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Hide And Seek
by Drena Hills
‘The greatest thoughts are the simplest, and so are the actions of the greatest men.”
- J.C. Hare
Considering I was only about eight years old when it happened it’s amazing how much I remember about that day. Summer was approaching and it was a Saturday, which accounted for why I was running loose in town and not chained to a desk and slate.
I was the youngest with large blue eyes and golden curls, which gave me a rather misleading angelic look. The truth be told, such an appearance was far more fetching on a girl and only served to involve me in more fights than I could win, attempting to prove my manhood.
On that particular Saturday I had been left in the care of my older siblings and thus promptly ignored, while my parents loaded up supplies at the local hay and feed.
The ‘event’ in town that day was the new safe that had arrived in a large Wells Fargo wagon, drawn by six strong plow horses with feet as big as me. And a good thing, too. The safe was a massive thing that took eight men to life down into the middle of the street. That accomplished, they retired to the shade to consider how exactly to get it into the bank.
Naturally this caused most of the town folks to pause and offer suggestions or just look on in general; creating a rather festive atmosphere, at least for those who didn’t actually have to do the moving.
After nearly being stepped on for the fourth time in my investigation of the horses, I was handed over to my brother with the order that he should let me play with him and his friends. I was thus half-heartedly invited to join their game of hide and seek.
I knew the end result of this offer. I would be forced to continually be it, or if by some wonder I was allowed to hide, no one would come looking for me. Still, optimism ran deep in my soul, so when I was actually permitted to hide I was determined to find the most amazing hiding place of all.
I took off at a dead run, shooting glances over my shoulder to see if anyone was following. It was then that I first met Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry. Actually, it began more as a collision as I ran straight into them and was only kept from falling by Heyes’s quick hand which steadied me. Of course I had no idea who they were at the time. All I saw at first were black boots, tan trousers and a Colt tied down, the way only the most serious gun-carriers did.
“Whoa! What’s your hurry?” Heyes laughed bending down to meet me eye to eye.
“Time’s almost up! I gotta hide!”
The two men understood immediately and looked around assessing the situation. This impressed me no end, them being grown ups and all.
“Over here?” Kid Curry said indicating a barrel at the end of the alley.
I looked up into eyes as blue as mine and hair just as fair and tousled. I felt suddenly drawn to a kindred spirit who had lived through what I had. I noticed his gun was slung even lower on his hips than his partner’s and something about his stance convinced me he didn’t lose many fights anymore, if any.
“They’ll see me if I hide behind it,” I protested as we walked over.
“Ah, but your not gonna hide behind it, your going to hide in it!” Heyes said prying off the lid.
I peered in, suspicious, and to be honest, a little nervous.
Kid seemed to understand. “It’s okay we’ll stay here and cover you.”
I stared at him with growing admiration. No one had ever offered to cover me before. I was being treated like a real contemporary and I swelled with pride.
“Gosh I never thought to hide in the barrel,” I admitted taking another look at the empty wooden container.
“My friend is very good at this hidin’ out,” Kid said almost swallowing a smile.
“I bet no one ever finds you when you play hide and seek,” I said as Heyes lifted me up and dropped me down into it.
“Not if I’m lucky,” he replied not as successful at keeping the smile away from his face as his partner.
Kid moved to put the lid on and I guess as the shadow fell across me I whimpered in fear at the thought of being in the dark.
“Don’t worry we’ll be right here. I won’t put it on tight. Think of the darkness as a friend, something helping you,” Kid said. “Makes it less scary that way.”
I guess I nodded because he loosely lay the lid across the top, leaving me a slit of light and air. Then he leaned on it casually just in time as I heard the thundering rampage that could only mean the arrival of my brother and his friends. Apparently things had gotten so dull they were not reduced to hunting me.
“Where’d he go?” I heard my brother ask and I hugged myself, delighted to be on the winning side for once.
“Lose something” I heard Kid ask.
“Our little brother, you seen him?” my brother replied, but I could hear the respect in his voice having sized up the two strangers.
“You usually go around losing your little brother?” Heyes asked. “Sounds a mite careless don’t it?”
“We was playing hide and seek,” my brother answered defensively.
“Then your brother must be pretty good at hiding if it takes all of you to find him,” Kid said and I felt so proud I nearly ruined it by jumping up and telling them so.
The moment passed and I heard my brother mumble something about checking the livery stable, then sunlight streamed into the barrel as the lid was removed and the same two arms hauled me out in one quick motion.
“Coast is clear,” Kid said.
“Gee thanks misters! I ain’t never fooled them before.”
“Our pleasure,” Heyes answered. “They went that way, so if you hurry, you should be able to beat them back before they can catch you.”
I took off running, only pausing once to turn back and wave my thanks. I was already working on how I would dazzle my family with the telling of my exploits.
*********************************************
“I hope that’s the only hiding he ever has to do,” Kid said watching the retreating boy.
“He reminds me a bit of you,” Heyes said, eyes crinkling into a smile as he thought back to a much simpler time when the only reason they had to hide was a game.
“Yeah, I guess there is a resemblance.”
“No I was talking about the way he needed help in figuring out where to hide.”
Kid shot his partner a dark look, but he couldn’t hold on to it when he met Heyes’s smile.
“We were always in trouble weren’t we?” Kid grinned.
“No you were always in trouble. I was always getting you out of it,” Heyes corrected his cousin.
“Like when?”
“Mrs. Winston’s cat.”
Kid stopped at the memory washed over him. “I’d forgotten about that one.”
“I don’t think Mrs. Winston ever did.”
“Or her cat!” Kid added starting to laugh.
Laughing they moved out of the alley into the street, warmed by the sunshine and the recollection. It felt good not to have to move on and the quiet hum of the little town that didn’t know them was a welcome change from the last few months of none stop running.
Seeing the safe they exchanged looks, then, finding two chairs on a nearby porch, settled down to give the newest acquisition of the Beaver City Bank their professional opinion.
“That’s one big safe,” Kid finally decided. “This town got that much money? You could hide a man in that.”
“Solid, big, but that tumbling device is inadequate,” Heyes said beginning to warm to the subject. “It’s the same kind they have on the Morgans. They’ve gone and put all their money into making it look impregnable in the hopes that no one will actually try and open it. A good cracker could do it easy, given the time.
Kid looked at him doubtful, “A good cracker or you?”
Heyes smiled, “I wouldn’t know, I’m retired.”
“Which means,” Kid said rising. “They got a safe safe. If you aren’t opening them anymore, then they ain’t being opened.”
Heyes smiled at the compliment, remembering back to the first safe he had cracked, how easily he had heard the tumblers, how quickly he had picked up the art of listening to them fall into place. Oh, there had been lessons here and there from the odd professional kind enough to offer a tip, not to mention the research he had done on his own, but it had all only confirmed one thing – Hannibal Heyes had the gift.
Or that’s what he had been told. Kid suspected it was simply that is partner and cousin liked to figure things out. Heyes, even as a child, wouldn’t rest until he understood or unraveled any puzzle he found. And to Heyes safes were just very large puzzles full of money.
“Come on let’s see if that poker game’s up and running yet,” Kid said. The work they had been promised, a delivery job, wouldn’t be ready until tomorrow and poker was as good a way as any to pass the time, especially considering the playing ability they had witnessed on their arrival the night before.
*****************************************
The game was two hands in when they heard the yelling coming from the street. Something was wrong, but like seasoned poker players, Heyes and Curry were the last to get up from the table.
“Some kid’s gone and got himself stuck in the safe!” came a voice from the doorway.
Curry and Heyes shot each other a look and followed the others into the street.
A crowd had formed a half-circle around the metallic monstrosity. In front of it crying was the older brother of the boy they had met earlier. Next to him and the bank was officials was a man and woman the ex-outlaws guessed must be the parents.
Heyes felt his stomach drop as his quick thinking mind filled in the missing information. A glance to his partner showed he too had come to the same conclusion.
“He said it would be a good place to hide! He said he wasn’t afraid of the dark no more!” the older boy was recanting. “I just shut the door all the way for a second to scare him. I didn’t know it would stay shut!”
“You have to open it! He’ll suffocate in there!” the boy’s mother said sobbing.
The bank official looked suitably horrified, “Ma’am, the combination…we just unloaded it and hadn’t…”
“What are you saying?” the boy’s father asked wearily.
“The combination isn’t here! For security reasons of security it arrives a few days from now with a Bannerman.”
“Well telegraph the manufacturer and get them to give it to you!” the father said disgusted at the stupidity of the man.
“They won’t just send out a bank combination without confirming it with a security check and it could take hours to get that,” the sheriff said. “And he hasn’t got enough air in there to last barely one.”
“I figure twenty-seven minutes, actually,” Heyes said under his breath.
Kid nodded, “Maybe more. He’s small and if he doesn’t panic…?” Kid stopped meeting Heyes’s eyes and groaning at what he saw there.
“Oh no you don’t!” Kid said firmly grabbing his partner by the arm and pulling him into they alley they had just left. “No Heyes, you can’t. The minute you waltz up there and try and open that safe they are gonna know who you are!”
“You don’t know that.”
“Heyes this is no time for modesty. There isn’t a soul in the territory that doesn’t know you are the best. Only Hannibal Heyes could open a safe like that. The minute you do the sheriff is gonna be right on you.” He was desperate now knowing he was not getting through. “Heyes all those people…” he growled frustrated. “I couldn’t get you out of a crowd like hat without hurtin’ a lot of innocent people.”
“Kid its all right. Don’t worry! You head on out of town and I’ll meet you later. They’ll have a tougher time putting it together if I’m alone,” he said pulling off his gloves.
Kid grabbed his shoulder, “Heyes!” he hissed. “You can’t! Don’t you understand I won’t be able to help you!”
That’s it, Heyes realized. That was what was making Kid angry. His partner was walking into danger and Kid’s hand’s were tied to help him.
“You said the same thing about Mrs. Winston’s cat and look how that turned out,” Heyes gave his partner the smile that would have worked on any other person. “Let’s not worry about problems until they happen.” And turning he walked swiftly away his mind all ready on the job ahead of him.
Angry Kid slammed his hand against the wall, but didn’t move. Heyes had to do this. He wouldn’t be the man he was if he didn’t try and save that boy. The younger man liked to think if their positions had been reversed he would have done the same as easily. But the cost…
“Yea Heyes I remember what happened with that cat and neither of us sat down for a week.”
Sighing he made his decision.
**************************************
Hannibal Heyes walked swiftly through the crowd. Now that the decision had been made he felt calm and resigned. That would help. By his count he only had twenty five minutes on the clock.
He stepped into the opening, “Excuse me, but I can open that safe,” he said his voice ringing out clear and confident. Then he smiled and the smile went a little farther quelling the doubters.
The crowd went silent, everyone looking at each other then back at him.
“May I see that?” Without waiting for a reply Heyes took the paperwork on the safe and glanced at it, confirming his suspicions.
The first banker puffed his chest out, “Sir this safe is state of the art, direct from Boston!”
“Yes well fortunately this isn’t Boston,” Heyes smiled and turned to the fresh faced young man with a medical bag who had been called to the scene. “Doctor?” he guessed and when the man nodded continued. “May I borrow your stethoscope?”
“Of course if it will help,” the man replied and quickly pulled it from his bag.
Taking it Heyes pulled off his hat and got down on his knees in front of the safe flexing his fingers.
“I am sorry, but we cannot have amateurs making the situation worse,” the second banker blustered and cleared his throat trying to gain control back. “Besides I hardly think you can just walk up here and open this when no one else can.”
“If you don’t keep quiet you’ll be right,” Heyes said picking up the stethoscope and turning to ignore him.
People began to talk, bets were even being placed and Heyes let out an exasperated sigh as he tried to concentrate.
Suddenly he frowned as a hush came over the crowd and looking up he swallowed a smile as to why.
“All right everybody just settle down,” Kid said striding into the circle and standing in front of Heyes. “My partner’s gonna have to have it quiet if he’s gonna do this.”
Heyes shook his head, he should have known. Kid was as crazy as he was.
Meanwhile Kid had the crowd’s complete attention as he drew his gun and casually used the tip of the barrel to push his hat back. “I’m gonna need you all to be real quiet like while my partner works, is that understood?”
It was. His stance, the look in his eyes, everything the Kid used to face down an opponent in a gunfight was now in play. As one the crowd moved back with an of respect and admiration.
“I thought I told you to leave town,” Heyes said softly his ear still pressed against the safe.
“Figured you might work a little easier with someone watching your back,” Kid said so only Heyes could hear. “See I do remember Mrs. Winston’s cat.”
Heyes smiled, not someone, the one person he trusted most in the world. With Kid there he could turn his complete attention to the job. He dismissed the sheriff, the people, the probably results of his actions, even the child. This was just a puzzle, a puzzle like all the others he had solved. He relaxed an allowed himself to enjoy the challenge.
Heyes willed himself to become one with the machine, listening, allowing intuition to come into play despite his logical mind.
“Do you think he can do it?” a woman asked softly of Kid.
Kid looked down and realized that it was the boy’s mother. She had inched towards them as if her presence might in some way help.
“Ma’am if anyone can do it he can.”
“God bless you both!”
“I’m kinda hoping he might see it that way too ma’am,” Kid said grimly never letting the sheriff out of his sight.
***********************************
Twenty minutes later he had three numbers, but the fourth was eluding him. Heyes paused to take a breath and flex his hand. He couldn’t think about the child or it would rob him of the serenity he needed to find that last number. It was just a puzzle and Hannibal Heyes had yet to meet a puzzle he couldn’t beat.
Three more minutes. He felt rather than saw Kid turn to glance at him. He understood and fought the frustration building up inside of him. He was so close.
If he just hadn’t shown the child how to hide in the barrel.
If…
No, no ifs. Stay with the hand you’re dealt, play it to the end.
He spun the dial and quickly entered the first three numbers, then concentrating, he went in search of the fourth…one more time.
He paused, a glimmer of hope, was it? There!
Heyes put his hand on the handle, took a deep breath and pulled down. There was a distinct click, then a swoosh of air entering the vacuum and the door pulled open in his hand.
Heyes didn’t even hear the cheer that went up. He just stared with a half-dazed, exhausted smile at the little boy curled up inside the safe, fast asleep.
With the rush of light the child rubbed a grimy hand over his eyes and blinked.
“What took ya all so long to find me?”
Heyes reached in and scooped the child out. Despite the light weight, his arms felt weak. He hadn’t realized how tense he had been. He held the child a moment longer than necessary just to feel him breathe, then passed him over to his sobbing parents.
“Robert Leroy Parker, you wait till I get you home!” the boy’s mother said hugging him and crying at the same time.
The boy managed to give Heyes a look of total embarrassment, but the dark haired man only shrugged and grinned as if to say, ‘that’s the price you pay’.
With the child out of danger, the attention was suddenly on Heyes. People were patting him on the back and offering him drinks. But all he really wanted was the chance to take a few long breaths of cool hair. Recognizing this, Kid was instantly at his side, giving him the space he needed to collect his thoughts.
“You okay?” he asked, gun still drawn, gaze watchful.
“Yea, thanks, just takes a bit out of you.”
“Well you’re not as young as you used to be.”
Heyes glanced up with a sharp look, but seeing the proud smile on his cousin’s face, he broke into a pleased grin. Exhaling he realized he did not care what came next. They had done the right thing. Not the smartest thing, but more and more the right thing was beginning to feel like the right thing despite the consequences.
“Now what?” Kid asked.
“Maybe we can interest them in a game of hide and seek,” Heyes said resigned.
The crowd had begun to disperse and Heyes knew this was it. He turned, aware his partner still had his gun casually resting in his hand, to face the bank officials, the parents and the sheriff.
He already knew what was coming, a warm thank you and then, ‘You’re under arrest.” He could hardly expect anything else after that public display. He just wondered how Kid was going to take it.
“Thank you so much!” the boy’s mother said hugging him. “Both of you,” she amended turning to Kid as well.
For a moment she was not sure how to hug a man who was armed, but she found a way as only mothers can and Kid didn’t try and stop her.
“That was pretty amazing work you did there young man. I don’t think there is another man in all of Utah who could have done it,” one of the bankers said, suspicion intermingled with respect.
“Oh I don’t think there is but one man in the entire country who could,” the sheriff said meeting their eyes.
Kid and Heyes glanced at each other. They knew the lawman knew who they were and he knew that they knew he did.
Here it comes, Kid sighed silently. He knows darn well if we’d risk letting on who we are to save that boy we aren’t about to go shootin up the town to get away now. With another sigh, this time audible, he holstered his gun.
Heyes caught the entire thought process and felt a twinge of pride as his cousin replaced his gun in its holster. Kid had matured a great deal in the last few months. The Kid Curry of old would not have taken this so well.
“Yes,” the sheriff went on as the group waited. “I reckon there is only one person who could have opened that safe,” he paused his eyes meeting Heyes’s.
“Yes,” the boy’s mother said suddenly stepping up and placing a protective hand on Heyes’s arm. “It could only have been an angel.”
No one moved. Heyes could see the sheriff look down at her startled and was surprised at the strength in the look she gave to the lawman. He’d have thought twice about taking on a woman with that look in her eye.
She knew. Somehow she knew and Heyes suddenly felt the odds begin to shift to their corner.
The sheriff looked at her and then the two men and finally sighed resigned, “Yea guess your right Mary, must have been an angel.”
The two bank officials paused for a moment as if to question this rather fanciful explanation, but the sheriff merely gave them a hard look.
“I think you better see to putting this thing out of harm’s way, gentlemen, before we have another incident. And fellas? Might wanna see about having that combination changed!”
Muttering the bank officials turned and began barking orders as the last of the crowd disappeared and the family once more offering thanks turned to go.
Kid and Heyes stood there alone not quite sure what had happened.
“I’d offer you boys a drink for doing what you did, but I don’t suppose angels are partial to that sort of thing,” the sarcasm practically dripped off the lawman suddenly beside them again.
“Ah that is exactly right Sheriff,” Kid said with a dazed smile. He still wasn’t sure why he wasn’t on his way to jail.
“I want you to know I’m real grateful for what you did for my nephew back there. Butch is a good boy, would have been a terrible shame to see him end that way.”
“Glad we could help,” Heyes said managing to step back a few steps without appearing too obvious.
“Of course as much as I love that boy and my sister I want you to know I don’t believe in angels most days, least not angels that can open a safe like that or carry a gun the way you do. So I’m gonna go back to my office and think on that a spell and if I come up with anything different, well I reckon you boys won’t be around to discuss it with me, will you?”
“No sheriff I think not,” Heyes grinned.
“Good day boys.”
“Sheriff,” they replied.
They reached the stables before he had gone ten yards.
*************************************
“And that’s how you got interested in safes?” the mustached man asked looking over his gun to his friend who was crouched in front of a large safe lighting a fuse. “Butch that is the biggest piece of….”
Butch Cassidy grinned and pushed him out of the boxcar and together they ran and dived as the safe blew its contents into the air in a mighty explosion.
“Okay if you learned so much how come you can’t open them quieter like he did?” the Sundance Kid cursed getting up and dusting himself off.
“Because Kid, there will only ever be one Hannibal Heyes!”
end
HISTORICAL NOTE: Robert Leroy Parker (alias Butch Cassidy) was born in 1866 in Beaver, Utah. His legendary exploits in the field of banking and railroads began in the 1890’s long after two even more successful legends had retired.