Open Starter

Muse: Samuel (Sam) Silas

Verse: Redwood (Modern Cowboy)

Closing time in some small towns usually means the point the town Sheriff arrives to order the last drunken revellers to stumble on home. In Redwood however, that’s unlikely to happen, mainly because it is the town Sheriff himself; Samuel Silas, who is among the drunken revellers tonight. Sam has occupied the same barstool for the past three hours and while his expression shows no signs of over-intoxication, his legs when he attempts to stand, are definitely telling a different story.

Shifting awkwardly on the small barstool, Sam takes another slow sip of bourbon, watching as a row of people begin what looks to be some kind of badly co-ordinated line dance. Turning back towards the bar, the Sheriff tries to concentrate on the warm hum of his drink in a failed attempt to banish all thoughts of the body he and his men found at the East edge of the forest today.

With his dog Seamus fed just before Sam left for the bar tonight, there’s no particular rush for him to return home, after all, it’s unlikely he’ll sleep. It’s already begun; that feeling, that dull aching anger and easily raised suspicion; if there’s a murderer here in Redwood, Sam’s going to find them.

Stumbling over to the jukebox, Sam slides in a few coins before beginning to scroll through the selections, desperate to find something a little less Garth Brooks, at this point anything else will do.

Sensing someone sidle up beside him, Sam nods towards the track list, his gaze slowly travelling down the list of songs.

“Any requests?”

redwood: modern cowboy verse 

Originally hailing from Killarney, Ireland, Samuel’s Father, Conor Silas, was a cattle hand who worked for several ranchers in Texas alongside the vaqueros, herding livestock on cattle ranches before relocating West to California to work for a very successful mesteñero that caught, broke and drove wild horses to market. Eventually, having saved enough money to move on, Conor established his own ranch near the San Joaquin Valley in Clayton, California. It was a little later that Samuel was born, though tragically his Mother died shortly after, due to complications caused by his birth.

Samuel was raised by his Father and as a boy worked on the Silas family ranch helping to run the family business, honing his skills as a ranch hand to become capable of breaking even the most stubborn Mustang. With most of his family still living back in Ireland, Samuel was raised by his Father, the ranch hands he employed, mostly immigrants, like Conor himself and their wives; an extended multi-cultural family who saw to it Sam was always well looked after and helped him to become fluent in Spanish. His childhood, though tainted with the loss of his Mother, was never-the-less a happy one, spent outdoors mostly, growing in the sun and working with horses.  

At the age of 19, having grown restless in Clayton, Sam left the family ranch to take up a position with the Sacramento Sheriff’s Office as a Trainee Officer. After completing his education and training, he worked as an officer for five years before receiving multiple promotions over the decades, moving up from Sergeant to Lieutenant, then from Captain to Major. As a Major, he was shot twice during a siege involving hostages and nearly died from his injuries. His recovery was long and hard, but following it, he was awarded a medal and the position of acting Colonel in Sacramento. At the age of 38 he was successful in obtaining the position of Sheriff’s Deputy in the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office, Eureka, California.

Now 39, Sam lives in Willow Creek, California, a small town of less than 2000 people, famed for its Bigfoot Museum, nestled in the heart of the Six Rivers National Forest. Sam lives in a large wooden cabin on the edge of the forest with his dog; a one-year-old Irish Wolfhound, called Seamus and his horse, Diego; a dark brown Mustang that Samuel caught and tamed himself, when visiting the family ranch during his extended medical leave, taken after the shooting.  

Samuel has had a few relationships over the years, with both men and with women, but none of these have really ever stuck. This is likely a result of his ambition and strong sense of justice, both of which have led to Samuel prioritising his career over his relationships, much against the advice of his aging Father, who would like nothing more than to see him finally settle down with someone and be happy. Though they never speak of it, Samuel’s explicitly aware that it is his Father’s greatest hope that one day he will give up law enforcement and return to take over the family business at the ranch in Clayton.

(Please note, for the sake of flexibility in threads, Sam’s backstory can be adjusted to move him to any small town in the USA.)