t was on my way home from buying some basic supplies when something happened that was to change my life.

I am Sevens Calderon, the youngest of the three Calderon brothers. They call me Sevens on accounta I’ve lived through way more than I ever should have. I should have been dead years ago, but somehow I’ve always managed to pull through. Nobody knows for sure how or why.

I was on my way back to the farm that I share with my two older brothers outside of Skibbereen, when I heard the gunfire. I am pretty sure that there were only three shots fired, but to this day I am not one hundred percent sure. I didn’t want to go running straight into the middle of shooting, so I sneaked up quietly until I could see what was going on. Just as I got there, the man I reckoned to be the killer was riding of at a gallop. I could have shot him out of the saddle, but I don’t hold to shooting people in the back, no matter what. As I glanced around, I saw that both of my brothers lay injured on the ground. I approached the one nearest me and saw at once that he was already gone. Shot straight through the heart. I went to my other brother. He wasn’t so lucky. He had been shot through the gut and was going to die, but not until he had suffered for a bit.

“Whatever you do, Sevens, don’t let him get away with this,” he grimaced.

“Who”

“You wouldn’t know him, ‘cause he ain’t from ‘round these parts, but he said his name was Zeno Curry. He said it when he was rantin’ about how ‘they didn’t think that ol’ Zeno Curry would ever amount to anything, but now I’ve done killed the Calderon brothers.’” My brothers were known for being quick with a gun and having dead aim to boot. Nobody knew if I was any good, because I’d never had any reason to test myself. Sure, my brothers had taught me everything they knew, and I’d practiced an awful lot, but that didn’t guarantee a blamed thing. “He forgot that there was another one of us, who would be sure to track him down. I didn’t tell him about you, because I figgered that, thinking he had killed us off, he might become careless and boastful. You’ve just gotta find him and get even. Now if you’ll do me one last favor, get me that bottle of whiskey from inside to help ease the pain.”

I went inside to get it for him, but by the time I had returned, he was dead. I took a swig of that whiskey and thought about what I was going to do. The first thing would be to get a horse, because 7 had stolen ours. That was easy to do, so I packed a few things, saddled the borrowed horse, and rode out on the trail of Zeno Calderon.

< CENTER> * * * * * < /CENTER>

It was the middle of the afternoon when I rode into the small Mexican town. I had been riding for many days on Zeno Calderon’s trail. I had a feeling he knew I was after him, but I had been careful not to let him know exactly where I was. I had no intention of being the target of some bushwhacker. The trail was easy enough to follow because Calderon made no attempt to hide it, and he was riding my own sorrel gelding. I would recognize those hoof prints anywhere.

I left my borrowed horse in the corral, and walked down the street to the saloon. I sauntered inside apparently unnoticed, sat down at the bar, and ordered myself a beer. I sat back to watch the patrons and sip my beer. Not much seemed to be going on, there were a few townsfolk talking at a table of to the side and a couple of drifters had started a game of poker. I watched for a while, but when I finished my drink, I decided to get my stuff set up down to the hotel.

After I had gotten my things put away at the hotel, I decided to catch up on some of the sleep that I had lost on the trail.

I awoke many hours later just as it was starting to get dark. I went back to the saloon to talk to the bartender. Bartenders know just about everything that’s going on in town and who has come in, because most everybody stops at the saloon. They are willing to tell you all they know if you so much as ask.

“Anything interestin’ been goin’ on here lately?”

“Not really all that much. A couple drifters came in yesterday; another came in this morning, about a couple hours before you. He came in and right away bought a round for everyone here. Said he had just kill the Calderon brothers. I didn’t think I’d live to see the day when anybody could outshoot them two. ‘Specially just one man. I guess it was bound to happen some day.”

“They was attacked at their own home for no reason at all,” I said coolly. I was starting to get irritated with this guy.

“I wonder where you heard that. I only heard that man’s story, an’ I s’pose a fellers not likely to boast about a thing like that. By the way, Stranger, I don’t believe I caught your name.”

“It’s Sevens Calderon.”

Soon enough, everyone in town knew that I, Sevens Calderon, was in town looking for Zeno Curry. I had to be careful now, walking around town, for I never knew when Curry may try to kill me. I was also getting to be pretty well known around town, which was a good thing because I was planning on settling down and staying here once I got this whole Curry business over with. I ate at the eating-house almost every day because I was never very good at cooking and anyways, Old Irina Garlin was always happy to have a polite customer.

It was while I was eating there one day that I saw Curry and a man I knew to be Bartlett Tilton, who wasn’t worth the weight of his thumb in tin when it came to using a gun, riding down the street. Curry was riding my horse, and they were coming to the eating-house. I had just slipped into the kitchen when Curry and Tilton walked in.

“Coffee!” Curry ordered.

Tilton was handing Curry some money, though I couldn’t see how much. “This is half of it, I’ll give you the other half when you get the other one.” Curry’s face paled. “You did know that there was another Calderon, didn’t you?” Curry shook his head. “You idiot, I thought you knew about him. How could you not? Every one in town knows that he’s here to find you. I can’t believe that you could be such a danged fool. I just want you to know that I won’t be lookin’ out for your hide. You’d better watch out for him yourself.”

“I thought that you just wanted those two killed because they killed your partner and got you put in jail. What do you have against the other one, whoever he is?" My brothers had talked about this, but they never knew the name of Tilton, the man they put in jail. Tilton’s partner was Crispin Mace.

“Do you seriously think that Sevens Calderon is going to let you get away with killing his brothers? Besides you’re in trouble unless you really think you can beat him with a gun. Dozens of times he should have been killed, but he somehow managed to survive. It was his dumb luck that caused him to be in town when you killed his brothers. You don't get the other half of the money until you kill Sevens Calderon.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll get him when the right time comes.”

“That time is now,” I told him. This seemed like as good a time as any to appear. “Now I’m going to get even.” Both men were wearing guns, but I wasn’t worried about Tilton because I knew he couldn’t event shoot straight, much less make a quick draw.

“Not in my dining room your not. I don’t want blood on my clean floor. Y’all get ya’selves out in the street.”

“You first, Curry, then you, Tilton. Don’t worry, I ain’t gonna shoot you in the back.”

When we got outside, Curry tried to draw on me. I saw his hand go down to his gun and at that same my hand went to mine. My mind hadn’t even registered the action yet; it was just instinct. Curry had a fast draw, I have to give him credit for that, but it just wasn’t fast enough. I got three bullets into him before he had fired two. The one he did get was way off to the side somewhere. What are yo...?"I started to say to Tilton, but he had already gone, so I went back inside to finish my meal. My place was already cleared, but Irina was there holding a package.

“I took the trouble to pack up your meal and a few other food supplies for you. Don’t worry about paying for it, you don’t have the time. You’d better ride out of here as fast as you can before a lynch mob gets you. Now get!”

I decided that I’d better not argue with her and went out to saddle the borrowed dun. I had noticed that my sorrel was gone so I guessed that Tilton must have taken it. As I was riding away I decided that the best place for me to go was home. It was too bad; I had really liked that little town. What bothered me most was that Tilton had just disappeared. Where was he?