The men made quick work, and soon Jim’s hands and feet were secure with the rope.
“We’ll finally have some justice in San Francisco,” one of the businessmen I recognized from Clay Street said. “Let the punishmentof English Jim be a warning to the rest of them that we will not stand for lawlessness any longer.”
“We found three other Sydney Ducks with torches,” another man reported as he stepped into the yard. “We stopped them from setting fire to the bank, the mercantile, and the butcher.”
“We’ll see that justice is meted out for all of them,” the man from Clay Street said. “It’s time we form a vigilante committee to bring law and order to San Francisco.”
The other men shouted their agreement as Jim screamed profanities and fought against his restraints. “You’ll all pay for this!” he yelled. “You might take down a few of us tonight, but there are thousands left. They’ll have justice one way or the other.”
“So be it,” said the man from Clay Street. “But so will we.”
I slid to the ground, letting go of the kitchen knife as sobs racked my body. Was this it? Had we averted the plans that Jim had to kill Sam and start the fire? Or would we have to keep watch the rest of the night?
“Ally!” Sam squatted next to me. “Are you hurt?”
Shaking my head, I forced myself to stop crying as I reached for him.
He helped me to my feet and wrapped his arms around me. “You don’t need to worry anymore,” he said, running his hand over my hair. “Nothing is going to happen. I promise. There are dozens of men out there taking care of Jim right now. They’ll be on guard for the rest of the night.”
Paddy walked up to us and set Jim’s knife on the window frame of the hotel.
“Thank you, Paddy.” I moved away from Sam and went to the quiet, gentle giant who had protected us and gave him a hug.
He awkwardly hugged me back and then let go, almost embarrassed.
“I don’t know what we would have done without you.” I looked between the men, a sinking feeling coming over me. “But how did you know?”
Sam led me into the kitchen, away from the others.
Paddy followed.
“I didn’t know,” Sam assured me in a quiet voice. “I had no idea what to expect tonight.”
“Did you ask Paddy to get a vigilante committee together?” My heart was hammering as the men outside pulled Jim to his feet to take him away. “If you changed history because of something I told you—I don’t know what that means, Sam. I don’t know if I’ll still lose this path or if you will.”
“I didn’t ask Paddy to do anything.”
I turned to Paddy. “Did you hear us talking about what might happen tonight?”
Paddy shook his head.
“Then how did you know?”
Paddy looked from me to Sam, confusion in his eyes.
“I don’t think he did know,” Sam said. “Perhaps someone else caught wind of it. But I promise you, I didn’t breathe a word to anyone.”
“Are we safe now?” I turned back to Sam. “Will other Sydney Ducks try to retaliate?”
“They might. But without Jim’s leadership, it would take them a while to regroup. Someone else might rise up and take over the Ducks, but no one else has problems with me. Jim was my only real threat.”
“I think we should still stay on guard for the rest of the night,” I told him.
Sam nodded. “I think so, too.”
“I g-g-go,” Paddy said as he moved toward the door. “H-h-hang Jim.”
My eyes opened wide as I asked Sam, “Do you think they’ll hang him?”
