Visiting Billy Chapter 5 - First Blood Jenny was just about to enter the saloon when Link yelled from his horse, "Jenny NO! Mount up and follow me." It was said so sternly Jenny didn't even think of doing otherwise. We're going to ride over to Maxwell's to see about a couple of rooms. Lucien Maxwell turned the Fort's officer's quarters into a 20 room house. His son Peter now owns it." "I'll let you two rooms for a dollar a day. How long will you be staying?" "Not sure," replied Link. "We're waiting for a friend to arrive." "All right but I want to be paid in advance everyday for the night you'll be staying. After your horses are unpacked take them around to the courtyard and Jake will take care of them for you." "Thank you Peter." "How'd you know my name? And by the way you couldn't have come very far, it's three days to the nearest town and you look like you're just getting ready to leave." Not saying a word Link simply handed Peter a silver coin and walked away. When Link was out of earshot he stopped the others, "After unpacking let's all go to the saloon and see what's going on in this hick town. Everyone will wear vests this evening. We'll meet in fifteen. Oh…be sure to unpack your guns and wear them. This is the old west." While opening the unlocked door next to Jenny's room Link couldn't hide his broad grin. Not completely believing they were in the past, the four time travelers walked silently from Peter Maxwell's ranch house to the tiny town. Their heads were swiveling trying to take everything in. Hearing the clink of glasses and loud voices Link assumed the opened doorway led into the unnamed saloon. Unlike the old TV shows there was no pair of swinging doors or shutters to this saloon. After walking past a bunch of cowboys drinking at the bar Barbie in too loud a voice states, "This place smells worse than a locker room. Doesn't anybody bathe?" After which if someone in the room hadn't been watching her when she walked in they were now. A cowboy at the bar looked at his partner and asks, "What's a locker room?" Link speaks up quickly, "Meat locker." The cowboys stared glaringly while one or two sniffs under their arms. Apparently in a mood to cause trouble Jenny walked up to another group. Looked them all over slowly. Her eyes stopped on a burly unshaven fellow. "Congratulations you're the dirtiest smelliest person here. You smell so bad flies won't even lite on you." As the fellow slowly stood up, probably not sure how to react to a woman, Jenny backed away a step. He stood looking Jenny up and down. "I never seen a woman wearing men's pants." "And I bet a piece of skunk crap like yourself never seen a woman wearing a gun before either," Jenny's knee came up quickly into the man's groin doubling him over in pain. At the same time a six shooter appeared in each of her hands pointing at his friends. Jenny backed up some more. She seemed surprised at her actions and wasn't sure what to do next. The burley guy had straightened up and was glaring at Jenny when Link came forward throwing down a couple of silver coins on the bar. "Bartender give these fellows another drink please. Mister," Link said to the burley guy still grimacing in pain, "please excuse my friend. As you can see she doesn't know her place. She's not sure if she's a man or woman. We don't want any trouble. Jenny put those away." Link hustled her off to a table. Gene was first to speak, "Jenny what came over you?" Jenny's eyes were unusually large while she stood speechless. An old cowboy walks up to the foursome. Link recognizes him as Jake who'd taken care of their horses. Link, paying more attention to him now, looks him over. He was about 60, wearing a gun on his right hip, torn but clean clothes. He didn't smell like everyone else in the saloon. "I'd like to talk to you Link. At that table in the back." "Sure," replies Link. After they got seated Jake asks, "I don't mean to be nosey but I've never before seen the likes of your outfit. You look and act like Eastern tenderfeet just arrived. But I know you're not. Easterners don't wear guns and you're clothes are different. The four of you have blue pants and you wear guns with the cockiness of a gun fighter. Which you aren't. And that pink hat! Where'd she ever get that? Besides what's a woman doing wearing pants and a pair of guns anyway? Isn't one enough? I'd figure even one would be too many for her! I've got more questions than hair on my head." "Good, this shouldn't take long then because it looks to me like you don't have much hair. Maybe you should leave your hat on. Makes you look younger and we'll have less to talk about," laughs Link nervously while looking at Jake's near bald head. "One of the first things you need to learn is not to make fun if you can't back it up," says Jake scowling. "I can back it up," boasts Link. "And you saw Jenny in action!" "Yeah she looks to be almost as fast as Billy," replies Jake. "But even if ya all know how to handle those fancy guns you're not killers. By the way what kind of guns are those anyway? I know guns and I've never seen the likes of them." "Made in Europe, we had them sent to us from New York." "Made in Europe? Tunstall was from England and he didn't have anything like yours." And if you're not from New York then where are you from? I know you couldn't have ridden those fat nags very far. You people must not know much about horses because who ever sold you those really took advantage of you." Ignoring Jake, Link takes a swig of whiskey and coughs most of it up. "That's all right. Most people around here don't say much about their past. But hear me out. You four will attract more trouble than a seven day old dead coon attracts flies. Especially the girl, wearing tight pants, a man's shirt and two guns." Jake's head shook side to side. Before Jake could say anymore a ruckus on the other side of the room caught their attention. Link looked just in time to see one of the cowboys from the bar fall backward taking out a couple of chairs and a table with him as he hit the floor. Jim yells, "Get up there's more where that came from." Expecting the downed cowboy to shoot Jim, Link ran over with his hand on his gun. The entire room watched expectantly while the downed man got up. He rubbed his chin while walking to where his friends stood. After some quiet whispering he walked out the door by himself. Feeling cocky Jim announces loudly, "Those guys aren't so tough." Getting to Jim first Gene complains, "What is going on? You and Jenny aren't yourselves, picking fights like little kids." "Well one of stinky's friends was making fun of Jenny," Jim smiled and shrugged his shoulders. Jake grabs Links arm and signals for him to follow back to the table. "Link, your pard is misreading those fellers. See, they've stopped drinking and are talking quietly. They've been made fun of twice now in front of everyone this isn't over." "What are you saying Jake? They were whipped. They won't do anything." "Sit down and I'll tell you. The feller that left will be waiting in some dark alley with his horse nearby. As you pass he'll shoot your pard." "Come on Jake, that's four to one. He wouldn't be that stupid." "No, it'll be four against four. Those other three will follow you out. If something goes wrong and your pard isn't killed those three will do you in from behind. Fact is they'll probably unload on you anyway." "Where do you think he'll be waiting for us at"? "Hmmm, if it were me I'd wait two buildings down, right before the livery. There's a good place to tie a horse in the back. He'll shoot and ride out and no one will be the wiser as to who did it." "Is there a back door here," asks Link. "Yeah but if you go out that way they'll know your on to them." "Ok," says Link, "I know what we'll do. Hey Gene come over here a minute would you." "What's up?" asks Gene smiling and happy. "Listen up, this is life and death. Gene, that fellow that Jim mixed it up with is going to be waiting for him down the street. And the other three will be out to get us. Here's what we'll do. First we're going to leave right away, before it gets dark. Gene, you and Jim will be out front and as soon as you pass the second building on the way to the hotel hit the dirt with guns drawn and take him out. I'm putting two of you on this because you won't know where that jerk will be hiding. While you two are hitting the dirt Barbie and I will turn on the three behind us. Now Gene, be sure you and Jim hit the ground so bullets his three friends send our way don't hit you two. Jake, you're sure you can't help us out?" Jake responds by shaking his head from side to side. "You know two against three are pretty bad odds." Link comes back with; "No it'll be three against three." "Boy, your math is bad. There are only four of you; two against that cowpoke in the alley leaves two of you for the three cowpokes at your back." "Jake, as you made mentioned earlier, Barbie is wearing two guns. And I'm here to tell you she can use both of them better than I can use one. Yep, it'll be three against three," states Link with a worried smile. Gene grins, "Links' right. She'd give Annie Oakley a run for her money." "Who's Annie Oakley?" Jake wants to know. "Later Jake. Gene walk over to Jim and quietly pass the word to him while I do the same with Barbie." The two get up and walk back to Barbie and Jim who by this time are starting to get a little romantic. After unobtrusively telling Barbie and Jim of the upcoming fight the four calmly walk outside. Just outside the door they turn right and sure enough about the time they reach the end of the building they hear boots on the boardwalk behind them. They nervously walk through the opening between buildings while keeping up worthless chatter so the three following wouldn't get suspicious. As they climbed the steps to the next boardwalk they breathed a small sigh of relief. Then revolver tie downs are quietly released. As the end of the building nears hearts are pounding, palms sweating. Then without a word Jim and Gene dove to the ground with guns drawn. Seconds later Link and Barbie are turning and drawing. But they're too late. A deafening boom and Link doubles up, his hat landing on the boardwalk. While Link is doubling up Jenny's two guns bark as one, dropping two of the troublemakers whose guns hadn't even cleared leather. By now though the bad hombre that had fired the first shot was swinging his gun towards Jenny. It spit smoke and flame again. Barbie felt a hot stinging sensation in her left arm as both her guns barked again crumpling the last opponent. While all this was happening things were going much better for Jim and Gene. After diving to the ground they spotted the surprised bushwhacker and opened fire taking him out. Ignoring her arm Jenny runs to Link who is now staggering to his feet. Up runs Jake who had been watching everything from the other side of the street. "Link…I saw you get shot…you're all right? He couldn't have missed from that distance." Link says his ulcer just picked a bad time to start acting up. Of course Barbie knows better. Jake then checks on the three desperados lying on the boardwalk. After finding they were all dead he whistles softly when he realizes they were all shot in the heart. He opens the shirt of the last fellow Barbie shot. He sees two bullet holes an inch apart going through the heart. She walks over and looking at the bloody men she killed, falls to her knees vomiting. Everyone heads to the Maxwell's where they tend to Barbie's nicked arm and talk of the gunfight. It's then discovered that Barbie wasn't wearing her vest. She says it hides her assets! Not understanding them Jake tells her the probable reason she was only nicked is because the cowboy had unconscious thoughts about shooting a woman. Jake then leaves to go back to the scene. The town being too small for an undertaker Jake is surprised to find the bodies gone. Looking at the blood covered boardwalk he then spots a smashed bullet. It was about to fall thru the crack between boards. Picking it up he surmises it is the bullet that hit Link. He studies it for minute. Shaking his head puts it in his pocket. Now that Jake had gone Link daintily unbuttons his shirt. Everyone gathers around to watch as he removes the bullet proof vest. His stomach is red and blue. "That will surely be sore in the morning," offers Gene. "Shows how much you know," moans Link, "hurts like hell right now."