The Promise

15. I talk!

Rango sighed deeply. Everything went wrong. What bad will come next? This and other questions went through his mind when they went through the darkness of the desert. He lifted his head. The coyotes rode on their roadrunners, while he, Bill and the others marched in the middle.
"Ten," Rango thought. "Ten coyotes. Including weapons. Bad opportunities to escape."
Someone pushed him from behind and Rango stumbled a few steps forward. He looked behind himself, where Bill's frozen eyes met him.
"You are dead, totally," Bill growled quietly. "If I ever come out of this dirty mess..."
He showed his fist.
Rango turned around and distanced himself from the annoyed big lizard. He sighed again and lowered his head. He was annoyed with himself. All because of a damn promise...
"Stop!"
The group stopped immediately. Rango craned his neck. Not far away, there lay dark rocks and at the foot on the rock stood three wooden huts. In the middle bickered a campfire. Roscoe held out his gun and shot three times short and two times with more distance.
An oil lamp shined regularly, a signal, and the group continued their ride.
They passed two watchers. Moments later, more watchers stood behind the rocks. Again all coyotes.
Roscoe jumped off from his riding animal.
Bill looked around and crossed his arms. "I had never thought that you would live in a hovel."
Roscoe grinned. "Oh no, it's just a little stopover. Did you really think I would guide you to my main residence? Your brain is really backward."
He turned around and didn't pay attention to Bill's sarcastic comments anymore.
Rango went forward when he felt a gun in his back. The other coyotes forced them to walk behind Roscoe. They passed the houses. Now they saw an entry to a cave.
They hesitated. Roscoe grinned. "Are you afraid?"
Bill snorted and walked first. The others followed him.
The cave had filled with torches and oil lamps. Then they reached a huge cavern which was bigger than the town hall in Dirt.
Rango couldn't help it and opened his mouth with awe. "Wow, that's really..."
"Big?" Roscoe asked. "I found better caves, but this was the next best I could find. Never mind."
Rango's eyes grew wide when he heard a threateningly knowing growling.
Rango forced a smile and waved weakly. "Hello, Bobby."
The giant rabbit growled louder. His most hateful look was fixed on Bill. Maybe Bobby remembered that Bill shot a bullet on him.
Roscoe waved his hand. "Calm down, calm down, boy."
He placed himself in front of the group and crossed his hand on his back. Rango stood like frozen. He didn't like this situation. This guy wanted something and he knew what.
"So, after a little night walk, I think your heads are clearer now, aren't they?"
His eyes were more fixed on Bill. The lizard crossed his arms and avoided his glance.
Roscoe's attention went back to Rango. Rango moved his eyes nervously.
Roscoe grinned. "So, I think you aren't from here, are you?"
Rango swallowed. "Eh... no."
Roscoe narrowed his eyes and circled around the chameleon.
"Who are you?" Roscoe asked.
Rango stood like frozen. What should he say?
"Eh... I'm... from..."
"He is a sheriff."
Bill's voice sounded in Rango's ears like a death sentence. After a second, he found enough power to look at him. Of course, he found only contempt. Bill got his gratification.
Rango grew pale when he felt Roscoe's gun on his back.
"I don't like bastards like you," Roscoe said.
Rango turned around. "No, no... okay, it's true. I was a sheriff, but I lost my job because of something... bad."
That wasn't a real lie, was it? He thought.
"What kind of bad thing?"
"I gave my town an outlaw," he replied with firmly voice.
Roscoe raised an eyebrow. "That's no excuse."
He held his revolver on his face.
Rango lifted his hands immediately. "No, no, no! I'm not a sheriff anymore!"
"Anybody can say that. Always the same old story."
Rango backed away a few steps. "I say the truth! Dirt isn't my town anymore!"
Roscoe hesitated. "Dirt?"
Rango nodded unsurely. "Y-yes."
"You were sheriff of Dirt? So, are you that silly lizard with one bullet-story?"
Rango swallowed. He felt how his knees shook. He screamed when Roscoe fired a bullet beside him.
"Do you wanna kidding me?!" Roscoe shouted.
Rango hid his head under his arms. "No, no, no! I'm not lying! I swear by Almighty God."
Roscoe snorted and came closer. He lifted with his gun Rango's chin. In his eyes, he could see only fear and sadness.
He snorted with disgust. "I knew it. It was just a story. A coward like you would never defeat an outlaw. No wonder, that he got your towny."
He held his hand firmly around his gun. He narrowed his eyes. "And now you go more down and makes common cause with that loser?"
Bill jumped up. "Retract that!"
"Shut your trap!" Roscoe replied and pushed Rango away.
"Go hang! You are really a failure dummy!"
He snorted. "Alright. Waste of time, your problems aren't my problems."
Rango sighed in relief when he dropped his weapon. He took out his pocket watch. "I have to do more important things. By the way, you have to tell me something. So, what did the owl say to you, after he gave this paper to you?"
Rango swallowed, but he didn't dare to tell a lie. Maybe the owl said everything and it would be very bad for him if the coyote boss knew that he didn't tell him all.
"Not much," he began. "He only said he would say more when he would go back to Dirt. It would be very important. He didn't say more. I swear!"
Roscoe narrowed his eyes. "But you know him, don't you. Or shall I better say, you knew him."
"Yes... his name is..." Rango stopped a second. "Eh... was Mister Owlden. He came to Dirt few months ago. He only came and inspected the town, then he disappeared again. He never talked about a paper or similar."
"I see, you aren't very long in town."
Rango nodded. "That's true. I've been living here for four months."
"And was a sheriff and lost it again, what a sad short career," Roscoe said "Softies doesn't survive very long. But you maybe say the truth; the owl didn't say anything other."
Rango sighed with relief, but suddenly the coyote grabbed his shirt. "But shall I find out, you didn't tell me all..." He pressed his gun again on his chin. "Get it?"
Rango nodded hastily and Roscoe released him.
"But you live longer in that dump, don't you?"
The last sentence belonged to Bill. "Maybe you know more about it, don't you?"
Bill snorted, but he didn't say anything.
"You really don't wanna say anything?" Roscoe asked.
Bill narrowed his eyes, which answered Roscoe's question.
"As you wish," Roscoe said after a while. "Perhaps you could play with Bobby, but I think he would kill you, after you made him so mad. Well, I can't risk that. But don't worry. In this case, I know a lot of other methods to get you to speak."
He let seconds lapse away. They only stared at each other.
Roscoe closed the silent. "Alright. Stan. Lock them up. But not him."
He gave a sign and two other coyotes grabbed Bill and pushed the Gila monster on a wooden supporting beam. Then they bound his hands on his back.
"What do you want?" Stump asked.
Roscoe grinned. "The following is not for faint-hearted."
Rango swallowed, but nobody dared to make a stand. Without a word, they left with other coyotes the big cave.
They guide them to another part of the cave. They followed a way, which ended in an impasse. At the end, there was a little room with a door.
One of the coyotes opened it and his colleagues pushed them inside. One after another fell in the room. Then the door was closed again.
"Rascal!" Kinski cursed.
"Calm down," Chorizo said. "We can do nothing."
"What is he going to do?" Rango asked quietly.
Kinski stood up and brushed off his clothes. "I can only hope that he remains completely."
Rango swallowed.
"Sheriff? Is that you?"
Rango was wide-eyed.
"You?" he asked with surprise when he saw Wounded Bird in the corner.
"W-what are you doing here?" Rango asked. "What happened? How is Beans? Is she okay?"
Wounded Bird shrugged his shoulders. "Don't know. After Jake saw you escaped, he went crazy. He ordered me to search you, otherwise someone will die."
Rango grew pale. "No, we have to escape!"
Wounded Bird lowered his face. "Senseless. He said, he would kill someone before sun left the sky. I fear that someone died this night."
Rango looked at him in disbelief.
"No, no, no." He grabbed his head in his hands and sank to the ground. "No, this can't be!"

"Why do you keep silent?" Roscoe asked and cracked his fingers, while Bill was still leaning shackled against the wooden beam. "I will make you talk later or earlier. Do you really want to be a cripple after that? You know that I will do. If you speak now, you spare a lot of pain for nothing."
Bill snorted with disgust. He didn't know Roscoe very well, but he heard some things which weren't very positive. On contrary. There were sometimes very horrible things.
Bill swallowed. He wasn't very brave. A short death was much easier for him than a painful one. Roscoe would never let him die until he had heard what he wanted to hear.
When Roscoe still didn't hear an answer, he shrugged his shoulders. "That's up to you. Kyle?!"
Shortly afterwards, an old but small coyote with rough fur appeared.
"I think you can make your work."
"Oh... he really wants it?" The old coyote asked with surprise.
"He didn't say no. Do what you can very well."
The old coyote rubbed his hands. "Well, well, well, well, well... if you really want... Second, I will bring my materials."
He ran away and came back with a leather suitcase.
He went behind Bill, and touched his hands.
"Take your hands from me!" Bill shouted.
"Good material," the old coyote said without listening to Bill's words. "Could be very useful for a purse."
Roscoe snorted. "Don't analyze. Just do it."
"Yes, Sir," Kyle said and put on rubber gloves.
Then he opened his suitcase and put out a scalpel.
"Last chance," Roscoe said. "Speak or scream."
Bill pressed his lips together. He wasn't ready to speak, but otherwise...
He didn't wanna lose.
Roscoe moved his foot impatiently. He gave Kyle a sign. The old coyote nodded.
He petted with the scalpel over Bill's arm and scanned the skin.
"Hmm. I think here I could..."
"Do it!" Roscoe shouted. He was bursting to see Bill suffer.
"Alright, alright," Kyle said and pressed the sharp instrument on Bill's arm.
Bill stifled a cry. He didn't know exactly what that ill coyote did at the moment, but maybe he was going to bark off his skin.
Roscoe still looked in his face. He was waiting for an answer.
Bill breathed loudly, while the other coyote continued his "work".
Roscoe raised an eyebrow, when the hands of the coyote became filled with blood while he took off a part of Bill's skin of his arm.
Bill clinched his eyes.
Roscoe smoked relaxed a cigarette. "Imagine you could feel it on your whole body."
Bill trembled like crazy. The pain was too...
"AHHHH! Alright! I talk!"
Roscoe raised his hands. "There we go. Why did you take so long?"
He snipped his fingers. "Little break for you."
The old coyote lowered his hands with disappointment. "What? I'm not ready yet."
"Shut up. Talk!"
Bill's lips still trembled, but he managed to say something despite the pain in his arm.
"It's under the town. The letters and numbers on the paper guide the way through the tunnels where it was hiding."
Roscoe grinned. "Too easy. Are you sure, you didn't miss anything?"
"That's all what I know!" Bill screamed.
Roscoe threw away his cigarette.
"Alright. Kyle. Let him down."
The old coyote was still disappointed, but he did it.
He cut through Bill's bonds. Bill sank to the ground and held his bleeding arm.
"Bobby!" Roscoe said.
Suddenly Bobby appeared.
"Bring him to the others but... don't kill him yet! Get it?"
Bobby growled, but he nodded.
He grabbed Bill and carried him away.
"And what about me?" Kyle asked.
"Take a coffee," Roscoe said. "Maybe you can continue later."

"Did you hear that scream?" Chorizo asked.
"Yep," Kinski replied. "Didn't take long time."
A few minutes later, the door was opened and Bill crashed on the floor.
"DAMN!" he cursed.
"Are you okay?" Chorizo asked.
"Sure, I'm NOT!" Bill screamed and held still his bleeding arm.
Stump walked to him and looked at it. "Oh my god, you have to stop the bleeding."
"You don't say," Bill said sarcastically with clenched teeth and cursed silently all kinds of swear words.
"Okay, okay," Kinski said. "Take away your hand."
Rango who sat all the time in a corner lifted his head. His stomach turned at this sight.
Bill's arm was red of blood and a part of his skin hung loosely on it.
Rango closed his mouth with his hand, when he felt nauseous.
Stump scratched his head. "Not so bad, but otherwise not harmless..."
"Stop talking!" Bill shouted. "Do something!"
"Okay, okay. Calm down!" Stump said. "I do what I can."
Seconds later, Stump tied a scrap of cloth around Bill's upper arm. Kinski and Chorizo patched up the big operation wound. Kinski held the loosed skin and Chorizo wrapped a cloth around it.
All the time, Bill held his hand over his eyes and waited that they are finished.
"Done," they said.
Bill sighed in relief and leant himself against the stoned wall.
"What did you tell him?" Chorizo asked.
Bill growled darkly. "None of your business. I only know, we have to escape before they kill us."
"Oh, good idea," Kinski said sarcastically. "But how?"
"Use your loaf," Bill said. "I need a rest."
Without a word more, he closed exhausted his eyes, while the others sat on the floor and tried to find a way out.
Wounded Bird looked at Rango. "Any idea?"
Rango shook his head. "No...," he said weakly. His thoughts were in Dirt. Who died?

Roscoe petted about his gun. He lifted his head when two coyotes appeared.
"You sent for us?" one of them asked.
"Yes, check the town. Then come back and give me feedback."
The two coyotes nodded. "Alright."
Then they left the place.