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His words trickled down and stopped as he realized that the crowd had suddenly fallen silent The people weren’t looking into the Pits of Judg in shock at the back of the hotel Preacher Jack and White Bear whipped their heads around to see a figure standing on the porch He had a pistol in a belt holster and a long Japanese sword slung over his back

"Imura," murmured Preacher Jack; then he threw back his head and bellowed the name It echoed all around the arena "Ihoul He stepped forward and pitched his voice for all to hear "Well, ain’t this just a treat? Cohed, but only the guards laughed with him The people in the bleachers shifted in shocked and uncomfortable silence Preacher Jack held up his hand, and every face turned toward him

"Why am I here?" answered Toh for the crowd to hear him He held out a copy of the bounty sheet and showed it to everyone "It’s pretty clear that you wanted h," answered Preacher Jack "You and your little pack of sinners and murderers"

"By that you , and Lilah?"

"Sinners all" Preacher Jack nodded

"Where are they, Matthias?" To at the pits, "they’re waiting for their chance at redemption"

Tom crumpled up the bounty sheet and dropped it off the porch into the dust "This is between you and round "This is between your farandson Don’t pretend you don’t understand that, Tom Imura It was you who nored the jeering catcalls of the guards and the nervous buzz of the crowd He locked eyes with Preacher Jack "Charlie dealt the cards, Matthias, don’t you pretend he didn’t He ran these hills like they were his personal kingdoot what he wanted He was a parasite, a thief, a murderer, and an abuser of children"

"You don’t dare--," began White Bear, but his father touched his arm

"Let the man have his say Then we’ll see what justice wants from this moment"

As he said it, he let his eyes flick toward the pits

Down below, completely hidden in the shadows, Benny and Nix stared upward as if they could see as happening The voices were rabbed his hand to give it a powerful squeeze

"Nix," Benny breathed, "is that Toe of the porch so everyone could see his tried to raid Sunset Hollow That was my home, my family’s home I marked the place as off-limits Everyone respected that except Charlie He never respected anything … but things didn’t work out so well for hiave him and his men a chance to walk away They didn’t take it Later, when it was just Charlie kneeling in the dirt begging for his life, I let him live because he swore to e his ways, that he wouldn’t do this sort of thing again That he wouldn’t hurt people again I let him live, Matthias I showed him mercy, but as soon as he slunk away he started back up worse than ever"

"I’ve heard that story before," said Preacher Jack "It was a lie then and it’s a lie now No one ever beat Charlie in a fair fight"

Tonored that "Last year Charlie opened a new Gaht tell me where it was Lilah The Lost Girl To find her he broke into Jessie Riley’s house He beat that good wohter, Nix You knohat happened then"

"Yes, I know You laid false charges on Charlie, then you and yours went out and a"

"False charges? I was there, Matthias I held Jessie Riley in my arms when she died I knohat happened Charlie asked for what he got, and ret is that it wasn’t from my own hand"

"Yes … that hell-spawn brother of yours, that devil’s ied some trickster ambush and killed my firstborn son"

The crowd buzz intensified There were dozens of versions of the battle at Charlie’s cauments broke out as facts and suppositions were thrown out

White Bear spun around and roared, "SHUT UP!" His bellow echoed off the walls of the Wawona Hotel The croered into silence

Preacher Jack took a threatening step toward Tom "You had your say, such as it was Now hear n of corruption, bullying, terrorism, and murder is done I call a blood debt on you and yours, and like a farht, I will burn the naainst my faenerations" As he spoke he turned in a slow circle to likewise address the shocked and silent crowd "Anyone who stands with you falls with you So say I and so say mine"

Silence owned the moment except for the constant low moans of the dead strapped to the chairs under the circus tent

Down in the Pits of Judg?"

"I don’t know," said Nix "We have to let Tom knoe’re here!"

Behind theryout to Toood plan, but not at the ht there with a ladder ready to let them climb out, and from what Benny heard, that wasn’t the case If they called to hiht be a fatal distraction for To the walls of the tunnel It was absolutely pitch black Even the torchlight from the ht to keep their breathing as silent as possible, listening for the scuff of a shuffling dead foot or the soft er Except for the powder, they had no weapons left, and Charlie was still out there along with at least fifteen zooogle" style="display:block" data-ad-client="ca-pub-7451196230453695" data-ad-slot="9930101810" data-ad-format="auto" data-full-width-responsive="true"></ins>