Cowboys & Alliance : part 4 -------- Death in the Family -------- *******************************************

Malcolm Reynolds watched as Lenore descended the ladder to the vault below. He wondered just how much like herself River had been able to program into the machine? If Lenore had anywhere near the combat abilities of the young Miss Tam, then she’d be a force to reckon with. She reached the bottom and motioned for him to come down.

In the vault below ground level, the room resembled more of a crypt than an actual place where money was being secretly stored. There were lots of old bits of furniture, farm goods and ranch supplies all around. Most had a good covering of dust on them, and the room wouldn’t have been of much interest except for souvenir hunting if it weren’t for the reason that the team knew something was hidden down there.

With the room being so untidy the secret hiding place of the vault had gone untended also. As they looked around, Mal and Lenore noticed a safe mounted on the opposite wall, a turn dial mounted directly in it’s center. There was an old picture portrait of some wise old general laying just below the safe. At one time he may have provided a covering over the safe, but now his job seeming unimportant, the general just lay resting his weary image on the dusty floor below.

Mal walked over to the safe, “ Well Lenore, if you’re half as good as River then you ought to be able to open this baby, no worries in the least!”

The captain went to spin the dial but it seemed frozen stiff it time, glued to the very vault it was set to protect.

“ Sorry Mal, but if you’re looking for the safe to be open by means of tumblers then you’re wasting your time.”

The she-bot walked over to an old desk located in the center of the room. She pushed a hidden button located on the side and a keyboard emerged from a rear panel.

“ Here’s how we get it inside,” She said. She pressed several buttons on the keypad and the door to the safe automatically sprang open. Mal was getting the feeling that he was less needed in this endeavor than the she-bot. He was like a school boy with an instructor telling him what to do next. It had him feeling very uncomfortable.

Both the she-bot and Mal hustled over to the safe. The Serenity captain’s eyes opened wide as he could see rows of Alliance currency bundled together in stacks lining the safe walls. This heist was certainly worth the effort he decided. He looked around the room for something to carry the loot in.

“ Lenore, over there draped across those chairs, saddlebags.” The excited captain told the she-bot. The female android walked over to a chair where there were two old, weather worn saddle bags resting across it’s dusty frame. She brought them over to the captain.

“Looks like Mr. Benson was totally correct with his knowledge of the crime boss’ money cache, “ the fem-bot exclaimed.

“ Seems he was.” Mal agreed.

He and Lenore both loaded stacks of paper bills into the money satchels and found that there were even a few bits of hard currency contained within a small pouch inside. They loaded it all up within a matter of a few moments.

“This may not be our best bank withdraw to date, but it sure ranks within the top four!” the captain said as he and his accomplice filled the saddlebags to their fullest.

After that Malcolm Reynolds and Lenore headed back up the ladder. When again they stood on the second level Lenore spoke to the Serenity commander.

“ Mal, maybe you should go down without me. I think it would amp up the fear if the folk below saw you returning alone,” she whispered.

Mal saw the reasoning behind her words, then agreed. He walked down to the first floor without her accompaniment. He could see the eyes of the hostages widen as they contemplated what had happened to the woman they perceived to be an innocent victim of this thief/murderer.

“ Bill, take this bunch into a back room! I’ll be with you shortly!” He told the big merc.

After Jayne had escorted the hostages into a side hallway, then to a room at it’s end Mal motioned to Lenore the “all clear”.

“ Seems we are all but finished cept for a few details,” he said, “ I’m going to assist Jayne, see if you can figure out a way for us to leave without drawing much attention,” he told the droid.

He then found the back room where Jayne had staged the hostages.

“ Tie them up Bill!” He said to Jayne speaking of the store clerk and his son.

“ You will never get away with this,” the tall Plex security guard told the captain, “ Once Niska finds out what’s happened he’ll hunt you down and have your ears!”

“ Been there, done that,” Mal reported, “ Anyway, if it were me, I’d be less worried about the thieves and more worried about myself,” the captain continued, “ what do you think your boss will do once he finds out that two of his trusted employees have dropped their guard and let some of his holdings venture outside the depository door? Best thing for you friend is to make for the nearest port of docking and get yourselves a ticket out on the quickest shuttle you can find!” Mal Reynolds could see that his words had not fallen on deaf ears.

“ There could be something he’ll be using as a decoration around his neck other that a set of severed ears!” The captain spoke.

The shorter guard swallowed hard.

“ He’s right Reggie, if we get loose we better head for safer ground!”

Mal was pleased with the result of his comment. Some noise outside the room had him tell Jayne to watch the men as he went to investigate. Back inside the main room he found Lenore with a paintbrush and a quart can of black paint. She was just finishing up a sign. It read “ Closed: Due to death in the family”.

“ Help me put this up will ya?” The android requested. Mal assisted her in taping the sign to the window.

“ Could buy us a little extra time,” She finished.

“ Maurice!” Mal heard Jayne call from the back room, “ I need assistance here!”

“ I’m going to help Jayne, get the horses, have them ready!” He told Lenore.

“ Give me the saddlebags. I’ll meet you in the alley out that side door,” she pointed to a door opposite the hallway leading to the hostages.

Mal returned to help Jayne tie up the store clerk’s son. Then the two of them headed towards the side door where Lenore awaited them.

Once outside each man mounted his ride then prepared for the gallop home.

“ Mal, I think it would be better if we were to split up!” Lenore voiced an opinion. It was becoming a regular thing with her.“ Confuse any pursuit that may be mounted anytime quickly.”

It was a point well taken by the commander.

“ Agreed!” he said.

“ Good! I’ll head this direction!” Lenore spoke showing that she would head east.

“ Ok, I’ll head west! Jayne, you make a straight line to Serenity! See everyone post arrival!” Mal spoke, then spurred his mount in a westward direction.

*******************************************

The way to Serenity was dusty and long but Mal finally made his way back. Jayne’s horse was there, hitched to some desert shrub, but there was no sign of the big merc, nor Lenore. Neither was there a sign of anyone else. There was, so to say the relative spacecraft of the Firefly transport “ Night Hawk”, docked not seventy paces away from his own boat.

“ Jayne……Kaylee?” Mal called out. There was no response, “ Zoe?”

Surely his orders had been clear and unquestionable? Zoe was to be in the pilots seat ready to throttle up, and Kaylee was to have the engine running and ready to go. What was the malfunction?

The captain dismounted his ride and headed towards the loading ramp. Where was the crew of the Night Hawk, and where was Bart Benson? There was not a soul in sight. Just before he made the top of the ramp he noticed Jayne standing there, just within the cargo hold. Then Kaylee and Zoe came to his sight. Each had someone standing behind them, a gun to the back of their heads. Mal then heard the sound of a pistol hammer being cocked behind him. He also felt the familiar touch of a gun barrel behind his ear.

“ Aaahhh captain Reynolds.”

Someone voiced, with an accent as strong as Badger’s.

“ Been wondering when you’d show up. Where’s the other one?” Malcolm Reynolds turned around to see an unfamiliar face studying his expression. The guy began to speak again.

“ Oh, let me introduce myself, Mitch Holcombe, independence veteran and caption of the spacecraft the “Mammoth”, his face contained a wicked little grin, “which for obvious reasons is in hiding for the time.”

Mal witnessed a gun barrel focused directly in his face.

“ Who…..?”

“ I’ve already explained who I am. Best for you to know only that I‘m a renegade, much as yourself captain. Fought on the Independence side, same as you. Only there is no honor among the losers sir, or among thieves,” he stopped for a second in order for Mal to absorb his words.

“Where there’s a carcass to be scavenged best to be there quick and hungry. Just so you know, your friend captain Riley is alive and well and locked within a storage room inside your ship. No harm has come to him or his crew of four,” he paused, “ Now as for the reason I’m here. Just as you feel it is your privilege and duty to steal and pillage from the Alliance, or anyone else you deem necessary, such do I. The better scavenger gets the feast, so to say. While half the Alliance may be looking for you and your crew in another quadrant, I thought to myself what would I do? The answer, stay in the same part of the system where I’d made the most trouble. Very obvious, don’t you think? So here I am, and here you are with my gun barrel pointed at your head.”

Mal looked at the fellow. He was certainly giving himself enough credit.

“ So, what’s your move?” The captain of Serenity asked.

“ My move?” The guy smiled, “Think I’ve already shown you that. The thing is how about we empty them saddle bags gent and find what we can find inside there. Buford…..” With a wave of his pistol captain Holcombe motioned to one of his men to empty the saddle bags still mounted on the captain’s horse.

Pulling the heavy, leather bags from the mount and flipping them over only led to a mound of sand being poured out upon the ground.

“ What tha……?” Holcombe exclaimed.

Although Malcolm was just as surprised as everyone else, he kept his cool, and kept his features expressionless. Lenore? Betrayed? The fem-bot did cross his mind.

“ We weren’t successful in our endeavor,” the Serenity commander lied.

Holcombe eyeballed the captain with suspicion, not believing a word that exited his mouth. Just then the sound of an approaching horse had everyone squirm in apprehension. Soon a single steed came riding up with a dust covered rider upon it’s back.

“ Lenore?”

As quick as a whistle there were three rifles sighted upon her.

“Well, hello there Missy!” Holcombe spoke. The she-bot had nothing to say, but she didn’t seem surprised to see these men.

“Glad that you could join us love,” The pirate captain continued, “ Buford check her bags.”

As commanded the fellow checked Lenore’s saddle bags as well.

“Sand!”

Again there was nothing but Ezra’s red soil come flowing out of the bags.

“ So, contradictory to what I’ve been told, you folk aren’t much good when it comes to thievery,” Holcombe spoke, “that or else you’ve hidden the loot away somewhere for safekeeping. But never mind that, I’m here for bigger fish anyway. My main reason would be the matter of a reward settlement. Reward offered by the Alliance for the fugitives known as Simon and River Tam. Folks rumored to be on your boat captain Reynolds, and ones confirmed by a wave sent to my ship from this very boat last evening.”

Mal looked over at Lenore. The droid’s face remained expressionless.

“ My thinking is that you’ve got a traitor onboard Mr. Reynolds. Something that doesn‘t sit well with any ship‘s commander.…..and my guess is that it would be this fellow.” Holcombe motioned for his crewman to bring Jayne out from the cargo hold.

“ Tie his hands up to the super structure.” He ordered.

“ Mal it wasn’t me!” Jayne voiced. A pistol barrel aimed at his temple silenced the big mercenary, but Mal figured that he already knew who the culprit was.

“ Now since a search of your ship has turned up nothing of the Tams, I suggest that you’d better come clean with me Mr. Reynolds. Either that or one of these pretty ladies may be squealing before too long….and it won’t be from something joyful I can assure you,” Mitch Holcombe finished.

“Tell him Mal, or I will!” Jayne voiced from where he stood tied to Serenity’s underbelly, “ It our own skins we gotta think about this time!”

That was true, the captain knew it. He needed time to think, but that was something at the moment he didn’t have.

END PART 4