Davey's victory was bound to have a massive impact on New Hanover and the state of Lemoyne.
Strictly speaking, the West was divided by the Mississippi River—also known as the Lannahechee River.
West of it was considered the West, and east of it, the East.
Saint Denis served as the eastern bridgehead of westward expansion and was also the largest industrial city.
Regions such as New Hanover, Ambarino, West Elizabeth, and New Austin all fell under this category. In addition, places that never appeared in the original game's storyline—New Mexico, Ohio, California, Arizona, Colorado, and others—were also part of the broader definition of the West.
At present, Saint Denis exerted enormous influence over the entire western region. As one of Saint Denis's major power figures, Bronte was naturally well known, a reputation built on the strength of the Italians and the Mafia within the United States.
Now, however, Davey had nearly wiped out Bronte's forces, and even the second-in-command, Martelli, had been captured.
This would have a tremendous impact on Davey's reputation.
The first to receive the news—and the first to panic—were the regional managers of several distilleries in New Hanover.
They quickly gathered to discuss how to respond to Davey.
"Gentlemen, we've reached the most dangerous moment," one of them said.
"The intelligence I received says Bronte's men were ambushed by Land Security Company. More than twenty were killed, and over forty were captured, including Mr. Martelli. I believe you all know who he is."
"Yes," another voice replied.
"So how are we supposed to deal with someone even Bronte couldn't handle? Do we just sit back and watch him take our business, or do we band together and seek stronger backing? This needs serious discussion."
The speaker was Caris, the regional manager for whiskey. Up until recently, whiskey had been the best-selling hard liquor in the West, so his losses were the greatest.
"Oh, Mr. Caris," Seymour, the brandy manager, said slowly,
"I don't think we have any way to deal with him now. His security company employs a huge number of men, and his moonshine outclasses ours in both price and taste. We don't have any advantage at all."
"I've decided to withdraw. Even someone like Mr. Bronte couldn't touch him and suffered such heavy losses. What chance do people like us have?"
"At the very least, Annesburg and Van Horn Trade Port are still in our hands. We can maintain decent sales there."
"And even if someone were going to confront him, it should be our backers, not us. We're all hiding in Saint Denis now, barely daring to leave the city. How can we even talk about fighting him?"
Seymour had clearly decided to give up.
He was already getting on in years. In his youth, he had spent a long time in the West and knew exactly how dangerous those hardened outlaws could be. He wanted to enjoy a peaceful old age, not live in fear of being assassinated every time he stepped outside.
"So, Mr. Seymour," Caris asked in a low voice,
"are you saying you intend to surrender?"
"I am," Seymour replied bluntly.
"I've decided to surrender."
The other managers exchanged uneasy glances. Though none of them spoke, they had already accepted Seymour's reasoning in their hearts.
They were respectable men. There was no need to entangle themselves with a group of ruthless outlaws.
"So that's it?" Caris said angrily.
"You're all prepared to be cowards? Or do you really believe he'll spare you if you surrender?"
"Don't forget Emerald Ranch. We all took part in hiring the Laramie Gang. He won't let us off that easily."
"Now we must unite, gather every bit of strength we have, and destroy him. Only then can we—"
Caris launched into an impassioned speech, one that might have rivaled even Dutch's rhetoric.
But his audience was different. Every man present was a seasoned old fox. None of them would be swayed by a few heated words.
Before he could finish, Seymour stood up and walked out.
Immediately after, the other managers followed one by one, offering Caris no respect at all. His speech was cut short.
"You cowards… damn cowards…" Caris could only curse in fury.
...
Meanwhile, after receiving the telegram, Davey ordered Emin to escort Martelli to Valentine.
Valentine had become Davey's stronghold. There, neither the police nor the townspeople dared to go against his will.
Even the local street toughs could find work under Davey. Everyone had a chance to earn a living by working for him.
Even if some jobs paid only twenty dollars, it was enough to support both themselves and their families. On top of that, they enjoyed the perk of buying moonshine for just one dollar.
With the petty criminals gone, Valentine's public order improved dramatically. Robberies became rare.
As for outsiders drifting into town, they had to follow Davey's rules as well.
Davey wanted to have a conversation with Martelli—about the Mafia, and about eliminating Bronte altogether.
A second-in-command who doesn't want to become the boss is not a good second-in-command.
The Mafia only accepted Italian members, so Davey needed a collaborator.
That was, of course, assuming Martelli knew what was good for him.
...
(40 Chapters Ahead)
p@treon com / GhostParser