Bill's agreed meeting with the Gray family was set at the saloon.
Arthur and the others were already on their way there when Mac spoke up. At that point, how could they not understand? This was clearly a trap.
"I knew it. I knew it was a trap. After everything we've done to them, there's no way they wouldn't notice."
"Looks like the Gray family wants us dead now. I should've realized it sooner. Davey told me a long time ago—our identities have been known to them for quite a while."
"They were just using us. Mac, thank you for bringing us this warning. Otherwise, this would've turned into a real disaster."
Arthur felt a tightness in his chest. Even while traveling, he'd already felt that the plan to join the Gray family as guards was deeply unreliable.
While Dutch and Hosea were trying to use the two major families, those families were just as clearly using them in return.
"Davey sent me," Mac said. "He's been keeping a close eye on what's happening around Rhodes Town, Arthur."
"When he realized something like this might happen, he told me to wait here—to verify the information and warn you."
"Looks like you can avoid this trap now. Take the news back to Dutch."
Mac didn't want his former friends to get hurt. Even though he'd left the gang and was now living a lavish life alongside Davey, those old bonds still mattered to him. Otherwise, he wouldn't have camped out here for two full days.
"No," Arthur said, shaking his head. "We should teach them a lesson."
Arthur had never been some kind of Western saint. He was a genuine outlaw. Now that someone had laid an ambush for him, simply avoiding it wasn't an option.
Anyone who dared provoke him would have to pay the price.
"Alright," Mac said. "But Davey was clear—we're not supposed to step in personally right now. Still, I don't think those guards are any match for you."
Before coming here, Davey had specifically told Mac not to get involved if Arthur chose to deal with the Gray family himself.
The Grays were no match for Arthur to begin with, and given Davey and Mac's current positions, it wasn't appropriate for them to act directly.
"Either way," Arthur said, "I'm already grateful you warned us."
With Sean, Bill, and Micah Bell at his side, four men against more than a dozen guards would be easy.
Mac despised Micah as a person, but even he couldn't deny that Micah's shooting skills were on the level of a true sharpshooter.
Sean MacGuire and Bill were weaker by comparison, but at this point that hardly mattered—they could handle support roles just fine.
After Mac explained the situation with the Gray family's guards, Arthur struck first. His marksmanship was on full display, and within less than twenty minutes, the fight was over.
The drunken sheriff was taken out with a single headshot from Micah.
...
At the same time, another gunfight broke out at the Clemens Point camp.
In the original storyline, while the Gray family moved against the gang, the Braithwaite family abducted Jack.
But now, Jack was living with Davey, so that never happened.
Even so, the Braithwaite family's plans didn't stop. Old Lady Catherine hired remnants of the former Lemoyne Raiders, along with some of her own family guards.
With thirty gunmen assembled, they launched a direct assault on the Clemens Point camp.
Clearly, this coordinated strike against the Van der Linde gang showed that the two families had been in contact and had prepared their plan carefully.
Unfortunately for them, they underestimated the Van der Linde gang's fighting strength. And thanks to Davey's advance warning, Sean escaped his original fate—though only Davey himself knew just how close that had been.
When Arthur returned to Clemens Point, he was met with devastation.
The entire camp was riddled with bullet marks. Arthur's wagon was badly damaged, and the other tents were full of holes as well.
"Arthur, you're finally back. Looks like you ran into trouble too."
Dutch smoked his cigar as usual, maintaining his elegant air, though the disorder in his appearance told a different story.
"What happened here, Dutch?"
"The Gray family's guard recruitment was a trap," Arthur said. "Davey found out and sent Mac to warn us. I took out the guards they set up to ambush us."
At the mention of Davey's name, an unreadable glint flashed briefly through Dutch's eyes.
Though Davey wasn't in direct conflict with him at the moment, Davey's success had always felt like a slap in the face to Dutch.
"It was the Braithwaite family," Dutch said, "along with some Lemoyne Raiders. But they didn't gain much from it."
"Looks like those two families are working together against us."
After explaining the situation to Arthur, Dutch turned to Hosea.
"Hosea, maybe it's time we agree to Bronte's request. What the Braithwaites did to us can't go unanswered."
"It solves two problems at once, doesn't it? And it brings in some much-needed money."
Hearing this, Hosea didn't respond right away. His expression grew bleak.
"So… our plan has already failed, hasn't it?" he said quietly.
Hosea had been the main architect behind their plan involving the two families, and he'd been full of confidence. Reality, however, had dealt him a brutal blow—one that hit especially hard for someone who had always relied on his mind.
More than that, he felt it clearly now: this era was no longer a place for people like them.
He'd sensed something similar before—but never this strongly.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser