America 1883: The Western Homeland

Chapter 13: The Aftermath of Killing the Robbers

"The captain's back!" Joseph shouted excitedly. "The captain and the others are back with the cattle!"

Tom suddenly stood up and poured the wine in his hand into the loach's mouth.

He slapped Mudfish hard on the neck. "Good lad, this is your reward! But now you have to chase those horses away for me, as far away as possible! Preferably north!" With that, he slapped Mudfish's rump hard. "Go now!"

"Ah!" the loach let out a joyful hiss and scurried away, wagging its tail.

At this moment, a herd of bison appeared before everyone.

These enormous creatures are robust, with a high hump on their backs, and their bodies are covered with thick, long hair of various colors. Most bison are covered in brown fur of varying shades, resembling dried soil or withered grass.

Its neck and head were covered with long, messy black hair, resembling a rough, large scarf.

Upon closer inspection, some of them have a yellowish-brown color, while others appear grayish-brown.

A large group of them gathered together, looking like a brown "wall" from a distance, but upon closer inspection, you can see that each cow has a slightly different coat color.

Captain Shay and James led the way on either side of the herd, while Thomas and another cowboy flanked the cattle. Elsa and the remaining cowboy brought up the rear, forming a fan shape that steadily surrounded the herd in the middle.

"Let's stop here!" the captain said.

The herd of cattle stopped not far from the camp.

"Alright!" the cowboys responded, skillfully stopping the herd and preventing them from moving forward.

Fortunately, this place is close to the river, where the bison can drink water and graze on the wild grass along the bank.

"Hey, look who's back!" Tom appeared in front of Elsa, who had just dismounted, carrying a plate of venison.

Riding on her beloved horse "Brown Lightning," Elsa smiled as she looked at the meat in Tom's hand. "Where did this venison come from?" The ripe color made it look very fresh.

Tom puffed out his chest. "I hunted it!"

This was like a joke, and it immediately made Elsa laugh. "Hahaha, stop joking!" she laughed, and turned to walk towards the camp.

Tom was left standing there awkwardly.

"Who is he?" Cowboy Wade whispered to his companion Ennis.

Ennis shook his head. "I don't know."

"Ha," Wade winked, "maybe it's her lover?"

Suddenly, Tom turned around sharply, his cold gaze sweeping over the two unfamiliar cowboys.

He glanced at it briefly before walking straight toward the camp, leaving the two cowboys, their hearts pounding, standing there dumbfounded.

"Did Tom really hunt this?" Elsa's surprised voice came from before they even reached the campfire.

Margaret's voice rang out immediately: "Yes, he's lucky."

Tom approached the campfire and saw that everyone was gathered around it.

James's probing gaze fell on him, scrutinizing him, making Tom somewhat uncomfortable.

"Tom, I never thought you could catch venison with your 'short legs'!" Elsa was as outspoken as ever.

Tom picked up the whiskey bottle, intending to pour James a glass, but Margaret stopped him.

"He drinks this," she said, placing a warm cup of coffee in front of James.

"Oh, I knew it!" Tom turned to James, a hint of mockery in his eyes. "What's your choice, coffee or whiskey?"

Without any hesitation, James picked up his coffee and took a sip.

"Ha," Tom shrugged, "I knew you couldn't accommodate anyone else here."

Five-year-old John looked up at the adults, then lowered his head again to concentrate on gnawing on the venison in his hand.

Tom, having eaten and drunk his fill, was about to leave when he saw Captain Shay approaching them with his second-in-command, Thomas.

Tom assumed they were looking for James and didn't pay much attention.

However, a low shout stopped him!

"Tom, stop right there!"

Tom paused, then turned around. James also put down his plate and stood up.

"What's wrong?" James asked in a deep voice.

Captain Shay looked at James with a serious expression: "This morning, a few cowboys from Fort Worth broke into the camp and were killed."

James frowned: "Are they all dead?"

"Yes." The captain nodded, but his gaze was sharp as he turned to Tom.

James followed Shay's gaze to Tom, then turned back to Shay: "What are you trying to say?"

"James, it was your son who killed those cowboys." Shay's voice was filled with undeniable certainty. "Tom, did you do it?"

Tom yawned and said casually, "People tend to get sleepy when they're full. As the old saying goes, eat until you're seven-tenths full."

He slowly took out the expensive pocket watch he had obtained from the train scammer and checked the time.

"If you're talking about those gunmen who disrespected my family this morning... yes, their bodies are lying in some deep pit right now. If you want to see them one last time, do it now, or they'll probably be infested with maggots."

The words had barely left his mouth when Tom took a few steps forward, closing the distance to Captain Shay, his eyes fixed on him like a hawk's: "I don't care who he is, if he dares to lay a finger on my family, I'll send him to meet God!"

boom! boom! boom!

With a few sharp cracks, several thick tree branches snapped without warning, crashing heavily to the ground with a piercing cracking sound!

Thomas was about to draw his gun in an instant, but James's hand also swiftly pressed down on the holster at his waist.

"Thomas! Stop!" Shay shouted sharply, barely suppressing his discomfort.

"Kid!" Shay wiped his brow, his eyes blazing. "Do you know those guys? Do you know how many accomplices they have in Fort Worth? If we let..."

"Then do you know me?" Tom interrupted him decisively, his voice icy. "I'm not your soldier! We're just colleagues!" His gaze was unwavering, like tempered steel, fixed straight on Shay's face.

The atmosphere instantly became as tense as a fully drawn bowstring.

"If you think this will drag the team down," James stepped forward, standing between Tom and Shai, his tone serious, "we can leave now."

Captain Shay glanced at the solemn-faced James opposite him, and smirked, "It's useless, James. In the eyes of the people in Fort Worth, we're already in cahoots. It doesn't matter whether we split up or not. I'm not here to interrogate you; you can go see the corpses. I just hope..."

He looked at James, his eyes grave. "If there's a next time, I hope you can restrain him. Otherwise, it could really bring disaster to everyone!"

"Was he wrong?" Claire's roar was like a thunderclap. She broke free from Margaret's grasp and rushed forward, her whole body trembling with rage.

"Where were you all then? Those men were riding tall horses, carrying guns, looking at us like we were livestock! They were robbers who came to steal our things, do you know how scared we were! Their guns could have killed us at any moment! Where were you then! Tell me! Where were you all?!

Her desperate questioning, filled with endless fear and lingering dread, ripped through the camp's sky like a knife, echoing for a long time.