Hours went by. With nothing to do but tug at the chains holding Lucas, the lawman admitted defeat. His wrists were raw with the effort and his arms hurt. Finally, Lucas dozed, keeping himself from sleeping too deeply. He didn't want to be caught off guard by that outlaw.
He must have been more tired than he thought. When he woke, a pitcher of water and a tin cup was by the bedside table. Whoever brought it in hadn’t woken him. Frowning, Lucas sat up and glanced around. The door opened then, and one of the bandits came in—it wasn't Malachite. The bandit glared at Lucas and put a pail by the bed. Then the bandit turned without a word and left, shutting and locking the door behind him before Lucas had a chance to ask to use it.
Lucas frowned at the silent treatment but was thankful he didn't have to converse with his captors. Then his stomach reminded him of his hunger, and his throat reminded him of his thirst. He glanced at the water, debating with himself. He couldn't catch Malachite if he was weak from starvation and dehydration.
Decided, he tugged his way into a sitting position, then cleared his throat. He called out, knowing there was at least one bandit at the door. Finally, a bandit did come in and stood at the end of the bed. Lucas glared at the man before swallowing and asked for a cup of water. The bandit frowned but made his way to the other side of the bed to pour a cup of water. The man handed over the cup without a word, then turned and walked out. It was hard to hold the cup with his hands shackled like they were, but he did his best and managed to get most of the water in his mouth and not on his chest.
Sighing, Lucas glanced again at the chains. He hadn't made any progress. The sturdy chains stared up at him stubbornly without even a dent. Muttering under his breath, he took stock of the room—or at least what he could see. Though—upon further inspection—the metal bedframe revealed a dented, warped section from his tugging.
Eyes widening, Lucas smirked and grabbed the chains in his hands. He twisted around until he could brace his feet on either side of the bed frame, and he pulled with all his might. Heaving, Lucas strained with his back and legs, pulling with his entire body—and with a crash, the lawman landed on his back on the floor. Though the shackles remained, and the chain between them endured in good shape, a long piece of the metal frame was trapped in the chains.
Long enough for a weapon. Lucas freed the piece of metal and stood, gripping the metal in his hands. He'd made plenty of noise getting free, so he hid by the wall near the door.
Just as predicted, he heard a commotion on the other side of the door. The lock on the door wiggled and clicked open, and two men rushed inside. Gritting his teeth, Lucas swung the metal right into one of their faces. The man crumbled to the ground as the second whirled around to look at Lucas, his jaw open in disbelief. Using their hesitation against them, Lucas charged and swung high, smashing the metal piping into the man's head. This one crumbled just as quickly. Breathing a sigh of relief, Lucas checked the fallen men for weapons. He came away with a bowie knife but no gun, so he kept the metal pipe.
Slowly, Lucas crept out of the room and glanced about. It was a house of some kind; that much was obvious. He didn't hear any voices from downstairs or from any rooms he passed as he made his way to the stairs. He took it slow to avoid making the stairs creek, his pipe held at the ready. Then, with his feet on the ground floor, Lucas crept to the window—and his eyes widened at the sight.
Outside was a small town nestled between the mountains. People bustled about the small town, from what appeared to be bandits to women and children. It was a different world—one he'd never thought he'd see.
"Still think I'm the bad guy?" Malachite's voice came from behind him, and Lucas spun on his heel, bringing the pipe up to hit him. But the metal thumped harmlessly into Malachite's hand, and the dark-haired outlaw smirked.
"So that's how you got out... interesting. You're more resourceful than I thought. That's fine." Malachite wrenched the pipe out of Lucas's hands with a yank and sent it clattering across the floor.
"I'm not the bad guy, blondie," Malachite insisted, his hand grabbing the chain between Lucas's shackles.
"Tell that to the people you've murdered and robbed!" Lucas countered, tugging at his shackles to make Malachite release him.
But the outlaw only smirked and suddenly shoved the chain—and Lucas's arms—above his head, pinning the chain to the wall behind Lucas. "I only kill those trying to hurt my people. The ones we robbed? Rich snobs coming to see the west. We take from those who have too much."
"So what? You're a modern-day Robin Hood? You expect me to believe that?" Lucas thrashed and kicked, even as Malachite got closer to him. The outlaw smirked and cupped the lawman's cheek, looking into Lucas's bright green eyes.
"I don't know about Robin Hood, but I'm still in charge of the towns out here," Malachite purred, his fingers entwining into Lucas's blond hair.
"Get off me," Lucas hissed, jerking his head away. A thought occurred to him then. "What about that town you and yours went to? That day... we got word you went to the next town over."
"What, Ganon? That place is under my protection, too. I go there all the time to make sure no more idiots showed up to try and make a mess of things," Malachite replied simply. He didn't reach for Lucas's cheek again.
"But you've murdered people."
"So have you."
Lucas bit his lip, still not looking at Malachite. This was wrong. He was a federal officer; he shouldn't be anywhere near this murdering outlaw! He should be arresting him!
"Are you saying you don't deserve the noose?" Lucas asked, his voice quiet.
"I'm saying I don't deserve your hatred," Malachite replied.
Lucas was silent for only a moment. "But you killed my men," the lawman countered, turning his eyes back to Malachite. "You mutilated them. Butchered them."
"I warned you to get out of town," Malachite retorted.
"You didn't have to mutilate them!"
"I had to send a message," Malachite answered, "one you wouldn't forget. Do I have to do it again? Are you going to make me into a monster to justify arresting me?"
"You made yourself a monster!" Lucas renewed his struggles, tugging at his arms, pushing with his body to get Malachite away from him.
A sigh rolled from the outlaw's lips, and he suddenly pressed his lips to Lucas's, coaxing his way into the lawman's mouth. Shock stilled Lucas for only a second before his struggles renewed tenfold, trying to jerk his mouth away from Malachite. The outlaw's free hand suddenly grabbed Lucas's hair, holding the blonde's head right where he wanted it. After what seemed like forever, the outlaw pulled back just a few inches.
"The hell did you do that for?" Lucas growled, his cheeks burning with what he told himself was shame.
"It shut you up, didn't it?"
"...get off me. And don't you dare touch me again!" Lucas kicked hard, slamming his knee into Malachite's crotch. The outlaw grunted in pain, but he didn't release the lawman.
"Damn, I knew I wanted you for a reason... feisty little bitch that you are..." Malachite's smirk returned, and he suddenly threw Lucas over his shoulder. With a shout of surprise, Lucas kicked and hit the outlaw, doing his best to cause the most amount of damage.
"Put me down! Release me! Barbarian!" Lucas shouted over and over as Malachite strode back up the stairs. The outlaw didn't go to the room where Lucas had been chained; he went to a different room, opening the door and tossing the lawman onto a large bed. Lucas landed with a loud oomph before he scrambled into a sitting position. Malachite locked the door from the inside and smirked at the lawman.
"You should just let me fuck you. I don't like forcing beautiful damsels like you," Malachite said, that smirk on his lips as he strode to the bed. "I prefer to woo 'em."
"You should just let me arrest you instead," Lucas growled, pulling his legs closer to his chest and preparing to fight off this brute. This bastard.
Malachite laughed, licking his lips. "This is gonna be fun for one of us at least."
A sudden knock on the door and Malachite stopped, a frown curling his lips down. "What?!"
"Boss, we got trouble. We need you, asap."
"Shit." Malachite turned back to the blond on the bed. "I'll be back soon, blondie, and then we'll finish this." He winked at Lucas before striding to the door. Unlocking it, he took another glance at Lucas. "I'll bring food when I come back. Maybe you'll eat this time." Then he was out the door, the lock clicking in place once more.
"...fuck..." Lucas groaned, pressing his head into his knees. Right back where I started.
—
He didn't know when he'd fallen asleep. Gunshots woke him, alert in an instant, his eyes wide. His head came up off the pillow just in time to watch the door to the room crash open. A bandit, bleeding from several wounds, slumped in the doorway, the top hinge of the door busted. Lucas jumped up off the bed and rushed to the threshold, flattening himself against the wall. One glance at the bleeding bandit told Lucas he'd be dead soon.
Good. One more I don't have to worry about.
Steeling himself, the lawman glanced out the doorway, his eyes darting about. He saw two people slowly coming up the stairs—and they had stars on their coats.
Sheriffs? Hope surged in his chest.
"Man, they sure made a mess of things here," one of the men muttered. Then his eyes fell on Lucas. "You—come out with your hands where I can see 'em. Nice and slow now."
"Don't shoot. I'm Officer Lucas Solomon," Lucas began, showing the men his shackled hands before coming out. "I was taken prisoner by an outlaw and kept here."
"Officer Solomon?" one of the men pulled out a small book and flipped through it. "Ah! Here, yeah, says you disappeared from Devil's Backbone three days ago. Lucky you're still alive—can't say the same for the rest of those lawmen you had with you."
"What do you mean?" Lucas stopped in his movements, shock traveling through him. He already knew the answer to that but—it couldn't be true.
"You had eight other guys with you, right? They're dead. The Angband Gang got 'em same day you disappeared. We figured they got you, too."
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READ THE FULL VERSION ON GUMROAD. Link in the Author's Note.
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