"Davey, my brother, why'd you give Arthur fifty dollars? That's the kind of job I should've handled."
"It was just catching some fake medicine peddler. Not worth that much."
Mac Callander pulled Davey aside, clearly displeased.
He didn't care much about the Pinkerton news Davey had brought earlier—what really bothered him was the fifty dollars.
Davey snorted. "If I'd left it to you, what were you doing when I told you to gather intel? You were drinking yourself stupid at the saloon, weren't you? Spent all your money, right?"
Faced with Davey's scolding, Mac looked embarrassed. He knew he hadn't done his job properly.
"Where's that fake medicine seller now?" Davey asked, sounding impatient.
Mac quickly replied, "Just like you ordered—Arthur caught him and locked him up in that burned-out town, Limpany."
Davey nodded. "You'll watch over him for now. Don't let him starve, and don't let him escape. I still need him."
Mac nodded earnestly. "Don't worry, Davey. I'll keep an eye on him, but…"
As twins who'd grown up together, Davey knew exactly what that "but" meant.
Without another word, he pulled out a wad of bills—over a hundred dollars—and stuffed them into Mac's pocket.
Mac's grin spread instantly. He'd known his brother must've made a good haul from his recent jobs.
By gang rules, half of anything earned from robberies was supposed to go to the camp.
But Davey hadn't made any donations lately.
In truth, most of the gang knew he'd been robbing wealthy travelers.
Just a couple of days ago, when Arthur and Uncle came back from buying supplies, they'd bragged about staying at a fancy hotel and taking a luxurious bath—all charged to Davey's tab.
Dutch hadn't called Davey out on it. He could tell Davey was still bitter about the failed train robbery, and pushing him now over donations would only lead to conflict.
The Callander brothers weren't people you wanted to pick a fight with.
Dutch knew he needed to keep the gang's heavy hitters on his side, not drive them away.
It was around then that Leopold Strauss approached Davey.
"Davey, are you busy these days? I could use your help," Strauss said, smiling faintly.
"You know how it is—some folks just never pay back what they owe."
Strauss had been running his loan business for a long time—it was one of the gang's key sources of income.
The money gang members donated to the camp was lent out by Strauss, making more money through interest.
In the original timeline, Arthur only started collecting debts after the gang moved to Horseshoe Overlook.
Before that, it was the Callander brothers who handled those jobs.
It was only after their deaths that Strauss turned to Arthur.
But now that the Callander brothers were still alive, the work naturally fell to them again—one of their steady sources of income.
Collectors earned a small commission for each job completed.
"No problem, Strauss. Just give me the list and the details—I'll take care of it," Davey said casually.
"Excellent, Davey. Working with you has always been a pleasure," Strauss replied, handing him a piece of paper with the names and information neatly written.
"One's named Chick Matthews—works at Guthrie Farm, probably just a hand there."
"Then there's Mr. Wróbel, a small landowner over in Painted Sky. His ranch hasn't been doing well."
"And a woman named Lilly Millet, a ranch maid over at Emerald Ranch."
Davey took the note and nodded.
This was also why he hadn't told Arthur about Thomas Downes.
Because of Davey's involvement, Arthur wouldn't be handling any of the debt collection work—and so, he'd never come into contact with Downes or his tuberculosis.
In a way, the moment the Callander brothers survived, the gears of fate had already begun to shift.
To launch his moonshine operation, Davey needed a few key components:
a distiller, medical-grade alcohol, and raw materials like cornmeal and malt.
He already had a lead on the medical alcohol—from the fake medicine dealer locked up in Limpany.
He'd also chosen someone for the role of distiller.
But the raw materials would require the help of a rancher.
Running a moonshine business meant more than just brewing—it meant dodging rival bootleggers and federal agents.
To stay safe, Davey would need to purchase supplies quietly and set up a secure distilling location.
No decent rancher would risk cooperating with him in secret.
So his best bet was to find someone struggling—someone desperate enough to take the offer.
And there was a perfect candidate: Wróbel, the struggling ranch owner over in Painted Sky.
People who borrowed from Leopold Strauss were usually at the end of their rope, so Davey was confident he could pull Wróbel into the moonshine business.
Wróbel actually had the means to repay Strauss—that wasn't the issue.
His real problem was the debt he owed the bank, and that was what had him trapped.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser