RDR: NO REGRETS - Chapter 260: Just in Time (Patreon)

“Thud!”

“You lunatics, aren’t you afraid to die?”

Sadie slammed the butt of her rifle into one of the slaves, the heavy stock knocking him straight to the ground.

Blood immediately sprayed from his skull, splattering Sadie’s face.

Sadie had never felt this exhausted before. Her hands trembled uncontrollably, making the rifle in her grip shake along with them.

She hurriedly backed up several steps, leaning on the rifle as she struggled to catch her breath.

One of the slaves swung a shovel straight at her.

Sadie could only raise her rifle with both hands and use it as a shield to block the blow.

But after being used as a club for so long, the weapon had already been pushed far beyond what it could take. Under the force of the shovel, the rifle finally gave out.

With a sharp crack, the once-sturdy rifle snapped in two.

Sadie hurriedly twisted aside to dodge the strike, only for another slave to knock her to the ground with a wooden club.

Seeing her fall, the remaining slaves immediately rushed at her.

Sadie rolled backward again and again, desperately trying to put some distance between herself and these madmen.

But it wasn’t that easy. There were enemies behind her too.

Several slaves moved around to cut her off from the rear. Sadie scrambled to her feet and immediately ran toward the nearby stairs.

But the staircase had open steps. The moment she set foot on it, the priests who had just climbed onto the deck spotted her and raised their weapons.

Bullets struck the iron staircase, throwing off showers of sparks.

Sadie had no choice but to jump back down, once again facing the seven or eight slaves in front of her alone.

Yes, after that brutal fight, only seven or eight slaves were still standing on the deck.

But Sadie had no weapon left.

She was out of ammunition, and the rifle she had been using to defend herself had been broken in half.

She was completely unarmed.

“Hahaha, you’re pretty tough, aren’t you, little lady?”

Seeing Sadie cornered, one of the priests laughed wildly.

“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. I’ll make you my female slave and make sure you enjoy yourself so much every day you’ll think you’re dying!”

“Oh, my brother, you’d better not forget about me. I get a share of this little lady too.”

The other man laughed.

“I’ve never had one this feisty before.”

Just like that, the two of them began discussing who would get Sadie as if she already belonged to them.

“Pah. Keep dreaming.”

Sadie wiped the blood from her face, then grabbed an axe from the ground and glared at the two priests.

“If you’ve got the guts, come and try me!”

Sadie was never the kind of person who would surrender without a fight.

If they wanted her to submit, they might as well kill her.

“What a shame.”

The priest laughed and shouted to the remaining slaves, “Go on, my slaves! Whoever catches her, I’ll let him enjoy...”

“Bang!”

Before he could finish his boast, a gunshot tore through the night.

A bright spray of blood burst from his head.

“Who’s there?!”

The remaining priest hurriedly raised his weapon and shouted shakily toward the direction the shot had come from.

But before he could even steady his gun, another bullet flew toward him.

It struck him squarely between the eyes.

“You could’ve come a little later, Cowboy.”

Even though Sadie was still surrounded, she laughed without a care.

“I was just about to finish these guys off myself.”

Her answer was a rapid burst of gunfire.

Only a few seconds later, Sadie was the only person left standing on the deck.

Seeing that, she finally collapsed onto the deck with a thud, breathing heavily.

“I’d say I came at exactly the right time, wouldn’t you?”

A familiar voice came from the darkness on the other side of the ship.

When Arthur walked over, Sadie ignored the blood and grime covering the deck and simply lay flat on her back.

“Why are you here? Weren’t you supposed to stay over there?” Sadie asked weakly.

Arthur crouched down and reached out to pull her up.

“You were gone so long I started worrying.”

He took off his coat and draped it over Sadie’s shoulders, then asked in a surprisingly gentle tone, “How are you? Hurt anywhere?”

Sadie moved her aching arms and replied casually, “I’m fine. Just worn out.”

Holding onto Arthur’s hand, Sadie unsteadily got back to her feet.

“I used to watch Stephen cut down that many people by himself without even blinking. I never realized how hard it actually was.”

“Come on, don’t compare yourself to that guy.”

Arthur didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh.

“That man isn’t normal.”

And that was the truth.

Arthur had spent years roaming the West and had met plenty of different Sharpshooters, but someone like Stephen was a first even for him.

Wrapped in Arthur’s slightly damp coat, Sadie suddenly felt a trace of warmth she hadn’t experienced in a very long time.

She hadn’t felt anything like it since her husband died.

Sadie quickly pulled off the coat and shoved it back into Arthur’s hands.

Ignoring his puzzled look, she forced her exhausted body forward and picked up the weapons dropped by the two priests.

“We’d better hurry over and help them.”

Leaning on one of the guns for support, Sadie looked back at Arthur.

“These cultists are complete fanatics. Stephen and the others must be under even more pressure than we were.”

At that, Arthur scratched his head.

“It should be safe here now. You stay here. I’ll go help them.”

Looking at Sadie, who could barely even stand, Arthur spoke firmly.

“You’re in no condition to go back there.”

Sadie frowned at his words.

But she knew he was right.

It was still quite a distance from here to the church. In her current condition, there was no way she could make the trip there and back.

“Move the boat a little farther from the dock.”

Arthur looked around before continuing seriously.

“When we come back, bring it in and pick us up.”

He was thinking about Sadie’s safety.

No one knew how many enemies were still hiding on the island. If Arthur left and a few more suddenly appeared, Sadie in her current state wouldn’t be able to deal with them.

Sadie knew this wasn’t the time to be stubborn.

She nodded firmly, then turned and headed toward the wheelhouse.

Watching her limp away, Arthur couldn’t keep the concern from his eyes.

Good thing he had arrived when he did.

If he had been any later...

Arthur shook his head, driving those thoughts from his mind.

He drew his weapon, jumped onto the dock, and quickly headed toward the church.