"Get away!" "There ain't no gold up here!" "Do you hear me?" "I hear you, old man." "But I don't believe you." "I know there's gold up there." "What are we going to do, son?" "You got to figure something." "You was wrong, pa!" "Like usual." "You said lucifer's pit was going to be a bonanza." "Please, pa..." "Let them have the mine, or lucifer's pit's gonna be our grave!" "You got no right to it!" "I found it." "I found it!" "We found you, old man." "We got the water and the supplies." "Ain't but one way down." "Pa..." "Maybe we ought to call it quits." "No, we'll come out all right, you'll see." "see?" "See what they call this place?" "Lucifer's pit." "This is his spread." "He'll bring us the luck." "I'll settle for the devil's luck." "I'd sell our souls to satan," "Before I give up." "Where you come from?" "Came from below, through those rocks." "What are you doing here?" "I heard shooting and noise, thought I could help." "I can help people sometimes." "Who are you?" "Paladin." "That's right." "No, I don't want any part of it!" "We can use all the help we can get." "I haven't offered you any help." "My help isn't for everyone," "And there's a stiff price." "We'll pay your price." "What do they want?" "They're trying to jump this claim." "I found it, it's mine!" "They can't get away with it!" "Blast 'em." "Scatter 'em." "Halt 'em with brimstone!" "Brimstone, that's what I smell." "Yes." "Brimstone and hellfire." "He shall walk among you under many names." "I told you the luck would change." "It was the brimstone." "You can smell it!" "It was some loose powder, from a broken shell." "We don't want any help from you!" "How do we even know who you are?" "I know." "I know." "You know." "What do you know?" "That we starved all our lives," "Chasing after your cursed luck!" "No fancy black devil is going to jump out of lucifer's pit" "To save our necks!" "I'm through, do you hear me?" "You do like I say, son." "Like you always done." "He heard, he came." "You can't quit me now." "We got the luck." "He's here." "Well, you tell him, mister." "Tell him that you ain't the devil!" "Now why should I tell him that?" "I tell you, there's three men up there now." "Can't be, rudy." "I saw them!" "I'm sure of that." "I say rush 'em." "And maybe get shot?" "No..." "Look, we can wait 'em out." "We got all the water and the supplies." "They got to be running low." "We got 'em covered." "They can't get away." "Yeah, but how long we gonna wait?" "I want to live to spend my gold," "Even if it takes all the way 'til tomorrow night." "Your trouble is you want to get rich quick." "Look at him." "Sleeping." "Safe and sound in his devil's arms." "Do you know how sick your father is?" "How would I know?" "I ain't no doctor." "Pa's had this fever for close to a week now." "It don't mean nothing." "Pa's been poorly for years." "You must have found a very rich strike." "Make him that stubborn, that excited." "That's our mine and our business." "Look, ain't you figured it out yet?" "He's an old fool." "A superstitious old man," "That's chased every rainbow from sicily to california." "Looking for his lucky pot of gold." "And I'm a bigger fool." "I've tagged along." "'cause I haven't had the nerve to leave him." "I hate him!" "I hate him for everything he is and he ain't." "And you're not very fond of yourself." "How long have you been prospecting for gold?" "Literally, I mean." "Not that long." "Couple of weeks now." "We ain't done nothing for very long." "Not even live, the way things look now." "Where you going?" "I'm going to take a look at your mine." "You two didn't dig this mine." "We found it." "It was abandoned." "But it's rich." "See?" "We made a bargain with you." "But only if we file the claim." "You got any blasting powder?" "Yeah." "Get it." "Where are your horses?" "Down there." "Tether them as far from the mine as possible." "What for?" "You want to file this claim or not?" "Then you do exactly what I tell you." "Here." "What are you going to do?" "What are you doing?" "I'm blowing in your mine." "Pa, don't let him!" "All right, you want your mine looted" "While we're in town to file the claim, I won't blow it in." "We do what he says." "Everything he says." "Sure!" "Just how are we supposed to get out of here, vanish?" "maybe." "There's a narrow crevice behind those rocks." "Leads to the other side." "Your horses can't make it." "We'll have to leave them." "No horses!" "Pa's in no condition to go on foot." "My horse is on the other side." "Now let's get started." "They may change their mind about waiting you out." "We ought to dig some of that gold first." "You got a lot of money in this sack." "You got at least $2,000." "If you wait to dig some," "They may figure out you never filed on this claim." "You've got 30 hot miles to that county seat." "If they figure it out," "They might just jump on their horses" "And beat you to town." "Maybe." "All right." "We're finished waiting." "You may be right." "Now spread out." "What do you get out of all this?" "If you recall, I mentioned that I have my price." "Come on, old man." "In here." "Down, down!" "Come on!" "Come on." "I think we better rest awhile." "No, I'm all right." "We've got to go faster than this." "Don't worry about me." "They'll catch up with us for sure at this pace." "Pa's right." "Maybe." "It's always touching to see a son respect" "His father's wishes." "We got to get to some water somewhere, soon." "The next time you go prospecting for gold," "Try an island in the middle of a lake." "We found gold." "We found gold!" "That's good, old man." "Now find water." "Come on." "Hold up, hold up!" "If we even put up a stake, they couldn't file a claim." "I should have known it." "They can't beat us into town, that's for certain." "We got their horses." "Rudy, you're sure there were three?" "So help me, dirks!" "Well, there's maybe one horse." "Yeah, but probably not much water." "Good, good." "Blow a man up, will they?" "I'll set 'em out to fry, if we catch 'em!" "We ain't interested in entertainment." "I'm worried they'll dump that gold." "It oughta be getting real heavy about now." "That sun beating down on 'em." "Not that old man." "He'll hang onto that gold," "Even if he has to die for it." "And he will." "Oh, don't bother!" "It's dry." "That's a very astute observation." "That's right." "You sleep, old man." "Sleep." "It's getting damp." "Water!" "Don't drink it." "it's alkaline." "Told you not to bother." "It's got to seep through two feet of alkaline." "You're surprised you can't drink it?" "What are you doing?" "Your father can't stand another day without water." "So here's where we make our stand." "There's no water here." "There will be, I promise you." "When?" "How?" "Four men will bring it." "Do we have to have a fire?" "That smoke'll show for miles around." "You can't ambush somebody who isn't here." "They might miss us." "Are you crazy?" "Nobody's going to be stupid enough to come into those trees." "They'll know it's an ambush." "Not in here." "We'll leave your father here out of harm's way." "You and I'll be out there." "Now get me about four good-sized tumbleweeds." "And incidentally," "Thank you for finding this mud." "We're going to need it." "There's no cover out there." "Now what are you doing?" ""let each soldier hew down a bough," ""and bear it before him." ""and thereby burnham wood will come to dunsinane."" "What's that?" "That, friend, is shakespeare." "there they are." "I only see two." "You see?" "They got another horse." "I told you there were three of them." "Hey, look." "They're gone." "Yeah, tricky." "Keep an eye on 'em." "This time we'll do things my way." "What if they try and run out again?" "On foot?" "Ha!" "I'd like that." "You just keep an eye on that horse, loy." "Without it, nobody's going nowhere." "Dirks!" "Huh?" "Thought I saw something moving out there." "Where?" "There ain't nothing there now." "Maybe I just been jumping at shadows." "Prairie dogs or something." "Maybe." "They got to try something." "Giving up don't seem to come natural to 'em." "We'll use the wagon for cover if we have to." "Keep your eyes open." "Let's go." "Ahh!" "Gino!" "Gino!" "Gino!" "Gino!" "Come on, boy!" "Come on!" "Gino!" "Gino!" "This wound's not serious, but he's burning with fever." "The gold is gone." "He got away with the gold." "Help me get your father into this wagon." "What..." "What are you..." "What are you doing?" "I'm living up to my part of the bargain." "No!" "I won't do it." "I won't do it!" "Take mine." "You can't have gino's." "Only mine!" "I had no right..." "Take it." "What's he babbling about?" "He's trying to renege on the bargain." "He wants to trade his soul and leave yours out of it." "That's nonsense!" "You know it is." "Isn't it?" "Can't you take it a little slower?" "You're hurting the old buzzard!" "We'll never catch up that way." "We got to get him to a doctor fast," "And stop that man from filing on your claim." "Ha!" "Ain't there anything we can do for the old man?" "You can pray if you believe in it." "They're through with him?" "Yeah." "When I find the other one, I'll send him to you." "According to the assay office," "That fellow dirks filed a claim on your mine an hour ago." "I want to find him while he's still celebrating." "Will you go to the doctor's office," "And take care of your father?" "Yeah." "Is that mirror baroque or louis couture?" "Huh?" "How silly of me." "Baroque, of course." "Gentlemen, I might buy." "My round's next." "You hit it lucky too?" "I'm not sure yet." "Bartender, bottled please." "Bottle's a dollar a shot here." "I'll accept that." "We'll have another round after this." "You owe for four already." "All right, all right!" "Yours a rich strike?" "I hear you beat three men to town to file on this." "Two or three." "What's it to you?" "I'm the third." "Here." "Take a look at your strike." "Take a good look at your rich strike." "From my mine!" "" tis more blessed to give than receive. "" "Now you just sign this." "I can't write." "Those two gentlemen will be very happy to witness your mark." "He still owes for eight drinks." "Drinks are on me," "And a bottle apiece for the witnesses." "Just sign it!" "You're not giving anything away." "Thank you very much." "Mr. Dirks, that was a very kind thing you did," "Shooting that old man." "Bartender, you'll find the sheriff is looking for him." "Let me see that bottle." "Well, there it is." "Gentlemen." "You ruined our mine." "It's not exactly your mine." "I had the deed signed over in my name." "Why, you're a crook!" "You swindled us." "You were right, gino." "He ain't no devil." "Of all the dirty, human things to do." "Now I haven't forgotten our bargain." "I'll sign the deed over to you gladly." "But for my price." "I'll take that small bag of gold." "That's all you want?" "Sulfur gas." "Any spark will set it off." "Gold ore is often forced to the surface by sulfur gas." "That smell of brimstone." "That could make you rich." "Now the last man I showed this to..." "He tried to draw on me." "And maybe you'll want to also." "See, there's no gold in that mine." "Why, you're a liar!" "It's rich." "There is gold right at the surface." "You found a salted mine." "The gold in these pieces has been cut or milled." "That mine isn't even rigged for real digging." "And if you weren't so gold hungry," "You'd have felt it the most obvious thing." "Who ever abandons a mine full of gold?" "You cheated us." "You said we'd be rich." "And you will." "The assay office and I are pleased to inform you" "That you are the owners of a very rich sulfur mine." "Sulfur!" "There's a lot of money in sulfur." "And a lot of work." "I'd say that mine," "In five years, will pay off very handsomely." "Five years!" "Of course, you could go back to chasing your luck." "Forget all about the sulfur." "That's your affair." "As for me..." "This has been" "A very interesting and profitable few days." "And I thank you very much indeed." "¶ have gun, will travel reads the card of a man ¶" "¶ a knight without armor in a savage land ¶" "¶ his fast gun for hire heeds the calling wind ¶" "¶ a soldier of fortune is the man called ¶" "¶ paladin ¶" "¶ paladin, paladin, where do you roam?" "¶"