Original subtitles

That'll do.

You better go for the sheriff, Jeff. - Hold it, Jeff.

- Let's find out what this is all about. - Suppose you start it.

Your cousin's been sneaking into rooms.

Can't you save your bickering for the dinner table?

Haven't you people enough to do killing each other?

When I find one of my own flesh and blood is a killer, I...

Lock him up in the storeroom, Jeff.

Go get the sheriff.

Hello. Glad to see you with us again.

This week's intriguing story takes us to an isolated ranch...

deep in the Wyoming territory for a tale of mystery and violence.

It's called "Black Fire."

It was a warm day in early spring...

when brother Bret first set eyes on Black Fire Ranch.

And it was a day he'd long remember.

- Afternoon. - Yes, sir. Which one are you?

Eakins. Homer Eakins.

All right, Mr. Eakins, looks like you're the last of the lot.

- Rest of them is up at the ranch house. - Thank you.

I'd swear he said his name was Homer Eakins.

Homer Eakins.

Folks is waiting for you.

So I went down to Texas. Instead of that, I go to Dallas...

Hello. I'm cousin Homer. Ahem.

Why, you're Mary Beth's little boy.

That's right, ma'am.

I'm your cousin Abby Wilkins. Your mother and I grew up together, Homer.

Heh, heh, well...

Homer Eakins, isn't that right?

Well, I'm your cousin Lonnie Doble from Dallas, Texas.

- I've heard a lot about you. - Well, come on and meet your kinfolk.

This is your cousin Elizabeth Seabright. She's a female suffragette...

and a temperance worker.

- And her husband... - Elmo.

Yeah, Elmo.

And over here, we have... Let's see, I still haven't got yours.

- Millard Sawyer. - Oh, yeah, cousin Millard.

Now, here, we have your cousin Hope Martin.

She's your first cousin, Homer.

- Well, that's kissing kin. - Is it?

Cousin Jeff Martin.

Him and Hope is brother and sister. They grew up here.

Howdy, Jeff.

And this is cousin Seeby Dixon.

- Howdy. - Howdy.

Cousin Pliney Potter.

Now, sit right down here, cousin Homer.

Now, make yourself comfortable.

Just how long are we supposed to sit around here waiting?

Unless the general has changed a lot in the last 20 years...

he'll let us know when he's good and ready.

Suppose we ought to go up and see him?

Go up and see him?

Don't nobody have to go up and see me.

Just because I sent for you don't mean that I'm laying around in my deathbed.

- But, general... - Stay away from me, all of you.

Keep your distance.

Hm.

Now that I've seen you, I may decide not to die at all.

Which one are you?

You know very well who I am, general. I'm Elizabeth Seabright.

Oh. I was hoping your voice would change when you got older.

Well, there's one thing I ain't got, and that's family pride.

- Who are you? - I'm Homer Eakins, general.

I don't believe it.

Well, it's a fact, general.

You'll have to remember you haven't seen me since I was...

Ten years old?

We all have to grow up sometime.

I didn't think you'd ever grow up.

Let alone...

Well, never mind.

Good to see you, general. I'm Lonnie Doble...

When I wanna know who you are, I'll ask you who you are.

Sit down.

First of all, you people are all guests of Black Fire.

Whether you like it or not.

Why do you call it Black Fire, general?

Because it's my place, and I can call it any blame thing I want to.

There's a lava bed up at the north end of the ranch.

Black fire is Indian for lava.

Why are we guests at Black Fire?

Because I said so.

I don't wanna see you people any more than you wanna see me.

But people seem to think that I'm getting old or something.

And that fool lawyer of mine said that I've got to decide...

who's gonna get Black Fire and all my money.

Now, I'm gonna take two weeks to pick some heirs.

Any of you that don't want the money can just go on about your business.

The rest of you can stay here for inspection.

That's compulsory.

Ahh!

Understand?

If you've got any stuff in the village, go get it and come back here.

Luther will show your rooms.

He's the smiley one that answers the door.

General. GENERAL: Homer.

I'd like to ask a favor.

A friend of mine is convalescing after an illness...

and I've been sort of looking after him.

He's down in town now. Could I bring him along as a guest?

Well, I don't see why not.

He won't get in on the grabs, but he's welcome to stay with you, yes.

Thank you, general.

I'll have to let the boys know down the gate.

What name does your friend go by?

Maverick. Bret Maverick.

Oh. All right, go get your moving done.

Breakfast at 7:30. Sharp.

- Homer. - All right, all right.

Yeah.

For a minute, I was afraid you'd be overcome by the fumes.

- What, the paint? - No, the Rabbit Tobacco.

All right, Maverick, now that we've all had our hearty laugh...

how did it go?

Well, I think he was expecting somebody more your type.

He was very pleasantly surprised.

Well, I couldn't be more delighted.

I want him to like you, Maverick. For my sake.

That's greed, Homer, greed.

It's not greed at all.

I merely want my kindly old uncle to die happy...

knowing that he's left his money in good hands.

How did you like the old gargoyle?

Oh, I liked him.

Well, you're both to be complimented on your exquisite taste.

Homer, I have some news for you you're not gonna like.

All the relatives, including you, have to spend two weeks at Black Fire.

Letting the old man look you over.

Maverick, I keep getting the feeling that you're trying to say something to me.

Homer...

let me out.

It was fun when we were talking about it, but now, I...

Now you wanna crawl out of it, eh?

Maverick, am I a hard man?

No. It's just that you owe me a sizable favor.

And you're gonna pay it back this way.

I want you to go out there, have a grand time.

Enjoy yourself, have fun.

And just remember that my thoughts will be with you every minute you're there.

So will you, Homer.

What do you mean?

You need food and shelter...

and I'll need moral support and the answers to a lot of questions.

So I told the general that I was bringing my friend Maverick along.

- You didn't. - I did, Homer.

And I am.

Sorry, out of the question. He'd know me the minute I walked into the house.

There would be the usual fight, I'd be cut off without a nickel.

I'm not giving you a choice, Homer.

If you don't play Bret Maverick, I don't play Homer Eakins.

Mr. Maverick, your...

Hat?

Whoever cut that fence was acting under your orders.

I thought we agreed there'd be no more fence cutting.

I can't help what you thought.

Those farmers aren't gonna sit and let you cut their fences...

every time you take the notion. They've got a right to put fences up.

You're gonna have to get used to it. We have to live with these people.

Live nothing. Run them off the range as fast as they turn up.

You know as well as I there's too many of them.

And they don't run.

Oh...

Well, come in, come in.

Your cousin Jeff has just been explaining the beef business to me.

- Oh? - Yeah.

Oh, General Gibson, Mr. Martin, Mr. Bret Maverick.

- How you do? - My pleasure.

- Thank you. - Excuse me.

You know, all you gotta do is cut one of them nesters' fences...

and it'll set that boy off for days.

I bet the nesters love it too. - Ahem.

Well, so you're Mr. Maverick, huh? Hm.

You know, Homer, this is the way I thought you'd grow up.

Indeed, well, when you expect too much, you're bound to be disappointed.

You must learn to make the best of what you have.

Huh.

- Well, boy, what do you do for a living? - Oh, I'm a painter.

- Houses, barns...? - Pictures.

Oh, for the love...

I thought you'd outgrow that kid stuff.

You don't look like no artist.

- That's very kind of you, general. - Huh.

Maverick, what do you do?

I play poker.

No, I mean how do you earn your living?

General, when a man plays poker well, he doesn't have to earn a living.

Other people earn his living for him.

No one can accuse Bret Maverick...

of having done an honest day's work since the day he left home.

Isn't that right, Homer?

That's right, Maverick.

Hm.

Well, boy, when are you gonna ride out and look over the ranch?

- Anytime you say, general. - Good, good.

Well, what do you think of it?

Since it obviously isn't a relative...

I'll assume you're paying off an election bet.

Young man, I shot that moose myself.

Well, the least you can do is give it a decent burial.

The country has got through panics before, and it'll do it again.

Why, the bank where I work is as sound as a dollar.

Nobody seems to know just how sound that is.

General, do you know that's the third glass of whiskey you've drunk...

since we sat down to table?

If I took the time to count, I wouldn't have the time to drink.

- What's your trouble? - It isn't often I have to sit and watch...

one of God's creatures dissolving his own brains with alcohol.

If I didn't keep my brains thawed out, they'd get as hard as my arteries.

Eat your dinner.

What else do you do for mankind besides trying to cut off their liquor?

I work for the emancipation of women.

Hm. You make less sense sober than I do drunk.

You over there...

you anxious to get emancipated?

Well, I...

What do you think about women voting?

Homer, do you think women will ever vote?

If they put their minds to it, they will.

Oh, you talk about women the way Jeff here talks about farmers.

Just because they want something doesn't mean they're gonna get it.

The farmers will get what they want because we want what they've got.

The country is filling out and it can't fill out without farmers.

When I see meat on my plate, I wanna see potatoes too.

There's trains running between here and the farm country every day.

They can bring you all the potatoes you can eat.

You're absolutely right, general.

I know all about this whole problem of fences cutting in on good rangeland.

And I'll tell you one thing. If I ran this ranch or any other...

I'd boot them sodbusters out as fast as they showed up.

Yeah? How would you run a place like Black Fire?

Just like I run my business in Dallas. The old methods, the tried and the true.

You start bringing in these new fancy-dan ideas...

and your whole business will go to blazes.

Yeah. You've got some good ideas.

I'd like to hear more of them.

Will you excuse me?

These tried-and-true ideas work out so well around here...

I've got to go talk a farmer out of taking us to court about them.

You ought to be ashamed of yourself. You're a disgusting old man.

You're all disgusting.

Well, now that you mention it.

You hover around like buzzards waiting for Uncle Jay to die...

- so you can swoop down on his leavings. - Now, hold up just a minute.

Let me tell you one thing, he's too mean to die.

And this fine big ranch you wanna divide among yourselves...

isn't the general's, it's Jeff's.

Jeff has run Black Fire ever since he was a boy.

He worked 18 hours a day making it what it is.

All the general has done has been to sit around and start trouble.

Cousin Hope, you're overwrought.

And don't call me cousin.

I don't wanna feel kin to anybody in this room.

She gets her temper from her father's people.

Whoever they are.

Ha! Game, 15-2, 15-4, 15-6, and two are 8.

Ha, ha! I guess you know now who's the cardplayer in this family.

You're no cardplayer. You just always draw a good hand.

Oh, yes.

I think I'll get me some fresh air.

Join me, Maverick?

For fresh air?

Do you care for a friendly game, Maverick?

I'm never friendly at cards, I never play for fun.

Well, what's wrong with playing for money?

You can't afford it, you have a large family to support.

Hm.

It's the general's own fault. He didn't raise the boy right.

If he'd started using the strap when Jeff was little...

Why do you tell us?

Why don't you pass your suggestions to the general?

Don't start telling me what to do, Lizzie Seabright. I ain't your husband.

Hmph!

Tell me, Luther.

Are all my relatives quarrelsome?

Ask somebody else.

I've been around here three months.

Three months from now, I'll be somewheres else.

Eh, somebody waiting for breakfast in bed?

Cousin Lonnie isn't here yet. Shall we wait?

I wouldn't wait breakfast for Fanny Davenport.

Luther! Luther!

- Yes, sir? - My compliments to Mr. Doble.

Tell him to get himself down to breakfast. Double-quick.

- Cousin Lonnie ain't here. - I know he ain't here.

Get yourself up to his room, get him here.

He ain't in his room.

Anybody see him go out?

The room ain't been slept in either.

People here have taken to stepping out for a breath of fresh air.

If he went for air, he took his clothes with him.

Hm.

Well, Hope, looks like your speech did some good after all.

You got rid of one of them.

All right, everybody pitch in.

I'm gonna kill you, Homer.

Ha! You're dead, Homer. You're dead.

It looks like horseshoes ain't your game either.

- I'm just feeling out your weak spots. - Then what do you aim to do?

- Beat your head off. - Ha, ha!

We'll see about that.

You just watch.

I don't wanna interrupt anything important.

- What's on your mind, Maverick? - Why do you think Lonnie left?

Because cousin Hope scorched his tail feathers.

He ain't used to her nagging like I am.

I wouldn't say this is a particularly thin-skinned family.

That's right, it ain't.

Ha, ha! Ringer!

Throw, Homer.

If anyone was to get hurt feelings and leave because some girl made a speech...

it might be cousin Abby or Seeby, or even Elizabeth.

- It would not be cousin Lonnie. - Why not?

Cousin Lonnie is about as sensitive as a barbed-wire salesman.

- He left, didn't he? - Did he?

Who's missing?

We seem to be all here.

It's cousin Pliney.

Pliney? I don't remember any Pliney.

The one who never says anything, general.

Oh.

Luther!

Where's cousin Pliney?

I don't know, general, I ain't been upstairs yet.

I ain't had time. GENERAL: Oh.

I'd better go up.

I'll go with you.

Nothing. GENERAL: Gone?

He's gone, sir.

Hmm.

Well, this one didn't pack up to leave.

Somebody did his packing for him.

I can't believe it.

I don't wanna believe it.

General Gibson, it's amazing how long you can talk without stopping to think.

It's one thing for a man to walk away from your money...

it's quite another for him to walk away from his own.

I'm afraid he's right, general.

Anybody who hides his wallet at night is the type that remembers it in the morning.

All right, then.

There seems to be no question about it.

Two of my relatives are missing.

For all we know, they're dead.

Now, most of you people ain't seen each other for maybe 20 years.

And you ain't been around Black Fire together long enough...

to stir up any grudges amongst yourselves.

So there's only one other reason for whatever is going on.

And that is that one of you wants my property worse than you ought to.

That's an awful thing to say.

I know that as well as you do.

The day before yesterday, I told you all had to stay here.

I'm telling you different now.

Anybody who wants to go is free to go without prejudice.

In fact, I'd rather you did.

Millard?

I don't feel like running, thank you. I've always managed to take care of myself.

- Elizabeth? - I'll stay, general.

- Elizabeth... - I said we're staying, Elmo.

General Gibson, sir, my wife and I are not the same type.

I'm not a relative, I'm not gonna inherit any money...

and I don't wanna lie awake nights waiting for somebody to kill me.

I'm obliged for your hospitality.

It's plain to see you ain't no kin of mine, Elmo.

You got guts, brains.

I think I'll go too, general. I'm used to being poor.

The good ones are always the first to go.

Well, if you're set on staying, stay.

But if you figure to sleep tonight, you better all bolt your doors.

It's built solid.

Everything at Black Fire is built solid.

Mrs. Knowles...

do all the bedrooms have bolts?

Bolts just like that one, Mr. Homer.

I made sure to use mine last night, I bet the others did too.

Wouldn't you? If you were one of the heirs?

I think I will be an heir, Mr. Homer.

Brother Bret's room looked tight and substantial.

Solid walls, high windows, not even a trapdoor into the attic.

And from what he'd seen of his departed cousin Pliney's room...

it was exactly like this one.

But he hadn't really studied cousin Pliney's room.

Now, the one vice of the Mavericks is curiosity.

Cousin Homer.

Cousin Millard.

You're looking for something?

You could say that.

Did you find it?

Who knows?

It was the dead of night, the silent hour...

when General Gibson and all his household...

his heirs and his would-be heirs...

could enjoy the security of their bolted doors.

All but one of them, that is.

Brother Bret's theory was a very simple one.

The killer, no matter what his plans were for the night...

would probably not bolt his door.

And this seemed like the best place to start.

This was cousin Millard's room.

That's far enough.

That'll do.

You better go for the sheriff, Jeff. - Hold it, Jeff.

- Let's find out what this is all about. - Suppose you start it.

Your cousin Homer has been sneaking into people's rooms.

Just trying people's doors, general.

You've been trying people's doors for three nights now.

I have not. I should have been. Somebody should have been doing something.

You can talk better sense than that.

I've been working on a theory, general.

I figured anybody who wasn't in his own room would be the one we're looking for.

Well, now, ain't that interesting?

That's just what Millard figured.

Good thing for you folks I agreed with him.

Can't you people save your bickering for the dinner table?

What are you playing now?

Sorry to tell you, but you're not very careful in your choice of company.

Well, I should think that goes without saying.

Homer, this hurts me.

The only fault you didn't have when you were a boy...

you weren't sneaky.

I'm happy to hear that.

As sick as I'd get at the sight of your mean little face...

I never thought you'd turn out this bad.

Don't tell me you've been playing cards with these people.

Playing cards?

We caught him sneaking in to kill his cousin Millard.

What a preposterous notion.

You better keep out of this, Maverick, this is a family matter.

By all means, keep it in the family.

Haven't you enough to do killing each other?

If you wanna be comical, go do it someplace else.

When I think of one of my own flesh and blood a killer, I...

Lock him up in the storeroom, Jeff. Go get the sheriff.

Never mind, Jeff.

General, this man has two things to his credit.

He is not a killer and he is not your flesh and blood.

Now, what the blazes does that mean?

This man is a simple, hard-working card shark named Bret Maverick.

Well, then who...?

What...?

Don't tell me. Don't even tell me.

That little ratty face...

that big mouth that never stops going, those same blame aggravating ways.

Dear uncle, you haven't forgotten me.

Homer Eakins.

Well, with everybody's good and kind permission...

Don't be in such a hurry, Mr. Maverick.

- You've got some explaining to do. - Settle down, Millard.

All he'd done was whip you in a fight, and you started that.

Go to bed, all of you.

You too, Millard.

Well, I think I'll go pack now.

- I've had a perfectly charming time. - You ain't going nowheres.

I'm disappointed in you, boy.

Just as I was getting to like you, you turn out to be one of those relatives of mine.

Well, general, for once in my life I know precisely how you feel.

But I guess I'll get used to it.

- At least you've got guts. - Guts?

It took guts to do what you done.

Just what was it I done?

You took all the blame off your friend here and put it on yourself.

Oh. How exciting.

Good night, Bret.

Good night, general.

Don't worry, general, he'll grow on you.

That's what I'm afraid of.

General, I'll say goodbye to you and then Homer, and I think I'll be on my way.

Maverick, walk me down to my study. I wanna talk to you.

You.

No, thank you.

- Do you have to go? - Well, let's say I don't have to stay.

What can you get somewheres else you can't get here?

A good night's sleep.

Oh, Homer... I mean, Maverick.

I'd take it kindly if you could stay for a while.

You're the only one here that I can trust.

You think I have an honest face?

No, I don't. But at least you ain't a relative.

- Your housekeeper isn't a relative either. - Don't have to be.

She's been here 20 years.

She knows that she'll get $20,000 when I die.

What about Luther?

Aw, Luther is dead from the neck up and half dead from there on down.

You're the one I need, Maverick.

I'm sorry, general.

I almost like those kinfolk of yours.

And I haven't got the heart to sit around and watch them get killed off one by one.

That ain't exactly what I had in mind. I...

I'm an old man. I've worked hard for what I've got.

Tell me, general, just what have you got?

I've got Black Fire and $2 million.

And I'm not about to leave any of it to a killer.

Well, what are you about to do?

Find out who's doing it...

and then stop him before he can do it again.

Why do you say "he"?

Well, there ain't no she around here strong enough to drag off a grown man.

Have you taken a good look at cousin Elizabeth lately?

Well, general, I wish you all the luck in the world.

Wait a minute.

I don't need luck. I need help, and you're gonna give it to me.

As my pappy used to say:

A man who can't find his own troubles doesn't deserve to share somebody else's.

Maverick.

Did your pappy have anything comical to say about money?

- No, he always spoke very highly of it. - Yeah.

Well, I'm gonna make you a proposition.

Tree this killer for me and I'll pay you.

What would you say to $2000?

- Oh, I'd think of something very friendly. - Yeah.

All right. Now, where do we start?

I think first of all, we should stake out some guards.

- Inside and out. - Walk me down to the bunkhouse...

- and I'll wake up some of the hands. - All right.

Oh, Bret.

Have you got any idea who it is we're looking for?

None yet.

- You have, haven't you? - Yeah.

I can't sleep nights for thinking it's Jeff.

Why is that?

Oh, Jeff has never had a fair shake out of life.

Nor Hope either. Their father left home when they were babies...

their mother, my youngest sister, and the only one of them I really liked...

she brought them here, and then she died.

And I never did do right by them.

You remember what Hope was saying about Black Fire being Jeff's place?

- I remember. - She's right.

Jeff has made this ranch his father and mother and wife and family.

And I think he's been festering inside at the thought of losing it.

Enough to kill people?

I'll tell you what I'll do, general.

I'll make you a bet.

The 2000 you're offering me to stay here.

If it is Jeff, you don't owe me a nickel.

If it isn't Jeff, $4000.

You're betting $2000 on Jeff.

It'll be the best 2000 you ever lost.

Yeah.

I feel better already.

Come on, boy, let's go call out the guard.

Another half hour, I suppose there will be some more bad news.

If there's anybody missing again today, I'm going to leave.

You'll lose a lot of money that way.

I could lose worse than money.

Oh, if they'd only let me take those extra chairs away.

Oh! Why, you gave me such a turn, Mr. Sawyer.

Up so early and sitting in the dark.

Oh, it's a beautiful morning outside.

Can anybody add anything?

Well, I don't know what to say.

No question it's murder. And when we search the whole ranch...

we'll probably wind up with two more bodies.

But I wouldn't have any idea who to start arresting.

I don't have to tell you...

I wouldn't have had this thing happen for anything in the world.

If it hadn't been for me, it wouldn't have happened.

You mustn't think that, general. It's not your fault you're rich.

The other day I asked you all to go.

Now I'm telling you to go. All of you, pack up, clear out.

It was a bad idea, me bringing you here.

I've seen you now, I know who I'm gonna give what to.

I want you to all go home while you're still alive.

I can't let them go, general.

Don't tell me what you can and can't do. This is my house.

This is my county and all these people are under suspicion of murder.

And I don't want any of them wandering off across any state lines.

Folks, I'm just as sorry as I can be.

Perhaps you can come back tomorrow and apologize to any of us...

who are still alive.

Keep your guards posted and hope for the best.

I better go out and help your cowhands look for the other bodies.

The search is over, sheriff.

We found both bodies up at the lava bed.

Now, you take Millard.

We both saw him go charging off into his room...

and we both heard him bolt his door.

Now, nobody could have gotten in that room unless Millard let him in.

Now, you don't believe that any more than I do, general.

Cousin Millard wasn't exactly a trusting soul.

With people disappearing, can't you just see him opening the door...

to somebody in the middle of the night?

Not without him having a gun on him.

Then we'll have to look for another answer.

But how else could they get in?

There is no sliding panels and trapdoors in this house.

I think I know.

There's only one way.

Whoever killed cousin Millard was in the room when he came in.

- Waiting in there for him, you mean? - That's right.

Well, but how could that have been?

We were all of us out there in the hall when he went in.

Were we?

I should have gone yesterday when I had a chance. Why didn't I?

Yes, why didn't you?

- Because he's greedy. - I hope that's all.

Why do you all sit around like this? It isn't healthy.

The least we can do is keep an eye on each other.

That's healthy enough for me.

Well, if we look at each other long enough, we won't care whether we die or not.

When I think that yesterday I didn't have a relative in the world.

You're very cool, cousin Homer.

Doesn't anything bother you?

Cousin Hope, everything bothers me, very little alarms me.

Maybe cousin Homer hasn't got any reason to worry.

Cousin Elizabeth, if I were the killer, you'd have been dead two days ago.

If anyone asks for me, I'm outside bribing the guards.

Keep smiling.

Somewhere in that house, there was an answer hidden.

Some simple little fact that would start things making sense.

And Bret was gonna find it...

if it meant searching the house from one end to the other.

He began at the most logical place.

And this was where the search ended.

He hadn't expected it to be quite that easy.

Know what they say, Homer, a good appetite is the best sauce.

Really, Bret, we're all aware that you're not one of us.

There's no need for you to feel smug about it.

I think we'd all be better off if we had dinner in our rooms.

I don't think so at all.

There's really no reason to sit here and mope and avoid looking at each other.

There isn't, huh?

No reason at all.

Suspicion and distrust are the worst things you can bring to dinner.

Instead of enjoying your dinner, you all sit here wondering...

which one of you is scheming to murder the rest of you.

Even the dullest mind has a genius for expressing the obvious.

I can set your minds at rest.

What does that mean, Bret?

I know the answer.

Well, let's have it.

Well, to begin with, general, we're all agreed:

The guests here aren't well enough acquainted to warrant killing each other.

The only interest they have in common is your will.

Mm-hm.

Well, get on with it.

Now, there's more than enough money to go around.

So the only thing worth fighting for is Black Fire itself.

Somebody wants to make sure this ranch goes to the right person.

- Wouldn't you say so, Jeff? - I hadn't thought about it.

Mr. Maverick, you're being coy.

Would you mind telling us right out which one of us you think is the murderer?

Come on, confound it, which one?

None of us.

Are you playing games, Mr. Maverick?

Not at all, Miss Martin.

Then who is the killer?

Your father.

That's not very funny, Mr. Maverick.

We don't have a father.

What are you talking about, Maverick?

George Martin hasn't been seen for 22 years.

He hasn't?

Then forget it.

You're not finished yet. You keep talking and talk fast.

Well, the unfortunate thing is, general, that my theory is really just a theory.

I know what I think and I can prove it to my own satisfaction.

But you can't take a theory into court.

I couldn't even take this one to the sheriff.

No, it will take somebody else's word besides my own.

Martin.

Thank you, George. I wasn't completely sure it was you.

Stop!

That was a long shot, Bret.

How did you come to it?

Not such a long shot, general.

The brooch.

Who is it?

Your mother and him.

I'm to blame for all of this.

I could have said at the beginning...

that I'd never leave Black Fire to anybody but Jeff.

All I meant to leave the rest of you was money.

That's all I ever wanted.

That's all any of you wanted.

All right, you'll all get your money.

All except Jeff, that is.

Why all except Jeff?

Because he don't need it. He's got Black Fire.

As to the rest of you...

I'm gonna take some of the joy out of your lives.

You won't have to sit around waiting for me to die.

You can take half the cash and split it up amongst yourselves. Now.

Do you have plans for the other half, general?

I'm saving that to go out and get drunk on.

One, two...

three, four.

It's a pleasure to do business with you.

It's a pleasure to take your money, general.

- Are you going too, boy? - Why not?

Where do you figure on going?

Paris.

Paris, France?

What other Paris is there?

I've always wanted to starve in a garret.

Homer, if we was both to go to Paris, we could sure do her up in great style.

- Do you think you could behave yourself? - No.

All right then, Paris it is.

- You care to join us, Maverick? - Not this time, thank you.

I'm holding up a big poker game in Denver.

Well, don't lose her all in one place.

It's the sheriff.

I got here as soon as I could. What happened?

The butler did it.