Chapter 60: Gaining Legal Status
Donal hadn’t expected Sheriff Hanley to be so greedy.
Five hundred dollars—while not a huge sum for their business—was still a hefty demand. They had barely been operating in Strawberry for a few days, not even a full week.
If Donal agreed too easily now, Hanley would surely demand even more the following month.
“No, no, no, Mr. Donal. Five hundred dollars might sound like a lot to most folks, but for you? That’s not much, is it?”
“As long as you’re willing to pay that, I can guarantee your moonshine business will run without a hitch here in Strawberry.”
Sheriff Hanley lit a cigar, speaking with confidence.
Donal didn’t answer right away.
The money wasn’t his to give—it was Davey’s. He couldn’t make that kind of decision on Davey’s behalf.
“Sheriff Hanley, I can’t make this call on my own. I’ll have to report it to Mr. Callander.”
“If he agrees, then I have no problem with it.”
With Strawberry’s daily sales of around two hundred bottles of moonshine, Donal earned about thirty cents per bottle—roughly eighteen hundred dollars a month in profit.
Of course, that was before paying his crew and covering transport costs, which still left him with nearly a thousand dollars in his own pocket.
Davey’s share, naturally, was even greater.
Truth be told, whether it was three hundred or five hundred dollars, it wasn’t a large amount in the grand scheme of things.
“I look forward to hearing good news from you, Mr. Donal,” Sheriff Hanley said with a smile, certain that Davey would make the “right” choice.
...
The next day, after returning to Valentine, Donal reported everything to Davey.
Davey frowned slightly.
He’d always known Sheriff Hanley was greedy—but he hadn’t expected the man to lose patience this quickly.
If he’d known things would turn out this way, he might’ve replaced Strawberry’s entire police department when he went to rescue Micah.
“Give it to him,” Davey said coolly. His voice carried no emotion, but in his mind, Sheriff Hanley had already been added to his list of people to deal with.
Five hundred dollars wasn’t much. Davey had even planned to raise both Hanley’s and Sheriff Malloy’s monthly cut to that amount in another month or two.
But offering it voluntarily was one thing—being extorted was another.
Hanley was clearly trying to use the moonshine business as leverage, to threaten him.
And with men like that, one bribe would never be enough. There would always be a next time—and another after that.
Greed was a bottomless pit.
Still, Davey needed time to grow stronger.
That same day, the paperwork Sheriff Malloy had arranged finally arrived through the post office—Davey’s new legal identity was official.
He could now buy property and apply for bank loans under the name Davey Land.
“As you command, Mr. Callander.” Donal wanted to say more, but seeing the cold look on Davey’s face, he kept silent.
Davey took out a thousand dollars and handed it to him. “Since Mr. Hanley gets five hundred, Sheriff Malloy shouldn’t get any less. Next time you deliver the liquor, give this to him.”
Compared to Hanley, Davey found working with Sheriff Malloy much more pleasant.
That was likely why Malloy had managed to stay in office for over a decade. Sure, he liked his share of cash—but he knew where to draw the line.
...
Horseshoe Overlook Camp.
When Arthur returned, he handed the moonshine to Uncle.
After taking a sip, Uncle’s eyes widened. “Now that is one hell of a drink! Arthur, mind telling me where you got it?”
“This has to be something new. Whoever brewed it put real heart into it, and yet they’re just selling it as plain moonshine.”
“In my book, it’s even better than whiskey.”
Arthur chuckled. “It does taste damn good. Folks in Valentine are selling this stuff all over town. I’ve no idea who’s behind it.”
He paused mid-sentence, suddenly thinking of Davey.
He knew Davey had been planning to get into the moonshine trade. With so much of it flooding Valentine now, it was obvious Davey had a hand in it.
“This fine stuff must cost, what, two-fifty a bottle?” Uncle asked between gulps.
Arthur replied, “No—it’s only two bucks.”
Uncle looked pleasantly surprised. “Oh-ho, that’s one tempting price.”
Not that it made much difference to him—he didn’t have any money anyway.
After chatting with the old man for a bit, Arthur went to find Dutch to deliver the cosmetics Molly had asked him to buy.
Molly O’Shea, Dutch’s lover, came from a wealthy family in Dublin. She’d met Dutch while seeking adventure in the United States and ended up joining the Van der Linde gang.
In truth, Molly didn’t get along with most of the gang. Aside from Dutch, Arthur was about the only one she really talked to.
He often helped her bring things back from town, and she always paid him—both for the goods and for his trouble.
Since the Callander brothers were no longer taking on debt collection work, Strauss had turned to Arthur for help with the job.
Arthur didn’t like that kind of work—but he didn’t refuse either.
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