Chapter Three
Just a Mouthful of Moonshine
'Deadstone, huh?' Ashley said as she looked around at the small town. 'These places have some pretty depressing names. Like Deadstone, and Deadwood.'
'Dodge City.' The Doctor added.
'Dodge City isn't a depressing name.' Ashley frowned.
'It is if you've had to do a lot of dodging in your time. Now how about we go down to the stables and see if we can rent ourselves some horses?'
'Oh no, no way.' Ashley shook her head and her hands. 'I'm not getting on any horses.'
The Doctor looked at her in disbelief. 'What? We're in the Old American West and you don't want to go horse riding?'
'I'll feed them and stuff,' she replied shyly. 'But I'm not getting on one. I saw my cousin thrown about fifty feet into the air because of a horse. Was in hospital for about six months. You see any hospitals around here? If I fall off that thing I'm dead.'
'Don't be such a baby.' The Doctor laughed. 'Tell you what, we'll get you a pony. Or an old one that doesn't go too fast.'
Ashley snorted. 'Yeah. Just because it's small or slow it won't trample me to death.'
'It's simple, really. I'll show you.' The Doctor grinned at her. 'One of those things you have to do at some point in your life.'
Ashley looked at him dubiously for a few moments. 'Okay, okay. But if any pervy old cowboy-man tries to look up my skirt I'll kick him in the head.'
The Doctor nodded solemnly. 'That's fine by me. Just make sure he isn't armed first.'
They headed across the dusty road as a horse and cart trotted by. They hadn't gotten far when they heard a very unhealthy coughing and wheezing coming from their right. The Doctor was the first to look over. Ashley tugged his arm impatiently.
''Ey you two over there…' a hoarse wavering voice called to them. 'You two ain't from around this here town…'
The Doctor beamed friendlily. 'As a matter of fact we're not.'
Ashley grimaced at the scruffy old man propped up on a equally as scruffy rocking chair. His clothes were stained and his eyes were yellowed. His dirty, nicotine stained fingers were wrapped around the neck of a half full bottle of unmarked liquid, which Ashley could smell from where she stood. She tugged on the Doctor again. He pulled away from her and stepped closer to the drunk man.
'Why'd you want to come to a rundown place like Deadstone?' he slurred. 'Ain't nothin' here but drunks 'nd miners.'
'Oh we're just passing through.' The Doctor replied.
Ashley slunk up beside him and jabbed him in his waist. 'God you'll talk to anyone, won't you?' she whispered harshly.
The drunk old man blinked lazily at Ashley and then gave her a toothless grin. 'Well hello there, darlin',' he said, slowly shifting position in his chair. 'Why ain't you just a little diamond?'
Ashley forced a smile. 'Yeah. Thanks.'
'This is uh, Arizona Annie.' The Doctor smirked at her.
Ashley glared back at him. 'And this is Desperate Dan.'
The Doctor's smile dropped abruptly.
'Arizona Annie and Desperate Dan,' the old drunk chuckled, ending up having a mild coughing fit. He spat the result on the floor not too far from Ashley. 'Those are some good nicknames. I'm just plain old Willy.'
'Well then Willy, I suppose you can just call us Dan and Annie.' Ashley smiled sarcastically at the Doctor, who didn't look impressed.
'Dan?' he whispered. 'Really? Couldn't it have been like… The Man With No Name? Or Clint Eastwood?'
Ashley patted his shoulder and shook her head. 'Sorry Dan.'
'So…' Willy said, pausing to take a swig from the unmarked bottle. 'You two married?'
'Oh no.' Ashley shook her head. 'I like a bit more muscle on my men.' The Doctor shot her a look and she back grinned at him.
Willy chuckled huskily. 'Well I can haul my fair share, missy,' he leaned forward and winked. 'You think you got time for ol' Willy?'
Ashley grimaced. 'I don't think so mate.'
'So Willy,' the Doctor interrupted. 'Do you know if there's anything we can do? We're not leaving until morning so we've got a bit of time to pass.'
Willy grinned that toothy grin at Ashley. 'Well I know what I'd be doin'.'
'You know what, I've decided the 1800s is just full of perverts.' She grimaced and tugged on the Doctor's arm. 'Come on.'
'Well I'll tell you one thing for nuthin'.' Willy sighed, leaning back in his rocker and peering at the bottle. 'You don't want to be goin' up to them hills.'
The Doctor had almost gone with Ashley, but the drunk man's warning caught his attention. 'Really? Why's that?'
Willy pointed a gnarled finger at him and narrowed one eye. 'Men go up there lookin' for gold and never come back. You go up there and you'll never come back either. There's monsters on that hill.'
Ashley rolled her eyes. 'Well if they've struck gold they'll have probably buggered off to buy a mansion somewhere where there are no perverts.'
The Doctor ignored her comment and took a step forward. 'Monsters?'
'Yup,' Willy nodded, leaning back again. 'Punish men for their greed. Men who think about nothin' but gold. I seen a man turn to gold right in front of my eyes.'
'Turn to gold?' the Doctor repeated, intrigued.
'Hey Willy, whatchu doin' spinnin' tales to these fine people?'
The Doctor and Ashley looked around to see a tall, dark haired man approaching. He moved slowly and confidently, his thumbs in the belt loops of his jeans. He wore a beige shirt and a white cowboy hat on his head, which he tilted back slightly to get a better look at the two strangers in front of him. On his chest pocket was a shining silver badge.
'Well hey there, Sheriff Lockely.' Willy slurred, peering into his bottle. 'I was just telling these nice people about the mountains.'
Sheriff Lockely stepped up onto the wooden platform and smiled handsomely. 'We no the wonder we ain't got more than a hundred people in Deadstone if you keep scarin' them all off with ghost stories.' He turned and held out a hand to the Doctor. 'Sheriff Lawrence Lockely.'
The Doctor smiled and shook his hand. 'And I'm the Doc-' Ashley cleared her throat behind him and half smiled. The Doctor sighed. 'I'm Dan.'
'Pleased to meet you Dan.' Lockely smiled. He glanced to Ashley and tipped his hat. 'Ma'am.'
The Doctor glanced to Ashley and shook his head at the dewy eyes that she was giving the Sheriff. 'This is Annie.'
The Sheriff smiled. 'Pleasure, ma'am.'
Ashley grinned. 'Heh… yeah.' She giggled.
Willy took a swig from the bottle again. 'There's nothin' ghostly about those stories.' He said with a grimace. 'Men go up there and never come back.'
Lockely nodded. 'Well probably because they've moved on, Willy. You know yourself that his town ain't what it used to be since that mountain got dry.'
'Dry?' The Doctor half frowned.
'When the gold ran out.' Lockely nodded. 'You still get the odd fella trying his luck up there. Normally just the young men who've heard one too many stories from their daddies. No one's ever found anything though. Well, no one's even come back down here with gold. Not that they'd have any use for it in a town like Deadstone.'
'They don't come back 'cuz they can't.' Willy told him, his eyes narrowed into slits. 'There's demons in those hills.'
'Why do I instantly think of 'The Hill's Have Eyes'?' Ashley shuddered.
Lockely looked at her curiously for a moment, and then glanced across the street. 'If you're lookin' for something do to then you should head down the stables. There's a sweet lady called Jane who'd happily loan you some horses so you could go ridin'.'
The Doctor nodded. 'Thanks, Sheriff. We might just do that.'
Lockely tipped his hat again. 'No problem, sir.' He glanced to Willy. 'And you take it easy with that moonshine, Willy. That stuff 'll eat through a horse's hide.'
Willy only grimaced and took a longer swig from the bottle. Lockely glanced to Ashley and tipped his hat again with a smile. Ashley giggled. The Doctor rolled his eyes and took her arm.
'Well maybe we'll see you later, Sheriff.' He nodded.
Lockely nodded and headed away up the street, thumbs in his belt loops. The Doctor led Ashley in the opposite direction, but she was still watching the departing sheriff over her shoulder.
'What is it with you?' the Doctor frowned. 'A soon as someone flashes a smile you get all giddy.'
Ashley looked at him. 'He's a sheriff. A real proper sheriff. A good looking one at that. What's not to love? He even has his own cowboy hat.'
'I have a cowboy hat.' The Doctor frowned.
Ashley frowned at him. 'But you're all… skinny.'
The Doctor frowned. 'Hey, I may be skinny but I still have feelings.' He looked ahead and beamed. 'Let's go pay Jane a visit and see if we can get ourselves some horses, eh?'
Ashley sighed heavily. 'We're going up the mountain, aren't we?'
The Doctor nudged her with his elbow and grinned. 'Darn tootin'.'
