All I Have - A Red Dead Redemption 2 Story - Chapter Twenty Three
Requests are CLOSED while I catch up!
Synopsis:
Sage Marston is the younger sister of John Marston, member of the notorious Van Der Linde Gang. After being separated as children, John finds his sister and invites her to run away with him and the gang.
As Sage quickly becomes a member of the family and valued member of the gang, she also falls in love with the charismatic leader, Dutch Van Der Linde. But little does she know, another member of the gang is falling in love with her, as well.
How will Sage cope with being a member of the gang? And what will happen when Dutch begins to lose himself?
Dutch Van Der Linde x OC
Arthur Morgan x OC
Major spoilers for RDR2
Sage stood, running into Arthur’s arms. He held her tightly, embracing her. He felt different. He was much smaller than before. Sage immediately began to worry - something was wrong, she could feel it. But right now, she was just happy to have him home again.
Arthur ran his hand through Sage’s long, soft hair as her tears stained his shirt. She never wanted to let go.
“Hey Arthur, they got John,” Abigail said, walking up to the two of them cautiously, concern etched on her face.
“Yeah, he got arrested,” Sadie said.
“He ain’t hung yet?” Arthur asked, reluctantly parting from Sage and moving to sit next to Abigail.
“Not yet…” Sadie said. “They moved him to Sisika. He’s been working on a chain gang.”
Arthur sighed.
Pearson brought Arthur some food over, and he took it gratefully, immediately taking a bite. Sage sat next to him, leaning in so only he could hear her.
“Arthur...have you seen Dutch?” she asked.
Arthur looked at her, sadness in his eyes. “We split up when we got back on land. I’m sure he’ll find us soon enough.”
Sage nodded, the worry staying with her.
//
Later that night, things were quiet. Most of the gang was asleep, including August, but Sage, Arthur, and a few other members remained awake. Sage looked up from where she was speaking with Arthur as they heard the door to the small cabin open.
“Dutch!” she gasped, immediately jumping up and running to him. The rest of the gang called out cheerful greetings. He looked terrible, but he was alive.
Dutch patted her gently on the back, never giving her his full attention. “Where’s August?” he asked.
“Sleeping in his crib,” Sage said.
Dutch quickly made his way over to the crib, scooping up his sleeping son and holding him to his chest. August woke, but Sage was surprised he didn’t cry. Instead, he made happy cooing noises as he grasped onto his father’s shirt.
“He’s gotten so big,” Dutch remarked, emotion in his eyes.
Abigail ran over to him quickly. “Dutch, Dutch, they got John,” she said.
“Okay, okay,” he said to her, trying to calm her. He kept his attention on the baby, a huge smile on his face as the rest of the gang crowded around him to welcome him back. Sage stood in the corner, feeling left out and a little rejected.
“How did you folks find each other? Can...can somebody get me a cup of coffee or something?” Dutch asked with a laugh as he sat August on his hip.
“It was Mrs. Adler who saved us,” Strauss said. “After the robbery in Saint Denis, she got us away from the camp before the Pinkertons turned up. Then, Mrs. Adler and Mr. Smith drove away the degenerates who were living here.”
Dutch turned to Sadie, a warm smile on his face. “Mrs. Adler, we owe you.”
The gang cheered for Sadie, including Sage.
“It’s been real hard, Dutch...we been surviving, but only just. What we gonna do?” Tilly said.
“Things have been tough...there ain’t no doubt about that. Trust me...I am gonna get us out of here. This ain’t over.”
“Ain’t none of you folks interested in our adventures?” Micah asked, cutting in.
“Guess we’re more interested in escaping the hangmen on our tail,” Abigail said.
“Cheerful nymph of the prairie, wasn’t you, Abigail?”
“Oh sure, my fair heart jumps for joy when I set eyes on you, Micah.”
Micah laughed, before the mood began to turn somber.
“We buried Hosea, Dutch,” Abigail said. “Charles, Sage and I stole his body from the law one night and gave him a proper burial. It was real nice.”
The gang nodded in agreement, just before the door to the cabin burst open.
“Well here you is,” Bill said, angrily. “Well I asked everyone I could find, and eventually someone knew. Said you fools were out here. Shit...get me a drink or something.”
“Get your own damn drink!” Sadie shot back.
“In our absence, Mrs. Adler has been looking after things,” Dutch said. “Now sit. down.”
Bill grumbled, but sat down without a word anyway.
“This is Agent Milton with the Pinkerton Detective Agency!” Came a voice from outside.
“Already?” Dutch gasped, holding August closer. Arthur wrapped an arm around Sage, pulling her into him protectively.
“On behalf of Cornwall Kerosene and Tar, the United States government, and the Commonwealth of West Elizabeth, we are here to arrest you!”
“Here we go....” Dutch said, handing August to Sage and pulling his gun out. Sage grabbed her son and moved back away from the windows.
The gunshots began flying through the cabin without warning.
“Sage, get down!” Arthur called.
Sage ducked down, the now crying baby in her arms. A fire started in the cabin, and Charles grabbed onto her, helping to pull the two of them out of the cabin. Charles led her to another small building off to the side of the property, pushing her and August inside.
“Stay here,” he said gruffly, then shut the door before she could say a word.
Sage wanted to help, but her instinct to protect her child came first. She sat against the wall of the small shed, clutching the baby to her chest and trying to quiet him down. She could hear the battle raging on outside. A tear ran down her cheek, which she ignored. She couldn’t handle losing any other members of the gang. But she couldn’t think about that now. She had to be strong.
Finally, after a while, things quieted down. Arthur called for Sage to come out of the shed. Cautiously, she stepped out, making sure there were no more Pinkertons hiding about. Once she was sure the coast was clear, she made her way to the rest of the gang.
“You saved us, Arthur,” Dutch said.
“Well, me and...Bill and Sadie,” Arthur said, out of breath. He coughed a few times.
“You okay, son?”
“Sure,” Arthur said, waving him off. “What...what do we do, Dutch?”
“Clearly we need to leave. It’ll take them some time to regroup. Mr. Pearson, Miss Grimshaw, start packing up. Javier, you and Bill...get outta here. Go scare off any scum still loitering about. We need a couple of days. Now! Please, gentlemen!”
Javier and Bill took off as Mr. Pearson and Miss Grimshaw began packing up the camp. Sage stood next to Arthur, watching as Dutch leaned against the wagon Arthur was leaning against.
“What next, Dutch?” Arthur asked.
“We just need some time. I just, I, I need some time. Now, we can’t go east, ‘cause then we’ll be in the ocean, so we’re gonna have to go north, I guess? I just need somebody to buy me some…” he slammed his fist on the wagon, “goddamn time, one of you.”
Sage looked at him with worry. He seemed to be losing it a little bit, and it scared her.
“You’ll figure it out boss, you always do,” Micah said.
Dutch walked off with Micah, Abigail running after him, asking about John. Sage was worried about John, too - he was her older brother, after all - but she had to deal with things one at a time or she would drive herself crazy.
Which was something she worried some members of the gang had already come to.
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