Stumbleton Creek Valley. A new day was now beginning in this humble backwater town.
The doctor John Baxter had already informed the townsfolk that Sheriff Rick Williams had something to announce regarding Col. Sancho Volonté and his bandits. In anticipation of this news, the townsfolk gathered around in front of the Sheriff's office. At 8 am sharp, Sheriff Rock Willaims rode into town and went straight to his office. There he stood before the townsfolk and addressed them saying:
"Good citizens of Stumbleton Creek Valley. I am sure you all know by now of what I am here to talk to you about. And I'm sure you've also heard the news of Henry and Maria's death last night at the hands of Col. Sancho Volonté and his men. Well, I am here to tell you that before Maria she revealed to me some info about Col. Sancho Volonté and his men. But before I mention what that is, let me first explain something to you all that happened yesterday when myself and a posse rode up to track Volonté and his bandits."
The sheriff then preceeded to inform the townsfolk what had happened when he followed Volonté's tracks. Continuing the story, the sheriff said:
"Now initially, I was confused about what might have happened. And then that evening, I had a visitor come to my house. It was Maria, badly injured and nearly unconscious. She had been beaten by Volonté and his bandits and left for dead. But she survived and came to me for help. She told me that Henry.... was one of Volonté's bandits."
The town gasped at this revelation. Honest Henry, the town banker. It couldn't be true.
"I'm afraid it is so. It appears it was Henry's job to cover the tracks of the outlaws so that we couldn't track them. He had done a good job of it up until now. Often, when a posse rode out, we had no real trail to follow. But for whatever reason, this time a trail was left. It seems Volonté heard that we were able to follow this trail and track his path. Because of this, Volonté and the rest of his men paid a visit to Henry and Maria. It seems Volonté will not tolerate failure. Even from his own men. Henry pleaded for them to let Maria go since she had no involvment with the gang of outlaws and had no idea that Henry was a part of it. But Volonté refused saying she knew too much now. And well, like I said, Maria was left for dead after and Henry was dead. But Volonté made the mistake of not checking on Maria and she rode to meet me and tell me what had happened. I sent out a farmhand to have the Doctor John Baxter meet me at the home of Henry and Maria while I rode over there with Maria to see if there were any other clues. When John got there, he found Henry was dead and did all he could for Maria but she was too far gone by that point. But Maria did enough to help me learn the identities of Col. Volonté and his bandits."
The citizens all went silent at that announcement and concentrated completely on the sheriff's words.
"You see, Volonté and his bandits wore bandanas over their faces when they attacked Henry and Maria. So, Maria was unable to identify them herself. But she heard their voices and recognized them. Due to the traumatic events she suffered, Maria wasn't able to dwell on where she had heard them before. She just knew they were familiar and that she had heard them in town before. That got me thinking. How could she have heard Volonté and his bandits in town before? Why did Volonté kill Henry? How did Volonté and his bandits vanish so close to town? The answer is simple. Like Henry,....... Volonté and his men are all citizens of this town!"
Shock and disbelief rippled through the crowd as the stunning revelation hit them.
"Think about it. How could a band of strangers have survived a month in this land without anybody spotting them or finding any traces of them in all this time? Why would Volonté and his gang circle back to the main road so close to town when they could be easily spotted? The answer is because they have been hiding in plain sight. Volonté and his men are not strangers. They are our neighbors. They weren't afraid of being spotted because they are citizens of this town. People are on guard for strangers not people they see everyday. That's why Henry was killed. He left too big a clue regarding the identity of Volonté and his bandits. The fact that Henry was a member and that his wife recognized the voices from people in town all add up to the same conclusion. Volonté is among us."
"What do we do?" someone from the crowd asked.
"I'll tell you what. We use this knowledge to our advantage. We all start opening up our eyes to the people around us. Start racking your brains for any suspicious or odd behavior you may have noticed. Reflect on anything you may have noticed that seemed strange to you. It may be another clue to the identity of this ruthless gang. And I don't want to start mass hysteria but start examing your fellow citizens. Because sadly, some among them are responsible for all this trouble. I'm going to do what I can investigating things on my own but this problem requires the help and effort of each and every one of you."
"Over there, in the town square is our gallows. When we find Volonté and his gang, and I swear to you we will find them, that is what will await them. A public execution and a swift death. Volonté and his men have declared war on us all. The gallows is a symbol of our resolve and determination to bring these theives to justice and to show that we will not back down from their brutal tactics."
"Well, that's all I have to say. I don't want any mass lynchings or mass hysteria starting up. If you believe you've found someone who's guilty or suspicious, I expect you to bring them forward to Judge Khushrenada and he will render a verdict on the suspect. You can all carry on with your business."
And with that Sheriff Rock Williams entered his office. The townsfolk milled around a bit briefly still a buzz over the revelations they had just heard. But they didn't start congregated for long for fear had begun to spread through the town. Conversations became hushed, eyes darted back and forth scrutinizing every action. Slowly, a majority of the townsfolk headed over to the Saloon to help ease their worry. Sheriff Rock Williams watched them mosey on over. He needed a drink also and he had a bottle in his desk for just such an occasion. He had laid everything on the line. Everyone now knew what he knew so hopefully this would keep Volonté and his men from coming after him to keep him silent. Still, he knew couldn't just end his involvment at that. Nope, he still wore a badge and he was still sworn to protect these citizens. He was fortunate to have lived as long as he had doing what he did. Rock realized that this might be the toughest case he ever tackled and of all the dangers he had encountered, there was a very good chance he would not make it through this case. But if he was going to die, it was going to be because he was doing his job and all he could to bring these outlaws to justice. With that, Sheriff Rock Williams took one last swig from his bottle, put on his cowboy hat, straightened his badge and stepped out into the town to do his job.
Not many people paid him much attention. Instead, most people kept glancing at and thinking about that edifice that stood in the center of town. The gallows.
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