[ WP ] `` Which one 's the Straw Man ? ''

A grisly man wearing dusty jeans and a cowboy hat sat at the end of a bar, his back turned to everyone else. He had asked the bartender if he could use his phone. 
 
 “ Better be local ”, the bartender said as he brought over the rotary phone. 
 
 The regulars got a little shifty after the cowboy started to raise his voice. 
 
 “ I can ’ t wait to put my hands around your fucking throat. ”, said the cowboy. 
 
 “ Relax baby, we will have plenty of time to talk about that when this is over. ”, said the woman on the other line. 
 
 “ You know I almost ran my car off the road. Two Red Men stopped and looked at me when I got into town. I walked past one before I got in here. His hands were about half melted to the ground. They fuckin ’ know who I am. I ’ m telling you. ” 
 
 “ If they knew who you were you wouldn ’ t be having this conversation with me. But I can tell they think something ’ s up. ”, the woman said 
 
 “ Why do you think that? ” 
 
 “ Because they are trying to tap into this conversation right now. Listen, the Reds aren ’ t our concern right now.. ” 
 
 “ NONE of this would be my concern if it wasn ’ t for you and the people you work for! ”. The cowboy could tell his voice got a little too loud. He got back to a whisper. “ Go back to your boss and tell them I don ’ t give a shit any more. You and him just signed your death warrants. Your goons better find me before I find… ” 
 
 “ The Straw Man. ”, she said, cutting him off. 
 
 “ What? ” 
 
 “ He ’ s in the bar with you. That ’ s why we sent you to that shithole town. ”. The cowboy heard a little bit of nervousness in her voice. He peeked around his shoulder at the regulars. They were all older and look like they were regulars at any other bar. Three men and one woman. 
 
 “ Which one ’ s The Straw Man? ”, he asked quietly. 
 
 “ I don ’ t know. I was lucky just to get you in the same room as him. Find him before a Red Man does. Don ’ t let us down. ” And with that she hung up. Just then the door opened and the cowboy froze. It was a Red Man. He slowly stumbled across the bar as his melted hands and arms dragged across the floor. He was dressed in jeans and a t-shirt that said “ I am the Man From Nantucket ”. His slack jaw drooped to the center of his chest and his hair was had wide patches. No one at the bar seemed to notice. Some looked up but casually turned back to their beer as if an old friend had walked in. The cowboy watched the regulars intently. Then he noticed the one woman ’ s hand was shaking as she tried to calmly set down her beer. The Red Man continued to shuffle down the bar. He was singing a wordless song from the back of his throat that made the cowboy shutter a little. The cowboy immediately got up and hurried over to the stool next to the lady. She kept staring forward, refusing to acknowledge him. The cowboy let out a little grin. He had found him, or her it now seemed. He rested his right hand on the revolver stuck into the back of his pants and put the other one on his knee and faced the Straw Man. 
 
 “ Looks like you and I need to have a talk. And you should probably get to talkin ’ pretty quick. ”
