Justice Ch. 03: Lawyers, Guns & Money

"I certainly hope so," he said. "Because you know how I deal with those who betray me."

"I would never betray you, darling," she said, climbing into his lap, rubbing her pussy on his growing manhood. He smiled and moaned as he grabbed her ass.

"That is so good to hear, my queen," he said.

"Fuck me, my king," she moaned. "Fill me with your royal seed and make me your woman." As they watched, she positioned him at the entrance of her sex and slowly impaled herself on him. They moaned as they bucked into each other on his chair. After a few moments, they each cried out in orgasm. They kissed deeply before she got up and they could see Enrique's semen drip out of her.

"I've seen enough," Lionel said. "Turn it off. Please!" The video ended, leaving them to watch static. I looked at Grandpa.

"What the hell did we just see?" I asked. "Where did that come from?"

"I can't get into the particulars right now," he said. "Let's just say I'm not the only one who does what I do. What you saw actually happened as you saw it. That's all I can tell you. I don't know how it was done and I couldn't even begin to explain it."

"You're telling me we just watched two people discussing a revolution in Mexico and a planned invasion of the United States in real time?" Danni asked. Grandpa nodded his head.

"Sure looks that way," he said. He looked back at Lionel. "Which means we need to get you somewhere they'll never be able to find you."

"But where?" Lionel asked.

"I think I know just the place," Grandpa said. "But I suggest you take a bath first. No offense, but yer startin' to get a little ripe." We all laughed at that, even little William.

"Yeah, but I can't stand on this for very long," Lionel said.

"No problem," Danni said. "We've got something you can use to sit down on while you take a shower. Honey, would you mind getting that shower seat out of the back closet for Lionel?" she asked, looking at me.

"No problem," I said. "I'll see if I have any clothes that might fit him as well." I found the shower seat along with an old pair of clean jeans and a shirt I thought he might be able to wear. He would have to use his own shoes and underthings, but I wasn't too concerned with obeying any fashion rules. I put them all in the downstairs bathroom and went back front so I could help him get to the bathroom. After I got him situated, I sat back down in the living room.

"Where are we taking him?" I asked Grandpa.

"Someplace similar to where I took you," he said. "He'll be safe there."

"We need to get that video to the authorities," Danni said as I prepared to burn it to DVD.

"And tell them what?" I asked. "That we saw video of two people somewhere - we don't know where - discussing a revolution before having sex? They'll lock us both up in a looney bin somewhere."

"You're right," she said.

"But Danni's got a point, Grandpa," I said. "We gotta do something."

"I understand how you feel, son," he said. "I'll have to give it some thought first. Saving a man from certain death in the desert is one thing. Stopping an attempted revolution is something else. Let's get Lionel to safety first and then we can discuss it."

"Okay, Grandpa," I said. I excused myself for a bit and went into my office, returning with a backpack. After another half-hour, Lionel hobbled back into the living room. He looked ridiculous in worn, ill-fitting jeans and expensive, albeit ruined, dress shoes, but at least he didn't stink. Grandpa stood up as he entered the room.

"You about ready to go, son?" he asked Lionel.

"I'm ready," he said, nodding his head. Grandpa went out and came back with his lasso. He gathered Lionel to him as I kissed Danni and William.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," I said. She smiled as she kissed me back.

"Better be, cowboy," she said. I stood next to Lionel, giving him support as Grandpa did his rope trick. The next thing I knew, we were standing in the middle of a dusty street, very much like the one Grandpa took me to when I faced off with my first wife and her lover. Grandpa pointed to a two-story wooden building with a sign that simply read, "Hotel."

I helped Lionel up the creaky stairs to the boardwalk as Grandpa opened the door for us. The interior of the place was a lot cooler than outside and I felt as though I had walked into a museum of the old west. A balding man wearing a band on one arm came from the back and welcomed us.

"Eli, you old dog," he said. "How're ya doin'?" Grandpa walked to the man and the two of them shook hands.

"Can't complain," Grandpa said. "How're you these days?"

"Ahh, you know," the other man said with a wink, causing Grandpa to smile.

"Listen, Jake, can you put my friend here up for a bit? Preferably downstairs, since he's been snake-bit," Grandpa said. The other man looked at Lionel and shook his head.

"Yeah, I reckon we can," he said.

"I appreciate that," Grandpa said. "And you think maybe you can fit him up with some decent clothes and boots? Maybe introduce him to a six-gun?" Jake looked at Grandpa through squinty eyes.

"You ain't gonna have him kill someone in my hotel are you?" he asked. Grandpa shook his head.

"I wouldn't do that to ya, Jake," he said. Jake looked at Lionel for a moment before speaking.

"Well, if'n you can keep him from scratching himself like a damn cow on a fence post, I reckon so," he said. We looked and saw Lionel trying to scratch his back on a door jamb.

"What the heck's wrong with ya, boy?" Grandpa asked Lionel.

"Sorry, my back itches like crazy," he said. "It won't stop."

"Lift up your shirt," I told Lionel, stepping behind him. Lionel did as I asked and I saw a large red spot on the lower part of his back. As I looked, I saw what looked like a small hair at the center of the spot. Grandpa looked at it with me.

"Is that some kind of a bite?" I asked.

"I ain't never seen a bite like that," Grandpa said. I looked closer and saw something just under Lionel's skin.

"That's because it isn't a bite," I said. "I think they may have chipped him with some kind of tracking device."

"What?" Grandpa asked.

"Yeah," I said. "You hear what that man said in the video. They lost track of him a few hours after they dropped him off, remember?"

"I sure do," he said. "I thought maybe they had people out in the desert watching him." I shook my head.

"I doubt it," I said. "I need a knife and some rubbing alcohol. We need to get this out of him. It looks like he's getting an infection." Grandpa pulled a blade out of his belt and handed it to me, then looked at Jake.

"You got any rubbing alcohol, Jake?" he asked. The other man looked under his counter and produced a glass bottle. He handed it to Grandpa.

"Here ya go," he said. "You might need this as well," he added, handing Grandpa a small wooden stick.

"Thanks," Grandpa said. He handed me the alcohol and looked at Lionel. "This is probably gonna hurt like hell," he said. "Use this. It'll help. Trust me." Lionel looked at the stick for a moment, then opened his mouth. Grandpa put the stick in his mouth and he bit down.

I poured some alcohol on the knife, hoping to sterilize it somewhat and began working the skin around the site of the device in hopes of opening up the injection site. I saw clear fluid start to leak out and poured a bit of alcohol on it. Lionel tensed up briefly as the alcohol got under his skin.

Using the knife, I made a tiny incision, just enough to work the device out. Lionel screamed and bit on the wooden stick. Grandpa held him to keep him from twisting away from me. I kept working and soon, got the thing out of his back. As it came out, so did a good amount of pus. I poured some alcohol on a handkerchief and rubbed the site to work out as much as I could.

Afterward, I examined the site and found that almost all of the redness was now gone. I administered a bit more alcohol, hoping it would help. I figured he would be alright for a while, and if it did get worse, I would have Doc Thompson take a look when we got back. I put his shirt back down and stood up.

"How re you feeling, Lionel?" I asked. He shook his head.

"Much better," he said. "Thanks." We looked at the tiny device in my handkerchief. It was about twice the size of a grain of rice, black, with tiny wires sticking out either end.

"Is that a tracking device?" Grandpa asked? I nodded my head.

"I believe so," I said. "They probably injected it into him after they drugged him." I threw it on the floor and smashed it with my boot. Grandpa looked at Jake.

"Where's his room?" he asked. Jake pointed down the hall.

"Jes' down that way," he said. "Outhouse is out back. He'll have to empty out his own chamberpot."

"Outhouse? Chamberpot?" Lionel asked. Jake laughed.

"This ain't New York City, boy," he said. "You want something to eat, there's a place across the street. Right next door to the barber shop. You can get a shave and take a bath there if you're a mind to. Jes' tell 'em it's on Eli's tab." Lionel looked at us, shocked.

"We'll explain later," I said. "Let's get you into your room." We thanked Jake and helped Lionel to his room. When we got inside, he looked around. There wasn't much - a bed, a table with a bowl and a pitcher of water and a wardrobe in one corner.

"What, no TV?" he asked. "Where's the light switch? What's that for?" he asked, pointing to a large ceramic jar with a wide opening that sat next to the nightstand.

"That's a chamberpot," I said. "It's for when you have to pee at night." Lionel blanched at that.

"This won't work," he said. We sat him down on the bed.

"That's why I packed this up for you," I said, putting the backpack on the bed. "It's not much, but it'll help you pass the time till we get back." I pulled out an old tablet and handed it to him. "I've got two seasons of NCIS and a couple movies downloaded on this. The battery is fully charged, so it should tide you over if you don't try to binge-watch everything at once. There's also a roll of toilet paper and something to snack on if you want. I tossed in a couple magazines as well."

"Thanks for that," he said. "It'll help. What about lights?" Grandpa pointed to the kerosene lantern on the nightstand.

"That's what this is for," he said. "Ever use one of these?" Lionel shook his head.

"No, never," he said. Grandpa shook his head.

"Good grief, boy," he said. "Let me show ya," he added. After a few minutes, Lionel understood how to light the lantern.

"I can't believe people actually lived like this once," Lionel said. Grandpa chuckled at that.

"Believe it, boy," he said. "Let me tell you, we were damn glad to have what we did."

"How long will I be here?" he asked.

"Hopefully not too long," I said. Grandpa nodded his head in agreement.

"We're gonna do everything we can to help you, son," he said. "But when the time comes, you're gonna have to do the heavy lifting. Think you can do that?" Lionel looked at Grandpa for a few seconds before slowly nodding his head.

"I think so," he said.

"Good," Grandpa said. "You listen to what Jake tells ya, hear me? And stay out of trouble."

"I will," he said. "And thank you, both of you."

"Hang in there, Lionel, we'll get you through this," I said as we walked out of the room. We got to the front of the hotel and said our goodbyes to Jake. Then Grandpa's eyes widened for a moment.

"We gotta go, now, son," he said. We ran outside and he pulled out his lasso. Bringing the rope over us, we found ourselves back in my front room. I looked around and saw the front door was open. I called out for Danni, but she wasn't there. I saw no sign of William, neither.

"What happened?" I asked.

"They got Danni and William," he said. My heart sank for just a moment. Then I got pissed - royally pissed. I swore they would pay for this. We looked at the table and saw a note with a set of GPS coordinates and a time.

"You know who we're looking for," the handwritten note read. "Bring him to these coordinates by the time specified and your wife and child will be released unharmed."

"Can you find this location?" Grandpa asked. I nodded my head and fired up my computer. When it was up, I did a search and found the location was about 200 miles south of the Mexican border inside Chihuahua. I looked at my watch.

"They're heading south of the border," I said. "About 200 miles into Chihuahua. They're giving us less than six hours to be there."

"I've got an idea," Grandpa said.

"What's that?" I asked. "You plan to hand Lionel over to them?" He shook his head.

"No," he said. "I don't think they'll let Danni and William go even if we did hand Lionel over to them. Mr. Castillo sees himself as some kind of Napoleon. I think he needs to meet his Waterloo. And I know just the fellas who can make that happen," he added with a wicked grin. "Tell you what. Get yer rifle cleaned up and ready, then go saddle up Ringo. We're gonna go on a little raid tonight."

After he left, I cleaned my rifle and made sure it was ready to go. Then I went outside and saddled Ringo, making sure he was ready as well. By the time I finished and got back in the house, Grandpa had returned.

"You ready?" he asked. I nodded my head. "Good. Don't forget yer badge." I grabbed the tin star off the mantle and pinned it on my shirt. He smiled as I did that. "I don't want to go riding into battle without mah deputy, you know," he said, slapping me on the shoulder. We went out and jumped on our horses, then headed for the clearing near Jacobs Ravine.

"You ready?" Grandpa asked. We had done this once before, and I knew what was coming, but I would gladly endure it if I could save my wife and son. I gritted my teeth and nodded my head.

"Let's do it," I said. He smiled and looked ahead.

"HIYAHH!" he yelled as he spurred his horse forward. I joined him, determined to rescue my family. We headed for the cliffs that marked the ravine and just as we were going to go over the edge, a large dark hole opened just above the ground.

We rode through the hole at a full gallop and found ourselves on a grassy ridge. We kept riding and soon came across a large group of men in dark blue uniforms. We slowed to a stop, then got off our horses. A man with a scraggly goatee and fairly short hair came over to us and shook Grandpa's hand. I could see the oak leaves on his shoulder tabs.

"Glad to see you could make the party, Eli," he said. "Who's this young man?" he asked, looking at me.

"This here's mah great-great-great-great grandson, Amos Jones," Grandpa said. "Amos, this is Lieutenant Colonel Fielder A. Jones, commanding officer of the 8^th Indiana Cavalry." The colonel extended his hand and I shook it.

"Good to meet you, Colonel," I said. He nodded his head.

"Good to meet you as well," he said. "Jones, huh? You think we might be related?" Grandpa laughed.

"It's possible, Colonel," he said.

"I hope you don't mind, Eli, but I extended your invitation to join this little party of yours," the colonel said.

"Not at all," Grandpa said.

"Good," the colonel said. "Let me introduce you." A man in a light blue-gray jacket walked up to us. His beard was longer and thicker than any I had ever seen before. He wore a small hat with one side pinned up and sported a huge saber on his hips. He pulled off his gloves and extended his hand to Grandpa.

"General Stuart," Grandpa said. "We meet at last. It's an honor, sir."

"The honor's mine, Sergeant," he said. And who might this young feller be?" he asked, looking at me.

"General, this is my great-great-great-great grandson, Amos Jones," Grandpa said. "Amos, this is James Ewell Brown Stuart, one of the best cavalry officers in the Confederate Army."

"It's great to meet you," I said. "I've read a lot about you." His smile broke through the heavy beard.

"I hope some of it was good," he said. "And please, call me Jeb."

"Yes, sir," I said. Jeb turned to Col. Jones.

"So, what's your plan, Colonel?" he asked. Col. Jones walked to a point overlooking a noisy camp below. I could see a helicopter parked on the south edge of the camp.

"It's pretty simple, really," he said. "Eli and Amos will make first contact." He pointed to an area to the right of the camp. "Three companies of the 8^th will hit their left flank. I'll be at the center with three companies and a battery of artillery. I'd be obliged if you and your men could attack their right flank, over there," he added pointing to the opposite side of the camp. "It's good ground and they won't be expecting you. Eli will give the signal. When he does, I'll have the artillery lob in some shells to disorient them. Then we move in." Jeb nodded his head as he surveyed the ground.

"What about the south approach?" Jeb asked.

"Mexican Army is coming in from the south," Col. Jones said. "They're still a few miles away, but my guess is these boys will break when things start happening and they'll high-tail it south as fast as they can."

"What makes you think that, Colonel?" Jeb asked.

"They're not Mexican regulars for one thing," he said. "Most of these guys look like conscripts, perhaps recruited off the streets or right out of jail. Very little to no training. No discipline whatsoever. If they're not drinking, they're eating or sleeping. Not exactly my idea of a viable force."

"Good point," Jeb said.

"Wait, Colonel," I said. "My wife and child are in that camp. I don't want them hit by artillery."

"Well, if things go as I predict, Danni and William will be outta there before we strike," Grandpa said.

"Also, the guns are set to fire over their heads," Col. Jones said. "The shells will hit just south of the camp. We're firing to distract them. Don't worry, these gunners are the best there are. Your wife and child will be just fine."

"I hope so, Colonel," I said.

Jeb joined Grandpa and I as we turned to walk back to our horses.

"Col. Jones never told me what this was all about," he said. "Care to explain this to me?"

"It's the same old thing," I said. "Guns, power, money. Of course, lawyers are involved."

"Of course," he said.

"Only this time, they've taken my wife and young son," I said. "And I intend to get them back."

"I understand," he said. "I'll do everything in my power to help make that happen, son," he said, shaking my hand.

"Thank you, General," I said. When we got back to our horses, I heard a fiddle playing softly in the background along with some men in gray jackets singing a song. It had a catchy tune and I stopped to listen for a second.

"Now each cavalier that loves honor and right, let him follow the feather of Stuart tonight.

"Come tighten your girth and slacken your rein;

"Come buckle your blanket and holster again;

"Try the click of your trigger and balance your blade,

"For he must ride sure that goes riding a raid!"

"Catchy tune," I told Grandpa as the fiddle played. "What's it called?"

"Riding a Raid," Grandpa said. "It's an old Confederate cavalry song."

"You ever sing like that during the war?" I asked. He nodded his head.

"Lots of times," he said. "Remember, we didn't have all those fancy doo-dads you kids have nowadays. We had to make our own entertainment."

"We are three thousand horses, and not one afraid; We are three thousand sabers and not a dull blade," I heard the men sing as Grandpa and I mounted our horses. For some reason, I felt even more confident that we would be successful.

"You ready to do this?" Grandpa asked.

"I was born ready, Grandpa," I joked. He looked at me a bit funny before his face broke out into a smile.

"Let's do it, then," he said. We waved at Col. Jones on our way out of the camp. He waved back and turned to his men.