Evenin' Sheriff

Chp.1: Buildings in the Night.

THE MOON reflected brightly off the coin when the man in the dark flipped it into the air. He continued flipping the coin, catching it, and flipping it again as he leaned on a wooden post. This whole process lasted a while until another silhouette had emerged from the shadows casted by the old buildings.

The man caught his coin one final time, and stood up straight to face the now visible form. "Evenin' Red, didn't expect someone like you to be out this late at night." The figure said, a British accent hiding under a western cover.
Red smiled, "Shall we get going then, Sweetums? A poor, helpless outlaw like me doesn't like the dark to much."
"Then I'd best assume you aren't fit for this job, hm?"

A wide smile appeared on Red's face as he began to walk with his cloaked companion. "Oh, I believe the shine of gold will snuff out this darkness for me." He remarked, tossing the gold coin to the other. "Don't 'cha think, Blue?" His strong foreign accent leaked through his words.

Blue's amused expression could not be seen under the shade of his hat and kerchief. But he replied with a light chuckle as the two carried on over to their horses.

With their steeds, they rode off to the distant town neighboring their abandoned hideout. They casually slid jokes to one another, as if their nightly ride was as normal as it gets. But in truth, it wasn't.

When they came to a stop at the high priced mansion gates, Red lifted his kerchief above his nose and lowered his dusty hat, concealing his face. They tied their horses loosely to a post near the dirt road, eyeing the mansion on the opposite sides of the gates. "She's a beaut, ain't she?" Blue commented lightly. Red made a tight lasso, throwing it over the gate and hooking it to a dried up fountain on the other side. "She could use a little ruffin' up."

Red hoisted himself up and over, sticking his landing as he dropped down. Blue didn't hesitate to follow.
Once they were over, they made their way across the front lawn. Using the shadows as cover, they found a window on the side of the mansion that looked perfect for an easy entry.
Blue held his hand out to Red, which he responded by giving him simple lock picking tools. Blue then tinkered with the lock while Red was on look out for any late-night streetwalkers.

"Checkmate." Blue mumbled, opening the window carefully. He held his hand out so that he was beckoning entry. "Red's first."
Red smiled at the action, tipping his hat in thanks before climbing through the window.

Once inside, Red examined the dark floors of the mansion. He scanned for thread pulled tightly over the floor, a tripwire. This was a famous alarm and was quite common for those who could afford it, thus making it incredibly vulnerable for a thief's watch.

Red motioned for his partner to follow behind as he gave the all-clear. Blue stepped in quietly, taking in the place with Red. They spread out, sneaking across the floorboards and keeping an extra eye out for creaky boards. Though, creaking boards weren't ever really a worry when they went into such houses. The people they robbed where always rich enough to put in new flooring every few years. That's exactly how the duo liked it.

Red branched off into one of the rooms of the mansion. The door he opened lead into a library with stacks upon stacks of books. But it wasn't the literature he cared about. It was the small statues made from pure silver stuck as the library's decor that he was really after. He pulled out a trusty prying tool from his pockets and began to tear away at the wood, eventually popping the statues off their placement. He passed carefully by a rattlesnake enclosure the owners had made and snatched reptilian fossils from their tidy stands.

Whilst Red scavenged for other minor valuables, Blue searched for the jackpot, the safe in which the family kept most of their treasures in. It had to there somewhere and Blue was itching to crack the lock open to find their loot. He crept up the staircase, opening a closet door, a child's bedroom, and the bathing room. He swiped a few trinkets here and there, but still was on the lookout for his ultimate prize.

Blue found himself back at the top of the stairs, examining the surrounding first floor. All he saw was furniture and the doors and windows, just the same as when he came in. This was the right address, right? It had to be.
As the moonlight shined through with the clouds departing with the rock in the sky, something reflected in the corner of Blue's eye. It came from a crack in the forth step down the stairs. He rushed over, just as the moon hid once more.

Blue peeked through the hole, catching sight of the overall shape of the square box of some kind. With his hopes high, Blue took off the top of the stair with slight struggle.
Inside was a long metal box, taking up all the space in the hollowed stair. Blue smiled at his discovery. Jackpot! He thought to himself.

Blue then took a crowbar from his satchel and tampered with the lock. By now, Red had gotten the feeling he always got when Blue had found something and was there a few steps below him. Blue motioned for Red to assist him, which he complied. Together, the two successfully busted open the safe.

Sacks upon sacks were inside the narrow metal cage, all were filled with sweet gold, silver, and copper.
They shared a brief look of victory when all of sudden, they heard heavy steps on the hardwood floor. Blue quickly pocketed the cash; handing Red a bag or two and sealing up the safe and stair before ducking into the nearby closet.
Blue left the door open a crack, as a precaution if the door made any sounds when it was shut.

A door creaked, and the silhouette of a petite woman strolled past the closet carefully. They held their breath as they waited for the footsteps to fade.

Blue let out a quiet and relieved sigh, shifting his gaze from the crack in the door. His eyes landed on Red who was cramped opposite to him in the closet. They exchanged gazes, all while knowing they'd sneak out after the home owner went back to her bedroom.

Red stared at Blue's now revealed lips, due to his kerchief falling down to his shoulders. As the moonlight peaked through again; reflecting off of Blue's figure, Red looked in awe at the other. His eyes were still covered by his hat, but Red could still feel his cold, ice-like gaze on him.
With their legs entangled, and with the little room the two had to breathe, they felt closer, more intimate when they shared their sights.

Red could feel them coming closer together, as if they were enclosing in on each other's warmth. Their eyes never once shifted to anything other than the one who was stuck in front of them. Though Red couldn't see them, he seemed to still get lost in Blue's eyes. It was as if he was fixated on them directly, seeing right through Blue's hat, and straight into his soul.

However, their soul exchange was cut short abruptly, after one of Red's bags went slack and let a gold coin clank loudly onto the hardwood floor.
The two froze, awaiting any other sort of sound. This moment lasted about five seconds, before Blue bursted out the door and swiftly hopped over the guard and landed perfectly on the first floor. With Red running at his side while poorly aimed bullets shot passed them, Blue laughed as they quickly exited the premises.

He and Red pulled their kerchiefs over their faces as they jumped the final gate. They sprinted to their horses with a spring in their step and sacks packed with coin.

This was quite the haul the lads had recovered, and they rode away with their prize, waving their hats through the air in victory.