you took adjoining rooms at the Oasis Hotel.â
Longarm blew a ring of smoke out toward the street, then he turned and looked at the stranger. âYou seem to be a real observant sort of fella.â
âItâs my job.â
âThen you must be Marshal Jeb Beeson.â
The man inhaled deeply and let the smoke drain through his nostrils. âI
know
who I am, but the question is . . . who the hell are you and what are you doing with the Ray girl?â
âWhat if I told you we were planning to get married and she wanted me to meet her father up on the hill this coming Sunday afternoon?â
The marshal was silent for a moment. âWell, Iâd say that was a good and reasonable thing to do. However, if you were to stay in my town, then Iâd probably come to believe that you werenât being completely honest about why you came to Yuma.â
âI guess what youâll have to do is to wait until next Monday to find out if Miss Ray and I are on the outbound train.â
âBut you see, mister, Iâm a very curious man and also an impatient one. So I donât intend to wait until next Monday if youâre intending to stay here.â
Longarm came to his feet. âLast I heard, Marshal Beeson, this was a free country where a man can come and go as he damn well pleases. So if youâll excuse me, Iâm going to say good night.â
The marshal came to his feet. He was almost as tall as Longarm and probably twenty pounds heavier. âWhat is your name?â
âCustis. Custis Long.â
âWell, Mr. Custis Long, Yuma is no place to get married or have your honeymoon. If you have any sense at all, you had better be headed out of town with Miss Ray come Monday or Iâm going to have all kinds of unpleasant questions for you to answer.â
âI understand,â Longarm told the man as he walked away.
âLong! You donât want to cross me!â
âNo, sir,â Longarm called back over his shoulder. âWouldnât dream of doinâ such a foolish thing as that.â
âGlad to hear it, and congratulations on catching such a pretty woman even though she sure ainât goinâ to be no virgin bride.â
That last comment stopped Longarm dead in his tracks. He took a deep breath, turned, and walked back to stand toe-to-toe with the town marshal. âMarshal Beeson, you are not a gentleman and I donât like you very much.â
Beeson laughed and blew smoke in Longarmâs face. âMister, you are a big man and you look tough. But Iâm the most bad-assed fella you ever came across and my two deputies arenât choir boys. So if you value your health and you really intend to marry that girl, Iâd suggest you be on the train come Monday morning.â
Longarm withdrew the cigar from his mouth and studied it for a moment, then he smiled, shoved the cigar back into his mouth and walked away. He was just itching to jam that cigar down the marshalâs throat, burning end first. Yet, the marshal had given him three full days to investigate and gain some answers before Monday. And considering that as a gift, Longarm decided to let the mean-spirited and uncalled-for remark about Jessica not being a virgin bride pass.
Chapter 11
Longarm sat across the table from Jessica and watched her finish her breakfast. âWhat are you up to today?â
âIâm going to open a bank account and put my house sale money where itâs safe.â
âGood idea.â
âThen Iâm going to go see an attorney named Kent Hamilton and see if he wants to take on the establishment here in Yuma and try to get my fatherâs sentence overturned.â
âYou want me to go along with you?â
âNo,â Jessica said. âKent is honest and heâs always been very smitten with me. I think heâd do a good job for my father.â
âHe may not even want to get involved,â