Weren’t these two supposed to be scouting ahead for Dutch?
How did their scouting end up in an underground Saloon?
Stephen walked over curiously and patted Lenny on the shoulder.
“Hey, kid, what are you doing here?”
Lenny turned around and lit up with surprise.
“Stephen!
What are you doing here!”
“As you can see, having a drink.”
Stephen raised his glass and glanced at Micah Bell, who was slumped at the table, completely drunk.
“What about you?
How did this guy end up this wasted?”
Lenny looked utterly exasperated.
He spoke with some agitation.
“We came out to scout like Du…
the boss told us, but this guy just drinks everywhere he goes.”
Stephen pulled Lenny over to his seat and poured him a drink.
“No rush.
Take it slow.”
Lenny downed the drink in one gulp, then immediately choked, coughing hard.
“Oh damn, did I just drink gunpowder?
Cough, cough…”
Stephen quickly patted his back.
After a while, Lenny finally caught his breath and began complaining.
“After we split up on the snowy mountain, we headed west the whole way.
My plan was to follow the boss’s instructions and check around Blackwater Town, see when we could head back.”
“But this guy, ever since we came down the mountain, he’s been like a madman, looking for booze everywhere.”
“I’ve tried to talk him out of it so many times, but he’s always like this.
He never listens.
Sigh…”
Lenny looked miserable.
“What do you think I should do?”
Stephen took a slow sip of his drink, listening to Lenny, then glanced at Micah Bell, who was lost in a drunken haze.
“What else is there to do?
Just go back,” he said decisively.
“But the task the boss gave me isn’t even done.
I haven’t even started yet.” Lenny sounded close to breaking down.
“Actually, there’s no need to stress over it,” Stephen said, looking at him.
“I just came back from Blackwater Town a couple of days ago…”
Stephen told Lenny everything he had seen and heard there.
After listening, Lenny fell silent.
“Oh, Sean, Mac…
my God.” Lenny covered his face, clearly grieving for his companions.
“So that means we can’t go back to the West anytime soon?” Lenny asked quietly.
“Is it really that bad?”
Stephen nodded.
“It’s worse than what I told you.”
“So there’s no point in you going any farther.
Head back early,” Stephen advised.
“Keep going and you’re just wasting time, and it could get dangerous.”
Lenny nodded helplessly.
“Yeah…
I guess that’s the only option.”
He suddenly looked up at Micah Bell, who was still drinking.
“Then what about him?”
The look in Lenny’s eyes was full of disgust.
“How am I supposed to bring him back?
I don’t want to spend even a second with him.”
“Why bother with him?
He’s not stupid.
Well, close enough.” Stephen let out a dismissive chuckle.
“Just leave him here to drink himself senseless.”
“Well…
that doesn’t seem right.
I came out here with him, after all.” Lenny hesitated.
“Even if I hate him, he’s still part of our gang.”
Stephen gave a cold laugh.
“You treat him like a companion, but does he treat you the same?
I don’t think so.
If he did, he wouldn’t act like this.”
“Maybe I should go talk to him and see what he says,” Lenny said uncertainly.
“If he keeps acting like this, I’ll leave then.”
“Go ahead.
I’ll wait here.”
Stephen had a strong dislike for Micah Bell.
The main reason was Sadie.
That disgusting bastard had taken advantage of her when she was at her most vulnerable.
The rest came down to his judgment.
To be honest, people like Micah Bell were everywhere in the West.
In fact, they were the norm.
Shameless, vicious, cruel.
Yet when faced with authority or someone stronger, they turned into complete cowards.
People like that had no bottom line.
They would sell out anything at any time.
Stephen had seen far too many of them over the past two years.
There was nothing surprising about it anymore.
On the other hand, people like Arthur from the Van der Linde Gang, those who had some sense of principle and truly treated their gang members as family, were incredibly rare.
That was exactly why Stephen was willing to work with them.
At least he did not have to worry about being sold out.
Just as Stephen was thinking, a loud commotion broke out.
He looked up to see Micah Bell shouting angrily at Lenny, on the verge of throwing a punch.
Stephen downed the hard liquor in one go.
The alcohol burned through his chest, leaving him slightly tipsy.
He walked straight over, pulled Lenny behind him, and faced the swaying Micah Bell.
“Heh, look who it is.
The mighty bounty hunter,” Micah Bell said with a wide grin, trying to look menacing.
Unfortunately, with his missing teeth, it just looked ridiculous to Stephen.
“Micah Bell, who’s this?” one of the men drinking with him asked curiously.
“Heh, just some nosy busybody.”
Before Micah Bell could finish, Stephen sneered.
“Why don’t you tell them I’m the one who knocked all your teeth out?”
The place fell silent for a moment, then erupted in laughter.
“Hahaha, Micah Bell, didn’t you say you lost your teeth falling off a horse?”
“He told me they fell out while eating.
Hahaha!”
“This is killing me.
So they were knocked out!”
The mocking laughter cut deep.
Micah Bell’s already flushed face turned even redder.
With an angry roar, he charged straight at Stephen.
Stephen shifted slightly to the side, letting him rush past, then lifted his foot and sent him crashing face-first to the ground.
Looking at Micah Bell sprawled on the floor, Stephen shook his head in disappointment.
That was all he was capable of.
One of Micah Bell’s companions, still laughing, stepped forward to help.
He clenched his fist and swung at Stephen.
Stephen tilted his head slightly and dodged the punch.
Then he surged forward and drove his right elbow hard into the man’s chest.
The blow knocked the wind out of him instantly, and he collapsed on the spot.
The last man watched the other two go down almost instantly and froze, unsure whether to lower his raised fist or charge forward and get beaten as well.
Stephen smirked.
He suddenly remembered the gig Willen had given him.
The man in front of him was perfect.
He pulled out his camera and snapped a close-up of Micah Bell lying on the ground in a daze.
Right then, Micah Bell lifted his head, glaring at the lens with eyes full of hatred.
“Heh, Willen’s going to love this,” Stephen said with a smile.
“That expression is perfect.”
Lenny had had enough.
He did not want to look at that idiot for even another second.
He stepped forward, grabbed Stephen, and pulled him out of the underground saloon.