The Six Gun Solution

9

The Alhambra and the Oriental were the last saloons left for Lucas to check. If Delaney wasn’t there, he only hoped that Andre would find him and get him back to the hotel. Unless Finn had picked up some sort of lead and left town to pursue it, he had to be around somewhere. Lucas couldn’t imagine him leaving town without letting them know. But there was no sign of Delaney in the Alhambra. Lucas decided to check the Oriental Lunch Room, which was attached to the saloon. As he entered, he walked right into the middle of an altercation.

“There ain’t a word of truth to it!’ Ike Clanton was shouting at a man sitting at a table. “I ain’t never made no deal with him! And if Wyatt Earp says I did, then he’s a damn liar and I’ll make him pay for it!”

“You’re a son of a bitch. Clanton.” said Doc Holliday, getting up from a nearby table, “and you talk too much!”

“Man goes spreadin’ lies about me. I intend to speak up about it and you ain’t got no say in it. Holliday!’

“You’re the one’s been spreadin’ lies about the Earps, Canton, and I tell you I won’t stand for it,” said Holliday, a dangerous edge to his voice. “And I hear it’s you been telling people I was the one held up that stage and helped King get away.

‘I don’t know nothin’ about that,” Clanton protested. “And I don’t know nothing about no reward for Leonard, Head and Crane, neither. It’s your friend Wyatt Earp’s been tellin’ folks I made a deal with him in secret to double-cross those three for the reward and I ain’t never done no such thing!”

“You’re a liar, Clanton.” Holliday replied. “You’d sell out your own mother for a dollar. I’ve had about enough of you and your damn mouth Jerk your pistol!”

“I’m not heeled.” said Clanton, nervously. “Hell, you know the law.”

“Yeah, and it seems like you obey it only when it’s convenient for you.” Holliday replied.

The door behind Lucas opened and Virgil Earp came in. Apparently. someone had run to fetch him.

“Trouble, Doc?” said Virgil.

“Clanton here’s been spreadin’ lies about us all over town,” said Holliday. “I’ve had about enough of it. You talk big, Clanton. Let’s see how big you are. You want a fight, you son of a bitch, you can damn well have one!”

“I told him I’m not heeled,” Clanton said to Virgil. “I ain’t breakin’ any laws.”

“You’re a liar.” Holliday said. “If you haven’t got a gun, then go and get one! I’ll wait right here!”

“I’m not going to have any shooting around here. Doc.” said Virgil. “Come on, let’s step outside and talk about this.”

“I’m through talkin’! And I’m through listenin’ to this lyin’ rustler, too!”

‘Doc, I’m askin’ you as a friend,” Virgil said. “Let’s go. Let Clanton have his mouth. He’s just a blowhard, everybody knows it.”

Clanton glared at Virgil, but said nothing.

Doc pointed his finger at Clanton. “I’m not through with you, you bastard. This ain’t finished!”

He walked out with Virgil

You heard him!” Clanton said, to the people in the room. “You heard him threaten me! That’s what this town has come to! Outlaws like Doc Holliday can threaten law-abiding citizens just because he’s got the Earps there to protect him! Now they’re goin’ around thrown?’ dirt on my good name! Well, if they want a fight, then Ike Clanton will oblige them!”

Lucas beat a hasty retreat before he got caught in the middle of something. He knew what this was all about and he knew what it was leading up to. Wells Fargo had offered a reward for the capture of the outlaws who had killed Bud Philpot and tried to rob the stage Leonard. Head and Crane had managed to elude the posse and Wyatt Earp was still smarting from it. He wanted the glory of capturing the outlaws and he hoped to do it before the next election, when he planned to run for sheriff against Johnny Behan.

According to history, he’d secretly offered a deal to Ike Clanton. Frank McLaury and another rustler named Joe Hill, to trap the outlaws. And rather than manifest the outrage that he claimed to have over being asked to betray his friends, all Ike Clanton had wanted to know was if the reward was good dead or alive. Obviously, if the outlaws were killed, they’d never be around to tell the other rustlers who betrayed them. And the size of the reward was more than a suitable inducement.

Ike was going to set them up for an ambush and then collect the reward, only nothing ever came of it because Leonard and head were killed in an attempted store robbery in Hatchita. New Mexico and Crane was killed shortly thereafter, rustling cattle with Old Man Clanton, Ike’s father. However, word of the deal leaked out and soon spread all over town, primarily because of Canton’s vocal protestations to anyone who’d listen. It only added to the bad blood between the Clantons, the McLaurys and the Earps and it would lead to the most famous gunfight in western history-the shoot-out at the O.K. Corral.

The situation in Tombstone was tense enough without agents from the future contributing to temporal instability in the time sector. Lucas only hoped that whatever was supposed to happen would happen soon. Yet, at the same time, he wasn’t ready for it. He hurried down the street to the Oriental Saloon.

Delaney wasn’t there, either. Cursing to himself. Lucas hurried back to the hotel. He had the terrible feeling that he was running out of time, he hoped Andre had found Delaney. They had to tell him about Scott. Somehow, Lucas was certain. Scott Neilson was the key to the whole thing. Only what, exactly, were they supposed to do? And when? There was still no sign of Darkness. Why was he cutting it so close?

He ran into the hotel and hurried up the stairs to their room. Andre was already there. There was no sign of Finn Delaney.

You didn’t find him?” she asked, anxiously.

Lucas shook his head. “I looked everywhere. I can’t imagine where he could have gone.”

“He hasn’t been in at the boarding house all day.” she said. “And he hasn’t been seen in any of the other places that I checked. Hell, they didn’t even know who the hell he was. You’d think they’d remember a guy built like a gorilla with red hair and a beard.”

“Something may have happened to him,” Lucas said. “Maybe he pushed Stone too close. Christ. Where haven’t we checked?”

Neither Lucas nor Andre were registered at the Grand Hotel. Delaney stared at the desk clerk with astonishment. “Are you sure?” he asked.

“We don’t have anyone by the name of Priest registered here, mister,” said the desk clerk. “You must have made a mistake.”

“Finn,” said Neilson, from behind him.

“Excuse me.” Delaney said to the desk clerk and went over to join Scott and Jenny.

“They’re not at this hotel.” said Scott. “They’re at the other Grand Hotel, in the other timeline. It’s me. Somehow, you’ve been crossing over from one timeline to the other, but you can’t do it now because of me. There’s another Scott Neilson over there and if I crossed over, it would be a temporal anomaly.”

Delaney frowned. “That doesn’t make sense.” he said. “Lucas had a double in the other universe and he was able to cross over. Why should I be prevented from crossing over because of you? And why should you be prevented from crossing over?”

“Come on, Finn. you must have figured it out by now,” said Scott. “There’s only one explanation that makes any sort of sense. It’s not the Network, it’s not the S.O.G., it isn’t Drakov, it’s me, the focal point of the disruption. Whatever’s going to happen here. I’m at the center of the instability and when it reaches the breaking point. I’m the one who’s going to trigger it somehow. Jenny, excuse us for a moment.”

He drew Delaney aside and spoke to him in a low voice, so she couldn’t hear.

She turned on Drakov because of me.” he said, “and I don’t want her to hear this but you’ve got to promise me one thing. When all of this is over, you’ll take her back with you. She needs help, Finn. Drakov had her thinking she wasn’t even human.”

“What are you talking about, Scott? You know we can’t possibly-”

“She doesn’t belong here, Finn. Look, let’s be honest with each other. Ever since Jenny told me what was going on, I’ve been wracking my brain over it, trying to figure all the angles. Drakov, the Network, the S.O.G., they’re all here contributing to the instability, but they’re not the real threat, are they? It’s me. Somehow, In the other universe. I was the Montana Kid. I lived in another time, in another place, and I didn’t know anything about the T.I.A. or temporal disruptions. You know, it’s a funny thing, but I’ve always felt that I was born too late. That I didn’t belong in my own time. that I really belonged here. And in the other timeline, that’s how it was! I don’t even pretend to understand the metaphysics involved, but somehow. I was fated to be here. Only I’m not supposed to be here. Whatever’s going to happen to bring about the disaster up ahead, maybe the Network’s going to start it. or maybe the S. 0. G. or Drakov or maybe even all of them. but I’m the one who’s going to finish it. Don’t ask me how I know. I can just feel it. And I also have a feeling that to stop whatever’s going to happen, you may have to kill me.”

“Scott, you don’t know what you’re saying You’ve been under a lot of strain and-”

“Damn it, Finn, don’t patronize me! You’ve thought about it, haven’t you? “Tell me the truth!”

Delaney took a deep breath and nodded. “Yeah, I’ve thought about it.”

“Suppose that’s what Darkness wants you to do.” said Scott. “Suppose you’re going to have to kill me. You are going to go through with it, aren’t you?”

Scott…”

“Damn it, Finn, if that’s how it turns out, you’ll have to do it! You know you’ll have to! I just want you to know I understand. Whatever happens now, if I’m really at the focal point of all this. I’m simply going to have to assume that there’s nothing I can do about it. If I’m the one, then whatever it is I’m going to do, we know from Darkness that I’ve already done it and chances are the only way to stop me is to kill me. But only at a certain time, apparently.”

“Scott, this is all conjecture,” said Delaney. “You don’t really know that-”

“No, I don’t really know, but if that’s how it’s going to be, I want you to know that I understand and I want you to do what you have to do. I’ve only got one last request. Take Jenny with you.”

“Scott…”

“Please, Finn. Is it really asking all that much?”

Delaney nodded. “No. No. I don’t suppose it is.”

“Then you promise?”

“Okay, I promise.”

“All right, we’re getting out of here, so you can find Lucas and Andre. We’ll be over the Oriental. Tell the others good luck for me.”

“I will.”

“And tell them… just tell them that I understand.”

Delaney watched as they walked out the door. He sighed heavily. “Damn it.”

“Finn! Where were you?”

He turned to see Lucas and Andre coming down the stairs.

“Where were you?” he asked, astonished.

“We’ve been all over town looking for you! Where-

“Did you just come down from your room?”

Lucas stared at him. “Of course we just came down from our room! Where did you think we were?”

“In another universe.” said Delaney. “I’ll be damned He was right.”

“Who was right?”

“Incredible. Nothing changed. I didn’t notice or feel a thing.”

“Finn, what the hell are you talking about?”

Delaney exhaled heavily. “We’d better go back up to your room.” he said He shook his head. “You’re not going to believe this.”

Zaber came back into the saloon and sat down at the table with the others. ‘They’re registered at the Grand Hotel, as Mr. amp; Mrs. Priest.” he said. “And Delaney’s got a room over the Aztec.”

“Are they there right now?” O’Fallon asked.

“Priest and Cross are. I don’t know where Delaney is. And I haven’t seen the Kid…;”

“He just walked in.” O’Fallon said, looking toward the door.

“What’s the plan?”

“We wait. We act nice and polite-like Clanton said, we don’t want any trouble. We stay right here, in front of witnesses. And when he leaves. Curly Bill plugs him.”

“What about the others?”

“I’ve got six of the boys waiting for Delaney at his rooming house. I made it clear to them that he’s extremely dangerous and if they screw up, it could mean their lives. The moment they spot him, they’ll open up, As for Priest and Cross. I’ve got four of our best riflemen stationed on the roof of Hafford’s Saloon, across from their hotel. As soon as Delaney gets it, someone’s going to run inside and tell them he’s been shot. The minute they step outside, the snipers will open fire with their Winchesters. Meanwhile, we’ll all be sitting right here, having a nice, friendly game of cards and establishing our alibis.”

“How are you going to prove to the organization that we got them?” Zaber asked.

O’Fallon smiled, “We won’t have to, Paul. Forrester is going to do that for us. We’ll be able to collect on that contract as soon as their names appear on the First Division’s Wall of Honor.

Zaber smiled and nodded. “Nice.”

“Minimum risk, maximum profit.” said O’Fallon. “That’s the way to run things. Then as soon as it’s over, we fold the operation and pull out, before any of their backup can arrive.”

“What happens if anything goes wrong?”

“Relax and have a drink. Nothing will go wrong.” He pushed a pack of cards toward him. “Shuffle the deck and deal.”

Scott stood at the bar with Jenny, watching the Network men out of the corner of his eye. He was torn with indecision. He felt certain, somehow, that he was at the center of this whole temporal scenario. What should he do? Would he have to think twice about every single action he was going to take from now until… whenever? Or should he simply attempt to do nothing? Maybe he should just hole up in his room and not come out until the time for whatever was supposed to happen had passed. Only how was he to know when that would be?

What troubled him the most was Drakov. Drakov troubled the others, too. Not only because of who and what he was, but because somehow he had found out about everything that was going on in this scenario. What Scott knew, he knew only from what Jenny had told him, and from what he had deduced from that, but clearly Jenny did not know everything. Drakov had told her only as much as he felt she needed to know to do her job for him. Obviously, he himself knew a great deal more. Only how’?

He knew about the Network and who they were. He knew about Ben Stone being S.O.G. and if there were others-and it would seem there had to be-he probably knew about them. too. He knew about Zeke Bailey. How could he know all that? How could he know about all the forces at work in this scenario without any of them knowing about him?

“Scott?”

He looked at Jenny.

“You look so worried.”

He took her hand and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Everything’s going to be all right. Jen. “

“What did you and Finn talk about before?”

“Oh, we were discussing what our plans should be.” he lied. “What we should do about Drakov and the others.”

“I watched Finn’s face while you two were talking.” she said. “He didn’t look as if he thought everything would be all right. “

“We’re all worried, Jen. It’s a dangerous situation. I just want you to stay out of it, that’s all. I don’t want to see you hurt. And I don’t want you going back to Drakov.”

“If he sends for me. I’ll have to,” she said.

“No. It’s too risky.”

“It would be too risky if I didn’t go.” she said. “It would warn him that something was wrong. I have to go on pretending. Scott. For your sake as well as mine.”

“What if he finds out you’ve betrayed him?”

He won’t find out.” she said. “Nobody knows but you and your three friends. And he would never suspect that I could even think of turning against him. After all.” she added, with a grimace, “he’s the Master.”

“He isn’t your master, Jen. Not anymore.”

“I could kill him myself.” she said. vehemently. “Not only because of what he wants to do to you, but because of what he’s done to me. All those years. all my life. I’ve believed that I was something less than human. I’ve believed that ever since I was a little girl, because that’s what I was taught. I’d stand before the mirror and stare atmy reflection, trying to see how I was different, how I was inferior..”

“You weren’t born the same way other people are born.” said Scott, “but that’s the only difference. That and the fact that Drakov had poisoned your mind. I know you’re in the grip of powerful, confusing feelings right now, Jen, but you’ve got to try not to dwell on them. When this is over, I’ll take you back with me and you’ll get some help from doctors who can help you sort out those feelings. They’ll help you to overcome all the damage Drakov has done to you. It will take some time. Jen but you’ll be all right. I promise.”

“And you’ll be with me? We can be together?”

Scott felt a tightening in his stomach. “Yes, we can be together.’

“I feel afraid. Take me out of here. Scoot. I want to be with you now. I need you to hold me. Just you and me, alone, together. the way it’s going to be.”

Across the room, O’Fallon watched over his cards as Scott and Jenny headed for the door.

“There goes the Kid.” he said. “Another minute or two and we’ll have one less temporal agent to worry about?

“So there you have it,” said Delaney. “We seem to be stuck right smack in the middle of a giant confluence point and it looks like there’s no telling which damn universe were in. You seem to have been primarily in this one, which is theirs… I think, or maybe we’re back in ours again. Anyway, it looks like I’ve been crossing over from one to the other. Don’t ask me how. I don’t know if there are specific areas in town where you can cross over if you happen to be in the right place at the right time or if one timeline son of winks out while the other one blinks in. Theoretically, since none of us happen to belong in either time sector, we’re getting tossed around like corks on the ocean.”

“Jesus. That should explain a lot of things.” said Lucas. “Unfortunately. it raises more questions than it answers. How do we happen to know which universe we’re in at any given time? And how do we know which timeline it is we’re supposed to act in? Are the Network and the S.O.G. caught up in this, the same way as we are, or are we the only ones subject to this peculiar phenomenon for some reason? And. if we’re in the wrong timeline when whatever is supposed to happen happens, how do we know we can get back?”

“There are two more questions we have to consider.’ Andre added. “One, how did Drakov manage to learn about everything that’s going on and, two, how do we know that we can trust Jenny Reilly? She’s still one of his hominoids, after all.”

“She seems on the level.” said Delaney. “At least, Scott believes her. And I believe Scott.”

“Scott is also infatuated with her.” Andre pointed out.

“I think it’s much more than just infatuation,” Finn replied. “He made me promise that we’d take Jenny back with us and get her therapy for the damage Drakov has done to her. He said it was his last request, in case he didn’t make it out of this, He said he… he had a feeling that he wouldn’t. And he wanted me to tell you that he understood.”

Lucas exhaled heavily. “God, what a mess “

“Yeah “ Delaney agreed. “But even if we’re not going to trust Jenny-and I’m entirely convinced we should-why would Drakov want to warn us about everything that’s going on back here? Why warn us of his presence? I can see no reason for it. Except that Jenny has actually betrayed him for Scott’s sake.”

“Well, either way, it makes no difference,” Lucas replied. “We got us a whole new ballgame. The only advantage we have, assuming Jenny’s on the level, is that Drakov doesn’t know she’s come over to our side. But there’s no way of knowing how long we’ll have that advantage, so we’re going to have to move fast.”

“Take Drakov first; said Andre.

“We’ll have to. And we’re going to have to do it right now.”

“What about Scott’?” asked Finn.

Lucas shook his head and sighed. “I don’t know. I just don’t know. All we can do at this point is play it by ear and hope for the best. But we’ll have to hit Drakov fast and hit him hard. Take him alive, if possible. Did Jenny tell

Scott how many people he’s got with him?’

“Scott said she saw at least four at that baseops he’s got in London, on the other side of the chronoplate in the opium den. He’s got Becky, over at the saloon, and some guy named Indian Charlie. Neither Scott nor I have seen him. That’s all we know about. There could be others. Plus he’s got an undetermined number of the Chinese residents of Hop Town that he can call upon. It seems he’s got them thinking he’s some kind of sorcerer. They’re all afraid of him, but whether or not they’ll actually fight for him is anybody’s guess.”

“Considering the risk involved, we’d better call for backup,” Andre said.

“I’ve been thinking about that,” Lucas replied, and I’m not sure if we should. The more people from the future we introduce into this time sector, the greater the odds of increasing the instability that’s already present here. If we bring in reinforcements, it may force Stone’s hand and we would wind up fighting a pitched battle in the streets of Tombstone, with no one being certain which timeline they’re fighting in. For all we know, that’s exactly what Darkness doesn’t want to happen. Damn it, if only he’d told us more!”

“Only what happens if we go after Drakov by ourselves and we don’t make it?” asked Andre. “Who’s going to stop the S.O.G. and the Network? Who’ll be around to send up the balloon?”

“There’s still Neilson,” said Delaney.

“No good.” said Lucas. “I don’t want to count on him. For one thing, he’s gotten too mixed-up in the scenario. For another, he’s too vulnerable. We’ll need somebody else. We’ll have to bring in someone who can take charge immediately and call in the strike if anything goes wrong and we don’t make it.”

“Cooper?” Andre said.

Lucas nodded. “Yeah, Cooper. We need somebody who won’t get nervous and jump the gun, but who can hit and run with maximum effectiveness if need be. Cooper would be perfect. Under any other circumstances, he’d be the one we’d pick and we’re just going to have to go on our best instincts. We’ve got to treat this as if it were any other mission. We can’t afford to question our decisions and wonder if we shouldn’t be doing something different than what we ordinarily would have done, because of Darkness. He told us that whatever’s going to happen, we’ll be in a position to affect it, so I’ve got to assume were going to live at least that long.

“Well, that’s a cheery thought.” Delaney said.

“We’ve got to consider all the possibilities,” Lucas continued “The key point may come when we make our move against Drakov. Or it may come before that, in the next five or ten minutes, for all we know. Or it may come afterwards, involving either the Network or the S.O.G. or maybe even both. It may come when Cooper brings his troops in. There’s no way we can know, but we do know that we’re going be there when it happens. When it does. Darkness is going to clock in and give us the word and well have to act immediately. So I want to know right now if anybody has any problems with that.”

“I take it you don’t.” Delaney said.

“Yeah. I do.” Lucas replied, with a nod, “but I’ve made up my mind that I’m going to do whatever he says without asking any questions. It’s too great a risk not to. He’s never let us down before. We’re just going to have to trust him.”

“Speaking hypothetically.. I hope.” Delaney said, “what if what we’re going to have to do involves killing one of us?”

“Good Lord.” said Andre. “You don’t really think… no, that can’t be. Darkness said that whatever happened didn’t happen as a result of anything we did, directly. Just that we’re going to be in a position to change it.”

“Yeah but what if changing it means that one of us is going to die?” Delaney asked. “What if something that one of us is supposed to do indirectly triggers whatever disaster is going to occur? And the only chance the others have to stop him… or her… is to shoot?”

There was a long silence.

“We have to consider that possibility,” said Delaney, finally.”Suppose you had to kill me, Lucas. Or Andre. Could you do it?”

Lucas swallowed hard and stared at him for a long moment. Finally, he nodded. “Yeah. I could. I don’t know how I’d ever live with it afterward, but if I had to.. with everything that’s at stake… He shook his head. “I’d have no choice. What about you?”

Delaney nodded.

“What are you guys saying’?” Andre whispered her eyes wide.

“Andre?”

“This is crazy. It isn’t going to happen. It can’t-

“Maybe that’s why Darkness didn’t tell us any more than he did,” Delaney said.

“I can’t believe that.” she said. “I won’t believe it!”

“But what if it comes to that?” asked Lucas. “Could you kill me? or Finn?”

“How in God’s name can you ask me that?”

“Because I have to.”

She shook her head. How could I?”

“Because billions of lives in the future could depend upon it, that’s how,” Lucas replied. “There’s a chance, maybe a remote chance, but a chance that it could all come down to you. And if it does, Lieutenant. I’ll expect you to do your duty.”

She glanced from him to Delaney with a stricken look.

“ Lieutenant!”

“Yes, sir.” she said, softly, looking away from them.

“I didn’t hear you!”

She jerked around, looking at him as if he’d struck her. “I said, yes, sir!”

Lucas nodded, “Right. Let’s not waste any more time. Finn, I want you to clock back to Plus Time and get Colonel Cooper back here. He’s to bring no more than two men with him. Use your room over at the boarding house as the transition point. Tell him he’s to stay them and not budge from that room, no matter what, till we get back. If we’re not back by morning, or if he’s attacked, then he’s in charge. Brief him on the situation and get back here as quickly as you can.”

“I’m on my way.”

Delaney got up and popped the cover on his warp disc, then clocked out.

“Andre…” Lucas said gently

She got up, turned away from him, walked over to the window and stood there looking out, not saying a word.