River’s Run – Part 16

“Dobson, I presume,” the Operative said as Dobson shook the cobwebs from his head and stood up in the dusty valley feeling his jaw and wondering if it was broken from the kick River Tam had given him. He definitely had a few loose teeth. Serenity was gone, and Reynolds and Tam with it. And now this man who he guessed was responsible for the attack on him and his men from behind was standing holding two pistols, Dobson’s and his own. As he looked around he could see that his four men were dead, two with bullet holes in the head, probably put there because they weren’t exactly dead yet. Dobson looked at this man and had a fair idea what he was, just not who he was. Of course if Dobson was correct in guessing what this man was, then he had no name to speak of, not anymore.

“Yeah, and you are an Operative of the Parliament, correct?”

“Yes, sent to clean up the mess you and others made five years ago.”

“River Tam,” Dobson said in disgust.

“River Tam. Tell me, why didn’t you just kill her?”

“I want Reynolds. She was the bait.”

“Reynolds is sitting in a jail cell on Londinium awaiting trial as the rebel leader.”

“Gorramnit, I knew they were lying!” Dobson yelled and it made his head and eye socket hurt more. “I guess…I just wanted him so bad.”

“You wanted to believe he was here. Why?”

“He gave me this,” Dobson said pointing to his eye. “Five years ago I had River Tam in my grasp and Reynolds shot me and left me for dead on this forsaken world. But I didn’t die.” Then he looked at his dead men and saw the three soldiers walking toward them. “Why did you kill my men? We’re not the enemy.”

“They were in the way,” said the Operative.

“Of what?”

“Of me fulfilling my mission, of killing River Tam. As are you.” And with that the Operative shot Dobson in his one good eye and then in the forehead just to make sure since it seemed the man did have a way of not dying like he should.

After they checked the bodies and took their weapons and gathered the horses, one of t