Angel acted by blind instinct.
He rolled to the side, over and over and off the edge of the sidewalk into the dust, crying out as his wounded shoulder hit the hard earth. The gun was in his hand and he saw the two dark shapes running at him. Another shot boomed out and a huge chunk of splintered wood torn from the sidewalk went whirring past his face, tracing a long red finger across his cheekbone. He eared back the hammer of the Army Colt and the gun leaped in his hand, the roar blotting out sound. He saw one of the men slew to one side and go down kicking in the street as the other fired again and missed. He was on one knee now and he held the Colt steady in both hands, arms outstretched to their full limit and let the running figure come clear in the sights and then he released the hammer. The gun blasted again and it was almost as if he could see the line the bullet traced through the air. He saw the puff of dust clearly as the bullet struck the running man high on the chest and he went back as if he had been swatted. The gun flew from the man’s hand, and Angel was up on his feet with the gun cocked again when Hickok came out around the back of the jailhouse, both guns in his hands.
‘Stand still!’ Hickok roared, and Angel froze. He let the barrel of the gun down.
‘Uncock that thing and drop it!’ Hickok yelled. ‘Now!’
Angel complied, and Hickok came forward. He looked at Angel’s shoulder and then at the two men in the street. One of them lay quite still. The other was writhing and groaning. Men were coming up the street warily, and Hickok watched them with eyes like a cat’s, no movement escaping him.
‘Bill!’ someone yelled. ‘It’s Mike Williams. I’m coming through.’
‘Get up here, man!’ shouted the Marshal. A man pushed through the crowd with a shotgun canted ready in front of him. He turned and bayed the crowd as Hickok went out into the street and knelt down by the groaning man.
‘Somebody get a doctor for this man!’ he said as he straightened up. ‘The rest of you get off the street.
Move!’ He gestured with the Navy Colts and the crowd melted back. ‘Move, I said!’ Hickok repeated, stalking towards them. The knot of people broke, retreating away from the tall marshal, and within a few minutes the sidewalk was empty again. Hickok turned to face Angel.
‘Get into that office an’ let me take a look at your arm,’ he said brusquely. When Angel made a slight movement of demurral, Hickok cocked one of the Navy Colts loudly. ‘Do like I say, son,’ Hickok said softly. Angel nodded and went in as Hickok stooped to pick up all the fallen guns. He came in and turned up the lamp on the desk, slicing Angel’s shirt away from the bloody shoulder with a wood-handled knife that had a blade about a foot long.
‘Arkansas toothpick,’ Hickok grinned, peering at Angel’s shoulder.
‘You’re a fool for luck,’ he pronounced. just burned skin. Here … this ought to help.’ He uncorked a whiskey bottle, sloshed some on his cupped hand, and slapped it on the gash in Angel’s arm. Angel yelped, and Hickok grinned.
‘Thank your lucky stars that’s all the hurt you got,’ he said. ‘One day someone’ll put a slug in you that’s got to be taken out with a knife. Then you can really yell.’
He sat down at the desk and arrayed the three guns he had picked up in line abreast on it. He looked at them for a moment and then he looked up at Angel.
‘You know what you’ve done,’ he said.
‘I had no choice,’ Angel said. His arm was stinging like hell. ‘You going to arrest me?’
‘My job here is keeping the peace,’ Hickok said. ‘Right now, that means getting you out of town as fast as I can. Those were Texicans you burned down, sonny. This town is full of their friends. You want to stay and discuss the question of self-defense with two hundred of them when they’ve had time to likker up an’ come lookin’ for you?’
‘Not much,’ Angel admitted. ‘Not very much at all.’
‘What I thought,’ Hickok said. ‘That’s the first good sense I’ve heard out o’ you since I set eyes on you.’
‘Will it make trouble for you?’ Angel wanted to know.
Hickok’s eyes crinkled at the corners. ‘I’ve known it happen,’ he said. ‘Them cowboys aren’t what you could call my staunchest admirers.’
‘Then — ’
‘ — then nothing!’ Hickok said. ‘There won’t be any trouble I can’t handle. As long as you’re not around. Tell me — where did you learn to shoot like that?’
Angel shook his head. ‘I didn’t even know what I was doing,’ he said.
Hickok nodded. ‘Fools for luck,’ he sighed. ‘Well, boy, you got to git. And fast. Only one thing more I can do for you.’ He gestured at the guns on his desk and Angel reached for the Army Colt.
He was still reaching for the gun when he heard the door open and he whirled like a cat, the Army Colt coming up cocked and ready. The man in the doorway was Hickok’s deputy, Mike Williams. He stood mouth agape, the shotgun dangling in his right hand, as Hickok burst out laughing. Angel put the gun up, shrugging shamefacedly as Williams came into the office.
‘Meet Mike Williams,’ Hickok grinned. ‘Special policeman at the Novelty. He helps me out, sometimes. Mike - you nearly got separated from yourself then. Maybe you’ll remember what I’m always tellin’ you — never come up unexpected behind a man with a gun in his hand!’
Williams shook his head. ‘I’ll remember next time,’ he said, smiling. ‘Son, you sure are nervous. Put that thing away, will you?’
Angel pushed the gun into its holster and then strapped the rig on around his waist. Hickok gestured at the other guns on the desk. There was a beaten-up Navy 1851 and a pocket Colt, the 1848 model with engraved sideplates.
‘You could take those,’ he offered. ‘Those fellows won`t be needin’ them anymore.’
‘I’ll stick to this,’ Angel said.
Hickok smiled. ‘You may be right at that, way you handled it. Mike, you look after things here a while, will you?’ He asked Angel where he had left his horse and Angel told him. ‘I’ll walk this youngster down to A Street. He’s leavin’ town and I do mean now.’
Williams nodded. ‘Good thinking,’ he told Angel.
They walked outside. Texas Street was bright with flaring oil lamps and the saloons were roaring. Honky-tonk pianos were barreling away, and coarse shouts of laughter and pleasure came from the bright doorways. The sidewalks were crowded but Angel noticed that a respectful path was always made for Hickok. They walked as far as the railway depot and then the Marshal stopped.
‘Far as I go — alone,’ he said. ‘You got any money, son?’
Angel nodded. ‘All l need,’ he lied.
‘Here’s a stake, anyway,’ Hickok said, pressing a coin into his hand.
‘Don’t argue, just take it. It won’t hurt to have an Angel thinkin’ good of me.’ The younger man could see his wry grin in the flaring lights of Texas Street. Hickok did not extend his hand.
‘Where you headin’, Angel?
‘New Mexico,’ Angel said.
‘Good,’ was the reply. ‘Don’t ever come into one of my towns again. Sabe?’
‘You got a deal,’ Angel said. ‘Good luck, Mr. Hickok.’
‘I can use all there is,’ Hickok said and turned back towards Texas Street.