Prologue

If you had asked the bound woman whether or not she had believed in the existence of a biblical heaven and hell, she wouldn't have been able to answer. Her faith had long been in limbo, her own existence could have lent credence to the fact that there was surely a hell to be found here on earth. A flip of the existential coin could see a man rich, or a slave to low circumstances and for a woman every possible future was the same bleak prospect. Wife and mother, or if the money was high, and morals low, you could find yourself on your back for a few coins in your pocket.

For Alice Hale, none of those futures were particularly appealing. Not that she was ever in a position to be a good godly wife. Dead father and mother, nothing but a unwanted responsibility on her already overburdened aunt and uncle. Undertaking any meager errand she could possibly have for a few coins in her pocket, against the wishes of her uncle. Until a chance encounter where she met Red Harrington. The older proprietor had taken quite a liking to the sharp tongued Alice quick, seeing some semblance of herself in the young woman, and quickly offered her a place amongst her "girls". In Red's eyes she had all the fine features that would have drove the men wild. A little more heavier set than some of the others, but with full pink lips, blue eyes, and a head full of wavy brunette hair that reached the small of her round backside.

As flattered as Alice was, she just wasn't to the point of giving herself over to that life just yet, and Red was content to bring her in as a overseer of sorts. One more set of eyes when her own were occupied. All Alice sought in return was food in her belly, a roof over her head, and the chance to see the world, or at least something more outside of the place she called home. So of course it didn't go down particularly well with her religious aunt and uncle that she was leaving, and with a traveling brothel of all things and wouldn't be back for the foreseeable future. Her uncle had rained down insults, disguised as prayers for her immortal soul and anything else he could try to steer her from the damnation he was sure she was following, while her pious aunt kneeled and quietly prayed, but she wasn't listening. If god truly was here, he left her to her own devices a long time ago. Gathering what pitiful belongings she owned, a book, a dress, and her mothers locket, Alice mounted her horse, an old spotted nag and took off back toward Red's menagerie, leaving her old world behind and fast riding into a strange new one.

It was in this strange new world that she would most definitely learn hell did in fact exist and the devil himself walked the earth among them. Slowly releasing the silver blade from its sheath, lightly grazing it against the side of her cheek, the ol' blue eyed devil chucked to himself as one swift motion he cut the dirty cloth that rendered her silent. Spitting and sputtering, Alice raked her tongue against her teeth, trying to rid herself of the nasty taste of the soiled rag, gobs of spit landing squarely at the Outlaws feet. The rope bindings around her wrists digging painfully into raw skin as she writhed. In the darkness she could barely make out the man squatted in front of her and maybe a few more around her. The low flame lantern casting a gentle glow from behind her captor.

"Well well, if it ain't our little songbird here in the flesh. and so far away from her gilded cage. Looks like mama Red don't pay much attention to her little birds as she used to"

The voice was smooth, a thick southern drawl dripping like venom with every word. She'd heard that voice once tonight, and the realization was slowly dawning on her of exactly whose presence she found herself in.

"I don't have any money, if that's what you're after."

"Oh darlin, from where I'm standing you're worth more than a lick of gold, I reckon old Red is wondering where her little songbird could have flown off to, bet she's in a right tizzy thinking you've might of done run out on her"

"She knows better and with you and your boys slithering around last night I'm certain she knows just where I am"

"Maybe so, but one thing I do know fer sure is that if I'm a betting man, and I am, I'm betting that old Red will be looking to get her girl back, so's much that she might be inclined to pull a few strings for me to see you come home."

"You're willing to drag me all over gods creation to entice her to do you a favor. You would have been smarter if you'd snatched Eve, at least you would have someone actually worth something, than settling for a simple barkeep."

Feeling a hand roughly grasping her chin, he raised her head with a assertive force, leaning close enough to make direct eye contact, blue eyes on blue. Smelling the dirt and grime coming off the haggard man made her nose itch and water.

"Something tells me I gots just the right one."

"And if she's not "inclined" to help you"

"Well it's really no skin off my back" he shrugged, "easy enough to just cut your throat and leave you out for the coyotes to chew on, and I'll just keep snatching them lil birds out the nest until I get what I want"

Drawing the knife over his own throat theatrically, he could tell the point hit home as the frightened woman paled in the low light.

"Or maybe I can get a pretty penny selling you to an injun. You don't hurt to look at" bringing a handful of the brunettes hair to his nose, eyes closed deeply inhaling the scent of lavender. "Let those savages take turns with you until yous wishin you was back home with your ma and pa"

The gang of men roared with laughter. Alice couldn't tell if he was being serious or not but at the expense of her throat she wasn't looking to press the matter any further at the moment. Glancing to the various men that surrounded her a deep dread filled the pit of her stomach. This was the absolute worst possible position she could have ever gotten herself into, with little to no guarantees that she'd ever go free again. She'd heard the stories from Red herself and seen the ivory leg adorning her mistress. Butch Cavendish was not a man to be trifled with, if he could even be called a man at all. He was a monster, a demon from the pit of hell sent to prey on the innocent and the guilty alike. With a taste for human flesh when the mood struck him, if you believed in the stories.

Looking to the outlaw she could tell her distress was entertaining the bastard, her heavy breathing eliciting a sly grin that highlighted his scar and shining gold tooth. Red never would divulge the circumstances surrounding the reasoning he took her leg, only that he did and with it her dreams of dancing. Taking a stand, he motioned to someone out of sight, and proceeded to check the small pocket watch he procured from his vest.

"Jesús, get her up on that horse, we're running behind"

His face and what little light was had disappeared as a bag was placed over her head and she was grabbed and tossed over someone's shoulder with ease as if she were nothing but a rag doll. Every rough step knocking the wind out of her. Until she could feel herself thrown over the saddle.

"Frank you're in charge of this one until we make it back to camp, she falls off your squirrelly ass gonna be right behind her" a voice barked from afar.

A hand grasped her leg, helping it over the horses backside and her into a sitting position, much better than laying like a sack of grain. Moments later she could feel another taking their place in front of her.

"This'll be a lot easier for both of us if you could put your arms around me ma'am." A fidgety voice spoke from the blackness. The last thing Alice wanted was to land face first into a rock at full gallop, and everything in her body fought against such an intimate feeling embrace, but the reality was there was no way of knowing how long she would be subjected to this way of traveling and it would be in her best interest to at least foster some sort of connection with her captors. So she acquiesced and lifted her arms to allowed the rider to slip her bound wrists over his head, to settle around his thin frame.

"That's the closest you've ever been to a woman isn't it Frank" another cacophony of laughter followed as she could feel the horse beginning to propel itself forward from a trot into a full run and with it Alice Hale into the strange new world she had unwittingly sought.