“Nope. If I can’t get him alone, I’ll never get him. All a damn’ posse is good for is to offer advice and kick about things.”
Harry was willing to ride with him, and they left town as soon as Bad News could saddle his horse.
“Collins must be in cahoots with Blaze,” offered Harry as they pounded along the road.
“I ain’t offerin’ any thoughts on the matter, Harry. Mostly always I’m wrong. I don’t sabe Collins no more than you do. Said he was here to find a stolen horse, but he ain’t looked for no horse; not that I’ve seen. I figure he’s just a lazy buckaroo with some money, and he’ll stick here as long as his money lasts. But don’t never git yore mind in such a condition that yuh might think for a minute that he ain’t forked. Pass all such thoughts, pardner, because that lean, hungry-lookin’ waddy is much man.”
“I ain’t choosin’ him for trouble,” grinned Harry. “What he done to Alden Marsh and Butch Van Deen was plenty warnin’ to me. I reckon they’ve laid off him since then. Seems to me that Alden Marsh is kinda layin’ off the booze lately.”
“Well, he ain’t such a familiar sight as he was for a while. Mebbe the old man has kinda blocked his parade. We better turn off here and head north, I reckon. Better travellin’ than it is farther on this way.”
“All right,” and they swung off the road. Then, “Who do yuh think helped Blaze rob the bank that night?”
“Pardner,” grimly, “if thinkin’ got me anywhere I’d be right where I started from. I reckon Buck Gillis hired me for a deputy because he felt sorry for the cows around here; and now I’ve got hoodled into the sheriff’s boots, which fit me jist like a sixteen collar would fit a rattler. I can crawl right through my job and never touch sides, bottom or top. Some of these damn’ fools around here seem to think that all you’ve got to do is pin a star on yore vest, and yuh immediate becomes wise as hell. Yeah, I’m wise, y’betcho; wise to the fact that I don’t know anythin’ about my job.”
“If yuh catch Blaze Nolan, you’ll have a reputation, Bad News.”
“Sure, I will. Then they’ll hang Blaze, won’t they? Uh-huh. And all my life I’ll think about it—think how damn’ easy I could have kept from catching him. Legal murder.”