would marry. But then, he completed the thought: he just wasn’t the marrying kind.
Buck watched her, noting the smoothness of the dress over her upper body. He didn’t know much about dresses and dress material, but had noticed time and again how some women seemed to fill out a dress better than others. This dress, at least to the point just below her waist where the bottom flared out, fitted this woman’s body as if it had been sewn on. A wonderful sight, he thought, all smooth and full of curves. Shoulder-length hair, light brown and wavy, was held in place by a wide band of ribbon. Her eyes were of a light blue color that was almost the pale shade of the sky just before sundown.
‘Tell me, how well do you know Professor Fish?’ Buck leaned back in the big chair, deciding it was best not to look too far into her eyes or he might get lost.
‘I know him as Uncle Fish. And I’ve known him pretty much all my life,’ she smiled.
‘Uncle Fish? That’s a new one on me. I’ve only ever heard him called the Professor or Professor Fish. Is he your uncle?’
‘He was almost my father,’ she answered, laughing. ‘I grew up knowing him. He and my father were great friendsand at one time both the men courted my mother. Father won out, and Uncle Fish stayed around, helping turn this end of the valley into the Rocking C. He was here until I was at least ten years old. I think he stayed around just in case my mother ever changed her mind. He really isn’t my uncle, you know, but he’s about the closest thing I have to any relatives . My husband Virgil was an orphan, so there’s just been him and me.’
‘Do tell. I’ve known the Professor for ten years or so and somehow I just can’t see him courting a woman. But yes, I did get a letter from him asking if I was to ride in this direction would I stop by and see what kind of trouble was coming your way.’
‘I didn’t know what else to do, or who else to turn to when Virg was shot. The town sheriff wouldn’t even come out when I reported it. He said anything outside the town limits was outside his jurisdiction.’
‘And there isn’t a marshal in this area?’
‘No. I didn’t know what to do. Nobody seemed to care that my husband had been killed. For a while I was knocked for a loop. Hugh came over a couple times to help out, and Hank, our foreman, and the hands, well they really took care of things. Kept everything running the way it should.’
‘Tell me about your husband’s shooting.’
‘I don’t know much. When he didn’t come in from a trip to town, Hank took a couple of the boys and rode back that way to see if Virg’d had some trouble with the wagon. He’d been in picking up supplies and was due back by dark. It’s a good two or three hours or so into town and he didn’t like being on the road after dark with the wagon. They found him on the other side of the river. He’d been shot in the side and was lying in the dirt next to the road. The wagon and all the supplies was just standing there. Hank used his bedroll and wrapped Virg up and brought him home in the back of the wagon.’
‘And the sheriff didn’t come out to even look at the body?’
‘No. I sent Hank in, but Sheriff Holt said there was nothing he could do. We buried Virgil up alongside Pa’s grave. Up on a little hill overlooking the ranch yard. We’d only been married six years.’
‘Your letter didn’t say much about the kind of trouble you were having, at least the Professor’s letter to me didn’t. You have any idea who would shoot your husband?’
‘I don’t know. All I do know is that a few days after we talked to the sheriff I had a visit from a well-dressed man I’d never seen before. He said his name was Vance Hubbard and he was holding a couple IOUs for debts my husband had owed. That was the first I heard of that. Virg had never said anything about owing anyone money.’
‘Did the Hubbard fellow say what that debt was for?’
‘Yes. He said it
Buck watched her, noting the smoothness of the dress over her upper body. He didn’t know much about dresses and dress material, but had noticed time and again how some women seemed to fill out a dress better than others. This dress, at least to the point just below her waist where the bottom flared out, fitted this woman’s body as if it had been sewn on. A wonderful sight, he thought, all smooth and full of curves. Shoulder-length hair, light brown and wavy, was held in place by a wide band of ribbon. Her eyes were of a light blue color that was almost the pale shade of the sky just before sundown.
‘Tell me, how well do you know Professor Fish?’ Buck leaned back in the big chair, deciding it was best not to look too far into her eyes or he might get lost.
‘I know him as Uncle Fish. And I’ve known him pretty much all my life,’ she smiled.
‘Uncle Fish? That’s a new one on me. I’ve only ever heard him called the Professor or Professor Fish. Is he your uncle?’
‘He was almost my father,’ she answered, laughing. ‘I grew up knowing him. He and my father were great friendsand at one time both the men courted my mother. Father won out, and Uncle Fish stayed around, helping turn this end of the valley into the Rocking C. He was here until I was at least ten years old. I think he stayed around just in case my mother ever changed her mind. He really isn’t my uncle, you know, but he’s about the closest thing I have to any relatives . My husband Virgil was an orphan, so there’s just been him and me.’
‘Do tell. I’ve known the Professor for ten years or so and somehow I just can’t see him courting a woman. But yes, I did get a letter from him asking if I was to ride in this direction would I stop by and see what kind of trouble was coming your way.’
‘I didn’t know what else to do, or who else to turn to when Virg was shot. The town sheriff wouldn’t even come out when I reported it. He said anything outside the town limits was outside his jurisdiction.’
‘And there isn’t a marshal in this area?’
‘No. I didn’t know what to do. Nobody seemed to care that my husband had been killed. For a while I was knocked for a loop. Hugh came over a couple times to help out, and Hank, our foreman, and the hands, well they really took care of things. Kept everything running the way it should.’
‘Tell me about your husband’s shooting.’
‘I don’t know much. When he didn’t come in from a trip to town, Hank took a couple of the boys and rode back that way to see if Virg’d had some trouble with the wagon. He’d been in picking up supplies and was due back by dark. It’s a good two or three hours or so into town and he didn’t like being on the road after dark with the wagon. They found him on the other side of the river. He’d been shot in the side and was lying in the dirt next to the road. The wagon and all the supplies was just standing there. Hank used his bedroll and wrapped Virg up and brought him home in the back of the wagon.’
‘And the sheriff didn’t come out to even look at the body?’
‘No. I sent Hank in, but Sheriff Holt said there was nothing he could do. We buried Virgil up alongside Pa’s grave. Up on a little hill overlooking the ranch yard. We’d only been married six years.’
‘Your letter didn’t say much about the kind of trouble you were having, at least the Professor’s letter to me didn’t. You have any idea who would shoot your husband?’
‘I don’t know. All I do know is that a few days after we talked to the sheriff I had a visit from a well-dressed man I’d never seen before. He said his name was Vance Hubbard and he was holding a couple IOUs for debts my husband had owed. That was the first I heard of that. Virg had never said anything about owing anyone money.’
‘Did the Hubbard fellow say what that debt was for?’
‘Yes. He said it
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