Disclaimer: I own none of the characters of this story. They are owned by the WWE or themselves. No profit is being made from this story. It's purely for fun!
Chris looked at the smug looking man standing at his table. He started to hide the bored expression on his face but then decided not to. What was the point? He didn't like the man on sight and he doubted very seriously that much would change that. "Not at all."
Hunter sat down and looked the stranger straight in his eyes. Most men would have been intimidated by the hawk like eyes of Hunter but this man seemed like he could care less whether he sat there or not. "This could be interesting," he thought to himself. He held out his hand and said, "My name's Hunter."
Chris looked at the hand and slowly put his hand into his. "Hello Hunter, name's Chris Jericho." He firmly shook the man's hand firmly, determined to let him know that he didn't scare him. If anything, he was amused by him but not scared.
Hunter was pleasantly surprised by the firmness of the man's handshake. He learned a long time ago that a person could tell a lot about a man due to his handshake. This one was firm and steady. He also noticed the stranger looking back at him straight into his eyes. This was definitely a man that he was dealing with. "I take it you are new in town."
"Yes, I just got into town earlier today," Chris said picking up his shot and downing it.
"Where are you from?" Hunter asked.
"Here, there, a little bit of everywhere," came Chris reply.
"Ah, a man of mystery," Hunter said with a smirk on his face. "Well, everybody has got their secrets."
"Yes, I suppose they do," Chris said with a slight smile. "I understand that you own the Evolution ranch."
"Yes, I do," Hunter replied.
Chris sat there quietly debating his next move. He was pretty confident that he could get a job there. He was very experienced in the field but decided to not mention it for the time being. He was paid pretty handsomely for his last job so funds were not a problem in the immediate future. However, there were other factors and it was best to keep all options open at this point.
Hunter couldn't shake the feeling in his gut that the man was trouble. He wasn't sure if he knew exactly what kind of trouble but it was there all the same. He glanced over at his father's table and saw Ric standing up. "Well, if you will excuse me, it looks like my father is ready to go. It was nice meeting you," Hunter said standing up and tipping his hat.
"Same here," Chris said nodding his head. He watched Hunter walked back to his table with unabashed interest. This was the man that had made the town's life hell from what he had heard. After talking with him for those few scant minutes, he understood why the town felt the way that they did. He didn't much care for the man either.
Stephanie had watched the whole scene between Hunter and Chris. She wasn't sure what Hunter was up to but she knew it wasn't good. She decided that she needed to let Chris know that he had to be careful with Hunter. She walked up to his table with another shot and sat down.
"After speaking with Hunter, I figured you would need this," she said with a smile.
"You would be exactly right," Chris said smiling. He took the shot and downed it quickly enjoying the feel of the whiskey burning his throat. "Thank you."
"I know you are new in town but you need to watch yourself with that one. He's bad news," Stephanie said with a serious look on her face.
"I kind of picked up on that," Chris said. "Thank you for the heads up though; I appreciate that."
"I try to stay out of Hunter's line of fire myself but I'm just not that lucky. I just couldn't let you think he was a nice person," Stephanie said with a sick look on her face.
"Oh really," Chris said chuckling a bit. "I'll let you in on a little secret, I had him pegged the second I laid eyes on him. I've learned over the years to trust my instincts."
Stephanie sat there with a small smile on her face. "Somehow I knew you weren't just another pretty face."
Chris laughed out loud and slapped his hand on the table. "No, I'm not. You know, I just don't think I've ever met a woman quite like you."
"No you haven't," Stephanie said cheekily. "And you probably never will."
"Something tells me that you are probably right," Chris said with a smile. "So tell me, what does this town do for fun?"
"They come to my saloon," Stephanie said with a smile. "I've got the best whiskey, the best dance girls, and the best singer. Okay, well the best singer is on her way, she's not here yet but she will be."
"I see, so if you want to have fun, you just come here," Chris said slightly amused.
"Pretty much," Stephanie said smiling.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure that I'm here but not just for the fun," Chris said. He wanted her to know that he was coming because of her. It wasn't just the whiskey, the dance girls, or the singer that was on her way.
Stephanie blushed a little and smiled. It sounded like he was flirting but she had limited knowledge of men in that way. She only knew how her father and brother were. Shane was a good man but that was probably due to him being sent off to school. Her father, however, was an entirely different story all together.
"Well, I had better get back at it," Stephanie said standing up.
"Aaah, so soon, and we were just getting to know each other," Chris said with a slight pout.
Stephanie laughed a little laugh. This one was different from the rest, which was like a breath of fresh air on a spring day. "Don't worry, you stick around longer and we'll get to know each other better."
"I'll take you up on that," Chris said with a slight nod of his head. "Better yet, I'll hold you to that."
"You do that," Stephanie said turning and walking back to the saloon.
Chris quietly stood up and walked up to the saloon. He brought his empty shot glass with him. "Thanks for the drink, what do I owe you?"
"That one was on the house, you just make sure that you come back and see me," Stephanie said grinning.
"Oh I will," Chris said grinning. "You take care of yourself Miss Stephanie."
"You too," Stephanie said smiling at him.
He nodded his head and walked out of the saloon. He stood on the porch just looking out into the night when he heard somebody else walking out the door. He turned to find himself looking up at Show. "Damn, that is one big man," he thought to himself as he waited for the giant of a man to speak to him.
Show had been quietly watching the exchange between Chris and Stephanie. He saw the sparks flying immediately between them and became alarmed. He also had to feel this guy out for himself and see what his gut told him. He nodded his head and said, "It's a nice night tonight, isn't it?"
"Yes sir, it is," Chris said with a slight smile. "We've not been introduced but I'm..."
"Chris Jericho," Show said with a slight smile on his face. "I'm Show."
"Nice to meet you Show," Chris said with a grin. "Has anybody told you that you are one giant of a man?"
Show chuckled at his words. He liked the guy. He didn't know why but he liked him. Maybe it was the way he spoke his mind that intrigued Show. "Not in that particular way but people have told me that I'm a big man."
"Well, I think you're a giant," Chris said. "However, you must be a gentle giant of sorts considering how you are around Stephanie."
"That woman is special to me in ways that you couldn't even imagine," Show said with a serious look on his face. "I kind of like you so I'm just going to tell you straight out, if you're looking for a girl to use and throw away, Stephanie is not it."
"I never thought that she was," Chris said with an amused look on his face.
"Good then I'm sure we will get along just fine," Show said holding out his hand.
Chris shook his hand with the silently understanding that if he hurt Stephanie, then Show would hurt him. He also had to admire the man for coming up and talking to him face to face. He also thought that this man could tell him a little more about Hunter. "What do you know about Hunter?" Chris asked.
"I know enough to say that I don't like him," Show said with a look of disgust on his face. He didn't like him at all and he never hid that fact. What was the point? Over half of the town didn't like the man.
"I didn't particular care for the man myself. He seems to act as if he owns the town," Chris said summing up his first meeting with the man in one sentence.
"Then I would say that you are a pretty good judge of character. He's a snake in the grass, coiled and ready to spring at any time," Show said.
"I kind of picked up on that. What about his brother and father?" Chris asked.
"Well, from what I can tell, Hunter took after Ric. They're both power hungry and you can see it in their eyes. Dave is different though, he's quiet, and mostly stays to himself," Show said.
"He and Hunter don't have the same mother do they?" Chris asked.
"No, they don't," Show said surprised that the stranger had picked up on so much in a short period of time. "You know, you look like just another pretty boy but there is more to you than meets the eye, isn't there?"
Chris steadily looked into Show's eyes with no fear. "I've been told something similar to that before just recently."
"How long are you planning on staying in town?" Show asked.
"I'm not sure. I've never really had a home before and to be totally honest with you, I felt the first stirring of settling down here when I got into town," Chris said looking out into the deserted town.
"Things are good here as long as Hunter is in a good mood," Show said giving a word of caution to the stranger. "When he is in a bad mood, the whole town suffers."
"Why doesn't somebody try and knock him off of is pedestal?" Chris asked.
"Because there's never been anybody man enough to do it," a stranger said walking up to Show and Chris. "I have to be honest with you though, there are some things that can't be done by yourself and Hunter is one of them."
Chris looked at the short man with interest. At about 5'4, he was shorter than most men were but the look in his eyes wasn't that of a short man. It was the look of a cynical man who didn't have much trust in people. It was the same kind of look that Chris normally had in his eyes.
Show smiled at his friend and held out his hand. "Benoit, when did you get back into town?"
"Just a few minutes ago," Benoit said shaking Show's hand with a smile on his face. He was missing a front tooth but it didn't seem to bother him. He also wanted to know who the stranger was and why he was asking so many questions about a man that Benoit wanted to see dead sooner rather than later. He turned to look at Chris. "Name's Benoit, Chris Benoit."
"Nice to meet you, I'm Chris Jericho," Chris said holding his hand out for the stranger to shake.
As both men shook hands, each was looking at the other with unabashed interest. To Chris, he couldn't help but feel like this was a good man who had had a rough time of it. To Benoit, this man could finally be the one man to end the reign of terror that the Evolution ranch had on the town.
"So, curious about Hunter huh," Benoit said with a toothless smile that suddenly fell to a scowl. "You had better be careful who you ask."
"I am," Chris said with a rueful smile. "Ivory filled me in on quite a bit. She gave me the impression that Hunter and the broad were not very well liked in this parts."
"You've got that right," Benoit said with a hard cold look in his eyes. "You wouldn't like him either if he had done to you what he has done to the good folks in this town."
"I believe you," Chris said. "I've only talked to the man once and that was enough for me."
"What brings you to this town?" Benoit asked.
"Well, I was moving some cattle for my former boss. I only had one more cattle drive to do and it was to here," Chris said.
"Who was your boss?" Show asked with a suspicious gleam in his eye.
"A fellow by the name of McMahon," Chris said oblivious to Show's clenching and unclenching of his hands at the mention of the McMahon name.
Ok, I know this was a little mean but there are so many great writers out there (i.e. DCFanatic4Life, lucyzigg, & StephanieIrvine04) who are just so great at cliffhangers that I just had to try it out. Hope you enjoyed this particular chapter as it opened up a whole world of questions I'm sure;-) Thanks for reading, and if you would, please review!