Robert Parker - Ironhorse

“Me neither.”

Virgil looked at Dean standing facing the door at the other end of the coach.

“Me neither,” Virgil said again and reentered the coach.

He walked halfway down the aisle and stopped.

“Dean?” Virgil said.

“What?” Dean said.

“What are you boys doing down this far?” Virgil said.

“What do you mean?” Dean asked.

“Next time you answer with a question,” Virgil said, “me or Everett will throw you off this train. Turn around.”

Dean turned and faced Virgil.

“I will ask you a few questions,” Virgil said, “and you’re gonna answer me straight.”

“Wha—” Dean stopped, afraid he was about to ask a question.

“You boys are outside of your whereabouts,” Virgil said. “How come this train, this far?”

“I told you.”

“What else ain’t you telling me?”

“Nothing.”

“Don’t get sidetracked with your lies, Dean.”

Dean shook his head. “I ain’t lying.”

“This was not Vince’s idea,” Virgil said. “Coming down this far and robbing this train, was it?”

Dean looked at Virgil with a blank look on his face. His knees worked toward each other like he needed to pee. Dean’s face was wet with sweat.

“Was it?” Virgil said.

Dean slowly shook his head.

“Whose idea was it?”

“I don’t rightly know.”

“What do you mean you don’t rightly know?”

“Vince tol’ us, but I ain’t sure who tol’ Vince.”

“No.”

“No? I mean, I swear! I don’t know! We was in Wichita Falls, we just moved a bunch of cattle for a cow-calf outfit there. Vince’s horse came up lame, and he peeled off ’fore the rest of us. He said he met a fellow playing Seven-Up at the Bluebell Pool Palace. A Yankee. It was the Yankee’s plan.”

“You’re lying to me, Dean.”

“No!”

Virgil took a few steps toward Dean and stopped.

“I ain’t lying! It’s the truth!”

“A Yankee?” Virgil said.

“Yes!”

“What’s his name?”

“That I don’t know! Vince was the one who met him. Vince said this Yankee knew about trains. About this train, I swear... the rest of us was just doing what Vince tol’ us to do.”

“What did Vince tell you to do?”

“To ride down to Paris. Board a long train with a bunch of cars. This train! He said ’cause of the land run happening in the Indian Territory that there would be a lot of people on the train going that direction with money and we’d make a lot of money.”

“What else?”

“That was it,” Dean said. “I swear.”

“What does this Yankee look like?”

“Don’t know. Never saw him.”

“You don’t know his name? You never saw him?”

The Adam’s apple in Dean’s skinny neck moved up, then dropped down.

“That’s right.”

Virgil walked a few more steps closer to Dean and stopped.

“You did not come down here to rob wallets and watches,” Virgil said.

Dean backed up a bit, hitting the door. He was dripping with sweat. Drops were falling from the tip of his nose.

“Did you, Dean?”

Dean blinked hard a few times and shook his head.

“No.”

“Go on,” Virgil said.

Dean took a deep breath.

“Well, we was getting the money, everybody’s money, like I tol’ you,” Dean said. “But... um, there’s supposed to be some loot on board.”

“Loot?” Virgil said.

Dean nodded.

“A bunch of loot,” Dean said.

“How do you know this?” Virgil asked.

“That’s what the Yankee tol’ Vince,” Dean said. “Vince tol’ us there was a lot of money being carried on this train.”

“What else do you know, Dean?” Virgil said.

“Honest to God, nothing!” Dean said.

“Don’t go using words like honest and God. They don’t sit well by you,” Virgil said. “Makes me think you are lying to me, Dean.”

“I ain’t lying,” Dean said. “All I know is Vince said we was gonna rob a train carrying a bunch of loot, that’s all I know. That’s what the Yankee told him, and Vince said when we all got off back there where we was supposed to get off that we was going to divvy up! That’s all I know!”

“Turn around, put your nose to that door.”

Dean just looked at Virgil.

“Now,” Virgil said.

Dean was facing the door again. Virgil walked back up the aisle to where I stood by Emma and Abigail. They were seated in the front row. Lightning lit up the interior of the car as Virgil turned to face them.

“Do you know if your father was carrying a large amount of money?” Virgil asked.

Emma looked to Abigail. Abigail shook her head.

“Not that we are aware of,” Emma said. “No.”

“Where were you and your parents traveling?” I said.

“We are headed to our grandmother’s home,” Emma said. “In Kansas, near Wichita. Father, Mr. Lassiter, and Mr. Hobbs were going elsewhere on business.”

“Who are Mr. Lassiter and Mr. Hobbs,” Virgil asked.

“Friends of our father,” Emma said.

“You know where they were headed?” I said.

“No, I’m not sure, business meetings with businesspeople,” Emma said.

“I know this is not easy for you,” Virgil said, “but try and tell Everett and me what led up to you being in this predicament.”

Emma looked to her sister and then to Virgil.

“Well... I was sitting in a chair at the front of the carriage across from our berth, reading. Abby was sleeping. You were asleep, weren’t you, dear?”

“Yes,” Abigail said.

“And the others?” Virgil said.

“Father, Mr. Lassiter, and Mr. Hobbs were playing cards on the center table,” Emma said, “and Mother was in her berth.”

“Go on,” Virgil said.

“The conductor walked in from the rear of the carriage. He was talking to the Pinkerton man. The conductor’s back was to me. I think the conductor was telling a joke or something, because they were laughing. Then a hard-looking man stepped through the door, behind the Pinkerton man. He had a big knife. The Pinkerton man was stabbed.”

“What about the other Pinkerton guard?” I said.

“He rushed to his partner’s aid and then the conductor shot him,” Emma said. “He just shot him... It was loud.”

“What about your father?” Virgil said, “and the other two?”

“The conductor told them to keep their hands up,” Emma said.

“The conductor?” I said.

Emma shook her head.

“I have to say, I don’t think he was the conductor,” Emma said. “He was wearing a conductor’s cap, but... I don’t know, he and the man with the knife threw the Pinkerton men from the train. It all happened so fast.”

Emma stopped talking. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she started to cry. Abigail grabbed her hand. They both were crying.

“Okay,” Virgil said. “Okay...”

Emma stiffened up, determined to continue. “The man with the knife pulled Mother out of her berth. He was mean and rough with her. He put the knife to her throat.”

Abigail spoke up: “The conductor, or whoever he is, told Father to get his luggage down.”

“Then there were gunshots,” Emma said.

“That’s right,” Abigail said.

“There was gunfire coming from the car behind us,” Emma said, “and then a big Irishman came running through the rear door.”

“He was followed by two other men,” Abigail said.

“The Irishman told the conductor there were lawmen on board,” Emma said, “and they’d shot two of their men.”

“Then what,” Virgil said.

“The conductor told him to go back and kill them,” Emma said. “Kill the lawmen.”