The Railroad War by Wesley Ellis Page A

leverage by pushing harder on the elbow pressing into his midsection. He tried to pull away, but his biceps were useless with his arm locked in the downward twist, and when he tried to wrest free, the tortured nerves in his hand sent shooting pains up his arm and shoulder.
    Jessie maintained the hold in a static position for only a few seconds. She yanked Jug’s wrist with a downward twist that sent fresh pain up his arm as both his elbow and the socket of his shoulder were strained into a position that hurt him past enduring. The hulking rowdy dropped to his knees on the sidewalk. Jessie released her hold, stepped around Jug, and moved past him to the street where Bobby stood, his mouth open, gaping at the kneeling, moaning rowdies.
    Ki took Jug’s pistol from its holster; the big man was too absorbed in his own pain to notice what was happening. Ki threw the gun on the roof where he’d already tossed Slip’s weapon. He picked up the suitcases and nodded to Jessie. She pressed her hand on Bobby’s shoulder, and the three resumed their interrupted walk to the center of town. The entire encounter had occurred so quickly that the other men on the veranda were still sitting on the benches where they’d been lounging, staring at the backs of Jessie, Ki, and Bobby as they walked leisurely along the street in the growing dusk.

Chapter 5
    Bobby walked as silently as Jessie and Ki for a half-dozen yards, then his curiosity bubbled over. “How’d you and Ki do what you just did, Miss Jessie? Why, you took care of those two men before they knew what hit ‘em! And they both had guns!”
    â€œA gun is only as good as the reflexes of the man carrying it, Bobby,” Ki said. “Jessie and I just moved faster than they did.”
    â€œWell, it sure was something to see!” the youth exclaimed. “Could you show me those holds you used, Ki?”
    â€œOf course. But the holds are only good if your entire body is trained, and your mind prepared.”
    â€œJust the same, I’d like to know how to use them, Ki. They sure give a fellow an edge in a fight!”
    â€œThere’ll be time for Ki to show you, Bobby,” Jessie said. She looked up the street. “Is your grandfather’s house very far from here?”
    â€œNo, ma‘am. Just a little way. We’re almost to the town square, and grandpa’s house is just on the other side of it.”
    The town of Hidden Valley reminded her of some of the old villages in the New England states she’d visited. It was a neat town, but not a large one, and in the part of it Jessie and Ki saw as they followed Bobby, there were no signs that it was growing. None of the houses they passed were new. They were spaced widely apart from one another, surrounded by lawns and flowerbeds.
    When they reached the square, Jessie was again reminded of New England. An uncompromisingly rectangular two-story brick building stood isolated in an area of green lawn and bore a sign above its double doors that said it was the town courthouse. A brick walk led to the entrance, the walk circling around a low, grassy mound on which a small brass cannon stood, a pyramid of cannonballs beside it.
    Bobby pointed to the cannon. “I guess you’ve heard about General John C. Fremont, Miss Jessie? That’s his cannon.”
    â€œOf course I’ve heard of him. He was almost elected President once. But how did the cannon get to Hidden Valley? I don’t remember General Fremont fighting any battles near here.”
    â€œHe wasn’t coming here at all, Miss Jessie. He was leading his men over the mountains in winter, and they left the cannon up there when a storm caught them. A miner found it, and—well, I don’t exactly know how it got here.”
    â€œThat’s very interesting,” Jessie said absently. She was looking around the square. Four stores and a bank stood with vacant lots between them on two of four