A few days after Sean's return, Arthur, went storming into Dutch's tent.
Dutch only had to see the look on his face to know that he was furious.
"Arthur, what ever is wrong son?" He asked.
"What's wrong! I can't believe you didn't put a stop to this!"
"Put a stop to what?" Dutch asked "I really don't know what your talking about."
Arthur rolled his eyes.
"Micah, spending time with Casie, teaching her to shoot, and god knows what else. Ya know what he's like."
Dutch sighed "Really Arthur, give the man a break. Anyway Casie seems to like him, they have some sort of bond. You weren't here, and she wants to learn, she's a clever kid."
"Clever maybe, but definitely impressionable. He'll only go and get her into some sorta trouble, the kids got enough on her plate, with everything she's been through."
"Well there's nothing to stop you from taking Casie out as well. Just don't make it into a competition." Dutch pointed to the other side of camp, "she's not doing anything now, take her out. It'll give the pair of you a chance to bond, she likes you Arthur, and you haven't been around much since she settled in."
Arthur threw his hands up in despair, and headed over to where Casie was standing.
"Casie!" Arthur yelled, "you wanna come out with me, I wanna see how your shooting's coming along."
Casie ran over to Arthur, "Yes please," she said enthusiastically, "I haven't actually done any shooting yet, Micah said I had to get my arms stronger first. Do you think I'm ready to actually try shooting my gun?" She asked.
Arthur laughed. "Ain't much point having a gun, if you ain't gonna shoot it. C'mon lets head out."
Arthur and Casie, rode a few miles south, until they came to a spot with a ledge, and some rocks. Arthur put some bottles out on the ledge, ready for them to practice. Casie stood, and drew her gun at hip height.
"Is that what Micah has been teachin' ya?" He asked.
Casie nodded.
"Well that's Ok," he said, "but sometimes you have change things around a bit, depending on the circumstances."
"How do you mean?" she asked. Arthur thought for a second. "Ok, so when we went and rescued Sean, there were loads of bounty hunters, and only three of us. So we had to take cover, before we started shooting." He said. "So we couldn't stand, and shoot like that, let me show you."
Arthur took his gun out of his holster, and ducked behind a rock. "So I'm using the rock for cover, and I'll bring my gun up at shoulder level, and shoot." He shot one of the bottles off the ledge. "That way I've got cover from any incoming bullets."
"Now you try," he suggested.
Casie ducked behind the rock.
"Now raise your gun, look at your target, and squeeze the trigger." He said.
Casie gave it a try, and although she missed the bottle, her gun arm held steady.
"Try again," he said, "don't close one eye to aim, you've got to be quick, just focus on your target, and shoot it."
Casie tried again, and the bottle was shattered by the bullet.
Casie grinned "I did it, didn't I, I really did it!"
Arthur smiled. "Yeah ya did! Just remember not to over think it. What you did with Micah was good." He said, he didn't want to confuse her, plus he could also see the benefit of what Micah had been doing. Although he wouldn't admit it to Micah. "But you also need to think about what's going on around ya. Then you can decide on how best to position yourself."
Casie ducked down behind the rock, and let off another couple of shots, one missed, and one hit.
Arthur smiled. "Just keep practising, we all miss occasionally, you just need to make most of 'em count."
After a few more shots, Arthur was full of praise. "You're doing really well, but lets see how you get on, from you're horse!"
Casie looked at Arthur in surprise. "When would I need to do that?" she asked.
"Well if you were being chased by law men, for instance, you'd probably want to fire off a few shots, especially if their horses were faster than yours. So you need to be able to ride, and shoot at the same time."
Arthur mounted his horse, and galloped past the bottles, as he did he turned, and shot one off the ledge.
Casie looked in dismay, "I'll never be able to do that." She sighed.
Arthur laughed, "sure you will, just believe in yourself. Start off trying it in a walk, then speed it up."
Casie mounted Maggie, and tried it from a walk, the first two times she missed, but on the third she managed to hit a bottle.
"See" Arthur said. I knew you could do it. But lets call it quits today, we can always practice again tomorrow."
"Thanks Arthur, I cant wait! Dutch was right, you are a pretty good shot." They both laughed, and headed home.
Dutch watch the pair of them as the came back into camp. Smiling, and laughing together. Whilst he liked the fact that Micah and Casie had bonded, he was all too aware of Micah's crazy side. Dutch didn't mind that too much, because he got the job done. If Arthur was his right hand man, then Micah was his left. But having Arthur and Casie bond, he thought, would be good for Casie. A stabling influence.
Lost in his thoughts, Dutch didn't see Lenny, come galloping into camp, until he was half way to his tent.
"Dutch, Dutch," the young boy yelled, clearly out of breath. "They've go Micah, he's been arrested for murder...he's in the jail house in Strawberry, they're gonna hang him!"
Arthur and Casie, had walked across camp, and heard the commotion.
"Here's Hoping!" Arthur snorted.
"Arthur!" Dutch stared at him.
"You know how I feel about him, it was only a matter of time before something like this happened." Arthur replied.
"Arthur, he's a good man." Dutch retorted.
Arthur turned to Dutch, "I ain't saving him. Not this time." he glanced at Lenny, and saw the state he was in. "C'mon Lenny, you look like you need a drink, I'll take you into Valentine."
The two men, walked towards their horses.
Dutch stared after Arthur, He damn well would go and get him, he'd have words when they came back. Right now, Lenny looked like he needed a drink.
Casie had watched in horror, as Arthur had said he wouldn't save Micah. What happened to nobody got left behind, she thought. No, she wasn't going to let another person be hanged, especially not Micah. He had saved her once from the sheriff in Valentine, now she would save him.
She waited until everyone had gone to bed. Checking her gun, to make sure it was loaded, she put some extra bullets in her pocket, just in case. She quickly scrawled a note, and slipped it under Dutch's tent, then she sneaked to the horses. She found Maggie, and led her through the path that she had found, when she beat Dutch in the race. Going this way, she would avoid anyone on guard duty.
Once she was out of the camp, she jumped on her horse, and started the ride over to Strawberry. She pushed Maggie, as hard as she dared. The roads were deserted, but the moon was full, and bright. Casie was lucky that night. As she rode to Strawberry, she saw some wolves on a hill. When she used to ride with her Pa, if they came across wolves he would get out his rifle, just in case they attacked. On one occasion they did, and he shot one, which had frightened the others away. Other times they would see them, and if they had hunted, or were feeding, the wolves would leave them alone. Tonight she saw the wolve's, and her heart started thumping in her chest. She knew she could point the gun, and shoot at them, but whether the bullet would actually reach the target, she had no idea. As she came closer, she saw that they were feeding on a deer carcass. They looked up, with bloodied noses, so she pushed Maggie on a bit harder. To her relief, they just went back to their feeding, so she didn't have to put her shooting skills to the test.
After a few hours, Casie arrived in Strawberry. She knew the layout of the town, so she headed to the Jail house. The town was still quiet. Everyone mostly sleeping she guessed. She knew the Jail house, not that she had ever been inside, and neither had her Pa. But she knew the cells were in the basement.
As she approached the jail, she saw the cell window. Casie, hopped off her horse, checked that no-one was around, and ran to the window.
"Micah," she said, in an urgent whisper. Micah quickly came to the cell window, and was more than a little surprised to see Casie standing there. He peered out the bars, to see if there was anyone else with her.
"What the hell are you doin' here kid!" he exclaimed, in a hushed voice.
"I've come to get you out, I'm not gonna let 'em hang you," she blurted.
Micah laughed "You're a good kid. But you shouldn't have come, not all by yourself. But seeing as your here..." He pointed behind her. "See over there, see if you can grab that hook and put it on the bars."
Casie looked. She walked over, and grabbed the hook. She could only just lift it, but she managed to slowly pull it towards the iron bars of the cell window. It probably would have taken an adult about five or ten minutes to attach the hook, but it took Casie a lot longer.
When she attached the hook, she looked at Micah, realising how long it had taken her,
"Sorry Micah, it took so long," she gasped, trying to catch her breath.
Micah looked at the kid, she was exhausted. He really didn't know how she'd had the strength to lift it, let alone pull the heavy hook, and attach it to the bars
"Don't worry kid, I ain't going anywhere," he joked.
"Now see the lever on that machine, you're gonna have to pull it down, then the chain should pull this window right out," he said with a smile.
Casie ran to the lever. She tried with all her strength to make it budge, but it wouldn't.
Casie was distraught, she ran back to Micah, "I can't do it" she cried, "It won't move, I'm not strong enough." Tears started to roll down Casie's face. "I don't want you to die, I don't want to see another person hang." She cried.
Micah put his hand through the bar, and touched her face, as he wiped away a tear. "Don't cry kid, you better get outta here before someone finds you..go on git."
Casie heard a voice behind her. "Yeah, you better get outta here."
She spun around, "Arthur, you came. You said you weren't going to."
Arthur knelt down, and grabbed Casie by the shoulders. He looked her in the eye, "I came for you, not for Micah, but as I'm here now..." he looked towards the jail window.
"Casie," he said. "I want you to get on your horse, and ride out of town. Wait for us there."
"But I can help" She said, "I..."
"No Casie, do as Arthur says," Micah interrupted. "We'll meet up with you, I promise, now go."
Casie ran to her horse, jumped on, and rode out of town, glancing back, every now and then, at the two men.
Arthur walked to the cell window.
"You gonna get me out then, Cowpoke?" he grinned.
Arthur glared at Micah, "I am, but I'm doing it for her, not for you."
Arthur walked over to the machine, and pulled the lever. The machine started to whirr, and it began to pull the chain. Within seconds, the cell window, and half the wall came down with a crash.
As Arthur had expected, some Micah craziness occurred, as they shot up half the town, in an effort to retrieve Micah's guns, and his horse.
Leaving a trail of devastation behind them, the pair galloped out of Strawberry, towards the rendezvous point with Casie.
Casie saw the two men riding towards her, so she pushed her horse on, to meet them.
"Oh Micah, thank goodness you're Ok," she gasped.
Micah winked at Casie, "course I am kid."
Casie looked at Arthur, "Thank you Arthur, I thought..."
"Yeah," he scowled, "I know what you thought. We better get back."
"Am I in trouble?" Casie asked, looking worried.
"Trouble ain't the word for it." Arthur huffed, as he shook his head.
He glared at Micah, "are you comin'?"
Micah shook his head. "Reckon I'll stay away for a bit."
Casie looked at him, "are you gonna be in trouble too?"
Micah laughed, "yeah kid, but I'm kinda used to it."
"Please don't stay away to long, Micah. I'll miss you," she pleaded.
Micah put his hand out, and tussled her hair. "I'll be back, don't you worry," he turned, and rode off down the track.
Arthur didn't say much to Casie, as they started the ride back. She could see by the look on his face, that he was cross. Eventually she broke the silence.
"I didn't think you were gonna get him out," she sighed. "I'm fed up of everyone I love dyin'."
Arthur felt a bit guilty, if she hadn't witnessed the scene back at camp, then this probably wouldn't have happened.
"Casie," he said "I'm only cross, because I was worried about you. Nobody's gonna die. Well nobody except you, if you keep runnin' off like that, tryin' to save the world."
"I ain't tryin' to save the world," she huffed, "just Micah!"
They rode on in silence, for a little longer.
"Is Dutch angry with me?" she asked, with a worried look on her face.
"Only because he's worried, you'll have to face whatever punishment he decides, when we get back."
The pair rode back into camp around mid-morning. After they had dismounted, Arthur ushered her straight to Dutch's tent.
Casie was tired, she hadn't slept all night, but she thought, lets get the punishment out of the way first, then she would go to bed.
"Thank you, Arthur" Dutch said as he ushered Casie into the tent.
Arthur left, and Dutch closed the tent flap.
"What were you thinking, Casie" he scolded, "you could have been killed!"
Dutch lifted his hand, to scratch his head. Casie dived on the floor, and covered her head, cowering, ready for a beating. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she whimpered.
Dutch took a step back, "Casie?" He looked shocked.
Dutch walked over, and gently but his arm round her. She flinched, befor he brought her to her feet.
"Casie, whatever is the matter," and then it dawned on him. Up until now, this is probably all the girl had ever known.
"No one's gonna beat you Casie," he said gently. He guided her to the bed, and sat her down.
Casie looked at him, with wide eyes "You're not? Arthur said, you were gonna punish me."
Dutch, gently touched her face, with his hand. "Maybe by making you do extra chores, or not allowing you to ride for a few days, but not beating you, that's not how it works around here."
Dutch looked concerned. "Casie, has someone beaten you before?" he asked.
Casie nodded her head. "But it was always my fault."
Dutch held her hands, in his, "tell me Casie, who? And why was it your fault?"
Casie took a deep breath, "Pa used to, when I got stuff wrong, he said it was the only way I would learn."
Dutch was angry, but he tried not to show it. "How do you mean Casie, got stuff wrong?"
Casie thought for a bit, "well one time, I didn't get a very good price for some horses we stole. Pa was angry, 'cause he said we needed the money. He beat me, and wouldn't let me eat for two days. It worked, 'cause next time we got more than they were worth." She said stoically.
Dutch decided he had heard enough about her father.
"What made you think you had to go to Strawberry to get Micah?" he asked her.
"Well Arthur said he wasn't going to go, and you said nobody gets left behind, so I thought I'd go get him instead." She continued, "and I didn't want to see anyone else hanged, or have anyone else die, that I care about."
Dutch sighed. "Nobody would have got left behind, Casie. Arthur would have gone, I would have told him to. Its just, sometimes we need to plan things, instead of just running off to do them," he explained.
Dutch hesitated, for a second, taking in some of the things she'd said.
"What do you mean anyone else die, who have you seen die?"
Casie swallowed hard. "I watched Mama die, and then the sheriff made me watch, when he hung my Pa."
Dutch was shocked. It was one thing to hang the girls father, but totally another make her watch, and if she had seen her mother die too. He knew from past conversations, that she had only been about five years old.
"OK Casie, I just want you to promise me, that you won't do anything like this again."
Casie looked at Dutch, and nodded. He kissed the youngster on the forehead. Now go to bed, you look exhausted.
Casie got up, just as she was leaving Dutch's tent, she turned to look at him. "Don't be angry with Micah, I want him to come home soon."
Dutch smiled, "scoot" he said, "and get some sleep."
Casie headed to her tent. She lay on her bed, thinking about Micah, then slowly drifted off to sleep.