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Chapter Text

When Luz Noceda was 14 her father was killed by the richest man in town. Of course, she didn't know that until two days after his then thought disappearance: When a soaked and shot Edalyn Clawthorn washed up on the bank of the Marrow River that rushed on the western side of Noceda Ranch half-dead and with a bullet messing her shoulder up ten ways to sunday. When Luz finally got her up to the ranch home her Pa built with his own two hands, with hers helping, her Ma rushed to her side and told her to lay her in the parlor.

After a suspicious amount of time, a few medical miracles, and an Eda left comatose for another two days: The story came out, and come out it did.

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A tall woman, about six-foot-four-inches in her scuffed red leather riding boots and two inches shorter without, stood next to a freshly hitched horse. A red holster hung at her hip, a nondescript revolver slung in it, a finger polished bone handle hovering above the owl-embossed shell.

Three figures stood, cast in the light from the half-moon that stained the dusty ground a rustic silver. Walking away from the wall of forest where they tied their horses, they crouched low to the ground and stayed close together, and focused completely on the mark ahead of them. The trio didn't notice the tall, flame-headed figure trailing them.

As the group of three stalked towards the darkened ranch home, the drying hay crunched and creaked under the boiled leather soles of their boots.

Hushed whispering floated around, twisting with the staling hay as the shadow matched pace. Two voices struck out first, unmatchable to any of the forms

"What're we doin' again, Boss?" one of the voices said softly, grumbly and harsh, like a half smoked cigarillo.

"Yeah, Boss, what're we doin'?" another voice whispered, chasing after the words of the previous.

"Christ in a handbasket! What are you two, master and puppet? And if i have told you once i have told you a thousand times: We are goin' to Noceda Ranch, to plant evidence against the Sheriff,'' a third voice said, their voice hoarse and strained, and their voice broke as they continued, "he knows about what Mister Blight and Dr. Belos are doing."

The voices halted as their steps slowed, reaching the darkened side of the house. One of the figures jerked their heads and the other two slinked to a tall oaken door. After a few minutes the door opened smoothly, and the trio stepped inside.

The woman dressed in red leather followed through the door they left open.
Darkly dressed, the three stood from their stooped pose, two stepped away from a third as they took a taper to the smoldering coals of the fire left in the hearth.

Light cascaded from the twisted wick, and the trailing figure quickly stepped back, just outside the smokey light of the candle.

"What now Boss?" said the man with the cigarillo voice, he was short and stocky, a weathered hardee hat visible on his head in the new light.

"Yeah, Boss, what now?" said a skinny man, the nasally quality of his hushed voice clashing with his tall frame.

A groaning escaped the third man as he took off his slouch hat and wiped his face with a handkerchief, "I really don't want to do this," he hushed, returning hat and kerchief to their place, "You boys know the envelopes I gave you before we left? Yeah, take those out and open them, then put them, the envelopes, not the- the envelopes not the papers inside the envelopes! Somewhere in the house where the Nocedas won't be keen to look, yeah?."

The "boys" as the third man, who was clearly the leader, said, nodded their heads as they looked down to their newly torn evidence-holding envelopes and turned away. Boots gently clicking against the dark lacquered wood floor, the short one in the hardee hat stuck his opened envelope behind a tall otter carving that stood next to a smaller, less skilfully sculpted. The tall, thin one, who wore no hat, disappeared behind a wall, and came back, hands emptied of their sheathed paper.

The three men gathered in their group again, and took the lit candle with them.

As the door slunk closed, the only light was that of the dimming coals in the fireplace.

The tall woman rose from her crouched form, popping coming from her joints, and her steps were mysteriously quiet as she walked to the otter carving.

She took the packet of papers from their torn sheath and flipped through them. Rising anger and shock shot through her as she read the condemning words.

Shoving the papers into her pocket, she sprinted to follow the men. Unhitching her horse with practiced ease, she leapt into the saddle, pushing her horse on the familiar terrain.

When she was mere yards away from the jailhouse, a burst of three gunshots sounded from inside. Her temper was fit to match the color of her hair as she sprinted to the door, left carelessly open by whoever preceded her.

Footsteps carried the perpetrators away from the dying Sheriff. The floor was covered in his quickly escaping blood as he groaned in pain.

"Help, someone help me" he choked out, his teeth quickly matching the color of her boots.

She sprinted to his side, slipping and covering herself red. Pressing her hands into the entry wound that wasn't already held down, tears started to slide down her face.

"Mr. Noceda I'm so sorry i couldn’t be here sooner I-"

A watery laugh worked out from his clenched teeth. "Eda, Edalyn, hey, don't, don't start on that now. Where is that humor that-" a gasp and a cough racked his body, his pulse weakened.

Edalyn hushed him, and pressed harder on his chest in vain attempt to stave off his death, and he cried out in pain from the effort of life. It wasn't going to work, he isn't going to survive. They both knew it, and his gasping breaths became more and more labored.

He lifted his bloodstained and weak hand to Eda's cheek and the lack of grey in his brown hair was suddenly too obvious as he smiled at her.

"Take care of my family, Owl, my Luz- Camila and her need another to lean against," his words grew weak as he took a shuddering breath, "Take care of them, be to them as I cannot.

"Camila has a gift for you, when you find her."

His eyes glazed over, once almost glowing eyes grew dark.

Sheriff Noceda was dead, and Edalyn, one of his deputies, was helpless but to listen to his words. She rose to her feet, and rested a bloody hand against the handle of her holstered gun.

Her eyes were shaded as he tipped the lip of her hat down in silent vigil to the man she admired so much.

A single thought pulsed in her mind as she turned and marched back to her horse.

I have to find Lilith.

Chapter Text

Riding her horse away from the jailhouse, her hair almost hiding a drying handprint in her rage, Edalyn became the storm that had earned her both fear and respect. The Owl Lady rose in her saddle, her ride, a blazed mahogany bay, surged at her will and they sped off to where her thoughts lead her.

I need to find Lilith.

Her eldest sister by a handful of minutes, Lilith was her best friend, picking her up where she fell. She was the best sister anyone could ask for, she would never hurt her willingly, she would always offer help unasked. She hoped that she would offer once again, only this time at her urging.

Slowly, she spoke to her horse, "Easy, Hooty," she drove them toward a stable leaning on a white-bricked house with a stunningly blue roof and chimney. A silent dismount from years of practice ended with a small "Hoot" from the horse. Patting Hooty, she shushed him before going to the oaken door. She took a deep breath before slamming fists, feet, head, her whole body, generally, against what would've been called a door but more resembled a drum and a great annoyance to the sleepy figure that swung it open.

Lilith stood in the doorway. She was rubbing her glasses against her nightgown when she mumbled out an, "Edalyn-"

"Sheriff is dead, Lils"

Lilith's mouth hung wider, the words she was going to say slamming to the back of her throat. Eyes widening, she took a step back and waved a hand.

Edalyn nodded and followed her sister as she turned and walked inside, as soon as both red boots were inside she slammed the door.

"What the hell do you mean Mister is dead?! What did you see- Wait. You're right painted with…" Lilith trailed off as she clenched her jaw, accusatory hand now pointing a shaking finger.

Eda jumped to her own defense, "He was dying when I got there. He- He, uh, they…"

Sliding down into a chair, putting face in hands, she took a shuddering breath.

"I just, they were already there when I… when I… I was so far, Lilith, I couldn't save him. I wanted to! Lily please, please, I would have saved him I would've-"

Tears broke past her eyes. Cutting through the red hand print of the man she couldn't save, she coughed out a sob. Lilith dropped to her knees and took her left hand.

Edalyn shoved into her arms and shook. Muffled wails sobbed into her shoulder as she held her sister. Lilith wished she could help more, but knew as she wrapped her arms tight and lowered her face that this is all she could do now, tears seeping past her closed eyes.

Taking a deep breath, she pulled away and wiped at her eyes, unintentionally smearing the forgotten bloodstain down her chin, she looked away from her sister.

Her voice cracked, "I- found something when I was trailing those people. They broke into Noceda ranch and planted some stuff, I don't know if I got all of what they put but-" She pulled out the envelope- "I did get this."

Handing the papers to her sister, she got up and went to the door, "I need to tell the boys about Sheriff's murder."

Lilith nodded, her face slowly coloring with shock and disbelief as she read the papers.

"Don't let them think you killed him, Edalyn. They'll eat you alive and make me do something I don't want to do to get you out of it, or worse."

Edalyn nodded and opened the door. Standing in her way was a man, sun scarred arms crossed over a stained grey shirt.

His face contorted with a simple emotion: Rage, "You done killed Mister Sheriff! He's dead and gone 'cause you couldn' wait for his retirement! Don' try an' deny now! I can see the blood smudged all on y'see!" he said, voice so loud you could see the tendons in his neck and the veins below his hat.

Lilith stood from her chair, "Wrath! You know we don't accuse without evidence.

Wrath took of his wool hat and held it to his chest as he nodded to Lilith, "Please, miss, I mean no offense to y' but she-"

"Now that's quite enough! We will get the boys on the case and a formal testimony from Edalyn here, we were just heading to the scene. I, for one, don't believe my sister here murdered the Mister, as she came to my house to report his" -she struggled with the word- "murder, as soon as possible. Now Wrath, don't you agree with my assessment?"

Lilith looked at him expectantly, waiting for his honest answer. Wrath crushed the hat further into his chest and looked down, taking a deep breath and nodding after a time.

"Good. Now, let me get dressed and we can do what we're supposed to."

--

After a lengthy interrogation, and the collection of Mr. Noceda's body, Wrath approached the two sisters.

He took a deep breath and scratched his hatless head, "Y'can't both be Sheriff, y'all're gon'a have t'duel for the position."

Lilith pursed her lips and looked at Eda, who was staring at her washed hands.

She started to speak but Edalyn stopped her, putting her left hand up and putting her head in her right.

"Do we have to?" she said, rubbing her downturned forehead.

Wrath nodded, but then spoke when he realized she couldn't hear him.

"Yes'm. You do."

Eda sighed and looked up, looking at Wrath, and then at Lilith, "If we have to, then I guess we have to. Right Lils?"

"I just wish we didn't, though," she said, resting a solid hand on Eda's shoulder.

Wrath sighed, and picked up his hat, readying to leave, "Y'two have t'do it as soon as possible, we can't be havin' no Sheriff for too long."

"Tomorrow, at high noon," Lilith said, face hardening, "Better to get it over with."

Nodding again, Warden left to tell the town the news, and to leave the sisters to their plans.