Kieran Duffy

Biography

Kieran's father was an Irishman with a dream of farming west in California, but both he and Kieran's mother later died of cholera. This left the young Kieran orphaned, and the stables where he worked threw him out shortly after. He joined the army but says it "didn't work out well". He then fell in with some unnamed outlaws, but they were killed by their line of work, leaving him alone once again.[1] At some point, Kieran encountered the O'Driscoll Boys, a rival of the Van der Linde gang. They said they would give him a choice, that he could "ride with them or die". Kieran claimed that it "wasn't much of a choice", subsequently joining the O'Driscoll Boys gang. Kieran presumably took care of their horses. The reasoning for his knowledge of horses is due to him taking care of them as a child, as he states. He describes himself as having been the "bottom rung of the ladder" within their gang. When the Van der Linde gang are scouting the O'Driscoll camp, Kieran is seen being scolded by Colm O'Driscoll, who then leaves on his horse. As they head back from attacking the camp, they come across Kieran standing by the river, whom they recognize from earlier. Kieran bolts as soon as he sees the gang on horseback, but Arthur manages to capture him via lasso after a chase and takes him back to camp, where Dutch orders the gang to lock him up in one of the cabins and not give him food until he provides them with useful information on Colm's gang. Kieran tells them that he was part of the O'Driscoll gang unwillingly and begs to be let go, but to no avail. some weeks later when the gang settles near Valentine, Kieran gets tied to a tree

Personality

Kieran is described by Arthur as a "gentle buffoon". This is shown best during "Old Friends", as he is being chased by Arthur, he doesn't open fire on him despite this, and upon falling off his horse, he still doesn't, and simply surrenders, saying "Don't hurt me, please!". Duffy is soft-spoken and nervous, often stuttering when he speaks. He stutters a lot especially when speaking with Arthur, and although he has a crush on Mary-Beth and seems to have no trouble speaking to her or complimenting her, he becomes shy and stutters when she returns his advances. He generally has a kind-hearted demeanor and avoids conflict when he can, as when he agrees to drink with Bill Williamson even after being physically threatened by him so often. When he tells Sean MacGuire his life story of being orphaned and falling in with the O'Driscolls, he says that all he's ever known is "folks all seem to die", reflecting that he may be wary of losing friends and loved ones so often and never having a solid home or family. Although the gang kidnapped him, he seems intent on earning their trust and becoming a fully-fledged member