𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐌𝐨𝐨𝐧 ♦ 𝐑𝐃𝐑

🇨​🇭​🇦​🇵​🇹​🇪​🇷​ 6

It had been about a week and a half since we had seen John, but he finally showed up in Armadillo and we knew we had some work to do for the sheriff. John comes into the saloon looking for us and we're down and onto the main road not even ten minutes after he shows. "Mr. Marston, pleasure to see you again." I mutter with a grin before I give him a pat on the shoulder. "Mr. and Mrs. Sanders. Pleasure to see you both as well. How has it been down here?"
"Ain't nothin' bad, we just been lookin' 'round the area. Seeing what's what and all. Selina hasn't been feeling the best, though thankfully as you can see. She isn't dry heaving over some pork chops and rice." I look over at my wife before she rolls her eyes. "Glad to see her not doin' that... Well, heard the Marshal was lookin' for us all. Leigh Johnson or something." I nod my head and we begin walking down the middle of town and into the the sheriff's office. We're not greeted in a friendly manner by one of the deputies within, who seem to be a bit threatened by us, causing all of us to pull our guns on him. But then the Marshal enters and looks us over. "Ah, Mr. Marston, Mr. Sanders, and Ms. Hinton. What are you guys doing here besides frightening my deputies?"
"We're here to capture or kill Bill Williamson."
The male seems to laugh at us for the moment with a simple 'okay' before John speaks up once more.
"Can you help us?"
Without much hesitation, the male seems to turn us down. "He's outside my jurisdiction, he's in the next county." Marshal Johnson states before he leans against his desk, still puffing upon his cigar. Taking it out of his mouth to speak. "Of course Bill Williamson and his boys have tended to keep themselves away from my town." John looks at the both of us with a bit of confusion then back at Marshal Johnson. "So you're happy to have him out there?"
"Well, I ain't happy, but I also ain't suicidal. My job is to keep this town safe, not clean up all of these three counties. It's hard enough around here."
"Ya know... I hear you speak and suddenly I'm reminded how some of the people I respected most in my life had a problem with authority. What's wrong with you?"
Selina and I look at one another as John speaks to the Marshal the way he was. Surely he wasn't in the running to want to die, but he did seem like he had grown confidence being a ranch hand over at the MacFarlane's. Marshal Johnson sighs before he speaks up once more.

"Well, I'm sure you and your fine friends have enjoyed spending your time running around pursuing noble causes. My cause is to keep this town from turning into a living hell for the folks who live here. Whole world has problems, you three, and I'm here, doing what I can."
He then proceeds to offer us drinks, which myself and John don't turn down but Selina does for obvious reasons. "Not much of a drinker, Ms. Hinton?"
"Never have been and I'm not one when I'm carrying a child so. Let's not trail away from what's going on, Marshal. What's happening?"
Marshal Johnson almost looks surprised by Selina's words. "Government really doesn't care for you folk turned decent, so much so that they force you, a woman who's with child, to go after her former gang members like some animal."

Selina looks a little saddened by those words but John is quick to get the Marshal back on track. "Just tell us what's happening." He demands before the Marshal takes a sip of his drink. "Right now? I got the railway, the people who pay my salary trying to get me to turn a blind eye to them burning down settlements up there. I got a bunch of cattle rustlers out near box canyon need shutting down. Not forgetting the gang that keeps murdering homesteaders out in the backcountry, and I got a bunch of hoods, over in the saloon, drunk, threatening to shoot up the whole town. That's all I got today, but it's early yet, give me a couple more days and there'll be more."

John and I take a quick drink before he shakes his head. "Alright, tell ya what. Let's go deal with them hoods, in the saloon, then we'll discuss Williamson. You got three of the finest gunslingers North and within West Elizabeth here to help you. Selina is a good shot and doesn't take no mercy and her husband can dual wield some pistols and revolvers and make people pay hell."
"Okay, boy. You're a persistent little cuss ain't ya?"
"Only when things matter, and to us, a lot matters here."

We all begin walking out before Marshal Johnson turns to Selina and I. "Husband huh? You two, Asher and Selina Sanders, the modern day happy ending version of Romeo and Juliet. Two very different people I heard, Selina, once a photographer and Asher a bartender turned outlaw. Two worlds collided and you two fell in love. Have three kids huh? With a fourth on the way too... Sorry for you both."
Selina shakes her head for a moment, a hand falling on her abdomen for a second before she rolls her eyes. "Spare us the pity please. We don't want it no more. We just really need to get out of this so our children can be back with their mother and father where they belong."
"What about that baby? The one you're carrying? You ain't worried?"
"Course I'm worried! You think I wouldn't be? I didn't want to be pregnant right now, didn't ask for it, but Asher and I thought we was gonna be okay. So we went for it. Wasn't working out so we nearly gave up before I found out. I've been in this situation before, when we was in the gang."
"That so?" I then nod so Selina doesn't have to keep defending herself.
"She did, I got her pregnant almost halfway through our journey in that gang. Wasn't planning on it, but it happened. Sure, she wasn't so hands on as she has to be now. But she did her best while she could. My worry for her, Marshal Johnson, is that we ain't gonna make it outta this situation in time. I can't picture her big and ready to burst, firing a gun at an outlaw while that baby is fixing to pop out any moment. This girl has the biggest heart and she's a great mother. So when all this is said and done, know we, along with John would appreciate your help."
"You two seem like a nice couple, unfortunate situation, but nice. Listen, yeah, we'll discuss things. Also though, just saw your father recently, Selina. Don't think I ain't know your last name."
"My father?"
"Antonio Hinton? Yeah. Saw him last week. Brought in for a bar fight. Long-ish brown hair, getting real gray though, got a beard but I'm sure you know."
"I wouldn't know, Marshal. I haven't seen my father in over fifteen years."
"Oh yeah? Not a fan of him?"
"I'd prefer we not discuss this."

God, it was no wonder we didn't bother to come down to these parts with our children, Selina was avoiding every least bit mention of her father and I really didn't blame her. It seemed painful for her to talk about and I did feel a bit bad for her too. My parents had been gone about thirteen years now, but having a parent still be alive and you don't want anything to do with them. I could really only imagine.
The Marshal explains to us about 'Walton's Gang', the infamous gang which has been terrorizing the city and all. Wanting to go after the leader, Walton Lowe, obviously with him being the leader, taking him down would severely damage the gang. Well, the male ends up stumbling out of the bar and onto his mount. Marshal Johnson commands we all get on our horses and ride after him. The man ultimately spots us and takes off faster than the four of us can almost keep up before he ends up at some pretty small house up ahead.
"Looks like he's holed up at the old Pleasance House. Let's hold up a minute and find a spot for our horses."
The four of us jump off our mounts before we're crouching down, couldn't tell you how impressed I was with Selina and everything she was doing right now. Almost as if she forgot how shitty she had been feeling only twenty four hours before.
"Looks like we got company, boys!" Then the shooting begins from the gang.
"Damn! Take cover!" Marshal Johnson shouts as we're all ducking and hiding behind rocks. I take out my dual wielded pistols, Selina one of her revolvers and John is off with a Repeater Carbine. The shooting lasts I wanna say all about five minutes or so before everything finally silenced. John captures the man alive with the lasso and the Marshal is quick to place him upon his horse. "You three aren't bad shots, Mr. Marston, Mr. Sanders, Ms. Hinton. Why don't you guys check in with me the next time you're in town?"
"Don't think we wanna be no policemen, Marshal." John replies before Marshal Johnson lets out a soft chuckle. "Nor did I, my friend. I can promise you that. I'll see you all soon." He gives us a tip of his hat and rides off.

With that we part with Marston. He states that he'd like to work more on trying to gather people to figure out how to get to Bill, but he wasn't sure when he'd be in contact with us once more. If he so desired our help, he'd be in touch. They never did say we had to all be attached at the hip, still hoped he could make good time in the coming weeks.