Paco Valdez
"Annie. Put the gun down." You tell her.
"I don't see why I should." She answers your request with defiance. "She's the whole reason we're in this mess."
"Now, now." Says Gus, intervening. "It takes two to do that deed, Annie. You should know that well enough."
You silently thank God that Gus is on your side on this matter. If there is anyone Annie will listen to, it is Gus. She seems to view him as a father figure at times.
She slowly, reluctantley lowers her rifle. "Just so you know, Ms. Montego, I sleep with my rifle close at hand. You try anything, anything, and I will not hesitate to shoot you dead."
"Understood." Claire says with a nod.
"I'm serious," Annie continues, "You make one wrong step, say one wrong word, give one dirty look, whistle the wrong tune, lift the wrong leg when you're ready to break wind,-"
"She gets it, Annie!" You say, interrupting her speech.
"Girl's got a way with words." Gus says aloud as he stretches and prepares to lay back down. Annie sits on the ground and stares into the fire while you and Claire share a long and uncomfortable gaze.
"I'll be damned if I'm gonna be able to get back ta sleep now." Annie grumbles to herself, loud enough that everyone hears it quite clearly.
"I think we should talk." Claire says to you, breaking the lengthy silence which before was only broken by the crack of the fire and Annie's complaints.
You don't answer her at first. She thinks you should talk? She sure as hell has a lot of explaining to do. But the whole "I think we should talk" line is a classic "We're breaking up" line that you'd heard all to often when you were a law abiding youth in the city. On the one hand, you don't want to hear a word of what she has to say. On the other hand you do, she endangered your life and then saved it in the same day.
You walk with her into the distant shadows some distance from the fire. "What the fuck do we have to talk about?" You ask of her with just a little more hostility than you intended.
"What we did," She begins, "is likely to get you killed."
"You really think so?" You ask of her with mock terror. "Do you seriously think I'm that stupid? I know Valdez's probably going to come after me. That's why I didn't stick around in Fullton after I came back to the room."
She is silent for a while after your berating and you almost feel sorry for her. Almost. She's the whole reason you're in this predicament after all.
Then she takes a deep breath and continues. "Paco isn't expected back in town for another day or two. So you'll have at least a days jump on him. And..." She trails off there, whether from fear, or a reconsideration of whatever it was she was about to say.
You give her a few moments to continue her sentence, but she does not.
"And what?" You ask her, curiosity getting the best of you.
"And I want to come with you."
You are taken aback by this request. She wants to come with you. Annie was about to shoot her dead, there is no way she'll be cool with this. You're not entirely sure that you are okay with it.
"Listen," she tells you; "I'm as dead as you are if I go back there. I've already shown you that I can shoot. I'll take care of myself, I just don't feel safe alone."
You nod. You head back to the fire, Claire tailing behind.
"Listen," you say, mustering up the courage to speak. "Claire is coming with us."
Annie looks at you like you just slapped her mother in the face. Gus actually launches into a coughing fit; revealing just how asleep he was after all.
"What the hell did you just say, boy?" Annie asks in a low voice that drips with malice.
"I said," You stop and clear your throat for fear that it might crack. Gus is sitting up now and he looks at you with those hawk eyes, sizing you up like prey. "I said that I want Claire to come with us."
Annie outright laughs. Gus swears and throws a twig violently into the fire.
After Annie stops laughing she shakes her head a bit and says; "Why in the hell do you wanna do that for?"
"She's in as much trouble with Paco as I am," You reason.
"How do we know she ain't gonna try and shoot us in our sleep?" Annie asks.
"She ain't on their side," You say.
"She already killed a few Vigilantes when she shot at them from the damn window."
Annie shakes her head, clearly not convinced. A looming silence hangs over the camp.
Gus breaks that silence. "Fine. She can come."
Annie's eyes go wide, first with shock and then with anger. "Gus, what in the hell are you thinkin'?!?"
"The girl is in as much trouble as we are," he told her calmly. "She done slept with this dumb shit," he gestures to you; "and she shot some Vigilantes. Paco probably wants her dead as much as he wants him dead."
Annie diesn't respond to that. She just stares coldly back at him.
You glance over to Claire while Annie and Gus battle silently, staring each other down. Her eyes meet yours and they lock for a while until Annie at last breaks the silence.
"Alright, fine; she can come," She says. "But if this hussy tries something I'll blast her brains all over the desert and let the vultures feast on her damn body."
"Deal," says Claire the moment Annie stopps ranting.
All three of you stare back at the woman in a lengthy silence of shock.
Gus breaks the silence by laughing outright. Annie shakes her head and settles back to a sitting position by the fire, muttering some obscenities under her breath.
Claire smiles at you and the two of you share your bedroll at the side of the fire. Having her in your arms is comforting and you drift off to sleep rather quickly.
The dreams come.
"I don't see why I should." She answers your request with defiance. "She's the whole reason we're in this mess."
"Now, now." Says Gus, intervening. "It takes two to do that deed, Annie. You should know that well enough."
You silently thank God that Gus is on your side on this matter. If there is anyone Annie will listen to, it is Gus. She seems to view him as a father figure at times.
She slowly, reluctantley lowers her rifle. "Just so you know, Ms. Montego, I sleep with my rifle close at hand. You try anything, anything, and I will not hesitate to shoot you dead."
"Understood." Claire says with a nod.
"I'm serious," Annie continues, "You make one wrong step, say one wrong word, give one dirty look, whistle the wrong tune, lift the wrong leg when you're ready to break wind,-"
"She gets it, Annie!" You say, interrupting her speech.
"Girl's got a way with words." Gus says aloud as he stretches and prepares to lay back down. Annie sits on the ground and stares into the fire while you and Claire share a long and uncomfortable gaze.
"I'll be damned if I'm gonna be able to get back ta sleep now." Annie grumbles to herself, loud enough that everyone hears it quite clearly.
"I think we should talk." Claire says to you, breaking the lengthy silence which before was only broken by the crack of the fire and Annie's complaints.
You don't answer her at first. She thinks you should talk? She sure as hell has a lot of explaining to do. But the whole "I think we should talk" line is a classic "We're breaking up" line that you'd heard all to often when you were a law abiding youth in the city. On the one hand, you don't want to hear a word of what she has to say. On the other hand you do, she endangered your life and then saved it in the same day.
You walk with her into the distant shadows some distance from the fire. "What the fuck do we have to talk about?" You ask of her with just a little more hostility than you intended.
"What we did," She begins, "is likely to get you killed."
"You really think so?" You ask of her with mock terror. "Do you seriously think I'm that stupid? I know Valdez's probably going to come after me. That's why I didn't stick around in Fullton after I came back to the room."
She is silent for a while after your berating and you almost feel sorry for her. Almost. She's the whole reason you're in this predicament after all.
Then she takes a deep breath and continues. "Paco isn't expected back in town for another day or two. So you'll have at least a days jump on him. And..." She trails off there, whether from fear, or a reconsideration of whatever it was she was about to say.
You give her a few moments to continue her sentence, but she does not.
"And what?" You ask her, curiosity getting the best of you.
"And I want to come with you."
You are taken aback by this request. She wants to come with you. Annie was about to shoot her dead, there is no way she'll be cool with this. You're not entirely sure that you are okay with it.
"Listen," she tells you; "I'm as dead as you are if I go back there. I've already shown you that I can shoot. I'll take care of myself, I just don't feel safe alone."
You nod. You head back to the fire, Claire tailing behind.
"Listen," you say, mustering up the courage to speak. "Claire is coming with us."
Annie looks at you like you just slapped her mother in the face. Gus actually launches into a coughing fit; revealing just how asleep he was after all.
"What the hell did you just say, boy?" Annie asks in a low voice that drips with malice.
"I said," You stop and clear your throat for fear that it might crack. Gus is sitting up now and he looks at you with those hawk eyes, sizing you up like prey. "I said that I want Claire to come with us."
Annie outright laughs. Gus swears and throws a twig violently into the fire.
After Annie stops laughing she shakes her head a bit and says; "Why in the hell do you wanna do that for?"
"She's in as much trouble with Paco as I am," You reason.
"How do we know she ain't gonna try and shoot us in our sleep?" Annie asks.
"She ain't on their side," You say.
"She already killed a few Vigilantes when she shot at them from the damn window."
Annie shakes her head, clearly not convinced. A looming silence hangs over the camp.
Gus breaks that silence. "Fine. She can come."
Annie's eyes go wide, first with shock and then with anger. "Gus, what in the hell are you thinkin'?!?"
"The girl is in as much trouble as we are," he told her calmly. "She done slept with this dumb shit," he gestures to you; "and she shot some Vigilantes. Paco probably wants her dead as much as he wants him dead."
Annie diesn't respond to that. She just stares coldly back at him.
You glance over to Claire while Annie and Gus battle silently, staring each other down. Her eyes meet yours and they lock for a while until Annie at last breaks the silence.
"Alright, fine; she can come," She says. "But if this hussy tries something I'll blast her brains all over the desert and let the vultures feast on her damn body."
"Deal," says Claire the moment Annie stopps ranting.
All three of you stare back at the woman in a lengthy silence of shock.
Gus breaks the silence by laughing outright. Annie shakes her head and settles back to a sitting position by the fire, muttering some obscenities under her breath.
Claire smiles at you and the two of you share your bedroll at the side of the fire. Having her in your arms is comforting and you drift off to sleep rather quickly.
The dreams come.