I left the next morning long before the others, choosing to forgo sleep, not wanting to be seen with the gang and have what was left of the sheriff’s tolerance of my presence erased. I arrived back in town before daybreak, careful not to be spotted, especially now that I knew the outskirts of the town was being watched so carefully by the deputies.

If I were to be spotted, likely no explanation would be good enough to the sheriff. In his eyes, I was already guilty, and had been from the moment I’d arrived. Seemed the townspeople hated PanTech because they were tyrants. The sheriff apparently hated them because they were competition. Or maybe because they didn’t go far enough for his tastes.

I wasted no time informing Daisy of Kuros’s plan and what was to take place.

“That boy’s just as stubborn as his brother was. Maybe more,” she said. “We’ll have to go about our day as normal and wait to see what happens. I can guarantee his plan isn’t going to work. He doesn’t understand the sheriff’s motivations as well as he thinks. It’s not just paranoia, but ambition. It’s both.”

My thoughts turned to PanTech’s president, which made me shudder. I couldn’t think of a finer example of these two traits combined. Add genius into the mix and you create the perfect blend of ingredients for evil. For the president, being one of the greatest geniuses to ever live, the desire to control others completely, and the constant paranoia that everyone was out to get him led to what would become the destruction of the entire human race. Absolute extinction of the one thing he claimed to value. So far removed from the truth, believing he had single-handedly brought humanity to the next major stage of evolution by sheer scientific force.

Yet, without him, none of this would be happening. None of it.

“Everyone tries to reason with the unreasonable people in power until it’s too late.”

“People just want peace, Taylor,” Daisy said.

“You don’t always get peace through peace. You rarely do.”

“Doesn’t stop people from wanting it, and there often is another way.”

“I don’t think there is here,” I said.

“Agreed…” Daisy stood and opened the door. “We’d better get to work.”

Her composure was surprising. Before the door had fully opened, her usual demeanor had fully returned as she strolled out to the balcony overlooking the saloon. I’d dressed in my uniform and wasted no time taking orders and serving drinks.

The atmosphere and mood of the saloon was surprisingly cheerful today. A stark contrast to what was likely to come. Folks ate and drank and chatted with their families or friends, absent the raucous laughter and scuffles that seemed to take place here in the late evenings after a long workday.

One hour passed, then another, and another, until I began to allow myself to hope. Maybe he’d changed his mind. Rolo and the others might’ve been able to talk sense into him after all. I allowed myself to relax a bit. I’d go back tonight and make plans with Clarence about the stock of guns and ammunition. Once we’d seized those, the group would have a fighting chance.

But before the relief could fully set in, a man came running into the saloon.

“The leader of the Red Collar Boys is ridin’ in and shoutin’ for somebody to fetch the sheriff! Just him!” he shouted, as everyone spilled from the saloon to witness whatever spectacle awaited them.

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I wasn’t far behind them, walking out just in time to see Kuros riding by the saloon. He dismounted, tying his horse before noticing me. He seemed surprised, but offered me a subtle smile and wink before continuing on. By now, the sheriff and four deputies were already rushing to meet him. The sheriff’s pistol was drawn, and the four deputies all had rifles on Kuros.

“Sheriff,” Kuros said, nodding and raising his hands in the air. “I’ve come to turn myself in.”

“Oh yeah?” Sheriff Eric asked, eyeing him up and down. “What’s your angle?”

“I murdered one of your men. That’s reason enough, ain’t it?” Kuros said, grinning.

“I ought to gun you down like a dog where you stand, but alright… I reckon if you want to go through the proper way and turn yourself in, you’ll get a hangin’ instead.” The sheriff paused, gesturing for the gathering crowd to condense around him.

“I didn’t even tell nobody else about it,” Kuros added. “So if it’s all the same to you, I’d like to put this Red Collar Boy business behind us. The gang’s disbanded, which means it only has one member. Me. Take care of me, and you’ve taken care of the whole gang.”

He couldn’t help but engage with Kuros, temporarily putting off his speech.

“This some kind of martyr thing? You reckon you can sacrifice yourself and save all your friends. It ain’t going to work that way. You can call it whatever you want, but even if they burn that bandana right in front of me they’re still Red Collar Boys until the day they die, which I reckon will be real soon.”

“Be reasonable, Sheriff!” Kuros pleaded. “We been nothin’ but a bunch of loners playin’ pretend these past few years. You ain’t got to act like this. They’re no threat to you and they ain’t done you no harm.”

“Yeah, just like that brother of yours killed my son and my brother, huh? No harm, right? No real threat?”

“They deserved it!” Kuros snapped, a sudden surge of anger I hadn’t seen from him.

The sheriff stood quietly a moment, his lack of an immediate retaliation indicating that maybe some part of him agreed.

“Tie him up,” the sheriff said, gesturing to the two deputies at his left before raising his voice to the crowd. “Kuros, leader of the Red Collar Boys, will hang tomorrow at noon for murder. The public is welcome to attend, and one round of free drinks will be available in the saloon afterwards, courtesy of your sheriff. A round tonight too.”

There was some cheering in the crowd, but it lacked the enthusiasm the sheriff was seeking.

“Alright, two rounds, but the third and beyond comes out of your own pockets. We’ll be taking volunteers for the hunting party to go after the rest of these cowards. Anyone who signs up gets a share of the bounty for every man, and there’s going to be plenty. You might get a year’s salary in just a few days. If you don’t have your own piece or if you need a box of ammunition, just let one of our deputies know. We’ll clean this town up one way or another. Meet us at the saloon tonight if you’re interested, and don’t forget to take advantage of those free drinks.”

Some cheered more enthusiastically, but it was hard to tell if it was because of the offer or because they feared the sheriff would notice and suspect them of being a sympathizer.

As Kuros was led away, Daisy and I exchanged nervous glances. I found it hard to believe Kuros saw this going any other way. Did he really believe the sheriff would spare the others if he gave himself up, or did he just believe there was no other way.

They were already outnumbered and outgunned by the sheriff’s men, and this was sure to draw in at least a few interested parties. Anyone in need of some quick cash might agree even if they’re opposed to it on principle.

We were out of options and out of time. If I couldn’t talk them into mounting some kind of resistance tonight, I may as well move on to the next zone.

I clenched my fists in frustration. What made otherwise decent people follow a man like this? Without a word, I used the opportunity to slip away unnoticed, stopping by my stash once again and arming myself before making my way back to the camp.

I sat on a rock, contemplating whether I even had time for this much effort.

I’d made up my mind. If I couldn’t talk them into fighting for themselves tonight, I’d move on.

I communicated this to Ghost, despite knowing he likely wouldn’t answer. I waited for a moment, just in case he might answer back. In true Ghost fashion, he did not. I could only cross my fingers and hope he was faring better than I was right now. For once, maybe a stroke of good luck was just over the horizon. Adversity Management would come riding back in tomorrow morning, their commander as cooperative and reasonable as Remulo had been, and we’d have this all behind us by the end of the day.

Yeah, right…

I stood up, brushed myself off, and made my way back toward the Red Collar Boys camp to make my final pitch.