Chapter 618 Lucky Horseshoes
“What do they want my father to do?” Wendy asked impatiently. “…help them find a group of people,” said Zhang Heng, whose expression became a little weird all of a sudden.
“Who are those people?”
“More than a month ago, there was a robbery in Shining Silver Town. A group of masked men robbed a bank and looted forty kilograms of gold. However, few people knew that they also took something that they are not supposed to take. That thing belongs to the Cook.
“Cook wants your father to help him find that thing, but he seems to have other plans too,” Zhang Heng said.
“But… the timeline does not match. As far as I know, the one-armed man came to Lincoln County very early and lived next to our house…” Wendy frowned, “…wait; you’re saying that the Cook has been watching my father all these years?”
“I’m afraid that’s the truth.” “Until Cook lost whatever they had, they contacted my father and asked him to come to Bliss. My father is half Indian, and that makes him a master tracker. After that, they used the lives of the farmers in the town to threaten my father, forcing him to help them to find someone!”
Thus, Wendy finally figured out the ins and outs of this matter.
“Twelve days ago, Cook left ten people to keep an eye on the farmers, and he left town with your father and the remaining thirty-odd.”
“So my father only needs to help Cook to find whoever they’re looking for, and he’ll be set free?” Wendy asked.
“It’s not that simple, I’m afraid,” Zhang Heng shook his head. “Cook ordered their men who stayed behind to kill everyone in half a month. After that, they were supposed to leave Bliss and meet in Lincoln County.” “Huh?” Wendy’s eyes widened. “What are they doing in Lincoln County?”
“You haven’t seen it yet. Cook doesn’t actually care about the thing he lost,” Zhang Heng said. “Your father has been their goal from the very beginning. They plan to go to Lincoln County to avenge the one-armed man executed not too long ago. If they pull it off, your father, who is with them, will be treated as their accomplice. In simple words, he has nowhere to go other than to stay with Cook’s Gang.”
“So, what should we do then?”
Wendy’s reaction was calmer than Zhang Heng expected. Although worried about her father, she did not lose her mind. Instead, she said, “If you can help me resolve this, I can call the shots and give you half of my family’s land and the cattle that live on it.”
“At this point, there is only one way to solve this problem. We need to stop them before they arrive at Lincoln. However, even if I can’t handle thirty-odd people at the same time. We have to look for help.”
Two days later, Zhang Heng and Wendy rushed back to Glen Town.
“Haha! Look who we have here,” the sheriff outside the police station sneered. “I have been waiting for this day to arrive! Well, it hasn’t
expect to avenge my horse so soon.”
“You know Cook, the leader of the Cook Gang, don’t you?” Zhang Heng asked directly.
“Well, how did you know about that?” After hearing Zhang Heng’s question, the sheriff’s face changed drastically, and he quickly glanced around. Seeing that there was no one following them, he was relieved.
“Your secret did surprise me,” Zhang Heng said. “The sheriff of Glen Town is in cohorts with the notorious Cook Gang.”
“You know nothing, kid. Don’t comment on the past of others. You were not there when it happened,” the sheriff snorted coldly.
“Then tell me, tell me everything about that mysterious past so that we can rescue Matthew,” Zhang Heng continued. “I think I have made it very clear. I will bring my past into the grave with me,” the sheriff shook his head.
“You are so stubborn and unwilling to cooperate. Are you 100% sure that Cook will not kill Matthew? There is something worse in this world than killing a person, and that is ruining his life. I don’t know the nature of Cook and Matthew’s relationship, but I do know that Cook is messing up Matthew’s life. As we speak, Cook is taking his people and Matthew to Lincoln County, preparing to avenge their recently executed member. Needless to say, you should know what it means.”
“What? Is Cook planning to attack Lincoln County?! Lincoln is not a small town like Glen.
county seat.”
“They’re not going there to conquer the place. They just want to loot it. By the time the armed forces arrive, they will be long gone. Considering Matthew’s tense relations with the townsfolk, what would they think when they see him showing up with Cook and his gang?”
The old cowboy fell silent after hearing this.
After waiting a while, Zhang Heng was about to give up. The sheriff then quickly said, “I know, Cook has always wanted Matthew to be his successor. He’s been training Matthew since he was young.”
“My father used to be part of the Cook Gang?!” Wendy instantly became dumbfounded. “He is not the only one. Matthew, Cook, and the three of us were the first members of the Cook Gang. No, at that time, we were not called the Cook Gang, but the Lucky Horseshoes. We didn’t form the Lucky Horseshoes to burn, kill, or loot. Vengeance was our true purpose.”
“Vengeance?”
The sheriff looked at Wendy, “Your father rarely talks to you and your mother about the past, right? Regarding his past, he worked in Cook’s ranch before meeting your mother. That was also the time where he met the love of his life-Mary. They got married, and soon after that, Mary was pregnant with a child. At that time, Matthew was the happiest man in this world. Matthew and I were good friends, and they were ready to let me become the child’s godfather. However, no one expected misfortune to hit so quickly.
“Once, Cook and Matthew brought their cattle to be sold in a town five hundred miles away. When they returned, they found their homes ransacked, and Mary was gone. At first, they thought it was a robber who did it, but they found out things were not that simple. All signs pointed to Ruben, the only son of Union Pacific Railway Company’s director.
That guy was a playboy. He always claimed that he came here to supervise and inspect the railway project, but the truth was that he and a group of evil friends would come to hunt for animals and visit the brothel. When he saw Mary, Ruben couldn’t take his eyes off her. He and his friends flirted with Mary several times, but Matthew was there to help her every time.
“What Matthew and Cook did not expect was that as soon as they left the town, Ruben would abduct Mary. They later found Ruben and asked him to release Mary. However, Ruben denied all accusations. That bastard didn’t want anyone to find out about the crime he committed, so he killed Mary without hesitation. It wasn’t until a week later that we found Mary’s body in the woods. Wild dogs had mauled her corpse. And the child she carried, only three months old at that time, was killed as well.”