Shoot Angel! Read Free Page A

It was only now that he realized the grubby
state he was in. He hadn’t shaved for a couple of days, his clothes
were dusty, sweat-stale. He decided that as soon as he had finished
his meal he would do something about his appearance.
    A few minutes later the girl
reappeared. She was carrying a tray holding
Angel ’s
meal. She smiled at him as she came across the floor of the
restaurant. Without warning the smile vanished from her face. Angel
heard the door rattle open, glanced that way, and saw two men step
inside. The first thing he noticed about them was the aggressive,
intolerant way they behaved. Nor was he slow to spot the badges
they wore pinned to their grubby, creased shirts. The one in the
lead was big, a heavy, beefy man with large hands. He grinned
wolfishly as he planted himself squarely in the girl’s
path.
    ‘ Smells good, Jess,’ he said. ‘That steak’ll do right
well.’
    The girl ’s face flared with anger. She
made to move round the huge bulk but the man stepped in front of
her again.
    ‘ Oh,
for heaven’s sake, get out of my way.’
    Duggan laughed. ‘My, don’t she get
uppity! Now you ought to treat us nice, Jess, ’cause we’re
customers. Ain’t that right, Koch?’
    ‘ Yeah!
Could be we want to spend some money here. Don’t cost a thing to be
civil, Jess.’
    ‘ How
about showing us some civility and letting the lady through with
this customer’s meal?’
    The man called Duggan turned at the sound of
the strange voice. He eyed the speaker, seeing a tall, rangy young
man in the act of rising from his seat at one of the tables. Duggan
saw the dusty range clothes, the tanned, high-boned face, and
thought he was looking at some out-of-work cowhand passing
through.
    ‘ Hey,
Koch, you hear something speak?’
    Koch made a great show of staring around the
restaurant. Then he shook his head.
    ‘ Thought I did. Must have been imagining it.’ He hesitated
for an exaggerated moment, then added: ‘Mind—I can smell
something.’
    Duggan grinned. ‘You know, so can
I. Now what is it?’
    ‘ Cow
shit!’ Koch stated. ‘Yeah. That’s it—cow shit!’
    ‘ I’ve
had just about enough of you two,’ the girl, Jess, said angrily.
She placed the loaded tray on the nearest table and swung round on
the two grinning deputies. ‘It isn’t enough that this town has to
put up with you and our so-called sheriff! Now we have to suffer
your filthy humor and stupidity! I think it best if you leave my
premises right now. One privilege I still enjoy is being able to
refuse to serve anyone I don’t wish to. In your language, Duggan,
it means you don’t get to eat in here. Now get out!’
    Duggan ’s face darkened, his small eyes
glittering dangerously.
    ‘ The
hell you say! Ain’t no damn female going to tell me where I go! An’
I’ll eat here … now … ’ Duggan reached out to snatch the steak from
the plate resting on the tray.
    ‘ No!’
Jess yelled. In her rage she swung a hand wildly at Duggan. Her
small fist jarred the steak from his fingers and it fell to the
floor.
    Duggan gave a grunt of annoyance.
    ‘ Look
what you done … stupid bitch … time someone showed you the way … !’
He lashed out with a huge hand, slapping Jess across the face,
hurling her across the restaurant. Behind him Koch uttered a shrill
laugh.
    Neither of them noticed that
Frank Angel had moved. Silently, with fluid ease, he slid away from
his table, crossing the restaurant in long strides. He reached
Duggan ’s
side just as the big deputy was about to move towards the fallen
girl. Angel’s right hand, held rigid, chopped brutally across the
side of Duggan’s thick neck. It was a powerful blow, delivered with
practiced efficiency. It caught Duggan in precisely the right place
to paralyze nerves, and the big man went down without a sound. As
Koch became aware of Angel’s presence, he made a desperate grab for
his holstered gun. Angel twisted round to face him, his right leg
delivering a swift kick. The toe