Zhang Heng had done a lot of walking in the past few days. When he arrived at the hotel, the first thing he did was to take a hot shower, getting rid of all that dirt and mud off him. While at it, he also washed his clothes and hung them on the window sill. With the temperature in the area, Zhang Heng’s clothes would dry the next morning. Once he got up the following day, he would have clean and fresh clothes to wear.
Before sunset, he had already taken off his boots and laid on the bed. He did not know how long he slept, but it was definitely not that long. It was still dark outside when the sudden knocking on his door woke him up.
For the first time, Zhang Heng grabbed his revolver under the pillow and leaned against the door.
“Who are you?”
“It’s me, sir, Wendy. We met at the grocery store in the afternoon.”
Zhang Heng did not open the door immediately after hearing her voice. Frowning, he asked, “Why are you here?”
“I re… thought about your proposal. I think what you said finally makes sense to me now,” Wendy replied. “What did I say?”
Zhang Heng combed his messy hair and quickly put on his damp trousers. As for his shirt, he decided to let it wring out for a little longer.
“You said you were not interested in getting directed by a kid.”
“Yes, that was my answer to you. Go and look for someone else to help you. By the way, do you know what time it is?” “Five o’clock in the morning, sir,” replied Wendy. “I pondered on it after that and felt that you should be the one in charge of this investigation. I am only responsible for providing suggestions. I wonder if you find this arrangement acceptable?”
“Why would you come here to talk to me at five in the morning?” Zhang Heng yawned.
“Sorry, I heard you fell asleep very early. If we depart now, we might still reach Glen Town in the evening. I just hope to find my father as soon as possible. The thought of him getting kidnapped by bad men makes it impossible for me to sleep. Please help me!”
Wendy felt like she was waiting for a trial after she spoke to Zhang Heng. Every passing second was torture to her. After a while, she heard something moving from behind the door. Zhang Heng moved the chair barricading the door and said, “Come in, slowly.”
Wendy was ecstatic when she heard Zhang Heng’s reply. She then entered the room, gingerly treading as per Zhang Heng’s request.
She saw Zhang Heng, who was holding a revolver but couldn’t help doing a second take at Zhang Heng’s naked body.
After making sure that Wendy wasn’t followed, and that nobody was hiding near the stairs, he put away the gun and closed the door.
“Didn’t your mother teach you not to enter a stranger’s room?” Zhang Heng asked.
“I can protect myself,” Wendy insisted. Seeing that Zhang Heng didn’t believe a word she said, she added, “If you want to do something vile to me, I will scream as loudly as I can! This hotel has many guests, and we are not too far from the police station as well. The sheriff will get here as soon as he can the moment I make a scene. Although I am not the most likable character in this town, it depends on who I compare to. Of course, I believe that you are an honest and friendly man.”
“You are too naive. Say I’m a villain, poised to do something bad to you, I wouldn’t even give you the chance to scream in the first place. You can’t be so lucky every time. The best way to protect yourself is not to put yourself in danger.”
“80 dollars… 80 dollars. You are in charge of this investigation.” Wendy wanted to dwell no longer on this topic, so she raised her offer again.
Zhang Heng was noncommittal when he heard this. “In contrast, I am more curious as to why you insist on getting me to help you? As you said, you could have hired someone else for this price.”
“I can’t be sure if they can be credible,” Wendy confessed after a moment’s silence. “There is one thing I didn’t tell you. My father has offended Lawrence G. Murphy. He is the most powerful man in town. All the grocery stores, bars, banks, and hotels are his. Except for Sheriff Terrell, the townsfolk all either work for him or would side with him. That’s why I chose you to help me. I don’t know if my father’s disappearance is related to Major Murphy, and I don’t want anybody to see that we are in frequent contact. The last thing I want is to trigger his vigilance.” “Well, this explains why you hired an outsider like me to help your father,” Zhang Heng snorted, “How long were you planning to hide this from me? So, you want me to offend this town’s kingpin by offering me a mere 80 dollars? This is not a good deal at all.”
“No, sir. I planned to tell you all this, and then some more, as we journey to Glen Town. Things are not as bad as you think. Lincoln County is indeed massive, but Major Murphy has the final say in the town. Outside town, the owners of many ranches and mines are all against him.”
“Even so, it’s still going to be a big loss for me.” Zhang Heng poured himself a glass of water.
Wendy gritted her teeth, “How about I offer you a good horse? We have thirty horses on our ranch. You can pick one. I noticed that your steed is not thoroughbred, and it is ancient. .”
Zhang Heng did not know how Radish would react if it heard Wendy’s evaluation. However, what Wendy said was still a fact. Unfortunately, Zhang Heng’s horseriding skills weren’t good enough to handle a thoroughbred horse.
A good horse certainly didn’t come cheap. Each going for at least eighty to ninety dollars, Wendy had just doubled-up on her offer by offering him a good horse. This should also be the last time she was going to ask him.
A hundred and seventy dollars was enough to make Zhang Heng reconsider the whole thing. The amount was good enough to sustain him for a year, and even if he didn’t mess with the man named Murphy, he would still be chastised because of skin color. Besides, he was just looking for a missing person.
Zhang Heng thought for a moment, then suddenly asked, “Do you know where the lucky horseshoe is?”
“Huh?” Wendy was at a loss when she heard the question, “You want horseshoes?”
“It’s nothing. Forget about it.” Zhang Heng asked the question because Wendy told her that her ranch had lots of horses. Zhang Heng was not surprised when he did not get the answer that he wanted. He then said to Wendy, “Let’s go and grab something to eat.”
“What do you mean?” Wendy asked nervously.
“Let’s get to Glen Town after breakfast. Didn’t you say we will arrive by nightfall?”
“No, it’s actually quite a long journey. We can only get to the town between here and our destination in the evening.” Wendy was ecstatic, “Let me bring you something to eat immediately.”
“What about you? How are you going to get there? Do you need to rent a carriage?”
“You have just underestimated a rancher’s daughter. I will ride with you.”
