Adventures of Hollywood Jim Ch. 56

The dry arid desert land was unchanged, and unforgiving.

A distant rider could be seen, riding powerfully aboard a fast stallion.

She looked behind and could see them in the distance.

The clouds of dust only confirmed it.

Three other riders were in hot pursuit.

Her destination was the old fort outside of town. Long since abandoned, it was slowly succumbing to the dust and tumbleweeds. Its white adobe stone walls were surrounded by a balcony that encircled the structure and whose wooden beams were quickly rotting away.

She rode through its front gates and into an abandoned space that had probably been a barracks or stable. She quickly dismounted and knew she was as out of breath as her horse. She checked her armaments. Her twin Colt revolvers were loaded, as well as the big Colt Dragoon that had been her husband's service revolver, extra gun belts were at the ready. She pulled out the sawed-off Winchester rifle, dubbed the "Mare's Leg" by its previous owner, a bounty hunter named Josh Randall who taught her all she'd need to know, and died when he encountered her quarry before she did. It would be most effective for close action.

She tensed up as she heard the hoof beats of their horses as they arrived, Butch Malone accompanied by his brothers, Sam and Pete. They were wanted men throughout the territories; numerous rewards had been posted for their capture. "Dead or alive" they all read.

"Hannie! Hannie Caulder!"

She knew it was Butch Malone, the man who'd murdered her beloved husband some months before and sent her on a quest, her quest for vengeance.

"I know you're out there woman...come on out...let's talk a spell."

The cackle in his voice and his brothers told her that talking was the last thing they had in mind. She had to put the memory out of her mind, what they did to her, how they murdered her husband before her eyes.

"Don't think about it." She told herself repeatedly through tightly closed eyes "don't think about it!"

"Gonna give you to three and then we're gonna tear this place down to find ya!" Butch yelled out

"One..."

This was it.

"Two..."

She cocked the trigger on the Mare's Leg and remembered what she'd been taught

"...your first shot is the most important, it can end the fight or buy you time in a fight, make it count girl...make it count!"

"Three!"

She burst out of the doorway and the rifle thundered her answer to their threats. The Malone's were caught off guard and their response was from their pistols.

The rifle's power threw her off-balance and she fell to the ground, just as a loud "POP" sound was heard above.

"CUT! CUT! CUT!" the director yelled "What the hell was that?"

"Bulb on the spotlight blew out Mark!" the lighting man called from above

"Alright...get it fixed and we'll do it again!" he said wearily "Miley are you alright?"

Miley Cyrus got up from the ground and brushed off the dust from her clothes.

"Yeah, I'm okay. I think the gun threw me off balance."

"No, the way you did it looked fine." Mark replied "OK, everyone let's take a break while Edison does his magic"

I stood by the director's chair as Miley came over. She had on tight dusty blue jeans with a thin multi-striped poncho thrown over her topped with a flat brimmed hat. Add in her straight red hair and she certainly looked like her predecessor, Raquel Welch, for this remake of her western film "Hannie Caulder".

She came over and gave me a quick hug

"How'd I look?" she asked

"Dangerous" I replied

"Cool!" she said, adding a quick kiss on my cheek.

We'd been down on this patch of land in Arizona that was owned by John Wayne's family for two weeks shooting her new film. Once this portion was done, we'd move to the confines of a studio back lot for other scenes in the film. Directing was an old friend of mine, Mark Stein. Mark and I went way back and this was to be his directing debut after a few years shooting commercials and video footage for concerts.

"Hannie Caulder" was a remake of a Raquel Welch western and would star Miley in the title role. Her character was a young bride assaulted and raped by the Malone Brothers, her husband murdered. Trained by a bounty hunter named Josh Randall, she goes on a quest to track down the brothers.

Miley grabbed a large bottle of water out of a cooler, removed her hat and dumped most of it over her head, shaking it from her red hair.

"You doin' OK?" she asked me

"Yeah, this is pretty wild to see, I know the photos are gonna look great." I said as I sipped my own water

"I never thought I could miss air conditioning like I do now."

"Well, weren't you the one who insisted on shooting down here?"

"That was Mark's idea!" she said with a smile as she wiped some water from her forehead "I just backed him up, hell, I didn't know he'd really go through with it!"

"Well, if you ask me, this is gonna look great when it's finished. You don't see many westerns anymore."

"I think I know why" she said as she looked around before giving me a smile that made us both laugh.

Mark called everyone back and began choreographing the shootout with Miley as the stunt coordinator listened intently and gave his input. I took this as my cue to reload for any good action shots that might happen. Mark was looking for a spectacular shootout as the climax to the film. He wasn't trying to outdo Peckinpah, but whatever he had planned was sure to be good from what I could hear.

The Malone brothers scattered for position as Hannie rolled on the ground towards a back staircase. Pete's shotgun sent bits of wood and adobe stone flying towards her. Hannie responded with a barrage from the Mare's Leg. Taking a quick breath she dashed up the stairs amid pistol fire from the brothers. With Butch yelling "get her!" they headed towards the staircase in pursuit of Hannie Caulder.

As Pete ran up the stairs, Hannie jumped out from a doorway at the top and fired her Colt pistols in rapid fire succession sending Pete flying backwards down the stairs, landing at the feet of Sam.

"CUT! Print that one! Great work guys!" Mark called out to applause from the crew "That's it for today everyone, great work!"

Now inside, Hannie quickly looked around to assess the location, the rooms were all empty, no places to hide; she'd be out in the open for anyone to see. Suddenly the windows shattered as the Malone brothers opened up with their armaments. Hannie grabbed part of her poncho to cover her face and ran the length of the structure as glass fragments flew everywhere. The rooftop might be her best bet but the only way up there would be to go back the way she came and climb an outside ladder. And she could hear another set of footsteps coming up those stairs. She braced herself against a wall, an open doorway on her right; maybe she could catch them off guard if they ran past her. The bare rooms, plus the creaky floors only amplified any footsteps. She tried not to breathe too hard. Whoever was coming up those stairs might hear it. But her heart was beating so fast.

What could she do?

Sam Malone slowly walked into the empty room, looking from side to side, holding his Winchester rifle at the ready. A succession of open rooms faced him with no doors to stop him as they'd all been removed long ago by scavengers.

"She's here," he thought "I know she is."

As he slowly entered each room, the glass fragments on the floor crackled under his every step, no sign of the redheaded gunfighter.

Another room was in sight.

He saw no glass on the floor here as he looked around. He heard what sounded like a pebble hitting the floor and he whirled to his right and opened fire with the Winchester. But all he hit was the stone walls and broken windows. Another pebble like sound was in front of him and he whirled towards that too.

Outside, Butch heard the gun shots and aimed his rifle, waiting for his chance. Hiding in an adjoining room, Hannie made a run for a door that led outside onto the balcony, she stopped just at the edge of it and the rotted wood broke underneath, her left leg broke through and dropped her to one knee. She was trapped! And now vulnerable to an attack from Butch on the ground and Sam who appeared on the balcony and spotted his brother below

"Over there! Get her!" he yelled as he ran over and aimed his rifle.

Sam turned and saw Hannie struggling to free herself. He aimed the rifle but realized he had no bullets. He threw it down and pulled out his revolver just as Hannie freed herself. Lying on her side she fired her revolver in a desperate shot.

Sam was hit in the chest and staggered for a moment then fell forward, crashing through the balcony and to the ground below.

Butch's rifle began firing now and she returned fire with the Mare's Leg. Her powerful rifle knocked Butch off his feet and she heard a sudden groan from him as he hit the ground. It looked like he'd been hit in the side or the leg, she couldn't tell for sure.

Knowing that Butch was wounded, Hannie ran down the balcony that encircled the garrison and headed for the opposite side. Though wounded, Butch could see her and quickly opened up with the Remington, but he aimed for the wooden beams supporting the balcony. The rotted wood quickly splintered and cracked as the balcony crumbled under her feet as she ran. She whirled around and fired the Mare's Leg again just as she was hit in the shoulder and legs by the shotgun. The impact threw her into a wall as the balcony collapsed, sending her tumbling downward.

"CUT! CUT! CUT!" Mark yelled "Print that one!" he said excitedly

Miley whistled and clapped as she stood next to me. The stunt crew ran to extract her stunt double from the wreckage.

"That was awesome!" she said out loud "Wow! I can't believe how they did that!"

"That's Hollywood, Miss Miley." Mark said to her

Her stunt double emerged from the wreckage and gracefully bowed to the cheering crew.

Hannie could feel the pain from the buckshot in her leg, her shoulder and back ached as she pulled herself out of the tangle of wooden beams. She looked out carefully before trying to walk. Everything seemed clear. In the distance she could see Pete's body at the foot of the stairs, Sam's was crumpled in a heap nearby. There was no sign of Butch, though. Slowly she hobbled through the main yard of the garrison towards her horse. She knew more ammo was there, and possibly an escape. She could see her horse as he poked his head out from the doorway, but she didn't dare call him over with the little whistle she often used. She smiled slightly and tried to quicken her pace as the pain went through her.

A shotgun blast threw her to the ground again and she screamed out in pain as she lay on the ground. She turned over and saw Butch slowly walking towards her carrying Pete's shotgun.

He let out a lecherous cackle.

"Well, well, well..." he cackled "Look what I got here...a little missy with a big gun."

Hannie looked down and saw the blood on the ground. She could also see the wounds Butch had. In particular the bloody wound on his upper leg.

"You were so tough, Miss Hannie Caulder" he sneered "Now look at ya...just a scared little woman...kinda like the little woman I saw once before."

His smile now turned into a face of pure evil

"Get up, you little bitch...GET UP!" he snarled

Hannie looked to her pistol, just a foot away

"I said...GET UP!"

Butch now stepped on her injured leg, sending a stabbing pain throughout her body and a scream from her mouth.

"GET UP!" he yelled again

"You bastard!" she spat out through tears

His response was to viciously kick her, making her scream out again as she rolled over, her right arm landing behind her head.

She felt something back there, but just as she realized what it was, she felt another kick from Butch Malone, sending another stabbing pain throughout her body.

Looking up through the pain and her tears she saw Butch silhouetted against the sun, his legs spread apart

"You killed my brothers...time for me to finish what I started." He said as he threw down the shotgun and reached for his own pistol.

"You remember this Missy?" he said as he aimed the gun at her

She remembered the gun as the one that killed her husband. It had been his service revolver during the war, the second Colt Dragoon pistol, part of a set he received from a General for valor during the war. Butch had stolen it after murdering her husband. Her own Colt Dragoon lay just a few inches away from her.

There was a moment of desperate fear as she relived that awful day, but she also saw this as her chance

"...your first shot can end a fight..." she heard Josh's voice in her head

She had only one chance now.

Hannie reached behind her, pulled out the throwing knife from her jacket collar and threw it forward with all the strength she had left. The knife sailed forward and into the dirt.

"CUT!" Mark yelled "CUT!"

Frustrated, Miley lay back and pounded her fist on the dirt

"Damn it!" she yelled "I just can't get the aim right!"

"That's OK, I think we'll end up doing an FX shot anyway." Mark said calmly as he crouched down close to her. The scene called for her to throw the knife at close range and have it land in his injured leg. Miley had instruction from a weapons expert for the scene but throwing the knife from the angle she was in proved trickier than expected.

"Could we try it one more time?" she asked, somewhat pleadingly

Mark smiled

"Aw, what the heck" he smiled "it's only Hollywood...OK everyone, let's setup for another take!"

The pain was still burning as Butch aimed the Dragoon at her head.

"Maybe I should blow that purty little face of yours off, the way you did my brother...whaddya think of that Miss Hannie Caulder?" he sneered before chuckling.

"I think I will..." he laughed and pulled the trigger

Only a "click" was heard, followed by another.

Before he could react, Hannie suddenly jolted herself forward and plunged the throwing knife into his bloodied leg.

Now Butch was the one screaming out in pain as she twisted the knife with all her remaining strength, a scream of psychotic anger coming from her, the blood gushing from his leg.

As Butch dropped to his knees and tried to reach for the knife, Hannie rolled to her left and grabbed her Dragoon. Butch turned to see the powerful gun in her hands, a look of steely determination in her eyes.

It was the last sight he ever saw.

The Dragoon exploded its ammo straight between Butch Malone's eyes.

The notorious outlaw now stood still for a second on his knees before falling face first into the dirt.

Hannie fell backwards, all the pain she'd felt from losing her husband, the way the Malone's had violated her, her long quest for revenge was suddenly released from her in a mournful cry that could be heard in the heavens.

"CUT! PRINT THAT!" Mark said firmly before turning to me

"Incredible..." he said to me with a big smile "Absolutely incredible."

Everyone on the crew applauded

"Did you get that, Jim?" Miley called out to me as she sat up

"You bet!" I yelled back, I smartly had the camera set for "rapid fire" as I called it so I could get the most shots in succession.

"OK! Thank you everyone, that's a wrap! Let's go home!" Mark yelled out to cheers from the cast and crew. Mark had gotten all he needed at this location and we could now head back to LA and the friendly confines of a studio back lot.

As the crew started to break down things for the trip home Miley immediately came over my way.

"Come on, babe you're riding with me." She said as she took my arm

"How can I argue?" I said as I grabbed the military-styled canvas shoulder bag I was using for camera gear.

Miley was using her tour bus for this trip. It was definitely luxurious, to say the least! The inside had colors of white and gold everywhere. The chairs and couches were black, very high-tech. She didn't even bother to change before getting on the bus in her dusty cowboy clothes. She fell onto the couch and started to pull her boots off. Once they were off, she stretched her legs out.

"Oh man...so good" she said as she laid her head back against the couch

"Tough day at the office, dear?" I asked while checking the settings on my camera

Miley gave me that distinctive laugh of hers

"Oh yeah, tough day out on the range" she said between laughs

There was a slight pause before she said with her southern drawl;

"Hey, cowboy..."

I looked up and she was giving me the eye with her denim clad legs spread apart, looking very sexy

"Come on over here..." she said in that sexy Tennessee drawl

I put down my camera and leaned down to kiss her sweet lips, she returned the kisses and our embrace slowly dropped down onto the couch. I was on top of her and we softly kissed, our hands roaming all over one another.

"Mmmm...honey...I wanna get cleaned up before we do anything else." She said as we parted.

Miley sat up and headed for the bathroom, then looked over her shoulder at me.

"Come on." she said with a smile and an outreached arm

What could she have in mind?

A cozy bedroom was at the back of the bus and a tight, but usable bath next to it. Though it was a tight fit, we were both in the bathroom and began to undress one another. The dusty shirt was first and a simple black bra was underneath, as were black bikini panties. Miley got my t-shirt off and as she unbuckled my jeans, there was the first bit of hesitation on her part as she fumbled with the belt.

"I must be a little nervous." she said

"I am too, y-you look so pretty just like that."

"Aw, what a sweetheart you are, I can always count on that with you." she said as she kissed me "I missed you, Jim...you make me feel so nice."

"I missed you too. It's always special being with you."

"I'm gonna make it even more special..."

"Oh yeah, how so?"

"Watch"

Miley stepped back and turned around, facing a large mirror, she unsnapped her bra and exposed her beautiful B size tits. Looking in the mirror, she softly fondled them, giving special care to her nipples, making little circles around them with her fingers, her eyes closed slightly as a gentle wave of pleasure started to come over her.

"Like what you see, hon?" she said in a soft voice

I nodded, somehow words didn't work at this moment

She smiled back

Miley ran her fingers through her thick red hair and made like she was going to put it up, then seeing how glamorous and sexy it made her look, she struck a pose for me in the mirror before giggling. Like she was some Playmate from the "Mad Men" era, she knew I liked what I was seeing. Now she moved her hands down to the front of her panties and began to softly rub the front. I could see enough to know what she was doing. Her back arched somewhat and I could hear a soft moan come from her. She slowly worked her thumbs into the sides of her panties and pulled them down just enough to see her cute ass, she wiggled it a little for me before sliding them all the way down her legs, very slowly. Miley turned to face me, completely naked, and completely turned on. Her smile was both innocent and very sexy, her tits looked beautiful and I could see her pussy was totally smooth and totally beautiful as well.

She liked what she saw of me too.

"Hey, Cowboy..." she said to me as she leaned against the sink. I embraced her and she immediately began to breathe heavily as she felt my body against hers. My dick was super hard as it touched her soft body and my hands felt her tits and we kissed lovingly.

Miley's soft hands began to touch my body, mine did the same with hers. She reached down for my dick, now soft and began to caress it, letting it slide through her hands and feeling it grow.

"Does that feel good, babe?" she softly asked