"Thank you, Davey."
Hosea was deeply moved. Davey hadn't forgotten him, nor had he forgotten the Van der Linde Gang.
The bond they'd shared over the years was real.
In truth, Hosea had always known that Davey was willing to help them. He never once saw Davey's departure as a betrayal.
Everyone had the right to pursue a better life.
Strictly speaking, the Callander brothers were different from the rest of the gang. Unlike those who merely sought protection, the once-notorious Callander brothers had joined the Van der Linde Gang more as partners than subordinates.
They had contributed a great deal to the gang.
"What are you saying, Hosea? Are you treating me like an outsider now?"
"Even if I'm no longer part of the Van der Linde Gang, we're friends forever, aren't we?"
Davey said with a smile.
Hosea smiled back. "You're right, Davey. We're friends forever."
The two soon began reminiscing about the old days they'd shared.
Years of wandering, robbing, and surviving together had left them with far too many memories to count.
Mary Beth sat quietly to the side, listening. Just like back at camp, she remained gentle and reserved.
Before long, the desserts were gone, and the chilled fruit juice was nearly finished.
Although refrigerators had already been invented in the United States, they were still in their early stages and considered luxury items.
Even so, Davey clearly didn't care about the cost.
Seeing that Mary Beth's plate and glass were empty, a maid immediately brought over a fresh serving.
"Thank you," Mary Beth said softly.
"My pleasure, Miss," the maid replied with a smile.
Davey's estate employed quite a few servants. A manor of this size required constant care and maintenance.
At that moment, Elisa was on the phone with Pinkerton headquarters.
Pinkerton took the call from Land Security Company very seriously.
In its current decline, with layoffs becoming common, every contract mattered to Pinkerton.
They were already familiar with Davey's situation—a wealthy and influential client.
As a result, the two sides quickly reached an understanding, and Pinkerton promised to contact Milton at once and have him call Davey.
Less than twenty minutes later, the phone in Davey's study rang.
"Mr. Land, it's Agent Milton on the line."
Davey smiled at Hosea. "Looks like we'll be able to ask him about his whereabouts after all."
Hosea followed Davey into the study.
Davey picked up the receiver.
"Hello, Mr. Milton."
"Hello, Mr. Land. I hear you're interested in working with Pinkerton," Milton's voice came through the line.
"Of course," Davey replied. "You've probably heard the news—some equipment I purchased from the East was robbed."
"That was extremely expensive equipment. Surely this is exactly the kind of situation where Pinkerton should be involved."
"I trust you, Mr. Milton. I'm confident you're more than capable of handling this for me."
Milton hesitated slightly. "But I've heard that you've already arranged for your own people to deal with the matter, Mr. Land."
Davey chuckled. "Does that interfere with our cooperation?"
"No, of course not," Milton replied. "Pinkerton would be very happy to work with you."
The voice on the line was loud enough that Hosea could hear everything.
At that moment, he couldn't help but reflect on it. The Pinkertons they feared like monsters were, in the end, nothing more than hounds driven by money.
Did Pinkerton really not know the past of the Callander brothers?
And yet, they still bowed before the dollar.
"I'd like to meet with you in person, Mr. Milton," Davey said.
"As soon as possible, if you can. That equipment is rather urgent for me."
After a brief pause, Milton replied, "That won't be a problem. I'm already in Saint Denis. When would you be available, Mr. Land?"
The moment those words were spoken, Hosea knew Bronte had lied to them.
Bronte had claimed that Pinkerton had only just received intelligence on the Van der Linde Gang and was still on the way.
But in reality, the Pinkertons were already in Saint Denis.
Hosea grew anxious. He needed to return immediately and warn Dutch.
The tram station was very likely a trap.
Davey didn't answer right away. He glanced at Hosea.
Hosea gave a slight shake of his head.
"Tomorrow would be a good day," Davey said into the phone. "If it's convenient, you can come to my estate. I believe you know the address, Mr. Milton."
"I look forward to our meeting, Mr. Land," Milton replied.
After hanging up, Davey said calmly, "It seems Pinkerton is moving faster than you expected."
"I need to head back," Hosea said at once.
"I have to tell Dutch and the others about this as soon as possible."
Davey nodded. "Alright. Looks like our talk ends here for today."
"Once I learn more from Milton, I'll send someone to inform you."
"Thank you, Davey," Hosea said sincerely.
As they were leaving, Mary Beth hesitated and asked softly, "Will we see each other again, Davey?"
Davey smiled. "My door is always open to you, Mary Beth."
"And to you too, Hosea. To all of our friends."
...
Not far from the Land estate, at Bronte's mansion.
Bronte was answering a phone call.
"We're ready, Mr. Bronte."
"Then have your people begin, Colm."
...
Shady Belle.
Arthur had just returned.
Sadie felt that life had been unbearably dull lately.
"Ever since I joined you, all kinds of strange things have happened," she said.
"And now you and Dutch have even entered Saint Denis high society?"
"Seems that way," Arthur replied.
Sadie raised her dagger. "I think I've already said goodbye to civilized society."
Arthur mentioned how even someone like Bill could dress up in a gentleman's suit and attend the Saint Denis mayor's banquet.
At that point, anyone could.
Just then, Dutch called Arthur over to discuss plans for robbing the tram station.
"Dutch, when are you going to take me along on a job?" Sadie asked proactively.
Dutch clearly didn't think Sadie would be much help in a robbery.
With a grin, he joked, "Get a few more like her, and we could rule the world."
Arthur shot back, "Get a few more like her, and there won't be much of the world left."
Dutch shared the results of his investigation into the tram station.
He believed it was time to make a move.
"I've never robbed anything in the city before," Arthur said.
In truth, he was worried. A city robbery would draw far too much attention.
But once Dutch had made up his mind, Arthur wouldn't argue.
It had always been that way.
"Just the two of us?"
"We might need one more."
"We should bring Lenny."
"Why not Micah Bell?" Dutch countered.
Arthur replied evenly, "That depends on whether you want to be soaked in blood or happily counting money."
Arthur hadn't forgotten what happened in Strawberry.
Because of that, he had a much clearer understanding of Micah Bell.
"I just wish I could do something to help you two get along," Dutch said.
Internal conflict was the last thing he wanted in the gang.
"The solution's simple," Arthur replied. "Make him change."
"That's a good one."
Suddenly, movement came from outside the trees.
"Look—over there, by the woods."
Dutch immediately sensed something was wrong.
Gunfire erupted.
"Everyone, take cover—!"
The fight broke out.
Unlike the original events, Kieran wasn't with the gang this time. He was staying with Davey in Valentine, tending to his horses, and so he wasn't killed by the O'Driscoll Gang.
Although the O'Driscoll Gang had the numbers, the Van der Linde Gang was far from weak now.
Dutch, Arthur, and Micah Bell—three deadly shots.
Along with Lenny, Charles, Javier Escuella, Bill, Sean MacGuire, and the rest of the crew.
The O'Driscoll assault was quickly beaten back.
As Arthur cleared the battlefield, he saw Sadie kill three O'Driscoll men with her dagger.
In that moment, Arthur saw Sadie in an entirely new light.
Sadie completed her transformation into a true badass widow.
When Hosea and Mary Beth finally returned to camp, they were met with corpses scattered across the ground and chaos everywhere.
...
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