Katherine Bowen Posted on January 12, 2019
On 1/12/2019 at 2:52 PM, The Old Ranger said: "Yes Ma'am, this'd be yer last stop cuz, well, this here's a holdup!"
Katherine turned to see where the voice came from. She could see three men approaching but before she could do or say anything, she heard Addy speak.
On 1/12/2019 at 6:16 PM, Adelaide Chappel said: Get in th' cabin!" Addy hissed to Kathleen, "bar th' door!" Hopefully, the teacher would notice the shotgun behind the door, and hopefully, she would defend herself.
As she spoke, she gigged the big horse beside her, knowing he would balk, and indeed, the animal tried to lurch forward, squealing in protest, not anything that would change the odds, but hopefully enough of a distraction that Kathleen could get to the cabin, and she could drop to the ground and seek shelter under the coach.
The horse lurching startled her temporarily, but she quickly recovered and made her way inside the cabin. After barring, the door as fast as she could, she dropped to the ground. As she huddled close to the door in an attempt to barricade it more, she listened to what was going on outside.
Not liking what she was hearing, Katherine began to look around the room for anything she could use to defend herself and the stage driver. It was then she saw the rifle against the wall near the door. Shifting over, she grabbed and checked it. Her father had taught her a little bit about using a rifle, so she sort of knew what she had to look for to make sure it was working. Thankfully, it was loaded but now she was unsure of what to do next as she couldn't see what was happening. So, she decided to wait but would be at the ready for any possible chance to help Addy out.
Case Steelgrave Posted On January 13, 2019
Whitefish, a while ago...
After all, as a mere farmer, life wasn't very exciting, so having the chance to maybe be a hero made him feel important, "I seen them Barnes boys headed outta town a bit ago, headed toward Kalispell...didn't think much of it at first, but then th' Millegan stage went by..." He shrugged. "Might not mean nothin'."
Case looked at him a long moment and said; “Or it might mean trouble.” He thought of the schoolmarm. You run to the Silver Dollar and get whose ever there to head for the swing station on the Kalispel Road!” He raced to his horse, tore the reins from the hitch-post and leaped in the saddle spurring the mount to a gallop.
Now Case Steelgrave rarely thought of anyone but family or himself, but he knew Barnes boys and knew what they might do to both Addy and Katherine. If he could get to the swing station before the coach he could stop it before it started. but Addy had a lead on him, and although his horse was running flat out he feared gunplay with the women likely in the middle! It was a desperate race against time, which was not on his side.
Storyteller / Shared NPC
NPCs Posted by Flip on January 13, 2019
“You best be holdin’ onta thet cayuse elstways I’ll be fer puttin’ it down....an; mebe you too!” Buckeye demanded, training his Colt on Addy. “An’ I mean you do it right now!”
“Buckeye! Thet other’n got inside the cabin!” Lem shouted, realizing there could be firearms inside, and that could pose a problem.
“Shut up Len! She ain’t nothin’ ta be afeared of. Danged city girl whot gots no savy of guns ‘er the like.” Buckeye retorted. Quite proud of himself for masterminding this hold up, that, and the plan that was formulating in his head of what was to come next for the two women.
“I got the door covered Buckeye!” Kyle shouted back shotgun leveled at the door.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
Adelaide Chappel Posted on January 13, 2019
“You best be holdin’ onta thet cayuse elstways I’ll be fer puttin’ it down....an; mebe you too!” Buckeye demanded, training his Colt on Addy. “An’ I mean you do it right now!”
"Ya got 'em all riled up," Addy grumbled, grabbing the nervous beast's bridle. She hadn't really thought to dissuade the men, but it had given Kathleen time to get to relative safety, and that was what mattered.
“Buckeye! Thet other’n got inside the cabin!”
"She's a school marm!" Addy protested, hoping that that little bit of information would make the other woman seem harmless, and hoping that wasn't the case!
“Shut up Len! She ain’t nothin’ ta be afeared of. Danged city girl whot gots no savy of guns ‘er the like.”
Well, good, that was just the sort of thinking that Addy wanted. Of course, she didn't know for certain what Kathleen would do in a pinch, but the fact that she hadn't panicked and frozen told a lot.
“I got the door covered Buckeye!”
"Leave her be," Addy grumbled, "get whatch want an' move on, I gotta timetable ta keep." As much as she wasn't thrilled about her cargo, at the moment there wasn't anything she could do about it, and she just wanted the men to leave them unscathed.
Case Steelgrave Posted on January 14, 2019
Case Steelgrave might be a lot of things, but he treated his animals well because he never knew when he would have to depend on it. That time was now! He laid spur and rein to the animal, demanding everything it could give and it was responding as he had hoped.
Ahead was a stand of Aspen maybe two hundred and fifty yards from the swing station, sitting o a gentle curve nest and hidden from the buildings ahead. It would be a rifle shot at that distance, but far better than galloping into the yard and getting shot to doll rags!
Ahead of the trees, there was some scrub oak and other vegetation, Case leaped the hose into it and consequently into the stand of trees. He swung down before the animal stopped dragging the rifle from its saddle scabbard and stepping quickly through the trees to where he could see the buildings, the coach and the four people. He levered a shell into the breach.
Where was the fifth? The teacher?
Katherine Bowen Posted on January 27, 2019
Still not knowing what was going on outside, Katherine debated with herself on whether or not to move over to the only window in the cabin to find out. The window was situated on the far side of the building and was just big enough to let the light in but it looked a little high or maybe it was just her imagination.
Feeling helpless was to her a dismal situation. If she was going to get attacked, she needed to be in a better position then she was now to give herself some sort of fighting chance. Crouching behind the door was the best place to be right now or was it? She didn't really know as this was a first for her. In all of the other places she had lived she had never really been in something like this.
However, the need to know what was happening was felt more important than her personal safety. Plucking up the courage she slowly began to crawl towards the window.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
Adelaide Chappel Posted on January 30, 2019
For a few tense seconds, everything was in relative control, at least to the degree that there weren't going to be any casualties, but then the yahoo at the cabin decided that a school marm might provide some amusement. Shouting, "I'm gonna git me that teacher!" he charged at the door and kicked it in...
It was only a few fleeting seconds, but the distraction was enough to give Addy the opening to pull her pistol, having the good sense to move as she did so that hopefully she'd confuse the other men. She hadn't intended to get into a fight, but she wasn't going to let these guys hurt Kathleen if she could prevent it.
Tumbling to the ground, she fired off three shots, not looking to see if she actually hit anyone, then rolled under the coach and out the other side, where she scrambled to her feet and charged toward the cabin. But she didn't get far before a bullet grazed across her shoulder and she stopped in her tracks, dropping the gun and holding her hands up in supplication, hoping they didn't kill her.
Case Steelgrave Posted on January 31, 2019
At the first report from the coach, Case fired scoring a hit, the man simply crumpled. He levered another shell into the chamber and took aim and the closest man to Addy, who was standing with her hands up her gun dropped. The other man was checking on the man who was down having dropped to his knee. The muzzle of the Winchester swung gently back to the man approaching Addy.
The report of Cases rifle exploded in the afternoon stillness . . .
Katherine Bowen Posted on February 2, 2019
Katherine had made her way to the window and was in the midst of turning around in the corner near so that she could get a good view of what was going on outside, when she heard the yell and the door crashed open. Instinctively she pushed herself against the wall and aimed the gun at the door.
It was then she heard the shots. Confusion and fear washed over her as she pressed herself back further into the wall. Still expecting someone to barge through the door at any second, she lifted the rifle higher and waited.
Sit down, shut up, don't touch anythin'
Adelaide Chappel Posted on February 2, 2019
At Case's first shot, Addy couldn't help but flinch...she expected that she would be the target, but then one of the men fell and she frowned in confusion, but had the presence of mind to dive toward the coach so that if the remaining bastard took a shot at her she wouldn't be there. And while she didn't know who their benefactor was, she was grateful, at least for now. Given a chance, she'd go for the scatter-gun in the boot.
"Cabin!" she shouted, hoping that whoever was helping them would catch the clue and intervene with Katherine...
~*~ ~*~ ~*~
At the cabin, the door easily burst in, and Kyle charged in, intent on catching a fair prize! Stopping just inside the door, he gave the young teacher a yellowed grin.
"Come on, Missy, yer not gonna use that..." He advanced on her...