The Lone Ranger Chapter 5

5.

“Don’t they serve you food on the trails?” Lance looked up from his stew that left to the last scoop on the plate. He had been wolfing the meals ever since his return.

“I doubt the heathen ever cooked anything that is not burned on the stake.” Father Dennis commented on the Native American that traveled with Lance. “What his name? Tonto or was it…”

“His name is Tonto and he does cook well. It’s just on the trails we only have time for the plain meals …. Beans and more beans.” Lance replied before he scooped off the last of the stew. Father Dennis was not a great orator on the evils of Man but a superb cook of the Irish foods.

“Yes, I had this displeasure of smelling it. AS for your friend, I had seen them cooked slabs of meat from where I was not sure. and God knows what’s in those tough hide?” Father Dennis had little regard for the food cooked in a jiffy over an open fire. He had then taken another helping for the younger man but the latter had declined.

“Good food need not be wasted.” Father Dennis pulled the plate back and went at it on his own cooking. “Tell me about those you had snared. Skip the ones that had repented. I will get to hear their confessions soon. Tell me on the ….:”

“I found nothing on their association.” Lance sighed and then lied. “They won’t talk.”

“Cat got their tongue or your heathen pal removed it?” Father Dennis cut in. “Son, I know when you are lying. Your eyes twitched. Heck, I know when you smog the house too.”

“Sorry, Father Dennis. It was the beans or the stew I think.” Lance smiled.

“I’ll be darned when I served beans in my stew. It’s your trail food that served you beans.” Father Dennis gave out one then. “I know it for I had eaten it before.”

The the conversation soon moved to the porch where the younger man relates to the finding of his.

“The Association is a well-knitted community. They have been spreading along with the smaller towns where the banks held the money for the trail masters or owners. They seem to be keen on robbing the banks at night and then arranged for some desperadoes to come later for the actual event but there will be little or no money left. Most of the desperadoes will then be ambushed and killed while some survived to escape. They will soon be killed by the named posse. It was all to cover the real robbery.”

“How could they do it? The posse was from the town folks.” Father Dennis replied.

“Yup but they were all the members of the community that was converted. I have seen some of them have done the whole family or the main leaders. Those close to them which are not converted are sent back east or worse to another town. Once they have finished with the town, the converters will leave or go missing. The towns will continue on with the converted taking control there. In some towns, it could be the town elders or even the Sheriff. It was how I caught up the trail. I followed the towns where the Sheriff had left. From there, I traced the clues to their next town or hiding place.”

“Their preferred hiding places are empty towns devoid or of few inhabitants or abandoned mines.” Lance continued on. “I also found trails of them being killed by their own.”

That stumped the priest but Lance then explained.

“I assumed the Association had limited members and the ones that are not required anymore may be killed. It’s like a survival game. The herd is kept to a certain number and with that they are efficient. If there are the maimed and old and needed fresh blood to survive. They may perish and will be discarded but with the Association. They can’t do that for the main converters who are also bloodsuckers. Those are immortal unless struck down with their heads removed. They do cull their own for they believed the numbers are maintained by having the fittest only.”

“So why the money for? Build their homes?” Father Dennis asked.

“To build an army to take over the country. The Association cannot surface unless they have the whole country converted and then again, it will deplete their feeding ground. They have decided to be the elite class and ruled over the others. In order to that, they need to build an army of people to do their other tasks like running for positions of leadership sponsored with the Association money. The President is due to be replaced in six months.”

“And the money is in the railways and cattle. Both are the new expansion in the country now.”

“No wonder my parish kitty is always low. I only got farmers and miners to ask from. Where is the rail when you need it?” Father Dennis sighed. He then looked at Lance. “Would you be coming for the Sunday services? The kitty is by the doorway.”

“You expect me to contribute?” Lance asked.