Doctor Who_ The Gunfighters - Donald Cotton [41]
‘What’ll I say?’ enquired Phineas, anxious to get it right.
‘Tell him that come sun-up tomorrow, me an’ Warren an’ Bat’ll be waitin’ fer him an’ the rest of his hell-spawn at the O.K. Corral! Say it loud an’ clear, Phineas, with none of your lame-brain fer-instances. An’ as fer you, boy, I surely do eagerly anticipate seein’ you over my gun-barrel on that occasion. Now, git!’ And he booted the bearded master of epigram clear through the door, into the middle of the morning.
‘Ahem!’ said the Doctor, feeling it was time he joined the discussion.
‘Yes, the old guy’s right,’ said Bat. ‘Guess you jest summed it up, partner! Wyatt, this ain’t by no means according to Hoyle! What you’re doin’ is declarin’ a private war! You cain’t do that, not if you’re a law-man!’
‘Then here’s my badge,’ said Wyatt, grandly, removing his badge and unfortunately a piece of his shirt in the process. If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. ‘Time’s all out for the niceties of lawful miscarriage of justice, wouldn’t you say?’
‘Then this time, I cain’t go along with you,’ said Bat, sadly. ‘I won’t go agin’ you, Wyatt, on account of our long an’ friendly association; but I cain’t no-wise back you up!’
The ex-Marshal breathed deeply; a patient man, incommoded by a knife in the back. ‘Then it’s me an’
Warren,’ he concluded. ‘Reckon we can take care of it.’
‘You still got me,’ groaned Virgil. ‘Guess I can still tote a shotgun. Fact is, it’d pleasure me some...’
‘Ride on home, Virgil,’ instructed Wyatt. ‘Don’t want no cripples lousin’ things up,’ he explained, kindly. ‘No –
the man I need here right now is Doc Holliday!’
‘Who, I believe, you jest ran out o’ town,’ pointed out Bat. ‘An’ a good thing, too! Start consortin’ with that kind, in a doin’s like this, an’ you’d be branded with the same iron! That’s all you need, right now!’
‘If I may say something,’ interjected the Doctor, glad to be able to make a contribution at last, ‘I think you may find he will shortly be on his way. My friend, Steven, set off to find him this morning.’
‘Small chance of his doin’ that, I’d say, when he don’t know the territory.’
‘Ah, but he had a local connection with him who was kind enough to offer assistance. I think we may have every confidence in the gentleman.’
‘Yeah? An’ so who might that be?’ enquired Wyatt, at a loss to account for a gentleman being in the neighbourhood at this time, or indeed ever.
‘Unfortunately I forgot to enquire his name. But he was extremely helpful, and appeared to be well-educated. In fact, he conducted part of our conversation in Latin!’
At this annoucement, a series of hair-line cracks appeared in Wyatt’s baroque facade, such as would have given an architectural conservationist, had one been present, food for alarmed thought.
‘Johnny Ringo!’ he breathed.
‘Ah, so you know the man? Is he a friend of yours?’
‘Ringo’s a friend of nobody,’ Bat explained, ‘except, maybe, the devil! He’s a bounty-hunting shootist – sells himself to the highest bidder.’
‘And as of now,’ confirmed Wyatt, ‘that’ll likely be the Clantons! Moreover, him an’ Doc’s got old scores to settle, concernin’ the possession of Kate Elder’s provocative person! And you sent him out there to find them?’
‘Well, it seemed to be a good idea at the time...’ faltered the Doctor, ‘in view of the shooting of the hotel manager...’
he amplified.
But this was altogether too much for Wyatt, who had a pretty full dossier, at the moment.
‘Then, little friend of all the world,’ he said pleasantly,
‘here’s another good idea for you to chaw on. If it turns out as Doc cain’t take care of Ringo, come sun-up tomorrow I’m gonna be shy a gun-hand; an’ I’m gonna need me a replacement. An’ since half the town is already of the opinion that you an’ Holliday is one an’ the same... if I was you, I’d get in a little practice on the equaliser!’
21
Dodo Draws a Bead
Coincident with the above conversation, an unprecedented event was occurring