Chapter 6: Easy Come, Hard Go

Bob Nelson was riding north at top speed, pursued by five very angry men. He had no illusions about what would happen if they caught him. He would be either shot dead or lynched. Twenty minutes earlier he had been sitting in a saloon in Elton, Idaho, calmly taking money from the men in a game of poker. He’d been doing that since late the previous evening and it was well into the early hours of the morning when he had asked to be excused briefly to answer the call of nature. Once outside, he’d hurried to the livery stable, saddled his horse and left the town.

When Nelson hadn’t returned to the game after ten minutes, the other players began to get restless. Every one of them had lost heavily. They were all local men of some substance: three ranchers, the town’s banker and the doctor. Two of the cattlemen were down by over a thousand dollars each, the third by close to seven hundred, the doctor about four hundred and the banker a little over six hundred. In proportionate terms, the medico was hardest hit, for his practice did not net him anywhere near enough to allow losses on this scale. He’d succumbed a combination of drink and gambling fever.

The discomfited players were muttering among themselves when a well-dressed stranger who had been standing at the bar and watching the game for some time went outside, apparently for the same reason as Nelson had done. A few minutes later he returned and walked over to the five men, who were still bemoaning their losses. ‘Excuse me, gentlemen, ‘ he said, ‘but I’m wondering whether you expect your companion to come back.’ On being told that they certainly were, he went on: ‘Well, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I think there are two things you ought to know. First, your man left a little while ago, heading north and not wasting any time about it. Second, he’s been cheating you ever since I arrived, and I imagine before then too.’

‘Damn, ‘ said one of the ranchers, ‘I thought he was having more than his fair share of luck. How’s he been doing it?’

‘I may have missed some of the tricks he used, but I know he had holdout cards a few times and he did a little bottom dealing.’

‘Why didn’t you tell us earlier?’ snapped the doctor.

‘I didn’t see it as any of my business. Still don’t, but when he rode off I changed my mind and thought you might appreciate being told. Incidentally, his final refinement was quite clever. You may have noticed that he put nearly all his winnings into his coat and trousers, but left what looks like about a hundred dollars on the table to give the impression that he wasn’t through with you.’

Another of the ranchers nodded. ‘The scoundrel. Thank you, sir. Your information comes a little late but it’s welcome anyway. I think my friends here will agree that we should go after him.’ They did.

By the time the five men had saddled up and got underway, Nelson had a substantial lead. Then disaster struck. His horse went lame. He checked that there was nothing he could do about that on the spot, then he turned his mind to the matter of temporary cover. When riding south earlier, he’d taken note of the terrain, so he knew that to his right was open country and to his left a long line of cliffs, almost abutting the trail. He recalled that the escarpment went on unbroken for at least three or four miles from his present position, so there was no possibility of turning off that way. However, there had been a number of rockfalls, some of which had brought down huge boulders. Nelson had just passed one of these.

Having little doubt that he was being followed but not knowing how far behind any pursuers might be, he took what seemed the least hazardous course by leading his horse back to the big rock. He made it shortly before the unofficial posse thundered past. In daylight, the concealment wouldn’t have been adequate, but for the moment it was good enough.

Nelson considered his next move. As far as he could remember, the only habitation for some way ahead of him was a cabin. He recalled noticing smoke rising from its chimney as he’d passed the spot when riding south. Potentially more important was the fact that he’d also seen a small corral there. Maybe he could buy a horse. There was no safety for him in either staying put or walking back to the town he had just left. With the way east barred by the cliffs, the only options were to continue north or head west. Nelson quickly rejected the second course. This being summer, daylight would come soon, then a man walking across the flat, open country in crystal clear air might be visible to a rider on the trail for a long time. Very risky. The isolated cabin seemed like the least bad bet.