Free The Railroad War by Wesley Ellis Page A

clock.”
    â€œWell, Jessie,” Ki said, “it looks like we’ve each got a job to do. You can work with the Captain and try to find out what’s going on at the courthouse, and I’ll spend my time at the saloon and see what I can learn there.”
    â€œThat could be dangerous, Ki,” Tinker said. “Those two men you had that run-in with are sure to recognize you.”
    â€œI can look after myself, Captain. Don’t worry.”
    â€œWell, if you don’t mind walking into a lion’s cage, it’ll keep you busy while Jessie’s helping me get the mess about the land titles unraveled,” Tinker said thoughtfully. He looked at Jessie. “You’ve had a long, hard trip, all the way from Texas. I imagine you’ll want to rest up a few days?”
    Jessie and Ki exchanged smiles, and Jessie said, “Ki and I are used to traveling, Captain. The sooner we start, the sooner we’ll overcome the lead the cartel seems to have on us. If it’s all right with you, let’s begin tomorrow.”

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 they’d come to do, but she hadn’t 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.
    â€œYou tell me what deed you wanta look at,” he said. “I’ll get it for you.”
    â€œYou don’t seem to understand, Zeke,” the Captain told the man. “We want to look at all the deeds you’ve got on file.”
    â€œI never heard of such a thing! I can’t have outsiders messing up my files and books!” Carter protested.
    â€œI guess I better go see Judge Halstead, then,” Tinker told the clerk. “He’ll read the law to you.”
    â€œYou can‘t,” Zeke smirked. “The judge is in San Francisco. He won’t be back for another week or two.”
    A chair scraped in the room across the hall, and a pudgy man with a sheriff’s badge pinned on his blue shirt appeared in the doorway. He looked at Jessie and Tinker, and asked the clerk, “You having trouble, Zeke?”
    â€œOh, Cap’n Bob and this lady wanta look at some deeds, and I been trying to tell ‘em why they can’t,” Carter whined.
    â€œYou say the word,” the sheriff began, “and I‘ll—”
    â€œYou’ll do nothing, Ed Kinsell!” Tinker snapped. “You know the law about public records, and we do too! They’re open to any taxpayer who wants to look at them!”
    Kinsell hesitated a moment, then told Carter, “I guess you got to let ‘em look, Zeke. Cap’n Bob’s right.”
    Carter nodded slowly. “All right,” he told the Captain. “You can look at the books up here. We ain’t got room to keep everything in the little office, though. The deeds are stored down in the basement.”
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    Ki saw Captain Tinker’s 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 saloon’s 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 man’s eyes studied Ki’s loose blouse, worn black leather vest, unpressed trousers, and black cotton slippers with rope soles. Ki suppressed