Episode 2: Departure

Betty starts to doze as she rocks back and forth in her chair on the porch. A slight gust of wind blows open the front door and when it slams shut, Betty is startled. She looks over her shoulder and Betty swears her husband just walked inside. This image lures Betty into the house where everything seems to be in place. Betty slowly walks down the hall, shotgun at the ready. Just as she decides there is nothing amiss, a coyote howls right outside the back door. The coyote is digging a burrow, not even 50 paces from the cabin. His incessant howling is accompanied by an odd scraping sound that is driving Betty mad. She fires her shotgun into the air to scare away the young coyote and Betty ambles over to investigate the burrow. A small, wooden box, now covered in scratch marks, halted the coyote’s digging. Betty retrieves the box and peers inside to find what appear to be dirt- covered rocks. As she starts to rub the dirt off, Betty notices a glimmer and she thinks to herself, “These may not be ordinary rocks– but they couldn’t be?” Betty’s husband has left her- gold! This could be Betty’s ticket out of town. Betty takes the box and goes inside. As she falls asleep, she thinks of new adventures in far off lands.

Sunlight peeks through the curtains and Betty is awakened. This is the day that Betty will begin a new phase in her life. She puts her hat on, grabs the box and her shotgun and heads for the door without looking back. Betty heads straight to the train station and hops on the caboose as the first trains leaves. Where she is going, Betty has no clue. Betty is watching the world go by and daydreaming about her first encounter with Deadeye Jack. After the mining accident, Betty went into town to pick up some food at the local market when she was accosted by a band of ruffians and Jack came to her aid. It was then that Betty knew she needed to perfect her shooting skills; she had to fend for herself now. Jack taught Betty how to handle a gun, putting his strong arms around her, showing her proper shooting techniques. How could Betty not fall for her hero? Thoughts of Jack drift away as Betty notices a beautiful young woman making her way through the train car. She hears the men as they call her over- “Josie!” Betty watches as Josie hugs a man and whispers in his ear, meanwhile taking his wallet. Instinctively, Betty clutches the wooden box closer, the slight move catching young Josie’s eye. To avoid altercation, Betty walks out the back door of the train car. Josie slowly follows, making her way through the crowd of men. Betty decides to hop the train as it slows down for the next stop. Little does she know, as Betty scrambles away from the train, Josie has also jumped the train, figuring that what’s in the box must be worth the risk.

~ Episode by Jamie Buning

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