Santa Fe Smith

“ What are you saying?”  Cotton demanded.

“Kill the girl and kill the tin horn.” Parker said. “Henry Hines will pay us well.”

“I’m going to have my way with her first.” Cotton said.

“You gonna get us hanged!” Parker said firmly.

“I’m with Cotton.” Cole said, “Didn’t you say we were going to live in a new place?  Out-laws living with their own laws?”

“You better wait till she wakes up.” Parker resigned himself to his two partner’s way of thinking. “She ain’t going to be much fun being dead weight. First, lets kill the tin horn kid and then when she wakes up we can have some fun.”

Cole pulled his gun and aimed it at Smith.

“Now, hold it, we got an opportunity here.” Parker said.

“What do you mean?” Cole said putting his gun down.

“Let’s give this boy a chance to die with his boots on.” Parker said grinning.

“How so?” Cotton asked.

“You two have bragged about how fast you are and you think you are faster than I am. Let’s settle it once and for all.” Parker explained as the two men gathered around to hear what he had to say.

“Let’s put a gun on this hayseed. All three of us line up and see which one of us gets him first. Then you have real proof of who is the fastest…” He smiled raising his eye-brows up and down nodding toward Smith.

“Ha! I like it, “ Cole said,” It will be the real thing, not cans, or trees, or each other!”

“Yeah,” Cotton grinned. “But let this settle it between us.”

“Cole, give that boy one of your guns and lets get with it.” Parker said.

Cotton went over to Smith untied him from the wagon wheel.

“Strap a gun belt on him Cole and I’ll make sure he don’t jump the gun, so to speak, heh, heh.” Cotton drew his gun and covered Smith.

Cole put one of his gun belts around Smith and checked the gun for bullets and action.

“See, boy, you got a chance,” Cole said showing Smith the bullets, then laughing cruelly.

The three men did not notice hope in Smith’s eyes for the first time since he had been captured.  Smith rubbed his hands for circulation.

******

“Okay, get in line and mark me a place.” Cotton said.

Parker and Cole lined up about ten yards away facing Smith.

“One of you hold a gun on him and I’ll put this one in his holster.”

Cotton put the gun into the holster and backed up to his spot beside Parker and Cole.

“You got any last words?”

“Yeah,” Smith replied, “ If you will put your guns down I won’t kill you.”

The three men looked at each other and then back at Smith and roared with laughter.

Smith looked at the three men. They were crouched down with their hands near their guns waiting to kill him.

“ I’ll count three and then we draw.” Parker said.

“ What’s your name? “ Cotton asked, “and I’ll see to it that your name gets spelled right on your headstone.” Then he laughed wickedly.

“Smith….Santa Fe Smith.”

The three men were in a crouch and as they comprehended the name they began to straighten up looking at one another.

“He’s lying.” Parker said to the others. “Smith is his name all right, but it is Charles Smith, that dandy from New York.”  Parker got ready again and said,”

Okay.  One!”

Cotton and Cole got back into position with their hands ready.

Smith said softly,” I killed the last three men I faced. So if you will ride on…..”

The men laughed again out loud.

“Two!” Parker yelled

There was silence as the men got ready.

Smith could see Victoria out of the corner of his eye. She lay nude and unconscious on the ground. He was angry. He felt like killing them but his conscience was bothering him again. He would rather die than kill another man. But Victoria was in danger. He had to make a decision. Was he good enough and fast enough to beat these men to the draw. He cried out to God silently to make the right decision.

“Three!” Parker called out as all three men went