CHAPTER XIII

STRAWBERRY, WEST ELIZABETH, JUNE 8TH 1900

David lit a third lantern in the hidden basement of his hotel, giving the chilly cellar some light and a little more warmth.

Vic was sat at the desk again, holding a burning cigarette between his lips and looking over a small map of Big Valley. The deputy had been relieved when he saw Ellie and Sawyer finally trot into Strawberry, after hours of sitting unsure about his two young companions, even more so after Agent Wilson's unsettling departure. Vic hadn't been able to sit calm since the Pinkerton left and had practically gone through a full pack of smokes within a few hours.

Sawyer and Ellie had brought David's oddball brother, Peter, back with them too. This gave the well-dressed Englishman some relief also, as Peter was who they all needed to take the next steps in their mission. He had the information on the shipment of weapons up at Fort Riggs, but he'd gone to eat some supper in his hotel suite immediately upon his return, so the info hadn't been given out just yet.

"Once my dear, indolent brother has satisfied his plant-induced hunger, I will send him down here to you all and make him relay what he discovered at the Fort." David assured the trio whilst sitting across from Vic.

Sawyer was lying on a camp-bed in one corner of the basement while Ellie roamed around the room aimlessly, picking up trinkets, looking at guns and bullets. David found her rather amusing and kept smiling at her actions.

"Is this the young one you have told us all about, Victor?" David asked, pointing calmly, "The little girl you've doted on for years?"

Ellie quickly span around, "I ain't a fuckin' little girl."

"He's kiddin'!" Vic said loudly, still staring at the map, "Sorry, David. She can be highly strung at times."

David chuckled while rubbing his moustache, "No, madam! Of course you aren't a little girl! After all, you did help get my beloved sibling back in one piece. Not the first time he's been found wandering the trees, mind you. Quite surprised he hasn't been turned into grizzly dropping's by now."

That made the young huntress giggle. She'd definitely held her own in the last few days. Vic and Sawyer had both seen it, the latter even more so.

"I guess he can hold his own more than you give him credit for then, huh?" Ellie asked, glaring and grinning.

David smiled with delight, "You would probably be right on that, madam. At the end of the day, I do send him out to do many important tasks, and he has yet to really let me down. However his punctuality does leave a lot to be desired."

The young huntress snorted with laughter and kept inspecting any small and shiny object she could find.

Sawyer hadn't really said much since he and Ellie had hitched the horses outside the Welcome Center. Now actually being in Strawberry again, the young outlaw's fear of being recognised was at a new level. David, the owner of the hotel, had been pretty polite and accommodating to him so far. But Sawyer couldn't tell whether or not the Englishman really did know who he was but was letting it slide because he was such good friends with Vic. Instead of finding out and pushing his luck with it all, Sawyer felt it better he just lay back and let Vic do any talking.

Vic let out another long sigh, exhaling a cloud of smoke in the process. The lawman had been looking at the Big Valley map for quite some time. Clearly he was thinking hard about something, Sawyer noticed, but he'd not said much about it. Other than a typical greeting and thanking him and Ellie for bringing April back, Vic hadn't said much of anything for almost an hour. Something was weighing on his mind, so much so that even Ellie could tell. But as of yet, he'd let nothing slip as to what it may be.

"Well I think it would be polite of me to let the three of you fine people catch up with one another!" David said at last, standing up from the desk.

The well-dressed hotel manger than pointed to Sawyer and Ellie, "The day must have been quite long for the two of you aswell."

Sawyer looked up at David and nodded calmly, feeling he had better be polite to the owner since he was giving them a bed for free. Ellie also gave the older gentleman a smile and tipped her overly large hat to him.

"Do help yourselves to any of the drinks and canned goods we have in the crates." David also said, gesturing his hand, "Hardly haute cuisine, but it should absolutely fill your empty bellies."

Sawyer then quickly sat up from the camp-bed and looked towards the boxes, "Ah. Much obliged, Mr. Anderson."

David smiled again and nodded, "Do call me 'David', Mr. Sawyer. I find myself fortunate to have a first name, unlike yourself, and therefore must make the most of having it used."

With that, Sawyer knew that the hotel manager knew exactly who he was. Vic had most probably told him, maybe even forced to. But the posh guy was still happy to give him a place to stay outer the view of Strawberry's people. And for that Sawyer would show nothing but gratitude.

"Sure thing, uh David." Said the outlaw, "Many thanks to ya."

The hotel owner bowed slightly and then made his way up the concrete stairwell and into the lobby, leaving the trio downstairs to their own devices. Sawyer was the first to move, going straight for the small crates and rummaging through it to see what there was to drink.

"Thirsty?" Ellie asked, turning at the noise of bottles clanking.

Sawyer shrugged while inspecting the bottles, "Haven't had a real drink in almost two fuckin' days. Plus I gotta say, I'm a little on edge here considerin' I could have my neck snapped at any moment."

Vic looked up from the map finally, "Quite whining, kid. That ain't gonna happen."

"I guess it isn't... But it would've been better if you kept who I was a little closer to your chest though, wouldn't it?" Sawyer replied, looking back.

"Look, the man ain't stupid." Vic said after shrugging, "I stroll into his place asking for help, he's got the right to know the story, ain't he?"

"Guess he does." Sawyer said, looking at a bottle of bourbon, "Even so... You're tellin' me that fella's a'ight with me bein' here?"

Vic finished his smoke and crushed away the ember, "You wouldn't be sittin' down here if he wasn't. Now have faith in me, would ya? And bring that bottle over here."

Sawyer chose the bottle of bourbon, put the crate back down in the corner and made his way over to the desk. The outlaw passed Vic the bottle and then sat down on the other side.

Ellie was still distracted at the other side of the cool, concrete room staring at bullet casings and a bandolier, something that she picked up and examined like it had fallen from the sky. Having only ever used knives and a bow, the girl was unfamiliar with the world of firearms and their accessories. Given that the ultimate goal at present was finding Roland Payne, stopping a bank robbery and putting him six feet under, Vic had been tinkering with the idea of teaching her how to shoot and giving her a gun. After all, if things got a little more heated, up close and personal, a bow wasn't gonna do her any good.

Vic removed the cork from the bottle and poured two doubles. One for him and one for Sawyer. Ellie noticed this right away after hearing the cork get pulled out.

"How 'bout one for me?" She asked eagerly after suddenly storming over.

Vic scoffed, "Nah, I don't think so."

"Oh come on! Please?!" Ellie then yelled a little, almost stomping her foot.

"Ain't old enough, Ellie." Vic replied with a smirk, "I don't give a shit how polite you are, you ain't gettin' one."

"I'm fuckin' old enough, Vic!"

"You ain't old enough." Vic stated with a smile, "Sixteen ain't old enough."

"It is." Sawyer suddenly piped up.

Both natives of New Austin then looked towards the outlaw. They froze in position, waiting for him to elaborate.

"What?" He asked, "It's true... In West Elizabeth and New Hanover, sixteen is an accepted drinkin' age. A little leeway's even given for fifteen too."

Vic stared at Sawyer in a weird cross between anger and disbelief. The young fella had practically taken all power away from the deputy when it came to Ellie. Of course, Vic knew he wasn't completely in control of his young friend's life, but he still felt responsible for her to a degree and wanted to make sure she was safe. And for some reason, drinking had always been a no-go rule with him. Now even that had been taken away.

Ellie smirked down at her best-friend, "There you fuckin' go. Heard it from the horses mouth, Vic."

Vic looked back up at her with a gaping jaw, darting back and fourth between the girl and Sawyer. He tried to say something but every word and sentence died before they even got to his throat.

"Just pour me a drink, you fuckin' bore." Ellie giggled, grabbing a third glass, "I ain't a kid, Vic. And I weren't gonna be one forever!"

After laying her glass on the table, Ellie looked at Sawyer and smiled with gratitude and then smirked with confidence at Vic. After another silent moment, the Tumbleweed lawman groaned aloud, yielding and even grinning himself. He'd been defeated on the subject.

"A'ight. You can have one." Vic told her, pouring the dark, golden drink.

Ellie glared again, "Just one?! You forgettin' the rules here?"

Vic laughed, "Nah, I know the rules, Ellie. You can have more than one... If you can handle more than one."

The deputy looked up at her and chuckled. Even Sawyer joined in laughing too. Ellie thought about knocking both guys' teeth out for a second but soon relented and joined in on the laughs.

"There you go." Vic said, handing her the glass.

Ellie smelt the drink, twisting and moaning at the stench, before taking a sip. As it burned away her throat she coughed for a good few seconds, causing both men to giggle a little to themselves like kids.

"Atta girl." Vic said, lighting another smoke and looking back at the map.

"Gotta another one of those?" Sawyer asked after taking a drink.

Vic looked up at Sawyer slowly. He didn't normally give out cigarettes, but then again, he'd never really been asked for one by anybody. After a moment of thought, Vic pulled out the pack and held it out to the outlaw who promptly took one.

"You got one for-

"Don't even go there." Vic turned to Ellie, cutting her off with a cold stare.

Even the huntress didn't feel like pushing her luck any further after that. Vic had finally, after sixteen long years, willingly let her have a drink. She knew she should've felt fortunate enough about that, so didn't ask for a smoke again.

After lighting Sawyer's cigarette for him, Vic continued to look down at the map.

"What's got you all focused on Big Valley?" The outlaw asked.

"The job we gotta do." Vic replied without looking up.

"Job? Besides the one down in Saint Denis?"

"Yup, there's somethin' else we gotta do first. Somethin' for our hosts upstairs." Vic revealed to Sawyer.

Sawyer's brows lowered and he looked puzzled towards Vic. Time was of the essence when it came to Roland, so the idea of going off-path for something else bothered him slightly. He finished his drink and poured another immediately.

"A'ight, go on." Sawyer said, pouring.

"Well, I came here asking David for a decent amount of arms to stop Payne and his merry-men from robbing that bank." Vic said, "Turns out, I asked at the exact time that he'd hit a snag in his weapon-dealing operation. The next shipment that was due to be his has been seized by the Army, and is now under guard up at Fort Riggs."

"Where the brother came from." Sawyer stated in realisation.

"Right. Now what David wants us to do is help him out." Vic said, taking a drink, "Head on up there, take the shipment and bring it back here. Whatever we need to stop that bank robbery is then ours for free."

Sawyer looked from Vic to the map and then away from the desk all together. He sipped at his bourbon in wonder, thinking about what they'd have to do in order to complete that mission. If the shipment was under watch by the Army, then they'd have to do some serious infiltration, Sawyer thought. Either that or go in guns-blazing which he didn't imagine was Vic's style, given the Army were technically innocent people.

"What exactly is in this shipment?" Sawyer asked.

Vic took a long drag of the cigarette and let out the smoke, "Rifles, shotguns, pistols and even dynamite. But most important, it's got a shit-load of ammo. Somethin' we don't have."

Sawyer took a longer drag himself, "And our host wants us to storm Fort Riggs, take on the Army itself, grab the shipment and somehow bring it back here and live to tell the tale?"

After consulting the map, thinking to himself and finishing off his drink, Vic glared and nodded.

"Please tell me... That you know we can't do that." Sawyer said grimly, "Please, tell me that, Vic."

Before Vic could reply, both men were interrupted by Ellie, who suddenly grabbed the bottle of bourbon and poured herself another drink. Upon seeing her, both guys saw that her eyes were a little glazed over. She'd managed to finish the first glass, but looked as though another might put her to sleep.

"You sure about that, Ellie?" Vic asked, smirking and relishing the moment.

Ellie frowned at Vic, one eye shut, "I'm sure... Continue with your, ya know... Talk."

After staring at one another, wanting to laugh but afraid of doing so, Sawyer and Vic poured themselves another drink each and continued on.

"By 'we can't do that' please tell me what you mean, kid." Vic asked, smoking.

Sawyer leaned forward onto the table, "I mean... We'd have to kill an entire regiment of the Army. We can't do that without drawing some attention."

"Who said anything about killing 'em?" Vic asked, "I ain't gonna kill any soldier, Sawyer. They got a job to do, just like myself. And I'm not about to shoot 'em for doin' it."

Sawyer scoffed while drinking, "So what do you expect we do then, huh? Just trot on into the Fort, all gleaming from ear to ear and just say, 'Howdy, boys. I know you don't know us, but we're men of the law and just wanted to ask if we could borrow your stockpile of weapons, explosives and ammunition please. Just for personal use.' I doubt we'd get as far as three yards before they mowed us down."

"Not really what I pictured." Vic growled, his patience thinning, "I thought, more or less, that we could just sneak in. Take the shipment and leave."

Sawyer moaned hard out loud and scrunched up his own face with his hands, "It don't work that way, Vic. And you know it!"

Again, before Vic could form a response, he saw Ellie in the corner of his eye. She finished her second drink and looked as though she was about to pass out in her seat.

Sawyer and Vic again both laughed quietly to themselves before the lawman noticed that she was about to drop her empty glass. Sawyer quickly bolted from his seat and caught it before it shattered.

"Best take her to bed, I reckon." Sawyer advised to his deputy companion.

"Yeah I reckon you're right, kid." Vic replied.

Quietly and gently, Vic picked Ellie up from the chair and into his arms. The deputy made sure he was as subtle with his movements as he could be, making sure not to wake her up. He chuckled gently to himself about it, knowing that it was gonna happen from the second he poured her a drink. Across the basement, in the corner, Vic laid her down onto the camp-bed. The only real bed in the room.

Sawyer watched the lawman carry Ellie as though he'd done it a thousand times. Maybe not when she'd been drunk, since he could tell this was the first time for that. But it was suddenly obvious, if it hadn't been already, that Vic had carried her to bed many times through her life. As the deputy did it, it seemed almost like routine. Sawyer could do nothing but smile to himself. While the girl had never had her real daddy to do it, she had the closest thing to it in Vic. It reminded the outlaw of his own, less than meaningful and parent-less childhood. The outlaw had always put himself to bed, no matter his age, and he suddenly found that quite sad.

Vic stroked her hair a little and then made his way back to the desk. Sawyer finished his drink and then poured another.

"She's fuckin' out cold." Vic said with a chuckle, "What the hell you two been doin' all day?"

Sawyer passed the bottle, "We found that 'treasure' she kept harpin' on about. Or... She found it."

"Oh yeah? What'd it turn out to be?" Vic asked, pouring, "Lump of shit?"

"No, a ring." The outlaw said, "Little rusty thing, probably dumped out by a wolf at some point though."

Vic drank his whole glass off in one go, growled out a burp, then poured again. Cigarette was almost done too, so he pulled out another in preparation.

"Didn't really sell it though. She practically fuckin' destroyed a store at Wallace Station because the fella wouldn't pay up what she thought it was worth." Sawyer told Vic, with a humoured smile.

Vic shook his head, "Oh Ellie's a fuckin' wild one a'ight."

Sawyer quickly looked over his shoulder at her, as she slept soundly, "Don't I know it."

"Thanks for keepin' an eye on her." Vic nodded at Sawyer, "You definitely proved that I can trust ya."

"You sayin' I hadn't done that already?" Sawyer asked with a little surprise.

Vic finished the latest smoke, "I guess you had in a way. But remember, that girl over there means more to me than myself."

Sawyer's face went blank as he listened. Vic lit another cigarette, puffing at it perpetually, before continuing.

"The fact that even she vouches for you... Means somethin'. So many thanks, Sawyer." The lawman said, with a genuine, grateful look.

Sawyer smiled modestly and nodded at his acquaintance, raising his glass. Vic soon did the same and both men clinked glasses, followed by a decent sip from both. The outlaw felt, for the first time in a long while, that he was actually liked by some people. Vic seemed to like him, to whatever degree the deputy could. And Ellie most certainly liked him. All day she'd acted like he'd been there, as a friend, by her side, all her life. Given she didn't usually have the same attitude with most other folks, Sawyer felt a tad honoured by it.

"So, that mean I get to ask what's botherin' you?" Sawyer felt he could enquire.

Vic looked sharply at the outlaw, "Botherin' me?"

"Yup. Come on, Vic, we've all noticed it since we got here." Sawyer said, leaning closer in again, "You've been smoking like a fucking log fire, drinking like a goddamn fish and hardly said more than a few sentences. Just would like to know what's goin' on is all."

Vic looked at Sawyer, wondering whether or not to tell him about the Pinkerton. The maverick lawman took a long and hard drag from his cigarette and held the smoke in for longer than usual. After exhaling the cloud and thinking hard, he felt it best to speak about it.

"A'ight. Earlier today... When I got into Strawberry. I did whatever business I needed to do with David, as usual." Vic said, "All we had to do next was wait on you and Ellie. But then, upstairs, in walked a fuckin' Pinkerton."

Sawyer's brows went up like a lightning flash, "You're fuckin' kiddin'?"

"Wish I fuckin' was, kid." Vic replied, sighing, "Now usually I'd turn my nose away from those asshole's, and I tried to. But it wasn't any good, 'cause he was here..."

Vic didn't finish the sentence right away. He instead took another big drag, leaving Sawyer hanging.

"Here for what exactly?" The outlaw asked, wincing with little patience.

"Here looking for you." Vic finally revealed.

Sawyer didn't look surprised at that revelation, Vic noticed. The young fugitive was, after all, wanted by the entirety of West Elizabeth. But there was something different to the reaction he gave about the Pinkerton. Something felt real off about it, Vic thought right away.

The lawman kept drinking the bourbon, "Look, I gotta be straight with you, kid. There was somethin' real fucking weird about the guy. I think he's on the same page as our buddy Roland out there."

Sawyer finished his drink and didn't have any expression, "Agent Wilson, I'm gonna guess?"

Vic almost coughed on the smoke he'd gotten so used to. It had played on his mind for hours after the Pinkerton left. How he was gonna explain it to Sawyer? What they were gonna have to do about it? Yet lo and behold, the kid already knew about him.

"You know that cocksucker?!" Vic asked, shouting as loud as he could without disturbing Ellie.

Sawyer nodded sharply, looking at Vic with a face that said a lot. But before he could actually say something else on the subject, both men heard the door at the top of the steps open up and close again, followed by the gentle patter of feet coming down.

Sawyer drank off his bourbon and so did Vic, who also finished the latest smoke. They both knew who was coming down so, without words, agreed to leave the Pinkerton topic be for now. First things were first, and they had to get the sit-rep from Peter before anything else, who soon bobbed his way down into the cellar. He stank of the hemp plant again. Even in the dim light of the basement's lanterns his eyes were noticeably bloodshot. They didn't seem to have any white in them at all, just mostly pink, save for his pupils.

Vic and Sawyer shot each other a look of exhaustion, knowing he was probably gonna take an eternity to explain the situation. They watched as he looked them both up and down, inspected the room and noticed Ellie sleeping on the camp-bed.

"Aww, how bloody sweet." Peter said slowly with a huge grin, "How old is your young amigo, eh Vic?"

"Uh, sixteen. Seventeen in a few months, if my memory serves me good." Vic replied as quick as he could to make it register.

Peter tensed his mouth, sticking his lips outward like a newborn, "Huh. Fine young lady. Feisty, I like her. You'd both do well keeping her by your sides, gentlemen."

"We plan to, as much as we can." Sawyer said, "How much can you tell us about the Fort?"

Peter seemed to snap back to reality, "Ah, of course! You want to know the goings-on at Fort Riggs. The Army and their ever expanding, petulant lust for weaponry."

"If you could please, Peter. We're short on time, so we'd appreciate the info fast." Vic said, gesturing to the map, "Could you give us a rundown of what we'd be facin'?"

Peter nodded casually, eyes half shut, and slowly moved himself towards the desk. His feet were bare and sparkling clean. Sawyer was stunned at it. How could the guy walk around barefoot on a cold, concrete floor? He was still wearing the same mucky clothes from when he and Ellie had found him, so why did he only wash his feet?

Eventually, after what seemed like an age to the two renegades, Peter dropped his ass into the chair. He inspected the map closely for a minute whilst fiddling with a worn pencil. Vic took the moment to pour him and Sawyer another drink. While Vic filled the glasses, Peter instinctively held the glass Ellie had used out. The deputy happily poured him a drink too, hoping the alcohol could speed him up somehow.

"So..." Peter started, taking a big gulp, "The Fort's wall... or fence if we're to be accurate... Is made purely of oak-wood beams. Most have leaned forward and weakened with time and age. There are plenty gaps between them that you could both slither on through."

Sawyer nodded fast, "Uh huh, yeah sure, what about you know... Numbers?"

Peter looked up at the outlaw with blank confusion.

"Soldiers." He then clarified.

"Oh yes, the soldiers." Peter realised, "Now I was performing recon for quite some time down there, both today and yesterday. From what I saw, there was around eight soldiers stationed there, maximum. Best guess."

Vic then nodded too, "A'ight, that's more than doable I reckon. What about the shipment? Is it big?"

"Big enough." Peter said before sipping again, "But not too big. You could both rather comfortably separate the stock into two sacks to stow on both your horses."

"Positions? Like, where the soldier's usually stand guard? And the location of the shipment, if you remember." Sawyer asked, pointing down at the map, eagerly.

Peter took the pencil again and carefully started marking X's in specific areas.

"There's one guard post directly above the Fort on a small overlooking hill." Peter said, marking the spot, "There's always two soldiers relaxing up there, hardly doing any actual guarding. They mostly just stand around scratching their scrotum's and smoking tobacco."

Peter then moved the pencil across the map, "Here, in the main cabin, is where the Shipment is stored. Out of sight from the ever nosy and confident outlaw."

Sawyer took a drink for that comment, "That also where the other guy's in green are?"

"About three of them always stand around the cabin, yes." Peter nodded, marking another spot, "The remaining trio of Army personnel are scattered around the ever-falling fence. Keeping watch, better than the other's I would say. Almost got spotted by those three myself."

Vic sipped the bourbon, "Okay, so there's two guards up on a hill that don't really do their job. Another three sittin' on their asses outside the cabin where our guns are. And the last few are doing laps around the whole Fort, am I gettin' that right?"

Peter smiled, finished his drink and tapped the pencil on the desk, "Boom. Perfection, Victor."

Vic stood calm and quiet, the first time he'd displayed such a stance since Sawyer and Ellie had arrived in town. He thought deeply to himself for a minute, making Sawyer very interested in his thoughts. The outlaw knew better than to ask, though. When Vic looked the way he did at that moment, it was best to let him see those thoughts through to the end.

Whilst Vic stood pondering, Peter stood up slowly from the table, "Gentlemen, I will be upstairs awaiting your decisions in great confidence. I'll prepare the sacks for you."

"Thank you, Peter." Sawyer replied, nodding with a smile.

Peter then returned the gesture, "Pleasure. Oh and one last thing..."

The Anderson brother then walked over to a particularly longer crate in the corner of the cellar, next to the shelves of ammunition and bullet casings. He pulled it out fast, showing he had more strength than his body mass would have anyone believe. His actions even took the attention of the deep-thinking deputy. Peter then pushed off the crate's lid.

"For such a job, I imagine you both might need some extra firepower." Peter smirked, "Certainly not as much here as the shipment you'll be returning to my brother, but it should give you a slight bit of aid."

Sawyer and Vic looked at one another again, before thanking the eccentric Englishman standing before them once more. Peter soon danced his way up the concrete steps again, beating a tune from his lips as he ascended. Once the door at the top opened and closed again, Vic and Sawyer inspected the opened crate.

"Can't really see much." The outlaw said, "Hold on a minute."

Sawyer quickly scarpered across the cellar and grabbed the lit lantern next to the sleeping huntress who had started snoring weakly. He brought it back to Vic and the crate, holding it out to illuminate the contents within. Both men then glared in surprised at their findings.

"Not bad, eh kid?" Vic asked the outlaw.

"It's a'ight, I guess." Sawyer replied.

Vic reached into the crate and grabbed a Bolt-Action rifle. It was mostly made of an almost black coloured wood, with an iron barrel and trigger. The deputy tested the bolt handle, which seemed to work smoothly. Looking further in the crate, he took three small boxes of rounds for it.

"Looks good in your hands, Vic." Sawyer said, chuckling, "Reckon I already got everythin' I need though."

"What, a dirty old pump-action?" Vic then laughed, "That could jam at any fuckin' second, kid."

"Shotgun's make damn sure the job gets done. That's why I like using 'em."

"Wasn't the shotgun side of things I was getting at." Vic said, "It's the 'dirty' and 'old' side of it that I got beef with."

Sawyer looked confused and promptly inspected the shotgun he'd taken from the O'Driscoll raiders on the road almost two days before. The Tumbleweed deputy did actually have a point, it seemed. The pump-action shotgun was rusty and decrepit. Even pulling back the pump was a strain for Sawyer. A strain that could cost the outlaw his life in a gunfight.

"Suppose you're right." The fugitive agreed.

Sawyer then stood his shotgun up against the cellar wall, reached into the crate and picked up another, similar weapon. Was still a pump-action, the kind he liked, but this one was in far better condition. It was shining in the dim light, felt sturdy, reliable and most importantly, the pump pulled back like it wanted to go back. Perfect, the young man thought.

"The Anderson's get nothin' but the best, kid. You'd do well to remember that." Vic said, grinning, "It's those posh, smart motherfuckers that are gonna help us stop that goddamn robbery and put your old buddy right in the ground where he belongs."

"Speakin' of which, you got a plan? Given what Peter told us and marked down on the map?" Sawyer then asked quickly.

Vic sighed whilst loading the bolt-action, "My only real idea was... That we sneak in. Slow and as easy goin' as we can be. Knock any soldiers out when it needs to happen. Otherwise I thought maybe we could make a distraction of some kind to lure 'em away."

Sawyer scoffed and shook his head again, "These fella's are soldiers, Vic. You think a crack over the head is gonna put them to sleep?"

Vic listened closely, not saying a single word to interrupt.

"And as far as makin' a distraction goes... These soldiers are guarding a shipment of weapons. That they probably plan to take back with them when one of there carriage's turns up." Sawyer said, "You think a stick of dynamite... Or a hapless motherfucker screaming for help is gonna lead all eight of 'em away?"

Vic nodded in agreement, glaring at the floor, "A'ight, decent enough point. You got anything better?"

"Nah..." Sawyer admitted, "But I guess we can just make it up as we go."

"I ain't killin' anybody, Sawyer." Vic said again, very sternly.

The outlaw sighed, "We won't have to, a'ight? Trust me."

Sawyer continued rummaging through the crate and found what felt like a velvet coat of some kind. Shining the lantern close revealed it to be a dark blue colour. As Vic kept inspecting the rifle he'd taken, Sawyer unfolded the coat and patted the dust off of it. He thought about wearing it, until he realised it was a little too big for him. Looking at the coat and then to Vic, the outlaw thought it probably suited him more.

"Here, catch." Sawyer said whilst throwing the coat over.

Vic had to catch it at the last second, grunting in a slight shock when it landed in his hands. After a quick inspection of the piece of clothing, he glanced back up at Sawyer.

"'Bout time you wore somethin' different, Deputy." The outlaw grinned.

Vic listened carefully and soon tried on the dark blue coat which hung down to his knees. The colour was suitable, Vic thought, given his affiliation with the law. Sawyer thought the same thing too as he looked at Vic wearing it.

"Look's good on ya." Sawyer said, nodding.

"Yup... Guess it does." Vic replied.

Just as the deputy looked back up from the coat's sleeves, he saw Sawyer pick up a dusty old flat cap out of the crate and put it onto his head. This made Vic snigger to himself.

"What?" The outlaw asked.

"Nothin'... You just look like you're about to clean out some chimneys or somethin'." Vic replied with a smirk.

Sawyer grinned but gave no response, and after another few more minutes spent cleaning and loading their weapons, the two men stood quiet for a few minutes. They listened to the general banging and knocking from the hotel above, and also the gentle snoring of Ellie in the corner. They didn't know what to do with themselves now.

"So." Sawyer began, "When d'ya wanna do this job?"

Vic looked at Sawyer, loaded one last round into the rifle's receiver and then hung it over his shoulder. He then took another quick glance at the peacefully sleeping girl and then back to his outlaw friend again.

"I'm ready now, kid. How 'bout tonight?" The deputy said quietly.

Sawyer smirked with a certain excitement, "Oh yeah, I can do tonight."

With that, both the outlaw and the lawman blew out the lanterns and made their way up the cellar's steps.