Maybe it was because they were on their own turf, but the five Murfree Brood bandits were completely caught off guard.

  Three of them were huddled around a campfire, roasting something, while another was sleeping on the ground.

  Even the lookout was dozing off, leaning against a tree.

  Seeing this, Arthur and Stephen wasted no time springing into action.

  These guys were old hands. Dealing with small fries like this was a piece of cake. They moved in on them, one in front, one in back.

  Back where they started, Raphael clutched the rifle Stephen had given him, watching their backs, all nerves.

  He really wanted to get in on the action, but Stephen and Arthur had shut that down real quick.

  The dude was a model citizen, never killed anyone or been involved in anything violent. This kind of thing was way too much for him.

  Arthur crouched low, quietly sneaking up on the lookout. The guy was already snoring.

  A foul stench filled the air, coming from the guy. Arthur frowned. Did these guys ever bathe?

  Seeing that Arthur was ready, Stephen gave him the signal to move, then pulled out his knife and moved in on the campfire.

  Arthur didn't hesitate. He reached out with his left hand and clamped it over the guy's mouth to stop him from yelling.

  Then, his right hand came up with a knife, and he sliced the guy's throat. Blood gushed out.

  The guy struggled wildly, grabbing at Arthur's arm, trying to pull him away.

  His legs thrashed against the ground, trying to break free.

  But Arthur's thick arms were too strong for him, nearing death like he was; it was all for nothing.

  Before long, the guy stopped struggling, and his body went limp.

  Seeing that Arthur had taken care of his guy, Stephen got ready to move.

  He wasn't going to try any sneak moves like Arthur had done.

  The three guys were sitting around the campfire. No matter what Stephen did, he was going to spook the others, so he decided to go straight for it.

  Stephen grabbed a rock from the ground and chucked it into the nearby woods.

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  The rock slammed into the trees, making a racket that was sure to get the three guys by the campfire to sit up.

  They all stood up and looked curiously towards the woods.

  One of the braver ones even took a couple of steps toward the trees.

  Opportunity! Seeing that, Stephen sprang up and charged at the group.

  He slashed wildly with his knife. The three unlucky bastards didn't even get a chance to pull out their guns before Stephen cut them down, one after the other.

  As Stephen slid his knife back into its sheath, the three corpses slowly fell to the ground.

  The last guy, who had been sleeping on the ground, finally woke up.

  He looked at his dead buddies, then at the three rough customers standing in front of him, and made the smart choice to surrender.

  Even though Arthur had seen it a bunch of times, he was still amazed by Stephen's clean, deadly knife work.

  The dude's confidence and decisiveness with that blade couldn't be learned. The dude was a natural.

  "Let me handle this guy. I'll get him to talk."

  Arthur wiped his knife clean with a rag from one of the bodies, then grabbed the guy by the neck and started his interrogation.

  Dealing with these guys wasn't hard at all. A few punches to the face, and the guy spilled everything.

  "Beaver Hollow is over that hill, just on the other side of it."

  Arthur looked at Stephen, who was sitting by the fire, warming himself, and said, "They've got about 30 people in their camp, mostly like him."

  "They don't have many guns, most of them are using axes and knives."

  "As for Raphael's wife and kids..." Arthur paused for a second.

  As Raphael watched on, hoping for good news, he slowly said, "This guy was out here on lookout and hunting. He hasn't been back for days, so he doesn't know."

  Raphael shook his head in disappointment, then glared at the bruised and battered prisoner.

  "Can I have him?"

  He asked Arthur and Stephen, "People like this don't deserve to live."

  Arthur glanced at Raphael, then pulled out his knife and handed it over. "Just one stab, in the head or the chest."

  Raphael shakily took the knife. The guy on the ground begged for his life, whimpering and sobbing.

  He scrambled backwards, trying to get away, but Arthur kept one foot planted firmly on his thigh.

  He could only flail his hands, clawing at the dirt, unable to move an inch.

  Raphael slowly moved toward the prisoner, slowly raised the knife.

  He couldn't bring himself to stab him. Being naturally kind, he had never wanted to hurt anyone.

  But then he thought about his wife, his kids, their lives hanging in the balance, lost in that wasteland with them.

  His eyes grew hard, his jaw clenched, his hands started shaking.

  Finally, he broke.

  He roared and fell to his knees, grabbing the knife and driving it down into the bandit below him.

  "Why?! Why are you doing this?! We didn't hurt anyone! Aaaagh!"

  Raphael screamed, venting his rage without holding back.

  Each time the knife went in and out, it brought a flood of blood, turning Raphael into a bloody mess.

  Seeing that he was losing it, Arthur quickly clamped his hand over Raphael's mouth and wrestled him away.

  Stephen stepped forward and gently knocked the knife from Raphael's hands with the sheath.

  "Cool it," Arthur said, trying to keep him from thrashing about.

  Stephen picked up the corpse and casually dumped it in a thicket.

  "This guy's a little too worked up. We better rest for a while."

  Stephen looked at Raphael, who was drained and huddled in Arthur's arms, and said with a sigh.

  "Yeah, we need a break."

  Arthur helped Raphael sit by the fire and looked up at the sky. "We should move out after dark."

  "These guys might not be the sharpest tools in the shed, but they know enough to post lookouts. Beaver Hollow ain't gonna be a walk in the park."

  "Exactly. Night's the best bet, less risk that way."

  Stephen nodded. "Besides, there's like 30 of them. It's going to be tough for just us three storming the cavern."

  After a short discussion, they decided to move out after nightfall.