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Gunfight in Abilene (1967)
Amy
Soft as the April snow Amy Lovely as indigo You only kissed me And paradise smiled And the man was a child And the wind was so wild Amy Here's what I mean to say Love me If only for today Let me know April And indigo blue And let paradise smile for me too Amy Soft as the April snow Amy Lovely as indigo You only kissed me And paradise smiled And the man was a child And the wind was so wild Amy Here's what I mean to say Love me If only for today Let me know April And indigo blue And let paradise smile for me too Let me know April And indigo blue And let paradise Smile for me too Amy Amy Soldier. Keep that arm covered. Did you get the water?Yes, it cost us Jeremy. Make sure the wounded get a ration of water.Yes, sir. Elmer, go bring in the outpost guard. Ain't gonna be no Yankee foot soldiers here tonight. Not as long as they're using their big guns. Go ahead, get. Sergeant, what's the count? Eleven men. That's counting any wounded that can walk. Them Yankees will be all over as soon as the cannons quit. Sure ain't got much to hold them off with. You know something? We ain't even gonna try. No, sir. Look. We move straight east, We can get out of this pocket. So you can use the dark and that cannon fire to keep us covered. At least there's a chance. Damn slim chance. Better than staying here, sergeant. Yeah, I guess. I know. Now get 'em ready. Yes, sir. All right, men, we're gonna move-- Major. What is it?I can't find my rifle. Private, you go right on over there. Hear? I'll find your rifle for you. I had it only just a minute ago. Tully, Tully. Take what's left of the men and move east and move fast. I'll lay back here and cover for you. Now get out. Go ahead. There's a thousand of them coming. Cal, I tried to get to you. I tried-- Dave. Dave! I'm dying, Cal.Dave. David. Boy, I thought you was one of them stray Yankees. Halt! Halt! We'll open fire! Dave. Get him a doctor. Get him a doctor. Get him a doctor! Man: Here, let me see that newspaper, boy. Come on, look. Look at that. He's telling the truth. Listen, we're gonna get out of here, boy. It's over, major. We're gonna be let loose. Guard says we'll be issued mounts and sent on our way. That's the fourth time this month that the war's been over. But it's so this time. He had a newspaper. I saw it. We're gonna go home. You ain't bringing them cows through here. You better haul yourself out of the way, old man. You pull that fence down, you'll have to answer to me and Mr. Sprague. All right, move 'em out. Easy. Watch it.Thanks. Don't I know you, boy? Cord Decker. Doggone if it ain't. The war must be really over to send all you young lads home. You hurt, Smoky? I've been cut with barbed wire before. It could have been worse. My missus will raise Cain when she sees this torn shirt. You ain't asking what happened. It's plain to see. You're a real Kansas boy. I better get back, tell Mr. Sprague what they did to his field here. Lord's own shame, ain't it? Yeah, well, maybe we can still catch 'em. Dozen of them. Just two of us, Cord. Leave it be. The lord's own shame. I got some hot coffee. You're welcome to a cup. Come on. All right! Come out into the light where I can see your face. Cal. Cal Wayne! How are you, Cord? Doggone surprised is how. I thought-- Cal Wayne. You're gonna stop folks dead in their tracks when you get into Abilene. I can't look that bad. You're supposed to be dead and buried. I got a letter. It must be a year now. Somebody spread the word they'd seen you shot dead. Even went to your burying and laid lilies on your grave. That come pretty close to the truth. Hard to believe. I don't mean your still being alive, but I mean us. Not more than a month ago, mean and you could never have talked. And we weren't any different except my uniform was blue And yours was gray.Hmm. And our thinking was different, too, I guess. I hope all that's behind us. Yeah, I hope. You look like you could use some of that coffee. Come on over, sit by the fire. Oh, yeah. Thought you'd never ask. Hey, Cal, I got a son. He's two. I ain't even seen him yet. Is that right?I got a picture, though. Ain't he a big one? Oh, yeah. Yeah, well, you're a mighty lucky young man. And on my way home! You won't even know Abilene when you get back. They had five sets of railway tracks runnin' in there when I left.Is that right? You ain't saying very much, Cal. You ain't giving much chance, boy. You know, I feel like-- Like I got wings. Like I could flap my arms and fly! Going home. Whoo-hoo! Hey, where's Dave Evers? Did you two get split up by Jeff Davis? Would have taken a president to split you up. Dave's dead. Well, listen, now. You were reported dead. Could be Dave Evers-- I said Dave's dead! I'm sorry, Cal. So am I, boy. So am I. Watch this. What's new, Ed? Nothing much. Things are about the same as-- Cal? Cal Wayne? What's the matter? You look like you just seen a ghost. Folks thought you-- You ain't dead. I don't think so. You're getting a little thick around the middle, ain't you? Well, yeah. Frank! Frank Norton, come over here! I'll be damned! Ain't he the healthiest looking ghost you ever saw? I'd have bet my shirt you wasn't killed. Sure you would. Me too. The drinks are on me. Come on! Hey, hold on, Ed. I'd like to join you, But, well, I come here to see Grant Evers. And I think I oughta to do that first. Where can I find him? Odds are the king's in his counting house. Cal: Dave?Ed: Yeah. Grant put Dave's name on that sign when he first started. He never took it off. Grant's a farmer. What would he know about trading cattle? All he has to. Wayne. Wasn't he sheriff here before the war? That's right. Supposed to be fast with a gun. Supposed to be. Not wearing one now. Maybe he got religion. Cal Wayne. He's alive. I just saw him. Cal Wayne? He's coming here. Alive. Cal, I could hardly believe it. It's too good to be true. Well, it's true. I don't know how good it is. How about Dave? He's dead. You were with him. Yeah, up at Thompson's woods. We got word soon after, and seeing you again, I thought maybe-- My right arm. What I used to say he was. And he was. He was. Come on inside. I want you to see something. Pleased to see you back, Mr. Wayne. Thank you. Well, you sure done real good for yourself, haven't you? It's better than that. You know, Cal, when I first heard the railroad was coming through here, I tied up all the big eastern cattle buyers. Cattle, huh?Cattle. That's right. I knew the ranchers would have to trail their herds up here for shipment. You need land to graze the cattle on. Fatten 'em up before shipping 'em out. Remember that land Dave bought for farming? Mm-hmm. Yeah. I've been adding to it ever since. This is it. Evers property. Miles of it. Second largest in the state and still growing. Dave and Grant Evers. Sure wish Dave was here to see this. His name will be up there as long as mine is. Cal, did Dave say anything to you? Or give you a message for me before he died? Grant, there wasn't much chance for him to say anything. We got enough Yankee sodbusters here in Abilene. Give me my gun. Why, sure, here it comes. Cord: All right, come on. We'll be glad to take you all on. Come on, hold it. Go on, get out of here. Hey, my gun. I'm taking the gun. It's mine. I said I'm taking the gun. Well, wait a minute. Cord here, he was just minding his own business. I'm sheriff of this town, Wayne, not you. Back off. I want the gun.Take it. What are you backing that up with? That gun in the dirt? Well, you're just back, Wayne, so, uh, so I'm taking it easy on you. This time. Don't push. You told him, Cal. Just like the old days. Did you see that Slade back down? Frank: Yeah, he quit cold. Ed: Come on, Cal. Take your old job back. What about it, Cal? You know dang well we need you. No, I've had about all the fighting I want for a while. Thanks just the same. Cal, no use making that trip. She's not there. Amy. She's not at home. She's at the dressmakers. I sent word to her, but there's something I want to tell you before she gets here. I mean, she's all right. Ain't nothing wrong with her, is there? No, no, she's fine. Cal, I want to level with you. Amy's gonna marry me. Claims she hadn't heard from you for a year, and then she got word from you that you were dead. I hadn't heard from Dave and got word that he was gone and she had nobody. I had nobody. There was nothing underhanded about it, Cal. I understand that, Grant. But you were still alive. I can tell you this-- Cal. Amy. Congratulations to you. Grant here was telling me about you two. You didn't write. Well, I-- That's all in the past, ain't it? Well, look at the three of us standing here like kids caught with our hands in the cookie jar. Shouldn't be that way at all, should it? I'm happy for both of you. Forgive me. I gotta be going. Somebody's gotta really welcome you back, Cal. You mark my words. This time we'll get a legislature that'll look after the interests of the cattleman. Teach some of these farmers the facts of life. Up to now we've had to fight for everything the hard way. Too many fences left in this state. You're right. Kansas is changing from farm to cattle country. And the sooner them sodbusters find out about it, the better it's gonna be. The farmers were here before that cussed railroad. Mister, I wasn't talking to you. Then you keep your speechmaking to yourself. Oh.Nelson, I think you best go home. I said get! Nelson, I think you best stay home. That was close. Close only counts when you're pitching horseshoes, Frank. Did you ever see 500 head of cattle on the move? They take up plenty of space and they'll stomp you right into the ground. They don't stop for nothing. Fences, sheds, crops, nothing. That's why I sold out to Grant. Considering there was nothing left of the farm, Grant give me a pretty good deal. There's nothing for you in Abilene, Cal. Do yourself a favor and get out while you can. No, no, you won't. Who's Joe Slade? He was Grant's range boss. Boyce Madden was sheriff and done a good job And Slade came on as his deputy. Six weeks later, Madden was bushwhacked. Slade got his badge and they never did find the killer. Thanks, Frank. Cal.Hmm? I don't know what you figure on doing, But if you stay, you can't just sit on the front porch and fan yourself. You're gonna have to pick a side. Wayne. You got a big reputation with a gun. How come you're not wearing one? Well, everybody around here tells me that we got a real good sheriff. So I figure I don't need me no gun. Well, we got some pretty rough boys here bringing in those Texas cows. I'd hate to see them take advantage of you. Thank you, Sheriff, I appreciate that. I tell you what I'm gonna do. If I run into any kind of trouble whatsoever, why, I'm gonna holler for you. I'm not proud, Cal. Leann, I-- I was waiting for you. You didn't come to me. I came to you. I'm sorry-- I love you. I always have. Man: Grant, come out here, Grant! We wanna talk to you. We got business with you, Grant. This is your last chance. We're gonna take what's ours, Grant. We're through talking. Grant, you got 60 seconds to get out here. They'll murder you. They will. You just listen to them. They'll murder you. Come on out here! Come on out! Get out here, Grant, or we'll-- You can hear me in there, Grant. We ain't gonna hold off no longer, Grant. We'll come in and get you. Thirty seconds. Watch is running a little fast, ain't it, Rod? Stand clear of this, Cal. Don't try and stop us. That's not a job for me. That's a job for the sheriff. What's your problem? Grant drove in a herd yesterday. Right through my property. Tore out five miles of fence and my whole fall planting. I want what's coming to me. Well, there's a law here in Abilene, and there's a courthouse, too. You've been away a long time, Cal. Cattle money pays the judges. We got cattlemen's law here. We know. We're no being pushed another inch, Cal. We're gonna protect what belongs to us! All: Yeah! I'm coming in to get you, Grant. I don't know. It seems to me that the way you wanna do it, you're gonna get in a whole lot of trouble. Now if Grant owes you, well, you'll get paid. Man: Let's go! Come on, let's go get him! Cal, thank you. You said it all for me. If you men had come here like businessmen instead of a hanging posse, I'd have come out and told you myself. Now my men made a mistake. It's their fault and it's my responsibility. So, Sprague, you take your bill to the bank. I'll see that it's honored. That's the first mistake Grant's made. Huh. I wouldn't be too sure. I wonder what got into him. I don't know. Just as long as I get my money. First time we ever came out on top. Cord: How about taking your old job back, Cal? We'll throw Slade out! Yeah, Cal, how about it? That's that Decker kid again. Man: Yeah, Cal, how about it? Yeah, we need you, Cal! We all need you! We're the shipping center of the west. Price of beef is sky high. The demand is more than the supply, and it all has to come through Abilene. Well, I've heard the same argument about wheat. Cuban, the best. Now I'm beginning to understand why the price of beef is so high. Seems to me that everything around here is the best. Everything is the best, huh? Almost. Like to trade places? What are you plans, Cal? Oh, I figured I'd head out to Oregon or California, maybe. A town like this could sure use you. We're sitting on top of a powder keg here. It's ready to go off any minute. We need a strong man.You got a strong man. Slade, he's heavy-handed, and he's got poor judgment. He made an enemy of every farmer within a hundred miles of here, And some say even further.Funny, I wasn't talking about Slade. Well, Cal, I won't deny that the cattlemen have pushed the farmers pretty far till now. But we'd be out of business if we hadn't. Well, how about now? Now the trails are pretty well established. We have all the grazing land we need. It's a kind of a balance, but there's gonna be trouble now and then. You can help maintain that balance. The way you talked with Sprague this morning. You got a hothead like that to listen, there'd be no trouble. Seems to me he had his reasons. It hasn't all been one-sided, Cal. We paid double for that land, triple. The cattlemen and the farmers listen to you. They trust you. Now Sprague said it this morning. Abilene needs you. Take the job as sheriff, will you? I don't want it. All right, let me put it this way. I need you. That's a little hard for me to believe. Seems to me you don't need nothing. That's how it looks from where you're standing. Everything I own, every penny is tied up in those herds out in my range, and if there's a range war, I'm wiped out. Farmers are ready for it. Make no mistake about that. Anything can set it off. It almost started this morning. You know, Cal, since you and Dave went away, I've been at the mercy of every two bit gunslinger that comes into town. That's why I had to hire a man like Slade. To be my right hand, the right hand that Dave was gonna be. But he's hired help. I can be out-bid at any time. I can't shoot, Cal. I can't trust anyone. It's like living with an axe over your head. Watching every stranger that comes into town. If Dave was here, it'd be no problem. But Dave's dead. There's only you, Cal. I need you. Take the job. Okay, seeing as how you put it that way. That's the least I owe you, huh? Now just a minute. I don't blame you for my hand. We were kids. That was an accident. No matter how you look at it, if it weren't for me, you'd still have both hands. No, no. I don't want you to take the job for that reason.Look. I'm here and I'm available. I'm willing to do it now. Why don't we just let the reasons go by, huh? But what about Joe Slade? He used to work for me. I'll just hire him back is all. Good. One more thing. Has to be a law here saying, "No guns in Abilene." Even you are gonna find that hard to enforce. To your health, Sheriff. Easy, Tar. I'll see who it is, Dad.Fine, sure. Play nice. When Tar started barking, I knew it had to be you. Old Tar didn't forget me. Well, I didn't mean that the way it sounded. I waited a long time, Cal. Grant told me. I... I just left him. Amy, looks like I'm gonna take my old job back. Grant said he was going to ask you. I never thought you would. Man's gotta earn a living somehow. But you always talked about farming. We even-- If you'd only let me know you were still alive. Too late to do anything about that now. Besides, Grant's gonna make a good husband. Real good. Do you love him? He's shown me nothing but kindness and consideration. In a way, I do. Sheriff Slade on his way to see Grant. Yeah, well, I guess I better be going. Cal, why did you stop by? I don't know. Thought I wanted to talk. I don't know. All right, Cal. Grant: The fat is in the fire, and a man's a fool if he can't see it. You're asking me to step down. I'm telling you to step down. For myself. I don't question your loyalty, Slade, but a man has to pull his horns in sometime and this is it. You saw what happened today in the streets, gunplay. Trouble every day and it's building up. You can't push a man and expect him to thank you for it. Slade, you heard them yelling at you today, didn't you? Sometimes I think they hate you worse than they hate the cattlemen. It was that decker kid. He needs a good lesson-- It could have been anyone. It's been building up for some time now. Got to have something to keep them from breaking out. That's why I'm giving them Cal Wayne. The farmers want him and they trust him. I can get him to do what I want him to do. Don't be too sure. I have my way of handling him. What about your Amy? From what I hear, you're taking a chance having him around. That's my business. Okay, what's next? You hand in your resignation in writing in the morning. I want Judge Fennis to swear in Cal Wayne as soon as he can. Then you come back to work for me at your old job. There's a real future here, Slade, for the right man. What about Cal Wayne? He's a friend of yours, too, isn't he? Joe, when I grow, you grow with me. Okay. I'm ready. Good night. Good night. Hello, Sheriff. Sorry I wasn't here to see you sworn in, but I figured somebody oughta mind the store. Got a present for you. You planning on retiring? I guess that's up to you. You like your work? Yeah, I do. Well, why don't you pin that back on? I could be a spy left here by Slade to keep an eye on you. Yeah, you could. You still want me to pin this on? If I want it back, I sure know how to ask for it. If I was you, I wouldn't take the chance keeping me on. You'll be good at your work. I've seen you at work. Yeah, I know that, but you can't be sure. Hey, are you always so gabby? Okay, Sheriff. Now what are these? Joe Slade sure loved those shoes. Took 'em off a gambler he shot last year. Used to kill Joe's feet. Two sizes too small. You know, I still can't figure what you're gonna do with this. I had 'em up all over town for two days now and had about 12 guns turned in, all from harmless folks. Why didn't you enforce it? I was waiting for you to be sworn in, Sheriff. Let me tell you something. A man wears a gun, It means he's ready to use it. Now I'm gonna take my first tour. Would you like to join me? Sure, half the town's out. I wouldn't miss it. You're forgetting your own gun. I give it up. Do you know what kind of man they got driving those cows in from Texas? Tell you what, you stick real close to me and make sure nobody shoots me in the back. Anything special you want done with your body? Nope. Just see that Slade don't get my boots. Here they come. I give 'em about a minute and a half for that "turn in your gun" law. You don't know the man. I got $50 here says he never lives to see nightfall. You're on. Hey, Loop, here comes the new sheriff. Loop: Hey, Wayne, you the new sheriff? Looks like you're gonna have a reception committee. Come take a look at this. I wanna see Wayne talk himself out of this one. You want me to give up my gun, Sheriff? I ain't giving my gun up to nobody, Sheriff. Tell him, Loop, tell him! You best come take it from me, Sheriff, if you want it. That's right, Loop. You know the law. I'll take the gun. You can pick it up when you leave town. I'll make him eat it. Come ahead, Sheriff. That loudmouth is mean and fast and itching for trouble. You better take this. She looks kind of worried, doesn't she? Loop: Come on, Sheriff, I'm waiting for you to take my gun. All right, hold that a bit. There are 10 guns in back of me to take care of you. Now y'all know the law in Abilene. Check your guns. Well, you heard what the sheriff said. Get! He's got 'em.And they know it. We were losing stock up in the north range. Take some men up there. See what's going on. Here, that'll see you through. Thanks. Anything else you want taken care of? I'll let you know. Anytime. I don't like him, either. She's wonderful hostess, Grant. Everything was just perfect. I think she's too good for him. Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed yourselves. Good night. Pure magic, Amy.Thank you. You know, I've always wanted to make this house a place that people would wanna be invited to, and you've done just that for me. You have a wonderful way with people, dear. You're the best thing that's happened to me, Amy. She sure is. You still wanna marry me? What do you mean? I'm a proud man, Amy. And I love you. I don't want anything that belongs to me belonging to somebody else. Cal Wayne? That's over and done with. You sure? I'm sure. Only two people in the whole world that ever meant anything to me. Dave and you. Dave is lost now, But I don't know what I'd do if I lost you. I'll never let you down, Amy. I tell you what, why do we have to wait until next month to get married? Why not next week? Next week? Sure, we can send out the invitations in the next couple of days. That is unless something's holding you back. Nothing.Good. Cal: Dave. Huh, Dave? You're alive. Glad to see you're alive. Dave. No, Dave, I didn't do it. The gun did it, Dave. The gun did it, Dave. I - I didn't do it. Dave! Whoa. I'll be back in a minute. Thank you. Sure she won't mind? She?Leann. Beautiful team you got there. An engagement present from Grant. Fine animals, real fine. Is Leann the reason you didn't ask me to-- Nope. I'm jealous, Cal. I've got no right, but I am. Your wedding's in a week. Why don't you tell me not to marry him? Cal, if I was you, I'd take a run out to the north trail and have a talk with a few people. Some of Grant's men beat up the Collins boys last night. They claimed the farmers have been helping themselves to Grant's cattle. Well, have they?Some people think Grant owes 'em something. Subtle, ain't he? Hold it. Hold it! Separated from the herd. Come on. Hyah! Slade, Slade, it's that loudmouth boy. Yeah. Let's go. Whoo-whoo. Lookee here. The calf strayed onto my farm. I was just bringing it back. Sure you were. Now, Loop, you know farmers don't lie. This man says he was bringing him back, he was bringing him back. That's just what I was doing, Slade. Well, I'm not arguing with you, boy. I'm grateful to you. I've been meaning to thank you anyway, for looking after my boy. You know him. He must be two years old by now. Awful good-looking boy. He lives with his mother at your house. Awful good-looking woman, your wife. You filthy-- Hey, Slade, about that boy. He ain't yours. He's mine. Go get him, Loop! Hey, it could be just as easy be anybody's kid now I come to think on it. She wasn't too choosy. Shut your-- I want your ears.Slade: He's mine! He's mine. Get off him! Get off! All right, now strip off his shirt. Tie him up to that wagon. Move! Give me the rope. Now, sodbuster, You stay off Mr. Evers' land. And you keep your hands off Mr. Evers' cattle. Now get him out of here.Hyah! Hyah! Come on, we can't hang around here all day. Ain't you ever seen a horse run up a hill before? Whew! The problem with this business is it makes a man old before his time. I never did hear of no sheriff living to be an old man. Did you? Sure. They didn't shoot old Walter Smith till he was almost 31. Probably lied about his age. Probably. Ward. What's that?Let's have a look. Come on. Ho! Ho, ho. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Take him down easy now. Easy. Easy.Okay. Watch his back. Watch his back. Watch his back. Man, I never saw nobody cut up like that before. He's just about alive. We're gonna need a wagon to get him to doc Caswell's. I'll get one. Nelson's place is about a mile from here. Yeah. He ain't come out of it yet. Ain't no sense in you hanging around. I'll stay with him. If you need me, just holler. Sheriff, what are you gonna do about it? I don't know yet. You don't know? Cord's a friend of yours. What's the matter? Cord came-to for a couple of seconds. Between what he said and what his wife told us, we found out how it happened. Cord was taking a stray Calf off his land back onto Evers'. He ran into Slade and a couple of his buddies. Cord was on Evers' land. We can't hang a thing on Slade. Yeah, I know that. You see, in this state it's perfectly all right to just go ahead and shoot a man if he trespasses on your property. Legally, our hands are tied. Well, your hands may be tied, but ours ain't. I'll tell you something else, Sheriff, you better strap on a gun. If Cord dies, you're gonna have to use it on me to stop me. He was trespassing. The law says-- I know what the law says. For the past three years, we've gotten what we wanted from the farmers by splitting them up, by out-guessing them every time they tried to get together And you give them the one thing that could pull 'em together. You know what'll happen if Cord Decker dies? I got a pretty good idea, yeah. I thought this was just another stupid mistake of yours, Slade, but it wasn't, was it? You're trying to force a showdown. I can handle anything that happens. Well, you're a fool. That's the one thing we've got to avoid. I work for you. But I wanna tell you one thing. Any stupid mistake was made was yours. When you paid off Sprague in front of those farmers last week, you showed them you could give in. That's something you never did before, and you never should have done it. You got to where you are by clubbing them till they was too scared to move. And you gotta keep on doing it if you wanna stay on top. All right, all right, you said your piece. I'm not gonna argue with you. Go on up to the range cabin in the buttes. I just hope that Cord Decker doesn't die and this whole mess blows over. What if he does die? Then we'll both know which one of us made the mistake, Slade. You were hoping that was Cal. I'm stone sober, Amy. Is there anything I can do? I know I haven't given you much to be proud about since your mother died, Amy. But even if I failed, your happiness is all I ever wanted in the whole world. I know, Dad. I know. As long as you know Cal's alive, you'll never be happy with Grant. Don't marry him, Amy. You'll regret it for the rest of your life if you do. Don't do it. Don't. Hey, hey, take it easy now. Take it easy, boy. It's me Cal. Slade. Filthy lies about my Annie, my son. Don't you worry. I'll take care of Slade. Thanks, Cal. Two years of war, I didn't get a scratch. Come home and... You'll be all right, boy. It's funny. Man's gotta fight to live in peace. How is he? He's conscious, but that's about all. Now look, you're not doing Cord or yourselves any good. We're not breaking the law, are we? No. Then why don't you just let us worry about that? Look, Cord is my friend. And if my friend dies, then I'm gonna make Slade a personal affair. Slade takes his orders from Grant Evers. You gonna make that a personal affair, too? Pretty edgy. Notice that wagon they got with them?Yeah. I'm glad you got the good sense to leave it alone. You seen Grant? He's got a herd of cattle coming in. He's probably at his ranch. I think I better take a ride out there. What'll I do if Cord dies? Don't do nothing. I won't be gone that long. I came by to see Grant. Is he around? I'm waiting for him myself. Well, I... I think I better wait outside till he gets back. I came to tell Grant I'm not marrying him. You can come in. I'm returning the team and buggy. The saddle horse is mine. I just can't marry Grant. You're gonna hurt him, Amy. He loves you. Is that all you can say, Cal? That's all. You loved me. We planned our life together. Is that all gone? Amy, I can't hurt Grant. I've been trying to understand, Cal, ever since you got back. It just can't be a guilty conscience over that accident to Grant's hand. You weren't like this before the war. What is it, Cal? What happened? Amy, the war does funny things. It-- You're somebody else. You're the man that left Abilene and you're somebody else, too. You never knew how to run and hide before. And you don't love Leann. She loves you, but you don't love her. You let her hide you. And she doesn't care. The fight you had in front of the Star saloon, you were afraid. I saw it. I did. You were afraid and you didn't use your gun. Why? What were you afraid of? It wasn't the man. It was something else. What are you running away from, Cal? Please, please, let me fight this with you. Let us both fight it with you, Cal. I've seen things, too, Amy. I saw Cal give you up. I saw him take the job of Sheriff when he wanted no part of it. It was because I asked him to do it. I think you're right, Amy. A man doesn't do all those things just out of friendship. What am I holding over your head that I don't know about? I killed your brother, Grant. You killed Dave. We were on a patrol. Ran into a Yankee advance. Boxed us in for about three days. And snipers were picking off my men one by one. And they started throwing those heavy guns. They followed that up with an infantry rush. We'd push 'em back, they'd start the whole thing all over again. Well, they kept that up. No sleep. Pretty soon the supplies were down to zero. Down to five guys. Five guys out of a whole patrol, I sent four of them to try to slip out, get away. I laid back and I covered 'em. Yankees started throwing some big guns again. And all of a sudden, everything was real still. Real still. I heard a noise in the brush, and I wheeled and I fired. I didn't even realize I'd pulled the trigger. It was Dave. By the time I got to him... he was dead. I was taking his body back in when the snipers got me. Took me to a prison hospital till a couple months before the war was over. Then to a prison camp. That's what I owe you, Grant. Part of it's paid. I can't fire a gun. I should have told you when I first got back to town, but don't ask me why I didn't. I'm sorry, Cal. He kills my brother and takes you away from me and you're sorry for him? I never belonged to you, Grant. What happened to Dave was an accident. An accident, huh? I see. I'm sorry, but I can't-- Go on, get out, Both of you. Where's Slade? I rode out here to tell you that Sprague is lining up a bunch of farmers in town. If Cord Decker dies, there's gonna be a whole lot of trouble. Sprague, huh? You tell those farmers that Decker trespassed on my property. If anyone else tries it, they'll get the same treatment. I would think about that. I got 40 men. 20 more than I need. You think that over. I'll go the rest of the way myself. All right. Seems to be nobody home. Dad's spending the night in town. Good night.Good night. You know, there's nothing the matter with his farm that a man who wanted to couldn't cure. Leann? That's more than that. It's Leann, and Grant, and Slade, and all of it. Cord's dead. Everything's busted wide open. Sprague's bunch has already had a run-in with Grant's men and Frank Norton's dead. So are some of his hands. Everybody's got a taste of blood and now the farmers wanna hang all the cattlemen they can find. I thought Sprague had more sense than that. Yeah, well, the last I heard he was yelling to hang Grant and Slade. That means they'll be coming back this way. You better not stay here alone. We're gonna go back to Grant's so you take the back road. It's longer, but it's safer. Get yourself to the hotel. See you there later. Come on. It's open! What do you want? Bill Reardon just rode into town through the buttes. The Decker kid's dead. Sprague's fixing up a posse to hang all the cattlemen starting with us. Get out of here. I risked my neck to ride in here and tell you that. You smell like a wet sheepdog. Get out. You're drunk. Not drunk enough to know that no good will come of your hanging around here. Slade, I tell you what I'm gonna do for you here. There you are. Now ride off my land and don't come back. Your land? 200 acres you got from your dead brother? I'd kill men so you could build this place up into something, 'cause you didn't have the guts to do it yourself. That's not enough. I want more than that. All right, do you want more? I'll get you more. You're not scared, Slade? Not at all. You should be 'cause I'm gonna kill you. I'll settle my differences with the farmers and be a hero besides. I'm gonna kill the man that whipped Cord Decker to death. Looks like it's my deal. I'll raise the ante, Slade. But I won't crawl. It's too late for that. Hyah! That was Slade. Cal: Grant! Open up! It's me Wayne. Grant! Grant! What is it? Grant used to keep the keys to his storeroom at the office on this chain. They're gone. He had them on him last time I saw him. If Slade took it, he must be heading for town right now. You'll be able to use it. You talk in your sleep. You take care of him. I'm going after Slade. Good luck. Don't worry, Mrs. Decker. We're not letting Cord down. We're hanging Grant and Slade. And you're not gonna stop us, Cal. Grant's dead. Slade got to him first. Ward's bringing the body into town now. That just saves us that much trouble. We'll still get Slade. There will be no lynching. I'll take care of Slade. Why don't you all go home and put away your guns before you get yourselves in a whole lot of trouble? All right, we'll let you take care of him. Hyah! Hyah! He's packing a gun. Yeah. Cal. Cal.What are you doing here? Go back upstairs.Who is it, Grant? Grant's dead. Slade's throwing all that lead out there. He killed Grant. Wayne, if you step out into the street, I'll argue the point with you. My horse is in the stable. You can get out through the back door. Slade: I always thought you had a yellow streak. You can prove me wrong. I'm going out there. You got no chance out there. It's my only chance. I'm ready to fight it even. Amy, if I run now, I'm finished. Me and you is finished. It's right here in this gun. I got to pull the trigger. Amy Amy You only kissed me And paradise smiled And the man was a child And the wind was so wild Amy Amy Amy Amy |
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