"Did we lose 'em?" yelled Wheat up to where the Kid and Heyes were lying prone at the top of the bluff. He and the rest of the mounted gang waited impatiently for the verdict but the two leaders of the Devil's Hole gang were concentrating all their attention on the scene below them. A plume of dust rose off the dusty desert floor several miles away.
"Who would've thought that stinkin' little minin' town could raise a posse at all let alone raise one that could follow a trail?" Kid Curry handed the field glasses to his partner and rolled over onto his back gazing blindly up at the clear, blue sky.
Heyes lifted the glasses to his eyes. "How many d'you think there are?"
"Any is too many. They got fresh mounts from that stage stop. They can go for days; we can't."
"I'm serious."
The Kid turned over onto his stomach again and stared at the waning dust cloud. The posse had stopped. Again. This had been the pattern for the last couple of days. Every time the gang stopped, the posse stopped as well, keeping their distance. Always out of reach of the outlaws' guns. "The same six or seven that were doggin' us yesterday, and the day before yesterday. Not enough dust to be much more'n that."
"I figure we've got twenty or so minutes before they could catch up to us."
Blue eyes shifted to the dark-haired man. "They ain't been tryin' to catch up to us and I ain't plannin' on lettin' 'em. That's why I've been ridin' my ass off for two days."
Heyes crawled backwards a few yards and stood up where he knew he couldn't be seen from below. "That's the point. We've tried everything we can think of and they're still on our tails; must be a professional tracker in the posse. We're gonna have to split the gang and the money up. Pair off in twos."
"The money?" The Kid let his friend pull him to his feet with a helpful hand. "You don't usually do that."
"I'm doing it now." Heyes started down the rise towards his men, but was stopped short when Curry grabbed his arm and spun him around.
"Why?" demanded the Kid, his discomfort written all over his face. "I don't like the idea of handin' my hard-earned cash to those knuckleheads for safekeepin'."
"The way I see it, we don't have a choice. There's a good reason the posse's been real careful to stay just out of our range. They know they're dealing with Kid Curry thanks to Hank's slip. They also know there're only seven of them and six of us and they aren't riding worn out nags. They're hoping to pick us off one at a time as our horses give out."
"Sounds like a smart plan to me." The Kid let go of Heyes' arm and the two men carefully picked their way down the sage-dotted upslope.
"We'll split up three ways just in case they split, too, but I'm betting they're gonna follow you and me. That twenty grand reward has got to be looking good to them. We can give the boys a chance to get away and we'll stand a better chance of shaking them when it's just us."
"So far I ain't likin' this plan," growled Curry.
"It's all I've got, Kid."
"So why divvy up the money, why not just give it all to Wheat?"
"'Cause if I'm wrong and they go after Wheat and Kyle or Hank and Lobo; we'll minimize our losses. Two thirds of six grand is better than nothing."
"Makes sense."
The partners fell silent as they neared their men.
"Did we lose 'em?" repeated Wheat, hopefully.
The Kid took the reins to his bay gelding from Lobo as Heyes untied the sack of stolen money from the horn of his saddle. He hastily grabbed a portion of the cash and handed it up to Hank before digging deep for another fistful of bills. "We're splitting up. Lobo, you and Hank stay together. Wheat, you and Kyle; we're gonna try to draw 'em off. Walk your horses for the first few miles so you don't raise dust and they get some more rest." He thrust the sack up to the big, mustached outlaw and tucked the remaining cash into his coat pockets. "If you get caught, maybe you can buy yourself a helluva lawyer," said a grim-faced Wheat. "Good luck."
Heyes and the Kid waited until their men had ridden out of sight then rode quietly up to the top of the bluff and walked slowly along its edge in full view of the waiting posse. For several minutes nothing happened and it was plain that vigorous discussion was taking place amongst their pursuers. Heyes could only wish he could hear the conversation.
"Looks like the drawin' off part's workin'," said Curry. Sure enough, the entire posse had veered in their direction and was closing the distance.
"Time to get to work on the shaking 'em part," answered Heyes as he sent his tired horse into a gallop.
oooOOOooo
The sorrel scrambled up the rocky hill, stumbling several times from fatigue. Heyes gave the horse its head and sat quietly, letting the animal find its footing. "Atta boy. C'mon. C'mon." He could hear the clatter of the Kid's gelding behind him. They were leaving the desert scrub and climbing towards a thick pinyon juniper forest surrounding a rocky mesa. The trees would offer them more opportunities than the arid open land had and the rocky, rising landscape would give them an advantage. It was only a few hundred yards further, but Heyes knew they didn't have much time left. His horse was nearly spent. The best part of another day had passed and they hadn't been able to lose their pursuers. Now the posse was getting close. It was over. They were done running.
As the two riders entered the shelter of the trees, they pulled up their exhausted horses. Both beasts were thickly lathered. Their heads hung down low and their sides heaved with the effort of drawing breaths. Heyes dismounted and pulled off his saddlebags. He tied his reins around the saddle horn, releasing his animal. Curry dropped to the ground and leaned against his horse for support. He rested quietly for a couple of minutes and then tied his reins as well and removed his saddlebags. He gave the bay a gentle pat and then whipped off his hat, waving his arms and growling at the startled animals. Without the weight of a rider, the revived animals took off bucking and kicking out in their eagerness to leave the humans behind. The Kid watched them go and then turned to a panting Heyes. "Hopefully, they'll give us a few minutes."
Heyes smiled sadly, "Where d'you wanna make our stand, partner?"
Squinting against the glare of the setting sun, the Kid pointed to a large jumble of huge boulders and broken trees resting at the foot of the mesa. "That rockfall's as good a place as any. We can rest in the shade until the posse figures out what they're gonna do with us." Wearily, the two men started walking.
"What you really mean is figure out if they want to take us dead or alive."
"Yep, and then I guess we're gonna have to figure out whether we fight or we surrender."
Heyes frowned. "If they give us a chance to surrender, we will. If they come in for the kill, we fight. How many bullets you got?" He opened the flap of his saddlebag and did a quick inventory of his own ammunition.
"I got a full box and maybe another fifteen rounds. You?"
"Maybe forty or so cartridges."
"That's a little over one hundred rounds. I reckon that'll slow them down a tad, but not for long. We'll be sittin' ducks."
"That's real encouraging, Kid."
"Hey, I calls 'em as I sees 'em."
oooOOOooo
After an unsatisfying dinner of cold beans, the Kid and Heyes were fighting off sleep. They'd heard the posse arriving a few hours ago and had amused themselves listening to the scuffling footsteps as the deputized lawmen had found their own concealment to wait out the night.
"We've got a few more hours to dawn. I reckon they'll make their move at first light."
"I don't know, Kid. So far they've been more concerned with saving their tails. If they rush us, they know someone's gonna die real fast and it ain't gonna be one of us. I'm betting they starve us out." Heyes fell silent for several minutes staring at the empty tin cans from their dinner before adding, "You still got more cans of beans?"
"Don't tell me the thought of dyin' is workin' up your appetite."
"No. Better. I've got an idea."
"What? You plannin' on fartin' your way to freedom?"
Heyes turned a pained expression on his partner. "Just get me the beans." He started digging through his own bags, coming up with a can of peaches, two cans of tomatoes, a fork, and a can opener. Curry produced three more cans of beans. Using the opener, Heyes opened the can of peaches halfway around the top and bent the lid back. He stuck the fork in it and handed it to the Kid. "Eat."
"I ain't hungry."
"Then dump it out but don't open it any further."
Curry squinted at Heyes trying to decide if he was serious. He began eating the peaches. Heyes dumped out the contents of the other cans into the dirt. Using his spare socks from his bags, he quickly wiped out the cans and set them carefully to one side.
"Oh, I get it. We'll starve faster if we throw our food out. Save the posse some time. Yep, that's a real smart plan."
"Shut up and fetch me something to start a fire with," snapped Heyes.
"Least we'll die warm," grumbled the Kid. He ambled around the boulders picking up splinters of wood and broken, dried branches of the crushed trees.
oooOOOooo
The night sky glowed slightly to the east, but darkness still highlighted Heyes' small, hot fire. It was dying down to embers. He blew on the flames fanning the coals to a red hot glow then took his knife from the shaft of his boot and stabbed at the coals, breaking them into smaller pieces.
Curry sat back and finished the peaches, watching his partner and wondering if the pressure had finally gotten to be too much for him.
"It's right nice of you to light the place up for 'em, makes it real easy for them to shoot us when they close in."
Heyes ignored him. He reached for one of the empty cans and snatched the fork from the Kid's fingers.
"Hey! I wasn't done."
"It's ready," said Heyes cryptically. Using the fork, he gingerly fished a glowing coal from the fire and slipped it into the can followed by several more.
"What the hell are you doin', Heyes?"
A delighted, maniacal smile assured the Kid his partner was acting normally, and he waited for an answer.
"The gang's coming to our rescue, Kid."
A brief look of worried disbelief scurried across Curry's face, chased by a dawning smile. "Heyes! You really are the genius you think you are." Laughing, he added. "Here, take my gloves. You hold 'em, I'll fill 'em." Soon the cans were lined up next to one of the boulders. Heyes kicked dirt over the remaining fire and the shadows turned to absolute blackness. He tore open his box of cartridges. With a grin at his partner, he dropped some of the ammunition into a can and the Kid bent the lid shut. In one swift, smooth motion, Curry lobbed the can out into the dark night.
Almost instantly, the cartridges exploded and clattered within the cans for several seconds with one or two shooting out and ricocheting harmlessly off a rock. As the noise died down, the swearing began. A second can was thrown through the darkness followed by a third and a forth. The phony gunfire erupted from every direction. The posse snapped into action and returned fire into the woods behind them, shattering tree limbs and terrifying their mounts in the process. Horses reared back in fear and several broke their tethers, galloping away madly from the ensuing chaos.
Heyes waited until the shots died away, and then screamed at the top of his lungs. "Wheat, Kyle, hold your fire. Give 'em a chance to surrender. Devil's Hole gang ain't taking to killing now." He paused.
"Sheriff, you giving up or should I let my men keep shooting?" He and the Kid smiled conspiratorially as the swearing started up again. Without giving the lawman time to think, Heyes filled the last two cans in quick succession and Curry threw them out. The subsequent burst of rounds caused the posse members to stand up from their hiding places, tossing down their weapons and putting their hands up. "Call off your men, Heyes, we give up!" yelled the sheriff.
Heyes and the Kid came out from their hiding place with their guns drawn.
oooOOOooo
The Kid finished tying off the last deputized citizen to a small pinyon while Heyes checked the bindings holding the sheriff snugly against the rough bark of a juniper.
"You'll pay for this, Heyes," threatened the sheriff.
Heyes gave him a dimpled smile. "We'll see about that, Sheriff Clitterhouse. Somehow I don't think you're gonna want word to spread you surrendered without us even firing a shot."
"Might be kinda hard to keep that secret, Heyes," grinned Curry. "You know how things slip out when you least expect. Why I bet you'll be the laughin' stock of the entire county in no time, Sheriff."
The two outlaws could still hear the sound of the sheriff's swearing floating down the hillside as they rounded up the string of horses before riding towards home.