Along Came Jones Page #4

Take Mr Gledhill for a walk out in the desert.

Way out, and leave him.

- Get!

- Leave him and do what?

Follow Melody to where you was headed

in the first place.

You're gonna get out of this country.

I'm gonna take you.

- How do you like that for organisation?

- You know who I am.

I don't know who you are,

only who you say you are.

But that's who I am.

You could be Luke Packard

who works for the express company.

- Come on, Melody.

- Yes, ma'am.

Too bad, partner. I know just how you feel.

If there's anything in the world I like,

it's gettin' saved from bein' shot.

I wished I had a candy box

To put my sweetheart in

I'd take her out and kiss her twice

And put her back again

- Round and round...

- Melody.

You know, Monte'd kill a girl

if she done to him what I done to you.

That's because Monte

don't understand women very well.

I suppose you do?

Pa gave me a piece of advice

that ain't never failed me:

"If you fool around a woman, hide a dollar

in your boot, then you'll come out with a dollar."

"That is," Pa says, "if you keep your boots on."

- What are you gonna do now?

- Tie up with George.

Head toward Hot Creek

and work around there this winter.

Will you be coming back this way in spring?

Maybe. Don't like it much

down there in the summer.

If you do, will you do something for me?

I don't like to seem impolite,

but after the way things been going,

I'd better listen to what it is first.

I don't blame you.

This money bag that Monte took,

when you come back, I want you

to give it back to the express company.

- Can't.

- You mean you won't?

- Don't know where it is.

- I'm going to show you.

It's in a little adobe house.

Under the window sill, there's a slab.

Under that there's a space

for a man to hide in... if he can breathe.

It's in there. Monte told me

when it looked like he was gonna die.

- Why don't we give it back to em now?

- We certainly will not.

- Why not?

- Monte's gotta have his chance.

They're looking for him.

If that money popped up here,

they'd close in so tight

a jack rabbit couldn't get out.

- We gotta wait till he gets away.

- No, I'd better turn it in right now.

You can't. After promising me,

you wouldn't dare.

Promised? When was that I promised?

Well...

Well, you gotta promise now.

- Oh, well...

- Well, do you promise?

All right, I promise.

Melody.

I'm awful sorry. I hope you understand,

and maybe someday you'll forgive me.

Forget it.

Ain't a thing in the world you've got

to worry about, as far as I'm concerned.

If you ever do come back through here...

I tell you, Cherry,

I'd like to see you again a whole lot.

But I just don't seem to be cut out for the kind

of life you folks lead around these parts.

Yeah, I see.

- Good evening.

- Luke Packard's the name.

From the express company.

Lift your hands just a little higher.

And you, lady, step round the other side of him.

I'd certainly be embarrassed

if you grabbed his iron and flung a shot at me.

That's something

that's been worrying me most of my life.

What would I do if a woman

hung the drop on me?

Boy, oh, boy.

Over.

These don't give much light to speak of,

but they'll warm it up while we wait.

- Wait for what?

- The posse.

- They're swinging around this way now.

- Posse?

The sheriff and some of the boys

are heading up here.

Go over in that corner.

What they're aiming to do when they get here,

I couldn't say. They didn't tell me.

- But you can't do that.

- No? Why can't I?

They'll kill him, not arrest him.

Those Cotton boys won't let em.

They're legal, lady. Legal to the teeth.

I ain't the one they're after.

I ain't Monte Jarrad.

I'm Melody Jones. I ain't never set eyes on him.

I ain't never seen

the gentleman in question myself.

But this is Monte Jarrad's hideout.

On information received,

this here girl is Monte Jarrad's lady friend.

Monte Jarrad is well known to be a beanpole,

such as you be.

When a posse makes a mistake,

it's mighty hard to unmake.

Come, now. Let's don't look on the dark side.

What other side is there, mister?

If them Cottons get hold of me, I'm a dead duck.

It ain't gonna be no good to say sorry.

The fact is, I don't care a hoot

whether you're Monte Jarrad

or Melody Jones or Harmony Q Smith.

All I'm interested in is 42,004 dollars

and 85 cents

belonging to the express company I work for

and not another cussed thing on earth.

Once I get my hands on that,

you're as free as a bird.

- Can I talk to this girl alone?

- Step in there if you want.

- You trust me?

- 100 per cent.

You'll never regret it, Mr Packard.

You'd better take a light with you.

Well, how do you like that?

He's no better than a cheat.

I couldn't break my word in here if I wanted to.

What did you wanna talk to me about?

Oh, yeah. Say, what about this?

- What about what?

- About my gettin' hung over this money.

- How far are you aimin' to carry this?

- You know the situation.

You figure if I tell where the money is, it'll hurt

that belly buster's chances of gettin' away.

But what about my neck?

You have to do what you think is right, of course.

You gonna hang onto that promise

you trapped me into?

- I'm not gonna argue about it.

- Maybe you're in love with him, but I ain't.

This thing's gone just about far enough,

and ten feet further.

Just as you please.

- Made up your mind?

- Uh-huh.

Well, where is it?

- Where's what?

- The money. Stop stalling.

What money was it?

You realise what you're doin'? That posse

ain't more than 30 minutes from here, Monte.

- I ain't Monte.

- I ain't got any way to force you.

But I hate to see a man taken apart

without a chance to defend himself.

- I'll tell you where it is.

- What?

The money you're after. Can't you keep

your mind on what we're talking about?

- If I tell you where it is, can we go?

- That was the proposition.

- Which man do you aim to be the death of?

- Shut up.

It's under that slab under the window.

Well, what do you know about that?

Mister, you're a...

Then you were telling the truth.

Yeah.

Look out for the fella doin' the shootin'.

It's the real Monte. He's after the money again.

Is he dead?

Yeah.

Shh.

There's somebody out there.

- Is that the way you always draw?

- You numbskull.

I'm sorry, but I couldn't be sure who was in here.

- Who is it?

- Packard, the express-company fella.

Well, that sinks the duck.

Now they got a "corpus delict".

- A what?

- A dead body.

That's the way the law says it.

If they've got a corpus, you're delict.

Before this, we could have proved

there was a mistake.

- Then why did you do it?

- We could have...

- Do what?

- Shoot him.

- Him?

- Why did you shoot him?

Why should I shoot the man,

a perfect stranger? Why should I...?

Wait a minute.

Both of you, you can't hang it on me.

You was under the table with your gun smokin'.

How do you account for that hole?

He ran outside, shot him, then came back in?

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