Bully McGrane

Bully McGrane by Ernest Haycox is a Western short story written in the early 20th century. Set in the hard-edged mining town of Pistol Gap, it turns on law, violence, and the possibility of redemption, centering on a reformed drifter’s bid to escape with a dance hall singer while a ruthless marshal and vengeful partners close in.

In Pistol Gap, Bully McGrane rules by fear, watching as Tud Drury returns from a mine with his share of gold and a plan to leave town clean and marry Anna, a singer at the Pride of the Hills. Drury’s three crooked partners arrive to settle scores, warning McGrane off; the marshal coldly decides to let them do the killing and then arrest them. As night falls, Drury arranges horses through Sen Yat in Chinatown, retrieves Anna, and heads out a back way toward the ridge—straight into an ambush. Moved despite himself, McGrane opens the escape route and charges into the dark when shooting starts; Anna and Drury mount and flee while one gunman is killed and the other two are knocked senseless by the blacksmith, Billy Monteith. The couple rides free, and McGrane, still gruff and cynical, reveals a grudging soft spot by letting their luck hold.