14 hours

15. Found

"Hey Bill."
Kinski pointed at the walls. There were the same walls as on the photography.
The Gila monster gave an understood nodding, then they continued their way downstairs.
Carefully and slowly, they walked down step by step, every time in fear that somebody could appear every moment.
Finally, they reached the end of the long stairway and stood at the beginning of a long corridor. It was dark, but Bill didn't dare to put on the light. He laid one hand on the cold concrete wall and followed it along the hallway, with the other hand, he held a gun. The others followed him close on his heels. The lizard's hand felt wood, the first door. He stopped and listened. But no sound and no light behind it. He moved on, until a loud cursing let them wince from the distance.
"Hell, why don't they understand – or what did I wrong? Could you explain that to me?"
Bill searched where the cry was coming from. Not far away, there was a door where light shined under the door.
Bill used the loud voice for a chance to open the door a little crack. Carefully, he looked inside. It was a big cellar room, wine bottles on shelves on the one side, tables and other things on the other side. Around a table sat two men on wooden chairs. One of them, a raccoon, had his feet on the table, the second one, an old coyote, sorted some play cards.
"How long do you want to wait?" the coyote asked.
Mr. McNelly growled who walked to and fro in the room. In his hand he held a burning cigarette.
"I don't understand," the lynx cursed. "You said he would be the favorite of the town and now, nobody gives a reply or a payment. Nothing! Not even a note. What kind of city is that?!"
The coyote shrugged his shoulders. "If I had the chance, I would have kidnapped the mayor, but he is dead, unfortunately."
"I know that for ages!" McNelly shouted.
"A shame that with Jeanny," the raccoon said. "He wasn't a bad guy."
"He was a stupid bastard," McNelly said. "I had given him a shot anyway. He was just a vagrant. There where he is now, he is in good hands."
"But how does it use us, without money," the coyote commented.
McNelly snorted. "Let's make a last try. But from now on, they need something tangible."
"Do we really have to do that?" The first man asked with worried voice. "I don't think my stomach will stand that."
"Get ahold of yourself," the coyote rebuked him. "You don't have to look at it."
McNelly threw away his cigarette into a corner.
"Alright then. Put him out."
With a deep sigh, the second man rose from his chair and went over to a second door. He unlocked it and went in. Shortly after, he came back with a bound person who he transported on his shoulder.
Bill realized the tied figure of the sheriff. The green lizard looked like they had seen him in the last photo. His hands were bound on his back, his feet tied together and a scarf gag placed over his mouth. The sheriff didn't struggle. Maybe he was afraid of being beat again. But he seemed to know this time it would be worse than that. He let loose some exhausted pleading moans and wailed when the man threw him ahead and put him with a dash on the table. Then he fixed the lizard and forced him to sit on the table surface. Then he took hold of the chameleon under his chin and lifted his face. The lizard looked tired and very exhausted and blinked heavily. He seemed to have trouble to straighten his back.
Suddenly the man hauled off his hand and gave the lizard a resounding slap.
Rango blinked wildly and ducked his head. Bill, who watched everything, would have enjoyed it if he had stood in front of him. But this time it made him angry.
McNelly stepped next to the feared chameleon and grabbed him from behind on his neck.
"Tcha, obviously you are all the same for your nice friends," the lynx sneered. "Well, it's time to take the gloves off, that they understand. Place him on the table."
The chameleon tried to kick them away with his bound legs, but his efforts were useless. It was an easy thing for them to press him on his stomach on the table. One man pushed down his legs while the other one held his upper body and shoulder down. The lizard could only use his tail and pelvic and tried to stand up in despair.
"Stay down!"
A hard slap by McNelly's hand on the chameleon's lumbar vertebra let Rango moan with pain.
Stump turned up his mouth. "Uh, that hurts like hell."
"Rebel more and you will lose your eye first, get it?!" Mr. McNelly screamed at the table laying lizard.
The chameleon lay still, but he didn't stop whimpering.
The rabbits' and mouse's eyes looked at Bill.
"What now?" Kinski hissed. "How far do you wanna go?"
Bill didn't look away and narrowed his eyes. How long should he wait?
Finally, he reached into his pocket, took out a scarf and wrapped it around the under region of his face.
"Cover your faces," the Gila monster hissed.
The others didn't contradict and put their scarves over their faces.
A loud sopping cry forced them to look back into the room. The lynx had grabbed the tied hand of the chameleon. With the tip of his knife he tapped one finger after another and counted silently.
"... and you are out."
With that, he bent more down and started sawing movements with the knife.
Stump was shortly before to cover his ears when a begging loud weeping for mercy filled the room. The chameleon struggled like crazy. It was a terrible try of escaping.
Suddenly Bill pushed open the door and came rushing into the room. He grabbed the lynx from behind and pulled him away from the struggling whimpering chameleon. McNelly was so surprised that he let fall the knife on the floor where little spots of blood covered the blade.
Quickly the Gila monster hit him with a hard and the lynx fell backwards against the door.
The other mammals who had held the chameleon threw their prisoner away and drew their guns. But before they could use them, Kinski jumped into the room and screamed: "Police! Hands up!"
But the bandits were no quitters. Quickly they knocked the table down without mercy. The bound chameleon rolled on the floor, while the raccoon and coyote used the table as a shield. Shots fell. Stump pulled Kinski on his ears and dragged him into the next save corner, near the wine bottles. Meanwhile, Bill had knocked out the ranch owner for a moment and took a new run-up. With loud scream he rammed the table which splintered into many pieces. The two men jumped aside, but Bill grabbed the raccoon and gave him a hard hit.
"Hey, a rumble," Kinski cried and put his guns away. "Yeah!"
Stump and Chorizo watched how their friend made a big jump and kicked the fleeing coyote with his big feet. Shortly after the rest lay their guns aside and dealt out blows. It didn't take a long time and all three of the gangsters lay on the floor.
"Good job, buddy," Chorizo congratulated and rubbed his own back.
Bit by bit a silence followed until the outlaws were sure their enemies will not wake up for the next few minutes and collected themselves in the middle of the room.
"Wow," Kinski said. "That was a nice scrimmage. We should repeat that."
"And what was that with "Police" and "Hands up"?" Stump asked with played skepticism.
Kinski shrugged his shoulders with an amused smile. "I had no other idea what to say."
Stump rolled his eyes.
"What now Bill?" Chorizo asked.
Bill looked at the knocked-out gangsters. Then his glance wandered into the little room where they had the chameleon had taken out. "We secure them in the room."
Together they pulled the three mammals away and blocked the chamber. After that they made free their faces with a clear conscience and put their masks down.
Chorizo looked around. "Uh, where is our little friend?"
They didn't need to search long. The chameleon lay huddled in a corner, his legs close pressed on his body. Bill tugged him up. The chameleon was weak. Maybe the gangster didn't give him food or water while his captivity. Roughly but also carefully Bill sat the chameleon on another table, but he had to hold his upper body so that he didn't fall forwards. Under his tail there were bruises. Maybe they had whipped the under region very badly. For a brief moment he thought whether the chameleon would be impotent. Rango's eyes were closed, but he moaned quietly. Bill lifted the chameleon up again and hold his chin. But Rango didn't seem to realize his rival at the moment and gave moaning sounds from time to time like he would have headaches.
"HEY!" Bill shook the weak chameleon violently. "Hey, I didn't go through the whole damn day for nothing just to see you how you peg out!"
Angrily, he gave the chameleon several slaps on the cheeks.
"Uh, Bill," Stump raised his hand. "I think he doesn't have the ability to say something."
Bill had the insight that it had no use to give Rango a clear head.
"Alright," Bill muttered darkly and took his knife.
The cold blade on the skin of his arms let the chameleon wince. But Bill showed no interest to his fear and cut through the ropes around his arms and wrists. The ropes were very tight bound around his arms and hands. Rango whined when he loosened the shackles. Rango let fall his arms ahead with a gentle sigh of relief. Then the Gila monster made the same with the legs, but he still had to hold the green lizard to avoid that he fell down.
Kinski, Stump and Chorizo watched their leader's work.
"Oh my," Stump muttered. "They had badgered him very badly."
Finally, Bill removed the gag and cut it. Rango whimpered with sobbing moan and spat out another cloth which the bandits had stuffed inside his mouth. Then he lost every force and leaned against Bill's chest.
Kinski smirked with a wide grin on his mouth.
"And when is your wedding day?" He asked jokingly.
"Babbling idiot," Bill growled and pushed the chameleon away in disgust.
"How do you want to wake him up?" Stump asked curiously. "He looks like he had lost his brain."
Bill snorted and took the limp chameleon from the table.
"I know a classical waking-up method."
With that he carried the limb lizards on his arms, the belly and face downwards.

"Here we are."
The others looked into a nice-looking bathroom.
"Aha, this is your classical wake-up method?" Stump nodded with played respect.
Bill gave no comment. He walked in and didn't pay attention for the expensive facility like porcelain washbowl and a porcelain bathtub with hot-cold water and a shower head over it. Bill lay the chameleon in the bathtub and reached for the shower head. Stump, Kinski and Chorizo circled the bathtub and eyed the unclothed chameleon for a short moment. In the light they realized bruises over the lizard's body and arms, including some heavy ones in his face. The chameleon was still unconscious and seemed to sleep.
Bill lifted the shower head and pointed at the water faucet. "Turn it up."
Chorizo grinned and turned the wheel. "Let there be rain!"
The water pelted down into the bathtub over the chameleon. Shortly after the water had touched the green body, Rango winced heavily and tucked up legs and arms. Then he tried to cover his face with his hands. Bill got his fun and swung the water head up and down in all directions, that the chameleon became completely wet, until he opened his eyes. But he covered his face again when new water fell on his face. The others chuckled. Finally, Bill closed the water faucet and put the shower head aside and silence fell. Just the dropping water was heard, followed by a squeak when the four outlaws leaned their hands and elbows on the edge of the bathtub, watching the chameleon which was trembling a little. After a few more seconds, Rango put down his hands, still panting softly.
The four gunslingers grinned at him.
"Are you surprised?" Stump and Chorizo said at the same time.
Kinski put his head on his hand. "You look very banged up."
Bill was closer to Rango's face and grabbed a hand under the chameleon's armpit and pulled him up so that the chameleon came from a lying to a sitting position.
"Nice to see you still complete."
All the time Rango was still speechless. What ran through his head?
But when Bill uttered the word "complete" he lifted his hands quickly and eyed them with a rush.
His right forefinger was still bleeding, but it had still fixed on his hand.
Chorizo took his hand and looked at it. "Oh, a clean cut, but not bad. The bone is still okay."
The mouse felt how the hand trembled, and it let the Mexican smirk. "Very nervous for a sheriff, Sheriff."
He released his hand and Rango pressed them on his chest again. He was still in big confusion and seemed to come back in the real-world step by step. His eyes stuck on Bill, who stood next to him with crossed arms as if he was waiting for an answer.
Rango looked at the Gila monster with unsure eyes. Then he tensed his forehead and looked aside.
"Do as you like. Feel free," he said with a defeated and defiant voice. He waited for a slap in the face or stomach or something else, still thinking about the argument in the canyon many days ago. And now he sat there without clothes and weapons. It would be an easy thing for the Gila monster to humiliate or to kill him immediately.
Bill chuckled mockingly. He grabbed the chameleon's chin and forced him to look at his face.
"Not today, little human pet."
He petted against his left cheek.
"I will wait for a better moment."
Rango turned away his head in a scared way.
"What do you want for that?" Rango asked with fear in his voice.
Bill showed a disappointed gesture. "It wonders me that you ask such kind of question. Where is your "thank you", little pet?"
"Yeah," Chorizo agreed. "You have no idea where we had gone through to pull you out of that nest. Do you think we did it for enjoyment?"
"Indeed," Stump added. "Be happy for that, that we were in near when they caught you, before he shot you."
His glance waved over to Bill.
Rango's skin colored black and looked with shock. "You wanted to shoot me?"
"Idiot!" Bill growled, but then he grinned. "For your luck. If I hadn't been in the mood to perforate your skull, we wouldn't be here."
Gently he put a hand on the chameleon's neck, which sent scaring shiver over Rango's body. He felt so helpless in this situation with a temporary trigger-happy Gila monster in the room.
Stump felt a little pity for the chameleon and waved his hands. "Hey, guys. I think he needs a little rest. Including us. I'm hungry."
Kinski stroke over his belly. "Me too. Hey, I think it's time to raid the fridge."
"Oh, yes," Chorizo cried. "We still didn't eat something today."
The others rolled their eyes when they remembered about the cheesecake. But nobody wanted to disagree and they went to the exit of the bathroom.
But before they left, Kinski held Bill back. "And when do you want to shoot him?"
Bill turned around and looked at the chameleon, which ducked its head and pressed his legs on his body. The Gila monster watched him with narrowed eyes.
"Mmpf, there is no rush."
With that, he turned around and disappeared.
"Hey Sheriff."
Rango winced when Chorizo came back with something in his hands. "Here your clothes. We found them in the rubbish."
He threw his clothes next to him.
"Maybe you should wash them before you put them on again."
With a loud chuckle, he let the chameleon alone. But as Rango thought he could relax a little, he startled heavily when a clicking sound met his ears.
"Sheriff," Bill showed his revolver. "We are still not finished with each other."
Then he left the bathroom once for all.