14 hours

5. Speculations

"What are you thinking about?"
Kinski gave Stump a little sidekick.
They were sitting in the saloon on their lonely regular seat in a corner and were eating their breakfast.
"Mm, uh, I just thought how he is feeling now," Stump muttered back. "What are you thinking?"
"Mm, I wonder more what's behind it all."
"What do you mean?"
"Who should kidnap him? I really wish I could find it out."
"Like Sherlock Holmes? Cool." Stump leaned back. "When I was a child, I watched the movies of him."
His friends looked at their companion and were surprised about his television interest.
"You?" Chorizo asked with surprise.
Stump crossed his arms. "Why not?"
"Don't let it hear him or he arrests you."
"It's only a fictional figure."
"Whatever," Bill cut the dialog. "For fellas like us, it's a no-go."
Stump ducked his head and sipped his cactus juice. "Uhm, okay."
"And it's not our business," Bill continued and took a piece of bread. "We don't sully our hands because of him. The sheriff is gone. And soon, maybe forever. He got his punishment what he deserved and the town will be ours again."
He laughed.
His henchmen forced a laugh too, but suddenly they became silent immediately.
Bill noticed their silence and looked around.
"What's your problem?"
Kinski, who sat facing him, moved his eyes at him and behind him.
The Gila monster had no idea what he wanted to say exactly, but he guessed that someone was standing behind him who shouldn't know about their secret.
Slowly he turned around in his chair.
With a deep sigh, he leaned his elbow on the chair back.
"Am I dreaming or is a cloud over your face?"
He chuckled, but Beans wasn't in mood of laughing.
"Did you see Rango?" she asked gruffly.
Bill shrugged a shoulder. "We haven't seen him since yesterday."
At this moment Stump coughed.
"Raisins," he explained and pointed at his plate.
Beans bent down and put her hands on the table. With severe look she looked around.
"Did you see him?"
"No," all spoke with one voice.
"Listen, Babe," Bill said and grabbed her arm.
"If you want that he comes back..."
His companions held their breath.
"... Maybe I know how we can summon him."
The big lizard jumped up from his chair and turned around. He drew his two revolvers and shot at the counter wall. Buford took shelter in the last second before the broken glass of the mirrors rained down on him.
Bill laughed.
"See you," he put one revolver away. With the other one he waved over Beans's face.
"Now you only have to wait until he comes to arrest me for that mess. Guys!"
He beckoned his men over and walked to the exit.
"Let's snap some fresh air."
With that he went through the saloon door. The others followed him, just Stump took a croissant from another guest.
Together they left the saloon and let an angry female lizard alone.
On the sidewalk, they met and stopped. Bill rubbed over his back.
"Bill?" Stump asked.
"Mmmh?"
"Should we search through the post tomorrow again?"
"Of course we will." The Gila monster stretched his body, totally glad to have a sheriff-free zone. "We have to be up to date."
The rest of the day they amused themselves. The four gunslingers pulled an all-nighter with a lot of alcohol until they fell into their double bed in the hotel.

"Kinski?" Stump muttered.
"Mmm?"
"Are you sleeping yet?"
"Yes, I'm sleeping and I'm dreaming, that you are calling my name."
The tower clock was tolling.
"Midnight," Kinski muttered.
"Midnight, yes," Stump added quietly.
"Mm," Chorizo agreed.
Their eyes wandered next to Bill.
Everyone kept his breath, waiting for an answer of their leader.
But all what they heard was a quiet snoring.

It was no wonder that they waited for the postman with tired eyes at the meeting point in the next morning.
Even the postman noticed that when he handed the postbag to Bill.
"Did you drink yesterday?"
"None of your beeswax!" Bill ranted at him. "Show me what you got in your postbag."
He grabbed it and tugged it to the familiar flat stone.
And no long time and...
"I've found...!"
Stump couldn't finish his sentence after Bill grabbed the letter out of his hand.
But the Gila monster didn't open it. Instead, he put it on the flat stone.
Silently they looked down at it.
Even Bill was silent. Yesterday he had made jokes about it, but now he felt a little bad for what they had to expect.
Kinski looked around. "Alright, who wants to open it?"
They exchanged glances.
After a while, Bill did it.
Carefully, he severed the envelope. Shortly after a familiar paper fell out with a photography.
The photo had the same format like the first time. Now it lay inverted upside down with the picture side on the stone table.
The four men stared at it.
Somehow nobody dared to turn the picture around.
Finally, Kinski plucked up courage and turned the photography so that could see the picture.
"Good Lord."