Axelrod threw up his hands when a group of men ran into his store. Charles got up from his chair to stand beside his uncle.
"What's going on here," Axelrod demanded.
Tiny flashed him a grave look.
"Some outlaws rode into town and stormed in the schoolhouse," he said, "We can't find Ethan or Dakota."
Axelrod folded his arms.
"You think they're in here?"
Tiny shook his head.
"We need some ammo," he said, "You have any you haven't sold?"
Axelrod sighed.
"I only keep a small supply of it," he said, "Did you talk to Mr. Lee?"
Tiny nodded, looking over at Charlie.
"He's waiting for the next shipment but he still has a few boxes left."
Axelrod unlocked a cabinet and pulled out some boxes of ammo.
"Who's paying for this?"
Tiny and Charlie just looked at him.
"There are women and children being held hostage in the schoolhouse."
"Have they made any demands?"
"No…not yet but they just got there," Charlie said, "Ethan and Dakota are out on patrol trying to keep them out of our town."
"That didn't work did it," Axelrod said, "What if they decide to rob the town blind while they're here?"
Charlie sighed.
"We'll have to go over to the schoolhouse and find out what their demands are first."
Axelrod threw up his hands.
"Without our marshal…?"
"He'll be back soon."
Charlie hoped so anyway but he knew that Ethan and Dakota had gone to pick up more ranchers to use to do patrols until they were sure Buck and his gang was nowhere near Paradise. But if this was Buck, then they would need all the men they could get. He remembered what the other gang had been like though his interaction with them led to a bullet wound in the shoulder leaving Ethan to take charge because the town didn't have anyone else. The town had been sharply divided with the merchants ranting about losing their money to some two bit bank robbers especially when Amelia went into the bank under gunpoint and handed everything to the bank robbers.
"We'll need to post some of us at the bank," Axelrod said, "just in case the robbers try to take advantage of it and steal everything we have."
"Calvin's there and he'll stand strong with us," Amos said, "We're not giving those robbers a dime and no one can make us."
Tiny just shook his head at the lot of them.
"I'd give up my entire business if it'd get them freed," he said, "I'm going to go find Ethan."
Ethan and Dakota rode with Clancy and Bob on the main road back into town. They couldn't spot any signs of Buck and his men or their horses anywhere. They did find a section with a lot of overlapping hoof prints and wheel tacks but a lot of travelers used it.
"We'd better head on back."
Dakota nodded.
"I'm guessing maybe they moved on to Virginia City."
Ethan didn't think so. His gut told him that Paradise was their target city and that's where they'd turn up. He just wanted to be there when they did before they made any moves.
"We'll have men set up at the entry points in case they do show up to cause trouble."
Dakota nodded.
"Clancy and I can take the north side and you and Bob the south."
That sounded like a plan to Ethan so they rode on back to town. He had hoped that the town could celebrate one holiday without someone showing up bearing a grudge or a larcenous streak to mess it up. The children at school had been excited all week about their party and he'd been looking forward to spending a night out dancing with his wife.
They neared the town limits and saw a man galloping towards them on horseback kicking up dirts.
"It's Tiny…"
They rode towards him and when he stopped, he told them that some gang of men had charged the schoolhouse and were holed up in there. Ethan urged his horse forward and they raced back into town.
Amelia folded her arms at Buck who had ordered the women to keep the children quiet. Buck was the ringleader and two others, Slim and Jude were the muscle. She didn't catch the name of the other two outlaws.
"Just sit them down, tell them to do homework," Buck said, "any of them cause trouble, I'll shoot them myself and then toss their bodies out on the steps."
Amelia knew that he meant that, she saw it in his hardened eyes. She remembered that his cousins had killed people including children during their robbery spree including in Reno. The man in front of her was no different.
"We'll do that…Claire give them some homework okay?"
The other woman just nodded and she gathered some of the younger children around her knowing that their lives depended on not causing any trouble.
"I need some food and drink for my men."
Amelia pointed to the refreshment table.
"This is all we have," she said, "It's a schoolhouse not a pantry."
He snarled.
"Oh I've got myself a smart one here," he said, "You might want to think about being more appreciative."
"About what…?"
He snickered.
"About still being alive because that could change at any moment."
Amelia had no plans of being anything else but she knew she had to protect the school children too. She sat down at one of the desks to think about what to do as the obviously hungry men hit the cookies and cakes and other desserts on the tables. Claire kept busy with the children and Ella helped serve the men. She knew that the schoolhouse which doubled as the church had two ways out because she'd helped with its renovation. The double door entrance in front and a smaller back entrance…some nice stained glass windows that had been installed and reinstalled at least once after a stray bullet shattered them and a bell tower.
She knew too why they had hit the school because they were adopting the same strategy used by the last gang. To target the more vulnerable people in town, the women and the children…so what better than a schoolhouse?
For now they had to sit tight as it was a waiting game until the outlaws contacted the people on the outside including Ethan to give their demands. But whereas the other band wanted fresh horses and a way out of town, she wasn't so sure it was that elemental with Buck and his men. After all, Buck hadn't taken it well when his cousins had been killed. So she'd probably hear more about that at some point. She just played it like she didn't know or remember but she did so clearly. It had been a scary, unpredictable chain of events when they'd been held hostage in the bank. So much had depended on her as the robbers had targeted her in particular for different reasons…well actually for the same reason but she used that to her advantage.
Buck returned with a plate of food to sit near her. She didn't like it but she tolerated it.
"You cook well…"
"I didn't make the food," she said, "I just brought it over for the party."
"Party…?"
"It's Valentine's Day."
He pondered that and she wondered if he even knew about the holiday. But then he got that knowing expression on his face, the one she didn't like.
"So do you have a sweetheart," he said, then he looked at her hands, "Yes you do…who is he? Does he live here in town?"
She didn't answer not wanting to give anything away.
"Oh you're shy are you? There are ways to change that."
She sighed heavily.
"I'm sure there are and I've heard every one of them."
He chuckled and put his plate down on the desk.
"You and me might get along just fine," he said, "You do what I tell you and you might just live."
She kept her voice light.
"What about the children?"
"That'll depend on the cooperation of those outside…including the town marshal."
Ethan raised his hands to still the chaos in the saloon. They had gone to meet with the towns folk and discuss what happened.
"It's Buck and his gang, I'm sure of it," Charlie said, "Who else could it be?"
Ethan figured as much but he had to be absolutely sure so he'd know how to act.
"We'll have to go and find out what they want."
Axelrod stood up and blocked him.
"If it's money…tell them we don't have any."
Ethan flashed him a disgusted look.
"The hostages come first with me," he said, "everything else is below that."
He'd raced back to town and saw the horses tied near the schoolhouse and then went to the hotel. It hadn't taken him long to figure out that Amelia and the children except Joseph were inside the schoolhouse with Buck and his gang. He wasn't going to let anyone stop him in getting everyone out of there.
"You don't have much money in the bank so what do you care?"
Then a voice came from the back and Ethan looked up to see Charles. The younger man turned to face his uncle.
"We have to help Ethan get them out of there," he said, "What about Claire, her brothers and all the others? They're depending on us to help them."
Ethan nodded at Charles who smiled back at him and Axelrod appeared to weaken a bit. Finally he relented.
"Okay I'll do what I can to help you."
"Thanks Axelrod," he said, "Now it's time to go find out what it is they want."
"Well it's obvious, food, money and horses not necessarily in that order."
But Ethan looked at Axelrod and the others suspecting that it wasn't going to be that simple.