The Tall Man, A Western Saga

By Ricky Adlam

A middle-aged saddle shop owner gets set up by an evil gambler, a deceitful wife and an outlaw gang. He loses the love of his wife, trust of his townsmen, The Tall Man's Saddle Shop and his pride when he's savagely beaten and run out of town. Months pass and he learns while in a saloon that he was set up. Then he returns to town to take back his life and his honor in good old shoot them up Western Texas Style.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Ricky Adlam
• Release date: Nov 17, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393713203

Ricky Adlam

Ricky Adlam has a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical & Industrial Engineering with a background in Electrical Technology. He has working experience as a News Anchorman, a Weatherman, a TV Comedy Writer, a Senior Aerospace Project Engineer, an Aerospace Systems Engineer, an Industrial Engineer, and a Senior Nuclear Project Engineer. He has also performed Big Band songs at numerous Mayfair Music Festivals. He played rhythm guitar as a member of the Wabash Country Band. Ricky likes to write music, screenplays, and comedy novels. He usually writes a screenplay first and then uses it to create his finished novel. Ricky’s comedy-oriented writing makes his stories fun, fast reading books, which are available as e-books and in hardcover. Adventures at Top Tractor Academy was his first creation. Following that was 12 Monkeys on a Bus, then Twitzy & Ditzy, then SOS Cruise-Lines, then House Shoes, then The Tall Man, then Return of Pitt the Pirate, then Pet Town, then STAR 999 Down, and then Coronavirus-6WKS 2D DAY. Each of his stories are unique creations on their own with no follow-up volumes. Ricky Adlam hopes that these popular unique books continue to be read by young and old adults. It should be mentioned, that as a youth, Ricky Adlam was always outside playing Baseball, Football, Basketball, Stickball, Handball and Hockey. He intends to write comedy action sports stories in the future to be placed in school and local libraries throughout the United States.

Book preview

THE TALL MAN

By

Ricky Adlam

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INDEX

CHAPTER ONE – A SERIOUSLY DEAD MAN

CHAPTER TWO – TAKING OVER THE TOWN

CHAPTER THREE – FRAMING TEXAN

CHAPTER FOUR – TRUTH REVEALED

CHAPTER FIVE – SALTY FLATS

CHAPTER SIX - RUSTLERS REVENGE

CHAPTER SEVEN – SALOON WOMEN

CHAPTER EIGHT – TEXAN’S REVENGE

CHAPTER NINE – HEALING TIME

CHAPTER TEN – THE BOUNTY

THE END

[Author Info & Character Sheets]

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The Tall Man

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CHAPTER ONE – A SERIOUSLY DEAD MAN

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In the western countryside, a man rides a horse at full gallop across a prairie field, up slopes and down, through streams, around bushes, and then right through the center of town to the other far end, where he leaps off his steed onto a wooden porch right at the TALL MANS SADDLE SHOP. The elderly rider takes a few steps forward and hands the reins to a waiting local rancher. He nods at the son, who takes the reins and mounts up on the winded steed. The excited boy trots away slowly, out of town sitting on a comfortable leather saddle. The rancher shakes the rider’s hand in gratitude, then gets on his beautiful horse and gallops after his son, with a satisfied smile on his face.

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THE WESTERN SADDLE SHOP

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A little while later, saddle maker, BARKLEY TEXAN, looks out his front store window from the ‘TALL MANS SADDLE SHOP’, just as the stagecoach arrives in a thunderous hustle. It stops right across the street, which is at the Salty Dog Saloon.

A slick looking man wearing a black suit and dark blue vest exits the coach carrying a small brown business case. He heads directly into the saloon through the small wooden swinging doors. Barkley’s close friend, well-known local rancher BILL BICKLEY of the ‘Triple K’ spread, rushes out of the local drinking establishment a moment later. He staggers across the dirt road to Barkley's saddle shop. Once he makes it across Main Street, he falls right through the fancy, glass front door of the saddle shop. Thud! The huge figure hits the ground floor and curls up in a ball on the rug. Barkley rushes to his side and watches his best friend grimace in pain, holding his stomach tight like he was gut shot. He tries to speak but his dry country voice quivers softly. Next, he rolls onto his back. Then, looking into Barkley's eyes, he gasps for air, shakes briefly, and rolls over dead. His frame turns completely still. Barkley kneels over his friend in shock. He grabs a note clasped in Bill's hand, just as his recently married wife rushes in from the back room to see what has just happened. DIXIE DAWN sees the dead body and gasps. She holds her hands to her mouth and turns silent, wondering what she should say to her husband. The moment passes. Issuing a cold stare, she raises, then lowers her head and comments, He looks good and dead to me. That’s your best friend whose is now dead, Barkley. So, what goes on here?

With a shocked look still on his face, he replies, Bill's dead and it was in seconds. No bullet wound. Staggered over here from the saloon and then that happened. Boom. The front door is broken. It’s gone to hell honey. I can’t understand this because he was healthy as an ox. I was mending his saddle today. Dixie steps over the body, then steps back, looking down on it. She puckers her ruby colored lips and then states to Barkley, What's his cute wife going do now? Oh my gosh. Poor Abigail Bickley. She's not going to take this news easy. Who’s going to eat her wonderful, prize-winning apple pie now? After smirking at the dead man’s body, Dixie moves calmly to the back room. As she leaves, Barkley’s wife oddly displays a look of pure satisfaction. Barkley doesn’t notice her cold, smirking expression. He’s still in shock, taking infrequent gasps of air, half bent over on his hands and knees. He sees a note in Bill’s hand and stares at it. Barkley grabs the note. It falls to the floor. He mumbles as he reads it. Don't trust the card playing man. He's a dirty liar. - I’m going to need your saddle rifle.

Just then, old SHERIFF ROY MAKENNA arrives, taking care to open the broken screen door slowly. The Lawman removes Bill’s gun from his black leather holster. He places it on a small table. Barkley stands up beside the body, shaking his head in disgust. The shop owner places both hands over his face. Dixie returns, holding a small dish towel. She fakes sobbing. Barkley looks at her, confused at her delayed, upset reactions. Dixie peers up at the Sheriff, then cries in her towel once again. She reaches out and tightly grabs hold of the Sheriffs arm. He then roughly pulls it away. She stands back two steps. Dixie goes silent. The old Sheriff bends over the dead body, feeling the neck with one hand. He removes his hand quickly from the red, burning, hot neck. He smooths out the end of his grey mustache and shakes his head about. Next, he pulls out a wad of chewing tobacco. In a moment of anger, he bites off a piece hard and tucks the rest into his leather vest pocket. The Lawman looks at Barkley and points down at the dead rancher. Hmm. I ain't seen nothing like this in a coons age. I’d say that he was poisoned. Foam on the corners of his mouth. Yep! Do you know when this happened?

Barkley whispers back, Sheriff Makenna, Bill came over from the saloon. - - - Roy, he crossed over from the bar doors and there he lies. Bad omen for sure. It's pure murder Roy. Tread careful when you question anyone over there about this thing. I’m sure that someone knows what happened. Barkley points out the broken door toward the saloon. The Sheriff looks over, then removes his spurs, slowly. Barkley removes the rancher’s small leg pistol, then hands it over to the sheriff.

The Sheriff spits out the front door and mumbles, He carried two weapons and he’s dead? Not right at all, Barkley. He turns when a noise from the back of the shop startles him. The new bar tender told me earlier that the new owner won Fred’s fancy saloon in a card game. Fred didn’t gamble that we both know. I believe that I’m going to need a deputy. I may need three deputies to do what I got to do over there. Are you interested?

Barkley looks towards the back room. I gave up gun-play years ago. I promised the wife that I’d just make saddles. Barkley stares up at the wall. He reaches out and places a hand on his old gun belt hanging on a wooden peg. Just then Dixie walks back in the room, towel drying a metal pot. She looks at Barkley with a long cold stare. She shakes her head no. Barkley removes his hand off the leather gun belt. He folds his arms.

She heads back into the rear room again, then shouts back, We have some door glass in the spare closet. Better tend to the front door first. Put him in the ground later dear husband.

The Sheriff lifts an eyebrow at her cold remarks, Texan, there's a rotten apple in every barrel. Looks like a rotten apple has arrived and is living over there. - - - Your wife is right. We can both take funeral action later. Bury Bill Buckley tomorrow. Roy looks down, then up at Texan. Again, the Sheriff shakes his head in disbelief. Then right before he leaves, the Sheriff pulls out his gun, checks each bullet chamber, then holsters it back in place."

Barkley comments to him, My Dixie will tell the wife, Abigail, tomorrow sometime after breakfast.

The Sheriff reaches out and grabs his shoulder, No! No, I'll tell Abigail, Mister Texan. It's my job. After all, I helped raise his wife. I watched her grow up. She’ll take it better if I tell her in person. He now reaches down and lifts-up his muddy spurs from off the floor. Last night, Buckley ate like a horse before and after the card game. He wasn't a bit ill all night. He walks to the broken front door and spits tobacco out far into the street.

Dixie enters the room holding a saddle horn. She tosses it into a wooden box lying in the corner. Let dearest Abby know that she’s welcomed to stay here anytime. We got two extra nice rooms. No kids, but that ain’t my fault. Barkley gives his wife a hard, cold stare. Silently, he holds it until she turns away.

The Sheriff frowns. Makenna places his hand on his gun holster then states loudly, This whole thing smells really-bad. I'll wire my concerns to the newly appointed Marshall in the morning. Hey Texan! A bank robbery went down in Houston yesterday. There’s a new gang riding somewhere around the territory. Keep an eye out for a dozen men riding on Mexican saddles. You can spot them for me. If they ride into town, get a hold of me fast.

Barkley tosses a work towel to the floor in anger. I’m going over there. I want to confront the new owner about this myself.

Roy raises his hand, Let me stable my horse first. Wait for me to return and we’ll both go over together. We got to make it look like we believe whatever bull they tell us. Right? Right? Sheriff Roy stomps out the door loudly. His boots can be heard as he walks away down the street towards his stallion. He spits on the dirt road in anger and disgust. Dixie Dawn rushes into the back room as soon as the Sheriff has left the shop. From a side window, she watches him move away, half hidden from view though the white curtains.

Sheriff Roy Holiday Makenna mounts his horse, then rides down to the stable which is located on the east side of town. Dixie returns and moves behind Barkley. He stares hard across the street, hugging him from the back. Her head rests against his back, between his broad shoulder blades. She closes her eyes, wanting her husband not to get involved with the whole, ugly matter. However, Barkley gets impatient. He tugs his body away from Dixie, grabs his gun holster off a peg on the wall, straps his pistol about his waist, then laces it on his right leg tightly. Dixie frowns at the deadly gun. Upset, she then rushes back to the storage room next to the kitchen. Texan bends over and pats dead Bill on the chest. He rises and carefully exits out through the broken front door. As he crosses Main Street, he stares down in the dirt. As he steps steadily onward, he can see the image aging Sheriff Makenna headed slowly back to the shop in the distance. 

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THE SALTY DOG SALOON

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So, Barkley Texan heads over to the ‘Salty Dog Saloon’ to investigate his friend’s death without Sheriff Roy Makenna as back up. He turns and glances through his shop window at his wife standing in the far rear room. She can be seen shaking her head no, from the far back room. Barkley hesitates a moment, then crosses the other half of Main Street. His get hit the deck boards, then take him through the swinging saloon doors. Once he inside the bar, Dixie heads to the front room. She drags Bill’s dead body out onto the stoop, then into the side alley, face down. She lets go of his body with a thump. Dixie