NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6: Chapter 6
Chapter 6: Old Friends
"What are the O'Driscolls planning to do here?"
"Blow up the bridge and rob the train."
"Where is Colm?"
"With the others, at the old mining camp in the southwest, by the lake."
Arthur, Hosea, and Dutch sat at the table discussing the information they had gathered from the interrogation, while Micah stood by, smoking.
After a brief moment of thought, Dutch instructed Micah to gather everyone. Once they were all assembled, he shared the news with them. Upon hearing the information, everyone in the room fell into a heavy silence.
Dutch looked at Hosea and Arthur, then scanned the room before finally turning his gaze to Micah.
The room was filled with smoke, and Micah's sarcastic voice broke the silence. "Hey, are you all starting to get cold feet after just a few days on the run? You all look like a bunch of miserable fools. I joined this gang because you were always daring and never missed an opportunity!"
Micah looked around and finally stopped at Lenny, speaking with heavy sarcasm: "Of course, not you, nigger!"
As a young black man born on this land, Lenny was used to such insults and simply gave Micah a disgusted look. "Shut up, Micah!"
Meanwhile, Bill, who had been looking down, said, "Davie survived, but we lost the others... Hearing this news, we're just mourning our lost comrades."
"Bullshit, if I died, I wouldn't want you all to mourn me like this." Micah was clearly annoyed and continued, "This is a great opportunity. Wake up! We left most of our money in Blackwater when we fled. We need cash now, and we need it for the next plan!"
Ah, the next plan, farming in Tahiti.
"Oh, yes, yes, you're right. But listen, if you die, we'll definitely celebrate with a drink, haha." Lenny exaggerated his joyful expression, which amused everyone.
Bill laughed and added, "A drink haha... we'll definitely set up a good drink, and if it's for this, it's definitely worth celebrating haha..."
Seeing Micah approach Bill, Arthur rubbed his forehead and sighed inwardly, thinking, "Here we go again."
Micah coldly questioned Bill, "Is it funny?"
"Isn't it?" Bill answered bluntly.
"Slap!" A big slap caught Bill off guard and landed on his face.
Bill was momentarily stunned, then roared and charged at Micah, fists raised to hit him. Lenny quickly stepped in to break up the fight, grabbing Bill's right hand. Arthur, who should have grabbed Bill's left hand, decisively turned around and hugged Micah from the side, trying to pull them apart while saying,
"Calm down, everyone, calm down!"
With his right hand held back, Bill swung his left fist and landed a heavy blow on Micah's face. Micah could have dodged, but Arthur's tight grip prevented him from moving, making the punch land squarely.
It must be said that Bill, with his military background, had quite a strong punch. Arthur could tell from the force transmitted through Micah's body. If Arthur hadn't held him tightly, Micah would have been knocked far away by the force of the punch.
"Enough! Stop it, damn it!" Dutch shouted angrily, slamming his hand on the table.
Micah, still struggling to retaliate, calmed down, and Arthur quickly let go, stepping aside. It must be said, Micah was quite resilient. Spitting out some blood, Micah glared fiercely at Bill.
Dutch, looking exasperated, said,
"You two idiots, always fighting among yourselves." Then, shifting his tone, he added, "The one who really deserves a beating is that damn Colm O'Driscoll! And it should be a severe beating."
"Since we know they are nearby, we can't just wait for them to come to us, and we can't let them carry out their plans." Dutch spoke passionately, making everyone feel a sense of misplaced righteousness.
"Listen, I have a plan. I intend to launch a surprise attack on the O'Driscoll camp and then use their prepared tools to take the train they plan to rob."
Dutch paused and continued, "At least Micah is right about one thing: we need money, and we need to strike first. Their target is definitely us, and we can't afford to give them a chance to ambush us in the wild."
Honestly, Arthur wasn't sure if the O'Driscolls even knew they were nearby.
After hearing Dutch's plan, Hosea had a serious expression, as if he wanted to say something, but he remained silent.
As the plan was about to be finalized, Arthur finally made up his mind. Instead of tactfully telling Dutch it wasn't a good idea, he decided to tell everyone directly that it was a terrible plan.
"Hey, Dutch, this isn't a good idea." Arthur's voice was not loud, but everyone heard him.
After a brief moment of shock, Dutch was clearly taken aback by Arthur's direct opposition to his plan. This had never happened before. In the past, Arthur might have had different opinions but never voiced them so bluntly.
"Everyone, we do need money, that's true, and the O'Driscoll threat can't be ignored. But we should find a smarter way to handle this."
Arthur spoke calmly, knowing that this time, he couldn't just go along with Dutch's plan. Otherwise, it might lead them all to a cliff with no way back.
Micah mocked, "Wow, listen to the stone in the outhouse. After all that, it's still about getting money and dealing with the O'Driscolls. I thought you had something different to say."
Arthur didn't even look at Micah, maintaining eye contact with Dutch as he continued, "We should let the O'Driscolls rob the train first, and then we rob them. We just need to keep an eye on them and let them take the heat for the train heist. We'll take the loot and their heads."
This suggestion left everyone in deeper silence, and Micah stopped his sarcastic tone, staring blankly at Arthur. Yes, why not wait for them to rob the train and then rob them?
The plan was simple, just changing the order of actions, but it opened up a completely different strategy. Everyone realized that Arthur's plan was more reasonable and safer than wiping out the O'Driscoll camp and then robbing the train.
"Hahahaha! Good!" Dutch's laughter broke the silence in the room. He patted Arthur on the shoulder and praised, "That's a good plan. Let's do it this way. We'll teach Colm a lesson, haha!"
Hosea looked at Arthur and then at Dutch with a complex expression, and then smiled, saying, "Since everyone agrees, we'll work out the details and specific assignments later."
Dutch continued, "I'll go with Arthur to scout the O'Driscoll camp first and see if the information matches. We'll work out the specific assignments when we return."
Arthur got up and headed outside first, with Dutch following closely behind. At the door, Dutch took a deep breath of his cigar and patted Arthur on the shoulder, saying, "Good idea."
"Dutch, I know you hate Colm, but we've been through a lot recently. We haven't stabilized yet, and discretion should be our first consideration." Arthur said as they walked towards the horses.
Walking side by side,
"Trust me, Arthur, you're thinking too little. The O'Driscolls are coming for us, those trash..."
"I doubt that." Arthur said. He began to feel that continuing this conversation might be pointless.
Dutch replied flatly, "No, you just don't trust me anymore."
Silence. Arthur didn't like silence, but in the past, he would have told Dutch that he never doubted him.
"Arthur, revenge is a luxury we can't afford, as I always say. I remind myself of that too," Dutch said sincerely, his eyes resolute. He reached into his saddle and handed Arthur a rifle.
"Take this gun and listen. To me, this isn't just about revenge. They're planning to rob a train, using detonators and explosives. I know Colm; his intelligence is always accurate. If they're going to this extent, there must be something valuable on that train."
No matter how valuable, you need to be alive to enjoy it.
Arthur tried to make his voice sound sincere. "Dutch, I'm not against you. It's just that now isn't a good time to rob a train..."
The two mounted their horses, and after Dutch instructed everyone to watch the house, increase vigilance, and be aware that the O'Driscolls were nearby, they set off towards their destination, one after the other.
***
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