No, wait a minute. Wait. Wait. Don't. Don't.
Oh. Oh, my God.
Take it easy.
Well, I didn't mean to shock everyone.
I tried to find you first, constable.
Eddie Fry.
I came as soon as I heard.
Where were you?
Well, that's not important now.
Where is Justin Briggs?
I went to the jail.
Where were you? Why didn't you come forward?
I found out about the trial yesterday.
I've been traveling ever since.
Well, Briggs is innocent.
Where is he? What do I do to clear him?
Oh, tell him!
Justin Briggs is dead.
We had him in jail.
He broke away.
We hunted him down...
We shot him.
And watched him die.
I don't know what chance he had for a new trial.
I know they put in the appeal,
but I could see the waiting
was eating at him every day a little worse.
Good morning, Bertram.
Would you mind looking this over?
It's Mr. Fry's statement of what occurred
on the night of the alleged murder.
Who's been informed of Fry's return?
Only you, officially, but it'll get around.
What did occur that night, Mr. Fry?
Mr. Bertram Ballinger, the lawyer here.
He defended Briggs at the trial.
We fought.
I got away. I ran into the woods.
I got lost.
Did you ever think of yourself as a coward,
Mr. Fry?
You wouldn't be looking for a scapegoat,
would you, Mr. Ballinger?
Why would I be doing that?
I don't know.
I don't know what kind of case the state presented
that you couldn't break by demanding a victim or a body.
The state didn't need a body.
Had an eyewitness.
One witness: Janice Cummings.
And a corroborator.
I was there.
She came over to my house yelling for help.
I ran back with her.
To the Briggs' barn,
that lean-to where you lived.
It was a mess.
Full of evidence.
There was some blood around.
We took samples, had them tested.
We showed it wasn't his blood.
It had to be yours.
We even found a weapon.
I saw him use that.
He stabbed him.
I saw it.
Miss Cummings, I think you better go outside and wait
a while until I get-
Briggs.
Briggs, where's your hired man?
Pair of sinners.
You killed him.
Briggs, she's accusing you of murder.
Knows he deserved it, that's why.
Where is he?
Forget him, he's gone.
Forget him, he's gone for good. Constable, look at his feet.
He was wearing those.
I impounded 'em.
We proved there's only one place that mud could have come from.
There's a quicksand bog in those woods
out near his house.
Yes, I know.
That bog's been known to swallow a full-grown deer.
He had time to carry a body over there and-
Does your signature on a piece of paper
erase all this from your conscience, Mr. Fry?
There doesn't seem to be much more I can do.
So you'll run away.
You ran away before. I wonder why.
I have a better question for you, Mr. Ballinger.
His appeal was pending, he knew I was alive.
Why did Briggs run away?
Uh, I don't think we ever thanked you, Fry,
for coming back.
I don't think you ever will.
Eddie. Eddie, I-I got to talk to you.
Could you please sit down for a minute?
All right.
Janice, I didn't- I didn't want to walk in on you this morning,
but I didn't know that you were working at the tavern.
Did you think I'd still be working for the Briggs'?
I came back to clear him.
I didn't know it was going to be like this.
Eddie, are you gonna see the boys?
I don't think so.
They know their father was innocent.
That's good enough.
Well...
Eddie, you got to see the boys,
'cause you could talk to Roy.
I think it would only make things worse for them.
It's for me.
I'm asking it for me.
I-I sat in there in that witness stand
and I swore to God
that I saw their father kill you.
Well, you believed it, didn't you?
Fry, there's no bus out of here till tomorrow morning.
Well, I won't need a bus.
The older boy, Vin, he's been drinking quite a lot.
Oh, now, don't exaggerate it, Bertram. He'll come around.
How's that going to affect Miss Cummings in the meantime?
Eddie, it all began with you.
Things might have quieted down, but, well, here you are again.
Do I have to face it alone?
Vin, no, don't.
I told you that woman lied, Roy.
Vin, they all swore.
Scales, Curry, and even Constable Gibson.
They know what they saw and what they heard.
Even you did that, Roy.
But here comes Eddie Fry back to town alive.
He was the only person that swore to what never happened.
All for nothing.
Our pa was killed for nothing?
Justice, Roy.
They showed us how to do justice.
Hey, Vin, wait.
Maybe Scales was wrong.
Maybe it wasn't Eddie he saw.
Eddie Fry is your problem, kid.
The one I want is that lousy, lying woman.
Vin?
Roy.
My pa was innocent.
He was innocent all the time.
Where is Vin?
Where did he go? I wanted to talk to both of you.
Why? Did you want to tell him you're sorry?
Well, I'll take him the message.
Roy, it was not my idea to come here,
but there is something that should be said before I go.
Yeah, I understand you're-
You're kind of a rolling stone, aren't you?
If you remember, I was going to leave that night.
Then something happened.
Janice Cummings saw it happen.
You ran out on me.
Eddie, don't you know what you did to me?
You know, I liked you.
I-I thought you were my friend.
And I-I believed you. And I believed Janice Cummings.
Against my own father.
And now he's dead and he can't even forgive me.
Roy, I-
I wish you could forgive Janice Cummings.
She thought she told the truth.
Well, you better tell that to Vin.
And you better tell her to get outta town,
because she swore my father's life away.
And Vin's gonna pay her back.
Janice.
All right, I bear no grudges.
Get back into your apron.
Least till I can get another waitress.
Hold on.
Never mind.
Just get out and don't come back.
Out the back door. Out. Out.
Wouldn't do to keep her anyway.
Just about to open the bar, Vin.
I saw that woman come in here.
I couldn't let her stay.
That- That Fry, he brought her in.
Vin, I took an oath on the witness stand,
and they made me say certain things,
because I take my oath serious,
but I couldn't lie
about what I heard.
Your pa did make a threat to Fry,
we know that,
but Vin, I don't want nothing to make it look like
I had any hard feelings.
I-I bear no grudges, Vin.
And- And you just remember, Vin,
I was not part of that posse that ran your pa down.
I was out there, yes,
but I had no gun.
I did not have a gun, Vin.
You defended Briggs.
You said you believed he was innocent.
You must have some influence on those boys.
I take this to mean you do have an interest
in the welfare of Janice Cummings?
Why do we keep coming back to that?
Because somehow you two have become a torment to this town.
By nightfall, shame and guilt
will be oozing over our doorsills, Mr. Fry.
The town is gonna feel compelled to purge itself.
I think it's going to want blood sacrifice,
and if I thought that you alone or you and Janice together
wanted this to happen or permitted it for any reason,
I'd give you to them right now as an atonement
before some innocent person gets hurt.
Mr. Ballinger, I don't want to see Janice shot.
On the other hand, I can't go to Gibson
and file a complaint against those boys.
I think they've been through enough.
What do you think?
I think that for the moment, Vin Briggs is legally insane.
These are the keys to my own car out front.
You find Janice Cummings and get her out of town.
Leave my car at the railroad depot at Hyattsville.
He could kill her and you too, for that matter,
in full view on Main Street,
and I could get him off scot-free
with the same jury that judged his father guilty.
Maybe you'd better try to get word to the constable.
Word about what?
He's grieving. He's been bereft.
He's got a right.
But having it all brought home so sudden, though,
and if there's a gun-
Oh. Eddie Fry said there's a gun.
I don't see one.
Listen, there's one thing you gotta give 'em credit for.
They always minded their own business.
They never bothered nobody.
I know.
My wife was on that jury too.
What a shame.
Yeah.
Who is it?
Eddie Fry.
Come in.
Are you packing?
I've been asked to leave.
Will you excuse us?
Thank you.
Hurry up and finish.
I've got Ballinger's car outside.
You got what?
We're leaving town.
Oh, no, I'm not.
Janice.
I'm going to the hotel on Main Street,
and I'm gonna take a room there, and I'm gonna stay.
I'm staying here in Black River.
I know what you're trying to prove,
but this isn't the time.
Eddie, if I leave now, you know what they're gonna say?
They're gonna say that I lied on purpose.
They'll say that anyhow, some of them.
Look, Janice, there's a kid out there on the street
with a gun.
Well, I've got nothing to be afraid or ashamed of.
Let's give him a chance.
Let's give Vin Briggs a chance to get his senses back.
Let's get out of town.
Look, I don't know where Vin is,
so will you just quit asking me about it?
What's the matter, boy? Are you and Vin determined
to have a murderer in the family?
You stop it.
Just stop it now.
Look, I don't care what any of 'em think of us.
Vin is looking for one thing: justice.
And that's all.
All right, son.
A terrible mistake took your father from you,
but if anything happens to your brother,
it won't be by error.
So you just be ready to shoulder the blame
that you're asking for.
Eddie Fry.
I can still see you.
Don't do this, Vin.
I smashed the distributor, Fry.
Now, you walk away and leave her there.
I want her.
Where are you?
Look, Vin, your father and I did fight.
He did try to kill me. Janice wasn't lying.
Now, if you protect her, Fry, I'm gonna get you too.
Come on.
E-Eddie. Oh.
Oh.
I need two men.
The usual pay.
Gonna hunt down the son, I guess.
Same as you did his daddy.
I've got two innocent people inside here, I just want-
"Innocent," he says.
I wish he could have seen them together in her room.
Justin Briggs was innocent too, John.
Curry, what about you?
All I want is to get these two out of town
before there's any more trouble.
John, if Vin Briggs gets in the way,
or if like a while ago when he fired those shots,
would we be expected to shoot?
I think there's something going on around here someplace.
Where are they?
Oh, they're in the courtroom.
Fry took her in there so she could lie down.
I think I should go now. Relieve some of the pressure.
Well, let me advise you. Now, wait until it's dark.
Those people out there think that Vin Briggs is right.
The rest of 'em have gone home
and turned up the sound on their radios.
Wait.
I decided to, uh, drive over to Hyattsville
and get the sheriff.
You're leaving town?
I can't get any help here. I-
Well, give the sheriff a call.
Better if I go.
Better for who?
Not for her and not for this town.
Shut up.
Bertram...
I let Justin out of his cell that night.
Let him eat supper in the office.
I knew in my heart that he'd never killed a man.
I knew when he made the break that I'd have to go after him.
I knew I'd bring him back dead.
If Vin was to walk in here now, I-
I don't think I could raise a finger to stop him.
I'll go get the sheriff.
Vin.
Vin, come on, let me hold the gun, huh?
You never used to know Pop, Roy.
You always used to argue with him so much.
Vin, he whipped us.
You know he-
He whipped us a lot when he was drunk,
like you are now.
I'm not drunk anymore, Roy.
Pa wasn't drunk either.
But he was that night.
And he- He asked that woman to take ma's place,
and she turned him down,
and she ran straight to that Eddie Fry.
Eddie Fry.
I'm going back up on the roof so I can keep watch.
Vin.
Vin, now, wait a minute.
You're gonna do this
and they're either gonna kill you
or they're gonna take you away.
I'm gonna be left all alone.
Vin, look.
Why don't you let 'em go?
Let 'em go. You scared 'em plenty, Vin.
Vin. You know-
You know it's only Mr. Ballinger down there with 'em now.
Let me- Let me go out there
and tell him that my brother says
that Fry and Janice Cummings
have got to get out of Black River
and never come back.
He's our friend, Vin. He- He'll do it.
He'll make 'em go.
Won't that be enough for Pa, Vin?
Please, Vin.
Please, I'm scared.
I never thought about you being alone, Roy.
Okay, you go and-
Go and tell him to come here and I'll wait for him.
I'll give myself up.
I asked him to join the lodge
when he first came to town seven years ago.
But no, he'd rather keep to himself.
He has ever since.
I submit that the prosecution is merely producing the excuse
this town has always wanted
for ridding itself of a man it simply doesn't like.
He interfered in my family affairs.
I thrashed him for it. That's all I did.
That's all she saw.
Why won't somebody look for Eddie Fry?
Why? Why did he run?
Didn't he know that they'd kill him if he tried?
I'm sure he knew they'd try.
He had to try either way.
He ran because running was the only hope they gave him.
Mr. Ballinger.
Mr. Ballinger, my brother wants to see you
down at the cabinet shop.
Vin Briggs is down at the cabinet shop.
That's where Roy just come from.
Ballinger's going down to see Vin at the cabinet shop.
All right, all clear.
I told 'em and they followed Ballinger.
Now, Vin, I'm glad you come to me, boy,
'cause like I told you, Vin,
I bear no grudges.
I'm with you, son, and lots of us are, believe me.
Now, I know you won't do anything wrong, Vin-
That's why I'm glad to help out.
I mean, Vin, nobody wants to see the innocent suffer.
Right, Vin?
Eddie, please take me with you.
I'm afraid to see him.
I can't do that, Janice.
I'm leaving tonight. You take the bus in the morning.
Eddie, you can't do that.
Vin will think I-I turned him in just to let you go free.
Roy, if it's any comfort to you, I'm taking this wound with me.
That's one less piece of evidence against him.
Eddie- Eddie, you're running out on me again.
Why? Eddie? Why?
Okay, back up.
Vin- Vin, you did this on purpose.
You made me out a liar.
Don't you worry about nothing, Roy.
Nobody's gonna care.
I care, Vin. Vin, I-I care.
Oh, boy, isn't this something, huh?
Now, you remember how it was
when they had pa in here, huh, Roy?
Your father did attack me.
He did try to kill me.
Is that right, Janice?
Answer me!
Okay, okay. Now, you-
You get up there on that stand, you hear me?
You get up there and let me hear you say
like you said before about what a-
About what a rotten killer my father was.
No.
You better get up there, Janice.
He accused Mr. Fry and me of-
Of something awful and he said:
"I ought to kill that man. "
He picked up the chair and he hit him with it.
His head.
Mr. Fry fell. He was bleeding.
His head was bleeding.
I can't.
You better tell me, Janice.
You better tell me the truth.
I remember what I saw and what I said,
and I swear to you, if I saw it again right now,
I'd still say that he was killing him.
Vin- Vin, can't you see she's telling the truth?
He never showed me any kindness or asked for anything but work,
but he did offer me a home of my own,
and I wanted that.
I never loved him,
but I never hated him,
and if he was killed because I lied,
well, I'd just as soon die.
Vin, can't you see? Sh-she wouldn't lie about that.
Oh, yes, she would.
They both would.
Eddie? Eddie, I can't let you have a gun.
He's my brother.
He's the one Pa loved, not me.
I owe Pa something.
I-I gotta keep Vin alive.
Even if he kills somebody?
You better stop that.
Nobody's gonna get killed.
Roy, Roy, we got to pay him back.
She- She ran off and left us, and she ran to him.
Now, they're- They're both wrong and he knows it.
That's why you ran away, isn't it?
Roy, my name isn't Eddie Fry.
I was convicted of a murder I didn't commit
just like your father.
That evening, when Janice went for the police,
I had to run away.
I ran for the same reasons your father ran.
Now, if they take me,
I'll die for something I didn't do.
Vin.
Vin, did you hear that?
I betcha you're telling a lie.
I don't care. That- That doesn't change it, Roy.
Oh, Vin. Vin, it does change it. It does. Don't you, see?
He came back. He tried to help us.
You can't blame him now.
But- But then where's Pop, Roy?
Where is he?
He must be alive somewhere.
Hey, I'll bet he's hiding.
Come on, Pop. Come on. Come on back.
Nobody killed ya.
Vin, Pop's dead.
He's dead, but it- It's not any one person's fault.
It was the- It was the two of 'em.
Vin-
Don't! Don't hurt them! Don't Vin!
No, Vin!
Should break.
Now.
Go get a doctor, Roy. Hurry up. Go on.
What happened?
I don't think he's too badly hurt.
I, uh...
Well, he came in here,
been drinking too much.
He was out of his head.
I shot him.
What will this mean for the town, Ballinger?
Wait.
Could you-? You come home and see me tomorrow?
But I need somebody to talk to.
Miss Cummings,
um... you dropped your bags in the street before.
I put 'em back in your room where they'd be safe.
Send them to the hotel.
Ballinger, why would both Roy and Fry
confess to shooting Vin?
Now, I just don't believe Roy done it.
Now, I-I say we better find out before Fry gets away again.
Fry. You're too late.
Fry left here a half an hour ago.
Go home, you pack of hyenas.
Go home.
I don't think Gibson will be back,
but I called the sheriff.
He'll be here.
How soon?
It's the law you're afraid of, isn't it, Fry?
And not much of anything else.
I wonder why.
Uh, Vin will tell you when he comes to.
Anything that I can do to help?
You can just help the kids.
If I'm not back here in 10 minutes, go out the window.
He will use many other names
and move through many other places,
searching for Richard Kimble,
dreading each backward look
as long as he must remain a fugitive.