Chapter 4 Treading On Starcourt's Land

Arizona Territory (Starcourt's land)

It had been several weeks since Les Dean had shot Matt Dillon and left him to die in the desert. Les had been staying low key for the last several weeks. Here and there he would stop in a town, but only briefly. Les spent more time out on the territory. By now he was fairly sure that the Marshal was no longer a threat when it came to arresting him. Unless someone had found the Marshal, Matt Dillon more than likely perished out in the desert. Les Dean solved the problem of the Marshal, but now he had another problem.

In his own words, Les Dean needed a place to roost. He also needed money. Normally Les would try to get his money in a card game. The last card game he was in didn't turn out so well. It was because of that card game that he had been on the run. Evans Vincent, the gambler, cheated. The man deserved to be shot. Obviously Matt Dillon did not agree with that, otherwise he would not have gone after Les. Maybe Les's gambling wasn't quite done. He was treading upon Starcourt's land.

Hasty Starcourt was not someone you messed with. The man had the devil locked up in his pocket. Starcourt was a smart and greedy man. But that was not going to stop Les. Starcourt's reputation did not scare or bother Les. He rode onto Starcourt's land without a care in the world. It wasn't long after Les and his bay, Slick, stepped onto Starcourt's land that they ran into a bit of trouble.

One of Starcourt's hired help tried to stop Les and Slick from going any further. Slick apparently didn't like being handled by the stranger, so he bit him. With Starcourt's worker occupied, Les dismounted Slick and walked to Starcourt's residence. Realizing that the stranger that came upon Starcourt's land was not leaving, the hired hand went after him.

Starcourt had been talking with Judge Cordelius in regards to Mike Yardner's land, when he heard the commotion. "What's going on here?"

"This man just comes riding up without an invitation," said the hired help, pointing to Les. "Then his bay bit me."

"I've sent him to all the best schools in the east," said Les. "I guess a skunk still smells like a skunk to him." Not taking kindly to the insult, the hired hand tried to get up to hit Les. But Les was faster and knocked him back down with one hit.

"That's enough," said Monte, another of Starcourt's hired hands.

"I agree," said Les. "Didn't mean no problems, Starcourt."

"That's Mr. Starcourt to you," said Monte, not liking the disrespect he was hearing from the stranger that came onto his boss' land. "Now, water your horse and ride on outta here."

"I go where I want and when I want, junior boy" Les replied. Les could see that the man standing next to Starcourt was Starcourt's right hand man. As far as Les was concerned, he was certain that the man probably cut up Starcourt's food and fed it to him.

Les' words didn't sit well with Monte. He was about to approach Les, but Starcourt stopped him. "Wait a minute," he told Monte.

Starcourt liked what he saw in the man that rode onto his land. This man didn't seem to let people get in his way. He also looked like a man that could use some money. Starcourt would need to find out more about the man, but it looked as though he could be the man to get rid of Mike Yardner. His men had tried to remove Mike Yardner from her land, but with no avail.

"Where are you from?" Starcourt asked Les.

"Wherever the compass needle spins," Les nonchalantly replied.

"Where are ya headed?" Starcourt asked.

"Wherever the spirit sends me," Les answered.

"What can you do?" questioned Starcourt.

"Anything I ever thought of," said Les.

"Can you use that gun?" Starcourt's questions continued.

Les answered with one word and then took his rifle and easily shot a pot of flowers hanging from Starcourt's patio area. Starcourt liked what he saw. He knew that the man standing in front of him would be perfect for the job. Starcourt knew he couldn't instantly hire the man to do get Mike Yardner off of her land. He would hire him as one of his hired hands first. He had to see if he could trust the man. Starcourt told his other workers to leave. Monte stayed.

"You're hired. Twenty-five dollars a month and found," said Starcourt.

"I can bed on the riverbank and get my own found," Les responded. "Thirty a month."

Starcourt wasn't about to negotiate with the man he offered the job to. He liked what he saw. He would agree to the man's request. The only thing that Starcourt did not know was the man's name. Starcourt could easily take care of that.

"What's your name?" he asked.

"Lester Dean."

"You found work, Dean. See ya at first light."

Les nodded, mounted his bay, and rode off. Starcourt was pleased with his new hire, but Monte was not. He did not want to disrespect his boss, but he questioned the thirty dollars a month. That seemed like quite a bit, especially since the top workers were only being paid twenty dollars a month. Starcourt assured Monte that Les would earn the thirty dollars a month.

Several days later Starcourt was confident that Lester Dean was the man to do the job. He was the man that would get Mike Yardner off her land. Starcourt had explained the situation of Mike Yardner and her land to Les. Les listened carefully to the situation. Starcourt told Les he didn't care how Mike was removed from her land. He wasn't a fan of murder, but he'd been around it. Starcourt told Les he could sense Les was a better man.

'If only Marshal Dillon could have sensed I was a better man, I wouldn't have shot him, and he wouldn't have perished in the desert," thought Les. 'I should've gone back and paid my last respects. Oh well, too late now.'

Starcourt was going to pay Les two hundred dollars to get the job done. By looking at Les Dean, Starcourt knew Les would get the job done. He could see Les had needs, and better yet, Les was unknown in the area. Mike Yardner was familiar with Starcourt's other men. She wasn't familiar with Les Dean. Starcourt gave Les one hundred dollars as an advance. Les would get the other hundred after the job was completed.

Les agreed to everything. He mounted Slick and rode off towards Mike Yardner's land. This was going to be the easiest two hundred dollars that Les Dean had ever earned. He was absolutely sure he would have no problem getting Mike Yardner off of her land. She was a woman. Les was certain he would be able to handle a woman. He didn't care what kind of reputation she had or what Starcourt said about her.

TBC