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Belle Taylor was a young woman who lived in Caliber City, Texas during the days of the American Frontier[1] on the ranch owned by her father.[2] She was friends with Lance Temple and his blind father Hoot. Lance was romantically interested in her, but his vow of nonviolence he made to his father after his blinding at the hands of the Red Vest Gang, led to Belle thinking him a coward. Unaware that he was secretly operating as the hero known as the Outlaw Kid, Belle developed a romantic interest in the masked hero.[1]

Although Belle continued to date Lance Temple, she often disapproved or was disappointed with his pacifist ideals and frequently romanticised about the Outlaw Kid.[3] Frequently seeing the Outlaw Kid and interacting soon led to Belle bragging about her association with the masked hero. This eventually led to trouble when Belle was kidnapped the Stacey gang who sought to use her to lure the Outlaw Kid into a trap. However the Outlaw Kid succeeded in rescuing Belle and capturing the gang. He later warned Belle to be more discreet about talking about her relationship with the Outlaw Kid in the future.[4] Later, Belle was jeopardized by Duff Baker and his gang when they were attempting to rob the Caliber City bank, but she was rescued once again by the Outlaw Kid.[5] Soon Belle became interested in a local named Mr. Warren, much to the dismay of Lance. However, the courtship soon ended when the Outlaw Kid uncovered the fact that Warren was in town planning a stagecoach robbery.[6] Shortly thereafter, Belle was witness to the murder of Ed Harvey, making her a target of the killer and the man who hired him. However she was under the protection of the Outlaw Kid, who lured the killers into a trap at the Taylor ranch.[7] When a tribe of Osage Native Americans were driven off their land by a gang of gold seeking outlaws, Belle helped the Outlaw Kid administer first aid to them, and then brought them to stay at her father's ranch temporarily while the Outlaw Kid liberated their land.[8] Not long after this, Belle and her father were terrorized by a gang of outlaws who were under the employ Jess Gardner, who sought to force Belle's father to sell his property to him at a very low price. However this attempt of intimidation was quashed by the Outlaw Kid.[2] Belle once again fell for the charms of a crooked individual when Mr. Harvey began trying to woo her by donating money to a charity bazaar she was organizing. However this courtship ended like the last after the Outlaw Kid uncovered that Harvey's hauling business was merely a front for his criminal activities.[9] When the Outlaw Kid came to the aid of Windy, a gold prospector who was being pressure to reveal the location of his strike before he could register his claim, the Kid put Windy in Belle's care overnight while Windy waited for the registry office to open again in the morning. However Windy was captured by the Mallon gang while out for a walk. When Lance was unable to break his father's vow to go and look for Windy, Belle charged off without him and ended up being captured herself. However, Belle and Windy were both rescued by the Outlaw Kid who arrived moments after, having followed Belle's trail.[10]

When the Outlaw Kid was accused of a string of robberies, forcing Lance to abandon his costumed identity, Belle was the only person in town who still had faith that the Outlaw Kid was innocent. Hearing her words encouraged Lance to resume his secret identity and clear his name. Doing so by uncovering that Mr. Travis, owner of the Crystal Palace gambling hall, had ordered the frame up to prevent the Outlaw Kid from exposing his own criminal activities.[11]

Later life[]

Belle Carter (Earth-616) from Outlaw Kid Vol 2 15 0001

Belle Taylor in the second Outlaw kid series

Eventually, Belle married Lance Tample, and the couple had at least one child together, Luke. Lance continued to be the Outlaw Kid despite his new life[12] . However their marriage came to an end when Lance's father Hoot learned of his double identity, the shock killing him. The grief over his father's death caused Lance to develop a split personality in which he believed himself and the Outlaw Kid to be two different people. His Lance persona believed that the Outlaw Kid was responsible for his father's death,[13] and he become obsessed to find the Outlaw Kid, wandering in the West.[14] Lance -- as the Outlaw Kid -- died assisting a number of other frontier heroes in battling the Nightriders, making Belle a widow.[15] Belle wrote a letter to her son Luke, when he was 4 years old, recounting his father exploits and that he should be honored by his descendants.[12] Her subsequent fate is unknown.

Notes

  • A similar character know as "Belle Cameron" appeared as the romantic interest of Lance Temple/Texas Kid in his first adventures. Despite the similar appearance, Belle Cameron was of hispanic background.
  • Strangely, Belle taylor was called "Belle Palmer", "Belle Carter" and only "Belle" in the revival of Outlaw Kid in his second volume. Despite of that, the character remained the same.

See Also

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References

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