RUNNING WILD [JOHN MARSTON]

15: pain

"Shit, Arthur, she's losin' too much blood!" Sean Macguire yelled over the sound of racing horses as he turned to look at Rosalie Bell.
"We nearly lost 'em, just hold tight!" Arthur Morgan shouted back as he steered his horse through the trees. Sadie Adler turned her head to look at Rosalie; slumped on the back of Sean's horse, her yellow dress stained red with blood and her eyes flickering as she slowly lost consciousness.
"She's passed out, you gotta get her back to camp!" Mrs Adler spoke up.
Arthur bought his horse to a stop, checking his surroundings to ensure none of the lawmen had followed them this far.
"We can't go to camp, what if they follow us back?" Javier said with a frown appearing on his face.
"She ain't got much choice. If she stays out here, she'll bleed out." Arthur sighed. After the losses the gang had suffered in the past few months, Arthur couldn't bare any more, especially not Rosalie.
"I think we lost 'em, anyway." Sean said as he climbed off of his horse and looked at Rosalie. He had ripped his shirt to try and stop the bleeding, but in the rush of their escape there wasn't much he could accomplish.
"You're right," Arthur sighed, "don't think they'll be tailin' us no more." He turned his horse in the direction of Rhodes.
"And she hasn't got much time left, we gotta get her back." Javier nodded his head towards Rosalie.
"Come on," Arthur took the lead as Sean climbed back onto his horse. "Sean, just focus on gettin' her back. If we run into the law, we got you covered."

The ground shook in an ominous manner as the three horses rumbled back into Clemens Point. The campfire was nothing much more than a smoulder of ashes, the only person still surrounding it being a drunken Uncle. Arthur Morgan had never jumped from his horse so fast as he ran over to Sean, picking up Rosalie bridal style before speed walking into the camp.
"GRIMSHAW!" Javier yelled as he, Sean and Sadie followed Arthur into the camp. The women and men that had stayed behind on the robbery were asleep, knowing little of what was to come.

"Dear lord..." The worry in Susan Grimshaw's voice became apparent as she ran from her tent to see a bloody, unconscious Rosalie Bell draped limply in Arthur Morgan's arms.
"God, no!" Mary-Beth yelled as she joined the commotion in the middle of the cold camp. "Is she dead?" She began to cry.
"No, but she ain't got long!" Arthur said as he began to walk with the girl.
"Get her into Mr Marston's tent, he's got a cot in there!" Miss Grimshaw said frantically as she followed Arthur.

The rest of the camp had awoken now, confused by the noise of the returning members. They were gathering in the middle of camp, sitting themselves down on barrels and stools and waiting to hear about the events of the robbery. Sean Macguire seemed to have taken a new role as a storyteller, elaborating fantastic tales of a bloody shootout and a narrow escape.
"Where's everybody else?" Tilly Jackson walked over to John's tent as Arthur emerged, wiping his hands on his blood soaked shirt.
"Still ridin' if they know what's good for 'em!" Arthur sighed, the stress apparent in his voice. "Law swarmed us, don't know if it was a set up or what."
"Is she gon' be okay?" Tilly sighed sadly.
"I hope so. Grimshaw and Strauss can look, but they ain't no doctors."