No monstrous demon from the fiery bowels of hell itself could have carved a more fearful sight than did the bounty hunter as he moved silently around the high loft, ever closer to his goal. Iron Eyes had crawled through the scattered hay until he was directly above the stall where he knew the deadly outlaw was hiding. The stall was bathed in dark shadows, but that could not disguise the truth from Iron Eyes.
Iron Eyes had the scent of his prey in his nostrils. He gripped the handle of his Bowie knife in his bony right hand and looked down at the man crouching below his high vantage point.
It was a ten-foot drop to the stable floor, but Iron Eyes had no fear.
His cold steel-colored eyes glanced across the distance to where the livery stableman waited for his signal to move.
Iron Eyes waved the knife. Hanney got to his feet and walked to the top of the ladder.
‘What ya doin’ up there, old man?’ the outlaw with the deputy star pinned to his vest called up from the horse-stall when he saw Duke Hanney resting his hands on the top of the ladder. ‘You bin in that loft too damn long.’
‘I’m just gettin’ hay for the horses!’
‘Ya took long enough!’
‘Shut the hell up!’ Hanney spat.
‘I’ll shut you up for keeps!’ The outlaw stood and shook a clenched fist up at the defiant livery man. ‘Just wait ‘till ya gets back down here!’
‘Reckon all ya gotta do is wait for me to turn my back and then you’ll start shootin’!’ Hanney kicked a bale of hay over the edge of the loft platform. It hit the stable floor. The horses inside the dark interior of the large building all whinnied at the same time and fought against their restraints.
Shod hoofs kicked at everything.
The noise was deafening.
‘Quiet these nags down, old man!’ the outlaw shouted above the ear-splitting noise.
Duke Hanney smiled and watched as the bounty hunter started to rise. Iron Eyes straightened up to his full height.
He leapt from the loft.
Like a mountain lion seeking its chosen prey, the bounty hunter flew through the air towards his target. Both his boots hit the neck and shoulders of the outlaw. The two men crashed into the ground. Iron Eyes fell to the side with the knife in his hand. He watched the stunned outlaw roll over on his shoulder and drag his lethal gun from its holster.
Before the outlaw could fire, the bounty hunter drew his arm back and unleashed his weapon. He threw the Bowie knife straight and true.
His aim was deadly accurate.
The outlaw staggered back when the long, honed blade entered his chest with ferocious force. Only its handle guard stopped it from going all the way through his lean frame.
He hit the wooden partition of the horse-stall and slid to the floor. A trail of gore covered the wood.
Iron Eyes leaned over, grabbed hold of the knife handle and pulled it clear of the dead outlaw’s chest. The body slid inertly on to its side.
‘Ya get him, boy?’ Hanney asked. He descended the ladder and moved quickly across the stables to the gaunt figure. ‘Ya kill the evil critter?’
‘I killed him OK!’ Iron Eyes wiped the blood off his knife and slid it down into his boot. He gritted his teeth and grabbed the dead outlaw’s hair.
‘Dead centre!’ Hanney enthused as his wrinkled eyes stared at the bloodstained shirt. ‘Never seen anyone throw a knife like that before, boy!’
‘Give me a hand, Hanney. Grab his legs. We’d better hide this carcass!’
Both men hauled the dead weight back into the shadows and covered it with hay.
‘Ya gonna try and get the drop on the rest of them dirty varmints, Iron Eyes?’ Hanney asked as they moved to the tall open doors.
Iron Eyes leaned against the doorframe and squinted out into the sun-baked streets of Rio Concho. He knew that there was probably bounty on all the outlaws who controlled the remote town. Yet who were they really? And how much were they actually worth?
‘I wonder if there are any wanted posters in the sheriff’s office, Hanney?’ he muttered thoughtfully. ‘There ain’t nothing worse than killing wanted outlaws and not knowing how much money’s on their heads. Did ya brother Tom keep any wanted posters in his office, Hanney?’
Hanney gripped Iron Eyes’ arm and pulled him around.
Their eyes met.
‘Steady on, boy! Ya ain’t seriously thinkin’ of going back to the sheriff’s office, are ya?’
‘Yep, I sure am. Maybe ya brother Tom had a pile of posters tucked away in his desk or someplace. These varmints have to be worth something. I wanna know how much.’
‘Don’t be loco!’ the stableman pleaded. ‘They’ll kill ya on sight! Ya have to lie low until sundown, boy! Think about it, Iron Eyes. Ya lost a lotta blood. You gotta try and get some strength back in that pitiful body of yours. Right?’
‘I feel OK!’
‘But there are too many of them!’ Hanney insisted.
‘I’ve faced more and come out the winner!’ Iron Eyes ran his fingers through his limp, sweat-soaked hair.
‘Wait until dark. OK?’
‘How long is it until sundown, old-timer?’
‘Not long. No more than a couple of hours, Iron Eyes,’ the older man answered. ‘Come with me. You can hide out in my cabin until then. It’s out back. What ya say?’
The sharp-eared bounty hunter could still hear the men who were searching for him. Iron Eyes listened to the sounds of those who still hunted him in the streets of Rio Concho drifting on the warm afternoon air.
‘Ya got got any whiskey in that cabin of yours, Hanney?’ He asked.
‘Yep! I also got vittles. I could rustle ya up a dandy meal if n you’d like?’
‘The whiskey will do just fine!’ Iron Eyes followed the older man through the stable towards the rear door. ‘But when the sun sets, I’m headed back to the sheriff’s office! I like to know who I’m killin’, Hanney!’
Both men ran across the open ground to the small cabin.