The Wall Lake Mystery

Chapter 44: A Quiet Moment

Lawler volunteered to stay behind and keep watch over Crowe that night.

"Thank you both for what you've done for us here," Lawler said.

Holmes extended a hand. "You too were invaluable," he said, giving Lawler a rare flash of a smile as they shook hands.

"About time you fellas got back to town," Lawler said to me.

I shook his hand as well. "I suppose it is."

"This ain't 'goodbye,' gents," said Lawler, with a stern look. "If I hear you've left the country without visiting me again, you'll never hear the end of it."

I laughed. "No danger of that, my good man."

We bid him good evening and returned to the station. The ticket window was shut, and a young man was preparing to lock the doors, but Holmes convinced a man to rent us his wagon for the evening, and Holmes drove us back to Wall Lake. The jostling was painful; one rut in the road jolted me enough that I was unable to silence a soft groan before it escaped my lips. Holmes turned to look at me, brows low over his eyes.

"A 'scratch' indeed," he said. "Next time, do not lie to me."

"I did not wish to be left behind," I replied.

He nodded. "I know, old fellow. How bad is it?"

"I should only need a few stitches, I think, though I will be a bit tired from all this blood loss, and these clothes will give the laundress nightmares."

When we arrived in Wall Lake, we learned that the two horses fortunately had found their way back to the stable, but Kelly would have to return for them himself, as the boy, quite understandably, would not let us near.

We continued south out of town to the Kelly's. They had brought my doctor's bag inside and the Sheriff was lying on the couch while Jack and his parents stood restlessly.

Jack nearly jumped out of his skin when we entered. "Did you do it? Crowe's in jail?"

I grinned. "We did."

The Sheriff clapped his hands and made to rise, then grimaced and resumed his supine position. While Holmes and Kelly went out to bring the borrowed horses into the barn, I approached Sheriff Sweet and checked him for injuries. There were no broken bones, but his arm was bleeding again, and he had two bruised ribs. I patched him up as best I could, then took a seat and replaced the bandages on my side. All the while, Holmes was telling the others what occurred since we left the Kelly's barn. We kept our voices low, but one by one, little footsteps were heard down the hall and soon all three pyjama-clad children were peering round the corner, to my amusement and their mother's dismay. She attempted to shoo them gently back to bed, but they would not be deterred.

Frank tottered in and tugged on my sleeve. "Did ya get the bad fellas? Are they in jail?"

"They surely are," I said, then frowned and turned to the Sheriff.

"What of Wright?" I asked. "Has he been secured somewhere?"

Sheriff Sweet nodded. "I have a cousin on the edge of town here who agreed to keep him handcuffed and tied in a spare bedroom till I can take him to jail, which I'd reckoned on doing tonight, but I think I may wait until the morning."

I yawned and checked the time. It was only a quarter past twelve, but it felt more like three in the morning.

"I believe it's time for us to return to the inn," I said.

"You two will have to fill me in on the details tomorrow so I can get all the damn paperwork straight," said the Sheriff. "Des Moines is going to want to know what happened here, so it doesn't happen again, what with Crowe impersonating one of their detectives."