Читать книгу Settling The Score - George McLane Wood - Страница 61

Chapter Twenty-Four

They’d trotted and walked their horses for an hour. They topped a small hill and rode down the road running west through the rowdy Texas town of Jasper. The sheriff’s office, a hotel, Budgher’s store, some respectable businesses, and five saloons were on the north side of the street. Five saloons, some whorehouses, a hotel, the livery stables, and the Town Café were on the south side of the street. The townies had their houses on the off streets behind their businesses.

Their horses were tired, more than ready for a resting stall, to feel the comfort of a cool bare back and eat some oats in a peaceful stable before sleeping. Jeff paid for one night’s lodgings for their horses. Other chores were more pressing and came before their own needs as far as Jeff was concerned.

Carrying Winnie, Jeff cautioned Ed to stay behind him as they left the livery stable and walked to the first saloon. Jeff looked in over the batwing doors and noted the faces of each man in the room; he and Ed entered and stepped up to the bar and each had a whiskey and a cold beer. Jeff paid. Then they started on. Ed wondered where Jeff kept getting his money. When they got to the west end of the dirt street, after checking out the saloons without seeing Murphy, they walked across to the north side of the town and sauntered that dusty boardwalk east, back toward the east end. “I’ll find him,” Jeff mumbled, “if I have to look all over this state.”