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"An act that had you two acting like pair of husband and wife, when talking like you two have five kids in front of the general store owner," Mary-Beth snapped, then immediately looked ashamed of her outburst. She took a shaky breath. "I'm sorry. That was... unbecoming."
Caleb reached for her hand. "Mary-Beth, look at me." When she reluctantly met his gaze, he continued softly, "There is nothing between me and Sadie except friendship like little brother and a mean older sister, with mutual respect. What we did in Rhodes was strictly business."
Mary-Beth's lower lip trembled slightly. "It's just... you know, thinking of you going to these jobs with her, laughing and covered in gunpowder and adrenaline, sharing experiences I'll never be part of..." She swallowed hard.
Caleb's thumb stroked her knuckles. "Is there anything else that bother you other than what you just said?"
She looked away toward the dark water. "Partly." She shuddered. "There's also... that Sadie understands this life in other ways I never will. She could rides out with you and fights beside you, while I'm stuck here washing clothes and—"
Caleb gently turned her face back to his. "Listen to me. Sadie is a good friend, but you..." He brought her hand to his chest. "You're the one I want to be with. The reason I dream of something better for us. Sadie may know guns and tracking, but you... you know me. The real me."
Mary-Beth searched his face, her eyes glistening. "You truly mean that?"
"Every word." Caleb kissed her fingertips.
WHACK!
A sound of something solid fall nearby. They both turned to see Sadie standing at the tree line, below her was a freshly cleaned repeater. Her expression was unreadable in the moonlight.
"Sorry to interrupt," she said, her voice carefully neutral. "Just wanted to go over weapons for tomorrow." She picked up her repeater from the ground. "I'll leave them here for you, Caleb. We ride at first light tomorrow don't forget."
As Sadie walk away, Mary-Beth bit her lip. "Now I've gone and made things awkward with her."
Caleb squeezed her hand. "She'll understand. Come on, let's get you back before Miss Grimshaw notices you're missing."
Mary-Beth searched his face before nodding reluctantly. "Just... come back to me safely. Promise?"
Caleb kissed her knuckles. "Promise."
Then morning came too quickly as the day turned into the next day. Caleb saddled Morgan, and ensuring his Lancaster repeater and Pumo Action.shotgun was placed correctly, as the camp slowly woke around them into life.
Sadie arrived dressed in her yellow roughspun shirt and trousers, her movements brisk and professional as she checked her gear.
"You ready?" she asked, avoiding direct eye contact.
Caleb nodded, swinging into the saddle. "Let's go get this bastard."
As they rode out, Caleb glanced back at camp one last time. Mary-Beth stood by the washing basin, watching him go with an optimistic expression. Meanwhile, Dutch emerged from his tent, his gaze following Caleb's departure with an unsettling intensity.
The ride to Roanoke Ridge from Clement Point will be quite a while, as Caleb have seen it from his map interface. So using the map, Caleb led the ride along smaller trails, avoiding main roads where they could possibly encounter the Lemoyne Raiders might have lookouts.
As they rode there, Caleb turned to look at Sadie, who had been silent from the moment they left camp. The awkward atmosphere had followed them like an unwanted shadow since dawn.
He knew exactly where it had come from, which was what happened last night. Sadie had accidentally intruded on a very private moment between him and Mary-Beth, and though she hadn't said much, Caleb could read her posture and silence like an open book.
Mary-Beth's words had come out in a moment of vulnerability, words of jealousy, about being left behind while Caleb and Sadie shared gunpowder and adrenaline, about not belonging in the same world.
And Sadie had heard it all. Caleb wasn't worried about Mary-Beth's feelings being wrong, she was entitled to them. But he was worried about what Sadie might be thinking now.
Did she feel like some kind of wedge in his relationship? Did she think Mary-Beth resented her presence? Did she think he had misled her into something more?
He couldn't let that misunderstanding fester, especially not before a dangerous job like the one ahead. Lindsey Wofford and his Lemoyne Raiders were no joke. Teamwork had to come first.
So, clearing his throat, Caleb nudged his horse closer and softly called, "Sadie?"
Sadie's gaze remained ahead for a second, then she glanced sideways. "What?" she asked, tone guarded but not cold.
Caleb hesitated, then smiled a little. "About last night… I just want to say sorry you had to overhear that. It got... intense."
Sadie snorted faintly. "Ain't the first time I've walked in on people havin' a moment. Probably won't be the last."
"Mary-Beth didn't mean to come off that way," Caleb said. "She's not angry with you. She was just... feeling a little left out, I think. She even blamed herself for making things awkward now."
Sadie let out a sharp exhale through her nose. "Well, she's got no reason to blame herself. I get it. Hell, I've been in her shoes before."
Caleb raised a brow. "Yeah?"
"Yeah," Sadie said, shifting in her saddle. "When I first met Jake, my husband, he was the one goin' off on doing the ranching with the other men, while I was stuck learning how to make stew right." She smirked a little. "'Course, my reactions were a bit more... rough than Mary-Beth's."
Caleb laughed. "Oh, I believe that. Don't need to say more. I think I understand exactly what you mean by rough."
Sadie shot him a sideways grin. "You sure? 'Cause I could give you a demonstration. Show you how I once put my husband into the ground just for coming home late without eggs."
Caleb raised both hands. "No demonstration needed Mrs. Adler, thank you kindly."
They both chuckled, and just like that, the atmosphere loosened.
"Glad we're finally talkin' again,"Caleb said after a while. "I was worried things might stay weird. I just want us to be like before. No need to be like walking on eggshells. And definitely no acting like we're a married couple unless absolutely necessary."
Sadie barked a laugh. "Oh, you mean like Tacitus, my dear husband with five hungry mouths to feed?" She cleared her throat and slipped into a sarcastic, high pitched tone. "Tacitus, you need to hurry back! The children are crying, and we still haven't named the baby after your mama yet!"
Caleb groaned, remembering their ridiculous charade. "Five kids, wasn't it? Including the imaginary twins?"
"Six if you count the one you forgot at the saloon," Sadie shot back, her eyes crinkling at the corners.
Caleb groaned with a smile. "Don't start."
"Oh, I'm just gettin' warmed up. You should've seen how I handled pretend domestic bliss back in Rhodes while I was looking for information. Had a whole fella convinced I ran a family bakery."
Caleb shook his head. "I'm sure you did. But seriously, thank you for understanding. Means a lot."
The rest of the ride was much lighter. The tension had finally broken. They rode side by side through the sweeping fields of Scarlett Meadows, the morning mist slowly giving way to rising sun and birdsong.
They passed through Southfield Flats, then through the quiet stillness of Mattock Pond. They followed the winding road to Ringneck Creek, where an old fisherman gave them a wary glance.
From there, they headed northeast, crossing the bridge over Kamassa River, its waters glinting in the daylight. The border of Lemoyne and New Hanover came and went with only a rustling of leaves and the distant sound of gunfire, probably a hunter or some idiot outlaws taking potshots.
Sadie's sharp eyes scanned the terrain as they turned onto the path leading north.
"Hey, Caleb," she said as they navigated a narrow forest pass, "you ever been to Fort Brennand before?"
Caleb tapped his chin, pretending to think. "I've heard stories. It's an old military outpost, right? Abandoned after the war?"
Sadie scoffed. "Not so abandoned now." She pulled a folded wanted poster from her saddlebag, Lindsey Wofford's sneering face staring up at them. "According to a fella I talked to in Rhodes, Wofford's been holed up in there for months. Turned it into his little kingdom. Got the whole place fortified, too."
Caleb nodded, recalling the layout from his past life. The fort had two main entrances, a heavily guarded front gate and a collapsed eastern wall section that was less watched.
As they crested a hill, the fort came into view.
Fort Brennand stood like a ghost from another time, nestled on a rocky cliff above the Kamassa River. The stone walls were cracked but solid, thick vines creeping up the sides. From this distance, they could make out several figures, armed men pacing along the top of the walls. Lemoyne Raiders.
They dismounted a quarter mile from the fort, tethering their horses in a thicket of birch trees. Through the foliage, the crumbling stone structure came into view, perched ominously on a cliff overlooking the river.
"There they are," Sadie murmured. "Look at 'em. Got rifles, repeaters, probably bunch of dynamite too. Whole damn place is crawling."
Caleb narrowed his eyes. "We'll have to time this right."
They dismounted in the trees and crept closer on foot. From a low ridge, Caleb pulled out his binoculars and counted heads. At least nine he could see, two on the towers, four by the gate, three moving crates near the center courtyard. Probably more inside.
Sadie crouched beside him. "You take left side, I'll take right. We sneak in through that collapsed wall, much safer compares the main gate I bet, and wait 'til they switch patrols, then strike. Quiet if we can. Loud if we must."
Caleb nodded. "Just like how I want to suggest it. You read my mind very well partner."
Sadie smirked. "'Course, partner. Now let's give the sons of bitches surprise of their life."
They waited for the right moment. The sun climbed higher, casting longer shadows across the grass. Finally, when one of the patrols turned toward the far wall, they moved.
They slipped through the forest, crouched low, stepping over roots and weaving through the brush until they reached the crumbled section of wall. Caleb went first, hauling himself over with careful movements. Sadie followed, landing beside him with silent precision.
They were inside.
The fort smelled of smoke and mildew. Crates of ammo, liquor, and supplies were stacked high. Caleb saw a makeshift barracks set up with old war tents and bedrolls. Two men chatted near a barrel, laughing about a raid they'd done on some poor farmer.
Caleb raised his hand, signaling.
Sadie nodded.
Together, they struck. Caleb slipped behind the first Lemoyne Raider and clamped a hand over his mouth, plunging his knife into the man's side. Sadie grabbed the second, choking him out silently.
More footsteps.
They ducked behind a stack of barrels as two more Lemoyne Raiders approached.
Sadie grinned at Caleb. "Want me to play housewife now?"
Caleb rolled his eyes. "Really? You make the worst housewife I've ever seen."
"Flattery'll get you nowhere Caleb." Sadie let out a grin. Seeing that, Caleb could only shake his head at her antics. At such serious and dangerous moment, she could joke about such thing and keep her cool which actually a testament to her skill and also confidence I should say.
...
Name: Caleb Thorne
Age: 23
Body Attributes:
- Strength: 7/10
- Agility: 6/10
- Perception: 8/10
- Stamina: 7/10
- Charm: 5/10
- Luck: 6/10
Skills:
- Handgun (Lvl 2)
- Rifle (Lvl 2)
- Firearms Knowledge (Lvl 2)
- Past Life Memory (Lvl MAX)
- Knife (Lvl 2)
- Blunt Weapon (Lvl 1)
- Sneaking (Lvl 2)
- Horse Mastery (Lvl 3)
- Poker (Lvl 4)
- Hand to Hand Combat (Lvl 2)
- Eagle Eye (Lvl 1)
- Dead Eye (Lvl 2)
- Bow (Lvl 2)
- Pain Nullifier (Lvl 1)
- Physical Regeneration (Lvl 0)
- Crafting (Lv 2)
- Persuasion (Lvl 2)
- Mental Fortitude (Lvl MAX)
- Cooking (Lvl 2)
- Teaching (Lvl 1)
- Germanic Language Proficiency (Lvl MAX)
- Inventory System (Permanent - 5x5x5)
- Acting (Lvl 1)
Money: 522 dollars and 0 cents
Inventory: 3,245 dollars, 2 gold nuggets, 5 gold bars, 4 silver rings, 1 Double Action, 1 Schofield, a large bag of jewelry, and 3 gold nuggets
Bank: -