beer.
âWhat can I tell you, Mr. Adams?â
âWell . . . your nephew has threatened to kill the sheriff.â
âThe manâs as good as dead,â Wentworth said with a wave of his hand.
âReally? Youâre that sure?â
âBad seed, Mr. Adams,â Wentworth said. âThe boy is a bad seed. Heâd kill you as soon as look at you.â
âI see.â
âIf he says heâs going to kill Andy Taylor, then heâll do it.â
âWhat about the rest of them?â
âHeâs got several cousins with him, and the rest are just trash.â
âWhat will they do to the town if thereâs no lawman?â Clint asked.
âWhat trash does,â Wentworth said.
âWhy not bring in federal help then?â
âNot up to me,â Wentworth said. âI ainât the mayor anymore. You better ask the present mayorâor better yet, ask the sheriff himself.â
âI think Iâll do that, Mr. Wentworth.â
He finished his bourbon and set the empty glass down on the table.
âPour me another before you go, will you, son?â the old man asked.
âSure,â Clint said, and obliged.
As he was going down the steps from the porch, he turned and asked, âHow did Ned become Ned Pine?â
Wentworth laughed.
âWho would be frightened of an outlaw named Ned Wentworth?â
The man had a point.
FIFTEEN
Clint knew he should just saddle Eclipse, mount up, and ride out of town. He knew this even as he was walking to the sheriffâs office. When he entered, the man looked up from his desk and did not look happy to see him.
âWhat do you want?â
Clint was taken aback by the manâs attitude. Wasnât this the same lawman who just last night had been asking him for help?
âYour wife came to see me this morning.â
âSo I heard,â Taylor said. âJust so you know, I didnât send her.â
âI know that,â Clint said. âShe told me she came on her own. She seems to be an extraordinary woman.â
âReally? What else do you think about her? Is she beautiful?â
âYouâre married to her,â Clint said. âYou know the answer to that is yes.â
âAnd did you tell her that?â
Clint was puzzled. âNo, I didnât. We didnât talk about her looks, Sheriff. We talked about you.â
âYeah, well . . .â
âWhatâs on your mind?â
âShe told me you looked at her like she was a woman,â Taylor complained.
âDonât you look at her that way?â
âWell . . . I thought I did.â
âOh, I get it,â Clint said. âYour wife is feeling unappreciated, is that it?â
âI suppose so.â
âAnd she blames your job?â Clint asked. âAnd the badge?â
âActually, yes.â
âSheriff,â Clint said, âit sounds like you need to work on your marriage, but to do that you have to stay alive.â
âSounds like youâre gonna tell me again to run.â
âAs far and as fast as you can.â
âI canât do that.â
âBelieve me, I understand,â Clint said. âCan I sit down?â
âSure. You want some coffee?â He pointed. âPotâs on the stove, cup hanging on the wall.â
âThanks.â
Clint walked to the potbelly stove, took a tin cup from a hook on the wall, and poured himself some coffee from the cast-iron pot. He took the cup with him and sat opposite the sheriff.
âAs I understand it,â Clint said, âNed Pine wants to face you in the street alone, you and him. Thatâs not what you told me.â
âWho told you that? Miriam?â
âIâve talked to a few people in town,â Clint said.
âWell, what Ned Pine says heâs gonna do and what he does are two different things. He may want to face me in the street, and thatâs fine, but his boys