No Way Out

Daric Emmerson is usually the odd man out at the Spiked Tiger. While his height and build make him the perfect doorman, his personality and background make it painfully obvious that he belongs somewhere far from the dark business that is the illegal liquor trade. He was born in a small town outside of Dallas, Texas his family was as country as they come. He was the oldest of 8 and didn’t learn how to read until he was well into his teens. His father died of pneumonia when he was 16 and he took over the daily chores at the farm. He struggled to provide for his family and soon he was caught up with a gang of cattle rustlers in order to keep his family afloat. It was fine and he probably would have grown up into a proper hoodlum if it wasn’t for that fateful day…. ”Maw! There’s a fancy lookin’ feller outside!” The youngest of the Emmerson family shouted to his mother from his spot at the window. The short colt hopped down from his chair to greet the man who rapped his knuckles on the door. “Gee, he even knocks all fancy like,” He muttered before swinging the door open, “Howdy sir! Yer lookin’ fer someone?” The tall Andalusian at the entrance removed his monocle with a look of disdain at the tyke before clearing his throat. “Yes, I am looking for someone. A Mr. Derek Emmerson.” He spoke above the colt, in a proper British accent, looking straight ahead. The young one gave him a funny look before understanding dawned on him. “Ohh you mean Daric! Yea he’s around back, I’ll go get him!” He took off without another word, leaving the guest in a rather awkward position. Lucky for him he was saved when a short and swat filly emerged from one of the rooms in the back. She was covered in flour and had an apron on her wide frame. Her warm smile was genuine and she motioned for the Andalusian to make himself comfortable. “So sorry ‘bout tha, lil’ DJ is a bit of o’ a wild one. I’m Gael Emmerson, I heard you were lookin’ for my son?” Her thick Irish accent took the guest a second longer to decipher before he responded. “Ah, yes. It seems as if there has been a bit of an issue with my boss. Nothing serious, he just wants to talk to the boy. I’m Rex Worthington of the Lazuli Estate. My boss and I recently purchased the plot of land down the road.” “Oh? Nice to finally meet ya-” Gael stopped short, remembering the large house that was build on the 100 acre plot. She also remembered the rumors that had been circulating about the…activities that had gone on in that that house. All the result of the rather ‘eccentric’ preferences of the owner. She eyed Rex a bit closer, looking for signs that he was a part of the eccentric lifestyle of his boss. Before she oculd come to a conclusion her son trudged through the back door, covered in a fine layer of dirt and dust. He set down the long axe and dusted himself off a bit before stomping over to Rex and his mother. He gave his mother’s shoulder a small squeeze before extending a hand to the other adult in the room. “Heard ya was lookin’ fer me? What can I do ya fer?” The other equine accepted his extended hand in a firm grasp. “Maybe it would be best if we stepped outside for this chat.” Rex eyeballed Gael and the small herd of young ones that had gathered to gawk at the fancy guy looking for their big brother. Daric glanced back before nodding solemnly and lead the way out the front door. Once the two were a good distance from the run down house Daric crossed his arms and sized up the other horse. “Well?” He drawled lazily waiting for Rex to reveal why he had come looking for him. Rex gave the younger male a look of contempt before getting down to business. “Right, I’m Rex Worthington of the Lazuli Estate. I’d love to skip the pleasantries and get right down to it. You and I both know exactly why I’m here Mr. Emmerson. You and your band of merry men took something of great value from my boss’ home. Now my boss is a kind man and all will be forgiven if you’d just return what you took and offered up an apology.” Rex fixed Daric with a hard stare, his irritation only growing when Daric shrugged his wide shoulders. “Can’t. Pawned it.” He picked at some dirt under his fingernails and sucked his teeth as he waited for Rex’s response. “How unfortunate.” Rex tisked, his expression growing dark before he jerked his head in the direction of the swanky motor vehicle a few feet away. Daric’s head snapped up at the sound of the back doors opening and two hulking figures stepping out of the car. They flanked the slightly smaller male and grabbed him none too gently under the arms. “Hey! Whadya doin? Put me down!” Daric was quickly silenced with a swift backhand across the face. It was then that Gael ran out of the house yelling and waving a ladle around. “Now, now ma’am we’ll bring him back in one piece more or less. After a quick chat with my boss.” Rex hustled the two back into the car, the thugs dragging Daric’s unconscious body between them. The short ride back to the estate was long enough for the Appaloosa to rouse from his forced slumber. He rubbed his cheek slowly as he processed exactly how much trouble he was in. With a quite groan he vowed to beat Old Jack senseless for getting him into this mess…provided he came out of this alive. TBC… ------------------------ Decided to break this one up in two parts. Poor Daric! He’s just a kid, I hope Rex’ boss doesn’t work him over too much. :o Edit: I also feel as if I need to clarify a potentially confusing point of this story. By 'cattle rustlers' I mean that Daric was involved with a group of bovines who steal things and cause general trouble for others. Not that he is involved in a group of bandits that steals cattle from their owners (because that would add some freaky Animal Farm-esque aspect to this world X3)