"Arrogant bastard, " Cole whispered just as Eagle went for his gun.
Cole reacted with lightning speed. The gunfighter didn't even get his
weapon out of his holster before a bullet stabbed through the palm of
his hand.
Ryan fired at the same time. He shot the gun out of Riley's hand just
as he was bringing his weapon up. The bullet cut through his wrist.
Keeping their guns trained on their targets, the two marshals strode
forward. Ryan reached Riley first. He removed his weapons, ignoring
the man's squeals of agony, and prodded him toward Sheriff Norton's
jail.
Eagle was bellowing like a wounded boar. Much to Cole's frustration,
he wouldn't stand still, but danced around in a gyrating jig.
"You ruined my shooting hand, Clayborne. You ruined my shooting hand,
" he screeched.
"I heard you the first time, " Cole grumbled. "Stand still, damn it.
I'm taking your guns." Eagle wouldn't comply, and Cole quickly tired
of chasing him. He let out a sigh, grabbed hold of the gunslinger by
his collar, and slammed his fist into his jaw, knocking him
unconscious. He continued to hold him up until he'd removed his gun,
then let him drop to the ground.
Gripping the scruff of his neck, he dragged him to Norton.
The sheriff was beaming at the two marshals from the boardwalk. "Guess
I'll have to go get the doc to patch them two up, " he remarked.
"Guess so, " Cole replied.
The sheriff rushed back inside, snatched his keys off the desktop, and
hurried on to unlock two cells. A moment later, the gunfighters were
pushed inside.
There wasn't time for the sheriff's congratulations, for no sooner had
the cell door slammed shut than Ryan was called outside by the
telegraph clerk. When Cole joined him on the boardwalk, one look at
the marshal told Cole something bad had happened. He was surprised
when Ryan handed the wire to him.
Cole read the contents while Ryan gave the news to Sheriff Norton.
"There's been another robbery." His voice was flat.
Norton shook his head. "How many dead this time? " "Seven. will
"Where did it happen? " Norton asked.
"Rockford Falls."
"That ain't far from here. I can tell you how to get there."
"How far is it? " "About forty miles over some rough terrain."
"You might want to keep your eyes open in case any of them pass through
here again. I doubt they will, " Ryan added. "They've already hit
this bank. Cole, are you riding with me? " He shook his head and
handed the wire back to Ryan. "It's not my problem." Ryan said
nothing. Squinting against the sunlight, his eyes narrowed and his
brow wrinkled into a frown. Suddenly he grabbed hold of Cole's vest
and shoved him backward off his feet. Before Cole could recover and
retaliate his fingers were flexing into a fist Ryan stole his thunder
by apologizing.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that. I let my temper get the upper