Astounded: Day 10

Word Count: 60,005

Summary of Events:

Jemima thought about Penrod and how, in all truth, she really wanted to marry him. Penrod was out looking around in the woods, thought he was being followed, discovered he was, and successfully arrested the man he was certain was his attacker; when he returned to Verdant, though, he found Mr. Bateman was away visiting Jemima again. Jemima was disinterestedly listening to Mr. Bateman tell his life story when Penrod rode up furious and tore a strip out of Mr. Bateman for leaving the town unguarded, going against orders Penrod had given him. Penrod interviewed Mr. Hindley, the man who had, indeed, been a part of the attack on him, and learned some valuable information. Jemima told Penrod to be a little easier on Mr. Bateman and had her suspicions aroused that Penrod was trying to get her and Mr. Bateman married.

Excerpt of the Day:

""Tell me what you did, heard, and observed on the thirteenth of August last year," Penrod said.

"I got up at sunrise, as usual, and had biscuits, eggs, and sausage for breakfast," Mr. Hindley replied. "And then I went out to check the stock."

"There was nothing particularly significant heard in the morning conversation, or did you eat alone?" Penrod asked.

"No, there was nothing significant," Mr. Hindley replied. "A couple of men were going to head out west to spell the men already out there."

"Who were the men they were going to spell?" Penrod asked.

"Arntzen, Greene, Threlfal, Roland, Whenam, and Simants," Mr. Hindley replied.

"When had those men gone out?" Penrod asked.

"The week before," Mr. Hindley replied.

"Do you recall anything significant about their departure?" Penrod asked.

"No," Mr. Hindley replied.

"They didn't mention any plans for catching rustlers?" Penrod asked.

"No," Mr. Hindley replied.

"Did they bring the horse back?" Penrod asked.

"I didn't see 'em get back, I just saw 'em around, and then I went in the barn to ask the boss a question and I saw the new horse, and then I saw him fillin' out the bill of sale for it," Mr. Hindley replied. "I thought it was odd, he usually made sure the bill of sale was written up for anything he bought before he brought it home. He didn't tell me who we'd bought the horse from when I asked either."

"What are the full names of the six men who came back that day?" Penrod asked.

"Elmer Arntzen, Robert Greene, Louis Threlfal, Albert Roland, Jules Whenam, and Clovis Simants," Mr. Hindley replied.

"Did you notice any black cattle around the yard?" Penrod asked.

"No," Mr. Hindley replied. "Didn't notice any black cattle until they were sold a couple'a weeks later."

"Who bought them?" Penrod asked.

"Lionel Fringe," Mr. Hindley replied.

"And who is he?" Penrod asked.

"Owner of Bar E Angus Ranch," Mr. Hindley replied.

"Near Sheridan?" Penrod asked.

"Yes," Mr. Hindley replied.

"I would presume the Angus he runs are black," Penrod said.

"Yes sir," Mr. Hindley replied.

"You didn't ask Mr. Albers where the black cattle came from, did you," Penrod said.

"No," Mr. Hindley replied. "It didn't matter to me."

"When did you hear that Mr. Vaughan was no longer proving to be a bother to Mr. Albers?" Penrod asked.

"I didn't find out until the roundup when I never saw him," Mr. Hindley replied. "We usually saw him at least once on our roundup, I asked and they said he'd gone to the big roundup in the sky."

"You didn't suspect anything?" Penrod asked.

"I knew what they meant," Mr. Hindley replied. "Isn't the first time."

"Oh it isn't?" Penrod asked.

"I'm not tellin' you about those times," Mr. Hindley said. "You only want to know about this one, it's all you're gettin', you can dig the rest out of them if you want to know.""