Vera Cruz Page #2

He has you there, Captain, I assure you.

Excuse me. The captain will

take care of your needs from now on.

Tell Max we're waitin'!

Your acquaintance with

etiquette amazes me, monsieur.

I had no idea you knew

which hand to use.

When I was no higher than

a hound dog's tail on point,

I had a little tin soldier, about so high.

And one day I lost him... and I cried.

My mother said "Stop bawlin'. Someday

that soldier's bound to show up."

And she was right.

You're back.

Joe! Over there!

Careful, monsieur. Some of the wine

is getting in your mouth.

Hello...

Hello!

Marie. You're looking

your loveliest this evening.

Thank you, Henri.

Mon cher Henri,

it's so nice to have you safely back.

The palace seemed empty without you.

Obviously your trip was successful.

Successful but... distasteful.

May I introduce Monsieur Erin, Monsieur

Trane? The Comtesse Marie Duvarre.

Enchante.

No wonder you was in

such a fire to get here.

Tous les Amricains, ils sont trs beaux.

- You are being complimented.

- Merci. Vous seriez belle n'importe o.

Monsieur, your French

is as pretty as your flattery.

In New Orleans,

we learn how to handle both.

Dirty son of a...

His Majesty the emperor.

Excuse me, gentlemen, please.

- Your Majesty.

- Henri.

They're a disreputable-looking band.

Do they know the nature of their mission?

Only that they will be

handsomely rewarded.

Do you consider death

a handsome enough reward for them?

If not from the guns of the Juaristas,

perhaps from the steel

of Your Majesty's lancers.

You may present me

to the courageous little group.

Your Majesty, allow me to...

I implore your indulgence.

They are not familiar with court protocol.

It is gratifying that you men

are so sympathetic with our position

- that you offer your services to us.

- Let's get one thing clear, Your Majesty.

Our services come high.

I hope the emperor is more interested

in fire power than protocol.

Precisely. Our primary concern is getting

a coach through Juarista country

- to the port at Vera Cruz.

- May I humbly remind Your Majesty

that my lancers will also take part.

Quiet. You failed before.

I beg your indulgence, sire.

But why should these men do any better?

Pittsburgh.

- This is why.

- Indeed.

May I? I am something of a marksman.

Ah, yes...

the new Winchester repeating rifle.

I hear it fires faster than the double-action

pistol, and as far as the eye can see.

Mister, it does everything

but shoot around corners.

Most amusing.

But, of course, a weapon is only

as good as the man who uses it.

Monsieur!

Hold on to your hat, Max. And don't

worry about the women and children.

Fantastique!

Magnifique!

Three torches left.

A pity your gun is empty.

It's not.

Your Majesty said he was a marksman.

Allow me, sire.

Thank you, monsieur.

Bravo! Bravo!

All the way forward...

All the way back.

Bravo!

Bravo!

Perhaps I better stop.

We have a servant problem as it is.

I assure Your Majesty I shall be

perfectly safe with these gentlemen.

Well, then, I suppose I must approve.

You see, it is the countess

who will occupy the coach.

She's decided that she must see Paris

again, and we indulge her every whim.

The marquis wants her to reach

the ship at Vera Cruz safely.

She will if the price is right.

I suppose when one deals with men

of action, one must expect action.

Does 25,000 in gold sound reasonable?

A pretty figure... but only half as pretty

as the figure we're escorting to Vera Cruz.

I gather that double would increase

your sense of responsibility?

It would double it.

I'll be a dirty...

The water is about to come in!

Joe's pretty fast on the draw!

I'd prefer he restricted

his speed to his gun!

Funny country, isn't it? A carriage cuts

deeper tracks than an overloaded wagon.

Yeah, funny country, all right.

A very large convoy

to protect one woman.

It will take two days

to get men for an attack.

- Get them!

- Yes, sir.

But in the meantime a few

will have to do the work of many.

- You are welcome, seor.

- We need food and drink for 70 people.

Your best - you understand?

But, seor, our provisions are scarce,

and the emperor does not pay.

We dine in an hour.

They have a very passable wine here -

vintage of '59. We'll stay the night.

Easy to defend, too.

My dear, you are unusually

gallant this evening.

- As gallant as the two Americans?

- You surprise me, Henri.

You should know there is never

anything to fear from two men.

Your French is as pretty

as your flattery, mon-sewer.

Ma'am, I learned my French

in old New Orleans.

Oh! You wanna play, huh?

Voulez-vous get off my toe?!

Aw, Tex! I told you to be careful!

You Americans are so gallant!

Come on, Countessy. Let's go!

Come on, Joe. Give it back.

Sure.

A little careless with

your hardware, ain't ya?

- Look out behind you, Joe!

- Ah, come on, Little Bit.

You can do better than that.

Careful, Joe.

It's cocked.

Well, what do you know?

So it is. Catch it, Little Bit!

You boys ain't gonna let

a little gunshot spoil the party?

Ballad, show us really how to dance.

Give us a hoedown, Pittsburgh!

Anything you say, Mr Erin.

- Hello...

- Hello!

How much d'you think is there?

Just enough.

For two?

Good evening.

Each one of those six boxes contains

half a million dollars in gold.

- Three million!

- Sure has a nice ring to it.

You plannin' to visit Paris or buy it?

This is the money to bring troops from

Europe to keep Maximilian on the throne.

But I can think of many uses for it

more civilised than war.

- Ma'am, you're just full of surprises.

- Then let me add another.

- One million's enough for me.

- It ain't for me.

I'm a pig.

Be a shame not to keep it all in one piece.

Perhaps. But neither of you

can get out of the country alone.

If the Juaristas captured it,

they could win.

- They ain't gonna capture it.

- You don't know the Juaristas.

They are suspicious already. Even

Maximilian needed me for camouflage.

How come he made

the mistake of pickin' you?

The emperor is very fond of the marquis,

so I made sure

the marquis became fond of me.

Looks like you been thinkin'

about this for a long time.

I have.

There will be a sea captain

to meet me in Las Palmas.

He has a fast ship

up the coast from Vera Cruz.

The marquis know about that?

Unfortunately, as I have

discovered to my embarrassment,

Henri is loyal to his emperor.

But I dare say he would be willing to...

die for Maximilian.

- How do we know we can trust you?

- How do I know I can trust you?

Countess,

you're beginnin' to talk my language.

- And yours?

- Should be an interesting trip!

I wish you'd stop drawin' around me!

Now, gentlemen.

It's a long way to Vera Cruz.

You see that?

You must have had a restful night

to find the morning so amusing.

It's the countess. She's quite a woman!

Indeed. She's worth her weight in gold.

Now.

Now.

Out of the way, peasants!

Not yet!

Joe!

The carriage!

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