Doctor Who_ Peacemaker - James Swallow [25]
Teague gave a nervous nod. ‘O-OK, Doc. Whatever you say. I guess I have been a mite selfish in recent times. Guess I could do better. . . ’
‘I know you will.’ The Doctor patted him on the chest and when he took his hand away, the tin star was pinned on the man’s waistcoat.
‘Sheriff Teague here is going to do the right thing, isn’t that so?’
Teague gawked at the badge. ‘Sheriff?’ Then the idea bedded in with him, and suddenly the gambler drew himself up, straight, steady and clear-eyed. ‘ Yeah. That I am.’ Teague nodded toward Pitt. ‘And the first order of business is, get the Doctor and Miss Martha here some horses. They got business in Ironhill.’
‘You’re riding out, then?’ asked Jenny.
‘We have to,’ said Martha.
‘That mining town’s two days from here on horseback,’ said Hawkes. ‘Godlove’s liable to be gone before you get there!’
That’s if they follow the stagecoach trail. There’s a shortcut through 63
the hills,’ offered Pitt. ‘Take it at a gallop and with the wind at your back, you’ll make it before sunset.’
‘Rough land out there,’ noted Teague. ‘Nothing but rocks and rat-tlers. You get lost in the hills, the coyotes’ll be chewin’ on your bones by nightfall.’
‘I know of a body, knows the route,’ Joe continued. ‘Reckon he might throw in as your guide, like.’
‘I’ve still got a fair bit of winnings left over from yesterday,’ said the Doctor. ‘Use that to pay for everything, and keep the change.’
The stableman nodded and headed off as the meeting began to break up. Loomis Teague led the men out, giving out orders in a strong, commanding voice.
‘Who would have thought a card-sharp and a reprobate would have it in him to be a town official?’ Jenny asked lightly, watching him go.
‘I’ve got an eye for people,’ said the Doctor. ‘Sometimes, all a person needs is a little trust to put them on the straight and narrow.’
Jenny took his hand. ‘Thank you, Doctor. If you hadn’t been here last night, then this whole town would be cinders.’
He eyed her. ‘I’m not the one who saved Nathan’s life, Jenny. You’re the one who pushed him out of the path of that beam. You saved him.’
‘I did what I thought was right.’
Martha studied her bandages. ‘How’s the shoulder?’
‘Painful,’ Jenny admitted, ‘but much preferable to the other option.’
She looked away. ‘I don’t know what you did, but I know it should not have healed this quickly. Are you using Godlove’s medicine? Will I have the dreams?’
‘Not unless you eat loads of cheese before you go to bed,’ said the Doctor. ‘Don’t be afraid. We just used a cure. . . something that’s a bit before its time. You know, like Captain Nemo’s submarine in Twenty Thousand Leagues or the rocket in From the Earth to the Moon.’
‘A science of the future?’ Jenny replied. ‘How marvellous.’
Vogel approached with a pile of gear and dropped it on the table before them. ‘Doctor, Miss Jones. Please, take these as a gift.’
Martha reached out and took a hat from the pile. ‘Ooh, cool!’ She sat it on her head at a jaunty angle. ‘Very Madonna, don’t you think?’
64
She fingered a poncho and frowned. ‘Not that, though. It’s too Ugly Betty for me.’
‘Oh, I quite like the Man-With-No-Name look,’ said the Doctor.
‘Well, you would,’ she sniffed.
He chose a hat, then picked up a thick leather holster and belt, and cinched it in place around his waist. ‘That’s snug.’
Vogel smiled. ‘I’ll hazard you’ll want this as well.’ The storekeeper slid a black revolver across the table toward him.
‘Colt model of 1873, single-action