LLM Part 1 Chapter 14

14.

Lance dropped the extra dollar coin into the large pool of coins. His fingers were still holding to the five cards there while his eyes were checking on the other players. He had lost a tidy sum for Mr. Jones was an novice at the game.

“Tell me, Medicine man. You sure want you want to place that bet?” Lance looked at the one who asked him. He was seated opposite and was dressed as a Sergeant in the Union Army. The bearded Sergeant was also fingering his cards and the only ones betting was him and Lance.

“I …think so. Isn’t that the game should be played?” Lance looked around at the other four players with his blank expression complete with the bespectacled look. “If the dollar is ….”

“It’s enough, Medicine Man. I am calling for the draw now.” The bearded Sergeant threw the cards open on the table. “I guess you got anything to match that.”

The cards by the Sergeant were a single pair and a three card. It looked like a winner until Lance showed his.

“I guess I lost.” The cards revealed by Lance were a Royal Flush. The bearded Sergeant was reaching for the coins then had stopped. He had lost his money and so were the others. They were leading the Medicine Man to top the pool and now the later had won.

“You…” The Sergeant wanted to cry out cheat but he knew he had no prove. Lance had then grabbed the winnings to pocket it. He then stood up and excused himself to the back of the saloon. There was a privy there and was in need of the patron.

Lance buttoned up and turned to leave when he saw the Sergeant and two other guys there. Their intentions were clear and Lance was itching for it. He braced himself on the ball of his feet with the slight bounce in his legs.

The first throw of the punch was by the Sergeant right fist aimed at Lance’s face. The later sidestepped and hit out at the underarm of the right elbow. The counter punch cracked the joint and Lance followed through with his own right hook fist into the Sergeant’s face. That second blow was delivered with a scooping motion with the power coming from the hips.

“Avant!” Lance called out when he delivered the blow.

Lance then turned his body to do a side kick ‘chasse lateral’ into the guy on the Sergeant’s left. Then he had his body crouched with the legs spread and delivered a low punch at the third guy in the right kidney area.

“Avant!” Lance called out again. He then followed through with a few well aimed jabss into the Sergeant to drop the man before he delivered the ‘Arriere’ chop on the side of the left neck. His adversary was down then before he moved in on the second recovering man. He did the series of jabs  into the face and then a left hook to drop the man.

“Avant!” Lance called out once more. He was enjoying himself with these three amateurs. They won’t last the first round at the organized fights at the ports. The third man was still holding onto his left kidney area when Lance grabbed his head and had it impacted on the raised right knee. He then saw the Sergeant had recovered to step in for more fight. Lance then did the whip kick or the ‘fouette’ on the Sergeant. The movement starts with a front leg kick, and then with it the knee was up. The movement called for the flicking of the leg from the knee joint at the side of the face. The strike was deadly with the toe point of the boot. Snap! The Sergeant fell sideways with his limbs flaring out.

‘Damn! I am good.” Lance had his earlier training when he had to fight off the school bullies. He found his way with the best then although he lost some teeth back then. Later he learned in the darker continent with the French traders and sailors in the art of French Savate ‘Dans du Rue’’ the Street Technique. It was intense and deadly. He looked to the other two and saw that they may not know much to tell him. He moved to the Sergeant and woke him up with the knee bent at the groin.

“Sergeant, you will tell me what’s happening here? And in return I will give you the winnings but you will ride out now.” Lance looked at the groggy state in the Sergeant who had nodded back. It came out in plain words.

“We are mercenaries. Paid to do a job up north. The train leaves tomorrow.” Lance was not impressed and exerted more pressure.

“Okay..I heard from the officers. It’s the DC we are going for.” Lance applied more action and asked on the other uniforms.

“The Prussians….I was told to garner support of the Germans. The migrants from Poland and those others on the east coast. It’s all a ploy to create a new civil war. The South shall rise once again.” With that Lance silenced the Sergeant with the punch in the face. He then stepped away but his mind was on the things he heard.

Why would the demons want DC unless they want to take over the Capital? But why? He thought the demons were just a menace across the Frontier. Maybe he was wrong. They are an Association. They are bandied for a reason. His task had become bigger than he thought. He needed to find Mr. Smith.

And Tonto.

Unknown to him, Tonto was staring at the group of men before him.

“The Army came in last week and had just rounded all the town folks. We were then herded here.” Red Horse explained their predicament. “We had no choice with the rifles aimed at us. It was like in the old fights when we lost the land and moved into the reservations.”

“No, it was more like the old slavery era.” The colored man spoke up. “I thought we were behind that but when I saw the Army, I knew it that my medical profession was gone.”

“All of you?” Tonto asked but he got his reply.

“No, Senor. It was only the few of us. The others were not. They are different from us. They came in the last few months and took over the town. They are mostly demons in disguise but some are bad men. I know their kind. They scared the women and the children.” Tonto listened harder. He knew that with him were the women folks and children. “They ignored some of the elderlies and the righteous ones.  Father Stanley was given the right to go where he wants. They feared him those demons I had seen. Mrs. Oliver from the hardware was ignored. She was a tough lady and they left her alone.”

“But they shot Mama Martha.” Another colored man spoke up. “She was shot dead by the Army. Her juju’s will haunt them.”

“Martha was not a nice lady.” The Doctor voiced out. “She and her so named magic were killing my patients. I ….”

“I need to get out.” Tonto stopped the argument. “Who can help me? Red Horse, the warriors are needed here. Our brothers must ride for us. So must the Lone Ranger.”

Lance pulled on his white shirt over his dark pants in the dark. He had ridden out unobstructed by the sentries for he looked like a drunken man on his way home. He had rendezvous with Mr. Smith at the nearby valley and freshens up with the new clothes. It was time for the Lone Ranger to do the task but he was unsure how. It was almost dawn and his partner was still missing. He was still stung by Tonto being an agent of the Pinkerton and holding that from him.

“I can ride to the next town but it will be noon when I do arrive.” Mr. Smith had joined them earlier but he kept away from the town. “I can wire DC and some others for help.”

“You could but by then the train would have left. And we don’t know the size of the Army.” Lance replied. “I need to do something to delay them or stop the train.”

“How? With your silver bullets and ….” Mr. Smith snapped back but was cut off by the arrival of Tonto. With him was Red Horse on the back of the horse.

“Kemo-Sabe, I have much to tell you.” The partner switched to his pseudo of the faithful one.

“Speak fast, Tonto for we got three hours to dawn. And an Army to stop.” Lance glared at his partner. The quartet had their findings shared and then the argument on what was to be done. In the end with another hour to do at dawn, they finally agreed.

Mr. Smith rode off with Red Horse on their task while the Lone Ranger and Tonto went back to town.