All the way to the jail, Rey protested his innocence and insisted that Matt had the wrong person. He went from demanding to see the proof; Matt claimed to have, to begging for his Pa. Matt ignored it all, led him to his cell and locked the door.
Walking back into the jail office, Matt took a deep breath. He had more evidence then he started with but he still wasn't sure he could prove the boy's guilt. The button was important and he couldn't think of any way to explain it away, but he was sure a good lawyer could.
Kitty and Sam would stand behind their statement that Rey was in the Long Branch that afternoon, but that proved nothing except that he lied to Matt about being home all that day. A good lawyer could explain that away too. But no matter how good the lawyer was, he couldn't explain away the girl's father's eyewitness account of the boy being there. Matt figured that to be his smoking gun. Or at least he hoped it was.
"Mr. Dillon?"
Matt turned to see Chester at the door with a man behind him, the very man Matt had just been thinking of. "Mr…" Matt still didn't know the man's last name only the first name of Victor.
"I come to see if you have found my daughter's killer?" Victor stated. "I vant him."
"I did." Matt answered. "Or at least I have arrested someone for it. But you're not going to get him. He's going to stand trial for your daughter's death and if he's found guilty, he'll hang."
"If?" Victor frowned as he shook his head. "Zere is no 'if'. He killed my little girl. He must pay. I must make him pay."
"No." Matt shook his head. "You must allow the law to deal with this. You cannot take the law into your own hands and if you try it, I'll have to stop you."
As Matt spoke, Chester moved on into the room and over to the stove. Lifting the coffee pot, he found it empty and picked up the water bucket, finding it empty as well. Quietly, he passed both men and headed to the back door to get fresh water to make coffee.
As Chester passed by Matt, Victor's attention was drawn to him for just long enough for Matt to reach out and grab the rifle from his hands.
"Hey!" Victor roared in anger. "Dat is mine."
"Not while you're in town." Matt told him. "And not when you threaten to shoot someone. Now, you can have this back when you leave town but not until then. When this boy comes to trial, I'll need you to testify against him."
"Testify?" Victor questioned. "Vat you mean?"
"Tell the court what you saw the night your daughter died and point out the man you saw hurt her." Matt explained. "If you do that, then he won't go free and he will pay for what he did."
"No." Victor shook his head. "I vill make him pay myself. You give him to me."
"No." Matt answered flatly. "I'm not about to give him to you so you can lynch him."
Victor smiled a terrible smile with no mirth. "I vould not hang him, Marshal." He stated. "Dat would be too merciful."
"Get out of here, Victor." Matt sighed. "Go on home. I'll send someone to get you when his trial comes up so you can come in and testify. In the meantime, there's nothing here for you."
"Can I see him?" Victor suddenly asked. "Vat if you have de wrong man?"
Matt highly doubted that but he knew there was a possibility. "Alright." He answered as he swung the door to the cell area open. "Un huh." He shook his head as Victor started towards him. "You can see well enough from there." He jerked his thumb towards the cell where Rey was. "Is that him?"
Victor stared long at the boy before looking back at Matt. "Yah, I see him dat night."
"You didn't see nothing, old man." Rey snapped as Matt quickly closed the door between the cells and the office.
"Alright." Matt looked over at Victor. "You identified him. Now, when his trial comes up, you can testify to that. Ok?"
Victor neither agreed nor objected to what Matt had said. "Give me my gun." Victor held out his hand. "I vill go home."
Matt wasn't sure he should or could trust this man. He knew grief and the thirst for vengeance could cause an otherwise gentle human being to do some monstrous things. Quickly, Matt unloaded the rifle then handed it back to Victor. "Go on." He ordered. "Go."
Victor said nothing, offered no protest to the emptying of his rifle. He merely accepted the weapon, tucked it under his arm and turned, leaving the jail and closed the door behind him just as Chester came back in with the water.
"He going home?" Chester asked, carrying the water over to the stove.
"I hope so, Chester." Matt answered. "I sure do hope so."
Later that day, Dale Granger arrived at the jail with a wire in his hand from Judge Hale in Topeka. "Let my boy go, Marshal." He slapped the paper on Matt's desk. "I have a wire here from Judge Hale ordering you to."
Matt said nothing as he picked up the wire and read thru it. "I'll release him." Matt said as he laid the paper down and started towards the cell area. "But there will be a trial and he will be the defendant. Now you can bring him back in for the trial or I will come and get him, but he WILL stand trial."
Dale Granger, who didn't back down from too many men and who was afraid of even fewer, nevertheless held his tongue and stood silently while Matt released his boy into his custody.
"Take him home, Dale." Matt replaced the keys onto their peg and then turned back to the rancher. "And keep him there."
"Don't worry about my son." Dale snapped as he pushed Rey towards the door. "You worry about yourself. Because when we prove my boy's innocence, I am going to make sure you lose this cushy little job of yours and are never allowed to have a badge again. Come on, Rey."
Matt said nothing as the father and son left the jail. He understood that Dale loved his boy. No man would want to see his son go to prison or possibly be hung for anything, even if they knew their child was guilty. But he hoped sincerely Dale would do the right thing when it came to it.
The next morning Matt received a wire from Judge Brooker. Matt had wired him as soon as the Granger's had left the jail. Judge Hale was a federal judge and had direct authority over Matt but this territory was Judge Brooker's area and Matt wanted him to be aware of what had happened and to advise him of what to do.
Brooker's reply was short. "Re-arrest him. I will arrive by the end of week for trial."
TBC