by Izzy Hunter
Enough was enough. Mona stood up quickly, scanned the ground for where the men were stood, and aimed her gun down at the ringleader, who stood a few feet in front of the rest of the men.
‘A toll fee, is it?’ Mona shouted down.
‘Yes, ma’am,’ said the ringleader, nodding.
‘I don’t think so. I’m Sheriff of the town, and there’ll be no exchanging of money, or anything. Who the hell are you?’ From this high up, she couldn’t get a good look at the men, but she had an inclination they weren’t No Hope townsfolk.
‘So you’re the infamous Sheriff Mona?’ the ringleader asked, ignoring her question.
‘Who wants to know?’
‘See, you weren’t supposed to come back. Not yet, anyways.’
‘What the hell are you talking about?’
This got a laugh from the other goons. Mona could see the smirk on the ringleader’s face.
‘Are the townsfolk okay?’ Mona asked.
‘For now,’ the man said with a shrug.
Mona wanted nothing more than to leap from the ship and put a bullet through the bastard’s head. ‘If you even so much as bump into them -’
‘Cool it, little lady,’ the ringleader interrupted, ‘but I appreciate the attempt at a threat.’
The condescending prick!
‘Why don’t you come down here and check on the good folk of No Hope yourself?’ He went on. ‘But the toll has to be paid.’ He scratched his dark, trim beard. ‘I’ve heard of this ship. Good things. Very profitable. I think I’d make a great air captain. What do you think, boys?’ He looked back at his posse who all agreed quite vocally that they thought he would.
‘There’s not a chance in hell you’re getting this ship or any money from us,’ Mona shouted down.
The ringleader looked back up at Mona again. ‘Then you can’t land. Sorry. Them’s the rules.’
Mona kept her gaze on the group of men below, but addressed Northam. ‘Bertha, get this ship moving.’ From the corner of her eye, she saw the captain signal to someone. After what seemed like an eternity, The Red Jenny began moving. Mona leant over the side of the ship and yelled: ‘I don’t know who you are, mister, but you’ve made the worst mistake of your life.’
This did not go down well with the group of men. As soon as they’d realised the ship was on the move, the ringleader ordered his men to fire. Mona crouched down but not before taking a pot shot at the group. A barrage of shots filled the sky. A couple of the crew and some passengers fired back at the group, though Mona wondered if a couple of them had actually ever used a gun before.
Finally, the shots became infrequent and eventually died down. Mona felt safe enough to stand up and look over the side. They’d covered such a distance that the men were less than a speck in the distance. The others followed her lead and got to their feet.
Mona looked across to where Sam was sticking his gun in the waistband of his trousers. Although she’d not recognised the ringleader, she had caught a familiar face amongst the goons. It wasn’t too familiar. He hadn’t been in No Hope that long. Arrived the same time as Sam did. Arrived with Sam, in fact. She raised her gun and aimed it at Sam, not saying a word until he saw what she was doing.
‘What the hell now?’ he asked in a weary voice, eyeing the gun.
‘Please explain why your friend was shooting at us?’ she asked, barely containing her rage at being taken for a fool.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
They landed the ship a couple of miles west of No Hope, on a reasonably-flat piece of ground at the bottom of a cliff. It was doubtful that the men had followed them all this way, unless they’d had horses close by. Most of the travellers, including the crewmen, had disembarked the airship. Some were scanning the cliff edge for any sign of the men, weapons at the ready.
Mona wasn’t one of them. She had her mind on other things. Like how long could a man last with his head underwater without dying. She didn’t dwell on it long, though. She was about to find out. She was dragging a wrist-bound Sam away from the ship towards rock pool in the shadow of the looming cliff. He offered no resistance which maddened Mona even more so. Northam was following behind her. She hadn’t said a word, only passing Mona some rope to bound Sam’s hands with. A couple of the more curious crewmen had joined them and followed in Northam and Mona’s wake.
They reached the rock pool. The water sparkled in the midday glow of the sun. Mona forced Sam to his knees. She grabbed the back of his neck and leant him forward so his face was inches from the water. He struggled then. But due to her abject anger or something else, Mona managed to hold fast.
‘Start talking, you piece of shit,’ she spat.
‘I didn’t know shit could talk,’ Sam answered back.
It was an appalling attempt at a joke. Mona knew he’d normally do better than that. That meant he was worried. Good, thought Mona as she thrust his face into the water. She saw the bubbles rise as Sam fought against her and the lack of oxygen. Eventually, she eased up and pulled him out.
‘Talk,’ she said again, ‘and if you give any wisecracks I’ll shove your head back in and keep it there until you’ve stopped breathing.’
He took a while to answer. ‘What do you want to know?’ he asked finally.
‘When you arrived in No Hope, you were travelling with a man; the same man who seems to be in charge of the posse we just encountered.’
‘So?’
Bastard
Down he went, into the water again. Mona was losing patience so yanked him back out almost immediately. ‘You were in on it, weren’t you?’ Mona hissed. ‘You planned it all. You and your friend had every intention of taking over the town. Me leaving for New Moray was just an added bonus. Hell, that’s why you came with me, to keep me out the way long enough for the rest of your pals to turn up. Why No Hope?’
Sam turned his head to look at her, his face red and wet. ‘Untie me and I’ll tell you everything.’
‘I’m not stupid.’
‘Fine,’ said Sam before letting out a long exhale of breath. The gentle whispers from those surrounding them died down as everyone listened. ‘No Hope used to be known as one of the wildest places around. Everything went on there, and I mean everything. As much as it was a fun place, it wasn’t exactly rolling in riches. That was until word spread that an English woman and her mute lover had cleaned it up. Performed a miracle and turned it into a place where you could raise a family, run a small business. Well, despite its name it was getting known as a prosperous town.’
'And you and your friends wanted a piece of the pie,' Mona finished. When Sam nodded, she let go of him in disgust. He just managed to throw out his arm and stop himself from falling back into the water. Instead, he turned around and sat down heavily on the ground.
'Me and Willis Brown were the advance party. We were to scope out the place before getting the rest of the gang to ambush it. When we heard the sheriff was leaving for New Moray we brought our plan forward.'
'How opportune of you' said Northam coldly.
'I volunteered to go with you and make sure you were out of the way for as long as possible,' he continued, glancing up at Mona. 'But what with the theatre going up and.... other things... My plan went to shit.'
'Doesn't seem to have made a bit of difference. Your friends are still around.'
'Bastard,' spat Northam.
'I know,' Sam muttered, staring at the dusty ground.
'And what about everyone in the town? Do your friends plan to harm them?' Mona asked.
'They said they wouldn't but, to be honest, I trust them just about as much as you do.'
Mona lunged forward and thrust his head back in the water. He tried his best to push back but the adrenaline of anger coursing through her was giving her an unknown strength. She really could hold him down until his last breath left his body.
'Mona,' Northampton urged. 'He's the only pawn we've got. By god, I don't blame you if you kill him but not here and now.'
Mona's eyes
blazed with fury but she knew her friend was right. Gripped hold of his hair, which brought him up from the water and pushed him to the side. When he just lay there, she thought she had in fact killed him, but the rise and fall of his chest, his wet shirt clinging to his shirt, told her otherwise.
Leaving the unconscious Sam with the others, Mona stalked off to speak to Hubert again. He'd said that Sam would betray her, so he obviously knew more than she did. And she didn't like people knowing more than her.
He was standing with his hands clutching the bars when she neared him. Before she could open her mouth, however, she was bombarded with questions.
'What's all the shooting about? What's going on?' he demanded.
'No. You don't ask the questions, you answer them,' she interrupted, before reaching up for the key hanging above the cell door. She turned the key in the lock and then opened the door. 'Out.'
Hubert hesitated. Giving her a wary look before taking a step forward. As soon as he was out of the cell, Mona grabbed hold of his arm and hauled him along the corridor to where the crew exit was.
Only Northam and Sam were where she'd left them. The other crew members and passengers had drifted off. Some stood a small bit away having a smoke. Mona hauled Hubert across to where Sam was slumped and stood before the two men.
'What did you mean when you said he'd betray me?' she asked of Hubert.
Hubert was busy taking in Sam's dishevelled, damp state. 'What happened to you?'
'You'd better answer me,' Mona said, trying to keep the anger under control.
'The Fixer tried to recruit lover-boy here,' Hubert began, sitting in a more comfortable position. 'He likes the pretty boys, after all. Much like yourself.'
Mona chose to ignore the dig. 'Go on.'
'But lover-boy said no. Said he was working for someone else, but that he'd appreciate it if The Fixer could arrange something to keep you in New Moray for an extra day or so.'
'You mean the blast, right?'
Hubert nodded. 'The Fixer had a vendetta against the owner anyway so it would be killing two birds with one stone, as the saying goes.'
Something didn't make sense. 'But Sam and Oscar only met for the first time the night of the blast. I was there. There was never any time the two men were alone for this conversation to occur.'
'No. He came to see The Fixer several hours before you turned up.'
'Want me to stick Sam in the brig?' Northam asked.
'I'd rather you run a bullet through his brain. No, Sam here is going to atone for his sins. He's going to help us claim back No Hope.'
Within a couple of hours, a group had been set up who would act as scouts and find out what was happening in No Hope. Mona, Sam and Hubert were among the party of seven. The rest consisted of three crewmen and a passenger who was travelling alone and looked like he could take care of himself.
As soon as everyone went off to gather what supplies they would need for the journey, Matthew had started with the complaints. Why wasn't he allowed to go? It was his town, too. Wasn't he allowed to fight for it?
'Look,' said Mona finally, sick of his bleating. 'We don't know what we'll be facing when we get there. It'll could be far dangerous than anything you could imagine.'
'I have a vivid imagination,' Matthew shot back.
Sam had been standing nearby. Well, he'd had no option as Mona didn't want him to leave her sight, and so had heard Matthew. 'Kid, you ran away from home, and now you wanna go back?'
'Shut it, you,' Mona told him.
'Please,' Matthew continued. 'If you don't let me come with you, I'll run away anyway. New Moray would have been for nothing.'
She regarded the kid for a moment. She was right when she said they didn't know what they'd be facing. So she could do with all the help on offer. 'Okay,' she said. 'But there's no way you're having a weapon unless absolutely necessary.'
The eager hopefulness on his face transformed into a wide grin. 'Hell, that'll do me!' he exclaimed, and Mona refrained from admonishing him for his cursing.
Northam approached her next. 'I'll come, too,' she said, then waved a hand towards the airship. 'These reprobates can look after The Red Jenny. I trust them.'
Mona shook her head. 'Thank you, but I need you to stay here. Once we know the lay of the land in the town, I'll send word back to you.'
'Are you sure?' Northam asked. 'I'm not too shabby with a gun, you know.'
'I remember.'
'Alright. If you don't need my presence then I've got something that may save you a bit of time.' The captain headed to her ship before Mona could ask what it was.
While she was waiting, Hubert appeared at her side. He beckoned her to lean down so he could have a quiet word with her. 'Are you sure you want to bring him?' She followed his gaze. Sam was standing quietly tapping the ground with his foot, impatient to be off. 'Can you really trust him?' Hubert pressed on.
'The same could be said about you,' Mona told the diminutive man.
'True, but I'm not part of the gang that's got the run of your town. I'm what you'd call an honest criminal.'
'An honest criminal?'
'Most people know I'm usually up to no good, and I don't try to make them think otherwise. I don't pretend I'm one of the good guys.' He walked off and left her to mull his words over, passing Northam who had returned carrying a strange contraption in her hands.
'There you go,' the woman said, holding the gadget towards Mona. Mona took hold of it and turned it this way and that. It was a small, wooden figure, carved into the shape of a bird. The wings, head and feet looked like they could move independently. On the bird's back was a discreet key to wind up the bird.
'Your Sanders made it,' Northam explained, stroking the bird as if it was real. 'He gave me two of them, a while back. It was in payment. I'd got some hard-to-get supplies for some project he was working on, and he didn't have the money to pay me.'
'What does it do? Hover in the air?'
'I think so. Its twin was stolen a few weeks ago so this is the only one we have. Sanders did say that if I ever needed to send for help, I had to wind up the bird as much as possible, get to the highest point I could, and let go.'
'So if I did this in No Hope, it would get back to you?'
Northam shrugged. 'Let's hope it does.'
Soon the group was ready to depart. They'd been given some food from the ship's kitchens and a few rounds of bullets from the armoury. For fairness, everyone in the group carried a bag of food and ammo. The sun was not yet at its highest so there was a nice coolness to the air as they took their leave of the airship and the remaining crew. That didn't stop Hubert from complaining, though.
'How long's this gonna take?' he asked, already traipsing his feet when they were still in sight of the The Red Jenny. 'We're going to bake in this heat.'
'Quit complaining,' Sam said tersely.
'Are your legs sore?' Matthew asked. He was currently walking alongside Hubert, and glanced down at the man's legs. 'I can carry you for a bit, if you want.'
Sam laughed and Mona shot him a dark look that made him shut up quickly.
'Carry me?' Hubert said, pausing to regard Matthew. 'You trying to imply something? You think I can't walk far because of my size?'
Matthew hadn't been expecting this, and looked at the others for back-up. 'I... I wasn't trying to be mean or anything,' he stammered.
Mona felt for the boy. 'We know you were just trying to help,' she said. 'Look, why don't we walk in the shade as much as possible? It'll at least keep us a little cooler later on.' Luckily, the sun was on the other side of the mountain range, so a large lengthy shadow was cast on their side.
Through the day, they'd stopped a few times for rest-bites and to take a leak. Soon, though, the sky was turning darker and the portable artificial lights the crew had carried with them had come in handy. But with tiredness setting in, the group were becoming cranky. The smallest aside from someone set off big arguments. When Matthew, overcome with abject tiredness, tri
pped over his own feet, Sam suggested setting up camp for the night.
'No,' said Mona, walking on, though the others had all stopped.
'We can reach the town tomorrow,' he told her.
'There's less chance of us being seen at night,' she answered back.
'Mona, the kid needs to rest. We all need to rest.' He bound up to her and caught her arm. She jerked out of his reach.
'And what if something happens to any of the townsfolk during the night?' she said, turning to face the group.
'We'll never reach it by sun-up, anyway. Isn't it better we get some rest and energy now? What's the point in fighting for your town if you're too tired to even walk?'
Mona curled her lip in frustration. He was right, the bastard. She folded her arms and exhaled sharply, glaring at Sam. 'Fine. Set up camp, then. But if your friends harm on hair on anyone's head while we're not there, I'll hold you personally responsible.'
The bags were dropped to the ground with immense relief by all, and soon a small fire had been made. Everyone sat around it, sharing some of the food from the ship. Cold meats and cheese, washed down with a pitcher of watered-down rum (Mona had added the water before they'd left. She didn't want to lead a pissed-up group into No Hope).
