pappabearbooks Chapter 480 480: 453. The Gang Arrived To Saint Denis
Chapter 480 480: 453. The Gang Arrived To Saint Denis
If you want to read 20 Chapters ahead and more, be sure to check out my P-Tang12!!!
...
(A/N: Don't forget to give those power stones to Skyrim everyone!)
...
Caleb wore a sharp, custom tailored charcoal suit that projected the absolute, untouchable wealth of a corporate titan. They looked like royalty, a far cry from the dirt stained fugitives who had fled into the Grizzlies just months ago. Suddenly, the ground beneath their boots began to vibrate. A long, piercing, high pitched whistle shattered the ambient noise of the station. "They're here," Caleb murmured, a genuine, wide smile breaking across his face.
A massive, heavy duty steam locomotive came barreling down the tracks, billowing thick clouds of white steam and dark coal smoke into the glass canopy of the station. The squeal of heavy iron brakes engaging filled the air, throwing sparks onto the tracks as the massive machine slowly ground its way along the platform.
At this time, the train finally arrived, bringing Arthur and the gang to their new destiny.
With a final, loud hiss of depressurizing steam, the train finally came to a full, complete stop. The heavy iron doors of the first class passenger cars were thrown open by the conductors, and the passengers could finally come down onto the bustling platform.
Caleb and Mary-Beth immediately scanned the disembarking crowds. It didn't take long to spot them. A group of twenty heavily armed, rugged, and completely out of place frontiersmen stepping off a luxury train car was impossible to miss.
Caleb and Mary-Beth immediately saw Arthur Morgan stepping down first. The big, burly enforcer of the gang wore his classic leather jacket and his battered gambling hat, his hand resting instinctively near the holster of his Cattleman revolver as his sharp eyes scanned the unfamiliar, crowded station for threats.
Right behind him came Hosea, stepping down carefully with his silver hair and sharp, analytical gaze taking in the towering architecture of the city. Then came John Marston, looking incredibly uncomfortable in the dense crowd, helping Abigail down the steep iron steps. Little Jack Marston practically bounded off the train, his eyes wide as saucers as he pointed excitedly at a passing trolley car outside the station arches.
The rest of the family poured out onto the platform. Charles Smith, stoic and silent, carrying two massive duffel bags effortlessly over his broad shoulders. Sadie Adler, her blonde hair tied back, looking around with a fierce, challenging glare that dared any city slicker to look at her wrong. Uncle, groaning about his lumbago the moment his boots hit the pavement.
Lenny Summers and Sean MacGuire hopped down, joking with each other, though their eyes betrayed their nervous awe at the sheer size of the metropolis. Javier Escuella and Bill Williamson followed, looking incredibly out of their element amidst the suited businessmen and porters. Reverend Swanson, looking surprisingly sober, stepped down alongside the formidable, sharp eyed Miss Grimshaw, who immediately began barking orders at the younger girls to keep their luggage close.
Molly O'Shea, Tilly Jackson, and Karen Jones stepped onto the platform, their jaws dropping as they stared at the towering brick buildings and the electric lights. Finally, the gruff camp cook, Simon Pearson, and the nervous, twitchy Kieran Duffy rounded out the massive group, dragging the last of the heavy leather trunks from the baggage car.
The entire Van der Linde gang stood in a tight, protective cluster on the platform, an island of rugged frontier survival dropped directly into the center of Gilded Age civilization.
Of course, the big group also immediately saw the two of them approaching through the crowd. The sea of civilians and porters naturally parted around Caleb and his heavily armed, suited mafia escorts.
When the gang laid eyes on Caleb and Mary-Beth, they were visibly, profoundly surprised. They stopped dead in their tracks, their eyes wide as they took in the sheer, unimaginable opulence of the two people approaching them.
Seeing them wearing quite the fancy clothes, Caleb in his immaculate, razor sharp charcoal suit, and Mary-Beth looking like a wealthy aristocrat in her pale yellow silk dress and parasol,bwas a staggering shock to the system. The last time they had seen Caleb, he was wearing a dusty Vaquero outfit, and Mary-Beth was wearing a faded cotton skirt. Now, they looked like they owned the railroad itself.
Arthur's hand slowly moved away from his gun belt, his hardened, weather beaten face breaking into a look of sheer, baffled astonishment. Hosea let out a soft, highly impressed chuckle, shaking his head.
Caleb and Mary-Beth, of course, took the action to be the first ones to let out the warm, familial greetings to them. They didn't stand on ceremony or wait for the gang to bow to their new wealth.
"Welcome to Saint Denis, Arthur! Hosea!" Caleb called out, his deep voice carrying over the noise of the station as he closed the final few yards. He offered a wide, incredibly genuine smile, the terrifying mob Don completely melting away to reveal the brother who had bled with them.
Mary-Beth let go of Caleb's arm and practically ran the last few steps, throwing her arms around a stunned Tilly and Karen in a massive, joyous hug. "You made it! Oh, I am so happy to see all of you!"
Mary-Beth cheered, tears of happiness pricking her eyes as she embraced her sisters.
Arthur Morgan stepped forward from the group, adjusting his battered hat. He looked at Caleb's expensive suit, then looked at the massive, heavily scarred mafia soldiers (like Silvio) standing respectfully at Caleb's back, treating the former bounty hunter like a king.
Arthur returned their greeting for the entire group, a classic, rough around the edges grin spreading across his face. He reached out and grabbed Caleb's hand, pulling him into a firm, brotherly half embrace, clapping him hard on the shoulder.
"Well I'll be damned," Arthur laughed, his deep, gravelly voice filled with genuine warmth and absolute disbelief. Saying, "It's been a while since the last time we saw each other, Caleb. And from the looks of it... life has been pretty damn great here for the two of you."
Arthur gestured toward Caleb's expensive suit and the fleet of black lacquered carriages waiting at the curb. "You look like you just bought the damn Mayor's office. You rob a bank down here without us?"
Caleb smiled, a brilliant, knowing expression crossing his face. He nodded his head, accepting the compliment, while keeping the absolute, staggering truth of his mafia empire close to the chest for just a few moments longer.
"Something like that, Arthur," Caleb chuckled, stepping back and looking over the tired, dusty, but completely whole and alive family standing before him. It was the greatest victory he could have ever asked for.
Before then, shifting the focus away from his own staggering wealth, Caleb looked at Arthur and Hosea, his tone softening with genuine concern.
"How are things back at the homestead in Valentine?" Caleb asked, his piercing blue eyes shifting between Arthur and Hosea as the bustling noise of the train station echoed around them. He wanted to know the exact status of the property they had left behind. "Before you all packed up your stuffs and left the Heartlands behind, have you made sure that the house is entirely secure and wouldn't be robbed by some desperate drifters or opportunistic outlaws?"
Hosea immediately nodded his head. He offered Caleb a reassuring, highly competent smile, stepping closer so he wouldn't have to shout over the hissing steam of the locomotive.
"Yes, of course, Caleb. We have made absolutely sure that the property is very safe," Hosea confirmed, his voice carrying the steady, reliable tone of a man who had spent his entire life covering his tracks. "We didn't just lock the doors and walk away. We boarded up the ground floor windows from the inside, secured the heavy shutters, and locked down the barns."
Hosea reached into his vest pocket, pulling out a small tin of tobacco, though he didn't open it. "And also, the dog, Cain, was left behind on the property just to make absolutely sure it would guard the homestead for us. You know how fiercely loyal that hound is. He's got plenty of food and water, and he'll raise absolute hell if anyone tries to step foot on that porch."
Arthur chimed in, adjusting his heavy gun belt. "We also used a bit of your legitimate leverage, Caleb. Through your restaurant business in town, Lenny went and contacted Jasper before we rode out. He gave the manager some of the camp funds to be given directly to the Sheriff in Valentine."
Hosea nodded in agreement, detailing the brilliant, highly effective bribe they had orchestrated. "Exactly. We paid the local law a very handsome premium so that the Sheriff would send a couple of his deputies to actively guard the road leading up to the homestead in the early morning and late at night. After all, the Sheriff still firmly believes it is your house, Caleb, the private estate of a very wealthy, highly influential restaurant owner and investor. He's more than happy to protect the property of a man who brings so much legitimate commerce into his muddy little town."
Hearing that flawless, highly strategic explanation, Caleb nodded his head in profound approval. He was incredibly proud of how smoothly they had handled the logistics. "You boys handled that perfectly. You have done the absolute right move in doing that. The homestead will be waiting for us whenever we need it, entirely untouched."
Before then, Caleb's expression shifted, the warmth of the reunion hardening slightly into the serious, uncompromising focus of a man who survived by manipulating the shadows of a dangerous metropolis. He needed to establish the ground rules of their new reality immediately, before a simple slip of the tongue got someone killed.
Caleb continued by looking directly at Arthur, Hosea, and the rest of the gang who were listening closely. "But listen to me very carefully now. We are no longer in the Heartlands, and we are not in the mountains. We are in Saint Denis. The walls have ears, and the streets have eyes."
He lowered his voice, projecting an aura of absolute authority. "From this moment forward, you should all call me McLaughlin in here. Since it was the fake name I established when I first arrived, it is the name that carries weight in this city. Everyone should call me that, and only that. I am McLaughlin."
Caleb's gaze drifted over to where Abigail was holding little Jack's hand. The young boy was staring up at Caleb's fancy suit with wide, innocent eyes. "Also, you need to tell little Jack that he had better just call me 'Uncle' for now. We cannot risk a child's honesty in a crowded market. If he accidentally says my real name in front of the wrong people, it could unravel months of very delicate, highly dangerous work."
Arthur, hearing the absolute gravity in Caleb's voice, immediately nodded his head. The big enforcer understood the necessity of aliases better than anyone alive. "Of course, Caleb. We understand completely. 'McLaughlin' it is. We'll make sure Jack knows the rules before we even leave this platform."
But Arthur's brow furrowed, the deep lines on his forehead creasing with a mixture of intense curiosity and ingrained outlaw paranoia.
He looked around the massive, sprawling train station, at the suited businessmen and the heavily armed guards standing behind Caleb. "But Caleb... why? Why did you invite all of us here to Saint Denis? You told us this city was a wasp's nest. You told us Angelo Bronte and Leviticus Cornwall were tearing each other apart. What changed?"
Caleb just smiled, a deeply confident, incredibly mysterious expression that gave absolutely nothing away. "I will explain all of it later, Arthur. I promise you, everything will make perfect sense once we are behind closed doors. But for now, you should all just gather your bags and follow me and Mary-Beth to my home here in Saint Denis."
After saying that, Caleb turned his back to the gang and raised his hand to call for Silvio.
The giant, heavily scarred mafia enforcer, who had been standing a respectful distance away, immediately stepped forward. Silvio moved with a heavy, terrifying grace, his massive frame completely dwarfing the surrounding civilians on the platform.
As he approached, Arthur instinctively shifted his weight, his hand hovering dangerously close to his Cattleman revolver, recognizing a fellow apex predator when he saw one.
But Caleb effortlessly bridged the gap between the two deadly worlds. He looked at Silvio and told him, his voice echoing with the absolute, unquestionable authority of the Don, that all of these ragged, dusty people were his highly valued family.
"Silvio," Caleb commanded smoothly, gesturing to the bewildered Van der Linde gang. "All of these people are my most important guests. They will be staying back at the mansion with me and the Madam for the foreseeable future. They are under my absolute protection. So you, and every single man under your command, should treat all of them with the absolute utmost respect. Their word is second only to mine."
Silvio, hearing that direct, uncompromising order from the King of the Underworld, did not hesitate for a fraction of a second. The giant enforcer nodded his massive head deeply, bowing respectfully toward Arthur, Hosea, and the rest of the stunned gang.
"Yes, Don McLaughlin," Silvio rumbled, his deep, gravelly voice echoing on the platform. Before saying, "I will make absolutely sure the others understand it as well. Your guests will want for nothing, and no harm will come to them while they are in our city."
The gang was completely speechless. To see a man that large, that heavily armed, and that clearly dangerous bow to Caleb and call him 'Don' was a staggering shock to their reality. John Marston exchanged a bewildered look with Charles Smith, while Uncle simply scratched his beard in sheer disbelief.
...
Name: Caleb Thorne
Age: 23
Body Attributes:
- Strength: 8/10
- Agility: 8/10
- Perception: 9/10
- Stamina: 8/10
- Charm: 8/10
- Luck: 9/10
Skills:
- Handgun (Lvl MAX)
- Rifle (Lvl MAX)
- Firearms Knowledge (Lvl MAX)
- Past Life Memory (Lvl MAX)
- Knife (Lvl MAX)
- Blunt Weapon (Lvl MAX)
- Sneaking (Lvl MAX)
- Horse Mastery (Lvl MAX)
- Poker (Lvl MAX)
- Hand to Hand Combat (Lvl MAX)
- Eagle Eye (Lvl MAX)
- Dead Eye (Lvl MAX)
- Bow (Lvl MAX)
- Pain Nullifier (Lvl MAX)
- Physical Regeneration (Lvl MAX)
- Crafting (Lvl MAX)
- Persuasion (Lvl MAX)
- Mental Fortitude (Lvl MAX)
- Cooking (Lvl MAX)
- Teaching (Lvl MAX)
- Trilingual Language Proficiency - G, I, & C (Lvl MAX)
- Inventory System (Permanent - 100x100x100)
- Acting (Lvl MAX)
- Alcohol Resistance (Lvl MAX)
- Treasure Hunter (Lvl MAX)
- Drugs Resistance (Lvl MAX)
- Business (Lvl MAX)
- Leadership (Lvl MAX)
Money: 3,222 dollars and 60 cents
Inventory: 285,392 dollars and 61 cents, 11 gold nuggets, 74 gold bars, 1 Double Action, 1 Schofield, 2 Colm's Schofields, 1 land deed (Parcel), 1 Mauser, 1 Semi Auto Pistol, 1 Lancaster Repeater, 1 Old Wood Jewelry Box, 1 F.F Mausoleum small brass key, 1 Ruby, 1 Braithwaites Land Deed, 1 Broken Pirate Sword, 1 Milton's Safety Deposit Key, 1 Senator Pendleton Sealed Envelope, Proof Of Marlin-Thorne Firearms Co., 10 Dynamites, 1 LeMat, 1 M1899, 1 Carcano, 1 Ownership deed of Doyle's Tavern, 3 Diamonds, & Important Documents & Deeds Of Cornwall
Bank: -