The Spurs of Iron Eyes (Iron Eyes Western #3) Read Free Page A

looked over his
shoulder at the swing doors which told him the men had
gone.
    They ain ’t from around
here.’
    ‘ How
long have they been in Rio Vista?’
    They rode in an hour after
you. ’
    Iron Eyes nodded. They
ain ’t
cowboys.’
    ‘ Then
what? Outlaws?’
    ‘ Maybe.’ Iron Eyes pushed the tall bottle towards the
sheriff and thought about their faces which seemed to be carved
into his distant memory, faces he had once seen on a wanted
poster.

Chapter Three
    Rio Vista could have been any
other Texas border town when the sun finally decided to set.
Cowboys and vaqueros seemed to arrive from invisible hideaways and fill the long
street and various saloons as the lamps were being lit along its
single dry thoroughfare. From the security of his room, Iron Eyes
watched the slow interesting change in the atmosphere below with
singular curiosity. The small town now glowed eerily as the street
lights began to spill their illumination over its simple
configuration. Horses tied to hitching rails filled the street
opposite the hotel as they waited for their masters. Piano playing
echoed about the otherwise quiet street as the tall bounty hunter
plucked his coat off its hook once more. Placing each mule-ear boot
on the seat of the hard chair in turn, Iron Eyes tied on his savage
spurs and glared through the small window panes. Although he had no
intention of riding this night, he still wore his spurs. There had
been times when their lethally sharp prongs had ripped the flesh
from his enemies’ bones. Iron Eyes knew only too well that during
hand-to-hand combat, that inflicting a split second of agony
allowed him to draw and fire both his Navy Colts.
    Straightening up and stomping
on both boots on the bare boards, Iron Eyes gritted his teeth
before picking up the hefty saddlebags and tossing them over his
shoulder.
    Stepping out of his room
and locking the door behind him, he pulled another long, thin cigar
from his pocket and placed it between his teeth. Striking a match
along the whitewashed landing wall, he made his way to the top of
the staircase, sucking on the lit cigar and blowing out a long line
of smoke.
    It was a watchful Iron Eyes who
ventured out slowly from the hotel with the heavy saddlebags still
hanging over his right shoulder.
    The swollen leather bulging
with silver dollars weighed massively but it did not show on the
lank frame of Iron Eyes. He seemed unable or unwilling to leave the
fortune out of his sight for even a few moments. As smoke drifted
from his narrow mouth, he walked along the street towards the
building which towered over all the others in Rio Vista.
    Moving along the
boardwalks, using the shadows as a shield, he seemed unable to take
his attention off the large chapel for more than a few seconds at a
time. It was unlike Iron Eyes to be drawn to anything, but this
building attracted his interest even whilst bathed in moonlight and
glowing torches. The sound of laughter flowed out of the saloons
opposite him as he made his way down the long street.
    Before the troubled man had
realized it, he was standing below the colorfully tiled steps leading to the
large carved wooden double doors. A pair of flickering torches set
to either side of the steps seemed to draw him like a moth between
their flames.
    Turning the large ring handle,
Iron Eyes allowed the door to open as he stood gazing inside. He
had never set foot into any place where a hundred candles burned
upon an altar graced by a solid gold crucifix before. When he
slowly proceeded within the chapel, the smell of incense filled his
nostrils and made him feel uneasy. The weight of the heavy burden
upon his shoulder began to tax his mind as he stared up at the
beautifully carved figure attached to the golden cross. Iron Eyes
stared at the crucifix as the candle flames licked its image and
wondered who it was or what it meant.
    ‘ You
seem confused, my son.’ A voice flavored with the charms of Mexico
came from the shadows to his right.
    Iron