J.A. Johnstone - The Loner - Crossfire

I didn’t quite know how to spend my last days as sheriff, but I’d think of something. That whole business gave me a good excuse to visit the new opera house. That’s what they were calling the place, but it looked like a theater to me. It had been going up pretty fast, three or four months, with a swarm of carpenters banging it together.

The front of the place was pretty fancy, with fieldstone facing the street, but the rest was just another frame structure. The stage was pretty small, but it’d do in a little town like Doubtful. They’d gotten a wine-red velvet curtain hung up, and the carpenters were bolting down a mess of seats that came in on the freight wagons. I’d never been inside a theater before, so I was taking a real gander at the whole outfit. Now, take the way the floor rose so that people sitting in the back were higher than people in front, and everyone could see real fine. That sure was a marvel.

Sure enough, there was Cyrus Ralston overseeing the whole deal, wandering around in a black pinstripe suit. I’d never seen one before, and it sort of reminded me of a barber pole.

“Ah, it’s you, Sheriff,” Ralston said.

“Just poking around,” I said. “This place is as foreign to me as California.”

“Well, glad to have you. We’re close now. I’ve booked the first show for next week.”

“Going to be an opera, is it?”

“Opera? An opera? Oh, no, not at all. It’s a variety show. This is an opera house but that’s a figure of speech.”

“I’ve never seen a show, opera or other,” I said. “What’s the deal?”

“Lots of different shows around. Some come with music. Singers like Jenny Lind. Or Lotta Crabtree. Or dancers like Lola Montez.”

“I never heard of any of them.”

“Actresses, dancers, some of them quite, ah, bold.”

“I’d sure come and look,” I said.

“We’ll have some fine entertainers coming, Sheriff. They’re on the circuit.”

“What’s that?”

“Troupes go from one town to another, more or less prearranged by booking companies. That way they’ve got work ahead, and know where they’re going.”

“They’ll start rolling in, will they?”

“I’m working on it. Nothing’s easy, Sheriff. You’ve got to persuade the booking companies that they can make some money coming here.”

“Mess of fellers roll in and put on a show, is that it?”

“Gals, too, Sheriff.”

“Where do they stay?”

“Well, that’s a question. Some companies got their own little travel wagons with bunks. Most just book rooms in the town.”

“We hardly got any rooms here in Doubtful.”

“Yes, I’m working on that. It’s hard to book a show here because of it. I’ve told Belle to put a wing on her boardinghouse.”

I talked some with this Ralston, who seemed a lot smarter than anyone else in Doubtful, maybe because he was out of some big city somewheres. And I ended up with a pretty good idea of how this deal worked. Every couple of weeks a new troupe would arrive, and the old one would pack up and go to the next town.

“It sure took some figuring out,” I said.

He smiled and nodded. He actually had a kind of cold gaze that missed nothing, and I think he was sort of humoring me when he wanted to be doing something else. But I was still wearing a badge, and people usually will palaver with me when I’m looking to know something. So I got around to the question that was on my mind.

“Mr. Ralston, the county supervisors are saying you know a lot about crime waves.”

That sure got his attention. “They say that?”

“I mean, they’re going to get in touch with you about finding a new sheriff. They’re replacing me.”

“Why should I know anything about that? Ralston’s whole demeanor had changed, and he was suddenly wary. “And why are they replacing you?”

“I got robbed couple of nights ago, and they can’t stand it. Sheriff of Doubtful getting stole from.”

“And they’re going to consult me? About your replacement?”

“That’s what they were saying when they took the axe to me.”

Ralston laughed suddenly. “Sheriff, there’s some in the world, especially out here in the sticks, who think that show people are crooks and thieves and jailbirds. And that it takes someone like me, with some experience, to keep them toeing the line. That’s hardly true. There’s a lot of good troupes that cause no trouble; once in a while an outfit rolls in that’s looking for ways to fatten their purses and aren’t very careful how they do it. I can spot ’em, and I can usually keep the lid on. Time or two, I’ve cancelled the show and sent them out of town.”

“Where was that?”

“Oh, Cheyenne, Deadwood, Miles City, Golden, Laramie... .”

“Yeah, but why did you come to Doubtful? We ain’t half as big.”

“Doubtful’s future drew me. Some of the richest ranches in the state. Some mining in the Medicine Bow range. And the town’s a stageline hub, coaches going off in three directions. And I’m not forgetting the hot springs, either. Pretty soon now you’ll have the resort trade. So, naturally, all these good folks have some coin in their pockets and no place to spend it—at least not until I open up in a few days.”

Ralston seemed almost amused, and I didn’t much care for him. He seemed always to be talking down his nose, like I was a dummy. Well, maybe he was right. I’m slow. They all say it, starting with my ma.

“Well, the politicians are going to come talk to you about a new sheriff,” I said. “Why is that?”

“You’re all the sheriff I need, Pickens. I think you and I’ll get along fine. Anyone running a show house needs an accommodating sheriff around.”

“What’s that word mean?”

“Means, you just stay relaxed, and I’ll keep Doubtful happy. You look to be just the man I want, and if they come asking, I’ll tell ’em so.”

He was sort of smiling, but with cold eyes, and I figured I’d have to think about all this.

“You’re going to tell them to stick with me?”

“I’ll insist on it. You may not be aware of it, but I looked you over pretty closely even before I started business here. Having the right man wearing the star’s important to a business like mine. I sell good times, Sheriff. There’s lawmen that just don’t like anyone having a good time in their towns, and then there’s trouble. I wouldn’t want to lay out a small fortune to build an opera house in some town where the sheriff hasn’t got a happy bone in his body and doesn’t want anyone else to be happy either.”

“Yeah, well what’s that got to do with enforcing the law?”

“Everything, Sheriff.”

“I think I get it. If some actress wants to show a little leg you don’t want me pinching her.”

“Ah, you’re mastering it just fine, Pickens.”

“There’s something you said about some of these outfits causing trouble. What kind of trouble?”

“You’re a good man, Pickens. Asking the right questions. Every once in a while, there’s a confidence man, or woman, traveling in a troupe. They usually work in saloons, getting suckers to bite on some fake deal or other. Once a pickpocket blew into town with a troupe, working the standup bars. You can do me a favor, and the town a favor, keeping an eye on the saloons when a troupe’s playing.”

“You put up with it?”

Ralston shrugged. “I don’t control the acts. I book companies. If one’s coming this way, I’ll probably book it. That’s why I’m glad to have this little talk with you. Company comes in, and you’ll know what to look for, and you can collar the troublemakers. At the same time, you’ll see that all the good citizens of Doubtful will be enjoying life at these shows, getting some belly laughs, and that’s what I want. I want to sell tickets. Lots of tickets. I want to fill up the place every night. Sell out. SRO—that’s standing room only. SRO every single night. You keep the lid on, but let the show go on too. You treat the performers and artists right, and I’ll, say, make it worth your while.”