Retribution
- 9 -
The next morning, Lom went over to see how Curry was. He was awake and cheerful, but still pale and very weak.
"How’re you doin’?" asked Lom.
"I’m O.K."
Lom nodded, "You just take your time and get well."
Curry nodded.
"Do you remember what happened?" asked Lom.
Curry nodded, a frown crossing his face, "Pretty much."
Lom nodded.
"Where’s Heyes?" Curry asked, as though the thought had only just occurred to him.
"He’s in jail."
"But… why?"
"Because of what happened. There were no witnesses, so the Sheriff had to take him in on suspicion of attempted murder." said Lom, choosing his words carefully, not wanting to influence whatever Curry might say.
"Attempted… murder?" Curry tried to laugh, but grimaced as pain flowed through him, "It was an accident."
Lom gave a mental sigh of relief. He’d had to hear him say that of his own volition.
"Thank God. Do you think you could tell the Sheriff what happened? Then he can let Heyes out of jail."
"Sure. How long have I been here?"
"Five days."
"Five days?" Curry looked confused.
Lom nodded.
"Has Heyes been in jail all that time?"
"Yeah."
Curry grinned, tiredly. It only took a few minutes for him to become exhausted.
"I bet he’s been climbing the walls." he muttered.
If Heyes had been aware of his surroundings that would have been true, Lom acknowledged. He hated being shut in anywhere. As it was, he’d practically been climbing the walls with worry.
"You know Heyes." Lom smiled, not wanting to upset him with the details, "I’ll bring the Sheriff over, later, when you’ve had a rest."
Curry nodded, drifting off to sleep again.
Lom went to fetch the Sheriff at three o’clock, and they went together to the doctor’s office.
"How’s Joshua?" Lom asked him as they walked, almost forgetting to use his alias.
"Not long woken up." replied the Sheriff.
"He was exhausted." acknowledged Lom.
They stepped up onto the boardwalk and entered the doctor’s office. Lom introduced the Sheriff to Curry, who shook hands with him.
"Pleased to meet you Mr. Jones." said the Sheriff, "How are you feeling?"
"Like a horse trampled on me."
"I’ll bet." smiled the Sheriff.
"Can you tell the Sheriff what happened on the day you were shot, Thaddeus, in your own words." said Lom.
Curry nodded, understanding, from Lom’s phrasing that he didn’t want him to talk about how they knew Felton or what had prompted Heyes to go after him. He told the Sheriff about Felton appearing in the saloon, hoping that Lom had already laid down some kind of story to fit the facts. He told of how he’d had to drag Joshua out to prevent him from going for him there and then, and then went on to describe the events of the following morning, of how he’d almost convinced him to put down his gun when Felton had gone for his own and Joshua had aimed the gun at him, purely in a gesture of self defence.
"It was an accident. I tried to grab the gun. He couldn’t do anything about it." he told him, "It was probably me grabbing for it that caused it to go off."
The Sheriff nodded thoughtfully, "Well, I guess that clears him. I’m glad. I have to admit to liking Mr. Smith. I would have hated to see him go to the gallows." He turned to look at Lom, a puzzled look on his face.
"Mr. Smith seems like a fairly affable guy. What happened to make him want to attack this guy Felton so badly?"
Lom and Curry exchanged glances. Curry looked anxious, hoping that he hadn’t said anything in his testimony that Lom couldn’t explain away. Lom walked around the bed, giving him an imperceptible wink as he did so, "It’s a long story…" he said now, stalling for time as he tried to finalize a story he’d been working on in his mind ever since they’d walked in here to talk to Curry. "They grew up in the same town," he began, "went to the same school, but they never got on. They’ve been at loggerheads for years one way or another." He paused momentarily as he composed the next part of his story.
"This latest set-to all started because of a girl, who Felton believed Joshua had stolen from him. He hadn’t, but Felton didn’t believe him. He went all out for revenge. He accused Joshua of all kinds of things, and stirred up no end of trouble for him for several months. Joshua played him at his own game, by exposing him in some dishonest dealings, for which he did a short spell in jail. After he got out, he lay in wait for Joshua, one night, with some friends, and they attacked him and beat him to within an inch of his life. It took months for him to recover from it." Lom’s sorrowful look wasn’t all acting as the similarities in his story made him think of the months Heyes had spent at his cabin trying to deal with what Felton really had done to him, "He hadn’t seen him since that day." He continued presently, "I guess, when he saw him again, he just snapped." He looked at the Sheriff now, hoping he would believe his story and not ask too many questions, while Curry fought to keep the smirk of amusement off his face at Lom’s over-zealous imagination, "I don't believe Joshua had any deliberate intent to harm Felton, things just got out of hand in the heat of the moment."
The Sheriff nodded, appearing to accept Lom’s story.
"What happened to Felton?" Curry asked, frowning.
The Sheriff shrugged, "He must have beat if after you were shot. There wasn’t another soul around when we got there. Didn’t want to get himself caught up in it I suppose." He sighed, "Well, I’ll go and arrange for Mr. Smith’s release." He stood up, "Nice to meet you." he said again to Curry.
"Likewise." replied Curry.
"I’ll catch up with you." Lom called after him.
"O.K." The Sheriff left and Lom turned to Curry with a smile.
"Thanks, Kid." he winked at him, "See you later, O.K?"
Curry nodded, yawning.
Lom left and went back to the Sheriff’s office, where he was just letting Heyes out of jail.
"Hi." Lom smiled as they came into the main office.
"Hi." Heyes replied, giving him a weak smile.
"You can stay at the hotel with me." Lom told him, "They re-let your room."
"Thanks, Lom, but I’ll have to owe you for the cost. I’ll have the doctor’s bill to settle." Heyes said gruffly.
"That’s O.K." smiled Lom.
"Thanks." Heyes picked up his things and followed Lom outside. He paused on the boardwalk, turning his face up towards the afternoon sun and taking a deep breath of the clean, fresh air. After five days cooped up in that jail cell, it was like being reborn, and Heyes made a silent vow that he would never let himself be sent to jail to serve his twenty year sentence. He'd rather die.
Lom smiled, reading his thoughts, "It is a nice day." he remarked.
Heyes nodded, following Lom to the hotel and upstairs to the room he was to share with him, which was on the floor above where he and Curry had been staying. They entered, and Heyes sat down on the bed with a sigh.
"I picked yours and the Kid’s stuff up from the desk clerk." Lom told him.
"Thanks." Heyes muttered.
"Are you O.K?" Lom asked on impulse. If anything, he looked in a worse state than Curry. Being pale didn’t look so bad on his fair haired complexion, but on Heyes’ swarthy features it made him look like death warmed up. His dark eyes stood out against his pasty complexion, his growth of beard making him almost unrecognizable.
Heyes nodded.
"Listen, why don’t you go get a bath and a shave." Lom told him, handing him some money.
"Thanks, Lom." Heyes gratefully took the money and quietly left the room, returning some time later looking a little more like his old self, having bathed and shaved and had his clothes laundered.
They went to the doctor’s office together that evening. Curry was dozing when they arrived, so they sat down quietly by the bed.
Heyes stared at Curry while Lom studied Heyes.
The Kid was very pale, Heyes noted, and from the amount of bandaging to his chest, the wound must have been very serious. And to think he had done it to him. God, it didn’t bear thinking about. He closed his eyes, consumed with guilt, opening them again as he felt a hand on his arm. Lom was shaking his head to him.
"Forget it, Heyes. It’s over. Done. He’s O.K. That’s all that matters."
Heyes sighed heavily, "Yeah."
Curry seemed to become aware of their voices and woke to see them both sitting by the bed.
"Hi." He smiled tiredly at Lom. Then, turning to Heyes, "It’s good to see you."
Heyes nodded but didn’t reply. They looked at each other for a moment, a thousand words passing between their eyes. Heyes looked away first, "Kid, I’m so sorry. I…"
"No." Curry cut him off.
Startled, Heyes looked up to find him shaking his head. There was no need for apologies between them, "Forget it." he said quietly.
Heyes gave an almost imperceptible nod.
"Are you O.K?" Curry asked suddenly, "You look like hell."
Heyes was both touched and embarrassed by the question. He gave a vague nod in reply.
Curry raised an eyebrow, "Jail get to you?" he joked.
Heyes looked away, his eyes bright with unshed tears. If only that were all.
"Yeah." he mumbled. Then, looking back at Curry with a forced smile, "I’m O.K."
Curry nodded, doubtfully, but refrained from further comment.
They chatted for a while until Curry's eyelids began to droop, tired once more.
"Well, we’d better let you get some sleep." said Lom, getting to his feet, "We’ll see you tomorrow. O.K?"
Curry nodded.
Heyes got up too, forcing a smile, "Look after yourself."
"You too." Curry replied tiredly. He raised his hand in a small wave, as Lom and Heyes left the room, drifting off to sleep almost before they’d closed the door.
"Well, maybe, now, you’ll let this be an end to it." Lom said to Heyes as they walked back towards the hotel, "You’ve been very lucky, both of you. Don’t push it."
When Heyes didn’t answer, Lom stole a sideways glance at him. He was looking straight ahead and Lom thought there was an unusual set to his face. But maybe it was just his imagination. Heyes had been so changeable these last few months, maybe that was how he usually looked and he had forgotten.
"Heyes?" he prompted.
"Yeah, sure." Heyes replied, without looking at him, his voice flat.
Lom gave him a puzzled look as Heyes opened the door for him to enter the hotel, but Heyes’ expression gave away nothing.
* * *
The next day, Heyes seemed in remarkably good spirits.
As they all chatted at Curry's bedside, Lom kept glancing across at him, not sure what to make of it. After seeing him sobbing his heart out in the jail a couple of days ago, Lom had doubted that he would ever be able to put what had happened behind him, yet now, he looked as though he didn’t have a care in the world. Lom was suspicious, but Curry didn’t seem to notice anything unusual about his behaviour.
"Are you sure you’re O.K?" Lom asked him that evening as they changed before going out for supper.
"I’m fine." Heyes replied non-commitally, without looking at him, "Why?"
Lom shrugged, "It’s just that… after everything you said the other day… you seem so… cheerful."
Heyes glanced at Lom through the mirror on the dresser, "I was upset about the Kid the other day… I over-reacted."
"You didn’t over-react when you went after Felton. You knew exactly what you were doing."
"Maybe, maybe not." muttered Heyes, shrugging into his jacket, "Like you said, it’s over. Let’s just try and forget it, huh?"
Lom gazed at Heyes with a frown, sure now that something wasn’t quite right. On the surface, Heyes appeared to be his old witty, amusing, happy-go-lucky self, but Lom had felt all along that it was an act, and now he was sure.
"What are you up to, Heyes?" he asked suspiciously.
"Up to?" Heyes raised an eyebrow as he put on his hat.
"Don’t kid me, Heyes. I’ve known you too long. You’re up to something."
"Like what?"
Lom shrugged, "I don’t know, but you are, and I’ll bet my bottom dollar it’s no good."
Heyes smiled. A sweet, disarming smile, intended to distract Lom from his train of thought, but it didn’t quite reach his eyes and it filled Lom with trepidation.
"Come on, let’s eat. I’m starving." said Heyes.
Lom gave up. He wasn’t going to get anything out of him. He would just have to keep a close eye on him.
He followed him out of the room and they crossed the street to the restaurant for their supper. Lom was both surprised, and pleased, that Heyes ate everything in sight. Since the shooting, his appetite had been virtually non-existent. Perhaps he really was making an effort to put it all behind him.
"Hungry tonight, aren’t you?"
Heyes glanced at him, "Mmm. Must be all the meals I missed lately."
They finished their meal and strolled across the street to the saloon for a drink, intending to visit Curry afterwards.
They’d been there about twenty minutes or so, when, in the middle of a conversation, Heyes suddenly put down his glass and bent over, clutching his stomach.
"What’s the matter?" Lom touched his arm.
Heyes straightened up, still clutching his stomach, "I guess… I ate too much… Indigestion I think…"
"You did eat rather a lot." agreed Lom as Heyes bent again, with a gasp of pain.
"I think… I’ll go back to… the hotel, and lie down… for a while." Heyes said hoarsely, "I feel a bit sick."
"I’ll come with you." Lom began.
"No." Heyes raised a hand to cut him off, "You stay and finish your drink… No need to spoil the rest of the evening on my account... I’ll be O.K."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes … don’t worry." Heyes pushed away his half full glass, "Tell the Kid I’ll see him tomorrow."
"O.K." Lom watched him, worriedly, as he left the saloon, still stooping slightly.
Lom stayed and had a few more drinks, chatting to some of the locals, before strolling across to the doctor’s office to visit Curry. He was getting stronger now, but wouldn’t be on his feet for several days yet, so Lom had insisted that they all go back to his place while he convalesced. It was a lengthy journey, and Lom had arranged to hire a wagon and Curry would have a bed made up in the back of it as he wouldn’t be able to ride for a while.
It was quite late when Lom arrived back at the hotel, having got chatting to the doctor about psychology, a subject that Lom had developed an interest in over the years, and lost track of time.
He turned the lamp up slightly and turned to check on Heyes who appeared to be asleep in the other bed. He leaned over him. He looked a little pale, he thought, but seemed alright otherwise.
"Heyes?" he whispered, but Heyes did not stir.
Lom turned away and undressed before turning out the lamp and climbing into bed.
In his bed, Heyes gave an inward sigh of relief, glad that Lom hadn’t suspected he was awake. He couldn’t handle talking to him right now.
"You O.K?" Lom asked Heyes the next morning.
"Fine." Heyes replied curtly, although Lom thought he still looked pale.
"The indigestion wear off?"
"Eventually." said Heyes, busying himself shaving, "My eyes must have been bigger than my belly. I had really bad stomach cramps. Did you visit the Kid?" he asked, changing the subject.
Lom nodded, "Yeah, he should be fit to travel in a day or so."
"Good. I can’t wait to see the back of this town."
They dressed and went across the street for some breakfast.
"Just coffee for me, Lom. I still feel a bit iffy." said Heyes.
"O.K." Lom ordered coffee for Heyes and bacon, eggs, beans and tomatoes for himself.
Lom chatted to Heyes about the preparations for moving Curry to Porterville to continue his recuperation, but Heyes was preoccupied and didn’t seem to be listening.
Lom’s breakfast arrived and he began to eat it hungrily. Heyes stared vacantly at Lom’s plate, lost in his thoughts. As he watched Lom cutting up the blood red tomatoes on his breakfast, he began to feel decidedly queasy.
"You O.K, Heyes?" Lom asked as he glanced up to see the colour drain from Heyes’ face.
Heyes shook his head, "Excuse me." he choked, getting up and hurrying out back, where he promptly threw up.
That’s judgement on you, he told himself, as nausea welled up in him a second time. He bent over to throw up again, before leaning against the wall of the restaurant, beads of perspiration standing out on his forehead. His legs felt like lead, and for a moment he thought he would pass out, but he took several deep breaths, forcing his mind onto other things, and presently, the nausea subsided enough for him to go back inside, where, thankfully, Lom had finished eating and was now on his second cup of coffee.
"What’s wrong?" Lom asked, scanning his pale face worriedly.
"I was sick. Must’ve been watching you scoff all that greasy food." he quipped.
Lom smiled, taking another sip of coffee, "O.K. now?"
Heyes nodded, "I’ll be alright." he said, an odd expression crossing his face.
"Well, I’m done. Shall we go see the Kid?" said Lom.
Heyes was lost in thought and didn’t hear the question.
"Heyes?" Lom prompted.
"Mmm?" Heyes blinked and looked at him.
"Shall we go see the Kid?" Lom repeated.
"Sure."
They got up and strolled up the street towards the doctor’s office.
"You still look peaky to me." Lom told him, "I’ll get the Doc to check you over."
"No. I’m O.K. Really."
But Lom insisted, and the doctor examined him thoroughly.
He could find nothing specific wrong with him except that he was a little underweight and was suffering from an irritation to the lining of the stomach, which he suggested was probably caused either by stress or too much rich food and drink.
"You need plenty of rest, no worry and not too much rich food." he told him, "Then you’ll be fine."
"Thanks, Doc." said Heyes, getting dressed. Fat chance of no worry, he thought to himself, unaware of the pensive frown on his face. He glanced up to see Lom studying him intently. Heyes smiled at him, "See, I told you it was just indigestion."
Lom merely raised an eyebrow and followed him in to see Curry.
"The Doc says I should be O.K. to travel tomorrow." Curry told them. He looked much better now that his colour had returned.
They chatted for a while and then Lom said he was going to make arrangements for their departure the next day.
He left Heyes and Curry talking while he headed off to organize the wagon for the next day. As he passed the Sheriff’s office, he came out and called him over.
Lom crossed the street, "Hi, Joe, how’s it going?"
"Come in. There’s something I want to discuss with you."
"Oh?" Lom followed him inside.
"We found a body this morning, in an alley at the back of the bank."
Lom looked puzzled, "So?"
"So, the guy’s name is Felton. John Felton."
"Felton?" Lom went cold, "But…"
"Wasn’t the guy your friend Mr. Smith had a beef with called Felton?"
"Well…yes…" Lom admitted, "But that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s the same man."
"It’s a bit too much of a coincidence." said the Sheriff, "Can you account for Mr. Smith’s movements in the last twenty four hours? After what happened, he has to be the prime suspect."
"Why, yes. He’s been with me the whole time--" Lom broke off, suddenly remembering Heyes’ departure from the saloon the previous night. But that had been genuine, hadn’t it? Hadn’t he been asleep in bed when he’d returned to the hotel? And hadn’t he been sick that very morning? He’d certainly looked ill, and the doctor had said he was suffering from a severe irritation to the stomach lining, probably caused by stress. Stress! Lom had allied it to the stress of what he’d been through, but there was nothing more stressful than killing somebody.
"How was he killed?" Lom asked now.
"Throat cut." said the Sheriff.
Lom allowed himself a mental sigh of relief. If Heyes did kill anyone, it wouldn’t be like that. He would use a gun. No, it must have been someone else. From what Heyes had told him about Felton, Lom was sure there must be a lot of people who would like to see him dead. Yet still the nagging doubt persisted. But what could he do? If he told the Sheriff the truth, Heyes would be hauled back in jail, possibly hung, maybe wrongly. But, if he lied, he’d be going against his oath as a Sheriff.
"He’s been with me all the time since he got out of jail." he said finally, "We were in the saloon last night, and we’ve just been across to the restaurant for breakfast. He’s over at the doctor's right now, visiting Thaddeus."
The Sheriff nodded, seemingly satisfied. If he checked, the Sheriff would probably find out that Heyes had left the saloon early, but he appeared to take Lom’s word as the truth.
"Well," the Sheriff nodded, "there’s no witnesses and no murder weapon, so, if you say he’s been with you all the time since he got out of here, it looks like that’s that. There’s nothing else to go on."
Lom nodded, thoughtfully.
"How’s Mr. Jones?" the Sheriff enquired now.
"Mmm? Oh, fine. He should be O.K. to travel tomorrow, so we’re going back to my place for a while, while he recuperates.
The Sheriff nodded, "You’ve known them a long time?"
"Yeah." Lom nodded, "We’ve been friends a good many years."
"What do they do?"
Lom shot him a quick glance. He was asking a lot of questions. Was he just making conversation, or did he suspect them of something else? The descriptions on their wanted posters weren’t totally accurate, but having met both of them, he would recognize them if he checked them.
"They travel a fair bit." Lom replied, "They do all kinds of work. Ranching, mining, anything that comes their way. I used to work with them before I became a Sheriff." he added, fighting to keep the smile off his face as he thought of what the Sheriff would say if he knew just what sort of ‘work’ they’d been in."
"Oh." the Sheriff nodded.
"Well." Lom stood up before the Sheriff had time to enquire any further into their history, "I must be going. I have a lot to see to." He extended his hand, "Thanks for everything."
The Sheriff shook his hand, "That’s O.K. See you around, huh?"
"Sure."
Lom left and went over to the undertaker’s office. He had to have a look at this guy Felton.
The undertaker led him through to the back room and pointed out the coffin.
Lom looked at the face of the man in it. Thin faced, with harsh eyebrows and a cruel twist to his thin mouth, Lom knew instinctively that this was the right man, the one who had reduced Heyes to a physical and emotional wreck. Heyes was right. He looked evil, even in death. Lom was glad he couldn’t see his eyes. He could imagine how cold they would have been. With a shudder, he turned away and, after thanking the undertaker, left. After arranging for their departure the next morning, he went back to the hotel to wait for Heyes’ return.
When he came in, Lom studied his face, but his expression was unreadable.
"Heyes." Lom began.
"Yeah?" replied Heyes, opening one of the dresser drawers and delving inside.
"I’ve just been to the Sheriff’s office." Lom thought he detected a slight stiffening of Heyes’ shoulders, but his tone was normal when he said, "Yeah?"
"Felton’s been murdered." Lom watched him carefully.
Heyes put down the things he’d been sorting out and turned to face him.
"Good." he said flatly.
Lom studied his face, but it was as though he’d drawn a mask over himself.
"He asked me if I could account for all of your movements over the past twenty four hours."
"What did you tell him?" Heyes asked, his gaze levelled on Lom’s face. He appeared calm, but, behind his back, Lom couldn’t see his hands clutching the edge of the open drawer tightly.
"That you were with me."
Heyes nodded slowly, breathing an inward sigh of relief that Lom hadn’t told the Sheriff the truth.
They stared at each other for several moments, each trying to read the other’s thoughts.
"Did you do it, Heyes?" Lom had to know.
"You think so, don’t you?" Heyes retaliated, his expression hard.
"I don’t know what to think." said Lom, "You did leave the saloon early last night."
"I was sick." said Heyes.
Lom nodded, "So you said."
"Aw, come on, Lom. The Doc confirmed it. And it was you who forced me to see him. I didn’t want to if you recall. If I’d wanted that as an alibi, I would have been keen to see him, wouldn’t I?"
That much was true, Lom had to admit.
"Well, whoever did it is off the hook." he told him, "In the absence of witnesses, or a murder weapon, there’s no case."
A flicker of something that Lom couldn’t read passed through Heyes’ eyes, but he merely nodded.
Both were silent for several moments. Then, suddenly, Heyes said, "Whatever I say wouldn’t make any difference. You already have your opinion." He looked disdainfully at Lom who blushed. Was he wrong to doubt him? Heyes hadn’t admitted to killing Felton, but then he hadn’t actually denied it either.
Heyes was right though. Even if he’d said outright that he hadn’t done it, there would always be a niggling doubt in the back of his mind. There was nothing to be done except put it behind them. Felton was dead. They need not worry any more about what would happen if they ever met again.
Lom sighed, "I’m a Sheriff. I have to consider all possibilities." He looked intently at Heyes, hoping he would understand, "And after everything that’s happened, you had to be the prime suspect."
Even if Heyes had admitted to killing him, Lom doubted that he would have done anything about it. Felton had deserved it. Lom had seen enough to know that, and he couldn’t send his friend to the gallows for that. Not that Heyes could know that. He had drilled it into them often enough, since trying for the amnesty, that he would turn them in, personally, if they were ever found guilty of any crime charged against them. It wasn’t surprising then that Heyes was unwilling to admit anything to him.
Heyes nodded, "I know."
Lom wondered if Heyes was angry with him for doubting him. If he was, he couldn’t see it in his face, but, in his shoes, Lom knew he would have felt resentful if he were accused of murder by one of his closest friends, especially if it wasn’t true.
But, with the killer’s identity a mystery, there was no-one for Felton’s gang to seek revenge on. If Heyes had done it, which Lom was reluctant to believe, he’d got it all sewn up. He’d got retribution and got away scot free. But then that had always been the secret of Heyes’ success - good planning.
Lom sighed, "Well, I still have a few things to do. I’ll see you in a while." he said, getting up and heading towards the door.
"O.K." Heyes watched him go.
As the door closed, Heyes’ shoulders seemed to sag and he sank down onto the bed, closing his eyes. He had known that he would be the prime suspect if anything happened to Felton, but it still hurt to be doubted, especially by one of his closest friends.
After finishing the arrangements for their journey the following day, Lom went over to the doctor’s office to see Curry.
"Hi." Curry smiled up at him, looking a little puzzled to see him back so soon.
"Hi." Lom pulled up a chair and sat down by the bed.
"I’ve fixed up everything for us to leave tomorrow." he told him.
"Fine." Curry studied his face, "Something wrong, Lom?" he asked, sensing his ambiguous mood.
Lom sighed, "I don’t know. Yes and no."
"Why?"
Lom looked at him. Should he tell him? Was it fair to plant the seeds of doubt in his mind too?
"Felton’s been killed." he said finally, carefully watching hia reaction.
"Felton?" Curry looked incredulous, "How?"
Lom sighed. It didn’t seem to have occurred to Curry, at all, that Heyes might be responsible. But perhaps he thought it had happened while Heyes was in jail and so couldn’t be responsible.
"I don’t know if I should tell you this." he said, ignoring his question.
"What?"
"When I left here earlier, the Sheriff stopped me to tell me that Felton had been murdered. He asked me if I could account for Heyes’ movements in the past twenty four hours."
"Yeah?" Curry still hadn’t put two and two together.
"So, I told the Sheriff he’d been with me all night. But he wasn’t was he? I told you last night he’d gone back to the hotel with stomach cramps."
"You think he was faking?" Curry's eyes widened in amazement.
Lom looked at him. Maybe he was wrong to doubt Heyes. Curry had seen him try to kill Felton before and yet he seemed genuinely surprised at the idea that it might have been him that had killed him.
"Well, I didn’t at the time, and this morning he threw up just watching me eat my breakfast. And the Doc did say he’d got a severe irritation to the lining of his stomach. But, the fact remains that he was out of my sight for two and a half hours last night and now, this morning, Felton is dead."
Curry looked thoughtful, "Did you ask Heyes about it?" he asked presently.
Lom nodded, "I didn’t get a straight answer. What he did say was that it didn’t make any difference what answer he gave because the doubt was already in my mind.
Curry nodded thoughtfully.
"And now I’ve put it in yours." said Lom.
"How was he killed?"
Throat was cut."
"I can’t imagine Heyes doing something like that."
"I know. But Heyes is clever. He’d know we’d be put off by that, and that if there was no weapon, and no witnesses, he’d be in the clear."
"True." Curry acknowledged.
"Lord knows, I’ve drilled it into his head enough about him and you going to the gallows if he were caught killing him." said Lom, briefly remembering how he’d reduced him to tears over it a few days earlier, "Perhaps I drove him to devise this elaborate plan to kill him, and now he won’t admit it in case I turn him in."
"Would you, if he did?"
"I don’t know." Lom sighed, "I don’t think so. Felton had it coming."
"I know it. But you’re a lawman. It’s your duty."
"Yeah. But sometimes, friendship comes above duty. And after what Felton did to him…" he shook his head, "Who are we to judge?"
"I’m glad to hear you say that, Lom. If Heyes did do it, he had good reason, and he wouldn’t have done it lightly. The day he shot me… he didn’t really want to kill him… I was that close to stopping him." he held his finger and thumb fractionally apart. "But it was like he was …"
"Driven by some demon?" Lom finished for him, "I know."
They sat for a long moment, thinking their own thoughts.
Presently, Lom said,"Do you think he did it?"
Curry looked thoughtful, "I don’t know. I thought, after shooting me… that he’d got it all out of his system… But… it’s possible I guess. Maybe if I ask him, I’ll be able to see in his face if the answer he gives is the truth or not."
"Does it change anything? If he did do it?"
Curry shook his head, "No… I’d feel sorry, if he did do it… Sorry for him, ‘cause I know it’s something he never wanted to have to do, not after seeing our folks murdered. And I’d feel… disappointed… that he’d risk both our lives, just for revenge… but after what Felton did… I couldn’t blame him."
Lom nodded, "Well, I’d better get back. See you in the morning."
"O.K."
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