clock.â
âWell, Jessie,â Ki said, âit looks like weâve each got a job to do. You can work with the Captain and try to find out whatâs going on at the courthouse, and Iâll spend my time at the saloon and see what I can learn there.â
âThat could be dangerous, Ki,â Tinker said. âThose two men you had that run-in with are sure to recognize you.â
âI can look after myself, Captain. Donât worry.â
âWell, if you donât mind walking into a lionâs cage, itâll keep you busy while Jessieâs helping me get the mess about the land titles unraveled,â Tinker said thoughtfully. He looked at Jessie. âYouâve had a long, hard trip, all the way from Texas. I imagine youâll want to rest up a few days?â
Jessie and Ki exchanged smiles, and Jessie said, âKi and I are used to traveling, Captain. The sooner we start, the sooner weâll overcome the lead the cartel seems to have on us. If itâs all right with you, letâs begin tomorrow.â
Chapter 6
Jessie had not expected to have a red carpet rolled out by the county officials when she and Captain Tinker told them what theyâd come to do, but she hadnât expected the almost open hostility they encountered.
Zeke Carter, the wizened little county clerk, stared at them with almost colorless blue eyes when he heard their request to examine the land deeds.
âYou tell me what deed you wanta look at,â he said. âIâll get it for you.â
âYou donât seem to understand, Zeke,â the Captain told the man. âWe want to look at all the deeds youâve got on file.â
âI never heard of such a thing! I canât have outsiders messing up my files and books!â Carter protested.
âI guess I better go see Judge Halstead, then,â Tinker told the clerk. âHeâll read the law to you.â
âYou canât,â Zeke smirked. âThe judge is in San Francisco. He wonât be back for another week or two.â
A chair scraped in the room across the hall, and a pudgy man with a sheriffâs badge pinned on his blue shirt appeared in the doorway. He looked at Jessie and Tinker, and asked the clerk, âYou having trouble, Zeke?â
âOh, Capân Bob and this lady wanta look at some deeds, and I been trying to tell âem why they canât,â Carter whined.
âYou say the word,â the sheriff began, âand Iâllââ
âYouâll do nothing, Ed Kinsell!â Tinker snapped. âYou know the law about public records, and we do too! Theyâre open to any taxpayer who wants to look at them!â
Kinsell hesitated a moment, then told Carter, âI guess you got to let âem look, Zeke. Capân Bobâs right.â
Carter nodded slowly. âAll right,â he told the Captain. âYou can look at the books up here. We ainât got room to keep everything in the little office, though. The deeds are stored down in the basement.â
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Ki saw Captain Tinkerâs buggy in front of the courthouse as he crossed the square. He thought of Jessie, who must now be digging into dusty records in some storage room and felt a touch of sympathy for her. Then, as he walked on and saw the saloon ahead, Ki wondered if his sympathy might not be better saved for himself.
Today there were no loungers in front of the saloon, and when Ki pushed through the batwings he was surprised to see that the place was empty. Except for an aproned barkeep who stood with his back to the cavernous room, polishing glasses at the backbar, Ki was the saloonâs only occupant.
For a moment the barkeep watched Ki in the backbar mirror, and a puzzled frown formed on his face, growing deeper as the manâs eyes studied Kiâs loose blouse, worn black leather vest, unpressed trousers, and black cotton slippers with rope soles. Ki suppressed