American Outlaws Page #9

BOB:

They got Cole.

He collapses into a seat. The crowd surrounds him.

ZEE:

He came to our house, Daddy. I

figured you'd all want to hear this.

Jesse and Frank are next to Bob. Zee puts a hand on Jesse's

shoulder. He notices.

BOB:

They came up, made the same offer

they made you folks. Our little

brother Jim tried to chase 'em off,

one of those detectives hit him in

the head, knocked him out. Cole lost

his temper.

FRANK:

(rubbing his

forehead)

Oh no...

BOB:

He just lost his temper a little.

JESSE:

(sighing)

How many of them did he kill?

BOB:

Two.

FRANK:

Damn!

BOB:

They said because the detectives

were working for the Department of

the Interior --

FRANK:

The Army can hang him.

BOB:

Tomorrow.

CLELL:

What do we do?

JESSE:

Nothing.

The crowd stares at Jesse.

JESSE (CONT'D)

You folks are going to do nothing.

You're all going to go home right

now. So you're going to be able to

swear on a Bible that you don't know

anything about what's going to

happen tomorrow.

Jesse's gaze is at once noble and terrifying. The crowd

quietly begins to disperse.

DOC MIMMS:

Boys...

JESSE:

Go home, Doc.

(softly)

They ain't gonna hang no more

Liberty boys.

Doc Mimms nods, EXITS.

Jesse walks to the other end of the school house. Bob,

Frank, Clell and Loni fall in behind him. The door SWINGS

OPEN again and Comanche Tom enters with Jim Younger sporting

six-guns way too big for him.

COMANCHE TOM:

I couldn't lose him.

BOB:

Jim Younger, I told you--

JIM:

It's my fault they're gonna hang

Cole. I want in.

FRANK:

Jim, it was just a matter of time

before they tried to hang somebody

else to scare off the other farmers.

JESSE:

And you're too young.

JIM:

(to Jesse)

I'm the same age you were when you

went off to war.

JESSE:

And the same age Web was. No.

ZEE (O.S.) (O.S.)

You're wasting time.

Zee joins them.

JESSE:

Zee, go home.

Zee's eyebrows go up.

ZEE:

Who else was there when they hanged

the others?

The men look at each other. Nothing.

ZEE (CONT'D)

You need to know how they do it.

Which way they walk up. What order

they do things in. And if you mess

up rescuing Cole because you won't

listen to a woman, then God damn you

all.

Pause.

JESSE:

All right. Seven of us against a

Union regiment and Pinkerton

detectives in broad daylight in the

middle of Main Street.

Jesse smiles.

BOB:

He's smiling.

JIM:

Is that bad?

FRANK:

Very.

EXT. LIBERTY CITY GALLOWS - THE NEXT DAY

Soldiers flank the gallows, which stand at the bottom of

the stairs to City Hall. A small drum corps beats a stark

rhythm.

Parker is watching this like a sideshow. Pinkerton is next

to him, scanning the crowd of locals which is getting larger

and surlier by the minute.

PARKER:

Relax, Alan. The Army has this all

in hand. And Mr. Thaddeus Rains will

be very pleased with this news.

Nothing like a hanging to motivate

the populace to relocate.

PINKERTON:

It's not my job to relax. I've put

men facing out both ways down Main

Street, so nobody can ride in

shooting. I've got a sharpshooter up

on the water tower just in case.

Pinkerton WAVES to a FIGURE in a suit atop the water tower.

CUT TO:

EXT. WATER TOWER

We see it is FRANK JAMES in the suit, who WAVES BACK and

then kneels and sights down his long rifle. Tucked away

behind him, out of sight from the street, is a

bound-and-gagged PINKERTON SNIPER in his underwear.

CUT TO:

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