Rider's Revenge

He rode back home from a soldier’s war, With dust in place of pride, He found his door split open wide… And his whole world dead inside. She lay there still... in a blood-stained dress, Gold ring on her hand… And something cold took root in him No God could understand. Three riders fled toward the western line, Tracks cut sharp and cruel, So he took up iron and followed on He had nothing left to lose. No badge, no name, no mercy now, Just judgment dressed in scarred skin… A man who’d died back east somewhere Riding west for justice... for revenge. There’s a black wind stranger riding through, He's burning up the sand, He ain’t chasing gold or glory... He’s burying what she can’t. You can run to saints or devils, You can swear you didn’t know… But the past don’t stay behind you When it’s got a flaming gun aiming for your soul. He found them where the water soured And the cattle wouldn’t drink, Left one man gasping long enough To speak what he could think. He said, “West it’s worse than sin itself, Whole towns have gone to rot… Something foul stinks in the dark It's a place where mercy was never taught.” He rode through dusty streets with shuttered eyes, Through coffins and empty beds, Where crosses hung on every door And flies outnumbered prayers. But one by one those riders fell Before they even took a stand… Till vengeance had no voice left... But the silence in his hands. There’s a black wind stranger riding through, With nothing left to save, He don’t speak about the dead no more... He just sends more to the grave. The darkness rides beside him Like a shadow he can’t lose… And it followed him to Silver Creek The night he met baby blue. He tied up at Murphy’s like any man, But sat alone where the lamps burned thin, He watched the whiskey, watched the cards, Just let the whole world spin. Then she moved through smoke in satin sky, Soft as a lie made true… And in her eyes he saw a ghost He once had loved so true. Not the same… but near enough To shake what he’d become, A flicker of a buried life He thought was dead and done. She smiled once for him, once for Joe... Like both might win her hand… And every soul in Murphy’s knew Thats where trouble always stands. One-Eyed Joe just laughed it off, Mean with half his sight, But pride don’t bend for wounded men... It only picks a fight. He stepped outside and called him out, Bootheels treading sandy scars… And fate stepped in beneath the moon Outside that crowded bar. Some men kill for love or rage, Some for what they’ve lost… Some see ghosts in living eyes... And they never count the cost. They faced off in the desert hush, Ten paces drawn in sand, Joe spat hate and grinned real wide, Gun steady in his hand. The stranger stood like weathered stone, No tremble, no delay… Just one thought he couldn’t shake... She couldn't die that way. Two shots cracked the midnight air, But only one rang true… Joe fell hard into the dust With nothing left to do. No triumph in it, no release, No justice left to claim… Just one more ghost to join the rest That never spoke his name. There’s a black wind stranger standing still, Ain’t riding anymore, He saw a spark inside the dark… And walked straight into war. You can chase what’s already gone, You can swear your aim is true… But ghosts don’t turn to living flesh Just because they look like you. Now some say they meant to leave that town, Ride out before first light… Two shadows stretched across the road And one just barely out of sight. But Silver Creek keeps quiet things And don’t give up what’s due… And somewhere in the dark that night The wind shifted… and something foul flew. And still late at night that old piano plays Though the player’s long been gone… There's One-Eyed Joe in every note… And the stranger listening on. The wind still moves through Murphy’s doors… Like something followed through.