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C HAPTER T HREE
    That evening, Luke Cable strode along the Jones Street boardwalk with Henry Myers, mayor of Wiles. He’d encountered Myers randomly, and the chance meeting had given him the opportunity he needed to discuss the prospects he’d discussed over breakfast with Dewitt Stamps.
    “Dewitt, huh?” Myers said. “Well, that’s not a name I’d have expected to hear put forth for a position in law enforcement. Not two or three years ago, anyway.”
    “I know exactly what you mean. Dewitt used to be no end of trouble to Ben and me. Had to lock him up two, three times a week sometimes. But the man seems to have honest-to-God reformed himself.”
    “Do you truly believe he can be trusted to oversee the jailing of men he used to drink with? Because there’ll be some of those. They might be able to talk him into being lax with them.”
    Luke shook his head. “I don’t think so. Not anymore. Most of those who Dewitt used to drink with avoid him now. He’s quick to preach at them, you see. Try to push religion on them. They don’t much like that. Having Dewitt oversee the jail is likely to make the jail a place they strongly want to avoid.Can you imagine being an old drunk, locked up in a cage with Dewitt Stamps looking through the bars with that glaring eye of his, telling you how you need to get on the straight and narrow?”
    The mayor pondered the image, grinned, then laughed. “A good point, Luke. Ha!”
    “So I can hire him?”
    “At the pay rate we discussed, yes. Keeping in mind that Ben Keely might not wish to perpetuate that hire when he returns. The town would have to take his views into account. Assuming, that is, that Ben would be allowed to continue as marshal.”
    “What are you getting at?”
    “Luke, when Ben left, it was under a clear and written understanding that he would be gone for only a limited time, then would return to full duties. He has violated that agreement and has not even made contact by letter or wire to explain his circumstances or his intentions. Though I think the world of Ben and am inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt, most on the town council are past their limit of patience. They are pleased with the job you’ve been doing in Ben’s stead, and I think Ben, when he returns, will find himself hard-pressed to find favor on the council for the idea of him continuing as town marshal. Unless he can provide a compelling explanation for his negligence.”
    “So does this mean I might be in line to have this marshaling job permanent?”
    “A likely possibility. If you’ll have it.”
    “I’d have to give it thought. It’s a task that drains a man of his energy and spirit. And the pay ain’t good. Even with me drawing the full marshal’s payduring Ben’s absence, it’s been nothing to put much into my pocket. Not that I ain’t grateful for the opportunity. Don’t take me wrong on that.”
    Myers had grown serious. “Luke, let me ask you something, since we’re in a private setting here. I hate even raising this kind of question, but I must: do you believe that Ben Keely is still alive?”
    Luke stopped walking and faced the mayor. Both men glanced about to ensure that they were out of earshot of anyone else on the street. “The thought has crossed my mind that something could have happened to Ben,” Luke said. “It just ain’t in Ben’s character to neglect his duties and just run off, without a word. And besides, I know for a fact he wasn’t inclined to stay back home in Kentucky. It was hard for him even to get up the will to go back at all, even with his father dying and all. Problems in his family, you see. He’s got a sister he’s estranged from, and with his parents both dead and gone, she’s all that’s left for him back home, and I doubt he’d stay because of her. If you’d asked me, I’d have predicted he’d come back sooner than planned, not later.”
    “The question now is whether he will come back at all. I was aware of