Nemesis by Yogerst Joe;

Author:Yogerst, Joe;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Blank Slate Press
Published: 2018-10-22T16:00:00+00:00

21

CRADOC WAS EATING at his usual late-night haunt, the cook wagon outside the County Courthouse, when he spotted her at one of the other tables, sitting alone as she read a book in the dim light of a lantern. Emma Lee Dawes. Her face flickering in the light. Her eyes tracking back and forth across the pages.

“Good evening, ma’am,” he said hovering over her table. And when she looked up from the book, he tipped his hat.

“Marshal,” she said, surprised to see him. “You’re up awful late.”

“So are you.”

“I’m a night owl from way back. Never get to bed before midnight, even when I got nothing to do.”

“I seem to recall you’re an early bird, too.”

Emma Lee shrugged. “I’ve never been a big sleeper. But it don’t seem to harm me.” She flashed a wide smile. “You eatin’ or just passing through?”

“Waiting for my order.”

“I’m waiting for mine, too.” Her eyes flared with an idea. “We could eat together.”

“I don’t wanna impose,” he said politely, when in fact he did.

“Wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want the company.”

So Cradoc pulled up a chair. “What are you reading?”

She held up the cover—Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll. “Mrs. Earp says it’s brand new. Not many folks have read it yet.”

Cradoc pursed his lips, nodding approval, astonished to catch her with yet another new book. “Any good?” he asked.

“It’s a mite hard to read at times. An awful lot of words I don’t understand. But the story’s a hoot.” She sat up straight on her stool, excited to tell him. “It’s about this English gal—her name’s Alice—who follows a white rabbit down this hole to a place called Wonderland, where most of the people are made from poker cards. Well, I guess they’re not cards. More like cards that come alive. There’s also this little mouse that falls asleep all the time and this crazy fella with lots of hats.” Then suddenly she stopped. “I’m boring you.”

“Not at all,” he said. And he was telling the truth. Far from being bored, he was intrigued by her passion. Such a change from the jaded souls he normally came across. “You seem to like books more than most folks.”

“Never thought about it, but I guess so,” she answered with a smile.

“You pick that up on your own?”

“My grandparents were big readers. Back in Mizzura.”

Cradoc wanted to ask an obvious follow-up question. But she seemed to read his mind.

“They’re the ones who raised me. Ma died giving birth to me, and Daddy ran off. I never knew him.”

“Sorry to hear that,” Cradoc told her.

“It weren’t a bad thing, getting raised by my grandparents. They taught me how to read and all.”

“Are they still around?”

“No. They died six, seven years ago.” Enough time had passed that sadness no longer figured in the revelation. No big deal. Just a statement of fact.

“So you’ve been on your own?”

“Since I was thirteen,” she confessed.

“Holy smokes,” he said. “How did you get by?”

Emma Lee wondered if she should tell him or not.

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