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  1865

  Cojacker Verdi

  AuthorHouse™

  1663 Liberty Drive

  Bloomington, IN 47403

  www.authorhouse.com

  Phone: 1-800-839-8640

  © 2011 Cojacker Verdi. All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

  Published by AuthorHouse 12/20/2011

  ISBN: 978-1-4685-2867-1 (sc)

  ISBN: 978-1-4685-2866-4 (e)

  Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models,

  and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

  Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

  This book is printed on acid-free paper.

  Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

  Contents

  One

  Two

  Three

  Four

  Five

  Six

  Seven

  Eight

  Nine

  Ten

  Eleven

  Twelve

  Thirteen

  Fourteen

  Fifteen

  Sixteen

  Seventeen

  Eighteen

  Nineteen

  Twenty

  Twenty One

  One

  In the year 1865 the Old West was still young. If you know history you should know that the Old West lasted half a century. The Civil War ended in 1865 and people thought everything was getting back to normal with their lives, with no further worries. Little did they know that their troubles were yet to begin again.

  In the same year, Abraham Lincoln was assassinated because some people didn’t like what he had done when he was president of the United States. Word spread quickly, and everybody got the biggest surprise of their lives, that their most powerful and respected leader had died. Abraham Lincoln will be always be beloved and will be down in history as one of the greatest leaders in America.

  In 1865, people are going west to start new lives. They are also taking their families so they don’t leave anything behind. Slowly people are naming their new land after their own or different names with their own different meanings. So far this has been a hard year for everybody in the Old West, like before the Civil War ended and Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.

  Our story begins in the center of Texas where most cowboys hang out, having the time of their lives. Fort Worth, Texas, isn’t a big city yet, but the story starts outside of the town of Forth Worth. Outside Forth Worth, Texas is mostly a farming area. People are friendly and down to earth, always being there to help those who need help.

  In the center of the farms in Fort Worth, Texas, there is a family by the name of Hahn. They’re a normal kind of family without any troubles or enemies inside or outside of Texas. John has been married to his wife, Sharon, for more than twenty years, and they have had three children together, all hardworking boys in their adulthood.

  The oldest, Derek, is six feet-almost as tall as his father with thin to medium build like his father. Little does Derek know that this will be the year of adventure of 1865. In the Old West Derek had heard about lots of adventures in his life before the century is over or before he dies, whichever comes first.

  On a normal Sunday afternoon, the Han family goes to their wagon to go home from church, minding their own business without any worries. Then suddenly Derek wants to say something to his father-something that he has been meaning to say for a very long time, but has been scared to ask his own father. But at the same time, he thinks to himself that it never hurts to.

  “Dad, I been meaning to ask you this for a very long time but was afraid to ask you,” said Derek.

  “Ask me. You know that I’m an open-minded person,” said John.

  “Here goes. Dad, when you were much younger than me, like a child, did you ever dream of doing something besides farming?” said Derek.

  “No, so far farming has always been inside my blood, just like my father and his father so on. Why?” asked John.

  “Just a thought. I always thought that there is something more than farming, that there was a big world out there waiting to be explored or have adventures in their lives,” said Derek.

  “All right all right, stop and think about this before you make any decisions. It never hurts to stop and think in life. And let me know by tonight,” said John.

  “You really mean it, dad? I could?” said Derek.

  “Of course I mean it. But let me know by tonight so you have enough time to think this throw,” said John.

  “All right, I’ll let you know,” said Derek.

  Derek understood why his father wanted to know by tonight, because Derek will have enough time to think this throw before he does something that he’s going to regret in the end. Right now, it’s three in the afternoon, so he has until tonight to give his own father an answer. So far Derek has been very lucky that he has an understanding father on these kinds of things.

  It’s eight in the evening. After five long hours Derek had enough hours to think about it, and Derek decided to leave his own home to have adventure in his life. So the best things to do was to tell his parents. Derek’s father is sitting in his chair in the main room near the fireplace. He looked like he was waiting for Derek’s answer. He looked back and saw Derek.

  Right away John knows from the look on Derek’s face that he wanted to leave the farm, so John is willing to help him in any way he can. Derek is very happy that his father understood his feelings about it, and glad that he’s willing to help him in any way he can. So right away tonight they got his stuff ready for the big day tomorrow when he leaves.

  Sharon promises herself not to cry, but she can’t. She loves Derek and took care of him for so many years, and the hardest thing is saying good-bye to her own son. Morning came, and everybody is outside waiting for their chance to say good-bye to Derek. It’s best for the family not to tell the other farms, except if they bring it up, because they don’t want to feel sad about this.

  “Good-bye, my son. Don’t forget to write to us as much as you can,” said Sharon.

  “Don’t worry, Mom. I won’t forget,” said Derek.

  “You listen to your mother and be careful on who you trust, Derek. There are a lot of weird people out there taking advantage of good people like us,” said John.

  “Don’t worry, Dad. I’ll be careful,” said Derek.

  Derek hugs his other brothers and said good-bye to them. So far it’s a very hard thing to do to say good-bye to loved ones, but he’s glad that none of the other farms are here to say good-bye, because Derek doesn’t want to say good-bye. In less than a second, Derek got onto his black horse and took off. So far Sharon cried pretty hard. She promised herself not to, but she broke that promise to herself. Sharon can’t believe that her own baby is gone, kind of like a bird leaving the nest.

  Derek took off, following the sun without any trouble. He can’t wait to see what’s across the mountain, to see what’s behind the shadows, to see what will happen to him. At the same time Derek will be ready for anything that comes to him and knows how to deal with it without any trouble. First things first. Derek needs a gun to protect himself and for anything tha
t will pop out. The last thing Derek needs is the surprise of a gun pointed right in front of him.

  The best place to get a good fighting arm is in Dallas, right here in Texas. Derek is very lucky that the saved enough money to buy a very powerful gun. That’s the first place that Derek will go, first to buy a very powerful gun and also a chance to go to Dallas, some strange things about the part of Texas. He’s hoping that some of the strange things that he heard aren’t true.

  Two weeks passed. Derek finally made it to Dallas without any trouble so far. Derek traveled day and night; that’s how he managed to travel east. Dallas is a nice, normal, average city, with not a care in the world. People mind their own business, with not a care in the world. The first thing that Derek said was, “What a city!”

  The first place he went was to the gun store to buy the most powerful handgun that money could buy, praying that the gun store owner won’t give him a hard time because he’s new at this. The gun store is at the center of town, next door to the sheriff’s office so no one will give the gun store a hard time.

  Derek tied his horse outside near the sheriff’s office so no one will take the horse. He calmly went inside the gun store without any worries. The gun store clerk is ready for anything that pops out, and he even has a gun ready in case anything happens. The last thing that the gun store owner wants is a surprise. The clerk looks like he ahs been robed a few times in the past, so if the could just talk he has nothing to worry about. And Derek will never steal from anybody.

  “May I help you with anything, sir?” said the clerk.

  “Yeah, what’s the most powerful gun you have? Money is no object to me, and believe me, you got nothing to worry about. You don’t have to call me sir just good old Derek,” said Derek.

  “All right. I’m Larry, and you act like a nice person. I’m sorry for how I’m acting. It’s just that I have been robbed a few times, and right now I really need a break,” said Larry.

  “Don’t worry. I’m not going to hurt you. I’m new here. I just need a gun,” said Derek.

  “Why? I’m hoping you don’t mind me asking,” said Larry.

  “I can’t say. It’s personal, and I could understand your worries about this,” said Derek.

  “I understand. You got nothing to worry about. I’ll show you everything,” said Larry.

  Larry showed him every powerful gun he had. The Peacemaker gun was enough to take down anybody and the most beautiful color of black. Derek saw the highest-priced gun so far, and it’s something he will buy. The reason is because there had to be some magic in the gun when Derek looked at it, and somehow that gun and he will work together like no other.

  The cost of that gun is twenty-five dollars. It’s a lot of money, but it will be worth it because nobody’s going to mess with him. Derek paid for the gun without any trouble and also the bullets that come with it. So far Derek got a good deal with it and left the city without any worries.

  The sun is coming down, and like before, Derek followed the sun to see what will come to him. But Derek will be ready for anything, and he means anything. At the same time Derek needs a new nickname, and from now on he will be called D.H., so no one will know his background and so no one will ever hurt his family. He’ll be mysterious no matter what.

  Two

  D.H traveled as far east as he could and made it to a city named-well, D.H. doesn’t know yet, but sooner or later he’ll find out. First things first. Get something to drink, but the first thing that D.H thought to himself was that the city looked a ghost town, something that D.H. had never seen before.

  The reason why D.H thought of that was that there were only a few people outside making some trade, but everybody else was inside for some reason-like everybody had something to hide. The second thought to himself was that this town looked like a great place to start an adventure, but that he needed to find a place to stay for a little bit until he got to the bottom of things.

  D.H. had a long trip to far east, and he really needed something to drink. The first place that he saw to get something to drink was a bar a little bit down the street, so D.H. helped himself. As he rode his horse down the street a little bit, some of the people looked at him in a different way, but not in a way that most people expected. They all looked a D.H. like they were afraid of him for some reason, which D.H. didn’t know.

  He tied his horse outside and calmly went inside the bar, but before he could go inside D.H. got a deep breath and got prepared for anything that might pop out, that might be thrown at him. That’s the last thing that D.H. wants, but he is ready for anything that comes to him, even in a strange new place. A second later D.H. went inside the bar without any trouble. The second when D.H. came inside, everybody looked at D.H. in a weird way, like they’d never seen an outside before.

  D.H. didn’t care as long as he could go up to the bar to get something to drink. So far D.H. has never seen so many people before acting like they all have something to hide. The best thing to do was to sit at the end of the bar. After a minute or two everything got back to normal and everybody was doing their own business; D.H. is minding his own business. The bartender came up to him to help him.

  “Good afternoon. I’m Travis. I’ve never seen you around here before. Are you new here at Cold Creek?,” asked Travis.

  “Petty much. I’m D.H., and it’s nice to meet you Travis. There any good hotels to stay at here?” said D.H.

  “There is one good place here in this town, but I should warn you about this town. This isn’t a good place to stay. There are a lot of outlaws that raise havoc around here. So I think it’s best to leave before you get yourself killed,” said Travis.

  “Thanks for the warning, but I think you guys need somebody to help you guys. I’m more like a guardian angel you guys need,” said D.H.

  “Yeah, right. That’s what the last guy said before he got his head cut off, if you know what I mean,” said Travis.

  “I know what you mean, but I’m here to help. There was a reason why I traveled east, and that’s why I’m here now. If you don’t mind, tell me where the hotel is,” said D.H.

  “All right, I’ll tell you where the hotel is, but I’m not coming to your funeral when you get yourself killed,” said Travis.

  “I’ll take that chance,” said D.H.

  The bartender gave the directions to the hotel at the end of town, and D.H. left the bar. So far the bartender decided to pray for him that this one wouldn’t get killed and try to help everybody here in Cold Creek. D.H. was trying to find out why the town was called Cold Creek, but sooner or later D.H. will know.

  D.H got settled into his room, and the first thing was to write back home to his family telling them that he’s all right, and that he made it to a town in the far east. It’s best not to tell them it’s a very dangerous town, because he doesn’t want to worry them too much about him; that he’s all right. At the same time D.H. is wondering how his parents will take it if they find out what’s happening, but he stops to think that it’s best not to tell them, for their own safety.

  He finished the letter and made sure that his parents wouldn’t worry about him too much. It was pretty late, so he decided to go to bed and mail it tomorrow; it’s the best time to do it. D.H. is trying his best to go to sleep, but he keeps on hearing something outside. So he decides to go and investigate and at the same time make sure that they won’t notice him.

  Mostly they are talking outside. D.H. is on the second floor downstairs in a restaurant, but they are talking from outside the restaurant, so it’s best to hear them through the window. He calmly opens the window and hears three men talking. And there is something, all right-something that D.H. has been waiting for. Right away D.H. knows that they are gangsters from the way they are dressed.

  “I heard what’s going to happen tomorrow night here in Cold Creek. Is it true?” said the first gangster.

/>   “Yeah, it’s true that there will be a shooting here in this town. So far we are putting the whole town in hostage if everybody wont give us the money tomorrow at high noon,” said the second gangster.

  “We will have more than enough to live on for a very long time without any worries,” said the third gangster.

  “So the two of you know what we’re going to do tomorrow night?” said the first gangster.

  “Yeah, we know, so you got nothing to worry about,” said the third gangster.

  “All right, that’s good. I’ll see the both of you tomorrow at high noon, and you two know what to do,” said the first gangster.

  “Yeah, see you tomorrow,” said the third gangster.

  “Same here,” said the second gangster.

  The three of them left the area, but first they made sure that no one was watching them. The second they finished their private meeting, D.H. went inside so they wouldn’t see him and know that somebody was on to them. All three of them didn’t see anybody, and they left in a hurry. So tomorrow D.H. has his work cut out for him what’s going to happen, and he’s willing to defend everybody here in Cold Creek.

  Morning came, and the post office opened. D.H. mailed his letter and went back to his room at the hotel and started to think what he should do to scare those outlaws. If it’s a war they want, it’s a war they will get. Suddenly it came out of nowhere to his mind that D.H. will shoot to scare them away and he’ll hide somewhere so all three of them wont see him. This was a pretty good idea that he had never thought of before, but odds were it was going to work. The deal won’t happen till high noon today, so D.H. will be ready for them today.

  Ten minutes before noon, D.H. got out his gun and put all the bullets in it and got ready for anything that would pop out. He is looking through his window. Suddenly everybody is acting very strangely; everybody is putting bags-most likely with money inside-in the middle of the road. Somebody will take them, and D.H. knows who it is-most likely the three gangsters.