"So, the total take is sixty-seven thousand dollars." Celina was to announce this rather proudly as she, Arthur and John stuffed the cash back into the bags.

Dutch whistled lowly with a satisfied shake of his head, "That, is enough." His voice was full of hope, "We, my friends are getting out of here. Getting out of this mess that we're in once and for all."

Celina couldn't help but feel hope soar in her heart at the thought of finally achieving true freedom with the gang. Still, something just... Something just didn't feel quite right. Was she really the only one who had this feeling? Or was she just paranoid because she wasn't used to things being so easy?

She stood to her feet and stretched, "So, what are we going to do while we're waiting to move?"

Bill was silent for a moment, "We could play a game."

Arthur scoffed, "I was going to suggest we get some sleep until the coast is clear, but sure Bill, we can play a game. Leave it to you to want to play a game. What do you suggest?" Arthur's voice was laced with sarcasm as usual.

Bill shrugged, "Well I don't know." He took on a tone of defense, "Whenever I have an idea you act like it's so stupid."

"Welll-" Arthur started.

Celina cut him off, "Would you quit? It's not a bad idea. I actually have a game we can play, it's called Never Have I Ever."

"Never have I ever?" Arthur looked as confused as everyone else at the name of the game.

Celina nodded with a knowing smile, it wasn't likely that the game existed in 1899, "Yep, Never how I ever. What we do is all take turns saying something that we've never done and then whoever has done it has to raise their hand.. normally whoever has done it has to take a drink of alcohol... but since we don't currently have it available to us..."

"Ok," Dutch nodded, seeming at least moderately interested in the game, "You start us off then."

It took Celina a moment to think of a topic, "Never have I ever eaten raw meat." She knew that would be a good one to start with considering the year they were in and the company she kept. She figured that quite a few of them had probably done that at some point, regardless how disgusting it would be.

Everyone in the room raised a hand except for Dutch who looked at all of them like he couldn't believe it, "You're telling me that all of you boys have been too lazy to cook yourselves a proper meal at some point?"

Javier shrugged from where he sat on a chair in the corner of the room, "At some point."

Celina laughed, "Now, I get to choose someone to think of the next one." She looked around the room in search of someone to go next and finally decided, "Javier."

"What?" He groaned, "Ok... never have I ever stolen livestock, other than horses if you count em." Arthur and John raised their hands, getting a few laughs out of the group, "Your turn, Arthur."

Arthur took a good look around at all of them before taking his turn, "Never have I ever... umm, Never have I ever cheated on a woman."

Javier, Sean, John and Bill all raised their hands, Celina looking at them with wide eyes, "You guys are jerks. And John, that's disappointing, was it Abbigail you cheated on?"

John looked down at his feet, "A time or two."

Arthur shook his head, "Ok, your turn, John."

John crossed his arms over his chest, "Never have I ever shot someone by accident."

Celina looked around the room with intrest, seeing who would and wouldn't raise their hand. She raised a brow when Arthur raised his hand along with Bill, "Ok, you guys have got to tell the story behind what happened with that."

Arthur laughed, "Why don't you ask Dutch? He's the one I shot."

Shock came across her face and the group bursted into laughter at the thought of what that would have been like or possibly as they recalled the memory of it. Ceoina looked over to Dutch who was leaning against the wall, shaking his head. Bill was the one who spoke though, pointing at Arthur accusingly, "You're telling me that you accidentally shot Dutch before and you still give me crap about my mistakes?"

Arthur shrugged with a small smile, "Just one of those things."

Bill's eyes widened at the phrase Arthur used to get out of trouble for everything, "Oh, common!"

Celina laughed harder than she had in a long time at the ineraction between the two adult men. It was as if they were still teenagers at times. She addressed Dutch again, "So, are you going to enlighten us as to what happened that caused Arthur to shoot you?"

Dutch chuckled, "It was back when Arthur was pretty young, around eighteen maybe. Anyway, we were out hiding from some law men who had caught wind of us, Hosea was with us too. So, we were hiding and I decided that I was going to go out and scout ahead, Arthur was still learning things and Hosea had twisted his ankle so I was the best bet. I go out there and see that the law has backed off and on my way back Arthur must have thought I were a law man because he shot me in the shoulder! Lucky he missed his mark or I would have been dead."

Arthur shook his head, face beat red at the memory, "Of course you leave out the part where I hardly left your side until you recovered." He laughed at himself, "I felt so terrible."

Dutch laughed, it all seeming to be a humorous memory in present time, "Son, I think you were scared to touch your gun for a month. Poor Hosea, I think you had about given him a heart attack."

Everyone laughed harder as they pictured the events unfolding as Dutch recalled them, Arthur's face remaining as red as a tomato. John gestured to Dutch, "What about you, Dutch? Do you have one?"

Dutch twisted the ring which he still wore, "I'm sure I can think of something... never have I ever..."

...

"Do you think it's safe for us to head out yet?" John looked to Dutch for an answer as the two of them stood on opposite sides of the window and discretely peered out upon the streets.

Night had fallen after a playing games for a while, then talking to pass time and frankly, everyone in the room was ready to leave the city behind for good. They had their money and they were ready to leave. Dutch nodded, surveying the streets himself, "I think we can make a break for it. The law has quieted down quite a bit."

Celina walked over to the window as well and shook her head, "No, not yet. I want to stay here a little longer, just to be safe. They haven't found us here yet, no point in rushing out at first chance and risking things." She kept her voice low, "None of us want to end up on our way to Guarma."

John looked interested, "Guarma?"

She nodded, "It's an awful place, nothing like Australia or Tahiti. And really, I'd prefer Tahiti over Australia any day, as far as I know there are way too many things in Australia that can kill you. Our luck we would escape this country only to die by the bites of killer spiders."

Dutch and John were both quiet for a moment but Dutch broke the brief silence, "Ok, so Tahiti it is... would you give it another hour or so?"

Celina tilted her head to the side slightly in thought, "I would probably give it at least another two hours.."

John seemed uncertain, "If we go out when it's too well into the night then that will look awfully suspicious."

Celina shrugged, "If we go out now the chances of us actually being recognized will be higher. Pick your poison."

Dutch sighed, "In a couple hours it is."

"So," Celina clapped her hands together and turned around to face everyone else, "I guess we're going to wait a couple more hours before we head out."

Sean yawned and took his jacket off, piling it up on the floor and laying down, using it as a makeshift pillow, "When you tards decide that this ain't the fancy livin yer after, wake me up." The Irish boy closed his eyes and turned his back towards all of them to face the wall in an attempt to go to sleep.

Arthur pointed at him, "Actually, that ain't a bad idea. I think I just might do that myself."

Dutch leaned against the wall, yawning himself, "Alright, all of you go ahead and get the sleep you can. I'll stay up and keep watch. It really shouldn't be to long before we're out of here."

Celina gave him a small smile and yawned herself, "Are you sure?"

Dutch nodded, "Yes, I am sure. It's my job to look after all of your best interests and you all so obviously need sleep."

Celina shook her head, "I want to stay up, with you."

He smiled, "As you wish."

...

It didn't take long for anyone but Bill to fall asleep, Celina watched at the man jumped violently every time he was falling into sleep and then jolted straight up and looked around to ensure he was where he thought he was. Of course neither Celina nor Dutch gave any hint that they had witnessed the trouble he was having in sleeping. At least no hint to Bill that they were watching what he was going through. Celina kept her voice at a whisper from where she sat beside Dutch, glancing at veteran periodically with some empathy, "It's PTSD, isn't it?"

Dutch nodded, with a slight frown, "He's struggled with it for all twelve years that I've known him. It's sad really, the sacrifices he's made for this country only to have them be the ones trying to take away his freedom."

Celina looked down at the ground, remembering back to only a couple days ago when the rough around the edges veteran had saved her life. She almost wished she could give him the credit he deserved for saving her, for seeing that she was still with them now. Actually, she felt rather guilty that when she was in 2018 She hadn't ever really cared for Bill with how he was portrayed in RDR2... or the first game for that matter. It was truly eye-opening to get to know him as a person and realize his level of complexity. Even with all of those thoughts running through her mind, her response was short, "It is."

She rested her head on Dutch's shoulder and the next thing she knew, she was being gently shaken awake, "Common Celina, we've got to get moving, it's been nearly two hours."

Celina opened her eyes slowly and rubbed at them to help her eyes adjust so she could see more clearly, everyone else was stirring, waking up as well. Obviously, they were way more used to waking up at Dutch's command than she was. How she hated being a heavy sleeper at times. She let out a yawn as she forced herself to her feet, Dutch standing up as she did, "Everyone, take a moment to collect yourselves, we're going to be heading out here before long."

Celina made her way over to the window still in a state of groginess and looked down at the street, searching for anything that made her feel uncomfortable. She licked her lips and nodded feeling as if they had waited long enough and everyone would made it out safe and without incident. She glanced over at Dutch, "It looks good out there. I see maybe two law men down the street a ways... they have flashlights. I think we can all make it."

Dutch nodded at her, trusting her judgement as if it were his own, "Ok, you all heard her. Let's get out of here, back to camp and then we'll work on getting to Tahiti tomorrow morning."

Everyone either nodded or gave a verbal agreement as Dutch walked back over to the window that led out to the roof and opened it, motioning everyone to climb outside. They all did so without a moments hesitation, more sick of that small room than they had been of anything in a while.

Celina was the last one out, feeling her stomach twisting with uneasiness once again. She made eye contact with Dutch, when he placed a hand on her back in concern, "I still feel like something's wrong."

"Do you think we should stay longer?" His question was sincere and it warmed her heart the amount of effort he was putting forth to try to make her feel like her call was important to him. Really, he acted like it was.

She shook her head though, "No, it should be alright... their ain't much law around as far as it seems. I think I'm probably just paranoid, we can't stay holed up forever... we just need to be careful."

The expression of concern didn't leave Dutch's handsome face but he nodded anyway, not willing to fight with her. In the time he had to think over his treatment of her in her absence, he had come to the conclusion that she probably did know what was safe as opposed to dangerous better than the rest of them. He just had to take a deep breath sometimes and remind himself of that, "We'll be careful. He assured her and himself, we'll always be careful."

Dutch took the lead once more, leading the gang across the roofs of buildings towards the edge of the town. They took their time and made slow progress in an attempt to go undetected by the few law men whom they were sure we're still lurking about.

The air was bitter cold even with the fact that heat rises. It was in fact so cold that it wasn't long before Celina had trouble feeling her fingers and her nose began to run to the point that it was simply annoying. She wiped at her nose with her sleeve and took cover with the rest of the gang when they spotted law up ahead on the next rooftop.

Dutch gestured to Arthur and the younger outlaw crept up to him, "Go up there with John and Javier and take those boys out silently. It would be a shame to get this far and cause commotion."

Arthur nodded and snuck back to ask Javier and John to go with him. Celina watched nervously as the three men snuck up on the law and took them out with their knives. She let herself breathe again only once all three of the law were clearly dead. Dutch led them forwards after that and Celina pointed to a ladder leading down the side of the building which the others must have missed, "Don't you think we can go down to the ground from here? We're almost through the city. Don't know when there's going to be another ladder."

Dutch turned around and looked at the ladder which she was pointing to, "We could use it, I'm sure there's got to be another one up ahead though."

Celina wasn't so certain, "Let's just take this one, I would feel better if we were on the ground before we're out in the open where we won't be able to take cover right away if needed."

"Alright," Dutch gestured, "Have it your way then."

Celina hesitated a second before creeping over to the ladder, wondering if Dutch's consent was genuine or bitter. Sometimes with him it was hard to tell. Slowly, she made her way down the ladder, taking cover at the side of the building and waiting for the rest of the group to come down.

Arthur threw threw sac of money he carried down to Dutch who caught it easily, then John throwing the one he had to Arthur as he climbed down himself. The group all took cover at the side of the nearest building with Celina and surveyed their surroundings the best they could without flashlights through the darkness. .

Celina smiled at the boys, "See? We did it." She stepped out of cover slightly to get a better look at were law could be standing. Before she knew it, the light of a flashlight was shown on her.

"There they are!" It seemed that a good portion of the rest of the gang was spotted too, "The folks who robbed the bank! Shoot them!"

At once, the gang took off, running in the opposite direction of the law and taking cover as quickly as possible, drawing their guns and ready to fight. Celina took cover behind a stack of crates beside Arthur, firing at the approaching law, "I should have never choosen to take that ladder. This is all my fault. I'm so sorry Arthur."

Arthur shook his head, "That's nonsense, you couldn't have known what we were walking into."

"Dutch let me make the call as to whether or not we would rob the bank and if we lose anyone in this it's all on me." Celina fired again.

"At least there's not a lot of law." Arthur took out the final guy and they all were quiet for a moment. Dutch shouted, "Out to the horses, now!"

Everyone obeyed immediately, the group immediately running out of cover again, firing at the law which was running down the street towards them. Celina fired at a man who lifted his gun to fire at Arthur just begore he could squeeze the trigger. Focused on her shot, she was blindsided when a bullet came whizzing towards her.

At first, she didn't feel it and she thought it was strange, the way the boys were all yelling at her like it was the end of the world. She fired off another shot, killing one of the closest lawmen before she registered that her stomach felt strangely warm and wet, she reached down, placing her hand on her stomach as the boys fired around her, keeping her safe of any shooters.

Her brow furrowed in confusion when warm, almost sticky liquid coated her hand and she pulled it away slowly, her vision beginning to fade out and go black. The last thing she felt was the feeling of being sweeped off her feet.

As she went back and forth between being concious and unconscious, she could just barely register that she was on the back of someone's horse. Who? She didn't know, but she was on someone's. Still, she couldn't quite process what had happened nor why her stomach hurt more than anything she could imagine as it did or why she was so tired. She relied on the voices of the gang to try to figure out what had happened through her pain. Her vision, no matter how hard she tried to see clearly was terribly out of focus.

"Would you stop asking if she's ok? She was shot in the stomach, Bill for God's sake!" That voice came from Arthur... at least she thought it was Arthur's voice... It sure did sound like him.

"We get her back home and we get that bullet out of her," That was Dutch, "She'll never make it through the night if she has it rattling around inside of her. She needs stitched up before she bleeds out."

She could just barely feel whoever she was riding with pull her arms tighter around their waist in attempt to help her stay on the horse. She clutched at their shirt weakly and then they spoke, revealing themselves as Javier, "She's awake just barely I think. Celina?"

She struggled to find her words, "I'm, I-"

"Hush love," it was Dutch who spoke, it would only make sense for it to be Dutch who spoke, "Save your energy for staying with us."

...

Dutch rode alongside Javier who had Celina on the back of his horse, her arms wrapped around his torso and her almost lifeless hands grasping at his shirt in attempt to stay balanced. Why had she had to agree to the bank robbery? Why had he even wanted to go through with the bank robbery after she told him what could happen during it? She had seemed certain that it would all be alright. She had seemed so convinced and now this?

He could hardly take his eyes off her, he was terrified that he was going lose her and he couldn't imagine how he'd live with that. She, she aside from the gang was everything to him. He loved her so dear. Why hadn't he just told her no about the ladder? He had wanted to. He had wanted to get to the very edge of the city before coming down from the roof but he had let her change his mind. If she died, it was all on him.

To make it worse, Bill kept talking as if he could speak her into being ok. When he wasn't trying to speak her into being ok, he was asking if she was ok. Dutch could hardly take it, he knew that Bill meant well but he just needed a moment of silence. He just needed a moment to think.

Bill opened his mouth again, "I think she'll be ok, Dutch. She just needs rest is all."

That was it, Dutch had had it. He turned around in his saddle, finally cracking under the possibility of losing Celina along with not knowing where Hosea, Charles, Sadie and Abigail were or if they were even alive, "Would you shut up, Bill?!" His words came out in a roar that shut the veteran up immediately.

Bill stared at Celina's back, that being the best view he could get of the girl from that angle, "She ain't done nothing wrong." Bill said a heck of a lot quiter to himself. She was one of the best of them, he thought and she was facing potentially dying over something as stupid as a bank robbery. He took a deep breath, that girl, if they went and lost her...

John looked over at Bill who finally shut up after being yelled at more harshly than he deserved by Dutch. He saw the largest man in the group's mouth move as he said something under his breath to himself. John shook his head, finding facing reality all too painful in that moment. It almost seemed unreal how fast the tables had turned on them, one moment they were hiding out not having such a terrible night, playing games. Then the next they had thought they were free, all to be led up to this very moment. John clenched his jaw, after all she had done for the gang, after the incredible amount of loyalty she had shown them all, what had it gotten her?

Lenny rode up next to Arthur, speaking loud enough so that Arthur could hear him clearly but likely not anyone else, "She's got to be ok, Arthur."

Arthur nodded, daring to look over at the woman who managed to open her eyes periodically, "She's strong, she'll be alright." Arthur forced himself to think of his more positive memories of her, "I taught her to shoot, you know? And she ain't half bad."

Lenny smiled, "What about the time the three of us got drunk as heck and ended up in jail in Valentine?"

Arthur laughed as he recalled that memory, "Yeah, she'll be ok. You know, she hasn't been with us a whole long time..."

Lenny finished his sentence, "But she belongs with us."

Arthur nodded, "She does belong with us... with Dutch... She just, things are better with her around. I wish she would have became a part of the gang sooner."

...

Eventually they rolled into camp, Celina still just barely clinging onto life and Hosea coming rushing up to them upon their arrival much to everyone's relief to see him alive and well, "There you all are! We were waiting for you but had to leave due to the law, you guys were taking too-" he stopped in the middle of his sentence when he saw Celina being carefully removed from the back of Javier's horse by Dutch, "Oh dear, what happened?"

"She's been shot. In the stomach." Arthur's answer was cut and dry, not currently caring about the fear in Hosea's voice but only about Celina's condition. Arthur climbed down from his horse and followed Dutch towards the house, everyone else who had been with Celina at the time she was shot following as well. Hosea, however immediately sprinted ahead, holding the heavy wooden door of the house open for Dutch who carried her bridal style, "Put her on the couch, Dutch."

Dutch did as told by Hosea, laying Celina on the couch gently and putting a pillow behind her head before dropping to his knees beside her, the gang members gathering around the couch in concern but giving Dutch and his injured woman plenty of room.

Hosea leaned out the door and
yelled for the only person they really had to get the bullet out of her, "Pearson, come in here, quick! We need you."

Dutch looked at Hosea in horror, "How the hell do you expect the butcher to help?"

Hosea turned back around and fixed Dutch with a ' don't question me' stare, "He's our only option, our best option unless you think another one of us is more qualified or you think you can fetch a doctor before she bleeds out and dies."

Dutch's eye's widened and he shook his head before looking back at Celina and pressing a kiss to her forehead and moving out of the way just as Pearson ran into the room from outside, looking at the scene before him in shock.

...

A/N: I am very aware that the chapters lately have been pretty dark and Celina is in a really bad place right now but I absolutely feel like her getting shot was necessary to the story line. So hang in with me through this and we'll see what happens in the next chapter. This was a rather hard chapter for me to write but I'm happy I did it and I am excited to be putting it out there for all of you to read.

At least 'Never Have I Ever' was fun though, right? I needed something to lighten the chapter a bit and I appreciate all of your suggestions, that really helped. I almost had Bill out his crush on Celina by saying spin the bottle before he realized the male to female ratio in the room lol but figured that would be stupid so didn't do it. That game probably didn't exist back then anyway ?

But funny story about Arthur accidentally shooting Dutch lol and Arthur's 'just one of those things' justifications ?

Anyway, I would love some feedback on this chapter if and when you guys get the chance. It won't stay dark forever!

Disclaimer: I do not own Red Dead Redemption 1 or 2 or anything associated with it.