Saddle Talk: Holidays and Fireworks

"Heyes, I don't think we're gonna find a doc on a holiday."

"If not, maybe the liveryman or blacksmith are around. Worst case, we can always try honey."

Kid Curry spoke over his shoulder. "Honey? Ain't that an old wives' tale?"

Hannibal Heyes shrugged. "I don't know, but we won't know until we try it."

"That's if the mercantile is even open to buy honey. Probably nothin' will be."

"Kid, you gotta look on the bright side. Even on a holiday some establishments have to be open. People from the local ranches will probably come into town for the festivities, and saddle tramps like us might want to celebrate. Anyway, it's a chance we gotta take. We can't go much further riding double."

Curry sighed. "That's for sure. The horses need a rest, and so do we."

"You're right, and we have enough for a nice hotel room with a bathtub and steak dinners."

"But not enough for another horse."

Heyes smiled. "Come on, Kid. For once, we're flush. We'll get off the trail for a few days and relax and let the horses rest and that wound heal up." His eyes twinkled and dimples flashed. "And we can put the extra toward a decent poker stake to get enough to buy another one if that wound's worse than we think."

"Is that why you weren't watchin' where you were goin' – so you could have an excuse to play poker? Like you need one! If your nose wasn't in that durned book all the time …"

"Kid, you would think the horse would be able to watch where it was going all by itself and not step in that gopher hole. Besides, I was reading about Tom Sawyer's Fourth of July."

"I hope he had a nicer one than we're havin'."

"Except for my horse, we're doing fine. It rained on his."

For some reason, this news sparked Curry's interest. "The whole day?"

"Uh huh. And then he got the measles and spent two weeks in bed."

The small spark of interest deflated. "So they needed a doc, too? I hope his ma was able to find one on the holiday."

"It was after the holiday, so a doc was around."

"But we won't find one. Dang, Heyes!"

The dark-haired man swept an arm toward the blue sky and few fair weather clouds. "But our Fourth of July won't have rain."

Curry shook his head in disgust. "Fine, we won't be rained on. But what if we know the sheriff and we need to hightail it out of there? We have two tired horses and one can't be rid, and we don't have enough to buy another one, so we're stuck. We'll be able to enjoy the fireworks through the jail window because the jail might be the only place in town that's open!"

"Calm down, Kid," Heyes soothed. "This area's new to us and I don't think the town's too big, so it's pretty good odds we won't know the sheriff."

"Only 'pretty good'? You're usually bettin' on odds that're better than that, Heyes."

His partner rationalized. "Since we're new here, I don't know enough about the place to weigh the odds better than 'pretty good,' but I'll bet they're way better than that. Kid, don't forget we're a long way from home, so it's pretty good odds that any sheriff out these parts ain't expecting Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry to come riding down main street hooting and hollering to rob the bank with the noise of fireworks muffling a blast to the safe." He smiled dreamily. "But, those were the days."

"Maybe."

"Oh, there's no doubt about that, Kid. Those were certainly the days."

"But we're not goin' back."

"Nope."

"What if your 'pretty good' odds are wrong, and we have to steal fresh horses? Then what, Mr. Genius?"

Heyes was silent as he pondered the question.

Curry turned in the saddle to look at his partner and met Heyes's gaze.

The dark-eyed man grinned. "I'm still here."

Kid turned front again to watch the way ahead. "So you don't know what we do if we have to go back to stealin'?"

"Kid, you have to have faith in the odds. It's the Fourth of July, we're flush, and we're going to enjoy the holiday. The odds are we won't know the sheriff, so we won't have to steal horses. And even if we did, I'm sure I can talk our way out of it somehow."

"How?"

"Oh ye of little faith." Heyes thought another minute. "We can tell them we're bounty hunters on a hot trail."

Curry rolled his eyes. "Fine. As long as we don't tell them we're after Kid Curry and That- other-fella."

Heyes chuckled. "Nope. Hannibal Heyes and What's-his-name will be furthest from their minds. We'll tell them we're after the Red Sash Gang and wire Lom to back us up if it comes to that. He's always our ace in the hole, isn't he?"

"I think he's gettin' tired of that. We're supposed to be makin' it all legal on our own."

Heyes nodded. "And we are and Lom knows that. But he also knows sometimes we need a little help keeping to that deal we got from the governor …"

"But he's already puttin' his neck out for us."

"Yes, he is. And since he has almost as much to lose as we do, odds are it's in his best interest to back us up if we need it."

"That's your whole plan, Heyes? It's soundin' pretty thin."

"Just playing the odds, Kid. Gotta keep your eyes on the odds."

Curry sighed, loudly, and shook his head. Sometimes it just made no sense to argue with his partner's silver tongue.

They rode in companionable silence until they reached the town limits. Trailing Heyes's horse behind them, they kept their heads down as they rode past the sheriff's office. They did not know him.

The doctor's office had a closed sign in the door. Odds were he could probably be reached in an emergency, but perhaps a horse with a wound on his leg would not qualify.

They found the livery stable at the far end of town. It was open and the stable hand said he would doctor the wound for an extra two bits a day. Flush as they were and with the odds going their way, they did not attempt to talk the price down.

Continuing the trend, they found and splurged on a room at the hotel overlooking the main street and sheriff's office with two beds and a bathtub. After washing off the trail dust and changing into clean clothes, they enjoyed a steak dinner with all the trimmings in the hotel dining room.

Heyes sipped his wine. "See, Thaddeus. What'd I tell you about the odds being pretty good?"

Curry sighed. "Do you want me to tell you you were right and I was wrong?"

"No. Just enjoy the holiday, even if the doc isn't around."

"Okay." Kid raised a glass to toast. "Here's to the fireworks staying on the holiday and not following us out of town."

Heyes grinned. "I'll drink to that."