[Fanfic] Red West III. - Chapter fifteen
Title: RED WEST III.
Author: Kasumi
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Western, Drama, Romance, Adventure, Historical fiction
Warning: AKame pairing - AU; vulgarisms, violence, explicit content
Beta-reading:
atago4
Summary: A direct sequel of Red West II. - Masterpost
A strange company of three young gunslingers and one Indian is on their way to Montana, while the infamous Black Riders continue their fight against Silver King of Colorado… Will they succeed or fail in the clash with the cruel environment and heartless Governor? Will their friendship, brotherhood and love persevere or be destroyed by greed, bloodshed and vengeance?
Thank you: To Kamenashi Kazuya and Akanishi Jin, because this story wouldn´t have existed without them.
A/N: Although it may look like it sometimes, I´m far from being done with this story...
I´m grateful for any opinion or advice, you help me hone my writing skills with them.
Thank you for taking time to read this story. I´ll be happy if you reward me with a comment for it.
Previously:
Prologue // Chapter one // Chapter two // Chapter three // Chapter four // Chapter five // Chapter six // Chapter seven // Chapter eight // Chapter nine // Chapter ten // Chapter eleven // Chapter twelve // Chapter thirteen // Chapter fourteen //
The dirty trick
A lonely pair of aspen trees had been shielding the house of Kamenashi family from various whims of Montana weather for more than twenty years and they would certainly keep doing their job even after the deeply-in-love couple currently living in it would be long gone. They were stretching their huge green crowns to the sun, proving they remained strong despite the past hot summer.
There was only one leaf, which was all faded and crumpled, shaking in expectation of that fateful gust of wind, which would take it away from the place among its countless buddies. The leaf was proud to become the omen of the forthcoming autumn, but at the same time sad to be the first one to go.
Then it came. A cold blow tore the leaf from its branch and pushed it up in the air, playing with it cruelly, before letting it fall in swirling curls. The leaf yielded and let the wind carry it through an open window to a quiet room´s floor, where it landed and remained motionless.
Something disturbed Kame from sweet reverie and made him open his eyes. Their bedroom was warm and peaceful, but still, a weird chill ran down his spine. And then he heard it - the distant sound of explosion west of the house.
Sighing, he closed his eyes again. He had thought that the mine location was too far for him to be bothered by Henderson´s interest in it. Apparently, it was not far enough.
A hand hugging him from behind shifted a little, fondly caressing his skin and a sleepy voice spoke into his ear: “I´ve told you… It´s damn annoying.”
A short smile spread across Kame´s lips: “It could have been worse. And since I can still come back home and roll in bed with you, I won´t complain.”
A soft chuckle warmly tickled his skin: “Well, aren´t you in a romantic mood today?”
“More like in a resigned one…”
There was a short moment of silence, before Jin propped himself up on one elbow to be able to see Kame´s face: “Will you tell me now what happened on that awfully long trip of yours?” he asked, while letting his other hand continue its slow movements on his lover´s skin.
Kame turned on his back and observed Jin´s face: “Do you want to hear it right now? It looked like you were about to fall asleep,” he asked inquiringly, since Jin forgot all about his coffee wish the moment he had returned to the house and grabbed Kame in his arms, dragging him to their bed instead.
His adorably disheveled lover shook his head in denial: “Sleep can wait. Tell me.”
“All right,” Kame sighed a little. “To be honest - it was nothing I wouldn´t have expected.”
Not used to such a defeatist attitude coming from Kame, Jin frowned: “Meaning?”
“Well, the capacity of the reservation will be filled up soon. With this new group I led there, they´ve got barely enough supplies. Not to mention that the deliveries of the government provisions are damn slow and there´s nothing I can do but rely on promises of people I´ve never met that it´ll get better before the winter comes.”
Jin moved his hand higher and stroked his lover´s neck in a slow, comforting way: “You can´t be everywhere, Kame. I know you and I´m sure there´s nobody who would do more for Indians in Montana.”
Kame snuggled closer to him: “Thanks… Though it doesn´t change the fact it´s damn frustrating.”
“What about Liwan and his little sister? And Cloud Dancing? Are they all right?” Jin figured the change of subject might improve the younger one´s mood.
“Yeah, they´re doing fine, given the circumstances,” Kame confirmed, murmuring the words against Jin´s chest. “Beara says hi.”
Jin smiled remembering the chipper kid: “That´s sweet of her. Sleeping Bear didn´t send his regards?”
“You didn´t send him yours either,” Kame reacted chuckling.
“Never mind,” he shrugged. “What about after that? Did you stop by in Helena as you had planned?”
Kame stiffened a little, before he pulled away from him: “Yes,” he reacted in a detached tone. “And I met that lawyer I had told you about. He´d be willing to take our case.”
Jin raised his eyebrows: “Really? Then why do I have a feeling it´s not the good news?”
“Because he´s a stingy asshole, that´s why,” Kame grumbled and sat up suddenly. “His charges are ridiculous! He even demanded a payment for consultation from me, but only after he heard me out. What kind of attitude is that? He was so slimy it made me sick. I almost threw up on his expensive carpet,” he finished upset.
“That sucks…” Jin couldn´t figure out a better reaction, but it was fitting enough.
His lover threw up his hands: “You tell me.”
Pissed Kame was better than yielding Kame, but Jin still knew the other version of him which was even better.
“But… You don´t want to give up just because of that, do you?”
“No, of course not,” Kame clenched his hands into fists. “Even though I don´t know what else to do.”
Jin leant forward and let his chin rest on his shoulder: “Now,” he emphasized. “I´m sure we´ll figure something out later.”
There was a short silence, before Kame turned and looked into his eyes: “Thank you...”
Jin winked at him: “Better now?”
Kame nodded: “Definitely.”
“Good. Come back to me then…” and he pulled Kame for his elbow, forcing him to lie on his back again. Quickly, his hand slipped across Kame´s abdomen, until it reached the pubic hair and sank into it playfully. Kame let out of a shaky breath, when Jin´s fingers clasped around his member firmly.
“But Jin… We´ve just…”
“You dare to think that it was enough for me?”
Another long pull made Kame´s reaction hasty and husky: “Greedy…”
“After two weeks of celibacy? Can you blame me?” Jin asked right into his ear.
Kame´s breath got caught in his throat, once Jin´s hand speed up.
“N-no…” he stuttered, the heat of arousal already rising up from his loin to the whole body. He raised himself and placed a hard, needy kiss on his lover´s full lips. “I´ve missed you too.”
***
“Every single day - which is a gift given to us by God - we are vulnerable to so many abominable sins! Lying. Gambling and inebriation. Robbery and murder! Sodomy! After moving to this town, I was horrified by the fact that good local people had no proper place for approaching God Almighty. Despite being faithful, it was difficult for you to reach Him with your prayers, so that He might bless you with strength to overcome these awful pitfalls of the Devil!”
That´s quite a questionable statement, he thought. With a clear conscience, he would have bet his newly constructed ranch that there were many people who took pleasure in the mentioned sins, while being more thankful to Devil than God.
“Fortunately, this is about to change now! Good citizens of Bozeman! All of you are in desperate need of a safe place, where you might be able to clear your sin-laden souls. Rest assured that God´s eye is certainly focused on this gathering of His faithful believers, who came in their good will to meliorate this divine sanctuary for our prayers. He sees you and He will know which of you did not take the teachings of Holy Scripture lightly. Finally, thanks to God´s good will and blessing, we may initiate this reconstruction. Look forward to purifying your souls!”
If he was looking forward to something at the moment, it was for this boring lecture to be over.
“But God in Heavens, although he is almighty, we are obligated to serve in His name. And this time, it would not be possible without one of you. Here he is. A good Catholic - Mr. Cameron Henderson, who donated considerable resources to our church. God bless you, Mr. Henderson.”
A lukewarm applause sounded above the crowd of gathered Bozeman citizens. He responded with a slight bow and reserved smile: “It was my Christian duty, Reverend.”
“Let´s all pray to God and ask him for His blessings to Mr. Henderson, as well as for our upcoming reconstruction.”
Reverend Kapner lowered his head in the mentioned prayer and the crowd fell silent with him.
If there would be a prayer on Cameron´s mind, it would definitely apply to him being finally able to leave this farce. He had other matters to take care of, since this one already seemed to be handled well enough…
After hearing out one heated sermon of this Reverend Gilbert Kapner last week, Cameron considered reasonable to keep good relations with the local church. Unfortunately, after he grabbed most of capable workers in Bozeman for his mine, Reverend seemed not to like him much. Therefore, he had used the easiest way to gain someone´s favor again. It was ridiculously simple - upon hearing the amount he was planning to donate for the church reconstruction, Reverend could break to fetch him everything he could only remember, including prayers to God, naturally.
Cameron´s own closest experience with anything holy was from the time he was ten years old and stole indulgences from a certain church in St. Louis, but this new reverend was apparently a strong believer. Cameron could imagine that late master Raynold Karnaka would have even used the word ´fanatic´ for him. Danny even brought a couple of rumors regarding Reverend - he allegedly supported the lynching in each state or territory where he used to preach.
Such devoted people were difficult to handle, but also more than convenient if one had some kind of influence over them and could use their fanatic approach at the right moment. No matter the popularity of saloons and brothels, many people in fast growing Bozeman were more than glad to see that they would finally have an open church again, Cameron realized that. And he also knew that with the right intermediary, people believing in God could be so easily influenced. Building a friendly relationship with Kapner was nothing but a tactical move, but dear Reverend did not need to know that.
The common prayer finished and Reverend took up on his sermon. Raising his head, Cameron noticed Danny rushing to the church from the side. Since he had ordered him to wait by the carriage until this comedy would be over, Cameron immediately figured something had happened. But he carefully maintained the humble expression and waited until Reverend finished his sermon and released all little sheep from his devoted care, before approaching the boy.
“What is it, Danny?”
“It´s the mine, sir,” McFly replied, his expression tense. “There has been a small collapse.”
***
It was such a relief when the sky finally cleared after the strong storm. With those constantly multiplying small waterfalls flowing from the poor roof, their temporary shelter could not keep them protected for much longer than one night. But as the outburst of nature came, it also went away and the only dark clouds left that morning were those hanging over Leo´s head.
With his hands crossed, he was quietly listening to an unusually heated quarrel between Cullen and Jane for quite a while already and felt gloomier with each argument thrown from one side to another. They were both right and firmly stood their ground. He envied them this luxury, since he had to be the one to decide and no one could tell him for sure which option was the better one.
Leo glanced toward the old trading station, which was standing pretty far from them now, since they wanted to make sure their captives wouldn´t catch anything from this crucial conversation. Ryo was pacing in front of the building, guarding and obviously nervous, shooting a curious glance at their little group from time to time. He had asked Ryo about his opinion before and he said it more than clearly - he would submit to whatever Leo would decide.
There was only one thing damn certain - the sooner they solve this situation, the better for everyone involved. And that knowledge finally pushed him to act.
With a sigh, Leo stepped forward: “All right, that´s enough. Stop it, both of you!” he requested rather harshly.
Jane´s eyes were literally shining with anger, her hands clenched into small fists, while Cullen´s face showed one hell of a cold expression. They were both anxious, Leo could tell and he was actually grateful for it, since it meant they really cared about what would happen next. He was damn concerned as well, but at the same time not willing to cross the borders which he had set when they had elected him as Black Riders´ leader.
“Let me briefly summarize it,” he started talking before he could reconsider. “We won´t just shoot them dead, that´s not an option I´d even consider. And we can´t leave them tied up here in the middle of nothing either, at the non-existent mercy of blood thirsty Indians.”
Cullen gave him only one hard look, which Leo returned, and he knew. The old wolf always knew.
“I see you´ve already decided.”
Determined not to do anything what he would be ashamed for later, Leo nodded: “I´m in for Jane´s proposal. If nothing else, it will buy us enough time to scram.”
His old friend and respected Rider stared at him for a moment, before he raised both hands in defeated and dismissive gesture: “Fine. Got it. Don´t come crying after me then.”
“We won´t,” Jane hissed, still pissed as hell, though it was clearly visible how relieved she was after hearing her fiancé´s decision.
“We´ll see about that,” Cullen reacted bleakly.
Already tired from the continued disagreement, Leo turned to him: “Does it mean you´re not willing to help?” he asked point-blank.
Cullen stiffened a little and seemed surprised, before he shook it off: “I might disagree, but that doesn´t affect what I decided years ago. I´ll always follow your lead, Leo. I´m too old for changing my mind easily.”
Leo nodded seriously: “And I appreciate that.”
“Why? I don´t require your appreciation,” Cullen scolded him right away. “Who else would take care of you children?”
“You´re unbearable, you know that?” Jane glared at him. “First, you argue with me almost to the death, then you say something like this and I´d rather hug you so tight you´d suffocate.”
Cullen grinned at her: “You´re pretty adorable nuisance as well, honey.”
“Don´t you have enough haggling for one day?” Leo cut in before they could continue again and spoil his relief from finally making a decision. “Jane, ask Ryo to go back there with you, okay? In case someone ran off and the ambush spot would be swarming with soldiers, call it off. Otherwise, be careful and take only the most necessary stuff. The horses are rested, so you should be back before nightfall.”
Jane nodded: “Roger that, love,” then she kissed Leo on the cheek and ran off toward the station.
***
John was damn anxious for the whole day.
Both he and Augusta were still alive and not treated badly. The Riders let them relieve themselves regularly, they gave them something to eat, even though their own supplies were poor and did not attack them in any way. But something was wrong and he couldn´t figure out what exactly it was.
First, there was that top secret discussion of theirs and then the pretty brunette - Jane and the horse guardian - Ryo rode off for almost half a day, while they were stuck with Riders´ leader Akanishi and that sour man Cullen. They were very careful not to talk about anything important in front of them, but they couldn´t watch themselves all the time, so he knew each of them by name now.
Then the young pair of Riders got back and they all acted the same way as before, only without much talking at all, which made him even more nervous. He spent hours trying to think of a way to persuade them to let at least Mrs. Tabor go, but each of his attempts to talk to them met with a wall of silence.
With all muscles stiff from the long sitting by the pillar, John gloomily watched as the brunette handed Augusta a cup to drink. Just for how long they intended to keep them captive?
“Here,” the woman´s voice disrupted his thoughts. He peered at the dark surface of liquid in front of his nose. They had been giving them just water before. This was something else and that bothered him.
“It´s just a tea,” the female Rider commented his suspicious look mockingly. “Don´t worry, it´s not poisoned. There are many easier and quicker ways if we wanted you dead.”
That was damn right, but it did not calm him down anyway. John glanced at Augusta who was sitting by the other wooden pillar.
“I think she´s telling the truth, John,” she said quietly. “At least it tastes good.”
“Thank you, Madame, I did it myself,” the brunette reacted. “So? Take it or leave it, Captain.”
What other choice he had? To be thirsty. And that was not an alluring option to him. He looked up to the brunette, who returned his inquiring stare calmly, still holding the cup for him. And so he drank it.
Augusta was right, it was surprisingly tasty tea. And after half an hour, he finally believed it was really just tea, since it didn´t make him swirl in pain with foam at his lips. He only felt a bit sleepy, which was no wonder. His position was far from being comfortable, so he didn´t get much sleep the previous night and spending the day worrying about Riders´ plans for them didn´t exactly fill him with energy either. His eyelids felt so damn heavy and the bandits´ quiet voices turned into a dull buzz.
As he let his head lean against the pillar, his eyes moved to the side to look at Augusta. She was already fast asleep, her expression peaceful and the ruffled hair falling over it in pretty curls. The brave woman looked younger and so defenseless at that moment…
He saw that the brunette brought a blanket and covered Augusta´s body with it, before glancing at him. Something poked in John´s blurry mind, but he couldn´t quite focus on it anymore. Within seconds, he sunk into the deep sleep as well.
***
“Next!” an invitation sounded sharply behind the half-open door of health clinic, attracting their attention. Both Jin and Kame watched a bearded man, so far waiting on the bench, getting up and limping inside after Dr. Best´s voice, as they passed by the building on their loyal animal companions. The wounded man was only one of four others.
“A mass brawl maybe?” Jin wondered.
“You can ask Harada, he´ll know,” Kame assumed and gave him a warm look. “See you tomorrow then?”
“Sure. In case you won´t run off somewhere after your duties again, Agent,” he noted meaningfully.
“I won´t. At least not without letting you know,” his boyfriend assured him with a small smile.
“Got it,” Jin grinned and directed Kuro to the saloon. “Say hello to the Brices for me.”
“I will. Enjoy your shift,” Kame added a bit mockingly and separated from their so far common direction, with Ukushi taking him toward the sheriff´s office. He wanted to ask the man if there were more mine related complaints, which would give a reason to go after Henderson.
Jin continued on his way with a suppressed sigh. He was really glad Kame was home again and that he could enjoy his company for almost the whole day, but the less he was eager to go to work now.
He left Kuro in the saloon stables as usually and since he had some time before his shift at Cora´s place was supposed to start, he cautiously stepped inside the suspiciously noisy taproom. With all the tables full, he managed to squeeze at the bar counter almost by the miracle and asked the new bartender, who was recently hired, for some beer.
As he looked around the room, he noticed Harada gesturing at him from his table in the back part of the saloon, so Jin grabbed his beer and went over there.
“You came in handy,” the satisfied owner welcomed him. “You can take Cora´s share to her.”
“Sure, no problem,” Jin nodded as he sat across from the older man. “What is this commotion, Harada? It´s only Thursday, right?”
Harada closed a thick accounting book: “Haven´t you heard yet? All mine workers got the day off.”
“How comes?”
“Some troublesome shake in the new shaft, a few stones here and there, they say. Nevertheless, Henderson closed the mine temporarily, until it´s properly checked. And he even gave the upcoming shift a pay in advance.”
“So, that´s why they seem so satisfied,” Jin murmured and sipped at his beer.
“Yeah, I don´t even know anymore,” Harada noted pensively. “Is he so calculating or he really cares?”
He raised his eyebrows confused: “Who do you mean?”
“Henderson, who else? I heard he even donated the church reconstruction and he was no cheapskate. Our new reverend is thrilled.”
Jin frowned: “Well, my vote is definitely for calculating creep,” he assumed with certainty.
***
John woke up feeling that something was terribly wrong. He took a deliberately slow breath and opened his eyes anxiously. Above him, there was an open sky.
Confused by such a view, he sat up more quickly than he should have, immediately regretting it. His head ached, he felt sick and half the muscles in his body were strangely strained as if he had spent the night in a horse saddle in some awfully wrong position.
Suppressing the urge to vomit, he frantically looked around. He was sitting on the stony ground in the middle of nowhere. There were plains of dry grass with familiar mountains in the background all around him. The sky was half gray, half light blue; it had to be just shortly before sunrise. There was no road, no old trading station, and no valley in sight.
How the hell did I get here?
Then John noticed a slight movement and a soft animal snort behind his back. Still in the sitting position, he abruptly turned around to find the dark silhouettes of two horses and one man on the background of the east horizon, which just lit up with the first sun rays. Despite the dark shadow and strange bells ringing in his head, he recognized the cold shine of a gun in the man´s hand.
Damn it…
If this was about to be his final stage of life, he wouldn´t remain sitting on the ground through it. John took a deep breath and slowly stood up, carefully straightening his aching back.
The man made two steps closer to him and he finally recognized the oldest member of Black Riders. Nobody else from the gang could be seen around.
John´s heart skipped a beat - Augusta was not there either. His hands clenched into firm fists.
“What did you do with Mrs. Tabor?” his voice came out raspy, he almost couldn´t recognize it himself.
The Rider just stared at him for a damn long while, before he threw the small sack - which he had been holding in his other hand so far - under John´s feet.
“Take it and go,” he ordered coldly.
Ignoring his words, John didn´t give the bag even a look, determined to find out what the hell happened while he was asleep. It was that tea, for sure. He should have realized they were planning something.
“Where is she, you spineless bastard?!”
There was a short silence, in which the sun rose above the horizon and hit John´s eyes with sharp intensity, making him narrow them.
“Once we´ll be sure you didn´t have any stupid ideas about pursuing us, we´ll let her go,” the man said finally, in that same detached tone.
John frowned. So, they were not about to kill him, but the Riders took Augusta hostage to keep him on a leash.
“Why should I believe you?” he gritted through his teeth.
The Rider sneered: “Because I´ve got the gun and you don´t. Now get lost, before I change my mind.”
John didn´t like it at all, but he realized that there was nothing he could to about it at the moment. Once he would be out of the Rider´s sight, he might try to figure something out, but now, it would be dangerous to tempt this grumpy man´s patience.
Therefore, he grabbed the sack, without even wondering what was inside: “I suppose you´re not giving me any directions,” he noted scornfully.
The Rider snorted and if John would have not known better, he would swear it sounded amused.
“Be grateful you can go whenever you want, Captain Walker.”
***
She was standing in front of the neat, two-story house with white wind shutters. Its main door was open and her son was standing in the doorway, greeting her with open arms. He was smiling happily and a newborn child´s cry could be heard from the room behind his back...
How Augusta wished this scene would be her reality and that awful encounter with savage Indians and unfriendly gang of bandits in inhospitable Wyoming nothing more than an unpleasant dream. Unfortunately, it was the other way around and she was aware of it even before she opened her eyes.
She found herself lying on something sloping and firm, with the morning sky above her. She must have slept through the whole night then. But why was she outside?
A horse snorted somewhere and the surface under her moved. That made Augusta cautiously rise herself from the primitive stretcher. More confused each second, she realized the stretcher´s sides were tied to the saddle of the horse standing behind her.
“So, you´re finally awake.”
The woman´s voice startled Augusta at first, since she didn´t notice the slim figure beside the horse until she moved toward her.
It was the pretty brunette, the only female member of Black Riders. Then Augusta realized they were nowhere near that building where they had taken shelter before and that they were apparently alone. The brunette was not armed, but Augusta could not be sure what she was hiding under her clothes. She griped the sides of stretcher, hesitating if she should get up or not.
“What is the meaning of this?” she asked, trying to sound firm, but not sure if she should fear the answer or not.
The female Rider returned her demanding stare for a while, before she turned to the horse, untied a small sack from it and dropped it to the ground next to her.
“Some water and money. If you head directly east from here, you should be able to reach the small town in the afternoon.”
Augusta hesitated between being relieved or terrified by those words. If she was letting her go, was it the whole gang´s decision or not?
She gathered herself and got up on stiff legs.
“Where´s Captain Walker?” she asked with an anxious lump in her throat.
The brunette eyed her curiously: “Aren´t you glad you´re free?”
“Where is he?” Augusta repeated stubbornly, ignoring the slightly mocking tone.
The woman´s expression changed, softened somehow, when she replied this time: “Don´t worry, Mrs. Tabor. We´ll let him go as well. Only a bit later… We need to be sure we won´t be followed. And it would be wise of you to make certain of that.”
Augusta pressed her lips, tempted to push the woman to promise her the captain would really come out of this unhurt, but then she realized that she could not be sure about it either way.
“I understand…”
The pretty Rider smiled: “I figured you would.”
Augusta took a breath: “Thank you… Jane. I also figured that without your intervention, I would not come out of our encounter so easily.”
The woman shook her head: “Do not thank me, Madame. Rather forget you ever saw me or my friends, I´d appreciate that.”
Augusta did not reply, well aware of what the woman meant by such a request.
“Now, go. You´ve got a long way to go,” Jane encouraged her kindly. “And be careful - you never know who you might come across.”
She almost chuckled, but managed to hold it back: “I know that now more than well.”
- To be continued -
Author: Kasumi
Rating: NC-17
Genre: Western, Drama, Romance, Adventure, Historical fiction
Warning: AKame pairing - AU; vulgarisms, violence, explicit content
Beta-reading:
atago4
Summary: A direct sequel of Red West II. - Masterpost
A strange company of three young gunslingers and one Indian is on their way to Montana, while the infamous Black Riders continue their fight against Silver King of Colorado… Will they succeed or fail in the clash with the cruel environment and heartless Governor? Will their friendship, brotherhood and love persevere or be destroyed by greed, bloodshed and vengeance?
Thank you: To Kamenashi Kazuya and Akanishi Jin, because this story wouldn´t have existed without them.
A/N: Although it may look like it sometimes, I´m far from being done with this story...
I´m grateful for any opinion or advice, you help me hone my writing skills with them.
Thank you for taking time to read this story. I´ll be happy if you reward me with a comment for it.
Previously:
Prologue // Chapter one // Chapter two // Chapter three // Chapter four // Chapter five // Chapter six // Chapter seven // Chapter eight // Chapter nine // Chapter ten // Chapter eleven // Chapter twelve // Chapter thirteen // Chapter fourteen //
The dirty trick
A lonely pair of aspen trees had been shielding the house of Kamenashi family from various whims of Montana weather for more than twenty years and they would certainly keep doing their job even after the deeply-in-love couple currently living in it would be long gone. They were stretching their huge green crowns to the sun, proving they remained strong despite the past hot summer.
There was only one leaf, which was all faded and crumpled, shaking in expectation of that fateful gust of wind, which would take it away from the place among its countless buddies. The leaf was proud to become the omen of the forthcoming autumn, but at the same time sad to be the first one to go.
Then it came. A cold blow tore the leaf from its branch and pushed it up in the air, playing with it cruelly, before letting it fall in swirling curls. The leaf yielded and let the wind carry it through an open window to a quiet room´s floor, where it landed and remained motionless.
Something disturbed Kame from sweet reverie and made him open his eyes. Their bedroom was warm and peaceful, but still, a weird chill ran down his spine. And then he heard it - the distant sound of explosion west of the house.
Sighing, he closed his eyes again. He had thought that the mine location was too far for him to be bothered by Henderson´s interest in it. Apparently, it was not far enough.
A hand hugging him from behind shifted a little, fondly caressing his skin and a sleepy voice spoke into his ear: “I´ve told you… It´s damn annoying.”
A short smile spread across Kame´s lips: “It could have been worse. And since I can still come back home and roll in bed with you, I won´t complain.”
A soft chuckle warmly tickled his skin: “Well, aren´t you in a romantic mood today?”
“More like in a resigned one…”
There was a short moment of silence, before Jin propped himself up on one elbow to be able to see Kame´s face: “Will you tell me now what happened on that awfully long trip of yours?” he asked, while letting his other hand continue its slow movements on his lover´s skin.
Kame turned on his back and observed Jin´s face: “Do you want to hear it right now? It looked like you were about to fall asleep,” he asked inquiringly, since Jin forgot all about his coffee wish the moment he had returned to the house and grabbed Kame in his arms, dragging him to their bed instead.
His adorably disheveled lover shook his head in denial: “Sleep can wait. Tell me.”
“All right,” Kame sighed a little. “To be honest - it was nothing I wouldn´t have expected.”
Not used to such a defeatist attitude coming from Kame, Jin frowned: “Meaning?”
“Well, the capacity of the reservation will be filled up soon. With this new group I led there, they´ve got barely enough supplies. Not to mention that the deliveries of the government provisions are damn slow and there´s nothing I can do but rely on promises of people I´ve never met that it´ll get better before the winter comes.”
Jin moved his hand higher and stroked his lover´s neck in a slow, comforting way: “You can´t be everywhere, Kame. I know you and I´m sure there´s nobody who would do more for Indians in Montana.”
Kame snuggled closer to him: “Thanks… Though it doesn´t change the fact it´s damn frustrating.”
“What about Liwan and his little sister? And Cloud Dancing? Are they all right?” Jin figured the change of subject might improve the younger one´s mood.
“Yeah, they´re doing fine, given the circumstances,” Kame confirmed, murmuring the words against Jin´s chest. “Beara says hi.”
Jin smiled remembering the chipper kid: “That´s sweet of her. Sleeping Bear didn´t send his regards?”
“You didn´t send him yours either,” Kame reacted chuckling.
“Never mind,” he shrugged. “What about after that? Did you stop by in Helena as you had planned?”
Kame stiffened a little, before he pulled away from him: “Yes,” he reacted in a detached tone. “And I met that lawyer I had told you about. He´d be willing to take our case.”
Jin raised his eyebrows: “Really? Then why do I have a feeling it´s not the good news?”
“Because he´s a stingy asshole, that´s why,” Kame grumbled and sat up suddenly. “His charges are ridiculous! He even demanded a payment for consultation from me, but only after he heard me out. What kind of attitude is that? He was so slimy it made me sick. I almost threw up on his expensive carpet,” he finished upset.
“That sucks…” Jin couldn´t figure out a better reaction, but it was fitting enough.
His lover threw up his hands: “You tell me.”
Pissed Kame was better than yielding Kame, but Jin still knew the other version of him which was even better.
“But… You don´t want to give up just because of that, do you?”
“No, of course not,” Kame clenched his hands into fists. “Even though I don´t know what else to do.”
Jin leant forward and let his chin rest on his shoulder: “Now,” he emphasized. “I´m sure we´ll figure something out later.”
There was a short silence, before Kame turned and looked into his eyes: “Thank you...”
Jin winked at him: “Better now?”
Kame nodded: “Definitely.”
“Good. Come back to me then…” and he pulled Kame for his elbow, forcing him to lie on his back again. Quickly, his hand slipped across Kame´s abdomen, until it reached the pubic hair and sank into it playfully. Kame let out of a shaky breath, when Jin´s fingers clasped around his member firmly.
“But Jin… We´ve just…”
“You dare to think that it was enough for me?”
Another long pull made Kame´s reaction hasty and husky: “Greedy…”
“After two weeks of celibacy? Can you blame me?” Jin asked right into his ear.
Kame´s breath got caught in his throat, once Jin´s hand speed up.
“N-no…” he stuttered, the heat of arousal already rising up from his loin to the whole body. He raised himself and placed a hard, needy kiss on his lover´s full lips. “I´ve missed you too.”
***
“Every single day - which is a gift given to us by God - we are vulnerable to so many abominable sins! Lying. Gambling and inebriation. Robbery and murder! Sodomy! After moving to this town, I was horrified by the fact that good local people had no proper place for approaching God Almighty. Despite being faithful, it was difficult for you to reach Him with your prayers, so that He might bless you with strength to overcome these awful pitfalls of the Devil!”
That´s quite a questionable statement, he thought. With a clear conscience, he would have bet his newly constructed ranch that there were many people who took pleasure in the mentioned sins, while being more thankful to Devil than God.
“Fortunately, this is about to change now! Good citizens of Bozeman! All of you are in desperate need of a safe place, where you might be able to clear your sin-laden souls. Rest assured that God´s eye is certainly focused on this gathering of His faithful believers, who came in their good will to meliorate this divine sanctuary for our prayers. He sees you and He will know which of you did not take the teachings of Holy Scripture lightly. Finally, thanks to God´s good will and blessing, we may initiate this reconstruction. Look forward to purifying your souls!”
If he was looking forward to something at the moment, it was for this boring lecture to be over.
“But God in Heavens, although he is almighty, we are obligated to serve in His name. And this time, it would not be possible without one of you. Here he is. A good Catholic - Mr. Cameron Henderson, who donated considerable resources to our church. God bless you, Mr. Henderson.”
A lukewarm applause sounded above the crowd of gathered Bozeman citizens. He responded with a slight bow and reserved smile: “It was my Christian duty, Reverend.”
“Let´s all pray to God and ask him for His blessings to Mr. Henderson, as well as for our upcoming reconstruction.”
Reverend Kapner lowered his head in the mentioned prayer and the crowd fell silent with him.
If there would be a prayer on Cameron´s mind, it would definitely apply to him being finally able to leave this farce. He had other matters to take care of, since this one already seemed to be handled well enough…
After hearing out one heated sermon of this Reverend Gilbert Kapner last week, Cameron considered reasonable to keep good relations with the local church. Unfortunately, after he grabbed most of capable workers in Bozeman for his mine, Reverend seemed not to like him much. Therefore, he had used the easiest way to gain someone´s favor again. It was ridiculously simple - upon hearing the amount he was planning to donate for the church reconstruction, Reverend could break to fetch him everything he could only remember, including prayers to God, naturally.
Cameron´s own closest experience with anything holy was from the time he was ten years old and stole indulgences from a certain church in St. Louis, but this new reverend was apparently a strong believer. Cameron could imagine that late master Raynold Karnaka would have even used the word ´fanatic´ for him. Danny even brought a couple of rumors regarding Reverend - he allegedly supported the lynching in each state or territory where he used to preach.
Such devoted people were difficult to handle, but also more than convenient if one had some kind of influence over them and could use their fanatic approach at the right moment. No matter the popularity of saloons and brothels, many people in fast growing Bozeman were more than glad to see that they would finally have an open church again, Cameron realized that. And he also knew that with the right intermediary, people believing in God could be so easily influenced. Building a friendly relationship with Kapner was nothing but a tactical move, but dear Reverend did not need to know that.
The common prayer finished and Reverend took up on his sermon. Raising his head, Cameron noticed Danny rushing to the church from the side. Since he had ordered him to wait by the carriage until this comedy would be over, Cameron immediately figured something had happened. But he carefully maintained the humble expression and waited until Reverend finished his sermon and released all little sheep from his devoted care, before approaching the boy.
“What is it, Danny?”
“It´s the mine, sir,” McFly replied, his expression tense. “There has been a small collapse.”
***
It was such a relief when the sky finally cleared after the strong storm. With those constantly multiplying small waterfalls flowing from the poor roof, their temporary shelter could not keep them protected for much longer than one night. But as the outburst of nature came, it also went away and the only dark clouds left that morning were those hanging over Leo´s head.
With his hands crossed, he was quietly listening to an unusually heated quarrel between Cullen and Jane for quite a while already and felt gloomier with each argument thrown from one side to another. They were both right and firmly stood their ground. He envied them this luxury, since he had to be the one to decide and no one could tell him for sure which option was the better one.
Leo glanced toward the old trading station, which was standing pretty far from them now, since they wanted to make sure their captives wouldn´t catch anything from this crucial conversation. Ryo was pacing in front of the building, guarding and obviously nervous, shooting a curious glance at their little group from time to time. He had asked Ryo about his opinion before and he said it more than clearly - he would submit to whatever Leo would decide.
There was only one thing damn certain - the sooner they solve this situation, the better for everyone involved. And that knowledge finally pushed him to act.
With a sigh, Leo stepped forward: “All right, that´s enough. Stop it, both of you!” he requested rather harshly.
Jane´s eyes were literally shining with anger, her hands clenched into small fists, while Cullen´s face showed one hell of a cold expression. They were both anxious, Leo could tell and he was actually grateful for it, since it meant they really cared about what would happen next. He was damn concerned as well, but at the same time not willing to cross the borders which he had set when they had elected him as Black Riders´ leader.
“Let me briefly summarize it,” he started talking before he could reconsider. “We won´t just shoot them dead, that´s not an option I´d even consider. And we can´t leave them tied up here in the middle of nothing either, at the non-existent mercy of blood thirsty Indians.”
Cullen gave him only one hard look, which Leo returned, and he knew. The old wolf always knew.
“I see you´ve already decided.”
Determined not to do anything what he would be ashamed for later, Leo nodded: “I´m in for Jane´s proposal. If nothing else, it will buy us enough time to scram.”
His old friend and respected Rider stared at him for a moment, before he raised both hands in defeated and dismissive gesture: “Fine. Got it. Don´t come crying after me then.”
“We won´t,” Jane hissed, still pissed as hell, though it was clearly visible how relieved she was after hearing her fiancé´s decision.
“We´ll see about that,” Cullen reacted bleakly.
Already tired from the continued disagreement, Leo turned to him: “Does it mean you´re not willing to help?” he asked point-blank.
Cullen stiffened a little and seemed surprised, before he shook it off: “I might disagree, but that doesn´t affect what I decided years ago. I´ll always follow your lead, Leo. I´m too old for changing my mind easily.”
Leo nodded seriously: “And I appreciate that.”
“Why? I don´t require your appreciation,” Cullen scolded him right away. “Who else would take care of you children?”
“You´re unbearable, you know that?” Jane glared at him. “First, you argue with me almost to the death, then you say something like this and I´d rather hug you so tight you´d suffocate.”
Cullen grinned at her: “You´re pretty adorable nuisance as well, honey.”
“Don´t you have enough haggling for one day?” Leo cut in before they could continue again and spoil his relief from finally making a decision. “Jane, ask Ryo to go back there with you, okay? In case someone ran off and the ambush spot would be swarming with soldiers, call it off. Otherwise, be careful and take only the most necessary stuff. The horses are rested, so you should be back before nightfall.”
Jane nodded: “Roger that, love,” then she kissed Leo on the cheek and ran off toward the station.
***
John was damn anxious for the whole day.
Both he and Augusta were still alive and not treated badly. The Riders let them relieve themselves regularly, they gave them something to eat, even though their own supplies were poor and did not attack them in any way. But something was wrong and he couldn´t figure out what exactly it was.
First, there was that top secret discussion of theirs and then the pretty brunette - Jane and the horse guardian - Ryo rode off for almost half a day, while they were stuck with Riders´ leader Akanishi and that sour man Cullen. They were very careful not to talk about anything important in front of them, but they couldn´t watch themselves all the time, so he knew each of them by name now.
Then the young pair of Riders got back and they all acted the same way as before, only without much talking at all, which made him even more nervous. He spent hours trying to think of a way to persuade them to let at least Mrs. Tabor go, but each of his attempts to talk to them met with a wall of silence.
With all muscles stiff from the long sitting by the pillar, John gloomily watched as the brunette handed Augusta a cup to drink. Just for how long they intended to keep them captive?
“Here,” the woman´s voice disrupted his thoughts. He peered at the dark surface of liquid in front of his nose. They had been giving them just water before. This was something else and that bothered him.
“It´s just a tea,” the female Rider commented his suspicious look mockingly. “Don´t worry, it´s not poisoned. There are many easier and quicker ways if we wanted you dead.”
That was damn right, but it did not calm him down anyway. John glanced at Augusta who was sitting by the other wooden pillar.
“I think she´s telling the truth, John,” she said quietly. “At least it tastes good.”
“Thank you, Madame, I did it myself,” the brunette reacted. “So? Take it or leave it, Captain.”
What other choice he had? To be thirsty. And that was not an alluring option to him. He looked up to the brunette, who returned his inquiring stare calmly, still holding the cup for him. And so he drank it.
Augusta was right, it was surprisingly tasty tea. And after half an hour, he finally believed it was really just tea, since it didn´t make him swirl in pain with foam at his lips. He only felt a bit sleepy, which was no wonder. His position was far from being comfortable, so he didn´t get much sleep the previous night and spending the day worrying about Riders´ plans for them didn´t exactly fill him with energy either. His eyelids felt so damn heavy and the bandits´ quiet voices turned into a dull buzz.
As he let his head lean against the pillar, his eyes moved to the side to look at Augusta. She was already fast asleep, her expression peaceful and the ruffled hair falling over it in pretty curls. The brave woman looked younger and so defenseless at that moment…
He saw that the brunette brought a blanket and covered Augusta´s body with it, before glancing at him. Something poked in John´s blurry mind, but he couldn´t quite focus on it anymore. Within seconds, he sunk into the deep sleep as well.
***
“Next!” an invitation sounded sharply behind the half-open door of health clinic, attracting their attention. Both Jin and Kame watched a bearded man, so far waiting on the bench, getting up and limping inside after Dr. Best´s voice, as they passed by the building on their loyal animal companions. The wounded man was only one of four others.
“A mass brawl maybe?” Jin wondered.
“You can ask Harada, he´ll know,” Kame assumed and gave him a warm look. “See you tomorrow then?”
“Sure. In case you won´t run off somewhere after your duties again, Agent,” he noted meaningfully.
“I won´t. At least not without letting you know,” his boyfriend assured him with a small smile.
“Got it,” Jin grinned and directed Kuro to the saloon. “Say hello to the Brices for me.”
“I will. Enjoy your shift,” Kame added a bit mockingly and separated from their so far common direction, with Ukushi taking him toward the sheriff´s office. He wanted to ask the man if there were more mine related complaints, which would give a reason to go after Henderson.
Jin continued on his way with a suppressed sigh. He was really glad Kame was home again and that he could enjoy his company for almost the whole day, but the less he was eager to go to work now.
He left Kuro in the saloon stables as usually and since he had some time before his shift at Cora´s place was supposed to start, he cautiously stepped inside the suspiciously noisy taproom. With all the tables full, he managed to squeeze at the bar counter almost by the miracle and asked the new bartender, who was recently hired, for some beer.
As he looked around the room, he noticed Harada gesturing at him from his table in the back part of the saloon, so Jin grabbed his beer and went over there.
“You came in handy,” the satisfied owner welcomed him. “You can take Cora´s share to her.”
“Sure, no problem,” Jin nodded as he sat across from the older man. “What is this commotion, Harada? It´s only Thursday, right?”
Harada closed a thick accounting book: “Haven´t you heard yet? All mine workers got the day off.”
“How comes?”
“Some troublesome shake in the new shaft, a few stones here and there, they say. Nevertheless, Henderson closed the mine temporarily, until it´s properly checked. And he even gave the upcoming shift a pay in advance.”
“So, that´s why they seem so satisfied,” Jin murmured and sipped at his beer.
“Yeah, I don´t even know anymore,” Harada noted pensively. “Is he so calculating or he really cares?”
He raised his eyebrows confused: “Who do you mean?”
“Henderson, who else? I heard he even donated the church reconstruction and he was no cheapskate. Our new reverend is thrilled.”
Jin frowned: “Well, my vote is definitely for calculating creep,” he assumed with certainty.
***
John woke up feeling that something was terribly wrong. He took a deliberately slow breath and opened his eyes anxiously. Above him, there was an open sky.
Confused by such a view, he sat up more quickly than he should have, immediately regretting it. His head ached, he felt sick and half the muscles in his body were strangely strained as if he had spent the night in a horse saddle in some awfully wrong position.
Suppressing the urge to vomit, he frantically looked around. He was sitting on the stony ground in the middle of nowhere. There were plains of dry grass with familiar mountains in the background all around him. The sky was half gray, half light blue; it had to be just shortly before sunrise. There was no road, no old trading station, and no valley in sight.
How the hell did I get here?
Then John noticed a slight movement and a soft animal snort behind his back. Still in the sitting position, he abruptly turned around to find the dark silhouettes of two horses and one man on the background of the east horizon, which just lit up with the first sun rays. Despite the dark shadow and strange bells ringing in his head, he recognized the cold shine of a gun in the man´s hand.
Damn it…
If this was about to be his final stage of life, he wouldn´t remain sitting on the ground through it. John took a deep breath and slowly stood up, carefully straightening his aching back.
The man made two steps closer to him and he finally recognized the oldest member of Black Riders. Nobody else from the gang could be seen around.
John´s heart skipped a beat - Augusta was not there either. His hands clenched into firm fists.
“What did you do with Mrs. Tabor?” his voice came out raspy, he almost couldn´t recognize it himself.
The Rider just stared at him for a damn long while, before he threw the small sack - which he had been holding in his other hand so far - under John´s feet.
“Take it and go,” he ordered coldly.
Ignoring his words, John didn´t give the bag even a look, determined to find out what the hell happened while he was asleep. It was that tea, for sure. He should have realized they were planning something.
“Where is she, you spineless bastard?!”
There was a short silence, in which the sun rose above the horizon and hit John´s eyes with sharp intensity, making him narrow them.
“Once we´ll be sure you didn´t have any stupid ideas about pursuing us, we´ll let her go,” the man said finally, in that same detached tone.
John frowned. So, they were not about to kill him, but the Riders took Augusta hostage to keep him on a leash.
“Why should I believe you?” he gritted through his teeth.
The Rider sneered: “Because I´ve got the gun and you don´t. Now get lost, before I change my mind.”
John didn´t like it at all, but he realized that there was nothing he could to about it at the moment. Once he would be out of the Rider´s sight, he might try to figure something out, but now, it would be dangerous to tempt this grumpy man´s patience.
Therefore, he grabbed the sack, without even wondering what was inside: “I suppose you´re not giving me any directions,” he noted scornfully.
The Rider snorted and if John would have not known better, he would swear it sounded amused.
“Be grateful you can go whenever you want, Captain Walker.”
***
She was standing in front of the neat, two-story house with white wind shutters. Its main door was open and her son was standing in the doorway, greeting her with open arms. He was smiling happily and a newborn child´s cry could be heard from the room behind his back...
How Augusta wished this scene would be her reality and that awful encounter with savage Indians and unfriendly gang of bandits in inhospitable Wyoming nothing more than an unpleasant dream. Unfortunately, it was the other way around and she was aware of it even before she opened her eyes.
She found herself lying on something sloping and firm, with the morning sky above her. She must have slept through the whole night then. But why was she outside?
A horse snorted somewhere and the surface under her moved. That made Augusta cautiously rise herself from the primitive stretcher. More confused each second, she realized the stretcher´s sides were tied to the saddle of the horse standing behind her.
“So, you´re finally awake.”
The woman´s voice startled Augusta at first, since she didn´t notice the slim figure beside the horse until she moved toward her.
It was the pretty brunette, the only female member of Black Riders. Then Augusta realized they were nowhere near that building where they had taken shelter before and that they were apparently alone. The brunette was not armed, but Augusta could not be sure what she was hiding under her clothes. She griped the sides of stretcher, hesitating if she should get up or not.
“What is the meaning of this?” she asked, trying to sound firm, but not sure if she should fear the answer or not.
The female Rider returned her demanding stare for a while, before she turned to the horse, untied a small sack from it and dropped it to the ground next to her.
“Some water and money. If you head directly east from here, you should be able to reach the small town in the afternoon.”
Augusta hesitated between being relieved or terrified by those words. If she was letting her go, was it the whole gang´s decision or not?
She gathered herself and got up on stiff legs.
“Where´s Captain Walker?” she asked with an anxious lump in her throat.
The brunette eyed her curiously: “Aren´t you glad you´re free?”
“Where is he?” Augusta repeated stubbornly, ignoring the slightly mocking tone.
The woman´s expression changed, softened somehow, when she replied this time: “Don´t worry, Mrs. Tabor. We´ll let him go as well. Only a bit later… We need to be sure we won´t be followed. And it would be wise of you to make certain of that.”
Augusta pressed her lips, tempted to push the woman to promise her the captain would really come out of this unhurt, but then she realized that she could not be sure about it either way.
“I understand…”
The pretty Rider smiled: “I figured you would.”
Augusta took a breath: “Thank you… Jane. I also figured that without your intervention, I would not come out of our encounter so easily.”
The woman shook her head: “Do not thank me, Madame. Rather forget you ever saw me or my friends, I´d appreciate that.”
Augusta did not reply, well aware of what the woman meant by such a request.
“Now, go. You´ve got a long way to go,” Jane encouraged her kindly. “And be careful - you never know who you might come across.”
She almost chuckled, but managed to hold it back: “I know that now more than well.”
- To be continued -