THIS WEEK'S POSTING: "Pink Eye", Part 2
RECAP: Last time, we met Pink Eye, a Pinkerton detective working in the wild west, and the five passengers he's sharing a stagecoach ride with. Two passengers of note are the Morris brothers, Harold and Samuel. Harold is the head of the family's merchant banking business looking for a noted investor while Samuel has just drifted his way. Pink Eye himself has been chasing the outlaw Lonesome Rita Marlow across the west. Anyway, in last time's posting, the stagecoach has stopped for a night at a way station, with Pink Eye guarding the passengers for the night. As we left off, Pink Eye's attempt to nap for a bit had been interrupted by a gun being pointed in his face...
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PINK EYE - PART 2
He opened his eyes to see a gun barrel pointed at him. He then saw the holder of the gun. He saw the dark brown hair, the long flowing black hair, the bright ruby red lips on a dark brown face. He saw the dull purple nankerchief around her neck, the dusty brown hat on her head. He also saw the determination in her eyes as she stared at him. These were the same things that haunted his dreams.
"Lonesome Rita, I see." he said, without pause to think.
"I see you here, Pink Eye. More importantly, I see your fate." she said back to him.
"You always say that, yet it's never true!" he said as he then, with the blink of an eye, he drew his own gun and pointed it at her.
"I see that you haven't forgotten my favorite game with you." she said.
"Like I ever would. Now, I see you managed to find me, just as well as I'm never able to find you." he said.
"I have my means. Now, do I pull my trigger or do you pull yours?" she said.
"Depends. Which one of us wants to die more?" he said.
The two then had a stare down. Each keeping their guns pointed at each other, each starting to sweat, each with their fingers on the triggers of their guns. Each trying to read in the eyes of the other what they had planned. Finally, after a minute, she made her move, moving her arm quickly to disarm Pink Eye. As he saw his gun drop to the floor, she quickly ran towards the door to the male bedroom.
With quick moves, Pink Eye ran over to the gun and picked it off the floor. He clicked the hammer of the gun back in quick movement, causing Lonesome Rita to stop in her tracks. She then pulled her gun again and did another stare-down. Then, without warning, she ran towards him and then past him. She ran out of the door and back into the darkness from which she came. Pink Eye re-holstered his gun and then went back to the sofa.
"She won't be back." he said to himself, if only as wishful thinking.
Pink Eye's second nap doesn't last long, as he soon heard the clicking of a gun hammer about twenty minutes into his new nap. He opened his eyes to see the barrel of a gun right in his face. He then saw that Lonesome Rita had returned, her face showed a look of anger over the last encounter. Pink Eye's face took a look of surprise over her return.
"I see you came back." he said.
"I have unfinished business here, starting with you." she said.
"I dare you to finish it." he said.
Suddenly, Pink Eye moved quickly, knocking the gun out of her hand. The two then had a small fight, throwing a few punches at each other. Pink Eye managed to get in one good gut punch to Lonesome Rita. However, Lonesome Rita responded with a hard right to his face. With him on the floor, Lonesome Rita wasted no time running into the male bedroom, eventually staring at the sleeping figure of Harold.
"Finally... " she said to herself as she didn't see Pink Eye run up behind her.
"Well, Rita, which one do you have your eye on?" he asked, taunting her as he spoke.
"If you must know, the poor fellow in that sorry excuse for a bed." she said with delight as she pointed right at Harold.
"Well, I'm sorry, but I must ruin your plans." he said.
"Then you won't mind this." she said as she gave him a elbow in the gut.
With quick speed, Pink Eye recovered and managed to grab hold of Rita's arm. However, she fought back as the sound of the fighting woke up Harold. Harold looked over at the fight and a look of surprise washed over his face.
"Holy crap! What's going on here!?!" said Harold, surprised out of his mind.
The surprise turned on Rita, who also got surprised at Harold for awakening, which allowed Pink Eye to fight her out of the room. After a moment, Rita ran out the door once more into the darkness. Now, Mr. Ryan and Mr. Colin had awakened and all three stood over Pink Eye, sitting on the floor tired from the fight.
"Was that who I think it was?" asked Mr. Colin.
"Yes. Lonesome Rita Marlowe. She told me that she wanted to kill Mr. Morris here. I put a stop to that." said Pink Eye.
"And a good thing, too. I like to be alive. Besides, if I get killed, that sorry brother of mine gets the family business and we all know where that would go." said Harold, who then went back into the male bedroom.
"I hope she won't come back." said Mr. Ryan.
"That's a good hope, because if I'm correct, that was the second time she tried to kill Mr. Morris." said Pink Eye as he got off the floor.
"How many more times will she try?" asked Mr. Ryan.
"I don't know, but I know I'm gonna find out." said Pink Eye as he then made a path towards one of the chairs in the living room.
Over the next half-hour, Pink Eye sat in the chair, having moved it to face the door. He faced the door, holding his six-shooter in his hand, waiting for Rita to come back. His stealy gaze was unmoved in that time. After thirty minutes, Serena emerged from her room, dressed in a long flowing white gown, to fetch herself some water. She made her way over to Pink Eye the moment she spotted the sight herself, wondering what was going on.
"Mr. Pink Eye, are you okay?" she asked, finching him a bit as he turned his head to face her.
"I'm fine. I'm watching out for Lonesome Rita." he said.
"You mean she was here?" she asked.
"That she was. She was here in a apparent attempt to kill Mr. Morris." he said.
"He's still alive, right?" she asked.
"He is. However, nothing's stopping her from trying again, except me, that is." he said.
"I hope she doesn't come back. By the way, have you seen Samuel?" she said.
"Not since he went out for his walk. I hope he came back. I know what Lonesome Rita would do to him if she found him." he said.
"I hope not. Now, if you excuse me, I need to get myself some water." she said.
"I hate to tell you, but it isn't like in the city." he said.
"How so?" she asked.
"The only water is outside in that well." he said.
"And Lonesome Rita is out there. What will I do?" she said.
"Well, there seems to be a lull. I think I can guide you to the well and get you that water." he said as he got out of his chair.
"Thank you, Mr. Pink Eye. What would I do without you?" she said.
"Ours is to not ask why." he simply responded as he made his way to the door, with Serena following behind him.
Before they left, they grabbed a lantern here the door and Pink Eye lit it. They then left the house and made their way over to the old well. As they neared it, they saw the condition of the water bucket. The fact it had no holes in it was a testament to how strong it was. Once they arrived at the old well, the two took time to look in and even the lantern light couldn't reach the bottom, leading to darkness below.
"I wonder how far down it goes." she said as he put the bucket on the stone lip.
"Far enough." he said as he moved the bucket from its perch on the stone lip and pushed it into the hole.
The two then watched as the bucket disappeared out of the light of the lantern. After what seemed like a minute of lowering the bucket, they heard the splash of the water. Pink Eye was quick to let the bucket sink a little before he began the process of raising the bucket up. After what seemed another minute, the bucket reentered the lantern light and was then placed back on the stone lip once it reached the top.
"This is great, but how do I get the water now?" she asked as he spied a ladle hanging from a nail attached to the well.
"Like this." he said as he then grabbed the ladle and used it to scoop up some water from the bucket.
"Thank you." she said as she then took the ladle and drank the water from it.
"Glad to be of service." he said, tipping his hat a bit.
It was then his ear picked up a sound. His ear was a highly-trained part of him, able to pick up a pin drop in a crowded room. The quiet night made it a bit easier to pick up the sound, a sound he heard as he left the house: the squeak of the old door into the house. Not wasting time, he ran out into the darkness, leaving Serena with her water.
He ran up into the house. When he saw that there was no one else outside except him and Serena, he knew who it was. In quick steps worthy of Mercury, he ran up to the house, opened the door, spotted Lonesome Rita about to enter the male bedroom, draw his gun, and fired a warning shot over her head. The quickness of this act impressed Serena, who ran after Pink Eye, but not as quickly.
"I see you came back." he said to Lonesome Rita.
"And I saw you coming." she said as she then quickly drew her gun, with her shot missing because Pink Eye ducked out of the way of the bullet.
"Would you like to try that again?" he asked.
"That depends. Are you gonna duck again?" she asked.
"That I will, and I will each of the four other times you fire that gun." he said.
"Then maybe I'll take that chance." she said.
"Not likely, because I know you wouldn't waste bullets on nothing." he said.
"Then how about a target?" she said before firing a shot, past Pink Eye, and nearly hitting Serena, who was standing behind the door, looking at the scene.
Pink Eye then took a shot at Lonesome Rita, who ducked out of the way herself by diving onto the floor. Pink Eye then rushed over to where she had fallen, only for her to take another shot at him as he neared. She then jumped up off the floor and ran out the door once more, knocking Serena down in her flight. Serena then got up and re-entered the house, lantern in hand.
"She just won't stop, will she?" asked Serena of Pink Eye.
"Indeed. I have never seen her with such a need to kill one person." he replied.
"I wonder why would Lonesome Rita would go after Mr. Morris." she said.
"Mr. Morris is not the kind of guy I would like to protect. However, my job is to protect people from the likes of her, even those I would rather not." he said.
"If you say so. Now, if you excuse me, I must head back to bed." she said, handing Pink Eye the lantern before she headed back to the female bedroom to sleep.
"I seem to be in the midst of a mystery here." he said before he blew out the light in the lantern.
"What's goin' on down here." said Mr. Gable as he descended the stairs with an old flintlock rifle and a medium-sized bag in his hands.
"Believe it or not, I've been having visits from my old enemy." said Pink Eye.
"Lonesome Rita Marlowe has been in my house?" asked Mr. Gable.
"That she has. Apparently, she wants to kill Mr. Morris." said Pink Eye.
"Has she ever done something like that before?" asked Mr. Gable.
"No, she hasn't. Her 14 kills have been ones of opprotunity. It seems weird that someone like her would go after Mr. Morris. It's become quite the mystery." said Pink Eye.
"Well, I've been hearing the gun shots and I thought you could use this." said Mr. Gable, showing the gun and the bag which contained its bullets and powder.
"Thank you. Any weapon will do here." said Pink Eye as he took the things.
"Thanks. Now, try to keep it down. Me and the missus would like some shuteye." said Mr. Gable as he headed back upstairs.
"I make no promises in regards to that. However, I will try my best." said Pink Eye as Mr. Gable headed up the stairs.
The night moved on as Pink Eye sat back in his watching chair and took to guarding the door with the flintlock rifle, all loaded and ready to fire. His gaze didn't move off the door for an hour and a half, unblinking and unmoved. He knew that Lonesome Rita was in the darkness somewhere and he was going to end her life of crime, one way or another now.
After an hour and a half, Pink Eye's gaze was starting to rust. At that time, Harold emerged from the male bedroom, with a concerned look upon his face. He saw Pink Eye in his chair, rifle in hand, staring out the door. Harold's interest in the events that have happened to me compelled him to go over to where Pink Eye was sitting.
"Looking out for Lonesome Rita?" Harold asked Pink Eye with much concern.
"That I am." said Pink Eye.
"Where did you get the rifle there?" asked Harold.
"From Mr. Gable. He felt I needed it." said Pink Eye.
"I see. Say, can I ask you something?" said Harold.
"Go ahead, Mr. Morris. I'm all ears." said Pink Eye.
"Why does this Rita want to kill me?" asked Harold.
"I don't know. Usually, when I stop her from killing, she doesn't try again." said Pink Eye.
"Then why is she trying to kill me?" asked Harold.
"It is quite a mystery. Tell me, have you ever met her before?" said Pink Eye.
"Never. Why would I ever want to meet someone like her?" said Harold.
"Well, apparently, she knows you enough to wanna kill you. That doesn't just happen between strangers." said Pink Eye.
"Well, I can't believe that someone I don't know would want to kill me that badly." said Harold.
"I've seen her rob banks without shame, kill those who stood in her way, and run across the west. You don't know the things she'll do." said Pink Eye.
"All I wanted to do was come out west and meet the man who was sending me money. I never thought that my life would be in this much danger." said Harold.
"Calm down, Mr. Morris. As long as I am here, no one will kill you." said Pink Eye.
"I would beg to differ, Pink Eye." said the voice of Lonesome Rita as the sound of clicking filled the air.
"Rita!" shouted Pink Eye as he saw that she now had a gun pointed at Harold's head, ready to fire.
"You really think guarding that door will stop me?" said Rita.
"How did you get in here?" asked Pink Eye.
"I snuck into the bedroom back there. When I saw he wasn't there, I simply walked out here." she replied.
"I should have known about the windows back there. I wasn't thinking." said Pink Eye.
"Now I get to take advantage of that by shooting this... this... man." she said, her finger closing on the trigger.
Pink Eye had to think fast, and he did, for he quickly took the rifle itself and used it as a club, knocking Lonesome Rita down as her gun went off, the bullet missing Harold by a half-inch. Pink Eye then turned the barrel of the rifle and pointed it down at Rita, laying down on the floor, her gun knocked from her hand.
"Now who's the one not thinking?" asked Pink Eye.
"Don't think you have won over me." she said, defiant.
"And why not?" he asked.
"Because I can do this." she said as she quickly ran for her gun as Pink Eye also began to run toward it.
While Pink Eye was fast, Lonesome Rita managed to get her gun back. The two then pointed guns at each other. As she got off the floor, the two were on the verge of a duel. Each had different guns but it didn't mean anything at that moment. Harold looked on in total silence, wondering who would win and if he would end up dead.
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A showdown between Pink Eye and Lonesome Rita. I wonder who will win. I know the answer because I wrote the story. For you, you'll have to come back next week and find out. Plus, I must apologize for no posting last week. I was on a trip and forgot to post before my departure.
Until next week, this is John Maxwell, your Fellow Traveler.
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