The Fugitive (1963) s04e23 Episode Script
Passage to Helena
Next, The Fugitive, in color.
Are you getting tired, deputy? Oh, Helenas only about 25 miles - Might as well be 1 ,000 for you.
- Come on.
When did you become a buddy of his? Dalton, you got a real prize package here.
This here is Richard Kimble, the man who killed his wife.
Get moving.
- What was the point of that? - Teach you a lesson.
We're in this together.
When we get ready to move, it's gonna take the both of us.
Now, lf he had any ideas of letting you go, they're all gone now.
A QM production.
Starring David Janssen as Dr.
Richard Kimble.
An innocent victim of blind justice, falsely convicted for the murder of his wife, reprieved by fate when a train wreck freed him en route to the death house.
Freed him to hide in lonely desperation, to change his identity, to toil at many jobs.
Freed him to search for a one-armed man he saw leave the scene of the crime.
Freed him to run before the relentless pursuit of the police lieutenant obsessed with his capture.
The guest stars in tonight's story: James Farentino, Percy Rodriguez.
Wyler City, a rugged frontier town in the mining country of Northern Montana.
To the ordinary man, a place where he can test himself against the harsh demands of nature.
To the fugitive, a corridor of danger.
- Yes, sir? What can I do for you? - Id like to buy a bus ticket.
Here, Laurence.
Yes, sir? Now, where would you like to go? I'd like a ticket to Helena.
One way, please.
One way? A round trip's only $2 more.
- I only wanna go one way.
- One way.
Helena.
One way to Helena.
That'll be $3.
80.
- Say, how about a haircut? - No, thanks.
- When does the bus leave? - Two oclock tomorrow afternoon.
I thought there was a bus this evening.
There is.
Only, it's 40 miles out of Holliston with a broken rear axle.
I told them that bus needed new shocks.
Offered to sell them a set myself at 20 off.
But, no, they had to do things their own way.
Is there any other way to get to Helena this evening? Well, outside of walking, I don't see what's to be done about it.
I'll tell you what.
You take this little note to my brother, Sam McGinnis.
He runs the Wyler inn.
Now, he'll see to it that you get a good room at 20 off.
Won't cost you more than 4 or 5 dollars.
You'll be all rested up for the trip tomorrow.
Hey, now you got the time, how about a haircut? Half a dollar off on Fridays.
No, thanks.
Hey, you! Hold it! Hold it, mister! All right, get up against that post.
Come on, stretch out.
Freeze, mister.
- What are you working on? - What else would it be? Well, you can put it away.
Well, it's a murder case, remember? I'm willing to go to court and swear that Old Man Gamion never had an enemy from the day he was born.
He didn't, but it was still murder.
Or I guess you could call it that.
- You know something else I don't? - Coroner finished the autopsy.
I know.
That was a waste of time.
A bullet through the head kills, or did they teach me wrong? Oh, the bullet killed him, all right.
John Gamion did it.
- His own brother? - Mm-hm.
Oh, come on.
Those two old men have been living in that same cabin together for the past 30 years.
I've never seen two men more devoted.
That's right.
I was down at the hospital this afternoon, had a chat with Old Man Gamion's doctor.
Gamion was dying.
John knew it.
Just couldnt stand to see his brother suffer anymore.
- Guess I better go pick him up, huh? - No need.
He'll be down by himself in the morning.
You have a man you want me to see.
Yeah, yeah.
He's in there with Webster.
Okay.
- Web.
- Hi, Emery.
Web, I think Kline needs some help with that new Cedar Glen report.
I'd like to know what I'm being charged with.
What would you prefer? That isnt funny.
We're not charging you with anything yet.
Just holding you for questioning.
And we have a right to your services for two more hours.
I, uh I haven't heard any questions.
Green 1962 pickup truck was reported stolen.
Belonged to a farmer named Prewit.
He got a look at the man, and from the description he gave us, fits you.
I've only been in town a couple of hours.
I bought a bus ticket to Helena.
Then why did you run when the officers stopped you? I only had $10 in my pocket, no visible means of supporting.
Don't look or talk like a vagrant.
- Prewit here yet? MAN: Yes.
He just got in.
Send him in, will you? What did you say your name was? - Uh, Barrett.
Thomas Barrett.
- Thomas Barrett.
Mm.
Prewit.
Stand up, Barrett.
Prewit, Mr.
Barrett.
- That ain't the man.
- You sure about that? He not only ain't the right one, he ain't even the wrong one.
I told the officers what that man looked like.
- He don't look anything like him.
- Thank you, Mr.
Prewit.
- Can I go now? - No, not yet.
You arrested me.
You held me here.
Now your witness came in, and he couldnt identify me.
Now Id like to leave.
The officers made a mistake, Mr.
Barrett.
All we can do about that is apologize.
But you resisted arrest.
All right.
That's my mistake.
We're even.
Resisting arrest isnt a mistake, it's a criminal offense.
Especially the way I heard you did it.
A regular one-man gang.
All right.
I'd like to see a lawyer.
Well, Jack Claytons on a case in Helena, and Ty Richardson's laid up with the flu.
Very helpful.
Look, why don't you relax, get a good night's sleep? Web, Mr.
Barrett will be staying the night.
Give him the first cell on the right-hand side, the one with the new mattress.
Send out for anything he wants to eat, on the house.
Anything else you want, just holler.
Mr.
Barrett.
Kline, check Barrett against whatever wanted posters we've got lying around.
That's a pretty good mattress.
I sleep on it sometimes when I work late.
Anything special you want for dinner? Welcome to the Sunny Palms Hotel.
You here on the monthly or yearly rate? Just overnight.
Well, what'd you do wrong? - I resisted arrest.
- Mm.
- What would they arrest you for? - For looking like someone.
That's a bad policy.
Here Catch.
Pecan candy.
- Thank you.
- Don't mention it.
You eat that hash they haul up from Shipleys, you won't live long enough to get to trial.
Say, who was it the boys had you confused with? Someone who stole a pickup.
Only reason I ask is that it seems to me you look like somebody I seen once.
Somebody I read about in a detective magazine.
it's a hobby of mine.
I like to read up on what makes people become killers.
You look like this guy who killed his wife back East somewhere.
Never been married.
Well, that's the problems you run into, I guess.
Having a familiar face.
You take my brother, Harry Joe, for example.
Anytime he strays from home territory, he's getting picked up for anything from chicken thieving to armed mayhem.
Which ain't to say he never done all those things.
Morning, Matt.
What'd you do, sleep here last night? Easier to get to work.
That's very humorous.
I wish I was in more of a mood for humor.
I wish I didn't have to hear, at 6:00 on a Saturday morning, that my chief deputy is holding a cleared prisoner incommunicado.
Well, he wasn't cleared of resisting arrest.
Now, you read the report.
It was like he was fighting for his life.
I could make out a case for assaulting an officer.
If that's what you're holding him on, why didn't you bring him into the court this morning for arraignment? Because arraignment means ball.
This is the procedure.
Oh, lf he gets out on ball, Matt, that's the last you'll ever see of him.
On a misdemeanor? He's gotta have rocks in his head.
Not lf there's something bigger out on him.
Such as? Oh, I don't know yet.
Nothing on him here.
He's cleared.
Checked him out.
But I just got a feeling about him.
You've got a feeling? What are you, a poet? You're a cop, and there's a book of procedure you're supposed to follow.
Matt, lf there isnt something big out on him, Ill buy you a new hunting hat.
How are you going to hold him past this afternoon's arraignment? There won't be any arraignment.
I'm taking him to Helena for identification.
Well, you must be out of your mind.
You've got an assignment in Deer Lodge, remember? - I remember.
- Do you? This isnt a possum hunt you're going on.
- I'm talking about Rafe Carter.
- I know who he is.
I'm going through Helena anyway.
If there's nothing on Barrett, well, Ill I'll just let him go.
Carter's a killer, and you're taking him to hang.
You and that kid deputy who's never fired a gun off at the practice range.
That's more than enough, and he's a good man.
It isnt enough.
If I didn't have the whole county to worry about, I'd send the whole squad with you.
If anybody's planning trouble, they'll expect me to take the main highway.
I'll go the back road in the old pickup truck.
Well, you think that way will be safer? Do you know what those mountains are like? I've been through there a hundred times.
And I grew up around mountain people.
You know that.
You were just a boy.
You're a man now, with a sheriff's badge on your shirt.
You mean I'm a black man with a badge.
Look, they wouldnt care if you were green with orange stripes.
You're wearing a badge, and that's all Carter's friends need.
Relax.
I know what I can handle, Matt.
I'm sorry, Dalton.
You have to take Carter, but you can't take Barrett.
Now, Matt All right.
Let him go.
And when it turns out you let a wanted man loose, you can explain.
All right.
If you think you got something, go ahead, take him with you.
- Thanks, Matt.
- Don't thank me now.
Wait until you get back from Deer Lodge.
If you make it there.
I'm taking the two men in.
- Time to go.
KIMBLE: To the courthouse? - Police station in Helena.
- Why there? That's where you were headed, wasn't it? I have a bus ticket, if it's all the same to you.
It isnt.
Well, lookie, lookie, lookie.
Wylers one-man minstrel show.
On your feet.
Why? You can shine my shoes sitting down.
- Get on your feet.
You're moving out.
- Who's gonna take me? - You? - Want me to get him up, sergeant? No, he'll get up by himself.
You're going through Rafe Carter's country.
I'd think about that, boy.
Dalton.
You run into any trouble, you use that radio.
Don't be a hero.
Yeah.
You ever kill anyone? - I said, you ever kill anyone? - No.
I have.
I killed two they know about, and two more they don't.
But they was all people who had a mind to stop me from doing what I was aiming to do.
I'm not telling you my life story to entertain you on our little ride to Helena.
If we get to Helena, they're gonna hang you as dead as they hang me.
Ain't that right, Dr.
Kimble? I don't know what you're talking about.
Sure.
You go on saying that for the public record.
I'm not going to Helena.
And that means you're not going either.
And if that means that we're gonna have to add a couple more to that score I was telling you about, well, we're gonna do just that.
You and me.
- What's up? - Gauge shows three-quarters empty.
It was full when we left.
Gas tank's leaking.
Well, let me see what I can do.
Like I tried to tell you, deputy, ain't hardly anybody in these parts not a relative of mine.
Wouldnt surprise me a bit if a few of them weren't behind those rocks, or those bushes over there.
Well, that ought to hold it for a while.
- Oh, my turn.
Ill drive.
- Okay.
What's on your mind? But for the grace of God and you, that could be me back there.
Or me.
But if you didn't take me in tow when I was a kid All right, son.
Just keep your eye on the road now.
That Carter sure got a lot of hate.
Haven't we all? Doesn't that bother you? Sometimes it does, sometimes it don't.
Here they come.
He's gone.
Unit 5 calling Headquarters.
Unit 5 calling Headquarters.
Unit 5 calling Headquarters.
You take it easy, son.
I'll be back as soon as I can.
It's a mille to the river.
Once we get past that, it's another mille to my cousin Tylers place.
He's gone.
No.
He ain't gone.
I'd get.
We lost him.
I'll take care of yours when we got more time.
Come on, let's go.
Get over there.
- You better let me take a look at him.
- Stay where you are.
I've had experience with this sort of thing.
What experience? Medic in the Army.
He's dead.
Pick him up.
Put him in the cab of the truck.
Put him in there.
Can I take care of that leg for you? All right, let's move.
What are you gonna do, march us to Helena? That's right.
One of those bullets must've bounced off your thick skull.
Helenas 40 miles You'll drop dead before we get ten.
You walk much on that leg, you'll wind up losing it.
Thanks for the advice.
Now, let's walk.
You know, we had a big old dog once.
Used to sleep with us, eat with us.
It lived with human beings so long, pretty soon it began to think it was human itself.
Would you shut up? Man, you're losing your sense of humor.
Hold it.
Hey, that's Big Ben Wilson.
He's got a mighty big mouth.
Oh, word's gonna start spreading.
Up there.
Get walking.
We're gonna have to stop, Dalton.
Not now.
Forget him.
He'll be dead soon.
Is the water contaminated? Where does that creek come from? Spring or run-off water? I forgot.
Is it contaminated? Well, there's one way to find out.
We need the water.
He needs it worse than we do.
I know what water to drink.
He don't.
Might give you a bad bellyache.
Ain't that right, boy? That's the Benson place, isnt it? That's right, boy.
All right, let's get moving.
That's Laura Benson's house, widow of my friend Tom.
We're gonna be all right now.
You just be ready to move when I do.
Your move.
Oh, boy.
Tom, take your sister in the kitchen and close the door.
Move.
Excuse the intrusion, ma'am.
Who are you? What do you want? Chief Deputy Emery Dalton, Wyler County Sheriff's Office.
- Do you have a telephone here? - No, we don't.
- Do you have an automobile? - No.
We're poor people, mister.
I'm on my way to Helena with these two prisoners.
Had an accident back on the road, and one of my officers was killed.
I have to ask you to put us up for the night, until we can get back on the road again.
I'm a widow, and there's two children in this house.
It ain't right to bring criminals in here.
They won't be troubling you any.
You have my word.
All right.
Come on in.
I'll see if I can find you something to eat and drink.
I'm grateful, ma'am.
This way.
Are you a bank robber? Don't ask foolish questions.
Take your sister and go to bed now.
- it's too early for bedtime, Ma.
- You do what I say.
Get your sister and go on to bed.
Do you hear me? Can I help, ma'am? Well, you can get the cups out of that cupboard.
- it's hot tea and whiskey.
- Thank you.
I don't like to see a man in chains, no matter what he done.
And I don't like to see a man accepting my hospitality with one hand and holding a shotgun in the other.
- Sorry, ma'am.
- What was it they done wrong? Enough that I should keep holding this shotgun.
I appreciate what you're doing.
I want you to know that.
Well, Ill appreciate it when you're gone tomorrow.
You can use the couch and the chairs to sleep in.
I gotta go see to my children.
You know, back in Wyler, I was sure I had myself a wanted man.
Oh, I'm still sure.
Don't mean I got anything against you personally.
That's nice to hear.
I find out I was wrong about you, l Well, you have my apology in advance.
- Apologies are easy.
DALTON: Not for me.
Haven't apologized to anybody for anything since I put on a badge.
That badge means a lot to you, does it? Mm-hm.
it does.
That gun means more to him.
Because lf he didn't have it, he'd be rotting away in some ditch right now.
Shut up.
You got the gun.
What do you do? - For a living, I mean.
- Um, mechanic, mostly.
- You have a wife? - I used to.
Women have a place in a man's life, but they don't tell him what he is.
A man's work, that tells him what he is.
Why is it so important for you to get me to Helena? - Find out who you are.
- I told you who I was.
Thomas Barrett.
- Who'd you kill, Barrett? - I didn't kill anybody.
Well, now, why don't you ask me? You know something about him? No.
I just felt kind of left out.
I thought maybe you forgot all about me.
Not a chance.
Got some more friends out there, Carter? I don't know what you're talking about.
Get up.
Come on.
Sit down.
You, over here.
Come on.
What's happening, Rafe? Why are they taking you away? Who is this man? Forget him, Laura.
This ain't your trouble.
I'm not prying, Rafe.
It's that it hurts me to see you like this.
You're a good woman, Laura.
I don't wanna bring my troubles down around your head.
l I wish - Rafe.
- Pay him no mind.
I gotta say what I feel.
I don't have much time.
I wish Id been able to give you something.
I wish I was I wish I was able to tell you what I felt for you before.
- Why didn't you? - What for? Sooner or later, it wouldve come to the same end.
They tried to take my mama's land away.
The acre and a half she had for 50 years down at Creek's End.
Tried to shoot me down like a dog.
I killed the man who tried to kill me, and they-- Now they wanna hang me.
No.
There must be something I can do, Rafe.
- Tell me what to do.
CARTER: lf Tom were here, l-- Tom's been dead three years.
Tom was my friend, but all my life, I wished I was in his place.
Set me free, Laura.
I'll come back for you.
We'll go off together somewhere I can hold you close in peace.
Just set me free.
Very touching.
Nothing out there but an old bobcat must've wandered down from the mountain.
What were you telling her? What a noble and persecuted hero you were? Well, that doesn't matter.
Where you're going, it don't matter what kind of stories you'll be telling.
- No.
- Sorry, ma'am.
He's a killer.
Killed a man and a girl for no good reason, except maybe they said something wrong to him.
Go on, tell her, Carter.
Tell her what kind of man you are, the kind of courage it takes to kill a 1 7-year-oId girl.
Get out, Laura.
Get out! You think you've won? You're finished, Dalton.
You're wounded, and it's getting worse.
Everywhere you go in these mountains, every man's hand will be turned against you.
You're gonna die, Dalton.
And I'm gonna be free.
Are you getting tired, deputy? Oh, Helenas only about 25 miles - Might as well be 1 ,000 for you.
- Come on.
When did you become a buddy of his? Dalton, you got a real prize package here.
This here is Richard Kimble, the man who killed his wife.
Get moving.
- What was the point of that? - Teach you a lesson.
We're in this together.
When we get ready to move, it's gonna take the both of us.
Now, lf he had any ideas of letting you go, they're all gone now.
Look at him.
Two nights with no sleep.
Now, all we want are the keys and to get out of here.
Dalton means nothing to us, right? - Carter? - I heard you.
Now, take the gun off.
Easy.
Throw it over there.
Get the keys.
Finish him.
I said finish him! Get up.
Get out of here.
Go on.
Carter! Carter, we're free.
Come on, let's get out of here.
Nobody puts me in chains, especially him.
Now get out of here, or Ill put a hole in your gut.
Dalton! Well, well, well.
We've come a long way, haven't we? I've come a long way to get free, and you've come a long way to die.
You know how many men I killed? Four.
And not a deputy among them, because I don't mess with dirt.
But you're something special.
Yes, sir, you surely are.
Carter.
I can't let you go, Kimble.
I'm not going with you.
I'll tell them you saved a lawman's life.
That's not gonna do me any good.
You know that.
Gotta take you in.
But after that, Ill help you.
- I promise.
- I never killed anybody.
Maybe you didn't, but I can't give you a new trial here.
Well, that's why I can't go with you.
Can't let you go, Kimble.
I can't.
A man can do anything he wants to do.
I'm a lawman, and lf I let you go, I'm nothing.
All right, lf shooting me makes you somebody, that's what you're gonna have to do.
You're gonna have to shoot me.
Kimble.
Kimble! - Well, hi, Emery.
- Hi, John.
Oh, Emery, here's our report on the Gamion case.
I'll take care of it later.
Too bad about Lockett.
Yeah.
Sheriff in? Yeah, I have the report in front of me right now.
By wire from Helena.
Oh, and he's just come into the office this minute, so I better hang up.
So long, George.
- Welcome home.
- Thanks.
What happened? You got the report.
Yes, I read the report.
But I wanna know what happened to you.
It's all in there.
I wrote it down the way it happened.
Emery.
Wait a minute, Emery.
Are you doing this because Kimble got away? You want a better reason? - I want a good reason.
- He's a murderer.
Who saved your life.
- When that report reaches-- - That report isnt going anywhere.
It was addressed to the sheriff of Wyler County, Montana, and that's me and no one else.
You don't understand, do you? You just don't understand.
I'm supposed to be a cop, and I let a murderer go.
Is that what the report says? That isnt the way I read it.
The way I read it: Under conditions of extreme duress, with your own life in danger, one of your two prisoners got away.
I've been sheriff for 30 years.
I ought to know how to read a report.
- What are you trying to do? - I'm trying to tell you something.
I'm trying to tell you that you're more than a cop.
You're the best man I know.
And good men are hard to find.
A fugitive's life is not measured in years.
It is measured in moments won, a day gained.
Richard Kimble has won another day.
Tomorrow, he must win it all over again.
Are you getting tired, deputy? Oh, Helenas only about 25 miles - Might as well be 1 ,000 for you.
- Come on.
When did you become a buddy of his? Dalton, you got a real prize package here.
This here is Richard Kimble, the man who killed his wife.
Get moving.
- What was the point of that? - Teach you a lesson.
We're in this together.
When we get ready to move, it's gonna take the both of us.
Now, lf he had any ideas of letting you go, they're all gone now.
A QM production.
Starring David Janssen as Dr.
Richard Kimble.
An innocent victim of blind justice, falsely convicted for the murder of his wife, reprieved by fate when a train wreck freed him en route to the death house.
Freed him to hide in lonely desperation, to change his identity, to toil at many jobs.
Freed him to search for a one-armed man he saw leave the scene of the crime.
Freed him to run before the relentless pursuit of the police lieutenant obsessed with his capture.
The guest stars in tonight's story: James Farentino, Percy Rodriguez.
Wyler City, a rugged frontier town in the mining country of Northern Montana.
To the ordinary man, a place where he can test himself against the harsh demands of nature.
To the fugitive, a corridor of danger.
- Yes, sir? What can I do for you? - Id like to buy a bus ticket.
Here, Laurence.
Yes, sir? Now, where would you like to go? I'd like a ticket to Helena.
One way, please.
One way? A round trip's only $2 more.
- I only wanna go one way.
- One way.
Helena.
One way to Helena.
That'll be $3.
80.
- Say, how about a haircut? - No, thanks.
- When does the bus leave? - Two oclock tomorrow afternoon.
I thought there was a bus this evening.
There is.
Only, it's 40 miles out of Holliston with a broken rear axle.
I told them that bus needed new shocks.
Offered to sell them a set myself at 20 off.
But, no, they had to do things their own way.
Is there any other way to get to Helena this evening? Well, outside of walking, I don't see what's to be done about it.
I'll tell you what.
You take this little note to my brother, Sam McGinnis.
He runs the Wyler inn.
Now, he'll see to it that you get a good room at 20 off.
Won't cost you more than 4 or 5 dollars.
You'll be all rested up for the trip tomorrow.
Hey, now you got the time, how about a haircut? Half a dollar off on Fridays.
No, thanks.
Hey, you! Hold it! Hold it, mister! All right, get up against that post.
Come on, stretch out.
Freeze, mister.
- What are you working on? - What else would it be? Well, you can put it away.
Well, it's a murder case, remember? I'm willing to go to court and swear that Old Man Gamion never had an enemy from the day he was born.
He didn't, but it was still murder.
Or I guess you could call it that.
- You know something else I don't? - Coroner finished the autopsy.
I know.
That was a waste of time.
A bullet through the head kills, or did they teach me wrong? Oh, the bullet killed him, all right.
John Gamion did it.
- His own brother? - Mm-hm.
Oh, come on.
Those two old men have been living in that same cabin together for the past 30 years.
I've never seen two men more devoted.
That's right.
I was down at the hospital this afternoon, had a chat with Old Man Gamion's doctor.
Gamion was dying.
John knew it.
Just couldnt stand to see his brother suffer anymore.
- Guess I better go pick him up, huh? - No need.
He'll be down by himself in the morning.
You have a man you want me to see.
Yeah, yeah.
He's in there with Webster.
Okay.
- Web.
- Hi, Emery.
Web, I think Kline needs some help with that new Cedar Glen report.
I'd like to know what I'm being charged with.
What would you prefer? That isnt funny.
We're not charging you with anything yet.
Just holding you for questioning.
And we have a right to your services for two more hours.
I, uh I haven't heard any questions.
Green 1962 pickup truck was reported stolen.
Belonged to a farmer named Prewit.
He got a look at the man, and from the description he gave us, fits you.
I've only been in town a couple of hours.
I bought a bus ticket to Helena.
Then why did you run when the officers stopped you? I only had $10 in my pocket, no visible means of supporting.
Don't look or talk like a vagrant.
- Prewit here yet? MAN: Yes.
He just got in.
Send him in, will you? What did you say your name was? - Uh, Barrett.
Thomas Barrett.
- Thomas Barrett.
Mm.
Prewit.
Stand up, Barrett.
Prewit, Mr.
Barrett.
- That ain't the man.
- You sure about that? He not only ain't the right one, he ain't even the wrong one.
I told the officers what that man looked like.
- He don't look anything like him.
- Thank you, Mr.
Prewit.
- Can I go now? - No, not yet.
You arrested me.
You held me here.
Now your witness came in, and he couldnt identify me.
Now Id like to leave.
The officers made a mistake, Mr.
Barrett.
All we can do about that is apologize.
But you resisted arrest.
All right.
That's my mistake.
We're even.
Resisting arrest isnt a mistake, it's a criminal offense.
Especially the way I heard you did it.
A regular one-man gang.
All right.
I'd like to see a lawyer.
Well, Jack Claytons on a case in Helena, and Ty Richardson's laid up with the flu.
Very helpful.
Look, why don't you relax, get a good night's sleep? Web, Mr.
Barrett will be staying the night.
Give him the first cell on the right-hand side, the one with the new mattress.
Send out for anything he wants to eat, on the house.
Anything else you want, just holler.
Mr.
Barrett.
Kline, check Barrett against whatever wanted posters we've got lying around.
That's a pretty good mattress.
I sleep on it sometimes when I work late.
Anything special you want for dinner? Welcome to the Sunny Palms Hotel.
You here on the monthly or yearly rate? Just overnight.
Well, what'd you do wrong? - I resisted arrest.
- Mm.
- What would they arrest you for? - For looking like someone.
That's a bad policy.
Here Catch.
Pecan candy.
- Thank you.
- Don't mention it.
You eat that hash they haul up from Shipleys, you won't live long enough to get to trial.
Say, who was it the boys had you confused with? Someone who stole a pickup.
Only reason I ask is that it seems to me you look like somebody I seen once.
Somebody I read about in a detective magazine.
it's a hobby of mine.
I like to read up on what makes people become killers.
You look like this guy who killed his wife back East somewhere.
Never been married.
Well, that's the problems you run into, I guess.
Having a familiar face.
You take my brother, Harry Joe, for example.
Anytime he strays from home territory, he's getting picked up for anything from chicken thieving to armed mayhem.
Which ain't to say he never done all those things.
Morning, Matt.
What'd you do, sleep here last night? Easier to get to work.
That's very humorous.
I wish I was in more of a mood for humor.
I wish I didn't have to hear, at 6:00 on a Saturday morning, that my chief deputy is holding a cleared prisoner incommunicado.
Well, he wasn't cleared of resisting arrest.
Now, you read the report.
It was like he was fighting for his life.
I could make out a case for assaulting an officer.
If that's what you're holding him on, why didn't you bring him into the court this morning for arraignment? Because arraignment means ball.
This is the procedure.
Oh, lf he gets out on ball, Matt, that's the last you'll ever see of him.
On a misdemeanor? He's gotta have rocks in his head.
Not lf there's something bigger out on him.
Such as? Oh, I don't know yet.
Nothing on him here.
He's cleared.
Checked him out.
But I just got a feeling about him.
You've got a feeling? What are you, a poet? You're a cop, and there's a book of procedure you're supposed to follow.
Matt, lf there isnt something big out on him, Ill buy you a new hunting hat.
How are you going to hold him past this afternoon's arraignment? There won't be any arraignment.
I'm taking him to Helena for identification.
Well, you must be out of your mind.
You've got an assignment in Deer Lodge, remember? - I remember.
- Do you? This isnt a possum hunt you're going on.
- I'm talking about Rafe Carter.
- I know who he is.
I'm going through Helena anyway.
If there's nothing on Barrett, well, Ill I'll just let him go.
Carter's a killer, and you're taking him to hang.
You and that kid deputy who's never fired a gun off at the practice range.
That's more than enough, and he's a good man.
It isnt enough.
If I didn't have the whole county to worry about, I'd send the whole squad with you.
If anybody's planning trouble, they'll expect me to take the main highway.
I'll go the back road in the old pickup truck.
Well, you think that way will be safer? Do you know what those mountains are like? I've been through there a hundred times.
And I grew up around mountain people.
You know that.
You were just a boy.
You're a man now, with a sheriff's badge on your shirt.
You mean I'm a black man with a badge.
Look, they wouldnt care if you were green with orange stripes.
You're wearing a badge, and that's all Carter's friends need.
Relax.
I know what I can handle, Matt.
I'm sorry, Dalton.
You have to take Carter, but you can't take Barrett.
Now, Matt All right.
Let him go.
And when it turns out you let a wanted man loose, you can explain.
All right.
If you think you got something, go ahead, take him with you.
- Thanks, Matt.
- Don't thank me now.
Wait until you get back from Deer Lodge.
If you make it there.
I'm taking the two men in.
- Time to go.
KIMBLE: To the courthouse? - Police station in Helena.
- Why there? That's where you were headed, wasn't it? I have a bus ticket, if it's all the same to you.
It isnt.
Well, lookie, lookie, lookie.
Wylers one-man minstrel show.
On your feet.
Why? You can shine my shoes sitting down.
- Get on your feet.
You're moving out.
- Who's gonna take me? - You? - Want me to get him up, sergeant? No, he'll get up by himself.
You're going through Rafe Carter's country.
I'd think about that, boy.
Dalton.
You run into any trouble, you use that radio.
Don't be a hero.
Yeah.
You ever kill anyone? - I said, you ever kill anyone? - No.
I have.
I killed two they know about, and two more they don't.
But they was all people who had a mind to stop me from doing what I was aiming to do.
I'm not telling you my life story to entertain you on our little ride to Helena.
If we get to Helena, they're gonna hang you as dead as they hang me.
Ain't that right, Dr.
Kimble? I don't know what you're talking about.
Sure.
You go on saying that for the public record.
I'm not going to Helena.
And that means you're not going either.
And if that means that we're gonna have to add a couple more to that score I was telling you about, well, we're gonna do just that.
You and me.
- What's up? - Gauge shows three-quarters empty.
It was full when we left.
Gas tank's leaking.
Well, let me see what I can do.
Like I tried to tell you, deputy, ain't hardly anybody in these parts not a relative of mine.
Wouldnt surprise me a bit if a few of them weren't behind those rocks, or those bushes over there.
Well, that ought to hold it for a while.
- Oh, my turn.
Ill drive.
- Okay.
What's on your mind? But for the grace of God and you, that could be me back there.
Or me.
But if you didn't take me in tow when I was a kid All right, son.
Just keep your eye on the road now.
That Carter sure got a lot of hate.
Haven't we all? Doesn't that bother you? Sometimes it does, sometimes it don't.
Here they come.
He's gone.
Unit 5 calling Headquarters.
Unit 5 calling Headquarters.
Unit 5 calling Headquarters.
You take it easy, son.
I'll be back as soon as I can.
It's a mille to the river.
Once we get past that, it's another mille to my cousin Tylers place.
He's gone.
No.
He ain't gone.
I'd get.
We lost him.
I'll take care of yours when we got more time.
Come on, let's go.
Get over there.
- You better let me take a look at him.
- Stay where you are.
I've had experience with this sort of thing.
What experience? Medic in the Army.
He's dead.
Pick him up.
Put him in the cab of the truck.
Put him in there.
Can I take care of that leg for you? All right, let's move.
What are you gonna do, march us to Helena? That's right.
One of those bullets must've bounced off your thick skull.
Helenas 40 miles You'll drop dead before we get ten.
You walk much on that leg, you'll wind up losing it.
Thanks for the advice.
Now, let's walk.
You know, we had a big old dog once.
Used to sleep with us, eat with us.
It lived with human beings so long, pretty soon it began to think it was human itself.
Would you shut up? Man, you're losing your sense of humor.
Hold it.
Hey, that's Big Ben Wilson.
He's got a mighty big mouth.
Oh, word's gonna start spreading.
Up there.
Get walking.
We're gonna have to stop, Dalton.
Not now.
Forget him.
He'll be dead soon.
Is the water contaminated? Where does that creek come from? Spring or run-off water? I forgot.
Is it contaminated? Well, there's one way to find out.
We need the water.
He needs it worse than we do.
I know what water to drink.
He don't.
Might give you a bad bellyache.
Ain't that right, boy? That's the Benson place, isnt it? That's right, boy.
All right, let's get moving.
That's Laura Benson's house, widow of my friend Tom.
We're gonna be all right now.
You just be ready to move when I do.
Your move.
Oh, boy.
Tom, take your sister in the kitchen and close the door.
Move.
Excuse the intrusion, ma'am.
Who are you? What do you want? Chief Deputy Emery Dalton, Wyler County Sheriff's Office.
- Do you have a telephone here? - No, we don't.
- Do you have an automobile? - No.
We're poor people, mister.
I'm on my way to Helena with these two prisoners.
Had an accident back on the road, and one of my officers was killed.
I have to ask you to put us up for the night, until we can get back on the road again.
I'm a widow, and there's two children in this house.
It ain't right to bring criminals in here.
They won't be troubling you any.
You have my word.
All right.
Come on in.
I'll see if I can find you something to eat and drink.
I'm grateful, ma'am.
This way.
Are you a bank robber? Don't ask foolish questions.
Take your sister and go to bed now.
- it's too early for bedtime, Ma.
- You do what I say.
Get your sister and go on to bed.
Do you hear me? Can I help, ma'am? Well, you can get the cups out of that cupboard.
- it's hot tea and whiskey.
- Thank you.
I don't like to see a man in chains, no matter what he done.
And I don't like to see a man accepting my hospitality with one hand and holding a shotgun in the other.
- Sorry, ma'am.
- What was it they done wrong? Enough that I should keep holding this shotgun.
I appreciate what you're doing.
I want you to know that.
Well, Ill appreciate it when you're gone tomorrow.
You can use the couch and the chairs to sleep in.
I gotta go see to my children.
You know, back in Wyler, I was sure I had myself a wanted man.
Oh, I'm still sure.
Don't mean I got anything against you personally.
That's nice to hear.
I find out I was wrong about you, l Well, you have my apology in advance.
- Apologies are easy.
DALTON: Not for me.
Haven't apologized to anybody for anything since I put on a badge.
That badge means a lot to you, does it? Mm-hm.
it does.
That gun means more to him.
Because lf he didn't have it, he'd be rotting away in some ditch right now.
Shut up.
You got the gun.
What do you do? - For a living, I mean.
- Um, mechanic, mostly.
- You have a wife? - I used to.
Women have a place in a man's life, but they don't tell him what he is.
A man's work, that tells him what he is.
Why is it so important for you to get me to Helena? - Find out who you are.
- I told you who I was.
Thomas Barrett.
- Who'd you kill, Barrett? - I didn't kill anybody.
Well, now, why don't you ask me? You know something about him? No.
I just felt kind of left out.
I thought maybe you forgot all about me.
Not a chance.
Got some more friends out there, Carter? I don't know what you're talking about.
Get up.
Come on.
Sit down.
You, over here.
Come on.
What's happening, Rafe? Why are they taking you away? Who is this man? Forget him, Laura.
This ain't your trouble.
I'm not prying, Rafe.
It's that it hurts me to see you like this.
You're a good woman, Laura.
I don't wanna bring my troubles down around your head.
l I wish - Rafe.
- Pay him no mind.
I gotta say what I feel.
I don't have much time.
I wish Id been able to give you something.
I wish I was I wish I was able to tell you what I felt for you before.
- Why didn't you? - What for? Sooner or later, it wouldve come to the same end.
They tried to take my mama's land away.
The acre and a half she had for 50 years down at Creek's End.
Tried to shoot me down like a dog.
I killed the man who tried to kill me, and they-- Now they wanna hang me.
No.
There must be something I can do, Rafe.
- Tell me what to do.
CARTER: lf Tom were here, l-- Tom's been dead three years.
Tom was my friend, but all my life, I wished I was in his place.
Set me free, Laura.
I'll come back for you.
We'll go off together somewhere I can hold you close in peace.
Just set me free.
Very touching.
Nothing out there but an old bobcat must've wandered down from the mountain.
What were you telling her? What a noble and persecuted hero you were? Well, that doesn't matter.
Where you're going, it don't matter what kind of stories you'll be telling.
- No.
- Sorry, ma'am.
He's a killer.
Killed a man and a girl for no good reason, except maybe they said something wrong to him.
Go on, tell her, Carter.
Tell her what kind of man you are, the kind of courage it takes to kill a 1 7-year-oId girl.
Get out, Laura.
Get out! You think you've won? You're finished, Dalton.
You're wounded, and it's getting worse.
Everywhere you go in these mountains, every man's hand will be turned against you.
You're gonna die, Dalton.
And I'm gonna be free.
Are you getting tired, deputy? Oh, Helenas only about 25 miles - Might as well be 1 ,000 for you.
- Come on.
When did you become a buddy of his? Dalton, you got a real prize package here.
This here is Richard Kimble, the man who killed his wife.
Get moving.
- What was the point of that? - Teach you a lesson.
We're in this together.
When we get ready to move, it's gonna take the both of us.
Now, lf he had any ideas of letting you go, they're all gone now.
Look at him.
Two nights with no sleep.
Now, all we want are the keys and to get out of here.
Dalton means nothing to us, right? - Carter? - I heard you.
Now, take the gun off.
Easy.
Throw it over there.
Get the keys.
Finish him.
I said finish him! Get up.
Get out of here.
Go on.
Carter! Carter, we're free.
Come on, let's get out of here.
Nobody puts me in chains, especially him.
Now get out of here, or Ill put a hole in your gut.
Dalton! Well, well, well.
We've come a long way, haven't we? I've come a long way to get free, and you've come a long way to die.
You know how many men I killed? Four.
And not a deputy among them, because I don't mess with dirt.
But you're something special.
Yes, sir, you surely are.
Carter.
I can't let you go, Kimble.
I'm not going with you.
I'll tell them you saved a lawman's life.
That's not gonna do me any good.
You know that.
Gotta take you in.
But after that, Ill help you.
- I promise.
- I never killed anybody.
Maybe you didn't, but I can't give you a new trial here.
Well, that's why I can't go with you.
Can't let you go, Kimble.
I can't.
A man can do anything he wants to do.
I'm a lawman, and lf I let you go, I'm nothing.
All right, lf shooting me makes you somebody, that's what you're gonna have to do.
You're gonna have to shoot me.
Kimble.
Kimble! - Well, hi, Emery.
- Hi, John.
Oh, Emery, here's our report on the Gamion case.
I'll take care of it later.
Too bad about Lockett.
Yeah.
Sheriff in? Yeah, I have the report in front of me right now.
By wire from Helena.
Oh, and he's just come into the office this minute, so I better hang up.
So long, George.
- Welcome home.
- Thanks.
What happened? You got the report.
Yes, I read the report.
But I wanna know what happened to you.
It's all in there.
I wrote it down the way it happened.
Emery.
Wait a minute, Emery.
Are you doing this because Kimble got away? You want a better reason? - I want a good reason.
- He's a murderer.
Who saved your life.
- When that report reaches-- - That report isnt going anywhere.
It was addressed to the sheriff of Wyler County, Montana, and that's me and no one else.
You don't understand, do you? You just don't understand.
I'm supposed to be a cop, and I let a murderer go.
Is that what the report says? That isnt the way I read it.
The way I read it: Under conditions of extreme duress, with your own life in danger, one of your two prisoners got away.
I've been sheriff for 30 years.
I ought to know how to read a report.
- What are you trying to do? - I'm trying to tell you something.
I'm trying to tell you that you're more than a cop.
You're the best man I know.
And good men are hard to find.
A fugitive's life is not measured in years.
It is measured in moments won, a day gained.
Richard Kimble has won another day.
Tomorrow, he must win it all over again.