Keeper of the Books (Keeper of the Books, Book 1) Read Online Free Page A

hideout?” he asked.  
    Levi shook his head as he opened the door to the front porch. “Change of plans,” he said. “Nathaniel and Joseph are certainly on their way to meet with Mr. Montgomery. You’re going to take me to the meeting.”
    “Can I get a gun then?” Amos asked. “I don’t like to go to these things unarmed. It’s dangerous.”
    Levi walked out onto the porch and turned to look at Amos with a lifted eyebrow. He decided the question didn’t warrant a verbal response, and suddenly wondered whether it was a good idea to bring Amos along. Levi started toward his horse, but stopped short when he looked out into the street and saw Sheriff Marston holding a small boy by the collar. The child couldn’t have been more than five.
    “You tell yer daddy if he don’t brang the money by tomorrow, I’ll split his head open with a hammer!”
    “Yes sir!”
    Marston reared his hand back and slapped the boy in the face two or three times. The boy fell in the dirt and started crying.  
    “Ah, git up!”  
    Marston kicked the boy in the side once, and started to do so again when Levi had about all he could take.
    “Sheriff Marston!” Levi yelled out. Marston turned sharply and the boy scrambled to his feet and ran away. “I’m taking your prisoner with me. He’s going to lead me to the others.”
    Marston took a few steps forward. “I’m goin’ with you.”
    “No, you’re not.” Levi couldn’t imagine letting Sheriff Marston ride alongside them. Just one morning with him had been far too much. The rest of the day would be unbearable. He looked down the street at the boy who was still running away, wiping tears from his face.  
    “He’s my prisoner! I found him!”
    “Who was that boy?” Levi asked.  
    Marston waved a hand in the air. “Ah, don’t worry about him. He’s just some trash whose daddy owes me money.” He cleared his throat. “Listen, if yer goin’ up against the Cole brothers then yer goin’ to need all the guns you can git.”
    Marston had a point. Sort of. Levi was confident in his ability to survive a gunfight, but Marston might provide a good distraction. If anything, he might be able to draw gunfire in his direction while Levi picked off any opposition.
    “Fine,” Levi finally said. “Bring a horse for Amos. We’re already running behind.”

    Sheriff Marston didn’t like the idea of letting Amos ride with them without any bonds. Levi didn’t have an opinion on the matter. He knew if he kept at least five feet away and let Amos take the lead there wouldn’t be any trouble. Levi had already checked him for weapons. The most Amos could do would be to take off at a gallop. With a pair of Colt revolvers at his belt, Levi knew Amos would get maybe twenty feet away before he was shot dead. But he let Marston have his way and now Amos rode ahead of them, bound in chains at his wrists.  
    Marston rode next to Levi as they moved toward Northrup Valley in a steady trot. He picked at his teeth, spitting every couple of seconds. Levi tried to move ahead of him several times, but Marston always caught up. What bothered Levi more than the spitting and teeth-picking was Marston’s incessant need to talk. He gabbed more than anyone he had ever encountered. If the sheriff wasn’t talking about gambling, he talked about whiskey. If he wasn’t talking about whiskey, he talked about public executions. This was apparently Marston’s favorite subject. He described past hangings in detail, giving Amos a glance every now and then to see if he was listening. If Amos felt any concern about the tale of bulging eyes and men’s faces that turned beet red before they died, he didn’t show it. No doubt Amos was confident he had already escaped such a fate. After all, he was helping a bounty hunter—one who had promised he would go free.  
    “Course, they turn to a grayish-purple once they’re dead,” Marston said with a grin. “Strange to see their limbs kickin’ and then suddenly