Chapter Twenty-Three
Jeb hated the tension in the air. It was thick, palpable and it drove him mad. For the life of him, he couldn’t figure out exactly what everyone was so damn mad about. They acted as if Gill had suddenly become the enemy or betrayed them and that wasn’t the way Jeb saw the situation at all. Gill had come clean to them and had no intention of doing anything that would harm any of them. He had made choices and decisions before he’d truly come to accept who he was. Jeb couldn’t see any reason to judge or condemn the man for his actions in the past. Now was what mattered.
And just now, Gill was riding tall in his saddle right at Jeb’s side. Gill and Pete both claimed to have been good rangers and now they would become good outlaws. Jeb had a feeling that Gill would succeed at absolutely anything he did because the man didn’t have it in him to fail.
Jeb was pulled from his thoughts when a bullet slammed into the dirt directly in front of his gelding causing the beast to rear. Instantly Gill moved his around to the front and drew his revolver as his eyes scanned every direction.
“It’s just Swilly,” Jeb assured him, grumbling as he fought to regain control of his horse.
“I thought Swilly was a friend,” Gill replied. “Why the hell is he shooting at you?”
Jeb sighed. “He’s not shooting at us… he’s just shooting in our general direction to let us know to stop. He doesn’t let anyone ride all the way in without coming out to meet them first.”
“Hell, I don’t know, he almost hit you that time,” Craig countered.
“Maybe he can smell lawmen,” Willie added.
“Lawmen have been known to stink from time to time,” Pete chimed in and Jeb saw the way that both Willie and Craig fought to hold back their laughter and remind themselves that they were angry with the newest members of their group.
Jeb squinted into the sunset as Jane and Wyatt rounded up the cattle who had spooked at the sound of gunfire. He saw Swilly coming their way and smiled. He’d always liked that one-legged, foul-mouthed, short-tempered crook of a man.
“”Well howdy there, Jeb! I about got ya, didn’t I?” Swilly mused as he rode in close and scratched at his patchy black beard.
Jeb inclined his head slightly. “That you did, Swilly. It’s a good thing your aim hasn’t gotten any better with the drinking and old age.”
Swilly laughed heartily, his breaths raspy as he swatted his thigh. “Well that sure as hell is the truth. So, what have ya brought me this….”
Swilly’s voice trailed off as his gaze landed on Gill and his blotchy face paled considerably. Jeb looked toward Gill as well and realized there was recognition in both men’s eyes. In a flash, Swilly drew his gun and aimed it straight at Gill. Nearly just as quickly, Pete, Jeb, Wyatt, Jane and Craig had sights set on Swilly.
“You might want to just put that gun down, Swilly,” Craig warned while Wyatt nodded in whole-hearted agreement.
Gill stared at them both as if they’d sprouted second heads and then the corners of his full lips curved slightly as his brown eyes lit up. He turned his attention back toward Swilly who hadn’t yet been convinced to lower his weapon. “I’m not here to cause trouble,” Gill insisted.
Swilly growled. “I oughta kill you and then put a bullet in Jeb for bringing you here! A Texas Ranger, Jeb! You brought a damn Texas Ranger to my camp!”
Jeb was surprised. “You two know each other?” He glanced at Gill. “You never said you knew him…”
Gill nodded. “That’s because I’d never heard him called Swilly before. I always knew him as Chuck Taylor.”
Jeb nearly laughed out loud when Gill suddenly twisted in the saddle, swung out his foot, caught Swilly in the wrist and sent the man’s gun clattering to the ground.
“Dammit!” Swilly exclaimed as he shook his hand and clutched onto his abused arm. “What the hell was that?”
“Me, tired of having a gun aimed at me,” Gill replied with a shrug. One by one all the other guns were put away. “Now, I’m not a ranger anymore and even when I was I never came after you…”
“You weren’t quite wanted enough to warrant the likes of the dynamic duo Pete Bardlow and Gilliam Tomlinson coming for your backside,” Pete chimed in.
Swilly glared at Gill a few moments longer and then sighed and nodded. “Well, it’s about damn time you gave up that Ranger nonsense. It never was no fair to your mama, you out dirtying up your family’s good name while she’s trying to make a living patching up decent folks….”
Gill simply shook his head while Jeb chuckled. The decent folks Swilly spoke of happened to be crooks, outlaws, bandits and rogues but Jeb could certainly see how Gill’s past profession would have made Maria’s job more difficult…not many criminals wanted to go to the mother of a Texas Ranger for their doctoring needs--which explained why Maria had always lied about where her son was and what he was doing.
“So can we ride on in with these cattle and goods or do we need to find another two-bit crook to sell it all off to?” Jeb inquired, swiping his shirt sleeve across his sweaty brow before adjusting his hat.
Swilly shook his head and his small black eyes lit with amusement. “”I’m the only two-bit crook you’ll ever need, Jeb. And I trust ya. If you say these boys are improving their lifestyle than I’ll take your word for it.”
“At least someone does,” Jeb mumbled, throwing a glare in his brother and Willie’s directions. They simply offered sheepish grins and became quite interested in the cattle.
“Well come along then.” Swilly motioned for everyone to follow him and then pointed at his gun. “Gill, bring that along since you’re the one who knocked it in the damn dirt. I can’t get on and off this thing too easy with one leg.”
The group followed after Swilly and Jeb attempted to ignore the conversation going on between his brother and Wyatt. Craig kept mumbling under his breath while Wyatt waved his hand animatedly and his mouth moved a mile a minute.
Finally Craig sighed. “I don’t know how he lost his damn leg, Wyatt! I wish you’d quit bringing that up every time we see him! You just don’t go asking a person things like that!”
Jeb chuckled. “Go ahead and ask him, Wyatt. Swilly loves talking about the day he bet his leg in a poker game.”
“Poker game?” Gill demanded as everyone else shook their heads. “That can’t be true.”
Swilly jerked his gun from Gill’s hand and glared at Jeb. “It’s true, dammit, but I don’t like talking about it so leave it be.”
“And who exactly were you playing poker with that took your leg?” Pete questioned. “And what the hell did he do with it?”
“I wasn’t exactly in the frame of mind to ask questions once he was done and the fella was a damn injun named Raindancer. Hell, for all I know he probably made my leg into a necklace and wore the thing around for decoration.”
Gill and Pete both began to laugh. Jeb, as always, was captivated by the deep, rumbling sound as it came from Gill’s lips and the way his brown eyes lit up and the lines in his cheeks crinkled--damn, he had it bad.
“What the hell you all laughing for?” Swilly demanded as his tent and make-shift corral came into view.
“If it’s any consolation to you, Raindancer is dead,” Gill assured the man.
Swilly raised a bushy brow. “How do you know that?”
Gill swatted at a fly buzzing around his head. “Because we killed him and then smelled his rotting ass next to us all the way back to the station.”
Swilly was quiet a moment then chuckled. “It probably served the man right. He always was a mean, crazy bastard.” Then Swilly frowned. “You didn’t happen to see my leg did you? It’s been ten years but I still miss it.”
Pete shook his head and wrinkled his nose. “Sure didn’t. But, then again, Gill fell through the roof and took out half the cabin so it’s possible we just missed it.”
Jeb frowned. “You fell through a roof.”
Gill rubbed at his neck and shrugged. “I was giving Pete a shooting lane.”
“And it worked too… that’s why we’re the dynamic duo,” Pete winked. “And he’s the brains of the operation.”
Swilly clicked his tongue as he got down from his horse and adjusted the wooden stump below his knee. “If that’s the case, it’s no damn wonder you quit. You’re lucky to still be alive.” He turned his attention to Jeb as Gill glared at him and chuckles filled the air. “Now, Jeb, let’s get down to business. If I know you, you’ve got places to go and people to relieve of their worldly possessions.”