Taming the Wild

That's One Way to Say Thank You

Charles blinked a few times, his tired brain trying to catch up on the events. He was staring at Alston - there was no doubt the man was dead.

"What the--" Charles whispered, trying to get his breath back.

"You're welcome." he heard Lehnsherr's voice from behind him and stared at him.

"You shot him!" Charles said, still too shocked for his brain to process the information

"Yeah." Lehnsherr nodded, wiping sweat and dirt off his forehead with the sleeve of his shirt.

"You killed him!" Charles repeated, just as astonished as the previous time

"I know." Erik said not really sounding that bothered by the revelation.

"No... No, no, no, no, no! You weren't supposed to do that!" Charles fell down on his knees, frantically checking Alston for pulse and other vital characteristics.

"It was either him or us, what did you expect me to do? Invite him to have tea with us?"

Charles glared at Erik. "Well, you weren't supposed to kill him!" Charles snapped desperately

Erik furrowed his brow. "I'm sorry, didn't I just save your life?" he asked sarcastically

Charles huffed and shut his eyes close for a moment, running his fingers through his messy hair.

"Yes. Yes, you did. And I thank you for it." he said, pouting a little "But I still needed this man alive. I needed him to tell me who gave him this order and you shot him before he could explain!"

Lehnsherr shook his head, whistling for his horse to come to him. "Listen, kid, the man was not gonna talk. That sort of scum never do."

Charles frowned. "I'm not a kid. And you can't know that! I was going to convince him!" he insisted

Lehnsherr raised an eyebrow and chuckled with a head shake. "Are you serious?"

Charles felt offended by the blacksmith's behaviour. "I am quite serious, yes. I know what I'm doing."

"Do you? Because it appeared as if you were getting your ass kicked."

Now Charles really glared. "Not everything is decided by brutal force!" he said firmly.

"Of course you'd say that."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Charles crossed his hands on his chest.

"I know your kind" Erik said "Scholars. You hide behind your books, playing real clever." his voice was low but firm, growling a bit. "This ain't clever, schoolboy. That ain't real life. I know real life... you know nothing but your fantasy world of abstract notions you read about in your books!"

He lit up a cigar, the smell of it choking Charles. Lehnsherr noticed Charles' reaction and it only made him chuckle. "A proper damsel in distress!"

"I'm no damsel, sir!" Charles insisted, getting more frustrated by the minute.

"Oh, no?" there was challenge in Erik's voice "Why not?"

"Because I'm a man!" Charles said firmly

Lehnsherr's eyes were laughing at him. "Who says only women get to be damsels in distress, schoolboy?" he replied even more amused now "Some of the best women I know can break your neck without a flinch if you as much as look at them the wrong way. Women can take care of themselves, kid! You can't. Therefore, you're the damsel! I might turn out to be your hero... again... who knows... It's the Wild West, kid! So get your head out of the books and start living a little before you get a bullet in that clever brain of yours."