Man with No Name- Fire Bullet Distractions

  The bounty hunter worked his way cautiously around to a point in the woods almost opposite the cookfire. Scrounging through the underbrush he collected a generous heap of small dry twigs and broken branches. Plucking six cartridges from his belt he poked them into the pile at various places, then snapped a match alight and poked it into the base of the heap around its circumference.

  The tinder-dry twigs flamed up instantly. The hunter snatched up his rifle and scurried back to where Shadrach was still crouched in the brush. The latter eyed him curiously.

  "Mind telling me what delightful evil you've been up to?"

  "Just creating diversions, old partner. Wait around and be ready for opportunities as they unfold."

  Suddenly there was the loud crash of a gunshot from the woods behind headquarters. The outlaws shot to their feet all attention toward the woods behind, snatching out their guns. A moment later there were two more shots, close together.

  "Don't tell me," Shadrach said. "Let me guess. You built a hot fire back there somewhere and dumped a handful of cartridges into it. Now the heat is setting them off and making these stupids think either they're under attack or a wild gunfight is going on back there in the woods. Congratulations, old chap."

  "Don't mention it. Just be ready to make the most of it in case it actually works."

  The outlaws had their guns out and were milling around in confusion, no one certain exactly where the sound of the shot had come from. Two more shells exploded in swift succession, then a single shot after a brief silence. Apachito yelled something and raced in the direction of the shots, with his gang streaming after him.

  "Come on," the hunter barked, as the last outlaw vanished into the woods. "If you figure on a square meal today, move—pronto! The moment they stumble onto my fire, they'll figure out how they were tricked and come boiling back here, thirsting for our blood. Dump the meat into the kettle with the beans. I'll help you carry it as soon as I grab the tools we need."

- A Coffin Full of Dollars, chapter 22