The Lawman

Chapter Six

Decker didn’t take another hand in the next five, losing almost all of what he had won, and the girl came out to tell him that his food was ready.

“Would you gentlemen excuse me?”

“Of course,” Jose said.

The excitement of that single hand of poker had quickly died and the mood in the place was once again sleepy.

Decker moved to an empty table and the girl brought out his food. The two men left at the table continued to play two-handed.

“Could I have another beer, please, Juanita?”

“Si, señor.”

Up close he saw that she was very pretty indeed, in spite of her plumpness. She had smooth skin, large breasts, strong legs and she smelled clean. Decker remembered Miss Milly’s stock in Pemberton, and thought that this girl would do very well there.

She brought him another beer and then went back to her table, where she had been sitting when he arrived, and took up her former position.

The sound of an approaching horse was oddly loud and everyone looked up when they heard it. Decker thought he saw a hint of fear in the bartender’s eyes.

The horse stopped right in front of the cantina and a man entered moments later. He looked around, his eyes pausing for a moment on Decker, then walked to the bar.

“Gilberto is coming,” he said to the bartender, who now did look frightened, as did most of the other men in the place. The only people who didn’t seem to be affected by the news were Jose, the girl and Decker. “When he gets here he, his sister and the rest of the men will be hungry.”

“Juanita!” the bartender shouted, his voice sounding abnormally high. “Did you hear? Gilberto and his sister are coming.”

The girl very deliberately leaned over and spat on the floor.

The bartender said something to her in rapid Spanish and she finally stood up.

“Juanita,” Decker called.

She looked at him and then came over to his table.

“Who is Gilberto?”

“The dog who thinks he owns this town,” the girl said with distaste.

“Is that why the town has no name, and why the streets are empty?”

“They are all afraid of him,” Juanita said.

“I see.”

“I must prepare some food. Perhaps I will grind some glass into it, as well.”

“Well, I guess I’m lucky I got mine already, eh?”

She smiled at that, and her face became almost beautiful because of it.

“Señor, if I was you,” she said, becoming serious, “I would finish eating and leave this town. Gilberto does not like gringos.”

Decker looked down into his plate, which was still generously full, and decided he’d probably have to gulp his food down to do that.

“Your cooking is much too good to rush eating it, Juanita.”

She grinned again, and stroked his face.

“You are a gringo fool, señor. I wish Gilberto was not coming, but—” she took her hand from his face regretfully and went into the kitchen.

“Ramon!”

The voice was Jose’s, Decker saw, calling out to the man who had just entered.

“Si, Jose?”

“What kind of mood is the great Gilberto in? Should we hide our women and children?”

“You would be well advised to hold a civil tongue in your head, Jose. Gilberto is in a very bad mood.”

“Why is that?”

“Someone killed two of our men, and Gilberto wants blood for blood.”

Decker, chewed his food slowly and listened carefully.

“How did that happen?”

“Someone gunned them down with a shotgun before they could touch their guns,” Ramon explained, “and then finished them with a rifle.”

Decker washed down his mouthful with a swig of beer and wondered how many men this Gilberto had? He was obviously the leader of the bandit band that the two men he had killed belonged to.

“Is his sister with him?” Jose asked.

“Of course.”

Jose looked over at Decker and said, “You are in for treat, señor. Raquel Diaz is the most beautiful woman in all Mexico.”

“How interesting.”

Ramon looked suspiciously from Jose to Decker, and then back again. It was time to leave.

“You will be very impressed—that is, if you stay long enough.”

“Well,” Decker said, looking regretfully at his plate, “I’m afraid I really have to be moving on.”

Decker, not a man to frighten easily, knew that it would be prudent to be gone when Gilberto and his band arrived. He had started to stand when suddenly Ramon pulled his gun and pointed it at him.

“Stand very still, señor.”

Decker did as he was told, cursing himself for not having been prepared for this. The man called Ramon had clearly seen that he was a stranger, but Decker had hoped to be able to leave before the man realized that that meant he was a good bet to be the man who killed the two bandits.

“That is a shotgun in your holster, is it not?” Ramon asked.

“That it is.”

“I would ask you to keep your hand away from it, por favor.”

“Whatever you say”

“I think Gilberto will be very happy that you are here, señor.”

“If you say so.”

“Please, take your gun out with your left hand and drop it to the floor.”

Decker did as he was told.

“Now, please sit and finish eating. Juanita is an excellent cook.”

“Isn’t that a coincidence,” Decker said. “I was just telling her that.”

Decker sat down, damning himself for a fool. His gun was on the floor and there seemed no sure way out of this short of charging the man and hoping he was a bad shot. He could upend the table, but the man was so much on edge that he might fire at a second’s notice.

In light of the circumstances, Decker did the only thing he could.

He continued to eat.