The Stranger Wore a Gun (1953) Movie Script
While the Civil War raged
between the North and South...
there swept across the border
from Missouri...
into the free state of Kansas...
a renowned force of guerrilla troops...
led by a Confederate officer.
Unbeknownst to the men
who blindly followed him...
this leader was
no longer considered a legitimate soldier...
by either the South or the North.
He was William Clarke Quantrill...
jayhawker, border ruffian, freebooter.
His destination:
Lawrence! On to Lawrence!
That's Quantrill! Get out of sight, Mr. Travis.
Come on!
What have you got, Lieutenant?
Fifty fresh horses
in a pasture quarter of a mile south.
Guns and ammunition
are in the basement of a store...
being held for a new company of recruits.
Dead men can't use them.
What about the lists?
Here they are.
The men you wanted, and where they live.
Todd!
Run down every man on this list
and kill him.
With pleasure. Come on.
- You're not taking any prisoners?
- No.
- Any money in there?
- $10,000 in gold.
Break it in.
Break it down.
That's Martin. He runs this line.
- Mr. Travis.
- Open the safe.
You came here as a friend.
- Heaven help your treacherous soul.
- Jim, don't.
You ride with this madman,
this guerrilla, to rob, burn...
torture and murder defenseless people.
- I'm a soldier. It's war.
- War!
The Confederates don't recognize Quantrill
as part of the Southern Army.
And the North will hang him on sight
as an outlaw!
Shut up and open that safe!
Do it, Jim.
- No, I won't. It won't save me.
- You must.
Enough.
Break it open.
You've eaten at my table, spy.
It wasn't part of the plan to murder civilians.
Civilians? Yankee Free-Soilers.
You've done well, Lieutenant.
You'll share in the glory.
Take whatever you want from this town.
Mrs. Martin, please go.
There's no help.
Remember this day, Travis.
Remember it well.
Tell Quantrill to get himself another spy.
Now turn those horses loose
that Lt. Travis found. Hurry.
Since the Yankees won this war...
this rabble has been
overrunning these riverboats.
That'll cost you another $200.
Not for me.
- $200, and $300 better.
- Jeff. Quit bluffing. I'm calling you.
- Can you beat two big sevens?
- Easily, with two little nines.
- I threw away three tens!
- I had a low straight. The pot was mine.
Need some money? Some help?
In a game with you, anyone'll need help.
How about dealing me a good hand?
Not a chance. I'm out to break you.
That's a dirty trick to do to an old friend.
In a card game, I don't have any friends.
And neither do you.
- You're playing like a rube.
- A man is only as good as his cards.
You always played a much better hand
when you were holding nothing.
- What's on your mind tonight?
- Nothing.
I open.
Thinking of Lawrence again, huh?
It's all over, Jeff. Forget it.
All right, it's forgotten. Just like that.
Lawrence, Kansas.
It was Quantrill's biggest day.
I'll never forget it. Nobody'll forget.
That is, nobody who is still alive.
They looted and burned the town.
Quantrill and his men slaughtered 150.
Women and children, too.
And all because of the work of one spy.
Ever met a Quantrill man, lady?
Look, friend, why don't you
take your talk somewhere else?
Quantrill's dead
along with everything that went with him.
- The war is over.
- This wasn't war.
They were thieves,
cutthroats and murderers.
What do you say, mister?
I'd like to run into the man
that set up that massacre.
Think you'd know him if you saw him again?
Sure, I'd know him.
What difference does it make now?
He was only a soldier
doing what he had to do.
I was in the room with him
when Quantrill murdered my best friend.
I could never forget him.
He's sitting there now, the spy.
Let's go outside. They won't dare follow us.
Dirty, filthy spy.
Jeff, get over the side now.
Go to Jules Mourret,
Prescott, Arizona territory.
- Get back inside.
- Please, Jeff. Go!
I can't leave.
Somebody'll have to answer questions.
Questions! You're a Quantrill Raider
who killed two men.
- But l...
- There'll be a Yankee judge...
and a Yankee jury.
What chance have you got?
- Please, Jeff, go. I'll catch up with you later.
- Don't follow me, Josie.
Did you see him? Where is he?
Who?
- Where are those Army wagons going?
- Prescott ain't the capital no more.
They're moving
all the territorial papers to Phoenix.
This town got too rough for them.
Hasta la vista, bluejackets!
- Take your good government to Tucson!
- Come back when you get your furlough!
We're wide open now!
Mr. Conroy, another holdup.
- Good work, Jake. You got through anyway.
- That ain't good.
- I should of bagged one of them bandits.
- I'm glad they didn't hurt you.
Thanks.
- This town is a disgrace to everyone in it.
- We all know, but it takes time, Shelby.
- Things will change some day.
- But when? All we do is talk.
Nobody has the courage to do anything.
We're controlled by riffraff
and it's getting worse.
Don't worry about it, honey.
We've held our own so far.
But how long can we keep on doing it?
- The stage was just robbed.
- That's the second time this week.
You wouldn't get me to ride on that stage.
Funny thing, they don't touch
the people on that stage.
I'm sorry they made me
throw off the strongbox, Mr. Conroy.
- Nothing in it but rocks.
- Get me that carpetbag, will you?
Mr. Conroy.
Mr. Conroy. You got rocks in there, too?
No. This is full of newly-minted coins.
Ain't that mighty careless
carrying around a fortune in an old bag?
No, it's safer. That's why we never tell you
where we hide the gold every trip.
- And we fooled them again.
- Yes, sir.
Never tell me where you put the gold.
What I don't know,
nobody can squeeze it out of me.
Mister.
I feel bad about spooking your horse.
Maybe I could buy you
a drink or something to fix it?
- Not just now, thanks.
- You're a stranger around here.
- My name is Jake. Jake Hooper.
- Is it?
How do like this town?
- Kind of wild.
- No. This is tame. Only one killing last week.
Not too bad.
That ain't good.
They moved the state capital out today.
- Ain't no place for an honest man now.
- Then why do you stay here?
It's comforting to know you live in
a town that can't get no worse.
- Gonna put up at the Juniper?
- Yup.
That's the best place in town, Mr...
I didn't get your name.
That's right.
Gabby sort of a feller.
Can I interest you
in a game of chance, stranger?
No, thanks, I...
Where does a fellow go
to get a room around here?
Over there, the man in the fancy vest.
- I'd like to have a room.
- The $1.50 or the up?
- The $1.50.
- You'll have Room 230.
You can get your key
off the peg in the lobby.
Mr. John Smith.
You've certainly got a lot
of relatives around here.
I come from a big family.
You know Jules Mourret?
He owns this place and a piece of most
everything else around here.
- How do people feel about him?
- Some like him and some don't.
- Where do you stand?
- He owns this place.
- I'm looking for him.
- Try his room. 201.
Pay for the first day, please.
He's the thirteenth John Smith
in this house now.
I hope he ain't superstitious.
- Mr. Mourret?
- No.
- I was told to see him here.
- You can wait. He'll be along.
- You ride a careless horse, mister.
- The way you ride, you'd better walk.
Don't ever do that to me again.
Hold it.
Such lack of hospitality. Let him go.
I must apologize for my men.
But we both know that civilization ends
with the Mason-Dixon Line.
- We were getting acquainted.
- You can't get away with that.
Neither will you.
I sent you for gold, Slager.
You brought me back rocks.
Come in, Lt. Travis.
Take a chair.
Too bad Josie isn't here.
Old friend of mine, you know.
On the boat. You threw the knife.
Could I stand by and let
an old comrade-at-arms be slaughtered?
You don't remember how
we routed them at Lawrence?
We fought under the same flag.
And under the greatest leader,
William Clarke Quantrill.
There are two schools of thought on that.
So, in a way, I owe my life to the Raiders.
No. You owe it to me.
And I know a good gambler
always pays his debts.
- There's a payoff, huh?
- There's always a payoff.
- That depends.
- I have a job for you.
A job for which you have unusual talent.
Here's to it.
- Jules. Degas is coming up.
- Jules, old friend.
What make you so nervous?
You jump so...
Your manners, Degas.
- Don't you ever knock?
- No.
I'm always surprise. I just sneak in.
Now we talk.
This is Shorty, my partner.
Listen, he don't talk good English like me.
- Is that right, Shorty?
- Yep.
Who's he?
Just a stranger.
No more?
It isn't your business, is it?
He's not afraid!
The man talks back!
But he don't carry any guns.
What do you think about it, Shorty?
He'd get riddled.
Riddled?
Oh, boy, he get killed!
You friend of my old friend.
I make you a little present.
- You need it.
- When I feel the need, I'll carry a gun.
Come on, take it...
stick it in your pocket.
You never know.
Thanks.
All right.
Now, Jules, for why I come to see you.
Last night, one of my boys...
my good old friend, Kansas. He was in town.
Have a little fun.
And he don't come back.
- You think he's here?
- Where else?
Kurth, bring Kansas in.
There's your man, Degas.
If you still want him.
And there's the knife
he tried to stick in my back.
- You push me too hard, Jules.
- You know your place.
Don't interfere
with my operations in this town.
- But we was in here first.
- But now I'm in and you're out.
Get back to the hills
and take that scum with you.
Here, take it back.
You may need this one, too.
I have plenty more.
Next time we meet, maybe you need it.
Come on.
One of the minor problems
I have to contend with.
But Degas is nothing to my real problem.
I intend to leave Prescott a millionaire.
- You've set your sights pretty high.
- Yeah.
Millions of dollars in raw gold
flow through this town from the mines.
I intend to divert part of the flow.
Every ounce of it moves out
on Conroy's stage line...
and Mr. Conroy has
an annoying way of hiding...
when and how the gold is shipped.
Now, the eyes you used
for Quantrill at Lawrence...
should do as sharp a job here.
I'd like to get one thing straight.
When I realized what Quantrill was,
I left the Raiders, joined the Confederacy...
and fought in the open.
It didn't help much. We lost the war anyway.
Lee surrendered, but I never will.
The Yankees ruined the South.
Now they're looting it.
So you're doing some looting on your own.
Taking Yankee gold
is legitimate business to me.
Now get yourself settled.
I'll see you tomorrow. And by the way,
you'll use the name Mark Stone.
Mark Stone. You know, Mourret...
I think you'd steal Conroy's gold
even though it wasn't for the South.
- What do you think of the tall man?
- I don't like him.
Be sure he doesn't take a dislike to you.
Dad. Mark Stone,
from the Collier Detective Agency.
Our Chicago office, sir,
notified the Western Division...
that you had written for an agent.
That was many weeks ago, Mr. Stone.
Why all the delay?
I was on assignment on the Rio Paso.
I had to finish that job first.
Didn't they tell you
how this town is being strangled?
Not all of it, but from what I've seen,
I've an idea what's going on.
These robberies are
costing us more than money.
They're killing transportation, our lifeline.
Now that the government's moved,
decent people are starting to leave.
There are times when it's wiser to get out.
That's strange talk from a man we hoped
would stop these outlaws.
Perhaps it doesn't mean anything to him,
as long as he gets paid.
Wait a minute, Miss Conroy.
I was wondering why
you should stick around...
on the chance of getting yourself hurt.
You don't understand, Mr. Stone.
This is our home. We live here.
I was born in Arizona territory.
Dad's given
everything he has to this country.
My mother gave her life.
Now this country owes us something,
and we just can't be driven out that easily.
No, I guess not.
You'll have to give me
a free hand, Mr. Conroy.
- Anything you want.
- Put me on the books as a shotgun guard.
It's best that no one knows
what I'm here for.
- Of course.
- I'll do my best to help you both. Good day.
I like him.
Got a match?
- What's going on? Any trouble?
- None.
What happened to Mark Stone,
the real owner of that letter?
There was none.
We intercepted Conroy's letter to the agency
and forged identification papers.
We'll have some fast action now.
I'm afraid you'll
have to wait till I learn something.
You've already wasted
three days before even seeing Conroy.
I had to do some planning.
I've found that, in playing
for big stakes, Mr. Mourret...
you'd better make sure
you hold the right cards.
Thank you, Mr. Degas,
for making the trip seem...
very short and very interesting.
I am very happy you enjoy me, seora.
We make another long trip soon.
- I'll make it even more beautiful for you.
- No, thank you.
And you shouldn't play
with those guns like that.
- You had me worried.
- Lf I worry you...
I shall cut off this hand right away.
Please wait till after supper.
Where's the hotel?
I take you myself to the Juniper House.
Take the lady's bags.
Why do I have to work
while you get the girl?
'Cause I'm a gentleman! You're a foreigner.
This Juniper House.
I hope it has plenty of hot water.
Sure. Very fancy.
They have plenty of water.
You have a nice cleanup.
But the boss, Mourret. He's a pig of a...
Jules! My old friend.
Are you wait to greet me?
- What were you doing on that coach?
- Go to Tucson. Buy clothes.
Fancy, no?
How you like it, stranger?
That woman. Where did you meet her?
In Tucson, we make friends quick.
She loves to ride in the stage with me.
You rode the coach to check the loot,
to find the best places of holding it up.
Maybe.
Maybe I like to see the country.
I ordered you to stay away
from those shipments.
Since when you order me?
I told you.
If you or any of your breed
step foot into this town again...
I'll have you torn apart.
The pieces thrown to the dogs.
He talks.
I don't talk.
Shorty, shut up!
- Josie, what are you doing here?
- Stop play-acting, Jeff.
- You knew darn well I'd follow you.
- No. I never took you for granted.
- I told you not to follow me.
- Sorry, Lieutenant, I disobeyed orders.
But wouldn't I be foolish, now,
to do everything men told me to do?
- You're a long way from home.
- I was, a minute ago.
- Why did you come here?
- You see, I was on my way to California...
and I figured you'd never
seen the Pacific Ocean, so...
No go, Josie.
Don't forget you're a wanted man.
And California's a lot farther from Louisiana
than Arizona territory.
A wanted man can't be choosy.
He stops where they let him
and travels fast when they don't.
- That doesn't sound like you.
- No?
Once you learn to toss your conscience
out of the window nothing matters.
You don't believe that.
- Why shouldn't I?
- Let's not argue.
Let's go downstairs
and have a drink to our reunion.
Sure.
By the way, you haven't even told me
you're glad to see me!
- I'm glad to see you.
- You play women like you play cards!
I'll toss in.
Look it!
Won't be long now. Stone said 11:00.
It's nearly that now.
All right, Mueller!
Yeah, this'll be like shooting fish in a barrel.
Make sure
you don't drop a sack full of grain.
It's gold we're after,
and Stone said it's in those sacks.
I know. I ain't feeble-minded.
There they come.
Come on.
Give me that!
That man's crazy.
We better get out of here.
He'll shoot us all up.
You sure handled them!
Let's go.
Giddyup!
- Sorry I'm late.
- You have some explaining to do.
Degas and his gang were in action today.
I had to run out.
Why didn't you stop when you saw my men?
I thought they were part of the Degas bunch.
Take a good look when you pull that trigger.
You shot my hat off.
Had I known it was you,
I could've done better.
You're not doing the job I want.
- I wouldn't say that.
- I would.
First whack we get
at a worthwhile shipment, you crumb it up.
I'll do the talking, Slager. He's right.
From your leads so far...
what we've taken
off the stages won't keep our horses in oats.
No? This might interest you.
The stage leaving Phoenix
is carrying over $25,000...
in new money.
It'll be in the water cask in the boot.
If these two will do as I say,
they'll get it without trouble.
- Conroy tell you this?
- His daughter.
It had better work this time.
I have a lot of patience.
But I can't say the same
for Mr. Kurth and Mr. Slager.
They need money.
So do I.
King wins.
Jack loses.
King wins.
Ten loses.
Try that one.
Queen wins.
Three loses.
Never argue with a lady.
Let's keep it that way.
Six wins.
Queen loses.
- What are you going to do for dinner?
- Why...
Previous engagement, Josie.
- Would it be at the Conroys'?
- I don't mean to neglect you...
but my job
has been taking up most of my time.
- Eight wins. Five loses.
- Yeah. I hear you have a very mean boss.
Maybe we'd find
more privacy somewhere else.
Like California?
- Where'd you get that idea?
- The other day when I saw your mean boss.
Four wins.
- You brought me luck!
- I keep telling you we're a great team.
Come on, get down from that box
and we'd better not find any rocks today.
Come on over here.
- Where is it?
- Come on. Where'd you hide it?
I never know. Please don't. I don't know.
Nine wins. Three loses.
Mr. Stone, the boss wants to see you.
- Which boss?
- The one who pays him.
- Sorry, Josie. Business.
- Your business comes before my business.
Keep on playing them, Josie.
Seven wins. Jack loses.
Hello, Shelby.
Hello, Mark.
You know, you make that gown
look mighty pretty.
Why, thank you. It's brand-new.
You know, Frank, there's a rule of nature:
There can only be one filly in the pasture.
Now, Mark Stone. He's a nice fellow.
Remember Shelby Conroy,
how business-like she used to be?
No time for frills?
Yeah. She's even neglecting
her bookkeeping chores.
I tell you, it's a marvel...
the way Mark
has put color back in her cheeks.
Six wins.
Ten loses.
Jake's late
bringing that stage in from Phoenix.
There's nothing to worry about.
If you're thinking of the money shipment,
Dad's changed the plan.
Jake's not bringing the money
with him this trip. Of course...
Mark!
I've got bad news for you.
I lost all your money.
That's all right.
- Miss Conroy, Miss Sullivan.
- How do you do, Miss Sullivan?
Not the Shelby Conroy
who runs the stage line?
I don't run it. I only work in it.
The way you kept telling me
how business-like and efficient she is...
I expected to see some frazzled old lady.
And you're really quite pretty.
Why, thank you. But so are you.
Mark is known for his good taste.
We've been close friends for years.
- Why, Mark, you never told me.
- Why, you never asked me.
Jake should be in that driver's seat.
Uncle Jake!
- He's gone.
- They tore up the coach looking for gold.
They couldn't find any.
They started on Jake...
- to make him tell where it was.
- They tortured him.
They tortured him to make him talk.
But he wouldn't.
I was born in this country
and I've seen men fight and kill.
But I've never seen anything as terrible
as what they did to that poor man.
He couldn't have told them
there wasn't any gold. He didn't know.
He always said:
"What I don't know,
nobody can ever squeeze out of me."
Even if he'd known about a shipment,
Jake wouldn't have talked.
No amount of gold could be worth that.
It was more than a job.
It was a trust. He put his heart into it.
And lost his life.
Now, what's all this?
Now, what's all this?
Dad and I don't know what to do.
We're so discouraged.
That's new kind of talk for you, Shelby.
We won't send more stages
if it means death to those who ride them.
I never thought they'd go that far.
When the stages quit,
decent people will leave with us.
This town will be dead.
Let the outlaws have it.
And I thought you were a fighter.
You yourself said, if you try to save
a burning house, you go up with it.
That's something I once heard a fellow say.
Jeff, I know you've done everything
you could to help us...
but it's just too much for us.
Dad and I are quitting.
And you've got to quit with us.
- Lf they do to you what they did to Jake, I'd...
- Listen to me.
Maybe there's a chance, but I need time.
I want you to send out a stage
tomorrow as usual, but no gold on it.
- No, I won't...
- Shelby, I'm counting on you.
Soon, real soon I'll give you your chance.
You lied about the gold dust
being on the coach.
There was no gold on it.
They killed for nothing.
I told you he double-crossed us!
Conroy held up the shipment
at the last minute.
- You say.
- The Conroys are making one big shipment.
$100,000 in gold.
It'll be going through
Raccoon Pass tomorrow.
- Lf there's a slip-up...
- There won't be. I'll be driving that stage.
Good evening.
- Come on!
- Put me down!
- For you, not bad, pig face.
- Pay me.
No. Please, don't!
Shut up.
Nobody ask you.
My good old friend, Kansas,
the one you beat his brains out...
don't got anymore.
He die dead.
- Don't do it.
- Give me a chance.
Hold still! You want me to lose my bet?
An eye for an eye. And a tooth for a tooth.
Don't!
Never mind the cup. First the gold.
Tie them up!
Steady!
How could I shoot?
Steady! Stop blinking the eyes.
- Better give me the gold poke, Degas.
- You!
Look at him,
try to roust me with my own gun.
Not at all. I came to return it.
Now, we have another little cup for you...
and play a little trick on you, stranger.
It'll cost you $100,000 to shoot me.
- What kind of a dirty trick is this?
- Mourret's getting stingy with my cut.
That's why I'd hate to see him
grab the $100,000...
I'll be taking over Raccoon Pass tomorrow.
- What time?
- About noon.
I'm so sorry,
my good friend, you break the bottle.
I like to invite you to drink.
Of course, I'll want a third of the split.
And there's Mourret to get rid of.
I wonder if you could take him.
After all, he did drive you out of Prescott.
You think we're afraid
about Monsieur Mourret?
I don't know.
He's got you living out here like animals.
They wouldn't be expecting anyone
to jump them from behind.
What a dirty mind you have.
Get rid of Mourret's gang. Who knows,
you and I might do lot of business together.
I give you the best suite
at the Juniper House when I take it over.
I'll count on that.
All right, Shorty.
Double eagle...
I can shoot the knot from under the chin.
Don't shoot!
Pay me!
I'd like to have a ticket
on the stage to Ash Fork.
That's the one
that goes through Raccoon Pass?
Yes. That's a wonderful trip.
There'll be snow on the ground,
the waterfalls will be frozen.
Yeah, how much?
$12.
- What's the matter?
- Nothing.
I was just wondering
how good a driver you were.
Have a pleasant journey.
Ike, I'd better take this run alone tonight.
Nobody'd expect gold
on a stage that didn't carry a guard.
Tell Mr. Conroy.
You don't mind if I ride up top, do you?
Just to keep you company.
I wonder what made him change his mind.
Just drive for Raccoon Pass.
What are you stopping for?
There's a tough climb ahead.
Got to let the horses blow.
You know Slager's waiting for us up there.
Get the gold first.
Scatter.
Drop your gun. Drop it!
Jules, old friend.
- What are you doing here?
- Call off your men. Quick!
Sure.
Boys. Let's go home.
It's all over.
We made a mistake.
Move out! Come on, let's go.
See, Jules? All a mistake.
All right?
- I go with my men?
- Just a minute.
I'd like some explanation of this mistake.
Kurth!
Slager!
Where are you?
Down here, Jules. What's left of us.
Where's the rest?
This place looks like a slaughterhouse.
- We're all that's left.
- They jumped us from ambush.
It was a mistake!
We come, see men hiding in the rocks.
Figure Sheriff was looking for us.
- Figure send them home quick.
- Where's the stage?
Stone pulled out when the shooting started.
I fell off on the turn.
Excuse me, Jules.
I'll pay you off some day.
Now I go?
So it was just a coincidence
you were here at this pass...
when the stage was passing through
and my men weren't watching.
Of course! Just a confidence.
I don't believe in coincidence.
Who told you to jump us here?
- Lf I had a gun...
- I have the gun now.
- Who told you?
- Nobody.
Was it Stone?
Your guns are useless now, Degas.
Was it Mark Stone?
Mark Stone. That's it.
I think he pushed me off on the turn.
Help me, please.
- Was it Mark Stone who set up this ambush?
- I'm shot. I need help.
You need help. First, tell me if it was Mark!
Mark Stone, Shorty?
Yeah.
What are you doing back here?
Hide the coach and the horses.
Put this in a safe place.
And if anyone comes looking for me,
all you know is I'm on my way to Phoenix.
You were a fool to even try.
That depends.
I don't know yet how many got out alive.
Jules is smart.
He's bound to figure you sold him out.
Now you have to leave town.
Are we on our way to California again?
You'll have to go alone.
And leave you here
to get your head blown off?
Come on, pack.
Go someplace else, then. Anyplace, but go.
You don't even have to tell me where.
- There is no one like you in this world.
- I know. I'm a great friend.
I made a deal with Mourret,
but it didn't include murder.
Now things have happened.
Like Jake Hooper.
And Shelby Conroy?
In trying to square one debt,
I got into another that has to be paid.
Fine people have been hurt.
People I thought didn't matter.
There goes my dream.
All right, stay here as long as you like.
But before they put your name
on a slab on Boot Hill...
you might as well know I lied to you.
You're not a wanted man.
There was a witness.
A little stevedore who played the harmonica
saw the whole thing.
From what he told,
it was anything but murder.
If I'd known this yesterday,
Jake'd still be alive.
- Why didn't you tell me?
- Because I knew I'd have a hold on you...
and you'd have to keep running
and I'd have to be running after you.
Don't blame me for using tricks to hold you.
That Conroy girl would use plenty
if you meant enough to her.
I don't even know if you're in love with her.
It doesn't matter.
Now you can go to her with
a grand confession. I hope she understands.
- I also hope she kicks you out on your ear!
- Maybe she will.
- Where are you going?
- I need a drink. Maybe five or six.
I'm glad you boys made it.
What are the guns all about?
You're not mad
because I had to turn around again?
There wasn't much else I could do.
Mourret all right, too?
Find out who those men were?
We also found out other things.
Yeah.
Your friend Degas wouldn't talk,
but Dutch had a loose mouth.
Now stick out your wrists.
Now sit down.
Why go to all this bother?
I'll fetch Jules.
Breathe deep, mister, while you can.
Jules didn't want us to plug you.
When he gets here, he'll skin the hide
off your bones an inch at a time.
Too bad you're a dirty rat.
No, I'd never be able to trust you.
- What do you mean, you can't trust me?
- Forget it.
Scum like you'd probably cut my throat
and keep it all.
Hit me again
and you'll probably jar my memory.
Make me forget where I hid the strongbox.
You mean you didn't bring it
back to the station?
You think I'd turn $100,000 back to Conroy?
What do you take me for?
I was packing to go when you boys came in.
Too bad.
Where is it?
You better tell me.
If I thought I could trust you,
we might talk a deal.
Just you and me. Not Mourret, nobody else.
You're just talking to save your neck.
I'm wasting my breath
on a big, stupid ox like you.
You wouldn't even know
what to do with $50,000 all your own.
$50,000?
Yeah. I was figuring
on going to New Orleans.
A man could live like a king
with all that money.
Everything he wants. Beautiful Creole girls.
You ought to see them.
No women so pretty anyplace in the world.
Skin like amber velvet,
soft and smooth to the touch.
They can drive a man out of his mind.
They like a big man, a man with muscle.
But it takes more than that.
You've got to have money to spend.
Clothes and a big diamond stickpin
wouldn't hurt.
Until you've lived like that,
you don't know what living is.
But it takes a better man than you, Slager,
to make up his mind what he wants.
All right.
Fifty-fifty.
But I'm keeping this gun on you
till I see the color of that gold.
I'm back here.
Holster your gun.
You've been pushing
to use that gun on me, Kurth.
- I promised you the chance.
- What are you waiting for, Stone?
Afraid to face me. So you're fixing
to gun me down in the back?
You don't deserve any better.
Raise your hands.
Higher. Over your head.
Turn around.
You like it better this way, Kurth?
Yeah.
Poley, Mark Stone been in here tonight?
Not tonight.
What's he done to you, Mr. Mourret?
What makes you think that?
I don't know. You got
a funny look on your face.
Last time I saw it was just before
you hung Gigs Barlow.
- Some day, Poley, I'll...
- Jules!
Kurth is laying over in the alley, dead.
Stone killed him.
He just stood there, cold as ice,
and shot him down.
- Where did he go?
- I don't know.
- You waiting for him, too?
- Go away.
That's no way to talk.
We've been friends for a long time.
It was mostly as a favor to you
that I helped Jeff.
- Helped Jeff? Used him, you mean.
- I'm a business man collecting a debt.
By this time, that Conroy girl
knows all about you and that debt.
- I'm not worried about the Conroys.
- I wish Jeff wasn't.
She's probably twisting him
around her little finger right now.
- So that's where he is.
- I didn't say that.
But you did, my dear.
You got a few of notches in your gun.
You ever shoot a man in the back?
You know better!
They saw it coming. They had a chance.
That's the way we do things.
We give and take our chances.
Reef, you trigger that gun of yours
now and again.
Did you ever kill a man
that never did anything to you?
Only in war. Otherwise live and let live.
That's the way I feel.
Soldier, you know what
the Quantrill Raiders were?
Sure.
Butchers that used the war
to cover up their murders and robberies.
There's one of them in town now.
He doesn't do things the way we do.
When he shoots a man,
he shoots him in the back.
And that's the way
he killed Dan Kurth tonight.
He can't get away.
Things like that give this town a bad name.
Yes, and we ought to do something about it
right now.
Let's take something along with us,
like a rope.
Sure, let's get a rope.
Yeah, come on. Let's get a rope.
Wait! He's lying!
Mourret is lying!
What else can she say?
She's in love with him.
- Come on, boys. Let's go.
- Can't anybody stop them?
Where there's a stampede, ma'am,
the safest place is up a tall tree.
Quiet!
Shoot him the minute he comes out.
- Quick! It's a lynching!
- So that's what all the ruckus is about!
Is that all? You've got to stop them!
I can't try nothing like that
without the Sheriff.
I don't know where he went.
What are you going in there for?
There's nobody there.
- Wait! Where you going with that gun?
- Stay back.
I can't understand it.
Men like Degas and Mueller,
yes, but Mourret?
He's still alive. Out in the open now.
And the killing's already started.
I knew it had to be someone here.
I would believe it was Mourret.
- Lf I could only believe you.
- I've told you all about myself.
Where I've lied, what I've done,
and why I did it.
There's nothing to gain by lying now.
Of course he's telling us the truth.
What can we gain against
anyone as powerful as Mourret?
The house is surrounded, Travis.
You can't get away.
You've got just 30 seconds.
Send him out, Conroy.
All right, Travis, we're coming in.
Did you find him?
You clumsy idiot.
You all seem a little jumpy this morning.
Have a drink. On the house, of course.
Yeah, I do need an eye-opener, at that.
You've been needing
an eye-opener all your life.
Lay off, Jules.
It wasn't my fault he got away. Not this time.
You know, I remember
when he first came here.
Right through that door.
Now we've lost him for good.
You really think you've seen the last
of Jeff Travis?
He won't dare show his face
around here again.
What are you getting at?
You think he'll come back?
Don't you? He's not the running-away kind.
He'll come back.
My men have blocked
every street and alley into this town.
They're good boys. They'll stop him.
Sure, they'll get him.
A fly couldn't get through.
That tall man is a lot smarter than any fly.
You don't think those fellows are
going to stand and wait for Jeff to show up?
They'd better. They have my orders.
Your orders? You got the crowd last night...
when it was liquored up
and ready for excitement.
They're tired out now,
they've been up all night.
Probably home right now, sleeping it off.
Take a look. See if they're still there.
- Why, sure they are, Jules.
- I said look!
They're gone, Jules.
The dirty, yellow dogs ran out on us.
They couldn't.
You beginning to feel it, too?
- Shut up, Poley.
- Don't be so jumpy, Jules.
Poley is only trying to tell you
he sort of feels Jeff's presence.
- Now what?
- I thought I heard something.
Feel how still the air is.
Like just before a cyclone or a storm.
Or death.
- Stop talking like that, or so help me I'll...
- Get a hold of yourself.
Sure.
We got nothing to worry about.
We can handle it.
We always handle everything together.
Both of us, huh, Jules?
Good morning, Josie.
Morning, Jeff.
It's later than I thought,
and I've got things to do. Elsewhere.
Sorry I kept you fellows up all night.
I'm sorry about all this, Jeff.
We were too hotheaded.
- The two of us can still get together.
- Which one of your men killed Jake Hooper?
What are you looking at me for?
- I thought he was the one.
- Wait a minute.
That'll satisfy the Hooper killing.
You can easily prove
that you killed Dan Kurth in a fair fight.
That'll satisfy folks all around.
We'd both be clean.
- Jules, you wouldn't!
- How about it, Jeff?
We can play out the string together.
We could, Jules.
But I'll give you a choice instead.
Get out of here, Josie.
You let me take you in
so the law can hang you...
or go for your gun.
We'll finish it up right here.
You're being kind of hard on me, Jeff.
I'm giving you a better chance
than you ever gave anyone.
Jeff, look out!
Fine fire, Jeff.
Reminds you of Lawrence, remember?
You going to stay there and burn,
or come out and take a bullet?
There's only the two of us left, Jeff.
Let's call it off, Jeff! What do you say?
We'll burn if we stay here.
We'll both get out that door.
Only one of us is going out.
Jeff, how does it feel
to be free of everything...
have all accounts square and settled?
Guns never settle anything the right way.
I'm through with them, Josie.
But you're gonna need one in California.
Sorry, but I'm not going to California.
I know that's what you said.
I wish you'd reconsider.
You could stay here with us.
- Run the stage if you like.
- Thanks, but it wouldn't work.
I'm used to something
that's more of a gamble.
Would you, please?
Goodbye, Mr. Conroy. Shelby.
Good luck always, Jeff.
Thanks.
Jeff, would you open the door, please?
I scorched my hands a little in that fire.
Do you want to fix them here
or in California?
Why, honeychild.
We'll fix them on the way,
they'll heal in California.
between the North and South...
there swept across the border
from Missouri...
into the free state of Kansas...
a renowned force of guerrilla troops...
led by a Confederate officer.
Unbeknownst to the men
who blindly followed him...
this leader was
no longer considered a legitimate soldier...
by either the South or the North.
He was William Clarke Quantrill...
jayhawker, border ruffian, freebooter.
His destination:
Lawrence! On to Lawrence!
That's Quantrill! Get out of sight, Mr. Travis.
Come on!
What have you got, Lieutenant?
Fifty fresh horses
in a pasture quarter of a mile south.
Guns and ammunition
are in the basement of a store...
being held for a new company of recruits.
Dead men can't use them.
What about the lists?
Here they are.
The men you wanted, and where they live.
Todd!
Run down every man on this list
and kill him.
With pleasure. Come on.
- You're not taking any prisoners?
- No.
- Any money in there?
- $10,000 in gold.
Break it in.
Break it down.
That's Martin. He runs this line.
- Mr. Travis.
- Open the safe.
You came here as a friend.
- Heaven help your treacherous soul.
- Jim, don't.
You ride with this madman,
this guerrilla, to rob, burn...
torture and murder defenseless people.
- I'm a soldier. It's war.
- War!
The Confederates don't recognize Quantrill
as part of the Southern Army.
And the North will hang him on sight
as an outlaw!
Shut up and open that safe!
Do it, Jim.
- No, I won't. It won't save me.
- You must.
Enough.
Break it open.
You've eaten at my table, spy.
It wasn't part of the plan to murder civilians.
Civilians? Yankee Free-Soilers.
You've done well, Lieutenant.
You'll share in the glory.
Take whatever you want from this town.
Mrs. Martin, please go.
There's no help.
Remember this day, Travis.
Remember it well.
Tell Quantrill to get himself another spy.
Now turn those horses loose
that Lt. Travis found. Hurry.
Since the Yankees won this war...
this rabble has been
overrunning these riverboats.
That'll cost you another $200.
Not for me.
- $200, and $300 better.
- Jeff. Quit bluffing. I'm calling you.
- Can you beat two big sevens?
- Easily, with two little nines.
- I threw away three tens!
- I had a low straight. The pot was mine.
Need some money? Some help?
In a game with you, anyone'll need help.
How about dealing me a good hand?
Not a chance. I'm out to break you.
That's a dirty trick to do to an old friend.
In a card game, I don't have any friends.
And neither do you.
- You're playing like a rube.
- A man is only as good as his cards.
You always played a much better hand
when you were holding nothing.
- What's on your mind tonight?
- Nothing.
I open.
Thinking of Lawrence again, huh?
It's all over, Jeff. Forget it.
All right, it's forgotten. Just like that.
Lawrence, Kansas.
It was Quantrill's biggest day.
I'll never forget it. Nobody'll forget.
That is, nobody who is still alive.
They looted and burned the town.
Quantrill and his men slaughtered 150.
Women and children, too.
And all because of the work of one spy.
Ever met a Quantrill man, lady?
Look, friend, why don't you
take your talk somewhere else?
Quantrill's dead
along with everything that went with him.
- The war is over.
- This wasn't war.
They were thieves,
cutthroats and murderers.
What do you say, mister?
I'd like to run into the man
that set up that massacre.
Think you'd know him if you saw him again?
Sure, I'd know him.
What difference does it make now?
He was only a soldier
doing what he had to do.
I was in the room with him
when Quantrill murdered my best friend.
I could never forget him.
He's sitting there now, the spy.
Let's go outside. They won't dare follow us.
Dirty, filthy spy.
Jeff, get over the side now.
Go to Jules Mourret,
Prescott, Arizona territory.
- Get back inside.
- Please, Jeff. Go!
I can't leave.
Somebody'll have to answer questions.
Questions! You're a Quantrill Raider
who killed two men.
- But l...
- There'll be a Yankee judge...
and a Yankee jury.
What chance have you got?
- Please, Jeff, go. I'll catch up with you later.
- Don't follow me, Josie.
Did you see him? Where is he?
Who?
- Where are those Army wagons going?
- Prescott ain't the capital no more.
They're moving
all the territorial papers to Phoenix.
This town got too rough for them.
Hasta la vista, bluejackets!
- Take your good government to Tucson!
- Come back when you get your furlough!
We're wide open now!
Mr. Conroy, another holdup.
- Good work, Jake. You got through anyway.
- That ain't good.
- I should of bagged one of them bandits.
- I'm glad they didn't hurt you.
Thanks.
- This town is a disgrace to everyone in it.
- We all know, but it takes time, Shelby.
- Things will change some day.
- But when? All we do is talk.
Nobody has the courage to do anything.
We're controlled by riffraff
and it's getting worse.
Don't worry about it, honey.
We've held our own so far.
But how long can we keep on doing it?
- The stage was just robbed.
- That's the second time this week.
You wouldn't get me to ride on that stage.
Funny thing, they don't touch
the people on that stage.
I'm sorry they made me
throw off the strongbox, Mr. Conroy.
- Nothing in it but rocks.
- Get me that carpetbag, will you?
Mr. Conroy.
Mr. Conroy. You got rocks in there, too?
No. This is full of newly-minted coins.
Ain't that mighty careless
carrying around a fortune in an old bag?
No, it's safer. That's why we never tell you
where we hide the gold every trip.
- And we fooled them again.
- Yes, sir.
Never tell me where you put the gold.
What I don't know,
nobody can squeeze it out of me.
Mister.
I feel bad about spooking your horse.
Maybe I could buy you
a drink or something to fix it?
- Not just now, thanks.
- You're a stranger around here.
- My name is Jake. Jake Hooper.
- Is it?
How do like this town?
- Kind of wild.
- No. This is tame. Only one killing last week.
Not too bad.
That ain't good.
They moved the state capital out today.
- Ain't no place for an honest man now.
- Then why do you stay here?
It's comforting to know you live in
a town that can't get no worse.
- Gonna put up at the Juniper?
- Yup.
That's the best place in town, Mr...
I didn't get your name.
That's right.
Gabby sort of a feller.
Can I interest you
in a game of chance, stranger?
No, thanks, I...
Where does a fellow go
to get a room around here?
Over there, the man in the fancy vest.
- I'd like to have a room.
- The $1.50 or the up?
- The $1.50.
- You'll have Room 230.
You can get your key
off the peg in the lobby.
Mr. John Smith.
You've certainly got a lot
of relatives around here.
I come from a big family.
You know Jules Mourret?
He owns this place and a piece of most
everything else around here.
- How do people feel about him?
- Some like him and some don't.
- Where do you stand?
- He owns this place.
- I'm looking for him.
- Try his room. 201.
Pay for the first day, please.
He's the thirteenth John Smith
in this house now.
I hope he ain't superstitious.
- Mr. Mourret?
- No.
- I was told to see him here.
- You can wait. He'll be along.
- You ride a careless horse, mister.
- The way you ride, you'd better walk.
Don't ever do that to me again.
Hold it.
Such lack of hospitality. Let him go.
I must apologize for my men.
But we both know that civilization ends
with the Mason-Dixon Line.
- We were getting acquainted.
- You can't get away with that.
Neither will you.
I sent you for gold, Slager.
You brought me back rocks.
Come in, Lt. Travis.
Take a chair.
Too bad Josie isn't here.
Old friend of mine, you know.
On the boat. You threw the knife.
Could I stand by and let
an old comrade-at-arms be slaughtered?
You don't remember how
we routed them at Lawrence?
We fought under the same flag.
And under the greatest leader,
William Clarke Quantrill.
There are two schools of thought on that.
So, in a way, I owe my life to the Raiders.
No. You owe it to me.
And I know a good gambler
always pays his debts.
- There's a payoff, huh?
- There's always a payoff.
- That depends.
- I have a job for you.
A job for which you have unusual talent.
Here's to it.
- Jules. Degas is coming up.
- Jules, old friend.
What make you so nervous?
You jump so...
Your manners, Degas.
- Don't you ever knock?
- No.
I'm always surprise. I just sneak in.
Now we talk.
This is Shorty, my partner.
Listen, he don't talk good English like me.
- Is that right, Shorty?
- Yep.
Who's he?
Just a stranger.
No more?
It isn't your business, is it?
He's not afraid!
The man talks back!
But he don't carry any guns.
What do you think about it, Shorty?
He'd get riddled.
Riddled?
Oh, boy, he get killed!
You friend of my old friend.
I make you a little present.
- You need it.
- When I feel the need, I'll carry a gun.
Come on, take it...
stick it in your pocket.
You never know.
Thanks.
All right.
Now, Jules, for why I come to see you.
Last night, one of my boys...
my good old friend, Kansas. He was in town.
Have a little fun.
And he don't come back.
- You think he's here?
- Where else?
Kurth, bring Kansas in.
There's your man, Degas.
If you still want him.
And there's the knife
he tried to stick in my back.
- You push me too hard, Jules.
- You know your place.
Don't interfere
with my operations in this town.
- But we was in here first.
- But now I'm in and you're out.
Get back to the hills
and take that scum with you.
Here, take it back.
You may need this one, too.
I have plenty more.
Next time we meet, maybe you need it.
Come on.
One of the minor problems
I have to contend with.
But Degas is nothing to my real problem.
I intend to leave Prescott a millionaire.
- You've set your sights pretty high.
- Yeah.
Millions of dollars in raw gold
flow through this town from the mines.
I intend to divert part of the flow.
Every ounce of it moves out
on Conroy's stage line...
and Mr. Conroy has
an annoying way of hiding...
when and how the gold is shipped.
Now, the eyes you used
for Quantrill at Lawrence...
should do as sharp a job here.
I'd like to get one thing straight.
When I realized what Quantrill was,
I left the Raiders, joined the Confederacy...
and fought in the open.
It didn't help much. We lost the war anyway.
Lee surrendered, but I never will.
The Yankees ruined the South.
Now they're looting it.
So you're doing some looting on your own.
Taking Yankee gold
is legitimate business to me.
Now get yourself settled.
I'll see you tomorrow. And by the way,
you'll use the name Mark Stone.
Mark Stone. You know, Mourret...
I think you'd steal Conroy's gold
even though it wasn't for the South.
- What do you think of the tall man?
- I don't like him.
Be sure he doesn't take a dislike to you.
Dad. Mark Stone,
from the Collier Detective Agency.
Our Chicago office, sir,
notified the Western Division...
that you had written for an agent.
That was many weeks ago, Mr. Stone.
Why all the delay?
I was on assignment on the Rio Paso.
I had to finish that job first.
Didn't they tell you
how this town is being strangled?
Not all of it, but from what I've seen,
I've an idea what's going on.
These robberies are
costing us more than money.
They're killing transportation, our lifeline.
Now that the government's moved,
decent people are starting to leave.
There are times when it's wiser to get out.
That's strange talk from a man we hoped
would stop these outlaws.
Perhaps it doesn't mean anything to him,
as long as he gets paid.
Wait a minute, Miss Conroy.
I was wondering why
you should stick around...
on the chance of getting yourself hurt.
You don't understand, Mr. Stone.
This is our home. We live here.
I was born in Arizona territory.
Dad's given
everything he has to this country.
My mother gave her life.
Now this country owes us something,
and we just can't be driven out that easily.
No, I guess not.
You'll have to give me
a free hand, Mr. Conroy.
- Anything you want.
- Put me on the books as a shotgun guard.
It's best that no one knows
what I'm here for.
- Of course.
- I'll do my best to help you both. Good day.
I like him.
Got a match?
- What's going on? Any trouble?
- None.
What happened to Mark Stone,
the real owner of that letter?
There was none.
We intercepted Conroy's letter to the agency
and forged identification papers.
We'll have some fast action now.
I'm afraid you'll
have to wait till I learn something.
You've already wasted
three days before even seeing Conroy.
I had to do some planning.
I've found that, in playing
for big stakes, Mr. Mourret...
you'd better make sure
you hold the right cards.
Thank you, Mr. Degas,
for making the trip seem...
very short and very interesting.
I am very happy you enjoy me, seora.
We make another long trip soon.
- I'll make it even more beautiful for you.
- No, thank you.
And you shouldn't play
with those guns like that.
- You had me worried.
- Lf I worry you...
I shall cut off this hand right away.
Please wait till after supper.
Where's the hotel?
I take you myself to the Juniper House.
Take the lady's bags.
Why do I have to work
while you get the girl?
'Cause I'm a gentleman! You're a foreigner.
This Juniper House.
I hope it has plenty of hot water.
Sure. Very fancy.
They have plenty of water.
You have a nice cleanup.
But the boss, Mourret. He's a pig of a...
Jules! My old friend.
Are you wait to greet me?
- What were you doing on that coach?
- Go to Tucson. Buy clothes.
Fancy, no?
How you like it, stranger?
That woman. Where did you meet her?
In Tucson, we make friends quick.
She loves to ride in the stage with me.
You rode the coach to check the loot,
to find the best places of holding it up.
Maybe.
Maybe I like to see the country.
I ordered you to stay away
from those shipments.
Since when you order me?
I told you.
If you or any of your breed
step foot into this town again...
I'll have you torn apart.
The pieces thrown to the dogs.
He talks.
I don't talk.
Shorty, shut up!
- Josie, what are you doing here?
- Stop play-acting, Jeff.
- You knew darn well I'd follow you.
- No. I never took you for granted.
- I told you not to follow me.
- Sorry, Lieutenant, I disobeyed orders.
But wouldn't I be foolish, now,
to do everything men told me to do?
- You're a long way from home.
- I was, a minute ago.
- Why did you come here?
- You see, I was on my way to California...
and I figured you'd never
seen the Pacific Ocean, so...
No go, Josie.
Don't forget you're a wanted man.
And California's a lot farther from Louisiana
than Arizona territory.
A wanted man can't be choosy.
He stops where they let him
and travels fast when they don't.
- That doesn't sound like you.
- No?
Once you learn to toss your conscience
out of the window nothing matters.
You don't believe that.
- Why shouldn't I?
- Let's not argue.
Let's go downstairs
and have a drink to our reunion.
Sure.
By the way, you haven't even told me
you're glad to see me!
- I'm glad to see you.
- You play women like you play cards!
I'll toss in.
Look it!
Won't be long now. Stone said 11:00.
It's nearly that now.
All right, Mueller!
Yeah, this'll be like shooting fish in a barrel.
Make sure
you don't drop a sack full of grain.
It's gold we're after,
and Stone said it's in those sacks.
I know. I ain't feeble-minded.
There they come.
Come on.
Give me that!
That man's crazy.
We better get out of here.
He'll shoot us all up.
You sure handled them!
Let's go.
Giddyup!
- Sorry I'm late.
- You have some explaining to do.
Degas and his gang were in action today.
I had to run out.
Why didn't you stop when you saw my men?
I thought they were part of the Degas bunch.
Take a good look when you pull that trigger.
You shot my hat off.
Had I known it was you,
I could've done better.
You're not doing the job I want.
- I wouldn't say that.
- I would.
First whack we get
at a worthwhile shipment, you crumb it up.
I'll do the talking, Slager. He's right.
From your leads so far...
what we've taken
off the stages won't keep our horses in oats.
No? This might interest you.
The stage leaving Phoenix
is carrying over $25,000...
in new money.
It'll be in the water cask in the boot.
If these two will do as I say,
they'll get it without trouble.
- Conroy tell you this?
- His daughter.
It had better work this time.
I have a lot of patience.
But I can't say the same
for Mr. Kurth and Mr. Slager.
They need money.
So do I.
King wins.
Jack loses.
King wins.
Ten loses.
Try that one.
Queen wins.
Three loses.
Never argue with a lady.
Let's keep it that way.
Six wins.
Queen loses.
- What are you going to do for dinner?
- Why...
Previous engagement, Josie.
- Would it be at the Conroys'?
- I don't mean to neglect you...
but my job
has been taking up most of my time.
- Eight wins. Five loses.
- Yeah. I hear you have a very mean boss.
Maybe we'd find
more privacy somewhere else.
Like California?
- Where'd you get that idea?
- The other day when I saw your mean boss.
Four wins.
- You brought me luck!
- I keep telling you we're a great team.
Come on, get down from that box
and we'd better not find any rocks today.
Come on over here.
- Where is it?
- Come on. Where'd you hide it?
I never know. Please don't. I don't know.
Nine wins. Three loses.
Mr. Stone, the boss wants to see you.
- Which boss?
- The one who pays him.
- Sorry, Josie. Business.
- Your business comes before my business.
Keep on playing them, Josie.
Seven wins. Jack loses.
Hello, Shelby.
Hello, Mark.
You know, you make that gown
look mighty pretty.
Why, thank you. It's brand-new.
You know, Frank, there's a rule of nature:
There can only be one filly in the pasture.
Now, Mark Stone. He's a nice fellow.
Remember Shelby Conroy,
how business-like she used to be?
No time for frills?
Yeah. She's even neglecting
her bookkeeping chores.
I tell you, it's a marvel...
the way Mark
has put color back in her cheeks.
Six wins.
Ten loses.
Jake's late
bringing that stage in from Phoenix.
There's nothing to worry about.
If you're thinking of the money shipment,
Dad's changed the plan.
Jake's not bringing the money
with him this trip. Of course...
Mark!
I've got bad news for you.
I lost all your money.
That's all right.
- Miss Conroy, Miss Sullivan.
- How do you do, Miss Sullivan?
Not the Shelby Conroy
who runs the stage line?
I don't run it. I only work in it.
The way you kept telling me
how business-like and efficient she is...
I expected to see some frazzled old lady.
And you're really quite pretty.
Why, thank you. But so are you.
Mark is known for his good taste.
We've been close friends for years.
- Why, Mark, you never told me.
- Why, you never asked me.
Jake should be in that driver's seat.
Uncle Jake!
- He's gone.
- They tore up the coach looking for gold.
They couldn't find any.
They started on Jake...
- to make him tell where it was.
- They tortured him.
They tortured him to make him talk.
But he wouldn't.
I was born in this country
and I've seen men fight and kill.
But I've never seen anything as terrible
as what they did to that poor man.
He couldn't have told them
there wasn't any gold. He didn't know.
He always said:
"What I don't know,
nobody can ever squeeze out of me."
Even if he'd known about a shipment,
Jake wouldn't have talked.
No amount of gold could be worth that.
It was more than a job.
It was a trust. He put his heart into it.
And lost his life.
Now, what's all this?
Now, what's all this?
Dad and I don't know what to do.
We're so discouraged.
That's new kind of talk for you, Shelby.
We won't send more stages
if it means death to those who ride them.
I never thought they'd go that far.
When the stages quit,
decent people will leave with us.
This town will be dead.
Let the outlaws have it.
And I thought you were a fighter.
You yourself said, if you try to save
a burning house, you go up with it.
That's something I once heard a fellow say.
Jeff, I know you've done everything
you could to help us...
but it's just too much for us.
Dad and I are quitting.
And you've got to quit with us.
- Lf they do to you what they did to Jake, I'd...
- Listen to me.
Maybe there's a chance, but I need time.
I want you to send out a stage
tomorrow as usual, but no gold on it.
- No, I won't...
- Shelby, I'm counting on you.
Soon, real soon I'll give you your chance.
You lied about the gold dust
being on the coach.
There was no gold on it.
They killed for nothing.
I told you he double-crossed us!
Conroy held up the shipment
at the last minute.
- You say.
- The Conroys are making one big shipment.
$100,000 in gold.
It'll be going through
Raccoon Pass tomorrow.
- Lf there's a slip-up...
- There won't be. I'll be driving that stage.
Good evening.
- Come on!
- Put me down!
- For you, not bad, pig face.
- Pay me.
No. Please, don't!
Shut up.
Nobody ask you.
My good old friend, Kansas,
the one you beat his brains out...
don't got anymore.
He die dead.
- Don't do it.
- Give me a chance.
Hold still! You want me to lose my bet?
An eye for an eye. And a tooth for a tooth.
Don't!
Never mind the cup. First the gold.
Tie them up!
Steady!
How could I shoot?
Steady! Stop blinking the eyes.
- Better give me the gold poke, Degas.
- You!
Look at him,
try to roust me with my own gun.
Not at all. I came to return it.
Now, we have another little cup for you...
and play a little trick on you, stranger.
It'll cost you $100,000 to shoot me.
- What kind of a dirty trick is this?
- Mourret's getting stingy with my cut.
That's why I'd hate to see him
grab the $100,000...
I'll be taking over Raccoon Pass tomorrow.
- What time?
- About noon.
I'm so sorry,
my good friend, you break the bottle.
I like to invite you to drink.
Of course, I'll want a third of the split.
And there's Mourret to get rid of.
I wonder if you could take him.
After all, he did drive you out of Prescott.
You think we're afraid
about Monsieur Mourret?
I don't know.
He's got you living out here like animals.
They wouldn't be expecting anyone
to jump them from behind.
What a dirty mind you have.
Get rid of Mourret's gang. Who knows,
you and I might do lot of business together.
I give you the best suite
at the Juniper House when I take it over.
I'll count on that.
All right, Shorty.
Double eagle...
I can shoot the knot from under the chin.
Don't shoot!
Pay me!
I'd like to have a ticket
on the stage to Ash Fork.
That's the one
that goes through Raccoon Pass?
Yes. That's a wonderful trip.
There'll be snow on the ground,
the waterfalls will be frozen.
Yeah, how much?
$12.
- What's the matter?
- Nothing.
I was just wondering
how good a driver you were.
Have a pleasant journey.
Ike, I'd better take this run alone tonight.
Nobody'd expect gold
on a stage that didn't carry a guard.
Tell Mr. Conroy.
You don't mind if I ride up top, do you?
Just to keep you company.
I wonder what made him change his mind.
Just drive for Raccoon Pass.
What are you stopping for?
There's a tough climb ahead.
Got to let the horses blow.
You know Slager's waiting for us up there.
Get the gold first.
Scatter.
Drop your gun. Drop it!
Jules, old friend.
- What are you doing here?
- Call off your men. Quick!
Sure.
Boys. Let's go home.
It's all over.
We made a mistake.
Move out! Come on, let's go.
See, Jules? All a mistake.
All right?
- I go with my men?
- Just a minute.
I'd like some explanation of this mistake.
Kurth!
Slager!
Where are you?
Down here, Jules. What's left of us.
Where's the rest?
This place looks like a slaughterhouse.
- We're all that's left.
- They jumped us from ambush.
It was a mistake!
We come, see men hiding in the rocks.
Figure Sheriff was looking for us.
- Figure send them home quick.
- Where's the stage?
Stone pulled out when the shooting started.
I fell off on the turn.
Excuse me, Jules.
I'll pay you off some day.
Now I go?
So it was just a coincidence
you were here at this pass...
when the stage was passing through
and my men weren't watching.
Of course! Just a confidence.
I don't believe in coincidence.
Who told you to jump us here?
- Lf I had a gun...
- I have the gun now.
- Who told you?
- Nobody.
Was it Stone?
Your guns are useless now, Degas.
Was it Mark Stone?
Mark Stone. That's it.
I think he pushed me off on the turn.
Help me, please.
- Was it Mark Stone who set up this ambush?
- I'm shot. I need help.
You need help. First, tell me if it was Mark!
Mark Stone, Shorty?
Yeah.
What are you doing back here?
Hide the coach and the horses.
Put this in a safe place.
And if anyone comes looking for me,
all you know is I'm on my way to Phoenix.
You were a fool to even try.
That depends.
I don't know yet how many got out alive.
Jules is smart.
He's bound to figure you sold him out.
Now you have to leave town.
Are we on our way to California again?
You'll have to go alone.
And leave you here
to get your head blown off?
Come on, pack.
Go someplace else, then. Anyplace, but go.
You don't even have to tell me where.
- There is no one like you in this world.
- I know. I'm a great friend.
I made a deal with Mourret,
but it didn't include murder.
Now things have happened.
Like Jake Hooper.
And Shelby Conroy?
In trying to square one debt,
I got into another that has to be paid.
Fine people have been hurt.
People I thought didn't matter.
There goes my dream.
All right, stay here as long as you like.
But before they put your name
on a slab on Boot Hill...
you might as well know I lied to you.
You're not a wanted man.
There was a witness.
A little stevedore who played the harmonica
saw the whole thing.
From what he told,
it was anything but murder.
If I'd known this yesterday,
Jake'd still be alive.
- Why didn't you tell me?
- Because I knew I'd have a hold on you...
and you'd have to keep running
and I'd have to be running after you.
Don't blame me for using tricks to hold you.
That Conroy girl would use plenty
if you meant enough to her.
I don't even know if you're in love with her.
It doesn't matter.
Now you can go to her with
a grand confession. I hope she understands.
- I also hope she kicks you out on your ear!
- Maybe she will.
- Where are you going?
- I need a drink. Maybe five or six.
I'm glad you boys made it.
What are the guns all about?
You're not mad
because I had to turn around again?
There wasn't much else I could do.
Mourret all right, too?
Find out who those men were?
We also found out other things.
Yeah.
Your friend Degas wouldn't talk,
but Dutch had a loose mouth.
Now stick out your wrists.
Now sit down.
Why go to all this bother?
I'll fetch Jules.
Breathe deep, mister, while you can.
Jules didn't want us to plug you.
When he gets here, he'll skin the hide
off your bones an inch at a time.
Too bad you're a dirty rat.
No, I'd never be able to trust you.
- What do you mean, you can't trust me?
- Forget it.
Scum like you'd probably cut my throat
and keep it all.
Hit me again
and you'll probably jar my memory.
Make me forget where I hid the strongbox.
You mean you didn't bring it
back to the station?
You think I'd turn $100,000 back to Conroy?
What do you take me for?
I was packing to go when you boys came in.
Too bad.
Where is it?
You better tell me.
If I thought I could trust you,
we might talk a deal.
Just you and me. Not Mourret, nobody else.
You're just talking to save your neck.
I'm wasting my breath
on a big, stupid ox like you.
You wouldn't even know
what to do with $50,000 all your own.
$50,000?
Yeah. I was figuring
on going to New Orleans.
A man could live like a king
with all that money.
Everything he wants. Beautiful Creole girls.
You ought to see them.
No women so pretty anyplace in the world.
Skin like amber velvet,
soft and smooth to the touch.
They can drive a man out of his mind.
They like a big man, a man with muscle.
But it takes more than that.
You've got to have money to spend.
Clothes and a big diamond stickpin
wouldn't hurt.
Until you've lived like that,
you don't know what living is.
But it takes a better man than you, Slager,
to make up his mind what he wants.
All right.
Fifty-fifty.
But I'm keeping this gun on you
till I see the color of that gold.
I'm back here.
Holster your gun.
You've been pushing
to use that gun on me, Kurth.
- I promised you the chance.
- What are you waiting for, Stone?
Afraid to face me. So you're fixing
to gun me down in the back?
You don't deserve any better.
Raise your hands.
Higher. Over your head.
Turn around.
You like it better this way, Kurth?
Yeah.
Poley, Mark Stone been in here tonight?
Not tonight.
What's he done to you, Mr. Mourret?
What makes you think that?
I don't know. You got
a funny look on your face.
Last time I saw it was just before
you hung Gigs Barlow.
- Some day, Poley, I'll...
- Jules!
Kurth is laying over in the alley, dead.
Stone killed him.
He just stood there, cold as ice,
and shot him down.
- Where did he go?
- I don't know.
- You waiting for him, too?
- Go away.
That's no way to talk.
We've been friends for a long time.
It was mostly as a favor to you
that I helped Jeff.
- Helped Jeff? Used him, you mean.
- I'm a business man collecting a debt.
By this time, that Conroy girl
knows all about you and that debt.
- I'm not worried about the Conroys.
- I wish Jeff wasn't.
She's probably twisting him
around her little finger right now.
- So that's where he is.
- I didn't say that.
But you did, my dear.
You got a few of notches in your gun.
You ever shoot a man in the back?
You know better!
They saw it coming. They had a chance.
That's the way we do things.
We give and take our chances.
Reef, you trigger that gun of yours
now and again.
Did you ever kill a man
that never did anything to you?
Only in war. Otherwise live and let live.
That's the way I feel.
Soldier, you know what
the Quantrill Raiders were?
Sure.
Butchers that used the war
to cover up their murders and robberies.
There's one of them in town now.
He doesn't do things the way we do.
When he shoots a man,
he shoots him in the back.
And that's the way
he killed Dan Kurth tonight.
He can't get away.
Things like that give this town a bad name.
Yes, and we ought to do something about it
right now.
Let's take something along with us,
like a rope.
Sure, let's get a rope.
Yeah, come on. Let's get a rope.
Wait! He's lying!
Mourret is lying!
What else can she say?
She's in love with him.
- Come on, boys. Let's go.
- Can't anybody stop them?
Where there's a stampede, ma'am,
the safest place is up a tall tree.
Quiet!
Shoot him the minute he comes out.
- Quick! It's a lynching!
- So that's what all the ruckus is about!
Is that all? You've got to stop them!
I can't try nothing like that
without the Sheriff.
I don't know where he went.
What are you going in there for?
There's nobody there.
- Wait! Where you going with that gun?
- Stay back.
I can't understand it.
Men like Degas and Mueller,
yes, but Mourret?
He's still alive. Out in the open now.
And the killing's already started.
I knew it had to be someone here.
I would believe it was Mourret.
- Lf I could only believe you.
- I've told you all about myself.
Where I've lied, what I've done,
and why I did it.
There's nothing to gain by lying now.
Of course he's telling us the truth.
What can we gain against
anyone as powerful as Mourret?
The house is surrounded, Travis.
You can't get away.
You've got just 30 seconds.
Send him out, Conroy.
All right, Travis, we're coming in.
Did you find him?
You clumsy idiot.
You all seem a little jumpy this morning.
Have a drink. On the house, of course.
Yeah, I do need an eye-opener, at that.
You've been needing
an eye-opener all your life.
Lay off, Jules.
It wasn't my fault he got away. Not this time.
You know, I remember
when he first came here.
Right through that door.
Now we've lost him for good.
You really think you've seen the last
of Jeff Travis?
He won't dare show his face
around here again.
What are you getting at?
You think he'll come back?
Don't you? He's not the running-away kind.
He'll come back.
My men have blocked
every street and alley into this town.
They're good boys. They'll stop him.
Sure, they'll get him.
A fly couldn't get through.
That tall man is a lot smarter than any fly.
You don't think those fellows are
going to stand and wait for Jeff to show up?
They'd better. They have my orders.
Your orders? You got the crowd last night...
when it was liquored up
and ready for excitement.
They're tired out now,
they've been up all night.
Probably home right now, sleeping it off.
Take a look. See if they're still there.
- Why, sure they are, Jules.
- I said look!
They're gone, Jules.
The dirty, yellow dogs ran out on us.
They couldn't.
You beginning to feel it, too?
- Shut up, Poley.
- Don't be so jumpy, Jules.
Poley is only trying to tell you
he sort of feels Jeff's presence.
- Now what?
- I thought I heard something.
Feel how still the air is.
Like just before a cyclone or a storm.
Or death.
- Stop talking like that, or so help me I'll...
- Get a hold of yourself.
Sure.
We got nothing to worry about.
We can handle it.
We always handle everything together.
Both of us, huh, Jules?
Good morning, Josie.
Morning, Jeff.
It's later than I thought,
and I've got things to do. Elsewhere.
Sorry I kept you fellows up all night.
I'm sorry about all this, Jeff.
We were too hotheaded.
- The two of us can still get together.
- Which one of your men killed Jake Hooper?
What are you looking at me for?
- I thought he was the one.
- Wait a minute.
That'll satisfy the Hooper killing.
You can easily prove
that you killed Dan Kurth in a fair fight.
That'll satisfy folks all around.
We'd both be clean.
- Jules, you wouldn't!
- How about it, Jeff?
We can play out the string together.
We could, Jules.
But I'll give you a choice instead.
Get out of here, Josie.
You let me take you in
so the law can hang you...
or go for your gun.
We'll finish it up right here.
You're being kind of hard on me, Jeff.
I'm giving you a better chance
than you ever gave anyone.
Jeff, look out!
Fine fire, Jeff.
Reminds you of Lawrence, remember?
You going to stay there and burn,
or come out and take a bullet?
There's only the two of us left, Jeff.
Let's call it off, Jeff! What do you say?
We'll burn if we stay here.
We'll both get out that door.
Only one of us is going out.
Jeff, how does it feel
to be free of everything...
have all accounts square and settled?
Guns never settle anything the right way.
I'm through with them, Josie.
But you're gonna need one in California.
Sorry, but I'm not going to California.
I know that's what you said.
I wish you'd reconsider.
You could stay here with us.
- Run the stage if you like.
- Thanks, but it wouldn't work.
I'm used to something
that's more of a gamble.
Would you, please?
Goodbye, Mr. Conroy. Shelby.
Good luck always, Jeff.
Thanks.
Jeff, would you open the door, please?
I scorched my hands a little in that fire.
Do you want to fix them here
or in California?
Why, honeychild.
We'll fix them on the way,
they'll heal in California.