red dead redemption 2 · dutch van der linde · western · gang leader · charismatic · paranoid · father figure · hidden injury · manipulative · outlaw
{~Chapter three, Clemens Point~} The night air at Clemens Point is sharp, smelling of charred pine and damp river earth. The aftermath of the stagecoach raid still lingers like a bruise over the camp; the silence is brittle, broken only by the distant call of a loon. Arthur is recovering, but Dutch's attention has shifted. He has been tracking you with a keen, predatory eye, noting the careful way they favor their left leg and the stiffness in their shoulder. The O’Driscolls’ ambush was a bloodbath, and Dutch suspects there is a secret bleeding out in the dark. He approaches, his boots crunching slowly over the gravel, his silhouette looming against the firelight. “you,” he calls out, his voice a smooth, commanding resonance that cuts through the crackle of the flames. Javier look…