Christy decided the next morning to seek out Kid and Cody. She couldn’t stand the tension hanging in the air between the group. She decided the sooner she talked things over with them, the quicker things could be smoothed over.

She found Cody sitting on the bunkhouse porch, cleaning and polishing his rifle. She felt very relieved when he grinned at her as she climbed the steps to join him.

“Hello, Miss Tunstall. You’re looking pretty as ever.” Cody drawled as she sat next to him.

As always, Cody’s blatant flirting caused her to blush. “Thank you, Billy. I was hoping I could talk to you.”

Cody turned his baby blue eyes to her, batting his eyelashes shamelessly. “Sure, talk, or anything else you want to do.”

She couldn’t help but laugh. “It’s about Jimmy, Billy. I-“

Cody held up one hand. “No need to go any further. From the day me and Hickok found you, I knew you were destined to be with him.”

Christy raised an eyebrow at him. “You did?”

“Yep. No hard feelings, the better man won.” Cody leaned forward to take her hand. Grinning devilishly at her, he kissed her palm. “But, if you ever reconsider…”

“Billy!” She pretended to be shocked. “You’re going to make some woman very happy someday, you know that?”

“I intend to make a lot of women very happy someday.” Cody laughed.

Feeling buoyed by Cody’s attitude, Christy approached Kid with a lighter heart. She located him behind the bunkhouse, feverishly chopping wood. Lou was leaned against a fence post watching him.

“He always does that when something’s bothering him.” Lou commented as Christy approached.

“He does?” Christy asked worriedly.

“Yep, when we first started courtin’, he chopped a lot of wood.” Lou smiled mischievously.

Lou left, heading toward the barn, leaving Christy and Kid alone. Christy walked toward her cousin cautiously. He swung the axe forcefully, cracking the slab of wood down the middle. He paused to wipe the sweat from his forehead, for the first time noticing Christy.

“Hey.” He picked up another piece of wood.

“I hope you’re not pretending that wood is me.” She tried to sound lighthearted.

“Nope.” He took another swing with the axe.

“Kid, please don’t be mad at me.” Christy pleaded.

He laid down the axe and sighed. “I’m not mad. I’m not anything. You’ve got a right to live your own life.”

“Good.” Christy nodded. “I just don’t like this feeling of distance between us.”

Kid put his hands on his hips as he observed her. “Neither do I.”

“What do you mean by that?” She asked curiously.

He paused. “Christy, who was that fellow you were talking to in town yesterday?”

“I told you-an old friend.” She looked away guiltily.

“Since when have you become friends with con artists?” Kid watched her closely.

“What do you mean?” Christy’s tone registered surprise.

“Last night, I asked Teaspoon whether he knew of any new faces in town.” Kid sounded casual, but his gaze was direct. “He told me he was keeping his eye on a fellow who rode into town yesterday. He said this fellow liked to hang around saloons, cheating folks out of their money. According to Teaspoon, his description matches the man you were talking to yesterday. Who is he, Christy?”

Christy tried to hide her irritation. “Kid, I had forgotten how nosy you always were.” Kid said nothing, merely waiting on her answer. “Fine, I’ll tell you. His name is Harry Turner.”

Kid looked stunned. “Harry Turner? As in, ‘Blackjack’ Harry Turner?”

“You’ve heard of him?” Now it was Christy’s turn to look shocked.

“I heard he murdered two men.” Kid said with some disgust.

“Yes, he did.” Christy’s tone turned bitter.

“You knew?” Kid asked incredulously.

She nodded. “You remember I told you about the man I stayed with before I came here? Well, his name was Charles Tunstall. He was a good man, Kid. He took me in when I had no place to go, and not only me, he took in several boys who were homeless. Charles gave us a home, he taught us, loved us. Harry was one of those boys.

“When Charles found Harry, he had been accused of cheating by two card sharps. They were going to kill Harry, until Charles showed up. He distracted the men long enough for Harry to get away, then Harry came to live with us. A year later, the two men showed up at our farm looking for Harry. They attacked Charles and burned down our main house. Charles died.” She looked up at Kid with tears in her eyes. “Harry swore he would get revenge, and he did. The last time I saw Harry was the night he killed them. I’ve never seen him like that, Kid, never. I think-I think it destroyed him. I stayed in the farmhouse, hoping he would come back again, but that was the last time I saw him, until yesterday.”

“You were in love with him.” Kid stated.

“Yes.” Christy admitted.

“Why does he want to see you now?”

“I don’t know.” She answered.

Kid shook his head. “I don’t trust him. You may have thought you knew him once, but I don’t think he’s the same person anymore.”

“Kid, it will be alright.” Christy grabbed his arm. “I’m meeting him here. What could he possibly do with you and the others around?”

Kid sighed and picked up the axe again. “I hope you’re right. I have a bad feeling about this.”

Harry didn’t arrive until late afternoon. Christy had already given up on him and was contemplating saddling Katy for a ride, when he rode up. He jumped down from his horse, offering her an uneasy smile. Again she noticed how bad he looked, although he looked more sober today.

“Thank you for seeing me.” He began shyly.

She nodded curtly. “What do you want?”

Was it her imagination, or did he look a trifle hurt at her tone? “I wanted to see you, of course.”

She stared at him silently.

“Are you going to be mad at me forever?” He demanded.

“No.” She said calmly. “After today, I don’t plan to see you again.”

“Chris, I’m sorry if I hurt you-“ he started.

“Hurt me?” Christy fought to keep from yelling. “Harry, you walked away from me when I needed you the most! All you could think of was revenge.”

“What did you want me to do? Just let those two lowlifes get away with murder? Charles deserved better than that, and you know it.” Harry’s eyes flashed indignantly.

She glared at him for a moment, then threw her hands up in the air. “It doesn’t matter now anyway.”

“It does matter.” Harry said quietly, with urgency. “Christy, I told you I would come back for you, and I did.”

“You also told me you couldn’t be with me, to find someone else!” She cried.

He shrugged. “I didn’t mean that. I just went through a bad time, I needed some space.”

“You’re unbelievable!” Christy stamped her foot for emphasis. “You left me. I didn’t hear from you for months, and now you just want to pick up the pieces and pretend like nothing happened.”

“Why can’t we? Chris, we had the beginnings of something good. Do you just want to let it all slip away?” Harry begged.

“It’s too late, Harry.” She whispered.

“Too late? Why?” He grabbed her hand. “Because I made a mistake? We can get past that, can’t we? Please just give me another chance.”

She removed her hand from Harry’s grasp and shook her head. “It’s too late.”

“Why do you keep saying that?” He asked. He gazed at her, then slowly, comprehension seemed to dawn. “You’ve found someone else.”

Christy looked down guiltily. “It doesn’t matter. If I have or haven’t, it’s still over between you and I.”

“Who is he?” Harry’s eyes were dull, his voice soft.

“Why do you care, Harry?” Furiously, she turned away from him. “It’s none of your business.”

Harry grabbed her by the arm and pulled her roughly to him. “Who is he?”

“Harry, let me go. You’re hurting me.” Christy tried to sound unafraid.

He shook her. “Tell me who he is, Christy.”

“Let her go!” Jimmy walked into the barn, his Navy Colt drawn and pointed directly at Harry.

Harry smiled and it chilled Christy. It was the smile of a madman. “Stay out of this.”

Jimmy walked closer, his gaze never leaving Harry, his gun never wavering. “I’m not gonna tell you but one more time; let her go.”

Harry laughed. For one dreadful minute, Christy thought he would ignore Jimmy, but then he let go of her arm and pushed her away. “I guess I got my answer.”

“I think you better leave.” Jimmy said to Harry. Christy ran quickly to hide behind Jimmy.

Harry slowly mounted his horse. He looked down at Christy and Jimmy before tipping his hat to them. “This ain’t over, Christy.”

“It is now.” Jimmy replied.

Harry smiled wickedly again. “Ya’ll have a good day, now.” He said as he rode away.

Christy breathed a sigh of relief as he disappeared. “Thank you.”

Jimmy uncocked his pistol and put it away. “Who was that?”

“Harry Turner. We used to be friends.” Christy said nervously.

“Friends, huh?” Jimmy looked suspicious. “I think you better stay close tonight. I don’t doubt he’d try something foolish.”

Christy was dismayed to see Jimmy begin saddling his palomino. “Where are you going?”

“I’m leaving on relay.” He replied. “I’ll be back in the morning.”

He noticed Christy’s worried look and continued in a softer tone. “Look, don’t worry. As long as you stay here, he wouldn’t dare try anything.”

She nodded and tried to look reassured. “You’re right. Be careful and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Jimmy gave her a quick kiss before riding away. Christy watched him go and she couldn’t help but feel apprehensive. She comforted herself with Jimmy’s words. He was right; Harry wouldn’t come back here with Kid and the others around. Slowly she walked back to the main house to help Rachel with the cooking.

Chapter Ten

After dinner, Christy sat on the porch swing next to Rachel and listened to Teaspoon tell stories of his days as a Texas Ranger. Lou and the boys sat scattered around, listening, too. The night was warmer than it had been all week, with a touch of the coming spring in the air. If Jimmy had been here, it would have been a perfect evening for Christy.

One by one, everyone began turning in for the evening, until Christy and Rachel were left alone. They rocked in the swing for a while silently, enjoying the night. The only mother figure in Christy’s life had been Kid’s mother, and she felt a strong urge to confide in Rachel.

“I’m sorry we worried you during the blizzard.” She began unsure how to broach the subject of Jimmy. “And I’m sorry I ran off yesterday without telling anybody.”

Rachel leaned forward to pat her knee comfortingly. “Well, I guess you have a lot on your mind with Kid and all. You can talk to me, you know, instead of running away.”

Rachel’s words were all the encouragement Christy needed. “I just feel like I’m being pulled in two different directions.”

“Because of Jimmy and the Kid?” Rachel clarified.

Christy nodded. “Kid is the most important thing in my life, Rachel. But Jimmy…”

“Jimmy is becoming important to you, also.” Rachel finished for her.

“Yes.” Christy sighed. “It’s almost like it’s a competition between them, to see who can win me.”

Rachel chuckled. “Well, you may not be far off. Now, I wasn’t here when Kid and Jimmy first started working for the Express, but Teaspoon has told me some stories. They are total opposites, those two. Sometimes that works for them, but sometimes, they are like oil and water-they don’t mix.”

“What happened between Jimmy and Lou?” Christy leaned forward in the swing, hoping to look casual.

Rachel hesitated. “I’m not sure, Christy. All I really know is for a time Jimmy and Louise seemed to be getting really close. It happened around the time Kid and Lou were having some problems and they had sort of parted company for a while. Jimmy was trying to get over a lady named Alice because things hadn’t worked out between them. Jimmy and Lou had to go to Willow Springs, and I think they spent quite a bit of time together.”

“So, did Lou and Jimmy---?” Christy trailed off.

“No, not that I know of.” Rachel shook her head. “Things were kinda tense for a while, but I think Lou realized that she really did love Kid. I think it’s that connection between Louise and Jimmy that worries Kid. He doesn’t really believe there can just be a strong friendship between a man and a woman without anything else."

“Hmmm.” Christy mumbled. “Do you think maybe that’s why Kid doesn’t want me to be with Jimmy? He’s getting back at Jimmy because of Lou?”

“I don’t know.” Rachel considered. “Could be, or it could just be Kid is just afraid of you getting hurt, like he says.”

“You mean, Kid thinks Jimmy is in love with Lou and is just using me?” Christy asked.

Rachel shrugged. “Maybe, Kid can be awful hard-headed sometimes. Just give it time; things got a way of working themselves out.” She stood and stretched. “You want some coffee?”

“No, I think I’ll pass.” Christy said.

“Well, I think I’m going to fix a cup and take it to bed. Maybe I’ll read for a while. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight, Rachel. Thanks.”

Rachel went inside, but Christy decided to stay outside for a few more minutes. She walked around the porch for a minute to stretch her legs, thinking over what Rachel had told her. Could Kid be right? Would Jimmy ultimately end up hurting her because of feelings he still had for Lou? Now Christy understood Kid’s hesitation at expressing his feelings to Lou better.

She walked down the porch steps, enjoying the feeling of the night air on her skin. Life had certainly become more complicated since she had come to Rock Creek, but Christy still felt happier than she ever had. She thought back to the terrible night right before she had gotten separated from Kid and Jed.

That was the night Kid had vowed he would never take anything from his father again, including his name. Never would she have guessed then that she and Kid would end up in a place like this, with a sort of makeshift family to ease some of the scars of the past.

Lost in her thoughts, Christy hadn’t noticed that she had wandered so far away from the house. With a start she realized where she was and hurriedly walked back toward the house. She hadn’t gone two steps when out of the darkness, a figure loomed in front of her.

“Harry.” She murmured a feeling of dread growing within her.

“Shh.” He whispered as he stepped closer with a foul smelling piece of cloth in his hand. He grabbed her arm before she could even think of running and brought the cloth up to her face.

For Christy the world suddenly ceased to matter…