The Promise

16. Who is your boss?

It was deep in the night in Dirt. But Beans couldn't sleep. Silently she looked out of the big window of the town hall. Compunction barged her. She lowered her eyes. What happened today? She still couldn't believe it.
Her glance wandered to the left when someone opened the door of the mayor's office.
"I thought so, you don't sleep," Jake said.
Beans clenched her hands. Jake's presence in the night was more frightening than at daytime.
"Anything wrong?" Beans asked nervously.
Jake laughed darkly and placed himself behind her. "No... not exactly."
He lowered his head and leant his chin on her shoulder.
Beans's body convulsed.
"Why so nervous?" Jake asked. He lifted his head a little bit. "Are you missing him?"
"No."
He smiled. "You are a bad liar. I can feel it in your veins. Your inner voice is calling him."
"I'm going to try to forget him," Beans said with firmly voice.
Jake looked into her eyes. "You are a strong person. I like that. But are you strong enough to forget him forever?"
Beans tried to be neutral, but her eyes couldn't lie.
Jake narrowed his eyes. "I knew it."
He turned around and slithered to the door.
Beans jumped forward. "Jake! Don't offense meant, but please... I need time!"
Jake stopped. He grinned evilly. "Okay, take your time. I have time."
With these words, he left the room. The door closed and Beans was alone with her emptiness again. She looked outside, where the moon shined beautiful its cold rays.
"Rango, where are you?"
She hugged herself. Why can't she wake up and everything was a dream? Rango sat in his office or on the terrace. Smiled at her when she was walking to him. He would stand up and enfolded her in his arms. It would be a warm day without clouds. The kids would play on the streets.
But he would have eyes only for her. She had eyes only for him. Only him.
She opened her eyes again. But there was nothing. No sun, no smiling, no joy with him, only emptiness.
She leaned herself against the wooden wall.
"Rango, where are you?"
With empty eyes, she stared at the dark street.
Suddenly, she lifted her head and made one step forward.
What's that? There was a shadow. She craned her neck, but the shadow was gone.

After Jake had left the room, he slithered downstairs to the front door. He coiled together his body and kept silent. His eyes looked watchfully. He wasn't sure whether Rango found someone who could try to get back the town. He had managed it last time. Maybe this time again. He grinned. That sheriff had lost anyway. Beans was his own, Rango could do nothing anymore. And he knew that Rango was in love with her very deep. If not, he had never capitulated when mayor threatened to kill her.
Jake looked upwards. The sky was beautiful with his clearly stars. So clearly.
Suddenly, he winced. His eyes moved nervously. Something was different. He flicked his tongue nervously. His senses were watchful.
Strangers were in his town!

Beans winced and lifted her head. Again a shadow between the houses. Who walked outside this time? One of the townspeople, a stranger... or Rango?
Beans leant forward to have a better view, but the shadow was gone again.
Beans couldn't stand anymore. She went to the door and ran down the corridor. She went downstairs to the front door. The terrace was empty. Also the streets.
Where was the shadow gone?
She looked around. What's going on?
She left the town hall and walked down the street. She didn't know where she should search, she walked somewhere somehow.
She looked at every side street, every time in hope to see Rango's silhouette.
When she reached Furgu's store, she stopped when she heard a noise in a dark alley.
"Rango?" She whispered hopefully.
She went ahead to the side street, which lay in complete darkness.
"Hello?" She whistled. "Anybody here?"
She went between some wooden boxes, still staring at the dark streets.
Suddenly someone grabbed her from behind and pressed a hand on her mouth.
Beans screamed muffled. At the same time, she felt cold metal in her back.
"Shut your mouth!" somebody hissed threateningly.
Beans was wide-eyed. That wasn't Rango. Definitely not.
The unknown person warped his other arm with the gun in his hand around her upper body.
"Don't say a word, or you are dead!"
Beans was like frozen. She didn't dare to move.
Suddenly there was a hard slap from the side. Both fell to the ground hard. A sharp hiss and the sound of a metal rattling made his surround.
Beans lay like paralyzed on the floor. Her head hurt terribly. A big shadow slithered with high pace beside her. The stranger screamed while Jake coiled his body around him and dragged him on the open street. In the moonlight, he saw a coyote in his coils.
The coyote's eyes were filled horror like he would stand in front of the devil personally.
"What are you doing in my town?" Jake yelled at him "Talk!"
There was a clicking sound. Jake turned around and shot.
There was a scream. A shadow fell to the ground. Jake jumped forward with the victim in his grip. The shadow on the street winced painfully and held his wounded legs. Jake recognized fur and long coats.
Jake hissed sharply and moved his gun forward. "Who are you?! What do you want?"
First, there were silence and panting. "Talk or I bang away your brain!"
"Only a place to rest," the second coyote said.
"Don't give me that shit! You are outlaws. I smell that in a thousand meters up the wind. What do you want? Who is your boss?!"
The second coyote kept silent despite the pain.
Jake hissed loudly. With a hard kick on his head, he knocked him out with his gun. He looked back at the first coyote.
"Who is your boss?" Jake yelled. "Talk or I break every bone of you before I bring you to hell!"
He pressed his coils closer. The coyote was almost unable to breathe. He stared into his eyes. No living creature would stand this deathly glance.
"R—ros—co. he."
Jake narrowed his eyes. He didn't need more information.
"That black moneybag. I hate such creatures."
Jake thought a moment. He knew that rich coyote, but he never met him. Every creature and Roscoe avoid meeting that devil of the desert like all the others.
He couldn't imagine, that Rango make common with that richly stinky coyote gang.
"Did you see a sheriff? A very ugly lizard."
The coyote lifted his head. "That chameleon?"
Jake pressed his coils closer. "Where is he?"
"I—I don't..."
Jake hissed warningly and pressed his gun against his chest.
"In Roscoe's hideout!"
"Why are you here?"
"Roscoe commanded to us. We shall check the town and come back."
"For what?"
"Don't know, really! He only said it would be important."
"Really, very informative," Jake said sarcastically. "What has that got to do with that lizard?"
"Don't know Mister! I swear! He locked him in."
"Where is that hideout?"
The coyote pressed his lips together, but a sharp hissing and a threatening stare of Jake's eyes loosened words.
"Near, black mountains of Yoshua Alley."
Jake pointed his gun at him, but a voice made him hesitate.
"Jake!" Beans cried with shaking voice. "Jake, you promised to kill nobody."
"Just the city people. No dirty outlaws."
"Jake, please. You promised."
The rattlesnake turned around and hissed annoyed like never before. He slithered forward and stared into her eyes. "Woman! Don't dare to delicate to me!"
Beans stood there with weak knees. She reached her trembling hands forward and touched Jake's face. He felt her fear, but she didn't run away. She held his cheeks. Pleadingly she looked into his eyes. "Please, do it for me."

With a loud crash, Jake threw both into a prison cell. The first one was still bleeding. The other one had still paralyzed. The annoyed rattlesnake didn't allow Doc to treat their wounds. "Let them suffer. So they aren't bored and are busy while their layover."
Jake left the prison and walked to Beans, who sat on a chair in front of the Sheriff's office. Doc had put a blanket around her and a cup of tea to calm her down again. Doc looked at her with a worried look. Since evening, Beans was so... she seemed to be so weak, broken... Normally she would stand on her feet again, overflowing with energy. But there was nothing. Jake seemed to drain her enjoyment of life like the sun the water. When Jake appeared on the terrace, Doc patted her hand and left the place to his office.
Beans didn't look at him. Jake slithered on the street in front of her. After a few seconds, Beans lifted her head.
"It seems that your friend is in troubles."
He avoided the word "boyfriend". This time was over.
He stared at her. What expected him to see? Sadness, anger, worry?
Jake narrowed his eyes. Beans's eyes didn't speak a language.
"I heard you how you called his name."
There was a movement in her eyes. She was wide-eyed. "No... it was... just..."
"Don't lie!" Jake shouted. He lunged. Beans let fall the teacup on the floor. He looked at her deep into the eyes.
"You can't forget him, do you?"
Beans avoided his glance. Jake narrowed his eyes.
"Alright. We will make a little journey."
"What?"
"You will come with me."
"Why? Where?"
"I only want to avoid that someone kills him before I see his face when he hears the news."
Beans stared at him. "Kill him? What do you mean?"
Jake snorted. "Roscoe is a rich rat. Life is nothing to him. If someone is useless for him, he kills him easily. I think he will kill him soon, maybe tonight, or in the morning. Who knows."
He looked again at her eyes. "You are worried, aren't you?"
Beans pressed her lips together. "No."
Jake smiled. "In this case, it will be no problem for you to tell it to him."
Beans winced. "W-what?"
Jake chuckled evilly. "You will tell him that you are mine now, and he has no meaning in your life anymore. Never again. You will say it into his eyes, tell him that you are mine, without lie."
Beans opened her mouth, but she was unable to speak a single word. She moved her lips, but there was no sound, which left her throat. Her eyes went damp. Her heart was broken inside. And it would break more when Rango will be devastated.
Jake smiled darkly. He couldn't wait to see Rango more suffer than Beans like now. He wanted to see his face when that sheriff knows, that he lost his loveliest thing.
You will pay for my defeat very hard.