Ralph Compton Vigilante Dawn

Chapter 1

Flat Pass, Wyoming, 1884

Some men had families. Others had their work. While most folks had both, they could never love them the same. Early in his life, Jarrett Pekoe made his choice and never looked back. He loved his kin with all his heart, but all of his sweat, blood, and soul had been poured into the Lazy J Ranch. It was a small operation. From careful planning, hiring on the best hands, and building partnerships spanning several states, his ranch didn’t need to be large to make a profit. It had taken years to make certain he was the only rancher driving his herd to some of the most selective buyers, and now Jarrett could reap his reward.

It was a cool spring day and the sun was high in the sky as Jarrett rode the perimeter of his land. Although his official task was to make sure the fence had been repaired in three spots that had rotted away, he barely kept one eye on the wooden rails. His gaze wandered along the horizon, savoring a comfort that could only be granted by contented solitude. Years ago, he’d been a hired hand who needed to make the rounds without taking a moment to lift his eyes from where they needed to be. When he’d ridden as a regulator at the Hard Luck spread up in Montana, his days were filled with chasing rustlers and rounding up strays. Naturally plenty of other men working the same jobs at those same places took time to indulge in simpler pleasures. These days, they were still at those jobs while Jarrett had clawed his way up to being the man who slept in the big house on his own patch of land.

Just as a smirk had gotten dangerously close to becoming a smile on his face, Jarrett spotted a portion of fence that didn’t quite meet his standards. He immediately pulled back on his reins and climbed down from his saddle.

Easy, Twitch, he said while patting the white nose of his otherwise brown gelding. Just checking to see if I need to tan anyone’s hide when I get back.

Judging by how much the horse shook his head and shifted on his feet, one might think the animal was worried that it was his job on the line. Of course, that very thing was how he’d earned his name. All of the fidgeting in the world, however, wouldn’t have dimmed Jarrett’s view of the horse he’d ridden since his regulator days in Montana.

Knowing his horse didn’t need to be tied up, Jarrett approached the fence and placed his hand on the top rail. He gave it a shove, gripped it with both hands, and put his whole body into it as he shook the sturdy posts. When he kicked the lowest rail, he scowled down at the length of wood.

I suppose it’ll do, he grumbled. As he climbed back into his saddle, he was still thinking of new ways to improve the fence’s longevity so even fewer repairs would need to be made in the future.

All fanciful thoughts from a few minutes ago were gone as Jarrett continued his ride along the fence. That sort of single-mindedness came easier to him without needing to concern himself with a wife and children of his own. If he was going to succeed the way he wanted, he would need to devote himself fully to the cause. He couldn’t do that if he was also pulling the weight of a missus and young ones. Of course he knew plenty of ranchers who raised a whole mess of children on their land. Those men also needed more hired hands to keep their heads above water. More important, they had to be content with taking a lesser part in the growth of their ranch. If Jarrett was going to do something, no matter what it was, he wasn’t going to do it halfway.

Jarrett’s clean-shaven face was almost always set into firm, straight lines. His light brown eyes weren’t cruel, but there wasn’t a lot of forgiveness to be found within them. The only thing about his appearance that was consistently unkempt was his hair, and that was only because it made more financial sense to cut it himself with a razor instead of paying some barber in town to clip it while yammering on about the weather. As soon as he’d spotted the pair of riders coming his way, Jarrett sat tall in his saddle and stared out at the approaching men with all the authority of a sea captain surveying his crew.

The men riding toward him were two of Jarrett’s regulators. Matt and Pete were good workers and mostly trustworthy. Although they tended to partake in a bit too much liquor for Jarrett’s liking, they had proven themselves on more than one occasion, which was good enough for him. Pete was the taller of the two and Matt had enough whiskers on his chin to evenly cover his face, his partner’s face, and a good portion of Jarrett’s. All of those whiskers weren’t enough to hide the uncomfortable frown he wore when he caught sight of the Lazy J’s owner.

Howdy, Mr. Pekoe! Pete hollered.

Waiting until he was close enough to respond without shouting, Jarrett asked, You men on your way back to the bunkhouse?

A bit early in the day for sleepin’, sir, Matt said.

After giving his partner a quick swat, Pete added, Thought we might get a bite to eat before taking a ride into town.

So that means your work is done for the day?

More or less. All that’s left is some bits of repair work and then taking our turn at patrolling the perimeter to make sure none of them vagrants show their faces again.

Jarrett nodded. Even though the vagrants in question had only managed to steal one horse for less than a day before being tracked down, he wasn’t about to give them a chance to take another run at the place. Still, his men had put such a scare into those two filthy thieves that he doubted they’d return anytime soon. You two have the night patrol, right? Jarrett asked.

Matt nodded. Yes, sir. We should be back from the saloon in plenty of time to— The next swat he received from the man beside him was almost hard enough to knock him from his saddle.

Before Matt could say another word, Pete said, We don’t intend to get drunk, Mr. Pekoe. Just thought we’d play some cards and have a bit of fun in town. That’s all.

While Jarrett might not have been one to drink much liquor himself, he wasn’t the sort who would harbor bad feelings against those who did. For the purposes of keeping his men on their toes, he kept his expression severe and waited a few heartbeats before nodding. You’d best be riding your patrol and have enough of your wits about you to see a jackrabbit bolt from its hole or there’ll be hell to pay.

Naturally, Mr. Pekoe, Pete said while tapping one finger against the rim of his hat.

Neither of the two men was much younger than Jarrett himself, but they treated him with an earnest respect. Jarrett repaid that by not treating them like anything less than the men they were. Tell you what, he said. I had a look at a portion of fence that you two were responsible for repairing.

We were just headed back that way, Matt said. We patched it up, but I didn’t think it was sturdy enough, so we’re just about to finish the job.

Having already spotted the tools, lumber, and bag of nails being carried by the men, Jarrett dug into a pocket while saying, I guessed as much already. He then tossed a silver dollar to each man. Do the job right and there won’t be any need to pay me back.

They smiled and caught the money in callused fists. We’re good for it, Mr. Pekoe! Pete said.

I know. You see anything else while you’re out here?

Matter of fact, we did. There’s a wagon coming in from the east.

There is?

Yes, sir. Weren’t you expectin’ company? Pete asked.

Yes, but not for another day or two, Jarrett replied. How many were in the wagon?

When Pete looked over to him, Matt said, Couldn’t say for certain. There was two in the driver’s seat and at least one horse riding alongside, but they were a ways off and taking their time in getting here.

Any children with them?

Maybe.

Furrowing his brow a bit, Jarrett asked, Could it be another damn salesman?

After the way we chased the last two off this property, I sure doubt it, Pete replied with a laugh. That wagon we just saw has probably been riding hard for a good, long while. The team was tuckered out. A blind man could have told you that much.

Slowly Jarrett’s smile returned. Then that could be Norris.

That your brother? Matt asked.

It sure is. And it’s just like him to try to get here early to give me a bit of a surprise.

You want me and Pete to ride out to greet them?

No, Jarrett replied. You said they were coming in from the east?

That’s right.

Then I’ll go see them myself. If Norris worked this hard for a surprise, there’s no good reason for me to spoil it.

So, you’re all right with us two heading into town? Pete asked. After we finish with that fence, of course.

Sounds like a plan. You two have a good time and try not to fall off your horses on your way back.

Unaccustomed to seeing their employer in such good spirits, both of the hired hands waved to Jarrett and snapped their reins to ride away before he added some other bit of hardship to their workload.

Jarrett not only snapped his reins as well, but tapped Twitch’s sides to coax a little more speed from the gelding. The horse was all too happy to comply since he always seemed more comfortable when his hooves were churning through the dirt and the wind was in his face.

After riding for about a quarter mile along the fence, Jarrett turned north and rode for a short ways more. With every second that passed, Jarrett’s grin became wider. Pulling back on his reins, he stopped less than fifty yards away from the spot where a wide road pointing toward Nebraska met up with a gate in the Lazy J’s fence. Jarrett reached into his saddlebag and dug around for a pair of field glasses. When he found them, he brought the glasses to his eyes and peered through the lenses. The magnified view might have been somewhat marred by several scratches on the glass, but he saw more than enough.

You sure are taking your time, little brother, Jarrett said to himself. He then panned the field glasses away from the wagon he’d found until he spotted another horse keeping pace with the wagon while maintaining a healthy distance from it. Jarrett squinted through the lenses but was unable to make out much of the rider. Scott’s getting bigger, he mused. I imagine he insisted on riding in on his own. Thought for sure Grace would be the one to scout ahead.

On a hunch, Jarrett kept searching the horizon. Before long, he found the other silhouette he’d been looking for. There you are, he said.

The sun was just bright enough to cast a glare on everything below. Although it was the same ball of brightness that shone down on the rest of the world, it seemed to cast longer shadows in Wyoming than anywhere else. If he lived closer to Old Mexico, he surely would swear that it was hotter and he’d heard more than a few men from Montana tell him how their sun resided in a wider sky than the blue expanse that could be found over any other part of the country.

Having lived in Wyoming for years, Jarrett rarely pondered such things anymore. The harder he strained to get a better look at his approaching guests, the more he wanted to curse the sun for being too damn bright and his glasses for being too damn old. When his horse stomped the ground with one front hoof and shook its head hard enough to jostle the man on its back, Jarrett sighed and said, You’re right. I already know it’s them. While putting the field glasses away, Jarrett scratched his horse behind the ear. My nieces and nephew are getting big. Before you know it, I’ll be hiring them on as hands for a summer or two. Then maybe one of them will want to work here for good.

He flicked the reins to point the horse’s nose away from the fence and start moseying toward the road that led all the way to the center of the ranch. Last time we saw Grace, she was nothing but a sprout with pigtails in a wrinkled dress, he said fondly. And Scott was kneehigh to a grasshopper. Ain’t even seen the baby yet, but that’s about to change.

Jarrett took a quick look over his shoulder. The wagon in the distance was picking up enough speed to kick up a cloud of dust, and the horses accompanying it were drawing in closer. Surely the young riders were getting a few final instructions from their father.

Knowing how much Norris enjoyed his surprises, Jarrett had intended to ride all the way back to the house so he could play his part as the oblivious host. He made it less than a hundred yards before bringing Twitch around in a sharp about-face turn. Eh, to hell with it, he said. Just because Norris is the baby of the family, that doesn’t mean he gets to have all the fun.

Chapter 2

In any family, being the youngest child had its advantages. The Pekoe clan wasn’t any different. Raised on a small Iowa farm, the children were doted on by their mother and worked harder than a rented mule by their father. Jarrett’s older sister lived with her husband in Virginia, and the next one in line was Kyle, who’d died of a fever in the winter of ’78. That had left Jarrett to maintain the family name in business and Norris to provide a few more branches of the family tree. Even if Norris had only contributed a few kind words at the occasional family picnic, their mother would have put him up for sainthood.

Surely Norris had put some small amount of thought into how he would announce himself while making his grand entrance at the Lazy J. No matter what idea he came up with, even if he’d cobbled it together in less time than it took for a nut to fall from a tree, Norris would expect it to be received with an abundance of enthusiasm from anyone within eyeshot. Jarrett took no small amount of pleasure from the thought that he was popping his brother’s bubble before it had gotten much of a chance to float. It did the baby of the family some good to be treated like the rest every now and then.

Jarrett amused himself with these thoughts after having opened the gate and positioning himself in the middle of the road directly behind it. He’d planned to stay there, staring at his brother to let Norris know that he wasn’t the only one who could arrange a surprise. The wagon rolled toward him, but at a snail’s pace. Both of the children rode their horses at least five yards away from it on either side and were keeping their distance. There was no possible way any of them could have overlooked the fact that Jarrett was waiting for them, and yet nobody had shouted a word to him.

Not one excited holler from Grace or Scott.

Not a single brotherly taunt from Norris or even a wave from his brother’s wife.

After a few more seconds of the strange silence, Jarrett started to worry. Perhaps someone was sick. Maybe there had been harsh words passed between members of the family. One of them might have been injured during the ride. The longer Jarrett considered the possibilities, the more gruesome and terrible they became. Finally he forced them out of his mind completely.

Enough of this, he said as he snapped his reins. Guess I’ll have to get a look for myself.

As he rode closer toward the wagon, Jarrett realized how impatient he’d gotten in a relatively short amount of time. The wagon wasn’t really moving that slow. It was just being pulled by tired horses and driven by what was most likely a tired man. Within the space of a minute, he was able to make out the faces of Norris and his wife. Even from a distance, Jarrett could tell his brother was not his normal self.

Jarrett got such an uneasy feeling from the look on his brother’s face that he pulled back on his reins a little early so as not to draw any of the ire that was brewing on the faces of both Norris and his wife. Norris pulled his reins as well to slow the covered wagon before plowing straight over their welcoming committee.

Imagine my surprise! Jarrett said cheerily. You all are early.

The only responses he got were heavy breaths from the wagon’s two-horse team and the creak of the wheels as they rolled to a stop. Norris had a rounded face and cheeks that would perpetually make him look five to ten years younger than he truly was. His sandy brown hair might have been thinning a bit in front, but the rumpled way it framed his face still had a boyish quality. Whenever Jarrett thought about his brother, he pictured Norris laughing, shouting, or giving some other overly emotional display. That was a far cry from the weary visage he wore on this day.

How was the ride? Jarrett asked. Did you run into any bad weather?

Norris shook his head as if in response to a voice that only he could hear.

Shifting his eyes to Norris’s left, Jarrett wasn’t surprised to find a vaguely sour expression on his sister-in-law’s face. She never did like Jarrett very much, and the only time she’d done more than simply tolerate his presence was on her wedding day. After that, she’d endured the occasional visit only slightly better than before, which Jarrett had always assumed was for the children’s benefit. She wasn’t an ugly girl. Her thick black hair was always well brushed and couldn’t be contained by the bonnet she wore. A thin face gave her something of a mousy quality, which Jarrett had never found appealing in anyone.

Good to see you, Jen, Jarrett said to her. You’re looking well.

She scowled silently at him, which really wasn’t much different from her usual greeting.

So, Jarrett said, did you take a shortcut or did you just whip those horses to within an inch of their lives? Since Norris and Jen merely looked nervously at each other, he asked, Where are the kids? Perhaps they’ll be more conversational. Turning toward the sound of hooves beating against the dirt, he shouted, That you, Scotty? You must’ve grown a foot since the last time I’ve seen you!

Jarrett, Norris sighed. I . . . I . . .

Well, now! He finally speaks, Jarrett chuckled. And here I was thinking the little woman had taken your tongue out.

The brothers had weathered plenty of hard times together. They’d seen each other through as many trials as triumphs, but in all those years Jarrett hadn’t seen this particular expression on his younger sibling’s face. What is it, Norris? he asked.

Norris grew increasingly anxious as his children’s horses approached the back of the wagon. I’m sorry, Jarrett. Truly I am.

The bottom had never fallen out of Jarrett’s stomach so quickly. Although it was his nature to assume the worst of most any situation, he rarely thought those worries would come to pass. When he got a whiff of something terrible drawing closer to him and his kin, it was all Jarrett could do to compose himself. What’s happened, Norris? Tell me.

They got to us yesterday, Norris explained. I tried to shake loose of them before bringing them here, but . . .

Twitch was getting increasingly nervous and for a change Jarrett himself couldn’t blame him. Rather than try to rein in the animal, he allowed it to back up a few steps from the wagon. That little bit of extra space allowed him to get a better look at one of the riders that had been accompanying his brother. Norris’s son and daughter had both been taller than most anyone else their age, but the person holding the reins of this approaching horse was definitely no child.

Who the hell are you? Jarrett asked. Where are Grace and Scotty?

The man in the saddle had a slender build, which seemed even more so owing to his slouched posture and slumped shoulders. His skin resembled starched sailcloth that had been draped on a wire frame. He gripped his reins tightly in one hand while the other hung within a few inches of a holstered pistol. Grinning beneath a mustache consisting of irregularly spaced hairs scattered unevenly on his lip, he said, They’re just fine. Don’t you worry none about that.

Scowling at the stranger, Jarrett said, You didn’t answer my first question.

Don’t get yer feathers ruffled. How about we all get on the other side of that fence so we can have a word like civilized folk?

Don’t give orders to me. This is my spread and these are my kin. Tell me who the hell you are before I send you away.

Send me away? Now, that ain’t no way to treat a guest.

As those words were spoken, the second horse that had been traveling alongside Norris came around the back end of the wagon. This one had a slender build as well but made himself look even slighter by hunching over. Once he sat up fully and put on his hat, he looked to have a build similar to Jarrett’s and was at least eight years his junior. He drew his .45 without so much as a how-do-you-do.

Calming Twitch with a few subtle gestures and a nudge from one foot, Jarrett placed his hand on the gun holstered at his side. Unbeknownst to him, Norris had climbed down from the driver’s seat to approach him from behind.

No, Norris said. Don’t draw that pistol.

I want an explanation, Jarrett said. Right now.

Chapter 3

Just simmer down, Jarrett, Norris said. Let me explain.

Jarrett wasn’t about to take his eyes off the two riders when he told his brother, You’re not the one that needs to explain himself.

You’d best think twice before touching that gun again, the second rider announced. Or this little visit is gonna get bloody.

Shut up, Dave, the first rider said.

Even though the second rider outweighed his skinny partner by a considerable amount, he deferred to him without a struggle.

Where are the children? Jarrett asked in a voice that was drawn tighter than a bowstring.

They’re fine, Norris replied. They’re both fine.

Finally looking away from the two strangers, Jarrett glanced at his brother when he asked, You sure about that?

Of course I am.

Comforted by the truth he saw in that familiar face, Jarrett shifted his focus back to the strangers. Tell me who you are.

The skinnier of the two riders shifted in his saddle to place his hand