Snippet #2010777

Morgan remained squatting in the dust, looking at the dead man. This was exactly what Splitcreek didn't need- loose cannons, shootings in the street...who knew what was was next? Heaving a sigh, Morgan got to his feet and dusted off his hands, his eyes on the useless medical bag lying in the dirt. Used to be all he did was treat the cut and bloodied hands of hard-working miners, or visit some poor lunger suffering from tuberculosis. These days he was digging the bullets out of men's backs!

Now he had to hunt down this fool's family and make sure someone gave the man a proper funeral over in Splitcreek Graveyard. In fact, he'd better get the corpse off the street fast, or some thieving bandit would steal the money right out of the man's pockets. He knelt again to get a hold of the body, his head snapping up as he heard Bell calling from across the street. He seemed awful pleased with himself, not the least bit concerned to see a bloody body lying in road, and Morgan watched him go with a grunt of disgust. The sooner that snake left town, the better.

The voice of Blackburn was next to reach his ears, and he turned towards the gunsmith, giving a helpless shrug. "Saw him about a half hour ago, chasing after some bloody outlaw. You can try the sheriff's office- matter of fact I'm headed there myself. Need to see if anybody knows who this here fella is...well, was."

He shot Jenny a look, but she was too busy pleading her case to Jethro, who had his hands full with a rowdy group of miners who'd ridden in the course of Morgan's failed rescue attempt. He looked around him, taking in the aggravated yells of Hass's miners and the general chaos of a town in trouble. Come to think of it, he might be heading back to the Silver Spur after all.

But first...he turned his attention back to the corpse, grabbing under the man's arms and hauling him across the road. The body was deadweight, and dragging him was an effort, but it was only just across the road, and Morgan got him into the office easily enough. With no place else to put him, he lifted him onto the table he'd used to treat Bell not fifteen minutes before. He sure hoped somebody could come get the corpse soon, because in this heat the body'd be rotting in no time, and the stench of decay was definitely bad for business.

Heading back out into town, Morgan headed down the road to the sheriff's office, hoping he wouldn't encounter any more trouble along the way.