This is for You, Brother

Blackwater, August 1896

With a finger on the trigger ready to pull at any moment, Runs with the Wind sat waiting in the shadows on the roof of the Blackwater General Store. At any moment his target, Samuel Wyatt would step out of the Blackwater Saloon onto the dimly lit street and right into the crosshairs of his rifle.

For over a year, he had wanted to seek revenge on the man responsible for the death of his brother. Killing Samuel Wyatt wouldn’t solve all his problems; it wouldn’t bring his brother back and it wouldn’t give his people back the land that was taken from them. But he wanted Samuel to feel the pain his brother felt and wanted Samuel’s brothers to feel the pain that he himself had felt losing a brother.

His mother had always told him as a young boy that revenge was a fool’s errand, but he didn’t care. He had been through so much. His people had been through so much. All at the expense of the Wyatt family.

Runs with the Wind had received a tip from Eduardo Garcia, the fence in Thieves Landing, a few days earlier that Samuel Wyatt would be meeting with potential business clients in the upper level of the Blackwater Saloon.  It was not often that Samuel or any of the other Wyatts had meetings in public. Business meetings were mostly held in secure areas or at one of the Wyatt’s many homes and businesses in order to keep away unwanted resistance.

The Wyatt family had an aggressive way of handling business and would stop at nothing in order to make a profit, which created many enemies. Because of this, it had been hard for Runs with the Wind to keep track of his whereabouts and in turn to plan out an attack. He figured this rare occasion would be the best opportunity he would have to take out his revenge on Samuel.

Runs with the Wind spent the next three days scoping out Blackwater and the road between there and Thieves Landing to make sure he had a clear plan and escape route out of Blackwater. There was no doubt in his mind that Samuel Wyatt would be bringing armed guards with him to this meeting. It seemed as though Samuel had guards with him wherever he went.

He knew that once he took out Samuel, he would only have a small window of time to escape before Samuel’s guards would be on his tail. He planned to take out Samuel from the roof of the Blackwater General Store which was across the street from the saloon. It would provide him with the perfect cover and vantage point to take him out from either inside the saloon or as he left. Behind the store there was an alley which would give him an easy route to escape, unseen by anyone who would be roaming the streets at the time. 

Once he escaped Blackwater, he would make his way southwest to Thieves Landing where Eduardo had agreed to house him in the basement of his shop to avoid the law.

It was a perfect plan; one he knew his brother would be proud of. Losing his brother to greed had devastated Runs with the Wind. They had been so close growing up. Their father died when they were young due to a sickness that spread through the tribe, so his brother had been a father figure to him. He taught Runs with the Wind everything; how to hunt and fish, how to shoot a gun, and how to care for sick members of the tribe.

Losing his brother was like losing his identity. He felt that without his brother he was nothing. He knew that the Wyatt family had to pay for what they had done to him, and that taking out Samuel, the oldest Wyatt brother and current head of the family business was the best way to start.

As darkness began to descend on Blackwater, Runs with the Wind entered the town from the southern end where there was likely to be less foot traffic. He hitched his horse behind a row of houses to make for a quick getaway southwest to Thieves Landing where he would hide to escape the law.

He made his way to the alleyway behind the general store, careful not to attract any unwanted attention. People always gave him strange looks because of the color of his skin, and he didn’t want to give anyone even more reason to raise suspicion. Once in the alleyway he climbed up the stairs behind the general store, then on up the ladder to the roof to wait for Samuel’s arrival.

It wasn’t long after he arrived when Samuel Wyatt made his way to the saloon, armed guards in tow. Dressed sharply in all black, he looked more like he was attending a hanging than a business meeting. Samuel Wyatt had a menacing look about him, one that all crooked men had. With slick dark hair and a neatly trimmed mustache, he always looked as though he carried with him a dark secret. He was a wretched, vile man and he knew it.

Runs with the Wind watched as a man at the entrance greeted Samuel and his crew and turned to lead them upstairs. Not long after Samuel arrived at the saloon, two more sharply dressed men - presumably Samuel’s potential business clients - arrived. They were led upstairs the same way Samuel had been and Runs with the Wind watched through the scope of his rifle as the meeting began.

Runs with the Wind didn’t have the clear shot at Samuel that he had hoped for so he knew that he would have to wait until the men were leaving the saloon to be able to take him out.

It seemed like hours had passed before the men finally stood up from the table. He watched as they all shook hands and started to make their way downstairs.

Runs with the Wind aimed his rifle at the doorway and readied his finger on the trigger to take out Samuel as soon as he stepped outside. His heart was beating a thousand miles a minute. He could hear it pounding in his ears as he nervously waited for Samuel to step outside.

As Samuel and the other men neared the door, Runs with the Wind couldn’t help but feel emotional. “This is for you, brother” he said quietly to himself as he cocked the hammer and aimed down the sight.

He had been so focused on watching Samuel’s every move that he hadn’t heard someone come up behind him.

“Put down the gun, boy.” The stranger demanded.

Runs with the Wind quickly turned around to see a tall, brooding man aiming a shotgun at his face. His heart was somehow beating faster than it was before. He had waited all this time, could his plan really have been foiled so easily? He stood frozen in his tracks, unsure if he should make a run for it or if he should fight his way out.

“Did you hear me boy? I said put the goddamn gun down!” The stranger demanded again.

Runs with the Wind wasn’t sure if the stranger standing in front of him was with the law, part of the Wyatt gang or someone entirely different, but he wasn’t about to stay long enough to find out. 

As the stranger began to walk towards him, Runs with the Wind reached down to grab his revolver from its holster. The stranger reached Runs with the Wind before he could pull out the gun and with one swift hit from the butt of the stranger’s shotgun, all he saw was darkness.