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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 3569717" data-attributes="member: 8530">Chapter One-sixty-nine, “The Man Behind the Rocks”, Thursday, June 15th, 5:00 P.M. Tomlinson reacts immediately to Jake's command, pulling both Kate and Nakomo with him onto the ground. Kate's legs got tangled in the mass of skirts of Kevin pulled her down. She managed to scramble to her feet and follow, as well as pull the derringer out of her bodice. "Follow my lead," he says as he then rolls around the corner of the building and into the alleyway between the east wall of Fisk's house and the west wall of Ray Singer's house. Chester gets up and scrambles behind cover. Chester follows as well, staying low, and with a confused look on his face. Jake notes that the four of them are now potentially out of the line of fire from the rifle. He and Minerva are still potentially in range, but it would be a considerably more difficult shot with them both lying on the ground presently much lower and smaller targets. He sees that the rifle barrel remains at the same angle it had been at before, not having shifted with the sudden movement of his group. Tomlinson leads the procession around the front of Ray Singer's house and onto South Street. "Follow me and look out," he says as he heads a block east and then across the street to the Arizona Territorial Offices where he and Judge Isby reside. Then he follows Tomlinson to the Territorial Offices. Jake and Minerva remain behind. Jake rubs his bright red cheek, "Damn you woman, make up your mind. I wish you would decide if you are interested or not!" Then in a fast whisper, "Go ahead and holler at me, but quickly stomp off east while you do so and get behind that shed. There is a rifle pointed in our direction." “What in Hades ever made you think that I would be interested in the likes of you! Senor Cook!" she bellows. "and You know very well that I belong to Nanuet!" she turns and with a swish of her skirts stomps off down the road as directed careful not to look in the direction of the rifle. She places her hand in her skirt pocket to draw out her gun, when she gets behind the shed she draws her weapon and scans the area for trouble. "Ah, Minerva, do not be mad at me." He flips over on his hands and knees and crawls after her. As he does so he glances back at the rifle, trying to determine what it might be aiming at, and if it was high enough to shoot over the top of the houses into town or was the shooter limited to someone in one of the houses near them. He scampers behind the shed. He tells her, "I saw a rifle barrel pointed in this direction and needed to act fast." He is speaking quietly and quickly. "It did not move when we scattered, it must not have been at us. I am going to sneak around and see who might be the target. Have your owl come around low behind me and I will scrawl a message and send back to you if I learn anything." As he sneaks off he adds, "I have no idea where the others went to...." At the Territorial Office, Chester asks, "What'd you see?" She shared a glance with Nakomo. "What happened?" she asked quietly as she could. Tomlinson replies, "Unsure, Cook indicated trouble and I reacted accordingly. We'll find out what is going on after he and the Priestess get here, that is, unless they go to her home or church instead." Chester states, "Are you saying we're going to wait for them to find us? Jake saw something out there. By the fact that he hit the dirt, he must have seen a gun. I can't let that pass." Kate says, "There's been no shots, so we know Jake and Minerva got out of the way safely. If we go blundering in we could ruin whatever Jake is trying to do. We don't want to wait long, but a moment should be alright." Chester looks skeptical. "OK. But you know I hate waiting." Kate wrapped the shawl around her shoulders, more uncertain of their path now. "How did Jake find you, Mr. Tomlinson? Mr. Harker told us you weren't available." He replies, “Cook ran into me at Lester's funeral parlor, I was fixing the bodies so that we won't see those guys again. I then ran into Jeff Mills on the way over to see you and he filled me in some more. We have some privacy here now, the Judge is over at Johnson's getting a bath, haircut and shave.” Kate states, "Then here's an important question. What are the consequences of going into Fisk's place and the headquarters? For Chester I mean? And for us as well. Legally. It needs to be done, but what can we expect afterward?" Tomlinson says, "Fisk's house would be okay as long as Deputy Martin has sufficient cause, the Liberty Party Headquarters is a different matter entirely, the Judge was clear that other party offices are off limits to the candidates of other parties. However, that's not to say he can't remain outside and cover the exits, after all, the Streets of Promise City fall within his jurisdiction." Kate comments, "I doubt a spell from Mother Jimenez that told us undead are sheltering there and Fisk's mind is likely touched by them, forcing him to cooperate is enough." Tomlinson says, "Better to stick with the Elmer Koontz angle, a wanted bank robber whose brother you just had a shootout with sounds valid." Kate replies, "Elmer Koontz angle? I'm afraid you've gotten beyond me. But if it will explain why we're in Hamilton Fisk's house, I'll trust you." Tomlinson says, "The Koontz Brothers were both part of the Deadeye Douglas's robbery of Condon's Bank. They didn't leave the area with Deadeye when the others left. Brice Koontz was one of the men who Deputy Martin shot earlier, who had been wearing a magical face. Brice was the brains of that pair and Elmer never went anywhere without him, so somewhere near here is the other bank robber with a false face." She asks, “And what leads us to Fisk and the Liberty Party Headquarters?" Tomlinson replies, "The Liberty Party Headquarters is where two of the four guys at the Hardware/Taxidermy shop were living. Of course, since they had altered faces Fisk can always deny knowing who they really were, but if one Koontz is living there that's where you'll find the brother." Chester says, “he Marshall told me that I can't go breaking into his house or the Liberty Party headquarters without proof." Tomlinson tells Chester, "You should stay out of the Party Headquarters, Fisk's house is a different matter if he is harboring a criminal." With the immediacy of the danger apparently having passed Jake cautiously makes his way further south using the storage building behind Fisk's house as cover. From there he is able to cautiously make his way beyond Fisk's outhouse and to the northwest end of the hillside with the Lucky Deuce Mine near the top. At this point he has covered a little over eighty feet of the distance to the shooter, but is still around one hundred feet away. He moves out until he can see the rifle barrel again and better gauges the angle to judge that it wasn't the back of Fisk's house that it is pointed at but more to the left, making the target either the door on the west side of Sam Slade's house some 130 feet from the rifle or the backdoor of the Liberty Party Headquarters some 180 feet from the rifle. Taking care to stay hidden and not have any metal flash in the sun, Jake takes a stub of a pencil and scrawls a short note on a scrap of paper which reads “Slade or Liberty Hdqtr.” He holds the rolled paper out tentatively towards the bird, who snatches it from his fingers. Jake snaps his hand back, "Yeah, nice bird." The small owl wings its way silently back to where ever her mistress might now be. While he waited he attempted to puzzle out what might be happening. He thinks “I would hate myself if the shooter was going to do some of our dirty work and I stopped him. Who would want to shoot Slade? Not a friend of mine that one, more often than not supports Fisk's agenda. Likely because the man is a bigot. He does not seem to be mixed up in the Cowboy gang, though you never know. I wonder if he keeps any dynamite at his house. Jake pulls his hat down lower to keep the sun out of his eyes. More likely someone at the Liberty Party headquarters. Jake taps his lips. Who are you Mr. Rifleman? Earp? Vaughn? Who?” Minerva stretches out her arm as Luna flutters gently down and lands upon it. With a soft coo, Luna drops the note into her mistress's palm. Minerva unrolls the note and reads. "Hmmm, Well this does not tell me whether it is friend or foe up there, Luna. Why don't you go and have a look. But keep your distance. I don't want him to shoot you out of the sky." Luna flies high, up to nearly 500 feet which while still within rifle range makes her presence less obvious to those below. She confirms to Minerva that there is a lone man well concealed behind the rocks. She cannot make out his face due to the dark cowboy hat on the man's head. Luna communicates the information to Minerva. "Well at least we know there is only one. I am going to find Jake." she says and carefully makes her way over to where Jake has scrambled off too and lets him know what Luna has seen. "I think we should find the others and figure out how to sneak up on this mysterious gun slinger from behind." Jake replies, "I might be able to come up behind him. I wonder though, is he acting alone?" The thought spoken out loud causes Jake to look around, imagining various places where he would hide men in an ambush. "Allow me to be quite blunt Priestess. If one of more of us approach the holder of that rifle and confront them, we will certainly prevent them shooting at their intended target. They may decided to shoot at us instead, having discovered them about to prepare someone for a six foot hole in the ground. Do we wish to risk that if they are going to shoot one of the Cowboy Gang? I know I do not." He scans the houses in and around that corner of town as well. "Our hidden shooter could be Earp, Vaughn, one of the hooded gang, who knows." "Unless you have a wiser plan, I suggest you hurry off and find the others. Tell them that I am coming up behind the rifle man, and that they ought to stay safe but make their way to this corner of town. This may be part of something bigger, so be mighty careful. If the shooter is after someone I do not want shot, I will do what I can to stop it. Otherwise...." Jake gives her a smirk, "otherwise I was just out here bird watching and happened to be on the hill when the shooting started." Jake watches Minerva make the wide arc away from the shooter and back around the cover that brought her to him. In spite of the seriousness of the situation he cannot help but admire her swaying hips under that long Spanish dress. He shakes his head, Back to work. Minerva carefully makes her way over to where Katherine, Chester and Tomlinson are now waiting. "There is a lone man aiming his weapon at what appears to be The Liberty headquarters. Jake is going to try and sneak up to the man from behind. I have sent Luna to follow from a distance. She will communicate to me if he is in trouble." Kate nodded. "I'm glad you both are well. At least whoever is behind that weapon is showing some restraint, whether he's a guard or an enemy of the people in those buildings." Tomlinson says, "Yes, but one unintended consequence of his presence is that it has delayed us. It is now around 5:00 PM, meaning around two hours until sunset, however those two buildings are in the shadow of Silverbell Hill immediately to the west of it, they'll be fully shaded an hour earlier." Still uncertain if the rifle holder is acting alone, Jake continues to scan the area all around him until the Priestess is out of sight. He then quickly plots the best course that keeps him out of sight of the would be shooter but gives him a view to shoot or stop them if that becomes necessary. Using the predictable and timed noises from the smelter, he moves quietly and as unobtrusively as possible. Once he has gotten as close as possible without alerting his prey, he settles in to wait and watch. On a whim he removes one magic round from his long barrel Colt and replaces it with an unusual and especially nasty magic round that he liberated from the Cowboy Gang. Twenty minutes pass with little visible movement from the man ahead, from which Jake can primarily make out just a dark hat and clothing. The man then shifts position, standing up to stretch. Jake is not one-hundred percent certain, but based upon the man's height, build, movement and what little Jake just now saw of the left side of the man's face it appear to be Wyatt Earp. The man returns to his crouched down position with the rifle and readjusts his aim towards the buildings. Jake slowly and quietly maneuvers himself closer to the man. He stays low so he does not give either one of them away. In a faint voice he begins speaking. "Here I am out looking for the elusive saffron breasted western desert rock snipe. Thought I had seen one. When they are hidden and waiting for their prey you can only find them by noticing their long beaks. Instead I find you. Strange coincidence." A short pause. "Planning to kill anyone whose death would improve my day?" Without turning his head or showing any indication of surprise Earp replies, "Perhaps....ever gone hunting for quail Cook?" Jake replies, "No. Is that a bird that needs to be flushed out? More importantly, am I going to regret having asked that question?" Earp answers, "Yes, it is a bird that needs flushed out. It appeared that was what you and your friends were fixing to do, which would have suited me just fine. Two of Morgan's brother's killers and the one responsible for Warren's death too are using that building as a sanctuary. I haven't been able to act because Sheriff Deputies Leslie and Nagle have been guarding them, but that shooting two hours or so ago seems to have drawn that pair away." Jake shrugs, though Earp cannot see it knowing Jake as he does he must imagine that is his response. "I saw a rifle barrel pointed in my general direction. It distracted me." A pause. "You will likely not believe me or possibly even care, but there is something in that building far worse than the murderers of your kin." Another pause. "I suppose I will be back about my business. Enjoy your hunt Mr. Earp." Earp replies, "Very good Mr. Cook. You and your friends don't need to worry, I never miss my intended targets." Which does not mean you do not kill or harm others intentionally, Jake muses to himself as he moves quietly back around the way he came. Once back on the street, he looks about for the others. He sees them conspicuously gathered together a short distance away. While still awaiting Jake’s return Kate comments, "We can't wait much longer." She'd never realized that the suddenness of these things was what kept her calm. Her stomach was churning hard enough that she was almost sick. "And once those buildings are shaded I can't go with you." He joins them and Kate asked when he approached. ""What's the news, Jake? Time is running short." Tomlinson also asks, "Well Mr. Cook, what was the problem?" Jake answers, "Wyatt Earp is hunting those that killed his kin. He is just waiting for an opportunity. I suggest we ignore him and continue with our business. At worst he is a distraction to those in the building. He may even prove useful, but he has his own demons and has little interest in ours." He looks expectantly from face to face. "So, have we settled on a plan yet?" Kate replies, "There was ever a plan?</blockquote>

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