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“Sorry the temperature isn’t to your liking,” Gray said, tossing the pitcher of water into the man’s face.
He sputtered a little, but the howls of pain had stopped so the water must have helped.
Before Gray could say anything else, Mercy hurtled herself through the door, stepping over the man on the ground to throw herself in his arms.
“Hey, darlin’,” he said, wrapping an arm around her waist. “What brings you here? Oops, I’ll take this,” he said, gingerly plucking the gun from her hand and uncocking it before he shoved it in his belt buckle.
“What brings…” She stared at him, utterly nonplussed. “What happened?” she asked instead of answering, nodding down at the man on the ground who was still holding his forehead and whimpering.
“I was just offering Mr.…?” He glanced down at the man and waited for him to answer.
“Brown.”
“Ah. I was just offering Mr. Brown here some coffee.”
Doc, Preacher, Mrs. DuVere, Martha, and Frank had been right on Mercy’s heels and were congregated on the porch, straining to see what was going on.
“You were offering him coffee? With the whole pot?” Mercy asked.
Gray shrugged. “Didn’t have time to find a cup.”
Mercy half sighed, half laughed and dropped her head to his shoulder.
“What’s all this?” Jason’s voice said from somewhere out on the porch. “Who’s the prisoner?”
“Prisoner?” Gray asked.
Mercy looked back up. “Yes. We caught another gunman over at the tavern. He came with another man…” She looked down at Mr. Brown. “I’m assuming that’s him.”
“Ah. Well, in that case…”
Gray set Mercy away from him and bent to pick up the man on the ground, except when he got near him the man emitted a high-pitched shriek that had Gray pulling back like he’d just grabbed the wrong dangly bit on a cow and was about to get kicked.
“Okay,” he said, drawing the word out while he searched his audience for his deputy. “Sunshine!”
“Here, Sheriff!” Jason said, pushing his way forward.
“Get him up.”
Jason hurried to obey as the crowd on the porch parted long enough for Preacher to push through with the other prisoner.
“Ernie!” Gray’s coffee friend said.
“Don’t say my name, you dolt!” Ernie said.
“Ernie? Would that be Brown as well?” Gray asked. “I detect a certain resemblance, I think.”
“He’s my brother,” the other one said.
“Dammit Claude, keep yer mouth shut!” Ernie yelled.
“Sunshine, why don’t you show Ernie here to a cell while we have a chat with Claude.”
Jason grinned and grabbed Ernie’s other arm so he and Preacher could wrestle him back into a cell.
Mercy had a quick murmured conversation with Martha and Mrs. DuVere before coming back inside the office and closing the door. He didn’t bother trying to ask her to leave. She’d just refuse, and he’d end up telling her everything anyway, so she might as well be there.
“Why don’t you have a seat?” Gray said. He reached for Claude, who emitted that high-pitched shriek again.
