rode toward Hetrick's , he was still watching. I could feel his eyes on me an d I'll admit I didn't like it. At a store on the edge of tow n I bought some ribbon for Liza, and I'd also saved he r a small gold nugget.
She ran out to the gate to see me, recognizing Ol d Blue from far down the road. She stepped up in my stirrup and rode that way up to the house. Mrs. Hetric k was at the door, drying her hands on her apron, and Hetrick came up from the corral, smiling a greeting. I fel t all choked up. I guess it was the first time anybod y felt good about seeing me come back. Most of my lif e I've been a stranger.
It was good to walk around the place again and to se e the horses. One of them, a tall Appalousa, followed m e along the fence, whinnying at me, much to Old Blue' s disgust.
While we waited for dinner and talked about th e horses, Hetrick suddenly asked, "Did you see Burdette?"
"I saw him."
"Bother you?"
"No."
"He wanted to buy a horse from me, but I turned hi m down. I've seen the way he treats his horses."
That gave me some satisfaction, but it worried me , too. I wouldn't want any of the horses I had broke n so carefully to get into the hands of Ollie Burdette, wh o was as Hetrick said, a hard man with a horse. But it worried me because I knew that Hetrick, a stiff-necked ma n and stern about such things, would not have hesitated t o tell Burdette what he thought.
It was pleasant inside the house, and Mrs. Hetric k put on a linen tablecloth and had the table fixed up rea l fancy. When I had my hair slicked down as much a s it would ever slick, which isn't much, I sat down to th e best supper I'd had.
Kipp rode in while I was there, all excited about th e gold I'd panned out, but I knew he wouldn't be so muc h excited by the work. It was a good supper and there wa s good talk around, and had I been their own son, I c ouldn't have been treated any better.
"That Burdette," Kipp said suddenly, "I don't thin k he's in your class. He's fast, all right, but not as fast a s you."
Hetrick frowned. He never liked talk about gun fighters , but Kipp was always talking of Clay Allison, the Cimarron gun fighter, or of the Earps, Bill Longley, Langfor d Peel, or John Bull.
"You'd match any of them," he said, his excitemen t showing. "I'd like to see you up against Hardin, or thi s Bonney feller, down in New Mexico.
"Why, Kipp," Mrs. Hetrick was horrified. "A bod y would think you'd like to see a man killed!"
He looked startled, and his face flushed. "It ain't that," h e said hurriedly, "It's just . . . well, sort of like . . . I d on't know," he finished lamely. "I just like to see who' s best."
Talk like that worried me some, and I didn't want an y more of it. Loose-talking folks have promoted more tha n one fight that would never have happened otherwise.
Kipp wasn't the only one. When I was around tow n I'd heard some talk, folks speculating on who would win , Burdette or me. The talk excited them. It wasn't tha t they were bloodthirsty, just that they liked a contest , and. they just didn't think that a man would have to di e to decide it.
Or maybe they did. Maybe they figured the sooner w e killed each other off, the better.
It nagged at a man's mind. Was he better than me?
I didn't want to be better than anybody, not at all. Bu t it worried me some because I wanted to live.
Even nice people warned me, never realizing that eve n their warnings were an incitement. It was on their minds , on all their minds, so how could it be different with me?
Or with Burdette? The sooner I got out of town, the better.
"I'm taking out," I said suddenly. "I figure to go East.
Have a ride on the cars, maybe. I want to see St. Loui s or Kansas City. Maybe New Orleans."
"Will you look up your family?" Mrs. Hetrick asked.
"I reckon not. They never tried to find me."
"You don't know," she protested. "Maybe they thin k you're dead. Maybe they don't even know about you."
"Just as well. They didn't set much store by Ma, o r
She ran out to the gate to see me, recognizing Ol d Blue from far down the road. She stepped up in my stirrup and rode that way up to the house. Mrs. Hetric k was at the door, drying her hands on her apron, and Hetrick came up from the corral, smiling a greeting. I fel t all choked up. I guess it was the first time anybod y felt good about seeing me come back. Most of my lif e I've been a stranger.
It was good to walk around the place again and to se e the horses. One of them, a tall Appalousa, followed m e along the fence, whinnying at me, much to Old Blue' s disgust.
While we waited for dinner and talked about th e horses, Hetrick suddenly asked, "Did you see Burdette?"
"I saw him."
"Bother you?"
"No."
"He wanted to buy a horse from me, but I turned hi m down. I've seen the way he treats his horses."
That gave me some satisfaction, but it worried me , too. I wouldn't want any of the horses I had broke n so carefully to get into the hands of Ollie Burdette, wh o was as Hetrick said, a hard man with a horse. But it worried me because I knew that Hetrick, a stiff-necked ma n and stern about such things, would not have hesitated t o tell Burdette what he thought.
It was pleasant inside the house, and Mrs. Hetric k put on a linen tablecloth and had the table fixed up rea l fancy. When I had my hair slicked down as much a s it would ever slick, which isn't much, I sat down to th e best supper I'd had.
Kipp rode in while I was there, all excited about th e gold I'd panned out, but I knew he wouldn't be so muc h excited by the work. It was a good supper and there wa s good talk around, and had I been their own son, I c ouldn't have been treated any better.
"That Burdette," Kipp said suddenly, "I don't thin k he's in your class. He's fast, all right, but not as fast a s you."
Hetrick frowned. He never liked talk about gun fighters , but Kipp was always talking of Clay Allison, the Cimarron gun fighter, or of the Earps, Bill Longley, Langfor d Peel, or John Bull.
"You'd match any of them," he said, his excitemen t showing. "I'd like to see you up against Hardin, or thi s Bonney feller, down in New Mexico.
"Why, Kipp," Mrs. Hetrick was horrified. "A bod y would think you'd like to see a man killed!"
He looked startled, and his face flushed. "It ain't that," h e said hurriedly, "It's just . . . well, sort of like . . . I d on't know," he finished lamely. "I just like to see who' s best."
Talk like that worried me some, and I didn't want an y more of it. Loose-talking folks have promoted more tha n one fight that would never have happened otherwise.
Kipp wasn't the only one. When I was around tow n I'd heard some talk, folks speculating on who would win , Burdette or me. The talk excited them. It wasn't tha t they were bloodthirsty, just that they liked a contest , and. they just didn't think that a man would have to di e to decide it.
Or maybe they did. Maybe they figured the sooner w e killed each other off, the better.
It nagged at a man's mind. Was he better than me?
I didn't want to be better than anybody, not at all. Bu t it worried me some because I wanted to live.
Even nice people warned me, never realizing that eve n their warnings were an incitement. It was on their minds , on all their minds, so how could it be different with me?
Or with Burdette? The sooner I got out of town, the better.
"I'm taking out," I said suddenly. "I figure to go East.
Have a ride on the cars, maybe. I want to see St. Loui s or Kansas City. Maybe New Orleans."
"Will you look up your family?" Mrs. Hetrick asked.
"I reckon not. They never tried to find me."
"You don't know," she protested. "Maybe they thin k you're dead. Maybe they don't even know about you."
"Just as well. They didn't set much store by Ma, o r
Similar Books
