American Vagrant: A Pulp

chapter:three

"get out of here, Murphy." joe whispered.

Murphy shook his head. "i've had it with these bastards." he snarled. "i'm gonna make my stand, here and now."

oh well, joe thought. he turned to the gangsters surrounding him.

"you've got a lot of nerve to hang with Old Murphy." the low rumbling voice came from a large stocky man. he had a shaved head, with bushy eyebrows and beard. an ugly scar ran along his left cheek. his tunic was weathered and had dried bloodstains covering it.

"let's teach you a lesson in opposing Lord Graver." another one of Graver's goons cracked his knuckles gleefully.

"let me guess," joe got off his stool and raised his fists. "i won't get away with it."

"you won't be going anywhere." the stocky man, presumably the leader of the goons, beckoned the rest of the group towards joe and Murphy.

"enjoy yourselves!" he bellowed as he retreated to the back of the bar.

"you ready, Murphy?" joe asked as he and Murphy backed up against each other. the goons, six of them in total, had arranged themselves in a semicircle around them.

"hell no." Murphy muttered in bated breath.

a great silence fell upon the bar. time stopped and the men waited in baited breath for the right moment...

suddenly, the goons hollered and charged ferociously!

Murphy reached for a stool. he swung and threw it, hitting three of the men and leaving them winded.

joe dodged the barrage of fists coming his way deftly, then with his own he struck. three punches with Herculean force, once on a goon's back, twice at the other two's chests respectively. the force made them drop to the ground unconscious.

the fight started as quickly as it ended. joe stretched his arms, looking at the scene he caused. "bet we'll be seeing Graver again soon." he quipped.

"joe, watch out!" Murphy suddenly shouted.

one of the goons wounded by the thrown stool had recovered and stood up. eyeing joe, he reached for his revolver and aimed!

Murphy tackled the goon in desperation, knocking away the revolver. joe walked over to it and picked it up. he looked at it for a moment before pointing it at the goon.

"wait, dont kill me! please!" the goon raised his hands.

joe's grip loosened. he put his arm down.

then he raised it again.

"tell Graver to give Murphy his customers back."

then he shot.

____________

the sound of another gunshot came. the large stocky man continued watching the scene unfold at the bar, from the balcony of a house to the south of the bar. next to him was none other than Lord Graver.

"our goons disappoint us yet again, Zed." Graver grumbled and shook his head.

"he's just like the rest of them wanderers." Zed uttered coolly. "always causing a ruckus."

Graver pulled out his revolver and looked at it. "not a day goes by in this shithole without some hotshot coming in to distract us..."

"by the time I'm done with you... you'll wish you never set foot here..."