"A Storm in the West", Chapter Eleven
Title: A Storm in the West
Chapter: 11/13
Fandom: Arashi
Character, Pairing(s): Sho/Jun
Rating: T
Warnings: Language and violence.
Summary: A saloon owner with an enigmatic past, an idealistic sheriff, a remorseful shotgun messenger, and the town that unites them.
Her eyes were very wide, dark as the sea.
"You're movin'?" she asked, voice coming out a bit like a squeak.
"You know there ain't nothing left for me here," he said. The ground beneath his knees was wet, and the moisture was creeping into the thread of his trousers. Beside his arm stood the granite stone erected for his mother- simple, uncarved still, and not uniform in color, but he didn't think she would have really cared about fancy stuff. It was all he could afford, in the end of things. "Ain't no reason to stay."
"I'm not reason to stay?" she asked, and even though she ducked her head, he could see the shimmer of tears in her eyes. She let her fingers brush at the petals of the flowers she'd brought for his ma.
He couldn't answer for a long moment, because his throat had closed up, but she gave a breathy little sigh and held up the bouquet.
"Your ma loved daisies," she said, softly. "Loved havin' them grow just outside her window, so she could see them dance in the wind every day."
"I know," he choked out.
"But you know what daisies mean?" she asked him. When she raised her chin, one of the tears escaped and trickled slowly down the smooth curve of her cheek. "They mean a farewell."
She set the flowers down against the stone and sniffled. He sat up a bit, letting his own fingers fall on top of hers- even with her sewing and needlework, her hands were soft still. Soft like the finest silk. He could spend hours just running his fingertips over the fine skin of her hands, listening to her sigh in contentment.
"They're a good funeral flower," she continued, and her voice broke a little bit at the end. "At the shop, we put them in funeral bouquets to say farewells with. I should have known you was gonna leave me."
"No, look," he started. "I said I was leavin'- but-"
He was fumblin' something awful with his words, and it was a moment he didn't want to be. He grappled inside the pockets of his trousers for the little box, and pulled it out.
"Here," he said, handing it to her. With trembling fingers, she took it from his palm. She gave him a look- eyes still sparkling in the sunlight- and when she opened it up, gasped. The silver of the chain was blinding when it caught the sun's rays just right.
"I know it ain't much," he said, and it wasn't- just a simple oval locket with a floral emblem embossed into it, "but I thought- well, I thought you could come with me."
When she just stared at him in shock, he swallowed hard.
"I mean, to get married. We could get married. And you could come out West with me once I sell all ma's things."
It took her so long to say something, say anything, that he thought she was going to turn him down flat. But she ran her fingers over the flower on the necklace and gave out a tiny little laugh, as more tears gathered in the corners of her eyes.
"Really?" she asked, and she was smilin' brighter than the sun. "Kazu, really?"
"Yeah," he said. Suddenly, he was laughing, too. "Yeah, really. Look, I know it ain't a ring-"
"Oh, I don't care!" she exclaimed, leaning forward to throw her arms around his shoulders and kiss his cheek with her pert lips. "Oh, you know I don't care 'bout that! Oh, Kazu, can we really get married?"
He reached for the box as she pulled away, disentangling the necklace and pulling it from the stiff material inside. His hands were shaking so bad it was hard to get the clasp open, but somehow he did it, and she turned obediently for him to fasten it around her neck.
"Is it ivy?" she asked, fingers tracing over the design again.
"For fidelity," he explained. "I asked Christie Bakerson what it meant, just cause I knew you'd want it to mean something. You always want things to mean somethin'."
She was smilin' again, with her bottom lip caught between her teeth. "You mean something, Kazu."
He brushed ringlets away from the side of her face. In the warmth of spring, she looked radiant. He wondered if his ma was watchin' from Heaven, at the two of them sitting in the long grass by her grave. He hoped she was. He hoped she was happy for him.
"You mean everythin'," he told her, and let his forehead rest against her temple. "You hear me? You mean everything to me."
Chief Coyote Howl was no fool- he kept his men moving, and kept them hidden. By federal law, most of the Apache had been relegated to the Arizona reservations, but there were a few tribes still ducking under the law's eyes and conducting business near the border. Didn't always stay in the same place, but usually one or two riskier gamblers knew where to find them. Tended to be easier when the tribe was dragging a herd of cattle at their heels.
When they arrived at the bluffs, Nino knew his source had been right. A handful of rickety tent-tops were visible from the hills against the horizon. The dust that blew up when his boots hit the dirt upon dismount made his eyes sting, but he made sure to keep his hands slow-movin' and in plain sight- didn't want Coyote Howl getting any wrong ideas about their arrival. Behind him, Jun was doing the same.
Two horses rode out to meet them, covered in colorful blankets and adorned with feathers and beaded hoops 'round the saddle-horns.
"Heard through the mill you got some cattle you're lookin' to sell," Nino said, when the hooves of the Apache horses had stilled against the sand.
"Depends," came the answer. Neither man was Chief Coyote Howl, but Nino hadn't figured the chief himself would come down to meet two stragglers lookin' to trade. "Depends on who you are."
Nino gestured back over his shoulder at Jun, who was wisely staying quiet. There was a knot in his stomach that refused to yield; dealing with Apache wasn't easy, and he was treading a dangerous line, but if Nagase's name held the influence he thought it did, the acquisition should go pretty smooth.
"Works for Nagase," he explained. "Lookin' to buy and sell quick, turn a nice profit."
The stolid figures on the horses exchanged quick, unreadable glances.
"I've met your chief," Nino continued, hoping to soften doubts. "Did some dealin's with Rapid Springs a few years back. Always paid in full, paid fair. Fixin' to do the same here."
"Confederate?" one asked.
"Was," Jun answered. Another silence, and Nino could finally see the far edge of the moving herd from behind the start of the bluffs- noisy, foul-smelling beasts, but from what he could see, they looked better than some of the bare-bones stock he'd seen run past Rapid Springs in the past. Hadn't been long, then, since the Apache had picked them up. That put the source within a few counties, or over the border- and Nino's bet was on the latter.
Good. Getting the herd from 'cross the bounds upped the possibility that they were stolen, and that was what Sho needed to bank on to get the feds interested.
The Apache's faces didn't show much by way of expression, but Nino could see lines across both foreheads that spoke volumes about the troubles they'd seen lately. He couldn't argue- tribe probably spent half their days keepin' out of federal eyes to avoid being shuffled over to the dingy reservations the government had set up.
Jun's horse stamped impatiently at the dirt.
"What are you offerin'?" the bigger of the two Indians asked.
"Usual," Nino said. "Couple hundred and coin. The going rate."
"400 headcount," the Apache informed him. Nino did the math quick in his head- the number was higher than he'd picked up through the grapevine, and he didn't know if they'd brought enough to deal with. He glanced back at Jun in question- the gunman got a little shifty under his gaze, but nodded in confirmation. Of all the times to start gettin' shy, Matsumoto picked the worst. Standing in front of two armed Indians was no time to start reminiscin' about getting physical.
Nino swallowed the memories down.
"Alright," he said.
"Good stock," the Apache said, and Nino didn't like the set of the man's jaw. "Might need more than the usual. It's not easy moving them through the desert."
Dammit- bargaining. Nagase's name hadn't pulled as much weight as Nino had been hoping, but he was sure the cattle were wet stock. And the higher herd number than they'd been expecting was throwing off how much they could offer. They didn't want to appear too desperate, or else the Apache would get suspicious. But if they turned it all down-
"Rather see the head first, 'fore we make any increases," Jun said, from behind Nino. Nino's breath caught. It was a risky move, and they were already standing on tenuous threads. The Apache shared another lingering glance, and one nodded just slightly, enough that Nino picked up on the movement. The air felt stifling all of a sudden, cloying around his shoulders.
"Got ammunition?" the smaller Indian asked, and Nino let out a bit of the air he'd been holding. Reluctance to show the stock meant some were most likely branded; a sure sign they'd been rustled from someone else's herd.
"Couple sacks," Jun replied. "Enough for ten, maybe fifteen."
Nino was quite suddenly very grateful that the gunman had thought to bring something like that. All he'd brought to offer was the handful of bills shoved in his breast pocket, and it was lookin' slimmer and slimmer by the minute.
"For 300, then," the larger Indian said. Not all the herd, but enough. They could go with that, but they had parts to play; Nagase was the biggest hand around the provinces, and he wouldn't accepted leaving a fourth of the cattle behind, especially not if he was paying the going rate.
Jun tapped his fingers against the bill of his hat. "Got gunpowder, too. 350."
Nino's chest felt like it would explode. He could feel the heat radiating off his mare shaking her mane next to him, and he idly ran his fingers through the coarse hair.
"Alright," came the answer. "350."
All his muscles wanted to uncoil at once, and he fought against it. He reached in his vest for the bills and coin, while Jun tossed over the bullets and powder he produced from beneath the blanket on his mount's saddle. The Apache pocketed it all silently, and then waved back towards the bluffs where the rest were. There was a sharp whistle, and a few smacks, and the thunder of stampeding hooves started.
The taller of the Indians gave Nino a nod, and the two doin' the negotiations clicked their tongues and turned their horses back towards the ridge. Jun was up and on the saddle already, movin' round the back to meet the Apache spurring the cattle on. Nino didn't know anything about herding cattle across sand dunes, but he figured he ought to do the same. Felt good to be back on his horse, at any rate; quicker to get away should something go sour.
When the Apache left, it was just him and Matsumoto with the stinking beasts.
"How long is this gonna take?" Nino asked, watching one of the cattle's eyes roll back a bit in its head.
"Dunno," Jun mumbled in reply, and then added, "too long. Let's just get moving."
They had to get to the edge of Nagase's ranch 'fore the feds spotted them with the herd.
------
Coyote Howl had kindly offered two of his boys to help them move the cattle, and since he and Nino were suspicious by nature, neither of them had slept since there was no knowing if the two helpers would turn on them or not.
Jun rode near the front, leading as quickly as he dared. He squinted, watching the sun set. They were going to keep the cattle moving all night, stopping only at creeks for them to drink. By the time they got the beasts unloaded and got back to Rapid Springs, hopefully the sheriff would have sent word from Santa Fe. Nagase’s ranch was enormous - it would be a while before they did a count and noticed the extra cattle.
The ride was slow, and once night fell and got the cattle through a particularly tricky pass, Jun halted his horse. “We’ll be fine from here,” he told Coyote Howl’s men, who seemed pleased to be able to turn back and go home. Jun imagined that Nagase’s reputation preceded him in these parts.
Nino was struggling to stay awake near the rear of the herd. Jun could just tell from the way he was slumping in his saddle. It was probably hardest for him, not being accustomed to so many noisy, complaining cattle and suffering from his wound. At least the cows slowed them down, and they couldn’t ride hard. Although the return trip from Nagase’s would be irritating for Jun. He’d prefer to get out of there as quick as his horse would carry him.
Maybe he just didn’t feel right around Nino now. Man had hated him, wanted him dead, but the past weeks had changed them both. Whether for better or for worse, Jun didn’t know. But the guilt was eating him alive. Ninomiya hadn’t said word one about what had happened between them. Maybe there was nothing to be said. Maybe their little feud was done for good now.
But what did that mean for Sho? Would Nino lay off, keep what happened between them? Or would he look for an advantage later? Use it as insurance in case Jun did something Nino didn’t like? He swallowed a gulp of water and replaced the canteen at his side. The Apache had already gone, their horses kicking up dust in the opposite direction now.
Jun kept his worries bottled, focusing on continuing the drive towards Nagase’s. The minutes, then the hours passed. He looked back as sneakily as he could every few minutes to make sure Nino was still with him, still alert. The cattle were behaved enough, stinking of dung and a bit loud, but they followed and kept together. He took a bite of the hard bread they’d taken from Aiba’s place and waved for Nino to ride up alongside him. They were close now.
“We’ll get them there ‘fore sunrise?” Nino asked as he approached, wincing something terrible. Jun imagined the man’s whole left side was aching. He remembered how that pain had stuck with him for ages.
“Just on the other side of that pass,” Jun said, knowing Nino wasn’t going to like the next bit. “Need you to lead ‘em all there. I’m riding ahead. Gotta find a place where the fence can be broke, sneak ‘em in there.”
Nino looked immediately distressed. “By myself? Why did you send those boys away? Was this your plan the whole time? To see three hundred plus cattle go running every which way?”
“Calm down, you’ll spook the animals carrying on like that.”
“I’m not carrying on, Matsumoto, I’m reacting like any man who never herded no cattle before would! And I’m injured, mind. I can’t be chasing them if they get any ideas!”
Jun grinned, tipping his hat. “Just keep doing what you’re doing. By the time you get down through the valley, I’ll be back to help you.”
Nino was still annoyed. “I’ll smack that look off your damn face.”
He chuckled, giving his horse a nudge. Nino’s cursing followed him for quite a ways. The animal seemed pleased to be going a bit quicker, and Jun made good time hurrying on ahead. As soon as he came through the pass, the valley opened wide before him. Nagase’s grazing lands stretched out almost as far as Jun could see in the starlight.
He scanned the fencing, looking for any gaps. Nagase had money and enough hands to find problem spots. There’d only be one, maybe two boys at most riding around at night, and they had a lot of ground to cover. It was pretty chilly too, so the corners of Nagase’s property might not be as closely monitored. The eastern side of the land was flatter. No obvious place to break the fence and mend it without alerting Nagase’s boys.
But the western side, at least from where Jun was observing, seemed the better bet. The grasslands grew sparser as the gentle hills grew steeper. The grass tapered off into hard rock, and Jun’s eyes followed the white fence until it halted against the rock wall. There. That was where he’d break the fence. The cows would find their way down to where the fields started, and they wouldn’t wander back and break out. If Nagase’s boys ever made it to the natural edge of the property, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine a rock fall had taken out the fence.
Jun spurred the horse on, hugging the valley wall, keeping the fence ahead of him. Nagase’s house was miles off in the distance. Even in the dark night, he had no trouble imagining the man in his old uniform coat, smiling that smile that let you know he was seeing right through your lies.
He dismounted where the fence stopped, setting down the small pouch of feed to keep the horse from getting skittish. Jun examined the wood, seeing the paint was chipped and cracked from exposure to the sun, and since the cattle rarely came to this part of the property, the fencing wasn’t as well kept.
His boot shattered the wood easily, splintering and cracking. He dug around for a pair of gloves, taking the broken pieces and tossing them aside. It only took minutes to take enough of it out. They’d have to force the cows to go through the opening since he didn’t dare break more of it. It would be hard work, but they could do it. They would do it.
Jun got back on the horse as soon as he was satisfied, hurrying back to find that Nino had done a fine job keeping the cattle together despite his worries and cursing. “About time you got back,” he greeted him, and Jun sighed. No matter what there was between him and Nino, the man’s attitude rarely changed.
Together, they got the cows down through the valley and over the rocky terrain. They pushed inward, forcing the cattle along the rock wall and down to where the fence was busted. Jun rode at the front, dismounting in time for the cattle to arrive. He smacked them along, doing his best to keep them from straying. Nino rode back and forth, keeping them together.
Slowly but surely, the cows made their way along the wall and past where Jun had broken the fence. They were noisy, but far enough away that they were probably in the clear. The animals, desperate to graze, hurried the other way, down the cracked, dusty terrain in search of the grass. They’d mingle in with Nagase’s herd before sunrise for sure.
“Never moving cows again,” Nino said grumpily when they were finally getting the last few stragglers through the gap in the fence. “Don’t care what the reason. Don’t wanna see a cow unless it’s a steak on my plate.”
They were done. Sweaty and tired, but they couldn’t linger here and risk being spotted. “Come on. We leave now, we could make Rapid Springs by nightfall if we ride straight through.”
Nino moaned. “No way. My arm’s about to fall off. You go as fast as you want, Matsumoto, but I ain’t doing more than trotting.”
He sighed. “You’re more recovered than you let on, hurry up.” Nino was still bitching, but it was obvious that he didn’t know the way back home without Jun riding before him. It was hard to go slow still after all the hours with the cattle, but he kept a manageable pace so Ninomiya wouldn’t get left behind.
They’d done their part. His thoughts drifted northward as the sun rose for the day, and they left Nagase’s land behind. It was up to the sheriff now.
-------
"How many days you think it's gonna take to get the investigation under way?" Ohno asked, as Sho gently folded the edges of the paper inward and smoothed down the creases with his fingertips.
"Could be a day, could be a week," Sho answered. He sighed- working through the convoluted channels and red tape of the federal bureaucracy was going to stall the entire plan, but they had some time they could afford to lose. Nagase's ranch was the biggest in the whole damn state; the odds of him finding cattle branded to someone else within the time Sho was waiting on the okay from the higher-ups was slim. They had that much working for them, at least.
"What'd you write?" the baker asked, gesturing towards the letter in Sho's hands.
"Just that," Sho explained. "Got the investigation started, but Lord only knows how long it'll actually take. Figure I gotta stay here, til they send me home."
The line moved, allowing Sho access to the counter. Courier messages weren't cheap, but it would get there faster than Sho himself would, and he needed to let Jun and Ninomiya know what was goin' on at his end of things. The woman behind the counter took his money with an easy smile, and when he stepped away at the end of the transaction, there were beads of sweat on his brow.
"Too damn hot," he muttered, wiping at his forehead with the back of his hand. Ohno stepped out into the sweltering midday sun with him, hands shoved in his pockets, and Sho glanced at him out of the corner of his vision. "Find what you needed, then?"
"Mm," came the affirmative. "Got some workers comin' down week after next to get started."
He was glad someone's plans were movin' ahead, at least. He wiped at the sweat trickling down his cheeks again, as footsteps approached from behind, kickin' up dust.
"Sheriff Sakurai?"
Both Sho and Ohno turned. It was a skinny whelp of a boy, breathing hard and half-doubled over, wearing a pin signifying he was a runner for the feds. An errand-boy. He gulped in a few lungfuls of air before continuing. "Gov'nor wants to see you in his office."
Sho looked at Ohno, and the other man just shrugged a bit. An impromptu call from the governor could only mean his claim for investigation had been expedited- and that was good news. He tried to swallow down the pleased sting of victory in the back of his throat.
"Alright," he told the pageboy, slowly. "Now?"
The boy nodded, and Sho gave Ohno a little wave.
"Shouldn't be too long," he said. The kid was movin' like death was on his heels, but his legs weren't very long- just gangly, and all angles- so Sho didn't have much trouble keeping up. His pace set the atmosphere up to something Sho wasn't entirely sure he could read. Had the feds found something, then, while looking over Nagase's holdings? Or had someone in the other faction had a grudge 'gainst the man, too? Didn't really matter, in the end, not when Sho's boots were thudding outside the governor's cushy office once more.
He rapped his knuckles against the door, and got a muffled "enter" from the other side.
"You wanted to see me?" he said, stepping through the portal.
"Mm, the Nagase matter," the plump man behind the desk said, arms folded over his chest. His jaw was set, lined and dotted with bits of whiskers. "We've taken another look into the claim. Think you might be onto something, after all."
It was a faction-driven change, then. Sho kept his face decidedly neutral.
"Looks like our friend Nagase has his stakes in some places he shouldn't," the governor continued. "Old confederate stock, some stolen weaponry- couldn't find anythin' on the cattle, but that's not surprisin'. Don't untangle that mess til you wade through it with your own two hands."
"He's gonna stand trial?" Sho asked. His heartbeat was pounding against his ears.
"If your claim is true, yes." The governor's eyes were shrewd, looking Sho over hard. The man bent over the desk and tapped one finger against the grain of sanded wood in an erratic, out of time rhythm. "But we gotta be sure he's got wet stock in his herds."
Sho shifted his weight from heel to heel. "You want me checkin'?"
"About that," the governor said, and he rose to his feet. He stopped by the window on the other side of his desk, staring out the grimy glass like he could see everythin' going on in the whole of New Mexico from his perch. "You ain't got enough authority, there. Need someone whose eyes I can trust."
"Sir-"
"Ain't saying I can't trust you," the man huffed. "But I gotta make sure things're done right."
Outside the door, Sho could hear the footsteps of a clerk, clipped against the wood.
"Sendin' a marshal with you." Bile rose in the back of Sho's throat, but from the tone of the governor's voice, the decision was final. "Name's Nakai. He'll be checkin' the cattle."
No- marshals didn't travel alone- the man had a partner, no doubt. That was two extra people Sho hadn't counted on bein' present when they rode up to Nagase's to haul him in. Two extra people who rode the high side of the law that were gonna snag the whole damn plan if he didn't sort somethin' out right quick. He swallowed hard, but couldn't stop his heartbeat from increasing painfully in his chest.
The governor resumed his tapping, fingertips clicking against the windowsill.
"This comes through, you done a good thing, Sakurai," the man said. All Sho could see was the plan fallin' into a hundred little pieces at his feet, and Nagase gettin' away clean. Sure, they'd get him on rustled cattle, or stolen war goods, but that wasn't enough. Wasn't near enough to make up for what he'd put Rapid Springs through- not enough for Satoshi's store, nor the bodies they'd buried next to the church of Rapid Springs' own.
"Thank you, sir," Sho choked out.
"Marshal'll meet you outside the courier's office tomorrow morning to ride down," the governor instructed.
"I-" Sho started, and then stopped. Didn't matter that his fingers were pressed so hard into his palm there were gonna be half-moon ridges in the skin. Didn't matter that they'd worked so hard to get Nagase to where they wanted him, to give him what he deserved. Nothin' mattered, cause the governor was standing in front of him with the beginnings of a frown on his features- and it was his territory. It was his jurisdiction.
Sho just nodded, swallowing his pride. "Yes, sir."
And when he left the office, he couldn't stop the waves of disappointment as he furiously tried to figure out to tie the rapidly unwinding threads.
------
He hadn’t expected to be included in whatever the sheriff was planning, but as soon as Sho had gotten word that there’d be not one, but two federal marshals accompanying him, he’d asked Ohno to come along for the ride.
Not that he minded. He spent most of his life in and around Rapid Springs, only taking trips to make big purchases or go where the fishing was better. Ohno hadn’t seen too many big ranches, and much as he knew Nagase was a rotten apple and the man responsible for destroying his store, he wasn’t going to pass up an opportunity like this.
But the trip there from Santa Fe sure was trying his patience. Satoshi Ohno considered himself level-headed. More inclined to peacemaking and compromise than other residents of Rapid Springs. It was probably why he and Deputy Aiba were such good acquaintances. Sheriff Sakurai had a temper on him, and Ohno had long grown used to Nino’s tendency to snap with little provocation.
Masahiro Nakai, Deputy United States Marshal, was a character. Ohno didn’t hate people on principle, as he preferred to treat others the way he wanted to be treated in return. But Nakai, whom Ohno had only known for the better part of a day, was a right pain in the ass. Nakai’s partner, Ishibashi, was tall and friendly and teasing. But Nakai was a squirrelly sort who wore a blue bandanna under his cowboy hat and made sniping remarks.
“If this is a waste of my time, Sakurai,” Nakai kept complaining, “I’m hauling you to a jail cell. You can just rot there as a disgrace to lawmaking in these here United States.”
Now Ohno didn’t know much about the law, beyond what protections there were for property and merchandise. But he imagined that Nakai thought himself a big man out in these parts, waving that federal star and spit polishing it so it gleamed more in the sun than Sho’s sheriff badge.
To Ohno’s surprise, Sho was remaining quiet as he and Nakai rode side by side. Ohno stayed back with Ishibashi, who just looked rather bored. “Nakai doesn’t leave Santa Fe unless he knows he gets to haul in some crooks,” Ishibashi informed him. “It’s gotta be high profile. He wants to be protecting the president or something.”
“He should focus on performing the tasks he’s assigned,” Ohno let slip, and somehow, some way, Nakai heard him. The other man halted his horse and came back to stare Ohno in the eye.
“You got a problem with me, shop keep?”
Ishibashi waved Nakai off. “Calm down, calm down. Mr. Ohno’s just being candid with you.”
“Candid?” Nakai squealed, and Ohno wished he was back in Rapid Springs relaxing with a glass of sweet tea. “I don’t need him to be candid. Hell, I don’t need him here at all!”
Sho looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry.”
Ohno didn’t much enjoy seeing the sheriff have to humble himself like that when it was his slip-up that got Nakai all riled up. “I apologize, Mr. Nakai…”
“Don’t be so casual! That’s Deputy Marshal Nakai!”
“Of course,” Ohno replied, praying for Nagase’s ranch to materialize and for all this business to be over. Nakai, still furious, turned back and rode off angrily, forcing the three of them to pick up their pace to follow him.
Ishibashi smiled. “He doesn’t like people who won’t acknowledge his position and standing.” The man tipped his hat. “I like you.”
Ohno didn’t know what to make of that. He preferred the straightforward earnestness of his own sheriff. They continued their ride, only stopping to let the horses drink. By mid-afternoon, Nakai announced that they were just crossing onto Nagase’s holdings according to the survey map.
He saw Sho visibly tense. Had Jun and Nino managed to get cattle from the Apache onto Nagase’s grazing lands? There were a few ranch hands on horses dotting the grasses and all the cattle seem scattered, standing in small groups. Ohno wouldn’t be able to tell a stolen cow from another, but federal investigators like Deputy U.S. Marshal Nakai probably would know more about branding and such.
They rode up to the main house, and Ohno wanted to tell the sheriff to relax. It was just going to make Nakai and his partner suspicious. Jun had warned them that Nagase was a big guy, intimidating. But Ohno did his best to keep his cool as they dismounted near the man’s front porch. This man had ordered his store burnt to the ground, and they hadn’t even met. Ohno wanted to see his face for himself.
“U.S. Marshals!” Nakai shouted. “Tomoya Nagase, got a few questions to ask you!”
Sho stood behind Nakai, subordinate, and he and Ishibashi stayed back. The other marshal wasn’t as flippant as Ohno had originally thought, his eyes darting from the porch to the upstairs windows, looking to see if Nagase had set up a trap for them.
“Got wind you been dealing with the Apache. My bosses in Santa Fe don’t take kindly to dealing with folks who oughta be on their reservations,” Nakai continued shouting at the house. “If you could come straighten out these rumors, we’d be much obliged, sir.”
A few tense minutes later, the screen door opened and the man himself emerged. He had to be over six feet tall, Ohno realized. He wore a Confederate officer’s jacket, just as Jun had said, and the brass buttons were tarnished with rusty stains. Blood, Ohno remembered. He smiled big, as though the marshals were no threat.
“Gentlemen, hello. Wish you’d have announced you were coming, or I could have had my housekeeper make up some dinner for you.” His voice was deep, with an undercurrent to it that Ohno couldn’t pin down. This was the man who’d gone off to make a deal with Mendoza. To ensure that Rapid Springs would starve. To burn down Ohno’s store and his home.
Nakai flashed his star. “Deputy U.S. Marshal Nakai, Deputy U.S. Marshal Ishibashi. We’re checking up on a report about some cattle on your property, as well as a few rumors about the legality of some of your business transactions.”
“I can assure you gentlemen that I don’t break any territorial laws.” Nagase’s teeth were white and sharp like a wolf’s. “Might I inquire about who launched these nasty rumors?”
Nakai opened his mouth to speak, but to Ohno’s surprise, Sho stepped forward. “Sheriff Sakurai, Mr. Nagase. Rapid Springs, ‘bout a day’s ride from here. Maybe you’ve heard of it?”
Ohno watched Nagase’s smile become fake, but he held it. “Believe I have. Not much more than a hole in the wall, seeing as how the railroad was built to the north a few years back.”
Sho tipped his hat. “We’re a bit more than an ink spot on the map, sir, but anyhow, I just heard from some folk passin’ through that there was some shady dealings going on. Found it my civic duty to let the people up in Santa Fe know.”
Nagase stepped forward, boots heavy on the porch. “Some folk passin’ through, huh? I’m entitled to face my accuser, ain’t I? Someone casting aspersions on my good character, and he can’t even show his face to me, Sheriff Sakurai? Unless the gentleman behind you is the accuser?”
“I’m not,” Ohno said. “But I do own a dry goods store in town, Mr. Nagase, sir.”
He was trapped. Nagase could feel the walls closing in, Ohno could just tell. He’d been through enough rough patches in Rapid Springs lately to figure out when a man was getting skittish.
Nakai cleared his throat. “Ain’t no more than a rumor, Mr. Nagase. But we take these things seriously up north, so if you have nothing to hide, can Deputy Marshal Ishibashi and I take a gander at your livestock?”
Nagase was suspicious, his eyes passing shrewdly from Sho to Ohno. Did he know who was behind the killings at Mendoza’s? Did he know he and the sheriff knew Jun? Ohno prayed that Jun and Nino had been successful. The tall man stepped down from the porch. “Nothing to hide. We keep a good count of our cattle here. If you gentlemen would be so kind to follow me.”
Nakai and Ishibashi were immediately on Nagase’s heels, and Ohno got behind the sheriff. “Think he’s gonna bolt?” he asked Sho.
Sho was still nervous, at least in his eyes. “Don’t know. Don’t know how long it’s gonna take to figure out if the other cattle are here.”
It took two hours.
“Wait, hold up,” Ishibashi announced, waving for Nakai’s attention. “This brand don’t match the others.”
Ohno stayed back while a rather confused Nagase joined the two marshals and Sho around one of the cows. “This says Corona Guevara on it, look at those markings,” Nakai wondered aloud. “That’s one of the biggest ranches in Sonora.”
“Sonora?” Nagase blustered, coming over to examine the brand. “How the hell…”
Sonora. Right over the border in Mexico. Nino and Jun had picked stolen merchandise from the right place, that was for damn sure. Nagase looked furious. The Sonora-branded cow was mingled perfectly with three of his own and the fields still stretched on for miles. He was stuck.
“Mr. Nagase, would you care to explain how one of Corona Guevara’s livestock found its way here?”
Nagase was ready to spit. He pointed right at Sho. “You! You set this up! Are you workin’ with him? You trying to get me strung up, boy?”
Ishibashi stepped forward, putting distance between himself and Sakurai. “Now now, calm down, sir. Let’s just catch our breath here. You think our sheriff here would register his suspicions through official channels, putting his own reputation at risk for the sake of a conspiracy?”
Nakai was watching Sho’s reaction for this. The marshals weren’t all bluster - they were damn good at their jobs. If Nagase came out and said how well he knew the folks in Rapid Springs, he was just digging his hole deeper. Sho stood his ground. “I just want to see justice done. Don’t matter how much land a man owns. Nobody is above the law.” Ohno watched Sho’s eyes narrow at Nagase. “Nobody.”
Nagase just stared the sheriff down, and Ohno could see murder in his eyes. And Ohno didn’t much like that look at all. But Nakai was already on his way back to the house. “You’ll be coming back to Santa Fe with us while we launch an official investigation into all your property, all your holdings and their acquisitions.”
Ishibashi was smiling. “Now we ain’t gonna charge you til you arrive, so go ahead and make your plans. We’ll escort you if you want to travel in one of your fancy coaches.”
“How thoughtful,” Nagase said, barely containing his rage. “I’ll put you gentlemen up for the night. All four, just to show you these claims aren’t who I really am.”
“Mighty fine of you,” Ishibashi replied. “You’ll be wanting a lawyer, all your deeds of sale, anything that might prove this whole thing’s a fluke.”
“Lawyer’s back in town. I can ride and fetch him.”
Nakai dared to pat the taller man on the shoulder. “Now, Mr. Nagase, you know we can’t let you go do that. If you’ll just give my partner here the solicitor’s address, he’d be happy to go fetch him.”
Sho hung back while the marshals and Nagase spoke. “We’re changing the plan,” Sho told him. “And I need to you to ride back to Rapid Springs. Right now.”
Ohno didn’t like this. “You think Nakai would let me?”
“I’ll deal with Nakai,” Sho explained. “But we can’t have no ambush with two federal marshals escorting Nagase and his lawyer back to Santa Fe. No way they’ll just turn the man over to me. Just get Nino and Jun to come up here.”
“But…”
Sho pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking quickly on his feet. “I don’t know, Satoshi, I don’t know. Just have Aiba give his badge to Nino. I’ll tell Nakai that my deputy’s coming to help. Jun’ll just have to come up with something himself. He’s better at this than me.”
Ohno just let Sho ramble on about Jun being good at figuring things out, at making things right. He didn’t much fancy a ride back to town all by his lonesome, and he didn’t much like the thought of leaving Sho alone here.
“You gonna be okay here?”
“Don’t worry about me. You need to get back to Jun, okay? Please.”
He just hoped Nagase wouldn’t dare killing a sheriff or a marshal in his home. Ohno made his way to his horse, Sho giving him a nod of encouragement.
“You stay safe, sheriff.”
Sho shrugged. “Do what I can.”
Ohno headed off back to the horses, hoping that Sho would be able to talk himself out of the growing mess. If they were leaving for Santa Fe the next day, he’d have to hurry and Jun and Nino would have to ride double time. It was going to be cutting it close, that was for sure.
“Come on,” he said, patting the horse. “We need to get moving.”
------
It was hot, and the sweat from his forehead was stinging his eyes.
He wiped at his forehead with his hand, running his fingers across the metal bar above him. It was hotter still under the body of the concord coach propped up on wooden blocks near the forge. His fingers found the screws connecting the singletrees and the whippletree. The metal was bent, and a bit cracked- the pad of his finger found one of the sharper edges, and he winced; no wonder the harnesses had come free. The welding had been quickly and shoddily done, and the bars were barely holding together.
Shifting, he moved his hands towards the back axles. The reaches, too, were starting to bend and break under the pressure of the loads carried by the cabin.
Aiba pushed himself back out from under the coach and wiped his hands on the fabric of his trousers. Didn't see too many coaches in need of repair anymore, 'specially not around Rapid Springs; town was too far off the map, too far away from the railroad to really get business like it used to. But he liked working on the coaches, because they were simple- easy to understand. They weren't wrapped up all together like jumbled yarn tossed aside, like the people around him.
The metal was easier to work with than the shrouds of past events. Aiba had always been fonder of getting frustrations out through his hammer and hot embers than through other people- but watching Rapid Springs as of late had been a different kind of study. He didn't claim to know all that was goin' on between Ninomiya, Matsumoto, and the sheriff, but he did know that Matsumoto had politely declined his offer of a place to sleep since the first time Aiba had set out towards Clearwater.
He just didn't know quite what it was supposed to mean.
Aiba pursed his lips, arms crossed, staring at the coach. If the welding was shot, he was gonna have to take the whole damn thing apart to get the whippletree free to work on; screws were a pain to get loose once they'd seen the hot New Mexico sun, that much was for sure. He'd gotten three out into the dirt next to him when the knock came at the side of the building.
"Here," he called back, not bothering to push himself out from under the coach.
"Can only see your legs," Jun laughed, and Aiba could hear the rhythmic thudding of his heels against the packed floor. "Always workin', ain't you?"
"Always something needs fixin'," Aiba answered. Another screw fell loose, and the whippletree clanked noisily away from the singletrees. He grabbed it 'fore it hit the dirt, and pulled it out with him as he disentangled himself from under the coach.
Jun didn't say anything as Aiba readied the coals of the forge, shifting them with the iron poker.
"What's the plan?" he asked, finally, breaking the silence hanging heavy on the air between them.
"Wait, I guess," Jun answered. He sighed, and adjusted his hat with two fingers. "Haven't gotten another letter from Santa Fe, so I guess that means we're still waitin' on the bureaucrats."
Aiba laughed, rubbing at his nose with one arm. "Seems to be the way of things out here, doesn't it?"
Jun sat down on a few of the boxes stacked near the far wall- it was cooler by the opening of the shop, where the breeze could roll in. Aiba wasn't gonna miss the stifling heat of summer once autumn rolled around, even if the winter promised hard tack and salted meat as the stores ran thin. Rapid Springs was still runnin' on empty by way of food; the atmosphere in town was strained. Nagase's shadow hung over all of them, which was probably exactly what the man had wanted.
When the gunman didn't say anything, Aiba started heating his hammer, staring down at the cracks in the bar. "What's your plan?"
"You mean the ambush?" Jun asked.
"Mm," Aiba replied. "I know you done a lot of killin', but attacking even a fake federal stage is rough, isn't it?"
There was a moment of silence, and Jun's boots scraped against the dirt a bit. "Think we deserve this one, don't we? After what he's done to Rapid Springs."
The other man didn't voice the last half of the statement- after what he's done to me- but Aiba heard it anyway, catching in the back of Jun's throat. It was a point he couldn't argue, and didn't really want to. He just brought his hammer down hard on the iron, watching as the metal glowed orange and bent under the heat.
"Anyway, I think-" Aiba didn't know what Jun was gonna say, but he never got the chance; there were rapid-fire hooves outside the shop, hard and fast against the main drag, and then Ohno was climbing out of his saddle faster than Aiba had ever seen the man move. He was breathing hard, hair askew- been riding hard, and he was alone. Sheriff was nowhere in sight.
Jun was on his feet in a flash, 'fore Aiba even had time to drop his hammer. Beyond Ohno's panting mare, he could see Nino leaving the front door of the saloon, moving up the hill to join them.
"Plan's changed," Ohno wheezed, as soon as his boots hit the ground. "Plan's off."
"Wait, plan's off?" Jun asked. "Why?"
"Didn't let us go to Nagase's alone."
"Shit," Jun hissed, and one hand went up to touch his forehead. "Shit, shit-"
"What do you mean?" Aiba asked, whippletree all but forgotten over the side of the forge, fire still crackling behind him. At the far edge of the forge, Ninomiya's footsteps echoed, til he was standing next to Ohno's sweat-slicked horse. The saloon owner looked worried- could probably sense the trouble on the air easy as he could pour shots.
"Can't ambush now," Ohno explained. "Got two federal marshals with us, and Nagase sent for his lawyer. Whole thing's screwed up."
"Well, we can't just let Nagase go," Nino snapped.
"Ain't got much choice now, do we?" Aiba asked. There was a sinking in his stomach; all the work Sho had put in getting the feds to look at Nagase's holdings, and all they were gonna do was put him on trial for cattle rustling? Wet stock was nothin' compared to paying Mendoza into attacking Rapid Springs.
"Sheriff wants Jun and Nino," Ohno said. His gaze flitted across the two. "Wants you out there."
"For what?" Jun asked.
There was a long silence that stretched on like the damn desert dunes, and Ohno just shrugged helplessly. Nino looked angry, Jun looked confused, and Aiba couldn't stop the disappointment he felt. Federal marshals- they were right outta luck, now. The feds were too much to try to go against... weren't they?
"Says you'll know what to do," Ohno said.
It was obvious by the tightening of Jun's features that it was a lot to ask- man had to feel trapped by the situation.
"Give me your badge," Nino demanded, to Aiba, holding his hand out in expectation. Aiba could only stare at him.
"That's what the sheriff said," Ohno murmured, with an odd sidelong glance at the saloon owner, who ignored any implications it might have held.
"What are you gonna do?" Aiba asked without moving, without reaching for the iron on his lapel. "You gonna go against the feds? You can't do nothing with them there, you know that."
"Give me your badge, deputy," Nino hissed. "You heard Satoshi. Sheriff gave you an order."
Aiba looked helplessly at Jun, but the gunman was lost in his own thoughts, and offered him nothing. The fire at his back was hot and crackling like gunpowder, and his heart was pounding in his ears. Should scrap the whole thing- should call it all off. Might not get Nagase on murderin' charges, but at least the feds would get the man on his other crimes. Had to be enough, didn't it? They couldn't risk everything 'gainst the federal government.
"I don't think-" he started, and Jun uncrossed his arms quite suddenly, sucking in a sharp breath.
"Give Ninomiya your badge."
"What?" Aiba stared. "No, I-"
"Just do it," Jun snapped.
"You got a plan, Matsumoto?" Ohno asked. His voice was softer- accepting. His horse stamped at the ground, and it just echoed Aiba's frustration.
Jun laughed, and the sound was decidedly mirthless. "No. But we gotta do somethin'."
"I don't like this," Aiba said, but even as the words left his lips, he knew he'd lost. Sheriff had jurisdiction, and he had to respect that, even if he didn't agree with it. Fingers tingling, he took the badge off his vest and gingerly placed it in Nino's palm. "Someone's gonna get hurt."
"Too late for that," Ninomiya growled, and his hand closed down tightly 'round the deputy sigil.
"They're federal marshals," Aiba warned.
"And Nagase's a fuckin' crook," Nino shot back. "Let's go, Jun."
Helpless, Aiba watched as the two started off out of the shop to get horses tethered to the hitching posts near the saloon.
"You think it's gonna go bad?" he asked, when they were out of earshot and it was only Ohno standing next to him.
"Dunno," came the answer. "Just dunno."
Aiba swallowed hard. "Me neither."
Chapter: 11/13
Fandom: Arashi
Character, Pairing(s): Sho/Jun
Rating: T
Warnings: Language and violence.
Summary: A saloon owner with an enigmatic past, an idealistic sheriff, a remorseful shotgun messenger, and the town that unites them.
Her eyes were very wide, dark as the sea.
"You're movin'?" she asked, voice coming out a bit like a squeak.
"You know there ain't nothing left for me here," he said. The ground beneath his knees was wet, and the moisture was creeping into the thread of his trousers. Beside his arm stood the granite stone erected for his mother- simple, uncarved still, and not uniform in color, but he didn't think she would have really cared about fancy stuff. It was all he could afford, in the end of things. "Ain't no reason to stay."
"I'm not reason to stay?" she asked, and even though she ducked her head, he could see the shimmer of tears in her eyes. She let her fingers brush at the petals of the flowers she'd brought for his ma.
He couldn't answer for a long moment, because his throat had closed up, but she gave a breathy little sigh and held up the bouquet.
"Your ma loved daisies," she said, softly. "Loved havin' them grow just outside her window, so she could see them dance in the wind every day."
"I know," he choked out.
"But you know what daisies mean?" she asked him. When she raised her chin, one of the tears escaped and trickled slowly down the smooth curve of her cheek. "They mean a farewell."
She set the flowers down against the stone and sniffled. He sat up a bit, letting his own fingers fall on top of hers- even with her sewing and needlework, her hands were soft still. Soft like the finest silk. He could spend hours just running his fingertips over the fine skin of her hands, listening to her sigh in contentment.
"They're a good funeral flower," she continued, and her voice broke a little bit at the end. "At the shop, we put them in funeral bouquets to say farewells with. I should have known you was gonna leave me."
"No, look," he started. "I said I was leavin'- but-"
He was fumblin' something awful with his words, and it was a moment he didn't want to be. He grappled inside the pockets of his trousers for the little box, and pulled it out.
"Here," he said, handing it to her. With trembling fingers, she took it from his palm. She gave him a look- eyes still sparkling in the sunlight- and when she opened it up, gasped. The silver of the chain was blinding when it caught the sun's rays just right.
"I know it ain't much," he said, and it wasn't- just a simple oval locket with a floral emblem embossed into it, "but I thought- well, I thought you could come with me."
When she just stared at him in shock, he swallowed hard.
"I mean, to get married. We could get married. And you could come out West with me once I sell all ma's things."
It took her so long to say something, say anything, that he thought she was going to turn him down flat. But she ran her fingers over the flower on the necklace and gave out a tiny little laugh, as more tears gathered in the corners of her eyes.
"Really?" she asked, and she was smilin' brighter than the sun. "Kazu, really?"
"Yeah," he said. Suddenly, he was laughing, too. "Yeah, really. Look, I know it ain't a ring-"
"Oh, I don't care!" she exclaimed, leaning forward to throw her arms around his shoulders and kiss his cheek with her pert lips. "Oh, you know I don't care 'bout that! Oh, Kazu, can we really get married?"
He reached for the box as she pulled away, disentangling the necklace and pulling it from the stiff material inside. His hands were shaking so bad it was hard to get the clasp open, but somehow he did it, and she turned obediently for him to fasten it around her neck.
"Is it ivy?" she asked, fingers tracing over the design again.
"For fidelity," he explained. "I asked Christie Bakerson what it meant, just cause I knew you'd want it to mean something. You always want things to mean somethin'."
She was smilin' again, with her bottom lip caught between her teeth. "You mean something, Kazu."
He brushed ringlets away from the side of her face. In the warmth of spring, she looked radiant. He wondered if his ma was watchin' from Heaven, at the two of them sitting in the long grass by her grave. He hoped she was. He hoped she was happy for him.
"You mean everythin'," he told her, and let his forehead rest against her temple. "You hear me? You mean everything to me."
Chief Coyote Howl was no fool- he kept his men moving, and kept them hidden. By federal law, most of the Apache had been relegated to the Arizona reservations, but there were a few tribes still ducking under the law's eyes and conducting business near the border. Didn't always stay in the same place, but usually one or two riskier gamblers knew where to find them. Tended to be easier when the tribe was dragging a herd of cattle at their heels.
When they arrived at the bluffs, Nino knew his source had been right. A handful of rickety tent-tops were visible from the hills against the horizon. The dust that blew up when his boots hit the dirt upon dismount made his eyes sting, but he made sure to keep his hands slow-movin' and in plain sight- didn't want Coyote Howl getting any wrong ideas about their arrival. Behind him, Jun was doing the same.
Two horses rode out to meet them, covered in colorful blankets and adorned with feathers and beaded hoops 'round the saddle-horns.
"Heard through the mill you got some cattle you're lookin' to sell," Nino said, when the hooves of the Apache horses had stilled against the sand.
"Depends," came the answer. Neither man was Chief Coyote Howl, but Nino hadn't figured the chief himself would come down to meet two stragglers lookin' to trade. "Depends on who you are."
Nino gestured back over his shoulder at Jun, who was wisely staying quiet. There was a knot in his stomach that refused to yield; dealing with Apache wasn't easy, and he was treading a dangerous line, but if Nagase's name held the influence he thought it did, the acquisition should go pretty smooth.
"Works for Nagase," he explained. "Lookin' to buy and sell quick, turn a nice profit."
The stolid figures on the horses exchanged quick, unreadable glances.
"I've met your chief," Nino continued, hoping to soften doubts. "Did some dealin's with Rapid Springs a few years back. Always paid in full, paid fair. Fixin' to do the same here."
"Confederate?" one asked.
"Was," Jun answered. Another silence, and Nino could finally see the far edge of the moving herd from behind the start of the bluffs- noisy, foul-smelling beasts, but from what he could see, they looked better than some of the bare-bones stock he'd seen run past Rapid Springs in the past. Hadn't been long, then, since the Apache had picked them up. That put the source within a few counties, or over the border- and Nino's bet was on the latter.
Good. Getting the herd from 'cross the bounds upped the possibility that they were stolen, and that was what Sho needed to bank on to get the feds interested.
The Apache's faces didn't show much by way of expression, but Nino could see lines across both foreheads that spoke volumes about the troubles they'd seen lately. He couldn't argue- tribe probably spent half their days keepin' out of federal eyes to avoid being shuffled over to the dingy reservations the government had set up.
Jun's horse stamped impatiently at the dirt.
"What are you offerin'?" the bigger of the two Indians asked.
"Usual," Nino said. "Couple hundred and coin. The going rate."
"400 headcount," the Apache informed him. Nino did the math quick in his head- the number was higher than he'd picked up through the grapevine, and he didn't know if they'd brought enough to deal with. He glanced back at Jun in question- the gunman got a little shifty under his gaze, but nodded in confirmation. Of all the times to start gettin' shy, Matsumoto picked the worst. Standing in front of two armed Indians was no time to start reminiscin' about getting physical.
Nino swallowed the memories down.
"Alright," he said.
"Good stock," the Apache said, and Nino didn't like the set of the man's jaw. "Might need more than the usual. It's not easy moving them through the desert."
Dammit- bargaining. Nagase's name hadn't pulled as much weight as Nino had been hoping, but he was sure the cattle were wet stock. And the higher herd number than they'd been expecting was throwing off how much they could offer. They didn't want to appear too desperate, or else the Apache would get suspicious. But if they turned it all down-
"Rather see the head first, 'fore we make any increases," Jun said, from behind Nino. Nino's breath caught. It was a risky move, and they were already standing on tenuous threads. The Apache shared another lingering glance, and one nodded just slightly, enough that Nino picked up on the movement. The air felt stifling all of a sudden, cloying around his shoulders.
"Got ammunition?" the smaller Indian asked, and Nino let out a bit of the air he'd been holding. Reluctance to show the stock meant some were most likely branded; a sure sign they'd been rustled from someone else's herd.
"Couple sacks," Jun replied. "Enough for ten, maybe fifteen."
Nino was quite suddenly very grateful that the gunman had thought to bring something like that. All he'd brought to offer was the handful of bills shoved in his breast pocket, and it was lookin' slimmer and slimmer by the minute.
"For 300, then," the larger Indian said. Not all the herd, but enough. They could go with that, but they had parts to play; Nagase was the biggest hand around the provinces, and he wouldn't accepted leaving a fourth of the cattle behind, especially not if he was paying the going rate.
Jun tapped his fingers against the bill of his hat. "Got gunpowder, too. 350."
Nino's chest felt like it would explode. He could feel the heat radiating off his mare shaking her mane next to him, and he idly ran his fingers through the coarse hair.
"Alright," came the answer. "350."
All his muscles wanted to uncoil at once, and he fought against it. He reached in his vest for the bills and coin, while Jun tossed over the bullets and powder he produced from beneath the blanket on his mount's saddle. The Apache pocketed it all silently, and then waved back towards the bluffs where the rest were. There was a sharp whistle, and a few smacks, and the thunder of stampeding hooves started.
The taller of the Indians gave Nino a nod, and the two doin' the negotiations clicked their tongues and turned their horses back towards the ridge. Jun was up and on the saddle already, movin' round the back to meet the Apache spurring the cattle on. Nino didn't know anything about herding cattle across sand dunes, but he figured he ought to do the same. Felt good to be back on his horse, at any rate; quicker to get away should something go sour.
When the Apache left, it was just him and Matsumoto with the stinking beasts.
"How long is this gonna take?" Nino asked, watching one of the cattle's eyes roll back a bit in its head.
"Dunno," Jun mumbled in reply, and then added, "too long. Let's just get moving."
They had to get to the edge of Nagase's ranch 'fore the feds spotted them with the herd.
------
Coyote Howl had kindly offered two of his boys to help them move the cattle, and since he and Nino were suspicious by nature, neither of them had slept since there was no knowing if the two helpers would turn on them or not.
Jun rode near the front, leading as quickly as he dared. He squinted, watching the sun set. They were going to keep the cattle moving all night, stopping only at creeks for them to drink. By the time they got the beasts unloaded and got back to Rapid Springs, hopefully the sheriff would have sent word from Santa Fe. Nagase’s ranch was enormous - it would be a while before they did a count and noticed the extra cattle.
The ride was slow, and once night fell and got the cattle through a particularly tricky pass, Jun halted his horse. “We’ll be fine from here,” he told Coyote Howl’s men, who seemed pleased to be able to turn back and go home. Jun imagined that Nagase’s reputation preceded him in these parts.
Nino was struggling to stay awake near the rear of the herd. Jun could just tell from the way he was slumping in his saddle. It was probably hardest for him, not being accustomed to so many noisy, complaining cattle and suffering from his wound. At least the cows slowed them down, and they couldn’t ride hard. Although the return trip from Nagase’s would be irritating for Jun. He’d prefer to get out of there as quick as his horse would carry him.
Maybe he just didn’t feel right around Nino now. Man had hated him, wanted him dead, but the past weeks had changed them both. Whether for better or for worse, Jun didn’t know. But the guilt was eating him alive. Ninomiya hadn’t said word one about what had happened between them. Maybe there was nothing to be said. Maybe their little feud was done for good now.
But what did that mean for Sho? Would Nino lay off, keep what happened between them? Or would he look for an advantage later? Use it as insurance in case Jun did something Nino didn’t like? He swallowed a gulp of water and replaced the canteen at his side. The Apache had already gone, their horses kicking up dust in the opposite direction now.
Jun kept his worries bottled, focusing on continuing the drive towards Nagase’s. The minutes, then the hours passed. He looked back as sneakily as he could every few minutes to make sure Nino was still with him, still alert. The cattle were behaved enough, stinking of dung and a bit loud, but they followed and kept together. He took a bite of the hard bread they’d taken from Aiba’s place and waved for Nino to ride up alongside him. They were close now.
“We’ll get them there ‘fore sunrise?” Nino asked as he approached, wincing something terrible. Jun imagined the man’s whole left side was aching. He remembered how that pain had stuck with him for ages.
“Just on the other side of that pass,” Jun said, knowing Nino wasn’t going to like the next bit. “Need you to lead ‘em all there. I’m riding ahead. Gotta find a place where the fence can be broke, sneak ‘em in there.”
Nino looked immediately distressed. “By myself? Why did you send those boys away? Was this your plan the whole time? To see three hundred plus cattle go running every which way?”
“Calm down, you’ll spook the animals carrying on like that.”
“I’m not carrying on, Matsumoto, I’m reacting like any man who never herded no cattle before would! And I’m injured, mind. I can’t be chasing them if they get any ideas!”
Jun grinned, tipping his hat. “Just keep doing what you’re doing. By the time you get down through the valley, I’ll be back to help you.”
Nino was still annoyed. “I’ll smack that look off your damn face.”
He chuckled, giving his horse a nudge. Nino’s cursing followed him for quite a ways. The animal seemed pleased to be going a bit quicker, and Jun made good time hurrying on ahead. As soon as he came through the pass, the valley opened wide before him. Nagase’s grazing lands stretched out almost as far as Jun could see in the starlight.
He scanned the fencing, looking for any gaps. Nagase had money and enough hands to find problem spots. There’d only be one, maybe two boys at most riding around at night, and they had a lot of ground to cover. It was pretty chilly too, so the corners of Nagase’s property might not be as closely monitored. The eastern side of the land was flatter. No obvious place to break the fence and mend it without alerting Nagase’s boys.
But the western side, at least from where Jun was observing, seemed the better bet. The grasslands grew sparser as the gentle hills grew steeper. The grass tapered off into hard rock, and Jun’s eyes followed the white fence until it halted against the rock wall. There. That was where he’d break the fence. The cows would find their way down to where the fields started, and they wouldn’t wander back and break out. If Nagase’s boys ever made it to the natural edge of the property, it wouldn’t be hard to imagine a rock fall had taken out the fence.
Jun spurred the horse on, hugging the valley wall, keeping the fence ahead of him. Nagase’s house was miles off in the distance. Even in the dark night, he had no trouble imagining the man in his old uniform coat, smiling that smile that let you know he was seeing right through your lies.
He dismounted where the fence stopped, setting down the small pouch of feed to keep the horse from getting skittish. Jun examined the wood, seeing the paint was chipped and cracked from exposure to the sun, and since the cattle rarely came to this part of the property, the fencing wasn’t as well kept.
His boot shattered the wood easily, splintering and cracking. He dug around for a pair of gloves, taking the broken pieces and tossing them aside. It only took minutes to take enough of it out. They’d have to force the cows to go through the opening since he didn’t dare break more of it. It would be hard work, but they could do it. They would do it.
Jun got back on the horse as soon as he was satisfied, hurrying back to find that Nino had done a fine job keeping the cattle together despite his worries and cursing. “About time you got back,” he greeted him, and Jun sighed. No matter what there was between him and Nino, the man’s attitude rarely changed.
Together, they got the cows down through the valley and over the rocky terrain. They pushed inward, forcing the cattle along the rock wall and down to where the fence was busted. Jun rode at the front, dismounting in time for the cattle to arrive. He smacked them along, doing his best to keep them from straying. Nino rode back and forth, keeping them together.
Slowly but surely, the cows made their way along the wall and past where Jun had broken the fence. They were noisy, but far enough away that they were probably in the clear. The animals, desperate to graze, hurried the other way, down the cracked, dusty terrain in search of the grass. They’d mingle in with Nagase’s herd before sunrise for sure.
“Never moving cows again,” Nino said grumpily when they were finally getting the last few stragglers through the gap in the fence. “Don’t care what the reason. Don’t wanna see a cow unless it’s a steak on my plate.”
They were done. Sweaty and tired, but they couldn’t linger here and risk being spotted. “Come on. We leave now, we could make Rapid Springs by nightfall if we ride straight through.”
Nino moaned. “No way. My arm’s about to fall off. You go as fast as you want, Matsumoto, but I ain’t doing more than trotting.”
He sighed. “You’re more recovered than you let on, hurry up.” Nino was still bitching, but it was obvious that he didn’t know the way back home without Jun riding before him. It was hard to go slow still after all the hours with the cattle, but he kept a manageable pace so Ninomiya wouldn’t get left behind.
They’d done their part. His thoughts drifted northward as the sun rose for the day, and they left Nagase’s land behind. It was up to the sheriff now.
-------
"How many days you think it's gonna take to get the investigation under way?" Ohno asked, as Sho gently folded the edges of the paper inward and smoothed down the creases with his fingertips.
"Could be a day, could be a week," Sho answered. He sighed- working through the convoluted channels and red tape of the federal bureaucracy was going to stall the entire plan, but they had some time they could afford to lose. Nagase's ranch was the biggest in the whole damn state; the odds of him finding cattle branded to someone else within the time Sho was waiting on the okay from the higher-ups was slim. They had that much working for them, at least.
"What'd you write?" the baker asked, gesturing towards the letter in Sho's hands.
"Just that," Sho explained. "Got the investigation started, but Lord only knows how long it'll actually take. Figure I gotta stay here, til they send me home."
The line moved, allowing Sho access to the counter. Courier messages weren't cheap, but it would get there faster than Sho himself would, and he needed to let Jun and Ninomiya know what was goin' on at his end of things. The woman behind the counter took his money with an easy smile, and when he stepped away at the end of the transaction, there were beads of sweat on his brow.
"Too damn hot," he muttered, wiping at his forehead with the back of his hand. Ohno stepped out into the sweltering midday sun with him, hands shoved in his pockets, and Sho glanced at him out of the corner of his vision. "Find what you needed, then?"
"Mm," came the affirmative. "Got some workers comin' down week after next to get started."
He was glad someone's plans were movin' ahead, at least. He wiped at the sweat trickling down his cheeks again, as footsteps approached from behind, kickin' up dust.
"Sheriff Sakurai?"
Both Sho and Ohno turned. It was a skinny whelp of a boy, breathing hard and half-doubled over, wearing a pin signifying he was a runner for the feds. An errand-boy. He gulped in a few lungfuls of air before continuing. "Gov'nor wants to see you in his office."
Sho looked at Ohno, and the other man just shrugged a bit. An impromptu call from the governor could only mean his claim for investigation had been expedited- and that was good news. He tried to swallow down the pleased sting of victory in the back of his throat.
"Alright," he told the pageboy, slowly. "Now?"
The boy nodded, and Sho gave Ohno a little wave.
"Shouldn't be too long," he said. The kid was movin' like death was on his heels, but his legs weren't very long- just gangly, and all angles- so Sho didn't have much trouble keeping up. His pace set the atmosphere up to something Sho wasn't entirely sure he could read. Had the feds found something, then, while looking over Nagase's holdings? Or had someone in the other faction had a grudge 'gainst the man, too? Didn't really matter, in the end, not when Sho's boots were thudding outside the governor's cushy office once more.
He rapped his knuckles against the door, and got a muffled "enter" from the other side.
"You wanted to see me?" he said, stepping through the portal.
"Mm, the Nagase matter," the plump man behind the desk said, arms folded over his chest. His jaw was set, lined and dotted with bits of whiskers. "We've taken another look into the claim. Think you might be onto something, after all."
It was a faction-driven change, then. Sho kept his face decidedly neutral.
"Looks like our friend Nagase has his stakes in some places he shouldn't," the governor continued. "Old confederate stock, some stolen weaponry- couldn't find anythin' on the cattle, but that's not surprisin'. Don't untangle that mess til you wade through it with your own two hands."
"He's gonna stand trial?" Sho asked. His heartbeat was pounding against his ears.
"If your claim is true, yes." The governor's eyes were shrewd, looking Sho over hard. The man bent over the desk and tapped one finger against the grain of sanded wood in an erratic, out of time rhythm. "But we gotta be sure he's got wet stock in his herds."
Sho shifted his weight from heel to heel. "You want me checkin'?"
"About that," the governor said, and he rose to his feet. He stopped by the window on the other side of his desk, staring out the grimy glass like he could see everythin' going on in the whole of New Mexico from his perch. "You ain't got enough authority, there. Need someone whose eyes I can trust."
"Sir-"
"Ain't saying I can't trust you," the man huffed. "But I gotta make sure things're done right."
Outside the door, Sho could hear the footsteps of a clerk, clipped against the wood.
"Sendin' a marshal with you." Bile rose in the back of Sho's throat, but from the tone of the governor's voice, the decision was final. "Name's Nakai. He'll be checkin' the cattle."
No- marshals didn't travel alone- the man had a partner, no doubt. That was two extra people Sho hadn't counted on bein' present when they rode up to Nagase's to haul him in. Two extra people who rode the high side of the law that were gonna snag the whole damn plan if he didn't sort somethin' out right quick. He swallowed hard, but couldn't stop his heartbeat from increasing painfully in his chest.
The governor resumed his tapping, fingertips clicking against the windowsill.
"This comes through, you done a good thing, Sakurai," the man said. All Sho could see was the plan fallin' into a hundred little pieces at his feet, and Nagase gettin' away clean. Sure, they'd get him on rustled cattle, or stolen war goods, but that wasn't enough. Wasn't near enough to make up for what he'd put Rapid Springs through- not enough for Satoshi's store, nor the bodies they'd buried next to the church of Rapid Springs' own.
"Thank you, sir," Sho choked out.
"Marshal'll meet you outside the courier's office tomorrow morning to ride down," the governor instructed.
"I-" Sho started, and then stopped. Didn't matter that his fingers were pressed so hard into his palm there were gonna be half-moon ridges in the skin. Didn't matter that they'd worked so hard to get Nagase to where they wanted him, to give him what he deserved. Nothin' mattered, cause the governor was standing in front of him with the beginnings of a frown on his features- and it was his territory. It was his jurisdiction.
Sho just nodded, swallowing his pride. "Yes, sir."
And when he left the office, he couldn't stop the waves of disappointment as he furiously tried to figure out to tie the rapidly unwinding threads.
------
He hadn’t expected to be included in whatever the sheriff was planning, but as soon as Sho had gotten word that there’d be not one, but two federal marshals accompanying him, he’d asked Ohno to come along for the ride.
Not that he minded. He spent most of his life in and around Rapid Springs, only taking trips to make big purchases or go where the fishing was better. Ohno hadn’t seen too many big ranches, and much as he knew Nagase was a rotten apple and the man responsible for destroying his store, he wasn’t going to pass up an opportunity like this.
But the trip there from Santa Fe sure was trying his patience. Satoshi Ohno considered himself level-headed. More inclined to peacemaking and compromise than other residents of Rapid Springs. It was probably why he and Deputy Aiba were such good acquaintances. Sheriff Sakurai had a temper on him, and Ohno had long grown used to Nino’s tendency to snap with little provocation.
Masahiro Nakai, Deputy United States Marshal, was a character. Ohno didn’t hate people on principle, as he preferred to treat others the way he wanted to be treated in return. But Nakai, whom Ohno had only known for the better part of a day, was a right pain in the ass. Nakai’s partner, Ishibashi, was tall and friendly and teasing. But Nakai was a squirrelly sort who wore a blue bandanna under his cowboy hat and made sniping remarks.
“If this is a waste of my time, Sakurai,” Nakai kept complaining, “I’m hauling you to a jail cell. You can just rot there as a disgrace to lawmaking in these here United States.”
Now Ohno didn’t know much about the law, beyond what protections there were for property and merchandise. But he imagined that Nakai thought himself a big man out in these parts, waving that federal star and spit polishing it so it gleamed more in the sun than Sho’s sheriff badge.
To Ohno’s surprise, Sho was remaining quiet as he and Nakai rode side by side. Ohno stayed back with Ishibashi, who just looked rather bored. “Nakai doesn’t leave Santa Fe unless he knows he gets to haul in some crooks,” Ishibashi informed him. “It’s gotta be high profile. He wants to be protecting the president or something.”
“He should focus on performing the tasks he’s assigned,” Ohno let slip, and somehow, some way, Nakai heard him. The other man halted his horse and came back to stare Ohno in the eye.
“You got a problem with me, shop keep?”
Ishibashi waved Nakai off. “Calm down, calm down. Mr. Ohno’s just being candid with you.”
“Candid?” Nakai squealed, and Ohno wished he was back in Rapid Springs relaxing with a glass of sweet tea. “I don’t need him to be candid. Hell, I don’t need him here at all!”
Sho looked embarrassed. “I’m sorry.”
Ohno didn’t much enjoy seeing the sheriff have to humble himself like that when it was his slip-up that got Nakai all riled up. “I apologize, Mr. Nakai…”
“Don’t be so casual! That’s Deputy Marshal Nakai!”
“Of course,” Ohno replied, praying for Nagase’s ranch to materialize and for all this business to be over. Nakai, still furious, turned back and rode off angrily, forcing the three of them to pick up their pace to follow him.
Ishibashi smiled. “He doesn’t like people who won’t acknowledge his position and standing.” The man tipped his hat. “I like you.”
Ohno didn’t know what to make of that. He preferred the straightforward earnestness of his own sheriff. They continued their ride, only stopping to let the horses drink. By mid-afternoon, Nakai announced that they were just crossing onto Nagase’s holdings according to the survey map.
He saw Sho visibly tense. Had Jun and Nino managed to get cattle from the Apache onto Nagase’s grazing lands? There were a few ranch hands on horses dotting the grasses and all the cattle seem scattered, standing in small groups. Ohno wouldn’t be able to tell a stolen cow from another, but federal investigators like Deputy U.S. Marshal Nakai probably would know more about branding and such.
They rode up to the main house, and Ohno wanted to tell the sheriff to relax. It was just going to make Nakai and his partner suspicious. Jun had warned them that Nagase was a big guy, intimidating. But Ohno did his best to keep his cool as they dismounted near the man’s front porch. This man had ordered his store burnt to the ground, and they hadn’t even met. Ohno wanted to see his face for himself.
“U.S. Marshals!” Nakai shouted. “Tomoya Nagase, got a few questions to ask you!”
Sho stood behind Nakai, subordinate, and he and Ishibashi stayed back. The other marshal wasn’t as flippant as Ohno had originally thought, his eyes darting from the porch to the upstairs windows, looking to see if Nagase had set up a trap for them.
“Got wind you been dealing with the Apache. My bosses in Santa Fe don’t take kindly to dealing with folks who oughta be on their reservations,” Nakai continued shouting at the house. “If you could come straighten out these rumors, we’d be much obliged, sir.”
A few tense minutes later, the screen door opened and the man himself emerged. He had to be over six feet tall, Ohno realized. He wore a Confederate officer’s jacket, just as Jun had said, and the brass buttons were tarnished with rusty stains. Blood, Ohno remembered. He smiled big, as though the marshals were no threat.
“Gentlemen, hello. Wish you’d have announced you were coming, or I could have had my housekeeper make up some dinner for you.” His voice was deep, with an undercurrent to it that Ohno couldn’t pin down. This was the man who’d gone off to make a deal with Mendoza. To ensure that Rapid Springs would starve. To burn down Ohno’s store and his home.
Nakai flashed his star. “Deputy U.S. Marshal Nakai, Deputy U.S. Marshal Ishibashi. We’re checking up on a report about some cattle on your property, as well as a few rumors about the legality of some of your business transactions.”
“I can assure you gentlemen that I don’t break any territorial laws.” Nagase’s teeth were white and sharp like a wolf’s. “Might I inquire about who launched these nasty rumors?”
Nakai opened his mouth to speak, but to Ohno’s surprise, Sho stepped forward. “Sheriff Sakurai, Mr. Nagase. Rapid Springs, ‘bout a day’s ride from here. Maybe you’ve heard of it?”
Ohno watched Nagase’s smile become fake, but he held it. “Believe I have. Not much more than a hole in the wall, seeing as how the railroad was built to the north a few years back.”
Sho tipped his hat. “We’re a bit more than an ink spot on the map, sir, but anyhow, I just heard from some folk passin’ through that there was some shady dealings going on. Found it my civic duty to let the people up in Santa Fe know.”
Nagase stepped forward, boots heavy on the porch. “Some folk passin’ through, huh? I’m entitled to face my accuser, ain’t I? Someone casting aspersions on my good character, and he can’t even show his face to me, Sheriff Sakurai? Unless the gentleman behind you is the accuser?”
“I’m not,” Ohno said. “But I do own a dry goods store in town, Mr. Nagase, sir.”
He was trapped. Nagase could feel the walls closing in, Ohno could just tell. He’d been through enough rough patches in Rapid Springs lately to figure out when a man was getting skittish.
Nakai cleared his throat. “Ain’t no more than a rumor, Mr. Nagase. But we take these things seriously up north, so if you have nothing to hide, can Deputy Marshal Ishibashi and I take a gander at your livestock?”
Nagase was suspicious, his eyes passing shrewdly from Sho to Ohno. Did he know who was behind the killings at Mendoza’s? Did he know he and the sheriff knew Jun? Ohno prayed that Jun and Nino had been successful. The tall man stepped down from the porch. “Nothing to hide. We keep a good count of our cattle here. If you gentlemen would be so kind to follow me.”
Nakai and Ishibashi were immediately on Nagase’s heels, and Ohno got behind the sheriff. “Think he’s gonna bolt?” he asked Sho.
Sho was still nervous, at least in his eyes. “Don’t know. Don’t know how long it’s gonna take to figure out if the other cattle are here.”
It took two hours.
“Wait, hold up,” Ishibashi announced, waving for Nakai’s attention. “This brand don’t match the others.”
Ohno stayed back while a rather confused Nagase joined the two marshals and Sho around one of the cows. “This says Corona Guevara on it, look at those markings,” Nakai wondered aloud. “That’s one of the biggest ranches in Sonora.”
“Sonora?” Nagase blustered, coming over to examine the brand. “How the hell…”
Sonora. Right over the border in Mexico. Nino and Jun had picked stolen merchandise from the right place, that was for damn sure. Nagase looked furious. The Sonora-branded cow was mingled perfectly with three of his own and the fields still stretched on for miles. He was stuck.
“Mr. Nagase, would you care to explain how one of Corona Guevara’s livestock found its way here?”
Nagase was ready to spit. He pointed right at Sho. “You! You set this up! Are you workin’ with him? You trying to get me strung up, boy?”
Ishibashi stepped forward, putting distance between himself and Sakurai. “Now now, calm down, sir. Let’s just catch our breath here. You think our sheriff here would register his suspicions through official channels, putting his own reputation at risk for the sake of a conspiracy?”
Nakai was watching Sho’s reaction for this. The marshals weren’t all bluster - they were damn good at their jobs. If Nagase came out and said how well he knew the folks in Rapid Springs, he was just digging his hole deeper. Sho stood his ground. “I just want to see justice done. Don’t matter how much land a man owns. Nobody is above the law.” Ohno watched Sho’s eyes narrow at Nagase. “Nobody.”
Nagase just stared the sheriff down, and Ohno could see murder in his eyes. And Ohno didn’t much like that look at all. But Nakai was already on his way back to the house. “You’ll be coming back to Santa Fe with us while we launch an official investigation into all your property, all your holdings and their acquisitions.”
Ishibashi was smiling. “Now we ain’t gonna charge you til you arrive, so go ahead and make your plans. We’ll escort you if you want to travel in one of your fancy coaches.”
“How thoughtful,” Nagase said, barely containing his rage. “I’ll put you gentlemen up for the night. All four, just to show you these claims aren’t who I really am.”
“Mighty fine of you,” Ishibashi replied. “You’ll be wanting a lawyer, all your deeds of sale, anything that might prove this whole thing’s a fluke.”
“Lawyer’s back in town. I can ride and fetch him.”
Nakai dared to pat the taller man on the shoulder. “Now, Mr. Nagase, you know we can’t let you go do that. If you’ll just give my partner here the solicitor’s address, he’d be happy to go fetch him.”
Sho hung back while the marshals and Nagase spoke. “We’re changing the plan,” Sho told him. “And I need to you to ride back to Rapid Springs. Right now.”
Ohno didn’t like this. “You think Nakai would let me?”
“I’ll deal with Nakai,” Sho explained. “But we can’t have no ambush with two federal marshals escorting Nagase and his lawyer back to Santa Fe. No way they’ll just turn the man over to me. Just get Nino and Jun to come up here.”
“But…”
Sho pinched the bridge of his nose, thinking quickly on his feet. “I don’t know, Satoshi, I don’t know. Just have Aiba give his badge to Nino. I’ll tell Nakai that my deputy’s coming to help. Jun’ll just have to come up with something himself. He’s better at this than me.”
Ohno just let Sho ramble on about Jun being good at figuring things out, at making things right. He didn’t much fancy a ride back to town all by his lonesome, and he didn’t much like the thought of leaving Sho alone here.
“You gonna be okay here?”
“Don’t worry about me. You need to get back to Jun, okay? Please.”
He just hoped Nagase wouldn’t dare killing a sheriff or a marshal in his home. Ohno made his way to his horse, Sho giving him a nod of encouragement.
“You stay safe, sheriff.”
Sho shrugged. “Do what I can.”
Ohno headed off back to the horses, hoping that Sho would be able to talk himself out of the growing mess. If they were leaving for Santa Fe the next day, he’d have to hurry and Jun and Nino would have to ride double time. It was going to be cutting it close, that was for sure.
“Come on,” he said, patting the horse. “We need to get moving.”
------
It was hot, and the sweat from his forehead was stinging his eyes.
He wiped at his forehead with his hand, running his fingers across the metal bar above him. It was hotter still under the body of the concord coach propped up on wooden blocks near the forge. His fingers found the screws connecting the singletrees and the whippletree. The metal was bent, and a bit cracked- the pad of his finger found one of the sharper edges, and he winced; no wonder the harnesses had come free. The welding had been quickly and shoddily done, and the bars were barely holding together.
Shifting, he moved his hands towards the back axles. The reaches, too, were starting to bend and break under the pressure of the loads carried by the cabin.
Aiba pushed himself back out from under the coach and wiped his hands on the fabric of his trousers. Didn't see too many coaches in need of repair anymore, 'specially not around Rapid Springs; town was too far off the map, too far away from the railroad to really get business like it used to. But he liked working on the coaches, because they were simple- easy to understand. They weren't wrapped up all together like jumbled yarn tossed aside, like the people around him.
The metal was easier to work with than the shrouds of past events. Aiba had always been fonder of getting frustrations out through his hammer and hot embers than through other people- but watching Rapid Springs as of late had been a different kind of study. He didn't claim to know all that was goin' on between Ninomiya, Matsumoto, and the sheriff, but he did know that Matsumoto had politely declined his offer of a place to sleep since the first time Aiba had set out towards Clearwater.
He just didn't know quite what it was supposed to mean.
Aiba pursed his lips, arms crossed, staring at the coach. If the welding was shot, he was gonna have to take the whole damn thing apart to get the whippletree free to work on; screws were a pain to get loose once they'd seen the hot New Mexico sun, that much was for sure. He'd gotten three out into the dirt next to him when the knock came at the side of the building.
"Here," he called back, not bothering to push himself out from under the coach.
"Can only see your legs," Jun laughed, and Aiba could hear the rhythmic thudding of his heels against the packed floor. "Always workin', ain't you?"
"Always something needs fixin'," Aiba answered. Another screw fell loose, and the whippletree clanked noisily away from the singletrees. He grabbed it 'fore it hit the dirt, and pulled it out with him as he disentangled himself from under the coach.
Jun didn't say anything as Aiba readied the coals of the forge, shifting them with the iron poker.
"What's the plan?" he asked, finally, breaking the silence hanging heavy on the air between them.
"Wait, I guess," Jun answered. He sighed, and adjusted his hat with two fingers. "Haven't gotten another letter from Santa Fe, so I guess that means we're still waitin' on the bureaucrats."
Aiba laughed, rubbing at his nose with one arm. "Seems to be the way of things out here, doesn't it?"
Jun sat down on a few of the boxes stacked near the far wall- it was cooler by the opening of the shop, where the breeze could roll in. Aiba wasn't gonna miss the stifling heat of summer once autumn rolled around, even if the winter promised hard tack and salted meat as the stores ran thin. Rapid Springs was still runnin' on empty by way of food; the atmosphere in town was strained. Nagase's shadow hung over all of them, which was probably exactly what the man had wanted.
When the gunman didn't say anything, Aiba started heating his hammer, staring down at the cracks in the bar. "What's your plan?"
"You mean the ambush?" Jun asked.
"Mm," Aiba replied. "I know you done a lot of killin', but attacking even a fake federal stage is rough, isn't it?"
There was a moment of silence, and Jun's boots scraped against the dirt a bit. "Think we deserve this one, don't we? After what he's done to Rapid Springs."
The other man didn't voice the last half of the statement- after what he's done to me- but Aiba heard it anyway, catching in the back of Jun's throat. It was a point he couldn't argue, and didn't really want to. He just brought his hammer down hard on the iron, watching as the metal glowed orange and bent under the heat.
"Anyway, I think-" Aiba didn't know what Jun was gonna say, but he never got the chance; there were rapid-fire hooves outside the shop, hard and fast against the main drag, and then Ohno was climbing out of his saddle faster than Aiba had ever seen the man move. He was breathing hard, hair askew- been riding hard, and he was alone. Sheriff was nowhere in sight.
Jun was on his feet in a flash, 'fore Aiba even had time to drop his hammer. Beyond Ohno's panting mare, he could see Nino leaving the front door of the saloon, moving up the hill to join them.
"Plan's changed," Ohno wheezed, as soon as his boots hit the ground. "Plan's off."
"Wait, plan's off?" Jun asked. "Why?"
"Didn't let us go to Nagase's alone."
"Shit," Jun hissed, and one hand went up to touch his forehead. "Shit, shit-"
"What do you mean?" Aiba asked, whippletree all but forgotten over the side of the forge, fire still crackling behind him. At the far edge of the forge, Ninomiya's footsteps echoed, til he was standing next to Ohno's sweat-slicked horse. The saloon owner looked worried- could probably sense the trouble on the air easy as he could pour shots.
"Can't ambush now," Ohno explained. "Got two federal marshals with us, and Nagase sent for his lawyer. Whole thing's screwed up."
"Well, we can't just let Nagase go," Nino snapped.
"Ain't got much choice now, do we?" Aiba asked. There was a sinking in his stomach; all the work Sho had put in getting the feds to look at Nagase's holdings, and all they were gonna do was put him on trial for cattle rustling? Wet stock was nothin' compared to paying Mendoza into attacking Rapid Springs.
"Sheriff wants Jun and Nino," Ohno said. His gaze flitted across the two. "Wants you out there."
"For what?" Jun asked.
There was a long silence that stretched on like the damn desert dunes, and Ohno just shrugged helplessly. Nino looked angry, Jun looked confused, and Aiba couldn't stop the disappointment he felt. Federal marshals- they were right outta luck, now. The feds were too much to try to go against... weren't they?
"Says you'll know what to do," Ohno said.
It was obvious by the tightening of Jun's features that it was a lot to ask- man had to feel trapped by the situation.
"Give me your badge," Nino demanded, to Aiba, holding his hand out in expectation. Aiba could only stare at him.
"That's what the sheriff said," Ohno murmured, with an odd sidelong glance at the saloon owner, who ignored any implications it might have held.
"What are you gonna do?" Aiba asked without moving, without reaching for the iron on his lapel. "You gonna go against the feds? You can't do nothing with them there, you know that."
"Give me your badge, deputy," Nino hissed. "You heard Satoshi. Sheriff gave you an order."
Aiba looked helplessly at Jun, but the gunman was lost in his own thoughts, and offered him nothing. The fire at his back was hot and crackling like gunpowder, and his heart was pounding in his ears. Should scrap the whole thing- should call it all off. Might not get Nagase on murderin' charges, but at least the feds would get the man on his other crimes. Had to be enough, didn't it? They couldn't risk everything 'gainst the federal government.
"I don't think-" he started, and Jun uncrossed his arms quite suddenly, sucking in a sharp breath.
"Give Ninomiya your badge."
"What?" Aiba stared. "No, I-"
"Just do it," Jun snapped.
"You got a plan, Matsumoto?" Ohno asked. His voice was softer- accepting. His horse stamped at the ground, and it just echoed Aiba's frustration.
Jun laughed, and the sound was decidedly mirthless. "No. But we gotta do somethin'."
"I don't like this," Aiba said, but even as the words left his lips, he knew he'd lost. Sheriff had jurisdiction, and he had to respect that, even if he didn't agree with it. Fingers tingling, he took the badge off his vest and gingerly placed it in Nino's palm. "Someone's gonna get hurt."
"Too late for that," Ninomiya growled, and his hand closed down tightly 'round the deputy sigil.
"They're federal marshals," Aiba warned.
"And Nagase's a fuckin' crook," Nino shot back. "Let's go, Jun."
Helpless, Aiba watched as the two started off out of the shop to get horses tethered to the hitching posts near the saloon.
"You think it's gonna go bad?" he asked, when they were out of earshot and it was only Ohno standing next to him.
"Dunno," came the answer. "Just dunno."
Aiba swallowed hard. "Me neither."