Free Texas Lawman by Ginger Chambers Page B

the parents notified. Then a call came in from someone who thought he’d seen Rio Walsh a few days before. A deputy wasn’t available, so Tate went to interview the man himself.
    “Sure looked like him,” Stan Dodson, a part-time gas jockey at one of the local service stations, said. “I’m pretty good at rememberin’ faces. That and license-plate numbers. Not a lot else to do when I’m on duty. Didn’t see him at the station, though. Wasn’t actually in Del Norte, either. Off in Fort Stockton. I had to go up there to pick up a special order. And while I was there, I stopped by to visit a cousin of mine who works at one of those chain grocery stores. That’s where I saw him.”
    “And you’re sure it was him?” Tate pressed. “Fairly sure. He has a mustache now, otherwise he’s pretty much the same. He used to come in here to gas up that old pickup truck of his. The one with the cow
     
    horns for a hood ornament. “When I heard you was on the lookout for him, I thought I better give ya a call.”
    Tate smiled. “You’ve been a big help, Stan. You, ah, didn’t happen to see which way he headed when he left, did you?”
    Stan admitted sheepishly, “My girlfriend says I’m too curious sometimes for my own good, but I stepped out to watch him leave. He took off this direction down the highway.”
    Tate clapped the man on the shoulder, thanked him again for his help, then went back to the office.
    Several administrative matters had to be attended to, but once he’d dealt with them, he put a call through to Bill Preston in Clayborne County.
    “Can’t say for sure,” he told the other sheriff, “but I think we’ve had someone spot Rio Walsh. Not in this county, but coming this way. Person knew him from before and recognized him.”
    Tate could hear the squeak of the other sheriff’s chair as he Sat forward. “Best news I’ve had all day!”
    “We’ll step up our activity, see if we can catch him for you. From what I know of him, he’s not the kind of person to keep to himself. He may lay low for a while, but he’ll surface sooner or later.”
    “That’s what I think, too. Man, Rufus Hammond is gonna be glad to hear this.”
    “Rufus Hammond?” Tate echoed
    “Crystal Hammond’s daddy—the girl Rio Walsh beat up.”
    A whisper of unease moved along Tate’s spine. “It might not be a good idea to say anything to him yet.
     
    Not until we know for sure . have your man in custody and all. “
    “Girl’snot.” getting any better,” Sheriff Preston said gruffly. ” In fact, she’s failing fast. Got all kinds of complications. Do Rufus good to hear some positive news for a change. “
    Tate offered no further advice. It wasn’t up to him to tell another sheriff how to run his county.
    After hanging up, Tate composed a bulletin to be passed along to his deputies and to the Del Norte police chief,” alerting them to the sighting. He also sent a notice to the law-enforcement agencies in the surrounding counties. If Rio Walsh showed his face anywhere in the vicinity, he wanted him detained.
    Tate’s thoughts swung to the Parkers. Their ranch would be a high-priority destination for the cowboy. Tate was in accord with the sheriff in Colorado that Rio might think he had friends there, at least among the hired hands. But unlike the Colorado sheriff, “Fate had drawn no conclusions about the man’s guilt. The fact that he was fleeing, though, spoke volumes. Out of curiosity Tate had run a check on Rio Walsh’s prior record and been surprised there wasn’t more. A few traffic warrants, a drunk-and-disorderly, participation in a couple of bar fightsmpretty clean for an itinerant cowboy. Still, there was that trouble with Jodie, which showed a history of involvement with susceptible young women.
    Tate stood up, retrieved his hat from the antler prong, jammed it on his head and strode into the hall.
    “Get this out right away,” he said, stopping by the dispatch office. “Top priority. I’m