Read Online Death Rides Alone by William W. Johnstone - Free Book Online Page A

said, “I need to get back over to the café. I usually have it open for business before now.”
    Luke put his empty plate and coffee cup back on the tray.
    â€œI can’t thank you enough for everything.”
    â€œYou don’t have to,” she told him. She came up on her toes and kissed him as he bent his head toward hers. “Good-bye, Luke Jensen.”
    â€œGood-bye,” he said, feeling more solemn than he usually did when he said so long to a woman.
    She paused at the doorway and looked back at him.
    â€œOn my way to the café, I’ll stop at the hotel and find out if Hardy can bring your clothes over here. You can just leave my husband’s things here in the office and I’ll get them later.”
    â€œI’m obliged to you for that, too.”
    â€œGood-bye, Luke,” she said again as she went out. Luke just nodded. There wasn’t anything left to say between them, at least not now. Maybe someday.
    Although he doubted if he would ever be that lucky.
    Off and on during the night, he had heard snores coming from the cell block, so he knew Tyler was still in there. Mary had left the extra biscuits on a napkin. Luke picked them up and went to the cell block door, unlocking it with a key from the ring that hung on a nail on the wall behind the marshal’s desk.
    â€œRise and shine, Tyler,” he called to the prisoner as he swung the door open.
    He was ready for trouble, even though the likelihood of it was very small. A man in his line of work didn’t live very long by being careless.
    In this case the caution wasn’t necessary. Tyler was still stretched out on the bunk. He pushed the scratchy wool blanket aside, rolled over, stretched, and groaned as he sat up. His mouth opened wide in a yawn.
    â€œI never did get a good night’s sleep on a jail cell bunk,” he said.
    â€œAnd why does it not surprise me that you have experience spending the night in a jail cell?” Luke asked, although the question was strictly rhetorical.
    â€œI’ve had a few scrapes with the law. I won’t deny that.”
    â€œYou mean like murdering a young woman?”
    Tyler came sharply to his feet, crossed the cell, and gripped the bars as he glared at Luke in the dim light.
    â€œI told you, I didn’t kill Rachel. I never killed anybody, and for sure not a preacher’s daughter!”
    â€œYou just admitted to being an outlaw.”
    Tyler leaned forward as his hands tightened on the bars. He said, “I’ve rustled some cows in my time, sure, and I even held up a few stagecoaches. I’m not proud of those things, but I won’t deny that I did them. But murder . . .” He shook his head. “I’m not a killer, Jensen, but right now I don’t give a damn if you believe me or not.”
    Luke held out the biscuits and said, “Here. Have something to eat and cool off.”
    For a second, Tyler looked mad enough to turn down the biscuits out of sheer spite. But then hunger won out and he relented. He snatched them from Luke’s hand.
    Luke had kept his other hand on a gun butt while giving Tyler the skimpy breakfast. If the prisoner had tried anything, he would have gotten a .44 round to go with his meal.
    Tyler retreated to the bunk to gnaw sullenly on the biscuits. After a moment, he asked, “Do I get any coffee?”
    â€œIf you can call it that,” Luke replied. “I’ll bring it to you.”
    As he started to turn away from the cell, Tyler said, “Hey, wait a minute. Have you gotten a reply back from the telegram to White Fork?”
    With everything that had been going on the night before, obviously no one had said anything to the prisoner about the wire from Sheriff Axtell in Montana.
    â€œActually, I have,” Luke said.
    â€œGonna get your blood money?”
    Luke made a disgusted sound and said, “Everybody keeps asking me about that. It’s a perfectly legal reward for the