Cowboys & Ghosts

15. The Phantom Shooting

Daisy had looked upward, to see men on the higher range, all firing. "It's Slim," she said. "They've followed us here!" Shaban yelled, looking over his shoulder. The horses were startled, including Dollar, dodging bullets that were racing into the dirt simultaneously. Suddenly, it hit. Horror expressed on Daisy's face, when she saw that Cody had been shot in the chest. Blood oozed out of him, soaking his shirt. He then fell backward into the river. This confirmed to Daisy; Cody Lonergan was dead. "Goddamn," muttered Shaban, looking as if he were fighting back tears. Daisy had pulled out her own revolver, returning fire. Rafael did so as well, joining her onto the assault. Shaban was turning towards the river, but Rafael pulled him back. "There's nothing we can do!" He shouted. "He's with the ghosts now!" The Native American had his bow, which shot an arrow, which whistled through the air. The more the shooting continued, the more Daisy saw the bodies falling from the range above. It was then that she realized, she had betrayed them and her 'uncle' as well. "There's too many of them!" Shaban shouted over his shoulder to Rafael. "Keep fighting!" Rafael retorted. "It's always worth a try!" Then, a bullet grazed his cheekbone, but he didn't flinch. He was indeed a ghost, but this didn't surprise Daisy to no end. There was no scratch or wound, as the immortality gave the boy much more strength than he ever realized. His eyes widened, as he saw Daisy running forward. "No!" Shaban yelled. Ignoring him, Daisy ran and climbed, dodging bullets. She was below one outlaw, whom she shot a bullet between his eyes. She then jumped, with knife and revolver in hand. She stabbed at one outlaw, then shot another. "Mrs. Martinsen?" One outlaw said, shocked. "You bitchy traitor!" He pointed his rifle, but Daisy was so much faster, stronger, and wiser. She kicked the weapon right out of his grip, before kicking at his chest with both feet, followed by the hitting the ground. She then shot him dead. Then, she heard it. Through the thickness of the trees, she saw that Shaban had also been shot, on his back with labored breathing. She leaned so far back, that incoming bullets missed her face by several centimeters. She recovered within a second, and fired on the outlaw who almost took her life. She had been shot once, but didn't make that same attempt twice. The men she barely knew for a short period of time...were gone. Daisy checked to make sure that no other outlaws were joining the attack on her, and she returned to the bottom of the range. Shaban had been shot in the head, his black hair soaked with blood. Rafael shook his head and confirmed it; Shaban was also a dead man. Both teenagers took off their hats, honoring their two companions, who were now with the ghosts in the sky. "It's up to both of us now," Daisy said. "We have to leave, now." Rafael nodded, as he and Daisy mounted on their horses, galloping on the rest of the trail, which would lead to the outside of the forest. Once out, the out field belonged to them. Daisy looked to her left, seeing more outlaws on the hillside. "We're not completely out yet," she said. "I can take them, you go."
"Daisy," Rafael objected. "They'll kill you!"
"If they do, the sky belongs to us," Daisy replied. "It always had." Their horses halted, and they held onto each other's hands for a tender moment. "Go, now," she continued, squeezing his wrist. Finally, the boy nodded and rode on his way. The other teenager remained behind, taking out her revolver once again. Once the sun had set below the surface, she was prepared for death in the dark of the night. She lowered her body in the saddle, as bullets were coming at her. She urged her horse, who galloped towards the chaos. She returned fire, causing war on her pursuers. As she was on horseback, it was easier than to do the killing with her bare hands or weapons. She rode through, pulling the trigger on each and every outlaw in sight. To them, she turned against them, but to her, they had betrayed her. It was more than five against one, but Daisy never felt so alive in the battlefield. If it were anything, she'd go for their boss next. No, she wouldn't dare let her former 'uncle' end up in the morgue, but the only thing would be prison. During the slaughter, she saw what seemed like the ghost riders appearing from the heavens above her. They had returned the fire to the mortal outlaws, who had died screaming and bleeding. If Rafael could see them now.