With a six-shooter in her hand, Lou swept the curtains from the small kitchen window to check the activity outside; there was much chaos as ranch hands tried to put out the stable fire. She listened for sounds of shooting but there was none. She couldn't see Kid, Buck or Jimmy and wondered what kind of trouble there were in. Agitated, she dropped the curtains and they fluttered back into place. She laid her gun on the table, walked two steps, then back and picked her gun again. Louisa and Amanda, who were seated at the table, exchanged glances and the latter stood up.

"I'll go and see how Teaspoon is," she told the other women as she picked up her own gun. Teaspoon was in the living room, manning the door to the main house. "You two OK here?" she asked, her gaze on Louisa's pale visage. Louisa nodded slightly and Amanda stepped out of the room.

Louisa picked up the gun in front of her. It, too, was a six-shooter, an old but serviceable piece Teaspoon had given her when the trouble started. Amanda had spared a few minutes teaching her how to load the gun. It seemed unnaturally heavy to her untrained hands and she wondered if she would be able to fire it. 

A soft knock on the door nearly startled Louisa into nearly dropping the gun. She clasped both hands around it and aimed the gun toward the door. Lou, whose pacing was interrupted by the sudden knock, carefully looked out of the window. For a moment, she could see nothing in the dark and then a figure stepped out of the shadows.

The young man had a bloody lip and an ugly gash on his brow. But it was his eyes that caught Lou's attention. "Garrett," she whispered. There was such terror in them that it broke Lou's heart. Seeing one of their own hurt, she forgot caution and hurriedly opened the door.

But it wasn't Garrett who stood on the doorway. It was a man Lou had never seen before but knew. The eyes were so much like the ones she held as dear as her own. And yet Kid's blue-gray eyes had none of the sheer malice and evil that these ones had.

Realizing her mistake, Lou raised her gun but the leader of the once-mighty Black Raiders quickly twisted her arm. A shot went off but it didn't hit the intended target and the gun fell on the floor with a clutter.

"Well, well, well. What a warm welcome we have here," the raider said, smiling at Lou like a malevolent god before a catastrophic tantrum. He brought his gun to Lou's temple and gestured toward Louisa who, afraid for her friend's life, promptly placed her gun on the table. The man stepped inside the cozy kitchen, hollering, "Boy, come in here and meet your sister-in-law."

Louisa paled in shock and Lou let out a soft gasp as Garrett slowly walked inside the house, his face gray. In his unsteady hands was a gun, which he slowly aimed at Louisa.

"Yes, yes, dearest daughter," the raider grinned, enjoying the impact of his revelation. "He takes after his old man, don't you think? Unlike that righteous husband of yours."

The soft click of a gun being cocked had the people in the room turning toward the door and Garrett found himself starring at the barrel of Buck's gun and Cody's rifle. From the other door Kid, Hickok and Teaspoon walked in, their guns cocked and aimed at the raider. Teaspoon quickly pulled Louisa behind him.

But in the face of such firepower and such doughty men, the raider merely laughed. A maniacal laugh that sent chills down everybody's spine. "Finally figured it out, didn't you, boys? Did you have fun with my explosives?" he asked. He looked at the faces before him. "You're all such sharp shooters," he said before spearing Kid with a dark look, "but would you take the risk of my hand twitching at the last second and blowing your wife's pretty little head off? Hmmm? Didn't think so."

"You're going to die," Kid said quietly. His eyes were unblinking, glittering with hatred and unshed tears. 

The raider merely nodded. "Even right now, as we speak, my soul is burning in hell. But I'll take you with me."

"Why?" Kid suddenly shouted, all the emotions he kept in check spilling out in that one word. His hand began to shake furiously and he couldn't control it. Hickok laid on a calming hand on Kid's shoulder and sent a swift, worried glance at Buck and Cody.

"Why?!?!" the raider spit out in a hiss. "Look at me! You've taken everything from me. Slinking in dank holes, do you think that's the life I want? I didn't become the leader of the most feared gang in three territories just so I could die like a bum, my body eaten by rats!"

"You're only paying for your sins," Buck said softly.

"Shut up, Injun. This conversation is only between father and son," the raider growled.

"Then why doesn't Garrett speak up?" Hickok asked. "He is part of the family, ain't he?"

"He's a good little boy, that's what he is. Follows his old man," the raider answered. "Get the horses, Garrett."

"No," came the quiet command. Garrett halted, his face almost white in terror as he looked at Buck and Cody. Their faces were stern but there was something gentle in their eyes. On Kid's signal, Buck and Cody lowered their weapons. Slowly, Garrett turned around and looked at Kid.

"You don't have to do anything, Garrett. You don't have to follow him. All he wants to do is hurt us. He'll hurt you, too," Kid said gently. "You already have a gash on your forehead. You know he's capable of doing more, even killing you. I've never treated you badly ... brother."

The raider snorted, "You gonna listen to him, boy? Huh? It's always been just the two of us, boy. Now, get the damn horses."

Kid sensed Garrett's weakening resolve and pressed his advantage. "Garrett, you can walk out of here. No one will hurt you. Just walk away. You don't have to follow him. He is a killer and a thief. You can be more than that. Just walk away," Kid urged.

"No," the raider barked. "Garrett, my boy, do you think blood matters to him? Kid here, he killed his own brother. He killed Jed. You know that, right? He'll do the same thing to you."

"Garrett ... " Kid began again but stopped when Garrett whirled around.

"Shut up, both of you, just shut up," Garrett screamed, his face contorted in hysteria, the gun in his hand unsteady as he raised it and took aim.

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