Vandermatthews Drabble #3Ā āI wonāt leave you behindā
āDutch!ā Hosea called amidst the chaos of the gunfire. A typical gunfight between the Van der Linde Boys and the OāDriscolls. This time though, it felt different. Colm was actually making an appearance and Dutch only saw red when Colm was around. āDutch!ā Hosea yelled at the man taking cover behind a downed log while he reloaded. āWe need to run, weāre sorely outmatched! Johnās pinned! Arthurās almost out of ammo! And I donāt feel like dying for your blood feud today!ā
Dutch turned around on the log unloading more bullets at the OāDriscollās trying his damnedest to get to Colm. Just one shot, thatās all he needed to bring that bastard down. Hosea growled to himself and looked at Arthur. āGet John and get the hell outta here!ā he snapped.
āWhat about you two?!ā Arthur asked.
āWeāll be fine! Dutchāll run outta bullets soon enough. And I aināt leaving him behind!ā
āJust do as I say, Arthur! Just this once! Do as I say!ā He yelled. Arthur looked at Hosea for a long moment and then nodded. He kept low while he ran after John and grabbed his arm. The two made a run for the tree line and hopefully back to camp.
Hosea was slightly relieved, at least he wouldāve been if he wasnāt being shot at right now. He winced when a bullet came close to him. āGod damn it all,ā he muttered. He checked to see if he was loaded and turned from the tree he was hiding behind to start firing. He was not dying today, not until he gave Dutch a piece of his mind.
It seemed like hours, but it couldāve only been minutes when the shooting died down. Dutch took a few deep breaths and called over the log.
āColm! Just come out! No one else needs to die today! This is between you and me!ā he said.
āI donāt think so Dutch! You see, I have something you donāt!ā Colm yelled back. Dutch rolled his eyes. Besides numbers, Colm really didnāt have anything he didnāt, but heād humor him.
āWhat could you possibly have that I donāt?!ā he called.
āMr. Matthews!ā Dutchās blood went cold at that. No...no there was no way. Hosea was only a few feet from him. How the hell did he not notice that Hosea got grabbed?! Dutch looked over the log and his heart leaped into his throat when he saw Hosea on his knees with Colmās gun pointed right at his head. Jumping up Dutch held his gun up to Colm his eyes darting between the two men.
āLet him go, Colm! Now!ā Dutch screamed his voice cracking. This was not going to happen again to someone he loved. He wasnāt going to let Colm OāDriscoll ever hurt anyone he loved ever again. Colm laughed hard, nearly doubling over.
āYou see Dutch...I donāt think Iām going to do that. You never got to see your dear Annabelle die, but that just made you angry. I have a feeling if I decided to put a bullet into Mr. Matthewsā head right now, it wonāt make you angry. Oh no. It would break you, wouldnāt it, Dutch?ā Dutch swallowed thickly his gun still aimed at Colm. He tried to do the math, tried to figure out a plan to get Hosea out of this alive. He couldnāt. If he fired, Colmās bullet would hit Hosea faster than his own could hit Colm. Even if it did, there were other OāDriscollās all over the place. They could kill them both if he killed Colm. Then there would be no one to look after the boys. Ā
There was no way out of this. Dutch bit his lip, tears burning his eyes. For the first time, he didnāt have a plan that could save their lives. One of them was going to die here and now. Dutch only had to decide which one. He knew the answer. Holstering his guns he put his hands up and made his way over to Colm and Hosea.
āDutch...no! Just go get the boys and get out of here!ā Hosea yelled. It was followed by a yelp when Colm hit him upside the head with the butt of his pistol making him fall forward groaning in pain. Rage bubbled up inside of him at the sight of Hosea trying to get up only to have Colm stomp his foot into his back pushing him back down. His gun was pointed right at his head.
āI aināt losing you, Hosea. Not today, not ever.ā Dutch said, trying to sound soothing, but he couldnāt deny his own panic. Hosea under Colmās boot, his gun pointed right at his head. He stopped in front of them, his eyes resting on Colm. āAlright, you got me. Let him go,ā Dutch said.
āDutchā¦ā Hosea breathed from the ground closing his eyes. They werenāt getting out of this. He could feel it. āIām sorry boys, we love you.ā he thought. It wasnāt until he felt the pressure on his back lift that Hosea opened his eyes again. He slowly got up and moved to Dutchās side and glared at Colm. āSorry bastard,ā he snarled at him.
āHoseaā¦ā Dutch warned and looked over at him. āGo. Okay? You get the boys and you run. If I make it, Iāll find you. If I donātā¦ā
āIām not leaving you behind god damn it,ā Hosea said harshly.
āJust go! If I donāt make it you have to watch over our family!ā Dutch snapped. He softened at Hoseaās sad eyes and leaned over to kiss him gently on the forehead. āGo.ā He said again. Hosea closed his eyes and nodded turning to walk away. He looked back at Dutch one more time, then glared at Colm for a second before running through the tree line. Get the boys and run, heāll be okay. Get the boys and run, heāll be okay. Thatās what continued to run through his head until he got to Silver Dollar and rode towards the camp.