Vengeance

The lone figure looked over the sleepy town from atop his black steed. He’d followed his bounty many miles to this place, and he wouldn’t let the outlaw slip away again. Justice would be done this day, and he would be the one to deal it.

As he pulled closer to the town, more details became clear in the waning light of dusk. The whole settlement looked old and decrepit, as if it had been abandoned decades ago, but there was enough activity in the streets to show that the area was inhabited. There wasn’t much to the place; a store, a sleazy looking motel, an old brothel, a few small houses; nothing special. The only place the bounty hunter deemed visitable was the rundown saloon, stood almost proudly in the centre of the small settlement.

He slowly rode towards the saloon, ignoring the angry and defensive looks from the townsfolk.He had a job to do, and he would see it through to the end, no matter what. Hitching his horse at the trough outside the watering hole, he checked his revolver, then made his way inside.

As he entered, all activity within ceased. The joyful ragtime jazz that had been playing stopped abruptly. Every glass in the establishment hit the table. Suddenly, all eyes were on the mysterious man that had just entered the saloon, uninvited and unwelcome.

The lawman made his way over to a lone table in the rear of the bar, where a queer-looking lady sat, gun lying before him on the tabletop.

“Howdy, this seat taken?”

When no reply came, the bounty hunter decided to sit anyway. The two men sat in silence for a while, carefully eyeing each other up. By the time either of them spoke, the saloon had returned to it’s original, lively state.

“Ya wouldn’t happen to be Gideon McGristle now, would ya?” The lawman asked eventually.

“Who wants t’know?”

The lawman smiled to himself inwardly.

“Ah’m Jack Smith, but folks call me AppleJack.”

“And why the hell would Ah care ‘bout YOUR name?”

Slowly, the lawman reached down and released the button on his holster, resting his hand on the grip of the pistol.

“‘Cause Ah think it’s ‘mportant fer people t’know who’s arrestin’ them.”

Silence fell over the room. Everyone tensed up. McGristle glared at the bounty hunter sat across from his, his eyes narrowing. Suddenly, the outlaw leapt from his seat, grabbed his gun and took aim at the bounty hunter.

But he was too slow-

“An’ then, Daddy sped off in t’the sunset, off t’find new adventures!”

The old woman looked down at her granddaughter, sitting up in bed, blonde hair up in a neat ponytail, emerald eyes wide and shimmering with excitement.

“That’s right, Jaqueline. Now, git yerself off t’sleep now, hun.”

“‘Night, Granny Smith.”

“G’night, AppleJack,” the old woman replied softly, leaning down and kissing the child on the forehead before leaving the room, shutting the door behind her. Outside, her face dropped. She didn’t have the heart to tell the young girl the truth about that day.

The truth about why her father had never come home...