Elmore Leonard - Riding the Rap

“He said be ready in five minutes, and that was about ten minutes ago. He had to take his stuff down first.”

“He didn’t have anything with him,” Raylan said, watching the date palms and clumps of sea grape at the edge of the property, the trees hiding the strip of beach.

“He said he’d be back for me.”

“I think that’s what he did,” Raylan said.

“Then why didn’t he come upstairs?”

It took Raylan maybe two seconds to decide what it meant and say, “He knows I’m here,” and start for the door, in a hurry to catch Louis outside.

Harry had time to say, “Wait a minute, will you?” He yelled at him, “Get me out of here!” too late.

Raylan was gone.

Harry’s gaze, coming away from the door, stopped on Raylan’s shotgun, lying on the other cot.

Louis stood in the path through the sea grape studying the house, taking in that upstairs window now free of plywood. Nobody up there watching that he could tell. He pumped the stubby shotgun to put one in the chamber. The Browning was stuck in his waist beneath his new black silk jacket. He needed to hurry, catch the man by surprise, but didn’t like having to cross the yard out in the open, exposed. So what he did was sprint across hunched over, like anybody looking out a window then wouldn’t see him. He came past the swimming pool, got to the patio and stopped, seeing one of the French doors come open.

The cowboy stepped out, nothing in his hands, and stood looking right at him. He said, “You don’t want to get shot, do you? Put down the gun. Drop it on that chair.”

Louis was where he’d stood when he did Bobby only turned around, facing the house instead of the swimming pool, a lounge chair next to him. He said, “What’d I do?”

“You have two years coming for that illegal weapon,” Raylan said. “I won’t discuss the kidnapping with you at this time. Put the gun down and come over here, your hands behind your head.”

“You telling me all that,” Louis said, “you don’t even have a gun pointing at me.”

“If I pull it,” Raylan said, “I’ll use it. You understand? You make a threatening move I’ll shoot you through the heart.”

Louis held the sawed-off pointed down and against his leg. He said, “Man, all I got to do is raise this thing.”

“I have to advise you, though, to put it down.”

Louis said, “We like in the movies, huh? The two hombres facing each other out in the street.”

“That’s the only place it ever happened,” Raylan said. “In the movies. You ever shot a man?”

Louis liked the way this was going, knowing he had the advantage, holding a shotgun he’d hardly have to aim. He said, “Lemme see. Yeah, I did, just the other day.”

That stopped the man. But he believed it, asking, “How close were you?”

“About like this far, me and you. Was Bobby, the Puerto Rican gunfighter. You know Bobby.”

The man’s suitcoat was open and he had his thumbs in his belt now in his U.S. marshal pose. Louis watched the man’s right hand.

He said, “You killed Bobby with that gun?”

“No, man, we drew on each other with pistolas, did the deed like you suppose to.” With his left hand Louis opened his coat enough to show the Browning. “Used one like this on him.”

Raylan said, “Now you want to try with the shotgun?”

“I don’t see no other way. Do you?”

The man raised his hat and set it on his head again, on his eyes, and it gave him a look-not just the hat but the man’s whole manner standing there-that made Louis hesitate and wonder did he have the advantage here or not. The man saying, “I’ll tell you once more to put down the gun.”

See? Like he thought he had the advantage.

The man saying, “You don’t put it down by the time I count to three I’ll shoot to kill. One…”

Louis thinking, Hey, shit, wait.

“Two.”

And saw the man’s hand come out of his coat with a pistol. Cheating , the man drawing on the count of two. Louis saw the muzzle hole looking at him the same way Bobby’s had, swung his gun up from his leg now, quick, and right then heard a shotgun blast that wasn’t from his, that got him to look up to see Harry with a gun barrel sticking out the window, the gun going off again with the smoke and noise it made and Louis felt the load hit him high in the chest to punch the breath out of him and slam him off his feet. He wanted to say come on, man, wait now, looking at sky, that’s all, the sky turned darker from what it was a minute ago, and thinking, The man never said three . Thinking, Was Harry. But how could it be? It was too quick, how it happened. He wanted to start over and do it right this time, no cheating. He was looking at sky, then looking at the man’s face in the hat looking down at him…

Raylan touched Louis’s throat and closed his eyes with the same two fingers.

Chip looked like he was approaching the edge of a cliff, coming within a few feet of Louis and turning away. Raylan sent him to get Harry.

“Nine days up there in fucking chains,” Harry said, coming across the patio, eager, his eyes full of life. “I nailed him, didn’t I? Like a split second before he was gonna shoot.” Harry turned to Raylan. “I saved your life, you know it? You realize that? You come to rescue me and I end up saving your ass.”

Raylan said, “Is that what you think?”

It was Sunday morning now, half past ten. Dawn asked Raylan if he’d like a cup of coffee; he said he wouldn’t mind and followed her to the kitchen. It seemed bare, hardly ever used. She stood at the range, her back to him, in jeans and a white shirt, her hair combed. Raylan, by the Formica table, had his hat on. He said to her, “You saw Harry?”

“Last night, but only for a few minutes. I told you he was okay.”

“For a man who spent a week chained up,” Raylan said, “blindfolded, eating TV dinners.”

“He was nice to me,” Dawn said, sounding hopeful, coming to the table now with the electric coffeepot. “I told him I was sorry, but there was really nothing I could do. He said he understood that. You want toast?”

“I’ve had breakfast.”

“He said if I needed a lawyer he’d get me one.”

“Harry did?”

“He’s not mad at me. He kept telling Joyce how he’s shot and killed three bad guys in his life, making the point, more than you have. Joyce was all over him. She even fixed him a drink, saying ‘cause he deserved it. I left.”

Raylan watched her pour coffee into ceramic mugs. Sugar and powdered milk were on the table. He pulled a chair out and sat down. “I understand they’re going away.”

“Yeah, to Vegas,” Dawn said. “I love Vegas, I wouldn’t even mind living there. Maybe when this business is settled… What about Chip?”

“His first appearance hearing’s tomorrow afternoon. He’ll be charged and a bond set.”

She said, “I suppose I’ll have to appear sometime.”

Raylan watched her lean over the table, her shirt open in front, to put three spoons of sugar in her coffee and stir it. He said, “The sheriffs people will talk to you, then it’s up to them.” He had to ask her, “What do you see happening to you?”

“It’s not real clear yet.”

Raylan said, “I think you see things the same way I do except you have that Grand Trine in your natal chart, so you believe you have a gift. I’ve never understood people wanting to know their future. I’d rather let it happen and be surprised.”

Dawn put the spoon down. She moved around behind him and placed her hands on his shoulders. She said, “You’d like to go to bed with me.” She said, “That’s how psychic I am. You can deny it, it’s still true.”