The Oak Hill Boys ride to Winston to tell Sheriff Caruthers what happened to Buck Thompson. Looking forward to a good night’s sleep, they check into the Grand Winslow. But are roused in the wee hours of the morning as an explosion booms.
Grabbing their gunbelts and only partially dressed, they hustle to the hotel balcony. A gunshot rings out. Just down the street, by the moonlight, they see five men run out of the bank towards horses. Their guns are drawn and they’re looking to giddy up.
From the balcony, Ezra takes aim. And the second gunshot of the night is heard. One of the bandits winces in pain as Ezra catches him in the shoulder. Shots are exchanged between the robbers and The Boys. But it seems as though the robbers are more intent on leaving than getting shot up. One robber is killed. And the man Ezra wounds is thrown from his horse. Three men escape, their horses moving faster than normal.
The Boys close on the scene and enter the bank. They see a guard with a single bullet in his head. And an empty safe that’s been blown open, which made all the noise. While a bank robbery wouldn’t normally faze The Oak Hill Boys, this one is different. As they had $12,500 in the bank for safekeeping. (How they came into this money is a different story.)
The law arrives, as does Russell Sherwood, the bank’s president. The dead guard in the bank is identified and the group determines what to do next. The guard was hired because there was an unusually high amount of money in the safe. Prospector Angus McAvoy recently struck it rich in Colorado and had come to Winslow to buy a ranch. His $25,000 was in the bank. This…with some regular deposits…and the OHB’s $12,500… Seems quite the payday for the robbers!
The wounded man is taken to jail after learning the robbers may be heading to Dog’s Head Mine, a deserted silver mine (and perfect place to lay low for a few days). A discussion ensues on what to do next. Sherwood suggests a posse leave immediately in the morning. And Jack, Shady, Ezra, Louis and Royce agree to be a part of the posse. After all, they have a vested interest in finding the money. But the discussion to figure all this out ruffles some of the boy’s feathers. And a different plan is hatched.
Once the banker, sheriff and others retire to get a few hours sleep before heading out… The Boys saddle up, following the trail left by the escaping robbers. At 3AM, the trail is a little hard to come by. As they make their way along the trail northwest of Winslow, they hear galloping behind them. It’s Deputy Jacob Munz. He suspected The Boys weren’t happy with the discussion in town and they just might try to get one over on the posse. He insists on joining. Not wanting to be on the wrong side of the law, the OHB have little choice but accept the decision. They move on.
After a few hours, something catches Royce’s eye just off the trail. The group sees a buckboard wagon, covered with spruce branches. In the wagon is a dead man. “That’s Harry Jenkins,” says Munz. The deputy goes on to say that Jenkins lives, well, lived, nearby on a small farm. He worked at The Grand Winslow. And that he was always “a little slow.” So slow, in fact, he had to write down everything to remember it.
Royce finds a slip of paper on the dead man with, “Sunday, 1:30 at night” scrawled on it. This was just a few hours ago. About when the robbery happened. And yet, the man has been dead for several days. Was this simple man somehow part of the bank job?
Investigating further, Jack finds a small book near the buckboard.
In it are names, towns and amounts. Most of the names are crossed off, including the name Harry Jenkins. One name still remains on the list: C.D. Ward.
What could all this mean?
Dry Gulch Bugle 