Always Was The Better Shot

Chapter 3

"Fancy meeting the both of you here," Marco said from somewhere outside, "I came here for Ashe, only to find that she was following you, McCree. Two birds with one stone as the saying goes. It truly is my lucky day!"

Cassidy could hear Ashe grumbling from somewhere amongst the rubble to his right, something about her coming here being a secret and "nobody else knew". He leaned a bit to his right to get a better view of Marco and his gang. It looked like he had eight thugs with him, all armed to the teeth. This gang was the one that went with Marco to jail, and the smiles they wore indicated they were happy to see Ashe. Probably not in a good way. Regardless, Marco clearly wasn't going to underestimate Ashe again.

"You planning on sending me to the sheriff? Make me take a vacation just like you?" Ashe yelled out to the stony faces outside, "I ain't gonna go quietly like you did Marco. I wonder if prison helped you with your lack of a spine!"

Marco chuckled, before smoothing back his greased black hair. "I won't do you the kindness of watching you rot behind bars Elizabeth." Cassidy could feel the anger shooting off of Ashe. "The county's got a reward for your capture. Dead or Alive. The reward for your body is lower, but I see getting my revenge worth the lower payout." Marco nodded towards the two gang members closest to him, and they started creeping towards Ashe's side of the diner.

"As for you McCree, it looks like you're wanted for a lot of things. Public disturbances, thievery, trespassing, carrying an unsanctioned weapon, attempted murder, I could go on and on," Marco jeered, trying to spot Cassidy among the rubble. "To think that Jesse McCree, Ashe's former right-hand man, always bowing and scraping before her, would be ten times more infamous than his former gang leader at half the effort," Marco snickered, "Must make you burn up inside huh, Lizzy?"

Ashe's response was enough swear words to make a biker blush, as well as various projectiles being launched in Marco's general direction. He had wisely chosen a spot far enough away from the diner to avoid any lasting harm, but he still got clipped in the arm by a piece of wall. Swearing under his breath, he aggressively motioned for the thugs near Ashe to quickly find her before she could do more lasting harm. They quietly picked around the various bits and pieces of the diner that littered the dusty orange ground outside, finally making their way to a few slabs on concrete haphazardly leaning against each other. Nodding to each other, they peeked around it. It was the last mistake they would make. As soon as they drew close enough, Ashe smashed her gun into the shin of the first gang member, causing him to stumble and fall hard. She followed up with a left hook to the jaw of the second, snapping his head to the side, blood and spit flying from his mouth. Two quick blasts followed, marking the end of their time in the Diamondbacks.

The only way out of this situation was past the Diamondbacks, and they sure weren't going to let them past without a hell of a fight. Even thanks to Ashe's quick work, it was still seven to two, or more accurately, the seven of them versus Ashe versus Cassidy. The classic Mexican Standoff, with less standing in the case of the gunslingers trapped in the diner. An easy out for Cassidy was to just toss his flashbangs, avoid all the blind shooting that came as a result, and hightail it to Phoenix. Since the diner was nestled in a shallow canyon, it would be a bit difficult to make it past the gang since they were standing at the mouth of it, but it should be doable. Yet, he couldn't leave Ashe behind, even though that is exactly what she would do to him. The two of them stood a better chance against the Diamondbacks outside than they did fighting on two fronts. The real trick was making sure there were two of them to fight against the gang.

Cassidy was able to spot the olive branch; Ashe's Viper rifle. It lay a few feet in front of him, probably blown from Ashe's bike into the diner when the Diamondbacks turned the front wall into dust. All he had to do was get it with seven guns trained on him, deliver it to Ashe, and pray that she doesn't immediately use it on him. The cowboy slid one of his flashbangs from his belt and quietly pulled the pin. After priming it for a few seconds, he released the spoon and flung the grenade out towards Marco and his gang. Shielding his eyes with the brim of his hat, Cassidy ran out into the explosion, dodging the blind shots the gang was making, snatched the rifle from where it lay, and dove back behind the overturned table. He met Ashe's ruby-colored eyes from across the diner and tapped the rifle next to him. Her eyes narrowed and she nodded for him to toss the rifle to her.