It was a quiet life in Green Rock, Texas. The two friends Chris Monroe and Gary Fengell had a few days off after they had worked three weeks in a row. They sat outside on the pavement in front of the National Bank enjoying the sunshine.
“What is life actually good for us. First work hard for three weeks and then a few days off”, said Chris.
Gary rolled a cigarette and replied, “For me this life may go on until I die.”
“Then you will have to live a long time”, his friend reacted.
Suddenly he remembered that he had to go somewhere.
“Gary, I must go because I have an appointment in the Bloody Hell. I see you in two hours time at the livery stable of Dan Wallace”, said Chris.
He got up and walked to the Bloody Hell Saloon. Gary nodded, watched him go and lighted his cigarette.
In the saloon Chris saw Mia Dalton already sitting at a table. He also saw his arch-enemy Ray Plant standing by the bar. Though Chris ignored him totally and went straight to sit at the table where Mia sat.
“Why did you have to see me? You know that it is over between us”, said the cowboy.
The girl looked at him with tears in her eyes and said, “You know that I still love you.”
“Yes. What is the reason? My time is very valuable and actually I don’t want to waste it on you”, said Chris.
“Can we go to your place? It is rather private”, said the girl.
Chris sighed deep and said, “Alright then.”
They got up and walked to the house of Chris.
Chris laid moving less on the ground of his house. Too moving less so that The Grim Reaper came to collect him to join him on the eternal hunting fields. How come that Chris was lying so still? That was for everyone a riddle but not for the killer.
Gary was waiting for the arrival of his friend at the livery stable. But who came, no Chris Monroe. Finally Gary suspected trouble and he decided to undertake action. He ran into the office of sheriff Hank Jenkins.
“Sheriff, Chris Monroe is missing. I had told him to meet me at the livery stable but he didn’t appear. I am almost one hundred percent sure that something has happened to him”, Gary said hasty.
He looked at the sheriff with a look saying, “Wouldn’t you come into action?”
Sheriff Hank Jenkins got up, yawned extendedly and said, “If I had to go after each missing person I wouldn’t have time to sleep anymore. Let’s have a look in his house.”
He put his belt on and walked along with Gary. It was an ordinary day but that wouldn’t be so all day.
At the house of Chris Hank knocked at the door but there came no reaction. Next moment Gary did ram the door open and found in the living room the mortal remains of his friend.
The sheriff bended over Chris for a second and said, “Your pal is so dead as a doornail something. Probably overdose of booze.”
“I get the doctor for an examination. When the cause of death is known you are going to find the killer”, Gary said fierce.
He ran out of the door and came back a moment later with the heal master.
Doc Collins examined the body and said, “Chris has been poisoned. It can be that it has been given to him.”
The cowboy looked at the sheriff.
“The cause of death is just pure poison. Everyone can buy that just like that”, the sheriff said who began to get a bit nervous of the look of Gary.
“Yes, yes. You go to the trading post and ask, “May I have an ounce of poison and a whole bread?” Go and take a long ride on your bike”, reacted Gary.
He knew too that she sheriff was rather lazy than tired and he also looked like that. Doc Collins took the mortal remains of Chris along. The sheriff searched the room looking for clues.
Gary stood watching until the sheriff asked him, “Do you have nothing else to do?”
“No, why? I am just watching how you are finally do something”, said Gary.
He went away before the sheriff got mad and busted out of his skin. The sheriff looked around him for a second, saw that he was alone and thought, ‘That Gary Fengell can go and sit upon the roof. It is time for my afternoon nap.’ He locked up and went back to his office.
Gary decided to find out for himself who had killed his friend. As first he went to the Bloody Hell Saloon. They came there a lot and for news you had to be there. The news of the sudden death of Chris was in the drinking building of course the talk of the town. Shelley King, the lady owner of the saloon, saw Gary coming and walked to him.
“Gary, sorry for your friend. We all find it terrible”, she said.
The cowboy passed her to Mia Dalton who avoided his look.
“Thanks. I don’t know yet who has done it but I will find out. The sheriff is one two penny-halfpenny. He rather sleeps than he does something”, he said absent.
“Jenkins shall even oversleep himself for his own funeral. Come, I buy you a beer off me”, said Shelley.
Gary walked along to the bar where he got a beer off the house. While he was drinking his glass Gary listened carefully to hear as much as possible clues.
“Shelley, of course you hear a lot here. Did Chris say anything to you when he was?”, asked Gary.
“No, we haven’t exchanged a single word with each other. He did speak to Mia Dalton though”, the woman behind the counter said.
“Strange. It is over between them since a long time”, said the cowboy.
“Are you going to suggest that I am the killer?”, Shelley asked a bit insulted.
“No, not at all but I think that everyone is capable to kill someone sometimes. Even you”, reacted the cowboy.
He left his spot at the bar and went to occupy himself with Mia.
“Hello Mia. I assume that you already have heard that Chris has died. Seeing as you were his last girlfriend I would like to know where you were this afternoon”, said Gary.
“I was here all afternoon with Ray Plant. He is now my boyfriend”, said the girl.
“If he is your new boyfriend, why did you ask Chris to meet him here in the saloon?”, asked the cowboy.
“I still had a necklace of him and I wanted to return it to him”, said Mia.
Gary said, “I know enough of you. Have a nice afternoon sweet Mia.”
He got up and left the saloon.
Ray came to Mia and asked whispering, “What did he want?”
“He kept on question on me through about if I had seen and spoke Chris this afternoon. I have told that I was here in the saloon with you”, she replied.
“You haven’t done it, have you?”, Ray asked worried.
“Of course not silly. What are you thinking?”, she asked on her turn.
“Good because I haven’t done it either”, Ray said cool.
Mia knew that she was one of the suspects but she was determined to lead Gary up the garden-path. To make the case more complicated she decided to kill Ray.
She asked, “I am a bit tired. Would you like to take me to your house?”
“Always sweetheart of mine”, he said.
She got up and walked with Ray to his house.
Meanwhile Gary paid the doctor a visit.
“Doc, do you already know which caused the death of Chris?”, asked the cowboy.
“He has been poisoned by a drink mixed with whisky and poison. Chris couldn’t stand it when there was something else in it”, replied the heal master.
“What was that other stuff?”, Gary wanted to know.
“A liquid soporific. I have prescribed it lately to Ray Plant”, said the doctor.
“Doc, you have never helped me so good before”, Gary said who suddenly had seen the light.
“I don’t want to say much but I have never ever treated you here”, reacted the heal master.
“That’s why”, Gary said smiling.
Quickly he went away. The cowboy wanted to question Ray too before it was too late.
Without any suspicion The Grim Reaper was waiting in the kitchen to take his second victim to his paradise. Ray let Mia rest on the settee in the living room while he made some coffee. Unnoticed Mia sneaked to the kitchen and with a tea towel she strangled her boyfriend. Ray fell down on the ground as a weak dish-cloth. Quickly the girl went away but underway unfortunately she ran into Gary. ‘Now I am getting unmasked as the killer. I must think of something quickly, she thought.
“Gary, Ray wanted to kill me like he had killed Chris”, Mia screamed hysterically.
“I know Ray good enough to know that he just would kill someone without a reason but let’s go to his house”, the cowboy replied calm.
At the screaming of Mia the sheriff and Shelley had come too and they followed the couple to the house of Ray.
The sheriff saw the body of Ray lying and asked Gary, “Do you know who has killed him?”
“Yes, and I know now too who has poisoned Chris”, he said calm.
He kept silent for a while to make more pressure.
Mia looked at him and asked, “Do we get to hear your theories or must we wait till tomorrow never comes?”
“Chris died due to a combination of whisky and a liquid sleeping medicine. Because he doesn’t use medication himself someone had to give it to him. Shelley can’t have done it because she always take a big nap-cap before going to bed. So that leaves us Mia and late Ray. Because Doc has told me that he had prescribed that soporific he was one of the suspects. But as he didn’t fall for Chris and the other way around neither it had to be our sweet Mia. She had stolen that stuff out of the house of Ray and put it into the whisky of Chris. Mia, why have you killed Chris?”, asked Gary.
“He had promised me to stay by me forever and to raise a family with me. But when I told him that I was pregnant with his child he dumped me. Ray also knew about this and threatened to hand me over to the sheriff. So he had to be killed as well”, the girl said cold as ice.
“I don’t know if you know it but you have given yourself away now”, Gary said calm.
Now the sheriff took the word.
“Miss Dalton, would you like to come with me. In prison there is still room for you”, he said calm.
Mia looked at Gary for another second and said, “If you had let me go it would never been discovered.”
The sheriff handcuffed her and took her down to the jail. Shelley and Gary stayed behind alone in the room.
“I now desperately need a drink and you too. Are you coming?”, she asked.
The cowboy nodded and walked along.