Conleyswifey's Interviews

Marston, Duke and Jeremiah

The air inside the shop was filled with oppressive heat and the scent of gunpowder and lead.

I was looking for Marston Jacobs, or Jacob Marston as he now jokingly called himself.

Seeing that he was not in his shop, I stepped back out onto the boardwalk of this sleepy little nowhere town in the Dakotas.

My attention was then drawn down the dusty road to the mercantile when the angry yell of a man reached my ears.

And then there he was. Marston Jacobs. He appeared amused as he stepped out of the mercantile and I wondered who had yelled. My curiosity was satisfied when Jeremiah stepped from the mercantile next with cuffs on his wrists and Pete holding his arm.

“See Marston!” Jeremiah exclaimed, his eyes glaring angrily at his brother, who had his arms crossed over his broad chest… and when I say broad, I mean broad! That man is roughly the size of an oak tree!

“What am I supposed to be seeing, Jeremiah?” Marston asked. I knew the men hadn’t noticed me so I simply stood back and watched them with amusement, though I made sure I stayed near the thick wooden banister just in case bullets began to fly. That tended to happen when Marston and Jeremiah disagreed.

“I told you having a lawman in the family was a bad idea! Dammit, if that girl of yours was mine, I would have said absolutely not when she talked about wanting to marry his ass!”

“Don’t be mad at Pete. You’re the one stealing from the mercantile.”

“I’ll let him go.” Pete said with a sigh and Jeremiah looked smug until Marston shook his head.

“No, he’s gotta learn his lesson about this stealing.”

“I wasn’t stealing!” Jeremiah insisted. “I was gonna pay for it later.”

“So that’s why you stuck that tobacco in your pocket while the clerks back was turned and then headed for the door?” Pete asked skeptically and Jeremiah spit onto the dirt and shrugged.

“I was buyin’ it on credit.”

“Let’s get to the jail.” Pete urged.

Jeremiah snorted. “Fine, I’ll just pick the lock and be home in time for Rose’s ham at supper.”

“Not that lock.” Marston countered. “I made that lock. It’s unpickable.”

“Damnation!” Jeremiah exclaimed as he looked down at the dirt. Then he glanced around them. “Where’s Duke?”

“I believe he went on to the house to let Delilah know you wouldn’t be home for supper.” Marston replied with a chuckle and Jeremiah began fighting against Pete.

“Let me go, lawdog! Please! I ain’t been hit in the head with that bible for a good solid week and I really don’t wanna get hit with it today!”

I decided it was time to let my presence be known. I had questions for Duke, Marston and Jeremiah and I did not want to be speaking through bars.

“Excuse me…” I spoke up as I stepped down onto the street. All three men instantly turned to look at me. “My name is….”

“Conleyswifey.” Marston spoke up before I could finish. “We’ve been wondering when you’d show up.”

“I’m here now. Do you men have a little while to sit down with me?”

“Of course we do.” A voice said behind me and I jumped and let out a squeak before turning and seeing Duke standing behind me. Tall, rangy and lean. A true vision of the old west.