Applause and Feedback

Remuda: The press of the crowd in that saloon trying to get up to the bar seemed very real the way you described it. I guess there seems to be one in every crowd (or at least town) that recognize them in some way, and this old codger's uncanny perception (or hang up!) with names was the culprit this time. And after everything Heyes went through to try to get some beer, poor Kid still didn't get one!

Silverkelpie - I'm so glad you are continuing this mystery and I never thought about it until I saw Evdokiam's comment, but Maud's face is missing!    Is it her?  Oh, your mysteries are so cunning.  Where are you going to take us with the old man?  Love it.

Keays  - You write chases in a way that takes the reader right along with you.  I got caught up in the excitement so much that it took a second read to catch the names when others commented on them.  The bantering is wonderful as well.  I'm looking forward to more of this whirlwind.    

Nancy Whiskey - Pettigrew's real name was a great last line, but the plot was lots of fun and the lines were excellent, especially when he was spouting off all those reviews. Lots of fun and I can see your writing really developing with this one.

Hunkeydorey - What can I say that hasn't already been said of this beautiful story?  Let's see.  This felt like the happy ending to a lovely, old black and white film and we get to see the people tragically parted come together to walk off into the twilight together.  All that and we got to see that there's a new 'Kid' who's is going to have the family, the love and the support his grandfather never had.  I'm tearing up even writing this because the story stayed with me so much.  I truly think this is a classic.  Wonderful!    

Moonpie - The Aga Sat?  How clever of you to find an insult in another language that an arrogant fool like Butterworth could use as an honorary title!  Love this and you used the different talent of the boys like a perfect harmony to make sure nobody got shot. 

Helen West - Randolph Z. Quaid?  I would love to know what the 'Z' stands for.  You built the suspense like one book stacked on top of the other in the musty, crusty bookshop I could almost smell.  I have a new favourite.  Lovely writing and I was completely drawn in before I'd realized it.

Javabee -  Oh, I don't know whether to envy Mrs. Parker or to be afraid for her, having Hannibal Heyes on her tail like that!  One things for sure, I'll be right behind trying to keep up with this wonderful story!  So suspenseful. 

Insideoutlaw - This is so clever in the insight it gives us to the characters and how their minds work.  It also tells us, that without Heyes, the Devil's Hole Gang will be a run-of-the-mill hold 'em up gang of robbers.  Great banter too.

Bluebelle - The uncommunicative Kid speaks volumes by what he doesn't say and Heyes manages to lead and arrogant lawman eight up to a snorting, angry bull.  Lots of great lines in this, especially Heyes' reply to someone asking if he was in charge.  "Almost always."  Ain't that the truth.

Hannaheyes -  No wonder the Kid was so incredulous.  A unicorn!  But there was one, kinda...  Great banter too, but the picture topped it off for me.  I could see this little dear in a travelling show in this days.  What a find.

Remuda -  Your dialogue is always perfect and nobody does it like you.  You took me through the different dialects right along with you so that I could 'hear' them in my head.  Old Jim was certainly a scoundrel and not to be trusted, no matter who or what he claimed to be.  He was just canny enough to be dangerous  I think Heyes made the right call.

Javabee - I am totally hooked and can't wait to see Mrs. Parker and Hannibal Heyes clash.  But what's she doing to the Kid in the meantime?      I hope you post more of this soon.  I'll be here on tenterhooks!

Insideoutlaw - John Brown checking into a hotel?  I think that Heyes was onto something here, because I doubt the clerk could even repeat those names the next day because they were such a mouthful.  It showed us the difference between Heyes and Wheat so clearly and you could see that the gang would be operating on a different basis after Heyes was gone.

Bluebelle -  I loved this one.  The marshal got just what was coming to him when he went after 'Pedro' and he couldn't say that Heyes didn't warn him either.  Interesting insights to the time in that the woman was twenty and old enough to know her own mind, yet her father could get her boyfriend hunted across state lines because he didn't like his race.  A serious message delivered in style.  
  
Cimarron - How sweet were these people?  Not at all, but I laughed out loud when her husband told the robber that his wife could probably remember his face.  Somehow I felt the most sorry for the robber!  The store owners were nastier than a gang of outlaws.

Hannaheyes - A great story, but if you hadn't posted the picture I'd never have thought there was such a creature.  No wonder they didn't want to tell Lom about this job.  he'd think they'd gone totally loco! 

Remuda - You not only write the best banter but you took us right into that saloon with the dripping beer.  I could see it.  The old man was smarter than average and certainly wrong-footed Heyes a few times.  No wonder he hot-footed it out of there!  The poor Kid never got a drink - at any price.

Here is the web address to the real story of the unicorn deer:

http:// www.nbcnews.com/id/25097986/.../ unicorn-deer-found-italian-preserve/

Hope it works. If not, just google unicorn deer and you'll find it.

Silverkelpie - The butler did it.  No!  The male mid-wife did it.  No, it was the...oh, it could be anyone.  On a serious note, I enjoyed seeing how the various strengths of the boys affect the investigation.  If the Kid hadn't insisted on going to find Maude they'd never know she was a victim instead of a suspect.  Loved the line about what women do after they give birth.  These fun lines light up the tragedy.

Keays - Wonderful action and adored the moment they walked into the saloon.  This is a great series from you and I'm greatly enjoying the persistent posse and its unusually named members.  Yes.  I did notice them, you naughty girl!

Nancy Whiskey - Pettigrew was the worse kind of 'lovey' actor and the way he spouted his reviews was wonderful.  You'd never suspect that buffoon was part of a smuggling ring.  I'm so glad that the detective knew that this was going on before the boys came along, otherwise they'd be in real trouble.

Hunkeydorey - Is it the end, or the beginning?  What I loved most about this is that you left it open for us to decide.  I see them back together with everything in front of them, just because that's how I like to think of them.

Moonpie - Every country has them.  Those tourists who are the worst example of our countries and Butterworth is one of those.  No wonder he ended up in a duel.  Loved the way the boys' talents were used to diffuse the situation and I've never read of the Kid's shooting being used to make someone else look good like this.

Helen West - I absolutely love the way you build suspense so subtly, taking us along with you.  You make us care about a man who never appears in the story and who doesn't really exist except as another alias.  Now that's talent!
 
Javabee -  You've got me all agog.  This woman is clearly brave, resourceful and beautiful and she's about to go head to head with Hannibal Heyes?  I can't wait.  This is my kind of story!

Insideoutlaw -  So Wheat isn't as good at lying or thinking on his feet as Heyes?  I guess we all knew that, but this clearly show the difference in the men and how they operate.  Simple but clever.

Cimarron - Grace Sweet's husband would surely get the sympathy of the townsfolk as he seemed the more pleasant of the pair.  Loved when he told the robber that he thought his wife had got a good look at his face.  Very funny.

Hannaheyes - Where did you find this picture?  It makes the story.  How else could we believe that the boys got a job guarding a unicorn?  Loved the Kid saying that if a Leprechaun turned up he was stealing his gold.

Remuda -  So did he die at the Alamo?  This old man seems canny enough to have gotten out of most things and was certainly  able to catch Heyes out on his aliases.  I agree with Heyes.  Best get out of there and not take any risks.

Bluebelle:  I loved how you describe the Kid's demeanor while facing the Marshal and Heyes' arrogance.  I laughed out loud when he was asked if he was in charge and he answered, "almost always."  The Marshal got what he deserved for being so hard-nosed!  Good last line, too.

Cimarron:  What an unhappy couple and how awful for the boys to have to witness the sniping.  I bet they were almost relieved to see the robber.  Mr. and Mrs. Sweet--LOL!

HannaHeyes:  Where on earth did you find that photograph?  I'm glad this might be a longer story, because it's very cute and engaging.  I liked the Hayes/Heyes mix up, too.

Remuda:  Excellent description of a crowded, wild saloon.  Leave it to Heyes to belly up next to the town crackpot, Jim Bowie.  Yet...the guy was pretty astute, too.  Thank goodness, Heyes had an extra beer for him..

SILVERELPIE; Love this continuation.  Heyes sure knows how to turn a phrase and make them sound so very important.  '...usually for the Governor of Wyoming.' and '...other clients we have to keep confidential.'!

Dealing with a senile old man can be very trying.  Kid does an excellent job of being patient with him. 

Got a chuckle out of their answers concerning new mothers;  'Swear at you?  Warn you never to come near her again?'  Smart boys, but hey!  they didn't know that decent women don't feed their own babies!

Sad end to Miss Davis--if that was Miss Davis!  Your stories can get awfully tricky SK.

NANCYWHISKEY; Loved the line about 'Lear', though I wonder if Heyes has actually read Shakespear and was being ironic!  You have so many great lines here, ie; eyebrows trying to hide in his hairline, and making a train take a dirt road!  LOL!

Well, I think Heyes and Curry are actors at heart so of course they'd be drawn to the props!

What an astute lawman, knowing that Heyes and Curry were innocent of any wrong doing.  But at least they caught the true culprit in the end.  With a name like Ramsbottom, he's gotta be a crook!


HUNKEYDOREY; This was a bitter-sweet story but well worth the read.

Interesting that you brought them up into Canada, but that always made more sense to me than going south into Mexico.  Although I suppose it would be warmer down south.

So Heyes ended up raising the Kid's son eh?  Talk about inheriting a family, but then they were always family, weren't they?

Of course Heyes would know when his end was coming.  Family always seem to have the hardest time accepting that.  But Heyes knew and then there he was back with his cousin again.

Very fitting ending.

MOONPIE;  Oh Heyes and Curry must get tired of dealing with dudes--especially loud, obnoxious ones!  I don't think the horse cared that much for him either.

Loved their solution to the gunfight.  And there is old Butterworth thinking that he is actually hitting the target.  Turns out both gentlemen just needed a push in the right direction.


HELENWEST; Oh well, what can one say?  This was a great 'added' scene to your longer story.  I love the smell of an old book store and you really dropped us into one here.

I smiled when Anderson asked about his hands!  Yes, Heyes has exquisite hands and of course he would be handling the books with great care.

A right little mystery for the poor book-vender and I'm left wondering if he'll ever find the answers to his questions.

JAVABEE; Those boys know Heyes pretty well, don't they?  Best stay out of reach when he's in that kind of mood.

Poor Kid's not doing too well, but it does all start to make sense once we know there was a woman involved.

I'm not too sure what is going to be happening to Mrs. Parker now that Heyes is on to her.  And now she knows who is coming to town.  I think sparks are going to fly.

INSIDEOUTLAW; What's in a name, for sure!  And Heyes always was good at coming up with those doozies.  Wheat really didn't see the significance of coming up with a handle that would cause confusion.  Unfortunately lack of imagination always was Wheat's biggest downfall.

BLUEBELLE; Kid sure was doing a good job at trying to be undetectable alright, but not quite good enough.

That rather obnoxious marshal really was asking for one of Heyes' paybacks.  Loved the man at the back and his response to being called a 'half-breed'!

And then, of course; 'Are you in charge?'.

'Almost always.".

'That was just plain mean, Heyes.'  and then the bull's name wasn't even Pedro!!

CIMARRON; How uncomfortable to have to witness an old married couple bickering back a forth.  Best thing to do is to just ignore it.  But then the youngster with the gun had to show up and escalate the whole thing.

Loved the lines about nobody seeing anything, well except maybe his wife got a good look at him.  LOL!


HELENHEYES; This was very interesting.  I for one was certainly expecting some kind of con or something.  But 'no' you pulled through in the end and produced an actual unicorn! 

I can picture Heyes' expression when he heard his name being called.  I'm sure all sorts of scenarios were running each other around in his head. False alarm though and they actually did get to meet the unicorn.

Nice little bit of history at the end as well.

REMUDA;  The visual description you gave us of a busy bar really drops us right into it.  I could hear the laughing and loud talking and the beer glasses clanking together.

Old Jim was pretty gutsy right from the start, asking to share Heyes' beer.  I could see Heyes being put off right away.

He sure got Heyes off balance with questioning their alias' right off the get go.  I think I would have been running for the hills too after that encounter.  Just a shame that after all that effort they still didn't get their beers!

Am I imagining things?  What happened to the story about the first meeting of those three volatile friends; Heyes, Curry and Clementine Hale?  I know I was drugged out on sleeping pills, but I mean--really!!

IO - Love your putting those silly names in Heyes' mouth, but for such good reason. They must have gotten awfully sick of Smith and Jones, which they never asked for.

Hi Keays, are you sure it was in this site?  It sounds great but doesn't ring a bell.

Well, it was a 'what's in a name' challenge story.  I actually included it in my notes when I was writing out my comments for the stories here.  How would it have gotten into those notes if it hadn't been posted here?  I think I'm going mad.

Maybe it was over on the other site and just sounded like it should have been here.  I'll go check.

Yeah, you're right; it was over on the other site.  But it fit this challenge topic over here more than it did the one over there.  And how come I have notes on it with the stories from this site?  I didn't even write any comments for the stories over there!!  That settles it; I am going mad.

Hey!  How come you're still up?

Sorry, I dropped off there.  I am ever attentive...  

Not surprised, you night owl you!

Riders -  W.B. and what a great start to March with this head to head competition between Heyes and Wheat!  We always knew who'd win but you gave us wonderful moments along the way, from Heyes slapping Wheat's hand away from the safe, to Wheat simmering in jail.  I loved this line, "Don’t think I have any friends, and the type of folks I know, don’t usually bother to knock.”  The Kid got a co-starring role as Marshal McCloud and a lovely nod towards Insideoutlaw's challenge from Feb too.  Loved it.   

Gosh, riders, you've made a pretty good bid for gold yourself!
HW

Riders - Marshal McCloud, wearing a sheepskin jacket, no doubt?  Great choice of name in a wonderful story.  I was just caught up in it from the beginning.  I adore the idea of Heyes and Wheat competing head-to-head.  Of course Heyes was going to win, but I loved the line from a dejected Wheat from his prison cell.  “Doubt it.  Don’t think I have any friends, and the type of folks I know, don’t usually bother to knock.”  Loved it and look forward to more from you
 
Silverkelpie - I'm going to stick my neck out and say I don't think a butler did it.  Too obvious for you, but I haven't got a clue who did.  I'm now thinking it's the stewardess, but who was the mysterious figure in the corridor.  Great plotting and I love being strung along with a terrific murder mystery.

What a trio of great stories to start off the month with!


Riders:  What a great Hannibal Heyes plan for putting both Wheat and the banker, Rutherford, in their places.  I loved the idea of a contest and Wheat's blundering in and making a mess of it.  It certainly shows you how unimaginative Wheat is that he's still trying to use John Brown as an alias.  LOL!  You captured all the characters really well, especially Wheat.  Clever, clever story!    

Silverkelpie:  So the plot thickens and murder abounds--love it.  I'm on the edge of my seat now.  Really like the Jenkins/Tishing subterfuge as well as Tishing's sad story of failed love.    More please.  

Bluebelle:  Poor Wheat.  It's just sinking in that the gang has lost its heart and soul; he can't get his men to work up much enthusiasm over his new leadership even though he pulled a successful robbery.  He's just now realizing what a tough act he has to follow.  Very well-written.  

I/O -- as you can tell I truly enjoyed your take on the problem with the name John Brown.