Loaded Guns and Broken Fences [On Hold]

Chapter 4

A surge of anticipation welled inside of Wade as he spotted Bran's horse nearing the tavern. He had ridden back to get Abby earlier, only to find her gone. It had all but confirmed the awful feeling he'd had about leaving her there with that McGrath still hanging around.

When Abby didn't turn up home, he'd panicked and did the only thing that seemed right. He'd gathered up some boys to help him look for her.

Wade, his brothers, Leroy and Willis, Calvin Becket, and Abby's older brothers, Ben and Clyde Birch, now closed in on the lone McGrath like hungry coyotes. Willis dismounted before the others, grabbing the reigns of their horses to go tie them off. The remaining five surrounded Bran. Wade stepped in the way of the saloon, a dangerous glare cemented on his face.

Bran peered out from under the rim of his hat, with a questioning glance. He waited a moment to see if the Shield would explain himself.

Neither of them had said a word, but a cool chill went up Bran's spine, like a cat cornered by a hound. His hazel eyes calmly scanned his right and then his left as he sized up the guys surrounding him.

"This him?" Ben said. The tense hiss of his voice alone was proof enough he was ready to tear into someone.

"That's right." Wade nodded as he crossed his arms in front of himself, flashing their prey a brief smile. Seeing as how things were on his terms now, there was nothing to be scared of.

Bran's eyes returned to Wade Shield's. The way Wade was looking at him told him everything he needed to know. He was outnumbered, and they weren't going to be friendly.

Without bothering with the hows and whys, Bran turned and dashed through the nearest gap between the boys. His hope was that he'd been quick enough to take them off guard. If he was lucky, he'd maybe even get to his horse or rifle.

Shocked to see the McGrath bolt for it, the boys stood bewildered. It didn't give Bran much time, though. Calvin Becken, a boy about Bran's size, grabbed him tightly by the arm, wheeling him off balance and away from his gelding.

"Hang on to em', Calvin," Clyde Birch said as loud as he dared.

In what seemed like only another second, both of Bran's arms had been seized. One of the larger boys, Leroy, got a tight hold of Bran's jaw and shoulder, forcing him backward.

As soon as they'd stopped wrestling Bran enough for Ben Birch to get a throw-in, he clenched his fist tight and delivered a sharp, solid blow to the McGrath's stomach. "Where is she, you filthy son-ova swine?" 

Clyde was next to deliver a well-placed punch to Bran's diaphragm, knocking the wind clean out of him and making his knees weak. Bran gave a breathless gasp, and couldn't inhale for a minute, not even to reply.

When the air did return to him, he didn't waste it on words, instead, he laid an elbow into one of the men holding him. The move connected with someone's nose hard enough to break it, and free one of Brand's arms, which he swung wildly.

Calvin immediately backed off, clutching his hands to his bleeding nose while yelping and cursing.

"Shut your mouth, fool!" Ben hushed his friend urgently. They'd be hard-pressed to explain themselves if anyone were to come out and see them, all six of them, roughing up one man.

"Get off me!" Bran snarled. His rifle was still in his horse's saddle holster, and it was just as well. There wouldn't have been a good chance to use it now that they were on him. He did, however, have his knife and his pistol. Shooting someone had been the last thing he wanted to do, but now he was reaching for the gun.

Willis Shield saw the McGrath reaching for his sidearm just as he'd anticipated. He pressed the cold, hard end of his revolver against the side of Bran's temple--pulling the hammer back in a harsh, but effective threat.

Bran stopped, as he felt the chilling bite of metal against his skin, and the evil click of the gun being armed. He pulled his hand from his pistol, swallowing thickly.

Clyde removed his bandana from his neck and looped it in front of Bran's face, forcing it tightly over his mouth. He agreed with his brother, this whole thing was getting way too loud for comfort. They'd draw too much attention if they stayed here.

Bran was drug haphazardly down the street--in and out of deep shadows. The further north they got from town, the rougher they got with him.

They made it to their intended destination, a barn owned by Wade's father, and lugged Brandon McGrath inside.

Bran could see tools, branding tools, as well as some other pokers, a fair-sized well of water, and a fire contained in a crude stone fireplace giving a low crackle.

While Calvin was still coddling his face, the rest of them moved to secure Bran's arms and legs. They received several bruising kicks before managing to bind Bran successfully, but once they had, they knew they could relax.

Getting Bran restrained and to the barn from town had taken a lot more effort from them collectively than the group had expected. If he'd been behaving like a wild stallion before, Bran was acting more like a stubborn mule now.

The McGrath's marbled amber and green eyes settled over the innards of the cattle barn. He was sure he'd die here if he didn't give them what they wanted. But he honestly couldn't tell what they were after.

Perhaps they wanted nothing more than to kill him to spite John, or maybe for what he'd said about Emit or any number of lewd, vague, things that were frequently spilling out of his mouth.

Whatever it was, he hoped that somehow John's figure would soon come busting through the door, with Allen, Clark, and maybe Sheriff Atwell. Hell, even just some rambling drunk would be great right about now. Unfortunately, that's not what he saw. All he found were unfriendly faces.

Wade yanked the makeshift gag off their captive just before Ben grabbed the neck of Bran's shirt. With some help from his brother, they forced Bran backward and effectively submerged his head and upper torso in the cold, shallow well.

Bran gasped and water rushed in. The distorted figures of Ben and Clyde Birch, and Wade Shield wavered above, looking downright hellish. After a few terrifying seconds, they yanked him back out, but not far enough for him to be able to get any stable footing or balance.

"Maybe we'll understand each other a bit better now, hm?" Ben growled. "What did ya do with our baby sister?"