Open Writing

Grayson rode into town and entered Evie's Bar. The bartender, Old Joby, slid a bottle and a glass towards him.

'Is he here?' asked Grayson.

'Over there,' said Old Joby, pointing.

Grayson looked past a group of cowmen and saw Adler talking to Evie.

'I don't want to kill him,' said Grayson to Old Joby, 'just to scare him.'

'Well, I guess you'll do that just by lookin at him,' said Old Joby, who then went down with a bullet through his forehead.

A gun was prodded into Grayson's back. 'Don't move,' said a voice.

Adler, smirking, came over and removed Grayson's guns..

'Frisk him,' Adler said to a one-eyed ruffian, who found Grayson's knife.

'Look at this,' said the ruffian, hurling the knife at the mirror behind the bar.

'Hey, you, One Eye,' yelled Evie, 'get the hell out of here.'

'Now, now, slow down, Evie,' said Adler, 'it's only a bit of fun and I'll pay.'

'Well, then, who shot Old Joby?' asked Evie, changing tack.

The man holding the gun to Grayson's back said, 'It was meant to be a warning shot.'

Evie wanted to say, 'If that was a warning shot, save me from the real thing.'

Instead she said, 'I reckon somebody ought to fetch the sheriff.'

'Now, now, that would not be a good idea, Evie,' said Adler.

Grayson said to Adler, 'I didn't come here to kill you, Adler.'

Adler replied, ‘That's mighty generous of you, Grayson.' Then he moved to one side and nodded to the man holding the gun to Grayson's back.

Afterwards, One Eye and the cowmen weren't sure how it came about that Adler and the man holding the gun to Grayson's back were both shot dead.

Over the years, Evie never said a word to anybody.

Nor did the sheriff, who was Old Joby's son.