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Yah!

Yah! Yah!

Yah!

Yah!

We seem to be in your debt. Thank you.

No thanks necessary. We just ran a fella off.

That's quite a lot.

That's enough, gentlemen.

Toby, these men are friends.

Look, mister, my name is Joe Cartwright. This is my brother, Hoss.

You happen to be riding on our property. Now, put the gun away.

Toby, put it away.

My brother's being very foolish.

He's Tobias, and I'm April Horn, and we're both very grateful to you.

Really, we are.

I'm, uh, sorry, gentlemen. I thought you might be part of the gang.

Gang?

We only saw one man.

Well, there were two until one's horse pulled up lame.

Oh, the one you saw was just catching up with us.

They ambushed us about three miles down the road.

Guns and gunmen, gentlemen, I have to admit, they scare me.

There's nothing strange about that, mister. They scare us too.

I doubt that. Well, April, we'd better get moving.

While we're talking here, those gunmen could circle on ahead.

May I ask where you gentlemen are going?

Virginia City.

So are we.

Toby, if we ask these gentlemen nicely, maybe they'd ride along with us.

Be glad to.

You notice anything peculiar about that horse?

Huh? The horse? No, I didn't notice anything.

He wasn't winded at all, not even sweated up.

That horse hadn't run no three miles, or two even. Half mile at the most.

That guy made a mistake about the distance.

You get a little nervous when you're being shot at.

Yeah. Dang poor shootin'.

There wasn't a scratch or a bullet hole on that buggy no place.

Well, they're bad shots, that's all.

Tell you one thing, that April Horn is a good-looking girl.

- Yeah. - That's nice.

Oh, Nevada is big and beautiful. I love the scenery.

But I can't say that I care very much for being shot at.

Well, I think you'll find it doesn't happen too often.

Well, once is... is more than enough.

How long are you gonna be in Virginia City?

You don't waste any time, do you, Mr. Cartwright?

I try not to. No, it's just a lot of nice places I'd like you to see

and a lot of nice people I'd like you to meet.

Well, that might be possible

if my brother's business allows us to stay in Virginia City long enough.

Let's hope it does.

Hmm.

Yes, this will do very nicely.

It's the best in the house.

Tell me which bags are the lady's and I'll put 'em in her bedroom.

No, no, never mind that. We'll take care of that later.

Now, listen, I need a bottle of bourbon,

a bottle of sherry and a bottle of brandy,

the very best available.

- Keep the change for yourself. - Oh, thank you very much.

My name's Alex. If you need anything else, just ask for me.

Fine.

There's your key.

Nob Hill.

We have a view of the ocean from almost every window in our house.

We watch the clipper ships stand out to sea.

My brother and I have a ship, you know.

And watch the fog roll in.

Yeah, I've been there. That fog is wet and cold.

- A little. - Mm-hm.

Your brother and I were just telling polite little lies about our hometowns.

Ma'am, if you knew my little brother better,

you'd know he can't tell polite little lies.

Well, you'll be pleasantly surprised. The accommodations are quite good.

- Wonderful. - I know there are several banks here.

Is there one you'd care to recommend?

Yeah. We use the Virginia City Bank across the street.

Good. Would you be good enough to introduce me to one of the officials?

Sure, I'll be glad to.

These two loans are fine. You can notify the parties involved.

Mr. Bishop.

- Joseph, how are you? - Fine, thank you.

What can I do for you?

I'd like you to meet a friend of mine, Mr. Tobias Horn.

Mr. Horn, it's a pleasure to meet any friend of the Cartwrights.

- This is Mr. Horn's sister. - How do you do?

I'm afraid I don't qualify as a friend, not yet.

My sister and I just met the Cartwrights

on the road from Carson about two hours ago.

I'm with Horn Enterprises, home office San Francisco.

President of Horn Enterprises.

Yes, since the death of my father.

I'd like to make a deposit.

- Of course. - 30,000 dollars.

That's a lot of money.

Carrying that much cash can be dangerous.

So I've learned. It can also be very helpful in doing business in a new town.

That's very true. Just a second.

Mr. Horn, if you'll just sign here, please.

It'd be a good idea to go down the sheriff's office,

tell him what happened on the road.

- I agree. - Mr. Bishop, thank you again.

- Joseph, thank you. - Mr. Bishop.

Mr. Horn.

Brandy, April?

I would love some.

There you are.

Uh, Tobias, brandy? I opened a bottle of that too.

How'd you get in here? That door was locked.

I leaned on it.

How long have you been here?

Well, in this room, about ten minutes.

In Virginia City, about two weeks. I was in and out.

We'd have been here sooner, but we had to report an attempted robbery.

Oh, did you?

- Hey, you were driving pretty good. - You were shooting pretty good.

All the comforts. You should have seen the room they gave me.

- Did you look at the herds? - Yeah, first thing.

The Cartwrights got plenty of prime cattle.

I got the water and food packages planted.

- The horses? - Ready.

Well, that's it, then. Friday it is.

Uh-uh.

Thursday.

Are you trying to give the orders now?

- No. Just correcting your mistakes. - What mistakes?

Well, he's a bachelor and he works late. That much you got right.

But you didn't dig deep enough.

He's also a joiner. He belongs to lodges.

- And he never misses a meeting. - What's that got to do with...?

He's got a lodge meeting every night of the week except Thursday.

So it's Thursday, or a week from Thursday.

All right, it's Thursday.

Brother Tobias is a little upset.

- How about you? - Me?

Oh.

It's been a long time.

Much too long.

- We're gonna have to correct that, huh? - Yes.

Well, thanks for the drink.

Wait.

Those water caches, you got 'em marked on a map?

Right here.

See ya.

- There you go. - Thank you.

Be right back.

1500 head of cattle? A few days to round them up.

- There you go, Pa. - Ah. Thank you.

Gentlemen, would you care for some coffee? Or some brandy?

- Not now, thanks. - I'll have some coffee.

Well, since my drovers will move the herd to the Sacramento Valley,

there's no reason they can't help with the roundup.

Now, the current market price is 16.50 a head. Is that right?

Well, for run-of-the-range cattle, yes.

And I understand yours are reputed to be better than that.

Yes, I would think so.

Well, if my superintendent, Mr. Spain, finds that to be true,

I'll give you 18 dollars.

You're still talking about run-of-the-range cattle.

Uh... what do you want?

We figure our cattle are worth 20 dollars a head.

I'll give you 19.

- Gentlemen... - Cash.

On the barrel head.

All right, it's a deal.

I would like that brandy now.

Excuse me.

Hi, Roy. Come on in.

- Howdy, Joe. - What you got there?

I found this stashed under a rock about a mile up the hill from Three Forks.

Ma'am, I wonder if you could identify this.

Yeah, let me see that, Sheriff.

Now, I was too busy driving to do much looking,

but... this could be the vest the gunman was wearing.

I'm sure it was.

I'd say that he wanted you to see this vest and not him.

Well, at least there's one gunman that carries a change of clothing.

But now he could be wearing just anything,

and that's gonna make him a lot harder to find.

There you are, Mr. Horn.

A cashier's check made out in the amount of 28,500 dollars,

made out to Ben Cartwright,

and the balance of your account,

minus the service charge of two dollars for the check.

I feel guilty, Mr. Bishop.

All the trouble I've caused you and a two-dollar profit.

Good service, minimum fees, our way of persuading you to come back soon.

Oh, we'll be back, Mr. Bishop. You can count on it.

- Good luck. - Thank you.

Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

- Your bill of sale. - Thank you.

- Your check, sir. - Ah, thank you.

Now, to complete the transaction, would it be possible,

a glass of your excellent brandy?

I was just about to suggest it.

- Yeah? - Telegram for Mr. Tobias Horn.

- Yeah, come on in. - Excuse me.

Mr. Horn.

Telegrapher told me to get this out here as fast as I could,

said you'd pay me for fetching it.

Thank you.

Toby, what is it?

What's the matter?

Our clipper ship, the West Wind, was lost with all hands

in... in a North Pacific gale.

That's terrible news. I'm sorry to hear that.

More than just the ship.

Captain Jess Bedford was the best friend I ever had.

Toby, tell them the rest of it.

No reason to.

Then I will.

The bank demands full payment within the next four days.

You see, the West Wind was carrying a cargo of silk,

paid for with money borrowed from the Pacific Bank, a short-term loan.

We do have insurance.

But not enough to cover the ship, let alone the cargo.

Toby is too proud, Mr. Cartwright, but if that loan isn't paid in full,

Horn Enterprises will go down with the West Wind.

Well, all I have to do is find a buyer for 1500 head of cattle.

If one of your men could hitch up our buggy,

we have to get to Virginia City and on to San Francisco as fast as possible.

May I see that?

You don't have to worry about those cattle. I'll buy them back. Here.

- Oh, I... I can't ask... - No, please, please.

Yes.

Thank you.

This could very well mean the difference between financial life or death.

Oh, but it's... it's made out to you.

It'd probably speed things enormously

if... if you were there to explain things to Mr. Bishop.

Oh, yeah, yeah, I think you're right.

Mr. Bishop is very touchy about rules and regulations.

I'll ride in with you.

Oh, now, if we have to come back tomorrow...

Don't worry about that. He's in there.

Harry loves to work late.

Harry?

- Thank you, Harry. - Ben.

You caught me just as I was about to leave.

- You know the Horns, of course. - Yes.

Mr. Horn is not gonna be able to buy the cattle.

For whatever reason. We'll explain later.

But he would like to have that... that cashier's check cashed.

Well, the vault's been closed for about an hour.

I hate to ask, but it's very important that we leave for San Francisco tonight.

- You could open it, couldn't you? - Well, I guess I can oblige.

That's real nice of you, Harry.

Don't move, Mr. Cartwright.

Don't make a sound.

He means it.

Stand very still, Mr. Bishop. Don't even try to move.

You move...

Took a lot of planning.

But you're not gonna get away with it.

Half the town will be on your trail before you've gone a mile.

Don't count on that.

You're a couple of fools.

Open it.

It's open.

Go open the back door.

It's all yours.

Come on, let's go.

How is he?

He's doing nicely, all things considered.

Took a small-caliber bullet from his left shoulder.

An inch lower, an inch to the right, and he wouldn't be here.

Pa? Pa, can you hear me?

Pa, what happened?

Killed Harry Bishop.

Tobias... shot him.

Cold blood.

Pa, who shot you?

The girl.

With a... popgun derringer.

Take it easy. We'll get 'em.

Very tricky.

Very... very careful.

Dangerous.

Better be careful.

Just the sedation I gave him taking hold.

He'll sleep for 10 to 12 hours.

- Cold blood... - Let's go.

- Oh, hi, Roy. - How is he?

- Oh, I think he's gonna be all right. - Yeah.

The deputy found the back door to the bank unlocked

when he was making his rounds about 11:30.

That's the first we knew.

The whole routine, with the 30,000 dollars,

and the cattle buying, the telegram,

it was all just a plan to get in the bank after it was closed.

Did anybody see 'em leave?

Well, Tobias and the girl were seen driving south in a buggy.

I calculate that gives 'em about seven hours' head start, then.

You getting a posse together?

Well, they're saddling up now.

And I've ordered you a couple of fresh horses if that's all right with you.

- Let's go. - Let's go.

Should be about daybreak time we get to the edge of town.

Rope corral at the top of the hill. Some grain sacks and water buckets.

They must have stashed their horses there for a few days.

- You see any tracks up there? - Yeah, three sets heading south.

Boys, let's go!

They were heading south when we lost the tracks.

I think our best bet is to continue south.

I'm not so sure, Roy.

I think we ought to split up. They might have headed northeast.

- Across the desert? - Yeah.

Joe, that's a three-day crossing.

There's no water holes for the first 100 miles.

They couldn't carry enough water for them and the horses too.

Besides, they got a woman along.

Yeah, there might be water at Sand Butte.

At this time of year?

Maybe so, but as slick as they planned this whole shenanigan,

they would never make that mistake.

That's just the point, Roy. Slick as they planned it,

they just might have figured on crossing the desert.

They might have water caches.

Well, it's possible, but I think our best bet is still to continue south.

I wanna head across the desert, see if I can find the tracks.

I'm gonna go with Joe. I think splitting up's a good idea.

- If you don't find them, we will. - All right.

- Getting the dust off? - I'm tryin'.

Well, that's all there is for two days.

Well, good. I'm not even through the first layer yet.

Now, don't worry about it.

In three days you'll be swimming in champagne.

Haven't had a chance to ask yet, but how much did we get?

Haven't had a chance to count. I don't know.

Maybe half a million. Maybe more.

I still can't believe it.

I couldn't help thinking all the time, though,

all of Toby's great big plans, how they've failed,

all the money he's lost.

Not just his money, our money, all the money our father left us.

Well, that's behind you now.

You're a rich woman.

- Thanks to you. - About time we moved, isn't it?

What's the hurry?

Horses need water and rest. So do we.

Well, that posse just might not believe that decoy swing we made to the south.

- We're way ahead of 'em. - I wanna stay that way.

Finish up with the water, April.

What's that?

You think of everything, don't you?

Well, I try to.

Let's move out.

It's like I figured, they're heading out across the desert.

The posse's way south of us by now too.

Well, we got seven hours to make up.

Yeah, let's go.

Nah.

- What's the matter? - Smells funny.

- What, alkaline? - No, smells like garlic.

What do you suppose that is?

I don't know.

What is it?

Arsenic.

They don't care who they kill, do they?

Yeah.

Hold on a second. I'd better mark this hole.

Well, they can't be too far ahead of us.

Yeah.

But they got water and we ain't. That do make a difference.

Yeah.

Look, we got two canteens. Neither one of them are full.

It's not enough water for two men and two horses, not even for one day.

I use less water than you. I'll go.

A drink before we go? It's a long way back.

No. You're gonna need it. You got ammunition?

- Yeah, plenty in the saddlebags. - All right.

I'll turn that posse around as soon as possible.

- Take care, Joe. - Will do.

- Find anything? - Mmm...

Stone bruise, I guess.

He's been favoring this hoof.

Have a drink.

I'm sorry I had to ask you to stop.

No, no. No hurry. Nobody's crowding us.

All this dust and dirt. I must look terrible.

No. Not to me. Not ever.

By tomorrow this time, we'll be through the worst of this.

It's a frightening place.

It's hot... and empty... and endless.

It's quite a ride for Toby and me.

Doesn't look like it bothers you any.

Yeah, well, I've had a lot of country like this.

Hey, you know, I saw a picture in a store once.

It was a girl with a blue dress on.

She was standing on a balcony and she was looking out over the sea,

and I just keep thinking, you ought to be in a place like that.

Thank you.

A balcony and a... cool wind and the sea.

What I wouldn't give for that right now.

I imagine there's lots of balconies in Europe.

Maybe we'll see 'em all, you and me, huh?

That horse'll be all right.

Yeah, well, from now on we'll start favoring our animals.

Ride 'em two hours, walk 'em one.

- Walk 'em? - It's an old cavalry trick.

Saves the animal.

Cavalry or outlaw?

Both. I been in both.

Puts me one up on you, doesn't it?

I was in the cavalry.

Scum. Border scum. And you've been shining up to him. Why?

Because I wanna get out of this place alive,

and he is the only one that knows the way.

There's one man trailing us. Get ready to ride.

- Did you get him? - Just as good. Scared his horse away.

- I think that was Joe Cartwright. - Is that supposed to matter?

Well, the other day it seemed to me that it might.

Well, that was a long, long time ago.

What's the matter, April? You cold?

I'm cold.

- Here. - Thank you.

All day long it was so hot, I could hardly breathe.

I couldn't wait for that sun to go down.

Now I am freezing.

Well, that's the desert.

Be cold by morning and then hotter than the hinges.

You sleep good?

Not very.

At least today it looks like it's gonna be a little cooler than yesterday.

Don't let this haze fool you.

By the time it burns off, it's gonna be hotter than yesterday.

Hey, take it easy with that.

I thought you said you had water all across the desert.

I have, but the next cache is 20 miles away.

That water's gotta last us all day.

Get the canteen.

Get down.

Who was it?

Cartwright. Who else? Not a drop left.

I thought Spain shot his horse. How did he catch up afoot?

He had all night while we were sleeping.

How could he get this far? He didn't have enough water.

Neither do we.

We got about a pint left in the canteen on my horse,

20 miles to the next cache.

No more for the horses. They won't last long.

We'll ride 'em far as they can go and then we'll walk.

Yeah.

Three of us can't make it.

I know where the water caches are, so I'm going. But only one of you.

Wait.

Now, we're all in this together.

And we gotta stick together.

Three of us can't make it.

It's him or you, April. Your choice.

How much farther?

A long way.

A long way.

A long way.

One swallow. One swallow.

That's all that's left.

Over there.

Devil's anvil.

Water cached just below the rock.

All right, that's far enough!

I don't wanna kill you. Drop your guns and I'll share your water with you.

You're bluffing. You don't have any water. You can't have.

Now, drop the gun.

Both of 'em.

Now, go easy on the water. That's all I got.

You were bluffing.

Yeah, that's right, I was bluffing.

A half empty canteen and an empty gun.

I kind of figured you wouldn't be able to make it across the desert

without having a cache of water somewhere.

A man hides a cache, he hides it near a place he can spot from a long way off.

But he's not gonna tell you where it is.

Oh, he'll show me.

Unless he wants to die of thirst.

Ah!

You know, I tell you, there was a time out on that desert

where I thought I'd never wanna see a fire again.

Yeah. It was a little hot out there, wasn't it?

I hope to tell you, it was warm. You sure looked good to me, brother.

You looked like a whole troop of cavalry moving across the desert.

- Well, I had that posse with me. - No, I don't mean the posse.

I mean just you, by yourself. You were a beautiful sight to see.

Yeah, the desert is full of mirages like that, isn't it?

Now, what is beautiful is to have you two back,

and know that the money's back,

and also to know that those two are locked up in the Virginia City jail.

Yeah. Little brother, you deserve a drink.

How about a brandy?

Oh, no. No brandy for me, Hoss, thank you.

I'd really like a great big cool glass of water.

You have no idea how good water really tastes.

You ought to try it some time.