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The shock waves shook the walls of the doctor’s office and were followed by a series of gunshots. Lou and Kid were instantly jerked out of their happy world and into a world of fear and uncertainty. Kid was the first to speak. “Stay put”, he ordered as he jumped out of the bed and headed towards the door. Lou started to protest but was silenced before she could even form the sentence. “Lou, please”, Kid practically begged. Lou could not refuse the pleading she heard in his voice and saw in his eyes. “Be careful, Kid”, she said quietly. Kid just gave a slight smile as he went to leave. Before he could make it out of the door, Lou added quietly, “Come back to us”. Kid stopped mid-stride and walked swiftly to her side to place a reassuring kiss on her forehead before promising, “I’ll come back for you, Lou. Just like I always do”. He then looked her straight in the eyes and said, “I love you”. Real fear took hold of Lou, but she was determined to stay strong. So she returned his gaze and said firmly, “I love you too, Kid”. They shared a small but heartfelt kiss before Kid disappeared behind the door and was off into danger. Kid nearly knocked Doctor Kincaid over in his haste. “What is going on?”, the kindly old man asked nervously. “I don’t know but I’m aiming to find out”, Kid said seriously. He then turned to ask the doctor a huge favor. “Would you mind staying here and keeping an eye out for me?”, he asked awkwardly. The doctor looked slightly taken aback by the request. “I’d appreciate you looking out for Lou for me, and I’m sure your wife would appreciate knowing that you aren’t out here”, Kid hurried to finish. The doctor filled with pride. He knew that it took a lot for Kid to place his beloved Louise in anyone else’s care and he wholeheartedly agreed to stay behind. Knowing that Lou would be somewhat looked after allowed the Kid to rush out into the night. The smell of burning wood filled the air. Kid soon realized that where it was coming from. The jail. “Jimmy. Buck”, he whispered as he took off at a dead sprint to check on his friends. The entire front of the building was gone and blown-out glass crunched beneath his feet as he approached the building. One of the newly appointed deputies was being helped to Dr. Kincaid’s for a gunshot to the shoulder while many other townspeople had appeared and began putting out the fire. Kid rushed pass them all and into the building. The fire was almost completely put out but the smoke still hung heavy in the air making it hard to breathe. “Jimmy! Buck! Are you in here?”, he shouted into the darkness. He got no response. “Jimmy! Buck!”, he shouted desperately. He faintly heard his name being called from somewhere in the back. Kid darted as quickly as he could into the direction he thought the voice came from. “Jimmy! Buck!”, Kid continued to shout until he heard another response. Kid bumped into something in the darkness and they both ended up on the floor. “Geez, Kid, do ya think you could get off me?”, Jimmy asked sarcastically. “Jimmy we gotta get out if here”, Kid said absently. “You don’t say, Kid”, Jimmy shot back. “Just help me with Buck. I think he may have gotten hurt”, Jimmy said as he started to get up. Kid was instantly concerned about the health of his friend. “Is he alright”, he asked as he moved to help Jimmy carry Buck. “He thinks he sprained his ankle”, Jimmy replied as they started to carry Buck out of the smoke. “He’s not deaf or dumb”, Buck spat out of with irritation. “Well, I’ll give you the not deaf part”, Jimmy joked. “Hey, Buck, we seriously need to talk about putting you on a diet when we get back”, Kid added as they crossed what used to be the threshold. “Oh, shut-up”, Buck said with a smile. Jimmy hesitated with his next words. He knew the reaction he would get. “Gregors is gone”, he said angrily. Kid was suddenly consumed with a mixture of rage and fear. All of his thoughts were focused on Lou and the danger he now knew she was in. He was unaware of anything until Buck brought him back to present. “Are you trying to break my arm?”, he grimaced. Kid immediately released the death grip he was unaware he had on Buck’s arm and quickly apologized. The trio continued their walk in silence. A few of the townspeople went to help the Kid and Jimmy out with Buck. Both Jimmy and Kid appreciated the help as two young men took on the responsibility of carrying Buck the rest of the way to the doctor’s. He and Jimmy returned to the scene of the crime to help piece together the events of the evening. Jimmy tried his best to fill Kid in on the details but even he was unclear as to what happened. One thing was for sure, Sheriff Gregors was gone and no one could say where he went. Jimmy rushed through trying to say things as quickly as he remembered them. “ I don’t know what to tell you, Kid”, Jimmy started. “Everything was fine. Gregors was asleep in his cell and Buck and me had just sat down for a card game. Next thing we knew all hell broke loose. There was an explosion that knocked us to the floor. We heard shots outside, but by the time we got our bearings, Gregors was gone”, He paused and shut his eyes in an expression of deep concentration. Finally, he let out frustrated sigh before saying, “That’s all I got”. Inside Kid was fuming, but he was able to hold his emotions in check to try and put his best friend at ease. “It’s alright, Jimmy. We’ll find him”, Kid said as he gave his friend a pat on the back. He then began to pace back and forth in front of the still smoldering jail. Most of the people had returned to their homes and previous activities once the fire had been put out. “We need Buck out here when there’s light. Maybe he can still see something we can track”, Kid said more to himself than to Jimmy. They both realized there was really nothing they could do while it was dark, so they headed back to the doctor’s to check on Buck and Lou. Lou was waiting anxiously for Kid’s return. She couldn’t rest easy until he was back with her, safe and sound. She wished she could get up and at least pace the floor but she was still confined to the bed so could only lie there and stare at the walls. Time seemed to slow down and it felt like he’d been gone for days instead of just a few hours. She was about ready to scream in frustration when the door opened and Kid walked in. She immediately sat up and held out her arms for him. She was so relieved she almost cried. He came to her and gathered her in his arms. Just the feel of him in her arms made everything right in her world. They both just held each other for the longest time, just taking comfort in the feel of the other. After a while, Kid slowly held Lou away so that he could look her in the eyes. “I told you I’d come back for you”, he said with a small smile. “Yeah, ya did. And I was holdin’ ya to it, like I always will”, she said back.
*Chapter Twenty-two*
Morning seemed to come earlier than usual. Kid was up and ready to leave almost before the sun was up. Lou could only lie there and watch as he prepared to leave her once again. “How long will you be?”, she asked quietly.“Not long, sweetie”, he said sympathetically as he came to sit by her. “We’re just going to see if we can find any clues. I’ll be back before you miss me”, he said as he kissed her softly. She gave him a look that said, “yeah right”. He gave her a slight smile. He then leaned forward to whisper, “I’ll be back”, in her ear. She whispered back, “I’ll be waiting”. They embraced once more before Kid left to meet up with Jimmy and Buck. His friends were sitting in the waiting room when he walked out of Lou’s room. “How are you feeling this morning, Buck?”, Kid asked as they grabbed their coats. “I’m fine. It’s not sprained that bad”, he replied but he still walked with a pronounced limp. The three friends walked in silence as they made their way back to the scene of the crime. Some of the wood still smoldered slightly in the early morning light. They separated to cover more ground in their search for clues. After about an hour they realized that any possible clues either went up in smoke or were covered up in the dash to put out the fire. They joined up at the former entrance with each of them feeling very frustrated. “There are footprints and tracks from last night, but there are so many that it’d be impossible to tell who they all belong to. Besides, the important ones were probably lost when the everyone was out here dealing with the fire”, Buck said with annoyance. Although they had a pretty good idea who had help orchestrate the escape, they had no idea where Gregors could be. “Maybe he’s gone as far away from here as he could get. I mean I wouldn’t want to hang around if I were him”, Buck offered trying to bring hope to the situation. “I doubt that, Buck. There’s at least one reason for him to hang around”, Kid said distantly. He didn’t have to complete his thoughts because they all knew what he meant. Gregors wasn’t going anywhere without Lou. Suddenly, Kid was struck with an overwhelming sense of panic. His heart began to beat rapidly. Sweat broke out on his brow and he couldn’t quite catch his breath. His friends couldn’t help but notice his strange behavior and were instantly concerned. “Kid, what is it?”, Jimmy asked. All he could say was “Lou” before he took off for the doctor’s office. Buck and Jimmy could barely keep up with him. The door was open and off its hinges. They entered the room and walked into chaos. Chairs were broken and the desk was overturned. Papers covered the floor and the air reeked of medicines whose bottles had been broken. The shock left all three riders unable to move for several seconds. Kid snapped out of it first and made a mad dash to Lou’s room screaming her name all the way, but he already knew what he’d find. Lou’s room was also in total disarray. Her bed was overturned and there were drops of blood there to indicate that there was a struggle. A pungent smell overtook him as he neared the overturned bed. He bent down and found a cloth and an empty bottle of chlorophorm. The rag was soaked and just the smell of it was enough to make his head spin. He knew that Lou was in serious trouble. Jimmy burst in the room and couldn’t contain the curse that escaped his lips. Kid was still kneeling when he heard Jimmy enter the room. “She’s gone”, Kid answered before Jimmy could even ask. Kid rose slowly and moved to stand before his best friend. Anger made both his voice and his body shake as he spoke, “That bastard’s got her and there’s no telling what he’s doing to her right now”. “Kid”, Jimmy started but was quickly cut off by his friend’s next words. “Why can’t I ever protect her, Jimmy? Why do these things keep happening to her?”, he yelled angrily. Seeing the look of self-disgust on Kid’s face, Jimmy couldn’t help but interrupt. “Kid, I won’t lie and say that I understand how you feel ‘cause I don’t. But I do know that you want to get her back, and I do know that ain’t gonna happen as long as you’re standing here questioning things that don’t matter right now”, Jimmy said as sensitively as he could. Kid knew he was telling the truth. It was just so frustrating. It seemed like every time they got things together, something always got in the way. But he knew he’d never give up, not on her, and not on their love. So he simply nodded his head as a sign to Jimmy that he was ready to do what had to be done. The fiery determination was back and the look in the Kid’s eyes showed that he was going to end this once and for all. At that moment Buck appeared with news. “I found the doc and his wife. They were tied up in the back. Doc’s got a pretty big bump on the head”, he said hurriedly. They all went out to the waiting room where Doctor Kincaid stood trying to console his panicking wife. Kid felt bad for interrupting but he had to get some answers. “What happened?”, he asked with all the patience he could muster. The doctor was still visibly shaken but was trying his best to appear calm and in control. “It all happened so fast. I had just gotten finished checking on Louise when I heard my wife scream. I ran to see what was wrong, but as soon as I opened the door, someone whacked me on the head. Everything went black after that. Next thing I know, I wake up and I’m all tied up. Not long after that your friend appeared and untied us”, he answered sadly. Kid simply nodded in acknowledgement and turned to Jimmy and Buck. He was already heading toward the door when he said, “We need to get moving if we don’t want to lose them”. Jimmy and Buck were right behind him. They stopped briefly outside of the office so that Buck could try and decipher the tracks. “There are two sets of prints here and what looks like the tracks of a buckboard”, Buck said as he continued to study to ground. “They went east on their way out of town which is why we didn’t see them. They haven’t got that much of a head start on us and that buckboard must be slowing them down”, he continued. “If we leave now, we should catch them before nightfall”, he finished as he rose. And with those words, they were off to collect their horses.
*Chapter Twenty-three*
They rode at break neck speeds with Kid at the lead. They had to stop on occasion for Buck to make sure they were still headed in the right direction. The sun was riding low in the sky when they came upon a small cabin with smoke coming from the chimney. Two horses that were attached to a small buckboard were tied up in front and they could see lights shining from the windows. They stopped a good bit away from the cabin. They didn’t want the sound of the horses to give them away. They huddled up to discuss a safe plan to get Louise out. Kid was the first to speak.“You two can cover me while I go in”, he said matter of factly. Jimmy understood the Kid’s eagerness but he realized the shortcomings of the plan. “Kid, we don’t know what’s going on in that cabin. We can’t just go barging in. Lou could get caught in the middle”, Jimmy said patiently. Buck spoke up, “Let me go down there and get a look around. That way we’ll know what we’re up against and we can work from there”. Kid and Jimmy agreed that was the best idea so far. “Be careful”, they said in unison and then Buck was gone. Jimmy and Kid waited anxiously for his return. After what seemed like hours, Buck returned. “Well?”, Kid and Jimmy asked simultaneously. “From what I can tell, Lou’s fine. They have her tied to a chair in the kitchen”, Buck answered with the information he knew the other two would find the most important. “How many are there?”, Jimmy asked. “Just two. Gregors and the deputy”, Buck replied simply. “So what’s the plan now?”, Buck asked. “The plan is that we get her the hell out there and finish this once and for all”, Kid said coldly. “Sounds like a plan to me”, Jimmy agreed. “Alright, well how do the both of you propose we carry out this plan of yours?”, Buck asked. “Buck, you’ve been down there. Is there any way that one of us could come in through a back door and secure Lou while the other two occupy Gregors and the deputy?”, Kid asked thoughtfully. “Yeah, that could work, but that’s only if they haven’t counted on it, Kid. They could be ready for that”, Buck answered worriedly. “Well, if you’ve got any other ideas, I’m dying to hear them”, Kid said shortly. He instantly regretted his tone but the look on Buck’s face told him that an apology wasn’t necessary. They both just nodded their understanding and then the trio went to working out the details. It was decided that Kid would sneak around the back and make sure that Lou was alright while Jimmy and Buck provided a distraction. The three of them made their way into the growing darkness toward the small cabin. Each said a silent prayer that everything would turn out alright and that they would all make it back safe and sound. As they reached the cabin, Kid silently signaled his departure from the group and then disappeared around the cabin’s corner. Jimmy and Buck both took deep steadying breaths before they got to work. Buck went to cover Jimmy from behind a nearby tree as Jimmy moved to stand outside the cabin door. Jimmy turned to make sure that Buck was ready. Buck signaled he was ready with a quick nod which Jimmy copied. Jimmy then turned to face the door and then hollered, “Gregors! I know that you’re there and I know that you have Lou. Just let her go and we can end this real peaceful like”. At first the only sounds that answered him were those of chairs scraping and muffled shouts. Jimmy looked back at Buck in confusion. Buck could only shrug. A split second later a bullet whizzed pass Jimmy’s left ear, causing him to dive to the ground as he fired back. From that moment, the fight was on. Gregors and his deputy broke the glass out of the cabin’s front windows to continue their assault. Jimmy and Buck kept firing back as they prayed that Kid had somehow managed to get to Lou before everything went crazy. Kid had barely made it into the cabin when all hell broke loose. He could see Lou just a few feet from him. She was still tied to the chair with her mouth gagged. It looked as though her head wound had begun to bleed again at some point. Her head was hung down but he could still see the fear on her face. She was trapped in the middle of chaos with no way to escape and no way to protect herself from what was going on around her. Kid stayed low to the ground as he made his way to her side. Luckily their plan was working and Gregors and his accomplice were too occupied with Jimmy and Buck to notice him. Kid finally reached the back of Lou’s chair and began to work on the ropes that were beginning to rub her flesh raw. At his touch, Lou’s head jerked up and she tried desperately to turn her head. Kid wasn’t sure if she would be able to hear him, but he whispered anyway, “It’s alright, Lou. I’m here now and everything is going to be alright”. Lou relaxed visibly and nodded her head slowly, acknowledging that she had heard him. Within a few seconds, Kid had her untied and was guiding her out the back. As soon as they had gotten out of the cabin, Kid stopped to make sure that Lou was actually alright. She looked pale and drawn and it looked like the blood from her wound was beginning to flow again. “Lou, do you think that you can make it up there to those trees?”, Kid asked as he pointed to a line of trees about 100 yards off. “If you can make it, you should see where we left our horses. I want you to hide out there until we come get you”, Kid explained. Lou looked unsure at first but then she drew upon the strength and determination that they all admired in her and gave him a firm nod in agreement. Kid gave her a brief smile and a quick kiss before he turned to join Jimmy and Buck in the fight. Lou quickly took hold of his arm before he left. He knew her thoughts before she spoke and simply said, “I have to make sure that this ends now, but I’ll be right behind you”, he explained. Lou began to look hesitant about what to do until Kid took her face in his hands and said, “I swear it, Lou. I will come for you”. With tear filled eyes, Lou reached up on her tiptoes to place a soft kiss on Kid’s lips before turning to make her way to the trees. Kid watched her until her form disappeared into the growing darkness. He spared another moment to send another prayer up to the heavens that asked for Lou to make it. He then hurried to join up with Jimmy and Buck.
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