“Guess that rumor was true, too.”
“You asked about Barrett. What the hell do you want to know about him?” Nick growled.
Glancing around nervously, Gil hooked his thumb toward an alley. “It’d be best if we talked in pri—”
“We’ll talk right here,” Nick said in a tone that made Gil flinch. “Say what you came to say and do it quick.”
“You were his friend. Cobb’s, I mean.”
“Yeah.”
“Word is that you may be the one who gave him the Reaper’s Fee.”
Nick’s brow furrowed as he drilled straight through Gil’s skull with his eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, unable to recall Barrett ever using that term.
Leaning forward on the balls of his feet, Gil said, “You buried him with the money that was stolen on his last job. Some folks say you helped him steal it. Some say you were the one to bury him, since there weren’t nobody alive who’d care enough about Cobb to…well…to go through all that trouble.”
“You talk like you know an awful lot.”
Gil nodded and grinned as if he was about to reach around and pat himself on the back.
“What’s this ‘Reaper’s Fee’?” Nick asked.
“It’s just the name someone came up with for what’s supposed to be in that coffin with Barrett Cobb. You know…like the money he’d pay to the Reaper when he came a-callin’.”
Nick’s face might as well have been carved out of stone. His expression was a cold slap that knocked Gil’s grin right off his face.
“Even though I don’t believe you had anything to do with that robbery,” Gil said as he glanced down at the gun hanging from Nick’s battered holster, “my bet is that you’d know something about it. I hear you were the only man Cobb called his friend…although there are some folks who say you might have been the one to kill him.”
“Barrett was like my brother,” Nick said.
“Hell, I’d like to kill my brother every now and then. Ain’t nothing wrong with that.”
Despite everything running through Nick’s mind at that moment, he couldn’t help but look at Gil with outright confusion. “Just who the hell are you, and where the hell did you hear all of this?”
“Didn’t the lady tell you? I’m Switchback Gil.”
Nick recognized the tone in Gil’s voice, as well as the arrogant posture that meant that Gil fully expected his name to strike a chord with anyone who heard it. Seeing that proud display made Nick feel as if he were looking at a faded picture of himself, back when he was young and full of his own brand of hellfire.
“That name don’t mean shit to me, boy,” Nick said. “Now tell me who filled your head with all of those rumors.”
“Word’s been getting around about that stash you buried. The company that owned them jewels has been out looking for them and they say you were wrapped up in the robbery.”
“Folks say I’m wrapped up in plenty of things.”
“Are they all lying?” Gil asked.
Nick didn’t respond to that right away. As the memories flooded through his mind, Nick had to stand there and let them run their course before he said, “Not all of them.”
“Then you know what I’m talking about. But that was in the past,” Gil quickly added. “A blind man could see you ain’t in any condition to be a threat no more. That’s what I was trying to tell the folks that came around talking about them jewels.”
“How thoughtful of you,” Nick said dryly.
“There ain’t many men as thoughtful as me. Most are just chasing off after the tales that are being spread without doing any scouting ahead. I hear there’s been graves dug up all the way from here to the Dakotas and everywhere in between.”
“That’s not a very wise way to go about things. Not with so many Indians in those parts.”
Gil smirked and snapped his fingers. “That’s exactly what I thought.”
“Are you going to tell me why you came out here to waste so much of my time?” Nick asked.
To Nick’s surprise, Gil actually
“You asked about Barrett. What the hell do you want to know about him?” Nick growled.
Glancing around nervously, Gil hooked his thumb toward an alley. “It’d be best if we talked in pri—”
“We’ll talk right here,” Nick said in a tone that made Gil flinch. “Say what you came to say and do it quick.”
“You were his friend. Cobb’s, I mean.”
“Yeah.”
“Word is that you may be the one who gave him the Reaper’s Fee.”
Nick’s brow furrowed as he drilled straight through Gil’s skull with his eyes. “What’s that supposed to mean?” he asked, unable to recall Barrett ever using that term.
Leaning forward on the balls of his feet, Gil said, “You buried him with the money that was stolen on his last job. Some folks say you helped him steal it. Some say you were the one to bury him, since there weren’t nobody alive who’d care enough about Cobb to…well…to go through all that trouble.”
“You talk like you know an awful lot.”
Gil nodded and grinned as if he was about to reach around and pat himself on the back.
“What’s this ‘Reaper’s Fee’?” Nick asked.
“It’s just the name someone came up with for what’s supposed to be in that coffin with Barrett Cobb. You know…like the money he’d pay to the Reaper when he came a-callin’.”
Nick’s face might as well have been carved out of stone. His expression was a cold slap that knocked Gil’s grin right off his face.
“Even though I don’t believe you had anything to do with that robbery,” Gil said as he glanced down at the gun hanging from Nick’s battered holster, “my bet is that you’d know something about it. I hear you were the only man Cobb called his friend…although there are some folks who say you might have been the one to kill him.”
“Barrett was like my brother,” Nick said.
“Hell, I’d like to kill my brother every now and then. Ain’t nothing wrong with that.”
Despite everything running through Nick’s mind at that moment, he couldn’t help but look at Gil with outright confusion. “Just who the hell are you, and where the hell did you hear all of this?”
“Didn’t the lady tell you? I’m Switchback Gil.”
Nick recognized the tone in Gil’s voice, as well as the arrogant posture that meant that Gil fully expected his name to strike a chord with anyone who heard it. Seeing that proud display made Nick feel as if he were looking at a faded picture of himself, back when he was young and full of his own brand of hellfire.
“That name don’t mean shit to me, boy,” Nick said. “Now tell me who filled your head with all of those rumors.”
“Word’s been getting around about that stash you buried. The company that owned them jewels has been out looking for them and they say you were wrapped up in the robbery.”
“Folks say I’m wrapped up in plenty of things.”
“Are they all lying?” Gil asked.
Nick didn’t respond to that right away. As the memories flooded through his mind, Nick had to stand there and let them run their course before he said, “Not all of them.”
“Then you know what I’m talking about. But that was in the past,” Gil quickly added. “A blind man could see you ain’t in any condition to be a threat no more. That’s what I was trying to tell the folks that came around talking about them jewels.”
“How thoughtful of you,” Nick said dryly.
“There ain’t many men as thoughtful as me. Most are just chasing off after the tales that are being spread without doing any scouting ahead. I hear there’s been graves dug up all the way from here to the Dakotas and everywhere in between.”
“That’s not a very wise way to go about things. Not with so many Indians in those parts.”
Gil smirked and snapped his fingers. “That’s exactly what I thought.”
“Are you going to tell me why you came out here to waste so much of my time?” Nick asked.
To Nick’s surprise, Gil actually
Similar Books
