bullyxtreme Chapter 96 The neighboring ranch is robbed; the Dutton family's ranch is being targeted.
Chapter 96 The neighboring ranch is robbed; the Dutton family's ranch is being targeted.
Chapter 96 The neighboring ranch is robbed; the Dutton family's ranch is being targeted.
"Dutton House" Ranch is located 30 miles outside the town, next to the river, with the Covington family's land on both sides.
The Covington family was gone; only some old cowboys remained on the ranch.
When the weather is warm, you can occasionally see them going to the river to fetch water, or driving their cattle up the hillside to graze.
However, as the chill intensified, the number of times the two sides met became extremely limited.
No one expected that at this moment of frozen stillness, a pair of large hands belonging to strangers would suddenly reach out from outside the fence of "Dutton House"!
next second!
boom!
Gunshots ripped through the frigid air! An old cowboy from the Covington family fell to the ground in response.
The shooter stood outside the fence, facing the people of "Dutton House" through the wind and snow with a cold gaze.
Suddenly, he abruptly ripped off his hood, revealing a ferocious face with a cruel smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
He raised his hand, palm down, and made a throat-slitting gesture!
boom!
James reacted with lightning speed!
He stepped forward, drew his gun, aimed, and fired!
The movements were executed in one smooth motion!
The bullet pierced the bandit's forehead with pinpoint accuracy, and blood spurted out, instantly staining the snow beneath him red.
The members of "Dutton House" tensed up, drawing their guns and nervously pointing them at the bandits committing violence at Covington Ranch in the distance.
However, something strange happened: the bandits did not immediately retaliate!
One of them lowered his spear, slowly raised his hands above his head, and walked step by step towards the corpse on the ground. A deep voice came from under his hood: "We mean no harm, we just want to collect the body!"
No malicious intent? Could the body lying on the ground have committed suicide?
The crowd watched helplessly as the bandit carried his comrade's corpse and retreated step by step.
"Why don't they fire?" someone asked in a low voice.
"The timing isn't right," James said sharply. "Their guns aren't firing, or—we're not part of their plan yet!"
In either case, the "Dutton House" has been shrouded in the shadow of death.
"Why don't we just charge straight in?" Ennis gripped the handle of his gun tightly.
James glanced behind him and saw Cooper, Zach, Simone, Jonah, and Tom. Including himself, there were only seven people.
He said in a deep voice, "We don't have enough manpower!"
The "Dutton House" is short-handed in terms of combat strength.
If Tom's right hand hadn't been severely frostbitten and unable to hold a gun, James would have really considered leading his men to charge over there.
But right now, without Tom as a source of firepower, the bitter cold has almost frozen everyone's bones, and their combat strength has been reduced by more than half.
Close combat?
Besides James himself, who else can hold on?
That shot just now was unavoidable!
If we don't respond swiftly to such blatant provocation, those jackals will probably pounce on us in the next second!
The group retreated back into the house with solemn expressions.
"What happened?" Margaret approached, her voice filled with unease.
James looked at everyone, his tone leaving no room for argument: "Those bandits won't let this go. Everyone, be alert! Keep your weapons on!"
Tom's gaze, however, remained fixed on the direction of Covington Ranch through the window.
The bandits did not leave; instead, like hungry wolves that had smelled blood, they turned their greedy eyes toward "Dutton House".
Why didn't they retaliate immediately?
A cold smile crept across Tom's lips.
It's just that this damn cold makes it impossible for them to even draw their guns!
But the moment they would take action against "Dutton House" was rapidly approaching as the cold wave intensified.
Tom withdrew his gaze and turned to the ominous-shrouded ranch, a cold glint in his eyes: "They're courting death!"
At night, Tom suddenly shook James, Zach, Cooper, Ennis, and Jonah awake.
"Let's take them down tonight!"
Tom's words were like a bucket of ice water, instantly sobering everyone up.
"Now? Tom, are you crazy!" Cook Jonah was the first to exclaim, his voice filled with disbelief.
This awful weather! Going out at night would freeze you to death!
Not to mention, with just a few of them, how could they possibly raid a bandit's den?
It's a miracle that any of them made it back alive!
What Jonah was thinking, everyone else was equally aware of.
"No!" James stared at his son Tom, his voice firm and resolute, without the slightest hesitation.
If Tom's hand were still intact, he might have considered this crazy suggestion, but now—
"I'll take Ennis, Zach, and Cooper! The rest of you will stay and guard, just in case—" Tom tried to persuade them.
"No 'what ifs'!" The bedroom door was flung open, and Margaret, the mother, rushed out, her voice resolute and unwavering. "Let's escape under the cover of darkness!"
"Escape?" Margaret's words made everyone's eyes light up, but Tom's voice was as cold as ice.
"Where can we run to? This ghostly night road is so cold your breath turns to ice; you could freeze to death in just a few steps! Who can withstand it?"
"The Klau tribe!" In the corner, the "Snow Wolf" lying on the bed opened its eyes at some point.
More than a month later, his injuries had mostly healed, and he was able to return to his tribe long ago.
His people hadn't forgotten him and came to fetch him. The shaman's apprentice also came to see him, but he turned them all away.
Tom knew perfectly well that this guy was probably eyeing the dozen or so bison on the ranch, saving the Klaus tribe a lot of food!
Of those fifteen cows, only thirteen remain now.
"If you want to leave, then get out of here. Nobody's stopping you!" Tom retorted, too lazy to bother with him anymore.
"Come with me!" Tom called to Zack, Ennis, and Cooper, and braved the biting wind to rush out the door and head straight for the tool shed.
The chill that penetrated to the bone almost froze you in just a few steps.
Trying to escape in this awful weather?
It's no different from slitting your own throat!
Inside the shed, Tom ripped open the cowhide covering in the corner.
The moment they saw what it was, everyone's pupils contracted sharply, and they held their breath.
"A powder keg!"
That's right, it's gunpowder used in mining!
Tom worked quickly and found detonators, fuses, sturdy oil paper, and cloth in the corner!
"My God! Where did you get this?" Cooper's eyes lit up with excitement as he circled the barrel of gunpowder.
Zack gave Tom a deep look, his gaze inadvertently sweeping over the carriage that had been brought back from Fort Worth, its carriages always covered by a canvas.
Tom checked on it quite a few times.
"You tell me," Tom patted the cold powder keg, a ruthless smirk playing on his lips, "is this enough to send those bastards to their deaths?"
"Enough! Enough for them to fly up and explode into dust!" Cooper growled excitedly.
Just then, the door to the tool shed was pushed open.
James walked in with the others.
He spotted the barrel of dangerous goods at a glance, along with the scattered detonators, fuses, and oil paper, and instantly understood Tom's plan.
"Let's go!" Seeing that James was going to take the lead himself, the others stopped talking and grabbed their gunpowder, detonators, and fuses. They followed James closely, braving the biting wind, like vengeful arrows merging into the night, heading straight for Covington Ranch!
Tom's vision was fixed on the ranch, completely obscuring what lay below.
The hilt of the short knife in his hand was almost embedded in his frozen palm; the slightest movement would turn the knife into a deadly flash!
suddenly!
"Snap!"
A figure covered in snow, like a demon crawling out of hell, suddenly leaped up from the snowdrift beside them!
The figure opened its mouth, and a roar that seemed about to tear the night sky apart rolled from its throat!
Everyone's blood froze instantly!