Red West II.

Chapter two - Two surprising captives

Danny just barely suppressed a yawn, which threatened to expose his exhaustion. He was supposed to be fully aware of his surroundings, watching out for anything interesting or suspicious, not being half-asleep, as he actually felt. Math insisted on having the perfect view over everything what happened in the city and he was his informer and observer in one, naturally. Not mentioning his last, but hopefully not least position in bed of the former sheriff deputy.

The boy started to pace in front of the small building to keep himself on alert. His boss was closed in the local Sheriff's Office for more than half an hour already and waiting for him was quite tiresome.

Danny glanced at the closed door hopelessly for the tenth time within ten minutes and then focused on the street again. Fort Collins was very different from Bozeman. The streets were wide and the houses bright and big. The city was only at the start of its growth, but it was already clear that it was going to be a big one soon.

Math used to say that Fort Collins is a city for weaklings and women. Not unexpectedly, the gunman didn't like the City Council, which was stubbornly fighting against the numerous brothels and saloons and pubs, which spread around freely so far and that didn't fit the image of the prosperous city, which certain men had in their minds.

Danny himself thought that it was a nice place to live in; unfit for dirty cowboys and gunmen with dubious pasts. Despite that, his boss managed to find a good position for himself there anyway.

Math was quite lucky he could appear in the city without worrying about showing his face. Or better to say, he was cocky enough. The local lawman had no balls to stand against the former Karnaka's right hand, no matter that the top boss was already dead. The result of their first meeting was that the man agreed with each of Grenet's demands, not publishing his wanted poster included.

In either case, they had to be careful only about the strangers and passersby, who might have remembered seeing Grenet's face somewhere before. Otherwise, it was safe to appear in public without attracting much attention, which didn't always work, as Math loved attention. But anyway, the government and Bozeman were far enough for them to be calm regarding the charges at Grenet's head.

The main street was very lively in the middle of the sun's trip across the sky. The workers from the fields were rushing home for lunch, a few carts were standing in front of the biggest hotel in town and the air was filled with a bit suspicious smell, which was leaking from the saloon's kitchen. The owner of the convenient shop enjoyed a cigarette outside his shop lazily, while his wife was chasing some brats away from the fresh bread.

Danny leant over the wooden railing again, letting his eyes scan over the faces on the street, but not really seeing them. There was nobody interesting enough to...

The boy's thoughts froze at the sight of a familiar face. At first, Danny was not sure if his eyes didn't deceive him, but then the young man leading a noble white mare appeared in his sight again, heading to the convenience store and Danny's jaw dropped at recognizing the slim figure in dark clothes. It was Kazuya Kamenashi. The very one Math kept mentioning constantly, along with 'that bastard Akanishi' almost every time he got drunk.

Danny knew that his boss was more than eager to deal with them both months ago, but he was sent to Fort Collins instead. Once the news about Mr. Karnaka's death reached them, it was already too late for the trip back north; even Math had to admit that. But he never let go of his desire to make those guys' lives miserable. With a certain dull ache, Danny noticed that even only the mention of Kamenashi's name awoke more emotions in Grenet than Danny's own physical presence.

The bartender from Bozeman, who obviously endured quite a long journey, but despite that seemed to be cheerful, entered the shop, leaving his mare behind, tied to the railing. And right at that moment, the door behind Danny opened so suddenly that he flinched a little. The heavy black boots crossed the veranda, on the way kicking a small dog, which was resting there, and approached him, while the animal ran off with a painful howling.