Curry threw his saddlebags down on the bed in frustration.

"Look on the bright side Kid," smiled Heyes "we have a free hotel room and free breakfast and dinner every day - that ought to cheer you up."

Curry glared at him. "Sure, and in return all we have to do is go to court and swear our names are Thaddeus Jones and Joshua Smith."

"You know we can't do that Kid."

"So what are you saying? We swear our names are Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry? They'd be sure to believe everything we said after that."

Starring

Pete Duel as Hannibal Heyes
Ben Murphy as Kid Curry

Guest Stars

4.8 Did You See What I Saw?
by Sally Wheaton

.
Kid Curry glanced briefly at his partner Hannibal Heyes as the items piled up on the storekeeper's counter, and pulled a face. They'd only spent a few days in this town, but it had been a comfortable few days and Curry had become used to a few home comforts - steak for dinner and bacon for breakfast being two of the most important ones. Now he watched as they stocked up with beef jerky and cans of beans, in preparation for leaving town. Curry didn't disagree that it was time to move on. Meredith was a nice town with a sheriff who didn't know them and not a soul who was suspicious of them. In fact, the town seemed to have become quite fond of them whilst they'd been working out at the Fraser Ranch. However, they didn't usually like to stay too long in any one town and with the job at the ranch finished, it was time to leave. Still, he would miss the steak. He shook his head slightly and then grinned, resigned to his fate.

"Did you fellas check over at the saloon?" asked the storekeeper. Heyes and Curry looked up at him, confused.

"About a job, I mean. Surely this town must have something to offer a coupla nice fellas like you."

"Ah thank you Joe" smiled Heyes. "But it's time we moved on."

"We have a rancher friend down south who has a job lined up for us." added Curry.

Joe nodded. "Well, right shame that is."

Just then the door opened and a rather flustered telegraph operator burst in, sweaty and out of breath.

"Walter? There a problem?" asked Joe, worried.

Walter shook his head, but was still unable to speak. He leaned back against the door trying to catch his breath.

Finally, he spoke. "No, no problem Joe. I was just hoping to catch Joshua and Thaddeus here before they left."

Curry frowned slightly at Heyes, not sure if he should be worried or not.

"You have a telegram for us?" asked Heyes smoothly.

"No, actually, it's not for you. I heard you might be riding on out past the Fraser Ranch today?"

Heyes nodded. "That's right. We're leaving town today but we have to call into the ranch to collect our pay."

Walter nodded, pleased. "I have a telegraph for Dan Fraser and I was thinking you could save me a whole hour's ride out there if you could deliver it for me?"

Heyes and Curry relaxed. "Sure, Walter, we'd be glad to." agreed Curry and took the envelope from the telegrapher.

"Now you boys be careful with that and be sure not to forget to deliver it. It could be important."

"Sure thing Walter, we won't forget" Curry reassured him, with a smile.

"I wouldn't trust telegrams with just anyone you know, but I trust you boys."

Heyes answered this time. "We know that Walter. And don't you worry, we'll make sure the telegram is delivered."

"I know you will" he smiled back "And thanks."

Heyes tipped his hat and turned to help Curry carry the supplies outside. The other two men watched them leave.

"Right nice coupla fellas" sighed Joe. "Shame they're leaving."

"That may not be what they'll be saying over at the saloon" laughed Walter and at Joe's raised eyebrow he added "I heard that Joshua was too good at poker for their liking". Both men laughed heartily.

* * * * *

Shielding his eyes against the glare of the sun, Curry searched the open land for any sign of Dan Fraser, the rancher they'd been working for these past few days.

"Can't see him anywhere" he observed.

"Probably over at the north rim" replied Heyes dismounting and leading his horse to the water trough.

Curry pulled a face. "Hope not. That's another half day's ride."

Heyes grinned at him. "Yes, but a half day's ride that'll put money in our pockets."

Curry grinned back and dismounting, conceded "You've got a point there Heyes."

"Come on Kid, let's go see if he's in the barn first."

As they approached the barn, Curry stopped, putting his hand on Heyes' arm to force him to stop, and listened hard. Recognising the sound of two men shouting coming from inside the barn, Curry shook his head.

"Sounds like old Dan has lost his temper again."

Heyes grinned. During their time working at the Fraser Ranch, they'd experienced Dan Fraser's temper on more than one occasion. The other ranch hands didn't have a lot of respect for him, most stayed only because they needed the money and Fraser paid well after all. He had to, he didn't invite much in the way of natural loyalty.

Drawing closer to the barn, they could now hear the words from inside.

"I know what you were up to!" snarled Fraser

"You were drunk, you don't know what you saw." yelled the voice of Jack Hanson, the senior ranch hand and a man Heyes and Curry had come to respect and like.

"I'm not a fool. So don't be making your excuses."

"Dan you're mistaken. It wasn't what you thought." Hanson's voice was calmer this time.

The sounds of a scuffle followed and Heyes and Curry looked at each other. Why was it never easy when it came to collecting their money? Just how many times had they completed a job but not managed to collect their pay?

"Sounds like a real convenient time to talk to him." deadpanned Heyes.

"Yep. Sounds like he's in a plum amiable mood alright." replied Curry as the two of them started off down the side of the barn towards the doors at the front.

They were almost at the corner of the barn when the doors burst open and Jack Hanson rushed out, running up the slope towards the house at full speed. Heyes and Curry hurried forward and seconds later, reached the corner of the barn. At that moment, Fraser rushed out of the barn, stopped still and yelled "Hanson" at the top of his voice.

As Heyes and Curry turned to look towards him, they saw him reach for his gun.

"No, Dan!" called Curry, realising what the man was about to do.

But it was too late. Fraser pointed his gun towards his senior ranch hand, still running up the slope, and fired three times, each time hitting Jack Hanson in the back. Hanson fell to the ground in an instant.

"Boys!" came a voice from behind Heyes and Curry. Turning together, they saw the sheriff just a few yards behind them, running towards them, down the side of the barn, gun in hand. Catching up with them, he stopped briefly, surveying the scene, and then shook his head.

"Drop the gun, Dan" he called towards Fraser, his own gun directed at him. Fraser didn't even try to resist, seemingly stunned by the events of the past few moments. Silently, he threw his gun to the ground and allowed the sheriff to tie his wrists.

As Fraser's gun hit the ground, Heyes and Curry had hurried towards Hanson, but it was of no use. He was already dead. Heyes stood up from his crouched position by the body and shook his head at Curry, just as the sheriff came to stand beside them.

Curry sighed and looked at Sheriff Bloomfield. "Dead" he said simply.

The sheriff nodded. "I know you boys haven't been in town too long, but it doesn't come as a big surprise to me."

Heyes looked up at the sheriff and raised his eyebrows.

"Jack Hanson came to me yesterday to report another argument between him and Dan."

"Another argument?" asked Curry.

"There have been..." the sheriff paused, clearly uncomfortable."…various …rumours"

Curry nodded.

"The pair had had several arguments over the last few weeks and Dan had threatened Jack on several occasions. Jack was worried and asked me to ride out this morning and talk to Dan. I didn't take any of it too seriously. Dan has a serious temper but I never saw him as a killer." He paused, then added "Looks like I was wrong."

"At least you saw exactly what happened." remarked Curry.

Sheriff Bloomfield pursed his lips and shook his head, looking directly at Curry.

"No I didn't."

Curry looked puzzled.

"Oh I know what happened alright, but I didn't see it. That's why I need you two."

Heyes glanced at Curry quickly.

"You two actually saw Dan shoot Jack. That makes you valuable witnesses in court."

"You didn't see it?" asked Curry incredulously. "You were only a few yards behind us when it happened. How could you not see it?"

"From where I was, I saw Jack run up towards the house, I saw the bullets hit him. A few seconds later I rounded the corner of the barn and saw Dan standing there with the gun in his hand. I didn't actually see him fire it. You boys on the other hand, actually saw him fire the gun. That will make a big difference at the court hearing. We're going to need you."

Heyes and Curry nodded uncomfortably.

"And, er, when exactly will this court hearing be?" asked Curry doubtfully.

"Oh shouldn't be more than a week or so, two or three at the most."

"Sheriff, ordinarily we'd be happy to stay and give evidence at the court hearing," Heyes smiled at him. "But like we already told you, we have a rancher friend down south who is expecting us and has an important job for us to do. I doubt he'll be very understanding about us being delayed over a court hearing. This could be a real problem."

The sheriff nodded, pondering for a moment. "I tell you what Mr Smith, you let me know how to contact your rancher friend and I'll be happy to send him a telegram explaining the circumstances. I'm sure he'll understand."

Heyes reluctantly nodded in agreement and gave the sheriff a half smile, which faded immediately the sheriff turned away from him and started back towards his horse.

"Come on boys, let's get back to town, we have work to do." He called back to them.

Heyes sighed and shrugged at Curry and, recognising that they really had no other choice, they slowly made their way after the sheriff.

* * * * *

Curry threw his saddlebags down on the bed in frustration.

"Look on the bright side Kid," smiled Heyes "we have a free hotel room and free breakfast and dinner every day - that ought to cheer you up."

Curry glared at him. "Sure, and in return all we have to do is go to court and swear our names are Thaddeus Jones and Joshua Smith."

"You know we can't do that Kid."

"So what are you saying? We swear our names are Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry? They'd be sure to believe everything we said after that."

"No, we can't do that either."

"So we leave town?"

"We can't do that either. If we leave town now, that sheriff is going to get mighty suspicious. He'd soon figure out why we left and start going through Wanted posters. You want to tangle with Sheriff Bloomfield?"

Curry shook his head and slumped down onto the bed dejectedly. "You think he has any idea who we are?"

"No, I don't think he does."

"Hmm." Curry paused, deep in thought for a few moments. "You think he thinks we had anything to do with that shooting?"

"No I don't think we're under any suspicion. He could see enough to know that neither of us had a gun drawn. Like he said, he knows what happened, he even knows why it happened. He just didn't actually see it is all."

"So what are we going to do Heyes?"

"I don't rightly know Kid"

Curry looked up towards Heyes and watched him turn to the window and look off down the street.

Curry smiled. "Yet." he stated confidently.

Heyes turned towards Curry and smiled back, nodding. "Yet." he agreed.

* * * * *

"Further back Heyes" instructed Curry.

Heyes complied and stepped a couple of paces backwards.

"About there." Curry nodded at him. "He was almost level with that boulder when he called to us."

"Hmm." muttered Heyes, screwing up his nose "Come and look Kid".

They'd ridden back out to the Fraser Ranch early the next morning to take a look around. They were now standing where Sheriff Bloomfield had stood the previous day and, looking out past the edge of the barn, they realised that the sheriff would not have been able to see Dan Foster fire the gun. What he'd told them was true. He could see the victim, but that was all.

They moved out to the front of the barn next, to where Dan Foster had stood as he fired the gun. Curry stared up the slope towards the house, feeling a slight unease. He was a gunman himself, it was true, but he had never held with killing and had always done his best to avoid it.

Cautiously, with his gun drawn, Heyes peered inside the barn. After checking that there was no-one inside, he entered and looked around. A search revealed nothing helpful and he stood just inside the barn door, staring out into the sunlight. He ran his hand through his hair and sighed. They had to come up with something, and quickly, or they really would be facing standing up in court and swearing their names were Joshua Smith and Thaddeus Jones. He kicked at the ground in frustration, and as he did, his eye caught something glinting in the sun. Bending to pick it up, he realised it was a blue button.

"What is it Heyes?" asked Curry as he walked over.

"Just a button" Heyes replied, holding it out for Curry to see. When Curry shrugged his disinterest, Heyes popped the button in his pocket.

With nothing much more to be done out at the ranch, they made their way back to their horses and a few minutes later were riding back down the road towards town.

A half hour later they reached the slowest part of the trail. It narrowed and wound steadily uphill, flanked at times by enormous rocky overhangs in between brush covered inclines. They rode now in single file although the trail was well used and sturdy.

It started as a low rumble, almost unnoticeable at first. Curry looked up at the rocky overhang not far above them and as a few loose stones began to roll down the steep hillside beside the road, he realised what was about to happen.

"Rockslide!" he shouted to Heyes, who was a few feet in front of him.

They kicked their horses into a gallop in an effort to move beyond the danger zone before the slide began in earnest. It soon became clear that they weren't going to make it as the low rumble turned into a thundering roar as more and more stones and rocks began to crash down around them. The dust made it almost impossible to see anything or to avoid the larger rocks.

A boulder fell just behind Curry and instinctively he put his arm up to protect his head. At the same time his horse reared, spooked by a shower of stones falling just in front of them. Curry was upended onto the ground, landing heavily with a thud.

"Kid!" yelled Heyes. He pulled his horse around, back towards Curry. Looking upwards he saw a number of loose rocks and knew it would only be moments before they came crashing down.

"Kid!" he called again, diving off his horse and towards his friend.

"I'm OK" Curry coughed and spluttered with the dust and was somewhat surprised when Heyes grabbed him none too gently under the arms and hauled him roughly to the side of the road.

"What the..." began Curry, choking once more and trying to push Heyes away as he tried to catch his breath. Pulling him almost to his feet, Heyes shoved him to the ground under the shelter of a large rock which was clearly firmly embedded in the ground and was going nowhere, and then dived on top of him.

"Heyes! What do you think…" Curry started, but his protests were drowned out by the roaring sound of a large boulder crashing to the ground and landing in the exact spot where only seconds before he'd been lying.

Stones and rocks poured down from above them for a few moments and then slowly, everything returned to normal. As the dust settled, the quiet was almost eerie after the thundering noise of the rockslide.

Pushing himself up into a sitting position, Heyes dusted down his shirt and looked at Curry, relieved to see that he seemed to have come through his ordeal with nothing more than cuts and bruises.

"What?" he asked.

Curry looked at him blankly. "What what?"

"You were saying something? Before the rock fell?"

"Oh yeah." Curry stared towards the boulder on the road for a moment and then looked back at Heyes, his expression serious. "Thank you."

Heyes just grinned at him. "Wait here, I'll fetch the horses." he added.

When he returned a few moments later, Curry was standing looking upwards. "You hear anything about this being a danger area for rockslides Heyes?" he asked.

"No. But that doesn't mean it's not."

Heyes turned back towards the horses, but when Curry didn't follow him, he hesitated. "What is it Kid?"

"I'm not sure Heyes." He shook his head. "It just doesn't look like a natural rockslide area to me. It just doesn't feel right."

Heyes glanced upwards. Curry did generally have good instincts about such things.

"What are you saying Kid? You think someone started that slide?"

"I don't know." He hesitated again. "But I'd like to take a look up there?"

It took them over an hour to wind back through the hills until they eventually came out at the top of the rockface.

Curry stared down at the road and then jumped down from his horse. There were a large number of loose stones and rocks up here, some of them of a decent size. It wouldn't be difficult to start a slide he figured.

He wandered away from the edge and looked around. Here the terrain was not as green as below and there were large expanses of open rock. Amongst the rocks though, there was a fair amount of brush and he pushed his way through, keeping his eyes on the ground. Beyond, it opened up into a small trail and as Curry looked down he saw the faint signs of tracks in the ground. Kneeling down next to the tracks, he signalled to Heyes to join him.

"Fresh tracks?"

"I'd say so." nodded Curry.

Heyes knelt beside him. "Kid, these tracks could be days old."

"They're fresh." stated Curry confidently.

Heyes stood up and pushed his hat back on his head. "Kid, if you're saying you think someone started that rock slide deliberately and you're saying these are fresh tracks, then…" his voice trailed off as he stared into the distance.

"That's exactly what I'm saying Heyes. Someone wants us dead."

Heyes frowned as his eyes focussed on the small dust cloud disappearing over the ridge almost on the horizon.

* * * * *

They rode in silence for a long while, each man lost in his own thoughts. Finally, it was Curry who broke the silence. "Heyes, why would someone want us dead?"

"I'm not sure there is anyone who wants us dead Kid."

"But if there was, who would it be?"

"Kid, think about it. That's the main reason why I don't think there is anyone who wants us dead."

Curry was quiet for a few minutes.

"Heyes, who could it be?"

Heyes glanced up at him. He clearly wasn't about to let the subject drop.

"Well, it could be a bounty hunter on our trail."

"I don't know too many bounty hunters who would kill a man by starting a rockslide."

"Good point. Let's discount the bounty hunter."

Curry nodded and looked at Heyes expectantly.

"Well," Heyes began reluctantly, not much liking his next theory himself. "We were witnesses to a murder. It's possible someone wants to prevent us from giving evidence."

"That's what I was afraid you'd say Heyes."

Heyes sighed. He would really rather have let the subject drop. Despite his own logic on the matter, it gave him an uneasy feeling.

"But who would that someone be Kid?"

"Dan Fraser?"

"Who, I might remind you, is right now in a jail cell."

Curry was quiet again for a moment.

"You're right Heyes."

"See? No-one is trying to kill us Kid. It just doesn't make any sense."

Curry nodded his agreement and they rode in companionable silence for a few minutes. As the road narrowed, Curry lead the way, with Heyes slightly behind him.

"Course," began Curry without looking back "It could be someone working for Dan Fraser."

Heyes closed his eyes. That was exactly the thought he had been trying to avoid. "Kid" his voice was harsher than he intended. "No-one is trying to kill us."

The sound of a gunshot pierced the air. The bullet flew past Heyes' shoulder, missing by just inches.

They flew off their horses and took what cover they could behind a small rock at the side of the road. Three more shots rang out. Staying as far behind the rock as they could, they fired back. Another shot followed and again, they fired back.

"Just one?" asked Heyes.

Curry nodded.

When no more shots followed, Curry poked his head warily around the rock. Still no shots. He looked up towards where the shots had come from but could see no movement. Aiming high into the air, he fired once more. High above them and mostly hidden by the trees, they made out the shape of a man standing up and running. Seconds later they heard the sounds of a horse's hooves.

Standing up straight, Heyes dusted himself down and started back towards his horse. "Like I was saying Kid, no-one is trying to kill us."

Curry nodded, just managing to maintain his serious expression. "Like you were saying Heyes."

* * * * *

Curry shifted uncomfortably. He was cold, he was tired and he was hungry. It didn't make for a good combination. He was huddled in a small, dark alley from where he had a good view of the sheriff's office - and the jail.

"It makes sense Kid. If someone is trying to kill us, then they'll need to tell Dan Fraser that their attempts haven't been successful. And we need to know who that someone is." And so they were taking it in turns to keep watch through the night. Their horses were inside the livery, saddled ready. Heyes was also inside the livery, asleep in the warm hay whilst Curry was on watch.

Heyes' words rang around inside Curry's head. He knew Heyes was right, it did make sense. He just hated being cold, tired and hungry. And so far, no-one had come or gone from the jail at all. Maybe they wouldn't until the morning? Still, he sighed, another hour or so and he would be the one asleep in the warm hay whilst Heyes took watch. He pulled his sheepskin coat closer around him and leaned back once more against the cold, stone wall.

Some minutes later, he detected a slight movement in the shadows across the street. There wasn't much moonlight and he squinted, trying to make out the detail. Everything was still for a few moments, but just as he was deciding that he'd been mistaken, he clearly saw someone moving across the street towards the jail. Standing now, right on the edge of the alley and being careful not to be seen himself, he watched as a man made his way cautiously to the window of the jail cell. He stood by the barred window, clearly speaking to someone inside. Curry strained to see more but it was too dark for him to recognise the man. After a few minutes, he could see the man outside nodding and then he slipped away as silently as he had arrived. Keeping to the shadows, Curry followed him down the street until he saw the man mount a horse and ride out of town to the north. Turning, Curry darted back to the livery.

"Heyes! Wake up!" he called, kicking his partner's foot.

Heyes was immediately alert and as Curry explained what he'd seen, they quickly prepared to leave and only moments later were riding out of town to the north, following the stranger.

* * * * *

They tracked the man for about three miles out of town to a small farm. They were still some distance from the house but could see it clearly.

"There!" Curry pointed as he saw the stranger walk around from the back of the house.

They dismounted and crept into the trees so as to remain hidden from him. They watched as twice he walked all the way around the house, each time re-appearing a few moments later, on the opposite side to where he'd disappeared.

"What's he doing?" whispered Curry

Heyes shrugged. "It's too dark to see properly."

Curry pointed to a clump of trees closer to the house. Heyes nodded and as the man disappeared behind the house yet again, they darted across to the trees to get a closer look.

They watched as he sidled up to the door of the house and pushed it open gently. Standing to the side to remain unseen, he paused and then he drew his gun and pushed the door open further. Everything was quiet inside the house as the man made his way cautiously inside.

They lost sight of him then in the darkness, and when he didn't immediately re-appear, they crept right up to the house, taking care not to make any noise or be seen. They crouched on the porch next to a window and then stretched up just enough to be able to peer inside.

They could make out the shadowy form of the man inside and as they watched, he struck a match and lit a lamp. Heyes and Curry immediately ducked back down out of sight. Straining to listen, they could just make out the soft footsteps inside.

Drawing his gun, Curry warily stood up and then signalled to Heyes to do the same.

The man picked up the oil lamp and then walked across the room to a window at the back of the house. He held it underneath the curtains for a few moments.

"What's he doing?" whispered Curry.

Heyes frowned as it began to dawn on him, but there was nothing they could do to prevent it.

In a sudden flash, the curtains burst into flames. The man then carefully lay the oil lamp down on its side, on the floor below the curtains. The oil started to run out onto the floor and the man tilted the lamp towards it. In a second, the oil was alight and the flames flickered into life, quickly becoming brighter and higher until they were licking the table and then even the wall of the house and it became apparent that they would soon engulf the whole house.

The man stood back from the fire and then suddenly turned and ran out of the door. Heyes and Curry pressed themselves back against the wall in an effort to remain unseen. The man, however, was intent on nothing other than getting away and he didn't even notice them as he ran off the porch and across the yard to where he'd left his horse. Mounting up, he disappeared around the back of the house once again and Heyes nudged Curry as he spotted a horse and rider disappearing up the track behind the house.

Curry started to move towards the door of the house, but Heyes pulled him back. "No Kid! We can't."

"Heyes?" Curry snarled at him in surprise. He knew they didn't want to give away their presence, but they could hardly leave a house to burn down with people inside.

Heyes shook his head and pointed towards the barn. Suddenly understanding, Curry nodded back and they raced towards the barn, lifting the heavy wooden plank off the door and yanking it open. There were three horses inside and they ushered them quickly out into the yard where the already nervous animals caused quite a commotion as they ran around the open space. At the same Heyes and Curry made a dash for the cover of the trees.

It worked as they'd hoped it would, the noise waking the household and two figures quickly appeared in the doorway with buckets to collect water from the well. It took them only a few minutes to get the flames under control and before long the fire was completely out.

* * * * *

"So Heyes, you come up with any reasons why he might want to set the house on fire yet?"

Heyes had seemed somewhat distracted as they rode back to town and Curry's question roused him out of his thoughts. "It may not be related to the murder Kid" Heyes kept his eyes straight ahead and his voice detached.

"Maybe not." agreed Curry, not sounding convinced. He knew what Heyes was thinking - he just wasn't sure what to make of it yet.

Heyes looked across at him. "But if it is related …" he paused "… it could mean there's another witness."

Curry nodded. "And he did speak to Dan Fraser in the jail."

Heyes returned his gaze to the road ahead, still seeming somewhat distracted.

"Heyes," ventured Curry "is this a good thing or a bad thing? For us I mean?"

Heyes looked across at him once more. "I don't know Kid. I haven't figured that out yet."

"Do we go to the sheriff?"

"And tell him what exactly?

Curry didn't reply.

"Kid, what can we tell him? That we think someone started a rockslide to try to kill us? We don't know that for certain. It could have been anyone shooting at us - it could have been someone who recognised us and not anything to do with the murder at all. We saw someone start the fire tonight, but we don't know who."

Still Curry didn't reply and Heyes returned to his thoughts. After a long pause, he tried again.

"Kid, if we go to the sheriff now, what is he going to think? That we're making this up maybe? To make it look like there's another witness so that we can leave town? Not to mention that he'll wonder why we were snooping around in the middle of the night."

Still Curry remained quiet. Heyes sighed. The Kid was being stubborn. "Kid, we can't afford to make him suspicious or start asking why someone may be shooting at us or why we may want to leave and who we might be. It's just too risky."

Still nothing.

"Whoever that was back there, he made it look like an accident. There's nothing there that will make the sheriff think that fire was started deliberately. It might make our story look a mite suspicious don't you think?"

Still silence from Curry.

"The sheriff just might get around to thinking that we had something to do with it ourselves."

Finally Curry spoke. "The sheriff doesn't have any reason to connect us to it though does he? He knows we didn't kill Dan Fraser. He has no reason to suspect us?"

It was Heyes' turn to remain silent.

Curry considered it for a while and then looked up earnestly at his partner. "Heyes, I think we should go to the sheriff."

Still looking straight at him, Heyes raised his eyebrows at him.

"If it turns out that someone is trying to kill us and maybe someone else," explained Curry quietly, "and we didn't go to the sheriff, we might end up in a lot of trouble."

Heyes turned away from him and let out a heavy sigh. It was too risky to go the sheriff. Darn his partner, darn him, he cursed to himself, shaking his head. He closed his eyes and pushed his hat back on his head.

The trouble was, he knew the Kid was right.

* * * * *

The sheriff banged loudly at the door of the farmhouse. The farm belonged, he had explained to Heyes and Curry on the ride out the next morning, to a young couple by the name of Hal and Mary Cornford. They weren't well known in the town, tending to keep themselves to themselves.

Hal Cornford opened the door and invited them in. Sheriff Bloomfield introduced his two companions and they exchanged pleasantries. Hal's wife, Mary, kept herself busy with her chores and didn't join them.

"I hear you had a problem last night?" began the sheriff. "A fire?" he added at Hal's questioning look.

"Oh yes. That." Hal replied, waving his hand dismissively, without offering any details.

"It cause much damage?"

"Oh no, nothing much at all."

"You were lucky. Did it wake you?"

Hal frowned. "One of the horses got loose from the barn, the fire spooked it a bit and the noise woke us up. I put out the fire in a few seconds. No harm done."

"Do you know what started it?"

"I got careless I'm afraid sheriff, I didn't turn the lamp out properly and then I must have knocked it over without even noticing."

Standing up, he continued, as if to imply that the conversation was finished. "In any case sheriff, I'm a busy man, is there anything else I can do for you?"

"Well yes actually Hal, there is" the sheriff replied.

"And what would that be?"

Heyes sat watching the man carefully. His manner seemed a little guarded he decided.

"You've heard about the murder of Jack Hanson, up at the Fraser Ranch?"

"I sure have sheriff, the town is talking about nothing else. Dan Fraser is already in custody I understand?"

"That's right" nodded the sheriff. "Joshua and Thaddeus here were witnesses to it and we're asking around town if anyone else saw what happened or had been at the Fraser Ranch that day?"

Hal nodded. "Makes sense I suppose. As you probably know Sheriff, I was away visiting my sister in Denver for a few days. She's been very sick you know."

"Yes I heard that. I was sorry to hear she was sick. I hope she's feeling better?"

"Hm." muttered Hal, clearly not about to elaborate. "I only got home late last night so you see sheriff, we clearly saw nothing of any use as we weren't even in town at the time."

"I see." Sheriff Bloomfield spoke slowly, looking across the room towards Mary. "And what about your wife Hal, has Mary seen anything which might be of use?"

"Mary has seen nothing. She's never even been to the Fraser Ranch." Hal replied quickly and curtly. There was a loud crash from the direction of the kitchen as Mary dropped the pie dish she had been holding.

"Oh no" she said softly, almost to herself, and then turned towards them, looking at her husband. Hal rushed over to her, putting his arm around her shoulders as she began to sob.

Heyes glanced at Curry, who was looking somewhat puzzled.

Hal turned to face them as the three men stood. "You've upset Mary now" he accused, clearly annoyed.

"I'm sorry" replied the sheriff gently. "I sure didn't mean to upset you Mary. I think it's probably best if we take our leave now."

Hal nodded.

The three stood to leave and tipped their hats towards the couple.

"Thank you for your hospitality." smiled the sheriff.

Mary pulled slightly away from Hal. She smoothed down her apron and the front of her dress and smiled at them slightly.

"Thank you for coming Sheriff" she muttered. "See you again soon."

As the sheriff and Curry walked out of the door, Heyes remained riveted to the spot for a few seconds, his attention taken by the front of Mary's blue dress. Finally, he nodded to them, turned and followed the other two out of the door.

"Well," began the sheriff as the three made their way towards their horses. "I think that takes care of that. I've known Hal a long time boys, and if he says there's no problem then I believe him. I know you two are losing the chance at earning a tidy sum working for your rancher friend, but I don't see any reason to think there was anyone else there that day. I'm afraid you are just going to have to stay in town until the trial boys."

* * * * *

"He was lying Kid." stated Heyes the moment they entered their hotel room.

"Who?" asked Curry, unable for a second to follow Heyes' train of thought.

"Hal Cornford."

"Obviously." Curry was confused that Heyes would state something so obvious. "We saw how the lamp ended up on the floor."

"More than that though. He said that Mary had never even been to the Fraser Ranch. But she was wearing a blue dress, with buttons exactly the same colour as this one." He fished into his pocket and brought out the button he'd picked up in the barn at the Fraser Ranch, holding it out for Curry to see. "And" he continued, his eyes sparkling at his discovery "her dress had one button missing."

Curry's head snapped up.

"Which means that she has been at the Ranch." concluded Heyes.

"You're right Heyes." smiled Curry. "So, she was at the ranch. Someone tried to start a fire at the house last night and now they're saying she's never been there. You think she knows something?"

"Could be."

"If she was there at the time and saw the murder, then she could go to court and testify instead of us."

"Whoa! Hold on Kid! That's a lot of ifs and we don't know if any of them are true yet."

"Hm." Curry paused, then looked up at Heyes, smiling. "But we're gonna find out right?"

"Right." grinned Heyes.

* * * * *