Where This Flower Blooms

by smeewrites

Effie Bartlett struggles to survive out in the Big Valley with her father, scambling to keep a roof over their heads as the West evolves with the new age. A fierce storm forces an outlaw to seek her help for shelter, and Effie's life is flung into chaos. (OC x Arthur Morgan) Rated M for graphic depictions of violence - the game itself is an 18 so read at your own discretion.

11. Chapter 11 - Pouring Forth Oil II

Chapter 11: Pouring Forth Oil II

Effie stared out at the road ahead as she made her way through Twin Stack Pass, acutely aware of Sean whistling some jaunty tune beside her. They had said very little to each other since they'd left camp, she wasn't in the mood for much conversation following her argument with Arthur before she'd left. Their heated exchange swirled in her mind, and she knew she hadn't meant to push the outlaw as far as she had; she knew Arthur was just worried for her - hell, he'd been the one by her side since she'd left Six Point Cabin all those weeks ago. He was even the one who got her out of there, got her better equipped to his the gang's lifestyle, even willing to take her out of camp exploring with him where he'd share his stories with her, and in turn listen to hers.

She touched the bandanna that he'd given her and gritted her teeth; she should have said something to him, should have told him she was tired, that her ribs had started hurting her from when she'd be thrown into those rocks going down the Dakota River with Benedict Allbright and neither had helped her mood. It had been childish of her to push him like that and lash out, whether he'd meant any of the things he'd said to her or not.

"Effie? Did ya hear what I said?" Sean's Irish twang suddenly interrupted her brooding reflection and she glanced up at him, making out his boyish features in the dark.

"Huh?"

"I said we gotta head off on the right, the house is somewhere out over there in the Heartlands," The Irishman pointed to the rolling plains illuminated by the clear night, "We won't miss it, it's a big house."

"Right," Effie nodded and swallowed, trying to focus on the job at hand.

Sean furrowed his brow, "Are ya sure you're okay to do this, lass?"

She cleared her throat, "Yeah, I'm good. I was just thinkin', that's all."

The outlaw grunted, "Don't take much notice of what Mister Morgan said to ya back there, the fella gets real grumpy sometimes, an' sometimes there's just no stoppin' him when he gets mad like that."

She huffed, "No, it's okay. I was actually thinkin' I should've said somethin' when he came over before we left back there."

Sean shrugged and reached into his jacket to pull out a loose cigarette, "I wouldn't worry about it, Miss. If anythin'; I should be the one frettin' about bringing ya back to him in one piece, I ain't lookin' for a scoldin' off ol' Morgan, either." He chuckled as he struck a loose match off his saddle horn and lit his cigarette. Effie gave him a small smile and looked back out ahead, guiding her stallion through the bushes and undergrowth, listening to the sounds of the nocturnal wildlife around them. Eventually she made out the silhouette of a large farmhouse up ahead in the moonlight, and she pulled on her reins, slowing her Thoroughbred up a little.

"Is that the place?" She glanced at her partner.

Sean nodded as he slowed his horse beside her, "That'll be the one," He smoked thoughtfully as they looked out to it; the homestead was big and in total darkness, with a barn and paddock situated beside it, "Ain't it massive?"

Effie nodded, and twisted in her saddle to grab her repeater from where it was slotted beneath, "How many people did you say lived here?"

"Just two."

"Two?" She echoed and scoffed, "That's a lotta rooms for just two people."

"Exactly my thinkin' when I first saw it," Sean grinned, "Never understood why rich people feel the need to live in such big places. The way I see it; you can only be in one feckin' room at once, just seems unnecessary to have so many."

"Lots of rooms means more places for valuables, though," She shot him a wry grin as she raised her repeater to look down the scope to get a better look; she pursed her lips as she slowly checked all the windows, there weren't any lights on, and in the gloom she couldn't make out much, but it didn't look like anybody was there. "Looks empty to me, how do you wanna do this?" She lowered the gun and glanced at the Irishman as he finished his smoke.

"Well we could try our luck goin' up the porch and breakin' the lock on the front door," He pulled a face as he eyed the front entry of the homestead, "But when I came up here last to take a look I saw a window around the back, we could go through that way."

"Huh," Effie looked back out at the house, "If we go through the window then there won't be any broken locks, raise less suspicion that way, I guess."

Sean nodded and jumped down off his horse, he grabbed his own repeater from his saddle and slung it over his shoulder. She leaned forward in her saddle and hopped down beside him, wincing as her side jolted a little at the movement; she'd definitely have to get Abigail or Miss Grimshaw to take a look at her ribs when they got back to camp later. Her hand brushed her holster to check for her knife and pistol and she nodded to herself, then she gave her Thoroughbred a sharp pat on his rear, "Go on boy, I'll call for ya later." She ordered, the stallion whinnied and shot off over the hill, Sean encouraged his horse to do the same and they approached the house quietly, veering the building in a wide arc to get around to the back.

Effie narrowed her eyes as they crept to the rear of the house, there wasn't a window on the ground floor open, but there was one wide open just one floor up, the Irishman followed her gaze and nodded to her unspoken question, "That's the one, we can use those crates to climb up." He breathed, he held out his hand for her to go first and she licked her lips as she gauged the climb.

She climbed onto the crates as quietly as she could, carefully not to jostle them into the side of the house, she stifled a groan when she realised she'd have to jump to reach the window's ledge and glanced back down to where the outlaw was stood watching her expectantly. The fall wouldn't be deadly, but it certainly wouldn't do her any favours if she didn't make it, either.

Effie counted to five to steel herself before she leapt and scrambled herself up the side of the house, gritting her teeth as her hands caught the ledge and she pulled herself up, swinging her leg high over the ledge so her boot landed on the floor flat, trying to make as little noise as possible. Once she was in she steadied herself, then leaned out the window and gestured for Sean to follow, she turned and glanced at the room she'd entered, it was an office, or some sort of study of some sorts. Bookcases lined two walls, a grand oak desk was positioned against the far wall, and there were shelves with various trinkets and photographs on them. Behind her, the window ledge creaked slightly as Sean's hands gripped the edge, and she leant to grab his arm and help haul him up, he stumbled slightly as he climbed through and she steadied him.

"That wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be," He grinned, his bold confidence flashed in his gaze.

She nodded, "Looks like this is some sort of office, I'll search the shelves, see if you can find anythin' in that desk." She whispered and crept over to the shelves, she picked up some jewellery and a silver pocket watch that gleamed to her in the moonlight. Behind her Sean was working the lock on the drawer at the desk, rattling it as he struggled to prise it open with the letter opener, she furrowed her brow slightly as he cursed under his breath, sighing as he finally got it open and she winced at how loud the wood scraping against itself sounded.

The Irishman let out a low chuckle as he peered at the desk drawer's contents and snatched up a wad of handbills and a coin purse, Effie made her way to the door leading out the room as quiet as she could and waited for the outlaw patiently as he searched a little more, once he was satisfied he joined her, a gleeful smirk already on his features, "That's one room down, an' if the rest are like this it's gonna be a pretty good take for us."

She returned the Irishman's expression with one of her own, "Come on," She twisted the doorknob as slowly as she could in an effort to stay quiet, and eased the door open carefully. They stepped out onto a landing and glanced at the two doors that were closed; both on either side of the house.

Sean nudged her, "We'll split up; you take that room an' I'll handle this one here, then we'll head downstairs together."

Effie nodded and carefully made her way over to the next door, she paused outside it and strained to listen to make sure she couldn't hear anyone in there, she reached up and opened the door as quietly as she could and stepped through. The curtains were drawn and the room was in complete darkness and she swallowed and held the door open wide, trying to allow as much moonlight from the windows on the landing into the room. She waited until her eyes adjusted to the gloom; making out a large bed with expensive looking sheets situated proudly in the centre against the back wall, there were two wardrobes and a chest of drawers, at the far end by the window there was a vanity and she could just about make out the shape of a chest at the end of the bed.

Effie breathed quietly as she worked her way around the room slowly, combing through all the drawers and possible nooks and crannies she could, filling her satchel as she went. Her meticulous searching was rewarded when she felt the familiar cool metal of a lockbox hidden right under the bed, and she made a small noise of satisfaction as she pulled it out. She grabbed the butt of her gun and winced as she bashed it twice to break the catch on the lock, her shoulders tensed as the metal clattered to the floorboards and she held her breath for a moment before she gingerly opened it, breathing out a sigh of relief as she saw the stacks of bills and and two gold nuggets. She stuffed them into her satchel and paused as she saw the expensive looking paper bound together with an ornate metal clip beneath the valuables and held it up in the light of the doorway to read it. "Cornwall City and Railway," She murmured as she read the title on the top, then glanced at the small print beneath it, "Bearer Bonds." She breathed, unable to fight the triumphant grin that spread on her face as she saw the figure printed onto the page.

She eased the lockbox back underneath the bed and tucked them safely into her inside jacket pocket as she straightened and started towards the open door, Sean was waiting for her on the landing and narrowed his eyes as he saw her smug smile as she joined him, "There weren't much in that room, what'd you find in there?"

"It's the bedroom, so there were a few bits, but I found a lockbox under the bed. Think I got somethin' good." She nodded.

Sean grinned and they headed for the stairs, she frowned when she heard muffled voices around the front of the house and she grabbed his arm as he led the way down. The voices got louder and they both stilled as she heard the unmistakable sound of footsteps on the porch outside.

"Well, looks like that codger was right, those folk ain't here for sure, house looks empty," A man's voice sounded from outside the door and the Irishman glanced back up at her, his eyes wide. The staircase led to a hallway below, and the front door was straight ahead of them in view, Effie's mouth went dry when the handle rattled loudly, "Shit, front door's locked up tight, ya got a lockbreaker?" The voice groaned.

"Yeah, hold on," A second voice sounded and Effie narrowed her eyes; Sean's tip off must have spread word about the homestead to more than just him, there was a faint scratching and Effie gripped her gangmate's arm and dragged him back up the stairs, they dodged just out of sight as the front door downstairs swung open and they heard the echoing sound of boots stepping through. "Alright," The bandit sniffed as he moved around, "Let's sweep these rooms real quick, but he said the real score is upstairs in the bedroom."

"Now hang on," The first voice said as he entered the house downstairs, "There's three of us, why don't we just split up and get through the house quicker?"

Sean and Effie exchanged a look in the gloom as the men shuffled together downstairs, "Fine. Mercer; go with Watson an' take the upstairs and go search everywhere, I'll take a look down here."

Sean pressed his back to the wall and pointed to the door nearest to them, he all but shoved her through as the stairs creaked behind them and he chewed his lip as he pressed the door shut. Effie clenched her jaw as she realised which room they'd gone into, "This is the bedroom," She breathed, her words barely audible as the men reached the landing.

"Fuck, we gotta hide," He hissed back at her in the gloom. In the near darkness she could just about make out the furniture, and she pushed Sean towards the bed in the middle of the room gently as the floorboards to the landing creaked outside the door.

"Get under the bed, I'll hide in the wardrobe," She whispered and hurried to the nearest wardrobe as Sean rolled under the bed, she crouched and backed into the dresser, closing the doors shut just as the bedroom door swung open. She pulled Arthur's bandanna up to cover her face and held her breath as she strained her ears, just one set of footsteps had entered the room, and they paused in the light of the doorway.

With the door back open and the moonlight pouring through, she peered through the slats to see a stocky looking gentleman, a sawn off shotgun swung menacingly from his hip and he surveyed the room with his eyes narrowed. She glanced to the bed where Sean was hiding and swallowed; there was only gonna be one way for them to get out of this. Her hand drifted to the hilt of her knife and she gripped it carefully, she could barely hear the man humming to himself with her heartbeat pounding in her ears. He stalked to the chest of drawers on the opposite side of the room and swung them open and rifled through, muttering to himself as he moved to the other wardrobe and swung it open.

"Both fuckin' empty, I don't believe this." The man cursed and turned back to the room, his gaze flickered to the wardrobe where Effie was hiding and her grip on the knife tightened. She knew what she needed to do, he was a fairly big guy, and taking him by surprise was gonna be her best bet. The man sighed irritably as he made his way around the side of the bed, he paused at the chest at the end of the bed and stooped to open it and she risked a breath to prepare herself. Arthur's familiar scent flooded her nose as she breathed through the bandanna and she gritted her teeth, preparing to burst out the wardrobe and rush the man from behind.

"You can't go five minutes without gettin' yourself into trouble. Because you don't think."

She blinked and paused, pulling back from the wardrobe doors as she huffed quietly into the bandanna, trying to calm herself down as the adrenaline coursed through her. She cursed inwardly as she the man straightened back up after feeling around the chest, that might have been their only window at getting out of this mess.

"What the fuck? Hey, Mercer, have you found anythin'?" The man straightened and called over his shoulder as he glared down at the chest, stripped of any valuables and only filled with winter coats.

"Not much," The other gentleman's voice called back from the other room, "Sure is bare for such a big house."

"That's what I was thinkin'," The stocky bandit muttered and let out an irritated sigh and glanced at the wardrobe where Effie was, "Gotta be around here somewhere."

He stalked towards the wardrobe and she licked her lips, it wasn't until he stopped at the dresser and raised his hands to swing the doors open that she rushed out and reached to grip his shoulder tightly, he made a small sound of surprise but was soon silenced as she dug her blade deep into his throat and ripped it across, his eyes widened and bored into hers as his blood sprayed out over her, warm flecks hitting the exposed part of her face and over her clothes. The man fell forward and she grunted as she struggled to slow his fall to the floor, trying to make sure his fresh corpse made as little noise as possible as he slumped to the floor, his blood spurting out onto the floor. Her gaze flickered to under the bed and she saw Sean's mop of red hair as he poked his head out, he winced at the corpse before he rolled out and stood up and joined her, eyeing the fresh blood all over her.

"Alright, I'm just about done in here," The other gentleman called, "You found anythin' yet, Watson?" They exchanged a look and Sean grabbed her arm and dragged her with him behind the bedroom door, he pulled his gun out and clenched his jaw as footsteps approached carefully, "Watson?"

Sean raised his sawn off shotgun, preparing to use the butt of the gun when the other gentlemen entered the room, but instead the footsteps paused behind the door, and it was suddenly pulled closed away from them as the man stepped back to avoid their surprise attack. His eyes narrowed as he saw them both standing there and he glanced at the still warm corpse of his friend behind them, "Son of a bitch!" He hissed and reached for his gun, but Sean pulled the hammer back and fired at close range, Effie's ears rang as the man glanced down at his torso; absolutely ruined by deep gouges the shotgun shells had made as the shot lay waste to his chest. The man managed a few desperate, gurgled breaths before he fell back into the chest of drawers and Sean grabbed her and dragged her out the door, "It's about high time we got outta here, lass!" He said, no longer trying to keep quiet as he heard the third man barreling up the stairs, he threw the door to the study open and shoved her towards the window, "You go first! Just fuckin' jump!"

She hopped out the window with one hand gripped tightly on the ledge, gritting her teeth to stifle the pained groan that escaped her as her body jolted back, she twisted her legs until her boots found purchase against the side of the house and she leaned her body as she let go of the sill, sliding down the side of the house and cutting the fall by a good chunk, she landed on the ground and faltered as the shock went up her legs, her hand flew to her mouth to stifle a cry as the pain in her ribs seared through her.

She whistled for her horse and glanced up at the window to wait for Sean.

She heard grunts and the unmistakable sounds of a fist fight and she clenched her jaw and withdrew her pistol, Sean suddenly came tumbling out the window and hit the ground with a loud groan, his attacker peered out the window and she didn't hesitate, she thumbed the hammer back and fired, cursing as he dodged and the bullet tore through his shoulder.

"Fuck," She heard her stallion's hoofbeats behind her and holstered her pistol as she skidded to Sean's side as he lay on the floor, checking for any wounds, "Sean, are you okay? Can you move anything?"

"Ahh," He inhaled a sharp breath as he shifted, "Aye, I'm okay, just… winded." He moaned.

"Come on, we gotta get outta here," She grabbed his arm and hauled him to his feet, she wrapped his arm over her shoulder and helped him towards her stallion, "Almost there," She gritted as he stumbled, almost taking them both to the floor, "Climb on." She ordered as she grabbed the reins to keep her horse still as Sean heaved himself up on the back of the stallion.

"Jesus," He groaned as he shifted to get comfortable, clutching his torso as he doubled over in pain as she climbed up on the saddle up front and urged her horse forward.

"Oh no you don't - come 'ere!" The man rounded the corner and snatched her elbow as they tried to escape, she yelled out as he dragged her from her saddle and onto the ground, Sean lurched forward and grabbed the reins as her Thoroughbred brayed in fear.

Effie rolled and sprang up to square off against the burly attacker, he stepped in close and she tried to push him back with her shoulder, she hissed as he merely stumbled back, one hand clutching his shoulder where she'd shot him. Even injured, he was far bigger than her and too heavy for her to physically overpower him and shove him to the floor. Switching tactics, she slashed out with the knife viciously, the man growled in pain as the knife carved across his front, but he dodged back at her second swipe and moved in to tower over her. She dodged under his first fist that swung wildly, but couldn't do anything about the powerful kick he sent to her stomach, throwing her back and she moaned on the floor as her body buckled in pain.

With Effie subdued for a moment, the man glanced down at his chest and groaned, "You fuckin' bitch!" He bit out, his shirt a mess of red at his shoulder, with red beginning to pool at the front where she'd got him with her knife.

"Glad it… fuckin' hurts," She managed between pained gasps and dropped her knife to the ground, switching back to the pistol and raising it as she sucked in a breath to straighten, he stepped forward but she emptied the chamber, this time blowing his chest through. He collapsed to the ground dead and she laughed shakily, "Fuck."

She holstered her pistol with a shaking hand and grabbed her knife, not bothering to clean it as she slid it back into its sheath. Sean was holding the reins with one hand and clutching his side with the other, his expression twisted in a grimace as she stood slowly and approached. "You alright, lass?" He asked in a strained tone as she climbed back up into the saddle, letting go of the reins as she settled in front of him, taking deep breaths as her ribs flared with pain.

"Yeah, let's get outta here." She nodded and kicked her horse forward, making their way back towards Twin Stack Pass as the edge of the sky began to pale with dawn approaching.

After a few minutes riding Sean whistled for his horse weakly behind her, "Stop here a minute, would ya?"

She pulled on the reins and patted her Thoroughbred's neck as the horse stilled with a huff, Sean's horse came galloping down the hill towards them and he slid off behind her with a groan. She breathed a little easier as she waited for Sean to get himself sorted, "You think that was a setup back there?" She asked.

Sean shrugged as he mounted his horse, "I dunno, it ain't the first time we've been given a robbery tip from somebody and they decide to share it around wit others."

"Huh, well I ain't surprised," She pulled the bonds out of her jacket's pocket and handed them to the Irishman, "I found these in that lockbox under the bed."

Sean squinted as he checked them other, "Shit," He breathed and looked up at her with a wide grin, "No wonder those bastards came stormin' into the house for 'em. This is good, Effie, an' I mean real good."

Effie nodded, "Figured as much, how're ya feelin'?"

"Like I fell out a window," He gave a low chuckle, "Come on, let's get back to camp." He clicked his tongue and led the way back to camp.

They rode in silence for a while until she eyed him looking at her as they made their way across the plains towards the train tracks, "What?"

"Nothin' just thinkin'..." He shrugged.

Effie laughed, "Try not to hurt yourself."

"Ah, shut up," The Irishman rolled his eyes, "Guess I didn't really believe the others when they told me you was a fighter."

"You been underestimatin' me, Irish?" She grinned as they passed over the tracks and down the slope towards Horseshoe Overlook.

Sean scoffed, "Well, not anymore. That was actually quite a fun job, considerin'."

"It kinda was," She nodded and dropped the reins in one hand to brush her torso, "Could've done without fightin' that big bastard at the end though."

"Yeah, hopefully Morgan's not gonna kill me when he finds out," The outlaw muttered and she laughed as they headed into the undergrowth towards camp.

"Who goes there?" She recognised Javier's voice and pulled on her reins as he stepped out of the shadows with his gun raised.

"Ah, put it away, Escuella, it's just us." Sean waved his hand as they rode up.

"Took a little longer than I thought you would for an empty homestead," Javier raised an eyebrow as he lowered his gun, Effie lowered Arthur's bandanna and his eyes narrowed at the blood on the upper part of her face, "What happened?"

"Some other's got the same tip as me, tried to storm the house as we were lootin' it," Sean explained, "Wasn't nothin' me an' Miss Bartlett couldn't handle, though. And turns out it was more than worth the scuffle."

The Irishman waved the bearer bonds gleefully at Javier and he snatched them to inspect them, "Carajo," He murmured and nodded as he handed them back, "That's not bad."

"Bet ya wish you'd agreed to go wit me now, huh?" Sean smirked and the Mexican tutted and rolled his eyes.

"Whatever, who was the one who found them?"

"Miss Bartlett picked 'em up," The outlaw leaned forward in his saddle and nodded to her, "Killed two of the bastards aswell, you were right; she really can handle herself in a fight."

Javier glanced at the dried blood on her face and grinned, "The chica saved your ass, then?"

Sean chuckled, "Somethin' like that. We'll catch up wit ya later, Javier."

The Mexican nodded as they both passed and headed for the hitching posts, Effie dipped her hand into her satchel and offered her Thoroughbred a treat as Sean jumped down beside her. She gritted her teeth as she jumped down, ignoring the pain in her side as Sean pointed to the table by the entrance of camp, "We'll take a seat there, go over everythin' we picked up in the house. Then we can share it out properly between us an' the camp."

---

Arthur rolled his neck between his shoulders as he eased his boots onto his feet, he wasn't sure what time it was, but he'd guessed he slept well into mid-morning judging by the buzzing activity in camp. He stood and leaned over the barrel where his shaving kit was and splashed some water from the bucket onto his face, blinking the last remnants of sleep out of his eyes before he shook away the excess water and looked up at the hitching posts. Effie's Thoroughbred was hitched next to Sean's horse and he glanced around the camp for her with his brow furrowed. He spied Sean's distinct red mop heading towards the stew pot and he headed towards him, "Mister Maguire," He greeted as Sean poured himself a cup of coffee.

"Mornin' Morgan," His fellow gang mate greeted cheerfully as he straightened up, offering Arthur one of his signature cheeky grins as he made room for him to get a coffee, "How are ya this mornin'?"

"Fine, how was the job?" He asked as he poured a cup for himself.

"Ah it went splendidly, turns out these folks had some bonds stashed away," The younger outlaw puffed his chest out proudly, "I showed 'em to Dutch and Hosea earlier, they're mighty pleased with us, we made away with a nice chunk o' money too."

The outlaw nodded slowly, "Good job, kid," He paused as he took a sip of coffee and picked his next words, "Look, about last night…"

Sean waved his hand, "Ah don't you worry 'bout a thing, Morgan, I'm sure ya had ya reasons. 'Sides, the little lass did real good - she's the one that found the bonds."

Arthur smiled slowly, "Really?"

The Irishman nodded, "Uh-huh, she's well cut out for this typa thing. Y'know," He sipped his coffee and shot Arthur a smirk, "Makes me wonder if you're givin' her enough credit."

The outlaw snorted, "Heh, well, I certainly owe her an apology after last night. Where is she? I figured she'd be ready and waitin' to tell me about your success last night."

Sean's smile faded, "She was fallin' asleep at the table when we were poolin' together everythin' we stole from the house. We ran into a little complication in the robbery," He raised his hand as Arthur's expression darkened, "Now, don't go lookin' like that, Morgan - she's fine, I swear. But we had to go up against these fellas that turned up lookin' for an easy score, same as us."

Arthur's jaw set and he breathed deeply, he knew. He knew something like this would happen. Despite Sean's reassuring look, his chest panged, "What happened?" He finally asked.

The Irishman took a sip of his coffee and shrugged, "Three fellas turned up and broke in downstairs whilst we were finishin' up upstairs, we had to take care of 'em. We killed the first two easy enough, the third bastard gave us a little trouble though, threw me out a feckin' window, for my sins." He tried to play it off with a wry smile, but Arthur wasn't overly convinced.

"Did she get hurt?"

Sean pulled a face, "She took a few hits in the fight, but I think she's fine. You know how it is, Arthur," The outlaw hummed; he couldn't disagree with that, but as long as she was okay and got back safely, that was all that mattered, "I wanted to ask you though," The Irishman paused and glanced around, "The girl ain't shy from a little violence, is she?"

Arthur searched Sean's gaze for a long moment and shook his head, "No. No, she ain't." He sighed; knowing all too well what the younger outlaw was getting at; that look she got in her eye when she was facing off against someone, the way she never flinched away from going all out to do whatever she needed to survive, "Why?"

The Irishman shifted, and rubbed the back of his head, "Ah, I dunno, maybe it's her size and the way she is usually… I just - I didn't expect to see someone like her do what she did."

Arthur huffed and a small smile slowly grew, "Miss Bartlett didn't scare ya, did she, Sean?"

Sean scoffed and rolled his eyes, "No, 'course not, just - took me by surprise is all. All I'm sayin' is after what I saw at the house last night she's fine to do jobs, if that's what you were worryin' about."

The gunslinger shook his head, still smiling, "That's not what I was worryin' about, I know what she can do."

Sean frowned, "Then what was last night all about?"

Arthur's smile faded, "Nothin' really, just me bein' foolish, her bein' stubborn…" He looked down at the coffee in his mug and pursed his lips, "I'm gonna head out for a while, can ya do me favour and tell Effie we'll be goin' out for that oil wagon for Marston when I get back?"

The younger outlaw nodded, "Sure thing. Say, is Marston lookin' for an extra gun on this job he's been cookin' up these last few weeks?"

The outlaw held up his hands, "I ain't sure, you'd have to speak to him on that, kid. I'll catch up with 'chu later, but thank you for keepin' an eye out on Effie on that job." He gave Sean a sincere nod before he tipped the rest of his coffee out and headed towards the hitching posts; his hand dipped into his satchel and his fingers brushed against the unopened letter from Mary he'd been carrying around and sighed inwardly, he'd been mulling over his decision for days, and last night after Miss Bartlett had left camp he'd finally realised what needed to be done.

"Hey, Arthur!" He looked up and saw Hosea perched on the wagon by the entrance to camp.

"Hosea," He greeted the older gunslinger distractedly.

"You headin' out?" Hosea frowned, leaning back in his seat.

"Just for a little bit, there's somethin' I've gotta do," He shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck, "I'll be back shortly."

"Well, I don't wanna stop ya, but Mister Maguire and Miss Bartlett proved quite the pair on that job last night, Dutch and I are real pleased," He gave the outlaw a pointed look.

"Yeah, I heard," Arthur nodded, his gaze drifted to where the girls' tents were set up and he cleared his throat, "Look, I know what you're gonna say, Hosea. I know I was a fool last night, I'll speak to Miss Bartlett when I get back, but I've gotta be gettin' on."

Hosea tilted his head, "Alright, son."

The outlaw turned and headed to his mare, "Girl." He praised his mare absentmindedly as he climbed up on the saddle, he gave Effie's shared tent one last look before he spurred his mare into the woods.

---

Effie was stood in complete darkness, the only thing she could make out in the gloom was the moonlight hitting his face. His features were mostly vague to her, except his eyes. Those eyes of his that went wide as a barn owl's as she heard the unmistakable wet sound of a blade slashing skin. Her blade. His throat. She licked her lips beneath the bandanna as his blood sprayed out and hit her face, watching the man's eyes stare into hers as they slowly dampened, glassing over as his lacerated throat gurgled, his lungs desperately trying to replace the blood with fresh air.

She jerked awake with a start and gasped, her mouth tasting like copper as her hand flew to her side where pain ached through, her face twisted in a grimace as she sat up slowly.

"Fuck," She breathed as her jaw clenched, waiting for the burn blossoming across her torso subsided before she moved again. She took a moment before she gingerly stood and rose to her feet, groaning as she rolled her shoulders, trying to ease the stiffness of her muscles before she stooped to pull her boots on. She patted the dust and dirt down off her clothes, she'd have to ask Mary-Beth if she could borrow something to wear so she could wash them later. She pulled her satchel and repeater over her shoulder before she stepped out of the tent she shared with Tilly.

The sun was high in the sky, and the rest of the gang had long since began their day in camp, Mister Pearson was cheerfully whistling away to himself as he prepared the stew for the day, Hosea and Lenny were engrossed in a game of dominoes, the girls were giggling to each other as they worked to darn some clothes Miss Grimshaw had undoubtedly thrust upon them. Far across at the edge of camp, Effie recognised Sadie's drooped form gazing out at the view with a cigarette, whilst Miss O'Shea was sat engrossed in a book, her brazen red hair flowing in the summer breeze.

She made her way across the camp towards where Abigail had her tent set up for her and Jack next to the medicine wagon, her smile tight as she watched her playing with her son on the ground, trying to keep the young boy entertained as much as she could living rough with a gang of outlaws, killers and thieves. The young mother looked up as she approached, a gentle smile grew on her face, "Well, well, if it ain't the newest gunslinger in our little group."

"Mornin' Miss Roberts," Effie greeted.

"Heh, more like afternoon now, you been sleepin' all this time?" Abigail reached down and stroked the top of her boy's head as he clambered onto her lap, where he eyed Effie curiously.

"I must've needed it, was a long day bounty huntin' with Mister Morgan yesterday, and Mister Maguire and I got back real early this mornin'. I don't even remember gettin' to my bedroll," She chuckled.

"Hmm, well make sure you ain't workin' yourself stupid with these fools, girl like you can only do so much," Abigail cautioned, eyeing her carefully.

"Yeah," Effie murmured and looked away, eyeing the medicine wagon, "I was actually wonderin' if you could take a look at somethin' for me."

"What is it?"

Her hand went up to her side and she pulled a face, Abigail frowned and lifted Jack down to the floor so she could stand, her hands grasped Effie's shirt and untucked it from her pants, lifting it up carefully and exposing the dark contusion that spread across her side, there were harsh grazes of red, sore skin where the rocks had scraped her body in the river, and she hissed as Abigail tested the ravaged bruising that lay waste across her ribcage.

"The hell did you do Effie?" Miss Roberts' tone sounded almost chiding, but her expression was one of deep concern only a mother could muster.

"Happened when I went in the river with that bounty hunter," Effie muttered and pushed Abigail's gentle hands away and pulled her shirt back down, "I'm fine, it's just - you got anythin' that can help me?"

The other woman sighed deeply as she searched Effie's gaze, Effie wasn't exactly sure what Abigail was looking for, but she schooled her features to stay neutral. "Wait here, there'll be somethin' on the wagon."

"Thank you, Abigail," Effie gave her a small nod, her tone warm with sincerity.

"Keep an eye on little Jack for me, I won't be long." Abigail nodded her head to the young child sat watching them with wide eyes.

She couldn't keep the sudden anxiety from straining her voice as she tucked her shirt back into her trousers, "Oh, sure."

Miss Roberts brushed past her and headed off towards the medicine wagon situated near Strauss's tent, leaving Effie in a fearful standoff with her young son. She'd had little interaction with children, growing up with her Daddy out in Strawberry and working the store with him; occasionally she'd see the odd parent with child browsing for wares, or watched them playing in the streets with one of the stray cats that roamed around town. When they'd been forced to sell the store and their home and move further out of town into the forest she'd seen even fewer children, and had never had to interact with one.

"You look sad," The five year old's innocent quip shook her from her thoughts.

Effie's brow furrowed as she looked down at the young boy, wondering if he was as nervous as her, judging by his untroubled expression she very much doubted it, "I look sad?"

"Yeah," Jack continued, his voice ringing out cheerfully, "Mumma told me I wasn't to bother you, because of how sad you are. She said that you're here to get away from some bad men."

"Oh," Effie forced a smile, "Yeah, I was sad. I'm not sad anymore now, though." She hesitated before she lowered herself to the ground to join Jack, he shuffled to give her some room so she could sit with him.

"Mumma told me Uncle Arthur rescued you, like one of the knights in the story Uncle Hosea is reading to me," The kid looked at her with bright eyes and her smile turned genuine, "Did Uncle Arthur save you from the bad men?"

She blinked, wondering what the world with the Van Der Linde gang must look like through the child's eyes, "He did."

"And now you go out on adventures with him," Jack nodded, she laughed at how uncomplicated he made it all sound, "I can't wait till I'm bigger and I get to go on adventures too."

"Will you let me come on adventures when you're bigger, Jack?"

The kid made a face, "I dunno, will I have to rescue you like Uncle Arthur did?"

Effie laughed again, "Well, what if I have to rescue you?"

"Oh, I won't need rescuin'," Jack puffed out his chest, "I'm gonna be a gunslinger when I grow up."

"Is that right?"

"Yeah," The kid nodded excitedly and looked over his shoulder to where Abigail was at the wagon, "Don't tell Mumma, but I'm gonna be just like Daddy."

She winked at the young boy, playing along with him, "I won't tell her - promise," She held up her hand in a closed fist, her pinky finger stretched out for him to take, Jack eyed her gesture amusedly, and grasped her finger with his hand to shake and she giggled, "No, it ain't a handshake. Here, copy what I do with your hand," She helped him make a fist and gently lifted his pinkie finger out, then she curled her pinkie around his, "See? This here is a pinkie promise, means I can't ever break it either."

Jack looked up at her with his mouth slightly agape, "Pinkie promise," He echoed as their hands parted.

Effie nodded seriously, trying to fight the smile tugging the corners of her mouth at the boy's awed expression, "Uh-huh, that there's a serious promise, too. Means I can't ever tell your secret to nobody."

"Here, Effie, take this," Abigail came back over holding a small bottle of tonic, "This'll help with the pain, should help the bruisin' go down too," Effie reached and accepted the bottle with a grateful nod, "A few days takin' it easy wouldn't hurt, neither."

"Ah, it looks worse than it is," Effie waved her hand dismissively as she stuffed the bottle into her satchel, "But thank you, this is just what I needed."

"Is that gonna make you all better?" Jack asked, looking between his mother and her.

"It sure is, your Mumma's real good, gettin' it for me," Effie smiled down at the kid, "But, hey, do me a favour Jack? You don't need to tell anybody in camp thatI'm hurt, okay? That can be my secret, okay?"

The boy's smile turned serious, and he held up his hand, "Pinkie promise."

"Heh, pinkie promise," She accepted his gesture and gave him a wry grin as she got to her feet, "Well, I'm gonna go see if there's any coffee left, I'll see you both later." She gave Abigail a parting nod, ignoring the concern still etched in the woman's gaze.

"Take care of yourself, Effie."

She made her way over to the stew pot that Mister Pearson had gotten well under way, she gave the butcher a nod as she picked up the percolator that was near the fire and smiled when she heard the sound of liquid still inside, she grabbed one of the tin cups beside it and tipped out the last of it to fill a cup, sighing as the welcomed bitter smell filled her senses.

"Look who's finally up an' about," She turned her head to the familiar Irish twang and smiled warmly.

"Mister Maguire," She greeted, "How are ya?"

"Good, a little sore after that little tumble out the window, but otherwise fine," Sean nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets, "You feelin' alright?"

"A lot better now I'd had some sleep," She grinned, "You tell Dutch what we found at that house?"

The Irishman chuckled, "'Course, he's been singin' his praises 'bout it all day."

"Good," She looked over the outlaw's shoulder at the men sat at the fire, her brow furrowed when she couldn't see the one person she was looking for, "You seen Arthur today?"

"I caught up with him earlier, told me to tell ya he was headin' out for a bit, but when he gets back you're goin' out to get that oil wagon for Marston's grand plan."

Effie smiled into her cup as a warmth spread through her chest; elated that the outlaw was apparently ready to put last night's argument behind them like she was, "He wasn't still mad?"

Sean chuckled, "Nah, I don't think so. Sometimes I swear he enjoys bein' grumpy for the sake of it…" He paused and peered at her, his bright green eyes narrowed slightly.

"What?"

The Irishman pointed to her face, "Ya still got blood on ya, didn't know if you knew." He mumbled, his cheery tone lowered.

Effie's eyes widened, "Oh," She rubbed her cheek and groaned, "Ugh! I just went and saw Abigail an' her little boy, too. I must'a looked a sight."

"Wouldn't worry about it," Sean waved his hand airily, "S'not uncommon for any of us to roll into camp a little roughed up. At least the colour of your clothes hide the blood."

"I guess," Effie pulled a face as she took a sip of her coffee and looked away.

"Anyways," The Irishman shoved his hands in his pockets and leaned back, "You want'a come join us round the fire? Pearson's talkin' bout gettin' a few rounds of poker started after he's done fiddlin' wit his stew."

She pursed her lips for a brief moment before she shook her head, "No, I'm okay."

"Y'sure? We can teach ya how to play it, I'll tell the boys to go easy on ya." He flashed a zany grin.

"Gamblin' ain't something that interests me I'm afraid, Maguire," She returned his grin with a smile, but it was strained, "But you go enjoy yourself, just make sure you don't lose everythin' you got last night on that job."

"Ah don't 'chu worry bout that, Miss," Sean chuckled, "Me Da taught me how to play growin' up, I can bluff a pair o' cards better than most."

"Heh," Effie scoffed and tipped out her cup onto the floor, watching it pool on the grass before seeping into the soil, "I'll see ya later, Sean." She walked off away from the outlaw and went around Dutch's tent on the side of the entrance, hoping to avoid anyone else before she got to her favourite spot past the girls' tents and Arthur's wagon to sit and look out at the view.

She stifled a groan as she slowly sat down and crossed her legs, pulling her satchel around to sit on her lap so she could grab her cigarettes and matches. She fished out one of each and struck the match off her boot to light her smoke, then she flicked the match off over the cliff and watched it disappear into the flowers and bracken below. There was a lone wagon making its way up the road following the curve of the Dakota River below, and a small group of pronghorn had found the clearing by the woods to graze amongst the blooming wildflowers and herbs. A bird's call caught from the west caught her attention, and she watched a large rough legged hawk soar over towards West Elizabeth; she exhaled slowly and flicked the ash to the floor as she watched it absentmindedly, then her gaze fell to the rolling country that was unmistakably leading towards Strawberry and beyond.

She hadn't allowed herself to dwell on Jack Bartlett's fate since she and Arthur had paid him a visit to collect his outstanding debts, but she'd be lying if she said it wasn't something that sometimes kept her lying awake at night. She wondered about the choices she'd made about the whole thing, whether he was still somehow alive living up there in that small, bare cabin all alone, or if he'd succumbed to the harsh realities of living out in the wild alone. She took a long toque on her cigarette thoughtfully, thinking about his final threats to her before she shook her head with a scoff. Even coming off of that home robbery last night, and having to kill those men who'd unexpectedly shown up with Mister Maguire… she wasn't sure she felt anything about it, other than the rush she got when they were riding back with the spoils.

She turned her head to the sudden laughter that had erupted in camp, smiling as she saw most of the gang had gathered around the table near Dutch's tent, watching some of them play their game of poker.

Was it a bad thing to feel no remorse over stealing, killing and general law breaking she'd apparently had a natural skill for?

She wasn't sure.

But it sure did feel good to feel like she was starting to belong somewhere. Horseshoe Overlook had definitely started to feel like home to her, and nearly every member of the Van Der Linde gang had pretty much welcomed her into their dysfunctional little family and lifestyle. Sure, there were those like Sadie, Kieran and Molly, who she'd still yet to have more than a one word conversation with. And Bill, who'd pretty much taken to either blatantly ignoring her or giving her the odd biting exchange.

A small smirk tugged on the corners of her mouth; the bruising on his face had long since cleared up, but his nose would forever serve as a crooked reminder of her.

And then there was the Reverend, whenever he'd stumbled into her path in camp he'd slurred an introduction to her or, weirdly enough, sung some filthy verse of a saloon song to her. It'd been a little amusing at first, having to remind him that she and him had already met when her and Arthur had saved him from getting flattened by a train. But after the fifth or sixth time she'd grown tired of his drunken obliviousness, and she'd soon taken to veering away from him whenever she saw him slumped around camp. Arthur had shown her his 'bible' in camp once, which was actually just an old copy within which the inside had been cut out with a penknife so he could store his stash of morphine and his dirty syringe and tubing, and the disgraced preacher had approached Arthur a couple of times asking him for money, to which the outlaw had vehemently refused. The girls had even told her stories of Swanson getting caught stealing from the camp's tithing box and disappearing to the local town for days; usually ending in Dutch sending out one of the men to go retrieve him. It made her wonder what he'd done to make the fearsome Van Der Linde leader so lenient with his behaviour, she'd heard the pastor had saved his life once, but no one in camp seemed to know any of the details.

Effie finished her cigarette and flicked it over the cliff, admiring the herd of wild horses that had been spooked by a couple of travellers as they crashed through the undergrowth and out across the river, braying and kicking up water as they went. She watched them disappear to the other side before she got to her feet, sighing as she looked at the dirt and grime on her clothes, she spied Mary-Beth settling in her tent with a book and chewed her lip as she approached, hoping the other girl wouldn't mind lending another dress to her so she could wash her things.

---

Arthur dropped the reins in one hand and rubbed his face wearily; his visit to Mrs Linton's, or - Ms Linton's, rather, had been fiercely bittersweet. Whilst he was pacing agitatedly on her porch waiting for her to come to the door he'd debated abandoning the visit altogether and riding back to camp, but the door opening behind him had him faltering as he'd made his way down the first step, and dammit he'd had to steel himself before turning back to face her. It had been everything he expected; her, looking just as beautiful as the day he'd met her, wearing the same crestfallen expression etched onto her slight features when she'd acknowledged who he was, and who he still is. They'd both suffered through some painful few minutes of awkward small talk before he'd finally gotten her to really talk, and if he didn't feel like a fool for going to see her, he sure as hell felt a fool once she told him why she'd written to him to get him to see her in the first place.

Now, he'd never truly been one for religion, and if there was a hell he was certain that's where he'd long been doomed for. But he'd been hardly surprised to hear that her younger brother Jamie had fallen in with some religious group that worshipped… he wasn't sure, turtles, maybe? Arthur shook his head; he may be a lot of things, but naive enough to be taken with some mad cult?

Hell no.

The mad chase Jamie led him off on was to be expected; Jamie was a lot like any young man, unsure of his place in the world and desperately wanting to find somewhere he belonged. Arthur tried to understand the kid's perspective - born into high society with all the promise of a wealthy life with a pretty woman on his arm, having a proper schooling education was a given for someone like Jamie and Mary, but they didn't get raised with any sense of practicality. No real skills that would help either of them if they strayed too far from the pretty terraced houses, fine dining and boutiques and out into the real world, Arthur wondered how different the wide open country and the beaten tracks must look to them. He'd never liked the big towns and cities, and had always had to grit his teeth and curb his tongue when he and Mary were courting whilst she'd delight in showing him the nonsense of her silver spoon world.

A pair of rabbits scampered out of the undergrowth and flitted out onto the path ahead of him and his mare before disappearing into some bushes on the other side, chittering and squeaking to each other as they went. His mare tossed his head and he leant forward to give her a reassuring pat and looked out to the west in the distance. He wasn't far from camp, and on this part of the ridge he could see the view of New Hanover and beyond almost as well as you could from the cliff at Horseshoe Overlook. His gaze landed on the peaks of Mount Hagan in the far distance and followed the forest that led from it, knowing well enough that that was the Big Valley region, Arthur rubbed the stubble on his jaw, his finger tracing the sickle shaped scar on his chin as his already heavy heart somehow grew heavier in his chest.

Oh, what a fool he was.

It seemed like another lifetime ago to him now, but sometimes, in deep, secret moments of weakness he'd close his eyes and allow himself to remember the way his heart had felt the day it had first been broken by Mary. The way her mournful, harrowing words of declination and repudiation felt like it'd been blown to smithereens by a shotgun, never to be fully repaired again. Ironically an unfeeling heart was just what anybody needed to become a skilled outlaw, a merciless killer and cunning thief, back in those days it was still very much the early days of the Van Der Linde gang, and he'd recklessly thrown himself into just about anything if it meant promising him a distraction from the pain she'd caused him.

Several months or a year, or two had passed by like that, there were few moments he could actually remember of that time; learning from Hosea and Dutch with young John, bickering with the young scrap of the kid around camp until they were both fiercely scolded by Susan or Bessie. Countless nights with women, none of whom whose names or faces he could recall, because at that time he'd been so stiff and brittle after Mary he'd been careful not to allow any more attachment or entanglement - or simply because his heart was that damaged he hadn't bothered to care enough to commit any of them to any real memory.

It was why he couldn't remember the night he'd met Eliza, as shameful as that sometimes made him. But he sure remembered the morning Hosea had handed him that letter some months after their paths had crossed, and going back into that small, insipid little town where she lived. He'd never forget the sheer fear that had struck him when he'd seen her belly starting to swell with his child; the way the idea of becoming a father seemed far too foreign to a criminal like him - a killer like him. The idea had been so colossal it had made him feel like a young boy again, and had unfortunately reintroduced him to a new fear he'd long since forgotten since being taken under Dutch and Hosea's wing; his father.

But the reintroduction to this young unassuming barmaid and the birth of his son, whilst at the time the whole prospect of it had taken a heavy toll on him, it had also done something he'd not thought possible; it had slowly healed him. He'd barely noticed it at first; the way it had been easier to smile, colours started looking brighter to him, and interactions with people had started to have more meaning to him. When Isaac had been in his life for a little over a year Arthur had really started being more mindful of his actions, and had allowed himself to consider being better for the people in his life, focussing on doing right by his family, by Eliza and his son. Those years had been good to him, he'd deepened his bond of brotherhood with John as he'd grown from awkward scrawny street rat to a headstrong young man, fatherhood had allowed him to find a newfound respect for both Hosea and Dutch for their parental roles in both his and John's life.

And then, there was the day he'd rode out to make his trip to visit them, as he'd done every few months after Isaac was born. He'd worked hard to help Eliza buy some small plot of land, and had helped her build a nice homestead for her and Isaac, somewhere she could raise her son peacefully and away from judging townsfolk who'd assumed she'd been foolish enough to bear a son out of wedlock. He hadn't felt anything deep for her, but when they'd first reconnected before Isaac was born he'd offered to marry her, to take him back to live with him and his gang and promised she'd be welcomed and protected. She had refused every time he'd asked, though. She liked Arthur as much as he'd liked her, but like Mary, she'd never wanted any part of his outlaw lifestyle, no matter how much he insisted she'd be kept safe. It had hurt, but it wasn't anything like when Mary had refused him before; if it weren't for Isaac, the two of them would have remained passing strangers who'd happened to seek each other out one night in the drunken haze of some characterless saloon.

But Christ that day.

He'd never forget it; riding out to where the two of them lived with the sun warm on his back, a smile he couldn't get rid of on his face at the thought of seeing them. Isaac had just turned five a couple of months before, and Arthur was planning on teaching him how to ride a horse. He'd found a carved wooden toy horse at some market stall selling knick-knacks, and couldn't wait to see the look on his face when he'd gift it to him. For Eliza, he usually gave her a stack of bills or some jewellery to help them both along, she never asked him where he'd gotten the money from but he knew she wasn't stupid. He'd never forget slowing his horse as he'd made his way up the unmarked path towards their home, seeing the pair of wooden crosses set out on the grass, the drawn curtains and the unsettling quiet all around. He'd had a key to the door, but he hadn't been able to bring himself to open it and take a look inside, he hadn't been able to linger long, instead turning and rushing away from it all and out into the open wilderness, trying to outrun that all too familiar crushing feeling of his patched up heart, breaking all over again.

Things had felt… dull after that. He didn't know how long it was until he'd been able to smile again, he thought it was one night when he was having one of his brief exchanges with Tilly, a young girl Dutch and John had recently rescued and welcomed into the gang. She'd made a passing comment to him about Susan one night, and he'd managed a laugh, it had shocked him as much as it had her and everybody else. He'd been so closed off for so long, so unreachable to his family whilst they'd tried to console and offer him comfort after what had happened. After that it had gotten a little easier for him, slowly, as more members of the gang had joined, and the robberies and jobs they pulled escalated into more than petty bounties. His ability to feel joy and laugh had slowly returned. But his heart? That he'd made sure to keep caged within him, hidden from anything and anyone much less risk going through anything like that again - mainly because he knew, he knew he didn't have the strength to go through anything like it again.

And then, he'd ridden out in some storm and met Effie.

She had been so sweet, like a breeze of cool air in a blistering heat, her smile and the way it brightened her dark eyes had somehow sparked something deep inside him he thought was long dead. Originally, it had been the similarities between her situation with her father and him and his worthless father that had called out to him, how the situation her Daddy had drunk himself into had thrusted her headfirst into a quite literal starve for survival. Then, after coming down off of that damned mountain after so much loss and regret in Blackwater, seeing that bastard's name in Strauss's ledger, and finding out what had happened to her… it had pained him more deeply than he cared to admit. It wasn't until after he'd rescued her from the O'Driscoll's and taken her out of camp did he begin to see some other similarities between them; that cold, unforgiving hatred she had for any threats, that menacing darkness that flashed in her gaze every so often… that quiet rage that at times seemed to be the only thing pushing her forward.

He'd seen it before, he'd recognise it anywhere. Because he had it too, he'd lived with it for so long, had had to push through it more than once, only for something equally crushing to happen that put him right back in that place again. He'd never asked her what had truly happened to her at Six Point Cabin, even if she never went into details to him about it; he'd seen enough from her night terrors, and that distant look she sometimes got to know it had caused that same effect on her as it had on him. He remembered meeting a man at a blackjack table once who had served as a military doctor in the civil war, shortly after he'd suffered the loss of Eliza and Isaac.

Soldier's Heart.

That's what he'd called it, he said it was what happened to the men who went to war and came back with severe trauma, said it happened when people suffered deep loss and pain, and experienced some sort of hysterical neurosis that caused an empty sense of paralysis or loss of sensation. Now, he was no doctor, but he knew exactly what the old man had been talking about, he was certain at the time that he had exactly that. And he was certain that Effie had it too.

He suspected in the back of his mind, he'd known it for some time. Maybe it was when she saw him kill that man who'd attempted to steal his mare when they were exploring Diablo's Ridge, maybe it was when he'd watched her storm through the Ike Skelding's Boys with him, Charles and Javier to rescue Sean, or maybe it was when he'd found her so vulnerable in the woods near camp the night the gang celebrated Sean's return, when she'd confided in him that she was in deep pain from everything.

He wondered if that's what had caused him to find the idea of her venturing out of camp alone so difficult, or maybe it was because after they met those three O'Driscoll's out on the road he'd found himself wanting her to not stray too far out of his sight. Maybe it was because he didn't know what it would do to him if she got hurt again, especially now that she was in the gang and he had a chance to keep her safe.

"You okay there, partner?"

Arthur jolted at the voice behind him and he blinked; how long had he been sitting on his mare in the middle of the road for? "Sure, just daydreamin' is all," He cleared his throat as he encouraged his mare to the side of the road to allow the traveller behind him to pass by.

The man tipped his hat as he passed, "So long as you're alright. Take care, friend."

The outlaw nodded and watched the other ride follow the road that cut down through the valley towards Dakota River, before he clicked his tongue and urged his mare onwards towards camp. He nodded to Charles standing guard as he passed through the undergrowth, a loud cheer made him look up and he smiled when he saw some of the gang were engrossed in a game of cards, others were crowding around watching the game in interest. Dutch had his music playing again, and the gang leader's favourite operatic song drifted around the camp, he spied the newly widowed Adler woman sat far from the group reading, and Abigail was busying herself at Pearson's table whilst the camp butcher joined in on the gambling. He furrowed his brow as he leaned forward and dropped down from his saddle and hitched his mare quickly, he looked around the camp as he dug into his satchel and produced a few oatcakes for his mare.

Effie was sitting with Mary-Beth near the scout campfire, Miss Gaskill was pulling her tortoiseshell comb through Effie's wet tresses, chatting excitedly. As he drew closer to the two girls he noticed a washing line had been hung from the nearby tent to a tree, and Effie's clothes hung from it, waving gently in the summer breeze. Miss Bartlett was sitting in a dress he recognised to be one of Mary-Beth's, it was a nice shade of faded violet that reminded the outlaw of the blooming wildflowers in that valley up in Big Valley she'd shown him a while back when they were out exploring. The dress was still too big for her thin frame, but despite it being ill-fitting she did look rather beautiful, especially when she threw her head back and laughed at whatever Miss Gaskill had said. Arthur swallowed slightly as his steps faltered a little; his heart began drumming in his chest as he remembered their last conversation.

God, he hoped she wasn't still angry at him.

"Ladies," He tipped his hat as he approached, his fingers felt oddly numb as he pulled the brim low in an effort to hide the colour seeping in his cheeks as he stood before them.

"Hey, Arthur," Mary-Beth shot him a warm smile as she worked the comb through Effie's hair.

"Mister Morgan," Miss Bartlett offered him a small nod as she looked up at him beneath her lashes, he couldn't tell by her tone if she was welcoming his company or not.

"There, all done," Miss Gaskill finished on Effie's hair and nodded at her work, "I'm gonna go and do some writin', Miss Grimshaw's still playin' poker with the others, so she won't notice we ain't finished on them socks yet."

"There's only a few left, I'm sure she won't mind," Effie turned to the other girl with a shrug, "Thank you for lendin' me your dress, Mary-Beth."

"Don't worry about it," Mary-Beth waved her hand as she stood, "Here, you can take my seat here, Arthur - if you're lookin' to sit." She shot him an impish grin as she brushed past him to head to her tent.

The outlaw shuffled his feet as a silence fell over the two of them, before he awkwardly sank into the stool next to Effie, "You, err, you look… clean." He winced as the last word left his mouth.

Miss Bartlett turned to him, her dark eyes narrowed slightly as her mouth curled in amusement, "Thanks, so do you," She gestured to his clothes that had been cleaned and pressed in Valentine before he'd paid his visit to Mary.

"Heh, yeah, I stopped at the Saints Hotel and had a bath," Arthur rubbed the back of his neck and looked away, he glanced back at her when he heard the sound of a match striking and tried again, "Heard you and Sean got a good score last night."

Effie's eyes lit up when they met his and she nodded as she took a toke on her cigarette, "We did, things got a little out of hand near the end, but we managed," She said carefully.

A small, guilty smile crept on his mouth, "Sean told me this mornin' before I left, by the sounds of it you had it under control."

She shrugged.

The outlaw dropped his gaze to his hands on his lap before he took a deep breath, "Look Effie, I'm - I shouldn't have said what I said to you last night before ya left camp with Sean, I'm sorry I got so mad about 'chu ridin' out on a job with him." He waited a long moment before he dragged his gaze back up to her.

Effie took another toke on her cigarette before she nodded slowly, "Ain't just your fault, Arthur, I was the one who was bein' childish, I didn't mean to push ya like I did last night. I was tired and," She looked away and her free hand ghosted up to brush her side and he frowned, "I hurt myself when I was in that river with Allbright," She said quietly, "But I guess it hurt more thinkin' you didn't trust me enough to leave camp on a job with someone else."

Arthur shook his head, "It ain't that, I know you can handle yourself. I didn't mean anythin' I said last night, not really."

Effie made a small noise of amusement and held out the rest of her smoke to him, "So you don't think I'm stubborn?" She asked with a teasing glint in her dark eyes.

He chuckled and brushed her fingers lightly as he accepted the cigarette from her, relief washing over him as the awkwardness between them slowly dissipated, "Oh, no, you're stubborn as hell. Probably one of the most head-strong people I've ever met," He smiled behind the cigarette as she shot him a guilty grin, "Hell, I think you'd probably give Marston a run for his money."

Effie scoffed, "John don't strike me as the wilful type."

"Then you ain't spent enough time round the idiot," Arthur finished the cigarette and flicked it off into the woods, "Speakin' of, did Sean tell ya we're meant to go out for that oil wagon today?"

"He might have mentioned it," She nodded and glanced up at her clothes hanging from the line as she stood from her seat to check them, "These are dry now, I can be ready to ride out when you are."

The outlaw didn't miss the pained grimace that flashed across her features as she stretched to reach the clothes and he frowned as he got to his feet beside her, "How bad did 'chu hurt yaself, Effie?"

"Hmm? Oh, s'nothin'," She said dismissively as she pulled the clothes off the line, "I went and got somethin' off'a Abigail this mornin' for it, just some bad scrape from the rocks in the river."

He snagged the shirt off the line for her and held it out to her with a serious look, "Are you sure?"

She rolled her eyes, "Yes, I promise, I was a little stiff this mornin', but I'm fine," Her lips pursed slightly under his hard expression, "I promise, Arthur, I'm good."

He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at her wide, imploring gaze, "Okay, but when we're out ridin' you tell me if you need to stop. Did Abigail take a look at it?"

"Yes."

He leaned back and crossed his arms as he looked down at her, "Uh-huh, and what'd she say?"

"She gave me some tonic and said it'd help with the pain. I should probably avoid bein' thrown into gorges for the time bein', though," She said with a smirk, "'Sides, how dangerous is it gonna be to steal a damn wagon?"

He smiled slightly as he dropped his hands to grasp his gun belt, "With 'chu? Hell, I'm sure one way or another you'll find a way to make it life threatenin'," Effie rolled her eyes as he chuckled, "Go an' get ready, and take this." He rooted around in his satchel and found the can he'd picked up from the general store earlier for her.

Her brow furrowed as she accepted it and studied the can, then her face lit up, "You got me peaches."

"Yeah, figured it'd be easier to get ya to eat somethin' if I know ya like it," He shrugged and looked away, "Now go on now, Miss. Don't want Marston givin' me any gripin' 'bout there bein' no wagon for his big plan."

---

Effie took a swig from the tonic bottle and suppressed a shudder as she forced it down; it tasted almost unbearably acrid and vaguely metallic, she wasn't sure why, but she imagined if she'd dare to lick some rusted metal it would be the exact same taste as the medicine swilling around in this little bottle. She pulled a face at the thought as she tucked the bottle back into her satchel and took the reins in both hands, she and Arthur were following the trail up through Twin Stack Pass towards Cornwall Kerosene & Tar, the massive oil refinery that was situated in the northern region of The Heartlands. Their horses were going at a slow, leisurely pace as per Arthur's instruction, Effie suspected it was because she'd told him about her side, but she wasn't complaining; she'd rather enjoy the scenery in the late afternoon warmth instead of gritting her teeth through a harsh gallop across the plains.

"The roads seem pretty quiet, I was thinkin' we wait out somewhere for a wagon heading into the refinery and ambush it," Arthur glanced at her as he looked up and down the road ahead of them down the sloping valley they'd cut through, "But I ain't sure, we might be out here waitin' for a while for it."

"Or we could just try and rob one and drive it out the refinery," Effie shrugged looked out to the east where the large oil rig stood proudly, great plumes of black smoke billowed from the chimneys and even from this distance she could hear the distant clanging of metalwork, "I reckon if we head round the back we could try and sneak in."

"What? While it's still light out?" Arthur scoffed and pulled a face.

"There's bound to be oil wagons in there, though," Effie shrugged as they took a right at the crossroads at the bottom of the hill, "It's riskier, sure, but it'll be a lot quicker."

The outlaw pulled out his binoculars and studied the refinery, "Looks like there's at least two entrances in - both of 'em got guards stood out front, I can see people patrollin' it, too."

Effie reached behind her and grabbed her rifle and raised it to peer down the scope, a set of railroad tracks that cut through The Heartlands ran up past the front of the rig, she could see the entrance on the far side where the tracks led to a tunnel to the east, and on the side facing them she could see the other one. She chewed her lip as she focussed on the men stood out on guard and tried to make out the guns they were carrying, the metal glinting at her menacingly in the sunlight, "Looks like everybody's carryin' either repeaters or shotguns," She murmured and followed a man on patrol on the eastern area of the rig, "Hey, follow where that fella's goin' - you see what he's walkin' past?" She lowered her gun and looked at Arthur.

"Uh-huh, big ol' oil wagon," The outlaw nodded slowly.

Effie leaned forward on her saddle, "That wagon's right by the back wall, it's low enough for us to climb it. We could go around, leave the horses and sneak in through the back."

"What? Climb over the wall an' just head straight to the wagon?" Arthur lowered the binoculars and shot her a wary look, "I dunno if we'll be that lucky, Effie."

She rolled her eyes, "We might have to take a few of 'em down, but I think if we're quick about it as soon as we're out and into The Heartlands it'll be easier to gun down anyone that chases, rather than try an' storm the refinery an' take on all of 'em."

He tilted his head as he considered her plan and rubbed the back of his neck, "That… might actually work."

"Well, yeah, otherwise I wouldn't have said it." She grinned when she saw a small smile slowly light up his features.

"We need to go in quietly then, guns'll make too much noise and we don't wanna get pinned down in there," Arthur reached into his saddle bag and pursed his lips slightly as he looked through it, "I've got some throwin' knives in here, you got anythin' that'll work?"

Effie frowned at the trio of sharp blades in his hands, "I got my bow, I ain't ever used a throwin' knife, somehow I don't think this'd be a good time to try," She looked down at the rifle in her hand and gritted her teeth as she made a decision on which gun to keep. Opting for the repeater slung on her shoulder behind her, she leaned over and slotted the rifle beneath the saddle flap and pulled out her bow and makeshift quiver.

The outlaw nodded and pointed ahead of them, "Alright, we'll cut off the road up there and make our way round, we can leave the horses somewhere behind the rig and jump the wall."

They rode in silence for a while, Effie made a small fuss of her horse as Arthur checked the rounds in his pistol and then his repeater, humming to himself as he snapped the chamber shut, "When we get over the wall stick together, no use splittin' up if the wagon's gonna be right there." Effie nodded as she straightened in her saddle and he turned to her, "I'll drive the wagon, you reckon you'll be okay shootin' any riders after us?"

Effie tested the string on her bow and nodded to him again, "Sure."

"Okay, you still got my bandanna I gave to you last night?"

"Yeah."

"Put it on, last thing we need for ourselves and the gang is another bounty on us for vehicle theft, I got a spare one in my saddle bag." Arthur leaned over and busied himself rifling through his bags whilst Effie tied the bandanna Arthur had given her around her neck, she pulled it up and rested the cloth on the bridge of her nose and pulled the brim of her hat low. She'd washed it with the rest of her clothes earlier; it smelled clean and of soap, but Arthur's natural scent of sweet tobacco, whiskey and horse hair still flooded her senses as she breathed behind the cloth. She flushed beneath the covering and closed her eyes as she concentrated on how comforting the smell had become to her over the last few months, she mentally leaned on it like she'd leaned on Arthur for safety and reassurance.

"There we go," She opened her eyes to the outlaw tying a bandanna behind his neck, he pointed to the brush of overgrowth ahead of them as they finished their wide arc around the rig, "We'll stop here, sneak up to the rig on foot and go from there."

They halted their horses and dismounted as quietly as they could, Effie winced when she jumped down off the Thoroughbred, the jolt from her boots shot up and rattled her torso, but it felt dull with the effects of the tonic starting to work. She cleared her throat as she did one last check to make sure she had everything she needed, her hand fell to her waist to brush against the butt of her pistol in her belt and she nodded up at Arthur. He put a finger to her lips and crouched down before he cut out of the bushes and led the way up to the wall, she followed closely behind with her eyes narrowed as she focussed on where she was putting her feet, careful not to kick any rocks or make as much noise. She got to the wall and flattened herself up against it as she crouched beside him, her ears straining to hear any movement from the other side, somewhere a few feet to her right, she heard somebody cough, but it didn't sound like they'd moved off. To the left she could hear a pair of footsteps crunching under the gravel as they made their way up round the building. She nodded up at Arthur and glanced up at the wall, it wasn't too high, but she'd still have to jump to grab purchase on the top to get over. For the much taller outlaw, this was less of a problem, he stretched to grab onto the ledge and let out a quiet grunt as he hauled himself up, she could see the corners of his blue eyes crease with a smile as he paused at the top, and pulled his bandanna down to shoot her a smug smile before he dropped to the otherside.

She rolled her eyes and took a few steps back to run up and jump, her boot hit the lower part of the wall first and she pushed to get the momentum to grab the top, she gritted her teeth as she climbed over and looked down to see Arthur there with his hands out, prepared to catch her. Instead she pushed herself down and landed in a smooth crouch beside him, pulling her bandanna down and reciprocating his cocky smirk back to him as she straightened. He rolled his eyes as they both crept to cover behind some crates and sacks of sand. Where they'd vaulted over the wall the wagon was only metres away from them, but it was under watch; the coughing she heard earlier must have been coming from the guard stood just ahead with his back to them, he was busying himself with lighting a cigarette, his gun pointing up to the sky as he juggled it in his arms with his matchbox and cigarette packet. She wrinkled her nose as she eyes the butts of cigarettes that littered the floor around him, it was no wonder he had a cough; standing around all day chainsmoking like that.

She nudged Arthur with her elbow as she readied her bow and notched an arrow, taking a breath in and shutting one eye as she pulled the string back and aimed for the back of his neck, she paused at the sound of a train whistle in the distance before she let the arrow loose, it struck her target with a quiet, sickening thud and the man dropped to his knees before keeling over, the smoke from his cigarette disappearing with the dust cloud that kicked up with his body. She nodded in satisfaction and gestured for him to stay where they were and then jerked her thumb to the guard she'd just dispatched, he narrowed his eyes and risked a peek over the crates before he nodded reluctantly, she put the bow over her shoulder and darted over to the fresh corpse, wasting no time to hook her hands underneath his arms and drag him back to where they were hidden behind the crates, clenching her jaw beneath her bandanna as her torso flared in pain as she hauled the body out of sight of any patrolling men. Once she'd dragged the fresh corpse back to Arthur she recovered the arrow from the back of his neck and dug through his pockets, grinning behind the cloth when her hand closed around a bill clip and a box of ammunition. The outlaw nodded to her and held up a hand as footsteps sounded to the left of them; one of the guards was coming back from the eastern side of the building to where they were with the supply crates and wagon.

"Alright Lewis, we're gonna be changin' shifts, Mister Turner says you're to take over watch on the north gate," Effie swallowed as the footsteps slowed in the dirt, "Lewis? Where'd you go?" Arthur readed a throwing knife in his hand, flipping it in his hand as they watched the man approach the space the other guard had been in, he looked around cautiously and Effie ducked down when he turned towards where they were hiding, but Arthur was ready; he threw the knife with a well practised arm and it embedded into the man's chest with a deadly precision. The guard let out a startled grunt as Arthur dashed out of their hiding place, he hooked his arm around the man's throat and hauled him back to where she was waiting for him, she glanced over the crates as he joined her, eyeing the guards stood by the gate, neither of them had noticed the scuffle and hadn't turned their way. The guard struggled feebly in Arthur's grip, his eyes glassy with shock as his front turned a bright crimson, strong hands gripped under his chin and wrenched it to one side, his neck snapping with a sickening crunch. Effie let out a breath she didn't realise she'd been holding as Arthur dropped him to the floor next to the man she'd killed, he didn't look at her as he searched the body, taking anything of value and storing it in his satchel before he touched her arm.

"Is it clear?" He asked in a hushed voice.

"Yeah." She breathed back.

"Okay," He checked on his side before taking a few seconds, apparently steeling himself for the hard part of the job. He grabbed her hand and pulled her up with him as he sprang up and took off in a sprint towards the wagon, he let her go as he ran round the other side, she jumped up to the front seat as he grabbed the reins, "Get that gun ready, Effie," He said to her before he cracked the reins sharply, "Hyaah!" The draft horses clearly startled at the unexpected command but lurched forwards, he directed them towards the easter gate and she raised her repeater steady.

She didn't hesitate as the two guards standing watch at the gate turned to the noise, she shot the first one and caught him in the neck before he could even get a look in. The other guard cried out in shock as his friend dropped to the floor with a gargled shout, but she soon silenced him, both of them lay dead as the wagon passed through the gate.

"That's two down, good," Arthur nodded as they followed the road, he whistled for his mare and she did the same as she turned in her seat to the shouts and cried behind them, "Don't let anyone get too close, one wrong shot and the oil drum might go up, takin' us with it."

"I got it, how long till we get to Old Trail Rise?" She asked as she raised her repeater; the commotion of the robbery had already travelled across the rig, and guards were leaping onto horses to give chase.

"It ain't far, hopefully we'll lose 'em 'fore we get too close, can't have people knowin' where we stashed it."

She shot out at the two men nearing the wagon on her left side, catching one in the shoulder, he yelled out and dropped his repeater to the floor, but managed to stay on his saddle. The other rider twisted under the fire and she gritted her teeth and ducked as he fired back at her, wincing as his last bullet caught the back of the seat and getting showered in wood chips.

"Fuck!" She hissed as she straightened and aimed back at the rider.

"Concentrate, Effie," Arthur said beside her, oddly calm as he veered off the road and out onto the grasslands.

She narrowed her eyes and shot twice cursing again as they ran over a rock and the wagon bumped, the first hit his hat clean off his head but the second tore straight through his stomach, he doubled over as he slid sideways off his saddle and onto the floor, his mount gave a whinnie of fright and galloped off into the plains and she smiled in satisfaction.

"You bitch! Get back here!" The man she'd clipped in the shoulder raised his pistol but she was quicker, she sucked in a breath as she aimed and pulled the trigger before her opponent could, this time hitting him in the head, he flew backward off his horse with the force of the bullet and she ducked as the two rider on the right took their chance to come in close and shoot.

"Shit!" Arthur ducked as one of the bullets whistled by him.

"I got it!" She yelled as he whipped to look at her and fired quickly back, she caught the first rider with three well aimed shots that tore up his torso, and he crashed to the floor, the other rider cursed as his horse collided with the fallen rider and trampled his corpse before stumbling a little, she smirked behind her bandanna and steadied the gun before she squeezed the trigger, only for it to click with the resolute sound of an empty chamber, "Oh, for Christ's sake!" She growled and slung the repeater behind her as her other hand grabbed the pistol.

"Hold on, it's about to get real bumpy!" The outlaw warned as he cracked the reins to encourage the draft horses forward, the wheels juddered as they left the smooth grass and rode onto some dried up creek.

The rider gaining behind them fired and she winced as she heard the last bullet ping off something metal, she stood up and used one hand to grasp Arthur's shoulder to steady herself as she shot back, smiling as the final guard cried out in pain before he fell from his horse to the dried up water bed and didn't get back up.

"Well, that was more dramatic than it needed to be," She said as she slotted her pistol back in its holster and dropped back to sit next to Arthur.

The outlaw scoffed and pulled his bandanna down, "You're tellin' me, for a second there I was worried we'd had it."

"You worry too much, I had it under control," She waved her hand dismissively, but looked over her shoulder all the same to make sure there was no one else in pursuit, "Looks like it's just us and the horses." She pulled her bandanna down and gave the outlaw a triumphant smile as the adrenaline pumped through her, making her slightly giddy.

"Good," He nodded and pulled on the reins to slow the draft horses and give them some well deserved respite, "That was some good shootin' back there."

"Hmph, could've been better," She furrowed her brow and looked ahead as they joined the road again to cross over some railroad tracks, Arthur pulled his bandanna down and kept the horses at a leisurely pace now they were clear of any danger, and he shrugged.

"I dunno, you killed 'em all, so," He paused and tipped his hat to a stagecoach coming up the road the other way, the driver frowned at the two of them curiously as they passed but didn't say anything, "Might have been a different story if I'd taken someone else along with me, like Sean, or Bill."

"Heh, I ain't ever seen Mister Williamson shoot, and Sean…" She frowned as she thought about the job they'd done together last night, "Well, he shot a hole through some fella's chest clean with his shotgun last night at that robbery, but I ain't seen him do anythin' that ain't close quarters."

Arthur chuckled, "Trust me, I'd have been more worried with Mister Maguire sat up beside me, you did good, Effie."

"Thanks Arthur," She smiled warmly and nudged his shoulder as she reached into her satchel for her cigarettes and matches, "Y'know, we make a pretty good team."

The outlaw huffed and he smiled as he pulled the wagon off of the road and into the woods, "We sure do, Miss."

They soon came to a clearing where a dilapidated house stood, completely stripped of any walls and doors, but it's wooden structure remained, long abandoned to be reclaimed by nature, and moss and ivy had wrapped itself around the wooden beams that had long since rotted, wildflowers had managed to grow and flourish inside it, and insects and birds hummed and chirped cheerily as they slowed the wagon and parked it next to it, out of view of the road and away from prying eyes. Arthur jumped down whilst Effie crossed her leg over her knee and lit a cigarette, eyeing the abandoned structure in interest as the outlaw soothed the two draft horses.

"You two did so good, huh? So brave," He murmured as he calmed the first horse and grabbed his knife to cut him free from the wagon, he slipped the bridle off and made quick work on the second horse, "There ya go," He soothed as both the horses stood free and his hand dipped into his satchel to retrieve some oatcakes. Effie smiled warmly as he fed both the horses and fussed over them a little more, before he turned and slapped one on the rear, "Go on, now, get!" He said firmly, both the horses raced off into the wilderness with a parting bray and he stood back to admire the oil wagon with his arms crossed. "Y'know, now that we actually got the wagon, I'm startin' to think Marston's plan might actually work." He mused.

Effie laughed as she finished her cigarette and flicked it off into the bracken before she stood up and jumped down off the wagon, she grunted as pain burned through her side and grabbed onto the wagon.

"Effie?" Arthur's face dropped as she hunched over slightly, her body taut with pain, "You weren't shot, were you?" His blue eyes widened as started to check her over carefully with his hands.

"No, I'm fine, just my - ow!" She shoved him away when one of his hands brushed over her ribs.

He held his hands up, "Sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"No, I know," She said quickly, hating the guilt that was pooling in his cerulean gaze from her shoving him off of her roughly, "Just, don't touch me there, it's fucking tender."

"Let me see."

"It's fine," She insisted, "I just need to take some more of that tonic Abigail gave to me to deal with the pain. It just hurts a little, that's all."

Arthur scoffed, "Horseshit, Effie. Show it to me right now." His tone hardened with the order.

"Arthur," She forced a chuckle to try and hide her sudden anxiety that thrashed within her; even though he'd seen her without a shirt before, and recently, it wasn't on her terms, and she'd do anything, anything to make sure she was never exposed to a man again, "I'm okay. I ain't takin' my shirt off to ya." She tried to keep her tone light and airy to play off her nerves, but instead it came out strained and tight.

He winced and almost recoiled at her words and she looked away with her lips in a thin line as he shuffled back slightly, "Effie… I ain't tryin' to get 'chu to bare yourself to me. You're hurt, and I needed to take a look to make sure you don't need a doctor or anythin'." His voice was quiet, but his words were so loud to her, she wondered if they were as loud to her as they were to him as she bored her gaze into the bark of a nearby tree trunk, "It's okay, if you won't let me take a look I can just ask Miss Grimshaw when we get back, if that makes you feel more comfortable."

She waited a moment before she dragged her gaze back to him, his eyes were wide with earnest concern and she gritted her teeth as she battled the turmoil within her, "Okay." She finally bit out.

"Okay?"

"Yeah," She nodded and slowly tugged at her shirt to untuck it from her trousers, "I trust you, Artur Morgan, just - just don't touch it, okay? It hurts like hell when you do that." She couldn't read his expression as she slowly pulled her shirt up, revealing the dark splotches of harsh bruising that lay waste across her skin where her ribs jutted out, patches of red stuck out against the deep purple and yellow where she'd scraped up against those damn rocks.

She looked away as he let out a low hum and stepped closer gingerly to take a better look, "Jesus," He muttered under his breath, "Effie, why the hell didn't you tell me about this when you got out that damn river?"

"Honestly? I think I was runnin' on such a high from us catchin' that bastard I barely felt it, it wasn't until later that evenin' that it started to hurt, but then we had that stupid argument, so…" She trailed off and looked back at him, only to find that guilty expression was clouding his features again.

Arthur looked down at the damage on her and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Dammit, even if we argue, I don't care how angry I am at 'chu, you tell me if you're hurt, okay?"

"Okay," She nodded, "I'm sorry, Arthur."

He scoffed and shook his head, "You're sorry?" He echoed in disbelief, "Jesus, wait there."

The outlaw turned on his heel and stalked back over to where his mare had stopped to graze after their horses had caught up with them, he threw the saddle back open and muttered something to himself as he rifled through it. Effie dropped her shirt and wrung her hands as she leaned carefully against the wagon, wondering whether she was regretting her decision or not; in all fairness, if she'd waited until they got back at camp for Miss Grimshaw to take a look at it, she had no doubt Arthur would be getting the details off the older lady after she got an earful from her for not saying anything about it sooner. No doubt others around camp would hear about it too, and the idea of everyone else hearing she'd been injured so soon after recovering from the O'Driscoll's left a sour taste in her mouth, the last thing she needed anybody to think was that she was… weak.

"Effie," Arthur's voice snapped her out of her thoughts and she looked over at him, he'd apparently found what he was looking for, and had a load of herbs and tonics in his hands, "Come on, we can build a fire somewhere nearby, then I can get some sorta salve made to help."

"Oh, you don't have to do that, I got that tonic Abigail gave-"

"Shut up," He snorted, his frustration from earlier apparently gone, "Now let's go, don't make me come over there and carry you."

---

Arthur poked at the logs on the fire he'd got going and nodded as they cracked and hissed in response, he'd led Effie and the horses deeper into the woods until he was satisfied with the small clearing they'd come across, collecting pieces of wood as he went for firewood. Effie had offered to help him carry some, but he'd refused and struggled not to snap at her when she'd asked for the umpteenth time.

He wasn't angry at her, but was instead absolutely furious with himself. He kept thinking about the bounty hunt he'd taken her on the day before; the long fall she'd taken when Allbright had shoved her off the cliff into the gorge had been bad enough, but then there was the viscous current of the rapids and the way the river had snaked, the branches of fallen trees that had been carried down the river and the rocks that had jutted out of the surface before the falls she'd been carried over. Of course she'd been hurt, he was a fool to think otherwise, watching her drag herself up the bank of the river when he'd finally caught up with her.

It hurt him more than he cared to admit that their argument that night had been the reason he'd not found out, sure, she'd mentioned it before they'd gone out for the oil wagon, but she'd been so damn dismissive about it and distracted him that he'd been stupid enough to go along with it. He grunted to himself as he poured a little tonic into his tin cup and readied his herbs, he wasn't sure what tonic Abigail had given her back in camp, but he pretty much swore by the Miracle Tonic Hosea had turned him onto years ago. There was a good reason why the medicine was named like it, it had saved him more times than he could count over the years, and even though he was far from qualified as any kind of healer, he was confident it'd work better than whatever Effie had been using. Once the medicine had warmed enough he tossed the herbs he'd ground out into the cup and mixed it around with the blade of his knife, wrinkling his nose slightly at the strong smell.

"Arthur," He glanced up at Miss Bartlett sat beside him, she looked a little wary and he couldn't blame her; they'd been in a stiff silence since he'd told her to sit and wait for him to get the fire going, she'd been fidgeting and playing with her hands ever since, "Are ya mad at me?" She asked quietly.

"No," He stirred the herbs around the cup and sighed, "No, I ain't mad at you, Effie."

"Oh," She paused and her gaze flickered to the fire for a moment before going back to him, "You're bein' so quiet."

"Yeah, I'm sorta mad at myself," He chuckled dryly, "I should've known better than to think you were gettin' out that river unscathed. I didn't think about it properly."

"Yeah, but I didn't really tell you," She murmured.

"I knew you were hurt in camp, watchin' you with the washin' line," He shrugged and shook the cup a little to keep the mixture from sticking and burning, "I'm just a fool, 'specially with 'chu." He muttered and took the cup off the heat and set it on the grass to cool, he sighed again as he flipped his satchel open and pulled out a bottle of Kentucky Bourbon, "Here," He held it out to her and she frowned.

"What's with the whiskey?"

"It'll help with the pain, once this salve's cooled down it's goin' on them bruises, and the drink'll take the edge off." He waited until she accepted the bottle and popped the cork off, she tilted her head back as she took a long drink and he nodded and started looking for some gauze.

Once he'd found everything he'd need he laid it out on the ground and lit a match off his boot to light a cigarette, he stared into the flames as he smoked, his mind going a mile a minute whilst Effie nursed the bottle quietly. He wasn't sure how late it was, but the moon had risen high in the night sky, and in the distance he could hear a pack of coyotes barking to each other as they combed the area looking for food to scavenge, and an owl was in the trees somewhere overhead screeching into the dark.

Beside him, the bottle nudged his leg as Effie put it down and he glanced at her, "How're you feelin'?"

"Better," She nodded, her dark eyes slightly woozy as she looked up at him, "I don't want you to be mad at yourself for me gettin' hurt, Arthur. Ain't your fault."

The outlaw grunted, "We're partners, Effie. When we go out ridin' together you watch my back and I watch yours," He said simply, "If you get hurt and I don't do nothin' about it then that's my fault, imagine if you hadn't told me and somethin' happened to make it worse when we were stealin' that wagon, what Dutch and Hosea would say if I brought you back to camp like that." He shook his head as he finished his cigarette and tossed the end onto the fire, watching it curl up and burn away in the flames.

"I don't want anyone else in camp knowin'," She said quietly.

He frowned, "Why?"

"Because," She leaned back on her hands and uncrossed her legs slightly, "I don't want people thinkin' I'm weak, I don't want 'em knowin' I only went out of camp a few times before I got myself hurt."

His jaw clenched; "Miss Bartlett, runnin' as an outlaw and a gunner for the Van Der Lindes means that the work we're gettin' into and the jobs we're goin' out on are dangerous. Sometimes, people are gonna get hurt, sometimes that's just the way it is."

She arched her brow, "On the job last night, Sean got thrown out a window, and he's fine."

Despite himself, Arthur grinned, "Yeah, and Mister Maguire's gonna be doin' nothin' but complainin' about that so he doesn't gotta leave camp unless he wants to. Hell, I bet Sean's drinkin' his way through half the camp's whiskey right now, an' if anybody says anythin' he's gonna say it's 'cause he fell out a window on that job," Effie's small smile encouraged him further, "Only thing that keeps him from bein' called out for it is the fact that he was lucky enough to take you along to find those bonds."

She snickered as she took the bottle of whiskey and took another long drink, "He would've probably found those bonds himself, it's the gettin' away he woulda had trouble with by himself."

"Heh, yeah. Sean's a scrappy kid, but he ain't the most skilled in a fight," He held out his cigarettes to her and she traded them for the whiskey, she'd drunk nearly half the bottle and her eyes were starting to glaze over, her cheeks were flushed with alcohol, "What happened, anyway? At the robbery? Thought it was meant to be a get-in, get-out job?"

She fumbled with a match between her fingers to strike it off her boot, her brow furrowed slightly as she concentrated to get the cigarette lit, she took a deep inhale on the smoke before she answered, "The tip off Sean got had been spread around, he had us climb up through an upstairs window to get into the house, and just as we were going downstairs to search around these three men turned up."

"That's the risk when ya take tips from strangers," Arthur nodded and shrugged his shoulders, "Sometimes you'll run into somebody who's been promised the same pay out as you, it happens."

"Yeah, well Sean definitely weren't expectin' it," She smiled as she recalled the job, "We had to double back and hide in the bedroom, wait for the men to sweep the house. One of 'em searched downstairs whilst the other two came up," She paused to toke her cigarette and he watched her patiently, "Sean hid under the bed and I hid in a closet, and with the first fella it was just a case of puttin' him down quietly so we could get the hell outta there."

He tilted his head, "And Sean shot him?"

"Nah, Sean had to shoot the second fella, I killed the first."

"You shoot him?" He pressed, remembering his conversation with the Irishman this morning before he'd left for Valentine, about how violent she'd been.

"No, I waited until he was about to open the wardrobe, and I," She reached out and gripped his shoulder tightly and turned him to face her, her eyes staring up into his made his breath hitch as she smiled, "I grabbed him like this, and took my knife and slashed his throat out." She jerked her other hand holding the cigarette across his throat in a brutal motion, and he winced slightly at the heat of the cigarette end as it brushed across his skin.

"Jesus," He murmured and gently pushed her cigarette hand away so she didn't accidentally burn him with it, "So what happened after that?"

The tight grip on his shoulder was removed as she tossed her cigarette with a slight shrug, "The other fella upstairs came looking for his friend, so Sean shot him point blank with his sawn off. Then we were just runnin' to get the hell outta there. Sean told me to get out the window first, I got out and waited for him, but the third fella had caught up with him, he was fuckin' huge - must have been as big as Charles. They had a fight upstairs before Sean was soon fallin' out the window."

Arthur chuckled slightly at that; imagining the small Irish kid squaring off against someone the size of Charles Smith, it was a wonder he hadn't been killed.

"Anyway, by that time I just wanted to get outta there, so I helped Sean onto my horse and for a moment it looked like we were safe," Effie pulled a face, "Then he just - he sorta just came outta nowhere. Dragged me off the saddle and all of a sudden I was fightin' the guy."

The outlaw clutched at the grass beside him, struggling to keep his expression neutral as Effie's brow furrowed, almost incredulous about what happened. But she still had that little smile on her face, that dark little smile she had whenever she got into anything life threatening, and it made his stomach flip. "Did Sean help ya?"

"Nah, it was all Sean could do to stay up on my horse at this point, so it was just me and this fuckin' bear of a man. I'd managed to shoot him in the shoulder after he threw Sean out that window, but all that seemed to do was make him mad," She giggled, "Tried stabbin' him with my knife, but that didn't do much neither, wasn't until he kicked me to the floor that I thought to empty my gun on him."

Arthur forced a smile before he took another long drink; he definitely hadn't enjoyed hearing the story as much as Effie apparently enjoyed telling it. All he could picture was her facing off against some bastard and her and Sean barely escaping with their lives. "Were you scared?" He asked and offered her the bottle.

"Scared?" She paused and took a sip from the bottle thoughtfully, "I don't think I was scared, a little shook up afterwards, maybe. But nah, not scared."

"Hm," Arthur looked away and grabbed the cup, testing the bottom to see if it had cooled enough, "I reckon this is just about ready to be put on."

She nodded and took another swig from the bottle before she set it down clumsily, "Sure," She slurred and started pulling up her shirt.

He frowned and looked away quickly, "You want me to go for a walk while you do it."

"I can't even see straight, Arthur, can you do it?" The whiskey had definitely done its job of taking the edge of, she sounded so subdued, so vulnerable, "I said before I trust you, just do what you gotta do." He glanced back at her to see she'd lifted her shirt up high enough to expose her wounded side and he nodded carefully.

"Okay, hold still," He ordered quietly and gingerly dipped his fingers into the cup and dipped his head low to hide his face beneath the brim of his hat as he rubbed the salve over the bruising as gently as he could, he winced when he heard her inhale sharply, "Does it hurt that much?"

"It's cold," She hissed and despite everything, he smiled.

He made quick work with the ointment and wrapped bandages carefully around her torso and tied them off in some knot Miss Grimshaw had shown him how to do.

"There," He said as he sat back and wiped his hands on the grass, "That should help a lot more. It's what I do whenever I get hurt out here, normally saves me from a trip to Miss Grimshaw or the doctor, so." He shrugged as Effie inspected the bandage and pulled her shirt down.

"Thanks Arthur," She breathed, giving him a smile that made him hope the flush in his cheeks from the whiskey would hide.

"Ah, it ain't nothin', Miss. Just please, tell me the next time you get hurt, I promise I won't tell nobody in camp about it if I don't have to, if that's what you're scared of," He looked around the fire to where their horses were hitched to a nearby tree, "It's late, and you ain't sober enough to sit in a saddle. I shoulda just put the tent up earlier," He sighed and went to get up, but she reached out and grabbed his arm.

"Wait, can you sit with me for a while?" She looked up at him with her dark eyes wide and his resolve crumbled quickly, "I'll help you put up the tent, but just sit with me, please?"

"Alright," He sat back down and sighed as he got comfortable, Effie hadn't let go of his arm, and she shifted closer to him, both of them looking out at the dark woods, letting the quiet drift over them.

"I like your company," She said after a while, her voice quiet, "I'm happy with the gang, but I think… I think I'm happiest that I met you."

"Seems so long ago now," He murmured, looking at her out of the corner of his eye, watching the way her delicate features glowed in the firelight, "All because I was foolish enough to ride out in a storm."

She made an amused noise, "I best be glad for that foolishness of yours, it's saved my life enough times."

He scoffed as he rooted around in his satchel for his journal, pulling it out and flipping it open to a fresh set of pages, careful to make sure she didn't see any entries.

"You ever gonna let me read any of it?"

"Not if I can help it," He chuckled as he looked for his pencil, he stilled slightly when he felt her head rest gently on his shoulder.

"You gonna draw somethin', or are ya gonna write?" Her voice sounded thick with sleep, the outlaw glanced down at her and saw her eyes were heavy lidded and he smiled.

"Ain't decided yet," He said quietly, "There ain't much for me to draw right now, probably gonna write about the job we did."

She nodded tiredly against his shoulder, "Ain't much worth rememberin' about is there? Just you and me on a job."

"Ah I don't know, think there's things that happen all the time that are worth writin' about. 'Specially with 'chu." He paused to wait for her response, but it never came; instead her breathing slowed and when he glanced down her eyes were shut, her mouth slightly open as she slept. He gently encouraged her head onto his lap and took off his jacket as carefully as he could, he accidentally jostled her a couple of times and she stirred, but never woke up, her hand eventually found it's favourite resting place beneath her chin as he threw the jacket over her and returned to his journal.

Got back from my visit with Mary to go vehicle robbing with Effie. I figured we'd just wait out on the road and hope one would come through, but Miss Bartlett has ways of convincing me otherwise, and today was no different. She came up with a plan for us to sneak into that Oil Refinery that's out in The Heartlands and steal one right from underneath the guards.

She was in good spirits the whole time, I think she was as happy as I was that we weren't wanting to be angry at one another; she said she was just being childish about the whole thing, and I told her I was a fool.

In a lot of ways, I still am.

She told me she hurt herself when she went in the river with that crook, Benedict Allbright, then when she went out on that homestead robbery with Sean she ended up getting in some altercation with some other men looking for an easy score, I think whatever happened on the job made the injury worse. She got something off of Abigail in camp to help with the pain, I'm not sure what it was but it sure wasn't working enough for me to not notice.

The job went okay, we got the wagon safe to the drop point in one piece, I drove and she shot at the guards, only ones that got any bullets was them, so no complaints there. My complaints came afterwards, though.

Convinced her to let me see what was hurting her so damn bad, and it certainly wasn't something that was just gonna go away on its own. Made her sit whilst I made that mixture of herbs Charles told me about, and made a salve for her. It took a lot of whiskey, but she asked me to help fix her up, which I was more than happy to do.

She told me she trusts me, and if only I could tell her how much that meant to me when she said it. Hopefully she trusts me enough to tell me if she ever gets hurt like that again, damn near terrifying seeing such a little thing like her handling things like that, especially when things like that don't seem to scare her.

It's strange to me. I don't think I've ever met a woman so fearless, yet in other ways so clearly vulnerable to me.

We'll head back to camp tomorrow, tell Marston he's got everything he needs from us to get on with this train robbery of his, no doubt that fool's probably still gotta run around getting the supplies together for it, could be a while till we ride out for it yet.