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The truth is... He never liked his brother.
And yet, the man couldn't help but think of him. Sitting in this damp cabin, he brooded over the past. Their childhood of course, and all that bullshit you think of when someone disappears. The death. That was precisely what obsessed him. His brother had died through his negligence, through that of his men.
But it wasn't really the man's disappearance that bothered him. No, that was the shadow it had cast on his reputation. How could he claim to be the greatest outlaw in the west if he couldn't protect his back? If his brother could be killed so stupidly, how could he still claim his power, his legitimacy? Something had to be done, and quickly.
He growled as someone knocked on the door. These fools exhausted him. They couldn't protect him or think for more than two seconds. They could at least have had the decency to leave him alone. He let the man in with a sigh, wondering what nonsense would be reported to him.
The iris of his eyes narrowed. The words he had waited for weeks had finally reached his ears. We found him. Without further ado, he pushed the man away, sending him to prepare his horse. There was not a minute to lose.
He got him.
An eye for an eye.
He stood up, his gaze meeting his reflection in the mirror. He had never been a handsome man. He didn't have the devastating charm of his nemesis. But the prostitutes didn't care. Neither did the threatened farmer's daughters. And they were all he needed to relieve himself.
He had never understood his enemy's need to burden himself with women. They were of no use, they were only good for bringing bad luck. Well, that's what his father had told him all his life. A former sailor, his amputated leg had nailed him to the house, where only alcohol seemed to be a worthy companion.
Colm then quickly understood that his salvation would lie outside these four walls. From that moment on, he had been eagerly looking for adventure and easy money. Going further and further, taking more and more risks, his power spread, making him the leader of one of the largest gangs in the wild west.
But an enemy seemed to resist him again and again. He spat on the ground and tied his belt. As he left the crumbling cabin, he grabbed his hat. Once outside, he shouted orders to everyone crossing his path. He wasn't going to take all these idiots with him. He was not a great strategist, but he was smart enough to know that in this case, discretion was required. There was no question of carrying out a massacre. Just to make an example.
A tooth for a tooth.
With two of his best men, he joined the one who was responsible for this providential discovery. He had been watching them for five days. And every night without exception, Dutch Van Der Linde walked along the river, his lovely companion on his arm. They were moving away from their camp, seeking to fulfill their need for privacy.
That night was no exception. Colm smiled as he looked through his binoculars. He got him, he got him. And in a compromising position at that. He motioned for his men to follow him silently, ordering the lookout to stay at his post.
Stealthily, he approached his target. The two lovers greeted the twilight, a blanket casually thrown over their languid bodies. Naive lambs. The humiliation would only be greater. His victory would be all the more triumphant.
He went alone. Some affairs had to be settled from man to man. A few feet away, he no longer bothered to be discreet. A branch creaking under his foot made the two lovers jump.
"Oh, I'm sorry, am I disturbing you?"
His eyes slid over the woman. Dutch always had good taste. She still had all the freshness of youth. Her half-open mouth showed little white teeth. Her red curls cascaded over her milky skin. He couldn't help but imagine the feel of his hand sliding along that uncovered collarbone. But he focused back quickly, an annoyed grimace on his face.
Why wasn't she reacting? She knew very well who he was. And yet she wasn't crying. She wasn't begging. She just stared at him with her big green eyes, her body leaning imperceptibly towards the one she loved. Dutch didn't speak either. He was content to stand with his arms in the air, his unbearable calm clinging to his face.
"You killed my brother Dutch.
- I had no choice Colm. He threatened my family.
- You don't have a family, Dutch. You have to stop with these little fantasies of yours. They're only with you for the money. The day your plans stop working... They'll abandon you, you'll see.
- What do you want Colm?
- Justice.
- What, you want us to fight in a duel?"
A grimace twisted his face as Dutch quipped sarcastically. His thumb slowly moved closer to the hammer of his weapon. He would have to act fast.
"I was thinking of something more... Biblical."
As his enemy's face crumbled upon realizing the meaning of those words, Colm wasted no time. In a blink of an eye, he turned his gun at the young woman, aiming at her heart. One shot for this beauty to vanish forever.
Dutch let out a cry of rage and tried to grab his weapon from the ground. But Colm didn't give him the chance, pouncing on him. The two men rolled through the dew-soaked grass. The fight was merciless, each seeming to take precedence over the other before losing ground.
Maybe he should have shoot him down too. But he didn't want him to die. No, that would be too easy. He had to suffer. He had to feel weakened, humiliated, like he had been. No, he wasn't done with him.
In a last effort, he managed to knock out his enemy. Dutch would stay unconscious a few hours, allowing him to escape. It was time to change horizons. As he sat up, his gaze fell on the young woman.
She had fallen onto her back, her loose hair beaming around her face. He approached her slowly, brushing her cheek in an almost tender gesture. His eyes turned to the gaping wound that adorned her heart. He couldn't suppress a smile when he saw his work.
Vengeance had been taken.
He knew it. When he wakes up, Dutch will howl in pain at the sight of the blood that was now feeding the earth. He would cry as he hugged the lifeless body of this beloved woman. Then he would move heaven and earth to find him, to kill him. He knew it, with this vengeance, he had unleashed all the demons of hell against him.
But truth be told...
He never liked his brother.