The tears and moans of the living mourning the loss of their loved ones passed had all passed that night as the real celebration began. Shortly after the people paid their respects to the ofrenda, the women and children set to work making meals out of the food supply that Reyes and his army had supplied. El Presidio became alive with movement as the pungent smells of authentic Mexican food was being prepared over several small fires. Traditional bread, pan de muerto, was kneaded and baked, sugar skulls were made and placed all around the ofrenda and all around El Presidio, and tamales and mole negro were tediously prepared. The men took to unboxing bottles of tequila and other fine alcohol from crates both from the wagons and within El Presidio itself. The crates, boxes, and tables were moved into the plaza and positioned in rows for seating room; some room had been saved around the ofrenda out of respect. As day turned quickly to night, the people of Mexico transformed from mourning victims to vivacious celebrators.
Candles, torches, and the small fires that had been previously lit for cooking now served as beacons of light as night blanketed the world. Within several hours, the food was eaten with gusto, the alcohol was drunk with wild abandon, and the people laughed, sang, and conversed happily.
Amongst the sudden change in everyone's character, Jack sat stunned and speechless. In silence, he ate his share of the delicious meal and sipped on a bottle of the finest tequila he'd ever tasted. He was quiet for a lengthy time as he sat looking about at the strange customs of Mexico. He was both fascinated and wary of what he saw about him: nearly every single person's face had been painted to make it look like a skull. Some people painted only half their face, others their entire face and neck, but all were adorned with ornate facial decoration. Many people even went to great lengths to don different attire: the women had changed into beautiful, brightly-colored dresses, whereas the men changed into suits. Not all of the citizens could partake in such lengthy ornamentation, particularly the very poor and the ones who had been driven hastily from their homes for fear of La Phantasma ransacking their town. Nevertheless, the people did what they could to fashion themselves as best they could in their current predicament. Where they in their own towns and everything was as it should've been, Dia de Los Muertos would've been a much better, more elaborate celebration.
"You're awful quiet," Maddie murmured in-between mouthfuls of her tamale. She took the bottle from her idle husband and took a healthy swig of it.
"I'm just…observin'," he replied in a confused mutter. So as not to appear rude to the people who sat beside him and his wife, he leaned in closer to her and whispered, "So why is everyone's faces done up? It's creepin' me out."
Maddie laughed and explained, "Death is celebrated here in Mexico. Were we in America, we'd mourn over the loss of a loved one, and while that does still happen here, the people choose to instead remember their loved ones with fond memories and celebration. Death is a part of life; it's just as important."
"I get that," he said, "but I don't get why they gotta look like skulls. Why do they do that?"
She smiled at him with adoration at his naiveté. "They paint their faces to overcome their fear of death." She gestured to the celebration around them. "They do all of this as a reminder that death comes to us all, and that we should appreciate life."
Jack merely frowned in response to this and shook his head as he retrieved the tequila from his wife. "It still creeps me out," he uttered before taking a drink.
"Then you must still fear death."
"I don't," he countered quickly as he looked into her eyes. "You and I both know how many times we've almost died." He paused to look his wife over carefully. "Do you fear death?"
She blinked slowly. "Do you even know who you're talkin' to, Jack?"
He chuckled and replied, "Never mind."
They ate in silence for a time before Jack spoke up once again.
"Do you think these people are still terrified?"
"Of what?"
"Of La Phantasma. You'd think they wouldn't want to celebrate, especially after everything that's happened here in Mexico."
"That gives them even more reason to celebrate, Jack," Maddie answered wisely. "What better way to retaliate against La Phantasma's insanity than to laugh and dance and drink? Why wouldn't they want to celebrate the fact that they're all still somehow alive? Even in the darkest of times, there's always a reason to celebrate." She motioned to the people surrounding them with an upturned hand and a smile. "Look at these people, Jack. They deserve to be happy. Sure, they could all die tomorrow, but that doesn't mean they can't go without smiles on their faces and great memories in their minds. Besides, death would seem a sweet reprieve to those who miss their loved ones dearly."
"You speak as though you know that feeling yourself," Jack commented softly. He paused before asking grimly, "Have you ever wished for death?"
"In my younger years I entertained that idea once or twice. This was before I met you. Hell, you remember how reckless I was back then."
"Back then?" he chuckled. "You still are, darlin'."
She frowned at him but continued on, "Landon himself noticed my reckless tendencies, and although he tried to rid me of them, I still found myself riding into danger. But I've made my peace with death a long time ago. I guess living in Mexico after I lost Mama and I left my father had an effect on my outlook on life and death. Death is neither good or bad—it just is what it is." She smiled in an effort to lighten the dark conversation. "But that was then, and this is now. Tonight, my love, we celebrate."
They each took a swig of tequila before kissing softly.
Off nearby the ofrenda, a group of people had begun to dance. Maddie watched them for a time before she smirked and looked back at her husband. "Will you dance with me?" Maddie cooed.
"You know I can't," Jack chuckled back.
A disappointed frown tugged at the corners of her mouth. She sighed and nodded. "I wish you would."
"Darlin', you know I can't keep up with you, even after all the times you tried to teach me. You've said it yourself: I'm as uncoordinated as a drunken three-legged donkey."
She guffawed and beamed at him. "I said no such thing!" she laughed.
"Like hell you didn't," he chortled and kissed her once more. As he pulled away, he nodded to a group of dancers and said, "Go and dance, darlin'. I know you want to."
She tugged at his hand. "Come with me!"
"I'll step on your feet with my…how did you word it?... "hooves from hell"."
She threw him a chastising look. "You won't ever learn if you don't start. Come on and dance with me, you stubborn ass." Again, she tugged on his hand.
Jack sighed and took a moment to deliberate. On the one hand, he was relatively drunk, but not drunk enough to not care about making a fool out of himself. On the other, he wished nothing more than to show off his wife to everyone, to parade her around like the prairie princess she was. He glanced at the bottle of tequila in his hand, shrugged, and took another drink. As he set the bottle down, he said, "Gimme some time to think on it, darlin'. In the meantime, you go and dance. I know you wanna show off."
Reluctantly, she released his hand and sighed, looking down at him with a defeated scowl. "I'm never gonna get you to dance with me, am I?"
"If I get drunk enough, I'll do you the honor. But we'll see, darlin'."
"Then drink up, Jack. You're gonna dance with me one way or another."
He laughed boisterously. "Yes, ma'am."
With one last disdained look at him over her shoulder, Maddie turned and jogged over to the group of dancers. She immediately joined in, falling into step and the rhythm with the guitar and violin as naturally as her heart beat the rhythm of life within her chest. Jack watched with pride as his wife twirled and bounced about with as much grace and beauty as a prancing mustang at play, her long hair fanning out and swirling with each movement. She took the hands of a young man, who was no older than eighteen or so, and they two-stepped around in the circle that the dancers had formed around them to watch. Maddie danced with several other men and women, as well as by herself. She became the stand-alone performer in the crowd; as usual, Jack was mesmerized, becoming entranced and succumbing to the spell she wove with each twirl and sway of her body and long dark tresses.
He nearly fell out of his chair when someone sat rather clumsily down next to him. Startled out of his reverie, Jack turned and frowned as he met gazes with President Reyes, who was looking incredibly intoxicated. A stupid grin spread across his lips as he acknowledged Jack's presence with a respectful bow of his head. Holding back a chortle, Jack returned the gesture in kind.
"It isss a beeeautiful sight, nnnooo?" Reyes slurred happily as he motioned with a broad wave of his hand to the crowd dancing and drinking away their sorrows and fears.
Jack nodded and took another sweet sip of the tequila. "It is. These people needed this, especially after everything they've gone through."
"Exactammmente, Marston. We all deserve to celebrate; we've ssssurvvvived La Phantasma ssso far, and very soon, we shall be rrrid of her once 'n' for all. Then we can REALLY celebrate, mi amigo. I shall ttthhhrow the GREATEST p-party at my palace, 'n' all of Mexico will dance 'n' drink 'n' propagate this c-country once mmmore! You mmmust come, Jack! It would b-be gloooorious to have the ssson of J-John Marston by mmmy side as we c-celebrate our hard-earned victory!"
"We gotta defeat La Phantasma first before we can get to celebratin'," Jack pointed out with a slight chuckle. "One thing at a time, mister."
"Are you afraid of her, Marston?" Reyes scoffed. He swayed in his seat and squinted threateningly at him. "Do y-you doubt me 'n' my army? I would cccertainly hope not."
"I don't doubt you or your army, mister—I just don't want to jump the gun. We haven't even started fighting, and you're already talking up how wonderful your celebration will be. Anything can happen in a couple days."
The conversation ran dry as they studied each other once more with quizzical countenances—the men didn't know what to think about each other. Not knowing how else to continue their discourse, they looked out at the dancing, drinking, and feasting that happened all around them. Not a single person looked to be in a mortified or anxious mood—every woman and man Jack laid his eyes on, he saw only absolute happiness (even if it were drunken happiness) on their faces. The citizens of Mexico had danced, drank, and talked their sorrows and fears away hours ago. Not one of them looked to be in a melancholic or brooding mood, even though they all were aware of the impending war—for now, all that mattered was to celebrate life, both their own lives and the lives of their loved ones passed.
As if on cue, Maddie emerged within the crowd, twirling in a circle and laughing as she held onto the hands of a little girl. Jack's eyes instantly snagged on her, and he smiled as he watched her and the child spinning together. The girl squealed with joy and laughed as Maddie spun her faster and faster until her little bare feet had left the ground. Maddie spun her around until she began to stumble, at which point she quickly slowed down and set the girl back down on her feet. Engulfed in felicity, the two laughed and smiled at each other. A wash of adoration and an unknown emotion engulfed Jack's heart as he watched his wife pick up the little girl and set her on her hip. From somewhere deep within him, he felt a strange yearning as he stared at how natural and happy Maddie appeared with the child as she shared exuberant gazes with the adorable girl.
"You are a lucky man, Marston," Reyes commented suddenly. "She is a beautiful woman."
Jack blinked out of his reverie and looked over at the President. He didn't know what to say to the man's observation, but he felt a flare of anger as he saw a hunger within Reyes' eyes as he watched Maddie.
"Yes, my wife certainly is," Jack growled.
The hunger was gone as soon as Reyes blinked and met gazes with Jack, whose own eyes speared through him. The President hastily smiled at him and, flushing with embarrassment and inebriation, cleared his throat and attempted to rise from his seat. "Well," he said as he unsteadily got up, "I hope you enjoy yourssself t-tonight." He threw him a sly smile and nudged his arm suggestively. "I cccertainly will b-be doing that in a short while."
"We'll see, mister."
With a drunken smile, Reyes nodded down at him before stumbling after a particularly busty, scantily clad woman who was passing their table. Jack shook his head in disgust as he watched the President chase after her, half-stumbling, half-running in hot pursuit. The woman didn't look too entirely hard to get, seeing as she draped her arm over his shoulder, and he hers, as they began talking and standing quite close, their lips to each other's ears.
"Looks like someone's on the hunt tonight."
Jack cleared his throat and looked away as Maddie came to sit beside him. As his eyes came to rest upon hers, a strong wave of affection washed over his heart, and he smiled as he took her hands in his. He wanted to say so much to her just then, but instead, he pulled her into a loving embrace and kissed her passionately. Up until that point, he hadn't wished for a child, and neither did Maddie…but something inside him ached. I wonder if she feels the same, he thought as he pulled away and looked into her eyes once more.
Her eyes searched his, looking for an explanation for the sudden affection. She opened her mouth to voice her concern, but he beat her to it.
"When this is over, and we get back home, I think we should settle down."
She blinked. "Jack…. what are you saying?"
"What I'm sayin' is…."
He was about to finish his sentence when he felt a wash of uneasiness. He couldn't shake the feeling of a pair of eyes of an unseen and unwanted observer had fallen upon him. Blinking, he turned his head and sat staring at the crowd of dancing people. He searched for the person that had made him uncomfortable, and his uneasiness rose quickly to internal panic as his gaze fell on the spy. Standing on the other side of the dancers was a woman with a painted face and long dark hair that fell to her waist. She was dressed like any other commoner, normal-looking even, but something about her made Jack's stomach churn. As his eyes met hers, the hair on the back of his neck stood straight up and his body instantly tensed.
"Jack, what's wrong?" Maddie asked, instantly picking up on his discomfort.
"Maddie…Look."
She followed his gaze and sat staring alongside him at the woman. She blinked and glanced back at her husband. "Jack, she's just a woman. So what?"
"It's…..her."
Maddie turned her attention back to the woman, who was now moving along with the dancers and blending perfectly in with them. It was almost impossible for her to discern the woman from the rest of them, except for the red floral patterns that were painted on her face.
"Jack, are you saying that's La Phantasma?" she chortled. "That's absurd. To think she'd be so stupid as to come into the most heavily guarded fortress…"
He shrugged. "What better night than for her to do so, Maddie?" He gestured to everyone around them. "Everyone here has a painted face."
A flash of terror crossed Maddie's face. "But how would she even get in? There's soldiers everywhere."
Jack shrugged, utterly clueless. "Let's just keep an eye on her, just to be sure. I don't know about you, but I don't want to take any chances."
His wife nodded in agreement. "Act naturally. Let's not make it too obvious we're watching her."
Despite the unshakable urge to stand up and draw his weapon and fire, Jack nodded as well and took a deep breath.
Twenty long minutes passed; in the midst of acting normal and talking and drinking, Jack and Maddie kept a close watch on the woman, who hadn't so much as made any sort of threatening act. She was drinking and talking alongside the rest of the citizens, laughing even. Still, the Marstons eyed her warily.
"She's acting too normal," Jack whispered in Maddie's ear. He cupped her face and acted like he was kissing her neck so as not to arouse the strange woman's suspicion.
"Should we warn Reyes?" Maddie uttered back, glancing at her out of the corner of her eye.
"No. Let's wait and see what she does."
"Wait…Where's Reyes?"
A cold wash of panic surged through Jack as he leaned away from his wife and looked around. He spotted the President across the courtyard, who was sitting at a table nearby where Jack and Maddie's horses, alongside several other horses, were hitched, drunkenly kissing the woman he'd chased after not long ago. Jack pointed him out with a nod and replied, "He's…busy at the moment."
Maddie followed his gaze and wrinkled her nose in disgust. "Dios mio," she uttered with a shake of her head. "¡Lo que es un cerdo!"
"What'd you say?"
"What a pig," she translated.
The woman they'd kept such a vigilance on suddenly set her drink down and politely excused herself from the group of people she was conversing with. She turned and walked around the dancing citizens, passing by five feet away from Jack and Maddie. Despite themselves, the bounty hunters tensed as she skirted around them.
Their trepidation turned to dread as the glow of the moon and nearby torches reflected off a metallic surface through the slit of her skirt, right in the middle of her right thigh. Whether or not it was a knife or a gun, the Marstons couldn't tell, but what they did know was that the woman was now making a move, whatever it might be.
Reyes, still in the throes of sloppily kissing the woman, had no idea that the woman was slowly making her way towards him, politely placing a hand on the shoulders of the people she was trying to move past. Her polite apologies suddenly stopped the nearer she was to the President. With no further proof needed to verify that the woman was indeed La Phantasma, Maddie and Jack sprung to their feet and raced after her, shoving their way through the crowd.
They were nowhere near the President to aid him as La Phantasma suddenly sprinted forward, reaching through the slit in her skirt as she quickly shortened the distance between her and her target. Finally, Reyes suspected something was amiss as the woman he was kissing suddenly stopped when she saw the asesina rush towards them out of the corner of her eye.
She was upon him without warning, slashing a large dagger at him with incredible speed. Despite being inebriated, Reyes was able to shy away from her attack, but only by mere inches. Her blade cut open his shirt, and as he stumbled up to his feet and turned to run, she swung the dagger back around and made contact with his flesh. The blade sunk in deep into his right shoulder blade; La Phantasma bared her teeth with frustration and let out a frenzied shriek when her dagger didn't fall true to her aim, so she withdrew the dagger from Reyes' flesh, sending a stream of his blood flying behind her. Reyes cried out in excruciation and, wildly panicking, darted away from her. Eyes aflame with maniacal rage, she attacked once again, thrusting her blood-streaked blade towards Reyes' chest.
As nearby soldiers turned and caught sight of what was happening, a gunshot suddenly sounded amidst the crowd. A soldier who seemed out of place had fired his gun in the air, drawing some of the soldiers' and citizens' attention. All of the sudden, it was pandemonium; the people of Mexico scattered and darted around like frightened cattle in a round pen; nearby soldiers rushed forward to aid their wounded President, but it was made even more difficult as they tried to push past the sea of rushing, stumbling, panicking citizens. In the midst of all the terror, a soldier nearest the imposter pointed his pistol at him, but the betrayer had drawn his gun faster and shot the soldier in the chest, killing him instantly.
A soldier who was stationed on the second level of the fortress, near the two cannons on the north side, suddenly rushed down the steps and, instead of apprehending her and protecting the President, shot down anyone who was in his way, including citizens. He cleared the path leading to the cannons, and by the time Jack, Maddie, and the soldiers had reached Reyes, the President had fallen to the ground while La Phantasma made a break for it, leaping up the stairs and over the fallen unfortunate. By that time, the other soldier who was in league with her had caught up and was guarding her from the rear, shooting at Reyes' soldiers and at the bounty hunters that chased after them.
By the time the soldiers and the Marstons could get a clear shot, the two men who'd helped La Phantasma escape rushed past her on the steps and over to the fortress wall between the cannons. They slid to a stop and helped hoist their fearless leader up and over the break in the wall before they scaled it themselves. Their efforts to avenge the President and smite La Phantasma were in vain as the group reached the wall, only to watch helplessly as La Phantasma and her two escorts gallop away on their horses. Even as they all started shooting, the three assassins sped away, their horses kicking up clouds of dust and vanishing into the night.