Curry sat in the chair by the window, his gun in hand. The gloom of the small room was broken by the faint light of the gas lamps outside and the silvery glow of a half-moon, shining in through the curtains. The Kid drew the heavy material back from the edge of the window, careful to expose as little of the room as he could, while still being able to see out. He listened intently for any sound from behind the door. It'd been a while since he'd been in this position and was far edgier than he could ever remember being before.

There was a heavy weight in his stomach and his hands were clammy enough to be annoying, but not damp enough for there to be any effect to how accurately he could handle his gun. He wiped his slightly wet forehead with the back of his hand as he shivered at the trickle of sweat drying on his neck. His heart was thumping slightly too loudly in his ears. He suppressed a small sigh, whether at his nervousness or at the fact he wanted to be anywhere else but here, he wasn't sure. He knew it was their best chance of digging up dirt on Matlock, but it felt a bit strange robbing the house where his wife had grown up. Although Lily would likely have been both amused and shocked in equal measure. He pushed the thought of her to the back of his mind. Now was not the time to be risk being distracted by dwelling on what he'd lost.

Curry knew without taking his eyes away from the window with the shift in the shadows by the desk that Heyes had looked up from his study of the old Brooker. The Kid dropped his eyes briefly from his lookout to peer at his partner. He couldn't see him clearly, but knew the expression that he'd see if he could. He envied his partner's seeming calm and not quite suppressed excitement. He looked back up to continue his watch, unwilling to chance missing any possible danger of discovery. Heyes' voice broke the slightly charged silence as he said. "Why you so nervous Kid? Ain't hardly the first time. Though if everything goes to plan, it'll be the last. " He stopped and Curry knew he was smiling as he said. "I know I'm out of practice, but you never forget your first love!"

Curry laughed softly then in spite of the prickly feeling down his back. He said dryly without looking away from the window. "Just hoping it'll be the last for all the right reasons." He stopped and added darkly, only half-joking. "And not because we get caught."

"We got it covered. We ain't exactly novices! You gotta have faith, Kid."

The Kid noticed the slightest undertone of real hurt beneath his friend's light comment. It was strange, but somehow that steadied his nerves and his heart slowed to a normal speed. He still felt a little edgy, but then he knew he'd be foolish not to be, given where they were and what they were doing. "Ain't exactly a lack of faith, Heyes, more like..." He trailed off as he was sure he heard a creak of flooring, maybe even footsteps from the main house. He shushed Heyes who looked about to say something and moved quickly to the door. He leant his ear against it for a few moments, but there was no more noise outside it. He stayed where he was for a couple more minutes, still half expecting the door to start to open, before embarrassment started to creep over him as there was only silence. Nerves!

He returned to the window to glance back at the street as Heyes chuckled softly before adding quietly. "I do like when you worry, Kid, but there ain't no need." He said nothing else and Curry knew he was stretching his fingers in preparation to tackle the safe. He kept his eyes out the window and his ears sharp, but aside from their breathing there was no other noise and no sign of anyone in the street. The Kid started to relax while still staying alert as he silently urged his partner to hurry up. He wasn't sure how long Emily would be out and he didn't want to put her in a difficult position.

Luckily it wasn't long before Curry heard a satisfying click as the lock surrendered to Heyes. The flash of white teeth as his friend grinned up at him was obvious even in the dim light. Heyes struck a match and after a few moments of silence that wound the Kid's nerves right back up, he gave a low whistle. " We hit pay dirt, Kid. Now C'mon, lets get out of here."

The Kid rolled his eyes but only said. "No need to tell me twice!"

Curry led the way out of the window and waited on the street, hiding in shadow as Heyes clambered out. Curry helped him down and together they slipped away.

Once in Heyes' set of the rooms as they studied the papers liberated from the safe a thought struck the Kid. "Heyes, we gotta find a way to copy these and return 'em. Got an idea on how we gonna do that?"

"Well, I guess I oughta have mentioned that tonight was actually the second last time we're going to have to break into a safe. Don't look at me like that, Kid. I didn't think you knowing we'd need a second trip was exactly gonna help your nerves. As to copying them, Emory owns the newspaper here in town. "

One document caught Curry's eye and a slightly bitter laugh escaped him. It was the letter that had lost him his job at the bank.

July 1 1888

Dear Mr Wigmore,

We the undersigned, who represent the majority shareholders of the Green Ridge branch of Wells Fargo, do not approve of your continued employment of an outlaw as head of bank security. We therefore demand that he is removed within seven days of your receipt of this letter. If you do not agree to our very reasonable request, we will have no choice as to write to your superiors and express a desire to find some other bank in which to deposit our money.

It was obvious from other documentation that Matlock had been the main force behind the letter. It appeared he'd used a mixture of the promise of major investment and vague threats about falling profitability to ensure cooperation from the rest of the shareholders.

"I bet most of them names are at that weekly poker game."

"Likely so, Kid."

"Ain't none of this exactly illegal Heyes."

"Maybe not, but look at how often he's used his knowledge about the potential routes of a railroad to cheat his neighbours and gouge the rail companies. That's hardly gonna make him popular."

The Kid yawned, suddenly exhausted and sat down heavily on the nearest chair, rubbing his aching eyes. Heyes studied him for a minute and then smiled. " You get some rest, while I figure out what's worth using. Ain't much else we can do tonight."

Feeling a little patronised, Curry was about to argue. However another yawn escaped him and his remaining bruises started to throb along with his head and instead he nodded, stood slowly and walked wearily to his bedroom.

Once there he removed his boots and jacket but nothing else. He lay on his bed, feeling itchy and dirty, but was unable to summon enough energy to move. He decided tomorrow though, he was going to have a bath. As his mind started to edge towards sleep, his eyes drifted over to the small drawers on the room's back wall where the repaired photo of his wedding day sat in pride of place.

Heyes had done more than simply have the frame fixed, he'd had it replaced with one of much better quality. The thoughtfulness of the gesture had left the Kid speechless with a huge lump in his throat when he'd spied it the day he'd moved in. Not wanting to embarrass either of them by being too emotional, he'd not said anything until a couple of days later over breakfast. Heyes had acknowledged his soft thank-you with a small grin and nothing more had needed to be said. The memory brought a smile to his lips as he finally surrendered to the tug of dreams.