Free A Good Day To Kill by Dusty Richards Page A

them,” Chet said.
    â€œI don’t miss a soul but Reg, who is too far away. Robert Brown at the mill gets his share, I feed the big ranch, send stuff for Sarge, and to your wife’s place.”
    â€œYou’re doing great.”
    Leroy was beaming. “The great ones are you three. I’d of died up there had it not been for you men. No one else was coming for me. I can farm, but only because you went the long miles to save me.”
    Jesus rubbed his shirtsleeves. “Well, it was a long cold mile going after you.”
    â€œToo cold, but we sure don’t regret it now,” Chet said, and headed for the house.
    The next morning, after a great breakfast, they rode up on the rim to the mill. Robert Brown and his smiling new bride, Agnes Jean, met them. He acted excited to see them and the four men had a great talk on the porch of his small house. Robert asked about his feed shipment, and Chet assured him it was coming and he settled down after that. He told them the mill operation was going full steam. He thought the future railroad track would run close to the mill, but Chet knew the end of the iron tracks were still back in Kansas. A long ways from the snow-capped peak of the San Francisco Mountains far north of them.
    The next day, they reached the base of that mountain, where several had struck homesteads, rail-fenced some of it, then planted alfalfa in plots and kept large gardens. Too early for much development and no money or markets was what he saw. Only the railroad would ever bring this region out of its weak financial problems. As they rode along, they passed near where Susie’s first husband died in a horse wreck. They camped on the high plains west of there that evening, then went on to the Mogollon Rim Ranch the next day.
    Stock dogs barked at their approach. A very pregnant Lucie waved at them from the porch. Three men came running from the blacksmith shop in leather aprons and heavy gloves to greet them.
    â€œHow the hell are you, Chet?”
    â€œGreat. What are you guys making?”
    â€œOh, a gadget. How is that new man at your house?”
    â€œGot lungs. He’s all boy.” Then he shook hands with Lefty and Haze, two cowboys he’d hired for Reg the summer before and they’d stayed with him.
    â€œWeather didn’t get too bad for you two?” Chet asked them.
    â€œNo, and Lucie’s about the best cook we’ve ever found,” Haze said. “Besides, me and Lefty don’t have a place to go, so as long as he puts up with us, we’re here.”
    â€œSo is my cousin Willy,” Lucie said. “He’s gone to check on a heifer. Coffee boils slow up here. It will be ready in a little while. Who’s next on the baby delivery?”
    â€œMay, I figure,” Chet said.
    Lucie nodded, looking thoughtful. “We’ve been reading in the letters about your border Force down there.”
    â€œWe’re taking a short break from that. I had to come see your wonderful house.”
    She about blushed, shook her head, and then smiled. “My crazy sisters call it a mansion. We’re finding furniture for it and I love it.”
    Reg came by and squeezed her shoulders. “She’s getting used to it anyway.”
    â€œHow are all those mavericks doing?”
    â€œAw, we have the damnedest set of calves. You’ll have to see them. Of course, I need some Hereford bulls to breed them back to. But we have a calf crop and their mommas never missed a bite this past winter. We never got to plant any alfalfa. Guess I better get Hampt up here to do that, huh?”
    â€œTom said he beat him at it, and that’s doing something. ’Course we think he prayed over it every day it was coming up.”
    â€œIf that’s what it takes, this crew can do the job,” Reg said. “They all agreed. Now tell us about Rancho Diablo. JD wrote me some things.”
    â€œBig, hot, and dry. The squatters have three