“You didn’t?”
“Oh, no, I did. Well at least, Zeke here says I did. I don’t reallyremember it myself. They all kind of blur together after a while. Another dollar. Another day. You get what it’s like.”
“Of course. I, too, have trouble remembering all the unarmed farmers I shoot as they’re crossing the street.”
He laughs, then shrugs. “Everyone has to make a living. You think you have some superior moral code?”
“Moral? No. Superior? Yes.”
“Rich talk coming from a thief.”
“We all have our hobbies. Besides, taking money is not the same as taking a life.”
“Isn’t it?”
I tilt my head, studying him. “You know, you remind me of someone.”
“Do I? Who’s that?”
I smile at him the same way he just did at me. “A dead man.”
He shakes his head. “Full of it, aren’t ya? Do you know how I knew to be sitting at that particular bar in the first place? Do you know how I managed to track you down?”
“I’m sure you’re going to tell me.”
“Because ofyou, Cypress. I’ve been going town to town for months and the thing is, you have a tendency to make quite an impression. All those scars on your face that you showed off just now…people remember seeing something like that. So much so that they remember you coming and going through Troy’s Hill foryears. Remember your partner, too. Quiet sort, right? Only place that you both seem to visit frequently, which likely means you call somewhere around here home.”
“Here specifically?” I frown. “No.”
“You lie.”
“Rarely.”
“You’re lyin’ about this, which I’ll bet means they’re right close by and will still never spare you another thought.” He smirks. “I’ll bet your partner is already counting his blessings to be ridof you. Bet he’s enjoyingyourmoney andyourgirl without a thought about coming after you. Bet he’s wondering how he ever put up with you for so long. Bet he can’t wait to never see you again.”
“I’ll take that bet.”
“Awfully confident, aren’t you?”
“Absolutely.”
“Mind if I ask why?”
I meet his gaze, unflinching as I tell him, “Because in this lifetime and in any that follow, I would wager everything I own on them, including my last breath.” I smile. “Including yours.”
The knife he’s holding comes up to my throat, the flat edge just beneath my jaw, and I keep my eyes on him as I lean into the pressure of it. Watching as his eyes widen slightly when I say to him, “Getting it now, Frank?”
Aiden and I lie on our stomachs on the ridge, overlooking a small shack situated on the side of another rocky hill below. It’s taken us a day and a half to find, a little longer to be certain until we see they have Cerberus tied up along with two more horses. The black stallion looks almost as irked about his containment as I’m sure his owner is.
It had been Aiden’s direction to start at the hollow and work our way out. Get to the highest ground we could and search in sections. At the time, it had felt tedious, but as it also gave us better odds than a frantic search through the Arizona mountains, we had little choice. Even if every moment that Cypress is gone feels like a moment too long.
We almost missed the shack on our first pass, nearly hidden in the landscape with its sun-faded gray sides, but I spotted the faint smoke from the stove and then the movement at the door. The first of two men that have each only appeared once.
At this distance and with their coats and hats, it was hard tomake out their features when they stepped outside, especially in the dwindling daylight, but we’re as sure as we’re going to be that they’re the only ones here besides Cypress.
“We could wait until they move him in the morning,” Aiden is saying, his voice low as we wait for one of the men to appear again. “Might be easiest.”
“And leave Cypress in there another night?”