Free Ralph Compton Whiskey River by RALPH COMPTON

fought the law and won,” Mark said, “and now nobody else knows where the stolen gold is. Just what the hell did you aim to do with so much money?”
    â€œOur ma was consumptive,” said Amanda, “and we wanted money for her. But she didn’t last that long, and all we could think about was giving back the stolen gold. We had some terrible fights with Jake, because he didn’t know where we’d hidden it.”
    â€œIf I had to bet,” Bill said, “I’d bet a horse and saddle the metal Jake used to line the bed of his wagon is the missing gold.”
    â€œNo,” said Amanda. “Betsy and me wouldn’t lie to you.”
    â€œNot after all you’ve done for us,” Betsy said. “The sheriff’s posse caught up to Jake in the wagon, and he hadn’t had the time to hide the gold.”
    â€œBut you and Amanda did,” said Mark. “What do you aim to do with it?”
    â€œReturn it to the express office from which it was taken,” Betsy said.
    â€œYou can still be prosecuted,” said Bill. “I believe that’s grand larceny, and there’s a seven-year statute of limitations.”
    â€œBut we never spent a dollar of that gold,” Amanda protested. “We’ve waited for most of five years for a chance to return that stolen gold. We only wanted to spare old Jake a prison sentence. They still sentenced him to a year.”
    â€œYou should have used the gold to bargain with the court,” said Bill. “Jake’s not here to testify that except for concealing the gold, neither of you had anything to do with it. It could now become your word against that of Estrello and his outlaws.”
    â€œHe’s right,” Mark said. “I don’t figure the opinions of Bill and me will be worth a damn, with a pair of ten-thousand-dollar rewards on our heads.”
    â€œOh, damn it, how did we get caught up in this mess, just trying to help Jake,” Betsy cried. “He didn’t do that much wrong.”
    â€œHe took a pile of money that wasn’t his,” said Mark, “and that generally creates one hell of a misunderstanding.”
    â€œOh, God, how can we return the stolen gold without going to jail?” Betsy cried.
    â€œI don’t know,” said Bill. “Somehow you’ll have to win the confidence of the law, and the best way to do that is to invite Estrello to put up or shut up. You can always tell the court that you did what you had to, trying to save Jake.”
    After a few moments of silence, Betsy shouted angrily, “Go ahead and call the law, Estrello. I’ll gladly go there if your dirty carcass is locked in the next cell. You can’t hurt Jake anymore, and we can testify we saved the gold.”
    â€œBetsy,” said Bill, “you don’t know the gold’s still there. If it isn’t, then all you’ve done is drag yourselves into a fiveyear-old robbery.”
    â€œDamn Estrello,” Betsy said. “I’m willing to risk it.”
    Estrello only laughed as Betsy and Amanda forced themselves to remain silent. The rain became more intense.
    â€œIt looks like a Mexican standoff,” said Mark. “This is the kind of rain that works its way in from the High Plains and hangs on for a week.”
    â€œThe least of our worries,” Bill said. “This bunch we just chased off may attack us at any time. They left a pile of dead bodies behind, and they don’t strike me as the forgiving kind. Our camp’s divided, and that will hurt us.”
    â€œYeah,” said Keithley, “and next time some of those dead bodies may be ours. As far as we’re concerned, there are twenty-five men who might decide to split with Estrello. Should there be a split, those hombres could finish us with a single volley of lead.”
    â€œIn Estrello’s outfit,” Bill asked, “who’s second and third in