McAllister's Last Ride by Bill Cartwright & 9780719823947

Author:Bill Cartwright & 9780719823947 [Cartwright, Bill]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9780719823947
Publisher: Robert Hale Fiction
Published: 2023-01-18T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 7

The next morning, Marshal McAllister’s black mood had evaporated, leaving him feeling cheerful and ready to track down Pete Atkins and try his luck against the man. As he put on his clothes, he muttered to himself, ‘First, catch your hare,’ for he had not the remotest idea where Atkins might be found. It was a fair bet that the sheriff would know of the likely whereabouts of a famous killer and badman like Pete Atkins, and so the first step after breakfast would be to pay a call on Sheriff Parker.

Parker was delighted to see the marshal, surprisingly delighted. In fact his effusiveness was puzzling and a little suspicious to McAllister. The two men hardly knew each other, and yet here he was being greeted like Parker’s long-lost brother. He could not rightly call to mind when last he had received a more rapturous welcome than that given to him in the sheriff’s office. He was introduced to Parker’s deputy as ‘that well known lawman’. Parker reminded his deputy how often he must have heard him, Parker, talking about his old friend Brent McAllister. The young man looked a little perplexed, and it was McAllister’s opinion that Parker had never mentioned his name to the deputy in his life. Which left him asking himself why Parker was so keen to represent himself as the marshal’s best friend. The resolution to this mystery was not long in coming.

As soon as he began to enquire about what Sheriff Parker might know of the current location of Pete Atkins, Parker started and stared in amazement at McAllister. ‘That is the hell of a coincidence!’ he exclaimed. ‘I was about to broach that self-same subject on my own account. Say, is there something here that I should be knowing about? Is this by way of being an official visit?’

‘Nothing of the sort,’ said McAllister, ‘I am taking a short vacation and heard last night that Atkins is in town. He and I have had dealings in the past. I thought that I’d look him out today and see if he holds any grudges against me. Clear the air, so to speak.’

‘That sounds like a load of crap, Marshal, begging your pardon,’ said Parker bluntly, ‘You don’t “clear the air” with a fellow like Atkins. If you have crossed him in the past, he will take any chance to kill you, were you to be foolish enough to cross his path again.’ He looked enquiringly at McAllister, who said nothing. Parker continued, ‘I know damned well that you are not a fool, and so you know all this better than me. If you are set on meeting Atkins this day, it can only mean that you hope to kill him.’ He looked hard at McAllister. ‘Or, and this is a thought, you don’t care much if you get yourself killed. You are playing some game of your own, I can see that clear enough.’

‘This is nothing to the purpose,’ said McAllister, ‘You aren’t being altogether straight with me either.

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