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Ed gets up from the ground. Calmly, he gets the dust off his jacket and observes Tom, Winford and Johny. He looks at his companions, and quietly reloads a few more cartridges to the gun he is holding.

He´s got a menacing grin and he looks for Choctaw and Jack. The halfbreed Choctaw was young, but he did have that edge. And he was part of the Lee family, the founders of the hideout where his gang was based. Jack Dekker had proven himself to be a good shot with the rifle. "Ace of Spades" Mayer had just recently arrived, and Ed was not sure about him...

-The old man and that wagon rider are as good as dead, he says with a cold voice waiting to get any reaction from Johny. The youngster is also wounded, and the wound could be more serious than expected. A lodged bullet, or even internal bleeding. Ed did not really care.

-Choctaw! With me. Let´s see what´s in the wagon. Dekker and Mayer, watch ´em and best to tie the boy up for now. He has some fight in him yet, he adds and grabs his jaw with his left hand remembering how Johny had wrestled with him earlier.

Jack kept aiming at Winford and his boy while his companions reloaded.

-Disarm those two, I do not want bullets flying all around again.

He was not happy with the work, or the outcome, but it was the new life he had been compelled to have. Well, as her mother said: "Whatever you do, do it right." And that would be.

It did not take long for Ed Stein to empty the boxes in the wagon. He was not interested in the goods, only the money. He did not seem too happy about the findings: $62 cash. Still more than two months wages, but only half was for him, the other half was for his pals. Those were the rules.

-Here yer, fellers. Thirty-one dollars to split three ways, or as you reckon. It don´t matter now, but I was hoping for some more dinero. Also my damn Bisley got jammed when I was killin´ them sumbitches. Anyhow, enough for ya to have a shindig¹ and git yer hands on some ladies!

He then gathered the weapons and put them on the pile. There was also a medical kit, and a fancy gold pocket watch. 

It was clear that both Tom and Winford were dying. Tom was still tangled in the ropes, but he was not moving and made no sound at all. Johny was holding Winford´s head in his arms, trying to comfort his father.

-I think I will keep the Sharps Carbine Conversion, Ed said claiming the rifle as his first choice from the pile², before everything else was split. -And one of the revolvers, since I lost mine. He looked at his companions. They were young, but they had performed very well, especially after Ed had lost his gun when he fired his first shot. -Jack, I think you hit the old Mormon in the neck, so it´s only fair you git to pick the S&W Russian or the Colt Navy, I don´t mind one way or the other. Mayer or Choctaw, you can decide on the pocket watch or the Marlin Stonewall. I reckon the watch is worth more if you are lookin´ to sell. Or maybe one of ya fancy the small pistol?

Marlin Stonewall Derringer was a one-shot palm-sized weapon, that could easily be hidden. The Derringers were quite popular amongst the gamblers and wealthier townsfolk.

The leather 16 inch medical bag was well equipped with alcohol, laudanum, scissors, scalpel and the like.

Ed was in a hurry to get going towards the hideout. It was not a good idea to hang around too long after so many gunshots had been fired. He had also taken out a shovel from the wagon, but it did not go to the pile. The shovel was for Johny...

Last goes down, the curtains rise.

-I'll take the watch -I said, takin' it and takin' a look at his shiny surface, jes' to put it in my pocket a second later-. You know, you've gotta look fancy to play poker, fellers. The clothes that make the man...

Then I took a look to the bodies lyin' on the ground and shut my mouth. I didn't kill anyone, but... were those really my clothes? Was I really that kind of person? I took the money* and put it in my pocket, right behind my new watch. Maybe it was about time for me to quit and just go somewhere else. I was a decent gambler.

Anyways, I put those thoughts away from my head. For then, at least.

Ed looked for a moment at the Mormon clothes, all bloody and full of holes, not really following what Mayer was trying to say. -These bloody Mormons don´t even use no boots! Ed Stein was a cruel and dangerous outlaw, but even he was hesitant to remove the clothing from the dead, unless the clothes were especially valuable. Everything in life had a price, and the dead were not going to enjoy them anyway.

That´s when he remembered something he had seen in the wagon. -Look, Choctaw! I think this jacket fits you nicely.

Ed tossed Choctaw a brand new clear brown leather jacket. It was a nice cowboy jacket, and the size fitted Choctaw nicely. Probably the jacket was a gift for young Johny, since he raised his head for the first time when he heard Ed mention it. -Yep, looking good there Choctaw!, the outlaw laughed. -C´mon, it´s about time we saddled up and left!

Ed got on his horse, and waved the others to do the same. But just as he was about to ride off towards the hideout, he pulled the reins back. -Mayer, you stay behind! Watch the kid dig a hole big enough for his father. And the other guy...

Then he added in a whisper, -and then kill the bastard. No survivors...
 

Mayer is left alone with the young man, ordered to watch him while he digs a grave for his dying father, and then kill the youngster in cold blood. Ed was known for his ruthless ways, but it was also possible this was a test. The leader of the outlaws often acted a bit loco, but he was not stupid. Maybe he had noticed Mayer was considering leaving the gang...

Suddenly, when he watched Johny dig, Mayer noticed he was holding his stomach with his left hand. The blood had clotted, and he looked pale. It was possible he was suffering internal bleeding.

Maybe I do not have to shoot him after all...

But did it really make a difference? Killing a man or not doing anything and watching him suffer and die... Did that make Mayer any better than the outlaws he was riding with?

The sound of the shot seemed like a damn explosion to me. I watched the smoke coming out of the gun when I opened my eyes, my hand was still shaking. The poor little kid was lyin' on the ground right in front on my, with his face in the dirt.

-Trust me, kid. I did it for you.

Damn, that was shocking. I would never forget that kid's eyes. I took the shovel and kept diggin' for a while, then threw the bodies in the hole that would serve as their grave. Everything was so... silent. I took the shovel again and covered it up again, and then I took two sticks to make some kind of cross and marked the place. I thought they deserved it...

When I was finished, I stayed there for a while, just looking at the thick wooden cross and thinking while the wind covered me in dust. That was it. I didn't betrayed Ed, I didn't betrayed the gang. I did what they wanted, but that was it. That was the last time I wanted to be involved in something like that.

I took a look to my clothes, they were full of dust. The clothes that make the man... That was funny. My clothes described me in that moment just how I felt: tired and dirty. I smiled ironically, then pulled off all the dust from my clothes and started ridin'. I was determined to become a new man, and the hideout wasn't my destination.

-I'll take the Colt Navy, Ed, if you don't mind -he said with his heavy german accent-And I'll take that 10$ for me and I propose to have a dinner in common, so we can enjoy our earnings together...

That proposal could be a bad idea, a very bad idea indeed, but a part of him pushed him to seek refuge in a new group, even if it would be of outlaws. The camaraderie was something he was not ready to give up yet.

After splitting the money three ways, they saddled up and Ed Stein lead Choctaw Lee and Jack Dekker back to the hideout. Ed was still cursing over the broken Colt Bisley as they rode into the wilderness...

- Yeah. I will take that jacket- the boy takes the jacket and wear it.

- Looks nice, thanks boss!.