Pete had finished his dinner. He and Henry left the saloon together.
"Pete, were any of those six on the wanted list?"
"No, sir. At least, not on our department's list."
"Go back and check the circulars from other departments. If you find a bounty on any of them, you get a five percent commission. If not, dump them in the valley with the others."
The mention of a five percent cut immediately lit a fire in Pete's eyes. His regular salary was less than five dollars a week. Five percent of a five-hundred-dollar bounty was twenty-five dollars—more than his monthly pay. If he got lucky and found a big fish with a three-thousand-dollar price on his head, that was a one-hundred-and-fifty-dollar commission. He'd be rich.
Pete hurried back to the Sheriff's office, eager to start digging through the archives.
Henry walked home alone.
As he neared his front door, he slowed his pace, approaching the house with extreme caution.
Men die for wealth as birds die for food. Two waves of assassins—sixteen men—had already come for him today.
His biggest fear now was a bomb.
The panel had indicated that five green husks could be combined to form a blue one, which could withstand a single bomb or artillery shell. But the information was vague. The power of explosives varied wildly. It was better to be careful. He had to avoid being blown up in the first place.
He currently had 175 grey husks, 58 white, and 5 green. Since every five lower-tier husks could be combined into one of the next tier, he could, at most, create four blue husks to defend against four explosions.
He felt no immediate sense of danger. He took out his key, unlocked the door, and pushed it open slowly.
No warning flared in his mind. He stepped inside, moving deliberately through the house, checking every room. He moved slowly so that if his danger sense did trigger, he'd have enough time to escape.
After a dozen minutes, he was satisfied the house was clean. He returned to the living room and began to plan his next move.
He was grateful for his precognitive talent; without it, he would be a nervous wreck. But even with it, he couldn't let his guard down. He was skilled enough not to fear a direct confrontation, but what if the assassins started targeting Linda and her family? Or Pete?
Although his connection to them was still new, if they were to die because of him, it would be a humiliating slap in the face. Henry did not like that idea at all.
His original plan had been to lie in wait, to let the assassins come to him and use them to farm more Release Pearls until he reached Level 3. Only then would he deal with the McKinley family.
Now, he knew he had to act, and soon.
He checked his status. The progress bar was at 54.8%. He had 4 grey pearls, 9 white, and 3 green. The twelve assassins from today had yielded 3 green and 9 white pearls, confirming they were all elites. Only two of the green pearls contained skills. His current total was equivalent to 79 grey pearls. He was getting close to the hundred he needed for the next skill upgrade.
This was only the first day the bounty had been posted. These two groups of killers were likely local opportunists who had jumped at the chance to be first.
The real professionals were still on their way.
Henry went to the ground-floor storeroom and cleared a space. He decided he would sleep there for the next few days.
Meanwhile, in Frisco's four saloons, the main topic of conversation was Sheriff Henry's instantaneous execution of six assassins. The news spread like wildfire through the saloons' information networks, reaching the ears of newcomers in town and spreading to the surrounding settlements. At the same time, Henry's personal history became a hot commodity, bought and sold multiple times over.
In a room at one of Frisco's hotels, the eight surviving members of the Douglas Gang were in a heated debate. They had survived the battle at the town entrance because they had been at the rear of the charge and had fled at the first opportunity. Their commander, Gallagher, had reorganized them, and they had slipped back into town to wait for another chance.
With the town's police force so depleted, entering and finding lodging had been easy.
"Based on what happened to those other two groups of killers today, it's clear Henry's a crack shot and his reflexes are inhuman," Gallagher summarized. "A surprise attack is almost impossible."
The other seven men looked at each other, the same thought in their minds: Maybe we should just give up.
Gallagher saw the hesitation in their eyes, but he couldn't force them. With their leader, Jack, dead, his own authority was limited. He had only convinced them to stay by arguing that Henry must have looted the massive cash deposit from Jack's body.
"Think about the bounty on Henry's head," Gallagher said, his voice calm and steady. "Add that to the cash he's carrying, and he's worth at least twenty thousand dollars. We take him down, we each walk away with three thousand. We'll be set for life, anywhere we want to go."
The eyes of the other seven men seemed to turn the color of gold. A bald, heavyset outlaw named Royce spoke first. "What's the plan, boss?"
"From what we've gathered, Henry is close to three people: Mayor William, Officer Pete, and the former Sheriff's widow, Linda."
"William has too many guards, and Pete's family is a possible target. But the best target is Linda. It's just her and her two small children at home. And Bryan must have left her a lot of money."
"With the town's security so weak, this is the perfect time for us to strike. We'll grab her and the kids and use them to set a trap for Henry."
The seven outlaws exchanged glances. Royce was the first to agree. "I'm in. When do we move?"
The others quickly followed suit.
"Tonight, around 11 PM," Gallagher said. "Any later and I'm worried another group of killers might make a move first. Linda has a border collie. John, you'll poison it. Ryan, you'll pick the lock. John, you'll chloroform Linda. We need to be as quiet as possible. Once we have them, we ride out of town immediately."
"If we run into anyone, Royce, you'll handle them with your throwing knives."
"Four men to grab them, four to watch the horses, ready for a fast getaway."
"And be careful not to alert Henry. His house is only about 170 feet from Linda's."
"If we're compromised, we ride for rendezvous point two. Successful or not, we leave town tonight."
Gallagher looked around the room. The men all nodded. They had over an hour to prepare.
Back at his house, after clearing the storeroom, Henry took a quick shower. He was fast because he was worried about an intruder breaking in while he was vulnerable.
He sat back down on the sofa, gritting his teeth in frustration. A single bounty from the McKinley family had completely shattered his peace of mind.
He felt this anxious and he was all alone. What would it be like when he had a wife and children of his own?
He had to build his own power base, and quickly. He needed walls, both literal and figurative, to protect himself.
Henry reaffirmed the plan in his mind, his resolve hardening.