Manhunter by Jeffrey Poston

Author:Jeffrey Poston
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lomas and Turner Press
Published: 2022-04-27T19:29:56+00:00

Chapter 13

Twelve Years Ago

Colorado nights were as beautiful and rawboned as the days, only colder. It was early January, and the creek was all but frozen solid. The whole town of Rocky Ford would soon close down until the April spring melt. Everyone would leave except the gold seekers and the Indian traders.

When Rocky Ford Creek froze up, the whole town froze up as well, though most people had already packed up and headed south. Tonight, Jason waited and watched for the man he’d been searching over a year for. He knew the man was here somewhere, and he knew he’d recognize the face instantly. Though the gunfight with the men who killed his family seemed to happen in a blur, the image of the survivor was burned into his mind. The man had red hair and mustache; short, thin build; half of one ear missing; narrow, brown eyes; and a hawklike nose. The face he would never forget belonged to the one man in the world that Jason wanted to kill. Yet he was the one man who could clear his name of murder.

The man named Scoot finally left the saloon, pausing to wrap his sheepskin coat tight, collar high. He shoved his hands deep in his pockets, hat low over his eyes. He didn’t seem to notice Jason until he almost walked into him.

“Hey,” Jason said quietly.

Scoot stopped and studied Jason as he stood leaning against the wall with one boot heel propped against the wall, knee bent outward. Jason also wore a heavy, sheepskin snow coat and had both hands in his pockets. He kept his face and eyes shaded by the brim of his hat.

“Well? What do you want, stranger?” Scoot said after a moment.

“I’ve been looking for you for over a year.”

“And who might you be?”

“Your name’s Scoot, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, that’s what my friends call me.”

“My name’s Jason Peares.”

Jason stepped out of the shadows and pushed his hat back on his head so Scoot could see his face. At first, Scoot just stood there not knowing who he was talking to. He gazed into fierce-looking, clear, brown eyes that burned into his own. Recognition slowly dawned on him. His eyes widened, and his jaw dropped open. Fear replaced surprise, and Jason pulled his gun from his right coat pocket.

“You’re the only man who can clear my name. All you have to do is tell the truth to the sheriff in this town about what happened in Malden. If you do, you’ll live. If you don’t, I’m gonna shoot you. What’ll it be?”

“You think I had something to do with what happened to your family. Well, I didn’t. I never killed anybody. That was Max and Daniel. Honest, I never touched them. I was just riding along with the gang. I swear.”

Jason stepped close to Scoot, grabbed him by the front of his coat, and shoved the barrel of his gun under his chin.

“I don’t care about the others, because they’re already dead. You make the difference between me living as a fugitive or a free man.

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