•Tombstone• Brothers Under The Sun

Chapter 13

𝓣𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝔀𝓮𝓻𝓮 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓖𝓻𝓲𝓶 𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓹𝓮𝓻, 𝓯𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓶𝓮𝓷 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓪 𝔀𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓷. 𝓓𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓼𝓮𝓭 𝓲𝓷 𝓫𝓵𝓪𝓬𝓴. 𝓓𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱 𝓪𝓽𝓽𝓪𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓭 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓲𝓻 𝓱𝓲𝓹𝓼.

Walking down the street, the woman kept an eye over her shoulder, in fear of the cowboys coming back and falling through with their threat. Once the Marshalls office was in sight, she saw the three Earp brothers standing there, wearing clothes as dark as the night sky.

"What the hell is going on!" Elle said as she approached them, the three men turned to her, "Ike Clanton and his gang of idiots just threatened me with their finger guns!" She said as she stepped into the shade of the front deck.

Wyatt stood next to Virgil and Elle saw the three Earp's with shiny silver stars on their chests. "I threw Ike in the cell last night cause he was drunk. Guess the boys didn't like it." Virgil mumbled.

"How's Doc?" Wyatt asked, Elle shrugged.

"Fine when I left'em."

"What are we gonna do?" Morgan spoke up.

"We're gonna wait it out. They're gonna get tired either way." Wyatt said, he then sat down on a chair on the porch.

"Is that going to work?" Elle questioned, she then saw Mayor John Clum walk towards them.

"Those Cowboys been telling everybody in town they're gonna clean you out." Mayor Clum said approaching the group. "They're back there in that lot behind the O.K. Corral." He then hurried away, as if he was afraid to be around them.

The woman sighed and out her hands on her hips. "Virgil," she turned to the older Earp, "I'm gonna need my gun."

"Your not takin' part in this!" Virgil protested.

"They were threatening me, I'm very much apart of this." Elle put her finger in his face. Virgil hesitated before reaching into his hip and handing her, her trusty pistol. She then placed it on her hip.

"What are you doin' out of bed Doc?" Morgan suddenly said, causing everyone to look out into the road to see a sweat covered Doc Holliday approaching the group.

He limped, a cane tightly grasped in his right hand, helping him hold his weight. A cigarette hung out of his mouth as his long black coat was lay on his shoulders. A light grey shirt was stained in his sweat. Elle watched him throw his cigarette away and walk up the the steps of the office.

"What in the hell's goin' on?" He started looking between the men and Elle, "Five people come up to my room... tellin' me the Clantons and McLaurys are gunnin' for us!"

"Doc, you can't be looking for another fight when your already facing death." Elle said putting her hands on her hips.

"Darlin'," he sighed as if frustrated with the girl, "I'm always facing death." He glared at the blonde.

"We goin' down there or not?" Morgan asks shifting his weight.

"What are we gonna do?" Virgil says looking at Wyatt who is sitting in a chair, feet up.

"Wait 'til the liquor wears off." He says not looking a the group. "Soon as they start gettin' headaches, they'll lose interest."

Elle scuffs and throws her hands up, giving up on Wyatt Earp and his attitude. Virgil gives his brother a nasty eye and says, "Lose interest, hell. They're threatenin' our lives." He protested.

"You'll never make that stick."

"They're carryin' guns, Wyatt." Elle said stepping in.

Wyatt stood from his seat, "Christ's sake, Elle that's a misdemeanor!"

Elle walked up to the Earp and faced him, giving him a hard stare. "Don't you dare call me Elle.  Nobody gets to call me that." She grumbled. Virgil put his hand on the women's shoulder and she stepped back, leaning on the wall, with her arms crossed.

"You go arrest them, something goes wrong, maybe somebody really gets his head broken. You'll have Cowboys comin' around lookin' for trouble from here to Christmas." Wyatt said leaning on the railing of the porch. You want to risk all that over a misdemeanor?"

"Damn right I'll risk it." Virgil said nodding to his brother, "They're breakin' the law."

Wyatt stayed quiet for a moment as if he was thinking of everything that could go wrong. "It's neither of your problems Elle and Doc. You don't have to mix up in this."

Doc looked at his friend as if shocked, he had been leaning on the wall next to Elle and finally stood up straight with his cane to help him do so. "That is a hell of a thing for you to say to me." Doc stood next to Morgan and Virgil, telling Wyatt he was with them.

Elle looked at the three men and then back at Wyatt and then unfolded her arms. "I've gotten myself this deep, I'm not turning back now." She also, stood next to Morgan, Virgil and Doc, telling Wyatt that they were ready to assist.

Wyatt looked at his brothers and then the two, nodding he looked at Virgil, "All right, Virg. Your call. Give Doc the shotgun." He said walking next to his brother and Doc, "They'll be less apt to get nervous, if he's on the street howitzer."

Virgil took the walking stick from Holliday and gave the shotgun to him in return. Doc looked at the shotgun with a wicked smile and loaded it. He then concealed the shotgun under his big coat, hiding it in its many folds. The men all looked at each other and then at the lady at the end of the group. Nodding to them, she pulled out her gun and loaded it.

"There's no need for violence." Virgil said as he got his pistol ready.

"These are the cowboys." Elle chuckled, placing her pistol back on her hip. "anything could happen."

The group looked at each other and seemed to hesitate before walking out from the shaded porch and into the sunshine. With each step, the men and Elle's heart races a little more. Unsure of what lies in the O.K. Corral. In front, is Virgil, Morgan and Wyatt. Behind them is Doc and Elle.

Walking out into the next street, a building is in filled with flames, raging with life. The group glance back at the fire, as if it's a sign of what's to come. The group is a fire that cannot be contained just by a few threats of water. They're going to burn the water. Or maybe they are the water, going to extinguisher the fire of the cowboys.

No one is in the street, they're all off to the side, watching death float through their streets. The five peacekeepers, full clothed in black, like death itself.

Doc Holliday starts to whistling, like this is any other day for him. Elle glanced at him as he tips his hat to the barkeep at the Oriental. Swallowing her fear she holds her head high and gaze straight ahead, afraid of what the witnesses are doing.

"How the hell did we get ourselves into this." Wyatt mumbled to himself. No one answers him, because they don't have an answer.

Before they turned a corner John Behan comes running up the the group causing them to stop.

"You don't have to worry about a thing. I just disarmed them." He said as if proud of his deed.

Virgil looked beyond him, the sign of the O.K Corral just a few feet ahead. "You did? Come on boys." Virgil said picking up the pace.

Elle chooses to ignore Behan and Virgil only referencing the group as her opposite gender.

"Gentlemen, I'm not gonna allow any trouble." Behan yells after them.

Turning the corner the Earp's, Holliday and Raycroft are greeted coldly, by seven cowboys. Holding her breath, Ellanora prepared herself for what was about to come.