The Two-Shoot Gun by Donald Hamilton

Author:Donald Hamilton [Hamilton, Donald]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Western
ISBN: 9780449134924
Amazon: 044913492X
Publisher: Fawcett
Published: 1989-09-29T07:00:00+00:00

16

It was light enough now that Burdick recognized her instantly, although he had seen her only once before. He did not need to hear Dan Justice speak her name roughly: "Janet! Get out of here, girl, before you get hurt!"

Janet Justice looked around with a shocked expression on her face. "Dad, for Heavens sake, what are you staging here, a massacre? I thought you said you were only going to—"

"This pair of killers never gave me a chance to speak!" her father said angrily. "They started pushing before I could open my mouth. Well, if that's the way they want it ... Go on, miss, get out of here!"

The girl said swiftly, "Jack Mort warned you not to come charging up here with twenty guns at your back. What were these men supposed to think when they saw an army approaching?"

"Girl, whose side are you on, anyway? And let's hear no more of that yellow-bellied Mort!"

She said, "If they are killers, they're just looking for an excuse to do their work, aren't they? And you're giving it to them, playing right into their hands!" She drew a long breath. "You didn't come into town to participate in a slaughter, why let them trick you into it?"

Dan Justice hesitated, and sighed. "Well, perhaps you're right," he said reluctantly. Without any abrupt motions, he reached into his pocket, drew out a pouch, looked at it for a moment, and tossed it at Burdick's feet. Landing, it made a small explosion in the dust, and a metallic, clinking sound. "I understand my boy owes you for a camera. Two hundred dollars was the figure mentioned. It seems high, but there it is, Burdick." Dan Justice stared balefully down at the younger man on the ground. "Well, pick it up!"

Burdick did not move. The man's arrogance had aroused his anger, and he said evenly, "My instructions were that the money was to be delivered by your son, in person."

Dan Justice let his breath go out with a snorting sound. "Your instructions. By God, who are you to give instructions to Flying V?"

"I'm a man whose property was damaged by an ill mannered young ruffian on a horse," Burdick said coolly. "I feel that makes it my privilege, my duty, and my plea sure, since the boy seems to have got no proper training at home, to see that he learns to conduct himself in such a way that people and their possessions are safe on the public street."

Dan Justice's normally reddish face was scarlet in the morning twilight. "Why, you insolent young—"

"Dad, please!" Janet Justice looked helplessly at her father. She turned in the saddle to throw a glance at Bur dick. Abruptly she freed herself from the sidesaddle and dropped lightly to the ground. She took four quick steps across the open space, and stopped before Burdick. "Mr Burdick, you know my brother's hurt—"

"I'd have been in pretty poor shape myself, Miss Justice," Burdick said, "if I hadn't managed to dive aside when he rode at me.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.