“All right,” Hale said. “This is the spot. I don’t think anyone got a look at what was in that wagon, and they sure didn’t get much of a look at you two, so I’ll be on my way.”
“What’s the hurry?” Nick asked.
Hale started to reach for his horse to unhitch it. “I’m paying you men to do this job and that’s what you’ll do. If I wanted to do it myself, I could have saved the money.” He stared at Nick and Kinman. “What are you men waiting for? Get to work!”
“I think the plans are about to change,” Kinman said.
The fear had already taken hold of Hale’s features as he started backing toward his men, who were beside the wagon. Hale bumped against Cy, who was the closer of the two. “You two stand to make some easy money,” he said. “Don’t ruin it by doing something stupid.”
Kinman chuckled and said, “Stupid, huh? By stupid, do you mean being the ones to set this dynamite so your men here can witness it? Or do you mean stupid as in being the ones hunted by the army for killing its soldiers while you do whatever the hell you want right here?”
Watching the two men talk, Nick learned plenty from their faces. He learned even more from the faces of the men Hale had brought along with him. Although Hale looked more scared than anything else, Cy and the other gunman wore the expressions of men getting ready to make a move.
“Or maybe you just got a guilty conscience,” Kinman added. “Perhaps you’re just the sort of fellow who don’t like getting his hands dirty. You could be the sort who just likes to plan the deeds and reap the benefits afterward.”
“You’re the one who killed those Chinamen,” Hale said defiantly.
“That’s right. And they barely put up a fight. You could have done it your own self if you weren’t sitting in your office while your own town was on fire. Tell me something, Hale. Did you have enough sand to start even one of them fires or did you just watch from behind a window somewhere with the rest of the women?”
Hale’s face twitched and the muscles in his jaw tensed. After a few stuttering hisses, he managed to part his lips enough to speak to the men who’d ridden alongside him. “Blow this asshole’s head off.”
Kinman smirked and brought up his pistol in a quick, fluid motion. He took aim and prepared to fire with plenty of time to spare, but didn’t manage to get his shot off before his pistol was knocked off target. When he turned toward the man who’d swatted his hand to one side, there was an angry fire raging in his eyes.
“What in the hell are you doing?” Kinman growled.
Nick leaned to one side and used the same hand that had swatted Kinman’s gun to point toward Hale and his men. “Watch where you’re shooting!” was all he had time to say before pulling hard on his reins and steering Kazys away.
In the space of a heartbeat, Kinman turned to where Nick had been pointing and saw why Nick had stepped in. Both of Hale’s gunmen stood in front of and within spitting distance of the wagon, which had enough dynamite to turn a healthy section of railroad tracks into twisted metal. Ducking low, Kinman swore under his breath and snapped his reins to move out of the gunmen’s line of fire.
Even though Hale and his men were nowhere near as quick on the draw as Kinman or Nick, they’d had plenty of time to pull their triggers by now. Gunshots cracked through the air and lead hissed past Nick and Kinman. Fortunately, the men doing the firing were just as rattled by Nick’s sudden actions as Kinman had been. Their shots went wild and sailed harmlessly into the night.
The biggest struggle for Nick was to keep from drawing his gun. He left the modified Schofield in its holster so he could have both hands free. He rode around the wagon and reached out, snagging the horse’s bridle to take control of Hale’s wagon.
“Get away from there, God dammit,” Hale said as he turned and aimed at Nick.
All those years of lugging coffins paid off, as Nick was able to pull his feet out of the stirrups, get clear of Kazys’s back and pull himself onto the other horse, just as Hale’s shot whizzed over his head.
Meanwhile, the other two gunmen kept firing as Kinman raced around them. They knew better than to empty their cylinders too quickly and still had a few rounds each by the time their target came to a stop.
Dropping from his saddle, Kinman turned toward the gunmen. His boots slammed against the dirt, but the sound of the impact was masked by a shot from his pistol. The bullet caught Cy in the shoulder, twisted him in his saddle and knocked him off of his horse. Kinman wasted no time in shifting his aim to the other gunman. Now that he’d steadied himself, he took proper aim and sent a round straight through that one’s face.
Cy heard the solid thump of the body hitting the dirt, and that told him all he needed to know. He gritted his teeth and fired his remaining shots at Kinman, who had gotten into a prone position.
Grinning like a kid in the middle of a game of tag, Kinman pushed himself to the left and rolled toward Hale’s wagon.
Cy’s hammer dropped onto the back of an empty brass casing.
Kinman kept his aim on Cy as he got himself back onto his feet. When Cy dropped his gun and held up his hands, Kinman shook his head. “Too late for all that,” he said. Before Cy could speak a word in his own defense, Kinman pulled the trigger and sent his final bullet into Cy’s chest.
Nick wasn’t able to hear what Kinman said, but the shot blasted through the air so close to the horses that it got the animals shaking their heads and stomping their hooves. Hale, too, had fired off his remaining rounds and was cursing loudly. Nick poked his head up to get a look at him and had to quickly duck as Hale threw his gun at him.
“I’ve come too far to stop now!” Hale said as he climbed into the driver’s seat. “I wasn’t the one to start this riot, but I sure as hell won’t let it pass without making some progress.”
Nick pulled himself up onto the wagon and immediately caught Hale’s fist in his jaw. The impact was barely hard enough to turn Nick’s head.
“It’s not a riot,” Nick said. “It’s a damned massacre!”
“Call it what you want. This town’s a powder keg thanks to those filthy Chinamen!”
As he cocked his arm back, Nick said, “Whatever this town is, you’re only making it worse.” He drove his fist into the middle of Hale’s face.
Blood spewed from Hale’s nose, which was now flattened awkwardly against his head. He turned onto his belly so he was draped over the back of the wagon’s seat and his legs were pointed toward the anxious horse. Digging into his pocket, he said, “You and Kinman have already done enough! All this shooting must have drawn a crowd.”
Nick glanced back in the direction from which they’d come and saw plenty of movement among the trees and neighboring buildings. He couldn’t be sure how many folks were watching from back there, but he could feel those eyes fixed upon him. They’d been given one hell of a show.
When he turned around again, Nick was treated to a sight that made his own eyes widen.
Hale had twisted around onto his side. His face was contorted into a twisted, grinning mask and his fingers were pinched around a single lit match. “Back the hell away from me or we both get blown sky-high,” he said in a disturbingly calm tone.
“Your men are already dead,” Nick said. “No need for you to join them.”
“We’ll all join them unless you do what I say. I’ve brought this too far to back up now.”
“Go on and do what he says,” Kinman said from a few yards away.
Nick only had to shift his eyes a bit to get a look at Kinman. Keeping Hale in the edge of his vision, Nick saw Kinman step forward while casually reloading his pistol.