A Life Of 'Shine - Lem Fike

22

Nora's first initial reaction was to go to the party without telling Lem, the distance to far for her to want to go. But Nora was a better person than that, despite the journey taking nearly an hour she went against her initial request and decided to ask Lem if he wanted to attend regardless. She remembered how fond he was with talking to Mary-Beth and Kieran and would most likely want to see them again.

Even if he didn't want to go and Nora made the journey for nothing asking him would be polite and honorable.

Luckily, Lem did want to go and was surprised to find that Dutch had said himself that Lem was more than welcome to join. From what Nora had gathered from Arthur's stories about the gang, Dutch wasn't one to openly trust anyone. Sure she had helped the gang numerous times and was vouched for by Sean, Josiah and Sadie who she had helped in the past but Lem had no previous affiliation with any member of the Van Der Linde gang, only knowing them through her and so he had no business in knowing of the camp location or who they were and yet Dutch was more than welcoming to invite him to his home due to Nora's own helping hands.

"Evening gentlemen!" Nora smiled, gently urging her horse to the hitching posts with Lem behind her. Arthur was by what used to be an old gate by the looks of things, enjoying a cigarette while everyone else behind in the camp sang along with to Javier's song. Lem dismounted and walked to Nora's side before helping her down, he didn't need to but he decided to do the gentlemanly thing regardless.

"Happy for you to join us." Arthur greeted. Dutch had heard the two arrive and walked over to join them, a charming smile on his face as he approached. Nora shook the leader's hand before allowing him to guide her into the outlaw's camp, taking her over to where the others were celebrating.

"Nora, Lem it's nice seeing you again." Mary-Beth called out, running over to join them as soon as she noticed their arrival.

"It's lovely to be back." Nora replied, her hands holding onto Mary's as she grabbed them. Lem only patted the female on the shoulder before grabbing a single bottle of beer from the crate.

Nora and Mary-Beth conversed for a small while since she joined them but Nora wasn't paying full attention to what Mary had been saying, instead she looked around the new camp and inspected each gang member, taking notes on them as if they couldn't be trusted. However, Nora knew that all members of the gang were much more trustworthy than that of people she had met once before. Then there was Micah  Bell, something about him was odd and it was certainly something she didn't trust at all about the male but Dutch allowed him to join and considered him loyal, so there was nothing to be worried over.

"Have you ladies seen Kieran? He had a bit to much to drink and wandered off." Arthur had interrupted the girl's talk, a look of worry on his face as he asked about their friends whereabouts. Nora remembered being told he was an ex o'Driscoll which wasn't something one would like to be associated with, that and if Kieran had wandered off from camp the O'Driscoll's were more than capable of taking him and torturing him for as long as they pleased, hell, they could even kill him if they got bored.

"I'll keep an eye out for him, Mr Morgan. But I ain't seen him since I got here I'm afraid." Arthur didn't seem happy with her answer, as any worried person would be but decided to simply nod an walk away in response. Joining Charles and John as they played poker at the table.

"Poor Kieran. I hope he's okay." Mary-Beth let out a wary sigh, her eyes holding worry but yet she held the false face of hope.

"I'm sure he will be. Worrying about him won't do anything I'm afraid."

The other female nodded, waving her hand over her shoulder for Nora to follow her. She did as told, entering the old plantation house and into the old dining room to sit at what was once a table.