Hickok Page #3

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- Where's the bullet?

- It's in his leg.

- Okay.

Now, son, ah, god.

Okay, son, now,

we're gonna have to pull

the bullet out right away

to stop the bleeding, okay?

So you gotta be brave.

I can't give you

anything to go to sleep.

You're just gonna have

to gut it out, okay?

You know what, we

could give him a shot.

Okay?

- Whiskey?

Really?

- Yeah.

Oh, forget it, come on.

You look really tough.

You'll be brave,

be a good soldier.

Okay?

Just count to 40, okay?

One, two.

- One, two, three.

- We're not goin' anywhere.

Grab his foot, hold his foot.

Let's see.

- Okay, Joey, listen, I

want you to listen to me.

I want you to listen

to me real careful.

Look at me, look at me.

Why don't I tell you

about the time that I was

scoutin' for my friend general

Custer in the black hills.

I was far in advance

of the column, okay?

And I found myself

cutoff by Cheyennes,

the most bloodthirsty savages

you ever had the

displeasure to meet.

Now, I managed to slip past

'em, and they chased me

into a dead-end canyon

with a little narrow

passageway leadin' in,

and I knew that they

could only come through

one man at a time,

so I decided to make

my stand there, okay?

So I turn around, and I'm ready,

but they disappear.

Silence.

And bang!

Gunfire starts.

And you know who pops

his head through?

A little ol'

confederate boy, okay?

He's movin' so slow,

I put a bullet right between

his, right between his eyes,

and, uh, his friends,

they clamber over the top

of him to come through.

And I drop another

one and another one.

And this,

I'm outta bullets then, okay?

So I draw my knife, and I

back up against the far wall.

By that time, they're

crowdin' around me.

- What happened next?

- Well, what could I do?

I was

outgunned and outnumbered,

out of ammo.

I only had my knife.

- So what'd ya do?

- I pissed my pants, doc.

- Now bandage.

You're doin' good.

Just stay this quiet

in here as you can.

I tell ya one thing,

guns are good for business.

- George.

- Can I help ya, son?

- I'm guessin' you

heard about young Joey.

It ain't right that a grown

boy can't horse around

without risking a bullet.

- And you're gonna tell me how

to keep that from happenin'?

"The carrying of firearms

within city limits

"is strictly prohibited."

- No guns at all.

You leave 'em at camp,

or ya check 'em into

the marshal's office

on the way into town.

- You sure about this, son?

Some folks ain't gonna

be too happy about this.

- Yeah, well,

they'll just have

to live with it.

- Boss, you know boys

can't belly up to the bar

if they're cuffed hand and

foot to the marshal's desk.

- Now where am I gonna sleep?

- Bill, I want you to know

I'm a 100% in favor of

what you're tryin' to do.

100% in principle,

but I think we need

to be practical here.

This ain't the only town

they can drive cattle to.

- My mind's made up, okay?

There's no changin' it.

And that goes for you, too.

- Do I need to remind

you of our arrangement?

- Ben, put a goddamn

cork in that bottle

and sit it on its

side facing me.

I see a lot of you

sons of b*tches

violatin' the no-guns ordinance.

So I'm gonna explain

it to you real simple

by uncorking that bottle there.

Anyone else beside me do that?

If not, kindly head to the bar.

Give your guns to

Ben for safekeeping.

- I'd like to give it

a try, Mr. marshal.

- Put another cork

in the bottle, Ben.

- Spin it.

Whoo.

- What do they call you, son?

- Hardin, John Wesley Hardin.

- You born somewhere?

- Most likely somewhere.

- You best get

back to somewhere.

- Oh, I don't know,

I kinda like it here.

Think I'll stay for a while.

- I recognize you now.

You're not a John Wesley

Hardin, you're Wesley Clemmons.

Folks call you little Arkansas.

- That's a new one,

little Arkansas.

- You know, you might

almost be as fast as me.

Ben, pour Arkansas

a drink on me.

Rest of you, keep givin'

your guns to the bartender.

Sully will pick 'em up later.

- Can I do somethin' for you?

- Yeah, mayor, you

can do somethin' about

that young marshal of yours.

Boy's runnin' all of my

customers out of town.

- Now, listen to me,

you son of a b*tch.

Ain't no one stoppin' them

boys from drinkin' the swill

you call whiskey.

- Now, you listen to me.

If it weren't for my businesses,

you wouldn't have

no goddamn town.

You'd just blow

away in the dust.

Ain't right messin'

with a man's livelihood.

And I'd hate to see

your young marshal

meet with some

unhealthy accident

while he's performing

his duties.

- I stand by my decision.

Now get your ass

off my property.

Before I put a bullet in you.

- I say we teach this

Yankee dandy a lesson.

- Ride out to camp,

pick up the spare guns.

- And a strong rope.

- Invite wild bill to

a little necktie party.

- Good afternoon.

Can I help you?

- We don't much like

your new ordinances.

- Yeah, we don't much like you.

- Is that so?

- That's so.

We reckon it's time you

leave Abilene for good.

- The next person to

move, I cut in half.

You boys put your tails

between your legs,

and you get outta here.

Get.

- Yeah, we'll be

seein' you real soon.

- You take care now, Yankee.

- Hi, darlin', how was your day?

- It was all right, Mattie.

How was yours?

- It was good.

- I see ya found 'em.

The pearls.

- Oh, uh, I must've taken

'em off when I was cleanin'.

- Well, you should

be more careful.

Allow me.

There,

back where they belong.

Now what are you so

excited about, son?

- You should've seen him!

Wild bill took on a 100 men!

He's one tough fella.

- A 100 men, you say?

Hmm.

- Don't move a muscle.

- You used to like

it when I moved.

I don't know if you're

aware of it, but

you're a hero in Joey's eyes.

Do me a favor.

Tell 'em not to be like you.

- I'll walk you home.

Why?

Who are you tryin' to protect?

Me or Poe?

You stay down.

Goddammit.

- Give me two.

- Mr. Hardin, you're

pretty fast with a gun.

- So I've been told.

- From what I saw, you

may be the fastest.

You may be the best.

I'm gonna take two.

What are you gonna do if wild

bill asks you for your guns?

- Well, he ain't asked yet.

- These drovers,

all from the south,

Texas mostly,

and they don't much

cotton to Yankee lawmen.

I'm just sayin' if somethin'

was to happen to wild bill,

we'd need a new marshal.

- You want me to kill

wild bill for nothin'?

- You never get

somethin' for nothin'.

No, there's a reward,

$500 reward.

- Isn't that ironic.

A bounty

on a lawman.

- You in?

- If you're so anxious

to see wild bill dead,

why don't ya kill him yourself?

- If you want

somethin' done right,

you oughta hire the best.

- You know, somethin'

tells me, Poe,

you're not an honest man.

- Let's just say, I

ain't easy to beat.

- It's time to fish or cut bait.

Somethin's gotta be done

about little Arkansas.

The son of a b*tch is wearin'

his guns in plain view.

- You can harness a mule,

but you teach a horse to run.

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