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NOW IN THE MIDDLE OF nowhere, the group now began to settle in a concaved area in the sand. Josiah and Belle straight on the level ground as they watched the others dismount their horses.
"Where to, Doc?" Billy asked once he noticed that the couple remained in their positions.
"Going to Patricio, if it looks safe. We're gonna ride to Dick's mother in Vermont, and get some clean wraps for this," Josiah said, gesturing to his bloody hand which was messily wrapped in blood-soaked cloth.
"Whatever you do, don't go near Lincoln," Billy commented.
"Hey, Billy?" Belle grabbed the brunette's attention once again.
"Yes, Miss Belle?" Billy asked, looking up at the ginger girl.
"Look after the boys for me, will ya?" She smiled. Billy grinned and nodded. Josiah and Belle gently rode away and towards where the boys believed was Patricio, but instead travelled to Lincoln.
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Billy watched as the couple rode away. He whipped out his gun and began cleaning it carefully. He felt a presence behind him, seeing that it was Steve who was stuffing his mouth with chunks of tobacco.
"What you doing there, Billy?" Steve asked. Billy glanced over his shoulder momentarily before turning back to his gun.
"Well, sir, with the sight filed down, I got an eighth of a second drop on our good Sheriff Brady," Billy smugly answered, his tone oozing with pride.
Charley's ears pricked up at Billy's confession. "Billy, we can't touch the Sheriff. Dick said so, you know that. Besides, we can't keep this up."
"Yeah, well, Dick ain't around anymore, is he, Charley?" Billy countered carelessly. "And right now, Sheriff Brady's in desperate need of being removed from office."
"We're not going after Brady, nor Murphy men, no more. I told you I would find the way, and the way is West," Chevez said from his distant position, his back turned away from the small group of boys.
"West, huh? West is that way, and the bastards we gotta kill are that way," Billy pointed his gun from West to East.
"The only bastards who are gonna get killed are us, chivato. Let it go," Chevez calmly spoke.
"Let it go? Murphy's taking inventory in Tunstall's store right now and you're saying that means nothing to you?"
"It means nothing to me? Murphy and his politicians have taken more blood from me than they ever will from you," Chevez seethed. "The Red Sands Creek Reservation. 207 of my people butchered in the snow with their stomachs empty. Murphy and Company were under the Government Contract to supply us with beef and two winters ago he sent only rotten meat - rancid beef crawling with worms. So I went out with a band in the night to the traders' camp to try and get food. Oh yeah, they welcomed us in, and then they opened fire on us. I got away, only me. But when I got back to the Red Sands, I found out that the army had already heard about our big Indian uprising and they paid us back. My mother was cut by a sabre from her privates to her neck. My sisters were just babies and they had their heads bashed in with boot heels so the army could save bullets! Everybody at my reservation was butchered and it means nothing to me? I went to Lincoln to take Murphy's head. And that's when the Tunstall's found me and they took me in, and John taught me a better way to bury Murphy."
"Murphy buried John the old Irish way, Chevez," Steve commented, trying to persuade Chevez to stay with the Regulators.
"That's right, Steve. And he starved out your family, Chevez. And now he's doing it to every small farmer in the territory. But if you wanna run out, go ahead. Bye," Billy taunted as the Mexican walked towards his horse. "You got no loyalty, Navajo. Ain't nothing more than a piece of chicken shit in the rain."
"No. We had our ceremony back there on the ridge, chivato. Now, I don't know what your vision told you. But my vision told me we're headed for blood. Blood like a river. I'm the last of my clan, the last of my people. If I die, and I am not afraid of dying, chivato, the sacred hoop is broken. I have to make my people live again. Charley, you'll come with me?" Chevez asked.
Charley rose to his feet, his eyes flittering between his three friends. "You ain't gonna say much, Dirty Steve?"
"Cause he ain't got much to say, Charley," Billy countered. "Or Steve understands the meaning of the word 'pals', don't you Steve?" Billy continued. "Cause if you got four or five good pals, well, then you got yourself a tribe. There ain't nothing stronger than that. We're your family now, Chevez, like Belle said. Think about how heartbroken Belle will be to see yet another one of her friends gone when she comes back. She already lost her father. She already lost Dick. She can't lose another, Chevez. We're the only things she's got now. We're her brothers. You walk away from us, you break her heart even more and you break our sacred hoop. We gotta stick together, fellas. It's the only way I see it."
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It was a few hours before dusk would completely take over the sun. Belle managed to convince Josiah to travel to Lincoln with her. Josiah was aware of her friendship with Yen Sun, he was aware of how much Belle treasured the younger girl, so he was happy to help her talk to the girl without Murphy finding out.
The two rushed to the old fashioned Irish pub in Lincoln. They both lowered the scarfs around their mouths and noses to breathe properly. Belle squinted through the tinted pub window, seeing Murphy drunkenly singing with a few of his friends. Belle sighed and nodded over to her partner.
Josiah noticed an open window above Murphy's bar with the light on, knowing it would be Yen Sun's. "Belle, look," Josiah pointed over to the house. Belle smiled, knowing that Yen Sun would be alone, besides the housemaids.
Josiah lifted Belle up to the window, managing to be undetected and silent as possible. Belle helped to haul Josiah up as well. Belle slid through the window with Josiah, noticing that Yen hadn't heard or seen them entering. Yen was sat on her bed, fiddling with her jet black hair.
Belle quietly walked over to her, placing her hand on her shoulder. Yen yelped but Belle quickly covered her hand over her mouth, resulting in two to fall on to the bed. "It's ok, it's me, Belle,"
Yen's eyes flittered towards Doc, and Belle sensed Yin's anxiety rising at the sight of him. Belle hesitantly removed her hand from her girl's mouth, allowing her to speak.
"Belle, please, I know what you desire. You've brought him to lay with me and cut me into tiny pieces with a knife. You're both bandits who eat children and old people," Yen shakily explained her fears.
Belle furrowed her eyebrows, glancing back at Josiah, seeing him with the same expression as her own.
"Yen, darling, we eat meat and raw potatoes. You know me. Who told you these lies?" Belle asked softly, her hands placed gently on Yin's shoulders.
"My benefactor,"
Belle heard Josiah scoff. "That's the man that eats people, Yen,"
"If you want to stay here, tell us now and we'll go. Do you honestly, deep down in your heart, want to stay with Mr Murphy?" Belle asked, her eyes flittered between Yen's.
"My benefactor has made me necessary, Belle -"
"No, he has not, I've told you this once before, necessary is something you can't do without, and I can't do without you," Belle glanced over her shoulder to see Josiah was smiling bashfully at her words, the words that he once said to her. "Yen, you're one of my closest friends, I will not allow you to root like a prisoner in this house, please, I'm not asking you to join us, I just want you to see this an opportunity for freedom. Think about it, Yen," Belle smoothed down some of Yen's black hair before standing up and ushering Josiah and herself out of the window as quickly as possible as she heard footsteps ascend to the room.
