Texas Timber War by Jon Sharpe

to you.’’ She paused, then said, ‘‘I have to admit, even though I’ll worry about you trying to find those pirates, I’m glad to know you’re going to be staying around here for a while.’’
    â€˜â€˜You won’t be leaving right away, either,’’ Fargo pointed out. ‘‘Kiley told me that it’s going to be at least a week before Captain Russell can assume command of that riverboat again, and even then, he’s going to need a good helmsman.’’
    â€˜â€˜Well, I can think of worse places to spend some time than Jefferson. It’s a nice town. There are several decent saloons where I can find a game.’’
    â€˜â€˜You plan to gamble?’’
    â€˜â€˜It’s how I make my living, Skye, remember?’’
    Fargo hadn’t forgotten. And as pleasant as it had been spending time with Isabel in bed, he had a feeling he would enjoy sitting across a poker table from her, too. She would be a good competitor.
    After breakfast, she wanted to go see Andy Russell, so Fargo volunteered to walk with her over to Dr. Fearn’s house. He wanted to talk to Russell about the river pirates. Since the captain steamed up and down the bayou on a regular basis, he ought to know the country around here pretty well. Maybe he could give Fargo an idea of where to start looking for Red Mike McShane.
    They left the Excelsior House and started strolling toward the doctor’s place. As they made their way, Fargo’s instincts warned him that he was being watched. He turned his head quickly and caught a glimpse of a man ducking around a corner into an alley between Austin and Lafayette Streets. Fargo didn’t recognize the man and didn’t really see anything except a shock of black hair under a battered old hat and a black patch over one eye.
    He would know the fella if he ever saw him again, though, and if it became obvious that the one-eyed man was trailing him . . .
    Well, in that case, Fargo thought, he would just have to find out why.

5
    Dr. John Fearn was a gaunt man with white hair, deep-set eyes, and a slight British accent. The accent didn’t surprise Fargo. Folks from all over the world wound up on the American frontier.
    â€˜â€˜Try not to tire him out,’’ Fearn cautioned as he led Fargo and Isabel into a room where Captain Andy Russell sat up in a bed. ‘‘He lost a great deal of blood, you know.’’
    Russell grunted and said, ‘‘They ought to know. They were right there in the middle of it.’’ He lifted his good arm and held out the hand toward Fargo. ‘‘You must be the fella who saved my life. Isabel told me all about it.’’
    Fargo shook hands with the captain. ‘‘Skye Fargo,’’ he introduced himself. ‘‘And I reckon I just came along at the right time to pitch in and give you a hand.’’
    â€˜â€˜If you hadn’t, I likely would’ve bled to death and McShane would’ve looted all the cargo on my boat. No telling what would have happened to poor Isabel here.’’
    She lifted her chin defiantly. ‘‘If those river rats had tried to lay a finger on me, they would’ve had a fight on their hands.’’
    Russell laughed. ‘‘I’ll just bet they would have!’’
    Fargo pulled up chairs for him and Isabel, and they sat down beside the bed. Russell went on, ‘‘I remember a little about what happened after I got hit, but not much. Where’d you come from, Mr. Fargo?’’
    For the next few minutes, Fargo told the captain about how he had heard the shots as he was riding through the forest and had gone to investigate.
    â€˜â€˜That was lucky for me and everybody on the Bayou Princess ,’’ Russell said.
    â€˜â€˜It certainly was,’’ Isabel agreed, and Fargo thought he saw a faint blush on her face for a moment. She was probably