<hr/><div class="floatleft">(http://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/a/a4/Flatbush.png)</div><br/><strong>Name:</strong>Charlie Flatbush<br/><strong>Faction:</strong>Law Dogs (3)<br/><strong>Date:</strong>May 18th, 1876<br/><strong>Time of Day:</strong>Morning<br/><strong>Location:</strong>Helga’s Wafflehaus<br/><strong>Tagged:</strong>Avery Burnam; CLOSED<br/><hr/><br/>“Mmm… not to disparage your detectin’ abilities, but I didn’t expect you were rolling in fundament,” he mused, gesturing to the coffee.  “I figured you’d landed yourself some work.”  He gave a small nod at the mention of Avery’s new boss.  “Just be careful with the Whateleys.  Once they get their hooks in someone they don’t like to pull ‘em free.”  He gave a small shrug.  “I’ll meet you up at the asylum.  Don’t… tell Bilton.”  He shook his head.  “He’s already pissed the Judge isn’t willing to just hang her up without a trial.  Thinks the whole mess’ll be better if its just over with.  You gatherin’ evidence is gonna make him… doubt your loyalty to the Law Dogs.”  He frowned.  “Don’t get me wrong.  He’ll be right as rain if you manage to figure out who really done it and let him make the arrest.  He knows its a blunder.  But the whole town’s uneasy, they want something that looks like justice, even if it ain’t.”<br/><br/>He gave a small nod.  “I could really give a damn about the Sheriff’s office coming out with some egg on its face.  I know it’ll send Bilton into a fit, but say the wrong thing on a Tuesday and he’s liable to mark you for an early grave.  It doesn’t hurt my feelings any if he gets enough rope to lynch himself.  More than that, though…”  He glanced out toward the mesa, fingers closing around his coffee cup.  “Whatever did all that?  Whoever did all that?  I’m pretty damn sure they’re still out there.  So worst case, we try the girl, Bilton manages to fix the result somehow, and the whole world watches some poor girl dance on a rope.  Then it hits again.  More folks die.  Not only are they just as afraid of the thing goin’ bump in the night, they<em>know</em>their Law Dogs are either incompetent or lyin’ to their face.  Neither one is gonna leave this town anything like peaceful for long.”<br/><br/>He tilted the cup back, and gave a small smile.  “Nah.  Nah, you don’t owe me a dime.  Just call it a favor.”  He smiled a little broader.  “Or a solemn promise if you see someone levelling a shotgun at my back you’ll put a hole in ‘em.”  He smiled and snagged Dora by the wrist, who gave a smile and dropped into his lap largely on momentum alone.  She shot him a not-the-least-bit-reproachful look and smacked him on the chest.<br/><br/>“You get a check for us, darling?”  She gave a little blush, and looked between him and Avery.<br/><br/>“Nope.  Mama don’t let us charge Law Dogs for drinks.  Even the rascals.”  She scoot off his lap, and smiled at Avery, her scandalously short skirt swishing as she walked away.<br/><hr/><div class="floatleft">(https://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/3/39/Townsend.png)</div><br/><strong>Name:</strong>John "Townsend" Templeton<br/><strong>Faction:</strong>Law Dog (Rank 3)<br/><strong>Date:</strong>May 18th<br/><strong>Time of Day:</strong>Morning<br/><strong>Location:</strong>Sheriff's Office<br/><strong>Tagged:</strong>Avery, Delores, CLOSED<br/><hr/>Townsend looked up with the arrival of the freelance detective, and he narrowed his eyes for a moment, then returned his attention to the apple he was peeling.  He continued to wind it slowly around the peel, keeping that rind in one long strip as Avery re-introduced himself.  His eyes narrowed and he glanced up sharply as Nicodemus Whateley was mentioned.  The perfect slice of apple rind broke with a tiny twitch of muscle, and he scowled.<br/><br/>“If you can shut her up, you can stay in there as long as you damn well please.”  He reached for a key-ring, tossing it over the desk towards Avery, and sliced a chunk of apple and chewed it.  “She leaves the cage, she’s gonna take a double barrel to the chest.”<br/>