted?”I was walking the horses to the cafe when I heard her scream. I dropped the reins and ran, pushing past three men in the doorway.One man had her arm, and another was about to hit her. The blow never landed, as they both fell dead. It wasn’t the first time I’d shot men in the back. We were almost to the door when she pulled away, ran back to the table, and grabbed a paper package, that I realized was my sandwich.Nearly a mile from town, headed west, the church bell peeled. I’d heard the sound often enough to know a posse would be on our trail soon. I slowed down and looked for high ground, then cut south to a mesa, that would serve my purpose. By the time we were atop it, I could see the dust from at least a half dozen horses.With the sun dropping behind me, I pulled the Sharps rifle from my saddle, and lay down on the edge of the mesa. Putting a box of shells on the ground beside me, I looked through my field glasses, and waited for the posse to come into range of the death that awaited them. The first of them fell sideways from his saddle, sending the others scrambling to the ground, and running for cover. Their horses scattered as man and beast sought shelter from the terror I rained down on them.Every shot was an exercise in mathematics. I found shadows that didn’t belong, and calculated where their sources sought shelter in the brush. They drew it out, but one by one the posse died. The last shot echoed through the valley, drowned out by the mortal screams of a man who shouldn’t have hunted me.After, I picked up my shells, and she asked, “Are you sure they’re all dead?”“Yeah.”“All of them?” she asked, as she turned me over.“All of them.”Her fingers unbuckled my gun belt as the sunset overtook us. I realized she was about to make good on our bargain again.“It’s barely dusk.” I couldn’t believe I’d said it.She opened my trousers, said, “Shut up,” and took me in her mouth. When she had softened me, I pushed her dress up, and offered the same to her. I’d never done that to a woman, having only been with whores, but she was patient and taught the path to her pleasure. Soon, I realized it wasn’t her opening that mattered, as much as the bump above it. I enjoyed the task, and for the first time, I felt like I had some power over her. At least, until her thighs tightened around my neck, and threatened to suffocate me.We broke camp two hours before dawn, with her owing me eight more nights. Thankful for my good fortune, I never asked what happened in the cafe. We were headed into higher, colder country, and the warmth of her body would be welcome next to mine.She wouldn’t watch when I stripped the dead men of their money, and took anything we could use. She chastised me for robbing the dead, then rode ahead to wait for me. We were a mile away before she asked how much I had taken from them.“We need their money and grub more than they do.”“It’s a sin to rob the dead.”“I’ve read the Bible and I don’t remember that verse.”“Not all sins are written in the Bible. Some are things you should just know are wrong.”I turned in my saddle and stared at her, not sure I’d heard her right, but her blush told me I had.
©2016 Shawn Jones