William Johnstone - Winter Kill

“Well, when you get settled in, let headquarters know where to find you. Somebody’ll be in touch with you about the inquest.”

The policeman’s tone had turned to one of mingled respect and wariness. Lawmen across the West knew about Frank Morgan’s reputation. Most of them didn’t like him because in their opinion he brought violence and danger to their communities. Many considered him a cold-blooded hired killer like the infamous Jim Miller, although that was the farthest thing from the truth. They never stopped to think about the fact that Frank had worn a lawman’s badge himself on several occasions, and he had never killed anyone except in self-defense or the defense of someone else.

Politely, he agreed to do as the policeman said. With that, the blue-uniformed officer turned to the crowd and bellowed, “All right, break it up, break it up! There’s nothing to see here!”

“Nothing but a dead body and a famous gunfighter,” one of the men in the crowd pointed out. That just made the policeman’s already florid face flush even darker with anger.

Chuckling grimly, Frank turned and started making his way along the street. The bystanders got out of his way. He spotted a decent-looking hotel down the street and headed for it. MAJESTIC HOTEL, the sign over the door read. The place didn’t appear to be all that majestic, but it looked clean and well kept up.

Frank hadn’t gone very far when he became aware of a man falling in step beside him. A glance over in that direction revealed a tall, lean man with a lantern-jawed face and steel-gray hair that hung down over his collar. He wore a flat-crowned hat and a long coat. His features had a hard cast, as if he was a man accustomed to trouble. He grinned, though, as The Drifter looked at him, making his face a lot friendlier.

“Howdy, Frank,” he said.

Frank stopped short. “Jacob?” he asked. “Jacob Trench?”

“That’s right. How long’s it been? Ten years?”

“At least that.” Frank stuck out his hand. “It’s good to see you again.” The men shook hands for a moment, then Frank went on. “The hell with that.” He pulled Trench into a rough hug, pounding the man on the back as he did so. Trench returned the boisterous greeting.

“What are you doing in Seattle?” Trench asked.

“Same as always. Drifting.”

“I thought maybe you were headed up to Alaska to get in on the gold rush. That’s why the town is so crowded. Lots of prospectors outfit here before they sail north.”

Frank shook his head. “I’m not interested in hunting for gold.”

He didn’t need to. Thanks to the vast, varied, and highly lucrative business interests he had inherited from Vivian Browning, his first love and his son Conrad’s mother, Frank Morgan was one of the richest men west of the Mississippi, though an observer would never know that from his broken-in boots, well-worn jeans, faded blue work shirt, and time- and weather-stained hat. His gun and holster—the tools of his trade, so to speak—were well cared for, but there was nothing fancy about them, either.

“Same as always, all right,” Trench said with a laugh. “You’re one of the most unambitious men I’ve ever met, Frank. I think that’s one reason I like you. You don’t ever try to horn in on a man’s plans.”

“You have plans, Jacob?” Frank asked. The last time he had seen Trench, ten years or more in the past, the man had been running a freight line down in New Mexico Territory. Frank had helped him deal with some outlaws who had been plaguing the line.

“I always have plans. I’m headed up to Alaska myself.”

“To prospect?”

Trench shook his head. “I’ve got another sort of bonanza in mind, if you’re interested.”

Frank held up a hand to stop him. “Nope. Whatever it is, I want no part of it. Shoot, Jacob, I’m from Texas. I can’t take the cold up there in that country. It’s all snow and ice, from what I hear.”

“Not just yet,” Trench said. “Winter hasn’t set in yet. There are a few weeks left before the weather turns bad. That’s what I’m counting on, anyway. I’ll be in Skagway before the snow starts to fall.”

“I hope so.” They had reached the hotel. Frank stopped in front of it. “Well, good luck to you, whatever this venture of yours is. It’s mighty good to see you again—”

“Wait a minute, Frank,” Trench said, interrupting. His smile vanished and was replaced by a serious expression. “Come across the street and have a drink with me.” He jerked a thumb toward the Cascade Saloon.

“I don’t know…I’ve been in the saddle most of the day, and I was looking forward to a hot meal and then a good night’s sleep.”

“Before somebody threw down on you from that alley, you mean.”

A frown creased Frank’s forehead. “You saw that, did you?”

“Yeah, I saw it. I did more than that.” Trench took a deep breath. “I caused it.”

“What in blazes are you talking about?”

“That bastard wasn’t shooting at you, Frank,” Trench said. “He was shooting at me.”

Chapter 2

Trench’s angular face appeared to be completely serious. Frank was intrigued enough by his old friend’s claim that after a moment he nodded and said, “All right. I reckon we can have that drink.”

“Good. I feel mighty guilty about you almost getting ventilated because of me. Seems like buying you a drink is the least I can do to settle the score.”

“That and tell me why somebody wants to kill you,” Frank said as they started across the street toward the Cascade. Some of the men they passed must have recognized Frank as being involved in the shooting from a few minutes earlier. He saw the looks they cast in his direction and heard the whispers, but he was able to ignore them.

He’d had plenty of practice.

The Cascade Saloon was a good-sized establishment doing a brisk business. It was noisy enough inside, what with the tinny notes of a piano, the clicking of a roulette wheel, and the bawdy laughter and raucous talk of the customers and the girls who worked there, that Frank was confident nobody would be able to eavesdrop on him and Trench as they sat down at a table in the corner with a couple of beers.

Frank wasn’t much of a drinker, but he liked a cold beer now and then. The beer in the Cascade was icy and went down smoothly. After a healthy swallow, Frank set his mug on the table and said, “All right, Jacob. Let’s hear it.”

Trench took another drink from his mug, then thumbed his hat back on his thinning hair. Like Frank, he was well advanced into middle age, but still a vital, powerful man.

“I was walking along the other side of the street from you,” he began, “although I didn’t know it at the time. Just as I passed that alley, I heard a little noise, and I reckon I was jumpy enough that it made me duck. That’s when the fella who was lurking there pulled the trigger. The bullet came mighty close to parting my hair anyway, but it missed and went on across the street.”

“Where it went right past my ear and busted out a window in the building I was passing,” Frank said. The moment was still vivid in his mind.

“Yep. That’s about the size of it,” Trench agreed.

“Question is, if he was trying to kill you, why did he keep shooting at me ?”

“Because you were shooting at him,” Trench said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

And it was, Frank supposed. When he had felt the hot breath of that bullet, his instincts had taken over, making him whirl toward the source of the shot, drop to a knee, and return fire. Once things had gone that far, the man in the alley had kept shooting to try to save his own life. Frank could see now that that was the way it must have been.