Read Online Turnback Creek (Widowmaker) by Robert J. Randisi - Free Book Online

like it. What about the law?”
    “What about him?”
    “Should we let him in on our plans?”
    “I know you were a lawman for a long time, Coop,” Locke said, “but I don’t trust this one.”
    “Why not?”
    “He feels … wrong.”
    “Well,” Cooper said, “I don’t like goin’ around the law, but I’ll trust your judgment. So, we just tell Molly?”
    “Right,” Locke said.
    “What about Crowell?”
    “No. Let’s keep control of who knows what we’re doing.”
    “What if she tells him?”
    “We’ll have to stress the importance of not telling anyone,” Locke said. “I think she’ll understand. She’s a smart woman.”
    “She’s a smart woman,” Cooper said, “with eyes for you.”
    “What are you talking about?”
    “Hey,” the ex-marshal said. “Even an old drunk can see that.”
    “I’m not here to find a woman, Coop.”
    “You could do worse.”
    “I’ve been alone a long time,” Locke said, “and I intend to stay that way. I like it.”
    Cooper regarded his friend across the table. “You never found a woman you wanted to settle down with? In all these years?”
    “I’m as settled as I’m ever going to be in Las Vegas,” Locke said. “I got a nice little place there, and I’m not looking to share it with anyone else. I’m comfortable.”
    “That’s sad.”
    “Why sad?” Locke asked. “Have you got a woman?”
    “No.”
    “Ever had a woman?”
    “No, but I was a lawman for a lot of years, like you said,” Cooper answered. “That’s no life for a woman.”
    “Well, my life is certainly no life for a woman, either,” Locke said. “So, I guess we’re just destined to stay old bachelors.” Cooper lifted his coffee cup, and Locke followed. They clinked them, and Locke said, “Here’s to old bachelors.”
    They drained their coffee cups, set them down, and Cooper said, “Now, let’s go shoot some more.”

EIGHTEEN
     
    W hen they left the café, they decided to go right to Molly’s office to discuss their plan. She was there alone, without Crowell, which allowed them to talk freely after she greeted them, and they exchanged pleasantries about the dinner the night before.
    “It’s a good thing we don’t eat like that every day,” Cooper said, touching his stomach.
    “Don’t either of you have a … wife to cook for you?” she asked, looking at Locke.
    “Uh, no,” he said, thinking about what Cooper had said. “I’ve never been married.”
    “I never have, either,” Cooper said, but Molly wasn’t listening to him. She was obviously more interested in what Locke had to say.
    “No woman waiting for you where you live?” she asked Locke.
    “Um, no,” he said, feeling uncomfortable. “We want to discuss something with you, Molly … about the gold.”
    “I see.” She seemed amused at his discomfort. She sat back in her chair. “All right, gentlemen, what’s on your minds? I know you came here to tell me something.”
    Locke allowed Cooper to explain their plan. He was, after all, the lead man on this job.
    She listened intently, nodding but not saying a word until Cooper was finished.
    “I like it,” she said. “In fact, I wholeheartedly agree with it. I’ll meet you Sunday afternoon at Turnback Creek. Do you think you can be there by three in the afternoon?”
    Locke looked at Cooper, because he was the one who knew how far away Kingdom Junction was.
    “I think it would be hard to pinpoint our arrival that much,” Cooper said, “but we should be able to make it by afternoon.”
    “Very well, then.”
    “There’s one more thing,” Locke said.
    “What’s that?”
    “We don’t think anyone else should know about this,” he said. “Just the three of us.
    “Not the sheriff?”
    “Especially not the sheriff,” Locke said. He explained how he got a bad feeling from the man.
    “I think you’re right,” she said. “He didn’t do much about finding the men who grabbed my first payroll. We probably can’t count on him for