Chapter 16
The sun started to peek above the horizon in Illinois.
Back at the campsite, The Hudsters cleaned up their campsite to ensure tracks or evidence was not left behind.
Hud and Ester got in his Hudson while Jack, Harold, and Willie got into the Buick.
They drove off down Route 4 and headed down south.
They soon headed south down Route 150 toward the town of Chester.
They drove through Chester and crossed the Mississippi River into Missouri.
After crossing into Missouri, they headed south down Route 51 and headed to Advance.
Once they passed through the town of Advance, they navigated through numerous roads and headed south of the town of Kenneth.
They continued their drive south and stopped off in some woods just south of Route 709.
They found a secluded place to camp for a week in the woods and raiding farmhouses in the vicinity for food.
Hud started planning their next job.
Over at the Bureau of Investigation office in Springfield, Agent Kelly again got frustrated when leads of sightings for The Hudsters were going nowhere. It appeared that people were desperate for that $10,000 reward, so they were turning in any man with a large nose claiming him to be Hud Hudson. Agent Kelly knew the gang was hiding out somewhere in Illinois planning their next bank job. But he also did not rule out Indiana or Missouri to throw the Bureau of Investigation off their trail.
Then after toughing out for a week in the woods, The Hudsters were ready for their next job. This time it would be in the town of Parker City located fifteen miles east of their campsite along the Mississippi River on the Missouri side.
So the morning of March 1st, 1934 rolled around, and The Hudsters headed east to Parker City in their Buick.
The town of Parker City was quiet when The Hudsters pulled into town in the Buick.
They found the First State Bank and Trust Company not far from the Mississippi River.
After their usual routine of scoping out the situation from across the street, Jack made a U-turn and stopped the Buick just outside the front doors of the bank.
Hud, Harold, and Willie ran into the bank with their weapons ready.
Then Jack’s eyes widened when he saw a Park City cop car slowly drive down the street heading at him in the other lane.
Jack looked away when the cop car got close to his Buick.
The cop behind the wheel was Rusty Jenkins, a thirty-two-year-old cop. He eyed Jack while he drove past the Buick. He spotted two bullet holes in the left rear passenger door.
Rusty drove past the bank and had a gut feeling something was wrong about those bullet holes. His stomach told him that a bank robbery might be going down at this moment.
He made a U-turn in the street and headed back to the Buick with the car’s red light on the front bumper flashing. But when he got close to the bank, his cop car was suddenly pelted with bullets from Jack’s Thompson machine gun.
The radiator hissed out steam, and the front tires blew. His car rolled to a stop.
People along the other side of the street ducked and ran for cover.
One gentleman ran down the street, heading to the Park City Police Station.
Rusty got out of his car and hid behind his driver’s door. He started firing his 38 Special at the Buick.
Jack returned fired from his Thompson machine gun, shooting out the windshield of the cop car.
Rusty ducked down while glass rained on him.
Then the bank doors slammed open, and Hud, Harold, and Willie ran out, firing their weapons at the cop car.
Rusty crouched down behind his driver’s door and realized he was no match for these guys. So he opted to stop firing and maybe reinforcements would arrive soon. Then saw four bullet holes that penetrated his driver’s door. Then he felt a little pain in his left shoulder. He felt that area of pain and some blood appeared on his fingertips. He realized he had been shot and got a little weak in the knees. He sat down in the street.
Back at the Buick, Hud, Harold, and Willie hoped inside and Jack stomped on the gas pedal.
The Buick raced off down the street.
Then another Park City cop car siren was heard while it raced down the street after the Buick.
Rusty watched while the other cop car with four of his fellow officers inside raced after the Buick. Then he passed out.
Jack raced the Buick down the street with the cop car hot on their trail.
He made a screeching left turn down another street and headed toward the western part of town.
Willie grabbed Jack’s Thompson and stuck half of his body out his door window. He fired at the cop car.
Two of the cops fired back with their 38 Special revolvers.
The rear window of the Buick shattered hitting Hud and Harold with glass. They were not injured.
Hud and Harold pointed their Colt 45s out the rear window and fired off a few rounds at the cop car.
Jack made a screeching right turn down another street but made it a little too fast. The Buick skidded over and crashed into a parked car. The engine died.
The cop car screeched to a stop. All the doors flew opened, and the four cop cars got out and hide behind their opened doors. They fired at the crashed Buick.
Willie fired the Thompson machine gun for cover at the cops while the rest of the guys got out of the left side of the car. Hud had that potato sack in hand.
Then Willie got out of the car still firing at the cop’s car.
The Hudsters ran down the street.
The cops cautiously got out from behind the car doors.
They cautiously walked toward the Buick.
The Hudsters ran down the street and saw a man get into his Ford Model A sedan. They ran up to the Ford.
Hud grabbed the guy’s left arm and yanked him out onto the street onto his back.
The man did not know what the hell happened. But was suddenly scared stiff when he saw Hud towering over him with his Colt 45 aimed down at him.
Harold and Willie fired at the four cops the second they reached the crashed Buick down the street.
The four cops did not return fire when they saw that innocent man in the street on his back.
They watched while The Hudsters hoped into that man’s Ford Model A and race off down the street.
“Who the fuck were they?” one of the cops asked.
“I believe that was The Hudsters based on that one guy with the big nose,” one of the other cops replied.
Two of the cops ran down to see if that man in the street was hurt. He only peed his pants.
Jack raced that stolen Model A out of Parker City with Hud in the passenger seat and Harold and Willie in the rear seat.
It was a quiet ride out of town.
Later on, Jack drove the Ford Model A back to their campsite.
Ester saw the Model A and initially thought they might be strangers. So she got her 38 Special ready for protection. But she put it away the second she realized that the guys in the Ford were Hud, Jack, Harold, and Willie.
Jack stopped the car and turned off the engine.
“What happened?” she asked when Hud got out of the car with the sack in hand.
“Little accident with the Buick thanks to the fucking Parker City cops,” he said while he walked over to Ester.
“I’m glad nobody was hurt,” she told the guys when she saw they walked fine and no apparent bloody bullet holes were also visible.
“We’re okay, but I think this take is a bit smaller than the other ones,” he said while he sat down in the dirt by the campfire.
He immediately dumped the cash from the sack to the dirt. He started dividing it up into five piles. The take was $2,000 each for the guys and $600 for Ester.
“Still better than a days work fucking sweaty slobs up in Saint Louie,” Ester said while she kissed her share of the loot.
Hud looked around the woods. “We need some better accommodations,” he told everybody.
Everybody nodded in agreement.
Later that night, Hud was horny and grabbed Ester by her hand. He walked her off into the woods.
They walked about thirty feet away in the woods. Then Hud reached under Ester’s dress and pulled down her panties. He got her in the dirt on her hands and knees. He then got behind her and pulled down his trousers and boxers. He lifted up her dress and glanced down at her lovely shapely butt cheeks. He got down on his knees and penetrated her from behind.
The sound of him smacking against her butt cheeks and her moaning of being fucked echoed in the woods.
Meanwhile up in Springfield, Agent Kelly got a phone call from Police Chief Abner Harrison that The Hudsters pulled off another bank job down in Parker City, Missouri with a cop wounded in his shoulder. He also mentioned they also stole a Ford.
So Agent Kelly stayed late at the office and looked at all the maps that showed the location of the bank jobs. He tried to second guess the general area for their next job. He figured they might hit somewhere in the western area of Illinois next.
The next morning arrived, and The Hudsters cleaned up their campsite and drove off.
Hud decided to pay one of those farmhouses they raided in the middle of the night a little surprise visit.
So about a mile from where they camped, Hud pulled his Hudson into the dirt driveway of a farm.
Jack, Harold, and Willie followed in the Ford sedan.
They parked their cars to the side of the farmhouse out of view of the road.
Hud and Ester got out of the Hudson and motioned for Jack and the other guys to remain in the Ford.
Hud and Ester took a step toward the front porch of the farmhouse.
“Can I help you?” asked seventy-four-year-old Hank Knotts while he stepped out on his front porch from the living room screened door.
“Ah, yes sir, we’re having a bit of car trouble. Do you have a phone we can use?” asked Hud in the best polite voice he could muster up.
“Nope. Don’t own a phone. Maybe I can take a look at your car?” offered Hank while he walked off the porch and headed over to Hud and Ester.
Then Hank’s eyes widened in shock when he remembered Hud and Ester’s faces from an article in this month’s issue of True Crime Detective magazine.
Hud knew from the look on Hank’s face that he recognized him and Ester. So he whipped out his Colt 45. “Listen, we do not want to harm you. We need a safe place to say. So we’re going to stay here for a little while. Now, I’ll make it worth it by paying you five hundred dollars and pay for food. Ester here can help the wife with the cooking,” he said in a serious tone that he meant business.
Hank scratched the back of his balding head. “Well, since you put it that way. We could use a little company,” he said, then looked back at the house. “Ethel, we have company,” he called out.
A few seconds passed, and Ethel appeared at the front screened door and wore an apron. She saw Hud with the Colt 45 in his hand and Ester. She got a little scared.
Hud motioned for Jack, Harold and Willie to get out of the Ford. They did and headed over to the front porch.
“Hide the cars in the barn,” Hud told Jack and Harold.
Hud, Ester, and Willie went into the house with Hank while Jack and Harold drove the Hudson and Ford towards the barn in the back of the farmhouse.
Later that night, Hud, Harold, Jack, Willie, and Hank sat on the front porch relaxing while Ethel and Ester washed the dinner dishes.
When it was time for bed, Harold and Jack took four-hour shifts standing guard outside for the signs of any cops or if Hank and Ethel tried to escape. It was quiet at the farmhouse.
Hank and Ethel lay in their bed.
“Are they going to kill us?” she quietly asked Hank.
He thought for a few seconds recalling the articles he read in his True Crimes Detective magazines. “Don’t think so. They only kill cops,” he said then smiled. “I do like money. Five hundred dollars will really help keep the farm a little while longer,” he added.
Ethel nodded in agreement with her husband. They slowly drifted off to sleep.
But then the sound of the bed in the room next store banging against the wall was heard and woke them up. They heard Ester moan while Harold fucked her.
Both Ethel and Hank missed those days, and she wished her husband could still perform. But he could not. So they just listened and recalled their memories of being young.
The next morning arrived, and Ester made Ethel drive their 1929 Ford pickup into Parker City to buy some groceries.
Ester also made it known to Ethel that she had a 38 Special in her purse to make sure we did not try to alert anybody.
Ester parked outside Callis’ Grocery Store, got out of the pickup truck, and went inside the store.
After Ester and Ethel shopped for groceries, they went to the counter where Chuck Callis the owner worked.
“Good to see you again, Ethel. How’s Hank?” he asked then gave her a warm smile.
“Fine.”
Chuck looked at Ester. “Who is this young lady?”
Ethel paused for a few seconds. “Oh, she’s my niece Debbie from Chicago. She’s staying with Hank and me for a spell,” she lied.
“Glad to meet you Debbie,” Chuck said then started ringing up the bill on the cash register and placing the groceries in a bag.
“That will be twelve dollars and thirteen cents, Ethel,” said Chuck.
“Please let me pay for this Aunt Ethel,” Ester said then opened up her purse, removed a twenty dollar bill and handed it to Chuck.
Chuck gave Ester back the change. “Did you hear that Rusty’s doing fine after getting shot in his shoulder?” he said to Ethel.
“I didn’t know. I’m glad,” Ethel replied.
“Shot? Who was shot?” Ester asked, pretending to be concerned.
“Oh, we had a bank robbery here in town the other day. That famous gang, The Hudsters, came into town. Robbed the bank and had a shootout with our police. They shot Rusty in the shoulder, crashed their car, stole another car from poor Gus, then drove out of town,” said Chuck to Ester.
“Oh my, you have bank robberies here?” Ester replied and played the innocent girl.
Ethel looked a little nervous will all this talk about The Hudsters. “Well, Debbie, we better git going. You’re Uncle Hank is probably mighty hungry by now,” he said.
“Yeah, we better get home and feed Uncle Hank,” Ester replied and grabbed the bag of groceries.
“Good day Ethel and Debbie,” Chuck said and watched while the two ladies headed off to the door with Ester carrying the grocery bag. “What a nice young lady,” he said while Ester and Ethel exited the store.
Ethel drove Ester back to the farm in the pickup truck.
The Hudsters maintained a low profile while they stayed at Hank and Ethel’s farm for another four weeks. Since they were such good hosts and did not try to contact the cops, Hud had the other guys cough up an extra hundred dollars. Hank’s eyes almost welled up with that extra cash.
Nobody in Parker City figured that Ethel’s niece was really Ester Walker. They just thought that since The Hudsters robbed the bank earlier in the month, they were long gone by now.
So now that April rolled around, Hud started planning his next job.
Hud, Ester Jack, Harold, and Willie leaned against the Hudson inside the barn.
“Well hit Gibsland, Illinois in two days.
We’ll leave first thing in the morning, camp outside Gibsland then head out to the bank the following day. We’ll hit the bank around eleven that morning,” Hud told everybody.
“Then, where?” Harold curiously asked.
“I’ll figure that out after we leave Gibsland,” Hud replied.
Outside the rear barn was Hank with a basket in hand. He eavesdropped on their conversation and heard their entire plan.
He rushed off and headed over to his chicken coup thirty feet away.
Hud, Ester, Harold, Jack, and Willie walked out of the barn.
Hud saw Hank inside the chicken coup gathering up eggs. He was not concerned at all while they headed off to the farmhouse.
The next morning arrived, and after Ethel and Ester cooked the boys a good egg and toast breakfast, The Hudsters took off and headed to Illinois.
For the rest of the morning, Hank and Ethel remained in their farmhouse not sure The Hudsters would return.
Then later that afternoon, Hank and Ethel decided to head into town in their pickup truck. He wanted to stock up on a few things he could not afford from the hardware store. Plus Ethel wished to send off a letter to her sister in Aberdeen, Missouri located upstate.
Hank and Ethel went inside the post office in Parker City. While she went to the counter to buy a stamp, Hank checked out the Wanted Posters. He wanted to see if his past guests were there. He flipped through the Wanted Posters and found the one for The Hudsters. Then his eyes lit up when he saw a $12,000 reward for Ester and the guys.
“What you looking at?” Ethel asked Hank when she walked up to him.
He pointed at the reward amount for the gang on the poster. “We’ll be set for life,” he said with a greedy grin.
Ethel looked at Hank then back at the Wanted Poster. She motioned that they should leave.
A little while later, Hank and Ethel walked into the Parker City Police Station.
“Chief Harrison, we need to speak to you about some important stuff,” Hank said the second he and Ethel walked up to the doorway of his office.
Chief Abner Harrison, a fifty-year-old chubby man, looked up from his paperwork. “Come inside, Hank and Ethel.”
Hank and Ethel walked into his office and sat down in the chairs in front of his desk.
“So, are the kids back to stealing your eggs again?” Chief Harrison asked as this has been the discussion of past visits.
“Oh no, it’s much worse than that,” Ethel replied.
“Must worst. We were forced at gunpoint the have those famous outlaws The Hudsters live in our house for the past month,” Hank added and looked dead serious.
Chief Harrison was not sure he heard him correctly. “Did you saw The Hudsters? The gang that robbed our bank last month?”
“Yes, Chief,” said Hank.
Ethel nodded in agreement.
“They left this morning, and I overheard them yesterday out in the barn planning on robbing a bank in Gibsland, Illinois tomorrow morning at eleven,” said Hank and he still looked dead serious.
“If you have the girl’s mug shot, show it to Chuck down at the store. That Ester Walker claimed to be my niece. I don’t have a niece. Chuck might remember her when we bought groceries,” Ethel said, and she looked dead serious.
Chief Harrison looked at his Wanted Posters that hung on the wall. He got up and rushed over to them.
Back at the Springfield Bureau of Investigation, Agent Kelly had Agents Handson and Henderson at his desk. They looked at a map of Missouri and Illinois while they tried to second guess where The Hudsters would hit next.
His desk phone rang. “Bureau of Investigations, Special Agent Kelly,” he answered the call.
“Yes Agent Kelly, Parker City Police Chief Abner Harrison again, listen, I had two of residents, Hank and Ethel Knotts just informed me that they were held captive at their farm, for the past month, by Ester Walker and The Hudsters. The owner of our grocery store verified that he saw Ester Walker in his store with Ethel. Ester claimed to be Ethel’s niece.”
Agent Kelly’s eyes widened, and he motioned to his fellow agents that he had a good lead. “Are they still down there?”
“No sir, the Knotts claim that they’re heading to Gibsland, Illinois. Hank overheard The Hudsters planning to rob that bank there tomorrow morning at eleven,” Chief Harrison replied from the phone.
“Thank you, Chief Harrison, I’ll be in touch,” Agent Kelly said then hung up the phone with a huge grin. “Looks like The Hudsters are planning on robbing the bank in Gibsland, Illinois tomorrow morning at eleven,” he told his agents.
Agent Kelly picked up the phone and called the Gibsland Police Department to give them a warning.
Night fell upon the Illinois countryside.
In the woods to the west of Gibsland, Illinois, Hud, Ester, Jack, Harold, and Willie made a camp for the night.
Then just after midnight, Hud drove off in his Hudson and headed into Gibsland.
After he drove around town for a while, he found the Gibsland Cemetery.
He walked through the cemetery with a leather satchel in his left hand and a small shovel in his right hand.
He walked around the cemetery looking at all the gravesites.
He stopped at sight that his gut felt was reasonable. He started digging at the gravesite for a Jimmy Peabody.
A little while later, Hud jotted down the dead man’s name and location on that piece of paper with a pencil. He shoved the paper and pencil in his trousers pocket.
He walked away from the gravesite with his shovel in his right hand and headed back to his car.