“He was up on the roof of the saloon, with his rifle,” Jenny said. “Bill wanted Scott to turn around and make his play and Demming was going to shoot him down as soon as he turned around.”
“So what happened to Curly Bill?” asked Wyatt.
“He ran after Scott shot Demming.” Jenny said.
“And Demming was up on the roof, you say?” asked Wyatt He turned and looked up at the roof. “How did the Kid happen to see him up there?”
“He didn’t,” Jenny said. “I did. I saw him and I warned Scott.”
“You saw him.” Wyatt said “What made you think to look up there?”
“Scott told me to look.”
“I see,” said Wyatt, pursing his lips thoughtfully. “Why couldn’t he look himself?”
“Because he had his back turned.”
“And with his back turned, he knew there was someone on the roof behind him?”
Jenny saw how it was going and it wasn’t going well. “He.. he knew that Curly Bill knew he couldn’t beat him and he figured out that someone else had to have a gun on him.”
Wyatt grunted. “So he shot Ross Demming.”
“It was self-defense!” said Jenny.
“Head shot.” Wyatt said. He turned to look at the roof again. “Clear up there, eh? In the dark, too. What was Curly Bill doing all this time?”
“I told you.” Jenny said, “he ran.”
“Why didn’t he just shoot the Kid while the Kid was shooting Demming? He had the drop on him, didn’t he?”
“He.. well, he couldn’t because… “ Jenny’s voice trailed off.
“Marshal, she couldn’t have seen anything,” O’Fallon said. “She was inside, in the saloon. Ain’t that right, boys?”
“Yeah, that’s right, I saw her.” Zaber replied.
“And Curly Bill left quite a while ago,” O’Fallon said.
“Alter the Kid called him out back there in saloon.”
“The Kid called him out?” asked Wyatt.
“Its a lie!” Jenny said “He just offered to show Bill who was faster.”
“Ain’t that the same thing?” asked O’Fallon.
“They drew on each other with empty pistols!” Jenny said. “Ask anybody! They all saw!”
“And once the Kid saw he could take Curly Bill, he decided to do it for real.” said O’Fallon. “Curly Bill left and the Kid went out after him, but he ran into Ross Demming first and decided to take care of some old business.”
“It isn’t true!” shouted Jenny. “He’s making it all up!”
“What was Demming doing with a Winchester?” asked Wyatt.
“He had it on his horse,” O’Fallon said. He was gettin’ ready to ride out of town when the Kid came out. When the Kid saw him, he jerked his pistol. Ross went for the rifle in his scabbard, but just barely got it out when the Kid shot him. You know how fast the Kid is.”
“What happened to his horse?”
“Ran off when the shots were fired,” O’Fallon lied, smoothly. “I don’t know where Jenny got this roof business, but you have to know. Marshal, she’s in love with the Kid. Wouldn’t have anything to do with anybody else ever since the Kid showed up. You can ask anyone. She’s his woman. You can’t blame her for tryin’ to protect him. I’d like a woman of mine to do the same.”
“Is that true, Jenny?” Wyatt asked.
She shook her head. “Surely, you don’t believe him?”
“I know how you feel about the Kid, Jenny,” Wyatt said. “Everyone in town knows. And if it happened like you said, I can’t see how the Kid could have shot Demming down from that roof without having Curly Bill shoot him. Nobody’s that fast.”
“But. but that’s the way it happened! I swear!”
Sheriff Behan pushed his way through the crowd. “Heard there was a shootin’,” he said.
“You don’t say,” said Wyatt. wryly.
Behan shot him an angry look. “Ross Demming, eh? Looks like the Kid finally got him.”
“How do you know it was the Kid?” asked Wyatt.
“Heck. everybody knows there was bad blood between those two.” said Behan, “ever since the Kid gunned down his brother. I understand they had a near set-to in the Grand Hotel a while hack. Fact, you were them, weren’t you. Wyatt?”
“I was there.” admitted Earp.
“Wyatt, you’re not going to believe these men?” said Jenny.
“It appears I’ll have to believe them enough to put the Kid under arrest. Jenny.” Wyatt replied.
“But you know what kind of men they are?” she argued, with exasperation.
“That’s right, Jenny.” Wyatt said, looking at her sympathetically. “I know. And I also know what kind of man the Kid is. He’s a gunfighter and there’s enough information to make him a suspect. I’m going to have to take him into custody and let the court decide.”
“But you don’t understand.” she protested. “You can’t!”
“I have to, Jenny,” Earp replied, misunderstanding the reason for her distress. “And for his sake. I hope the Kid comes along quietly. He’ll get fair treatment. I promise. I’ll continue to look into this. I have no intention of letting a man hang on the word of someone like Johnny Ringo.”
He gave O’Fallon and his men a hard stare.
“Just tellin’ the truth. Marshal.” said O’Fallon, with a shrug. “I saw what I saw.”
“That’s what you say, Ringo.” Wyatt Earp replied. “But I think I’ll ask around just the same and find out if anybody else saw the same thing.”
Jenny felt someone come up beside her and touch her elbow. She turned to see Indian Charlie standing by her side, he merely nodded at her once, then slipped away through the crowd She felt a tightening in her stomach. Drakov wanted to see her.
As she moved away from the crowd, she felt herself torn by indecision. If she refused to respond to Drakov’s summons, he would know that something had gone wrong. If she went to him now, Scott would be placed under arrest and thrown in jail and there would be no one to warn his friends of what had happened. Perhaps if she could find them quickly and let them know that Scott was in trouble, then go back and see Drakov…
She ran down the street, toward the Grand Hotel. She ran inside and up the stairs, to Lucas’ Priest’s room. She pounded on the door. ‘There was no answer. In desperation, she pounded again and this time, the door opened, but it wasn’t Lucas Priest. It was another man, with a large, bushy moustache and red-rimmed eyes. His nightshirt bulged out over his paunch.
“What in tarnation…?”
“Where’s Mr. Priest?”
“There ain’t no one by that name here, Missy. But say… will I do?”
She backed away, then turned and ran down the stairs and out into the street.
Ike Canton stood at the bar in Hafford’s Saloon, hunched over a whiskey. In defiance of the town ordinance, there was a six-gun stuck in his belt, beneath his coat, and a Winchester. 44–40 rifle lying on the bar before him. The bartender kept glancing at the rifle nervously. Clanton was working up a real snootful and guns and whiskey didn’t mix.
“Want me to hold on to that gun for you. Ike?” the bartender asked.
Clanton slapped a beefy hand on top of it. “It’s stayin’ right here.” he replied, in a surly voice. “There’s men in this town lookin’ to murder me and if they come lookin’ for a fight, they’ll get one!”
He glanced around at the other patrons in the bar. “You all heard that!” he said, loudly.
“I don’t want any trouble in here, Ike.” the bartender said.
“Ain’t me that’s causin’ trouble.” Clanton replied. I was mindin’ my own business when that Doc Holliday invited me to jerk my pistol! I couldn’t defend myself because I wasn’t heeled, but that Virgil harp was right there with him and you think he arrested Holliday for makin’ a play against an unarmed man? No. sir! I tell you, they’re all in it together, those Earps and Holliday! They’ve been spreadin’ lies about me, tryin’ to frame me, and now they’re out to murder me, as well!”
He patted the rifle once again. “That’s stayin’ right there! Man’s got a right to protect himself! Gimme another whiskey!”
“Maybe you’d better go home and go to bed Ike “ said the barman. “You’ve already had quite a lot to drink-”
“I said, another whiskey!” Clanton shouted, slamming his hand down on the bar. “I ain’t goin’ nowhere! I ain’t goin’ to bed. I’m goin’ to stay right here in town and as soon as the Earps or Holliday show themselves out there on that street, the ball opens! They’re gonna have to fight!”