Her quiet sobs beckon him to step closer, through the first set of doors and then the second. The closer he gets, the louder the sobs seem.
Arthur scratches his beard in discomfort, finally seeing the greenery of the garden past the balcony a few steps ahead. This mansion is enormous, and the gardens are even bigger. Poor fools living here. Must be a hell of a chore to maintain.
He reaches the balcony and hovers in the doorway, finally settling his eyes on the crying girl. Her arms are draped over the stone balustrade and her face is pressed into her forearms.
She doesn't hear him until his velvet voice starts to speak, "Are you okay there, miss?"
The girl gasps, jumping up from her position and wiping away the tears, "What on earth do you think you're doing? Why are you in my chambers?"
Arthur holds his hands up, just as shocked as she is, "Now, calm down."
She backs up against the balcony edge and proceeds to dramatize the situation, pressing the back of her hand against her forehead, "Did you sneak past the guards? Are you a rapist?"
As her voice begins to get louder and louder, Arthur knows that he needs to be getting out of there. Hosea and Dutch are in a room downstairs, talking to the lady of the house. Serves him right for breaking away from the group. He doesn't need the bathroom after all.
"What? No! I don't mean any harm."
"How did you get past the guards?"
Arthur points behind him, stepping back, "I was just on the way to using your restroom. I'll… I'll be on my way now."
The girl seems to calm down the more he talks. He is clearly harmless. Now she feels stupid. Her eyes jump from his muddy cowboy boots to his worn hat. No, he is harmless. She recalls him being downstairs, before she ran off. He was with the guy with the dark eyebrows and an older man who seemed to do all the talking.
But that's not where she remembers him from.
"Wait," she wipes her full cheeks, trying to catch her breath despite the hundred-dollar corset squeezing her lungs, "I think I know you."
Arthur lowers his hands steadily, seeing no immediate danger. Unless, she starts to yell again, "Me? Nah, miss, you must be mistaken."
She finds her smile, brushing down her dress before stepping closer to him. His face is almost out of the sunlight and she is dying for a closer look, "No, I…" she takes a moment before her eyes light up, "I saw you on that wanted poster."
Arthur shakes his head, keeping his eyes on the floor.
"Yes!" she exclaims, "Yes, of course! You've got quite a price on your head."
"Alright, keep it down," he gets ready to charge in case she decides to alert every guard in the damn mansion. At least that way, she sees his face more clearly when he steps out onto the balcony.
She wipes her eyes again, linking her fingers together, "Is that… is that why you're here, mister? Have you come here to rob us?"
Arthur sighs when she reduces her voice to a whisper, "No, miss. We've got a private matter with your mother we came here to discuss. That is all."
"You're full of shit, aren't you?"
He has never heard a girl of higher class curse before, especially not one that seemed so broken earlier, "Excuse me?"
She laughs quietly, "You're not here to discuss anything. You're here to rob us. And…" her eyes jump around, as if the answers are right there in front of her, "And you are sneaking around, while your friends are down there distracting my mother. You're an outlaw."
She seems to be crazy, but incredibly smart. Arthur raises his hands again, wondering if there will be an opportunity to silence her without her screaming.
"I don't know what you're talking about, miss. I was just looking for the bathroom."
The girl smile knowingly, "What is your name?"
"Arthur."
"Arthur?"
He takes a moment to remember, "Callahan."
She nods slowly, "I'm Elizabeth."
When he doesn't reply, she starts pacing like a predator about to pounce.
"Yes, I know," he nods, "We were acquainted a while ago."
Elizabeth watches his broad shoulders relax in her presence. Yes, she remembers seeing him with the others. She remembers sitting next to her mother and lighting a cigarette before it was snatched away from her.
"Excuse my daughter," her cold smile on her face, "She has trouble behaving around guests."
All eyes fell to her and it was the most humiliating thing ever. Her mother resents her, and she feels the same way.
Arthur nods mostly to himself, "Alright, well. I'll be on my way then."
"Wait!" she exclaims, stopping him yet again. He looks like if he stays a bit longer, she might get a noose around his neck. He did not want to be caught snooping around, and he wasn't. But something inside him wanted to approach the heart-wrenching sobs coming from this woman. And now he's here.
"I promise I won't tell a soul, mister," she bites her lip, "Are you really an outlaw?"
She seems to be questioning herself now.
Arthur sighs and nods slowly, "Yes, ma'am."
Elizabeth regards him like a rare species of bird, that is about to fly away. She has lived in this mansion her whole life and it has limited her freedom to meet people like that. She doesn't think she has ever talked to an outlaw before. They are not as menacing as mother describes them.
"And have you come here to rob us?"
He hesitates, "Not yet."
The 'yet' makes her hairs stand on the back of her neck. But she does not take it as a bad thing.
Arthur tips his hat politely, "Take it easy, alright?" he refers to the state in which he has found her.
She nods slowly, watching the man disappear into the house. Something tells her he will be back very soon.