𝔴𝔢𝔰𝔱𝔴𝔞𝔯𝔡 𝔰𝔲𝔫 ⟡ ʀɖʀ2

ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 𝟸𝟼

Riding up the path, we spot Sadie and Arthur who have returned with John finally.  Abigail looking over the moon to have her husband back and Jack, actually a bit happy to see his father for once. We hitch the horses and we come to join the little gathering of gang members.

"Back from the dead, yet again Mr. Marston."
"Heard you are too, Mr. Sanders."
He jokes before we hug for a quick moment. "Got myself caught by those Pinkerton fuckers, but your amazing wife and Mrs. Adler came to get me. Seems with both, we're lucky men."
"That we are, Ash. That we are. Truly nothin' but powerful women 'round her. Bet if Selina wasn't having your baby, she'd be out there too."
"No doubt, now, you better go change into your actual clothes before the law catches you without your chains."
I joke before he nods and heads off to his tent to get himself all cleaned up and looking normal again.

I head over to my tent and take a seat within it, lighting up my cigarette before quickly putting it out once I saw Selina coming over. For one, I knew I shouldn't really be smoking around her since she didn't like it all that much when I did and two, not in my tent or else it could go up in flames.

"Wow, still keeping up with the smoking I see."
"Selina, you know I took this up when I joined this gang. Guess it is the only bad thing Arthur taught me."
"Let us hope our son doesn't wanna be a gunslinger when he grows up."
"And if he does..? What we gonna do, Sel? Tell him he can't do that? Look at us, we're a couple outlaws ourselves, me more than you I suppose but both got prices on our heads. Not like you're the innocent girl you lead some of these people out here to be. I've seen you kill a man, Selina. Seen you do a lot of things--- Hottest shit I ever did see but I've seen it. Our boy--- I feel like he'll know better if we do right by him, Sel. But that doesn't mean he won't question everything. I have photos of us together, us with the gang, everything. He'll wanna know one day what ma and pa did and unfortunately, this is it."
She take a seat beside me before she allows one of her hands to fall upon her growing abdomen.
"His ma was a photographer before all this."
I narrow my eyebrows for a moment as I watch her closely. She never really told me too much about her life outside of this... Before I dragged her down with me.

"You was?"
"I was..."
"Wanna tell me 'bout it? Share with me, I share with you sorta thing." Even I was aware I didn't tell her much either about me. All she knew was my parents were killed and this was why I was here.
"Well, when Buck and I were engaged, I did a lot of photography. Everything you could imagine, people, animals, the beautiful ambarino mountains. That was just the start, I had a collection of these photos. I wanted them to keep track of everything that was going on in my life when I did have the intention of being an Army wife. My mother was so damn proud of me for wanting to be with a man like that. Seeing him as the greatest man I ever did meet. When I chose to leave him, that was when I was in Valentine. I took a photo of the letter I sent him and then did it. Just like that, I altered my future because I knew damn well what it would mean to be with him. Meant he'd leave me for a long period of time, pop out his kids and have them run off too. I knew it all. I hated it. My ma didn't know I was planning on leaving him till I wrote her too. Told her I was going to travel and see the states. I was a good kid growing up, don't mistake that, but--- I always had the itch to be more than just a simple girl who liked photography. That's when I crossed paths with you, Mr. Sanders."
I'm smiling a bit, I could still tell Selina was pure somewhere within her soul. She didn't ask for this as much as I didn't either. She was still good. I knew she was. I only hoped she could give our son that same goodness amount.
"You still take photos?"
"You'd be surprised to know I do?"
"Not really now that you've said something. Let me see 'em."
"I'll show 'em to you when you tell me more about you."
"Alright, alright--- Before the whole thing with Dutch and fallin' into this gang. I was an art lover, every aspect of art. God, I could paint for days on end. Loved making food too, that was something I just needed in my life at all times though--- My job, why, I was a bartender in Blackwater. Made some of the finest drinks and served some of the best food. Had a talent for writing too, so when Arthur introduced me to journal writing when I got in with them back in our Horseshoe Overlook site. Told me it would help me get out some of my frustrations after losin' my parents. Helped a bit, I just never find time to do it... I was an okay kid growin' up, I was an only child. That's why I hope in the future, maybe you and I can have a couple kids and not just him. I don't wanna have a kid who acts out when someone doesn't wanna play with them, a kid that doesn't just rely on his parents like I did. 'Cause it hurt like hell losin' 'em. Truly did, still does."