Davey had no interest in Seymour's house or shop in Saint Denis, but he fully intended to take the $20,000 ransom.
After Seymour joined him, Davey planned to put him in charge of the moonshine business in Van Horn and Annesburg—two places Davey had been eyeing for a long time.
Once the moonshine operation expanded into those areas, Davey's income would take another major leap forward.
Of course, that also meant he would need to recruit more manpower.
At present, his employees already numbered eighty. Combined with the thirty-plus former subordinates Donal had left behind, Davey's armed force had grown to over a hundred men.
This time, Davey planned to recruit another one hundred employees outright.
The recruitment would no longer be public. Instead, it would be done through an internal referral system.
A salary of $100 was an astronomical sum that nearly seventy percent of current United States citizens could not refuse. Without anyone quite noticing, Davey's Land Security Company had already gained a strong reputation among Western cowboys. More and more men who believed they had real ability were eager to join his ranks.
That was precisely why Davey chose the referral system, with Germans as the primary targets.
Of the one hundred new hires, he planned to recruit at least fifty of German descent.
Once matters concerning identities in Saint Denis were settled on Bronte's end, Davey intended to carry out another round of recruitment.
By then, he would be able to formally move into Saint Denis.
As an industrial metropolis with a population of hundreds of thousands—and the eastern civilization's bridgehead—Saint Denis was a city Davey was determined to establish himself in.
...
Meanwhile.
Clemens Point camp.
Arthur had finally returned.
The news filled the camp with joy, especially Dutch.
"Arthur, my boy, seeing you alive and well is the happiest thing I could ask for," Dutch said warmly.
"When I heard you'd been set up by that bastard Colm, I was ready to take men and go after him myself."
"That Davey fellow did something right this time. He got you out, and that put all our minds at ease."
Dutch's words were filled with genuine concern, and Arthur could feel the sincerity in them.
Living on Davey's farm had felt surreal, like waking up from a dream every day. Now that he was back at the gang's camp, he finally felt at ease again.
"It's good that you're okay, Arthur. Everyone was worried sick while you were gone," Hosea said as he walked over and patted Arthur on the back.
Charles, Pearson, Lenny, Sadie, Tilly, Karen, Mary-Beth, Reverend Swanson, Sean, Strauss, and Javier all came over to greet him.
Oh—and Micah.
"Arthur, seeing you safe really puts everyone at ease," Micah said with a flattering smile.
After all, it had been Micah who had pushed hardest for the meeting with Colm. Now that everything had gone wrong, there was no way he could escape responsibility.
Arthur's good mood immediately soured when he saw Micah.
"Dutch, Micah, I told you from the start it was a trap," Arthur said grimly.
"They captured me. Their plan was to inform the police and have all of us arrested."
"If it weren't for Davey, I'd probably have died in that cellar. Even so, I was badly injured."
Hearing this, Pearson looked deeply ashamed.
He had been one of the main supporters of reconciling with Colm and had worked together with Micah to persuade Dutch.
"Apologies are meaningless now, Arthur," Dutch said solemnly. "I won't forget the humiliation you suffered. When the time is right, we'll take revenge on Colm."
"Davey… he's a good kid. All of you are. Trust me, Arthur—we'll get payback for everything."
"There's something else I should tell you. While I had people searching for you, that idiot Bill got himself captured by bounty hunters. What a fool."
"You've only just gotten back. Maybe you should rest a few more days. It's just that Bill's situation is a bit troublesome."
"So, Arthur, can you go with Charles to rescue Bill now? Of course, if you need rest, you can wait a few days."
After Arthur was captured, Davey hadn't informed Dutch immediately. Under Hosea's reproach, Dutch had quickly sent Charles, Bill, and Javier out to search for Arthur.
While looking for him, Bill was spotted by passing bounty hunters and promptly captured.
Clearly, Bill's claims about his shooting and fighting skills were mostly bluster. In reality, he was completely useless in a real fight.
He didn't even manage to run before being taken alive.
Arthur's condition looked quite good now—everyone could see that—so Dutch assigned the task to him.
After all, once Arthur got involved, things usually went much more smoothly.
"Alright," Arthur said. "That idiot Bill—wasn't he always bragging about how tough he is?"
"But he got captured because he was looking for me. So of course I'll go save him."
Arthur didn't hesitate. Bill had been captured because he was searching for him, and Arthur felt genuinely grateful for that.
Dutch nodded. "Charles has some information. Go with him, Arthur. Trust me—everything will turn out fine. Once we finish this job with those two medieval-minded, idiotic families…"
"And I know you've suffered a lot this time. I promise this won't happen again. Trust me, Arthur."
Arthur fell silent for a moment, glancing around at the gang's current situation. Scenes from Davey's side of things surfaced in his mind.
Compared to Dutch's plans, Davey seemed far more successful—perhaps already successful.
Despite his hesitation, Arthur finally said, softly but firmly:
"I believe you, Dutch."