“Your bone don’t matter.”

Balto drew his pistol.

“Oh I beg to differ Steele.”

Steele looked longingly at the pistol that still lay on top of the table he’d been sitting at.

“You’re an animal Steele!” Balto yelled. “Jenna is a sweet girl that would never harm anyone! How could you do that to her?!”

Steele smiled.

“You must be the young one that her father mentioned. You know he wants you to stay away from his daughter. He thinks you’re a bad influence on her.”

“It’s true I’m no angel.” Balto said. “…but she’s better off with me than she ever would be with the likes of you!”

Steele laughed again.

“Just so you know son, she squealed like a pig when I stuck it to her… if you know what I mean.”

Steele smiled.

“You bastard.” Balto said.

He lowered the aim of his pistol and pulled the trigger; the bullet struck Steele square between his legs.

Steele screamed and fell to the floor.

The bartender knew better than to meddle in affairs that had nothing to do with him, and snuck out the back when the shot was fired.

Balto walked over to Steele, who was curled up in a ball on the floor crying like a baby, a puddle of red blood forming under him.

Balto put his boot on Steele’s shoulder and rolled the Sheriff on his back, placing his foot on his chest.

Then he pulled the hammer of his pistol back again and pointed it at Steele’s head.

“You should have left her alone Sheriff.” He said.

Then he pulled the trigger and Steele’s head exploded all over the hardwood floor in a great spray of blood and gore.

“Hey you stop!”

Balto turned to see that the deputies that had exited the bar earlier had returned, probably drawn by the shots.

Balto stood up and let the arm that held his gun fall to his side.

“Drop the gun mister!” The deputy yelled. “You’re under arrest for the murder of a Sheriff of Sawyer’s Falls County.”

Balto smiled and jerked his gun up, cocking the hammer and fireing as one motion, then he dove behind the table Steele had been sitting at, tipping it over to use as a shield.

The bullet Balto had fired found it’s mark square in the center of the badge the deputy that had spoken wore on his vest, right above his heart.

The dog collapsed without a further word.

The others opened fire and the table splintered as bullets rained all around Balto.

Balto cocked his pistol and popped up, pulling the trigger and ducking back down.

He was satisfied to see another of the dogs fall.

He cocked his pistol again and popped up to repeat the procedure, but he felt a burning pain in his right shoulder as one of the deputies bullets found it’s mark.

Balto lost his grip on his pistol and fell backwards.

When he opened his eyes he saw four dogs standing over him…

…four angry dogs…

…four angry dogs with pistols aimed at his face.

“Sir, you’re under arrest.” One of the deputies said.

Jenna was sitting at home later that night when her father walked into the room.

She looked away from him, still angry and hurt about what he’d allowed to happen.

“Why weren’t you home.” Jenna asked.

Her father sighed.

“Sheriff Steele was killed today.”

“That’s good news.” Jenna said.

“Now honey,” her father said, walking over to her. “I know you don’t mean that. Steele was a nice guy, and a good sheriff.”

“Good?” Jenna scoffed. “Sure, good at being crooked.”

Her father sighed again.

“Anyway, one bit of good news… that outlaw you were hanging out with, uh, what’s his name… William Bongo or something, anyway, he was the one that did the killing.”

Jenna’s face took on a look of worry.

“Did they catch him?”

Her father nodded.

“Sure did, and tomorrow morning justice will be served. Yes ma’am, won’t have to worry ‘bout him anymore.”

Jenna stood up.

“What do you mean by that?” She asked.

Her father smiled.

“Well, he killed a Sheriff and two deputies, we’re gonna hang him of course.”

He patted his daughter on the shoulder, seeming not to notice the horrified look on his daughter’s face.

“Good-night sweetheart.”

Then he walked upstairs to his room.

Jenna followed soon after, but went to her own room and stood in front of the mirror.

Though she was still almost in shock when it happened, she remembered the conversation she and Balto had in the meat store earlier that morning.

“Don’t worry Jenna. Shh, don’t cry anymore, I’ll take care of him.”

“What are you going to do Balto?”

“Don’t you worry about that dear. Just know that the situation will be taken care of.”

She sighed.

“It’s because of me that he’s going to be hanged.” She thought. “He would have never gone after Steele if it hadn’t been for me, if he hadn’t…”

She stopped.

“…if he hadn’t cared for me.” She said aloud.

She opened the drawer beneath the mirror.

“I know what I should do.” She thought as she gazed at what was inside. “…but if I do my father…”

Balto’s voice came back to her then, as clear as if he were standing in the room with her.

“...you need to get out and live; make your own decisions about things.”

Jenna walked to the other side of the room and opened her closet, then she started to get ready, leaving the drawer open.

Inside the drawer lay Balto’s pistol.

Chapter 5:

Back in town, Balto sat in his cell.

The young wolf dog looked out the barred windows and could see the empty gallows sitting there in the darkness.

He sighed.

Though Balto was known for amazing escapes, he could see no way out of this one.

The law had finally caught up with him, and come tomorrow he would die.

He thought about Jenna.

Had it been worth it?

Balto nodded and sighed.

“…of course it was.” Balto thought. “Steele deserved to die for what he did.”

His conceince at ease, Balto tipped his hat over his face and drifted off to sleep for what he knew would probably be the last time.

Outside the jail, a stranger crept through the darkness.

The creature was small in stature, and wore a brown hat and brown clothes, his face was covered by a red bandanna. Though they didn’t conceal his presence as well as black would have, the dark brown garments hid him sufficently in the night as he pressed his back against the adobe wall of the jail and peered through the window.

Six deputies were on duty, playing cards around a circular table.

The stranger picked up the tail end of one of the deputy’s sentences through the window.

“…full house gents.”

The dogs moaned and the winner, a white dog smiled, raking the pile of money at the center of the table toward him.

“Tonight just seems to be my lucky night.” He said.

He finished off the glass of beer in front of him and stood up.

“I’m out of this hand.” He said. “…gotta go drain the lizard.”

The dog grabbed his hat and walked outside.

The dog walked over to the side of the Jail, just a few feet away from the stranger.

The stranger crept up behind the dog as he handled his business.

When he was through, the stranger clamped a hand over the dog’s mouth. In the other hand he held a shiny silver pistol, which he jammed to the side of the surprised deputy’s head.

“Let’s go back in and see your friends.” The stranger said. “No sudden moves now. I’d hate to slip.”

With that, the stranger pulled the hammer back on his pistol.

“Come on, let’s go.”

The dog nodded and the two of them walked toward the entrance of the Jail.

“Open the door.” The stranger commanded.

The white dog nodded and opened the front door, stepping inside.

“Hey John, what took so…” The dog stopped speaking as he saw the gun wielding stranger.

“No one move.” The stranger said. “…or I’ll re-paint the wall with your friend’s head.”

The dogs all stood.

“Which one of you has the keys to the cells?” The stranger asked.

A brown dog in the back timidly raised his hand.

“Come here.” The stranger ordered.

The brown dog walked to the front of the room, and stopped in front of the stranger.

The stranger shoved the white dog forward and grabbed the brown one, pressing the gun to his temple.

“Your friend and I have some business to attend to.” The stranger said. “The rest of you, get out of here.”

The dogs didn’t have to be told twice, and ran out of the jail.

“You.” The stranger said to the brown dog. “Take me to Balto’s cell.”

The dog nodded nervously and walked to a wooden door near the back of the room. He opened it and walked down a narrow hall, which had cell doors on either side of it.

The brown dog stopped at the third of five cells, and extracted a ring of keys from his