New Gods of North America

With victims, accomplices, and third-party witnesses,

even in the West, the leader of the group that escaped would almost certainly be placed on a wanted list.

The agents helped treat the wounded and the prisoners, while others cleaned up the scene.

The attacked party originally consisted of ten people, now six are dead, and two are injured. One is being bandaged, while the other needs to see a doctor immediately.

The other side was estimated to have sixteen or seventeen people in total, leaving five bodies at the scene and one who surrendered.

Confirming identities was essential at this point.

After all, the items on the victims' bodies were their personal belongings, while the items left behind by the criminals were spoils of war.

The agents helped the other party load the victims' bodies and the seriously wounded onto the carriages.

Wayne chatted briefly with the leader of the other team, exchanging names and contact information, and getting a general understanding of the situation.

Wayne learned that the name of the leader of the offending team was John Ruth.

If we don't consider the possibility of them running away or recruiting more people, then there should be at least ten people left in their group.

Because the condition of the seriously injured man did not look good, the remaining members of the attacked party were eager to find a doctor.

The two carriages, one after the other, quickly left with their companions, saying their goodbyes.

If needed, Wayne and his team would be witnesses in court or confirm the identities of the criminals.

In return, the other party left the detective agency some guns and ammunition, as well as some horses and supplies that they couldn't take with them.

The captured prisoner was wounded in the leg and couldn't run away, but he probably wouldn't die.

After confirming that none of the dead were wanted criminals, Wayne gave the prisoner a shovel and told him to dig graves for his dead companions, and then put up some simple wooden tombstones with their names on them, to facilitate investigation and evidence collection by law enforcement.

This area was in the wilderness and probably under the jurisdiction of the county police or state police.

Wayne took the opportunity to give Doug an employee education lesson, reminding everyone that if they weren't careful, they could be the ones being transported away in the carriage.

Finally, after cleaning up the scene and counting the spoils, they had ten more lever-action rifles, three handguns, some horses that had run away, and eleven remaining, as well as some odds and ends found on the saddles or elsewhere.

Afterwards, everyone from the detective agency gathered in the valley, finding a location upstream of a river to rest.

After a while, Wayne and his team encountered Chris Mannix and the group led by the town sheriff, Mr. Daggett. These two groups had indeed joined forces.

Having just witnessed an attack, the detective agency's vigilance was high, and the scouts immediately spotted the "scouts" they had sent.

Unfortunately, they didn't seem to have encountered the survivors who had left, so they were wary of the detective agency, who were not too far from the scene.

They looked at the detective agency as if they were bounty hunters who "double-crossed" them.

Wayne was reasonable and went over to explain the situation, telling them that he had the contact information of the survivors and even brought the prisoner out as a witness.

Sheriff Daggett listened to Wayne, his face thoughtful.

After seeing the prisoner, Chris dispelled his suspicion of Wayne. After all, if it was a team effort, there was no reason to keep a prisoner - at least not one who looked so "ordinary", unless Wayne was used to the two beauties around him and his tastes had changed.

Since they had encountered the sheriff, Wayne wanted to get rid of the burden:

"Mr. Daggett, although the case did not happen in your town, if you are willing to help take the prisoner to the county police or state police, I can hand over the prisoner to you now."

Mr. Daggett, who had previously appeared unapproachable, was willing to help at this time:

"Okay, then I'll take the prisoner away. I will report the case that happened here to the relevant departments later. If you need the corresponding proof, you can go to the town to find me. Chris can also be a witness to our handover."

After Mr. Daggett finished speaking, he snapped his fingers, and someone stepped forward to take the prisoner away.

Wayne observed for a while. Although he didn't have many people under him, they all seemed experienced and capable.

It felt like they were experienced old detectives or former professional soldiers.

They had an aura of being at the top of the food chain.

The two groups didn't seem to have known each other for long. Chris's side seemed to have recruited a few more people, and they seemed to have a slight advantage in numbers.

However, at this moment, it was clear that after they joined forces, Mr. Daggett's side was the dominant force in the team.

After slightly dispelling the suspicion towards the detective agency, Mr. Daggett's side left with their men.

Ineesha observed for a while and seemed to have the same feeling as Wayne, "The people around Mr. Daggett look very professional."

Lena nodded in agreement, "I feel like they have been secretly observing our camp's manpower and defenses. If they weren't with the sheriff, I would think they were bad guys who wanted to attack us."

"That's unlikely. Virginia is a prosperous state on the East Coast and wouldn't be as chaotic as the West," Wayne casually replied.

Ineesha and Lena glanced silently at the scene of the recent crime and shrugged their shoulders in unison, without answering.

...

Afterwards, Wayne and his team "scanned" the area for two more days, but they didn't find any new clues.

Wayne even suspected that the gang had received some news or noticed some signs and changed their plans.

Or maybe the news itself was inaccurate.

So, with the carriage pulling a long string of horses, everyone looked at the directions indicated on the map, planning to find a nearby place to digest the spoils.

The gang that ran away didn't seem to have returned for revenge.

The detective agency had deliberately given them a chance for the past two days, but they didn't cherish it.

They turned the horses and the extra stuff over in a village. Because this village was more remote, there were fewer villagers, and they didn't even get money.

Fortunately, their furs and the American ginseng they dug up were not bad, and there were even some strange herbal ingredients. Wayne and his team roughly estimated the price and bartered with the villagers. Carrying goods was always easier than carrying a string of horses.

Leaving the small village and heading back towards the high-crime area,

the team changed direction, cutting diagonally towards the steam train line.

Then on the third day, Wayne, during an advance scout, saw a group of people in the distance, about thirty or more, most of whom could be seen carrying weapons.