CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION
I stared deep into the horizon as I watched the sun set. I had watched it a million times before, but it always amazed me, to watch the sun sink into the distance. Soon, night will fall and the moon will rise to take her rightful place up in the sky. Amongst the stars, she will shine down upon the barren earth, reflecting light from the sun, on the pale desert sand.
I sat in my cabin, near the window, watching all this happen. I sigh, as I get up to close the shutters on the window. Night had come. It was time for me to fall asleep again. I give one last glance at the moon, as I shut her outside. I get into bed and blow the oil lamp out. I lie in bed, staring at the darkness. Is this how the earth would be if there was no sun and no moon? I ponder upon my thoughts as they slowly lull me to sleep.
CHAPTER 2: THE MYSTERY PARCEL
I wake up to the sound of bees buzzing outside. I always liked bees. From a very young age, they fascinated me. I have been stung a few times but it wasn't anything major. I slowly get out of bed and have a shower.
Once out of the shower, I hear someone knocking on the door. I pull the shutters open and by the position of the sun, I calculate that it is around midday already. People always come early in the morning, in this place. Wretched bloodsuckers! But there were many thieves around. You had to be careful. I grab Matilda off her hook. She is my Desert Eagle. One of a kind. She had already saved my life a dozen times. I check to see that she is loaded before I head towards the door. I open the door, and find it's the postman. Phew! Damn fool nearly got his head blown off. I click the safety back on the weapon and holster it. The postman isn't shocked to see a gun in my hand. He is used to it by now. He passes me a parcel, which I sign for, and he leaves. It is addressed to a Mr Fouchet. One of my aliases. I have many. Vladmir, Piere, Barbosa and countless others. But my real name was El Mariachi. I was a true Mexican by blood. I close the door behind the postman and juggle the parcel about in my hand. It wasn't heavy. Wondering what it could be, I grab my switchblade and slice open the packaging. Inside, I find a pendant. I inspect it. It is made of solid silver and had the letter 'S' intricately carved on the back. Turning it over, I see a picture of a woman whom I do not recognise. I can deal with it later. I leave the pendant on my bedside table as I grab my cowboy hat and leave the house.
Outside, it was sweltering. The sun shone down upon the earth from high above. But the occasional cool breeze did help cool me down. Not many people around. The place was deserted. Everyone was inside, away from the heat. I saw a stray dog lapping at a puddle of water. I don't give it much thought as I head off towards the pub.
CHAPTER 3: IN THE PUB
Once inside the pub, I get a big welcome from the regular crew. They were all offering to buy me a drink, but I had business to do, people to see. I wave Hi to everyone as I climb the rickety steps, which led to the barman's room.
I find the fool still in bed. I look around and seek out a jug. I fill it to the brim with cold water and splash it on the barman's face. He wakes up with a start and sputters the water out.
"Goddamn, Fouchet, do you have to wake me up like that every time?". I could see that he wasn't in the best of moods but I couldn't care less. I was El Mariachi. No one messes with me and lives to tell the tale. I smirk at him.
"Hey Bobby, a joke! No?". I've known Bobby for a long time now. He was a loyal man, if ever I saw one. Bobby grunts in reply, but gets up from the bed.
"We got business to talk" I say to Bobby. "I hear the Sheriff plans to shut you down. What is this I'm hearing?"
"Oh that! Heh, chill man. He isn't gonna close me down". Bobby talks with such confidence, but I knew he was bluffing.
"Look, Bobby, I'm gonna go have a word with the Sheriff, okay?" I say, assuringly.
"Sure, if you think that's gonna help" mumbles Bobby, falling back asleep. I give his face a couple of slaps to wake him up.
"Come, Bobby. I'll wait for you outside. You get ready and meet me there. You got 5 mins, pal" I say as I leave the room and head downstairs. I leave behind the shouts and cheers of the crew, as I exit the pub.
I had a meeting with the Sheriff, and I knew it would be an interesting one. I hoped, for his sake, to find him in a forthcoming mood.
CHAPTER 4: THE STRANGER
I head off towards the station, with Bobby by my side. On my way there, I pop into the local donut store.
"Ahoy Spinelli! I want some service" I call out to the young girl at the counter. She was 16 years of age, average height, with black shoulder length hair, and always appeared to be smiling. She was new to the area, but had fitted in nicely, thanks to me. Upon hearing me, she glances up.
"Heeeeyyy!!! Hiyaaaaaaa!! What would you like today?" shouts a somewhat excited Spinelli, as she puts her magazine away. Her young shrill voice nearly deafening me.
"Some of your delicious donuts, along with a glass of Orange Juice" I say as I drop a 5 Dollar bill on the counter.
"And you, sir?" Spinelli says to Bobby.
"I'll have a couple of donuts too, please!" says Bobby, eyeing the donuts sitting behind the counter. Oh, how he wished they were all his, as he licked his lips.
"Oh, quit drooling. They are only donuts!" says Spinelli, instantly making Bobby flush all red. She smirked. She was a smart lass. I smiled inwardly at the young girl's courage. If I wasn't here, Bobby would have put lead in her stomach.
Once my donuts and drinks are ready I leave, letting her keep the change.
As I exit through the door, another customer comes in, budging past me. My hand swiftly travels to my Magnum. None but Bobby catches this movement, as he silently warns me to stop. I heed his advice and continue leaving the store.
Once outside, I hear someone shouting behind me. I spin around to see the customer coming back out of the store. She held something in her hand.
"Excuse me, Sir, but I think this is your wallet?" says the stranger.
I notice that it is indeed my wallet, as I find my one missing.
"Thank you, ma'am" I say as I take my wallet back. I pocket it as I watch the young lady go back into the store. There was something about her, which jogged my memory. Of course, it was her picture in the pendant! But who is she and why did I receive her pendant? I'll deal with her later, as I continue towards the station, munching away on the donuts.
I arrive at the station and find the Sheriff sitting outside, smoking a pipe. No other officers in sight.
CHAPTER 5: THE MEETING
I stroll up to the Sheriff, eyeing his every movement. My eyes glance over his shiny badge, polished. That was his joy, his pride. I can see his pipe reflecting upon it. Above his badge, he had his name stitched on his uniform. Pablo, it read. His crisp uniform held a minor stain on the lower left leg. Blood. He was shot in the calf a few months back, by me, by my Magnum but no charges were pressed. How could he? I held the town in my fist.
"Hey there, Sheriff, how's things running?" I call out. My eyes draw parallel to his. His eyes, they spoke of a history long forgotten. Here was a man, who nearly died trying to bring me to justice. He despised me but his hands were tied. Maybe one day, he would succeed in bringing me down. I looked forward to that day more than anything, to have another shot at this guy.
"What you want now, Fouchet?" says Pablo. His words fail to veil his anger. He had spat out my name. I chuckle softly to myself.
"What's the deal with Bob's pub?" I question the Sheriff as I rest my hands on my hip. Pablo's eyes sharpen. He has noticed I have my Magnum with me and that my hand isn't that far off from it. He is no longer smoking casually.
He glances over towards the station entrance. He is checking if he has his rifle nearby, but he is at a loss as he remembers he had left it behind his desk. He turns back, facing Bobby now and inhales deeply. Coughing up some phlegm, he spits it towards Bobby's direction. It lands a yard away from him. I pay no attention to it, although I could hear Bob's laboured breathing. Bob was nervous. Poor guy, I don't blame him. I was beginning to get impatient with all the waiting.
I decide to scare him. I reach over towards my Magnum, when someone comes out through the station entrance. I instantly recognise him. My nemesis. Machine, the town's local Hangman. No one knew his real name. It was kept away from the public's knowledge for the safety of the executioner. He was a very large man, maybe 6ft tall, and he was as strong as a bull. Rumours tell of how he had crushed a man's skull with his bare hands.
He notices me, then looks over at the Sheriff. Pablo tries to act like everything is under control but Machine isn't to be fooled. He carries his own Magnum with him. His hand flies over to his Magnum. A brief glint of metal reflecting in the sunlight, and a loud bang follows, instantly followed by another one. Movement too swift to be caught by the human eye alone. Machine screams in agony as he goes down on the floor, clutching his right leg. I had shot him on the knee, busting his kneecap. I rarely shoot to kill. Blood was flowing out of his wound. He would have to be treated fast, else lose the leg.
"Let that be a warning to you Sheriff, and to him too!" I say, nodding towards Machine. I watch Pablo get off his seat as he goes to treat Machine's wound. I leave them at that. Bob follows close behind me.
As we walk away from the station I finally decide to look at my wound. I was shot too, but fortunately, Machine's aim was flawed. His bullet had only grazed my left hand. I show my hand to Bob, who has been silent all this time.
"Check out what he did to my hand! Lucky for him I didn't put lead in his head." I say to Bob.
"Was that necessary? I mean, you could've gotten killed, damn it!" says Bob angrily. I laugh at his comment.
"Chill out! I'm all safe. You don't have to worry about me, pal. Come, let's go off to Spinelli's. I need my hand treated." I tell Bob. He has relaxed a lot now, seeing that I am safe. But I knew better. Pablo and Machine won't be very forgiving for today's events. I sigh, as we pass by the Noose on our way to Spinelli's Donut.
CHAPTER 6: THE STRANGER RETURNS
We arrive at Spinelli's and get a more excited greeting than normal.
"OMG! OMG! OMG! You're back!! Yaaaay!" screams Spinelli, jumping up and down as Bob and I enter her store.
"Yea, we're back" I say, flashing her a smile, not at all understanding what all the excitement was about.
"No, you're back! I ain't worried about him, send that guy home" says Spinelli, referring to Bob, while shooting a frown in his direction.
Bob gets offended and mutters something under his breath.
"Oi, I heard that! I am not a Wailing Banshee!" scowls Spinelli, sticking her tongue out at Bob.
I break out a yawn, to stop them before an argument happens.
"Oh my, you must be very tired. Didn't you sleep last night? Did Bob come and wake you up very early?" asks Spinelli, showing concern. She then turns to frown again at Bob.
"Nah, I'm ok. I just came back from the station. Had a bit of trouble with the Sheriff" I say, as I show her my hand. Spinelli glances at my hand and instantly has a panic attack.
"What the..? How did that happen?" gasps Spinelli.
"I got shot at, while at the station. I also put a bullet in Machine" I say, as I see Spinelli's eyes open wide.
"Quick, we need to get your hand cleaned" says Spinelli as she kneels down and goes through the draws, throwing everything out onto the floor. She is looking for something to use as bandage for my wound and is also panicking. In her rush, her hand knocks over the tray of freshly made donuts. This is just too much for Bob. He rushes around behind the counter to help himself to the donuts. Spinelli notices him at her donuts, gets up and gives him a kick on the shin. Bob shouts out in pain as he drops his treasures and hops around on one leg, trying to make his way away from the dangerous girl.
"Now who is the Wailing Banshee?" says Spinelli, smirking.
"You see that, Fouchet? That brat kicked me!" shouts Bob through gritted teeth.
"Ahem, I am not a brat. You're a greedy pig for trying to eat my donuts" splutters Spinelli, her spit flying all over the air as she shouts.
I sigh again. What was I going to do with these two? Couldn't they just be friends and get along? I hear the wind chimes jingle, as the door opens, playing a melodious tune. Spinelli had another customer. I turn around and see that it was that mysterious woman again. All is quiet when she enters.
To Be Continued...
