John Marston

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John developed into an experienced outlaw, running with Dutch, Hosea, Arthur, Bill Williamson, Javier Escuella and several others, committing robberies, raids, murders, kidnappings and other crimes across the American frontier. Alongside Morgan, Marston was viewed as Dutch's proudest protégé; many members of the gang including Arthur himself considered John to be Dutch's favorite and "golden boy", much to the envy of certain people, such as Bill. Marston had fallen under the sway of Dutch's philosophy, believing that the gang stole and fought for a reason. In stealing from the rich, they, in turn, gave to the poor. They wanted to elicit change in the people of the West, although he later came to admit that these were excuses to let them rob and steal indiscriminately. In 1894, a prostitute named Abigail Roberts joined the gang. Despite having sexual relations with most of the gang members, she eventually fell in love with John. They later had a son together in 1895, whom they named Jack. The gang became an extended family to Jack, with most of the members becoming aunts and uncles to him. In his early years, John had a lot of difficulties connecting with his son due to doubts as to whether or not he was Jack's biological father, as well as fears about his own ability to raise him. Around 1896, John left the gang for a year. His return was met well with Dutch, Hosea, and certain other members of the gang, whilst Arthur felt betrayed by his actions. A rift between Arthur and John steadily grew over the next few years. The gang picked up new members such as Micah Bell, Lenny Summers, and Charles Smith as they traversed the Grizzlies circa 1898. They continued moving east until they reached the up-and-coming port town of Blackwater, where they decided to stay for a while. Here, Micah encouraged Dutch to pursue a lucrative boat heist, which John participated in alongside Javier, Sean, and the Callander brothers - Mac and Davey.