Read Online Iron Eyes Must Die by Rory Black - Free Book Online

use the
lethal Bowie knife! That was the silent way to kill
one ’s prey!
Iron Eyes tried to reach down to his boot, but it was impossible.
His fingers clawed at his pants’ leg but there was no way he could
find the handle of his deadly Bowie knife.
    Then he felt the boards under
his spine bend. The unknown man ’s legs came into sight beside the head of
the prostrate figure.
    He stopped walking.
    Twenty inches separated them.
    Iron Eyes stared at the footwear of the man.
The boots were well worn. The heel was off the left boot and had
not been repaired. These were not the polished boots of the
deputies who had thrown him into jail, he thought. Iron Eyes
remained perfectly still. Only his eyes moved.
    He strained to see more, but could not.
    Whoever this man was, he was standing
directly above the pile of hay that Iron Eyes was beneath.
    Iron Eyes moved his right hand slowly. His
bony fingers searched for one of his lethal guns. Inch by inch he
dared to lower his hand towards one of his deep trail-coat
pockets.
    It seemed as if he would never locate the
gun. Then, as he felt the cold handle of one of his Navy Colts in
the palm of his hand, the right leg of the mysterious man was
raised.
    Before Iron Eyes could do anything, the boot
was pressed down hard on to his throat. Then suddenly the sharp
twin prongs of a pitchfork pushed the hay aside and were pressed
into his chest.
    ‘ Just
stay nice and quiet, boy!’ a voice whispered over him. ‘Don’t make
a sound! We don’t want to let them varmints know where you’re
hiding, do we?’
    The eyes of the bounty hunter flashed up at
the face of the man who had him pinned down. He was old-looking by
usual standards, but well built. He was bearded and strong enough
to make Iron Eyes helpless.
    ‘ Who
are ya?’ the bounty hunter managed to say.
    ‘ The
name’s Hanney. Duke Hanney.’
    ‘ Who
are you, Hanney?’
    ‘ I’m
the stableman.’ Hanney continued to whisper. ‘This is my
livery.’
    ‘ What
ya want of me? Rent?’ Iron Eyes croaked.
    ‘ You
got a smart mouth for someone hurt as bad as you are. We got us
some talking to do, boy!’ Hanney said in a hushed tone. ‘There’s a
few things that you ought to know. Things that might put the fire
back in ya belly.’
    Hanney eased his boot off his
victim ’s
windpipe. It was just enough to allow Iron Eyes to speak more
clearly.
    ‘ What
kinda things do I need to know, old-timer? I already know that I
killed the sheriff of this damn town. What else have I gotta
learn?’
    ‘ Them
men running around with stars pinned to their vests ain’t really
the law!’ the old man said. ‘You ain’t killed the
sheriff!’
    ‘ What?’ Iron Eyes blinked hard.
    ‘ They
ain’t lawmen!’ the man repeated slowly. ‘They’re trail
trash!’
    ‘ Are
you sure?’
    ‘ They
killed the real law!’ Hanney sighed. ‘Then they took their place.
The critter who called himself the sheriff was just the leader of
these outlaws!’
    ‘ Can
you prove that?’
    The man nodded.
    ‘ I
could show you the graves, boy!’
    Iron Eyes stared at Hanney. The old-timer
leaned over him with the sharp pitchfork in his weathered hands.
The bounty hunter did not know whether he could or should believe
him. Was this a trap thought up by the deputies to get him down
from the hay loft and into the sights of their guns?
    ‘ Are
you tellin’ me the truth, amigo?’ the bounty hunter asked in a low drawl. ‘I’m too
darn sick to be lied to.’
    The man leaned closer to his helpless
victim.
    ‘ I
ain’t lying to ya, Iron Eyes! There ain’t no call for me to lie.
You gotta understand one thing, I’m probably the only friend you
got in this here town!’
    The bounty hunter felt as if a
weight had been lifted from his shoulders. If these men were outlaws,
as Hanney said, then they were fair game for his lethal
talents.
    ‘ Is
that deputy still down there hiding in the horse-stall,
Hanney?’
    ‘ Yep.
That’s why I’m whisperin’!’
    ‘