Chapter 2 - Cash Dollars on the Hoof

[ateno]

"Um Deputy, should we not take the money and 'buy' our stolen horses back? We waltz in there asking for our horses, they will laugh and run us out."

Doos

[Grognardsw]

It may seem like a silly question, but do people carry around receipts for or proof of horse ownership? What (besides a gun) prevents someone from taking one of dozens of horses outside a saloon on a Saturday night?

Paladin sighed. “Mr. Larson is right. Legally its dicey. Unless you have proof of ownership, these horse thieves could claim we’re trying to steal their horses.

If we get the horses back over the town line, our previous claim and the deputy sheriff make our case.

This would make the horse thieves that much more motivated to stop us. I’m not sure a horse is worth a man’s life.”

[jemmus]

Information about proving ownership of a horse was just posted in the Game Setting thread.

The players wouldn't have known this, but the PCs would. Posses aren't bound by jurisdiction. They're vigilantes who operate outside of the law and do anything they want. They do some pretty outrageous things, such as lynching a suspect from the nearest tree or telegraph pole. As long as the community in general feels that what they did was justified (which they almost always do), posse members aren't prosecuted. The idea is, if their isn't sufficient law enforcement to protect the community, the community members have the right to eliminate the source of the problem. (This is historical, throughout the Old West).

In this case it seems that the deputy might have deliberately used the term "posse" to give the group some legitimacy. In other words, not so much some guys trying to recover their horses, but citizens out to stop criminals.

[jemmus]

Retconning a little here to address Doos's comment about buying the horses back. This is before the deputy rides off.
Hmm, the deputy says. I suppose ya could try buyin em back-- if ya can find em. Y'all boys, was it this Harvey Adler hisself who bought the horses from y'all?
The elder Wiley boy replies, Nah, I don't think so. It was some different fellers. They was pretty rough lookin men.
Mr. Wiley throws in, Harvey Adler ain't got the guts to buy stolen horses hisself. Then he'd have to keep em in his corral fer a while and git em to a buyer. He's just a piddlin greedy rancher after a dollar, however he can git it. Includin swindlin poor sharecroppers. He spits on the living room floor. Which seems to somehow spur the still testy Gideon McLaury into doing the same. Adler ain't got the guts or the gumption to handle real horse rustlin. But he's the kind of sumbeech to know somebody who does.

Alright then, the deputy sheriff says. Y'all boys, how much did y'all sell them six horses fer?
Young Lucas Wiley considers a little bit and seems to have been through enough for this morning to decide to come clean. We got 18 dollars apiece.
The deputy does some arithmetic in his head. If I ain't wrong, for six horses that comes to 120 dollars, minus 12 dollars. $108 dollars. Mr. Doos, please collect that amount from what's on the table and give each horse theft victim his fair share. They're yer horses, so it's yer money. Not these boyses' money. It was a bad deal fer y'all, but yer stuck with it.

Back to the present.
Outside the gate, the deputy dismounts, finds a thick stick, lays the barrels of the firearms on it, away from the dirt, and closes the gate. He starts to spur his healthy young mare, but stops and looks. Mr. McLaury! Check yer temper and yer behavior! He looks William Moore and Paladin in the eye. Then he spurs his mare into a trot back up the road toward San Marcos.

[Grognardsw]

Paladin considered the posse’s status and size against the horse thieves.

He collected his $18. Given a horse cost $25, he was down $7 and the $5 to rent the sorry steed he was riding now. He was ambivalent about whether it was worth the chase.

“Well boys, do we still go after the horse thieves?”

Paladin looked at the collected guns.

“Well McLaury, you might as well get your oak-handled pistol back.”

[jemmus]

McLaury replies, Thank ya, I'll do that. Lucas Wiley starts to say something, but stops. And I'll have ma gunbelt and boots back, too. Lucas answers, This is ma gunbelt which I've had since I was 15 years old. And them are Clyde's boots. But ya can buy em off of us for.... He thinks about it. Fer 10 dollars if ya want.
Whut! Yer saying you'll sell me my own belongins what ya robbed back to me? And I'm s'pose to buy back with money ah got from y'all stealin and sellin ma horse? By the way, whar's ma money from before? What ya robbed from me on the road?
I don't know what yer talkin about, mister.
McLaury makes kind of an exasperated growling noise. That datgum deputy took off without finishin his goldurn business! He's seething again. I ought to plug all of y'all nits now before ya grow up into full-grown lice! Would do the world a favor. But ya don't got no guns on ya, so that would be murder. He mumbles to himself under his breath a little. Alright. Ah'll give ye eight dollars, and ya can have these shoes.
Lucas looks at the oversize shoes. Alright. Maybe we can give them shoes to the next stumblebum who comes along. Show us yer money. McLaury puts on the boots, straps on the gunbelt, puts his recovered revolver in the holster and tucks his borrowed one in on the other side. Y'all boys remember this: The next time I see any of y'all, I won't show so much Christian charity. Ya best not be carryin guns at the time. Cause if ya are, one or the other of us will have daylight-- or moonlight-- shinin into im.
Mr. Wiley growls back. That's enough of yer mouth, feller. Go on git outa here. McLaury turns on his heel, spits on the dusty-grimy rug under the table, sardonically tips his hat, and takes his leave.

PCs are up for responding to Paladin's question or any other action. FYI, per the rulebook, here's what your missing horses are worth. Value is based on the horse's Strength.
Charlie - $100
Sebastian - $25
Doos - $100
Paladin - $50
Andres - $50
William - Character sheet says an average horse, so probably $50, of if Strength is less than 11, $25. Please roll your horse's stats and update your sheet. The stats may be really important at some point. I could see that coming up in a pursuing or pursued situation. Considering the big distances of the Old West, mobility can be very important.

[redwarrior]

PCs are up for responding to Paladin's question or any other action. FYI, per the rulebook, here's what your missing horses are worth. Value is based on the horse's Strength.
William - Character sheet says an average horse, so probably $50, of if Strength is less than 11, $25. Please roll your horse's stats and update your sheet. The stats may be really important at some point. I could see that coming up in a pursuing or pursued situation. Considering the big distances of the Old West, mobility can be very important.

Justice's stats are on the Notes tab.

[redwarrior]

William responds to Paladin as the deputy takes off ahead of the Posse... Well, I'm in no way made whole for my horse. And, even after I get my deposit back on this animal, I'd still be short buyin' another horse... I the posse wants to git these horse thieves, I'm for it. Ain't no way I can do it on my own, but I'll ride and stand with y'all. William is maintaining a level head, but it's clear he's hoping that the posse will go after the next rung of the horse thieves.


I didn't ask before, but was our tack back at the stable or did they steal that too? If so, would retcon the above dialog to include a reference to "let alone my tack."

[Rex]

Charlie

"I think we should."

[cybersavant]

Andreas Larson

"I ist no gunman, but if you go after dem tieves, i go too."

[jemmus]

They didn't get your tack. Apparently they didn't want to take the time to saddle several horses. Your tack is on your current Army horses.

[ateno]

"I'm ready to go."

Doos

[jemmus]

Map of the area posted in the Game Setting thread.
What you know, in case I wasn't clear.
-The Wiley brothers stole the horses the night Sheriff Behan was shot.
-It's now around 11:00 AM the next day in Stringtown, Hays County. Stringtown is hardly 5 miles south of San Marcos. (Less than a half-hour ride for average horses, if you run them. Walking, still less than an hour). The horses are not at the Wiley place.
-The Wiley brothers (well, their dad) confessed that they informed a rancher named Harvey Alder around Comaltown, Comal County they had the horses for sale. (Comaltown is maybe 8 or so miles south of Stringtown. Someone in the party, possibly Andreas or Charlie, is local enough to know that).
-The boys say they didn't know the men who actually purchased the horses from them. It was dark and the men had their faces covered with bandanas. The boys seemed rather fearful of the strangers. From their speech, at least.
-Sebastian (only) saw a dropped fence rail and multiple fresh hoof prints inside the corral, both going into it and coming out of it.

If it seems like quite a lot must have happened with the horses between last night and now-- it must have. It doesn't get dark in San Marcos in early June until around 9:00 PM. If the boys stole the horses after dark, that would be a maximum of 15 hours for them to get them stolen and out of San Marcos, and then contact the broker Adler at some place, and get the horses sold and off of the property. Before the posse arrived this morning.

Considerations of time, distance, velocity, and other factors (such as frontier veracity) may be things to consider here.

Well, Wellington boots in horsh*t, McLaury grumbles. Here we sittin saddles and hangin onto saddle horns. And no idea where them horses might be. How about you, injun? He's looking at Charlie. Don't ya got any special sense about how to locate a horse? Some kinda song ya can sing or somethin? Track a horned toad lizard across a prairie and when it got to the other side across the Coaml. Help us out. That Adler sumbit*ch ain't gonna say nothin' unless he's got a pistol barrel at his gut and another one at a kidney. Which he shore does deserve.


PCs' actions?

[cybersavant]

Andreas Larson watches McLaury and scowls. Upon hearing Doos, he gets the old army horse sauntering that direction. "Sinz der deputy left, you are now most senior official. I let you do the talking." He paces his horse so that he's between the middle and the rear of the group as they head for the broker.

[Rex]

Charlie

Charlie will take point and do the trail finding/navigating for now.

[jemmus]

The posse came to Stringtown on the main road south to San Antonio. The tracks of the railroad laid down later mostly follow it to its east side. The railroad bridge over Purgatory Creek into Stringtown might have provided some convenience and security over following the horse and wagon road's ford through the stream. The little bridge itself looked kind of dubious about standing up under the weight of a fueled and watered steel locomotive and its train. But that's the route the deputy took.

The posse turned right to the Wiley place after crossing Purgatory Creek. Turning left now should put them back on the San Antonio road. Which would go through Comal County, and presumably through its sort of namesake Comaltown. And toward the reported/purported broker for horse theft and/or avaricious rancher Harvey Adler's place.

PM about following trails in BH sent to point man Charlie.

[Rex]

Charlie

Charlie see the crows starting to form up into a murder and heads that way, looking for any signs that someone may have left the main trail.

[ateno]

Doos takes the time to string his bow and check the horse for wear and tear.

[Grognardsw]

Paladin ambled along with the others in the posse.

[redwarrior]

Charles drifts a little to the left of the main body anywhere the trail is wide enough. Quietly wishing he'd had a rifle.