Fang calls them out

CLANG!

CLUNK!

THONK!

A series heavy thuds woke Texas from her peaceful slumber. She had heard it enough times to no longer be startled by it anymore. It was the sound of Jolly Joe’s head being slammed against the steel bars of the holding cell, no doubt the result of trying to make yet another pass at Isabelle. Three days had gone by since the sheep’s attempt on her life and her presence in the office made things a bit more interesting.

For one, she had a tendency to switch between flirting with the sheriff and frothing at the mouth with rage. The latter usually happened whenever Texas was on the phone or speaking to April, as the craze sheep still held onto some hope that they could work things out as a “couple.” More amusing than her mood swings were her interactions with her cellmate. The fact that she had attempted to kill Joe not three days prior didn’t seem to resonate in his mind in the slightest as he was persistent in his efforts to woo her, which Isabelle would answer with disgust and ****.

Texas paid no mind to the scuffling below her as she got out of bed and went about her daily routine. After a quick shower, she got dressed and headed downstairs. She wasn’t surprised to find Joe’s head sticking through the bars, his face bruised and battered from Isabelle’s thrashing and his big goofy grin ever present. At times Texas wondered if he was some kind of masochist, as he always seemed to invite it on himself. His smile widened upon seeing her walk into the room.

“Mornin’ sheriff! I must say love, you a lookin mighty fine today!” he said with a hearty chuckle. He was suddenly snatched back into the cell, Isabelle grabbing him but the hair on his chin as she glared into his eyes.

“I thought I told you to stop talking to her like that” she said through gritted teeth. Joe laughed and through his hands up.

“Aw, what’s the matter, darling? You feeling jealous? Don’t worry your pretty lil head. When it comes to this cell, your me number one gal!”

Isabelle growled and hurled the large dingo over her shoulder, slamming him down on the hard concrete floor of their cell. For what it was worth, Texas had to admit that Joe was a sturdy fellow, as he barely reacted to the damage inflicted on him outside of a discomforted grunt. Isabelle quickly switched to her classy demeanor as she approached the bars, looking up at the weasel with her bright blue eyes.

“I bid you good morning, dear~. I take it ya'll had a good sleep?” she asked softly before looking away with a cute pout. “I can’t say the same for myself. While I do appreciate the accommodations, but it gets ever so cold at night… it would be nice to have a brave and noble lawman to cuddle with and keep me warm…” she cooed as she batted her eyelashes at the sheriff. Texas remained stonefaced, though she always felt a lump form in her throat whenever Isabelle put the moves on her.

“You’re setting an awfully high bar, love” Joe cut in, drawing Isabelle’s hateful gaze once more. “I mean, brave is one thing but I also gotta be noble? Bloody hell, next you’ll be wantin me to give up drinkin!”

“I WILL SKIN YOU!” Isabelle hissed, drool dripping from the sides of her mouth as she gnashed her teeth at him.

Texas rolled her eyes at their bickering as she walked over to her desk. Entertaining as the pair were, she couldn’t have them taking up space in the cell. She and April had been doing all they could to try and expedite the process of having them sent back home, but progress was slow. Being the drifter he was, Joe held no residency in any town she could find. Isabelle’s home was easier to find, but things became even more complicated when it was brought to her attention that the only prison in the sheep’s hometown was also owned by her family. As she began to dig through the paperwork on her desk, Deputy April entered the station holding two cups of coffee.

“Morning, boss” she said as she walked up and placed one of the cups on the desk.

“Mornin’” Texas responded, not even looking up as she grabbed the cup and downed its contents in one sitting. April smirked as the tough-as-nails weasel didn’t so much as grimace from tossing back a steaming hot beverage.

“Still looking for a loophole?” the fox asked with a sympathetic smile.

“Yer darn tootin. Things’ve been quiet, but it won’t be like this forever. Gotta have that cell clear for the next time trouble comes around. Can’t have a cutpurse or a pickpocket sharing a room with two hardened criminals”

April nodded as she sipped away at her coffee. They were ever alert, keeping an eye out for anyone who might have fit the criteria of a professional killer. The deputy admired how unfettered her boss was, as she was somehow able to juggle multiple responsibilities with relative ease. She cleared her throat to get the weasel’s attention before digging into her pocket and pulling out a small piece of paper.

“A report came in a few hours ago. You know about Miss Sophie’s Shack?”

“That lil bar twenty miles outside of Gold Springs? The one owned by that sweet ol lady?” Texas asked with a raised brow. “I’ve been there a few times. It's small but Sophie knows howda run a quality establishment. Why? Something happen to her? She didn’t get stuck up by some punk, did she?”

“Well… yes and no. It’s a weird case” April said as she scratched the back of her head. “A small group of hoodlums arrived there three days ago and were making a mess of things when a scrawny little woman showed up and mulched them”

“That right?” Texas asked as she leaned back in her seat. “Glad to hear that it got handled”

“I’m not playing it up, boss. These boys got destroyed. Doctors say that they were mashed so bad that some of em will take months regain their shape. Their leader got the worst of it. They still haven't been able to scrape his body off the ground”

“Sounds like they bit off more than they could chew” Texas said with a stretch. Horrific as their fates sounded, it was nothing new for people this far out west. She couldn't even begin to count all the cases she'd read of folk getting squashed, mashed, or lost up the caboose of someone much larger than themselves. “Not to be rude, but do ya’ll got a reason for tellin me about this?”

“I’m getting to it” April said with a huff. “Turns out those boys were a gang called The Red Vipers. They had spent the better part of a month traveling from place to place, robbing folks blind and tearing up taverns. Apparently their leader was planning on making a name for himself by coming here and taking you down”

That last statement got the sheriff’s attention as her eyes narrowed. It certainly wouldn’t have been the first time that some nobody had tried their luck against her in the hopes of bolstering a reputation for themselves. She had put away so many wannabe gangsters that she rarely bothered to commit their names to memory. Once April saw that her boss was paying attention, she continued.

“That was what set the whole thing off. He was bragging about all the attention he’d get from doing you in and suddenly that tiny little lady snapped and put them through the wringer. Something about them ‘not being worthy’ to take you on”

Texas frowned as she leaned against her desk with her fingers tented. This case certainly sounded odd and her gut was telling her there was more to it than just a simple bar skirmish.

“So what happened? How’d she take them on all by herself?” she asked curiously.

“That’s the only thing we don’t know. Miss Sophie was the only eye witness and she was hiding in the backroom when the fight went down. When she came out, the lady was gone and the bar looked like a monster had gone hog wild in there. The boys were either flattened, pasted, or in their leader's case, smeared into the ground”

Texas nodded, her thoughts racing as she listened closely. She herself was well known for her ability to win against overwhelming odds, but in all humility, even she couldn’t see her replicating such a feat. It was one thing use one’s reflexes and wit to come out on top in a wild bar brawl, but this woman managed to singlehandedly manhandle a group of thugs despite them having both the size and numbers advantage. It was extraordinary, to say the least.

“...And mah name was what caused all that ruckus” Texas huffed as she stood up and adjusted her belt buckle. “Deputy, ah think we done got ourselves another hired gun to deal with”

“My thoughts exactly, boss” April said with a bright smile. “So how’re we gonna find em?”

“Hmm… Well, that report was recent, but it all went down three days ago. Miss Sophie’s place is twenty miles away, so if that lil lady was traveling on horseback, she shoulda arrived by now…” Texas said as she stroked her chin in thought.

“You think she’s just waiting for the right time to strike?” April asked.

“Ah dunno… all that talk of ‘being worthy’ makes me think that she’s the sort’a gal that likes a good scrap”

“Good point. Still doesn’t explain why she hasn’t at least called us out though” April responded.

As if on cue, their window was shattered by small throwing knife which cut through the air before being embedded into Texas’s desk. April shot back in surprise but Texas barely flinched as looked down at the blade. A small note was attached to the hilt and the sheriff didn't need to be a mind reader to discern it’s origin. She quickly removed the paper and read it aloud.

“Sheriff Texas Stanton,

Ah have been tasked to end your life. Ah will not hide in the shadows like a coward. Meet me in the middle of town so we can have our duel on equal footing. If you are as brave as they say, you will meet mah challenge. See you at noon.

- Fang Yu, The Great Red Beast.

P.S. Sorry ah took so long to get here. This land is new to me and ah am not good with directions.

P.S.S. Your sidekick can come too if she wants to fight me, not that it will make a difference”

Texas raise brow as she looked over at her deputy. “What do ya’ll make of this?”

"Sidekick?" April said with a huff, her face turning red with anger. "I might be a deputy but I'm no sidekick! And what does she mean by 'not that it will make a difference'? If she thinks she can sleep on Deputy April Briggs then she's got another thing coming! I kick her keister from here to Silver Lakes! I pulverize her, I'll stick my boot right up her-"

"April" Texas interrupted. The deputy blinked and cleared her throat, the redness on her face more from embarrassment than anger this time. Texas shook the note at her to bring her focus back on the matter at hand. "What's your take on this? Think we should go and meet this loon?"

"Well... we're still operating under the assumption that she's here for fair fight. For all we know, she could be just luring us into an ambush" April pointed out.

"Yeah, but ah'm thinking that she's really spoiling fer a fight. If she really wanted me dead, she coulda buried this thing into mah head" Texas said as she removed the blade from her table.

"True. Either way, it's your call. However you decide to handle this, you know I've got your back" April said as she patted the weasel on the shoulder.

Texas thought for a moment, weighing the pros and cons in her mind. She was confident in her belief that this stranger was looking for a clean fight, but that didn't make things much better for her. If the record was to be believed, this woman possessed some sort of monstrous power unlike anything she'd dealt with before. Part of her wanted to air on the side of caution and avoid a direct confrontation until she got more information on this assassin, but her pride nagged at her to accept the offer. She mulled it over for a bit before turning to her deputy with an answer.