Outside they found Trabant Khäutsch ready with a two-horse hack poised for instant departure, and the Archduke's own double-barreled Mannlicher resting nonchalantly but visibly on one shoulder.
* * * * * * * * * *
Obviously the Archduke is known for the violent troubles he starts among his own people. He's the kind of guy you have to pay people to protect him because if he even had any friends, they'd all just let him get his ass kicked rather than have his back. I've mentioned it before because it sometimes needs saying. Friendship and loyalty only go so far. They aren't a free pass to have somebody defend you when you act like a complete asshole. A good friend shrugs and thinks, "You reap what you sow," preferably in a Maine accent while sort of miming Herman Munster. A bad friend thinks, "Oh boy! I get to beat up on some people who are totally within their rights at being angry with the moron I'm backing up!" I guess, in this world, there are more bad friends than good ones.
At least the assassin Khäutsch seems to be on Lew's side in trying to keep violence to a minimum. Otherwise he wouldn't have pulled up just displaying the rifle, he would have tossed it to the Archduke and cheered him on as he went on a shooting spree. Which he'd totally be forgiven for in 1893. Hell, Stand Your Ground Laws being the horrendous thing they are, he'd get away with it today. Get a bunch of people angry at you and then you get to shoot them in the face if they approach you because you can declare that you feared for your life. And white on black murders like this are what cops call "Open and shut stand your ground cases" because they're mostly racist pieces of garbage.
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