They found little things to do around the ranch the rest of the day – it had been too long since Molly had someone to pay attention to the small tasks. Bart fixed a hole in the barn roof; Bret repaired some loose boards on the porch, then they worked together to restore the chicken coop to functionality. They watered and fed the Mustangs, then did the same for Noble, Bret's stallion Blackthorn, and Molly's roan. They'd just sat down with Molly on the porch to rest for a few minutes before she served supper when a rider approached. "It's Marshal Sanders," she told them, and both men were immediately on alert.
He seemed surprised to find anyone with the ranch owner. Sanders wasn't a tall man, but he was built solidly, with sandy blonde hair and piercing eyes. He wore a double rig gun belt, with a Colt on either side and a Marshal's badge on his chest. He tipped his hat after he dismounted, and held onto the reins rather than wrap them around the hitching rail. "Miss Molly, I didn't know you had company."
"I don't, Conrad. These are the two men who are going to be running the ranch and helping with the breeding program. Jamie Hancock, Joe Delacroix, this is Marshal Conrad Sanders. What is it that you wanted, Marshal?"
"Hancock. Delacroix." He nodded to each of them; neither Maverick brother saying anything. "I heard you had some more trouble out here last night, Molly."
"Yep. Damaged part of my fence and ran my mares through town. I got 'em back, as you can see. I don't expect that to be happening again."
"With just two men?"
Bret finally spoke up. "We'll have a crew shortly."
"Really?" Sanders asked. "And just where are you gonna get a crew?"
"That sounds like a challenge, Marshal. Trust us, we'll have one," Bart insisted.
Sanders shook his head. "Oh, I believe you think you'll have one. I'm just not sure who's gonna be willing to work out here."
"You tryin' to tell us somethin'?" Bret asked.
"No, not at all. Just makin' an observation." He turned back to Molly. "Any idea who caused the trouble last night?"
"You know better than to ask that, Conrad. They make sure they can't be identified."
He shook his head slightly. "You know I can't do anything about it if you can't tell me who they were."
"I don't recall asking you to do anything."
"Alright, Molly, Just tryin' to get to the bottom of the problem. You let me know if anything else happens. Mr. Hancock. Mr. Delacroix." He tipped his hat to Molly, remounted his horse and trotted back the way he'd come.
"Don't much care for him," Bret observed.
"That makes two of us," Bart added.
"Dinner should be done, gentleman. Come on inside and eat." She got up from her chair and the gamblers followed her.
XXXXXXXX
The lawman rode straight to the Bircken Ranch. There was a horse out front he didn't recognize, and Nance Tesson's gray gelding. This time when he dismounted he tied his reins to the hitching rail, then bounded up the steps and straight inside. Jeremiah looked up from his desk when Sanders walked into the room. "Well, Conrad, come on in. You look like a man on a mission."
"Where's Nance?" the marshal asked.
"Right here," Tesson answered, as he entered the office with a fresh cup of coffee in his hands.
"And Burns?"
Nance shook his head. "Still at home?"
"Then whose horse – "
"Mine," answered Branch Haven.
"Well, Mr. Mayor, haven't seen you in a few days."
"Out of town," Branch replied, then sat down next to Nance.
"How'd it go at Hooper's?" Jeremiah interrupted before the Mayor could say anything else.
"Part of it? Normal. She couldn't identify anyone."
"Part of it?" Nance asked.
Sanders nodded. "Part of it. Got any more of that coffee?"
Jeremiah picked up a gold bell sitting on the corner of his desk and rang it. A Señorita of perhaps fourteen or fifteen came hurrying in, making no sound except for the rustle of her skirts. "Coffee, Fidelia, and another cup."
As soon as the girl left the room Bircken asked his question. "What's the rest of it?"
"She had two cowboys with her I never seen before."
The Mayor snorted. "Cowboys? So what?"
Conrad almost stared a hole through the Mayor. Before he could answer Fidelia came back in with the coffee pot and an empty cup. She set the cup in front of the marshal and filled it with the hot, rich smelling black liquid, then filled everyone else's cup. "Leave the pot, Fidelia," Bircken told her, and she set the pot on a towel and left the room. "Now, Conrad, quit playing games and tell us what's so unusual about these 'cowboys'."
"They're no ordinary saddle tramps," the marshal started. "Delgado told me he saw 'em in the saloon the night before playin' poker and winnin' everything in sight." Delgado Hernandez was the town deputy marshal.
"So?"
"Wasn't no run a good luck," Conrad continued. "Delgado said they handled themselves like professionals. Didn't drink, knew exactly what they were doin' at all times. Now what's two men that can play poker like that doin' goin' to work for a rancher, and a woman rancher at that?"
Nance asked the next question. "You get names?"
"Hancock and Delacroix. Never heard of either one of 'em."
"When you get back to town see if you got anything on either one."
Conrad nodded. "I intend to. What do we do now?"
"Nothing. Until we know what we're dealing with."
"I told you she wasn't gonna be easy to get rid of." Nance almost smirked when he said it.
"We've dealt with everything she's come up with," Jeremiah reminded him. "Why do you think two saddle tramps are gonna give us a problem?"
"Because he's always looking for trouble," Branch interjected.
"And it's a good thing I do, too," Tesson reminded them. "I've saved this whole operation more than once."
"Yes, yes, Nance, we're well aware of that. But let's be smart about this, shall we? There's no sense rushing into anything until we know exactly what we're dealing with. Let's meet at the regular time tomorrow, at Wolcott's house. Maybe Burns will be able to get there if we make it convenient for him," Bircken suggested. The Mayor laughed nervously. Even Nance chuckled.
"Alright," the marshal agreed as he set his empty cup back on the desk. "I'm goin' back to town and see what I can dig up on our two new problems. Mayor, you comin' with me?"
"Not just yet, Conrad. I'll come see you when I return."
The marshal tipped his hat and got up. "Well, I'm about done for the night, boys. I'll see you all tomorrow." And with that, he left.
Jeremiah looked up from his coffee. "Keep an eye on him, would you, Nance? I'm still not sure our marshal is with us one-hundred percent."
"Conrad's alright," Branch Haven defended his pick for lawman. "Just because he wants to be certain of everything before he fully commits . . . "
"I know, Mayor, what you think. I'd just like a little reassurance is all."
Nance Tesson got up from his chair and stretched to his full height. 'The man really was large,' thought Jeremiah.
"I'm goin' home," Nance announced to no one in particular. "I'll see you all at Wolcott's tomorrow." The room seemed to get suddenly larger after Nance left.
"How much trouble do you think we've got now?" Mayor Haven asked his good friend.
Jeremiah shook his head. "I don't know, Branch, I can't imagine too much from two men. I think it's just a matter of time before we get Hooper to give up on this cross-breeding nonsense and sell us her land."
The mayor sighed. "I hope you're right, Jeremiah. I surely hope you're right."