A Grave for Lassiter by Loren Zane Grey Read Free Book Online Page A

explained that the three of them were just good friends.
    Days passed swiftly. He got so he could help assemble the small platform where Doc sold his elixir. But he tired easily. Patience, he warned himself. When he returned to Bluegate he had to be strong and have a clear mind. Among other things, he didn’t intend to forget the seven thousand dollars he had invested in the freight line owned by Herm Falconer and his niece. By now, Herm should have recovered from his leg wound and be able to take over. But Herm would need help against Kane Farrell—a gentleman Lassiter intended to settle with. He couldn’t forget Dutch Holzer mentioning that Farrell had paid two thousand dollars to have him killed.
    Not to mention the least of it, Vance Vanderson, who had run off to leave Lassiter alone to face a pair of killers.
    There was no hurry, he kept reminding himself. There was plenty of time.
    With the coming of winter, they headed south where the sun was warm. Doc owned a rather spacious adobe house that he used when not on the road. There was a smaller house on the property. This was Roma’s.
    After a few days, Doc and Rex left. They would do their show in saloons and stores. They wanted Roma to go with them, but she said it was her place to stay with her patient and see him get well.
    At the first sign of spring, Lassiter began practicing with his gun. A lot of the money he had with him went for shells.
    More than once, when Lassiter grew discouraged over his slow recovery, Roma would bring him to life at night. At first they had to be inventive because of his wound, but finally he was able to lock her in his arms in a normal embrace. Afterward they would lie together and he would stroke her long, silky hair. One name would beat through his brain like the tom-tom Rex used for Roma’s dance. Kane Farrell, Kane Farrell, Kane Farrell . . .
    Roma received a letter from Doc. They were on their way back and expected Roma to go on the road with them as usual.
    â€œI’d rather go with you, Lassiter.”
    â€œToo dangerous.”
    â€œWhat could be so dangerous about a town with a pretty name like Bluegate?”
    â€œHow did you know about Bluegate?”
    â€œYou talked when you were out of your head. I learned many things about you, darling Lassiter.”
    Her black eyes were shining, the red mouth curved in a sensual smile. “So, you take me with you,” she said.
    Their parting was not easy, but he was adamant. Roma screamed at him and pretended she wanted to claw his face with her sharp nails. But in the end they fell into each other’s arms in a warm embrace.
    And after kissing her for one last time, he rode north. How he hated to leave her. She had done so much for him. But it was impossible to take her back to the turmoil he would face. Soon Rex and Doc would return and she would forget all about him when she returned to the old routine. At least that was what he told himself on the chill spring morning as his trail climbed through cactus and stretches of high desert, with a backdrop of purple mountains.
    One night in a tavern where he was eating supper he heard his name mentioned. Some men were drinking at a short bar. They were comparing gunfighters.
    â€œLassiter was the best,” said a man in fringed buckskin.
    â€œNot as good as Kane Farrell,” another man said. “He took down the Texas Kid right on the main street of Bluegate just last month.”
    â€œLassiter an’ Farrell shoulda faced up. Now that would’ve been a gunfight.”
    A thin mustached man spoke for the first time. “Fact is, Lassiter couldn’t be so goddamn good. He ended up dead, like the Kid. I was at his funeral. I seen him buried.”
    None of the customers paid any attention to the slender man in worn range clothing, who sported a bushy beard and ate a lonely supper.

Chapter Seven
    Melody rode into Bluegate on a windy spring morning. Tumbleweeds rolled along the street