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No one liked the future Luther John Prescott had given them.
But it was better than getting into deeper trouble.
Luther had sent back the report to his grandfather.
Dear John Prescott…
Tumbleweed has not had any major developments so far. No one here has taken their jobs seriously. Miss Crabtree is practically illiterate, Harry has very little blueprints, Sheriff Plunket is too lazy to do his job, Lawyer Maxwell has been disbarred, Almira is a convicted felon, and Doc Snipes is, in fact, a horse doctor.
However, I am inclined to give them a second chance. While their story about the Kansas City Kid was quite ridiculous, a man by the name Tom Burns swindled them into giving him all their money, and I suspect Lily De Lilac was his assistant. They have learned their lesson, and could turn this place into something amazing.
Your Grandson, Luther John Prescott III
He put down the quill back into the ink and looked up from the paper to find Mayor Oates staring at him intently.
Luther sighed. “No, Mayor, I did not lie to my Grandfather." Luther told him, exasperated with his obsession with keeping all the money for himself.
Mayor Oates groaned. Luther ignored him and shoved past him, heading out of the hotel, headed towards the post office.
When he got there, he was greeted by Almira Sessions, the postmistress.
“Hello there Luther!” Almira greeted him. “What do you have for me?”
Luther handed her the report. “For my grandfather.” He told her gruffly.
Almira nodded curtly, taking the letter from his hand. “I presume it wasn't all sunshine and rainbows?” She guessed.
“No, Almira. I know about the past of everyone here in Tumbleweed. Even yours.” He stated. Almira tensed.
“But I'm willing to see the bright side of things. My grandfather will make the final decision, however.” Luther continued.
Almira nodded in understanding. She turned around briskly and started walking to the cabinet.
“Gert Dooley should be back in about a week. He'll take it on stage then.” She called over her shoulder.
Luther walked out of the post office. Sometimes, he missed when he was known as “Luther the Desert Rat.” But the sort of… fear that people had for him now made him pleased.
Next stop, the jailhouse.
As expected, Sheriff Plunket had still not gotten rid of the chickens he claimed to not be his.
They were roaming around the empty prison cells, with the Sheriff being nowhere to be seen.
“Sheriff Plunket!” Luther called, his voice echoing across the empty building.
“Sheriff!!” Luther yelled again.
The only response was the cluck of a chicken pecking at his feet.
Luther sighed as he shook off the chicken and wandered up the creaking stairs.
There, he found the Sheriff dozing off with a bag of grain in his hand.
Luther shook him awake. Sheriff Plunket shot up and instinctively reached for his pistols.
“Ah, Luther. It's just you.” The Sheriff grumbled. “Whaddya want?”
“I thought you said you were getting rid of the chickens?”
The Sheriff sighed. “I was hoping we could make a compromise.” He began. “Harry could help build a barn for these guys?”
Luther thought about it for a moment. “You'll need to talk to Harry, but it's fine on my part.” He answered eventually.
The Sheriff loosened up, relieved. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I would like to continue my sleep.” He stated, still sounding annoyed.
Luther stopped him. “You need to catch Professor Burns. He needs some of those beans from Electra.” Luther reminded him.
The Sheriff shot up instantly. “That rascal doesn't even deserve those disgusting beans.” He growled, angrily walking out of the building, clutching the pistols at his sides. Luther followed.
Once outside, Luther decided to walk past the schoolhouse.
Outside, he saw Harry and Victoria Dobbs walking their two daughters to the school. Victoria glanced up briefly, her eyes meeting Luther's.
“You girls know what Luther said!” Victoria whispered. “I don't care what you think about Miss Crabtree, I don't want to lose more money than we already have!”
The Dobb sisters just groaned.
Luther walked up to Harry, who was watching him closely.
“Harry Dobbs. A word?” Luther invited.
Harry immediately walked over and bowed. “At your service, Luther John Prescott.” He muttered respectfully.
“I am not a king, Harry. Please stand up.” Luther stated sternly. Harry got up immediately.
“Anyway, Sheriff Plunket was wondering if you could come up with some blueprints of a barn.” Luther continued.
The two walked over to the Dobb apartment and Harry pulled out some paper.
By the time the two had finished discussing their ideas, it was dark.
“Gert isn't back yet. You'll have to purchase a hotel room.” Harry noted.
Luther groaned internally. He didn't want to spend another minute with the Oates family!!
Oates..
Julie Oates…
Maybe the hotel wouldn't be so bad.
He wandered back to the hotel.
Luther rang the service bell, and Miranda walked out from the door that led to her apartment.
“Luther!” She gasped, surprised. What are you doing here?”
“I need a room. Gert isn't back yet.” He stated plainly. If he was being honest, he wasn't fond of Miranda.
“Of course. Anything for our guest from Boston!!” She exclaimed, putting on a clearly fake smile. She most likely still wasn't over the whole… Kansas City Kid robbery. “Dining Room's to the left. I'll get Electra to prepare some supper.
Luther calmly walked to the dining room and sat down, waiting for Electra.
However, she wasn't the first face that walked through the door.
“Luther!!” Julie Oates squealed, running to the inspector. “I thought Poppa didn't want ya here anymore!”
Luther chuckled. “That was before they figured out I was the inspector.” He pointed out. “Now they want me to stay.”
Julie giggled. “Oh Luther…” She whispered. “Do you think Father would mind if we married?”
Luther sighed. “Not certain.. I need to head back to Boston as soon as possible, however.” He replied.
Julie let out a noise of protest.
“I'll be back in a couple of years to see how the town is progressing.” He reassured her, noticing Julie's reluctance.
Julie let out a sad, shaky sigh and headed back to her bedroom.
After the oh-so-sassy Electra brought Luther his delicately crafted supper, Luther stepped out to the hotel room.
The room with the blue wallpaper and the rug.
As he fell asleep, his dreams were filled with the beauty of Julie Oates.