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Chapter 52: The Bank

Bronte shouted in pain as he dropped the gun. Lilly grabbed his hand by her belly and broke his fingers getting the knife out of his hand. She turned, grabbed his neck, and shoved him into the wall while choking him. She neared his face and sneered at him. "You. I was willing to only kill you. Now? I think I'll torture you first."

Angelo grasped at his throat trying to breathe. When Lilly decided he'd had enough she dropped him and he slumped to the floor, coughing and wheezing. She went down and looked in his pockets for the key to her collar and found it. She unlocked it, took it off, and hit him in the face with it. Arthur let out an approving guffaw as Bronte wailed from the hit.

"Serves you right," Arthur said.

Lilly cracked her neck and pivoted at the waist. "What should I do with him?" she asked Arthur as she gazed at him lovingly.

Arthur neared her and kissed her softly. "It's your call, mo stór."

Lilly grinned. "Mo chompánaigh fiach?" [My hunting companions?]

"Yes, they're here."

"Who's here?" Bronte demanded.

Lilly looked at Angelo with a menacing smile before she whistled. The wolves came in snarling and licking their chops. Bronte tried to scoot under the bed but Lilly grabbed him with a chuckle. "No no no, you earned this, Papa. Just like I earned my beating, and just like my brother earned his death." Lilly tossed him to the floor. "Boys?" They looked up at her and Arthur walked behind Lilly to the door. "Kill him. Slowly."

Lilly didn't have to smell the blood. She didn't have to watch the carnage. All she had to do was listen as the wolves growled and ripped their teeth into the flesh of a screaming man who begged for mercy. Mercy was something she was not willing to give.

"C'mon, let's go outside," Arthur said as he kissed her cheek.

Arthur shut the door behind them as they walked into the hall with red carpet and the red and white walls. Lilly saw the rest of the men and smiled. "Thanks for comin' to get me," she said.

Lilly quickly recovered fron her ordeal on account of being fed properly. Now that Bronte was dead and gone, they could finally get on with their bank job. Lilly crossed the floor back and forth as she listened to the men talk the plan over.

"I'm tellin' ya, Dutch, this is the way to do this job," Hosea said. "The distraction'll buy you all the time you need."

Dutch sighed. "I...don't like it," he said.

"It's the right plan. I've done the work. I've been in town, looking, watching and...and waiting. I've, I've tested it as well as I can. It's the right plan."

"I know. I just...I'm still worried about this rat in the camp gunnin' for my daughter. Who can we trust?"

Lilly leaned against the door frame. "Me, Athair and Arthur, for starters."

Arthur chuckled. "You're still insistin' on goin'?"

"Of course. I told Athair and Lenny that they're gonna die in Saint Denis. What if it happens with this job? I need to be there to stop it."

"Well," Arthur shook his head. "You can't be in two places at once."

"No, so I think you should keep an eye out for Lenny and I'll keep an eye out for Athair. Remember, Lenny is supposed to get shot on the roof tops so if this goes sideways, try your best to avoid that route."

"And me?" Hosea said. "Where do I die?"

"On the street."

"Jesus Christ, alright," Dutch groaned. "You're sure, Hosea? About this plan?"

"Certain. Well...not certain it will be done, but certain it can be done. And certain this is the only way I see we can do it. I've timed it out more than once."

"Well, you're the expert."

"Look, the bank," Hosea said, pointing to the map. "Karen, Tilly, Abigail, I sent them all. They all say the same thing. There's no more than one armed guard. And the police? It's a city, there are police, but as far as we can tell, the patrols will all be going this way," Hosea motioned north on the map, "when Abigail, Lilly and I cause the diversion and that's the opportunity."

Dutch leaned back in his chair. "What do you both think?" he asked Arthur and Lilly.

"Well, I don't see we have a lot of choice. We linger around here, we know we're dead," Arthur explained.

Lilly shook her head. "I don't know. Somethin' don't seem right about the one guard."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, well, it's a fuckin' city bank. It's got a shit ton of money. You think they'd only have one guard protectin' that money?"

Hosea huffed. "But the girls all said it's just one guard."

"I know what they said, but how do we know they don't got guards in the back somewhere? It just seems too easy to me."

"What choice do we have, Lilly?" Dutch asked her.

"Well, can't we do this at night?"

"We do it at night, there's the drama of just getting into the bank. Can't do that silently. They'll pick us off far easier." Hosea rubbed his face.

"I could do it silently."

The three men looked at her. "What?"

Lilly shrugged. "I told you, I've been trained for sneakin' about at night."

Arthur sighed and walked over to her. "Killin' men at night in their beds is one thing, but breakin' into a bank is another thing. Besides, not all of us is as silent and deadly as you."

Lilly giggled. "None of ya are. You're all a bunch of clout headed ogres," she joked.

Arthur wheezed out a laugh. "If you say so. But," Arthur sniffed and walked back to the table. "We got a decent bunch. We know how to fight. Those city cops, they don't seem so tough, as long as we move fast. I reckon doin' it in the day," he put a finger on the map, "with a distraction. If that's what Hosea's sayin'? It's as good a plan as any."

"I, I think I agree," Dutch stammered.

"Every plan is a good plan if we execute it properly. Every problem we had was because we did not...execute...properly. Even Blackwater, from my understanding."

Dutch nodded. "You're right," he said asssuredly and stood up. "Let's rob this bastard."

Lilly scoffed and threw up her arms, leaving the room. "Where you goin'?" Arthur asked her.

"To go get ready," she snapped.

Lilly dressed in her white and blue feminine suit with a white hat. She braided her hair and stuffed it under the hat. She checked her knives in the belt and in her white boots. Lilly brushed herself off and looked at herself in the mirror. She was ready. Lilly put a hand to her belly and sighed. "Well, here we go."

Arthur walked in with his gray suit, black vest, and dark blue puff tie. He put his hands on her shoulders. "You look sharp," he said with a smile.

"So do you, Mo Fear Álainn."

Arthur laughed and turned her around. "I know you don't like the plan, but we got this. One last job, then we can go home to Ireland, mo stór."

Lilly raised a brow. "You callin' it home already?"

"Yes."

"Well then," Lilly put her arms around his neck and placed a few kisses on his lips. "Let's go get this done."

"That's my girl."

They both left the tent and went to their mounts Liath and Rose. "You two got everythin' you need?" Dutch asked them both.

"Sure," Arthur replied.

"So, we rob ourselves a bank and within weeks we're living life anew in the green paradise of the Emerald Isle spendin' the last of our days as potato farmers?" Hosea asked. "Let's get out of this godforsaken place and go rob ourselves a bank!"

Everyone cheered and raced off. Lilly laughed as they went, barely listening to the banter between Dutch and the rest of the men. "This is it, folks. The last one," Dutch said.

"Where have we heard that before?" John asked.

"What has happened to you, John? You lost all your heart."

"I'm just tryin' to stay real about all this."

""Real". Oh how I detest that word. So devoid of imagination."

"How soon are we shippin' out?" Micah asked.

"Soon as we get a passage organized," Dutch replied. "Train to New York City, then a boat to Galway, Ireland. Then a carriage to Darach ar an gCnoc in Moycullen. God, did I say that all right?"

Lilly giggled with glee. "Yes, Da. Perhaps you should learn the language."

"Naw, I'll leave that for you and Arthur."

"What about the money in Blackwater? We're just gonna leave that behind?" Micah inquired.

Lilly rolled her eyes. "You're always on and on about that feckin' money, ya greedy little piggy. Look, we get this job done right, that money won't matter."

"She's right. Forget that money, it's gone. You talk like it's the only god damn money in the world," Dutch complained. "We're gonna take that and more, take it from the people who take it from us. This isn't just some hick town, hundred dollar operation. This is a big city bank!"

"Right. With security, guards, police," John pointed out.

"Hosea has done his reconnaissance, we've been over this. The plan. One last time! Hosea, Lilly, and Abigail draw out the police, we go in calm and fast. John and Lenny, secure the front doors. Javier and Sean, take the side exit. Bill, Micah, and Charles, control the crowd."

"Gentlemen, let us go ahead," Hosea said.

"How long do you need?"

"Not long. Fifteen minutes or less. You'll know by the noise. Any problems, we'll see you in camp."

Lilly and Arthur grasped each other's hands. "I'll see you when it's over, mo bhean chéile," Arthur said, kissing her hand.

Lilly kissed his. "See you on the other side, mo fhear céile."

"Ride on!" Dutch shouted.

The carriage picked up speed and Lilly chased after it on Liath. They entered into town and Lilly unholstered her repeater. She was going to play at being a guard for the carriage. "You got this, Lilly?"

"I do!" she yelled happily. "I'm just so happy! We're all gonna be so happy! Oh, Abigail, Jack is goin' to love Ireland!"

"I think he will!" Abigail smiled at Lilly. "He's goin' to love havin' cousins, too. Have you got names yet?"

"Aoífe or Cahira for girls, Arthur Jr. and...well, we hadn't decided on a second one yet," she laughed.

"Well you got plenty of time!"

"Alright, ladies," Hosea said. "Let's get this done." They slowed the carriage to a stop at the distraction point. Lilly felt nervous, or perhaps that was the flutterings of her unborn children inside, but something felt wrong about all of this. Hosea and Abigail were getting things ready while Lilly kept an eye out. "Okay Lilly, you see anyone lookin'?"

Lilly looked around. "No." Suddenly Pinkertons appeared around the corner. "Shite, we got company!"

Arthur waited with the other men across the street from the bank, anxious for the diversion to happen.

"Gentlemen, robbin' thieves...it ain't no crime at all. Folk like this, they stole what this country could'a been," Dutch said. "Stay cool, fellers. Act natural. Wait for Hosea to do his thing."

"This, this'd better work," Micah grunted.

"Looks like there's law over the other side," John observed.

"Have a modicum of faith, John, would you please?" Dutch pleaded. "Soon as we get out, load everything onto the wagon here." A few moments later, an explosion occurred a few blocks down and Arthur looked to see a cloud of dark gray smoke rising into the air. Dutch cackled. "I love that Hosea! He's a true artist!"

Arthur spotted law running in the direction of the explosion with whistles blowing. When they were gone, the men crossed the the street. Arthur felt a tickle in his throat and coughed as he followed. They got to the front of the bank and the men put on their bandanas.

"Gentlemen, let's go!" Dutch demanded. They opened the doors and immediately went to work. "Ladies and gentlemen! This is a hold up!" Women started screaming and men scattered as the rest of the group tried to control the crowd. "Don't do nothin' stupid!"

Arthur held up his revolvers as Micah cackled. "Who do you think you are?" the manager inquired with a demanding tone.

Bill smacked him and pushed him over to the vault. Arthur kept his gun on the man as the rest of the crowd was shoved into the bank office.

"Okay! Now then! Arthur, would you please have Señor Bank Manager here open the vault?" Dutch asked as the manager began to fiddle with the lock.

"Open the vault, come on!" Arthur commanded in an angry tone, his gun still pointing at the bank manager.

The man finished and opened the vault door. Arthur walked in with Dutch. "Arthur, you're with me. Let's clear this out." Arthur headed to the biggest safe. "Forget all the drawers, just get those safes open."

"I need the combination for these safes!" Arthur yelled.

"Tell him the combination!" Bill shouted at the bank manager. "Come on! Speak! Speak or die...now! First number!"

"Nineteen," replied the manager.

"Nineteen!"

Arthur turned the lock to the number 19. "Got it!"

"Okay now, what's the second number?" Bill asked.

"Seventy-two," replied the manager.

Arthur turned the lock to 72. It clicked. "Alright, should be one more number," he said.

"Last number! Come on!" Bill shouted.

"Fifty-four," the man responded quickly.

Arthur turned the dial to 54 and it clicked. "You get that, Mr. M? Fifty-four!" Bill shouted to Arthur.

"Okay, I'm in!" Arthur put a leather saddle bag over his shoulder and opened the safe.

"What did I tell you?" Dutch said. "Would you look at that..."

Arthur grabbed all the bills he could take and stuffed them into the bag.

"Get outta here!" Bill yelled at the bank manager.

"We got trouble!" John shouted abruptly. "Looks like the law!"

"Shit!" Arthur exclaimed.

"Come on, let's go," Dutch said and both the men walked out of the vault.

"Okay." He handed the bag to Bill.

"Think we got a problem here!" John said as Arthur ran to the front with Dutch.

"Come out, it's over!" a man outside yelled.

"Shit, Abigail," John said.

Arthur pulled out his gun and stared in disbelief as Hosea was held at gun point. "Dutch, get out here!" Agent Milton shouted. "Get out here now!"

"Someone must have squealed!" Dutch said. "Mr. Milton...let my friend go, or folks...they are gonna get shot unnecessarily!"

"Your friend? Ha, why would I do that?" Milton asked jokingly.

"Come on, Milton!"

"It's over! No more bargains! No more deals."

"Mr. Milton, this is America!" Dutch reasoned. "You can always cut a deal!"

"I've given you enough chances!"

Arthur saw crows gather around the buildings and he gulped. This was where Hosea was supposed to die. "Dutch, this is it!" Arthur whispered. "Hosea's gonna die out there!"

"Shit! Milton, don't you do it!" Dutch shouted. "I will shoot a hostage if you kill him!"

Milton pushed Hosea out onto the street and the elderly man almost fell over. He walked a few steps and turned around.

"Hosea, get outta there!" Arthur yelled as he ran towards the front door. Milton pulled the trigger on his gun just as Adair jumped down from the roof of a building and landed in front of Hosea. The bullet bounced off her and Arthur sighed in relief.

"Thank God she showed up," Dutch said with a chuckle.

Adair glared around at the Pinkertons and walked backwards into Hosea. "Get into the building, Hosea," she demanded.

Hosea did as he was told and ran in. Adair stood her ground as the men fired their guns at her. All the bullets bounced off, of course, and they stopped. Milton's jaw dropped.

"Mrs. Morgan," he said. "How did-"

Adair held up a hand. "I am not Lilly. I am Adair." Adair unsheathed her sword and stood with her knees bent and her legs slightly apart. "If you desire the lives of my men, you will have to pay the price."

"And what price would that be, Miss Adair?" Milton asked.

Adair twirled the sword in her hand with a twist of her wrist. "All of you will fight me for them."

Milton laughed. "Men, kill them all!"

The Pinkertons and the law began a shoot out with the Van der Linde gang but Adair was not having any of it.

Arthur shot men down while keeping an eye on Adair. God, she was amazing. "Kill all those sons of bitches!" Arthur cheered, watching her slice men open with her sword.

"God dammit! I said this was a bad idea!" John shout out.

"Hold them back, I got an idea!" Dutch barked out loudly.

"What?" Arthur asked with a scrunched up brow.

"Just keep shooting!"

"Give me a hand, Arthur!" Charles yelled. "Wagons coming in on the left here!" Arthur started shooting at men on the left side, including those driving the wagons.

"Arthur, are you alive?!" Dutch shouted from behind the bank counter.

"Just about!" Arthur snapped with his reply.

"Get over here!"

"Shit, there's too many of them! Where did Adair go?"

Arthur peeked out. Where did she go? "Arthur, come on!" Arthur ran back to the counter and jumped over it. "There's no way we are gettin' out that door. Take this and blow a hole through that wall."

"Where are they all comin' from?!" Javier shouted.

"Feck if I know!" Sean shouted back.

"This is worse than Blackwater!" Bill yelled angrily.

Arthur grabbed the dynamite from Dutch and raced to the back wall. He placed the dynamite on it and ran back behind the counter.

"I don't know how much longer we can hold them back!" John exclaimed desperately.

"Dynamite! Stay down!" Arthur warned everyone. He shot the dynamite and the wall exploded.

"Arthur, climb up to the roof and cover us!"

Arthur ran back to the now gaping hole of a wall. "Arthur, here!" Javier tossed Arthur a repeater and he gladly took it before climbing the ladder outside.

"Get up there! I'll cover the rear! We'll get them outta here!" Dutch yelled assuredly.

"That we will," Arthur said. He got to the roof and started shooting. "Everyone move! I'll hold 'em off!"

Adair came into view on one of the balconies and threw a man off. She punched another in the throat and threw him off too. She looked at Arthur with a smirk. "Lilly says you sure know how to show a girl a good time!" Adair yelled from across the way.

Arthur laughed. "I sure do! Come and help me out, would ya?"

Adair leaped off the balcony and landed next to Arthur, pulling out her bow and shooting men down alongside him. "What army is this, husband?"

"Pinkertons and lawmen. Probably Cornwall's men too. God, there's so many."

"Everyone, with me! Now! Let's go!" Dutch yelled.

"Get shootin', all of ya!"

Adair kept firing arrows until she had no more to let fly. "I am out of arrows!"

Arthur handed her the repeater. "Here, can you shoot this?"

Adair looked at it in confusion before aiming it and shooting a man in the head. "This is a sufficient instrument of death," she observed.

"Oh my God," Javier said behind her at the amount of men that kept coming. "Come on!"

"Where is everybody?! What is goin' on down there?" Arthur shouted.

"We lost control of the bank...the others are tryin' to hold them off."

"Okay!" Arthur said, shooting at more men with his revolvers.

Adair sighed as she also kept shooting. "What kind of ammunition does this "gun" require?" Arthur snatched it from her and reloaded it. She took it back and went on shooting. "You have my thanks, human."

Javier laughed. "I will never get over this whole "goddess" thing."

Adair stopped shooting for a moment. "Lilly says she will not either. Really, is this such a shock to everyone?"

"Yes!" both the men shouted.

A wagon pulled into view on the street. "They got a Gatling gun! Stay down!" Arthur warned.

Adair peeked over. "What does that one do?"

"It shoots everything to hell!"

Adair handed Arthur the repeater. "I'll handle it." And with that said, Adair jumped down from the building to the ground. She landed on her feet and walked confidently through the street towards the wagon as it opened fire on her. She giggled from the bullets hitting her.

"Ha! I am actually feeling this!" She got to the wagon and knocked the trigger man away. She got behind the machine and inspected it. "Now, how do I operate this contraption?" she asked herself.

Adair found the trigger and started mowing down men. She stopped and her eyes filled with delight. "Ooooh!" she squealed and clapped her hands. "I like this weapon!" And she started mowing men down again.

"Adair! Come on!" Arthur shouted from the rooftops. "We gotta go!"

Adair laughed. "But I just started playing with this thing!"

She watched Arthur throw his hands up in frustration. "Alright, just meet up with us!"

"Alright, husband! Lilly says to watch out for Lenny!" Adair kept on killing. The Gatling gun eventually ran out of ammo and she frowned. "That was short-lived."

Adair jumped down from the wagon, then jumped onto a building. She climbed up and over the edge.

"I don't believe it!" Dutch said.

"They knew we were comin', just like your ferry job in Blackwater!" Arthur snapped at Micah as the blonde-haired man climbed through the window.

"Ain't nothin' like that," Micah said as he pointed at Arthur accusingly.

Javier was the last to climb into the room and Dutch reboarded the window. The men walked into the next room. "Well what now?" Bill asked angrily.

"I don't know..." Dutch replied. "I don't." He shut the door behind him. "This whole town is filled with cops."

"Well, how long we gonna stay here? A-a few hours?" Arthur snarled at Dutch.

"We go back to camp...they're gonna get every last one of us. I know they're gonna be watchin' the roads." Dutch paced back and forth.

"Wait, where is Lilly? Adair? Whoever she is right now?" Hosea asked Arthur.

"She was on the Gatling gun shootin' the law when I last saw her," Arthur said, sighing in frustration. "Apparently, Adair liked her new toy and wanted to have fun with it."

Dutch chuckled. "That sounds a lot like Lilly to me."

Sean let out a giggle. "It does."

Just then the door opened and everyone aimed their guns. It was Lilly. They all lowered their weapons and Arthur crossed the room to her, embracing her in a hug. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine." Lilly looked around the room. "Feicim Athair agus Lenny beo." [I see Father and Lenny are alive.]

Lenny waved with smiles, as did Hosea. "I'll have to thank Adair for savin' my life," Hosea chuckled.

"Yeah. So, what do we do now?" Lilly said, pulling away from Arthur.

"I got it..." Dutch replied. "A boat."

Arthur turned around and looked at Dutch. "What'chu mean?"

"We stay here til night fall...then we sneak on down to the docks, we get ourselves outta here," Dutch said as he walked back and forth through the room.

"Yeah, but where?" Bill asked.

"Any place'll do," he replied, moving Charles out of a chair so he could sit. "That's all I got. We leave, we lie low, we come back for the rest in a few weeks."

Arthur stared out the window. "I'm guessin' it's that or we die out there right now."

Dutch stood up quickly. "Exactly! Now everybody...calm down. Dutch sat back down. "I mean, ugh, look at us."

Arthur leaned against the wall and Lilly sat down next to him, putting her head on his shoulder and yawning. "Boy, am I tired..."

Arthur chuckled. "Take a little nap, darlin'."

"Okay..."

Lilly snuggled up next to Arthur as they waited for night to come. She yawned, woke up, and laid down with her head in his lap, going on her back. "Arthur? You think we're gonna get outta here okay?" she asked him.

Arthur shrugged. "I hope so," he replied.

Lilly took her hat off and scratched her scalp. "Geez, so itchy."

Arthur laughed and sat her up. "Here, let me fix your hair."

Lilly sat cross legged as she felt Arthur's fingers undo her braid. "Abigail wanted to know about a second boy's name. Any ideas?"

"Hmm. No. What's the point? We're havin' a boy and a girl."

"Maybe we should name the girl Cahira. It's a good, strong name."

"So is Aoífe. After that warrior lady you told me about."

"Yeah but Cahira actually means "warrior"."

Arthur finished with her hair and ran his fingers through it. "Either way, she will be our little warrior. Both of them will be."

Lilly leaned against him and he put a hand on her belly. "They keep wigglin' about, the wee troublemakers."

Arthur wheezed out a laugh. "Just like their mother."

Lilly back handed his chest with a giggle. "Shut up..."

Arthur chortled and prodded her ear with his nose. "When we get out of this...we are gonna focaíl, mo stór..." [fuck, my darling...]

Sean burst out laughing then covered up his mouth. Lilly threw a piece of wood at him. "Shut up, deartháir!" she hissed.

Arthur guffawed before shushing them both up. "The law's still lookin' for us..."

The rest of the time was spent in quiet reflection until the sun went down. Then the group went on the move downstairs with Dutch leading them. He opened the doors and they crept out quietly like skittish mice waiting for a cat to come and pounce.

"Okay, follow me, and keep your heads down," Dutch said. They crossed the street, crouched as they half walked, half ran towards the direction of the docks. "To the boats, come on." They got across and hid behind a train. "Guards up ahead."

"What now?" Arthur said with a groan.

"Just wait a second," Dutch whispered.

Lilly could hear the guards talking as rain poured down on them. "God dammit. This night just keeps getting better, doesn't it?" one of them said.

"Everyone stay down and keep quiet."

Lilly put her back to the train. "I could take 'em both out, Da," she proposed.

"No. We're not gonna draw attention to ourselves by doin' that, Lilly."

"But Da, I-"

"I said no, Lilly," Dutch hissed quietly.

Lilly huffed. "Yes, Da."

"We'll go through the train, Arthur. Come on. Rest of you, follow when it's clear."

Lilly scooted next to Hosea. "How ya doin', Athair?" she asked.

"I'm okay." Hosea pat Lilly on the arm. "Thank you for savin' my life, kid."

Lilly smiled. "You're welcome, although Adair did the hard part."

"True, but we wouldn't have known about it if it wasn't for you."

"Yeah, Lilly," Lenny said quietly. "Thank you."

She smiled at both of them. "I'm just glad you both made it."

"Hey," Charles said. "I think we're clear."

Lilly and the rest nodded, then they boarded the train and walked through it with faint and careful footsteps. Lilly heard a whistle as she got off the train and headed to Dutch with the rest of the group. "Was that Arthur?" she whispered.

"Yes," Dutch replied. "Now stay quiet." Lilly saw two guards walking in Arthur's direction and he popped out from behind some barrels back to the gang on squatted legs. They all walked along the building silently once he joined up with them. They got further down and spotted four guards nearby. "See them?"

"Sure," Arthur said.

"What'chu think?"

Arthur sighed. "Don't know."

"They're watchin' for us," Charles pointed out.

"Maybe...maybe not," Dutch quietly argued.

"Well, they ain't just waitin' there for no reason."

"Yeah, let me think for a second."

Charles huffed. "I'll deal with them."

"What? How?"

"I can't kill all of them silently, so...when they chase me, you go the other way."

"What are you talkin' about?"

"Charles, no," Lilly interrupted. "Don't do it. We'll figure out another way."

"You heard what I said," Charles burst out before going out of hiding and walking down the way towards the guards.

"Oh, I like him," Dutch said gruffly.

"Real brave," Arthur said.

"Yes, brave and stupid," Lilly said.

Arthur chuckled silently. "Shut up, you know you would'a done the same thing if he hadn't thought of it first."

"What in the hell?" one of the guards said as Charles walked by. "Who is...Excuse me! Hey! Buddy! Hey, stop!" he shouted, going after Charles as he went running. "Stop! Stop!"

The other three Pinkertons chased after them. "That is one of the most beautiful acts I ever saw," Dutch said as whistles played in the distance. "Come on."

They all went running to the boat houses until they got to a boat. As the men boarded, Lilly looked at the boat and frowned. Where had she seen this boat before? Just then she heard whining behind her and she turned to see Brian and James looking up at her.

Lilly sighed in frustration. "I told you boys to stay home. Now go ho-"

The boys ignored her and got on the boat. "Hey!" she hissed. "No no no, you get back here!" she said, running after them.

"What now?" Arthur asked Dutch.

"Well, at least we got some gold," Dutch replied.

"Sure."

"Was it worth it?" Lilly asked. "I mean...Lenny and Athair almost got killed."

"We got enough to get outta here, Lilly. All of us. So yes, it was worth it."

Hosea sighed. "Well, I'll be glad to finally retire, even if it's as a potato farmer."

Lilly chuckled. "We don't only harvest potatoes, Athair."

"What else do you Irish harvest?"

"Turnips," she joked.

The three men and her laughed. "Ah, shit," Hosea said.

"John," Dutch said. "That wasn't good."

"What happened to John?" Lilly asked Dutch. So much had happened, she didn't even think to ask.

"He got caught," Arthur replied.

"Shite."

"I know. So what we gonna do now?"

A man coughed as he walked into view with a lit cigarette. "Guess I'm gonna introduce myself to the Captain," Dutch said. "Give him some of this gold to secure his silence...and find out where we're headin'. How do I look?"

"Like a shifty, no good killer on the run from the law," Arthur said to Dutch glumly.

"Ain't that the truth?" Dutch got up and cleared his throat. "Excuse me, sir!"

"Hey, who are you?" the man said.

Arthur poked his head out. "Forgive me. A stowaway. Can I see the Captain please? I come in peace."

Arthur sat straight and shook his head with a sigh. He looked worried. Hosea got up. "I'm gonna go introduce myself to the Captain too." And Hosea walked away.

Lilly looked at her husband and frowned. "You seem perturbed, my love. Care to tell me what's on your mind?"

Arthur gave Lilly a soft smile. "Ah, I'm fine. C'mere," he said.

Lilly sat next to him and they kissed. "You sure?"

"Yeah," he assured her with confidence in his voice. "Of course. Just don't like this back step to our plan."

"Well, we been waitin' a few months to get to Ireland with the gang, what's another few weeks?"

Arthur cackled and wrapped his arm around her. "How are the babies?"

"Sleepin'," she said. "I think robbin' a bank wore them out."

"Ha! You crack me up."

Lilly giggled and rested her head on his shoulder. "We should sleep."

Arthur nodded. "Yup." He rested his head on hers and soon they both dozed off.

"Well!" Dutch said, jolting both Lilly and Arthur out of sleep. It was morning now. "It's gonna take a little bit more gold, but I think we're gonna be okay."

Arthur and Lilly stood up and stretched. "Where are my brothers at?"

"They're runnin' around somewhere. Scared the shit out of some of the crew, but Brian and James are on their best behavior, of course. Now, this Captain, he is a fine fella. A New Englander, from the Cape, the rest of the ship is Frenchmen. They're headin' down to the islands, takin' some Pennsylvania coal. Now apparently we're gonna be able to slip ashore in Northern Cuba in a couple of days."

"That so?" Arthur asked him.

"Apparently."

"Oooh, Cuba," Lilly said enthusiastically. "Oof!" Lilly grabbed her belly. "Okay, knock it off, you two."

"They wigglin' again?" Arthur inquired.

"Yes. God, such...mmm," she groaned. "My back is hurtin'," she said, pressing a palm to her lower back. "I must'a slept funny."

Arthur went behind Lilly and started rubbing her lower back. "There, is that better?"

"Mmhmm," she groaned. "Yup." She leaned her hands on the railing as Arthur continued to rub her back. "Arthur, you spoil me."

A deep chuckle escaped Dutch. "You two are adorable."

"Shut up," both Arthur and Lilly said.

Dutch laughed. "Come on, let's go see the others."

Arthur and Lilly followed Dutch to the other side of the ship. "What are we gonna do in Cuba, Dutch?" Bill asked him as the three approached the rest of the stowaways.

"Hold up for a while, then hurry back...gather up the rest of our family." Arthur sat on a box and pulled Lilly down with him before rubbing her back sone more. "At least we got some money now. Money and loyalty. With that you can do whatever you please."

"So you reckon they'll follow us to Cuba?

"Like Colonel Waxman on a jolly? I highly doubt it. I reckon we hold ourselves to ourselves and this is done and dusted."

"Let's hope so," Arthur said.

Lilly pat Arthur's hand and walked up to Micah who was looking out at the horizon at some dark clouds. Suddenly Lilly remembered where she'd seen the boat before.

"I ain't no sailor, but uh..." Micah stammered and cleared his throat, "that cloud look like good news to you?"

All the men stood up and stared off into the distance and Arthur looked at Lilly with a sad sort of awareness. He knew what was going to happen too. The boat was going to sink in a storm.