RANGO // OӘͶAЯ - Another Outlaw Story [Engl.]

38. Bad Bye

The city people stopped dead on the street and sidewalk.
"It's Joel," somebody said.
A babel of voices arose.
All people came together and looked at the end of the street at the entrance of the town, where the old lizard stood there with a rifle in his hands.
Miss Daisy pressed her bible closer to her body. "Like the last time."
Now it was Mayor John, who had taken notice of all the tumult. On his wheelchair, he rolled to the top of the crowd, still many meters away from the old armed lizard.
"Good day, Joel. What a pleasure to see you again after so a long time."
Joel growled loudly. "The pleasure is NOT all mine! Give my daughter back!"
"Dad!" Rice cried. "I came of my own volition. Don't do something rash!"
"What I do and what I don't do is still my decision," Joel shouted back. "You come back home with me! Immediately!"
Bill cradled her closer. "You have no right to command her."
A scary clicking sound of a gun loading cut the air. Joel was going to shoot at Bill's head.
Quickly Rice made two steps forward.
"Dad, I only wanted to see our hometown. That's not a crime."
"It's more than a crime to see a fella in your near!"
"He only showed me the town."
"Is that the only thing what he is going to show you?!"
She swallowed because of that insult.
Suddenly a big shadow slithered next to her.
"Mr. Joel," Jake said with firm voice. "You can take her with you. She's your daughter, but you aren't allowed to hurt someone of the inhabitants. But if you want to shoot someone than you can do it with me."
The old lizard chuckled evilly; remembering the bullet which Jake had shot at him last night. "My shoulder is still stinging, but you have a little track of more sanity than the lousy pre-sheriff."
He lowered his gun a little. "Daughter, you heard what he said. Come here!"
The hands of the girl trembled. She hated to think it, but in moments like that, she hated her father more than everything.
"But I don't want."
Joel's eyes narrowed into small slits.
"You do what I say!" A dark smiled crossed his lips. "Otherwise... you know, I'm in a position to do much worse things than this. You know what I mean."
Her breath died for a brief moment.
In the next second Bill stepped forward. "She stays here!"
"If so," Joel aimed his gun sharply in his direction. "I will climb over your dead body."
The Gila monster hissed. "Try it..."
"No, Bill." She held his shoulder. "It's okay. I go with my father."
Bill looked at her in disbelief. "What? But you said, I thought..."
She waved her hand. "It's okay. It's the best for all. Let us say, goodbye."
She opened her arms. "Embrace me."
Bill couldn't believe what he was hearing.
He didn't move, and she moved instead. She wrapped her arms around him. He felt how firmly she squeezed him.
"We will see again," she whispered quickly.
Then she released him and walked over to her father. But before she reached him, Joel grabbed her arm and pushed her hard behind himself.
"And you!" He pointed at the rattlesnake. "Never dare to put a scale on my land again!"
With these words, he lifted his gun and shot into the sky several times.
Some women cried and covered their ears.
Then both lizards were gone.
Voices of people filled the air again.
Bill stood still there on the street, realizing what had happened and appealed to Jake.
"Do something!"
"What should I do?" the rattlesnake asked. "He didn't force her. She went with him voluntarily. Let her go. She will know what she is doing."
"Is that all what you have to say?"
Jake gave him a hard glance. "Yes."
The force of the eyes met the Gila monster so hard that it took his ability of speaking for a moment. But just for a brief moment. Then the lizard turned around with rage and walked away to the town hall.
Kinski and Chorizo tried to say an encouraging word. "Hey buddy..."
But Bill pushed him away. With surprise his friends gazed after him.
Chorizo was going to say something, but Kinski held him back. "Let him alone."
The Mexican mouse sighed. "Well, at least he has smiled for a moment."
They looked back where the rattlesnake still stood alone with a grim glance on his face.
A rolling squeak came to a hold behind him. Jake looked behind.
Mayor John gave him a smile. "Thanks Mr. Jake."
"What happened?"
Kinski and Chorizo turned around in surprise and saw Stump with his two boys running in their direction.
"We heard shots," Stump said exhausted. His sons holding on their hands.
Kinski rubbed his forehead. "You will not believe what happened."

With angry, slow footsteps, Bill walked up the stairs to his room.
She said, they would see each other again. But how? At least everything didn't seem to be too hopelessly. Maybe it was a dawn of hope. But the disappointment about the sheriff's incompetency gave him stomachaches. This was the third time. Should he keep the deputy job? Or would it be the best to part ways?
He stopped immediately. On the doorknob of his room stuck a letter.
Without thinking the Gila monster took it, went in his room and closed the door. He had no much interest to read something, but after he had cast a glance on it, he paused.
"Important telegram," he read. From a man named Jacques.
"Jacques?" Bill got curious. Wasn't that Angelique's boyfriend name?
Bit by bit the memories came back. Of course. He almost forgot. He should look for information about the strange lizard. What was that been? A chameleon?
Bill scratched his head. But why put Miss Daisy the letter here?
He shrugged his shoulders and opened it.
First, he skimmed through the words, but then he stopped and read slower. Second by second, his nails cramped around the paper.
"This can't..."
Suddenly he felt something cold on his neck.
He turned around wildly. He froze with wide open eyes when he looked into the barrel of a gun, be held by a green lizard. The face of the chameleon was neutral and emotionless. But there was a dark shadow in his eyes.
Bill winced and raised his trembling hands slowly when the barrel touched his mouth.
At the same moment the green lizard lifted his free hand and put his pointing finger on his lips. Then he smiled and whispered softly: "Shhhh."