Brother's Keeper by Robert J. Thomas Read Free Book Online Page B

shots and hit both men dead on. One of the men fell forward off the roof, bounced off the short overhang and fell onto the boardwalk while the other man stumbled backwards and out of sight on the roof. Jess ducked and made a full turn around scanning everything he could to see if there were any more threats. He saw none. One of the townsfolk who had watched the failed ambush walked over to the body that had fallen onto the boardwalk. Jess quickly reloaded his empty chambers before holstering his pistol and walked over to the body.
“That’s old Ned Cullen. He won’t be missed much,” the man said, spitting some tobacco in the dirt.
“Is he one of Carter’s men?” asked Jess.
“He was, but I guess he’s off the payroll now.”
“Do me a favor and go up to the roof and see who the other man is.”
“What if he ain’t dead yet?”
“Don’t worry, he’s a goner. I caught him square in the chest. If he’s not dead yet, he’s not long from a meeting with his maker.”
The man walked through an opening between two buildings and walked over to the back of the building where the man had been shot and went up the back steps and onto the roof. Sure enough, the man Jess had shot in the chest was lying face down, dead in a pool of his own blood. The man went back down and told Jess it was another one of Carter’s men but that he didn’t know his name.
“Thanks for the help, Mister.”
“No problem. Most of us here in town understand what’s going on. You’re fighting for us and we sure appreciate it. We ain’t gunfighters but we’ll do what we can to help. Carter’s had an iron grip on this town since you left and it’s high time someone did something about it. Sure can’t count on the new sheriff; Carter owns him lock, stock and barrel, just like he owns the mayor.”
“I have a hunch the sheriff might back off a little.”
Just as the man was giving Jess a look of puzzlement the sheriff came storming out of his office with a rag that was dripping blood all over the boardwalk. Newcomb was heading straight for Doc Johnson’s office, and cussing up a storm. The man looked at Jess and said, “What the hell happened to him?”
“I gave him something else to do to occupy his time other than bothering Jim or Sara Smythe.”
The man chuckled at that. “I think it’s gonna work,” the man said.
Jess had noticed through all of this that the blacksmith, Tony, and the Barkeep, Andy, had appeared in front of their doors. Tony had his Winchester rifle in his hands and Andy had his double-barrel. They nodded their heads to him as if to say that they were watching his back and he could count of them when the time came. It gave Jess a comfort level he was not used to. He nodded back and they knew exactly what he meant. Thanks for watching my back. They went back into their respective establishments and back to work. Normally, Jess would apply for any bounty that these two men might have had on their heads, but he knew that he could not rely on Newcomb to assist in that so he figured to hell with it. He did, however, remove a very nice pistol and holster from the very dead Ned Cullen, along with fifty dollars that he found in his front pocket. He figured that he would give the pistol and holster to Jim Smythe to sell. He climbed up the back steps to the roof where the other man lay dead and he picked up a very nice model 1876 Winchester rifle and another thirty dollars. The dead man’s pistol and holster wasn’t worth taking it off him.
He figured that the ambush was a result of Newcomb’s trip out to see Carter earlier. He realized that this was a personal war between himself and Dick Carter but it was also a fight for the townspeople. This town had been part of his life and the townspeople had stood by him and his family when they had needed it the most. His pa had been friends with most of the long time residents. His pa would have wanted Jess to help these people and that’s exactly what he was going to do. Even