The Right Thing - Part 3

painted by me, NotTasha

PART 3:

Vin raced in front of Ezra and shoved past a cart.  The owner squawked.   Ezra muttered a quick "beg your pardon," and then did the same to the next vendor who ruthlessly tried to maneuver across the courtyard.

The tracker spotted the not-Lopez as he ducked into a train car.  Vin shot through a break in the crowd, almost crawling over the tops of some of the loiterers, and then leaped into the open door.

Jaime, unaware of his tail, had made his way to the far end of the car.   Other passengers milled about in the aisle, either taking their seats or taking up room.

"Hey!" Vin shouted.  Jaime turned, and smiled.  He gave Vin a little wave, then spun about to run down the stairs to the rear of the car.

"Dammit," Vin swore and went after him, and muttering apologies as he pushed and shoved his way through the offended passengers in the narrow lane.  When he reached a large woman plugging up the works, he had to press rather hard against a substantial rear-end to make it past.

By the time he reached the far exit, Jaime would be long gone… unless.

"Well, well, well, what have we here?" Vin heard the honeyed tones of a loquacious southerner.  He came down the stairs to find Ezra pressing the young man against the outside of the train car.

"Hey, there," Jaime said through a grin.  "Fancy meeting you here."

Vin sauntered down the stairway and hopped down to join his compatriot.  "Hey Ez, seems you caught up with an old friend," Tanner stated.

Ezra nodded.  One hand was wound into the fabric of Jaime's shirt, with his other hand resting on the gun at his hip.  "Fancy that," Ezra responded.

Vin moved clear of the stairway to let new passengers enter.   Nobody seemed to be paying them much attention –all too intent on getting settled on the train.

Ezra stated, "I believe you have somethin' that should be in the care of the Brothers Lopez – Jewelers Extraordinaire."

Jaime smiled still.  "Just keepin' it safe."

"Seems they're tryin' to deliver it at this moment to its owner," Vin told him.

"Right," Jaime said with a nod.  "I was going to meet them later."

"They need it now," Ezra went on.  "And seein' as we injudiciously allowed you to come into possession of this necklace, perhaps you should return it so that they can complete the exchange." He extended a hand toward the man.

"Right, right."  And Jaime's expression changed to something more devious as he met Vin's gaze.  "You gave it to me, didn't you?  It's not as if I stole it."

"It was ‘cause I thought you were someone you weren't," Vin quickly countered, and made a face.  "I was tryin' to do the right thing."

Jaime continued, "We can break it apart, take it some big city and get money for the gems.  A lot of money.  I'd share it with you.  I'm not greedy. More than enough to go around."

Ezra almost spoke, but Vin cut him off with, "It don't belong to you!  And it definitely don't belong to us!"

Maple and Andy suddenly came through the crowd, intent on the group. "What are all ya'll doing here?" Maple asked, her eyes glued on Jaime.

"Just tryin' to make a deal," Jaime said.  "A good deal that'd benefit all of us.  Like I said, there's plenty to go around."

"No deals!" Vin growled.  "Hand it over, Jaime.  We need to get it back to the others."

But the young man was looking past him, over Vin's shoulder to Maple and Andy, imploring them.

"You got it?" Maple asked from behind them.

"Sir," Ezra's gaze snapped between Jaime and the couple.  "You all had best not give us any trouble.  We don't care for trouble."

But trouble came anyway.  Jaime nodded and Maple swung her bag, clobbering Vin upside the head.

Andy leapt onto Ezra.  They spun about, and slammed into the side of the car.

 The clout from Maple offended Vin more than hurt him and he snagged Maple's arm before she could try it again.  She fought like a wild cat, thrashing and clawing.

Ezra had the wind knocked out of him.  Andy pressed hard against the wheezing conman, pinning him to the car, and gave Ezra a somewhat apologetic look.

In response to that, Ezra brought his knee up sharply, making brutal contact with a rather sensitive area.  Andy let out a gasp, went white, and released him immediately.

The crowd pressed in.  A woman in a brown shirt and trousers grabbed onto Vin and yanked him away from Maple.  "What're you doin'?" she shouted.  She was a formidable-looking person, and Vin didn't want to try her.

"I didn't start it!" Vin declared, and tried to wrench himself clear. "And I dinnet hit her!" he said, pointing at Maple.

"That man touched me!" the fat woman from the train shrieked from above.

Vin grimaced.

 Jaime was running away, headed along the length of the train as the woman on the train continued to babble about the offense

 "Ezra!" Vin shouted.

The conman stumbled away from the crumpled Barlow.  He drew in a breath, and then gamely took off after Jaime.

The woman in brown, pushed Vin away from Maple.  The big woman on the train was spewing out a torrent of words that hardly formed a coherent thought.  Andy was curled on the platform in agony.

Maple's bag came at Vin's head again with a solid whack.  He saw stars.

"Hey!" the woman said, still holding Vin in place.  She glared at Maple.  "You stop that!  That's not ladylike.  And you, up there, Izza!  We heard you!  All that noise isn't doing anyone any good!  What the heck are you all doin'?"

But Izza kept up her wail.

"Run, Jaime!" Maple shouted after the escaping man.  Then, she gave Andy a little shove with her foot. "Get that gamblin' fella, Andy!  Get him!"

Andy moaned and clutched at his crotch, but otherwise didn't move.

Annoyed, Maple tucked her bag under her arm.  She looked from Vin, to the woman, to Izza on the rail car.  Then, with a tight nod, she took off after Ezra and Jaime.  Vin tried to follow, but the woman in brown impeded him.

"I didn't do anything to that woman!" Vin said, pointing to the big lady.  "Nothin' outside of move past her in the train car!"

Sheriff Stains suddenly appeared behind Izza in the train, having boarded via the stairs on the other end.  "What's going on here?" he shouted over her.  "Odette? What happened?"

The woman in brown shook her head.  "Tryin' to sort that out, Sheriff.  Seems like we have a mess of folk acting like fools!"

Stains grimaced, mostly because Izza's voice was loud enough to pierce through a skull .  "Izza," he started, settling a hand on her shoulder.

That brought an even louder scream from Izza.  She turned on Stains, her arms flailed about in the narrow space, looking like someone was juggling two great hams. 

Stains made a strangled sound as he tried to get away.

Odette sighed, and said to Vin, "Yeah, that's Izza.  She does that."  She loosened his hold.  "So, what are you all about?"

Finally able to pull away, Vin said, "It's not what you think!"  He pointed after Maple, "That woman tried to make off with an expensive piece of jewelry, and so did the man that ran that way."

"The one in the red jacket?  He's the type that'd do somethin' shifty."

Vin stepped back.  "Usually, yes.  But I'm after the other one." He glanced up at the train, and seeing no sign of Stains emerging, he turned and took off after the others.

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When Vin caught up with them, he found Jaime splayed out on his stomach at the end of the platform some distance beyond the train.   Ezra was sitting on his back, and above them, Maple whaled away with her bag at Ezra's head.  Standish was doing his best to protect his noggin and to keep the wriggling Jaime from rising.

"Ah, Mr. Tanner," Ezra said brightly when Vin arrived.  The crowd was almost gone, dispersing into the train or fleeing the area.

Whack… whack.

"Need any help?"

Whack …whack.

"Ah, yes.  Help would be… helpful at this moment."

Vin moved in.  One swift movement, and he had his arms around Maple, pinning her.    Jaime took that moment to try to escape, flopping mightily and momentarily dislodging the gambler from his back.

He flipped like a fish, but Ezra wasn't about to let him go.  Standish slammed his weight down again on the young fella, stilling him.

"Sir," Ezra said, leaning in close.  "I would suggest that you give up.   Certainly, the local law will be here shortly, so we'd best make this quick."

"He's here nearby," Vin said, working hard to keep Maple restrained.

"Stains?" Ezra asked.

"Yup.  Was stuck in a train car last I saw him."

"Sheriff Stains," Ezra said, his voice dripping with discontent.  "My, that does not bode well for you," he told Jaime.  "Sir, I understand the lure of wealth, and your actions might have seemed well-thought out at the moment, but let me assure you, a jail cell in Ridge City is not a welcoming place.  Give up the necklace immediately, and we'll let you loose.  You should be able to escape before the notorious Sheriff Stains arrives."

"Goes for you, too," Vin said in Maple's ear.  She stopped trying to break away from Vin, and let her arms drop to her side as she sighed. "Ya'll might end up in a jail cell alongside this one."

"But you gave it to me!" Maple hissed.  "You all are the ones who stole it."

Jaime looked startled at that revelation.

"Under false pretenses!" Ezra got in, and he craned his neck, looking for Stains.  His quick gaze caught Vin's, and the tracker realized the difficulty they would be in if Stains caught up to what was going on.

"This won't go well for no one," Tanner muttered at them.

Ezra added, "I doubt that either of you wish to deal with the law.  It's time you gave up the purloined piece, and let us return it to the Brothers Lopez." And he made a little bounce on Jaime's back, and the man let out an 'Oof'.  "The sheriff is coming.  Decide now.  You know what's right."

Jaime gasped, "Yes, yes, I agree."

Ezra moved off his back and Jaime rolled over.  He pulled the colorful necklace from his pocket and handed it to Ezra.

The conman held it, his gaze fixed upon the jewels. His eyes took on a faraway cast and his jaw dropped a fraction.  His whole body tensed, as if ready to bolt with the expensive piece in his hands.

Vin dropped his hold on Maple and grabbed Ezra's arm.  He had to wrench the necklace free.  "We gotta go!  Now!"

Ezra blinked and seemed to come out of whatever spell had held him.

"Now!" Vin said as dropped the necklace into his pocket and darted off the end of the platform.

Together, they hurried back to the Mamie Hotel.

Gingerbread depiction created by me...NotTasha.  They were tasty

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Within the lobby of the Mamie Hotel, they could see the two real Lopez brothers at a table with the brunette woman.  Her fingers flashed with rings.

On the table, it contents covered with a piece of red velvet, a tray seemed to hold her necklace hidden.

When Vin and Ezra came through the door, Rudolfo glanced up.  With a gesture, he told them to stay where they were, that he was coming.  He spoke a word to his brother before heading their way.

Rudolfo looked anxious.  "Did Jaime take it?"

"Yeah, he did," Vin said with a serious nod.  "And we got it back."

Rudolfo tsked.  "I should have suspected it.  We met him last week in Bakersville.  He was to travel to San Francisco.  We thought he would be good company."  The young jeweler sighed. "He was interested in our business – very interested…" his voice trailed off as glanced to the table where Alonzo was in deep conversation with Mrs. Perkins.  "He was so easy to trust."

Ezra nodded in commiseration.  "Those are the worst sort," he told him.

"May I have it?" Rudolfo exclaimed quietly.

"Yeah," Vin said, and put his hand in his pocket.  As he drew out the necklace, both Rudolfo and Ezra gazed intensely at the costly piece.

Rudolfo quickly took the necklace from Vin and cupped it in his hand.  He examined it.  Yes," he finally whispered.  "Thank you, so much!"  He clenched it to chest.  "Thank you for retrieving it."

"If a reward might be forthcoming…" Ezra started.

Vin gave Ezra a jab to the ribs. "We're glad to help."

Ezra frowned, and muttered, "Yes, of course.  Glad to do all of this for free."

"I must..." Rudolfo glanced to the other group.  "I must rejoin them." He nodded, smiled and ducked away to return to the others.

Once he reached the table, Rudolfo touched his brother's shoulder and the man begged pardon of Mrs. Perkins as he stood.

Rudolfo picked up a covered tray from the table with his free hand, as Alonzo grabbed the tool kit that had been at his knees.  They moved a distance away to the far corner of the lobby where they bowed their heads in conversation.  Alonzo set the tool kit on a nearby table and cracked it open.

Mrs. Perkin's curious gaze followed them.

"Now that this is completed," Ezra said in a quiet voice, "Perhaps we can return to the Brown Bear and see if any of our dinners are still about."

Vin saw a movement at the door, noting that Jaime had arrived, with Maple and a limping Andy.  Apparently, they'd managed to avoid Stains.

"We got trouble," Vin muttered.  None of them looked happy.

After a moment, Rudolfo looked up from his work with Alonzo, and spotted Jaime.  He scowled, and gave Ezra and Vin a sharp look as if to say, "take care of them!"

With a sigh, Vin approached the three, saying, "You'd best let them alone."  In a confidential tone he added, "Ya'll know ya done wrong.  No reason to make things worse."

Ezra hadn't joined him.  He'd moved forward to watch the Lopez brothers and the necklace.

Vin found himself unable to corral three people at once, so Maple and Andy quickly made their way close to the proceedings.    He did what he could to keep Jaime away, but at this point, it hardly made any difference, so with a frustrated motion, he let Jaime join the others.

Jaime smiled at Vin and moved in to see.

Rudolfo and Alonzo both gave Vin the stink eye.  Mrs. Perkins looked up in surprise and said, "Oh My!"  For a moment, Vin thought she was going to be upset at the audience, but instead she beamed, and tossed her head, as if to better show off her diamond earrings.  She smiled smugly at the brothers.

After a moment of hesitation, Alonzo moved forward with a little velvet-covered tray.  He set it down on the table, and, with a practiced flourish, pulled the covering away to reveal their work.

The peacock necklace was pinned pin place to best show off its overdone beauty.  It sparkled in the sunlight streaming through the big front window at the Mamie.

Ezra leaned forward to get a better view.  Jaime, Maple and Andy moved closer.  Vin took up the best spot for muscling in if necessary.

Mrs. Perkins gasped.  "It's beautiful!  I am delighted to see it again!" she purred.  "You repaired it wonderfully!  It's perfect!"  She touched it lightly as if devouring it with her fingertips.  "I must have it on!  I must!"

"Stop her!" a voice called from the doorway.  Everyone turned as a woman charged in, raven-haired, dressed as finely as the brunette.  "I am Mrs. Perkins! This harlot is a phony!"

The brunette sneered.  "Honey, I was Mrs. Perkins long before you."

"I am the last Mrs. Perkins!" the younger woman declared.  "And that's what counts!"

Everyone drew back as the new woman moved forward.  The brothers grabbed their cases and stepped away from the impending melee, leaving the necklace on the table.

"Aren't you going to do something about this?" Vin asked the departing brothers.

Alonzo shrugged.  "The estate paid us.  We have delivered the repaired necklace," he said.  "Our task is complete."  He tipped his hat as he scuttled away with his brother.

Vin turned toward the women, and mumbled, "Come on, Ezra.  We gotta make sure the right person ends up with that flashy necklace."

But Ezra was already moving in the other direction.  "That's why we're following them," Ezra said and bolted off after the brothers.

The two Mrs. Perkins both had their hands on the necklace while Jaime, Maple and Andy stood close behind them.  Ezra was already through the door – so Vin went with him.

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by krisserci5

They caught the brothers before they reached the station, where the train was chuffing and ready to leave.

"Well now," Ezra drawled as he pulled Rudulfo to a stop.  "Where's that expensive necklace?"

"The Perkins widows, they have it.  You have seen this!" Rudolfo said quickly.  "We must go now, to catch the train."

"Come now," Ezra said.  "Do you want me to believe that the ornament you presented was the same as the necklace taken from Jaimie?"

The brother looked at Ezra in fear.

"It certainly was a good match, and it displays that you are fine jewelers.   With that in mind, shouldn't you be able to tell that the jewels in that particular piece were glass?  Perhaps it was an honest mistake?"  Ezra smiled.  "You made a copy while you had the original in your hands because you appreciated the … beauty… of the bird."  His grin grew wider.  "Honest mistake," he repeated.

The brothers seemed beaten.

"I know how it happened.  Somehow," Ezra went on, "while you were preparing it for presentation, the two necklaces were confused. 

You already had the copy ready because you didn't have the original in hand.  You meant to remove the copy and replace it with the original."  He fluttered his hands and put on a bewildered expression.  "Sometimes things get confused when you're in a hurry, am I correct?"

Vin chuckled softly, then said, "Best give it up now.  No need to involve anyone else in this, right?  The law won't look kindly."

Cowed, Rudolfo set the toolkit down and opened it.   They hadn't had time to secret the necklace into the hidden compartment, but it was under the removable tray.  With a hesitant hand, Alonzo handed it over.  Ezra snatched it away before Vin had the chance to stop him. 

He let the gambler have it for the moment.  After Standish scrutinized it, Vin asked, "It the real thing?"

The kit still open, Ezra snared the loupe from the tray.  Fixing it in his eye, he examined the jewels before grinning widely.  His fingers started to close greedily around the necklace, and that was enough for Vin.

With force, he pulled it free of Ezra's fingers and muttered, "It's for your own good," before dropping the necklace into his pocket again.

Ezra let the loupe fall into his hand, and handed it over to Alonzo.  "You do fine work," he told Alonzo.  "The copy was an excellent piece.  In spite of all this, I wouldn't mind seeing what else you have available."

The boys gazed toward the train, obviously wanting to get on board.  It was Alonzo who said, "That was all we had."

Ezra indicated the big case.  "But certainly, you have other pieces."

"The copy was kept in the case.  That was all," Rudolfo explained.  "To deter theft," he added with a shake of his head.  "We thought that any thief would look in the case and forget about the toolkit.  If they stole from us, they would have taken the copy."

Alonzo went on, "Our papa left us with nothing but his tools and his knowledge.  We spent everything we had on making that copy." He looked morose.  "We were hoping…"

"To cheat those women out of what they were supposed to get?"  Vin completed.   He gave Ezra a jab. "Come on.  Let's get this to where it's supposed to go."

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There were more people inside the hotel when they returned.   The proprietor was trying to quiet down the rabble.  The Widows Perkins had been separated, but were snapping out bon mots and pithy retorts at each other.  Jaime stood near the table, watching the shiny necklace like a magpie.  Maple and Andy were together at a settee near the action, keeping watch on everyone.

The necklace waited at the center of everything.

As Vin and Ezra moved into the room, Alonzo and Rudolfo came in after them.

With a disconsolate sigh, Vin strode into the center of the storm, with Ezra alongside.  Disgusted, he picked up the displayed necklace with one hand as everyone gasped.  The widows lurched toward them.  He held up his spare hand to stop them.

"This one is a fake," he said.  "Ask these fellas or find someone in town that'll give you a straight answer ‘cause I'm not sure if they will."

With a flick, he handed the fake to Ezra, and pulled the genuine article from his pocket.  "This one is the real thing. If you ask me, they look the same.  One is probably a whole lot less troublesome than the other."

The room was filled with gasps of astonishment.

He dropped the genuine necklace to the red velvet tray.

A roar of incredulity rose up.  Vin was turning to go when a woman rushed through the door.  "Mother!" she called.

The brunette, already struggling against the other widow for the necklace, looked up.  Both grimaced, and muttered, "Bernice…"

"How could you!" Bernice cried.  "How could you!  You know he left it to me. It's in Daddy's will!"

It was time to go, Vin decided.  Time to cut and run – to let Stains decide on any business that was left to be sorted.

The crowd let them through.  Odette, from the train station, was among them.  She watched them carefully, and asked "Two necklaces?"  She shook her head, not knowing the story, but she asked, "If one is real and one is fake, how are we supposed to believe that the real one is on that tray?"

Vin moaned.  "You have to trust us!" he said, glancing quickly at Ezra who could only shake his head.  Vin went on, "As far as we can figure, we finally got it right."

Ezra was still moving, heading toward the door.  Alonzo held out his hand when Ezra reached him, but the gambler tried to brush past.   Vin grabbed Ezra and made him hand over the fake necklace.

Tanner made a show of handing it to Alonzo, to make certain that Odette saw the exchange.

Alonzo took the necklace with an unenthusiastic expression, but Rudolfo leaned in and reminded, "It is excellent work.  We will display it in our front window when we open Lopez Brothers in San Francisco!"

In any case, it was no longer the problem of the men from Four Corners.

And then the brothers, swindlers, hurried off toward the train station.

Jaime, a man willing to accept stolen merchandise, ready to betray his friends, darted past a moment later.  He hesitated as if he didn't want to catch up with the Lopez boys, but the train wasn't going to wait, so he followed close behind.

A moment after, Maple and Andy left.  The young husband still limped as they hurried, and his bride clutched tightly at her handbag as made their way to where the freight wagon was waiting – the driver looking annoyed.  She gave Vin a dirty look.  They were schemers, con artists, troublemakers, liars.

Ezra and Vin walked side-by-side on the boardwalk, letting them go.

"Sure am glad that's over," Vin sighed.

"As a I," Ezra responded.

"I sure hope we can get our dinner now."

And a voice behind them said, "Well now, what's going on here?"

They both turned to find Sherriff Stains behind them.

"Ah, Sheriff," Ezra said pleasantly.  "How might we be of assistance?"

"You all are comin' with me," he grumbled.  "Now."

They were directed to the jailhouse.

With a sigh, defeated, they went were Stains led.

The train moved slowly out of town as they headed to the jail.  Alonzo and Rudolfo were in the first car looking straight ahead as if trying to put this all behind them.  The last passenger car held Jaime.  He smiled when he saw them, and waved.

The freight wagon to Roosterville left immediately after the train.  It didn't seem to be comfortable travel, and neither Maple nor Andy looked pleased as they kept their heads down as they left town.  At least they were gone – and weren't going to cause any more trouble.

At the jailhouse door, Stains said dryly, "You've got some explaining to do."

"My, do we have a story to tell," Ezra responded.  He smiled congenially at the Stains, and then to Vin, saying, "Let me do the talking."

by krisserci5

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Gambler and tracker stood side by side, leaning against the cell door of the unpleasant jailhouse in Ridge City, waiting for news.

The conman had spun a fantastic tale.  With all the other participants gone, he could get away with whatever he pleased – and he went on for quite a while until the tale was a confusing mess – not terribly unlike what had really happened.

When Stains tried to get collaboration out of Vin, Ezra had scoffed, saying, "Mr. Tanner is a near-mute.  Gettin' more than two words out of him at a time is a colossal chore."

In the end, Vin nodded mostly, against his better judgment.

The necklace was currently in the hands of young Miss Bernice Perkins.  The sheriff had taken Ezra's advice, and sent for an expert in town, the pawn broker, who could judge the quality of the jewels.  Hopefully he would be a good and honest man.

It was hard to find that sort in Ridge City.

"This is what comes of attemptin' to the do the right thing," Ezra muttered.

"We tried…" Vin started.  "Don't see how it got so wrong."  He sighed.  "Hopefully we'll get let loose before nightfall so we can head home."

"If that doesn't happen, perhaps we can find room at the Mamie?  A simpleton could break into it, but it is the finest hotel in town."

In the quiet, Vin's stomach growled discontentedly.  "Still haven't had our supper," he mumbled.

"Of this, I am well aware," Ezra responded.  "Paid for it twice…"

"I want some dinner."

"With any luck, our story will be enough, and if the jewels are decreed to be genuine, we'll be out soon."

And again silence as people milled around outside.

"We tried to do a good deed," Vin said after a moment.  "Tried to shine that candle…"

Ezra chuckled.  "I should have said it at the time, but whenever I hear people spouting that particular quote about performing good deeds bein' like a candle in the darkness, I can only think of a different saying."

Vin leaned against the cell door and said quietly, "No good deed goes unpunished?"

"That's the one."

THE END

by krisserci5

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