Down the quiet streets of Cattle Creek sauntered Edgaroni Stonewyck and two jolly kiddies in infant-cowboy state.
Adjusting his vest with a tug, Edgaroni raised his bandana up to his eyes and motioned to his two companions to follow him down a damp and dirty alley. His topcoat felt heavy in the hot humid air, but his gait was as free and confident as ever. He was so eager he barely even moderated his outrageous stride enough for the two youngsters beside him to keep up.
So much so that Little Buckley had to break off his whistling to catch his breath, and Chani’s legs hardly ever touched the floor for two seconds together as they tripped after Edgaroni.
Rays of golden sunlight glittered off of the hitch racks, casting long shadows on the road as the sun fell behind the horizon. From the verandah of the Flying Queens pretty Pam Dora nodded and smiled to the three as they tramped by.
“What a pretentious pair of sweet-looking infants,” sighed Pam Dora picking up her broom again, and laughing at their funny imitation of a cowboy’s gait as she watched their faded forms melt into the distance.
The alley narrowed and the sky darkened as they walked along, until it became hard even to see a foot ahead. But the path was well-known to Stonewyck. Many a time had he traced it in preparation for this day. As for his two companions, why, they had spent their whole lives in Cattle Creek and knew every inch of it like the back of their hands.
From up the alley came slight stomping sounds of a horse’s hoofs and the rolling of heavy carriage wheels. Startled, Buckley gazed up at Stonewyck’s face, but he saw no surprise written on Edgaroni’s countenance.
Wagons, gigs, and all such were infrequent in those parts, and it was rarer still to hear them out this late.
As they rounded the corner they came into view of two dim lights, one belonged to the hooded gig they had heard, and the other to the old Town Bank.
Tilting his hat lower, Edgaroni Stonewyck held a private conversation with the driver, who took the lamp that was hanging on the cab, jumped down, and fastened the horse to the Bank’s balustrade. Stonewyck and the children watched him walk off and then, turning towards the Bank, Edgaroni said with a thick yet quick drawl, “‘Kay kiddiwinkles. We’re makin’ millions tonight.”
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Eleven Worlds 