I rode into camp, steeling myself for what was going to happen.
"And this here, this is Ann," Micah spoke to his two stooges as I marched towards Dutch, "She's a good guy, a real good guy. Sort of, uh... a modern day hero."
"Well at least you ain't run off," Dutch said as I approached.
"What you talking about?" I questioned, trying to control my anger.
"Pearson left," he was cradling his gun, "Old Uncle... the traitors. Both gone at dawn. They said to young Tilly they were running away to save themselves. I think Mary-Beth left as well."
"So it goes," I whispered, finality clear in my voice.
"They are goddamn cowards, Ann," he stood, "Cowards. Of all the time we spent, they run off!"
"Well, I guess they don't wanna die, Dutch," I told him.
"Ain't nobody gonna-" he looked over to the campfire where everyone was sitting, before grabbing my shoulder and pulling me somewhere more private.
I coughed harshly as he stared down at me.
"This is a tough time," he said, "And you ain't, you ain't doing too well, but... we... our community, we will survive. They will not crush us!"
"I hope so, but... if we let Jack, and the women free," I said, "Well, then maybe we can-"
"There ain't no freedom," he cut me off, shaking his head, "Not for no one in this country no more, Ann. One more big score, we got enough money to leave. All this turmoil has the army and Pinkertons spinning, we take a boat and slip away."
"I don't know what you're saying, Dutch, but it seems like I've heard it all before," I shook my head.
"Just one more train," he argued.
"There's always a goddamn train!" I yelled, causing myself to cough.
"Ann," he put a hand on my shoulder, glancing to make sure nobody heard my outburst, "This is different. We know this is full of cash. Army payroll. Money and supplies to repair the bridge that Arthur and John blew. This is all going to plan! We rob Uncle Sam, and we leave. The poetry of it all! What do you think?"
"It sounds wonderful," I sighed as he chuckled, "Hell, I ain't got much to lose, but... you know the women and the children, and John and his family... I'm afraid I have to insist, I mean, we gotta let 'em go! Cause if the Pinkertons come through again, they will kill everyone."
He stared at me, a look on his face I had never seen before.
"John? Insist?" I recognised now that the look was barely contained rage, but I wasn't about to back down.
"Yeah, insist," I said after a moment's hesitation.
There was silence for a few seconds, I worried he would just shoot me in the head, but he finally spoke.
"Of course, pal..." he said, his voice anything but genuine, "Whatever you think is best, I will see to it. Now... we gonna rob a train?"
"Sure," I said, he patted my shoulder and walked towards the others.
"We will survive, we will flourish," he said before addressing everyone, "We have work to do my friends, let's go. Come on, we are gonna borrow a little money from Old Uncle Sam, and be outta his hair, once and for all."
He led the way to the horses and everyone stood, following him without question. I could have sworn I saw him muttering under his breath, his head shaking slightly. I had really pushed the boundaries, he was beside himself with anger.
"Let's go!" he yelled as we mounted up, leading the way to Saint Denis.
"Okay, let's pick up the pace," Dutch yelled after a while, "The train is due in Saint Denis in an hour."
"We're robbing a train in the middle of a city?" I asked, astounded. That was bold, even for Dutch.
"No, it's going to stop there," Dutch explained, "Take on mail and water. Let off some boys heading home on leave, and then it heads out."
"They know the bridge is gone, Black Lung," Micah said, and I bit my tongue, "There'll be a patrol past Annesburg, waiting down by the river to collect the money."
"We sneak on quietly and then we got a short time to stop the train before it reaches the patrol," Dutch continued, "John, you go get that dynamite. We'll meet back up outside Saint Denis."
"I'll go with him," I announced, giving Arthur a look.
"As you wish," Dutch said unhappily.
We peeled off from them, John leading the way.
"This is one big goddamn group of us to be riding back into Saint Denis," I said after a moment.
"Yeah, and I heard the Pinkertons have pretty much taken over Van Horn," he told me, "Moved a whole heap of men in there. Things are closing in fast."
"Shit..." I said, coughing harshly as we neared the wagon.
"I'll get the dynamite," John said, dismounting, and for once I didn't argue.
He grabbed it and mounted up again, giving me a hard look.
"So, listen... Abigail just told me..." he hesitated, "The money. It's hidden in the caves at Beaver Hollow?"
"What?" I barked, following him again.
"Yeah, so much for never hiding it near camp," he sighed, "Dutch was getting sloppier than we thought."
"Are Abigail and Jack ready to leave?" I asked him.
"I think so," he nodded.
"Okay... whatever happens with this job today, wherever Dutch and them go next," I told him, "We're getting you the hell outta here. We're gonna get you the money you need. Knowing the three of you got out, well... maybe this'll all still mean something. Tilly and Susan too. I'll do whatever it takes."
"You and Arthur, you've both always had my back," John said.
"Perhaps not always," I laughed slightly.
"Anyway, here we go... one last train," there was doubt in his voice.
"One last train..." I nodded.
We rode to where the others were waiting, a determination settling inside me. Dutch was smoking a cigar, quite content with himself, but he turned and started riding the moment he saw us.
"Got everything?" he called.
"Yeah," I replied, giving Arthur a sharp look. I hoped he got at least some meaning behind it.
"Then off we go," Dutch pushed the Count harder, and we rode into Saint Denis.
"Off we go indeed," I heard Arthur mutter.
"One last time, gentlemen!" Dutch called, "I've got us a riverboat. We'll head up to New York or Chicago, and get a real boat from there out to the tropics."
"So long as it isn't Guarma," Javier called.
"Oh, it'll be paradise, son," Dutch replied, determination evident in his voice.
"It's all coming together, Dutch, just like we planned," Micah sneered.
"Is that okay with you, John? Ann?" Dutch's voice was mocking, "Or do you insist on something different?"
I'd definitely annoyed him back there, Arthur shooting me a confused look because of the wording.
"Sounds about as good as every time I heard it before," John shot back.
"Abigail must be real excited, all packed up like she is," Micah commented and I cringed, "I can just see her there, in a little grass skirt..."
"Don't talk to me, you son of a bitch," John said angrily.
"Boys, boys, okay now, let's keep it down," Dutch said as we entered the town, "We don't wanna draw attention to ourselves going through here."
"Ah, Saint Denis... it's good to be back," Micah said with a grin, "Happy memories, huh, John?"
"Will you shut up, Micah?" I roared.
"That's enough. Quiet, all of you," Dutch commanded.
We rode to the train tracks, dismounting and all walking towards Dutch.
"Alright," he said, "Cleet, Sadie, Arthur. You board halfway along. John, you and Ann are gonna board at the back. Rest of you, follow Micah and I, and join once they stop the train."
We heard the train whistle go, and all turned to look down the tracks. I could tell from the second I saw it, it was not slowing down to stop in Saint Denis, no way.
"Here she comes," Bill said as we backed away slightly.
I stared with an unsurprised expression as the train went roaring past us, everyone else staring with wide eyes. Even Dutch was dumbfounded for once.
"Should I just... sneak on now?" I asked mockingly.
"Godammit..." Dutch muttered and everyone turned to him, "Well... everybody mount up!"
"We're still going through with this?" I grabbed his arm, Arthur by my side.
"Of course we are," he pulled away and headed for his horse, Arthur giving me a troubled look.
But I mounted up anyway. What did I have to lose?
We rode hard, eventually catching up with the train. We jumped on as we rode alongside it, just the folk Dutch had mentioned originally, and took cover behind some crates. They surely knew we were coming.
"Are you okay?" John asked as I coughed, the impact of the jump winding me.
"Yeah," I nodded, hoping the others managed to jump on at the midway point.
"Money's in the front carriage, we've gotta push forwards quickly before we run out of track," John informed me, and pushed we did, shooting every guard we came across.
The crates provided more than sufficient cover, allowing us to move largely unseen through the train. They knew we were there, but we popped up before they could react.
It was going too well, however, and the inevitable problem was soon encountered. I shot one man just before he himself shot me, and as he fell, his pistols rose, going off wildly...
And shooting a lantern in the carriage in front of us.
A loud explosion through us off our feet, I looked around in panic. What was the plan?
"Trains on fire!" John yelled behind us, "We can't get through the smoke!"
Those who weren't on the train rode alongside us, giving us enough time to jump on the back of their horses. John jumped to Bill, I ran to where Dutch was, hoping I wouldn't miss.
I landed on the Count's back, gripping onto Dutch for dear life. We rode past the burning carriage and, before I knew it, I was forced to jump back onto the train. I'd barely even caught my breath.
I stumbled back to my feet, John moving forward to help me. Sadie, Cleet and Arthur were behind us but I didn't acknowledge them, heading back for the burning carriage.
"Uncouple that carriage, before it blows us all up!" I bellowed.
"I'm on it," John moved forward and I looked around the flatbed for something we could use.
A Gatling gun would surely do the trick? The stand was in front of me, the gun in a box to the side. I hesitated, but we had finally been spotted.
"The trains being robbed!" came a yell and John turned to me.
"Man the gun, Ann!" he told me, and I quickly grabbed the equipment out of the box, putting it together with Arthur's help.
John finally uncoupled the burning carriage, and it flew off the track as it lost momentum, but the carriages attached to it did not. We stumbled back slightly as the carriage went flying, but we were safe from an explosion now.
"Now get on!" John yelled, Bill immediately jumping onto the train as he was told.
I heard a gunshot go off, and turned quickly to see John falling backwards off the flatbed, a hole in his shoulder.
"John!" I yelled, but I had to duck immediately as another shot went off.
I turned to see a guard on the roof of the carriage in front and didn't hesitate for a second, gunning him down.
"I'll get John," Dutch yelled, pulling back, "You get the money!"
"Man the gun, Ann, I'll go stop the train," Bill told me as I loaded up the ammo.
"Stop the train?" I stared at him, "Whatever you do, do not stop the train! Secure up ahead, but keep us moving! Arthur and I'll deal with that patrol."
He went with Sadie, Arthur and Cleet stayed on the flatbed with me. They took cover by some crates while I grabbed the Gatling gun.
"Shit, we got a lot of riders on our tail," Arthur said as I readied myself.
I didn't respond, I just let loose on them. Horse and man fell alike, the Gatling gun cutting them to shreds without any trouble.
"You sure you can handle that gun? Because I can take over if you want," Cleet announced.
"Just shut the hell up," I yelled, still shooting.
We began to near the bridge Arthur and John had blown up, the patrol that had been following us well and truly dealt with.
"Get off that gun, we need to get that money," Cleet ordered and I bit my tongue, doing as I was told.
We climbed onto the roof of the next carriage, heading straight for the front carriage where the money should have been.
"Come on, let's blow a hole in it," Sadie grinned as we approached the armoured car and I produced the dynamite John and I had collected.
I ignited it and took cover, the door blowing wide open. We ran inside, Dutch had been right for once. Bags of money awaited us, we grabbed what we could see, Arthur and I passing it out to Cleet and Sadie.
"Morgan, the driver's dead," Bill suddenly interrupted us, "This thing ain't stopping, we got to get off."
"Okay then, let's go," Sadie said, and we grabbed as much of the cash that we could carry.
I threw the bag ahead of me, recognising the building to our left as Bacchus Station, and threw myself off the train. I watched as the train headed for the bridge, then disappeared from sight, falling down into the deep ravine.
"Jesus..." Arthur muttered.
"We're alive," Cleet commented.
"Yeah, just about," I sighed.
"Let's move," Bill said, and we walked down the tracks, money bags in hand.
"Where's John?" I asked Dutch the moment I saw him. He was counting the bags we had on us.
"I tried... I tried," Dutch shook his head.
"That patrol killed him, there was nothing we could do," Micah agreed, "We had to run."
I dropped my bag of cash to the ground, shaking my head in disbelief. John was dead? After all that, John was dead?
"Come on, let's go," Dutch addressed us all, "Before another patrol turns up."
I didn't move immediately, staring after Dutch in disbelief. Arthur put a hand on my shoulder, squeezing it. I shared a look with him before we joined Dutch and the others in riding back. John was really dead?
We rode in silence, I had nothing more to say to any of them. I was beyond angry, disgusted... Dutch didn't even seem to care that one of his supposed sons was dead!
We neared camp, Dutch suddenly holding up a hand to stop us as a figure approached.
"They came and took Abigail!" It was Tilly, riding towards us with Jack on her horse, we all came to a halt, "I saved Jack. We hid, but they took Abigail."
"Who did?" Arthur asked.
"Agent Milton and his men, they took her to Van Horn..." she gave him a pleading look, "to be put on a boat and tried for murder!"
I shared a look with Arthur and Sadie, this was all going to shit faster than we had ever anticipated.
"I am sorry to hear that..." began Dutch but Micah interrupted.
"We gotta let her go," he said, no emotion in his voice, "John's a... well, sorry son. Without John, she's just bait. We've got a bunch of money, Dutch, she's just a girl. They won't do nothing to her. But me and the boys know, we need to keep riding on this one Dutch, you know it, everyone here knows it."
Dutch had a strange look on his face, he glanced between Micah and I, the cogs in his head clearly turning. He leant back, obviously trying to make a decision, and I had to intervene.
"So we just gonna let the boy be made an orphan?" I demanded.
"It ain't like that!" Dutch turned to me.
"What is it like?" Arthur asked angrily.
"I wanna live, cowpoke, I still got the choice," Micah turned to Dutch again, "Dutch, it's just a girl."
"You're right," Dutch nodded.
I stared dumbfounded before getting down from Roach.
"It pains me to say it, Ann, but he is right," Dutch looked down at me, no sympathy for Jack in his eyes.
"Dutch!" I pleaded, praying that the man I once knew would come back, but I didn't recognise the one in front of me anymore.
"Come on, boys," he ignored me, and Micah, Dutch and Micah's crew charged back towards camp.
"Well, I guess that's that then," I spat at the ground after coughing, "All them years."
"Come on, Ann, let's go get her. You, me, and Arthur is all we need," Sadie said.
"Miss Tilly, here," I took the bag of money off Roach and put it on her horse before counting out some cash, "Take this money too. Take Jack and wait at Copperhead Landing for Abigail, Mr Morgan, and Mrs Adler."
"Thank you," she said softly.
"You're a good girl," I sighed, "Live a good life now, you hear?"
"Alright, Ann," she said, "I... I'll miss..."
"I know, I will too," I smiled, "Listen, Jack, you be brave. I'm gonna go get your momma. Sadie, Arthur, ride with me! Ya!"
With that, we cantered towards Van Horn.
"If they're putting her on a boat, they'll probably dock at the north end of town," Sadie told us, "So I reckon we should go in the other way."
"Sure, I guess, I don't know," I sighed.
"Those goddamn bastards," Arthur growled.
"Look, just follow me, okay?" Sadie said, "We're gonna get this done."
"Now he doesn't care if he orphans his friend's child? All that talk, all them goddamn years," Arthur continued.
"I know. But we will get her back," Sadie said.
"All I wanted was to let John and his family get out and have a life... seems I left it too late," I sighed.
"But if we get Abigail, maybe her and Jack will still be okay," Sadie said.
"John, Hosea, Mac, Davey, Jenny, Sean, Lenny, Kieran! We have to put an end to this," I coughed, "And Eagle Flies. Another angry fool he used just like the rest of us."
"Like I said, we don't need them. We'll get Abigail. Now, come on," we rode in silence the rest of the way, I was boiling with anger.
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Last chapter tomorrow folks...