Read Online Buchanan's Revenge by Jonas Ward - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Jonas Ward
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the door way and came inside the little room. "Good gravy," Doc Vincent said, his lively eyes traveling the length of Bu chanan. "Ought to charge you by the square foot."
"Better keep the bill under three dollars, Doc," Bu chanan said.
"That's been taken care of," he said, leaning down and pulling the towel away. He spent the next five minutes cleaning the wound and bandaging it. "Better stay off your feet for a couple of days. Give it a chance to scab."
"You bet, Doc. Much obliged."
"Glad I could help. 'Night, mister. 'Night, Cristine." He went out, and as soon as the door closed Buchanan was swinging his legs to the floor.
"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded.
He stood up, reached out for his shirt. Her hand got to it first, snatched it behind her back.
"You," she said, "are going to lie down, and I'm going to wash this shirt. And take that stubborn look off your face."
Buchanan looked down at her for a long moment.
"Let's have that talk about Rig Bogan," he said.
"You mentioned him before," she said. "Is he the fel low who drove the red wagon through town last week?"
"That all you know about him?"
"Yes," she said. "That's all I know about any fellow who comes through." -
"He told the liveryman this was his lucky town. He thinks he means on account of you're here."
She began to shake her head puzzledly. Then her face brightened. "He means the game that night he was here," she said. "And I'll say he was lucky. He broke the bank and everyone else playing." She smiled. "Sat there grin ning and turning up blackjack three times out of every five."
"How much did he win?"
"Well, there was a hundred in the bank. That's my limit and he won it all. And he must have taken those three toughs for another hundred apiece."
"What toughs?"
"Three just like the ones that came in tonight. Two of them were brothers."
"And Rig busted them?"
She nodded. "Then he left. That was when they started drinking and turned surly. Poor Sheriff Rivercomb tried to quiet them and they beat him with their guns."
"They bother you?"
"I got out and drove to my brother's house. Why all these questions?"
"I'm looking for Rig Bogan," Buchanan said. "We're partners in that red wagon he was driving."
"So you're the famous partner," she said. "Every time he'd win a pot he'd say, 'Boy, if only old Buchanan could see me now!' I thought he'd drive me crazy."
"I wish old Buchanan could see him now."
"Is something wrong?"
He told her what was wrong. Even told her about his suspicions concerning Bogan and herself.
"You came in here tonight with a lot of ideas about me," she said.
"All of them wrong."
"But intriguing, though," she said with a sad smile. "More intriguing than this existence."
"You don't like what you're doing?"
"Like it? I hate every minute of it."
“ How'd you come to leave Carolina?" 59
She took a deep breath, walked over to the window. "My husband was killed in a duel," she said very quietly. "It was all very gallant."
"What was the duel about?"
"It seems that another gentleman made a remark about me, about my —virtue—before David married me. David challenged him to a duel and this other man put a bullet in his heart." She swung around. "That's why all guns are horrible," she said.
"A man," Buchanan said, "sees it different from a woman. Me, I don't know what else your husband could have done."
"David's mother says I could have stopped him."
"How?"
She looked across the dimly lit room steadily. Beneath the bodice of the dress her breasts rose and fell emotional l y-
"David's mother said I should have told him that what the man had said about me was the truth," she said slow ly. "She pointed out that we'd only been married a month, that we really hadn't formed any deep attachment. I should have sacrificed our marriage, his mother said, to save his life."
"That lady was wrong," Buchanan said.
The blonde girl's head came up in surprise. "You think so? You really think she was wrong?"
"She'd have been
"Better keep the bill under three dollars, Doc," Bu chanan said.
"That's been taken care of," he said, leaning down and pulling the towel away. He spent the next five minutes cleaning the wound and bandaging it. "Better stay off your feet for a couple of days. Give it a chance to scab."
"You bet, Doc. Much obliged."
"Glad I could help. 'Night, mister. 'Night, Cristine." He went out, and as soon as the door closed Buchanan was swinging his legs to the floor.
"What do you think you're doing?" she demanded.
He stood up, reached out for his shirt. Her hand got to it first, snatched it behind her back.
"You," she said, "are going to lie down, and I'm going to wash this shirt. And take that stubborn look off your face."
Buchanan looked down at her for a long moment.
"Let's have that talk about Rig Bogan," he said.
"You mentioned him before," she said. "Is he the fel low who drove the red wagon through town last week?"
"That all you know about him?"
"Yes," she said. "That's all I know about any fellow who comes through." -
"He told the liveryman this was his lucky town. He thinks he means on account of you're here."
She began to shake her head puzzledly. Then her face brightened. "He means the game that night he was here," she said. "And I'll say he was lucky. He broke the bank and everyone else playing." She smiled. "Sat there grin ning and turning up blackjack three times out of every five."
"How much did he win?"
"Well, there was a hundred in the bank. That's my limit and he won it all. And he must have taken those three toughs for another hundred apiece."
"What toughs?"
"Three just like the ones that came in tonight. Two of them were brothers."
"And Rig busted them?"
She nodded. "Then he left. That was when they started drinking and turned surly. Poor Sheriff Rivercomb tried to quiet them and they beat him with their guns."
"They bother you?"
"I got out and drove to my brother's house. Why all these questions?"
"I'm looking for Rig Bogan," Buchanan said. "We're partners in that red wagon he was driving."
"So you're the famous partner," she said. "Every time he'd win a pot he'd say, 'Boy, if only old Buchanan could see me now!' I thought he'd drive me crazy."
"I wish old Buchanan could see him now."
"Is something wrong?"
He told her what was wrong. Even told her about his suspicions concerning Bogan and herself.
"You came in here tonight with a lot of ideas about me," she said.
"All of them wrong."
"But intriguing, though," she said with a sad smile. "More intriguing than this existence."
"You don't like what you're doing?"
"Like it? I hate every minute of it."
“ How'd you come to leave Carolina?" 59
She took a deep breath, walked over to the window. "My husband was killed in a duel," she said very quietly. "It was all very gallant."
"What was the duel about?"
"It seems that another gentleman made a remark about me, about my —virtue—before David married me. David challenged him to a duel and this other man put a bullet in his heart." She swung around. "That's why all guns are horrible," she said.
"A man," Buchanan said, "sees it different from a woman. Me, I don't know what else your husband could have done."
"David's mother says I could have stopped him."
"How?"
She looked across the dimly lit room steadily. Beneath the bodice of the dress her breasts rose and fell emotional l y-
"David's mother said I should have told him that what the man had said about me was the truth," she said slow ly. "She pointed out that we'd only been married a month, that we really hadn't formed any deep attachment. I should have sacrificed our marriage, his mother said, to save his life."
"That lady was wrong," Buchanan said.
The blonde girl's head came up in surprise. "You think so? You really think she was wrong?"
"She'd have been
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