Ghosts of the Past [RDR2]

Chapter 16 - Rhodes

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Word count - 2612

"Oh, say whatever you damn well please, but if I don't get outta here soon - I'm gonna kill somebody." The raspy voice of Sadie Adler spoke in an irritable tone, knife held firmly aloft in her hand and directed towards Simon Pearson. The camp cook.

Sadie was what everyone believed to be a doting housewife, widowed by the tragic end of her husband, Jake, in their cabin set high in the mountains. She had joined the gang only a month ago, when Arthur, Dutch and Micah had found her locked in the basement of her own home by the very men who had brought her husband's life to a sudden and ill deserved end.

She had done little more than mourn in that first month, but as the days wore on, her true self began to blossom back into existence. And that was of a woman scorned.

"And if you don't stop hissing at me-" Pearson said, turning his own knife on Sadie in a threat that didn't really carry "I'm gonna kill you."

Brandishing her knife still more fervently, Sadie continued her string of threats "Come near me, sailor... and I will slice you up."

Their small argument had drawn the attention of Arthur Morgan, who looked up from his seat on a crate curiously, pausing in cleaning his gun to slowly rise to his feet, putting the revolver back in his holster and stepping closer.

Pearson took a step towards Sadie glaring "You put that knife down, or you'll be missing a hand, lady." He glowered.

Although arguments were not a new thing in camp, it did seem strange to see a woman quite so riled up "What's wrong with you two?" Arthur asked exasperated, putting his weight on one leg to survey Mrs Adler and the cook.

"I ain't chopping vegetables for a living." Sadie's anger had turned to Arthur now as she stabbed a knife down into the chopping board.

"Oh I'm sorry, madam. Was there insufficient feathers in your pillow?" Arthur responded sarcastically, with an uncaring shrug.

Throwing her cloth down to the ground, Sadie bristled as his comment "Look, I ain't lazy, Mr Morgan, I'll work. But not this." And she turned to walk by Pearson towards the other side of the cooking wagon, shouldering Pearson on her way by.

This earned a scoff from Arthur, who raised his arms in confusion "Well ain't cookin' work?"

Sadie stopped a few meters away, arms folded and a defeated look on her face. Dissuading Pearson's irritation with a quick motion that said 'calm down', Arthur followed her, leaning on the butcher block table, and looking at Mrs Adler with a tilt of his head.

"Look." Sadie began in a forced calm kind of voice, turning around now to face Arthur "My husband and I? We shared the work. All of it." Her words were deliberately enforced with a hand motion to try and push the point "I was out on the field, I can hunt, carry a knife, use a gun." Her glare was reforming on her face as she looked over Arthur's shoulder to Pearson again "But I'm telling you, you keep me here? I'll skin this old coot and serve him for dinner!" She exclaimed in that anger filled voice again.

"You watch your damn mouth, you crazy goddamn fishwife!" Pearson said, jabbing a finger towards her with his own hissed out insult.

The resulting motion was Sadie's strangled scream of rage as she lunged at Pearson, only being caught by Arthur's shoulder as he pushed her back the way. "Enough! Both of ya!" Arthur's voice demanded adhesion. He stood a little straighter now, pacing very shortly between the two, but facing Sadie alone "Well come with me then." He added to Sadie, causing her to whirl around and face him "You wanna head out there? Run with the men?" He raised his arms with a derisive huff of air "So be it."