JEWELS PART 6

The partners quietly left through the back of the hotel, once again making sure not to be spotted. As they arrived at their horses and mounted them Kid turned to Heyes, "Ready?"

"Let's wait a few minutes to make sure Lom’s out on the street," Heyes said, then looked at the two of them and got off his horse. He picked up some dirt and started to rub it on his clothes and face. "Kid, you better do the same if we're gonna look like we just came to town."

"We just got clean," Kid whined.

"Yeah and we'll be able to get clean again. Get down and get dirty otherwise this isn't gonna work."

Kid got off his horse with a big sigh and started to rub dirt all over like Heyes did.

"You look like you were holding back a little in there," Kid said looking at Heyes.

"That obvious?"

"Only to me," Kid paused "Maybe Lom, oh and probably Laurie. She seems to read you pretty well."

"Ain't that the truth!" Heyes chuckled. "Still feels strange talking in front of Hardy - I mean Tom." Heyes chuckled again, "Lom and Tom," he said in almost a singsong tone, "the rhyming Sheriffs who know who we are and are trying to help us out!"

Kid shook his head and smiled. Heyes was back; he's making jokes. "So what are you thinkin’?"

Heyes became serious, "Kid who in Jake's gang looks the most like me?"

Kid mounted his horse and thought for a few minutes, "Probably Johnson, but not really." Kid thought about it for another minute, "He has brown hair but lighter and brown eyes, a little shorter than you."

"And heavier!" Heyes said indignantly as he mounted his horse. "Lom said the dead guy had lighter hair. The wanted poster only says brown hair, brown eyes. Doesn't give a whole lot of description which is lucky for us."

"Yeah, so what's your point?"

"Who was supposed to take over watch the night we got away?"

"Jake was on watch."

"No after Jake, who was supposed to take second watch," Heyes clarified.

Kid sat on his horse staring at Heyes trying to figure out what he was getting at, and then it hit him. "Johnson was takin’ second watch that night. What are you thinkin’?"

"Not sure yet, just think it's not a coincidence if it was Johnson who was killed," Heyes stated with a frown on his face.

"Kelly?"

Heyes nodded, "Well," he said as he looked at his watch, "Lom should be waiting for us, lets go make our entrance." They turned the horses around and headed into town.

***

Sheriff Trevors stepped out on the porch and casually walked around town. He took note where the bank was and what was around it. If Heyes thought something was up, something was probably up. Standing just down from the Sheriff Slatery’s office he heard his name called. He turned to see Heyes and Kid riding into town.

"Lom, Lom Trevors is that you?" Kid yelled out as he was slightly in front of Heyes.

"Jones!" he yelled back.

"Howdy Lom," Heyes said as they got closer to him and didn't have to yell.

"Smith!" he exclaimed. "You two are a sight for sore eyes. I know someone who is going to be thrilled you're here."

"Well thank you Lom, didn't know you cared," Kid said with a smile.

"Not me," Lom stated turning to Heyes, "Your wife! You're two weeks late, she's been worried."

"Ran into some trouble on the way home," Heyes said as he got off his horse. Noting Slatery standing at his office door, the three went through the act of explaining everything all over again.

"So what brings you to town Lom?" Kid asked.

"I came to identify Hannibal Heyes," Lom replied.

"He's here?" Kid asked sounding confused. "We thought he was up north."

"Wasn't him," Lom stated then explained to them about the failed robbery.

Kid looked at Heyes, "Do ya think it could be one of the guys that had us?"

"Could be," he said to Kid.

"Excuse me," Slatery said as he closed his door and walked towards the three men. "Did I over hear that you might know who was shot?"

"Don't know," Heyes said with a small smile on his face, "Sheriff..."

"Slatery."

"Sheriff Slatery," Heyes continued, "We just got into town and are only hearing of the shooting now. My partner and I were being held hostage by a gang and I guess it is possible it was one of them who was shot."

"Sheriff Slatery, this is Joshua Smith and Thaddeus Jones," Lom said as he introduced the two to Slatery.

Slatery looked the two of them over, "The Joshua Smith that's supposed to look like Hannibal Heyes?"

Heyes and Kid got a little uncomfortable, Heyes forced one of his smiles and pointed to his face, "Brown hair, brown eyes, and play poker," he said and almost rolled his eyes giving his best disarming smile as possible. "Pretty much describes half the men in town but when you have someone who is convinced there ain't much you can do ‘bout it ‘cept to wait for someone to come and tell them your not."

"Happen a lot?" Slatery asked looking curiously.

"Nooo," Heyes said still smiling as he shook his head. "A couple of drunk cowboys who lost at poker convinced a bounty hunter," he said wondering if this plan was such a good idea. Heyes didn't think Slatery would question them when he saw them with Lom. Now he was beginning to wonder if their friend would stand up for them if Slatery asked him directly if they were Heyes and Curry.

"How do you know them Sheriff Trevors?" Slatery asked. The fact that he called him Sheriff Trevors was not lost on the three men.

"Former deputies of mine," Lom said. "Moved on to bigger and brighter pastures."

"Smaller paycheck," Kid chirped in.

Heyes gave a low guttural chuckle and looked at Kid wide eyed and a ‘don't you know it grin'. Recovering he added, "You know, working for the Governor so there's more glory than pay."

"Oh," Slatery said with an acknowledging head nod. "Ain't that the truth! If we could only use the glory to pay for things." The four men stood nodding their heads in agreement. "Can you come take a look at this fella and see if it's one of the ones that held you?" Slatery asked as he looked at the partners.

"Sure," Kid replied, "Anythin’ we can do to help."

All four men turned to walk to the undertakers. Lom and Slatery led the way with Kid and Heyes following. Kid reached up and gave Heyes a pat on the back and rolled his eyes. Heyes looked at his partner and shook his head.

**

Heyes and Kid walked into the undertakers and over to the body. They both became very quiet. Even their body language changed as they reflected on their previous life and the fact that this could easily be them. They removed their hats as the undertaker lifted the sheet.

"It's Johnson," Heyes said solemnly as he shook his head.

Turning to Lom, Kid added, "He ran with Giant Jake and Joey. He was one on the guys that held us."

He bent down and checked out the body. Then nodded his head at the undertaker and turned to leave. As they step outside he said, "Notice anything strange about the wound?"

"Looked like a gun shot wound to me," Slatery replied.

"It looked to be at fairly close range," Lom replied.

"Yeah, it did. It also looks like he got shot from the front not the back." Heyes said as they walked back toward the Sheriff's office; his mind working trying to piece together the puzzle and come up with some answers. Continuing to think out loud he said, "The entrance wound is in the chest not the back. Johnson was facing the person who shot him and was pretty close." He walked a few more steps, "He didn't even draw his gun." Heyes paused for a moment, "I think he knew who shot him."

Kid looked at Heyes, "Revenge?"

"For what?" Lom asked.

"Not sure, but I think this was done to make a point," Heyes stated. "I think we need to talk to Stanley." Turning to Slatery, he asked, "Where can we find him?"

"At home in bed," Slatery stated, "He filled in on the night shift last night. Should be in town in about an hour or so."

"Well that gives you time to check into the hotel, get cleaned up and see Laurie," Lom stated.

"Laurie, Laurie's here," Heyes blurted out. As if on cue, she came running out of the hotel and into his arms. He held her in a tight hug as she began to cry.

Pulling her face off of his chest she reached up and touched his face with her hand, "I thought I heard your voice. You're here, you're really here."

"Yes," Heyes smiled as he looked into her eyes. "I have a lot of explaining to do, how ‘bout if we go to the hotel and I can get cleaned up and fill you in?" He turned to Kid and Lom, "Can you take care of the horses?"

Kid nodded.

Heyes and Laurie walked arm and arm across the street to the hotel.

Lom and Kid took the horses to the livery and then went to the hotel.

***

Heyes and Laurie went up to Kid's room to join Tom. Kid and Lom took care of the horses then met them in the room. As they entered the room Heyes was standing staring out the window, Kid looked at Laurie she smiled and nodded slightly. He acknowledged the nod with a glance, took of his hat and lay on the bed placing the hat over his face. Lifting his hat up he looked at Tom, "Make yourself comfortable, this might be a while."

"Think I'll head back to my room to get cleaned up," Tom stated.

"Mind if I room with you Tom?" Lom asked. "Looks like my room has been commandeered." With a wave of his arm Tom motioned for Lom to join him, they both walked out the door closing it behind them.

Heyes turned around, "Certainly know how to clear a room."

Kid once again lifted his hat off his face, turned to look at his partner, raised an eyebrow, and innocently stated, "I just said it could take a while."

"Yes you did," Heyes said walking across the room and into his and Laurie's room returning with a bottle of whiskey. He took two glasses off the dresser and poured two drinks. Motioning to Laurie, she shook her head no, he picked up the drinks handing one to Kid and took a sip from his glass. "Thing is, until we talk to Stanley, I really don't know what I should be thinking about. He's the key."

"The key?" the blond asked sitting up and drinking his drink.

"Yeah," Heyes absently responded still trying to sort things out in his head. "Who called my name? Was it one of the gang, Stanley or another guard? If it was a guard, was it just a guess or did he think he recognized me? Who shot Johnson? Johnson had to know his killer. The guy was right on top of him when he pulled the trigger. Was Johnson caught off guard or did he know the person? We can't get any of these answers until we talk to Stanley."

"You think we should do the talkin’?" Kid asked.

"I want to get a look at him first," Heyes said. "Make sure we don't know him. Then we should talk to him."

"Don't trust Lom to get the answers?"

"Not a matter of trust. It's our heads and I feel better if we handle it," Heyes explained. "Don't mind Lom helping but he is the law. Gonna do everything by the book." Heyes paused and a twinkle appeared in his eyes as a grin grew on his face, "We might have to get a little more creative!"

"What about Tom?" Laurie inquired.

"Don't have a problem with him either but don't know if push comes to shove if he's with us or not," Heyes answered.

"So what do we have them do?" Kid asked.

"We'll figure that out after we talk to Stanley," Heyes said, finished his drink and walked back to the window. "Now we wait for Stanley, then you and I go have a talk with him."

**

A couple hours later Heyes and Kid went to talk to the Deputy. "So Stanley," Heyes said as he paced the Sheriff's office, "What exactly happened the night of the robbery?"

"It wasn't really a robbery," Stanley stuttered, "They didn't get away with anything."

"Sorry," Heyes said, "Attempted robbery."

"Oh, oh," he hesitated.

"It's okay," the ex-outlaw said walking over to the man who was seated in the Sheriff's chair. "You aren't in trouble. We work for the Governor and thought Heyes and Curry were north. We are just trying to find out if our information was wrong and if for some reason Heyes and Curry have decided to get violent. So any information you could give us would be a great help."

Stanley let out a big breath and sat up in the chair, "Well if you need my help," he said proudly, "I'll do my best."

"That's all we can ask of ya Stanley," Kid said and smiled at the man.

"Well," he said, "What do you want to know?"

"Why not tell us about the night," Heyes said in the most disarming tone as he sat on the edge of the desk. "Did anything strange happen that night before the attempted robbery? Anything catch your eye, anything different? Just think about that night and tell us anything and everything you can remember. Don't leave any detail out, because even the smallest detail could be a clue."

Stanley sat and nodded his head at Heyes. He tightened his lips and creased his forehead as he began to think.

Kid looked at Heyes and smiled, he loved to watch his partner work. If anyone could get the smallest detail out of someone, it was him. It was the way he talked, the way he looked at you, it was Heyes being Heyes and it could be pure magic.

"The night started out like any other night," Stanley started as he had now closed his eyes. Kid could swear that if you looked closely you could see smoke coming out of Stanley's head he was thinking so hard. "Then they came and tried to rob the bank."

Heyes looked deflated, "That's it, nothing else happened the entire night. Everything was exactly the same as always, not one little thing had changed. You didn't notice any strangers on the street, no one was acting strange, no one came to see you."

"George stopped by," Stanley said matter-of-factly.

"George," Heyes asked raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah it was just George. Nothing else," Stanley said.

"Did George stop by all the time when you were on duty?" Kid asked as he moved to stand next to Heyes.

"Nope, first time probably," Stanley responded.

"You didn't think it was strange?" Kid asked.

"Nope, just George," Stanley shrugged.

"Who's George?" Heyes finally asked.

"George is George." Stanley said then added as he looked at Heyes, "George does some work now ‘n ‘gain at the bank."

"Guard duty?" Heyes asked.

"Nah," Stanley said, "He does whatever the owner needs. He does all different stuff needed inside the bank. He don't usually guard unless they's in a bind. He's more of a thinker guy."

Heyes looked at Kid and a conversation between the two of them took place without either one saying a word. After a minute Heyes turned back to Stanley, "Where can we find this George?"

"Oh, he's been real upset ‘bout the robbery, the almost robbery," Stanley corrected himself. "He's been hangin' out at the saloon most of the time, drinkin' lots."

"Thank you," Heyes said standing up. "Just one more thing, did you shoot the guy they thought was Hannibal Heyes?"

"No not me," Stanley said standing and shaking his head. "Never shot nobody!"

"Did you yell the name Heyes?" Heyes asked.

"Nope, not me neither. Must ‘ave been George," Stanley stated.

"George was there at the time they tried to rob the bank?" Kid asked.

"Yeah, he stopped by and we was talkin' for a while. He said I looked tired and he'd take over for me if I wanted. Then everythin' just got crazy," Stanley said. "It was so fast, guns firin'. I dove behind the wall so I wouldn't git hit. Next thing I know, others is comin' to help, I hear someone yell Heyes and the outlaws all turn and run. When I got up, I saw the dead guy."

"Thank you for your help, Stanley," Heyes said as he moved towards the door with Kid following him.

The partners exited the Sheriff's office, "So," Kid said as they paused on the boardwalk, "We goin’ to go talk to George now or wait?"

"Oh, we're definitely going to go talk to George now," Heyes stated as he stepped off the boardwalk and made a beeline to the saloon.

Heyes pushed open the saloon doors and paused taking in the entire room. He noticed a man sitting at the back table with a bottle in front of him, drinking by himself. Heyes gave an ever so slight move of his head in the direction of the man, Kid nodded in agreement. The two walked over to the bar, "Whiskey, two," Heyes said holding up two fingers. As the bartender poured them the drinks Heyes asked, "How long's George been drinking today?"

The bartender looked at the two strangers, "Not long," he hesitated but responded.

"First bottle then?" Kid asked.

"Yeah," the bartender said eyeing the two strangers.

"Well," Heyes said picking up his drink and turning towards George, "Let's go see if we can keep him sober."

Kid picked up his drink and followed Heyes.

"George," Heyes said as he sat down. "How ya doing tonight?"

"Do I know you?" George asked as he watched Kid sit down next to Heyes.

"No," Heyes said quietly, "But we know you."

"How?" George asked with a tremble in his voice as his eyes started to dart around the saloon.

"The bank robbery," Heyes said so softly he almost just mouthed the words.

"I'm doin' what they told me to do," George stuttered.

"And you're doing a good job of it," Heyes said with a smile. "Now George," he started, "Why don't you tell me exactly what you are doing?"

"Just like," George started but was interrupted by a man that had walked up behind Kid and Heyes.

"George," the man nodded his head. "Excuse me sirs, but are you the two Sheriffs that came to town to identify Hannibal Heyes?" the man asked.

"No sir, that's not us," Heyes said as he smiled at the man then started to turn back towards George.

"But Sheriff Slatery pointed you out as you walked into the saloon. He said you came to identify Hannibal Heyes," the man insisted. "You went to look at the dead man and said it wasn't Hannibal Heyes," the man paused. "Oh, you must be the Deputy Sheriff's and not the Sheriffs."

Heyes closed his eyes for a moment as all hope of getting George to open up because he thought they were part of the gang just disappeared. With a tight smile on his face, "Former deputies. I'm sorry, I thought you were looking for the two sheriffs that came to town."

"No, I just wanted to know why you said that man wasn't Hannibal Heyes?" the man stated.

"Because it's not," Kid replied rather gruffly seeing Heyes’ plan fall apart. "What's it matter to you?"

"I'm the bank manager!" the man stated indignantly. "How are you so positive?" He blurted out.

"Because we know what Hannibal Heyes looks like and the man lying in the undertakers ain't Hannibal Heyes," Kid stated and glared at the man.

"Oh," the man became rather sheepish under the scrutiny of Kid turned and walked quickly out of the saloon.

Heyes turned to George; "Now where were we," he said quietly and smiled.

"Where were we," George said as he quickly downed his drink and poured another one. "I was sittin' here mindin' my own business when the two of you came in and started to bother me. Now you can leave me alone," he said as he shot the glass he just poured and quickly downed another.

Heyes looked at Kid and shook his head then stood up. "George, we were only trying to help you out." The partners stood for a moment watching George guzzle the whiskey then turned and left the saloon.

**

The slamming of the hotel room door caught Laurie, Lom and Tom off guard. Laurie had been sitting in her and Heyes room reading a book. Lom and Tom were in their room waiting for Heyes and Kid to return. "Just perfect!" Heyes exclaimed as he threw his hands in the air. He took off his hat and angrily threw it on the dresser. "Of all the perfect timing!" Heyes continued to rant as he paced the room. "Bank manager couldn't have waited to come talk to us. Had to do it right then and there. George was going to open up," Heyes said as he turned to look at Kid. "I could tell he was going to tell us what was going on." Heyes abruptly stopped talking and continued pacing.

"Didn't go well?" Laurie asked Kid quietly.

"Bank manager interrupted our conversation with George. Heyes had him thinkin’ we were part of the gang." Kid replied.

"Bank manger came in and George clammed up," Heyes spit out and kept pacing then stopped. "Kid," Heyes said turning to face him, "Why would the bank manger come into the saloon at the exact same time we're talking to George?"

"Bad timing?" he responded then got the drift of what his partner was thinking. "You don't think it was bad timin’ do you?"

"Don't know Kid," Heyes said as he put his hand to his chin, fingers barely covering his mouth and began to think. As he slowly started to pace, his mind started to put together the plan for the bank robbery. Deep in thought he said, "Here me out. We tell Jake that the million dollars in jewels are here in the bank. I come up with an elaborate plan to rob the bank. This buys us time and allows us to get away. My plan called for twelve men. Now the gang is two short. With the security as new as it is, who better to get to fill in the two empty slots in the gang then the under paid part time security guard and the under paid bank manager?"

"But how? Why?" Kid asked prodding Heyes to continue hashing things out.

"I haven't figured that out yet," Heyes paused, "Something always seemed wrong to me. Just didn't fit. There's a piece of this puzzle out there and I think George is the key. If we can get him to talk," Heyes stopped and shook his head. A knock on the door broke his concentration for a moment.

Kid walked over and let Lom and Tom in.

"Heard you two come back," Lom said stopping short as he noticed Heyes pacing slowly in the room. Kid nodded and closed the door behind the men. The three men stood there watching Heyes for a minute.

"If the bank manager just," Heyes blurted out in almost a growl.

"We found the other guy that was there that night at the saloon and thought he was going to talk until the bank manger came in and let him know we were with the law," Kid explained to Lom and Tom.

"Now we have to figure out a new way to get him to talk," Heyes said as he plopped himself down into the chair.

"Seems George has been doing a lot of drinkin’ since they tried to rob the bank," Kid said.

"Well, maybe if we had the Sheriff bring him in he'll talk," Tom said.

Heyes shook his head, he was still thinking, "No, he's too scared. Something is up and we have to find out what or there goes our amnesty."

"What if you can't," Tom asked.

Heyes glared at him, "That's not an option. We may be wanted for robbing banks and trains but we're not wanted for murder. Twenty years is one thing, hangings another."

"If you've forgotten Tom," Kid said rather surly, "We don't do that any more. We've gone straight and are trying to get amnesty. This messes up everythin’."

Laurie stood up from the chair and put her book down, "Tom, Heyes and Kid have been nothing but model citizens since they went to see Lom."

"How do you know?" Hardy asked. "I know they say that weren't involved but they were missing for two weeks."

"How do I know?" Laurie asked, "How do I know? It's very simple." She walked over to Heyes and looked him in the eyes, "Hannibal Heyes, were you involved in the bank robbery?"

"Attempted," Kid corrected.

Laurie gave a slight smile to Kid then turned back to look Heyes in the eyes once again, "Hannibal Heyes were you," she turned and looked at Kid, "or Kid Curry involved in the ATTEMPTED bank robbery?"

"No," Heyes stated calmly returning her gaze.

She smiled at him, turned to Tom, "Satisfied?"

"That's it," Tom asked. "Just because he said no."

"YES!" Laurie stated with authority. "Heyes said he and Kid had nothing to do with the ATTEMPTED robbery and that's good enough for me." Turning to look at Lom, "Is that good enough for you?"

Lom nodded his head.

"Tom, or do I need to call you Sheriff again? Heyes and Kid don't rob banks any more and when they did they didn't shoot people. Do you really think after all this time they would give it all up and then be stupid enough to come back into town? If they wanted to go back to their old ways, they would have taken the million dollars in jewels. We had them, no one knew. We could have gotten away before anyone noticed they were gone, no one chasing them or shooting at them. Yes I know," she continued sarcastically, "None of the glory of being a bank robber, but a heck of a lot safer and smarter."

"Well," Hardy said with a small chuckle and a grin appearing on his face, "Now that you put it that way, it would seem rather stupid." Becoming more serious he turned towards the partners, "I wasn't accusing you, really. It's just that things don't look so good for you right now and no one can back you up on your story."

"We know," Kid said. "That's why it's so important to figure out what happened and who did this. If we can't, our hope for amnesty is over.

"Well" Laurie said, "I have complete faith in you figuring this out. Since I think you men have things to discuss, I will leave you and go take a walk." Laurie leaned over and gave Heyes a kiss on the cheek. She brushed Kid's arm and gave it a little squeeze and then left the room.

***

About an hour later the four men were no closer figuring out how George was involved or how to get him to talk. "I could use a beer," Lom said as he stood up and walked to the door, "Anyone for a drink at the saloon, I'm buying."

"Well then," Kid said with a smile spreading across his face as he grabbed his hat, "count me in."

"Me too," Tom chimed in.

Kid turned towars his partner, "Heyes you comin’?"

He had been staring out the window for some time. "Huh?" he said, as he turned still deep in thought.

"The saloon. Are you comin’?" Kid asked. "Lom's buying."

"Oh," Heyes paused and got a small sparkle his eye, "If Lom's buying." Heyes paused again and looked out the window.

"See somethin’?" Kid asked.

"No," Heyes said turning back around and picking up his hat. "Just been a while. I was wondering what happened to Laurie."

"She's probably sitting on the porch or checking out the stores," Kid replied as Heyes reached him, Kid patted him on the back. "I'm sure she's fine. You know how she likes to explore."

Heyes chuckled slightly, smiled and tilted his head, "She does, doesn't she."

***

The four men found a table towards the end of the bar, "Four beers," Lom told the bartender as he passed and sat down at the table. Kid and Lom had their backs to the bar, while Heyes sat next to Kid facing the bar and the front door of the saloon. Tom was in between Lom and Heyes.

Picking up his beer and taking a sip Kid's eyes widen and he started to choke. "Wrong way," Kid coughed waving off his partner and the others at the table. "Just went down the wrong way." He took a deep breath and looked at the table for a moment before looking back up at the cause of his choking. Shifting uncomfortably in his chair, he made eye contact at the exact moment Lom looked in the same direction and almost spit out the sip of beer he had just taken.

"I don't see George in here," Kid stated trying to look in the direction of the table George had been seated at earlier only to find his eyes drifting back to the distraction. "Think I'll finish my beer and head back to the room or maybe get somethin’ to eat."

"That sounds like a good idea," Lom jumped in and agreed, both men taking large gulps of beer.

Heyes scanned the area of the saloon he could see from his vantage point, "You're right, don't see George. Maybe he left, or he went up stairs." Brown eyes surveyed the bar and came back to Kid and Lom. "What's with you two?"

"Nothin'," Kid and Lom said acting uncomfortable. "Just decided I would like to get somethin' to eat," Kid added.

"You're acting strange!" Heyes said as he studied his partner and hearing a laugh come from behind him he quietly asked, "Is that George laughing?"

"Don't think so," Kid replied quickly and downed his beer. "Time for food, come on lets go," he said as he pushed his chair back from the table.

Another laugh bigger and longer came from behind Heyes, "That's George," Heyes insisted as he turned to find the source of the laughter. Standing about ten feet from them was George with a saloon girl. Heyes could tell by George's stance and voice he probably hadn't stopped drinking since they had seen him earlier. The girl was standing next to him with her back to Heyes. She was talking to him but kept a slight distance between herself and intoxicated man. Heyes thought that was a little unusual for a saloon girl who usually staked their claim in a man and held on tight. As he looked for a moment, even though he could only see the back of the girl, something seemed oddly familiar.

Kid sat frozen in time as he could see the look of recognition slowly travel down Heyes' face.

"Honey," George boomed in a loud drunken voice, "Go get me another drink." The saloon girl turned towards the bar with her eyes meeting Heyes' just as George gave her a big smack on the butt.

Kid reach over and put his hand on Heyes' right arm holding it to the chair arm.

Heyes' eyes bulged appearing to almost pop out before whipping his head towards Kid, his eyes suddenly black and narrow. His lips had become paper-thin as he pressed them together. You could see the clenching of the jaw as all the muscles in his face contracted. The hand on the table slowly made a very tight fist as the hand on the chair grasped the arm so hard his knuckles where white and Kid thought the chair would snap under the pressure. Heyes' nostrils flared and Kid would later swear that he could see steam being blown out as he breathed heavily.

"Heyes," Kid's eyes met his partners although he wasn't sure Heyes could see him. "She has a reason..." was all he got out before she passed the table not even acknowledging their existence.

"I'm going to kill him. Then I'm going to find out what the hell she was thinking," Heyes spit out.

Tom, looking up from his beer, saw Laurie pass the table dressed as a saloon girl. Her hair was piled high on her head, and she was wearing an above the knee royal blue off the shoulder dress, black stockings and black high lace up boots. The dressed was cinched tightly from her waist up to her bosom hoisting them up and almost out of the top of the low cut dress.

Brown eyes glared at blue eyes as he began to stand up and Kid removed his hand from his partner’s arm. Kid held his eyes on Heyes' as he was looking for and trying to get back some reassurance that he wasn't going to completely loose it.

Taking a step towards the bar, Heyes put his hand on Kid's shoulder as he passed letting him know he would control himself.

Kid let out the breath he was holding.

Stepping up to the bar and standing next to Laurie, "Whiskey," Heyes snarled in a voice so fierce it sent shivers up her spine.

Trying hard not to show any reaction or change in expression Laurie said very quietly so only Heyes could hear her, "He's talking."

The bartender returned with George's drink for Laurie and Heyes' drink. As she picked up George's drink with her left hand, Heyes placed his hand firmly on her right arm holding it to the bar. Turning to Heyes, Laurie waited for a moment to meet his eyes as he slowly turned his head towards her. "Sorry Sugar," she said in a very sugar and breathy voice loud enough to be heard by others in the bar, "I'm takin' right now, maybe later." Laurie held onto Heyes' glare trying to convey with her eyes that she was okay and that she would explain.

Heyes held the stare momentarily then lifted his hand off her arm.

A slight smile and slow blink of her eyes showed a moment of tenderness to Heyes before she turned back to George and plastered a fake smile across her face.

Heyes stayed at the bar and drank the whiskey in one gulp and motioned for another.

Kid stood up and walked over to the bar standing next to him.

"He's talking," Heyes said quietly, his eyes still black and narrow, his lips not moving.

Kid hadn't seen this look in his partner in a long time and was very impressed by his ability to keep it together under this situation. Heyes rarely lost it, having the ability to hold everything in and under control, but this was one situation Kid could understand it happening.

"She'll be alright," Kid said quietly, "I promise." He turned to see George staggering towards the stairs with Laurie helping to push him along. Kid's eyes met hers with such intensity it felt like they cut right through her.

Laurie held the piercing stare and slowly and slightly moved her head and eyes towards upstairs hopefully indicating to Kid she wanted him to follow.

Heyes turned to see Laurie about halfway up the stairs.

Kid once again put his hand securely on Heyes' right arm holding it by his side. "She wants us up there," he said quietly.

Heyes' entire body tensed as he watched Laurie and George disappear into the upstairs hallway.

"You go up the back stairs…" Kid started but was interrupted.

"No!" Heyes said in his outlaw leader voice as he turned and glared at his partner.

Kid hadn't heard this voice or seen that face for over a year and knew Heyes meant business.

"I'll go up the front stairs, you take the back." Heyes asserted as he pushed himself off the bar. Scanning the saloon he quickly grabbed the closest saloon girl, "Upstairs, now!" he demanded.

Kid swiftly made his way through the saloon to the back stairs and taking them by two ran up. As the partners reach the upstairs hallway, Laurie was in the hall quietly closing the door to the room behind her.

Turning to see Heyes and Kid she let out a small sigh and started to smile.

Heyes abruptly grabbed Laurie by the arm effectively removing the smile from her face and unequivocally stated, "You're coming with me!" Heyes took two strides towards the back staircase and turned his head towardshis partner, "Kid".

"I'll take care of it," he replied not having to hear the rest of what Heyes had to say. He knew he wanted him to take care of the girl he just discarded as well as Lom and Tom. Heyes needed time alone with Laurie and Kid was going to give him that time. Turning to the girl, "Miss," he started.

"Amber," the girl replied.

"Amber," Kid repeated. "I'm sorry but my friend has some business to attend to." Pulling out some money from his pocket he handed it to her, "Here's for your time."

Amber took the money from Kid, smiled and cozied up to him, "Well, you don't look busy."

He sighed and put his arms around Amber, "Unfortunately looks can be deceivin’. There isn't anythin’ I would rather do right now then to walk into that room with you but I can't."

"Hmm." Amber made a noise, "Must be a real good friend." She lightly kissed his lips.

Kid closed his eyes, "Right now I wish I never met him." He returned the kiss and pulled Amber into a passionate embrace. Pulling back he tipped his hat and stepped around her.

Amber touched his arm as he passed, "Another time?"

"I certainly hope so, Amber. I certainly hope so," Kid sighed.

***

Heyes didn't say a word as he hastily guided Laurie back to their hotel room. He opened the door and led her in. Taking off his hat he placed it on the dresser never looking at her. He took the pitcher of water and filled the basin, "Wash your face," he curtly instructed. "You look..." he stopped himself and shook his head. Still not looking at her, he walked passed and reached for her robe. "Put this on," he told her as he handed it to her; Laurie hadn't moved from where she stopped when she walked in.

Heyes was upset, really upset. When she turned and saw him in the saloon she knew he would be, but hoped her reason would be enough. She was waiting for him to explode and yell at her and all he had done is give her the silent treatment. Looking at him, she thought she might be able to tell what he was thinking, but she barely recognized him. His facial expression, the eyes, even the body language were completely different from anything she had experienced before. Right now, in front of her eyes, he was Hannibal Heyes the leader of the Devils Hole Gang. Laurie took the robe from Heyes and hoped she hadn't gone too far.

He stared out the window in silence as she washed her face. Turning around to face him, Laurie quietly asked, "Did I get all the make-up off?"

Heyes turned around to look at her, she had the robe over her dress and was still wearing the black stockings and boots but her face was clean.  She had also taken her hair down so it flowed gently over her shoulders. He nodded his head yes.

"Can I please explain," Laurie softly requested as she took a step towards him.

"There's nothing to explain," Heyes stated in a monotone voice. "My wife was in the saloon, dressed as a saloon girl and THEN WENT UP STAIRS WITH ANOTHER MAN!" The floodgates opened and Heyes exploded with all the force of a volcano. Everything he had been holding in and controlling since he first recognized Laurie in the saloon was pouring out.

She stood there quietly watching him walk and pace through the room talking to himself.

After a few minutes he turned to her, "WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU THINKING! DRESSING LIKE THAT! GOING INTO THE SALOON! ACTING LIKE A SALOON GIRL! GOING UPSTAIRS!!! UPSTAIRS WITH A MAN! DO YOU KNOW HOW I FELT WHEN I SAW MY WIFE DRESSED LIKE THAT WITH ANOTHER MAN? KID, LOM, TOM, THE WHOLE TOWN SAW MY WIFE HALF NAKED! THEN, THEN," he bellowed as he ran his hand through his hair. "THEN YOU WENT UPSTAIRS WITH HIM! WHAT WERE YOU THINKING? OBVIOUSLY YOU WEREN'T THINKING! THAT CAN BE THE ONLY EXPLAINATION! YOU WEREN'T THINKING! IS THIS WHAT YOU HAVE BEEN DOING SINCE I'VE BEEN GONE? HAVE YOU BEEN A SALOON GIRL IN SMALL FALLS? WHAT COULD POSSIBLY HAVE MADE YOU DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT?"

"You," Laurie replied meekly.

"WHAT?" he barked.

"I was thinking about you," she repeated. "I was thinking about how you said you had to find a way to get George to talk. You needed to find a way to clear your name and Kid's name. I was thinking of you!" Laurie started to get angry and her voice started to get louder. "I was thinking of YOU!!! And it turns out all you were thinking was about YOU. Not what I might be doing to help you but how YOU felt. Do you think I enjoyed getting dressed like this? Going into the saloon. Have the men look at me the way they did? Do you think I liked having that man place his hand anywhere near me? The answer if you haven't figured out is NO! I didn't like it but I did it because I saw a way that I could help. Because I LOVE YOU! And to answer you, NO I HAVE NEVER EVER BEEN A SALOON GIRL BEFORE! I WASN'T EVEN ONE TONIGHT! I JUST DRESSED LIKE ONE! I DIDN'T LET HIM OR ANYONE ELSE IN THERE TOUCH ME!"

"YOU COULD HAVE BEEN HURT! HE COULD HAVE DONE THINGS TO YOU! HE IS A LOT BIGGER THAN YOU AND SO WERE ALL THE MEN IN THERE! WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED TO YOU!" Heyes paced a little more and ran his hand over his face, "YOU WENT UP STAIRS WITH HIM!"

"I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN HURT! I HAD THINGS UNDER CONTROL! IF YOU AND KID HADN'T COME INTO THE SALOON, I WOULD NEVER HAVE GONE UPSTAIRS WITH HIM! BUT I HAD IT ALL UNDER CONTROL! I KNEW IF YOU WERE THERE I WOULD BE SAFE, EVEN AS UPSET AS I KNEW YOU WERE, EVEN UPSTAIRS I WOULD BE SAFE! BESIDES, I TOLD KID TO COME UP STAIRS."

"HOW DID YOU DO THAT?"

"I LOOKED AT HIM WHEN I WAS GOING UP THE STAIRS! HE KNEW!" Laurie shouted. "I HAD IT UNDER CONTROL!"

"YOU HAD IT ALL UNDER CONTROL!"

"YES I DID!" Laurie yelled defiantly. "SALLY TOLD ME HOW TO GET A MAN TO TALK AND HOW NOT TO WORRY WHAT WAS GOING TO HAPPEN WITH HIM!"

"SALLY! WHO THE HELL IS SALLY? AND HOW WOULD SHE KNOW?"

"SALLY, FROM THE RED DOOR SALOON IN SMALL FALLS! SHE KNOWS! PLY A MAN WITH ENOUGH LIQUOR AND HE WON'T BE ABLE TO DO ANYTHING EVEN IF HE WANTS TO! IF YOU TIME IT RIGHT YOU CAN GET HIM UP STAIRS AND HE'LL PASS OUT AS HE HITS THE BED! THEN HE WILL THINK EVERYTHING WENT GREAT AND SHE WOULD STILL GET PAID!"

"WHAT IF THINGS DIDN'T WORK OUT THE WAY YOU WANTED? THEN WHAT?"

"THEN THE GUY WOULD BE TOO DRUNK TO RUN AFTER YOU ANYWAY! GEORGE COULD BARELY STAND BY HIMSELF! DO YOU REALLY THINK I AM THAT HELPLESS THAT I COULDN'T TAKE CARE OF MYSELF WITH A MAN WHO NEEDED SOMEONE OR SOMETHING TO HOLD ON TO JUST TO KEEP STANDING! YOU DON'T THINK I COULD HAVE GOTTEN AWAY IF HE WOULD HAVE TRIED SOMETHING?"

"HE WAS WEARING A GUN! A GUN MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD!"

"NOT IF HE CAN'T POINT IT STRAIGHT! I DON'T EVEN KNOW IF HE COULD HAVE TAKEN IT OUT OF HIS HOLSTER!"

"YOU WERE WILLING TO TAKE THAT CHANCE? WHAT IF HE COULD? WHAT IF HE HAD IDEAS, IDEAS OF WHAT HE WANTED TO DO WITH THE PRETTY LITTLE SALOON GIRL! THEN WHAT?"

"I TOLD YOU, I WOULDN'T HAVE GONE UPSTAIRS IF YOU AND KID WEREN'T IN THE SALOON!"

"STUFF HAPPENS DOWNSTAIRS TOO YOU KNOW!" Heyes rubbed his hands over his face. How could he get through to her? Explain the danger she was in. That what she did was stupid. "HOW DID YOU KNOW WE COULD HAVE GOTTEN TO YOU IN TIME? HOW DID YOU KNOW HE WOULDN'T HAVE DONE SOMETHING ONCE HE PAID YOU? YOU DIDN'T TAKE MONEY! DID YOU?" Heyes yelled sounding horrified.

"NO, I DIDN'T TAKE MONEY!!! HOW DID I KNOW YOU WOULD SHOW UP IN TIME, BECAUSE YOU WERE THERE! I KNEW YOU WOULD PROTECT ME AND BY THE WAY, I WAS GETTING INFORMATION BUT YOU ARE BEING TOO PIG HEADED TO ASK WHAT I WAS DOING AND WAS I SUCCESSFUL! SINCE YOU WON’T ASK I'LL TELL YOU! I WAS GETTING GEORGE TO TALK, AND YES IT WORKED! GOT THE INFORMATION, THE LAST LITTLE IMPORTANT BIT UPSTAIRS BEFORE HE PASSED OUT! SO I GUESS IT WAS A GOOD THING YOU AND KID SHOWED UP!" Laurie yelled then growled, crossed her arms in front of her and turned away from Heyes.

"YOU," Heyes began to yelled and then stopped. "You got George to talk?"

"Yes," Laurie said still facing away from Heyes.

"And," Heyes said.

"And what," Laurie said in a pouting voice.

Heyes walked slowly over to Laurie and wrapped his arms around her waist pulling her close against his chest, "And can you please tell me what he said?"

"Will you stop yelling at me?" Laurie asked still acting hurt.

"I've already stopped yelling," Heyes said quietly into her ear before he nibbled it. "But, if you keep this up, I'll start again."

"Okay," Laurie said turning around with one bounce like a teenage girl. "I found out everything." she smiled, "You wanna hear?"

He nodded.

"George is related to the bank manager. They're brothers-in-law. The bank manger is married to George's sister."

"We could have found that out talking to people in town," Heyes said. "You didn't have to do this," he closed his eyes trying not to explode again, "to get that information."

"True," Laurie said biting her bottom lip.

"Stop trying to distract me."

"Sorry," she said releasing her bottom lip. "If I didn't get George to talk," she continued, "you wouldn't have found out that the gang kidnapped the wife!"

"What?" Heyes said taken aback.

"The gang kidnapped George’s sister and is holding her now. Seems the bank manager is really bad at poker and lost big time to someone in the gang. They said he could keep the money if he helped them out. Just to make sure he did, they kidnapped the wife. The bank manager told everyone in town she was visiting her sister because they said they would killer her if anyone found out. He got George to help out. He was supposed to be on duty so no one would get hurt. The gang arrived early and the other guard, Stanley I think, hadn't left yet. The guy who has the wife is the one that shot Johnson and the other man when they were leaving town. He turned to George and said this is what will happen to your sister then said something about payback and your name before he shot Johnson."

"Why do they still have the sister?"

"They're planning on coming back. There's a mining payroll due tomorrow and they're going to go after it. They said this time no mistakes or the sister is going to be tortured and killed," Laurie said. "George is to pretend to be upset and drunk until tomorrow and then he'll have to go help out. He has to keep Stanley busy. Did I do okay?" she asked looking up into Heyes' eyes.

"You did better than okay," he smiled at her. "Why didn't you tell me what you were planning?"

"You would have been okay with it?"

"No, but..."

"No buts." Laurie stated, "We needed to get George to talk. You wouldn't have let me do it."

He nodded. Changing the subject Heyes quietly asked, "How do you know Sally?"

"When I first went to Small Falls and had no place to stay she was really nice to me. She told me how to handle men. She said it wasn't a bad job, and I would get a roof over my head and meals."

Heyes lowered his head and closed his eyes,

"Heyes," Laurie said softly as she raised her hand to touch the side of his face, "I didn't take the job." She paused and gazed into his eyes as he opened them, "I didn't take the job. You were and are my first and only. Okay."

A smile spread across his face, "Okay." Heyes leaned down and kissed Laurie gently on the lips. "Kid will be back soon, can you please finish getting changed?"

"Okay," she said. "Oh, my skirt and blouse are still upstairs at the saloon. I borrowed the dress from Amber. She helped me get ready. She did my hair and make-up."

"What did you say to get her to loan you a dress and help you out?" Heyes asked.

"I told her I needed to make my husband jealous. That he, well you, spent too much time in saloons and not enough time with me," she said as she pulled out clothes to wear.

"Oh," Heyes said glumly.

Laurie rolled her eyes, "I didn't know if she would help if I told her the truth so I hoped she was an incurable romantic. Since you brought her upstairs and then left her standing there, I think she'll buy that, the plan worked," Laurie said smugly. "By the way," she said curtly as she turned to look at him, "I had better not see or hear of you taking another saloon girl upstairs again. Got it!"

Heyes nodded his head dutifully.

Laurie removed the robe and asked, "Can you help unlace this in the back?"

He gave her a devilish smile, "Absolutely," he said as he started to untie the bodice he looked Laurie up and down. "Hmm, maybe we can take this dress home with us."

"Excuse me!" she exclaimed. "You just yelled at me for a half an hour about wearing this dress and now you want to take it home!"

"Well," Heyes said mischievously, "You can wear it at home in our bedroom."

Laurie looked at him and gave him a big swat on the arm. "What am I going to do with you?" she said as she bit her bottom lip.

Heyes made a low guttural growl, "I'll figure something out."

***

Kid walked down the stairs of the saloon and sat down at the table. Lom and Tom looked at him. "They went out the back," he said.

"Should we go back to the room?" Tom asked.

"No!" Kid said shaking his head. "We'll give them time to talk first."

"I was thinking time for Heyes to cool down," Lom stated motioning to the bartender for another round of beer.

"Yep," Kid replied. "We should give Heyes time to cool down."

"Haven't seen that look in his eyes in a long time," Lom stated. "Noticed you held his arm away from his holster."

"Well, I haven't seen that face in a long time either. Didn't see the point in taking chances."

"He won’t hurt Laurie?" Tom asked.

"Never!" Kid replied. "Heyes would never hurt a woman let alone Laurie. He might yell but he won't place a hand on her."

The bartender delivered the beer.

"How long?" Lom asked.

"We'll drink our beer slow. I think the fireworks should be over in about half hour. We'll give them forty-five minutes just to make sure and not to interrupt if they're in the process of making up," Kid said and took a sip of his beer. "We should probably make it two maybe three beers."

***

The three men took their time finishing their beer and ordered another one just to make sure they didn't arrive back at the room too soon. They left the saloon after about an hour and headed back to the hotel. As they walked into the hotel lobby Kid turned to Lom, "So far so good."

"You think we could hear them down here?" Tom asked.

Lom chuckled, "I don't know about Laurie, but Joshua," he paused, as the clerk was in earshot, "can certainly yell loud when he wants too."

"Looking at his face when he left, I'm surprised we didn't hear them back at the saloon," Kid said as he reached the bottom of the stairs. He paused for a minute looking at the other two men, sighed and started up the stairs. Entering his room, the other two men followed. "I don't know," Kid said, "It's a little too quiet don't ya think?"

"Not if Laurie had a good reason and they worked it out," Tom said.

"Laurie had a good reason," Kid stated, "just didn't think that would be enough to calm Heyes down." He walked over to the door between the two rooms and lightly tapped.

***

Laurie had changed and Heyes was back to pacing the room when they heard the door to the room next to theirs open and footsteps. Heyes turned quickly and whipped open the door, "What took you so long?" he asked a startled Kid.

"Just finishing our beer," Kid said innocently as he peered around Heyes to see Laurie.

"Well you took your time," Heyes stated.

"Thought you might need a little alone time," Lom said as he walked in the room and tipped his hat a Laurie.

"Why?" Heyes asked, then remembering, "Oh," he added a little sheepishly. "Laurie got George to talk!" he said boastfully.

A smile spread across Kid's face.

"Smart girl you got Heyes," Lom said as he smiled. "I'd hold onto her."

"Planning on it Lom," Heyes said a little protective.

"So," Kid said sitting in the corner chair, "What did George have to say?"

"It turns out that George and the bank manager are brothers-in-law," Heyes started. "Bank manager married George's sister and he's a real bad poker player."

"The bank manger or George?" Kid asked.

"Bank manager," Heyes replied. "Seems he lost a lot of money to someone in the gang. Was told he could keep his money if he helped out."

"Eleven," Kid stated.

"What?" Tom asked?

"Eleventh man. Heyes' plan needed twelve men," Kid answered looking at Tom. Turning to Heyes, "Let me guess, George was number twelve."

Heyes nodded.

"How much could he have lost?"

"It wasn't just the money," Heyes stated. "They kidnapped the bank manager's wife, just to make sure they would be cooperative."

Kid groaned.

"Yep, now if we can't prove we didn't do this, add kidnapping to the charges of robbery and murder."

"Heyes," Kid moaned.

"I know Kid, but we'll prove it," he stated confidently.

Kid looked up surprised, "Got a plan?"

"Not yet, but there's one out there?" Heyes said and smiled. "Almost forgot," he added, "They're planning on hitting the bank again. Big mining payroll due in tomorrow. They still have the bank manager's wife. Holding her until the job is done so nothing goes wrong this time. George is supposed to stay out of the way and then distract Stanley at the right time. Bank manager won't interfere because they have the wife."

"Do we know where they are?" Lom asked.

Heyes shook his head.

"Oh," Laurie said standing up from the chair she had been sitting in and walking over to Heyes, "Did I leave that part out?"

Heyes looked at her and nodded his head.

"She should be in the bank manager's hunting cabin. They were keeping her in the house and then after the mess up during the first attempt they decided to leave town. The bank manager convinced them to go to the cabin so he would know his wife was safe."

"Do we know where the cabin is?" he asked quietly.

"George was a little drunk so I'm not positive but it should be about five miles out of town up the hill. He said you couldn't miss it. It's the only thing out there. The bank manager has dropped supplies out near there twice and when he checked, they had been taken so they figure they're still there. George said something about just following the creek. Then he passed out," Laurie said. "Sorry I couldn't get more."

"You did great," Heyes said pulling her close and giving her a kiss on the forehead. "Much better than we did." He looked at Kid and smiled.

"So now what?" Tom asked.

"Heyes comes up with a plan to get the bank manager's wife out and catch the gang," Kid stated standing up. "I think gettin’ some food might help in the thinkin’." 

"Kid, do you ever not think of food?" Heyes asked.

"What?" Kid said defensively. "We haven't eaten in...in a long time. I can't help it if I'm starvin’!"

"Now that you mention it," Lom said, "I could use some food too."

***

The five of them went and ate dinner. It was fairly quiet as Heyes, deep in thought, sat there more playing with his food than eating it. Finally he said, "If we don't get the wife before they leave to rob the bank she's dead. Then they'll come into town and kill the bank manager and George."

"There goes our amnesty," Kid stated.

"Worse than that, four murders added to your wanted poster. The two of you would be hunted down non stop," Lom stated. "The bounty would be increased and I'm sure the wanted Dead would be emphasized."

"Don't paint a rosy picture on our account, Lom," Kid said glumly.

Heyes put his hands up, "I'm not ready to give up on everything. There's a plan out there and I'm going to figure it out." He paused, "We know they are probably going to try to hit the bank tomorrow night."

"How do you know that?" Tom asked.

"Easy, payroll comes in tomorrow. They aren't going to let it sit there or take the chance they'll start paying it out. And, they've already hung around too long. Jake isn't going to hang here any longer than they have to," Kid said.

"If Jake's in charge," Heyes stated.

"You think Kelly took over?" Kid asked looking at his partner.

"Jake is mean and he don't let much stop him, but kidnapping isn't usually included" Heyes said.

"He held you," Tom said.

"That was different," Heyes explained. "He thought we cheated him out of money. The bank manger didn't cheat anyone out of money. Now if you said he held the bank manager or George, but not the wife. Jake and Joey have never been accused of mistreating a woman." Heyes paused, "It's also too arrogant a plan for Jake. He's real simple. Having two outsiders, that's not Jake."

"He was going to use you two," Tom stated.

Kid glared at him, "No, he was going to use a Hannibal Heyes plan with Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry. A whole lot different!"

"Why would Jake go along with him?" Lom asked.

"Don't know," Heyes said shaking his head.

"Maybe he has no choice," Laurie stated.

The men turned and looked at her; she had been sitting so quietly they had forgotten she was there. Laurie turned to Heyes, "You've done things because you have had no choice. You had to rob a bank because they were holding Kid and threatening to kill him if you didn't do it. Jake and Joey are pretty much as inseparably as you and Kid. Maybe Jake doesn't have a choice or maybe it's Joey that doesn't have a choice. They're already holding one hostage, what's another one?"

Heyes smiled at Laurie, "She has a point," Kid said.

"Guess we should look at this as maybe more than one hostage," Heyes paused, "Maybe a smaller gang to deal with. Those who joined with Kelly and those loyal to Jake."

"So what's next?" Tom asked.

"Not sure yet," Heyes stated, "but we're going to leave first thing in the morning and head up to the cabin. I'll have it all figured out by then." Heyes stood up from the table, "I'm going to head back to the room now, see you at seven." Turning to Laurie, "You coming?" he asked.

Laurie nodded her head, stood up and the two went back to the hotel.

***

Kid, Lom and Tom headed over to the saloon for a while. Kid stayed for a little while then headed back to the hotel as well. Entering into his room there was a knock on the door between his and Heyes'. Opening the door Heyes was standing there, "We leave at four," he stated.

"We gonna tell Lom and Tom?" Kid asked.

"No," Heyes said. "It's our necks on the line. Don't know about Tom yet and there is no reason for us to take a chance. Don't know how he'll react if we have to bend the law a little."

"And Lom?" Kid asked.

"I trust Lom, trust him with our lives but he is the law. He shouldn't be seen helping us out by people who know who we are," Heyes said. "They could use it against him."

Kid nodded his head in agreement.

"Laurie will tell them when they come at six-thirty and it will give us a head start."

"Thought you told them seven," Kid said.

"Do you really think Lom is going to wait ‘til seven? You don't think he'll show up early?"

Kid chuckled, "You're probably right, Heyes. So what's the plan?"

"To save the bank manager's wife and stop the gang," Heyes said matter-of-factly.

"Oh," Kid said.

Heyes smiled, then gave Kid a pat on the arm, "Well we better try to get some sleep. Got a lot to do. See you at four," Heyes closed the door.

Kid stood there for a minute looking at the closed door, shook his head then went to turn in, four o'clock was awfully early.