"SILVERADO" Screenplay by Lawrence Kasdan and Mark Kasdan PRODUCTION DRAFT FADE IN: INT. SHACK - DAY Darkness. Quiet. The CAMERA MOVES through the gloom of the small, dirty, wooden hut, past a broken table, over a well- worn saddle lying on the floor. Now, a pair of boots standing empty by the rotting remains of a rough-hewn bunk, up to a holstered gun hung on the corner of the bed. The still shape of a man, a bedroll his only protection from the splintery planks. This is EMMETT, fast asleep. The door of the shack bursts inward as a Gunman crashes in. For a moment he is silhouetted against the blinding morning light, his two six-guns blasting even before the door has bounced shut behind him, returning the hut to darkness. Emmett's holster, the gun gone. The gun is here in Emmett's hand, erupting now with three quick explosions. The intruder flies against the far wall of the hut and lands on the floor dead. From outside, two bullets pierce the plank wall behind Emmett, light streaming through in .45 calibre shafts. Emmett is out of the bunk and on the floor. He fires once over the bunk. In the moment of quiet that follows, we hear running FOOTSTEPS outside the hut. Emmett follows their progress with the point of his gun, but holds his fire. Suddenly a shotgun blasts a large hole in the roof of the shack, and the table disintegrates in a new column of light. Emmett glances upward, but quickly returns his attention to the side walls, trying to follow that gunman. Now more fire comes from there and more footsteps. Another shotgun blast showers Emmett with debris, but he ignores it, concentrating on the walls. WHAT HE SEES. The Man Outside moves quickly past a crack in the wall, momentarily revealing his spot by blocking the light. Emmett fires once ahead of him, stopping his progress and forcing him back to the crack. Emmett fires his last shot there, and the man outside goes down hard. The shotgun rips another jagged hole in the ceiling and blows a crater in the dirt by Emmett's foot. The shape of a man flashes across the new hole. Emmett looks across the room at the top bunk, where the barrel of his Winchester protrudes a few inches from the bare planks. Emmett throws his empty six- gun noisily into the far corner of the hut. Instantly the man on the roof blasts away in that direction. Emmett dives for the bunk. With the tips of his fingers, he pulls hard on the muzzle. The Winchester flips full circle into the air as the bunk behind it is shredded from above. With an odd kind of inevitability, as though seeking its rightful place, the Winchester arcs into a shaft of light, where it is met by Emmett's steady, waiting hands. Before it has even settled, he has cocked and fired twice through a hole in the roof. Emmett stops and lowers the carbine. The Man on the Roof falls spread-eagled through the weakened ceiling. Debris and sunlight shower his lifeless form. Emmett listens, moves silently to the door, and opens it carefully. WE FOLLOW him outside, out into the bright sunlight, into the awesome promise of the American West. EXT. SHACK - DAY Emmett moves warily around the isolated shack. There are no more attackers. He looks off into the distance. Two riderless horses, galloping away, are the only moving things in the empty landscape. A third saddled horse, a pinto, stands nervously near Emmett's horse, which is tied to a stake. Emmett walks to the body of the Man Outside and looks down at him. He doesn't know him. He moves to the pinto and calms it. He examines the distinctive brand on its flank, a circle with two wavy lines beneath it. Emmett is clearly mystified. He rests his arms on the saddle and stares after the retreating horses. THE MAIN TITLE BEGINS. EXT. EMMETT RIDES (VARIOUS SHOTS) - DAY/NIGHT Emmett travels, the saddled pinto in tow. He moves from high mountain terrain down-country, through meadow and canyon. He makes night camp near a rushing stream. The land flattens as he approaches the desert. The sun beats at him as he dismounts at the edge of a white-hot plain. He takes a short pull from his canteen and squints off across the flat, empty space. All he can see ahead is blinding sand and blue sky. THE MAIN TITLE ENDS. EXT. DESERT (SERIES OF SHOTS) - DAY Emmett is now surrounded by the white blankness, moving slowly under the broiling sun. He stops his walking horses and squints out into the distance, seeing something. We see it too, but just barely: a distant, horizontal smudge on the glaring sand. Emmett reaches the smudge. It is a man, barefoot and dressed only in longjohns, his head propped on a rock, eyes closed. The man's skin is burned red and beginning to blister, his lips parched. Yet there is a curious ease to his repose. If he has lain down here to die, he has done it in peace. This is PADEN. Emmett lifts Paden's head and puts the canteen to his lips. Paden's eyes struggle to open in the glare. He takes a few sips of the water. His lips crack with a slight smile at the taste. He looks up at Emmett, takes another sip, and tries to speak. Emmett must lean down to hear his raspy whisper as he tries again. PADEN Pleased to meet you. EXT. NIGHT CAMP - DESERT - NIGHT The terrain here is more hospitable. Paden, wrapped snugly in a blanket, lies with his head against the saddle from the pinto. Emmett is preparing his bedroll across the fire. EMMETT Two of the horses ran off, but that pinto you're riding hung around. PADEN You got no idea what they were after? Emmett shakes his head "no". PADEN Offend anybody lately? EMMETT Not for five years. Paden understands. PADEN Jefferson City? EMMETT No, Leavenworth. PADEN I've never been in there. They just jumped you out of the blue? EMMETT I had to get up anyway. PADEN (smiles) Me, I'm riding along, minding my own business. Four cowboys come by and we decide to ride together for a while, friendly as can be. I always figure you might as well approach life like everybody's your friend or nobody is... don't make much difference. We get out in the middle of that frying pan and suddenly everybody's pointing their gun but me. I guess they admired my horse. She's a great one, a sweet little bay. EMMETT Looks like that's not all they admired. PADEN Yup. The whole rig. I don't care much about the rest, but I surely will miss that bay. Least they didn't kill me. That was right considerate, I thought. They were laughing when they left me. Thought it was real funny. I walked for a little while but there was no use, so I gave it up. Figured it was just bad luck. Emmett comes over and fills Paden's coffee cup. EMMETT Looks like those boys are headed south, so they weren't the same ones that jumped me. Which way you going? PADEN Where's the pinto going? EMMETT I gotta stop by Turley and meet a guy. PADEN Where's Turley? EMMETT South of here, past Chimayo. PADEN Maybe I'll go along as far as Chimayo. Get me some clothes. Maybe a bath. EMMETT Yeah, maybe a bath. Emmett settles down at his saddle and pulls a blanket over himself. Paden glances at the rifle in its scabbard on the pinto's saddle by his head. PADEN Is this loaded? Emmett nods and closes his eyes. Paden smiles at the implied trust and settles down himself. EXT. APPROACHING CHIMAYO - DAY Emmett and Paden, who is still clad only in longjohns, ride toward the low, adobe settlement of Chimayo. EXT. ENTERING CHIMAYO - DAY Emmett and Paden enter the town past a cluster of teepees. Three Cavalry troopers ride past them. EXT. STREET - CHIMAYO - DAY The little settlement is the center of civilization for miles around. The U. S. Cavalry maintains an outpost here, and there are many soldiers on the street. Emmett and Paden pull up to the general store. Paden dismounts and hands his reins to Emmett. Passersby look with curiosity at the undressed Paden. EMMETT I'll get these horses tended. Paden nods and looks doubtfully at the store. He scratches himself. Emmett produces some money and flips Paden a coin. Paden nods. PADEN I'm good for it. Emmett rides up the street, leading the pinto. Paden starts toward the store and nearly collides with a shocked woman, who covers the eyes of the little girl with her and crosses the street. Paden gives an apologetic tip to his non-existent hat as he watches them go. Before he can turn back to the store, his eye is caught by something up the street. He reacts big. WHAT HE SEES. His horse, a good-looking bay. And, dawdling his way out of a saloon, a disreputable-looking Cowboy. Paden's hand slaps his side, where his gun should be. He grimaces and looks around desperately, then hurries into the store. INT. STORE - DAY The lone CLERK is showing a woman customer a bolt of cloth at the back of the store. Paden hurries in and makes a bee- line to the display case holding handguns and ammo. He spots something he likes and taps the glass impatiently. The Clerk reacts with distaste to Paden's appearance. PADEN Excuse me, there -- CLERK I'll be with you in a moment, sir. Paden looks out the front window, up the street. The Cowboy is untying the bay's reins. Paden, more agitated now, glances back at the Clerk, then moves around and opens the back of the display case. He extracts a shiny, new Colt .45. The Clerk reacts with alarm and moves toward Paden. CLERK Just a minute there, fella. When I'm done with this lady -- PADEN I'll take this one. He drops his coin on the case top. CLERK (looking at coin) That one's twenty dollars. Paden is frustrated. He leans to peer out the window again. PADEN How much to borrow it? CLERK These guns are for sale. PADEN (indicates his coin) What can I get for that? The Clerk gives up on putting him off and comes around the display case, disgruntled. EXT. IN FRONT OF SALOON - DAY The Cowboy mounts the bay. INT. STORE - DAY Paden holds a broken-down memory of a gun as though it were a cow chip. PADEN (resigned) What's it take? The Clerk holds up a box of shells. CLERK This is extra. Paden snatches it from his grasp and heads out of the store. PADEN I'll be back. EXT. STREET - DAY Paden hurries out into the middle of the street. Several passersby stop to look at him. A teenage girl lets out a delighted shriek. IN FRONT OF THE SALOON. The Cowboy has turned the bay into the middle of the street and now looks to see what all the fuss is about. When he makes out Paden standing alone, his expression changes. Paden is having trouble extracting a shell from the ammo box. He glances up the street at the Cowboy and sees that he has been spotted. He shakes one shell loose and drops the box, trying to insert the bullet in the gun. The Cowboy pulls his six-gun, leans forward, and spurs the bay hard toward Paden. He raises his gun and fires at Paden. There is general alarm in the street as the bystanders dive for cover. Paden gets the shell loaded as the Cowboy bears down on him, firing. The bullets kick up the dust in front and back of Paden, who now raises his pistol slowly. A bullet tears through the floppy material at his crotch. The Cowboy is almost upon him when Paden fires. The Cowboy is knocked off the horse and hits the street dead. OMIT EXT. STREET - DAY A big, tough Cavalry SERGEANT has been summoned by a TROOPER and now walks briskly toward -- A small crowd gathered around Paden, who is affectionately stroking his reacquired horse. Two troopers flank him suspiciously. The Sergeant glances at the body of the Cowboy, then pushes through the crowd and confronts Paden. TROOPER (indicating Paden) This is the man, Sergeant. He claims the animal was stolen. SERGEANT How do I know this is your horse? The bay nuzzles Paden. PADEN Can't you see this horse loves me? SERGEANT I had a gal do that to me, but that didn't make her my wife. PADEN I'll tell you what, on the underside of this saddle I got my name scratched. Take a look and you'll see. SERGEANT Oh, yeah, and what would your name be? SHERIFF COBB (O.S.) Paden. The Sergeant and Paden both look to see COBB come through the crowd; he is an imposing man in a duster. Paden's reaction is deep and mixed, a whole chapter in his life coming back at him. PADEN (quietly) Hello, Cobb. SHERIFF COBB Hello, Paden. How ya doing? SERGEANT You know this man, Cobb? SHERIFF COBB I surely do. SERGEANT (to troopers) Let's see that saddle. One of the troopers uncinches the saddle and flops it upside- down in the dust. "Paden" is scratched on the underside. SERGEANT (satisfied) All right, move along, folks. Get these children out of here. The crowd begins to break up. Paden and Cobb are left facing one another. Cobb takes in Paden's longjohns. SHERIFF COBB I see you're prospering without me. PADEN It's been a while. SHERIFF COBB Where's the dog? Paden's look pierces Cobb, but he bends to pick up his saddle and when he straightens, there is a smile on his face. OMIT EXT. SIDEWALK - DAY Cobb and Paden come out of the general store and start down the sidewalk. Paden is a little unsteady in a pair of cheap boots. A small pile of clothing is in his arms. On his head is a bad-looking new hat. He catches his reflection in a window and tries to give the hat a rakish tilt. PADEN Appreciate the loan. I'm good for it. SHERIFF COBB Let's talk about that. (a beat) I'm looking for some men. PADEN I've given that up. SHERIFF COBB So have I. I've got a legitimate job now. I can use a guy like you. PADEN (doubtful) You've got a legitimate job. SHERIFF COBB Yes, sir. You wouldn't believe it. PADEN You're right. Cobb stops and faces Paden. SHERIFF COBB This is mighty sweet, Paden. I think I finally found my place in the world. PADEN Well I'm real happy for you, Cobb. But I think I'll keep looking for mine. KYLE, a tough associate of Cobb's, hurries up to them. KYLE (to Cobb) He's getting out. Kyle goes back up the street. SHERIFF COBB (smiling) C'mon, this'll interest you. Cobb moves off after Kyle. Paden watches a moment thoughtfully, then follows. EXT. STOCKADE - DAY Kyle is digging into a saddlebag on one of three saddled horses at the gate of the stockade. Trooper guards flank the entrance. Cobb comes up and stares at the gate. Paden reaches the end of the sidewalk and leans against a post, watching. The heavy gate is opened and a jailkeep steps out into the sunlight; he looks back into the gloom. TYREE comes out, wearing civilian clothes, shackled hand and foot. He's mean. The jailkeep unlocks Tyree's irons and steps back, a little too quickly. Tyree nods at Cobb and a smile slits his face. Kyle comes up and hands Tyree his holster. Tyree buckles it on and bends to tie it to his thigh. SHERIFF COBB Look who's here, Tyree. It's our old riding buddy. Tyree looks up and straightens slowly at the sight of Paden. No love lost. Cobb, standing between them, grins and then laughs. He takes the reins of his horse from Kyle and swings up. SHERIFF COBB I invited Paden to join us, but he's not having any. Kyle and Tyree mount up. Tyree looks down at the longjohned Paden with a sneer. TYREE (like a knife) Where's the dog? The three head out of the village, passing Paden. SHERIFF COBB (to Paden) You owe me thirteen bucks. Cobb spurs his horse and the three gallop away in the dust. PADEN (to himself) Thirteen... bad luck. EXT. RESTAURANT/SIDEWALK - DAY Emmett and Paden come out of a restaurant. Paden is now bathed and fully dressed for the first time and he looks quite different, better. The old gun he purchased is stuck in his belt. Three horses -- Emmett's, the pinto, Paden's bay -- are tied to the post in the street. Paden is fussing with his new, cheap hat. Emmett takes a close look at Paden's bay. EMMETT I see what you like, she's mighty pretty. PADEN And bridle-wise, too. She's the only thing I lost I really cared about. (he messes with his hat, disgruntled) 'Cept for maybe my hat. It's a great one. Got a pretty silver band on it. My head spent three years training it. (frowns at his new hat) I surely do miss that hat. Emmett gives him an amused look; this sounds kind of familiar. Emmett unties his two horses. EMMETT I gotta be going. PADEN Going to Turley, was it? EMMETT (nods) Gotta meet a guy and head out for Silverado. Paden takes the excess reins of the bay and begins idly slapping them around the post, distracted. Emmett swings up to his horse. PADEN What's Turley like? EMMETT (he doesn't make distinctions) It's a town... PADEN They got a saloon there? EMMETT I expect. PADEN Women? EMMETT I expect. Paden takes a long time looking around the village's main street. It doesn't look promising. Emmett regards him with growing bemusement. Finally -- EMMETT Maybe you want to ride along with me as far as Turley. Paden lights up slightly at the suggestion. He looks up at Emmett. This is how Paden makes his decisions these days. He seems to be digesting it slowly. PADEN Maybe... I'll ride along... as far as Turley. Emmett nods and turns his horses into the street. Paden mounts up and follows him. EXT. TRIP TO TURLEY (SERIES OF SHOTS) - DAY The two men, leading the pinto, make their way through desert country to Turley. EXT. EDGE OF TURLEY - DAY Near the corrals at the end of the main street of the small town of Turley, a small WAGON TRAIN is loosely formed up, waiting. The settlers from the wagon train mill about. Several regard Emmett and Paden with unusual interest as they ride by on their way into town. One of the Settlers is a lovely young woman. She glances at the two men, then returns her attention to her wagon. Both Emmett and Paden notice her. She is HANNAH. EXT. MAIN STREET - TURLEY - DAY A tall gallows is being constructed in the middle of an intersection. Emmett and Paden look it over as they ride past. Two workmen pause in their labors and look them over. EXT. SALOON/HOTEL - TURLEY - DAY This is the busy part of town. Amidst the street traffic and pedestrians sits a wagon with three Settler men, who watch Emmett and Paden's arrival with enormous interest. As the two travelers hitch their horses in front of the saloon, the oldest man, HOBART, approaches them with some agitation. HOBART (yelling) Baxter, Hawley, where the hell have you been? You're late! And I'll tell you, I don't like it. It's a bad start, boys. Emmett and Paden exchange looks. HOBART I've got my people sitting down there... (indicates end of street) ...swatting flies and raring to go. EMMETT I'm afraid it is a bad start, friend, 'cause my name isn't Baxter, and he ain't Hawley. HOBART You're not Baxter? EMMETT My name is Emmett. HOBART (to Paden) And you're not Baxter, either? PADEN No, I'm not Hawley. HOBART Well, god-dammit! God-dammit! Hobart turns and looks across to the other Settler men. He yells. HOBART They ain't Baxter and Hawley! Where the hell are Baxter and Hawley! All this commotion has attracted some attention and amusement from passersby. BAXTER (O.S.) Quit your yelling, old man. We're right here. Hobart looks around to find two tough-looking men on horse- back behind him -- BAXTER and HAWLEY. HOBART Who you calling an old man? Baxter gets down from his horse and smiles, friendly for him. Emmett and Paden watch with interest. BAXTER (offers his hand) Calm down, Mr. Hobart. I'm Nord Baxter. That there is my partner, Tom Hawley. Hobart takes his hand grudgingly. He's glad they showed up. HOBART (gruff) You're late. It's a bad start, boys. BAXTER (grinning) Yes, sir. We'll just have to get you people to Silverado that much quicker. Emmett and Paden have continued to watch. Now Hawley looks over at them suspiciously. HOBART All right. Let's get going. BAXTER You remember my letter, don't you, Mr. Hobart? Half now and half when we get there. HOBART (remembering, impatient) I remember, I remember. C'mere. Hobart, Baxter, and Hawley move to the wagon, where the two other Settlers wait. The younger of the two, CONRAD, eyes the guides suspiciously. Hobart speaks to the third man, a huge, bearded fellow called EB. Eb sits upon a strongbox in the bed of the wagon, an awesome blunderbuss in his arms. HOBART Open the box, Eb. Eb stands, unlatches the strongbox, and opens it, revealing an impressive cache of coins and paper money. Hobart extracts a pouch of coins and hands it to Baxter, who pockets it. CONRAD Don't you want to count it? BAXTER Not at all, friend. We trust you. Now let's get this train on its way to Silverado. Emmett and Paden watch the other five men head in the direction of the wagon train. Paden looks over at Emmett. INT. SALOON/HOTEL - DAY At the back of the big room is a registration desk for the hotel and stairs to the rooms. Emmett and Paden are eating near a table of three Tough Men. Emmett is questioning a WAITRESS, and his questions are making her nervous. EMMETT ...He's about my size, energetic young fella, wears two guns in a fancy rig. He'd be a stranger here. WAITRESS (moving away quickly) I don't know him, I told you. I ain't seen nobody. Paden, munching on a biscuit, has noticed something out in the street; he gets up and walks to the entrance. EXT. SALOON/HOTEL - DAY WHAT PADEN SEES. The wagon train is moving by. Paden's attention is drawn to the seat of one of the wagons. Hannah, the lovely settler woman, is there; sitting beside her in a husbandly manner is Conrad. Paden is interested enough in the pretty girl that he barely registers a new arrival at the saloon's hitching post. The newcomer takes his saddle- bags and a Henry .44 rifle from his horse and comes up into the saloon. INT. SALOON/HOTEL - DAY The newcomer is a lithe, strong, black man -- MAL. He has no other weapon besides the rifle. Mal looks around the room and walks wearily to the registration desk, although there is no one behind it. He RINGS a bell for service. At the sound of the bell several of the patrons look up and spot Mal for the first time. The three Tough Men are instantly displeased at the sight of the black man. Paden, returning to his meal, notes their attitude and glances over at Mal. Mal leaves his saddlebags at the registration desk, but takes the rifle as he walks across to the bar. The nervous Waitress is working there. The sight of Mal only adds to her agitation. WAITRESS (cold) What do you want? MAL (friendly, tired) I haven't had a drink of whiskey or slept in a bed for ten days. Give me a bottle. The Waitress hesitates, uncertain. She places a shot glass and a bottle on the bar beyond an elaborate, brass, nude statuette whose upraised arms hold dishes full of hard-boiled eggs. Mal has leaned his rifle against the bar and must now move a few steps to stand before the whiskey. The three Tough Men exchange looks as Mal uncorks the bottle and slowly, lovingly fills his shot glass. He puts the bottle down and regards the glass for a long moment of pleasant anticipation. Mal's hand has started for the glass when the saloon's PROPRIETOR appears from a back room. PROPRIETOR (sharply) Hey! What are you doing, buck? Mal draws his hand back and straightens slightly. A different kind of weariness comes into his face. MAL Having a drink. PROPRIETOR No, you're not. Get out of here. The Proprietor shoots the Waitress a withering look; she shrugs helplessly and hurries away. At the tables two of the three Tough Men quietly rise and separate, moving toward the two ends of the bar. Emmett and Paden watch. MAL (flat) I haven't had a drink of whiskey or slept in a bed for ten days. PROPRIETOR You ain't getting them here. MAL (gravely) I'm real sorry to hear that. At this, the First Man steps forward quickly, snatches Mal's rifle, and slides it down the bar. Mal looks across the distance at his only weapon. PADEN (quietly, to Emmett) Doesn't look quite fair. EMMETT (watching carefully) Which way do you mean? The Second Man lurches up to the bar and pins Mal's arms behind him. The First Man moves quickly, cocking back his arm for a punch square in Mal's face. As the blow is unleashed, Mal bends forward with terrific speed and force, pulling the Second Man onto his back. The Second Man's face is suddenly where Mal's was an instant ago, and the First Man's punch lands hard on it. Mal slams the Second Man's back against the edge of the bar; he falls to the floor. Mal blocks a blow from the First Man and steps in with a flurry of body blows. Back at the Tough Men's table, the Third Man pushes back his chair as if to rise. Emmett has just picked up a chicken leg; now he waves it ever so slightly at the Third Man: "Stay out of it". The Man looks at Emmett and Paden, then settles back into his seat. Mal sends the First Man crashing down through a table with a final blow. He turns in time to see the Second Man, back on his feet, grab Mal's whiskey bottle and break it against the bar. Mal looks for a frustrated moment at the splashing whiskey -- what a waste. The Second Man lunges with the sharp glass. Mal lifts the heavy statuette easily with one hand and uses its upraised arms to catch the Man's wrist and twist the bottle painfully from his grasp. Mal's other hand hits the Man once in the throat, and he is down. The Proprietor rises from behind the bar, a sawed-off shotgun in his hand. Mal spins, swinging the statuette brutally against the Proprietor's arm. The shotgun clatters to the floor as the Proprietor recoils in pain, crashing into a shelf of glasses. The fight is over. Suddenly, standing in the doorway holding a leveled gun is an enormously tall figure -- SHERIFF LANGSTON. Dressed rather elegantly in suit and bowler, he dwarfs the man at his side, DEPUTY KERN. He surveys the scene as the three injured men stir back to life. When he speaks, it is, surprisingly, with a British accent -- LANGSTON What's all this then? PROPRIETOR This nigger's breaking up my place, Sheriff Langston. LANGSTON I don't like that word much, Carter. PROPRIETOR We don't serve them here and you know it. I asked him to leave and he went crazy on us. He owes me money for this damage. LANGSTON Is that a fact? EMMETT 'Fraid not, Sheriff. These other fellas started the ruckus. Langston's attention focuses on Emmett and Paden. LANGSTON There are three strangers in this room, traveller, and these gents you are accusing aren't them. (to Mal, indicating Emmett and Paden) Are these your friends? MAL (shakes his head "no") I wanted a drink and a bed. I guess I came to the wrong place. LANGSTON (taking in the mess) Came to the wrong town. I don't tolerate this kind of thing. It's hard on the peace, and it's hard on the furniture. Now, knowing a bit about Carter here, I'm going to let you go without paying for the damages. But go you will, and I mean now. MAL Is there a place in town that takes... my kind? LANGSTON You misunderstand. I want you out of town. In fact, I want you all the way out of my jurisdiction. MAL (seething) That ain't right. LANGSTON I decide what's right in this jurisdiction. Now move. Mal glares at Langston and, finally, moves. He takes his rifle from the bar, then walks over, picks up his saddlebags, and slings them over his shoulder. He is almost to the door when he stops, turns, and walks slowly back to the bar. The shot glass full of whiskey has miraculously survived the fracas. Mal brings it to his lips and swallows with satisfaction. He turns and goes out the front door. Langston motions to Deputy Kern to follow and witness Mal's departure. Langston turns and looks at Emmett and Paden as he slowly uncocks his revolver and holsters it. PROPRIETOR Who's going to pay for all this, Sheriff? LANGSTON Don't press your luck, Carter. Langston moves to Emmett and Paden's table and pulls up a chair. He lifts the last biscuit from a basket. He takes a fastidious bite. LANGSTON Now let's talk about you chaps. PADEN We'd rather stay. LANGSTON We'll see about that. I'm Sheriff John Langston. As you may have guessed, I am not from these parts. PADEN You're kidding. LANGSTON (ignoring that) But the good citizens of Turley have taken me in their embrace, and for one simple reason. I maintain the peace. So when strangers come to town, I always ask them their business. Have you come for the hanging? EMMETT ("no") I'm just meeting a guy here and moving on. So far I haven't been able to find him. LANGSTON In my town, when you're looking for someone, you ask me. EMMETT All right. I'm looking for a young fella, full of juice. About my size, wears a fancy two-gun rig. Langston takes a long time reacting to this information. Now he slides his chair back a foot, giving his gun hand a little more room. LANGSTON I know where that gentleman is. OMIT INT. CELLBLOCK - EVENING A lean, young man is bouncing around his cell, playing hacky sack, keeping a small, leather, bean bag from falling to the floor by kicking it with his bare feet. This is JAKE. Langston opens the door to the cellblock and speaks over his shoulder to Emmett and Paden, who have removed their guns. LANGSTON Now I want everyone to behave himself. At the sight of Emmett, Jake's face lights up. And then he does an extraordinary thing: with one long stride he is across the cell and into the air; he hits the bars halfway up and clings like a monkey. Paden reacts as if he is one. JAKE Emmett! Am I glad to see you! EMMETT (touching him) Howdy, Jake. What's going on here? JAKE You got me. This is a crazy town, Emmett. I think we ought to get out of here. Jake lowers himself and darts about as he talks. JAKE All I did was kiss a girl. EMMETT (skeptical) That's why they got you in jail? JAKE Yeah, I kissed a girl and this guy didn't like it and we had some words, so I decided to get out of there. Jake looks at Emmett as though that should make it perfectly clear. Emmett waits. JAKE So I did, I got out of there, I don't want no trouble. You know me. (indeed, Emmett does) So I walked out on the street and the fella tried to shoot me in the back. EMMETT ...And you had to kill him? JAKE No, no, no! I winged him, and he dropped his gun. EMMETT You're in here for winging a guy? Paden watches, fascinated. JAKE Well, no, not exactly. See then his friend opened up on me. EMMETT What friend is that? JAKE The one with the shotgun. LANGSTON The dead one. There is a long moment of silence in the cellblock. EMMETT Jake, I'm going to ask you once -- was it self-defense? JAKE (after a moment, quieter now) Honest to God, Emmett, he would've killed me. LANGSTON The jury saw it differently. PADEN (putting it all together) So this is the guy you're going to hang? LANGSTON Tomorrow morning. Ten o'clock. PADEN (nods) I was afraid of that. Emmett steps back and leans against the opposite wall, looking down at his boots. JAKE Emmett, can't you help me? Emmett looks up at the young man. He looks sad. EMMETT Jake, you know the law. You know what they did to me. Jake remembers. It makes him gloomy. EMMETT Blind Pete always said you'd hang. Jake's eyes flick over Emmett, but his expression doesn't change. EMMETT I guess tomorrow at dawn he'll be proved right. LANGSTON Ten A.M. EMMETT Right... I thought they always did it at dawn. (to Jake) So long, kid. I'm sorry. Emmett walks out. Jake watches as the other two follow. EXT. STREET - NIGHT Emmett and Paden walk along the sparsely populated sidewalk. They are quiet for a few moments. Finally -- PADEN Shame about the kid. Seems a lively sort. EMMETT (morosely) He is that. PADEN I hate to see any man swing. Bad luck. EMMETT Bad luck for me. Now I gotta bust him out of there. Paden stops. Emmett has moved a couple more steps before he notices and turns back to Paden. PADEN You'll have to deal me out on that. I've had some experience with that sort of thing, and I don't want any more. EMMETT I understand. PADEN It's not going to be easy. EMMETT It never is. But he's my brother. (Paden reacts) We're going to California together. But first we're going to stop in Silverado and see our sister. And I can't show up there with a story like this. Paden nods. He is sympathetic. PADEN Then I guess this is where we part ways. Sorry. EMMETT No hard feelings. PADEN C'mon, I'll buy you a drink. EMMETT You haven't got any money. PADEN All right, you buy me a drink. They cross the street toward the crowded, noisy saloon. PADEN You know, a good smelly saloon is my favorite place in the world. INT. SALOON/HOTEL - NIGHT This is the busiest place in town, really packed. Emmett heads for a spot at the bar, but Paden, who is taking in the scene with relish, stops in his tracks, staring across the room. WHAT HE SEES. Through the moving jumble of bodies and the heavy smoke, Paden's hat with its silver band, floating atop an unseen head at a poker table. Paden adjusts the old gun stuck in his belt and goes in that direction. At the table a heavy game is in progress. An UGLY COWBOY is wearing Paden's hat. Paden plants himself across the table from the man. In seconds, Paden's posture brings things to a halt. Quiet ripples out across the room. The Ugly Cowboy looks up and recognizes Paden. PADEN You're wearing my hat. What else you got that's mine? UGLY COWBOY I don't know what you're talking about, mister. He shifts a little in his chair. His right hand slides off the table. Bystanders back away. Emmett watches from the bar. PADEN I hope your hand isn't tickling my bone-handled Colt. If you stand up real slow and let me see, you might live through this night. The Ugly Cowboy hesitates, his eyes darting. He pushes his chair back slowly and begins to rise as if in compliance. But now a bone-handled Colt is in his hand, clearing his holster. Paden is quicker. He snatches his gun from his belt and fires. Paden's eyes, squinting through a cloud of gunsmoke, as we hear the Ugly Cowboy's body CRASH to the floor in his chair. Paden's glance now darts down at an angle. WHAT HE SEES. His hat lands on the saloon floor, spins once on its brim, and settles into stillness like a tossed coin. Silence in the saloon. Then, in a far corner, the BANGING of chairs and a door SLAMMING. Paden's gun points that way, but there is no one there. Only an overturned chair, and an empty pair of boots -- Paden's. Paden picks up his hat and walks toward his boots. Emmett moves to the dead man, unbuckles the gunbelt, and pulls it free of the body. He picks up the bone-handled Colt and puts it in the holster, then stops abruptly. We hear the steady advance of FOOTSTEPS across the saloon floor. Emmett's eyes follow the off-screen presence. Paden, seated, is pulling on his newly-regained boots with a delighted air when a shadow surges up and engulfs him. He looks up. Sheriff Langston towers over him. INT. CELLBLOCK - NIGHT Paden is brusquely deposited in the cell next to a surprised Jake by Sheriff Langston and DEPUTY BLOCK. PADEN You're making a big mistake. Langston is not interested. He and Block go out. JAKE That's what I told 'em. INT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - NIGHT Deputy Block eyes Emmett, who loiters by the door as Langston settles himself. LANGSTON Maybe I ought to throw you in jail too. Then you could be with all your friends. EMMETT I haven't done anything. LANGSTON I want you out of town before the hanging. EMMETT I'll be long gone. OMIT INT. CELLBLOCK - NIGHT Paden forlornly regards a snoring drunk in another cell as Jake talks to him. JAKE You mean you ain't coming with Emmett and me? PADEN I can't say I'm convinced you're going anywhere. JAKE Sure we are. We're leaving at dawn. PADEN I've got no reason to run. It was a fair fight and there were plenty of witnesses. JAKE (bubbly) Yeah, that's what happened with me too. PADEN The other guy drew first. JAKE (same for him) Right! Paden looks a little discouraged, but is still unconvinced. EXT. GALLOWS - MAIN STREET - NIGHT Emmett sits up on the new gallows in the deserted intersection, his legs dangling through the dropped trap door. Now he begins idly collecting wood shavings into a little pile. INT. CELLBLOCK - NIGHT Paden steps close to the bars that separate the cells and looks up at Jake, who is dangling at arm's length from one of the overhead bars in his cell. PADEN (whispering) Your brother seems pretty good, but it isn't going to be easy getting in here. Jake drops down to the floor. JAKE He ain't coming in, we're going out. (motions) Gimme your belt. Paden, trying to follow this, unbuckles his belt. JAKE Didn't he tell you about Blind Pete? PADEN (handing him the belt) We didn't get that far. JAKE Blind Pete taught me a great trick. Jake grasps Paden's belt by the buckle and snaps it at Paden with a CRACK, like a lion tamer. INT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAWN Deputy Block cheats at solitaire while Langston dozes at his desk. Now we hear FOOTSTEPS and BANGING outside. STABLE BOY (O.S.) Sheriff! Sheriff! Open up! Block unlocks the door as Langston comes groggily to life. A STABLE BOY bounces at the door, pointing off. STABLE BOY Sheriff Langston, come quick! He disappears. Langston goes out, calling back to Block -- LANGSTON Lock this door and don't let anybody in. EXT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAWN Langston hurries up the street after the Stable Boy. INT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAWN Deputy Block bolts the front door. PADEN (O.S.) (shouting) Hey! What are you doing, you crazy kid? Don't do it! Block draws his six-gun and edges suspiciously toward the door to the cellblock. PADEN (O.S.) Oh, Jesus! Somebody stop him! Block turns the doorknob and pushes the door open with his foot, gun ready. He moves into the cellblock. INT. CELLBLOCK - DAWN Block moves cautiously to where he can see the cells. A strange look crosses his face. Jake is hanging by the neck from the overhead bars, two belts forming the noose, his head at a disgusting angle from his body. One foot gives a final twitch and he is still. PADEN Cut him down! For God's sake, cut him down! Block is confused, uncertain. He doesn't want to go in there. PADEN Hurry up! You might be able to save him! BLOCK What for? So we can hang him? Paden, sincerely desperate now, looks up at Jake, whose face is turning blue. PADEN I think I'm going to be sick... when I see what Langston does to you when he gets here. Block lets it sink in, then takes some keys from his belt. BLOCK (to Paden) You get way back there. Paden moves back quickly, motioning for Block to hurry. Block holsters his six-gun, opens Jake's cell door, and goes inside. He gets up on the cot, pulling a knife from a sheath. He strains up against Jake's body, stretching to cut the belt. Suddenly Jake can stand it no longer: he sputters to life, his long-held breath blasting in Block's face. Block, startled, stumbles backwards off the cot, raising the knife threateningly. Jake grabs the overhead bars, swings up, and kicks Block in the chest. The deputy careens across the cell and hits the bars. He throws the knife outside the cell and draws his gun, ready to shoot Jake. As Block's finger pulls the trigger, Paden's thumb intrudes between the hammer and the firing pin. Paden has reached through the bars behind Block to grasp the gun with his right hand. Now with his left he grabs a handful of Block's hair and slams the deputy's head hard back against the bars. As Block slides unconscious to the floor, Paden keeps the gun, wincingly uncocking it. PADEN Got to be real quiet here. Jake has unhooked himself and is freeing his makeshift noose. He rubs his reddened neck. JAKE (a hoarse whisper) Right. EXT. GALLOWS - DAWN Langston huffs to a stop next to the Stable Boy, his countenance a picture of outraged befuddlement. He, the Stable Boy, and just one other surprised citizen are the only witnesses: the gallows is aflame, burning like a pyre. Langston considers this phenomenon, a suspicion slowly growing in his mind. EXT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAWN Paden and Jake come out warily. The street is deserted. Paden straps his holster on; he's glad to have it back at last. Not as glad, however, as Jake, who seems to have a nearly religious relationship with his rig, an elaborately tooled, double gunbelt with two pearl-handled Colts. JAKE That's the longest I ever did it. 'Bout bust a gut. PADEN (finger to lips: "quiet") What now? JAKE We wait. The two men move carefully off the porch and into the street. A wood stair goes up the outside of the jail to a door. Now, high behind Jake, Deputy Kern comes out, nightshirt flapping, cocking the carbine in his hands. He has thumped down five steps before he focuses on Jake and Paden. He starts to raise the carbine. Both men see the deputy, but Jake's reaction is so fast that Paden need only watch. Jake spins and, before he has stopped, both his Colts are erupting in his hands. The carbine flies out of Kern's grasp and clatters down the steps. Jake continues to fire -- the stair at Kern's foot splinters and he steps backwards and up. Jake continues to splinter the steps at Kern's feet, until he has made the deputy exactly retrace his steps and retreat back through the door. The firing stops. Paden gives Jake an odd look. Paden may have seen someone this fast and good before, but he can't remember it. He puts his finger to his lips -- "shhh". PADEN Where's your brother? JAKE (reloading fast) He'll be here. A bullet WHIZZES between the two men as we hear shots from the far end of the street. Langston is coming toward them firing. They move back to the cover of the jail porch. ALLEY ACROSS THE STREET. Emmett roars into view, riding his horse and leading two others: Paden's bay and the pinto. A window above the jail breaks open and Kern starts firing at Emmett. DOWN THE STREET. Langston, behind a wagon, uses a British two-handed grip to fire off a few rounds. Emmett brings the horses over, and Paden swings quickly up. Jake focuses his attention, unleashing a fusillade as Emmett leads the pinto along the front of the jail. EMMETT Jake, come on! DOWN THE STREET. Langston lifts his head from behind the now bullet-pocked wagon. He's impressed. Jake runs along the porch, hits the top of the hitching post on the fly, and takes off, landing lightly in the saddle of the pinto. The three men gallop out of town in a cloud of dust. EXT. RIDE OUT OF TURLEY (VARIOUS SHOTS) - DAY The three men ride hell-for-leather away from town. At the first bend they leave the road and head off cross-country, their horses straining up craggy hillsides and sliding down dusty slopes. There is some good riding going on here. OMIT EXT. THE CHASE (VARIOUS SHOTS) - DAY INTERCUTTING the three men and the Posse Langston has raised, as the Posse closes ground over choppy terrain. Now the three fugitives come through some trees along the bank of a stream and splash across to the other side. EXT. A SPLIT IN THE TRAIL - THE CHASE CONTINUES - DAY The three men come thundering along a dusty trail to the place where it splits. The high road disappears up the side of a ridge; the low road is really the bed of an arroyo. The three men exchange looks. Paden plunges into the arroyo. Emmett shrugs to Jake, and the brothers follow Paden. INTERCUTTING. The Posse splashes across the stream. The three fugitives twist their way through the crooked arroyo. AT THE SPLIT IN THE TRAIL. Langston pulls his group to a halt. He looks at the tracks leading into the arroyo, and a smile splits his face. He leads the Posse up the high road fast. EXT. ARROYO - DAY IN THE ARROYO. Paden and Emmett pull up, looking back at Jake, who has stopped at the last bend in the gully, watching their rear. Now he rides up to the others. JAKE I think we lost 'em. EMMETT There's nobody coming? Jake shakes his head "no". Paden and Emmett exchange long looks. Paden looks to the ground above them, even more worried. PADEN Oh-oh. They spur their horses out of there. EXT. MOUTH OF ARROYO/FLATLANDS - DAY The three riders break out of the arroyo and exchange looks of glee on seeing the clear flatlands ahead. SHOTS ring out. They look over their shoulders to see Langston's Posse, practically on top of them, pouring over the lip of a rise and firing at will. The three men whip their horses and head flat out across the open space toward a cluster of boulders three hundred yards away. They are vulnerable and exposed as shots PING around them. They are not going to make it. WITH THE POSSE. Deputy Block jumps from his horse onto the top of a boulder and lies prone, bracing his Winchester for an accurate shot. BLOCK (to himself) Let's see you fake this one, kid. He is about to fire when suddenly the rocky surface in front of his face explodes. He is so startled, he falls off the boulder. Another Posse member is coming between two tall rocks when a bullet hits near his head and ricochets into the rock on the other side. His horse rears up, and the horse coming up behind him collides with it. Langston and Deputy Kern have just started across the flats, but pull up next to a cactus at this new firing. An arm of the cactus is immediately severed by a .44 slug. KERN Is that them shooting? LANGSTON (pointing) No. It's coming from those rocks. WHAT HE SEES. Paden, Emmett, and Jake are now halfway to the cover of the distant rocks. Another shot CRACKS, and a puff of smoke appears from ahead of them in the boulders. KERN Let's go. He ain't hitting anything. LANGSTON You idiot, he's hit everything he's aimed at. KERN ...But they won't be out of our jurisdiction till they pass Flat Top! As Paden, Emmett, and Jake disappear among the boulders, Langston rises high in his stirrups to catch a final glimpse. His bowler is blown off his head. He lowers himself back to his saddle. LANGSTON Today my jurisdiction ends here. He turns his horse back. The others do likewise. LANGSTON (over his shoulder, to Kern) Pick up my hat. EXT. BOULDERS - DAY Emmett and Paden rein in their frothing horses in the natural bowl of rocks near a tied horse and the remains of a campfire. Jake has stopped short of them and taken his horse back to peer out toward the Posse. Grinning, he comes back to the others. The three riders bring their horses around and focus on a spot above them. On the top of the highest boulder, Mal leaves a comfortable, prone shooting position and eases himself down to a lower rock. A bandolier of .44 bullets dangles from one hand. He rests his Henry rifle at an angle across one shoulder. JAKE (to the others) This a friend of yours? PADEN He is now. JAKE Who is he? PADEN Oh, a guy who got run out of town... EMMETT ...just like us. EXT. HIGH DESERT - DAY An awesome rock spire soars into the perfect blue sky above the orange desert. The sight is spectacular. The slow surge of MUSIC exhilarating. It is the perfect setting in which to see the four horsemen who now appear on a ridge. Here they come -- Riding together, side by side, for the first time -- Emmett, Paden, Jake, and Mal. EXT. HILL - DAY The travellers crest a hill above a wide desert plain and pull up at the surprising sight below -- there in the distance, stopped dead in a disorderly line, is the wagon train we saw leave Turley. The horsemen exchange puzzled looks. EXT. WAGON TRAIN - DESERT PLAIN - DAY The Settlers are clustered near a wagon as the four horsemen ride down on them. There is a tense silence as they dismount and approach the group. Hobart, the leader, steps forward to meet them. After a long perusal -- HOBART (calling) It's okay, Zeke. From the cover of a nearby wagon, Zeke appears, lowering a shotgun that had been trained on the newcomers. EMMETT Hobart, what are you people doing here? HOBART This is where Baxter and Hawley brung us. EMMETT Well, they're wrong. This territory is full of bad characters. HOBART And they were two of them. Look -- He gestures and the Settlers part to reveal the wagon which held the money box in Turley. The money box is gone, but the still form of its giant guardian, Eb, lies in the bed of the wagon, dead. HOBART Baxter and Hawley killed poor Eb here and stole our money box. (gestures) They went north and we're going after them. The newcomers now see that a few of the Settler men and boys are preparing to ride in pursuit. Mal and Paden exchange looks, not terribly impressed. EMMETT Forget the money. You've got to get these people out of here. This is no place to be sitting with women and kids. JAKE Your next water ain't for three days. HOBART We got no life in Silverado without that money. Everybody put in, that's our whole stake. Paden looks around. His gaze falls on Hannah, somber now, but still lovely. Conrad, her husband, stands beside her. Mal has been watching a little girl cling to the leg of one of the Settler men who is going out on the chase. Now the black man quietly mounts his horse, and speaks to an older, solid-looking man, MR. PARKER, standing by his wife. MAL How long have they been gone? MR. PARKER About an hour. Emmett and Paden watch Mal with interest. Jake is excited by this development. He jumps up on his horse. JAKE I'll go with you, Mal! Paden isn't so quick to commit, but then he notices Hannah gazing up at Mal and Jake with radiant admiration. He digests that and moves toward his horse. PADEN Deal me in. He steals a look at Hannah as he mounts up. Emmett has watched all this with growing resignation. Now he speaks crisply, all business. EMMETT Jake, you know the way out of here. I want you to get this train moving toward Silverado, and fast. I'll go with these guys. Jake is disappointed, but nods agreement. Emmett turns to Hobart and the Settler posse. EMMETT You men stay with your wagons and your families. Get rolling and keep your eyes peeled. Emmett moves toward his horse, as Conrad, rifle in hand, steps forward belligerently. CONRAD Wait a minute! If you do get the money, how do we know you'll come back? EMMETT (flashes him a look) If we don't, you can keep my brother. HOBART (to Emmett) I'm trusting you, mister. CONRAD (to Hobart) You trusted Baxter. I'm not letting these men out of my sight. As Conrad moves toward his horse, Paden looks at Hannah, now standing all alone. Paden thinks he acted too quickly. EMMETT (indicating Hannah) If I'd brought a pretty lady like that into a place like this, I'd stay close. Paden reacts to Emmett's interest in Hannah. CONRAD That's none of your business, mister. Let's get going. PADEN (quietly, to Emmett) I think you got a point, Emmett. Maybe I better stay here with her. Emmett smiles and snaps his reins, moving out with Mal. Reluctantly, Paden follows, twisting around for a last glimpse of Hannah. WHAT HE SEES. Hannah moves toward Conrad's horse, as if to touch her husband. But Conrad, his face set in suspicion, barely nods farewell as he sweeps by her. She looks after him desolately. Mal, Paden, Emmett, and Conrad ride off to the north, as Jake begins yelling orders to the Settlers to get things moving. What he lacks in expertise, he makes up for in enthusiasm. EXT. HIGH DESERT (SERIES OF SHOTS) - DAY The four men track the killers across the rugged terrain. Sometimes, Emmett gets down from his horse to examine the tracks. On a flat, rocky expanse, the chase party is temporarily stalled. Emmett and Paden confer, balked. Mal, peering ahead, spots something and points it out to the two expert trackers: a steaming horse patty. They head off in that direction. OMIT EXT. RIM OF BOX CANYON - DAY The four men crawl to the lip of the canyon and get a clear view of the activity below; the box canyon has been turned into a hideout for the Dawson Gang, a band of border raiders. There are about twenty-five outlaws moving about among the tents, caves, and wagons of the encampment. Their horses are penned in a natural alcove in the rock off the main floor of the canyon. The strongbox from the wagon train sits on the tailgate of a wagon. Next to it is a large keg of whiskey from which the outlaws are drawing generous portions. Baxter and Hawley have brought the loot proudly back to their cohorts, and the celebration is centered around this wagon. On the rim the pursuers exchange looks in reaction to this new situation. PADEN (to Emmett) You know, hanging around with you is no picnic. EMMETT Anybody got any ideas? EXT. OUTLAW CAMP - BOX CANYON - DAY One of the outlaws spills some whiskey onto the money in the strongbox. DAWSON, the leader of the gang, angrily slams the strongbox closed and kicks the offending outlaw. Suddenly, there are cries of warning from the Sentinel at the entrance to the box canyon. HOOFBEATS echo into the canyon from that direction. The outlaws react en masse with a frightening display of armed readiness. WHERE THE TRAIL ENTERS THE CANYON. From the shadows emerge two galloping horses: on the first is Emmett, who holds the reins of the second, across whose saddle is draped the seemingly lifeless body of Paden. The Sentinel watches them pass under the point of his carbine. AT THE WAGON. Emmett dismounts quickly and ties both horses to a wheel. Dawson decides not to shoot this guy yet. He watches as Emmett runs back across the canyon to the cover of some crates and crouches down behind them, looking up at the rim above the entrance. The outlaws, guns pointed, stand around him. TALL OUTLAW (to Dawson) Should I kill him, Mr. Dawson? DAWSON (approaching Emmett) In a minute! Emmett, still cowering, looks over his shoulder at Dawson. He speaks now, and throughout, very fast. EMMETT I wouldn't do that. You're going to need every gun when that posse gets here. DAWSON Posse? What the hell you talking about? EMMETT My partner and me robbed the bank in Turley and headed out with a posse on our tails. My partner there caught one a ways back, and I think he kicked off while I was looking for this damn canyon. You're Dawson, ain't you? I'm Tex LaRue. (offers his hand for only a second) Used to ride with Ry Morris. You know him. Well, Andy Sims told me there was a hideout here, so I headed for it. Hope you don't mind. Paden, lying over the saddle, his face shielded by his hat, winces at this story. DAWSON You brought a posse to my best hideout and you want to know if I mind. Mister, I don't know any of those names and you're about to die. EMMETT Wait a minute! If you don't believe me, ask them... (indicates Baxter and Hawley) ...they saw me and my pal in Turley before we did the job. Baxter and Hawley peer at Emmett and nod to each other. BAXTER I saw 'em there, all right, but I don't know about any bank job. DAWSON If you took the bank in Turley, where's the money? Emmett crouches lower, looking nervously at the rocks. EMMETT I'd get down if I were you. They may be up there now. DAWSON (just as he suspected) No money, eh? EMMETT The money's in my saddlebags over there, but I ain't stepping out to get it. The outlaws, all of whom are standing in the open, think he's crazy. Dawson motions Hawley toward Emmett's horse. Hawley is almost there when gunfire erupts from the rocks above and Hawley goes down dead. Now all the outlaws hit the dirt, some firing wildly. Paden unobtrusively frees his rope. Dawson comes down beside Emmett. EXT. RIM OF BOX CANYON - DAY Conrad and Mal fire into the canyon, then move to new positions. EXT. OUTLAW CAMP - DAY ABOVE THE ENTRANCE to the box canyon the Sentinel disappears into the rocks, moving upward. AT THE CRATES. Down the line from Emmett, an outlaw gets hit. The outlaws can't see anything to shoot at. EMMETT (agitated) If we charge them, they won't have a chance. But we gotta get to the horses. DAWSON What do you mean, the horses? Emmett jumps up. He yells to the other outlaws. EMMETT Cover me! He runs in a mad zig-zag toward the gate of the horses' pen. EXT. RIM OF BOX CANYON - DAY Mal, firing rapidly, follows Emmett's route with precision. EXT. OUTLAW CAMP - DAY Mal's shots kick up dust inches from Emmett's flying feet. Once Emmett throws a glance upwards; Mal's cutting it pretty close. Baxter slides in next to Dawson, who is thinking hard. BAXTER (indicating Emmett) Brave man. DAWSON I think there's only a couple of guys up there and this asshole's one of them. AT THE WAGON. An outlaw is cowering beneath the wagon, but doesn't notice as Paden reaches out and secures the latch on the money box. AT THE HORSE PEN. Emmett throws open the make-shift gate and runs in among the horses, yelling and waving his arms. The horses begin to run out of the pen. AT THE CRATES. Dawson jumps up and orders his men forward. A line of outlaws rushes toward the pen, all the while firing up at the rim. Paden appears at a gallop from behind, pulling Emmett's horse beside him. A rope stretches from his saddlehorn to the strongbox bouncing along in the dirt. Paden comes through the line of outlaws firing and heads for the pen. A few of the outlaws make the mistake of closing the gap and aiming at Paden's back. The bouncing strongbox knocks them head over heels. Emmett leaps from a rock onto his passing horse, firing behind him. He and Paden go down the trail in the midst of the outlaws' horses. The strongbox careens after them. EXT. MOUTH OF CANYON TRAIL - DAY Mal and Conrad, mounted; are waiting as Emmett and Paden ride out of the mouth of the canyon. Beyond them, the outlaws' horses scatter toward the horizon. Paden jumps off his horse and picks up the strongbox. IN THE ROCKS ABOVE THEM the Sentinel from the outlaw camp positions himself to fire at the men below. EMMETT (to Mal) That was some idea of yours. Next time you go in. Paden is tying the strongbox to his saddlehorn when there is the loud CLICK of Conrad's rifle being cocked. He nervously points it at the others. CONRAD I knew it. Put that box on my horse. MAL Mister, you got a lot to learn about people. A SHOT rings out. Conrad takes it in the chest and flies off his horse. Now an amazing sight -- Emmett, Paden, and Mal all turn and fire at once. The Sentinel is really dead. EXT. DESERT RISE - DAY Below in the distance the wagon train moves across the desert, dwarfed by giant rock walls. Now, coming right PAST CAMERA, at a gallop ride Emmett, Paden, Mal, and Conrad's horse with his body slung over it. EXT. DESERT - DAY Hannah sits alone on the high seat of her wagon. She is unaware that behind her the four horses approach. And that her husband is dead. OMIT EXT. WAGON TRAIN CAMP - NIGHT Mal, Emmett, and Jake lounge about a campfire within the quiet circle of wagons. Emmett is whittling a whistle pipe out of a stick. MAL After the war my family worked a little piece of land near Savannah for a while. But the way it was down there then... well, they made it hard every way they could. Finally my daddy figured the promised land was out this direction. By that time I was so sick of farming, I didn't want to touch another hoe ever. I wouldn't come with 'em. My daddy took it pretty hard. Him, my ma, and my little sister headed out without me. They've got a little place south of Silverado. I guess they've done okay. Good enough anyway so that when my ma wrote me last time, she said they needed my help to work the place. That was almost nine months ago she wrote. Letter took a while to find me, but when it did, it was just the right time. EMMETT Where were you? MAL Chicago. Working in the slaughter- houses. JAKE Chicago! You been to Chicago? Was it wonderful? MAL (remembering) No. Paden walks into the light of the fire and pours himself a cup of coffee. EMMETT Where you been? PADEN (caught, vamps) Oh, I was just checking the, ah... (gestures vaguely over his shoulder) ...you know, lookin' in. He concentrates on his coffee and moves away from the light. Mal, Emmett, and Jake exchange amused, knowing looks. JAKE Jeez, Paden, her old man ain't even cold yet! Mal and Emmett laugh. EXT. ROLLING DESERT - DAY SERIES OF SHOTS as the wagon train rolls westward. Paden is driving Hannah's wagon; she sits beside him on the seat. PADEN He acted bravely out there, Hannah. Just bad luck his getting hit. Could have been any one of us. HANNAH I don't believe in luck. I know what Conrad was like. Don't tell me what you think I want to hear. PADEN Never will again. HANNAH We got married just before this trip, so we could come out here and try the land. It's hard to find a man willing to take on a life like that. She pauses and takes the reins from him. HANNAH Love isn't the only important thing. Emmett rides up on Hannah's side and keeps pace beside them, smiling at the sight of the couple. EMMETT How you doing, m'am? Getting enough help? Hannah, caught between the two men, smiles. HANNAH More than enough. EMMETT Have you thought at all about your plans? HANNAH Some. I've been talking to the Parkers. One thing I know I'm not doing -- I'm not going back. OMIT EXT. RIVER CROSSING (VARIOUS SHOTS) - DAY The wagon train splashes noisily across the river, drivers yelling loudly to urge on their teams. Emmett, Paden, Mal, and Jake, on horseback, direct the crossing. EXT. APPROACHING SILVERADO - DAY The wagon train is moving through pretty, rolling country. Mal rides up to join Emmett and Paden on point ahead of the train. In his hand is a yellowed letter. He points off to the south where a dramatic half-dome of rock towers above the hills. MAL This is it, gents. My ma told me to head south past that rock. PADEN Good luck, Mal. EMMETT Maybe we'll see you sometime. MAL (doesn't think so) Yeah... maybe. So long. He rides away, and he doesn't look back. EXT. FORK OF THE ROAD (OUTSIDE SILVERADO) - DAY A buckboard with a man and a young girl in it is stopped at the fork, its two occupants standing up and waving excitedly. As the wagon train pulls to a halt, Hobart climbs down from the lead wagon and is embraced by the homesteader from the buckboard, BRADLEY. Bradley points off along the right fork of the road as he speaks to Hobart. BRADLEY It's right down this road aways. I'll ride in with you myself. (to the girl in the buckboard) Carol, go spread the word our people are here. The girl, CAROL, whips the buckboard into motion and disappears down the road. Bradley is looking down the line of wagons. BRADLEY I thought there'd be more of you. But I thank the Lord for each and every one. We'll have a solid strip of bottomland under the plow when you people stake your claims. (a grim look at Hobart) And we're going to need every hand to hold it. AT HANNAH'S WAGON. Emmett has brought his horse up to face Hannah and, on horseback beside her wagon, Paden. EMMETT Hope to see you again, m'am. She nods demurely. PADEN I think I'll ride along with the lady here. Just take a look at this farmland before I come into Silverado. See what makes a trip this hard worth taking. (catches Emmett's amused look) I'll see you around. EMMETT I'll be around. AT THE LEAD WAGON. Hobart has what might be tears in his eyes as he picks up the reins and looks at the countryside. HOBART I feel like I've arrived in Canaan. BRADLEY When we got here, we thought it was Eden. And it's pretty close -- right down to the serpents. The wagon train moves out along the right fork of the road as Emmett and Jake, waving goodbye, ride straight ahead toward town. EXT. ENTERING SILVERADO - DAY Silverado is a sprawling, active, handsome frontier town, a cattle center and supply station for the burgeoning silver mines to the west. Emmett and Jake ride into town. OMIT EXT. COUNTRYSIDE - DAY Mal comes around the shoulder of a hill and reins to a halt. He takes the yellowed letter from his pocket and checks a detail. He smiles at the stand of cottonwoods that marks his route. After all these years, he's excited to be approaching some kind of home. He hurries on. EXT. LAND OFFICE/HOLLIS HOME (SILVERADO) - DAY The land office is in the front of the first floor of the Hollis home, a separate, two-story structure on a side street. Now we're looking down the porch as KATE HOLLIS embraces her brothers, Emmett and Jake. Her big, bear-like, gentle husband, J.T., comes out to add his greetings. After the laying on of hands, the attention of all four is drawn to the doorway and a figure we cannot yet see. Now he steps shyly into view: eleven-year-old AUGIE. Jake makes a show of shaking Augie's hand, man to man. Emmett kneels to greet him at eye level; the boy's grown a lot in five years. EXT. HILL - DAY Mal reaches the top of the hill, a look of high expectation on his face. But now he pulls up sharply, his expression changing. Not what he expected. Down below in a pretty, little valley that recently embraced a farm are hundreds of cattle, roaming free across the last remnants of the fields. And the burnt-out remains of a small farmhouse. EXT. FARMHOUSE RUINS - DAY Mal dismounts near the blackened timbers and walks into the ruins. He looks around in a daze: he's home, but there's no home there. EXT. KNOLL ABOVE BRADLEY'S PLACE (HOMESTEADER LAND) - DUSK Paden and Hannah are just reaching the top of the knoll. In the distance below them is Bradley's farm, in the barnyard of which the wagon train has pulled up for this first night. HANNAH Mr. and Mrs. Parker have agreed to join their parcel to mine. We'll work them together. (she points) Mine starts right over there. It's all I've ever wanted. Pretty land, isn't it? PADEN (nods, looking at her) And a pretty lady. She turns to face him with a clear-eyed gaze that is almost scary. HANNAH A lot of men have told me that. Maybe it's true. I guess some women are slow to believe it. PADEN Believe it. HANNAH They're drawn to me by that. But it never lasts. PADEN Why? HANNAH Because they don't like what I want. PADEN What's that? HANNAH (turns back toward her view) I want to build something, make things grow. That takes hard work -- a lifetime of it. That's not why men come to a pretty woman. He shakes his head, agreeing, though she cannot see it. HANNAH After a while, I won't be so pretty. But this land will be. She turns to face him again. He understands now as well as she that romance is not in their future. But friendship could be. PADEN Hannah, don't tell me what you think I want to hear. Hannah laughs with him. EXT. FARMHOUSE RUINS - NIGHT Mal has made a fire in the remains of the fireplace and is cooking food. As he sits back, he senses he is being watched. He turns. There at the edge of the light stands an old black man holding a Henry .44 rifle like Mal's -- his father, EZRA JOHNSON. The two men look at each other a long time. MAL Daddy? EZRA I saw the light. I thought maybe Rae had come back to see me. But I never thought it'd be my boy. I never thought that. Mal goes to him and encloses him in his arms. MAL Ma? Ezra looks up at him and shakes his head. EZRA She was sick for a long time. She was sick when she wrote you, but she didn't say it. I never thought you'd come. But she did. Mal takes it hard. They move back to the fire together. MAL Where is Rae? EZRA She's gone, gone to town. She hated working on the farm... (a bitter glance) ...just like you. MAL (gestures) What happened? EZRA They run me off. They burned me out. They made it so I couldn't do. Just like Georgia. If you won't sell, they take it anyway. MAL Who? EZRA (as though it were obvious) The cattle! This valley runs down to a clear creek. That's why we picked this spot, and that's why they don't want us here. MAL You own this land. EZRA I paid the government for it, all right. That don't mean much out here. (he motions behind him) Malachi, I'm living like a wildcat in a cave in those hills. Hiding out, afraid to walk my own land. MAL What about the law? EZRA Whose law? The law here runs a man down -- just like these cattle. Mal thinks about that and grows very angry. Finally -- MAL That ain't right and I've had enough of what ain't right. INT. HOLLIS HOME (SILVERADO) - NIGHT The group is finishing dinner in the kitchen/sitting room at the back of the ground floor. Augie is tooting the carved whistle pipe that Emmett has given him. Kate and Emmett begin to clear the dishes as Jake and J.T. continue to sit. JAKE I thought running the land office would be easy work, J.T., but it sounds like what you got here ain't much fun. J.T. We got a bad situation here, and those homesteaders you brought in with you are going to make it worse. (indicates front of house) When they come into this office to stake their claims, I think it's going to be the start of real trouble. They're going to cut McKendrick off on the north. KATE J.T.'s done everything he can. I married a brave man. Augie, take that delightful gift your uncle gave you out of here while we're talking. (back to others) McKendrick picked the new sheriff himself, so J.T. can't even get the law enforced. J.T. Half the gunslingers that drift into town turn up on our police force. EMMETT A man could die of thirst before anybody offered him a drink around here. J.T. pulls a bottle of whiskey from a cabinet and sets up three glasses, but Kate pantomimes for him to add one for her. EMMETT Maybe you all ought to come to California with Jake and me. (across the room) How 'bout it, Augie, you want to go with us? AUGIE Sure! JAKE You know, Augie, there are no schools in California. AUGIE (aglow) Really? KATE Augie's going to grow up here. There's nothing wrong with the land, it's just some of the people. J.T. The problem is, Emmett, you killed the wrong McKendrick. KATE Why, J.T., watch what you're saying around Augie. Emmett didn't kill anybody. EMMETT Well, Kate, it was self-defense sure enough, but I think you'd have to say I killed old Murdo. I think that's definitely the word. JAKE It was my fault. KATE It was not -- it was Murdo's. Those McKendricks don't know how to act like human beings. J.T. His son is worse than he was. He's smoother, so you don't always hear him coming, but he'll do anything to keep his range free. KATE (intensely) I'm worried what he's going to do when he finds out you boys are back. Emmett puts his arm around her. EMMETT I think Jake here can take care of himself. I did five years I didn't owe. McKendrick ought to be satisfied with that and let it lie. Kate looks between her brothers. She is not reassured. EXT. FARMHOUSE RUINS - NIGHT Having smothered the fire, Mal mounts up, then reaches down to pull his father onto the horse behind him. They begin picking their way through the cattle when two night-riding cowboys, RED and SCRUFFY, approach through the gloom. RED Is that you, Ezra? SCRUFFY (to his mate, jovially) You see pretty good, Red. Is there one or two of them? (He laughs) What brings you out of your hole, Johnson? RED We're going to find that place one of these days. Who you got with you, Ezra? EZRA This is my son. He's come home. SCRUFFY Ain't that sweet, Red? I'm afraid you boys are trespassing on McKendrick land. MAL You got it all wrong, mister. This is our place. RED What? Mr. McKendrick bought this place from your father. EZRA That's a lie. MAL Tomorrow we're going to town to straighten that out once and for all. The next day we'll be back here... farming. And these cattle better be gone. The two cowboys are taken aback. They look to each other for guidance. MAL If I find any cattle on our land after tomorrow, I'm going to start carving them into steaks. And believe me, that's one thing I know about. SCRUFFY Killing cattle is a hanging offense in these parts. If we shot you down right now, we'd be within our rights. MAL Mister, you ever seen what a Henry rifle can do in the hands of someone who knows how to use it? The two cowboys tense, their gun hands flexing. SCRUFFY Who would that be? You? Behind Mal, Ezra lowers the barrel of his own Henry toward the cowboys and cocks it. He looks like a man coming back to life. The two cowboys are dumbfounded. They turn and start to ride away. Scruffy shouts back at them -- SCRUFFY This ain't the end of it! MAL (to Ezra) We're going to get your land back, Daddy... our land. EZRA (marvelling at events) Maybe we will! Maybe we will! (pause) After all, I never thought I'd get my son back. EXT. MAIN STREET - NIGHT Paden rides along the dark street, drawn irresistibly toward the thinking MUSIC, lights, and hubbub of the big saloon -- The Midnight Star. INT. MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Paden comes in and looks around with some pleasure. It's an expansive place, busy now with gamblers, drinkers, and brightly-dressed saloon girls. A piano player bangs away in the corner. Paden has to smile. This is the way a saloon ought to be. Now, even Paden is home. Paden walks up to stand at the bar. The BARTENDER is busy at the far end of the bar. Paden is patiently waiting to get his attention when he hears a woman's voice behind him, on his side of the bar. STELLA (O.S.) What can I do you for, stranger? Paden turns to face his interlocutor, but at first cannot find her. After a moment, though, he looks down to see a small woman in a velvet dress -- STELLA. PADEN You work here? STELLA I run the place. What can I get you? She is already moving away toward the near end of the bar. He watches her disappear around the end, then sees the top of her head appear behind the bar down there. As she moves back toward him, she gets taller and taller, until she is facing him eye to eye across the bar. PADEN Bourbon. As she reaches under the bar and produces bottle and glass, Paden leans over and peeks behind the bar. A foot-wide ramp runs the length of it. PADEN Nifty. STELLA (smiles) The world is what you make of it, friend. If it doesn't fit, you make alterations. PADEN I'll drink to that. Will you join me, Miss -- STELLA Stella. PADEN Paden. Stella sets up a glass for herself, and they shake hands. Paden looks up at a carved ornamental star on the back wall, over the words "The Midnight Star". PADEN Stella... Are you the midnight star herself? STELLA I am. I'm always there, but I only shine at night. A saloon girl -- a lovely, young, black woman -- RAE passes with some drinks. Paden watches her go, then looks around the room. PADEN My compliments to you, Miss Stella. This is what I call a saloon. STELLA Thanks. That's what I call it too. PADEN And I know what I'm talking about. STELLA You like a good saloon? PADEN It's the only place I'm happy. STELLA Me too. What's wrong with us? Their eyes meet for a moment, and a real connection is made. PADEN You wouldn't be needing any help around here, would you? Maybe with the gambling? STELLA (points) You see that fellow over there in the gray coat? Paden nods, and now we see him too: a big man in some gambler- like finery -- KELLY. He is leaning over a poker game. STELLA That's Kelly, my so-called partner. He runs that side. PADEN So-called? STELLA Yeah, aside from being a loud-mouthed, lying cheat, he's just the man I would have picked. PADEN Why'd you go into business with him? STELLA I don't own this place. The man who does stuck me with Kelly. PADEN Who's the owner? STELLA Here he comes right now. Stella nods toward the door, and Paden turns to look. Cobb enters through the swinging doors. He looks around with a proprietary air as he walks to the bar. He is almost there before his gaze settles on Paden and Stella. He stops in his tracks, and a big grin splits his face. SHERIFF COBB Well, look at this! Two of my favorite people in the world, talking to each other. Cobb moves up and puts an arm around Paden as he shakes his hand. Stella is interested in this connection, but she doesn't faze easily. Paden is the surprised one. SHERIFF COBB Stella, this is one of my oldest surviving friends. Treat him right. STELLA That was my plan. SHERIFF COBB (laughs) Oh, yeah, you two are going to get along fine. You got a lot in common. Cobb looks across the room and yells. SHERIFF COBB Kelly, get over here. (to Paden) You didn't come all this way just to pay me back that money, did you? (turns to Kelly) Kelly, meet my friend Paden. KELLY (cool) Howdy. SHERIFF COBB Give the man a line of credit. He already owes the house thirteen bucks. Kelly casts a wary, appraising glance over Paden, nods, and moves off. SHERIFF COBB You got a place to stay? PADEN I just got to town. SHERIFF COBB Stella, we still got an extra room out back, don't we? STELLA It's not in use at the moment. Cobb comes around the end of the bar to stand next to Stella. SHERIFF COBB What brings you into my saloon? PADEN Luck, I guess. SHERIFF COBB (cackles at this) Good old Paden. I was hoping you'd changed your mind about the job. PADEN You didn't tell me you owned a saloon. Cobb looks at Paden a long time and laughs. SHERIFF COBB That ain't the half of it, friend. He turns away, taking off his coat, and hangs it on a peg back there. When he turns back, rolling up his sleeves, our eyes are drawn to the same thing as Paden's: a shiny, silver sheriff's star. SHERIFF COBB Welcome to heaven. INT. CAVE - MORNING Mal is asleep on some hay in the small cave his father has fixed up as a hideout and home. A shadow falls across him. Ezra stands looking at his son with loving eyes. In his hands are a water bucket and his Henry rifle. Now he turns quietly away. EXT. CAVE - MORNING Ezra emerges. From here, it would be impossible to tell that the cave was inhabited. Except that, on this morning, Mal's horse is tied nearby. Ezra looks around cautiously and moves off into the rocks. EXT. ROCKY HILLSIDE - MORNING Ezra picks his way among the boulders warily. EXT. MOUNTAIN SPRING - MORNING Ezra comes out of the surrounding rocks and goes to the edge of the spring. A stream runs off downhill from the pool. He props the rifle against a rock and bends to drink from the spring. He hears something and turns quickly. What he sees makes him reach for the rifle, but the sound of several GUNS COCKING freezes him inches from it. There are four Cowboys, McKendrick's men, emerging from their hiding places. Their eyes search the surrounding rocks. Scruffy and Red, the cowboys from the previous night, are there, but the leader is HOYT. HOYT Where's the other one, Johnson? Ezra is silent. HOYT You couldn't leave well enough alone, could you, old man? (resigned) Our orders are to run you two off. If you tell us where your son is, we won't have to do any shooting. EZRA You're lying, Hoyt... like always. HOYT Not this time. I got my orders. Ezra thinks a moment, looks over at Scruffy, then back to Hoyt. EZRA My son's on his way to town. HOYT That's too bad. You'll have to go by yourself. INT. CAVE - MORNING The distant ROAR OF GUNS echoes in the small space. Mal awakes with a start. Did he dream it? He looks around. MAL Daddy? EXT. ROCKY HILLSIDE - MORNING Mal, rifle in hand and frantic, is lost among the rocks. Now he stops, listening. He hears HOOFBEATS. He scrambles to the top of a boulder and looks down. WHAT HE SEES. The four Cowboys far below are riding away from the base of the hill. EXT. MOUNTAIN SPRING - MORNING Mal comes out of the rocks. Ezra's rifle is no longer propped where he left it. Ezra is gone. Mal rushes to the edge of the spring, in agony. He looks around desperately, and then freezes. Ezra's dead body is floating away down the mountain stream. Mal splashes into the water, tripping and sliding on the slippery rocks. Finally, he is able to reach Ezra. Mal sits in the water and hugs his father to him. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - MORNING Only a few customers. Early light streams in over gambling tables draped with dust covers. Stella is busy behind the bar. Paden and Emmett are nursing cups of coffee at a table. PADEN Hannah's a smart, pretty woman, but she's got a hard idea for living. EMMETT (doesn't follow) Yeah? PADEN All I'm saying is, you won't trip over me if you look her up. EMMETT (understands, but --) I'm going to California with my brother. Cobb comes in the swinging doors, heading for the bar. Paden waves him over. PADEN Cobb, I want you to meet Emmett. He's a friend of mine. (to Emmett) This is Sheriff Cobb. EMMETT (shaking hands) Pleased to meet you, Sheriff. SHERIFF COBB (interested) Pleasure is mine. Always happy to meet a friend of Paden's. (yelling to Stella) Stella, bring Kelly out here, will you? Cobb turns back to Emmett with an odd smile on his face. SHERIFF COBB You're Kate Hollis' brother, aren't you? (Emmett nods) You're the one who killed old Murdo McKendrick. Paden watches as the two men let that hang between them. EMMETT Didn't have much choice. He was about to shoot my brother in the back. SHERIFF COBB Can't be having that now can we? Stella appears with Kelly, who speaks to Cobb. KELLY You wanted to see me? SHERIFF COBB We're going to make some adjustments. I wanted you to be here when I offered Paden your job. I think he could do it without getting greedy. Stella and I are tired of you skimming our profits. Stella is surprised. The charge is true, but she didn't know this was coming. KELLY What are you talking about? SHERIFF COBB I'm done talking. Get out. KELLY You can't do this. SHERIFF COBB (smiling) Really? Without warning Cobb hits Kelly viciously in the stomach. Stella jumps. Cobb grabs the doubled-over Kelly by the hair and the belt, and propels him out of the saloon, letting go before Kelly crashes through the swinging doors and into the street. Cobb comes back toward the table as though nothing had happened. SHERIFF COBB How about it, Paden? You want the job? Paden, considering, glances at the still swinging doors. PADEN I see you're an understanding boss. Cobb chuckles, picks up Paden's coffee cup, and takes a sip. SHERIFF COBB Nothing like that will happen between us. PADEN Maybe we ought to ask Stella. He turns toward her. She likes the idea. STELLA You'd be welcome. She is smiling at him warmly when suddenly her eyes shift, her expression changes, and she screams -- STELLA No, Kelly! He'll kill you! Cobb is already in motion. He spins, drawing his gun, and fires repeatedly at the swinging doors. Kelly has been aiming over them and is blasted back into the street as the slats splinter. Cobb holsters his gun. The coffee cup is still in his other hand. He takes a final sip, puts the cup down, and licks a spilled drop off his thumb. Stella is repulsed. Cobb fixes her with a malevolent look, and his tone is icy -- SHERIFF COBB Thanks for warning me. Stella rushes out to the street, as Emmett and Paden get up. Emmett and Cobb are very close for one moment. SHERIFF COBB Didn't have much choice. They go out through the gathering crowd. EXT. MAIN STREET - DAY Down the street a stagecoach is rolling into town. Cobb steps off the porch to kneel beside Kelly's body. He looks across at the already-kneeling Stella. SHERIFF COBB I never enjoy killing a man. Stella stands, so for a moment she is taller than he. She stalks back into the saloon. The stagecoach has pulled up across the street. A tall, lanky gambler has disembarked and now walks toward the saloon, carrying his heavy satchel. He moves through the assembled people until he is standing over Kelly's body. This is SLICK. SLICK Excuse me, Sheriff. I'm a gambler who would like to run an honest game in your town. To whom do I speak about that? (glances down) I hope it's not this gentleman. Cobb likes his style. He smiles and turns to indicate Paden. SHERIFF COBB That's him. Paden and Cobb exchange looks for a second. Then Cobb is bustling off. SHERIFF COBB I gotta get somebody to clean up this mess. Emmett and Paden watch Cobb move down the street. EMMETT You used to ride with that guy? Paden looks at Emmett, then down at Kelly. EXT. REAR OF HOLLIS HOME - DAY Jake unhitches the pinto and begins to lead it away. Suddenly, Augie appears from nowhere on the back porch, jumps up to the railing, and leaps out toward the pinto's back -- just as Jake did in the escape from Turley. But Augie misses and lands in the dirt. Jake, irritated, watches the child dust himself off. JAKE What're you doing? I told you to practice with a horse that's not moving. Jake turns and starts away. Augie runs after him. AUGIE Where you going? JAKE I got things to do, kid. I'm a busy man. AUGIE I'll go with you. JAKE (stops, looks at him) A grown man can't have a little boy with him everywhere he goes. Jake walks away. Augie watches, then yells -- AUGIE Who's a grown man? INT. SUPPLY ROOM - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Stella works at the spigots of some large kegs, filling empty bottles with a portion of whiskey, diluting them with water, and corking them. Paden comes in and watches her. She hands him a bottle to cork and starts the process again as he shakes it. PADEN Is this a fair mix? STELLA I'm saving lives here. The straight stuff would raise a blood blister on boot leather. PADEN I meant, seemed like a lot of whiskey. They share a smile. Paden takes down a fancier bottle from a shelf, examining the label. PADEN What's this? STELLA That's the good stuff. PADEN Oh, yeah? How good? She understands him and produces two glasses with a grin. PADEN (pouring the drinks) Here's to the good stuff. Stella lifts her glass, sealing the bond. STELLA May it last a long time. Before they can drink, the Bartender bursts in. BARTENDER You better get out here. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT The room is crowded but silent, frozen. Near the middle of the bar the sexy, young, saloon girl, PHOEBE, stands frightened between Jake and Tyree, the mean fellow we saw released at Chimayo -- now a deputy for Sheriff Cobb. The two men appear about to draw. PHOEBE Nothing happened, Tyree. This is my job. TYREE Shut up. JAKE I don't believe a lady has to explain anything to a man this ugly. Slick watches from a card table nearby, with Rae standing beside him. Now his hand drops casually from the curve of her rear to the vicinity of his boot. Paden and Stella come up on opposite sides of the bar, him in front. Paden sees everything in the room: Tyree's friends, Deputies Kyle and GARTH, are behind Jake and clearly poised to kill him if Tyree fails. PADEN What's the problem here? TYREE (with venom) Stay out of it, Paden. STELLA He can't do that, Tyree. Cobb's hired him. TYREE That's Cobb's mistake. STELLA Come out of there, Phoebe. You've done enough. As Phoebe starts to move from between the men, Tyree grabs her viciously by the arm. In the instant of that movement, Paden's hand flashes out and draws Tyree's Colt out of its holster from behind. Garth and Kyle tense as Tyree whirls on Paden, eyes flaming. But his own gun is pointed at his chest. PADEN Get out of here, Jake. JAKE All I did was kiss the girl. PADEN That's what you said in Turley. You remember how that ended. JAKE What's the matter, Paden? You afraid I couldn't get those two behind me? PADEN I don't want you getting anyone in my place. Jake looks at Paden, who motions him out with the gun. Jake starts to move grudgingly, but first flashes Phoebe a big "see you later" look. He goes out. TYREE (to Paden) I should have killed you a long time ago. Paden flips the gun in his grasp and hands it to Tyree, butt first. PADEN Why not now? The situation is now totally reversed, and no one can quite believe it. Tyree cocks the gun. At the poker table Slick lifts his pant leg, revealing the handle of a custom-made dagger secreted in his boot. STELLA Don't do it, Tyree. I just lost a partner. If you kill him, I'll never get anyone to work here. Tyree considers for a moment, then holsters his gun. To Stella -- TYREE Better start looking. He goes out. Garth and Kyle follow. Phoebe hurries away from Stella's hard look. Slick relaxes. The piano kicks in. Paden leans against the bar toward Stella. STELLA You really are a gambler. PADEN Give me some of the good stuff. EXT. ROOMING HOUSE - DAY A door opens on the upstairs porch and Rae emerges, giggling and buttoning her dress. A hand reaches out and pulls her back inside for another squealing embrace. She pushes herself free and comes outside again, then starts down the exterior stairs. She is almost to the bottom when she stops suddenly. Mal stands at the bottom of the stairs. They look at each other a long time. Conflicting emotions race across Rae's face, but the winner is cold anger. MAL Hello, Rae. RAE What are you doing here? I thought you were done with our family. MAL Daddy's dead. Rae seems to sway, then sits down on the stairs above Mal. For a moment she is somewhere else, but when she returns, her look is as hard as before. MAL He was murdered. RAE Who did it? MAL I'm not sure, but I got an idea. And when I am sure, they're going to pay. RAE (bitter) Oh that's just fine. Where were you when Ma and Daddy needed you? It's too late, Mal. Now you finally show up and all you can think of is to get yourself killed. Now Slick comes down the stairs behind Rae, pulling on his jacket. Mal glares at him; this is who can buy his sister now. SLICK Are you all right, Rae? RAE Yeah, I'm okay. Slick seems unperturbed by Mal's glare. To Rae -- SLICK Will you introduce me to your friend? RAE He's not my friend. He used to be my brother. SLICK (offers his hand to Mal) Calvin Stanhope... but my mother called me Slick. Mal just looks at the proffered hand. Slick retracts it without offense. SLICK I know what you're thinking, mister, but I think Rae's a special lady. Excuse me. Slick comes down past Mal and moves off. Mal watches him go, then turns to Rae. MAL What are you doing here, Rae? This ain't for you. RAE It's none of your business. MAL Rae, all we got is each other. RAE (standing up) I don't have any family any more. She brushes past him and is gone. OMIT EXT. BRADLEY'S PLACE - NIGHT Carol, Bradley's daughter, and a Friend are playing on the roof of the farmhouse, above the noisy activity of the welcoming celebration. Now Bradley steps into the foreground. BRADLEY Don't fall off of there, you fools! HOBART Might do them some good, Daniel. I wasn't worth a damn until I fell off the barn on my head. The two men turn to look at the dancing. It's a festive scene all around: tables are laden with food near a large bonfire, a few of the covered wagons are pulled up nearby, children dart about before the pick-up band of musicians. Now we see, here among the sodbusters, whirling by with a comely lass, Jake, looking mighty slim without his double gunbelt. He and his partner glide by Emmett, who stands shouting over the din with Hannah and Mr. and MRS. PARKER. MRS. PARKER Hannah's the hardest-working gal I ever saw. MR. PARKER It's going to be all right. EMMETT I wish you the best, Mrs. Parker. Mr. Parker twirls his wife off into the dance. Emmett and Hannah, a slightly awkward couple, stroll away from the music. This is the first time Emmett has seemed less than certain. EMMETT The Parkers seem like nice folks. HANNAH They've been kind to me. EMMETT (after a few steps) Paden sends his best. HANNAH (smiles) I guess I put a good scare into him. Emmett smiles in agreement. HANNAH I'm surprised to see you out here tonight. EMMETT I just came out to say goodbye. HANNAH (stopped) Goodbye? EMMETT Yeah, me and Jake will be heading out for California soon. Hannah is silent for a moment. She sits down at one of the tables and looks at him. For the first time there is a softness in her voice. HANNAH You came all the way out here to tell me you're going to California? All you had to do was go, and we'd never see each other again. EMMETT That's why I'm here. She gives him an odd look, a soft challenge to his reticence. HANNAH Why? He sits down beside her and looks at his boots. EMMETT You don't make it easy on a fellow. HANNAH Didn't Paden tell you that? Emmett smiles at that and looks into her lovely eyes. After a long moment -- HANNAH Maybe you thought you'd be back this way someday. EMMETT Yeah... that must have been it. UP ON THE ROOF of the farmhouse, Carol is yelling and gesturing to her oblivious father below, while her Friend stares frozen into the night. Jake is wiping his brow as he stands at the edge of the dancers. He looks up at Carol quizzically. Only now do we hear it, over the din of the music: the THUNDER of hooves. Out of the night, streaming around the farm buildings, comes a horde of masked Cowboys, McKendrick's men. They send up a horrible yell and begin firing their weapons in the air. Their arrival is so sudden that the celebrants are frozen in their places, mothers hugging children to them, men far from their weapons. There are SCREAMS. Emmett grabs a panicked child from the path of the horses and moves back, passing her to Hannah. He's trying to gauge his response in the midst of all these innocents. Two Cowboys have roped opposite ends of a section of fence and now pull the deadly drag, already thick with ravaged corn, through the barnyard, knocking over everything in its path. Jake slides through the chaos toward his gunbelt, hung on a peg on the barn wall. A Cowboy pulls the gate from the pigsty, and the pigs squeal out. Another Cowboy begins shooting them with a Henry rifle. On the roof, Carol looks in horror at the death of her prize sow. Emmett is herding as many Settlers as he can toward the cover of the barn. Bradley edges toward the door of his farmhouse. Hobart is urging some women between two wagons. A Cowboy rides by and kicks him viciously. Hoyt pulls up, looks around, then gestures to some of his men. Two Cowboys with prepared torches in their hands ride up to the bonfire and swing low, lighting their firebrands. One moves ahead toward the farmhouse, reins his horse, and heaves the torch high in the air toward the roof on which the two children perch. In the air, the tumbling flame suddenly explodes at the ROAR of a shotgun. Sparks shower harmlessly to the ground. Bradley has shot it out of the air with one barrel of his shotgun. The blast has created a momentary, shocked lull in the attack. Bradley looks wild. Emmett watches, fearful. His hand is on his gun. Hoyt looks at Bradley. Bradley swings the shotgun around toward the other torch-bearer. The Cowboy who tossed the first torch shoots Bradley dead. Carol screams. Emmett looks across the yard at Jake, who steps out from the cowering homesteaders, a gun in each hand. Emmett draws and kills the man who shot Bradley. Now all the Settlers hit the dirt. Jake fires from both hands repeatedly. One Cowboy dies and another takes it in the arm. The man who was shooting the pigs swings his rifle around toward Jake, and Emmett kills him with one shot. Hoyt reacts big to the presence of deadly wolves in the midst of these sheep. He peers through the tumult, trying to see their faces. His Cowboys are shooting wildly into the crowd now, but he rides through them, signalling a retreat. Emmett jumps from the top of a fence to the roof of the house, the Henry rifle in his hand. He scrambles to the peak of the roof, where the two children still cower. Bracing the rifle on the chimney, he takes careful aim. Once... twice... he fires. One Cowboy dead, one wounded and fleeing. Hannah runs up to the riderless horse of a fallen Cowboy and pulls a rifle from its scabbard. She cocks it and fires off at the retreating Cowboys. Jake mounts a horse Pony Express- style and rides out of the barnyard. OMIT EXT. BRADLEY'S PLACE - NIGHT LATER. Emmett lowers a weeping Carol to the ground. The girl rushes toward her fallen father and her mother, who cradles the body. Hobart intercepts the girl, trying to shield her from the sight. Emmett's eyes meet Hobart's. Hobart lets Carol go. Emmett walks through the devastation to where Hannah stands dazed, rifle still in hand. Emmett puts his arm around her. She jumps at his touch, then moves against him. Jake rides into the barnyard and up to Emmett. He is flushed. JAKE There's two more out there walking home, if they can walk. Emmett's gaze is caught by something across the barnyard. Hannah follows his gaze. Mr. Parker stumbles out of the darkness at the side of the barn, sobbing. Hannah breaks from Emmett and rushes to Mr. Parker. When she is beside him, she freezes, staring into the shadows. Emmett watches. EXT. ALLEY/STREET - SILVERADO - DAY Augie is standing circus-style on the saddle of the pinto as he rides down the alley. As he approaches the main street, his foot slips, and he bumps down hard into the saddle. The horse is barely in his control as he bounces out into the busier thoroughfare, and into the path of -- An imposing phalanx of four horsemen: Hoyt, Scruffy, SWANN, and their boss, ETHAN MCKENDRICK. The pinto shies as the horsemen pull up abruptly. AUGIE Sorry 'bout that. Swann looks with interest at the pinto, then reaches out and grabs the reins from Augie's hand. AUGIE Hey! SWANN Where'd you get this horse, kid? AUGIE This is my uncle's horse. SWANN The hell it is. MCKENDRICK (irritable) What's the problem, Swann? Emmett steps off the sidewalk on the other side of the street and approaches the group, his eyes on McKendrick. EMMETT Yeah, what's the problem? McKendrick turns at the sound of Emmett's voice. Something powerful flicks through his eyes, but not too many people would see it. MCKENDRICK Emmett. EMMETT McKendrick. Hoyt eyes Emmett, who seems familiar. Emmett looks at Swann in such a way that Swann releases the reins of the pinto. MCKENDRICK I didn't know you were out. EMMETT Did it seem short to you? McKendrick reacts to Emmett's tone. MCKENDRICK That's all over as far as I'm concerned, Emmett. I'm satisfied. EMMETT Sounds good. MCKENDRICK All right then. (to his men) Let's go. SWANN Mr. McKendrick, don't you recognize that pinto? MCKENDRICK (doesn't) What? SWANN That's Lee's horse. HOYT Shut up, Swann. Now McKendrick understands. He avoids Emmett's gaze and speaks to Swann. MCKENDRICK Forget it. EMMETT Wait a minute. Get down off of there, Augie. Augie hops down as Emmett takes the reins. Emmett gives Augie a look and a small nod, and the boy steps away. Emmett looks once again at the distinctive brand on the pinto's flank, a circle with two wavy lines beneath it. Now he leads the pinto around beside McKendrick's horse so he can see the brand on that animal. McKendrick has to twist in his saddle to watch Emmett. The brands are the same. Emmett looks up at McKendrick. Things are clear between them. EMMETT The man who lost this horse must have been working for you. I should have known. But you changed your brand, Ethan. McKendrick's tone is different now -- MCKENDRICK A lot of things changed when my father died. Emmett lays the reins of the pinto across the front of McKendrick's saddle, but they might just as well be a gauntlet. McKendrick picks them up. He and his men move down the street. Emmett walks over and takes Augie beneath his arm. DOWN THE STREET. Hoyt rides close to McKendrick but looks back over his shoulder. HOYT Mr. McKendrick, he was one of them last night at Bradley's. McKendrick reacts: more bad news. INT. LAND OFFICE - DAY J.T. supervises the newly-arrived Settlers as they file their homestead claims. There is a battle-weary but resolved air to the group after the night attack. They are going to stick it out. The last step in the filing process is to sign in a large register. Mr. Parker signs and moves away. Hannah steps up for her turn. Her face is a little harder today, but her hand is steady. EXT. LAND OFFICE/HOLLIS HOUSE - DAY Several of the Settlers' wagons are here, guarded by vigilant, armed men. Their attitude has become more wary, siege-like. Parker climbs onto a wagon. Hannah is about to follow when Emmett approaches with Augie, who runs off around the house. Several of the Settlers greet Emmett warmly. Emmett looks closely at Hannah's face. EMMETT Are you all right? HANNAH This is a brutal land. EMMETT You must have known that before you came. HANNAH It's one thing to know it... She looks off, then bitterly -- HANNAH We told Sheriff Cobb about the attack. (with an edge) He said he'd... look into it. (Emmett understands) I can't believe he's the law out here. Now I see why you all wear guns. EMMETT How's Mr. Parker doing? HANNAH Just like you'd think. But he's not going to run. We're sticking to our plan. Now we both need help. Emmett looks her over. He's not liking her any less. INT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - SILVERADO JAIL - DAY Cobb sits with his boots up on his desk. McKendrick sits in the shadows across the room. SHERIFF COBB He must be pretty good. MCKENDRICK He's good, all right. Too good for my men. That's why you've got to take care of it. SHERIFF COBB What about his brother? MCKENDRICK We'll handle that. He's careless. Cobb looks out the window. SHERIFF COBB Things are getting messy around here. (he looks at McKendrick) I hear Ezra Johnson got himself killed. MCKENDRICK I heard that too. SHERIFF COBB Did you hear his son is still around? McKendrick reacts to that, and Cobb can't suppress a smile. McKendrick sees it and stands up. MCKENDRICK Cobb, looks like you're finally going to earn your money. INT. OFFICE - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Stella and Cobb have been dividing the receipts between them. Cobb puts another sum in a leather pouch. SHERIFF COBB This'll be for Paden. Stella is impressed by the amount. Cobb notes her reaction. SHERIFF COBB It's an advance. We want him to know he's going to be happy here. STELLA I wouldn't worry about that. SHERIFF COBB I thought you two would get along. Cobb opens the office door and holds it for Stella. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Cobb and Stella come out into the saloon, which is not yet crowded. Stella moves up her ramp behind the bar as Cobb walks along in front of it. STELLA From what I've seen, Paden doesn't care much about money. SHERIFF COBB He says he doesn't care about anything, but he does. There's just no telling what it's going to be. Slick is standing at the bar. Cobb settles in next to him. They nod at each other. SHERIFF COBB Howdy, Mr. Slick. SLICK Sheriff. Cobb turns to Stella, who has put a bottle before him and is pouring Cobb and herself drinks. Cobb seems to be including Slick in the following story, though he addresses Stella. SHERIFF COBB Let me tell you about your friend Paden. Me and him and Tyree and a few other boys did a good bit of riding together a few years back. Business, you know, and business was pretty good. We were moving around a lot, the way you have to in that work, and somewhere along the line we picked up this dog. One of the boys took to feeding it, so it followed us everywhere. Anyway, this one time we were leaving a little Missouri town in quite a hurry, with a bunch of the locals on our tails. The dog somehow got tangled up with Tyree's horse and Tyree went flying. Tyree was pretty mad when he jumped up, so he shot the dog. Didn't kill him, though. Before you know it, Paden's off his horse and holding the dog. He'd gone all strange on us. Said we should go on without him. I thought he was kidding at first. But he wasn't. Tyree was ready to plug 'em both. And all this with the posse coming down on us. Here I thought we were pals after all that riding. And suddenly he's more worried about a mutt. So we did like he asked and left him. He went to jail for a dog. Stella has been listening intently. Now her glance shifts: Paden has walked up beside Cobb. Cobb lifts his glass to Paden with a grin, but speaks to Stella. SHERIFF COBB And you want to hear the funny part? Paden didn't even like the damn dog. Paden gives Cobb an odd glance but smiles. PADEN It evened out in the end. They locked me up, but the dog sprung me. Cobb and Slick laugh, but Stella just watches Paden. STELLA Where's the dog now? PADEN He left me. Cobb takes the bottle and a couple glasses. SHERIFF COBB C'mon, Paden, I'll buy you a drink. Cobb leads Paden to a table in the corner. As Paden sits down, Cobb drops the pouch on the table. Paden glances at the contents as Cobb pours the drinks. SHERIFF COBB I took out thirteen dollars. PADEN This is a lot of money. SHERIFF COBB I told you this was a sweet set-up. PADEN It is that. SHERIFF COBB Maybe you could run it without Stella. Paden looks sharply at Cobb. With some heat -- PADEN This is her life. I'll go before she does. Cobb is amused but not surprised. SHERIFF COBB Easy, boy. Just an idea. PADEN Well, thanks, but forget it. SHERIFF COBB You know, Paden, what makes all this work is me doing my job. The fellows you came to town with are causing some trouble. It's going to take a little straightening out. I have my responsibilities. I want you to understand. It has nothing to do with us. Paden looks at Cobb a long time, then at his drink. PADEN What is it you want from me? SHERIFF COBB Nothing. Do nothing. Don't get between us. PADEN I'm a great believer in doing nothing. SHERIFF COBB So we understand each other? PADEN Don't worry about me. If you're taking on Emmett, the last place I want to be is between you. EXT. ARROYO - OUTSIDE SILVERADO - DAY We move along the burnished barrel of the old Henry .44 rifle to Emmett's eye, sighting along its length. Now we see his target. In the distance is a small cactus plant. Emmett squeezes off a shot. The cactus does not move. He aims again and fires quickly. Again, nothing at the cactus. AT THE CACTUS. Now we're right behind the target plant, Emmett in the distance. When he fires, a thin needle at the top edge of the plant is blown away, the bullet leaving a shallow trough in the green skin. He fires again, and the next needle disappears. Now there are four troughs. He's been hitting from the start. Emmett lowers the rifle, walks back to his horse tied nearby, and leaves the rifle, then moves away from the horse again. He stops, looking at a can in the dust fifty feet away. He shakes the fingers of his gun hand once, then very quickly: he draws his Colt and fires. The can jumps into the air. While it is still moving, Emmett holsters the gun, releasing it, then draws again and fires. As the can jumps once more, Emmett repeats the action. Six times he draws. The can doesn't stop moving until after the last shot. The horrible NOISE echoes away as Emmett holds the empty gun before him. From behind a rock ahead of him, Deputy Garth appears. GARTH You're empty, mister. Emmett immediately begins to bolt toward his horse. A lasso settles around his arms and whips him viciously backwards. In a second he is back on his feet and running like a bull toward Deputy Kyle, who has stepped from the brush to throw the rope. Immediately a second lasso catches Emmett from the other side and pulls taut. A deputy on horseback, CHARLIE, has roped him. Charlie and Kyle pull their ropes, yanking Emmett onto his back. Now appearing around a bend in the arroyo is Tyree, a nasty glint in his eye. He rides hard directly toward Emmett. Emmett watches the pounding hooves approach. He struggles but can't move. Tyree's horse thunders over him, one hoof catching his side with a sickening THUD. Emmett writhes in agony. Tyree turns his horse and heads back. Kyle pulls harder on his rope. Tyree rides over Emmett again, but we can't see the damage for the dust. Tyree walks his horse over and looks down, as Garth, Kyle, and Charlie converge. Emmett's head is bleeding, his body crumpled. But he looks up at them through pain-squinted eyes. GARTH Ain't you dead yet, mister? TYREE Cobb said he'd be hard to kill. They all laugh at this. TYREE (to Emmett) Guess you couldn't hear us coming. (to the others) He was practicing so hard for a fight, he missed the whole thing. The others cackle. Garth draws his gun. GARTH So long, stranger. He starts to lower the muzzle toward Emmett. There is the echoing CRACK of a shot and the gun flies from Garth's shattered hand. Mal stands on a rock above them, his rifle pointed. MAL I don't want to kill you, and you don't want to be dead. Drop your guns. The other deputies exchange glances as Garth bends in pain. KYLE He can't be that good, Tyree. TYREE Do you want to find out? CHARLIE (dropping his rope) I think we should do like he says. As the others start to unbuckle their holsters, Charlie, the compliant one, draws on Mal. Mal shoots him out of the saddle, dead. The others freeze. EXT. TRAIL - BASE OF HILLS - DAY Mal comes into view, leading a motley remuda. Emmett is tied onto his horse, unconscious. The four deputies' riderless horses are strung along behind. All their guns have been tied on Emmett's horse. Now Mal releases the extra horses and shoos them away. He leads Emmett's horse up the trail into the hills. EXT. CAVE - DAY Emmett and Mal's horses are tied near the entrance. INT. CAVE - DAY Mal has tended to Emmett's head wound and now binds a large, ugly bruise on his ribs. Emmett, half-conscious, writhes in pain, and now his eyes flicker open. Confused, he makes a futile attempt to rise. EMMETT ...Gotta go... MAL Sure. Emmett passes out again. EXT. ROAD - OUTSIDE SILVERADO - DUSK The three surviving deputies, gunless, trudge along the road. Garth holds his wounded hand close to his body. INT. CAVE - DUSK Emmett lies sleeping in the flickering light of the fire. Mal sits nearby, his Henry rifle lying at his feet. He is examining the Henry that Emmett had at the arroyo. Emmett wakes up, wincing. EMMETT Where are we? MAL Someplace safe. How you feeling? Emmett's look makes it clear -- "bad". EMMETT I'd be worse if you hadn't come along. MAL I didn't just come along. I was looking for you. (Emmett doesn't understand) Jake said you were out there. I saw him in town, and he told me about that business the other night. Said you boys took a Henry off one of McKendrick's men. I wanted to see it. EMMETT That's it. Mal looks at the rifle in his arms sadly. MAL This was my father's. The men who killed him took it. EMMETT (looks at him a moment) I'm sorry. Emmett tries to move his pain-racked body. EMMETT I gotta get to my brother. If they came after me, they'll want him too. MAL You'll never make it. EMMETT (still trying) Have to. Mal reaches out with a strong hand and eases Emmett back down. MAL I'll go. I'll bring Jake out here. EMMETT (after a long look) Be careful. You're in it now. And it's gonna get mean. MAL So far that's all I seen in this life. EXT./INT. LIVERY STABLE - EDGE OF TOWN - DUSK It's quiet here, nobody around. We move up to the hay-loading window at the loft level. Now Jake dives into view, leaping from the hayloft to a beam and flipping completely around it. We hear GIGGLES. Phoebe climbs the ladder onto the loft and looks in wonder at her manic companion, who now flies back onto the loft. They look at each other with hungry anticipation. EXT. ALLEY/STREET NEAR HOLLIS HOUSE - NIGHT Mal, on foot, makes his way cautiously through the gloom to the end of the alley. He looks over at the Hollis home and land office, windows aglow. Now Mal spots a Cowboy down the street smoking a cigarette as he leans against a hitching post. Mal is peering at him uncertainly when the front door of the Hollis house opens, and Kate steps out onto the porch. The Cowboy steps quickly back into the shadows, and Mal notes it. Kate vigorously shakes a tablecloth over the railing and turns back inside, talking as she goes. KATE Augie, I've had enough of this. Kiss your father and get in bed. She closes the door behind her. Mal sees the cowboy called Red coming down the street and hurries away in the direction he came from. Red comes up to the WATCHING COWBOY. RED No sign of him yet? ("no") He ain't at the saloon either. WATCHING COWBOY Where is that boy? INT. RAE'S ROOM - MIDNIGHT STAR (SECOND FLOOR) - NIGHT Rae is finishing her evening's makeup in the cracked mirror of her cramped, little room. Mal slides in the door behind her, closing it quickly. He carries his rifle. She sees his reflection and stiffens but continues making up. RAE Get out. We have nothing to talk about. MAL Rae, I need help. RAE Why come to me? MAL Because you're my sister. There's nobody else. (a beat) The men who killed Daddy are after Jake. I gotta talk to him. RAE What's stopping you? MAL They're watching the Hollis place. I can't get through. RAE What makes you think I could? MAL Why would they stop you? RAE (bitter irony) Because I'm your sister. Mal sits down on her bed. She looks at him a moment. RAE Wait here. INT. SALOON - NIGHT Stella is working behind the bar. Slick is playing poker at a table nearby. Now Rae appears and whispers in his ear. He throws in his cards, gets up, and follows her toward the stairs. Stella watches. INT. RAE'S ROOM - NIGHT Mal looks up as the door opens, then stands up when he sees that Rae has brought Slick with her. MAL Why him? RAE Shut up. You need help, don't you? EXT. CHURCH - SILVERADO - NIGHT We are looking up at the church steeple from across the square. Now Slick steps into the foreground, looks around, and waves someone on from behind. Mal comes into the frame. SLICK (quietly) Jake said he'd meet you behind the church. Be careful. They're all over the place. Mal's opinion of Slick has softened. He offers his hand. MAL Thanks. SLICK (shakes hands) Good luck. Mal looks around, then slips away toward the church. Slick stands and watches. EXT. BACK OF CHURCH - NIGHT Mal comes around the corner of the building. Cobb is lounging comfortably on the back steps. Mal aims his rifle, but Cobb doesn't move. SHERIFF COBB You must be Ezra Johnson's boy. Mal cocks the hammer. SHERIFF COBB Don't shoot the sheriff. It's against the law. Three deputies appear quietly out of the shadows behind Mal, their guns pointed. The door behind Cobb opens, revealing Garth, his hand bandaged. Mal lowers the rifle. SHERIFF COBB So's killing a deputy. Tyree comes up behind Mal and takes the rifle from his hand. Suddenly he hits him in the kidney with the rifle butt. Mal goes down. SHERIFF COBB We're going to give you a fair trial... Garth has come down the steps and over to Mal. He holds his bandaged hand out in front of him, then kicks Mal viciously. SHERIFF COBB ...followed by a first-class hanging. Finally Cobb gets up and walks over to look down at Mal. SHERIFF COBB Or you can ride out of here before dawn. Mal turns his head so he can look up at Cobb. SHERIFF COBB All you gotta do is tell me where to find your friend Emmett. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Rae is serving drinks at a table in the noisy saloon. She sees Slick come in. Their eyes meet, but he goes to the bar and orders a drink. She hurries over there. Slick throws back a shot and turns to her, upset. SLICK Did your brother tell you he killed a deputy? Rae is taken aback. SLICK Jake never showed up. Sheriff Cobb arrested Mal. Took him off to jail. Rae begins to crack. Slick takes her into his arms. Stella moves up behind the bar, looking closely at Rae. STELLA What's going on here, Rae? INT. CELLBLOCK - SILVERADO JAIL - NIGHT Close on Mal as he dabs at a split lip with the tail of his shirt. He's sitting on a cot in a cell. He has been beaten more. As the door to the outer office clangs open, he reacts with resignation; here comes more pain. But when he looks up, it is Paden standing outside the bars. Behind Paden, Garth throws a hostile look at Mal and goes out. Paden notes Mal's condition. Mal regards Paden coolly. PADEN Why are they doing this, Mal? MAL Because they enjoy it. PADEN I heard from Stella you were trying to find Jake. What happened to Emmett? MAL You don't know? Paden takes the rebuke and shakes his head "no". MAL Cobb's men just about killed him. That's what happened. Paden reacts. MAL I got there just short of too late. PADEN (pained) Lucky. Mal snorts derisively at that and glances around. MAL Yeah, it's working out real good. PADEN Where's Emmett now? Mal gives him a disbelieving look. MAL You're working for Cobb these days, aren't you? Paden grimly acknowledges that. MAL Your friends have been beating me to find that out. You think I'm gonna just tell you? Mal gets up to face Paden, separated by only a few inches and the steel bars. MAL You waltzed in here pretty easy, and you can go out the same way. (motions him away) Me they're figuring to carry out. Paden knows that no explanation will suffice here. Sadly, he turns away from his former riding companion and leaves. OMIT EXT. ALLEY BEHIND MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Rae waits nervously behind the noisy saloon, peering into the darkness. Now she sees what she's been waiting for: Paden comes out of the shadows. His mind elsewhere, it takes him a moment to focus on Rae. RAE Is he all right? PADEN (considers a moment) It looks bad, Rae. He's a hard man, and he won't give them what they want. It's gonna cost him. RAE Can't you stop them? PADEN I don't think so. Rae begins to cry quietly and leans against a wall. Phoebe appears from the other direction and goes up to Rae. PHOEBE Rae? It's Phoebe. EXT. REAR OF HOLLIS HOUSE - NIGHT Jake has put his horse in the little corral behind the Hollis house. He whistles as he goes up onto the back porch and in the door. INT. KITCHEN/SITTING ROOM (HOLLIS HOUSE) - NIGHT There is one, dim lamp burning in the room. Jake sails his hat across the room onto a hook, picks up a match, and lights a second lamp. He calls out softly. JAKE Kate? He picks up the lamp and moves toward the dark office at the front of the house and the stairs which lead upstairs. He steps through the door and freezes. A cocked six-gun appears near his ear. INT. LAND OFFICE (HOLLIS HOUSE) - NIGHT In the light of Jake's lamp he sees: four masked men have Kate, J.T., and Augie gagged and held at gunpoint. The little boy is in his nightshirt. For one long moment Jake seems to be considering a play. McKendrick is the one with the gun to Jake's head. MCKENDRICK Don't. EXT. ALLEY BEHIND MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Rae has been tearfully telling Phoebe her story as Paden stands nearby. PHOEBE Looking for Jake? Jake's been with me all evening. I just left him. PADEN (suddenly alert) Where is he now? PHOEBE He went home. Paden takes off running into the darkness. Phoebe looks after him, confused. Rae grabs her by the shoulders. RAE All evening? Even after Slick came? PHOEBE Slick? Rae begins to understand an awful truth. EXT. STREET IN FRONT OF HOLLIS HOUSE - NIGHT A masked man (Hoyt) steadies Jake, hands bound behind his back, on one of the horses Red and the Watching Cowboy have brought up to the front of the house. Another of the men (Scruffy) is just coming out onto the porch. INT. LAND OFFICE - NIGHT Inside only two masked men remain, McKendrick and Swann. J.T. watches them with hostile eyes. Swann notices Kate peering out the window at Jake. SWANN Take a long look, lady. It's the last you'll see of him. MCKENDRICK Shut up. McKendrick has been looking thoughtfully at the ledgers and records shelved around the land office. Now he picks up the lamp Jake brought into the room. It lights his eyes above the bandana mask. They lock with J.T.'s . McKendrick heaves the lamp into the shelves. Kerosene flames engulf the ledgers. McKendrick starts to move toward the door. J.T. snaps. He picks up a heavy register book and hurtles it with enormous force, hitting McKendrick in the back of the head and knocking him down. J.T. dives for McKendrick's gun. Kate watches in terror, then sees Swann point his gun at the scrambling J.T. She grabs Swann's arm, and his gun fires into the floor. J.T. comes up with McKendrick's gun and fires quickly at Swann, who has thrown off Kate. Swann, hit in the shoulder, crashes back through a window and out onto the porch. EXT. STREET - NIGHT Jake reacts in anguish and twists in his saddle. Hoyt points a cocked gun at him. INT. LAND OFFICE - NIGHT Scruffy, back at the door now, fires twice into J.T., slamming his big body backward against the base of a counter. Kate's scream is muffled by her gag. Augie, eyes wide, darts to his father's body, but rather than embrace him, he pries the gun from J.T.'s fingers and raises it toward Scruffy. Kate sees what's happening and leaps at Scruffy. He viciously pistol-whips her. Her unconscious, falling body knocks the gun from Augie's hand. McKendrick is straightening now, his head clearing. His bandana has fallen from his face. He looks in horror at the wounded Hollises. Augie stares at his revealed face. Scruffy's gun is cocked and pointed at Augie. MCKENDRICK Stop it! SCRUFFY He saw you. McKendrick hates the way it's gone. MCKENDRICK Bring him with us. EXT. END OF STREET - NIGHT Paden runs up. Down the street in front of the Hollis house a mass of men and horses, lit by the growing flames, thunders away into the night. Paden races toward the house, as neighbors rush about raising the alarm. EXT. HOLLIS HOUSE - NIGHT Paden runs up to the open front door and is momentarily stopped by the heat. INT. LAND OFFICE - NIGHT In among the flames a bleeding Kate is desperately trying to drag J.T.'s inert bulk to the door. Paden reaches her, picks her up, and runs out. Two neighbors pass him on their way to J.T. EXT. STREET IN FRONT OF HOLLIS HOUSE - NIGHT A chaotic scene as the fire-fighting is organized. Several Neighbor Women help Paden ease Kate down on a blanket. KATE Help J.T.! NEIGHBOR WOMAN Where's Augie? (to Paden) Her boy must be upstairs! Paden rises as if to go back in, but stops at -- KATE No, no... they took him. They took my Augie. Paden reacts to this, then turns as the two neighbors lay J.T.'s body nearby. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Word of the fire has not reached here, and normal, noisy activity reigns. Slick is dealing a three-man poker game. Rae watches him from across the room, then takes a drink over to him. When she places it before him, he looks up appreciatively, then goes back to his game. She puts her arms around him from behind and kisses his neck, then slides sensuously into the empty seat beside him. He ignores her adoring look and roaming hands, but smiles as he plays. BENEATH THE TABLE. Rae's left hand roves excitingly high on Slick's thigh. Now, so smooth and quick we barely see it, her right hand lifts his trouser leg and slips the custom- made dagger from his boot. Slick deals a hand. Rae watches him thoughtfully. The swinging doors behind them crash open, and a TOWNSMAN bursts in. TOWNSMAN Fire! The land office is on fire! Most of the patrons rush out, including the players in Slick's game, who grab their chips first. Slick peeks at one of the thrown-down hands out of curiosity, then rises slowly. SLICK Shall we take a look? Rae nods, and when she rises to take his arm, her hands are empty. EXT. STREET IN FRONT OF HOLLIS HOUSE - NIGHT The townspeople have formed a bucket brigade in a losing battle with the fire at the Hollis house. SHOUTS fill the air above the ROAR of the inferno. Stella is among the new arrivals from the saloon. She is stopped by the sight of Kate, bloody and hysterical, being borne away. Horrified by the scene, Stella now snaps out of it and begins YELLING ORDERS to the saloon patrons to help fight the blaze. Paden is only a few feet from the flames, at the head of the bucket line. He is in shirt sleeves, sweaty and sooty. The heat of the fire is driving the line back. The Townsman next to Paden yells to him -- TOWNSMAN There's no way! It's a goner! Cobb, Tyree, and Kyle appear from the shadows. Cobb takes in the scene and spots J.T. being carried across the street. He motions Tyree over to investigate, then moves toward the fire. Slick and Rae arrive within the light of the blaze. Slick watches with detached interest, but Rae's gaze quickly locks on Cobb moving through the chaos. She sees him now with new eyes. Phoebe, crying, watches as J.T.'s limp body is hurried off on a stretcher, DR. SKINNER in attendance. She turns and is face to face with Tyree, who grasps her arms. She regards him with revulsion and fear, then breaks from him and runs off. Cobb moves up next to Paden. SHERIFF COBB Give it up. Paden glances at him, then throws more water on. But now the bucket line slows to a halt. The townspeople fade back a little to watch the inevitable. SHERIFF COBB I hate to see this kind of thing in my town. Paden glares at Cobb, who is watching the fire. SHERIFF COBB I'm going to have to look into this. PADEN Yeah, maybe I will too. SHERIFF COBB (looks at him) I thought we talked about that. PADEN We didn't talk about this. (a beat, indignant) They took the little boy, Cobb. Paden moves off toward a nearby hitching post, where he has left his gunbelt and hat. Cobb looks after him a moment, then follows. They are now a short distance from the onlookers. Paden straps on his gunbelt, but his eyes are on Cobb as he approaches, silhouetted against the flames. SHERIFF COBB You're still worried about the dog, aren't you? Paden ties his holster to his thigh. SHERIFF COBB You gotta calm down, Paden. Everything will be put straight in a few days. PADEN I saw how you're putting Mal Johnson straight. Something flicks through Cobb's eyes. He turns slowly and looks at the scene behind him. At the edge of the crowd a tired Stella sits on an overturned bucket, watching the fire; she wipes her sweaty brow with the sleeve of her dress. Still looking that way -- SHERIFF COBB I never could count on you to be reasonable. (turns back to Paden) Don't force me to make an adjustment around here. PADEN Cobb, you've got nothing I need. SHERIFF COBB I'm not thinking about your future, Paden. I'm worried about Stella. PADEN What's she got to do with it? SHERIFF COBB Not a thing. She's just a mutual friend. (a beat) But if you wind up on the wrong side of this, she's going to get hurt. Paden stares at Cobb, but now his eyes follow Cobb's right hand, which swings up to Paden's shoulder. SHERIFF COBB I'm just trying to save you from yourself. Don't change your luck. Cobb lets his hand drop and begins to move away. SHERIFF COBB Get some sleep, Paden. Things'll look better tomorrow. Paden watches as Cobb walks over to Stella. Cobb takes a handkerchief from his pocket and squats before Stella. He starts to wipe her forehead solicitously, but she takes the handkerchief from his hand. Cobb looks back at Paden as he rises and moves off. Paden turns and looks into the leaping flames. Our eyes can barely discern the change as these flames dissolve into others, the fire now in -- INT. CAVE - NIGHT The low fire illuminates Emmett, who is sitting on the hay. He is sweating badly and seems to be concentrating on some rigorous task. Now we see what it is -- to stand up. He struggles to his feet, wincing in pain, his hand steadying against the rock. When he is upright, he tries to clear his head and finally lets go of the wall. For a moment he seems all right. Then, suddenly, he drops heavily back to the floor. The fall sends more pain shooting through his ribs. He's going nowhere. EXT. STREET IN FRONT OF SILVERADO JAIL - NIGHT Middle of the night. All is quiet, no one on the street. Rae watches from the shadows across the street as DEPUTY FOX leaves the jail and moves away. Rae goes toward the jail. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT The place is nearly deserted. Paden sits alone at a table killing a bottle of the good stuff. Stella watches him pour another drink. STELLA Can't you drink any faster? We need the bottles. Paden throws her a look as she takes one of the empty chairs. STELLA What is it that I can't figure? PADEN What do you mean? STELLA Cobb's got something on you, and it must be pretty good. Paden is impressed, even at this late date, by her acuity. PADEN What makes you say that? STELLA If he didn't you'd never sit still while this was happening. PADEN You sure? Maybe that's the kind of friend I am. STELLA (laughs derisively) Nah! (moving on) What's he got? This is a nice saloon, but there are other nice saloons. It's not the money. Not for you. Why can't I get ahold of it? (watches him take a drink) Cobb says there's no telling what you're going to care about. PADEN (bitterly amused) Is that what he said? Well, he figured it okay this time. She regards him as he looks at his glass. Then he looks up, and for one moment their eyes meet. Paden, uncomfortable, quickly looks away. In that second, she understands her own role in this. And she is deeply moved. They are silent together. INT. CELLBLOCK - SILVERADO JAIL - NIGHT Mal looks up as the door to the outer office clangs open. Deputy Garth comes in with Rae in tow. Mal comes to the front of his cell. GARTH Look who's here, Johnson, it's your sweet little sister. You remember her, works at The Midnight Star. Everybody knows her. Mal and Rae look at each other. GARTH She wanted to see you. Course I had to search her. I'm not sure I did a good job. Might have missed something. (holds up his bandaged hand) Only got one good hand, you know. Rae steps toward Mal, but Garth suddenly grabs her arm and flings her back against the wall opposite Mal's cell. He moves close to Rae and slips the big ring of keys over his bandaged right hand, freeing his left. He looks once at Mal, then down Rae's body. His left hand fondles her. GARTH Maybe I better check her a little closer. Mal's eyes flame as Garth takes Rae in a lascivious embrace. Suddenly Rae dips to one side within his arms. Her hand comes up from her boot with Slick's dagger and plunges it into Garth's back. The deputy jolts back a few steps in shock, already pulling a six-gun from his belt with his left hand. He fires once into Rae's body. She goes down. Garth is cocking the gun again with weakening fingers when Mal's hand encircles his neck and pulls him violently back against the bars. Garth's gun clatters away down the hall. EXT. STREET IN FRONT OF SILVERADO JAIL - NIGHT Deputy Fox has heard the shot and is running toward the jail. INT. CELLBLOCK - NIGHT Garth, his neck broken, lies crumpled outside Mal's cell. Rae is unconscious and bloodied against the far wall. The large key ring is on the floor under Garth's leg and out of Mal's reach. Mal's anguished gaze darts from Rae to the keys as he begins to drag the dead weight of Garth's leg toward the bars. The key ring is dragged a few inches, then slips free. Mal tries again, then hears the front door SLAM open in the outer office. Mal looks at the gun lying useless down the hall. INT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - SILVERADO JAIL - NIGHT Fox draws his gun as he rushes across toward the cellblock door. FOX Garth! You in there, Garth? INT. CELLBLOCK - NIGHT The keys still lie in the middle of the hall, the gun down at the end. Fox comes through the door, gun raised, and takes in the sight of the two bodies. He looks up in surprise as Slick's dagger flies into his chest with a THUNK. Fox dies. Down the line of bars, Mal's right arm is extended into the corridor, as it was when he released the knife. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Paden is leaning all the way over the bar to extract a glass from beneath it. He straightens and walks back to the table, where Stella still sits. Now, however, she has drawn her legs up before her on the chair and is hugging her knees, deep in thought. The saloon is now empty save for these two. Paden pours them each a drink and hands Stella's to her. This brings her back. He clinks his glass with hers and toasts -- PADEN To my midnight star. They exchange a long look, then drink. STELLA Cobb's using me to stop you. So good people are being hurt because of me. (a beat) That makes me mad. Listening closely, he finds this last bit endearing. STELLA Some people think because they're stronger -- or meaner -- they can push you around. I've seen a lot of that. But it's only true if you let it be. The world is what you make of it. PADEN I like your attitude. But it can be risky. STELLA I'm ready for that. There is a challenge in her eyes as she reaches out and slides the whiskey bottle away from him. STELLA How about you? PADEN I don't want you to get hurt. STELLA He can't hurt me if he's dead. Paden looks at her with growing appreciation. A light is coming back into his face. A smile slowly grows on his lips, mirroring hers. The door behind the bar bangs open, and Phoebe comes out, breathless. PHOEBE Stella, come quick! INT. SUPPLY ROOM - MIDNIGHT STAR - NIGHT Phoebe leads them into the dimly-lit room and goes to her knees beside Rae, who lies wounded on the floor. Rae is semi- conscious and moaning. Stella stoops to examine her wound. PHOEBE (crying) She sprung her brother... all by herself! And this is what happened... He brought her here. PADEN Where'd he go? PHOEBE I told him about Jake and the little boy. He went off after Emmett. STELLA (to Phoebe) Stop your crying. Go get Doc Skinner and bring him to the shed. (to Paden) Pick her up. Phoebe hurries out. Paden kneels next to Stella. STELLA I've got a place I can hide her. PADEN You better get in there with her until this thing is over. INT. CAVE - NIGHT Emmett works by the light of the fire, checking one of the guns taken from the deputies. He hears something we do not, but continues to work for a few moments more. Now we hear it: an approaching rider. Emmett stands up gingerly and moves painfully back into the shadows. He is much improved but still tentative. Mal comes into the cave carrying his Henry rifle. Emmett reappears, lowering his gun. EMMETT I didn't think you were going to make it back. Mal steps into the light, revealing his bruised face. MAL I almost didn't. EMMETT (reacts to Mal's condition) Where's Jake? MAL McKendrick's men got him. EMMETT Is he alive? Mal indicates that he doesn't know. Emmett accepts that and picks up his gunbelt. MAL It's worse than that, Emmett. Emmett looks up, waiting. MAL They took him at your sister's house. Her husband was shot. I don't know if he's going to make it. Emmett feels real pain. EMMETT Kate? MAL She was hurt... pretty bad. (hates to tell him) Emmett, they took the little boy with them. Emmett lets this all sink in. And then his face and body begin to transform. All the pain is swept away in a surging current of vengeful energy. The MUSIC begins to build, as Emmett moves with eerie deliberateness to arm himself. He picks up one of the extra gunbelts and loops it over his shoulder. Mal slides into his bandolier. Emmett indicates the gunbelts remaining on the floor. EMMETT Want one of these? Mal turns. He now holds his father's Henry rifle in addition to his own, one awesome weapon in each hand. MAL This oughta do. OMIT EXT. HOTEL - SILVERADO - DAWN Cobb, having just finished breakfast, steps out into the morning light and looks around at his domain. He works the toothpick in his mouth and watches Tyree come slowly up the street on horseback. They nod their greetings and head down the street. EXT. JAIL - DAWN Tyree ties his horse in front, and the two men go inside. INT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAWN Cobb is barely in the door when he stops, noticing something out of place. The gun cabinet has been forced open; its splintered door is ajar. TYREE Garth! (nothing) Yo, Fox! Tyree draws his gun, but Cobb is already moving toward the cellblock door. INT. CELLBLOCK - DAWN Cobb and Tyree survey the scene: the empty cell, three pools of blood, two bodies -- Garth and Fox. Cobb watches as Tyree checks the two deputies and shakes his head. SHERIFF COBB Get Kyle and Dusty over here. And keep your eyes open. I'm running out of deputies. He goes out. INT. SALOON STAIRS - MIDNIGHT STAR - MORNING The Bartender comes to the head of the stairs wearing a nightshirt. BARTENDER Stella ain't here, Sheriff. I checked her room. Now we see Cobb waiting at the bottom of the steps, thoughtful. SHERIFF COBB And you don't know where Paden is? BARTENDER Haven't seen him since last night. SHERIFF COBB Let me know if you do. And tell Stella I want to see her. Cobb turns and walks to the open, outer doors at the corner of the saloon. The swinging doors are still hooked back for the night. When Cobb stops in the doorway, he casts a long shadow across the room. He stares out into the town for several beats, then lifts his gun from its holster and checks the action. EXT. BORDER OF MCKENDRICK RANCH - MORNING The McKendrick brand is fashioned in wood at the peak of an arch over the road. Beyond it, in the distance, cattle are grazing on the rolling land. EXT. MCKENDRICK GRAZING LAND - MORNING Hundreds of cattle are grazing here in the morning light, a sea of speckled hides. Now a Cowboy pulls up in the foreground. He is heavily armed. His watchful gaze is not on the cattle, but outward toward the horizon. EXT. BUNKHOUSE/CENTRAL AREA - MCKENDRICK RANCH - MORNING More Cowboys here, armed and watchful. Red comes along a corral and climbs up onto a fence to peer into the distance. EXT. CASA GRANDE - VERANDA - MORNING Scruffy, scratching his belly, walks along the porch of the main ranch house, the casa grande. As he comes up to us at the corner and looks around, we see that he is wearing Jake's elaborately tooled, double gunbelt with the pearl-handled Colts. As he moves down the other side of the house, we see McKendrick standing at a window, looking out. INT. LIVING ROOM - MORNING We're behind McKendrick now. On the wall next to the window there is a large, framed photograph of Murdo McKendrick, a big, ferocious man, sitting rather stiffly in a chair. On one side of him stands his wife, as thin and tough as a nail. On the other, beneath a large, paternal hand, a small boy -- young Ethan. McKendrick turns away from the window and for an instant his eye is stopped by the photograph. McKendrick looks unsettled. He hasn't slept. INT. BEDROOM (SECOND FLOOR) - MORNING Augie is huddled on a bed in the corner of the dark room, frightened, still wearing the nightshirt he had on when abducted. Suddenly, sunlight blinds him. The Watching Cowboy from the night before has thrown open the curtains. He looks out over the roof of the veranda, then turns back. He gives Augie an odd look and moves toward the door, first kicking a Guard Cowboy awake in his chair. EXT. ROLLING RANGE - MORNING Emmett and Mal ride side by side. Relentless. You wouldn't want to be the people they're going to visit. Now a solitary rider appears on the ridge above them, moving the same way. Mal notices him first, then Emmett. It is Paden, and now he is sloping down to join them. He moves in alongside them. They exchange looks. Then all three look ahead. Where they are going. INT. STORAGE SHED - SILVERADO - DAY Dr. Skinner has tended Rae on a cot in the dark recess of the shed and now moves with Stella to the door. Phoebe kneels beside Rae. DR. SKINNER If her skin gets cold, you better come for me. Stella nods, then cracks the door to peek outside. EXT./INT. STORAGE SHED - DAY WHAT SHE SEES. This shed is down the alley from the back of the Midnight Star. The alley is empty. EXT. ALLEY - DAY Dr. Skinner comes out and begins to walk away. Slick appears from between two buildings. They nod to each other, and Dr. Skinner walks away. Slick watches him for a moment, then moves up the alley, looking around as he goes. He walks past the shed and on toward the street. EXT. CORNER OF ALLEY AND STREET - DAY Slick reaches the end of the alley and stops. Cobb comes down the sidewalk toward him. They talk confidentially. Slick shakes his head. They part, continuing their separate prowls. EXT. CENTRAL AREA - MCKENDRICK RANCH - DAY IN THE CORRAL. One of the horses drinking at the trough lifts its head, ears twitching. A wave of restlessness goes through the horses. On the top of the fence, Red notices and begins to listen intently. ON THE VERANDA. Scruffy stands up from a step and looks off toward the rise beyond the corrals. Alarm creeps into his face. AT THE BUNKHOUSE. Swann, his shoulder bandaged, comes out to join a Sentry Cowboy looking with concern at the rise. Suddenly, the Sentry Cowboy starts running toward a saddled horse nearby. Red has jumped from the fence now too and mounted up quickly. The two horsemen head off toward the rise at a gallop. Swann looks in alarm at -- THE CREST OF THE RISE. Pouring into view with a ground-shaking RUMBLE is a huge herd of stampeding cattle. AT THE BUNKHOUSE. Swann turns to the door of the bunkhouse and shouts inside. SWANN Stampede! ON THE RISE. Red and the Sentry Cowboy tear toward the oncoming cattle. They fire their guns repeatedly in the air, trying to turn the herd. AT THE CORRAL. Scruffy runs across from the casa grande and joins other Cowboys trying to saddle and mount panicked horses. Scruffy's horse rears and breaks away from him. ON THE RISE. Red and the Sentry Cowboy are closing with the dust-enshrouded herd, still firing their guns. Suddenly, from the cloud, there are answering shots. The Sentry Cowboy is shot dead off his horse. Emerging like a spirit from the dust at the edge of the herd, comes Emmett, six-gun in hand. On the other side of the herd, Paden's form materializes. He aims his Winchester and fires. Red's horse rears. Red goes down and the herd pounds over him. AT THE BUNKHOUSE. Hoyt comes out the door, buckling on his gunbelt. He looks at the on-rushing stampede, then toward the corral where several Cowboys are swinging up on their horses. Suddenly, there is gunfire from the roof of the bunkhouse above Hoyt. One of the Cowboys in the corral goes down. Another draws his gun and lifts it toward the bunkhouse, but is shot before he can fire. The other Cowboys head for cover. Hoyt stops some men who are coming out the door behind him, and edges out to try to locate the source of the fire. ON THE VERANDA. McKendrick comes out of the casa grande and runs to the corner of the veranda nearest the rise. He takes in the stampede, which is almost upon them now, then hears gunfire to his right. He looks back there and sees Mal on the bunkhouse roof, above Hoyt and firing from the protection of the raised rim. Now Mal swings his rifle around toward McKendrick. McKendrick jumps around the corner of the house as the wall where he was standing takes a hit. SERIES OF SHOTS. The stampede hits the ranch. The herd splits, the mass of cattle heading between the casa grande and the bunkhouse/corral area; the rest go around behind the casa grande. They take down everything in their way. Fences fall, holding pens are destroyed, horses run free, and Cowboys scramble away from the deadly current of rampaging cattle. NEAR THE BARN. Paden pulls up on the edge of the flow and fires repeatedly at the Cowboys scrambling for safety. Swann is among those hit. BEHIND THE CASA GRANDE. Emmett pulls his horse out of the flow, protected by the building, then dismounts, ties the horse, and runs up to the back door of the house. He throws away the empty, extra six-gun in his hand as he looks carefully inside. He draws his own gun and goes in. NEAR THE BARN. Paden is coming under increasing fire from the bunkhouse as the cattle thin. He rides into the barn at the end of the corral. AT THE BUNKHOUSE. Hoyt directs some of his men, including Scruffy, to work their way along under the eaves of the bunkhouse and go after Paden. Hoyt glances upward toward the sound of Mal's rifle. INT. CASA GRANDE - DAY Emmett works his way carefully down the central hall, gun ready. He looks up the main staircase, sees nothing, and edges forward. At the top of the stairs behind him, the Watching Cowboy jumps into view. Emmett spins and ducks as the Watching Cowboy fires. The finial splinters. Emmett's shot follows immediately. The Watching Cowboy is hit and tumbles the full length of the stairs, dead. EXT. CENTRAL AREA - DAY ON THE VERANDA. McKendrick reacts to the shots behind him in his house. He moves toward a window and opens it. ON THE BUNKHOUSE ROOF. Mal switches to his father's Henry and shifts around to fire at some outriding Cowboys who are thundering in from the range. AT THE BARN. Three cowboys dive through the main door in pursuit of Paden. Scruffy, one of Jake's pearl-handled Colts at the ready, sneaks along the side of the barn. INT. CASA GRANDE - SECOND FLOOR - DAY Emmett moves away from the stairwell and cautiously rounds a corner, focused on an open bedroom door up ahead. Suddenly, the Guard Cowboy steps boldly into view in that doorway, gun raised, using Augie as a shield. Emmett cannot fire. He dives back around the corner as the Guard Cowboy gets off a shot. Seeing his miss, the Guard Cowboy slams closed the bedroom door and locks it. Instantly Emmett is running that way. He flies into the bedroom next door. INT. HOSTAGE BEDROOM - DAY The Guard Cowboy has backed against the wall, gun raised toward the door. Augie is still clutched to his chest. The window overlooking the roof of the veranda implodes and Emmett arrives in a shower of glass. The stunned Guard Cowboy spins, opening an angle between himself and Augie. Emmett doesn't need much. He fires before he stops rolling. The Guard Cowboy falls back against the wall. INT. CASA GRANDE - BOTTOM OF STAIRS - DAY McKendrick, gun poised, stands over the body of the Watching Cowboy, reacting to the shots above. He is about to go up there when the front door crashes open as a Cowboy, shot by Mal, staggers into the hall. He leans against the hall table and fires out the door. Two more shots from Mal finish the Cowboy and a large vase. McKendrick changes him mind about going upstairs. He moves quickly toward the door at the back of the house. INT. HOSTAGE BEDROOM - DAY Augie is trembling in Emmett's arms. Emmett soothes him, then looks into his tear-stained face. EMMETT Augie, where's Jake? AUGIE (chokes it out) He's dead. Emmett reacts to this hard news. AUGIE They hung him! Slowly a peculiar twinkle grows in Emmett's eyes. EMMETT They hung him? EXT. CENTRAL AREA - DAY AT THE BUNKHOUSE. Hoyt is hugging the side wall of the bunkhouse. He warily looks around the back corner. WHAT HE SEES. Mal's horse is tethered near a stack of crates and barrels that rises almost to the roof. INT. BARN - DAY Paden is in an empty stall part-way down one side of the barn. The three Cowboys have him pinned down from the front. Paden's horse does a panicky dance in the central aisle. The horses in the other stalls are spooked. Scruffy sneaks in the back door of the barn. He peeks around the wall of a stall at Paden's unprotected back. When he sees Paden stop to reload his Colt, Scruffy steps out and aims at him. Quite unexpectedly, someone swings down from the loft above, kicking Scruffy and sending him flying into the recess of a stall. Now the figure drops into view. It's Jake! He dives after Scruffy. Paden, reloaded now and unaware of the struggle behind him, has to shrink back from a splintering rail. Now he hears two muffled shots from the back of the barn. He looks over there. After a beat, Jake steps into Paden's view, grinning like a maniac and happily buckling his reacquired gunbelt. Paden does a double take. Jake gives him a big "Here I am!" gesture, then indicates he's going up to the loft again to help out with the guys up front. But first, with real relish, he checks his pearl-handled Colts: he draws both at once, tips them up to look into the cylinders, then spins them back into their holsters. Then, with a leap, to the loft. EXT. RANGE NEAR CASA GRANDE - DAY McKendrick rides flat out toward town. INT. BARN - DAY There are Cowboys in the first stalls on each side of the barn, and a third in a stall closer to Paden. Jake drops down from the loft behind the first two, his guns in his holsters. They both see him and react. Jake draws both guns and shoots one, spins, and shoots the other. The third Cowboy turns to look. His mistake. Paden flies into view and shoots him dead. Paden approaches Jake with wonder. Jake shows him an ugly bruise where the rope was around his neck. When he speaks, it is in a hoarse whisper -- JAKE New record. PADEN (slaps him on the back) Let's get out of here. Paden catches his horse and swings up. Jake pulls a horse from a stall. It is the much-contested pinto, bare-backed but bridled. Paden rides out the back of the barn. EXT. CENTRAL AREA - DAY BACK OF THE BARN. Paden rides out, but pulls up when he notices that Jake is not following. He is about to go back when something catches his eye. WHAT HE SEES. Hoyt is just climbing onto the roof of the bunkhouse, catty-corner from Mal's position. Paden squeezes off a shot, but Hoyt has already disappeared from view. Paden looks along the bunkhouse, where he can see Mal firing. Mal is protected at present from Hoyt by the big chimney he is braced against. But if he isn't warned, Hoyt will surprise him. A Cowboy in the bunkhouse spots Paden and fires at him. Paden must warn Mal quickly. Yelling is hopeless in the din. Paden aims carefully at Mal and fires. AT MAL. The chimney is hit just above Mal's head. He swings his rifle around toward -- Paden! Paden signals wildly about Hoyt. Mal understands just in time: he flops around the chimney just as Hoyt gets a bead on him. Without knowing it, Mal avenges his father's murder. Hoyt is blown off the roof. The bulk of the herd has passed, but confused cattle are everywhere. AT THE VERANDA. Jake has ridden across the open area under heavy fire and now rides for protection up and onto the side veranda of the house, firing into all the windows. His momentum carries him all the way out the other end. When he is beyond the porch, he hears a yell, two voices -- EMMETT AND AUGIE Jake!?! Jake looks up with a grin. Emmett has Augie out on the roof of the veranda. They are pleased in the extreme at the sight of Jake. Jake brings his horse beneath them and gestures to Augie. Augie swallows hard once, strides twice, and leaps out, down, and onto the bare back of the pinto behind Jake. Paden comes riding up with Emmett's horse in tow. Emmett moves to the edge of the veranda roof and drops into his saddle. He winces, his ribs throbbing. They turn their horses away from the ranch and head out. EXT. RANGE NEAR CASA GRANDE - DAY The three horses with four riders come tearing toward us. They form a dusty "V" as they intersect with Mal's arrival from the other side of the bunkhouse. Even now, shots are fired after them. But they are on their way. EXT. SHOP ACROSS FROM SHERIFF'S OFFICE - SILVERADO - DAY The SHOPKEEPER is placing items in his front window when his eye is caught by something across the street. We can see only a dim reflection of it in the glass. With a concerned look, the Shopkeeper comes outside. WHAT HE SEES. Trouble. Five men, loaded for bear, are coming out of Cobb's office: Cobb, McKendrick, Tyree, Kyle, and DUSTY, another deputy. EXT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAY Dusty mounts up and rides toward the center of town. Kyle goes off in another direction on foot. McKendrick unhitches his horse and speaks to Cobb with some bitterness. MCKENDRICK It never should've got this far, Cobb. Cobb eyes him coolly. SHERIFF COBB This is as far as it's going. McKendrick swings up and jacks a cartridge into the chamber of his Winchester. He's not as confident as Cobb. MCKENDRICK I'll do my part. But you better watch your ass. These guys'll shoot it off. He heads off in the same direction as Dusty. Tyree moves up next to Cobb. TYREE I'm gonna enjoy this. Cobb gives him a sideways glance, then looks around wistfully. SHERIFF COBB This used to be a peaceful town. Tyree moves off in yet a new direction. The Shopkeeper approaches Cobb nervously. SHOPKEEPER What's going on, Sheriff? SHERIFF COBB Hide and watch. The Shopkeeper reacts big and scurries away to spread the word. EXT. STREET CORNER/HOTEL - DAY Dusty pulls up at the hotel on the corner and throws his reins over the post. Then, with rifle in hand, he stands on his saddle and climbs to the roof of the porch. He looks down the street, cocks his rifle, and settles into hiding behind the hotel sign. McKendrick rides by slowly, exchanging looks with Dusty, and moves down the street. Several townspeople have seen Dusty. The panicky, street- clearing word spreads. INT. STORAGE SHED - DAY Rae writhes in pain on the cot. Stella's hand is on Rae's forehead as she speaks to Phoebe. STELLA Better bring the doc. (as Phoebe turns) Be careful. EXT. STREET - DAY The Milliner is urgently closing the shutters on his shop as passersby hurry for home. Phoebe edges out of the alley nearby, turns, and finds herself face to face with Tyree. He regards her malevolently. TYREE Where you going? PHOEBE (scared) Nowhere. TYREE This is no time to be on the streets. Maybe you oughta come along with me. He grasps her arm hard and pulls her along the sidewalk. EXT. BOOT HILL - OUTSIDE SILVERADO - DAY The four horsemen and the boy pull up near the cemetery and look down at Silverado. Jake lowers Augie to the ground. Emmett hands him a blanket and speaks down to him. EMMETT Stay here till we get back. Don't come in. The four riders look from the town to each other and check their weapons. EMMETT (to them all) I'll see you around. PADEN (smiles) Last one to the Midnight Star buys. JAKE You're on! Let's get 'em! Jake kicks the bare-back into motion and tears off directly toward town. Emmett heads off to the left. Paden begins to move after Jake, but slower. Mal stops him with -- MAL Hey, Paden... They look at each other. MAL Good luck. Paden nods it back to him, and the bond is re-formed. Mal heads off at a gallop to the right. They are all going to enter town from different directions. INT. STORAGE SHED - DAY Rae MOANS loudly, and Stella instinctively reaches out to quiet her, worried about discovery. Stella throws a frustrated glance toward the door -- where is Phoebe? She can't wait. She goes to the door and peeks out. INT./EXT. MIDNIGHT STAR - SECOND FLOOR - DAY Slick checks Rae's room and closes the door. He too is frustrated. Now he looks out the hall window, down at the alley. WHAT HE SEES. Stella steps quickly out of the storage shed and moves away. Slick runs for the steps. EXT. ALLEY NEAR STORAGE SHED - DAY Slick runs past the shed door and peers between buildings in search of Stella. She's gone. He comes back to the shed. Before opening the door he does an odd thing: he chops his left forearm sharply downward and a shiny derringer slides crisply into his grip from beneath his sleeve. He enters cautiously. INT. STORAGE SHED - DAY Slick moves through the dim light. He hears a MOAN and steps forward. He looks down at Rae. Half-delirious, she focuses on him and reacts in terror. He makes the derringer disappear and kneels beside her. SLICK Don't be afraid, baby. I'll stay with you until your little friend comes back. EXT. STREET NEAR MIDNIGHT STAR - DAY Jake comes riding down the street, waving his hat, WHOOPING and HOLLERING. The few remaining pedestrians run for cover at the sight. JAKE (yelling) Come on out, boys! Jake's in town! Let's start the ball! EXT. MIDNIGHT STAR - DAY Jake jumps off the pinto and hitches it in front of the saloon. As he approaches the entrance, set in the cut-off corner of the building, he executes a fast pirouette, scanning down all four blocks that meet here. He finds the doors locked and kicks them open with a loud BANG. He goes inside. EXT. SIDE STREET - DAY Tyree has heard the commotion and moves toward it. EXT. DOCTOR'S OFFICE - DAY Stella is pounding on the door without luck. She gives up, looks around, and hurries off. EXT. MIDNIGHT STAR - DAY Tyree stops across the street from the Midnight Star and looks at Jake's horse and the open doors. Across the intersection Kyle appears at a run. Tyree motions him to go around the back of the saloon. Tyree runs across the street. When he is on the porch of the saloon, he pulls his gun and begins edging toward the open doors. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - DAY It's dark in here with the shutters closed. Tyree jumps inside, gun poised. When Kyle bangs through from the back, Tyree almost shoots him. They scan the room and advance cautiously into the shadows. Nobody here. Now they back out, eyeing the dark stairwell. When they are safely on the porch, Tyree motions for Kyle to go down one side of the building while he starts down the other. Jake appears from beneath Stella's ramp behind the bar and vaults lightly over the bar. In a moment he stands just inside the open doorway. He peeks out, then turns so his back is to the outside, his guns still holstered. EXT. MIDNIGHT STAR - DAY Jake backs quietly out onto the porch. When he stops, he can see both Tyree and Kyle moving along their respective porches. JAKE Hey! Tyree and Kyle spin at the sound. Only then does Jake draw both guns and, pointing them in two completely different directions, he shoots both men at once. INT. STORAGE SHED - DAY Slick has made himself comfortable next to Rae, who has fallen into a fitful sleep. Now he hears something. The door of the shed opens and closes. He waits confidently for Stella to appear around the intervening wall of barrels and crates. But he's looking too low. Mal steps into view, the big Henry rifle in his hand. Slick's eyes widen, but he gets control quickly and rises, trying to gauge Mal's attitude. Mal looks from Rae to Slick and back to Rae. SLICK I'm glad you're here, Mal. I've been watching her, but she needs a doctor. MAL Yeah. He looks at Slick as he leans his rifle against the wall. Slick looks at the rifle, then at Mal. Mal seems to concentrate on Rae and makes a move that way. When he is past Slick, Slick makes the peculiar, chopping gesture of his left forearm that snaps the derringer into his hand. Mal has been waiting for something and is already turning into Slick. Before Slick can raise his gun hand, Mal has Slick's wrist in a vise-like grip. Mal's other arm encircles Slick's torso and crushes him against Mal's body. Two strong men strain against each other. The cocked derringer wavers perilously toward the sleeping Rae. Suddenly, Mal twists Slick around, banging his hand into the wall, and the derringer fires. Slick lets it clatter to the floor. Rae wakes with a start and watches the combatants in terror. The men's eyes are only inches apart. Something flashes through Mal's and he loosens his embrace. Instantly, Slick dips to the right, lifting his boot to his hand. But his dagger is not there. Slick's surprised look is answered by Mal's tight grin. MAL Looking for this? Their bodies jerk as Slick gets his last surprise and goes limp in Mal's arms. He falls to the floor, his own boot dagger protruding from his ribcage. Mal kneels to embrace his sister. EXT. STREETS ON FRINGE OF SILVERADO - DAY Emmett rides slowly down the street, his Winchester held ready on his thigh. His eyes continually scan the buildings and alleyways. He slowly rounds a corner. Way behind him, off his right shoulder, McKendrick has brought his horse to a stop between two buildings and is carefully aiming at Emmett's back with his Winchester. Now he pulls the hammer back with a CLICK. Emmett hears it and twists in the saddle as McKendrick fires. The shot is good, but Emmett's Winchester takes the hit and jumps in his hand. He levels it at McKendrick, cocks the hammer, and squeezes the trigger. Nothing. He tries to work the lever as McKendrick fires again. Emmett's rifle is useless. He throws it away and draws his Colt, firing twice. Emmett's bullets hit close to McKendrick. His horse shies. McKendrick turns his horse and rides behind a building. SERIES OF SHOTS. Emmett chases after McKendrick along a parallel street. Each man prepares to fire as they reach the intermittent spaces between buildings. McKendrick gets a clear shot and fires twice. Emmett rides around a building and speeds toward McKendrick's path. He comes into the open, ready to fire, but McKendrick is heading off down an alley. Rather than follow, Emmett moves to cut him off. EXT. EDGE OF SILVERADO - DAY McKendrick has pulled up behind a barn. When Emmett comes into view, McKendrick fires twice, then spurs his horse back into town. Emmett squeezes off one carefully aimed shot, just missing McKendrick before he disappears. EXT. BOOT HILL - DAY The echoes of gunfire reach the little boy waiting at the cemetery. Augie watches and wonders. EXT. HOTEL STREET - DAY McKendrick comes out of an alley and tears toward the intersection which Dusty commands from the roof of the hotel porch. McKendrick waves his rifle at Dusty and rounds the corner of the hotel. Now Emmett comes out of the alley in pursuit. He slows a bit since McKendrick is no longer in sight. As he moves down the block toward the hotel intersection, he looks into the loading yard of the feed warehouse, which forms a cul-de-sac on his left. Now Dusty opens fire from the protection of the hotel sign. Bullets kick up dirt around Emmett, but instead of retreating, he slings himself Indian-fashion down along the protected side of his horse, and rides toward the sign. Emmett aims over the mane and fires: once, twice, through the sign. Dusty rises, hit, and Emmett kills him with a third shot. Dusty crashes through the sign to fall to the street. Emmett has just straightened in his saddle and snapped open the loading gate of his empty Colt, when McKendrick opens up from where he has reappeared down the street. Emmett is hit in the thigh. For one long second there is perfect clarity between the men. Emmett's eyes stare from his pain-contorted countenance at his adversary. McKendrick hesitates only a breath to look at Emmett before raising the rifle and charging. Emmett wheels his horse and painfully spurs it back down the block. As McKendrick's fire hits around him, Emmett turns into the nearest cover -- the loading yard of the feed warehouse. McKendrick rides toward the mouth of the loading yard with all he's got. He can't let Emmett reload. The glint of victory is in his eyes as he draws near the loading yard. He raises his rifle in preparation for the coming clear shot at his trapped enemy. As his horse begins to pass in front of the loading yard, we hear a terrible RUMBLE OF HOOFBEATS on wood. McKendrick's expression changes to horror. Emmett has ridden onto the loading dock of the warehouse and charged toward this end. Now he jumps his horse straight out into the air over McKendrick's horse. The hooves of Emmett's horse catch McKendrick full force with a HORRIBLE SOUND. Emmett's horse lands on its feet, but just barely. From a cloud of dust Emmett watches McKendrick's horse race on, riderless. Its master is a still shape in the dirt. EXT. STREET - DAY Stella has been hurrying through the empty streets. Now she pauses to listen to the new silence. EXT. SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAY Cobb listens too. He sits on the steps at the front of his office, toying with an object in his hands. Now he brings it to his mouth. It is his sheriff's badge, and he breathes a fog onto it, then polishes it on his sleeve. He looks at it another moment, smiles to himself, then pins it on his chest. EXT. STREETS NEAR SHERIFF'S OFFICE - DAY Paden is walking. He is calm. He rounds a corner and moves out into the center of the new street. AT THE END OF THE STREET. Cobb looks up from his seat and sees Paden coming toward him. He had a feeling it would be this way. It makes him sad. He stands up and walks to the center of the street. Paden keeps coming. He watches Cobb, resigned. Now Paden stops. Stella comes out of an alley. When she takes in the scene, she steps onto the sidewalk and puts her hand on a post. She looks back and forth between the men. Cobb sees her, but his only real concern is Paden. Paden sees her, too. His gaze returns to Cobb. SHERIFF COBB What a waste. This could have been such a sweet deal for us. PADEN Yeah. Bad luck. (a beat) Good-bye, Cobb. SHERIFF COBB Good-bye, Paden. They both draw, and it's impossible to say who moved first. But one is luckier. Paden stands as Cobb falls. Paden holsters his gun as though it weighed a hundred pounds. CUT TO BLACK. SLOW FADE-UP over the SOUNDS of tinkling glasses, piano music, and friendly voices. INT. SALOON - MIDNIGHT STAR - MORNING Four shot glasses sparkle in a line on the bar. A bottle of the good stuff is used to fill them. Stella is pouring the drinks from behind the bar. Now the glasses are lifted by Mal, Jake, Paden, and Emmett. Stella holds up the bottle and proposes a toast -- STELLA To California! They echo her and clink glasses. Stella clinks with the bottle. When they toss back their drinks, she tips the bottle to her lips, then puts it down on the bar, as the four glasses come down. EMMETT Gotta go. MAL Right. The four men move toward the door as Stella walks down her ramp. Emmett walks with a slight limp. EXT. MIDNIGHT STAR - MORNING Phoebe stands on the porch talking across to Rae, much recovered, who sits on the seat of a wagon heavily loaded with farming supplies. Rae wears a simple dress and looks quite different. The men come out onto the porch. Emmett shakes Mal's hand and watches him climb onto the wagon. Mal gets the wagon going, and the other wave. Jake has slipped his arm around Phoebe's waist. Now he turns her into his arms for a big kiss. Emmett is watching Mal and Rae roll away when a woman's hand touches his back. He turns to find Hannah looking up at him. Paden watches from nearby. HANNAH Weren't you going to come out to say good-bye? EMMETT I already did that. HANNAH This time you're really going? (he nods) You know where I'll be. EMMETT That I do. They look at each other. She kisses him and steps back. When Emmett looks up from her, Paden is watching him with an amused look. The two men shake hands. Emmett and Jake mount up. JAKE So long, Paden. Paden gives him a nod. Kate and Augie roll up in a buggy. In the back seat, a blanket across his legs, sits J.T. They wait for the brothers. Augie drives for his recovering mother. Stella comes out and stands by Phoebe. Hannah is now standing next to Paden. Emmett looks at them as though they were a couple. EMMETT (to Paden) You might make a farmer yet. PADEN I've got a job. He puts his arm against the post, and his coat is drawn back to reveal the shiny sheriff's badge on his vest. Emmett touches the brim of his hat and turns his horse away. He and Jake flank the buggy and head off. EXT. OUTSIDE OF TOWN - MORNING Emmett and Jake take turns leaning down from their saddles to kiss Kate and Augie and shake hands with J.T. EMMETT (to Augie) Take care of your folks. One final look, and they're off. Jake turns in the saddle only once -- JAKE We'll be back! They spur their horses forward, chasing their shadows, heading west. THE END