Linus spat out the last of his chewing tobacco as he held onto his lucky gold belt buckle. 

The sun was peeking through the trees on this dewy morning.

‘I feel it in my bones,’ he said to himself.

Linus hobbled out into the bush.

It took him an hour to reach the spot he left from yesterday.

He hoped today he would finally get a good haul and pay off his debts to Charlie.

By the time he reached the place, he was huffing and puffing. He was too old for this work anymore.

Linus set his shovel into the dirt and dug.

He heard a click behind him.

‘Nice mornin’, old timer,’ said a familiar gravelly voice.

Linus didn’t turn. He felt a gun pushing hard against his head.

‘I’ve got nothin’,’ he whispered. ‘I swear, Charlie.’

‘I’ll wait.’

‘I haven’t found gold fer days!’

‘Don’t play dumb with me ol’ boy,’ Charlie hissed. ‘Ya wern’t be diggin’ here otherwise! Dig ol’ boy! DIG!’

Linus dug hard and fast. Dirt soon covered his white beard, and his face was burnt from the sun. He felt the sweat covering him and his pants coming loose, but he was too distracted to care.

Linus knew Charlie would pull the trigger regardless of if he found something or not, but he kept digging. Maybe if he just kept digging a little longer…

PING.

Linus felt his shovel hit something hard — something metallic.

‘Was th-’

Linus’s shovel hit Charlie’s face before he could finish.

Linus stood over Charlie’s body. His young face was still. Blood pooled from the side of his head onto the hot dirt.

Linus looked back at his hole. His belt buckle lay inside. It gleamed back at him in the sunlight.

He smiled, picked it up and gave it a squeeze, extra tight. 

Always his lucky buckle.