The Cagon Mines
By the Chronicler
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Chapter Twelve
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Perfect Tommy's arms were loaded with gun belts, trying to shuffel them safely, while signing papers all at the same time. "Don't know why I have to do this." he grumbled. "I ain't even the paper pusher of the outfit."
"No, sir, I see you are not." the hospital clerk answered, frowning at his handwriting.
Tommy frowned back. "You are aware that I have an arm load of guns, right?"
"If you shoot as well as you write, I have nothing to worry about." the clerk huffed.
"Hey!" Perfect Tommy snapped, but the man was already turning away to file the information the Cavalier had given him on his wounded friends.
"Perfect Tommy." Pecos called from down the hall. "Quit buggin' the locals."
P.T. glanced at her sharply. With one last glare at the clerk, he started down the hall.
"Try a shower. Some of us are trying to breath here." the clerk called after him.
The Cavalier stopped.
"Tommy." Pecos warned. "There's enough folks taking up beds in this place without you adding to it."
"Meaning don't trip over your feet." the clerk added.
"That's it!" Perfect Tommy spun about only to come face to face with New Jersey.
The doctor was not smiling. "I have spent the day stitching up Blue Blazes. Something I do a lot of when you are on the loose." His dark eyes narrowed. "Don't be the next that needs stitching."
"You think that little dweeb can take me?"
"No." jersey admitted. "But I'll shoot you in the leg to keep from having to write the morgue notes on that little dweeb." He indicated the clerk with a jab of a thumb over his shoulder.
"I resent being called a dweeb!"
"Shut up!" all three Cavaliers snapped.
Perfect Tommy glared at his friend. New Jersey was, by far, not a violent man. But he was a protective one. It occurred to Perfect Tommy, watching him, that he just might shoot him to keep him out of trouble.
'Course, as it was with the youngest Cavalier, something else occurred to him. "What the hell hit you?" Perfect Tommy demanded, changing the subject all together. He stepped aside so Pecos could see the damage. "Looks like the doc's had some rough patients."
Pecos smiled, thankful for the distraction. "Our timid little doctor got that color when he took out big, mean Mayor Cagon." she explained, looking like a proud mother.
Perfect Tommy looked his friend over with an over dramatized look of admiration. "My, my..."
New Jersey glared at the two. He didn't like being congraduated for killing a man. So it was his turn to change the subject. "The dweeb was right, Perfect Tommy." His nose wrinkled. "You need a shower."
Pecos chuckled. "Give us the low down on the gang and showers will be our next stop." she promised.
Perfect Tommy leaned into her. "Our?" he teased.
To add her opinion on the matter, Pecos pushed him away, waving a hand in front of her nose. "The low down, do, quickly. I can hold my breath only so long."
Jersey smiled. With a wave of a hand, indicating that they should follow, he started down the hall to the rooms the wounded Cavaliers occupied. "Pinky came out of surgery with flying colors. Bullet bumped off ribs, went up, and nailed the shoulder. He'll be out of action for awhile, but he will be back."
Pecos whistled her relief.
"Rawhide has a cracked head and a concussion, but, again, will heal up nicely. Though I had to sedate him to keep in bed." Jersey shook his head, amused and irritated at what difficult patients Cavaliers made. "Buckaroo has a handful of cracked ribs. I'm keeping him here only because security, right now, is better here. Norse has a slight concussion. Keeping her overnight for observation. Reno has a broken ankle, twisted knee, dislocated shoulder, bruised ribs, scalp wound which took some stitches, and a little depression."
Pecos stopped. "Depression?"
Perfect Tommy answered "A friend of his died in the mine saving him and some others."
Pecos nodded slightly, knowing how Reno would react to such a loss. He was a passionent man hidden behind a laid back attitude. One of the reasons she loved him so. "I better go look in on him." she said.
"Room 332. Buckaroo is roomed with him, and Rawhide when I can get a bed big enough and ropes strong enough." New Jersey nodded to the room to their right. "Appreciate it if you hung out in there. Kept an eye on the them."
Pecos nodded and peeled away to go do her duty.
"What about our shower?" Perfect Tommy wined.
"I'll ask Reno about it." she assured with an evil grin.
"Great." Jersey groaned. "I'll take those guns if you don't mind." Taking the weapons off P.T. hands, he informed his friend "Knuckles is across the hall in 331." He suddenly had his full attention. "She's fine. Eyes got scratched up. Vision will clear up in a few days."
Perfect Tommy sighed his relief. He didn't even realize he had been worried about her.
The doctor smiled. "Go see to her. And don't wake up Big Norse. When you're done, you can use the shower in the doctors lounge. There some fresh clothes in a box on the couch."
"Thanks, Jersey." Tommy patted his friend's arm, then headed for Knuckles' room.
Room 331 was a four bed room with Knuckles in one corner and Big Norse in the other on the window side.
Norse was curled up under her covers, sound asleep, her back to the door.
Knuckles was propped up slightly by pillows while she laid on top of the white blankets of the hospital bed. Both women were wearing white, hospital issued shorts and baggy, blue t-shirts with the Banzai logo on the front. A damp wash cloth was folded over her eyes. Her hands were fumbling with her braids, trying to untie them.
Perfect Tommy shook his head in disgust when he found himself just standing there, watching her. Damn, his stomach was filled with butterflies, twisting and turning, like he was a school boy waiting on his crush for his very first date.
"Crap." Knuckles hissed, flinging a pigtail aside.
Perfect Tommy chuckled.
Her head jerked about. "Tom?"
"Yea." he answered. He crossed the room and sat on the side of her bed. Taking one of the braids, he gently began to untie it.
She reached out blindly until her hand rested on his arm. "Are you alright?" she asked.
Perfect Tommy smiled at her concern. "'Course. You know me: come to the rescue, save everyone, and be the only one to walk away unscathed."
Knuckles smiled. Then slugged him in the arm.
"Ow!" Perfect Tommy wined, falling back. Gingerly, he rubbed his wounded arm. "What was that for?"
"They were after you in the first place!" she snapped. "Isn't right for you to be the only one to walk away!" Again she smiled.
"Well, Pecos and Jersey walked away too!" he protested. Despite the risk of her nailing him again, he took up the other braid and began to untie it.
"Yea... well, I like them." Knuckles answered.
Perfect Tommy laughed. He ran his fingers through her hair, making sure he got all the strands untangled. "You should ware this down more often." he mumbled, though more to himself than her.
"You think?" Knuckles replied.
Tommy looked at her, wishing he could see those eyes of hers. Then he looked away, suddenly embarrassed for some damn, stupid reason.
After a moment, Knuckles snapped "Quit that!"
Startled he looked up at her again. "Quit what?"
"Quit being so quiet." she answered. "Between you being all hushed and this damn blindfold, I'm... gettin' a little clautophobic." She wrapped her arms around herself. "I hate feeling all closed in."
"Really?" Perfect Tommy huffed. "What were you doing down in that mine then?"
"I was worried about you, stupid!" she snapped. her tone became soft again. "Damn fool always jumpin' in before looking to see where you might land. and then there's the doc and I jumpin in after just 'cause we're having a boring day, and..."
Perfect Tommy kissed her. It was a quick, light peck on the lips, but it was enough to steel away both of their breaths.
After a long, quiet moment, Knuckles licked her lips and whispered "You need a shower."
"I do." Perfect Tommy rose up and hurried for the door.
"Tom!"
He paused to look back. "Yea?"
"Maybe I will ware it down more often."
Perfect Tommy grinned, then hurried out of the room.
Knuckles heard the door closed before breathing again. She ran her fingers over her lips, surprised how one little kiss could leave her feeling so fluttered.
"I'll be damned."
Knuckles head jerked around, tilting her ears toward her room mate.
Big Norse smiled. "I do believe our little brother has fallen for you."
Knuckles frowned. "You'd be believing wrong, Norse."
The Cavalier shrugged, turned her back to the girl, and closed her eyes again. She fell asleep wondering if their little bounty hunter in the other bed had ever blushed before.
----------
"Swallow." Pecos ordered, holding out the aspirin to Reno. When he didn't look at her, she sang softly "Reno Nevada-a."
His head snapped about until his dark, moody eyes found her. "What?" he mumbled.
"Be a good patient, Reno." Buckaroo reprimanded from across the room, sitting up in his own bed, going over a song one of the nurse's had asked him for an opinion on. "Take your medicine, feel better."
Reno glanced down at the aspirin and, with a sigh, took the pills.
Pecos looked across the room at her employer. Even as she nodded her thanks, she began a reprimand of her own: "Speaking of being a good patient... you are supposed to by laying back and relaxing."
Buckaroo looked at her over the rim of his glasses. "I am relax." he argued. But he knew that expression well. Every woman he ever met, and some men, had that same expression when someone they cared about was injured: rest, get well THEIR way, or die THEIR way. Either way, they were going to have THEIR way. Sighing, Buckaroo scooted down in his bed, careful not to wince when his ribs protested the movement. After all, he knew Pecos' was would involve calling in his wife for reinforcement... and Peggy would have no problem beating him into submission for his own good.
He couldn't help but smile at the idea.
Pecos shook her head, guessing at what Buckaroo was think ing about. But she had some of her own thoughts on mind.
She leaned against Reno's good arm and tilted her head until it rested on his shoulder. "You should write about him." she advised. "Let his family and everyone else know about the modern day Moses who lead the new world slaves out of the pits of hell and into the light of freedom."
Reno smiled for the first time since his rescue. "You should be the writer." he told her.
Pecos smiled at her momentary win: he was smiling! A glance over at Buckaroo let her know that even he had spotted the change.
But, it slipped away again, and the dark returned to Reno's eyes. "He didn't lead the way. He pointed the way. To lead, he would of actually had to have made it into the light of freedom."
Pecos sighed. "Don't blame yourself, Reno." she encouraged. "You couldn't have saved him."
"I'm not blaming myself." Reno snapped, a little rougher than he wanted to. "I hate that it happened, but I know it wasn't my fault. It was that damn bastard cagon and his lackey sheriff."
"Both of which are dead. so let it go."
"Let it go?" His tone dripped and burned like acid.
Pecos flinched away and Buckaroo started to sit up again, wondering if he would be needed to calm the man.
"Let it go?" Reno repeated. "They're dead. And they took a good man with them! Let it go?" He shook his head angrily. "I'll be sure to advise the same to his children."
Pecos glared at him. Hurt at his tone, she moved away and sat on the vacant bed. She hated when he got this way, but, she knew him well enough to know that his anger had to fizzle on its own. He didn't mean to hurt her. When he hurt, he lashed out. Bad guys were already dead, that left only the good guys.
A knock on the door drew Pecos attention. She came to her feet at once, her hand hovering close to the colt tucked in the back of her belt.
Billy Travers stuck his head in. "Hey, everyone still alive?" he asked.
Pecos sighed, dropping back onto the bed.
"Come on in, Billy. Could use a change in the conversation." Buckaroo greeted.
Coming in, Billy glanced wearily at Reno and Pecos, both looking dangerously sour. One in a bad mood was enough of an ouch, but both of them... He moved directly to Buckaroo's bedside. "Hey, boss, how's the ribs?"
Buckaroo smiled at the young man's reaction. "Doing better." he answered. "What do you have there?" He indicated the computer clipboard he carried under his arm.
"Oh, yea. The reason for my visit." Billy said, pulling it out. But he stopped suddenly and looked up at his employer with an expression of extreme guilt. "Not that I didn't want to come and see you guys anyhow. It was just with all the work and stuff... But I would of come by anyway, you know... right? You know that?"
Pecos laughed. Even Reno smiled.
Buckaroo nodded. "Yes, Billy, we know." He pointed at the clipboard. "Share."
"Yea." Billy smiled shyly, and opened the clipboard and handed it over. "Turned out that there were actually some bad guys down in those mines. Not that Cagon let anyone know he had them. But I guess he was worried that that would attract too much attention. And, besides, he put them in charge of cells. Kept them out of the legal system, so to speak, and he let them do what they want with their cell.... as long as they didn't mess with production."
Pecos gasped. "We were just releasing them as they came up. We didn't even think to check if any of them really belonged down there."
"No one belonged down there." Reno growled.
"Don't worry. They didn't get far." Billy assured. "We caught all but one."
"This guy?" Buckaroo asked, looking at the picture and profile of the man on the clipboard. He looked over the top at Reno a strange look in his eyes.
Not that Reno was all grins in the first place, but that expression made him frown.
Buckaroo handed the clipboard to Billy and indicated that he should show the other Cavaliers.
"Yea, this guy. One of the worse, if you ask me." Billy took the clipboard over and handed it to Reno. Pecos moved in beside him so she could read over his shoulder. As they read, Billy continued "Slaughtered his wife and children. crushed them with his bare hands. When they tried to arrest him, he broke the neck of one cop and the back of another... again with his bare hands." He looked at Reno. "Everyone I've asked so far hasn't seen him. You're my last chance."
Reno's eyes narrowed as he stared at the picture. A big, black man with big, brown eyes and white teeth revealed by a warm, welcoming smile.
"You seen him?" Billy poked for an answer.
Reno licked his lips. Not bothering to look up, he closed the clipboard and handed it back. "No." he lied. "Never seen him in my life."
Billy hesitated. he glanced back at Buckaroo. He knew that answer was wrong. But Buckaroo nodded slightly. "Go ask Perfect Tommy, Billy. He was in another part of the mine."
"He didn't see him either." Reno was quick to cut off that option.
"Yea... okay." Billy took the clipboard. "Well, never know less I ask." He smiled, but it was as fake as they come. "I'll drop in later, okay?"
"See you, Billy." Pecos offered as the boy retreated.
The door clicked behind the computer whiz, leaving the room to sit in silence for a long, uncomfortable time.
Buckaroo was the first to brake it, and, though gentle and calm, his voice came like a stone thrown through a window: shattering. "It was Moses, wasn't it?"
Reno looked up at him sharply. For a moment, dark eyes were trapped by those see everything piercing blue eyes. But then he looked away. "I never saw that man before." he repeated the lie.
The End
By the Chronicler
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Chapter Twelve
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Perfect Tommy's arms were loaded with gun belts, trying to shuffel them safely, while signing papers all at the same time. "Don't know why I have to do this." he grumbled. "I ain't even the paper pusher of the outfit."
"No, sir, I see you are not." the hospital clerk answered, frowning at his handwriting.
Tommy frowned back. "You are aware that I have an arm load of guns, right?"
"If you shoot as well as you write, I have nothing to worry about." the clerk huffed.
"Hey!" Perfect Tommy snapped, but the man was already turning away to file the information the Cavalier had given him on his wounded friends.
"Perfect Tommy." Pecos called from down the hall. "Quit buggin' the locals."
P.T. glanced at her sharply. With one last glare at the clerk, he started down the hall.
"Try a shower. Some of us are trying to breath here." the clerk called after him.
The Cavalier stopped.
"Tommy." Pecos warned. "There's enough folks taking up beds in this place without you adding to it."
"Meaning don't trip over your feet." the clerk added.
"That's it!" Perfect Tommy spun about only to come face to face with New Jersey.
The doctor was not smiling. "I have spent the day stitching up Blue Blazes. Something I do a lot of when you are on the loose." His dark eyes narrowed. "Don't be the next that needs stitching."
"You think that little dweeb can take me?"
"No." jersey admitted. "But I'll shoot you in the leg to keep from having to write the morgue notes on that little dweeb." He indicated the clerk with a jab of a thumb over his shoulder.
"I resent being called a dweeb!"
"Shut up!" all three Cavaliers snapped.
Perfect Tommy glared at his friend. New Jersey was, by far, not a violent man. But he was a protective one. It occurred to Perfect Tommy, watching him, that he just might shoot him to keep him out of trouble.
'Course, as it was with the youngest Cavalier, something else occurred to him. "What the hell hit you?" Perfect Tommy demanded, changing the subject all together. He stepped aside so Pecos could see the damage. "Looks like the doc's had some rough patients."
Pecos smiled, thankful for the distraction. "Our timid little doctor got that color when he took out big, mean Mayor Cagon." she explained, looking like a proud mother.
Perfect Tommy looked his friend over with an over dramatized look of admiration. "My, my..."
New Jersey glared at the two. He didn't like being congraduated for killing a man. So it was his turn to change the subject. "The dweeb was right, Perfect Tommy." His nose wrinkled. "You need a shower."
Pecos chuckled. "Give us the low down on the gang and showers will be our next stop." she promised.
Perfect Tommy leaned into her. "Our?" he teased.
To add her opinion on the matter, Pecos pushed him away, waving a hand in front of her nose. "The low down, do, quickly. I can hold my breath only so long."
Jersey smiled. With a wave of a hand, indicating that they should follow, he started down the hall to the rooms the wounded Cavaliers occupied. "Pinky came out of surgery with flying colors. Bullet bumped off ribs, went up, and nailed the shoulder. He'll be out of action for awhile, but he will be back."
Pecos whistled her relief.
"Rawhide has a cracked head and a concussion, but, again, will heal up nicely. Though I had to sedate him to keep in bed." Jersey shook his head, amused and irritated at what difficult patients Cavaliers made. "Buckaroo has a handful of cracked ribs. I'm keeping him here only because security, right now, is better here. Norse has a slight concussion. Keeping her overnight for observation. Reno has a broken ankle, twisted knee, dislocated shoulder, bruised ribs, scalp wound which took some stitches, and a little depression."
Pecos stopped. "Depression?"
Perfect Tommy answered "A friend of his died in the mine saving him and some others."
Pecos nodded slightly, knowing how Reno would react to such a loss. He was a passionent man hidden behind a laid back attitude. One of the reasons she loved him so. "I better go look in on him." she said.
"Room 332. Buckaroo is roomed with him, and Rawhide when I can get a bed big enough and ropes strong enough." New Jersey nodded to the room to their right. "Appreciate it if you hung out in there. Kept an eye on the them."
Pecos nodded and peeled away to go do her duty.
"What about our shower?" Perfect Tommy wined.
"I'll ask Reno about it." she assured with an evil grin.
"Great." Jersey groaned. "I'll take those guns if you don't mind." Taking the weapons off P.T. hands, he informed his friend "Knuckles is across the hall in 331." He suddenly had his full attention. "She's fine. Eyes got scratched up. Vision will clear up in a few days."
Perfect Tommy sighed his relief. He didn't even realize he had been worried about her.
The doctor smiled. "Go see to her. And don't wake up Big Norse. When you're done, you can use the shower in the doctors lounge. There some fresh clothes in a box on the couch."
"Thanks, Jersey." Tommy patted his friend's arm, then headed for Knuckles' room.
Room 331 was a four bed room with Knuckles in one corner and Big Norse in the other on the window side.
Norse was curled up under her covers, sound asleep, her back to the door.
Knuckles was propped up slightly by pillows while she laid on top of the white blankets of the hospital bed. Both women were wearing white, hospital issued shorts and baggy, blue t-shirts with the Banzai logo on the front. A damp wash cloth was folded over her eyes. Her hands were fumbling with her braids, trying to untie them.
Perfect Tommy shook his head in disgust when he found himself just standing there, watching her. Damn, his stomach was filled with butterflies, twisting and turning, like he was a school boy waiting on his crush for his very first date.
"Crap." Knuckles hissed, flinging a pigtail aside.
Perfect Tommy chuckled.
Her head jerked about. "Tom?"
"Yea." he answered. He crossed the room and sat on the side of her bed. Taking one of the braids, he gently began to untie it.
She reached out blindly until her hand rested on his arm. "Are you alright?" she asked.
Perfect Tommy smiled at her concern. "'Course. You know me: come to the rescue, save everyone, and be the only one to walk away unscathed."
Knuckles smiled. Then slugged him in the arm.
"Ow!" Perfect Tommy wined, falling back. Gingerly, he rubbed his wounded arm. "What was that for?"
"They were after you in the first place!" she snapped. "Isn't right for you to be the only one to walk away!" Again she smiled.
"Well, Pecos and Jersey walked away too!" he protested. Despite the risk of her nailing him again, he took up the other braid and began to untie it.
"Yea... well, I like them." Knuckles answered.
Perfect Tommy laughed. He ran his fingers through her hair, making sure he got all the strands untangled. "You should ware this down more often." he mumbled, though more to himself than her.
"You think?" Knuckles replied.
Tommy looked at her, wishing he could see those eyes of hers. Then he looked away, suddenly embarrassed for some damn, stupid reason.
After a moment, Knuckles snapped "Quit that!"
Startled he looked up at her again. "Quit what?"
"Quit being so quiet." she answered. "Between you being all hushed and this damn blindfold, I'm... gettin' a little clautophobic." She wrapped her arms around herself. "I hate feeling all closed in."
"Really?" Perfect Tommy huffed. "What were you doing down in that mine then?"
"I was worried about you, stupid!" she snapped. her tone became soft again. "Damn fool always jumpin' in before looking to see where you might land. and then there's the doc and I jumpin in after just 'cause we're having a boring day, and..."
Perfect Tommy kissed her. It was a quick, light peck on the lips, but it was enough to steel away both of their breaths.
After a long, quiet moment, Knuckles licked her lips and whispered "You need a shower."
"I do." Perfect Tommy rose up and hurried for the door.
"Tom!"
He paused to look back. "Yea?"
"Maybe I will ware it down more often."
Perfect Tommy grinned, then hurried out of the room.
Knuckles heard the door closed before breathing again. She ran her fingers over her lips, surprised how one little kiss could leave her feeling so fluttered.
"I'll be damned."
Knuckles head jerked around, tilting her ears toward her room mate.
Big Norse smiled. "I do believe our little brother has fallen for you."
Knuckles frowned. "You'd be believing wrong, Norse."
The Cavalier shrugged, turned her back to the girl, and closed her eyes again. She fell asleep wondering if their little bounty hunter in the other bed had ever blushed before.
----------
"Swallow." Pecos ordered, holding out the aspirin to Reno. When he didn't look at her, she sang softly "Reno Nevada-a."
His head snapped about until his dark, moody eyes found her. "What?" he mumbled.
"Be a good patient, Reno." Buckaroo reprimanded from across the room, sitting up in his own bed, going over a song one of the nurse's had asked him for an opinion on. "Take your medicine, feel better."
Reno glanced down at the aspirin and, with a sigh, took the pills.
Pecos looked across the room at her employer. Even as she nodded her thanks, she began a reprimand of her own: "Speaking of being a good patient... you are supposed to by laying back and relaxing."
Buckaroo looked at her over the rim of his glasses. "I am relax." he argued. But he knew that expression well. Every woman he ever met, and some men, had that same expression when someone they cared about was injured: rest, get well THEIR way, or die THEIR way. Either way, they were going to have THEIR way. Sighing, Buckaroo scooted down in his bed, careful not to wince when his ribs protested the movement. After all, he knew Pecos' was would involve calling in his wife for reinforcement... and Peggy would have no problem beating him into submission for his own good.
He couldn't help but smile at the idea.
Pecos shook her head, guessing at what Buckaroo was think ing about. But she had some of her own thoughts on mind.
She leaned against Reno's good arm and tilted her head until it rested on his shoulder. "You should write about him." she advised. "Let his family and everyone else know about the modern day Moses who lead the new world slaves out of the pits of hell and into the light of freedom."
Reno smiled for the first time since his rescue. "You should be the writer." he told her.
Pecos smiled at her momentary win: he was smiling! A glance over at Buckaroo let her know that even he had spotted the change.
But, it slipped away again, and the dark returned to Reno's eyes. "He didn't lead the way. He pointed the way. To lead, he would of actually had to have made it into the light of freedom."
Pecos sighed. "Don't blame yourself, Reno." she encouraged. "You couldn't have saved him."
"I'm not blaming myself." Reno snapped, a little rougher than he wanted to. "I hate that it happened, but I know it wasn't my fault. It was that damn bastard cagon and his lackey sheriff."
"Both of which are dead. so let it go."
"Let it go?" His tone dripped and burned like acid.
Pecos flinched away and Buckaroo started to sit up again, wondering if he would be needed to calm the man.
"Let it go?" Reno repeated. "They're dead. And they took a good man with them! Let it go?" He shook his head angrily. "I'll be sure to advise the same to his children."
Pecos glared at him. Hurt at his tone, she moved away and sat on the vacant bed. She hated when he got this way, but, she knew him well enough to know that his anger had to fizzle on its own. He didn't mean to hurt her. When he hurt, he lashed out. Bad guys were already dead, that left only the good guys.
A knock on the door drew Pecos attention. She came to her feet at once, her hand hovering close to the colt tucked in the back of her belt.
Billy Travers stuck his head in. "Hey, everyone still alive?" he asked.
Pecos sighed, dropping back onto the bed.
"Come on in, Billy. Could use a change in the conversation." Buckaroo greeted.
Coming in, Billy glanced wearily at Reno and Pecos, both looking dangerously sour. One in a bad mood was enough of an ouch, but both of them... He moved directly to Buckaroo's bedside. "Hey, boss, how's the ribs?"
Buckaroo smiled at the young man's reaction. "Doing better." he answered. "What do you have there?" He indicated the computer clipboard he carried under his arm.
"Oh, yea. The reason for my visit." Billy said, pulling it out. But he stopped suddenly and looked up at his employer with an expression of extreme guilt. "Not that I didn't want to come and see you guys anyhow. It was just with all the work and stuff... But I would of come by anyway, you know... right? You know that?"
Pecos laughed. Even Reno smiled.
Buckaroo nodded. "Yes, Billy, we know." He pointed at the clipboard. "Share."
"Yea." Billy smiled shyly, and opened the clipboard and handed it over. "Turned out that there were actually some bad guys down in those mines. Not that Cagon let anyone know he had them. But I guess he was worried that that would attract too much attention. And, besides, he put them in charge of cells. Kept them out of the legal system, so to speak, and he let them do what they want with their cell.... as long as they didn't mess with production."
Pecos gasped. "We were just releasing them as they came up. We didn't even think to check if any of them really belonged down there."
"No one belonged down there." Reno growled.
"Don't worry. They didn't get far." Billy assured. "We caught all but one."
"This guy?" Buckaroo asked, looking at the picture and profile of the man on the clipboard. He looked over the top at Reno a strange look in his eyes.
Not that Reno was all grins in the first place, but that expression made him frown.
Buckaroo handed the clipboard to Billy and indicated that he should show the other Cavaliers.
"Yea, this guy. One of the worse, if you ask me." Billy took the clipboard over and handed it to Reno. Pecos moved in beside him so she could read over his shoulder. As they read, Billy continued "Slaughtered his wife and children. crushed them with his bare hands. When they tried to arrest him, he broke the neck of one cop and the back of another... again with his bare hands." He looked at Reno. "Everyone I've asked so far hasn't seen him. You're my last chance."
Reno's eyes narrowed as he stared at the picture. A big, black man with big, brown eyes and white teeth revealed by a warm, welcoming smile.
"You seen him?" Billy poked for an answer.
Reno licked his lips. Not bothering to look up, he closed the clipboard and handed it back. "No." he lied. "Never seen him in my life."
Billy hesitated. he glanced back at Buckaroo. He knew that answer was wrong. But Buckaroo nodded slightly. "Go ask Perfect Tommy, Billy. He was in another part of the mine."
"He didn't see him either." Reno was quick to cut off that option.
"Yea... okay." Billy took the clipboard. "Well, never know less I ask." He smiled, but it was as fake as they come. "I'll drop in later, okay?"
"See you, Billy." Pecos offered as the boy retreated.
The door clicked behind the computer whiz, leaving the room to sit in silence for a long, uncomfortable time.
Buckaroo was the first to brake it, and, though gentle and calm, his voice came like a stone thrown through a window: shattering. "It was Moses, wasn't it?"
Reno looked up at him sharply. For a moment, dark eyes were trapped by those see everything piercing blue eyes. But then he looked away. "I never saw that man before." he repeated the lie.
The End