INT. SHACK - NIGHT
ROOSTER. Jack, Jack.
Jack wakes up to Rooster shaking him. He sits up drowsily, wiping sleep from his face.
JACK. You're back...
ROOSTER. Jack, Jack, you've got to see this. Look at what I got.
Rooster pulls something heavy beside them. Jack looks down at it, his heart beating.
JACK. What's that?
Rooster opens the sack. Jack's eyes take a moment to focus, and then he sees that the sack is filled with gold and silver coins. His heart begins to beat faster.
JACK. Where did you get this?
ROOSTER. Do you know how much this is? For the rest of our lives, we'll never need to work a day-- Your mother--
JACK. Rooster, where did you get this?
ROOSTER. Don't worry, everything's going to be okay. I got away without anyone noticing.
JACK. You stole this?
ROOSTER. Not unless you can steal something that's already been stolen.
JACK. I don't understand.
ROOSTER. Do you remember that cabin we passed on the way here?
JACK. What about it?
ROOSTER. It was a robbers' den. The men inside were thieves.
JACK. How do you know?
ROOSTER. I-- I used to be one of them.
JACK. You... helped them rob people?
ROOSTER. I did.
JACK. I don't--
There is a crash from far off. Rooster starts and runs to the door. He sees a group of four men stream into the woodcutter's house.
ROOSTER. Shit! How the hell did they find us? Get Neddy up. Hurry!
Jack obeys. Coley and Tom stir. Rooster fastens the sack of gold to Neddy's back.
Jack picks up Tom in his arms.
ROOSTER. Listen to me, Jack. You keep going toward Dunlavin. Take the long road, okay? I'll meet up with you if I can, okay?
JACK. Rooster, I--
Rooster silences Jack with a kiss. His hands cup his face, and his heart beats wildly. Before Jack even knows what has happened, he pulls away.
ROOSTER. There's no time, Jack. There's just no time. Whatever happens, just know that I did this for you.
Jack just looks at Rooster for a few moments, entirely stunned. Rooster has to push Jack toward the door.
Jack, Neddy, and Coley proceed toward the tree line, and then they disappear into the forest. Rooster stands at the door of the shack. Finally, the four robbers, clearly having figured out where the boys were sleeping, come out onto the porch.
ROOSTER. Over here, you mangy bastards!
Rooster flinches at the sound of a pistol shot, ducking his head and grabbing at his chest. He straightens slowly, realizing that he isn't wounded, and then he turns on his heels and begins running toward the tree line. One of the men on the porch lunges for the shooter's arm and lowers it.
MICAH. What the hell are you doing?!
LOVELL. He's getting away!
MICAH. What if he's hidden it somewhere? We'll never find it if you kill him!
HENRY. There were two of them. You two check the shack, then search the area. Micah, help me catch the boy.
The four robbers take off in the direction of Rooster. Henry and Micah follow him into the forest, while Arlo and Lovell enter the shack. The woodsman, fearful and unsteady, comes out onto the porch. Jack watches anxiously and breathlessly from where he is hiding in the forest. The two robbers exit the shack and look around, gesturing angrily. After some apparent disagreement, they run in the direction of the other robbers.
YOU ARE READING
The Enniscorthy Thieves
Short StoryWhen drought strikes his village, Jack, the only son of a widow, must leave his home in order to make a living. Jack has little luck until he runs into a mysterious and attractive boy named Rooster. Together, the two of them begin the long trek to E...
