The Sons of Katie Elder Page #4

- l don't need any help.

lsn't it a little late

to be wondering what happened?

- Who shot him, Billy?

- John, stop digging around.

All it'll get you is trouble.

Trouble.

Hastings.

Miss Gordon, l want to talk to you

about Katie's things.

She didn't have much,

but we'd be pleased,

and l'm sure she'd want you

to have anything of hers that you liked,

like maybe the rocking chair,

and things like that.

Why, thank you, John.

l'd like that very much.

Fine. l'll bring them by.

l can't stand a man

that forces himself on a girl

who wouldn't be caught dead with him.

They're sure a fine pair, Mr Hastings.

The finest.

- Southern hospitality, huh?

- Sorry, gentlemen.

No offence, l was feeling the balance.

Finest duelling pistols ever made.

- You're two of the Elder boys?

- That's right.

l'm sorry about your mother.

She was a wonderful woman.

After your father lost the ranch

and passed on,

l offered to pay her for the ranch,

but she wouldn't hear of it.

- Well, now, why would you do that?

- Guilt, Mr Elder.

Yes, guilt. l wanted the ranch.

Yes, l needed it.

This town can grow

and become important.

lt needs water power for a mill.

The ranch had the water power.

l intended to buy it,

not win it in a card game.

No offence meant, could we see

the paper that transferred the ranch?

Certainly, of course.

You have every right to.

lt's right here.

Yes, here it is.

That's where

your father made his mark.

And the signatures

of the other witnesses.

- You one of these witnesses?

- Of course.

- The rest of these work for you?

- Occasionally.

What was the game

you were playing that night?

- The game? Blackjack.

- Blackjack?

- Are you sure it was blackjack?

- Of course.

Pa always told us he wouldn't

be caught dead playing blackjack.

Shoot his kids if he saw them playing it.

Thought it was a woman's game.

Mr Hastings,

you know all the people in this town.

Who do you think was the dirty,

stinking rat that killed our pa?

Why ask me?

We aim to find out.

We started playing blackjack with Pa

when we were three or four.

We know that, but Hastings doesn't.

Hey, Bud.

''Katie Duane, born Ohio.'' No date.

''Married Bass Elder,

September 8th, 1 850,''

''Clearwater, Texas.''

- We'd better keep this.

- Why? Let's raffle it off.

We'll give half the money

to the parson.

l think we ought

to get her a nice stone for her grave.

A big stone with nice writing on it.

- What do you call it?

- A monument. Do you think so, John?

- She'd like that.

- Why buy a hunk of stone?

Because there ought to be

something to remember her by.

The Ridders got their mother

an angel with her finger pointing up.

- At who?

- Nobody!

- All right, then, an angel.

- Does it have to be an angel?

Besides, some kid

shot the angel's finger off,

and it looked like

she was shaking her fist.

- We'll get a marble lamb!

- How about a horse?

- A horse? For a grave?

- Ma loved horses.

How'd you like to have a marble horse

on top of you for the rest of eternity?

- What's happened to all of us?

- You said she'd like a monument.

Yeah, but not that kind. She wanted

one of us to amount to something.

She sure drew a flat blank zero!

Not if Bud goes back to school.

That's the kind of monument she wants.

Why me? One of you

go amount to something!

- lt's too late for us.

- l won't be no monument.

l'm going with you. We'll be famous,

like the Dalton brothers.

Yeah, they're famous, but they're just

a little bit dead. They were hung!

We keep the book.

Horses!

- John.

- Good evening. l brought the things.

Come on in.

- This is a nice room.

- Thank you.

How about... right here?

That's fine.

This is very thoughtful of you, John.

Whenever l look at it or sit in it,

l'll think of Katie.

l brought your things back, and...

...also we thought

you should have this.

But it's your family bible. You keep it.

No, a lot of the places that l go

it wouldn't fit in.

All right, l'll keep it. But it's yours

whenever you want it back.

These are yours, too.

They weren't meant for an outsider,

but Katie wanted me to know about you.

- l don't mind.

- You stopped writing so long ago.

She would read your old letters

as if they'd just come.

Then she gave them to me to read.

l don't know how

either of you could read them.

- My handwriting isn't a thing of beauty.

- But what you wrote was, at first.

Then l began to notice a change.

Your ma never did, but l did.

- Everybody changes.

- Not the way you did.

l began hearing things about you.

lt wasn't even the same man

who wrote those letters.

You're going to look

for your father's killer?

l sure am. Whoever killed him

probably stole the ranch from Katie.

- lt's the least l can do for her.

- Why? So you can even a score?

Kill again? Maybe do it in front of Bud

so he can be proud of you?

Don't let Bud worship you

because you're a killer.

Katie wanted Bud to go to college,

to make your name stand for something.

l'll be leaving now.

Thank you again for this.

Why wouldn't Katie

want me to find Bass' killer?

Because all that means is more killing.

And Katie hated killing.

- How much money you got on you?

- Me? Where would l get any money?

- You got five bucks from Peevey.

- Spend my own money for a drink?

Pa'd come out of his grave

like a scorched cat. Never do that, kid!

- You just watch. Two whiskeys.

- Yes, sir.

Thank you. Thank you, sir.

Well, down!

- Bartender!

- Yes, sir.

Hey, can a fellow

get a drink on credit around here?

Sorry.

l'll get us another drink!

Beauty! We'll get us a drink

'cause we're going to have a raffle.

- Raffle what?

- My eye! My glass eye.

Who'll take a chance

on getting a made-to-order eye?

lf you want a drink that bad,

l'll buy you one.

But you wouldn't let a man buy you

a drink if you couldn't buy him one back.

All right, sports! Fifty cents a chance,

just four bits to win a $22 eye.

l always did want a third eye.

- Are you playing poker or kid games?

- Kid games! l'm losing money.

- l'm in.

- You can look at it, but don't touch it...

- l'm in!

- Oh, yeah! Lay that money down.

- That's nine.

- l got seven.

Well, that's nine dollars

and fifty cents.

l need one more

to make it ten bucks.

- There it is. l want that eye.

- Well, all right!

Let's see. We need nineteen

white chips and one blue one,

because whoever draws the blue chip

is going to be the winner of the eye.

- Shake them up. Who was the first in?

- l was.

You're entitled to the first draw. Dip in.

Who's going to be the winner of that...?

- Let's see who's going to win.

- Get in there.

This tall, good-looking gentleman,

see what you come out with.

Seem to be all white chips.

This gentleman took two chances.

You're entitled to two draws.

Dip in and may

Lady Luck smile on you.

He got it!

- l got it! Give me my eye.

- lt's over there.

l might just have it

made into a stickpin for Sunday.

- How much would you take for her?

- l'm going to keep her.

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes