Dan Wayne’s father had left him a thousand acres of ranchland, and the son had built up his cattle herd from two thousand to ten thousand. There was also a prize stallion that was going to be worth a fortune. And now the bastards were trying to take it all away from him. It wasn’t his fault that the cattle market had gone to hell, or that he had gotten behind with his mortgage payments. The banks were closing in for the kill, and his only chance to save himself was to find someone who would buy the ranch, pay off his creditors, and leave him with a little profit.
Wayne had heard about a rich Swiss who was looking for a ranch in Texas, and he had flown over to Zurich to meet him. In the end, it had turned out to be a wild-goose chase. The dude’s idea of a ranch was an acre or two with a nice little vegetable garden. She-eet!
That was how Dan Wayne had happened to be on the tour bus when that extraordinary thing occurred. He had read about flying saucers, but he had never believed in them. Now, by God, he certainly did. As soon as he returned home, he had called the editor of the local newspaper.
“Johnny, I just saw an honest-to-God flying saucer with some dead, funny-looking people in it.”
“Yeah? Did you get any pictures, Dan?”
“No. I took some, but they didn’t come out.”
“Never mind. We’ll send a photographer out there. Is it on your ranch?”
“Well, no. As a matter of fact, it was in Switzerland.”
There was a silence.
“Oh. Well, if you happen to come across one on your ranch, Dan, give me another call.”
“Wait! I’m being sent a picture by some fellow who saw the thing.” But Johnny had already hung up.
And that was that.
Wayne almost wished that there would be an invasion of aliens. Maybe they would kill off his damned creditors. He heard the sound of a car coming up the drive and rose and walked over to the window. Looked like an easterner. Probably another creditor. These days they were coming out of the woodwork.
Dan Wayne opened the front door.
“Howdy.”
“Daniel Wayne?”
“My friends call me Dan. What can I do for you?”
Dan Wayne was not at all what Robert had expected. He had envisioned a stereotype of a burly Texan. Dan Wayne was slight and aristocratic-looking, with an almost shy manner. The only thing that gave away his heritage was his accent.
“I wonder if I might have a few minutes of your time?”
“That’s about all I’ve got left,” Wayne said. “By the way, you’re not a creditor, are you?”
“A creditor? No.”
“Good. Come on in.”
The two men walked into the living room. It was large and comfortably furnished with western-style furniture.
“This is a nice place you have here,” Robert said.
“Yeah. I was born in this house. Can I offer you anything? A cold drink, maybe?”
“No, thanks. I’m fine.”
“Have a seat.”
Robert sat down on a soft, leather couch.
“What did you want to see me about?”
“I believe you took a bus tour in Switzerland last week?”
“That’s right. Is my ex-wife having me followed? You don’t work for her, do you?”
“No, sir.”
“Oh.” He suddenly understood. “You’re interested in that UFO thing. Damndest thing I ever saw. It kept changing colors. And those dead aliens!” He shuddered. “I keep dreaming about it.”
“Mr. Wayne, can you tell me anything about the other passengers who were on that bus?”
“Sorry, I can’t help you out there. I was traveling alone.”
“I know, but you spoke to some of the other passengers, didn’t you?”
“To tell you the truth, I had a lot on my mind. I wasn’t paying much attention to anyone else.”
“Do you remember anything about any of them?”
Dan Wayne was silent for a moment. “Well, there was an Italian priest. I talked to him quite a bit. He seemed like a nice fellow. I want to tell you something, that flying saucer thing really shook him up. He kept talking about the devil.”