Ethan and Dakota rode out to talk to Ben out on his spread. He rarely left his ranch these days but he kept a good eye on everything around him. They stopped their horses in front of his small house and went to his front door.
The house looked quiet but Ethan knocked on the door and soon after, Ben opened the door and just looked at them a long moment.
"What do you want?"
Ethan and Dakota looked at each other.
"I'm the marshal now…"
Ben gave them a slight nod.
"I heard that…but what's that got to do with me?"
Ethan picked up a trace of defensiveness in his voice.
"This is my deputy, Dakota. We're out asking some questions about whether you saw anyone using the road close to your spread two nights ago."
Ben paused to think about it.
"No…not that I can recall," he said, "It's been pretty quiet since the stagecoach has been using the other road…on account of the rockslide."
Ethan remembered that a sudden rainstorm had caused some boulders on the side of a mountain to fall in the middle of the road where it narrowed and curved around the mountain. So the stagecoach had to detour around it down the other road as did some of the freight shipments.
"You sure about that," Dakota asked.
Ben nodded, a little irritated.
"It's been really quiet like I said," he said, "except for a week ago when the Blakely Brothers rode by on their way to Virginia City…but they passed us over."
Ethan nodded, remembered that he'd heard about that. Virginia City's marshal had been waiting for them and they'd cooled their heels in the lockup for a while.
"Some of those security men that that Mr. Wyatt hired," Ben said, "They were out riding around earlier that night but they didn't cross paths with them far as I know."
"You know Mr. Wyatt," Dakota asked.
Now Ben looked irritated.
"Sure I do…came out to my ranch once to ask me what I wanted him to do in town," he said, "Don't care much about that since Millie died of the sickness."
Ethan looked at him.
"Do they ride out often?"
Ben shrugged.
"Maybe once a night, every other night," he said, "I just see them passing by."
Ethan digested that, knowing that Wyatt had his men doing much more than just overseeing the security of some of the town's businesses. Was he having them ride out to challenge anyone who might be just about to ride into town? Ethan felt that was overstepping their bounds and interfering with his job.
They left Ben after that and headed back into town not knowing that they were being followed.
Amelia had left Ernie but had taken his word with her. She'd headed to the wire office while Claire had headed back to the school to help Ella the other teacher. Bernice was there handling the telegraph and she smiled when she saw Amelia arrive.
"Anything from the San Francisco bank…?"
Bernice nodded and handed Amelia a slip of paper which had the news that the last installment of money from an account would be transferred to Paradise. As she read it, Bernice chattered on about some of the others she'd received, saying it'd been a busy day over the wires.
"No news on Dylan Daggett and his boys," she said, "I don't think the marshal will be happy about that…and there's some news for that reporter from his publisher and…"
Amelia held up her hand.
"I think I've heard enough…"
Bernice nodded.
"Of course…excuse me…it's just been one of those days…never seen it so busy…and did you hear about Francis?"
No, Amelia hadn't and she wasn't much interested. She thanked Bernice and walked outside. She saw Ethan and Dakota ride up to the marshal's office. She walked on over there and when Ethan got off of his horse, he headed towards her, sliding his arms around her and bringing her in for a kiss.
"I missed you…"
She glanced up at him and smiled.
"I thought you'd be very busy…did you find anything out?"
He shrugged and he walked into the office, his arm still around her waist. Dakota smiled at them.
"I'm heading to the saloon…to get something to drink…and find out more facts of course."
Ethan just shook his head at him and then focused on the woman in front of him. She looked at him, her eyes narrowed.
"So what did you find out Ethan?"
He went to sit at his desk and she sat in a chair beside him.
"Not anything really useful," he said, "I know that Burke and Trevor had a lot to do with Walton's death. But I need more to go on before I can do anything about it."
She heard the frustration in his voice.
"Were there any witnesses…besides them?"
"Don't know…asked around but no one's come forward."
"Maybe they're afraid…if they know they'll be safe, maybe that'll give them the courage."
Ethan rubbed the back of his neck.
"You can offer a reward."
He sighed.
"No one's upset about his death except us."
Amelia realized he had a point. Most of the town considered him a vandal who had been intent on damaging property until the two security men had caught him. Never mind it hadn't been in the act but that didn't matter especially to the likes of Axelrod. They didn't care that the world was short one unrepentant criminal.
"That's because they don't know the truth and they don't want to know it."
"He came from the same city that Burke and Trevor, the two men arrived from," Ethan said, "Still don't know who they worked for except he had a lot of power and money."
"There were a half a dozen men like that Ethan," she said, "They could have worked for any one of them…I don't know much about the men who…"
She fell silent and looked away for a moment.
"Amelia…"
"No I don't…I thought Ernie would want to find out but he was so intent on blaming Daggett…I wonder what's got him changing his mind."
"He's had some time to think," Ethan said, "for reason to catch up with him."
She sighed.
"I don't know if I believe that. I think he's just trying to sell newspapers…no matter what the cost."
She didn't want to get into what it had cost her…how hard it had been to pick up her life and continue on with it including coming back to Paradise and the life she'd left behind.
"I need to find out if anyone saw either one of those men going into the office while Dakota and I were out…"
"It was very early in the morning," she said, "an hour or so after the saloon closed…not many people would be on the street."
He nodded.
"Fewer people that'd want to admit they were out…but no one said anything about seeing them."
Amelia knew that without witnesses, it would always come down to their accounts against Ethan's theory of what had happened to Walton once he'd been left alone in the cell. Doc Carter said that the fatal injuries were separate from when the two men had captured him. So he'd gotten them while inside the jail cell. But that information wasn't enough to be able to accuse them, not to mention that they had a rich and powerful man in their corner.
"Darrin Wyatt will make it very difficult for you to accuse them of anything," she said, "He's got more than enough money to hire more than enough lawyers."
He knew that and she knew that he didn't want anything to stop him from finding out who killed Walton and holding him accountable.
"Money can't buy him enough to protect those two men if they're guilty."
She didn't know what to say to him. Darrin just had so much of it and knew how to weld it along with the power he held. He'd make Burke and Trevor look like heroes and the dead man like the worst kind of criminal.
She'd seen it happen many times herself. Wealthy people could even buy judges who decided cases. She wouldn't put it past the Wyatts to do that here.
"Ethan, you know that often it's exactly what decides a case," she said, "and without any proof…"
"I'll find it," he said, "I'll start with finding more information about the history of these two men."
He started to leave the office and she got up and followed him.
"Where are you going?"
"Telegraph office…sending out more wires," he said, "Something will come back with more information. If these two men did anything like this before, it'll make it easier to put them away."
She knew that but so far Darrin had tried to hide the backgrounds of his men when he brought them here. But looking at the expression on Ethan's face, she knew he wouldn't stop until he found out the truth.