By Kirsten Page
Copyright 1999
Much to their surprise, the town appeared on the horizon just as Cole said it would. Either he had made a change in his convictions, or there was going to be some form of trickery involved. Whichever way it turned out, they were going to be prepared.
Teaspoon stopped and faced Cole who sat erect, yet casual as if nothing were wrong. “So, you about ready to tell us the rest of it now?”
Cole shrugged in a carefree manner that made them all extremely irritated. “He’s at the hotel in town. No doubt you’ll find him enjoying the company of a lady too. Wayne’s good for that sort of thing,” he said, more crassly than he had intended.
“Good, then you can take us there,” Jimmy said as he kept a firm grasp on the rein’s of Cole’s horse. He was ready to get this whole ordeal over with. The sooner they did what they needed to do, the better.
Riding into town as if they had a grand purpose (which just so happens that they did) the riders stopped in front of the hotel. Buck offered to wait outside with their prisoner. None of them wanted to risk him trying to escape, or have one of his ‘buddies’ do something stupid like try to help him.
Teaspoon took off his badge and stuck it in his pocket. He didn’t want to give away more than was necessary at this point. Especially because he wasn’t sure who could be trusted.
“Excuse me,” he stepped up to the front desk, “I was wondering if you could help me out,” Teaspoon smiled broadly as if he were planning a great surprise party. He motioned for the manager to lean in closer before he continued. “I have a friend who’s staying here. We served in the war together and it’s kind of a reunion. Could you tell me which room he’s in? His name is Wayne.”
The manager raised his eyebrows. This wasn’t exactly the kind of town where one would plan a party or reunion, but who was he to be the judge of anything? Instead of inquiring into it further, he flipped through his registration book. “Room 214. But I’m afraid that you won’t be able to go in there. There’s been a murder and the Marshal isn’t finished investigating yet. I guess it’s not a pretty sight...what with the blood and all.”
Jimmy and Teaspoon exchanged nervous glances. If Wayne was dead that would solve a lot of their problems...although they wouldn’t be able to find out anymore than was already known at this point. Obviously no matter how one looked at it, there was going to be a major letdown to the whole scheme that had been planned. “You mean he’s dead?” Jimmy said as he took a step forward and leaned on the desk, “Do they know who killed him?”
“No, it wasn’t Wayne that was killed. Actually I never met the man. I guess he was a good friend of Wayne though, seeing as he’s got a posse out on the woman who did it,” he replied as he sat back down on the stool behind him.
Teaspoon’s mind began to fill with questions. Nothing seemed to fit together at all. Why would a woman murder a friend of Wayne’s, and why would be that interested in catching her? “What was the woman’s name? I’m headed towards Rock Creek, maybe I could be on the lookout.”
“I think, don’t quote me on this, but I think they said her name was Leanne, or Louise, or something like that,” he scratched his forehead. “I never have been much good at names.”
Jimmy stood up and left the hotel lobby in two strides. “It can’t be...it couldn’t,” he said to himself, letting the door slam behind him. If this man had been involved with trying to murder Lou, could there be a chance that he wasn’t successful and she was still alive out there being chased by a posse?
Teaspoon’s thoughts were almost identical. He tipped his hat to the hotel manager and turned around to follow Jimmy, “Thank you for your help.”
The manager shrugged and went back to the book that he was reading.
“Teaspoon, it’s her, I know it!” Jimmy fiercely pulled on his gloves and readjusted his hat. “I’m going to find her. If there are a ton of men after her, she doesn’t stand a chance.” All of the feelings that he had been experiencing surfaced at once...he was right, he just knew it. She wasn’t dead, in fact, he’d stake his life on it.
Buck watched in astonishment. He knew that now was not the right time to ask questions, so he decided that his best bet would be to listen, absorb, and hope that he was right in thinking that they had found some word about Lou.
Teaspoon did not attempt to hide his frustration. While he was praying that Louise was alive, they had to go about this with caution. A situation like this could not be handled so haphazardly, not when someone’s life was at stake. “Son, I know how you feel, but until we’ve got proof, we can’t go chasing anyone. Besides, there are lots of women out there with the name ‘Louise’.”
Typical! Jimmy’s anger rose, “Teaspoon, I’m telling you, this is her! Now I’ll go with your blessing or without, but either way, I’m leaving now,” as if to further illustrate his point, he mounted his horse and sat glaring straight ahead.
Teaspoon let out a sigh of aggravation. There were days when he really hated the things he had to go through. Probably what bothered him the most were these times when he knew that one of his riders was right and he was wrong. “If we’re going to do this, we’re doing it my way or not at all, understand?”
Jimmy and Buck nodded, although the latter wasn’t quite sure what he was nodding in affirmation to.
“Good. We’ll have to take our friend Mr. Cole with us because we can’t leave him here,” he turned to Jimmy, “Since you seem to know the way...go ahead and lead us on.”
Much to Lou’s protest, they ordered her into bed once they realized how injured she truly was. Although she adamantly denied suffering any pain, they could see the hurt in her eyes everytime she made a sudden movement.
Once Rachel had bandaged her and cleaned the cuts as best she could, she let Kid inside. He’d been pacing back and forth wanting desperately to see Lou. It was driving her nuts...but she had to admit that she wouldn’t have it any other way. Lou was back to them, and it was going to stay that way.
Maddie had made herself comfortable on one of the bunks and fell asleep in no time at all. Rachel smiled at the sight of the young girl before her, and carefully brushed a lock of matted hair from her face. Taking one of the blankets, she placed it across her slim figure and noticed how much of a baby Madeline really was. She could only imagine the horrors that the young girl had experienced in her life.
Rachel stepped outside and smiled at the impatient young lad that stood there waiting...almost like a child in anticipation of seeing his presents on Christmas morning. “How is she?” He asked.
“Aside from some pretty serious injuries, extreme exhaustion, and a bad case of missing you, I’d say she’s alright,” Rachel replied, setting her humble supply of bandages and ointments on the porch step. She watched as Kid’s eyes asked the question she had already predicted. “Don’t stand there talking to me, go in and see her.”
Without thinking twice, he nearly stumbled over his own feet entering the bunkhouse. But don’t break our neck first!” Rachel laughed as she watched the spectacle.
Kid entered the room and spotted Maddie on the bed. He tiptoed over to where Lou was and sat down. She opened her eyes and looked up at him. Even in her worst fears, she had always been able to see his face beaming with unfailing love.
“How are you feeling?” He asked, clutching her hand, but trying not to touch any of her tender wounds.
Lou tried to make light of his worries with a smile, “I’ve had better weeks. I’m fine, though, really.”
He grinned at her attempt to appease him. In situations like this, she had always wanted to give the answer that she knew he wanted to hear. He replied in a whisper, “You’ve always been a bad liar, Lou.”
Knowing that she wasn’t going to get away without telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth, Lou took a deep breath, “You’re right. Frankly, I feel terrible.” She saw the concern spread across his face, “Well, you try being thrown from a horse, knocked on the head, and pushed around, then see how you feel.”
The thought of anyone hurting her made him sick. “Is that what happened?”
“Kid, there’s so much about this week that I want to forget,” her eyes misted with tears, “There’s also a lot that you want to know, and I do owe you an explanation.”
He nodded, understanding her personal need to take her time in telling him all the details. Kid wasn’t sure that he wanted to hear about everything all at once anyway. For the moment he chose to revel in the fact that she actually was before him...and most importantly, she was alive.
On to Chapter Twenty-Four
