The RECKONING: A Jess Williams Western Read Online Free PDF

ranch. I hope they don’t cause my pa any trouble,” he said with a worried look on his face.
                  “They’ll probably just keep riding, heading for the next town,” replied Diggs. “I’ll tell you what though. After I finish up a few more things around here, I’ll ride out to your pa’s ranch and make sure that things are okay.”
                  “Thanks Sheriff,” he replied gratefully.
                  Jess felt a little better as he left the sheriff’s office and walked back to the general store. Mr. Smythe had everything in one pile and Jess made quick work of loading up the wagon. He went back in to get the bill to take to his pa. Jim smiled at him and darted his eyes over to the candy counter as he handed Jess the bill.
                  “Well, are you going to pick out a few pieces of that candy?” asked Jim.
                  “Yes, sir,” he said smiling, as he looked over the candy counter. Jess picked out three different flavors of sugar sticks. Two sticks for him and one for his sister. Jess climbed up in the wagon and headed back to the ranch, his thoughts on the three men he met on the trail. He had a bad feeling and he just couldn’t shake it off.
     
    CHAPTER THREE
     
                  Jess rode back to the ranch and turned left onto the path going up to the house. The house sat about fifteen hundred feet back off the main trail. As he was riding up the path to the house, he looked over to the right to see if his pa was still plowing. He spotted the horse and plow sitting still in the middle of the field, but not his pa. He pulled the wagon up to the front of the house so he could unload the supplies. It seemed unusually quite around the house. He was hungry so he tied the paint to the front porch railing and quickly headed up the steps.
                  He swung the screen door open and just as he was about to say how hungry he was, he was frozen in a complete state of horror. He stood there motionless, his eyes fixed to the grizzly scene before him. He couldn’t speak even though his mouth was stuck open. Tears began to well up in his eyes. His knees almost buckled, but somehow he caught himself. His muscles began to tremble and shake. The carnage before him was almost unbearable to look at, but he couldn’t turn his gaze away.
                  His mother’s body was hanging in the doorway going to the sleeping quarters of the house. The ropes that were tied around her wrists were tied to nails at the top corners of the doorway. There was a huge pool of blood on the floor surrounding her feet. Within the pool of blood was her dress, which was torn and ripped. The dress was soaked in blood. Her body had been slashed and stabbed repeatedly, and her throat had been cut. Her face was black and blue and one eye was so full of blood you couldn’t tell if the eye was still there. Jess’ legs finally buckled and he dropped to his knees.
                  It took him several attempts, but he finally got the strength to slowly stand up; but his legs were still trembling and he almost fell to his knees again. He knew he had to tear his eyes away from the grizzly scene in doorway. He finally found the will to turn away and go back out the front door. He looked out to where his pa had been plowing. The horse and plow was still there, but he still couldn’t see his pa anywhere. He started to walk in that direction. As he did, he saw something on the ground behind the plow.
                  As he reached the horse and plow, he saw his pa’s body lying beside the plow. Jess knelt down next to his pa. John had been shot several times. One shot in the chest, one in the stomach and two in the head. After what seemed like an eternity, Jess gathered enough strength to stand back up. He stumbled backwards from his pa toward the house a few dozen steps and then he fell backward into the