Standard disclaimer: Trigun and its characters are not mine. I am not making money on this or any of my other works. I am basically trying to relieve some stress by pounding this keyboard and not my hard-headed students!

Brother and sister eyed the bottle of bourbon between them on the scared tabletop. Nickie sighed again in the hot stillness of the tiny bar. Reaching a slim hand toward the bottle, she grasped it by the neck and poured a healthy dose into the two waiting glasses. Nick glanced at her briefly before his own hand brought the amber liquid to his lips. Swallowing quickly, he set the glass back on the table and nodded his thanks to his sister.

"How long have we been looking for Knives, Nick? It's been an awfully long time since we've been home to December. I miss mother and Uncle Vash." Her voice was pitched low enough as she spoke quietly in the stillness. The twins had learned early on in their journey to attract as little attention as possible to themselves.

Nick glanced out the window and around the room cautiously as he surveyed the other occupants in the small saloon before answering. "I think it's been almost 3 years. I sort of lost count of the days when we ran into that typhoon out in the desert a while back." He shrugged carelessly before adding, "Why? Does it really matter?"

"I guess it doesn't. I write mother a letter every time we come to a town with a mailbox. Sometimes, she sends me letters in return when I can tell her where we're going and when we'll be there," she added with a wide smile as her eyes crinkled.

Nick stared at his sister. "How is it possible that she keeps her innocent air? She's totally clueless at times as well," he mused silently. Vash had said his mother had been like that. Even up to the time of her death and all she went through with his father and Knives, his mother had retained her innocent air as well. Nick shook his head. Some of the things they had to deal with and had been through should have been enough to make his sister as jaded and cynical as he was. But, it was still good to see that she was as unchanged as ever.

Nickie suddenly looked concerned and leaned forward to whisper to Nick, "How much money do you have left?"

Nick thought for a moment and mentally did the math. "It's my turn to buy so after I pay for the meals and the drinks, about $$500. What about you?"

"Hmm… I guess about $$400, give or take another $$50." She shrugged. "We're getting low on cash. I wonder if it was so expensive to travel when Mamma and Mother wandered around out here with Pappa and Uncle Vash?"

"So, where do we go to find our next target?" It was Nickie's job to locate the potential sources of income.

"Right over your left shoulder," she whispered softly. "There's the man who was responsible for stealing an awful lot of money from a bank in a town a few hundred iles from here." Her innocent air was lost as her voice took on a deadly calm. "He wounded several people and killed the bank teller for being too slow. I heard that poor man had a wife and two little children too."

Nick glanced in the mirror facing them. Sure enough, there sat the man who was wanted for robbery and murder. "He's worth $$5,000. That much will be enough to hold us for a while." Nick silently took in the man's attire and tried to determine what type of weapon he carried. "One gun on the left hip, and probably one hidden somewhere on him. There's probably a knife too."

Nickie eyes drifted around the room and casually lingered on the man in question. He had an unkept appearance, sporting several days' growth of beard and shaggy brown hair that didn't look as if it had been washed recently. A flat brimmed hat was pulled low over his eyes and a narrow scar traced its way down one cheek. Tall boots encased his feet, and Nickie's trained eyes caught the small portion of a dagger hilt, just visible in the top of his left boot. His clothes were filthy as well, but in a place like this, it didn’t really matter. As long as you had money to pay, no one questioned anything.

She tensed slightly and then forced herself to relax. These things had to be handled carefully. If not then some innocent person could be caught in the crossfire if a gun battle erupted. She glanced at Nick, who was casually sipping on another glass of bourbon. Her eyes narrowed as she prepared to stalk her prey. "The usual plan?" she questioned softly.

Nick met her eyes with a silent nod. He didn't like her to put herself in danger, but she was the best weapon they had when it came to providing a suitable distraction. Nickie was a beautiful woman and even he would admit that if she weren't his sister, then he would be at her door to ask her out.

There had been several men in December that had asked for her hand in marriage, but none of them had been right for her. At least that was the excuse she had always given. She'd told him three years ago that she was waiting for someone to come back. Try as he might, he could not name a single man that he knew of who'd left December that Nickie had shown an interest.

Even though her reasons were the same as his own, he knew it wasn't right for her to be out here with him. He wanted her to remain at home and to have a normal life and to have a family of her own. He would have been glad to come visit her and have his nieces and nephews crawl onto his lap looking for treats and stories. Just like his sire, Nick liked little kids. They were sweet and uncorrupted by the world around them and that made them something special.

But, Nickie had been firm and insistent about accompanying him. She had reminded him of their vow at fifteen to hunt down and kill Knives, of their need to exact a heavy toll for his murder of their own parents as well as for those people in the towns that had simply vanished. Her voice had been deadly when she said she would see that he paid for the horrible way he had treated their mother. It was at times like those, that Nick had seen the steel in his sister that Meryl had told him his mother displayed on rare occasion. But, the one thing that bothered him was the fact that Nickie didn’t like to see anyone killed, even if it was the criminals they hunted for bounty money.

Their traveling money had run out after six months and not wanting to return home, Nickie had been the one to suggest the idea of bounty hunting. After all, she had pointed out, they frequently saw people whose faces appeared on wanted posters as they traveled. And they would be doing everyone a lot of good if they helped removed dangerous criminals from the streets.

Nick had reluctantly agreed with her. It would have been embarrassing to go home after six months because of not having enough money. His mother and Meryl had often been forced to find part-time jobs just to keep up with Vash's travels. Somehow, working in some office or in a shop didn't really appeal to him so he had agreed to try the bounty hunting idea. "It was funny how things worked out," he mused silently. In the three short years they had been out here, constantly searching for Knives, they had developed a reputation for being a deadly pair and had become bounty hunters by trade.

Nick snapped out of his reverie as Nickie closed the short distance between them and the wanted man. She glided across the room, slowly rolling her hips in an exaggerated motion. Several pairs of male eyes were suddenly diverted to her figure. Nick groaned as he thought about the trouble they'd have with this crowd after this was over. It wouldn't be the first time they'd collect on a bounty and then suddenly leave just to escape from a horde of Nickie's newfound admirers.

Nickie eyed the man in front of her with disgust. What right did he have to deprive that woman of her husband and those children of their father? It wasn't right that he should sit at a table so casually, spending other people's hard-earned money. She strode up to the table, and propped her booted foot onto a chair beside him. "Buy a lady a drink, mister?"

The man in question looked up from his glass. He first saw the black leather clad leg in the chair next to his. He grinned appreciatively as his eyes traveled up its long length, giving him a tantalizing glimpse of thigh before disappearing under a short black skirt. Nickie leaned forward over her thigh, "Well…?"

He looked up into her wide sky-blue eyes and grinned. A thick mass of inky blackness cascaded over one shoulder, coming to rest on the top of her leg as she leaned toward him. "Sit down, wench. You may be worth my time."

Nickie smiled casually at the man as he signaled for another glass. He smiled back at her as he poured the amber liquid into the waiting container. "You new here?" he inquired casually as his eyes greedily roamed over her full breasts.

Nickie smiled guilelessly and shrugged. "I guess you might say that." Her ears picked up Nick's movements as he casually moved from their table to work his way behind the man before her. She set the glass on the table before her and threw the man a challenging look. Pulling her hair behind her shoulders, she lowered her mouth to the rim of the glass. The man at the table watched in rapt facanation as she quickly lifted the glass with her lips, tilted her head back and drank its contents quickly. She smiled again as she placed the glass back on the table. Leaning forward slightly, she licked the traces remaining moisture from her pouting lips and whispered huskily, "I hate to miss a drop of something so good."

Nick watched her from a few feet away. He wanted to laugh out loud at the expression on the man's face as his sister continued her antics. It was a shame really that their target failed to notice that Nickie's smile did not quite reach her eyes. He grimaced as she received several cheers from the men at the surrounding tables. Nick made a mental note to speak to her about her bold behavior in places like this because it could ultimately lead to more trouble. He also reminded himself to ask her where she had learned that little trick.

He caught her eyes and nodded. As one, they swiftly closed in on the wanted man. Every movement ceased as two pistols cocked in the room. Nickie pointed a small derringer at the man's head. "I really hope that you don't move. I've never killed anyone before and I don't want you to be the first."

"Missy, you're making a big mistake."

"I don’t think so," she answered grimly as Nick placed his own pistol to the man's back. "You did a bad thing by robbing that bank and killing that poor man. You have to be held accountable for your crimes and that's why we are taking you to the feds. And there is the small matter of the reward too!" All was still and silent in the bar as the other patrons watched the drama unfold around them.

The man shrugged and suddenly jumped to his feet, shoving his chair over backward into Nick. Leaping forward, he reached out to grab Nickie as she lunged sharply from his reach, but she was not quick enough. As Nick struggled to remain on his feet, he watched in horror as a grimy arm went around her throat and gun was placed to his sister's head. "Back up, over there by the wall."

Nick slowly complied as his eyes met Nickie's. She sent him a silent warning as her left hand groped frantically at the folds of her cape. "You two thought you were pretty smart, trying to get the drop on old Ed. Throw your gun over here nice and easy and maybe the little lady will live to see another day."

He cautiously slid his pistol across the floor. Ed, feeling confident, licked the side of Nickie's face, his rancid breath making her stomach roil. He pawed at her breasts, making her shriek and struggle against him. "Get your fucking hands off my sister."

"It seems to me like she was willing to put out for me a few minutes ago. I tell you what… I'll just keep her with me for a while. Where I'm going, there's not much to be had in the way of female company." He leered at Nick as he continued to paw at her.

Nickie was frantic; her derringers were just beyond her fingertips. She was struggling to breathe. "I can’t be sick… I've got to stay focused… I can get away from this guy…" Her words played over and over in her mind as she tried to gather her wits.

She glanced at Nick. His rage rolled off him in waves. She could feel his emotions as surely as he felt hers. He took a step forward. The gun cocked and was brutally shoved against the side of her head. "Nick, DON'T…" her mind screamed.

Suddenly, the man released her and dropped to his knees, screaming wildly and clutching his gun hand. Nickie and Nick stood back a short distance. "Did you bite him?" Nick questioned softly.

Nickie vigorously shook her head. "I never touched him. I don’t know what's wrong with him."

Ed rolled about on the floor, screaming and clutching his hand for several minutes until he fainted. The silent patrons fell into heated arguments as they speculated what had happened before their eyes. The twins approached the still figure cautiously. "Look at his hand," Nickie spoke urgently.

Nick reached out and grasped the limb. He dropped it swiftly, "Every bone in it is shattered."

"It's an act of God," Nickie declared stoutly. "We have been saved by divine intervention."

"Well, we're not going to stick around here and wait for the church to pronounce it a miracle. We're leaving and taking him with us." Nick heaved the body over his shoulder and carried it out to the waiting jeep as Nickie quickly gathered their guns and paid their bill. "Have a nice day," she called out cheerfully as she waved and backed out the saloon doors. The other people in the room watched in disbelief as the drama around them came to a close.

Nick hurriedly threw the unconscious man into the bed of the vehicle and motioned for Nickie to get in. She scrambled in on the passenger side as Nick threw the jeep into drive and sped off into the desert.

***********

One lone figure sat silently in the darkest corner of the small saloon and smiled wolfishly to himself. He was not at all disturbed by the events that had taken place a few minutes earlier.

He was surprised to find the object of his thoughts appear from the desert though. He wondered what she was doing out here on the edges of the frontier. It was of no consequence though. He wondered at the brief bolt of jealously that had surged through him when he realized she was with the tall man in black. But, as he quickly ascertained the man with her had to be a brother, he settled back in his corner to watch the proceedings.

Her brother had been careless. It was obvious that the man they cornered had fighting experience and was desperate enough to want to avoid capture by the authorities. He clenched the glass in his hand tightly as he remembered the way that filthy bastard had put his hands on what he considered his.

It had been a damn good thing he'd been here to make sure that Nicole M. Wolfwood had survived the encounter. It would have been rather unfortunate for her brother if anything permanent had happened to her. As it was, she had merely received a bad scare. Maybe it would be enough to make her return to December.

He looked up as a woman approached his table. "Hey Lazarus, you looking for a little more excitement this afternoon?" Her voice held an eager note of anticipation.

He looked at the blonde in front of him and thought for a moment about the girl in black. "I believe I'll have to pass this time… I must be about my business."

She nodded sadly and turned away, "Your loss, I guess…"

He stood to leave, his thoughts on Nicole, "Indeed, it is…"

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To Be Continued…

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Chapter 6 is here for your reading pleasure. As usual please R& R for me.

Love and Peace,

Blackhat (^_~)