The rain came down shortly after they left town which made JD glad the idea of a ride had been abandoned although they were going to get just as wet riding to the farm as they would on any outdoor excursion. Fortunately, it was a light summer shower and the rain against their skin felt quite refreshing as opposed to cold and uncomfortable. Casting his eyes on the grey clouds overhead, JD could tell the weather was mild in comparison to the rest of the territory which was no doubt storming if the cumulous clouds in the sky were any indication of the weather.
Although they rode briskly towards Nettie’s farm, JD could feel the rain making its way through the fibres of his clothes and chilling his skin beneath. Casey’s hat was slouched over her face as it became saturated with water and JD wondered why she was so unusually quiet. Albeit the rain did not lend itself much to conversation but he still expected some kind of chatter from her. Casey rarely found it easy to be quiet and she was always going on about one thing or another. He wondered if she was still angry with him for talking to Jillian.
JD frowned, hoping the rest of his afternoon was not going to be spent justifying how he was not interested in Jillian Carr when Casey should know better by now. Of course, he could not blame her for not trusting him to keep his eyes from wandering after the whole mess with the female bounty hunter called Maddie. JD had gotten involved with the woman after she and her sister had ridden into town supposedly searching for a bounty although the truth was far more sinister than any of them had envisioned.
Maddie had been a woman who knew what she wanted and when she wanted it. This included her sexual encounters and she had settled upon JD simply because she liked the look of him and for no other reason than . Later on, JD had realised her choice of selecting him had been worth even less than he could have imagined. It could have been anyone who had walked into the saloon and caught her eye. Unfortunately, JD had been so nervous during the entire encounter when he finally got around to resigning himself to the fact their joining was one of simple lust and not much else, Casey had walked in on him and Maddie before they could get down to it.
Before point, Casey and he hardly had what was called a sexual relationship. He had kissed her a couple of times but little else and JD understood Casey was a proper young woman who was not prone to bandying about her attentions on just anyone. He appreciated he had to earn the right to take such liberties with her and probably not even then. JD had the oddest feeling the only way he was going to get to know Casey in a biblical way was after they were married. JD could not say he minded, after all, Casey was a complicated girl and what she wanted was no different than most of the girls of her age.
In retrospect, he was glad she had walked in on himself and Maddie, even though he felt like an absolute crumb for the next few days. He had never forgotten the expression in her eyes when she had seen them both and while he had not even got around to getting out of his long johns, JD felt inordinately guilty for betraying her. Especially with a woman who saw fit to shoot him in the stomach at first opportunity, simply because she was embarrassed she might have cared about him.
"Casey." JD looked to her as they took the familiar turn off the main trail towards the Wells’ place. The rain had made the track towards the farm rather muddy so JD saw no need to push his horse any faster than need be. Besides, he liked looking at Casey with the rain against her skin and thought she looked really pretty even though the hair was plastered to her face and her cheeks were red from the cold. "There’s nothing going on between me and Jillian."
Casey blinked and turned to him, an expression of surprise on his face as if she had no idea what he was talking about. In truth, her thoughts were centred on the momentous decision she had made earlier today and she was still feeling butterflies in her stomach even though she had every intention of going through with it. She had been thinking of all the reasons Aunt Nettie had said a proper young lady did not give herself to anyone until marriage. While she had never discussed the subject with Nettie because the old lady would have been horrified just to hear her talking like , Casey found Alexandra Styles were surprisingly frank with her.
Casey supposed it was because Alex was a doctor she did not mind discussing sex with Casey and much of what the young woman knew came from her talks with the doctor. Although Alex was never overly descriptive, she did explain a few fundamental truths and the fact while keeping one’s virtue until marriage was a good thing, it was never possible to truly know a person until final barrier was breached. As Alex had put it, it was best to make such discoveries before wedding vows set a relationship in stone rather than after when it was too late to do anything about it.
"I know ." She replied, wondering why he would think such a thing.
"Then what’s wrong?" He asked somewhat exasperated, wondering what secret annoyance she was keeping from him now and more importantly, what he had done to inspire it.
"Nothing is wrong JD." She looked at him with puzzlement.
Ahead of them, the track leading towards the farm was fast running out with the pave of rocks they had lined some part of the path to keep the ground solid appeared in the mud. She could see the faint outline of the farmhouse and the barn in the distance, surrounded by tall trees and golden fields browned by the summer heat. The rain had turned it into a dull greyish sort of colour and Casey looked forward when the sun came out again because the place always looked better when everything was dried out.
"You ain’t said nothing since we started riding out from Four Corners." He pointed out.
"I’m sorry," she offered him a faint smile. "I was just thinking."
"Thinking?" He asked suspiciously. Casey’s random thoughts were far more dangerous than any foolishness he might have done to anger her. There was something about women allowed random thinking to ignite into an inferno of misconception. In Casey it was especially so. He hoped this time whatever random thought she had would not cause too much difficulty. He really did not have the energy for it. "What were you thinking about Casey?"
"Nothing." She said with a mysterious smile and all the more convinced JD he had reason to fear. "It can wait until later," Casey answered and then decided to change the subject for a while. "So where was everyone today?" She asked instead.
JD was still staring at her, trying to decipher the reason for smile and found he could not. After a moment, he decided it was too much effort to try and unlock a secret from a woman especially if she did not wish to let it be known. In way, Casey was typically female as Buck was fond of saying. Women and secrets were like men and guns, the Lothario was known to brag on several occasions.
"Well Chris and Mary were going to Sweet Water," JD answered deciding to take the safe approach and just go along with her attempts at conversation until she stewed enough to let him know exactly what was on his mind. "Didn’t seem to happy about it from what Buck tells me."
"What do you mean?" Casey inquired, unable to imagine Chris and Mary ever unhappy about anything when they were together. If any couple were more suited for each other, it was the gunslinger and the editor of the Clarion News. At first sight, they did seem a very unlikely pair but on closer observation, it was not hard to see how much love there was between the two. Of course, did not mean they did not have spectacular arguments. Casey had been in the company of Mary enough to know when the lady’s mind was set on something, there was nothing anyone could do to change it.
Not even one as formidable as Chris Larabee.
"Well, Buck said Mary was hollering at Chris about something when he met up with them on their way to Sweetwater. Buck didn’t want to stick around to find out what’s wrong." JD replied, understanding the sentiment all too well. He would not want to be anywhere in the nearby vicinity of either Chris or Mary if they were having an argument. Besides, it could cause unnecessary bloodshed. Namely his.
"Oh they’ll work it out," Casey remarked as they reached the farm. The place seemed unusually quiet despite the pitter-patter of rain and JD guessed this was mostly because he was so accustomed to seeing Nettie on the porch or Casey doing chores around the place whenever he arrived. "When is Nettie due back?" JD asked as he thought about the lady, painfully aware Casey was out here alone because he worried about her faring all by herself so far from town.
Unfortunately, Casey was too independent to stay in town and had insisted on remaining at the farm on her own and nothing JD was able to say could convince her otherwise. He knew part of her decision had to do with her determination to prove, not only to Nettie but everyone else, she could be left alone on her and she was not a child who needed watching over. As the youngest member of seven men who often felt the need to protect him from the evils they faced on a daily basis, JD could understand with perfect empathy as well.
"The day after tomorrow," Casey answered as they nudged their horses towards the barn in order to give both animals some shelter from the rain. Both animals were starting to breathe hard and it was obvious the weather was beginning to take its toll on them.
"You been okay on your own?" JD asked without sounding too condescending. If he did, Casey would react badly as she often did when her ability to look after herself was called into question. The entire purpose of remaining at home when Nettie had left was to prove to everyone including her aunt she could take care of herself alone. However, JD’s question was not merely to inquire how she was handling the solitude. He knew how overwhelming it could be when one was accustomed to it and could not deny even now, he had a great deal of difficulty being by himself. In the days before the seven had binding ties to Four Corners, JD had constantly worried about the group going their separate ways unable to comprehend the horror of loneliness again after experiencing the camaraderie of being in the fellowship.
JD had struggled with loneliness throughout most of his young life but had never known how truly empty and devastating it could be until shortly after his mother had died.
He had spent most of his life until point living with her in their small house on the grounds of the fancy school in the East at which she worked. For as long as he could remember there had just been the two of them. The loneliness of life had been made tolerable by the indulgence in his daydreams at the sufferance of his schooling and also by his mother. He never knew his father, not really, aware only he had died when JD was too young to remember him. While his mother’s position at the school saw to it he received the benefits of a good education, he always knew he was not apart of the elite who paid for the privilege. The other students kept away from him, aware he was not of their station and treated him as the outcast, the usurper in their midst they had to tolerate but never accept. JD was always treated like the help and his only friends back in those days were the horses whose care was his responsibility in his role as a stable boy.
In this instance, Casey’s life was not too dissimilar from his own. As far as he knew, Nettie was the only family Casey had ever known. From what Casey had told him about her parents of whom she remembered almost nothing about them except her mother had died too early. As was the case with many women who came out to the West to fulfil their dreams, the reality was an existence too harsh to survive. While Nettie had thrived in the West, Casey’s mother had not and passed on soon after the husband who had died and left her alone. JD knew nothing like would ever happen to Casey because Casey made of the same steel forged Nettie thanks to her upbringing. Casey was made of sterner stuff than and he knew she could hold her own anywhere.
"There’s some firewood in the house," Casey remarked as they rode across the small homestead making up the Wells’ property. "We can warm up in there." She suggested they continued up the track towards the barn.
Upon seeing shelter ahead, the horses, familiar with the terrain, immediately trotted forward quickly, eager to escape the rain and the cold. JD had to admit he would not mind getting dry himself as the chill of the rain had seeped through his clothes and he could feel in it his bones. JD suddenly found himself longing for a hot cup of coffee and reminded himself to make the suggestion to Casey once they were inside the house.
The barn smelled of wet hair and animal spores but it was dry and a fraction warmer once they were inside its confines. He rubbed the flank of his mount and felt the coolness of the animal and knew it would require at least a few hours of rest before forcing it into this weather again. Although his horse had been through much worse, JD did not like to make the animal suffer any more than it had too. It was still afternoon even though the sky was dark outside due to the thickening of the rain-soaked clouds kept the sunlight from breaking through its dense covering.
"Hey Casey," he asked when he dismounted the saddle and a thought occurred to him suddenly. "Is it okay I’m with you alone in the house? Nettie wouldn’t think we’re getting up to any funny business, would she?" He knew Nettie was extremely protective of Casey’s virtue and JD would hate for the lady to think he was anything but a gentleman when left alone with her niece.
Casey gave him look once again. The wistful one he did not understand and only left him wondering what was behind her eyes when she stared at him way. Her expression was unfathomable and at moment, she did not look like Casey the girl but rather like Casey the woman. For a moment, he was captured by the mystery she exuded until it was almost something palpable tangible to the touch. JD could not decipher enigmatic expression on her face and noted a few seconds had passed before she answered.
"Of course not silly." She replied shaking her head as if he had said something inordinately absurd and further convinced JD she was hiding something from him, although he could not fathom what could be in the slightest. Once again, he was reminded of what Buck had said about women and their secrets and decided it would take a better man than him to unlock them.
"Casey, is there something you ain’t telling me?" He asked after they had finished tending to the horses, providing the animals with an adequate amount of feed and hay to warm themselves after being in the rain.
Once they were stabled and comfortable, Casey started towards the barn door. She had yet to answer his question and appeared as if was contemplating her answer, making him question what it was there was to consider. Normally, if she had something on her mind, Casey just came out and told him. Sometimes even when he did not wish to know. He felt into stride with her, staring in expectation of her answer until finally, Casey came to the conclusion he would not relent until she answered him.
"JD," Casey let out a weary, wishing he would desist with the questions until she was ready to show him what had occupied her thoughts during their journey back to the farm. If he could just wait for a little, there would be no need for questions. After all, she was nervous enough about this as it was and knew if she delayed any longer, she might start to reconsider her decision and Casey did not want to do . She loved him and she wanted to show him she loved him in the purest expression of her love she could imagine.
Besides Casey did not want to delay any longer.
Aside from the timing being perfect since Nettie would be away for at least two more days ensuring their complete privacy and keeping JD from being killed if the lady found them, Casey wanted their coupling to take place in familiar surroundings. Casey wanted to love him in the bed she had shared so many of her dreams about him. Besides, as Ezra Standish would not doubt reply if faced with the same situation, Casey had no wish for her first experience in lovemaking to occur in any place as undignified as a livery stable.
"Everything is fine, will you quit your worrying?" She cried in exasperation as she emerged into the rain and started running towards the house, leaving him behind.
JD rolled his eyes in similar frustration and decided to give up arguing because it was obvious; she was not going to tell him anything until she was good and ready to.
Whatever it was.
***********
A short time later, JD found himself seated in front of Nettie’s fireplace, enjoying the delicious heat against his skin and warming up after being in the rain. Although he would have preferred a bath, he knew he would just have to wait until he got back into town for . Unfortunately, he was not about to risk getting killed by having one here should Nettie return home unexpectedly. Still, toasting himself before the cackling fire was more than enough compensation for the lack of a bath at the moment.
His fingers were wrapped around a steaming cup of black coffee Casey had made for him once they had entered the house and JD took a deep breath of the aromatic beverage, allowing it to fill his senses. Instinctively, the awakening of his senses to coffee had also made him long for something to eat and he wondered if Casey would not mind if he helped himself to a quick bite to eat. Good manner made him wait until she had emerged from her room where she was no doubt engaging in a change of clothing.
His own was still fairly damp although removing them and drying them before the fire was out of the question. JD had to be satisfied with pulling off his coat and leaving it to hang on a chair facing the fire so it would hasten the drying process. He did not mind it since he was perfectly aware it was not at all proper for him to disrobe when he was alone with Casey in Nettie’s house. However, the likelihood of Casey allowing him to take any liberties with her was so astronomical JD was rather sceptical at why he was being so cautious in the first place. Nevertheless, he contented himself with sitting before the open flames, knowing the cackling fire would do the job soon enough.
He looked around and wondered why Casey was taking so long and realised she was still in her room. He could not imagine what could be taking her so long because when it came to clothing, Casey did not indulge in wearing layers upon layers of clothing being most comfortable in pants and a shirt most of the time. He appreciated her dress sense was borne out of her need to be comfortable since much of the chores she undertook around the property should have been for a man to do not a young girl like herself.
However, JD could not deny she had been acting strangely today.
Her behaviour today had been peculiar enough without adding a mysterious disappearance to it as well. JD was starting to worry something was seriously wrong because Casey was not normally this puzzling in her mannerism. Sure she had the ineffable quality to drive him absolutely insane with her reasoning at times but for the most part she was not flighty like most girls. If there was one thing JD could count on with Casey, it was she was not as insipid or uninteresting as some of the other young women her age in Four Corners.
Case in point, Jillian Carr.
Jillian with all her fancy trimmings really hid the fact she was no personality and it did not say much for a young lady if she needed so much decoration to attract the opposite sex. Casey who hardly exerted her sexuality was far more capable of making JD aware of her sexuality then Jillian could ever dream of doing in a hundred years. Therefore it was always a mystery to JD Casey could find such a vacuous specimen like competition for his affections when in truth, Jillian could never hold a candle to his Casey as far as JD was concerned.
Tired of waiting and speculating at what her intentions might, JD rose to his feet and walked to her bedroom door, pausing at the doorway before tapping lighting against the wood and calling out. "Is everything alright in there?" He asked.
Despite himself, JD felt slightly uncomfortable about being alone in the house with Casey like this. If Nettie came home suddenly, the youth was certain the lady would not view his presence here favourably and Nettie’s wrath was not something he wanted to inspire. When Nettie Wells made her will known, even Chris Larabee was known to take a step back in caution and nothing ever spooked Chris. Besides, he felt ridiculous standing at her door like this. Why couldn’t she just answer him and let him know what the hell was going on?
If Buck were here, he’d make her tell him. JD grumbled.
"JD," Casey’s voice suddenly responded and almost startled him by appearing out of nowhere so suddenly. "Can you come in here a moment?"
JD had not been in her room before and a part of him was curious to see the place where she slept and dreamed her dreams. Reaching for the doorknob instinctively, he was about to push his way inside when he considered if this was the proper thing to do. It was bad enough being here without Nettie let alone entering the forbidden bastion was Casey’s bedroom. After a second, JD told himself he was being foolish. Casey probably wanted his help with something and most likely a perfectly innocent reason for inviting into her room which could be easily explained in the event Nettie came home unexpectedly.
Pushing the door open, he stepped inside the doorway like a man about to take a step into some mysterious place around which legends and myths revolved. Perhaps he was even stepping through the looking glass, he thought absurdly and wondered how there could be so much mystique about a place. Upon entering, he soon realised it was not the doorway into Shangri-la or Xanadu but just another room, like any other in this newly built house.
The inside of Casey’s room was slightly dim because the floral curtains were pulled back, keeping what natural light there was out. Still, there was enough illumination for him to make good observations as he took his first step in. It was very much a girl’s room with flowers in a vase sitting on top of the nightstand as well as an ornate basin and pitcher for washing. He could see pretty things hanging on the walls and the scent of rose water lingered in the room, pulling him deeper like an invisible chord with its enchanting fragrance. It was just how he had imagined her room to be and knew despite the fact she had only modest means to make it homely, she had nonetheless made this room very much her own. It was such a far cry from the practical young woman he knew JD had to admit to a certain amount of surprise seeing how feminine the decor really was.
At first, he could not see Casey and his eyes searched the small confines of the room, furnished by a bed, a nightstand and a bureau where her clothes were kept. He noticed the scarf he had bought her for Christmas hanging over the dressing table mirror and her hat her was drying on the chair sitting under the window. It was another full second before he realised just where she was and when he did, he could only react by allowing his jaw go slack with astonishment.
Casey was in bed and she was naked.
For a minute JD thought he had walked in on one of his midnight fantasies but through the window outside, he knew it was still daylight so this was no dream. Her clothes were hanging neatly on the edge of the bed and he knew she was naked because he could see the outline of her body through the covers. The sheets had fallen into a very tantalising representation of her figure with every curve accentuated until he could hardly breathe.
"Casey, what are you doing?" He asked cautiously, trying to keep his eyes averted even though he was fighting the urge not to look at the promise of what lay beneath those covers. His body was starting to react and JD knew if he was not careful, he was going to embarrass himself in front of her although at the moment seemed incidental when she was waiting for him in bed naked.
"I want to be with you, JD," Casey said shyly, trying not to let her cheeks burn crimson as she waited in anticipation for him to do something because she had not the faintest idea how to begin. Whether or not he could tell, she was shaking slightly because she was scared and the expression on his face was unfathomable so she did not know whether she had done the right thing or not.
Oh God. JD felt his insides melt as he heard her say . He felt himself hardening just at the thought of lying with her in those sheets, feeling the smoothness of her skin, still cool from being caught in the rain, next to his. "I want to be with you too Casey...." He stammered, not trusting himself to speak because his physical urges were starting to overtake him. "But why now."
"Why not?" She asked pulling the cover slightly apart so he could get a better look at her and hoping the sight of her bare skin would make his own hesitations disappear. "We’ve waited long enough and I love you."
"I love you too." JD stuttered as he saw what lay beneath the fabric of her sheet. While he did not see all of her body, he did see the curve of her hip and a perfect length of leg, beginning from the supple thigh right down to her toes. His eyes could not move away from the sight of her naked flesh and he swallowed thickly as he felt a churning in his gut and the all too familiar pull in his loins signalling the beginning of his erection. After what he had seen and what she was proposing, he could do nothing but be swept away by the anticipation of their possibly coupling.
"Are you sure?" He asked after a moment, his heart pounding so loudly in his chest he was rather surprised she could not hear it.
"Yes," she smiled at him and sat up in the bed, the cover falling from her chest and revealing her bare torso.
If there was any resistance whether or not this was the right thing to do, it more or less crumbled when he caught sight of her breasts exposed to him. The air was relatively cool inside the room and the slight chill made her react as the rosebud colour skin of her nipples contracted and stood erect. He envisioned what it would to touch them and immediately felt a surge of intense feeling rushing to his cock. His jaw dropped for an instant as he saw her waiting for him to touch her and knew if he did not he would spend the rest of his life regretting it.
Taking a step forward, he could not move his eyes from her naked torso and he managed to whisper as he started undressing to join her. "You’re so beautiful, Casey." He whispered, feeling the bulge in his pants pressing hard against the fabric until he needed to be free of it.
Casey noted his erection as he drew closer and smiled with pleasure as she saw his fingers trembling as he pulled off his coat and started unbuttoning his vest. It was nice to know this was going to be as unnerving to him as it was to her. When he was close enough to touch, she reached out in fascination, allowing her hand to mould over the ridge of flesh pushing against his pants. JD reacted immediately upon feeling her palms against his hard length. He shuddered visibly, lost for a moment in the sensation until his hands forgot what they were doing and clenched into fists.
"Oh god." He moaned and looked down at her with a glassy stare.
"Are you okay?" She asked, fearful for a moment she had done something wrong.
"Yeah," he replied hoarsely. "Let me get undressed first." He said taking a deep breath in order to control himself because the feeling of her hand on him, even through the fabric, felt like nothing he had ever imagined.
"Okay," Casey nodded, deciding she would have to explore part of his anatomy later when he was more able to cope with her touch. He certainly looked as if he had liked it when she touched him and she was not so ignorant she did not know what it meant when a man became rigid like . At least Casey was assured she had engendered enough of a reaction to understand he wanted her.
JD undressed in front of her trying not to be subconscious about being naked but decided since she had braved it enough to do it for him; he could not very well be otherwise. He stripped down to his long johns, aware she was watching the removal of his clothes, transfixed by what he looked like bare. JD was still in something of a state of shock about all this and eventually started to peel them off his shoulders before stepping out of them completely. She had always been very proper about her conduct with him and although they had been together for some time now, their relationship had not progressed beyond a few heated kisses after their outings together. He had certainly not taken her to the livery stable like he had done with Maddie, not it had turned out well and now as he stood poised to join with Casey, he was glad he had not wasted his virginity on Maddie when Casey was worth waiting for.
When he finally stepped out his long johns, he noticed Casey studying him closely, her eyes moving over every inch of his skin, pausing at his length in curiosity because she had never until this moment seen a man completely in the nude. He hoped he was not too much of a disappointment and then asked himself when she would have had no other basis for comparison. His cock was fully sprung to life now and JD could see Casey was watching it mesmerised and he guessed she wanted to touch it again and JD knew he wanted to let her. Moving towards the bed, he saw her slip deeper into the sheets as she made a space for him.
"Casey," JD said as he climbed in and had to pause a moment when he felt the delicious heat of her bare skin next to him as he rolled on his side to face her. "Are you sure about this?" He asked nervously.
"Yes," she nodded with a smile. "I want to be with you JD. I want you to be my first."
JD swallowed, feeling his heart swell with affection at what she was offering and realising at moment she believed he had been with a woman before. Of course, considering how she had walked in on him and Maddie, there was no reason for her to believe otherwise.
"Casey." He looked at her. "I haven’t been with anyone else either." He admitted. This was a special moment and it was way too special for him to be lying to her. She was offering him something of herself was a once in a lifetime experience and JD wanted her to know just how much it meant to him she was his first as well.
Her eyes widened in surprise. "But I thought when you with ....."
"No." He shook his head quickly. "I never did anything with her."
Casey met his eyes and started to smile. "I’m glad." She whispered. "It makes this more special."
"It does." He nodded and leaned over, meeting her mouth in a gentle kiss.
He kissed her tenderly at first, even though he was throbbing hard with each taste of her lips against his. Casey was closing her eyes, parting her mouth gently as he continued to kiss her and JD was awash with sensation at how sweet she felt. His head started to swim as his tongue slipped past her teeth and started stroking the deep recesses of her mouth as well as savouring the feel of her tongue as she nervously began to explore him just as deeply. Instinctively, he reached for her face and stroked her hair and cheek tenderly as they continued to kiss because anything more was still too new.
JD could not believe how wonderful she felt as he rolled on top of her. All his senses were being bombarded by the stimulating sensations of her scent in his lungs, of her skin against him and the softness of her full lips growing bolder as their passion started to heighten beyond discovery into the taut singularity of need. He could feel her breasts pressed against his and he continued to kiss her and knew his erect length was pressing into her thigh. Her hands were moving over his back, rolling languidly across muscle and feeling the firmness of his flesh under her palms. He felt her shudder slightly at the feel of him, it moved through her body her like a wave and through her kisses, he heard a sharp intake of breath.
"Oh Casey." He swallowed as he came up for air. "You’re so beautiful." He whispered and saw her smile radiantly before she pulled him to her again because the pleasure of his kisses was more than she could stand to have away from her at this moment. She was aware she stood on the periphery of something but could not imagine what might be except for this tugging inside her would not be abated. She could feel him pressing hard against her leg and knew they had both crossed a point of no return.
JD tried to remember all the talk he had listened in when Buck and the others talked about women. Buck was naturally the most vocal and JD had to shift through all the advice given and cast out what was mostly bluster in order to secure the knowledge was actually useful. Buck always said it was always best when the woman felt good too and Ezra seemed to agree even though he never went into more detail than . Vin and Chris did not talk about women at all except to joke about some of the ladies they had known in the past but like Ezra did not specify the more fundamental aspects of it. Josiah’s knowledge of the opposite sex was not focussed on the bedding but the courting while Nathan’s attitude was to take things slow. What would happen would happen.
He knew Casey expected him to take the lead assuming he had more experience than she did in these things but all JD knew how to do was to take it slow as Nathan had advised. He told himself to remember she was here too and Casey had needs just as demanding as his. She had given herself to him on nothing less than a leap of faith and JD had no intention of betraying her trust. Gazing into her eyes and he saw the love she had for him. JD knew he wanted this to be something they could remember for the rest of their lives, a memory they would share even when they were old and grey because he knew he loved her too.
Lowering his head, his lips parted and captured the soft skin of her neck, awkwardly moving up and down the creamy flesh as he began exploring her, trying to find the secret places Buck had told him about where women could be pleasured. Purely on a whim, he tried to tease the tender skin as he had kissed her, darting his tongue out far enough make contact when he heard her breath in deeply and one of her hands left his back and started raking through his dark hair. It took a few seconds to realise she liked what he was doing and so he continued, raining soft kisses down her shoulder, moving across her neck and collar bone all the while stealing the nerve to cup the small mound of her breast.
His palm burned like fire when he felt the hard nub of a nipple under his skin and instinctively squeezed gently. Casey wriggled underneath him, feeling the previously forbidden pleasure now taking complete control of her body as JD started squeezing harder until the breath was forced from her lungs with each tentative compression of his fingers. The sensation started to burn like wildfire, making her moan softly in his ears, even before she was aware the sound had left her lips. She placed her hand over his, inciting him to continue even though he had no intention of stopping in the slightest now he had made this discovery.
JD was throbbing so hard he was almost panting with the need to find release immediately but hearing her gasp in his ears was so arousing, he knew he just had to hang on a little longer because he wanted her to experience it with him. Inspired by the response he had garnered by touching her breast, JD wondered how sensitive they really were to touch and began directing his kisses lower. She reacted to the touch of his lips with every inch of his journey and when he happened to glance upwards, noted her eyes were closed shut and her lips were quivering with sensation.
Her nipple was like a rosebud, pulled tight into a single nub of crinkly skin, the way it would be if she were cold. The tip jutted into a small plateau. When JD brought his mouth to it and allowed a breath of hot air to pass over it, he felt her react most acutely when her back arched slightly and her legs parted so he could feel his cock sliding neatly between them near the heated core of her. The sensation endured when the head of his manhood caressed the tender skin of her inner thighs almost made him come undone and he had to fight like hell to rein in the urges threatening to overpower him.
When he finally reined in his rampant desires, JD flicked his tongue experimentally over point of contracted flesh. What he received, in turn, was a languid moan, like something had been awakened inside of her with one action. Her back lifted off the bed enough to push her hot body against him while her hand in his hair pushed his head down again, wanting him desperately to repeat what he had just done.
"JD....." She pleaded. "Don’t stop."
Encouraged by her reaction, JD became bolder and sucked deeper, eliciting another cry of pleasure upon doing so. He let his tongue fully explore the tiny nod of skin in his mouth, swirling around it and gently nipping it with his teeth, testing the boundaries of what he could do to make soft moan escape her again. His cock was hardening by the second with each pleasure gasp sneaking past her lips until his entire body trembled in anticipation of release.
His hand cupped her other breast while his mouth did its worst and JD felt extremely satisfied he was able to deliver some measure of pleasure to her because he had been afraid of disappointing her, especially since it was the first time for both of them. Buck’s words a joining like this should be enjoyable for both, haunted him. Kneading the flesh in his palm gently, he felt her fingers rake through his hair and could not deny he liked how it felt immensely.
Leaving her breast, he moved his hand downward, feeling his curiosity about the female anatomy reach bursting point because he had to know more before they proceeded to the next step, whatever was. He wanted to be with her desperately. His entire body was aching for it. Just watching her heave in sensation as he continued to nurse on her was enough to shatter his control and he was very close to climax but JD refused to let himself give in until he was sure she was ready for it. He was not entirely ignorant and knew the first time for women was supposed to be painful, at least was what Buck said and it was a man’s responsibility to lessen it as much as possible.
JD did not want to hurt Casey and as his hands snaked down the smooth skin, relishing in the curves so often hidden beneath loose-fitting clothes, he wondered why she was not tempted to display lovely figure more often. Finally, he arrived at the crinkly mound of hair and lingered for a moment as he experienced the texture under his fingertips, running his own digits through it as she was doing to him. Casey seemed to breath harder when he reached point and paused suddenly as if she had not expected him down there.
"Casey?" JD stopped what he was doing and looked up at her when he felt her stiffen suddenly. "Is everything alright?" He asked anxiously, praying she had not changed her mind because he had done something wrong.
"Yes," she nodded after a minute but the apprehension in her eyes showed. She was had counted on him knowing what to do when she had made this decision but JD’s revelation he had never been with a woman before, though wonderful, had given her cause for concern. She wanted to be with him but she was also afraid because they were both in uncharted waters with no guide except the experimentation they had been doing to aid them in their sexual awakening.
"I won’t hurt you Casey," JD said softly, aware of the fear in her eyes and wanting to assuage them because he would just die with need if she chose not to continue. Of course, he was a gentleman and he had no intention of forcing himself upon her if she did not wish to go through with this, no matter how uncomfortable he might become. "I promise."
"I know," she smiled, believing him when he said it. Slowly, her hand dropped away from his hair and gently urged his hand to continue what it was doing.
JD returned her smile and lowered his lips once more to capture her nipple, wanting to engender the same pleasure within her as he made this latest incursion into unknown territory. She was breathing hard but it was part pleasure and part fear as his fingers moved to her lower regions. JD noticed he could smell her very acutely now and it was not just the perfume always seemed to linger on her body after she had spent the day in the sun doing chores around the farm. It was something else, something not bottled but overpowering, like heat and sweat all rolled into one and whatever it was, he took a deep breath and savoured it in his lungs like an elixir stoking the fire burning inside his groin.
The first thing he noticed when he finally began probing at the folds of her sex was the slick moisture at the small opening. He knew from personal experience men were able to produce lubrication of their own when they were pleasuring themselves. He guessed it was the same for women as well but had no idea how similar it would be. He used the dampness to probe further into her, letting his fingers explore every crevice and every fold with fascination until his finger brushed over a nod of flesh and he received the surprise of his life as well as giving Casey one herself.
"Oh god JD!" She groaned and she bucked underneath him, her hands flying to his hair and back. Suddenly the gentle caresses disappeared and was replaced by fervent kneading of flesh as her fingers raked across the hard muscle of his back.
JD considered what he had discovered briefly before repeating the action to see if the same reaction would be engendered. Just as before, the moan escaped Casey with careless abandon and the surge of moisture flooding her passageway almost tore the sense from his world as he felt his finger dampen with her juices. He realised this was the place he had needed to find, the one would give her the same kind of pleasure she had given him when Casey had placed his hands on his throbbing cock.
Deciding to take advantage of what he now knew, he continued to concentrate his digital manipulations on one area, swirling, caressing and kneading with his fingers tips until Casey was writhing beneath him with nothing less than ecstasy. Her hands had left his back and were now knotted around the sheets. Her legs were wrapped around his thighs, with one foot gently stroking the back of his calf in complete submission to the pleasure he was affording her. When he pressed the inside of the moist passageway and felt the walls of muscle contracting around his finger, he almost came there and then and told himself he had to hang on.
"JD," she whispered almost incoherently. "’s so wonderful." She panted. "Oh god, ’s so good!"
She could think of no other way to describe it because it was not what she had expected. In truth, Casey had not known what would happen when she finally decided to give herself to JD but she had to admit she was pleasantly surprised by everything happening so far. While JD was just as new to her as this was, she could see he was taking great pains to ensure she enjoyed the experience as much as he and if nothing else, this convinced Casey she had made the right decision.
JD continued stroking pearl of flesh, relishing each pleasured groan as it escaped her lips until she was riding his hand in order to experience as much as the ecstasy he was delivering to her in searing waves of erotic sensation. Her hips were thrusting gently toward him, moving in rhythm with his hand. JD had to breathe in deeply to control the almost painful ache building up in his cock as he felt her heart pounding against his when as he rested his head on her breast and continued their fevered dance.
Suddenly, he felt her tense underneath him and a shudder overcame her JD knew all too well from too many experiences doubled over in his bed, groaning into his pillow so he would not be heard when the pleasure of his own hand allowed him to reach climax. She arched against him as her arms wrapped themselves around his back and her nails dug into the skin. The pain was strangely arousing and JD watched the pleasure overcome her face as her cheeks flushed with colour and her lips trembled as the full vent of her orgasm rushed over her body and swept her away. A gush of moisture flooded the narrow passage and emersed his finger in warmth. JD revelled in the feeling knowing it was he who had made her feel this way.
JD pulled himself further up her body, capturing her mouth with his and reached instinctively for her leg and hooked it over his thigh. She was still recovering from the sensation of her climax and made no protest, aiding him somewhat when she positioned herself so they could finally complete their joining. Her fingers traced slow circles over his back once she had relaxed and she gently whispered into his ear.
"Now JD." She said softly, her voice a little shakey still but definite in its intention. "Do it now."
JD needed no more encouragement because he could not wait any longer. Seeing her climax was the most erotic thing he had ever seen in his young life. He loved the way her eyes had clamped shut and her lips had puckered into an ‘o’ of pure sensation as it rushed over her. The sight of glassy stare and the beatific expression on her face as it melted into satisfaction was something he would carry with him until the day he died. At instant, JD had understood better than ever what Nathan had meant when the healer had said the experience was so much better with someone you loved.
Positioning himself over her quivering sex, he gently nudged his way through the heated passage his finger had taken earlier, much to the envy of his hungry cock. As the head of the swollen member penetrated the tight ring of flesh, JD thought he might just die from how it felt. The pressure against his glans, awakened every nerve inside his body until he could do nothing except groan out loud in order to keep himself from forcing all the way up her.
"Casey……" JD was almost incoherent. "Oh Jesus, Casey!"
He could not breathe. The pleasure of it! Oh dear god, the pleasure of it! It was nothing like what he imagined, not even in his wildest fantasies and he had only just slipped a little of himself inside her, to say nothing of his full length. However, despite the incredible ecstasy of her body, he still remembered he was not alone. In a raspy voice, he asked. "Is it okay, Casey?" He could hardly keep himself from shuddering as he spoke, the sensation chipping away at his composure so relentlessly his jaw was taut with agonising attempts at control.
"Yes." She nodded. It did not hurt yet but then she was not sure it would as much since he had made her experience incredible rush of sensation pulling the bones from her body until she was nothing but fluidic motion wishing for him to experience the same enjoyment. She loved him so much seeing the strain of his jaw and the look in his eyes as he tried to control his entry so as not to hurt her. As if to give him permission, her palms circled his rear and pushed him towards her gently.
He continued to push, relishing each centimetre of the journey towards the core of her. She was so tight inside and while he had no basis of comparison, he had never imagined the lack of space could produce such incredible sensation. The walls of her inner muscles clenched around him, stroking his heavy shaft as he nudged deeper and deeper into her until he could hear her starting to call her name in his ear. The feel of her breath against his skin compelled him to move faster into her when suddenly, he came against a barrier of skin.
His first instinct was to pull back when suddenly he felt Casey’s hands pulling him against inner obstruction. She stiffened under him as he did so but the sensation of her moist passage clamping down around him drove any further thought from his mind. Oh Christ, JD thought to himself. He was never going to make it to the end and he knew he just had to. He did not want to disappoint her and yet the pleasure was beyond belief. She as so damn tight! He wanted to scream in loud ragged sobs as his cock hardened at the overload of stimulation until it was very near explosion.
This must be it, Casey thought as she felt him fill her and the pain searing through her as he breached her maidenhead. She felt it burning inside of her and was almost tempted to push him away but knew she could not do because he was too far along to stop. He had tried so hard not to hurt her and the pain was fading away somewhat so Casey knew she could bear it. The next time it won’t be so bad she told herself and she knew there would be a next time because JD had made this experience so wonderful she could deny him nothing ever again.
JD reached the end of the passageway and knew he could go no further because he was buried to the hilt inside Casey. Her fingers were raking at his back and he was aware something had happened during the course of joining because she had stiffened enough for him to notice. He wanted to ask her but was too afraid to spoil the moment with words and the most coherent thought in his mind at the moment was this need to start thrusting into her.
He pulled back and started to pump, taking note with the slick wet was some stickiness as well felt different from the other. However, sensation soon drove the observation from his mind as he started moving his hips and began thrusting into her warmth with long steady strokes. JD was realistic he could not last for very long. This was his first time inside a woman and the anticipation leading to this moment had almost shattered his resolve a thousand times over before he had even penetrated the sweetness of her body.
"Oh, Casey!" He groaned as he slid into her, each stroke was pure bliss and his body was absolutely wracked with it. His eyes clamped shut as he continued pumping into her, his body performing an ancient rhythm was buried inside him all his life waiting for its time. All he could see before he was this heaving veil of colour, reaching epiphany with every stroke until he was knew nothing else.
Casey watched him in fascination as well as arousal. He was pushing fast and furious, beads of sweat running down his muscled arms and chest. His face was contracted into a knot of pleasure and he was panting, gasping, trying to keep control. She could see the muscles flex in the line of his jaw and the chords of sinew pulled tight in his neck as his head was thrown back in animalistic lust. She watched his skin glisten under the light and the musk of him filled the room and was almost as intoxicating as watching the pleasure on his face.
Casey felt as if she had come down from a high place and was still basking in the warmth of her descent. While she felt none of the frenzied ecstasy of his earlier ministrations, there was a pleasure in this too. The fullness inside her was very satisfying and even though she still ached a little from the loss of her maidenhead, she was revelling in the sight of watching him pound into her. She thrilled in his vocal expressions and how he reaching the same heights he had sent her earlier.
He was beautiful.
Casey had never understood how could be applied to a man until this point but she knew it was an accurate description. Everything about how he looked to her now, helpless to his needs, his lips quivering and his skin flushed gave her a sense of the real JD she had never seen before. She wondered if it was this moment stripping away all the pretext and words between a man and a woman and finally lay them open to each other, unable to hide nothing. Casey saw him for what he was just then, not the youngest member of the seven, not the sheriff of Four Corners or even the man she loved but rather as a boy not unlike the girl she was, trying to find his place in the world.
Suddenly, he opened his eyes and looked at her. In the split second of time it took for their eyes to meet, Casey saw he was finally there. His body tensed and a long, guttural moan of pleasure escaped his throat as she felt the warmth of him filling inside of her. The sensation was like nothing she had ever experienced. It seemed to rush up within her, staking claim to her body as it warmed her insides with seed.
Oh god. Oh god. Oh god.
was the only thing JD could make sense of in his mind when he finally let himself go. A rainbow of colour exploded before him, blinding him to everything but the pleasure gripping his body in a tight knot and refused to let him go. The control he had tried so hard to master snapped, like the ropes holding the mast of a ship together and the resulting chaos followed was no less turbulent as the relief flooded his body and he spurted his seed deep inside her.
JD continued to pump, climaxing harder than he had ever done so in his life although he measured those experiences with the lonely episodes in bed where a day of pent up sexual frustration found release in his hand. JD had to say this was so much better. His head swam as the strength drained out of him and he found himself unable to remain on his elbows any more and had to lower himself onto her. Resting his head against her breast, JD swallowed hard as he caught his breath to speak.
"Casey, was something." He raised his head long enough to kiss her on the lips. He felt like the bones in his body were no more and he could not move. All he wanted to do was to lie against her forever and hear her heart beating against him. He had never imagined for one moment it could be so incredible. Buck’s description did the act no justice and yet it was Josiah’s words seemed to echo more in his ears than anything else. Josiah said it was a symphony of souls and at the moment JD could not disagree with him more. It was like a song was playing in his ears and even though it was now over, he could hear the lilt of it humming through his soul.
"Thank you JD," she smiled happily as she brushed a strand of hair away from wet brow. She knew she was bleeding a little but the pain of the moment hardly registered when she saw how satisfied and affectionate he was following his release.
"Thank you?" He looked at her perplexed. Thank him? She was thanking him for making him experience the most mind-numbing pleasure of his life? JD had to admit confusion and managed to exclaim. "What for?"
"For making it so wonderful," Casey said wistfully, smile on her face again.
"You made it wonderful, Casey." JD pointed out and felt it the honest truth. "I was just here."
"No," she shook her head, disagreeing with him on count and decided on the admission would be acceptable to him. "We made it wonderful."
Nathan Jackson was not a happy man.
He should have been on his way to Eagle Bend, preparing to meet one of the most important appointments of his life but instead, he was riding into a small town less than an hours ride away from large city in order to get cleaned up. The rain had not let up and if anything had become a full-blown storm pelting the earth with large drops of water felt like lashes against the skin. He supposed he ought to be grateful the ferocity of the weather had washed away the mud he had been covered in after he fell off his horse.
The town was called Hadley’s Hope and as towns went it was a nice little place was home mostly to sheep graziers. It reminded Nathan of Four Corners before the arrival of the seven, although crime was not as rife here as it had been in the dry, dusty town was destined to be their homes. The main street was just a narrow stretch of land flanked by a general store, a hotel, a telegraph office, a post office, a jailhouse and all the usual utilities necessary when more than a dozen people settled in a place. Nathan and the others had reason to pass through the town on numerous occasions on their way to Eagle Bend. The sheriff was a George Brooks, a former Union soldier who had settled in the early days of the town and was a decent enough man. He kept the town safe and was not above asking help.
The town had been having troubles lately with a series of murders of young women not unlike the crimes beset the town a few years ago when Silas Poplar had come to Four Corners. The Pinkerton detective had claimed to be on the trail of the killer and had accused Josiah of the crime when it was he who had been responsible for all those deaths and might have taken Mary to had they not made the discovery in time. Nathan had been forced to examine the bodies after the murder and had to admit feeling for the first time in his life, this was not a task he wanted to do again. Later on, when he had met Alex, she had explained to him forensic science was a field gaining much prestige in the medical community and eventually, many crimes would be solved by the study of the victim’s body.
The seven had offered to help but catching Poplar had been sheer luck and other than manpower which Brooks had plenty off with the mobilisation of the townspeople, there was little they could offer in the way of expertise. Nathan knew Chris was keeping a close eye on the situation in case the killer shifted towns as Poplar had done when he had left a slew of bodies in the wake of his travels. Nathan hoped the situation in Hadley’s Hope would not see a body count as high before the killer was brought to justice.
As he moved his horse towards the livery, he noticed a large gathering of people outside the local dressmaker’s shop. Judging from the sombre expressions on the faces of those collected at the boardwalk, trying to peer through the glass and braving the rain, Nathan immediately felt his heart sink some tragedy had befallen the lady who conducted her business there. Although he had not the time to deal with this, the lawmen inside of him forced him to nudge his horse in the direction of the shop.
After all, what would it hurt if he just had a little look?
His arrival was barely noticed but even through the rain, he could hear Brooks telling his deputies to keep people away and wondered if he was intruding by coming here. Nathan inched his horse to the nearest hitching post before dismounting and tethering the animal to the slick wooden bar. When he stepped onto the boardwalk, a few people glanced over their shoulders and paused a moment if they recognised him. Those who did know him from his previous visits simply returned to their viewing of the events taking place inside the shop.
Nathan skimmed the edge of the crowd, looking over the tops of people’s heads to see a pair of boots protruding from beneath a white sheet. He felt his stomach hollow, knowing those boots belonged to the next victim of the murder who had fallen prey to the mad man who was roaming the streets of Hadley’s Hope. He could hear someone weeping and had no doubt there would be many such tears in the days following this grisly discovery. Suddenly, he saw Brooks emerge from the front door and issued orders to his deputy to keep people out of the crime scene.
Brooks was a lean wiry man. His build was not much larger than Ezra with a face worn by hard-living and intelligent blue eyes showing there was much compassion in his soul despite his hardened features. His dark brown hair was slowly greying and the moustache on his face was making better progress of the two. His eyes scanned the crowd, trying to see past their faces to see into their souls in order to find a killer. Nathan could see the deaths had affected him and the expression in his eyes seemed haunted.
"Nathan!" Brooks suddenly exclaimed, catching sight of the healer’s face in the crowd.
"Sheriff Brooks." Nathan tipped his soggy hat a little as the crowd parted for Brooks as he ploughed his way straight through them to reach the visitor from Four Corners. "I’m sorry to see you have another one your hands."
"Yeah," Brook nodded casting a brief glance at the door even though his eyes could not bring himself to look at the body once again. "Thelma Rutledge. She was our local dressmaker. Listen, Nathan, our doctor up and moved with all the killing and I would surely appreciate it if you could take some time to have a look a Miss Rutledge and tell us what you can about the body. I mean I know there probably ain’t no difference from the last three killed but every victim is important and it helps us bring this bastard to justice."
Nathan did not know what to say. He had commitments in Eagle Bend and he was late already but then Brooks did not make this request lightly and an autopsy could not take him long. All he had to do was make some quick observations and be on his way. The weather was bad and was plausible enough of an excuse for him to be a little late for his appointment. Surely they would not penalise him for ?
"To tell you the truth," Nathan said after a moment of consideration, aware Brooks was waiting for his answer in anticipation. The man knew Nathan was a doctor in training and he knew something of criminal activity being a lawman himself in Four Corners. "I’m on my way to take my doctor’s exam in Eagle Bend but I reckon I could lend a hand."
He saw Brooks let out a visible sigh of relief at his agreement to help and a slow smile stole across the man’s face. "I appreciate your help. This won’t take long and you can get on your way." With , he started leading Nathan through the group of people towards the door again. Brook’s hand brushed against the sleeve of Nathan’s shirt and the sheriff looked up at him.
"Good lord, you’re soaked through!" Brooks exclaimed as they moved into the shop.
"Yeah the rain got me on the way here," he frowned, feeling chill bit into the skin at the mere reminder he was soaking wet.
"One of those days huh?" Brook said with a faint smile.
"Something like ," Nathan replied and then they both fell silent when the door closed behind them and they were left alone with the body of Thelma Rutledge lying on the floor dead. Nathan allowed his gaze to sweep across the room; unable to envision how a setting so benign could be the scene of so much violence. A flower vase full of cuts flowers, tapestry fibre purse of rose design, a pair of shoes, newly mended sitting against the floor. These were things associated with someone going on with their lives and enjoying the little pleasures of it. Not someone, who ought to be lying dead on the floor, covered with a sheet, lying nothing behind but the tragic circumstances of their end.
He looked at the door through which he had entered with the sheriff and saw no signs of violence, no broken glass or torn wood. The metal was slightly tarnished but the lock was very much intact. He made the same observation of the windows and could see faces peering at him through the unbroken finished without a break or even crack to mar it. He glanced at Brooks, who was aware he was studying the place and allowed him the moment.
"When was the last time anyone saw her?" Nathan found himself asking.
"Well, Mrs Tynan brought a dress into her last evening at about six," Brooks answered quietly. He had his back turned to the corpse as if he was done looking at it. "Says Thelma left the shop with her and locked up but when the body was found this morning, the door was open. The door at the back is still locked so I figured he got in somehow and left it unlocked when he was done."
Nathan considered his words and said nothing before he dropped to his knees and raised the blood-soaked sheet covering the young woman’s still form.
"Who did find her?" Nathan asked as he stared into the face of a woman in her early twenties with long gold hair, splayed around her hair, matted in places by the blood drained from the large gash across her neck. Her lips were blue with lifelessness and her skin seemed grey.
"Jenna Wade," Brooks answered. "Sixteen years old," the sheriff said grimly. "Came in to pick up her new dress and found her like this. Poor thing is half out of her mind from the shock."
Nathan could not blame the unseen Jenna for behaving as she had. The sight of this could shake the resolve and the constitution of the most hardened of men. Thelma lay outstretched, her hands resting on her belly, folded one across the other. They almost looked like she had been laid to rest at peace. Nathan continued his observations, making sure there were no other injuries other than the most obvious. Nathan noticed something caught his eye immediately but Brooks had not mentioned which meant he might not have understood or guessed.
"The others were laid out like this?" Nathan asked, glancing at the man. There was something very odd about this whole scenario. The way she had been laid to rest and the pristine atmosphere of the room. It was like it was arranged so it would look as disarming as possible. Suddenly, he noticed everything was neat and tidy. No signs of dresses she might have been presently working on or even the accoutrements of her trade lying about the sewing machine against the wall. Not even one roll of thread could be seen.
"Sheriff," Nathan suddenly straightened up and found his mind ticking slowly as the pieces of what he was seeing around him started to form a vague jigsaw. "The other girls were killed. Can I have a look at where they were found?"
Brooks stared at him, not daring to hope he had a reason for making the inquiry, a reason could well lead to an answer they were so desperately seeking to make these murders stop. "Of course," Brooks said eagerly, not at all about to deny the request. The reputation of the seven men who brought law and order to Four Corners could not be questioned, neither could the skills of his particular healer who had been proven so many times already. Brooks was aware from his earlier association with Nathan the former slave had a quick mind and he sometimes saw things obvious only to him but no one else.
Right now, they needed kind of clarity.
As Nathan followed Brooks out of the shop following the man’s instructions to his deputy to move the body to the local mortuary but not to have the undertaker touch it until they returned, he asked himself what he was doing. He did not have time for this. As it was, he was going to be hard-pressed to make it to Eagle Bend in time but somehow he could not pull himself away from this little town. Maybe he was wrong. Perhaps he was chasing some wild theory with no basis in fact except in his mind but if he was right......
If he was right then they could end this before another girl wound up dead.
There was too much compassion in him to allow to happen for the simple sake of an exam. Alex knew people, perhaps she could square it with them for him to take the exams again. Either way, it did not matter, he was going to help because he was being Doctor Jackson was not as important as saving someone’s life.
***********
"The Johnsons are staying at some friends," Brooks told Nathan as they walked into the set of rooms above the hardware store did not look unlike his infirmary in Four Corners. As he walked into the home, he did not need Brooks to tell him about the Johnsons to know they were a family of moderate means. There was very little on the walls and most of the furniture was hand made from rough-hewn wood. However, there were traces all around the place to know it was a home filled with love.
Nathan walked through the home, trying not to think about the appointment he would be missing. He looked through the window with its cheery curtains and saw the rain still coming down outside, even though in light of what was happening at Hadley’s Hope it did not seem to make much difference. There was a pall of grey over the town more than just the weather. It meandered through the streets and through the buildings made slick by water until it seemed to saturate the entire town with its malaise of death.
Despite his urge to leave for Eagle Bend, Nathan knew he had to see other places to because he had to be sure of what he suspected. It was not Brook’s fault he could not see the details because this was his town and his home. He lived with these people, grieved with them when their daughters were killed and felt their loss as profoundly as he might feel his own child, were they slain in the same brutal fashion. Being an outsider, he had the chance to see things clearly and offer a fresh perspective.
"I reckon she was found the same way?" Nathan asked, noting the pristine nature of the home as well as the lack of bloodstains. Blood had a tendency to seep into the wood and leave an indelible impression behind no one could ever forget, no matter how much scrubbing was applied to remove it.
"Yeah," the sheriff nodded, walking to the space before the cooking stove and glancing at the floor. No doubt, he was now revisited with the image he had seen when he first walked into the room and caught sight of Maryanne Foster lying dead. "Lying in the same position, hands across each other. It almost looked like she was sleeping."
"You okay George?" Nathan said coming to the man.
"It’s hard." Brooks met his gaze and Nathan did not doubt it one second it could be any other way. Nathan turned away a moment, resting on the leather boots sitting up against the nearby wall. Shoes, the poor girl would never wear again, he thought as he drifted towards it for no particular reason.
"How does he find them?" Nathan mused. When Silas Poplar had selected his victims, there had been a common denominator. He liked young, attractive women who happened to be independent and had vocations of their own to sustain them. Here there was no pattern at all. Thelma was young and attractive and she did have a job as a seamstress but Maryanne Foster was not quite fifteen years old. She was a lovely young woman but their physical similarities according to Brooks, were poles apart. Thelma had gold hair, Maryanne’s was dark. Yet, gut instinct told Nathan there had to be a common denominator.
"I’m interested in knowing how he gets to them," Brook replied walking away from the fireplace and standing by the kitchen door, waiting for Nathan to complete his investigations. "Maryanne wasn’t found until supper time. Her ma had been in Eagle Bend and her pa had been working all day. He found her here but there was no sound of any kind of disturbance, not even a scream. No one downstairs even had the slightest idea something was wrong. How can be?"
Nathan had a pretty good idea. "George," he said after a moment. "I don’t see no bloodstains on the floor."
"Well, there wasn’t much blood in the first place," Brooks explained automatically. "There was some but not enough to bleed into the wood like it can do with blood sometimes."
"You said she was cut across the neck?" Nathan inquired again, having an answer explaining everything.
"Yes," his brows furrowed as he saw Nathan’s line of questioning leading somewhere. "What you getting at?" He asked suspiciously.
"When you cut a jugular vein, there’s a lot of blood," Nathan replied. "It’s a major artery, everything goes through your body has to go through vein at some point. If she slashed her neck open, this place would have covered in blood. She would have died quick but it would be into the wood and no amount of scrubbing would make it gone. Believe me," the healer said earnestly. "I’ve seen men shot in the throat with bullets and have so much bleeding, their clothes are covered with it before they even realised they were dying."
"There was not much blood with Thelma either," Brooks pointed out realising the connection the healer had made. "Just a little like it was when we found Maryanne." Suddenly, it came to him and his eyes widened. "Jesus Christ....."
"Yeah," Nathan nodded once he understood. "They weren’t killed here. They were killed somewhere else."
"How would he have gotten the body here?" Brooks demanded, defying Nathan to answer this question because the possibility they were not killed where they had been found had not occurred to him.
"Easy enough," Nathan responded. "Busy afternoon. People coming and going. You’d be surprised how easy it to move something big without people really paying attention. This here is a wood stove," he glanced at the iron cast device before him, its embers cold and grey from disuse. "Could have been someone bringing up wood, sack potatoes, anything really."
"And the same thing with Thelma." The sheriff replied, following the healer’s line of reasoning enough to make some speculations of his own. She could have left work with Harriet Tynan on her own. He could have been waiting until they split and then grabbed her. She would have her keys on her so all he needed was to do the killing and then bringing the body back to the sewing shop in the dead of night."
"’s how I see it." Nathan nodded in agreement, having reached the conclusion far sooner than Brooks had taken to work it out in his head.
"Still don’t explain how he picks them though." He said after a moment, staring at Brooks briefly before they both left the confines of the Johnson home. Nathan waited briefly for Brooks to lock the door behind him and wished inwardly Vin were here. The sharpshooter’s skill would have been most useful at this point. Vin had the amazing ability to see tracks where none were and make the most obscure marks in the ground tell him something.
"He can’t just be waiting for them to appear," Nathan replied as he and Brook descended down the stairs into the street again. Both men hasten their pace as the rain was still drizzling outside, although, in Nathan’s case, he was so wet he hardly cared any more. However, it would be wise if he got into some dry clothing before he caught pneumonia or something equally debilitating.
"Well we’ve told women to be on the lookout," Brooks explained as they ran for cover beneath the awning of the main boardwalk. Nathan shook the excess water off his hat as he looked at Brooks and gestured towards his horse at the direction he was taking. "Since the first murders, no woman is out on her own at night. Most of them are indoors by dark and if they do wander out, not to do it alone. Hell, even the saloon girls are skittish with all the warnings we’ve been making but still he finds them."
"Sheriff," Nathan tried to put this delicately since there was no real way to put this without possibly offending the man and he did not wish to do . "I know this is a bitter pill to swallow but I gotta ask. I’m assuming you’ve been looking for a man who is a stranger to these parts?"
"What other sorts would I be looking for?" Brooks turned to him sharply. "I’ve run every drifter, vagrant and stranger I’ve seen in the last month through a fine tooth. My deputies keep an eye on them real close when they are in town enough to know we’ve done all we can do and it still ain’t enough."
"I think you better start expanding your suspects," the lawman from Four Corners replied. "You may be looking for someone in town, someone known to you and the townsfolk."
"Christ," Brooks swore, wondering just how much worse this could get. "I was really hoping it would not come to ."
Nathan could sympathise with him. When Billy Travis had returned to town, no one had ever suspected Stephen Travis’ murderers would surface once again. Until then, everyone had assumed the brave and forthright newspaperman had been killed in a robbery gone wrong. It was not until an attempt was made on Billy’s life the truth was uncovered and the guilty men were found to be community leaders they had seen on a daily basis. Men, who in every possible way, were upstanding members of the town with a dark secret. Nathan was certain somewhere in the town of Hadley’s Hope, one such man was viewing his neighbours in the same way a lion may view the herd of zebra it was stalking.
"You better start thinking about it George," Nathan replied. "He knows he can get away with it so he won’t be stopping any time soon. He’s got a taste for it now and he’s getting better at it."
"He’s already killed three women," Brook said bitterly. "How much of a blood lust could he possibly have? How many women does it take to satisfy urge?"
"I don’t you can put a number to it." He answered, remembering Silas Poplar. The Pinkerton detective had left a trail of bodies everywhere he went. Josiah was certain there were murders before the trademark duo left in other towns. Killers like these liked to hone their craft, to see how good at it they got. Their mind was a razor-edged maze of hurt, trapped in a cycle of abuse ended only until they died. "I think when it takes him, there ain’t no choice but to feed it until gets to wherever it needs to get."
The sheriff allowed Nathan half an hour to clean up and get into some dry clothes before the healer insisted on the lawman taking him to the rest of the murder scenes. Even though the appointment to take his exams weighed heavily on his mind, Nathan found he could not pry himself away from the plight of Hadley’s Hope when it was all possible for him to help. The homes belonging to the first two victims were no different from the Foster place or the sewing shop where Thelma Rutledge had made her living. As Brooks explained it, the victims had bee left the same way, with a minimum flow of blood around the wounds which should have done nothing but the opposite.
Nathan scanned the rooms, trying to understand what it was he was missing. He knew his visit had uncovered more than Brooks had first expected and yet there was something nagging at the back of his mind would not give him peace. It sat at the edge of the periphery of conscious thought, taunting him with its obscurity, confident he would persist in defining its mystery even if it drove him mad.
There were all the same, neat and tidy. The families who had dwelt in their walls had departed for the time being because the horror of their discoveries had been too much for their minds to cope with the need to stay away was a necessity to overcome their loss. Nathan could understand , if he lost someone the way these poor folks lost their daughter, wife, friend, he would be just as traumatised by the horror of it all. He could not blame them for staying away and felt a hint of guilt thinking it was best they had because he was able to move about their empty homes and view it as the killer had viewed the place before his departure.
They were all the same. So orderly with everything in its rightful place as if there as some insane ritual the killer demanded to satisfy the manner in which he would present his victim to the public. It was like a gallery of death, almost artistic in its methodology. The mind did this was one who missed nothing, who enjoyed the grisly work and believed the arrangement was in some twisted way an expression of his genius. Everywhere, he saw books in place, empty cupboards and flowers in a vase, shoes against the wall and not a sign of blood on the floorboards, a further indication the murders had taken place elsewhere.
question had plagued Nathan quite a bit as he made his observations with Sheriff Brooks in attendance. The place where the murders were committed had to be fairly close to town. Small communities like this made privacy impossible because gossip was the main past time and people were always getting their noses into other people’s business. A man like this had to be fairly sure of himself to move around a town like this without raising suspicion, doing the work he did. While Brooks was rather reluctant to admit the possibility, Nathan was certain the killer was indeed a long time resident of Hadley’s Hope, perhaps even a man who was trusted and considered beyond reproach.
Maybe even the sheriff.
He shook the thought out of his head mostly because Brooks was too visible to commit the crimes. It was one thing for one of the townsfolk to be seen at either of the murder scenes but the sheriff was another thing entirely. A man with a badge tended to stick out in the crowd and besides Nathan was not blind to how badly Brooks felt about allowing such villainy to go on in his town. He had the same look on his face Chris Larabee wore when one of the fellowship was hurt, even if he had no reason to blame himself for the injury. The nature of the man, made him believe everyone was his responsibility, whether or not it was necessary.
No, whoever was perpetrating these crimes was someone who could move about unnoticed. A man who was usually a nonentity in the eyes of everyone else, completely normal and always the least suspect of violence. Following his investigation of the homes and perfectly aware he had missed his chance of making it to the exams on time, there was nothing left to do but to send a telegram to Judge Travis. No doubt, the Judge would pass it along to the folk at the examination centre he had been held up due to the storm. Nathan had a reasonable hope of believing they would give him another chance because delays in the Territory were a part of life.
"I’m sorry you missed the exam," Brooks remarked after the two men had left the telegraph office and headed towards the undertaker’s parlour where Thelma Rutledge awaited Nathan’s expert eye.
"Its all right," Nathan said with a long sigh, unable to deny he felt disappointed but aware given the same choice he would have made the same decision. He wanted to be a doctor because he wanted to help people and save lives. It made no difference if he did under the title of Doctor Jackson or just plain Nathan Jackson, either way, his efforts in Hadley’s Hope might save some lives. "The weather’s been pretty bad, maybe I can get them to let me take it tomorrow." He answered although he had a feeling it would take some intervention by Alex and her father’s friends who had arranged the accreditation in the first place.
Brooks could not deny as Nathan responded, aware the healer was feeling more than he was saying about his inability to make his appointment in Eagle Bend. Brooks respected Nathan a great deal, more than just because he was a lawman but also because he was a skilled healer showed an unusual amount of compassion towards his patients. Despite his need to find the murderer who was running loose in his town, Brooks did wish he had not delayed Nathan from his journey. If any man should be a doctor, it was Nathan Jackson.
"Well I appreciate you staying on a bit to help," Brooks said honestly. "This has been a bad business Nathan," Brook remarked as the funeral parlour came into view. The wind was still lashing the town with its gale and signs were flapping back and forth as they hung suspended under awnings. The rain was just as fierce and both men had to hold their hats down as they stood at the edge of the boardwalk, steeling themselves to run out into the open.
Nathan did not answer as they both ran across the muddied street, allowing the wind to rush past their ears and feeling the wet against their skin as the water started seeping through the clothes. Fortunately, they made it across before the cold reached the skin beneath and both men shook themselves off upon reaching shelter, like big dogs coming in from the rain. Nathan repeated the same procedure on his hat before regarding Brook’s comment.
"When we had the same trouble at Four Corners," Nathan explained. "It was like a having a kind of enemy worse than a hundred outlaws coming at you with guns. At least you knew who to shoot at and showed you how to protect your own. With Poplar around, we had no idea what we were dealing with because he told us so many lies just so he could get closer to the women he was after. I hate to think what would have happened if Josiah hadn’t learned the truth." The healer said shuddering inwardly and it was not just because of the cold. "We would have lost Mary for sure."
" would have been a loss," Brooks agreed, having met the lovely Mrs Travis...no he corrected himself, Mrs Larabee, during his occasional visits to Four Corners or when the woman stopped here on her trips to Eagle Bend to visit her kinfolk there. "When’s the baby due?" He asked, moving to a lighter note briefly.
After all, there would be nothing of the sort when they entered the funeral parlour.
"Late winter, early spring," Nathan replied, happy to talk about something else for a moment. It gave the mind a chance to correlate the information already gathered and perhaps offer a fresh perspective when he gave the matter more thought once again.
"Larabee’s a lucky man," Brooks answered with a faint smile. He was a married man himself with two young daughters and knew how a family could bring peace to even the most troubled soul. While Chris Larabee was still an ornery cuss, there was a softer edge to him then there had been before and everyone who knew the man could see it. "What about Tanner? I heard he was getting married?"
Nathan chuckled softly, aware of how Vin felt on subject. "I figure he’ll get around to it eventually. Man’s terrified of anything 's gonna get him out of hide coat of his and into a new suit but Miss Alex is patient though," he smiled. "She’ll get him, sooner or later."
"I’m pleased to see his name got cleared," Brooks admitted, aware of the price on Tanner’s head ever since the seven had first started their tenure in Four Corners. However, Brooks was of the belief rumour did not offer the true insight into man’s soul and he formed his opinion of Vin Tanner on his own, without making any preconceived notions of what a wanted poster might claim.
"We all were." Nathan agreed and started to tell Brooks something of the events took place at Tascosa as Brooks opened the door of the funeral parlour and allowed him to enter the sombre surroundings first.
The first thing caught his attention was the stink of formaldehyde and the other preserving agents used to prepare a body for its final journey in this plane of existence. The stench always made his skin crawl and Nathan wondered why these places felt ice-cold, even in the worst days of summer heat. He supposed the cold was a state of mind rather than something real even though the chill in his bones was as near to reality as he ever wanted to get. It did not help several of the establishment’s wares were laid out on the main display floor as if anyone would ever shop for these things. Nathan was certain the undertaker in Four Corners had all of the seven measured for coffins from the day they had agreed to take on the protection of the town.
The undertaker placed Thelma Rutledge in the backroom where he prepared the bodies for burial. The man had taken the liberty of undressing her and leaving covered under a sheet with only her bare feet visible when Nathan and Brooks had walked into the room. Her clothes had been placed in a small box on a workbench against the table so the investigators could peruse them for any evidence leading to an arrest. Nathan had a feeling the undertaken had been practised with this ritual after the previous three deaths and hoped he could find something would allow him to abandon the grim task.
Pulling aside the sheet below her neck, Nathan began his examination of the body while Brooks stood by and watched. Nathan had the impression the man did not want to be present but was bound by duty to remain. He would have told the sheriff it was alright if he wanted to go but Nathan had a feeling Brooks would not shirk his duty no matter how distasteful it might be to him personally. The healer said nothing as he examined the wound across the young woman’s neck, noting the gash across her throat ended in one clean swipe, everything she would ever be in this life.
"Very clean." Nathan declared studying the wound. "Whatever he used to cut her up ain’t no regular knife." He observed. "I’d say it was a doctor’s scalpel but it ain’t quite fine. The cut is deep and sliced through the jugular with no problem at all. It only took one swipe." He paused a moment and turned to face Brooks. "By the looks of it, he got them from behind. Probably arm locked up around the head and just pulled the blade across."
"At least it was quick," Brook muttered, knowing it was not much consolation but at least Thelma’s family would know she had not endured any lengthy ordeal at the hands of her killer.
"Very quick," Nathan assured him. "It takes practise to do something like this. There’s not even a pause, just a very deep slash probably did not even give the victims time to understand what happened until it was all over. I’d say the man we’re looking for does this for a living. He could be a butcher, a tailor, maybe even a doctor but ’s stretching a little. The murder weapon was sharp but also very strong. The blade sank in deep almost to the bones of a neck."
"Jesus," Brook swore under his breath. "Are you sure about this Nathan?" He asked, hoping the healer was wrong but knew inwardly Nathan would not cast aspersion on anyone unless he had a very good reason. "We’ve got only one butcher in town and Thelma was the only seamstress in town and we haven’t been with a doctor since Doctor Bairstow left with his wife and daughter when we found the second victim."
"I can’t be sure about anything," Nathan replied honestly. "I’m telling you what I think but I can’t guarantee I’m exactly right."
"I understand," the sheriff nodded, realising Nathan’s opinion was speculation on his observations, not the truth. Nonetheless, Brooks was impressed by what Nathan had been able to tell him so far about their killer. At least, he had somewhere to concentrate his search on now. From what Nathan was trying to explain, Brooks gathered their man was skilled with expertise requiring fine and delicate work, yet physical laborious as well because no one cut a neck so deeply it almost bordered on decapitation unless they had the physical strength for it. "Go on."
"Well she wasn’t sexually assaulted," Nathan replied after examining the rest of the young woman’s body. He felt invasive making such a private search of the lady’s person in death but knew it was vital for their investigation he uncovered as many facts as he could. "I don’t see any of the usual signs so I’m guessing he killed her and then cleaned the body. Other than the neck after the initial bleeding had been allowed to run its course, there ain’t no blood anywhere else."
"’s sick." Brook retorted. Why did the man take such care with the bodies after he performed the ultimate feat of savagery any human being could perpetrate upon another? He placed them in their homes with what was almost affectionate care.
"Well, I think it’s the ritual after the killing does it for him." Nathan offered a possible scenario. "I think they have to be dead first before he can do what he wants."
Nathan continued with the examination, trying to find something would help them further but eventually, the partial autopsy had come to an end with nothing left but some insight into how the killer had claimed its victims but not much else. Nathan wished he could do more but Thelma Rutledge could tell him no more and as he pulled the sheet over her face for the last time, he could help feeling this underlying sense of failure.
"I’m sorry George," Nathan sighed, unable to hide the fact he had been bothered by his inability to bring more to light about how Thelma had met her end. "I hoped I could be of some help to you."
Sheriff Brooks came alongside Nathan and patted him on the back in a gesture of thanks. "I appreciate what you have done already Nathan," he said genuinely grateful. "You didn’t have to do this but you did because we needed you and ’s good enough for me."
"You know," the healer turned away from the corpse and went to the box where Thelma’s clothes and belonging were gathered. He began rifling through them distractedly, not paying attention to them really as he continued to speak. "I have this gut instinct if we worked out how he picks them, we’d crack this thing."
"I don’t know," Brooks shook his head unable to see the pattern and understanding Nathan’s conundrum. Since the murders had begun, he had read something of the few documented cases of killings like these and he had to admit, Nathan was right about there being some common denominator linking all these women together. Their killer must have a reason for selecting the women as he had although, at the moment, Brooks could not imagine what might be. They all possessed different physical characteristics, social and economic backgrounds, the first was married, the last two were not. He had to admit they were all attractive but it had to be about more than just , surely?
Nathan continued to examine the dress Thelma had been wearing and found a wave of sadness wash over him as he found he could still smell the lingering scent of lavender perfume coming from the material. He liked the sweet fragrance and wondered if it clung to her skin. He knew when Rain wore some of lilac perfume she liked so much, he could smell it all day in his lungs and when he kissed her, he could feel its misty aroma on her flawless skin. Thinking of Rain made him grateful she was in Four Corners, safe from the madness currently doing its worst in the town of Hadley’s Hope.
Suddenly, he saw a black smudge on the fabric of her dress. For a minute he thought it might be grease or dirt but as he lifted it closer to his eye and examined it, he found it was neither. Nathan ran his finger over a smear of dark resting just above the waistline as if she had been standing against something with this substance on it. He could understand why the sheriff had missed this since Thelma’s dress was not a light colour and the only reason Nathan had noticed it at all was he had been searching for some clue in her clothes.
"George," Nathan raised the gown out of its box and presented the smudged area to the sheriff. "What do you make of this?"
Brooks leaned closer to the stain for a closer look before allowing his fingers to make the same exploration Nathan had done earlier. The substance was not slick and viscous like grease would be, not did it set the same way. Instead, it was light against the skin, almost grainy but still possessing a waxy consistency made it smooth when rubbed against the fingertips. "It ain’t oil or grease." He remarked. "If I didn’t know better, I’d say shoe polish."
"Shoe polish?" Nathan looked up and suddenly his mind began whirling. For a moment, he was uncertain of what he had stumbled upon, aware only of the nagging sensation sitting on the edge of his consciousness all days, suddenly becoming clear in his mind as the fog around it began to dissipate. Shoe polish. What had he seen made shoe polish react him so? He knew he had the answer, it sat on the tip of his tongue, taunting at him in shrieks of exasperation until finally, it exploded in his mind like a rainbow of colour.
"Boots!" Nathan exclaimed, immediately dropping the dress back into its box and running for the door. "Come on!"
***********
Nathan ran out of the funeral parlour, hardly thinking about the rain was going to saturate him with water the moment he emerged into the open. Splattering across the puddles of water and mud on the soaked ground, he made his way towards the sewing shop had been the source of livelihood for Thelma Rutledge before her premature death. Behind him, Brooks followed unable to see what had made the healer so excited but was not about to argue with him since Nathan had been so far quite helpful to his investigations so far by offering insights he had never considered previously.
It did not take Nathan very long to reach the shop and when he stepped onto the boardwalk, he hardly noticed the rain on his clothes was quickly seeping into his skin. Without pausing to shake the water off, he entered the shop was the scene of the latest murder and immediately scanned the front room for what he was certain was the vital clue they had been searching for all this time. Brooks came in after him, a little out of breath but nonetheless confused.
"What the hell are you doing?" Brooks asked, taking a moment to catch his breath after the sudden exertion. "What do you mean boots?"
Nathan was already picking up the pair of ladies boots he had seen sitting against the wall, placed neatly like everything else thanks to the killer’s ministrations. Flipping them over in his hands so he could examine the soles of the shoes, Brooks watched Nathan holding them under deep scrutiny before coming to rest on the newly replaced heel. The repair was easily seen since the new leather was in stark contrast to the old. When Nathan made this observation, Brooks saw him release a breath almost in satisfaction of his discovery.
Whatever might be.
"Boots." He said after a moment. "’s how he finds them."
"Boots?" Brooks stared at Nathan wanting him to explain because the healer had just slashed the list of suspects from a handful to significantly less than .
"Yeah boots," Nathan said putting down the shoes and making his way towards the door. "Come on," he motioned the sheriff to follow him. "I’ll explain on the way." He called out and Brooks took a deep breath before hurrying after the healer.
They were walking down the boardwalk when Nathan started to explain what had led him to the conclusion he had just formed. "From the beginning, we couldn’t understand how they were getting taken. After all, you’ve been smart enough to let the ladies in this town know there’s a killer on the loose and it ain’t safe to be wandering around alone. I couldn’t figure out why they would just go with some stranger to be cut up the way they have been."
"But you said the chances are, this ain’t no stranger." Brooks pointed out, reminding Nathan what he had said earlier about their killer.
"’s right," Nathan agreed, not about to dispute fact since it held no relevance at the moment. "However, a woman just doesn’t follow a man she knows somewhere private unless there’s a very good reason for it and I’m assuming these ladies don’t seem to be the type who would do , married or unmarried, young or old."
"’s right," Brooks nodded. "It ain’t proper for a fifteen-year-old girl to just go off with a man unless she knew him pretty well and trusted him."
"Exactly," he smiled as they took the familiar path towards Maryanne Foster’s home. "What if she needed to go see him?"
"Needed to go see him…." Brooks looked at Nathan when suddenly the answer clicked into place and the understanding Nathan was trying to impart on him flooded his mind with knowledge. "Jesus, she needed to go see him get her boots repaired."
"’s how he finds them." Nathan smiled triumphantly. "I was looking around Maryanne’s place and the other two and I noticed one thing didn’t make sense at the time but I didn’t think much of it cause it was so insignificant. There were pairs of shoes neat against the wall in all three instances. He puts them back after he’s done with the women. Chances are if he has a store or something. ’s where the murders were committed."
"They go to get their shoes repaired." The sheriff was breathing hard as if the truth had been relayed to him was more than he could stand because his heart was pounding in his chest and he did not dare believe it could be true, the answer was at their fingertips. "And he kills them in the shop and then places them and the shoes in the house."
"I’d say, they dropped the shoes off first to be repaired and the killing took place when the ladies came back to get them. I wouldn’t be surprised if Thelma Rutledge made a stop to get her boots back after she and Mrs Tynan went their separate ways." The healer offered an alternative scenario instead.
"And if Maryanne Foster was to do the same, she’d call in at the place on her way back from school," Brooks replied.
"You’ll need to check with the other one," Nathan responded, certain they were right about what they had learnt in the last hour.
"Right," Brooks nodded in agreement, having made the decision to do once Nathan had his confirmation at the Foster place. In the meantime, he was going to steer the healer past his jailhouse so he could give some instructions to his deputies.
"So," Nathan looked at the sheriff and asked the question on his mind since the discovery of the shoe polish unlocked the truth about the murders. "How many boot maker do you have in this town?"
The sheriff smiled faintly. "Only one." He answered. "He lives alone and has a store on the far side of town. His name is Leyland Banks."
***********
The rain had started to abate by the time Nathan and Sheriff Brooks found themselves staring at the building where Leyland Banks conducted his trade a bootmaker and as a tanner of leather. After going to the Foster home and discovering the shoes he had spied there earlier had been under the recent administrations of a bootmaker, they had repeated the same search at the home of the first victim and found the same thing. Upon discovery, neither man had any reason to doubt the hypothesis they had formed about how the killer had found his victims was nothing but the truth. Although there would always be doubt until they found conclusive evidence such as a murder weapon, for instance, Brooks now had a face against which he could guard the rest of the community.
While it was just as easy for Nathan to make his departure following this new development, he found he wanted to remain to see how this situation played out. A part of him could not believe a short stay could yield so much and yet he still could not help feeling disappointed at having missed the exams he had spent so much time in preparation. However, the healer in Nathan could not walk away for very reason. Even if it meant losing the chance of being a doctor, Nathan was not about to stop saving lives. Perhaps he would be doing it in a different manner than what he had previously thought but nonetheless, he would be content to know there would be no fourth victim.
As he and Brooks arrived at Leyland’s store after interviewing the family of the first victim and examining the shoes more or less confirmed everything they had deducted up to this point, the deputies were keeping Mr Bank in their sights. They had been watching Mr Leyland ever since Nathan’s revelation had finally given them the suspect they had been waiting to find from the onset of the first murder.
"Is he in there?" Brooks asked his head deputy upon reaching the man.
Faulkner was as almost as experienced a lawman as Brooks and he had been watching the store by idling his time inside the general store whose shop window faced the front of Banks’ premises.
"Yeah," Faulkner nodded. "Had a couple of people go in there over the last hour but they’ve been and gone."
"Good," Brooks nodded, having no wish to worry about anyone when he and Nathan finally confronted the man. "Have you got the others in place?"
"They’ve sealed off the area," Faulkner replied tautly and was just as passionate about bringing this man to justice as the rest of his comrades. The terror the town had endured because of these murders had touched the core of the community and like Brooks, Faulkner wanted it over and done with. "If he’s our man, he ain’t getting past any one of us."
"Hold position," Brooks said quietly aware the eyes of shoppers in the store were watching the trio, suspecting something was happening if not what. They cast their furtive gazes at the direction of the sheriff and his companions, trying not to listen in but felt compelled to do so because there could only be one reason Brooks was so worked up. "Nathan and I are going in to have a little talk to Mr Brooks. If we can, we’re going to bring him in peacefully." Despite his personal feelings towards the murderer terrorising his town, Brooks had no intention of letting the search for justice, become a quest for vengeance. If all possible, they were going to do this by the book.
Still, he was not about to forget the young women whose lives Banks might have possibly taken. The sheriff was not unmindful of the fact the entire wealth of evidence against the town’s bootmaker was fixed solely on Nathan’s theory and liked the healer, wanted something more substantial before deciding the man was entirely guilty.
"However," Brooks added, remembering the three young women whose lives were savagely curtailed. "If he makes a run for it, shoot him."
Faulkner tipped his hat forward and nodded. "You got for sure." The deputy felt no hesitation about pulling the trigger if Banks ran like the guilty coward he was.
"All right," Brooks took a deep breath and looked at Nathan. "Let’s do this."
"It’s your show Sheriff," Nathan replied, having no real authority to do anything in Hadley’s Hope and was accompanying Brooks as moral support but also to see if he was right about what he claimed. The coat he was wearing hid the assortment of knives he carried into battle because if things got tense, he might need their assistance.
Brooks met his gaze briefly before the sheriff took the lead and walked out of the general store, aware eyes had followed his departure and of the visiting healer. Nathan could see the line of tension on his jaw as they crossed the wet street, toward the bootmaker shop owned by Mr Banks. As they made their advance, Brooks explained part of the reason it was easy for him to accept Banks might be their killer was because the building in which he conducted his business was wholly owned by him. Banks not only ran his store from there but also lived in the building and the situation of the structure had it some distance away from the rest of the main street.
If Banks was their killer, his home provided the ideal setting for his grisly work.
As they approached the front door, Nathan could see Banks behind his workbench, working on the heel belonging to a pair of men’s boots. He was pulling away from the damaged heel and preparing to replace it with the new one sitting in front of him on the bench. Banks was not a physically imposing man. If anything, he looked thin and somewhat unhealthy. His eyes, which were of a watery, blue colour immediately locked on to them as they reached the door.
Nathan allowed Brooks entry first and as the Sheriff walked into the store, Banks wiped a strand of dark hair out of his face and forgot what he was doing, straightening up to face the new arrivals. Nathan’s eyes were immediately moving across the room, searching for some clue might give irrefutable proof of the man’s guilt. He could see the boot polish on the table and the tools the man used on the workbench. The knives he used were made for cutting through leather and yet flexible enough to shape the tough material for use. Aside from boots; Banks worked all kinds of leather goods such as saddlebags and even saddles needing repair. The room stunk of saddle oil and the floor did not reveal any bloodstains although it was difficult to tell because the floor was so grimy. However, Nathan did notice a door at the corner of the room.
"Sheriff." Banks said nervously, "what can I do for you?"
Brooks paused in front of the workbench and offered the man a smile before answering. "I’m sorry to bother you Leyland but I got a couple of questions."
"Questions?" The man asked, betraying nothing even though he had noticed Nathan glancing at the little door.
"Yeah questions," Brooks answered and then glanced at Nathan. "This here is Doctor Nathan Jackson, he’s come into town to help us with the murders."
"Shit," Banks retorted. "There ain’t no nigger doctors, Sheriff." He gave Nathan a perfectly derisive look. "I think this nigger is pulling something on you."
Brooks clenched his jaw, unprepared to let things get out of hand and saw Nathan was unperturbed by the insult although the healer was a little curious as to why Brooks had referred to him as a doctor. The way things were going, was not going to happen for quite some time.
"Doctor Jackson is a real physician," Brooks continued his questioning, although there was a hard edge to his voice now. "However, what I want to know is whether or not Thelma Rutledge was in here last night."
"Thelma Rutledge?" Banks was already shaking his head, watching Nathan like a hawk especially when the healer started walking casually towards the small door.
"Yeah," Brooks repeated himself. "She was killed last night. I wanted to know if you might have seen her."
"No," he said starting to get a little anxious the nearer Nathan came to small door. "Hey nigger, don’t you be wandering around now. If I find anything missing, I’m gonna take it out of your hide."
"Answer the question Leyland," Brooks demanded, disliking how the man was treating Nathan intensely. "Forget about the door, you got bigger problems."
"Like what!" Banks growled. "You ain’t got a shred of proof she was here!"
Nathan dropped to his knees and pulled open the little door. Banks just about leapt over the workbench to reach him but Brooks reached for his gun before the man could even land on the floorboards to take the step forward to reach the healer. "I wouldn’t Leyland," Brooks warned with ice in his voice. "I’m looking for a reason to kill you, don’t give me one."
"You ain’t got no right!" He shouted as he saw Nathan open Pandora’s Box.
"If you killed those girls, you ain’t got no right!" The sheriff barked and then turned to Nathan. "Go ahead!"
Nathan offered the lawmen a slight not and peered into the small compartment and was unsurprised by anything he had found. Wrapped neatly in a bundle of leather was a tanning knife and while it had been washed, there were still telltale signs of blood having seeped permanently into the wooden handle. There was also a pendant would later be identified as belonging to Thelma Rutledge and a score of other souvenirs Leyland Banks had collected from his victims.
Further investigation would reveal the remains of the burnt drop cloth in the man’s furnace which he had used to clean the blood of Thelma Rutledge the night before he had murdered when she had come to claim her shoes. No doubt, he had disposed of others like it when he had lured his victims to his shop in order to collect their repaired footwear. Always presenting the helpful facade, Banks would wait until they were preparing to leave before he would grab them from behind as Nathan had suspected and slit their throats. He would then clean the bodies and return them home; sometimes changing their clothes if what they wore were too soiled before destroying which was.
Eventually, however, the most damning evidence would come from Bank’s himself, when the weight of everything they had found dragged the confession out of him and brought an end his reign of terror in Hadley’s Hope.
***********
Nathan arrived at the home of Orin Travis later evening.
Despite having missed the examination should have been one of the most important events of his life, the healer felt strangely satisfied he had done the right thing by stopping at Hadley’s Hope and aiding Sheriff Brooks. Before he left, Brooks had made him promise to come back to the town once things had settled down and to bring Rain with him. According to the sheriff, he deserved supper at least for what he had done to bring Leyland Banks to justice. However, as he neared the Judge’s home, Nathan started to feel a little disappointed at having missed the examinations not to mention arriving late at the Judge’s home when the man had been so good as to offer him a bed at night and supper.
"Well Mr Jackson," Orin Travis said after they were settled in front of the fireplace on two comfortable wing chairs warming themselves with the heat. With a hot cup of coffee in his hands, Nathan suddenly felt the day catch up on him and wished for nothing more than a warm bed so he could prepare himself for the ride home tomorrow.
"It looks like you made this trip for nothing." The judge looked at him.
"I wouldn’t say ," Nathan admitted. "The folks in Hadley’s Hope needed help. I was glad I was able to do something for them. has to counts for something."
"Indeed it does," the judge agreed readily. Orin liked Nathan Jackson and admired his ability to learn despite the lack of formal education. He had seen Nathan perform miracles with his hands most surgeons could not dream of achieving even after a lifetime of practice. Like the rest of the seven, Orin trusted Nathan explicitly but there was also a hint of admiration in the old man for the former slave. "Sheriff Brooks sent me a telegram shortly after you left for Eagle Bend."
"Oh?" Nathan lowered the cup of coffee he was about to take a sip from and looked at the judge. "What did he say? Was there some trouble with Banks?"
"No, not at all." Orin quickly assuaged fear. "He merely informed me of how invaluable you were to his investigation and wanted me to express his personal thanks to the doctors at the examination centre for allowing you the time to aid him in capturing a dangerous criminal. A task, of course, I was happy to do and surprisingly enough those doctors, some of whom I happen to know well, asked me to relay to you a message. is when you feel able, they would like to see you one week from today at the centre to take your accreditation exams."
Nathan’s jaw dropped open as he stared at Orin in surprise. "Judge, I don’t know what to say...." For once the healer was at a loss for words.
"Just say you won’t start charging me for medical attention when you become a physician." Orin Travis grinned and then added with genuine hope for the younger man’s future. "Doctor Jackson."
Actually, Josiah’s day had been strange from the onset, so he was not at all surprised by how it moved from the sublimely bizarre to the extremely weird by the time the sun had set on the evening. Of course, Josiah had come to learn such a state of affairs was nothing unusual in Four Corners as it seemed to be the convergence point for anything out of the ordinary and usually gained its fullest strength around the seven men who guarded the town. During his time in Four Corners, Josiah had been visited by a gamut of odd occurrences, from mechanical monsters to strange alien creatures who wore human skin and was not particular about whose they took for their use.
At least he knew those were oddities whose presence in the world was fleeting and once visited upon them would be gone fortunately from this realm and in all likelihood, would never return again. However, the presence of a little blond girl with the taste for the mystic ensured Josiah’s life would never stray too far from the extraordinary. Since the arrival of Lilith King and her mother the new schoolteacher, an undiscovered vein of paternal emotion had surfaced out of nowhere within Josiah for the young girl with a penchant for the supernatural.
While his feelings for her mother was currently navigating uncharted some waters, Josiah knew exactly how he felt about Lilith following her initial bout of conjuring. Until then, spells and mysticism were little more than fancy words spoken by magicians while entertaining the crowds with clever card tricks and vermin concealed in formal headwear. He never imagined it could be real but then as previous experience had taught him, the world was not a place of absolutes and when he was plunged into the reality of his heart's desire, Josiah learnt just how potent a force true magic could be.
A hundred years ago, what Lilith practised in her dabbling with the arcane arts would have seen her burnt at the stake by the masses and there were still factions among good Christian folk who would advocate such penalties if they knew what held her interests. There was no doubt in his mind true magic was neither evil nor some by-product of satanic worship. Lilith had made her first conjuring because she had wanted to bring happiness to those around her. Josiah could not bring himself to believe a force which could be manipulated for such noble ends could be entirely bad. There was a theatre of belief who considered guns to be evil and yet men argued guns were not the true evil but rather the men who employed its application. Josiah seemed to think magic could be utilised the same way.
Some day, he had no doubt she would master the potential harboured in her young body and the power at her fingertips could save lives, bring hope to the despaired and perhaps change the world in ways he could not imagine. However, for the here and now, Lilith was a little girl sitting on a powder keg and Josiah had appointed himself her keeper. It was not a task he found laborious because, for the most part, Lilith was a delightful child. She was young and inquisitive, eager to learn and able to accept much of what he told her because her mind was open to all forms of knowledge. And because he believed he filled a void in her life left vacant by her father.
Josiah enjoyed being for her most of all.
They spent a great deal of time together, mostly talking about things. She liked listening to him recite poetry, telling her stories about faraway places and people with names like Helen, Perseus, Beowulf and Gilgamesh. If she had been a boy, there was no telling what intelligence might do for her in the future and Josiah knew whatever course fate had in store for Lilith would no doubt be an interesting one.
They say the path to hell is lead with good intentions and never was this phrase more true when one was referring to Lilith. When Billy Travis had professed a desire to get Julia Pemberton and by the same token, all his friends which included the seven and their ladies, the perfect Christmas gift, Lilith had lent her assistance which saw her cast a spell granting them all their fondest wish. What had intended to be a spell to bring much happiness had plunged them headlong into a nightmare of biblical proportions as the world around them splintered into custom made realities for all those involved.
Josiah had found himself a preacher as he had always wanted but knew inwardly was not the life for him. Until then, he had nursed the dream as one would harbour the desire to take long trip, they knew they never would. The reality of his wish had made him grateful for what he was but for the others, it had been downright frightening.
He managed to learn about their wishes with idle conversation the day after and discovered JD had thrown out all his books about gunfighters and shootouts, the very books bringing him to the West in the first place. Nathan seemed more at peace about his sister’s passing and Ezra’s feelings towards slavery in any shape or form was so acute his opinions bordered on abolitionist. Vin merely mentioned he would have rather faced judgement in Tascosa instead of going after Eli Joe himself because it would have probably ended badly and for some reason, Buck was unable to look at either Julia or Alex in the face for weeks after.
What Chris had dreamed was a secret known only to him.
The entire incident gave them all a finer appreciation for everything in their lives but for Josiah, there had been an unexpected bonus. At the stage in life the former preacher had reached, he was quite happy if things remained the same forever. He had his friends and something of a family in the fellowship of the seven and occasionally, when Maude Standish came to town, much to the chagrin of her son, he had a little female companionship as well. Josiah was well aware Maude did not take him seriously as a suitor and wondered how she would have felt if she learned he felt more or less the same. Women did have a double-sided view of such things. They enjoyed each others company, perfectly content with the fact there was no relationship to speak of, just the mutual enjoyment of two people whose paths occasionally intersected.
The first time he had met Audrey, he was not even in this world. He was in the dream reality created by Lilith and he had been a preacher asking for her to believe him. He remembered how it was to look at her first time, to see a face just as worn by the years as his and yet lovely nonetheless because the sparkle in her blue eyes was not bound by time. She believed him when there had been no reason to do so and it touched Josiah more than anything she could have said. He still carried the memory of taking a turn with her through the tree-lined walk to the river and wished it was something he could share with her.
Getting to know Audrey was no easy thing. While she was artistic with a tendency to be flamboyant in her speech and her manner, she was a surprisingly private person. They say some women could be a mystery a man could spend a lifetime trying to unravel and in Audrey’s case, it was precisely . After nurturing a friendship of so many months, since what they were could hardly be called courting, Josiah found he cared for Audrey more than he had for any woman in his life. When they were together, they spoke of books and travels, of things seen in life, of religion and politics and any subject captured their interest. He found his mind challenged by hers and reaffirmed Josiah’s belief Four Corners was a magnet for strong, intelligent women as evidenced by Mary, Julia and Alex before her.
Audrey had no idea or course Lilith was an amateur sorceress. While Audrey was aware Lilith enjoyed reading musty old book handed down from her ancestors, she did not know her daughter considered the book more than just fascinating and was actively conjuring spells with far-reaching potential. There were moments when Josiah considered telling her about Lilith’s predilection and yet feared the reaction might come from the revelation. While he cared about Audrey and was confident enough to know quite a bit about the lady, he could not say for certain how she would take the news her daughter was a powerful sorceress in the making. Audrey was open-minded but Josiah did not know if she was open-minded. When they had been in alternate reality, she had accepted what he had told her readily enough but so much about other world had been distorted to suit, Josiah did not know if it included her response as well.
Josiah did not know when the revelation would be made to Audrey but he hoped it was later rather than sooner because things between them had settled into comfortable and Josiah liked comfortable.
Unlike the others, his world did not need shaking up.
***********
"How am I gonna stay one step of her?" Buck Wilmington grimaced as he sat at their usual table in the Standish Tavern, moaning his circumstances following the sudden arrival of Millie back to town.
"Just tell her the truth Buck!" JD groaned in exasperation, giving the preacher a look at how ridiculous this was when the solution was so simple.
Josiah smiled as he saw JD’s disbelief and thought to himself just how much the boy who had first forced his way into their ranks had grown since his initial arrival in Four Corners. JD was on the verge of becoming a man and judging by the sense he was displaying at the present moment, he would be a pretty good one in Josiah’s opinion. The preacher felt a sense of pride knowing he had a small part in .
"Out of the mouth of babes." He drawled in his low rumbling voice before continuing to enjoy the lunch Rain had set before him.
"It ain’t simple." Buck gave them both a look. "I don’t want to hurt her feelings!" The big man said wanting to know why Josiah and JD found this so hard to understand. "I’m a fine catch." He continued to procrastinate. "I mean the poor girl could be devastated knowing I slipped through her fingers." With a perfectly straight face, he sat up erect in his chair and added with great dignity. "I ain’t easy to get over you know?"
"Of course not," Josiah said with an equally straight face. "However, might I remind you your wife may not take to kindly with your attempts to keep one step ahead of Miss Millie." Josiah pointed out, ever the voice of reason.
"Yeah…." Buck nodded, his face creasing with new lines of worry at the possibility was presented to him. "Inez ain’t gonna believe I had nothing to do with this."
"How do you know ?" JD countered. "You and Inez are married now, I’m pretty sure she trusts you."
"Boy," Buck looked at the younger man as if he was talking a child. "You don’t know the first thing about women do you?" He challenged. Without waiting for JD to answer, Buck pushed himself away from the table and started towards the door muttering. "I got lay low for a while. If she can’t find me, there ain’t no reason to worry….."
JD and Josiah stared at the new father as their gaze followed him out of the saloon and shook their heads collectively after his departure. "You know Josiah," JD sighed. "I’m starting to think I know a lot more about women than he thinks, without actually knowing a woman." The last part of his sentence came forth rather awkwardly and he tried to convey his intention a little more clearly.
"I understand your meaning, my young friend," Josiah said sparing him the embarrassment of trying to explain. "I am afraid Buck’s affection for the ladies, sometimes clouds his judgement as to what they are really like. He has an image in his mind does not always fit reality." The older man replied and felt some empathy with Buck in sense. There was a time when Josiah was more in love with the idea of being in love than actually caring about the object of his affections. He still stung from humiliation when he thought of how ardently he had built the image of Emma in his head when it was nothing like the reality of what she was. Josiah was glad he had a more measured view of Audrey.
"You think its way with him and Inez?" The young man asked somewhat shocked if it was. Buck and Inez were like fire and oil but the conflagration they ignited by their passion seemed to feed off each other and it was impossible for an outsider to watch without feeling the heat.
"Probably not," he shook his head. "Fortunately, in relationship, Inez is the smarter one."
JD laughed at the thought and could well believe it. The youth glanced outside the window and frowned with displeasure at the storm forming just beyond the confines of Four Corners. Josiah was aware JD had plans to spend the day with Casey and a storm would almost certainly put an end to desire.
"I wouldn’t advise it," Josiah remarked just in case the boy was considering throwing caution to the wind. If it had been mere summer drizzle, Josiah would have kept his peace but the clouds forming in the sky outside promised a thunderstorm would be most unforgiving to those foolish enough to venture into its fury. "Weather’s looking pretty bad. storm is gonna be fierce."
"I know," JD said unhappily, not at all impressed at having to disappoint Casey. "I really wanted to spend some time with her you know?"
"I do," Josiah nodded understanding completely and reminded himself he had to call in on Audrey because they had plans for supper tonight and he thought they might go a restaurant for a change. She always seemed to be cooking meals for him and Josiah felt it was high time she was relieved of the chore, no matter how wonderful a cook she might be. Still, he did not want to impose upon any plans she might have made already so it was best to go check nonetheless.
He had observed his friends long enough now to know what not to do when it came to women.
"I am sure Casey will be pleased just spending some time in your company JD," Josiah said confidently. "Maybe you just spend an afternoon just talking with her." He suggested.
JD nodded, thinking this too was a good idea. After all, she had spent the last few days alone without Nettie, perhaps she might be a little lonely and JD hated the idea of picturing the young woman starved for human companionship. Maybe they could do something in town, which did not require good weather. In any case, he would go see her first and make sure a change of plans met with her approval.
He had observed his friends long enough now to know what not to do when it came to women.
***********
Despite the promise of bad weather, it was a rather nice day in Four Corners. There was just enough hint of a breeze to take the edge of the summer heat and while people were staying close to home in case the storm came their way instead of moving on as they thought, they were nonetheless out in force going about their business. The same could be said about the children who were running around, playing and getting to mischief the way only the young could. With summer, came the inevitable break from school and so the younger citizens of Four Corners were also highly visible today. As he thought about children in general, Josiah found himself sniggering at the thought of Ezra and Billy’s duel later today.
The gambler was itching to get disembowelled by Mary if she discovered he was encouraging Billy in the boy’s card-playing activities. It was not as if Ezra had not suffered the wrath of Mrs Larabee once before after teaching the boy the art of craps, which Billy displayed to his full potential in Audrey’s schoolhouse during lunchtime. Josiah remembered how amused Audrey had found the whole incident even though she was meant to disapprove of such behaviour and was forced to take a punitive role because she was meant to be instilling her charges with good moral fibre.
Suddenly he saw Lilith emerge onto the boardwalk, making a beeline for home. There was something of the furtive in her manner and immediately sparked Josiah’s interest as he hastened his pace to catch up with the young girl. She was carrying a little bag with her and seemed to be holding it with more care than normal which immediately aroused the suspicious nature of the lawman inside Josiah. Although he was aware she still dabbled in her interest in conjuring, Josiah knew she had not referred to the Book of Shadows, which was the real ignition for her latent abilities. He hoped the reason she was making her silent advance was not because she was moving into those uncharted waters again.
"Hello, Lilith." Josiah greeted as he came up alongside her and looked down into a pair of blue eyes.
"Hello, Josiah." She met his gaze sharply and Josiah could smell something of the shock she was displaying in her angelic face. She was not scared but he had caught her by surprise.
"What are you up today?" He asked, trying not to sound accusatory since he had no idea whether or not she was doing anything wrong. Women were filled with secrets and little girls were no different, Josiah thought. It was beyond his ability to decipher whether or not those secrets had anything to do with magic and spells.
"Nothing." She said trying to hide the anxiety form her voice.
"What’s in the bag?" He pushed, once again reminding herself she was not under suspicion and his question was merely mirroring his curiosity.
"Stuff." She looked ahead, keeping her eyes from him.
"What kind of stuff?" He inquired, perfectly content to play this game of questions and answers.
Lilith thought quickly, certain Josiah was on to her and what she intended to do with the contents in her bag was too important for her to abandon it. However, she needed to give him an answer and quickly thought up an excuse to allay his suspicions. "Stuff to make an Indian charm." She blurted out in a fit of inspiration.
"An Indian charm?" He looked at her.
"Yeah," she nodded with a smile, seeing he was unprepared for her answer and was just surprised enough to believe it. "I’m gonna make a good luck charm for Billy." She continued, building the little white lie into something more plausible.
Josiah knew it could very well be since it was he who had taken her out to the Indian village to visit Kojay on occasion. Audrey who was not averse to allowing her daughter learn about other cultures had allowed him to take Lilith for the experience of actually meeting Indians and forming her own opinion, instead of the biased view held by most white folk. Josiah knew Lilith had enjoyed the day out and spent most of her time with the medicine man and watched how the women in the tribe went about their chores. She had remarked to him at the end of the day their worlds were not so dissimilar from one another, just a little different.
Josiah remembered feeling immensely proud when Lilith had declared she did not know whose way was better.
"A good luck charm huh?" He nodded slightly, showing his approval and on a deeper note, his relief.
"I figure he needs all the help he can get," Lilith added. "Him playing cards with Ezra is such a bad idea."
"Well not really," Josiah shrugged. A small smile crossed his face picturing the cool, collected gambler, ever the picture of calm deliberation, sitting across the table from an eight-year-old playing a game of go fish. Then the devil in him flashed another thought in his mind at the image, what if Ezra lost? "I reckon it ain’t so easy to cheat at go fish."
"Ezra wouldn’t cheat," Lilith exclaimed, unable to imagine Ezra Standish doing anything of the sort. After all, Ezra was a professional as he was so often fond of saying to anyone who listened.
"Of course not," Josiah said with a perfectly straight face because he was not about to fill the young girl on the facts of life when it came to the card skills of one Mr Standish. While Ezra was a damn fine card player, Josiah and the rest of the seven knew he was not averse to tipping the odds in his favour when he felt the need to salvage his pride or replenish his empty coffers.
"The medicine man at the village showed me how to make the charm," Lilith continued to say, pleased Josiah had bought her story because she did not want to have to tell him she was conjuring from the book, even if it was for the best reasons.
"Well," Josiah said as they took the turn towards the house. "Just as long as you promise me you ain’t doing nothing dangerous." He gave her a stern look was more paternal than it was warning and Lilith nodded obediently.
"I won’t Josiah." She said feeling a twinge of guilt for her deception and moved quickly to change the subject. "Are you coming to see mama?"
"Yeah," Josiah replied. "Is she home?"
"I think she was going to visit with Mrs Potter this morning," Lilith answered, trying to remember what her mother had on her agenda today. Suddenly, she realised Josiah intended to come home with her and decided this would not at all do. She needed privacy to cast her spell and knew mama was not home anyway. "Said she’ll be back this afternoon."
"This afternoon huh?" Josiah paused, seeing no reason to continue if Audrey was not going to be home. "Okay." He looked down at Lilith, "tell you ma I’ll call in later or if she wants to say hello, I’ll be doing some work at the church."
"Sure Josiah," Lilith beamed at being able to deter him from his course. "I’ll tell her."
***********
It was more than an hour after his encounter with Lilith Josiah finally saw Audrey.
As usual, he spent most of his free time when he was not helping out at the Lucky 7 ranch either playing the part of a lawman in Four Corners or putting the finishing touches to the church which had been his pet project since arriving in town. He knew as far as he was concerned he would never really get it finished because part of his enjoyment at working on the place was the fact there always a little something else he had to get done. Josiah did not mind, there were worst ways to spend one's time.
"Hello Josiah," Audrey announced herself as she came down the aisle as he was coating the pulpit with some varnish to turn its dull finish into something more presentable.
"Hello, Audrey." Josiah poked his head from behind the stand and flashed her a smile.
Audrey looked as beautiful as always, with her dark hair worn up and delicate strands cascading around her neck while she regarded him with those incredible blue eyes. Each time he looked at her, he knew what he felt for her was no romantic image of what a woman should be but a feeling for her more genuine than any he had ever known.
"Lilith said you were going to come up to the house." She replied, brushing her skirt down as she placed herself on the steps of the raised floor, which lead to the pulpit.
"I did," Josiah agreed. "I was hoping to catch you before you made any plans for supper tonight." He remarked putting down the paintbrush full of varnish on to the newspaper he had strewn about to protect the floor and joined her a second later.
"I was going to cook," Audrey shrugged, having not placed much thought upon it. Josiah sharing supper at their table was so commonplace it was something she almost took for granted now. She liked seeing him at the head of the table and knew Lilith adored seeing him there as well. While he was not her husband and never would be, Josiah in his own way had captured her heart just as intensely. His presence had made her new life in Four Corners so much more than she ever dreamed possible and even though this town seemed to attract trouble like bees to honey, she knew he alone made all discourse worth remaining.
"I thought we might go out tonight." He suggested instead. Usually, every penny he saved would go to keeping his sister in the convent at Vesta City but the truth was, he was so well ahead of the payments he knew there would be no harm indulging one night out on the town. Besides, Audrey was not his cook. She was a woman whom he cared about deeply and there came a time when a lady needed to know the prose she inspired inside a man’s heart. "Supper at the hotel?"
" sounds nice," she beamed, liking the idea he would be taking her out when they did it so rarely. Audrey did not mind of course, aware he was a man of modest means and admired him for ensuring his sister was well taken care off. She was one of two people in Four Corners who knew about Josiah’s sister and felt privileged he would trust her with information. "Lily is going to be staying at Gloria’s though."
"Oh?" Josiah glanced at her; unable to deny he would not mind spending the time alone with her, not he felt Lilith’s presence was an intrusion. "How come?"
"I thought we might have some time alone to talk," Audrey replied and captured Josiah’s undivided attention with statement, as there was something in her voice immediately put him on guard.
"About what?" Josiah asked after a moment, trying to hide the fact he was burning with curiosity.
"About us." She said with an enigmatic smile making him swallow the lump suddenly formed in his throat. Why was he so bothered about this? They talked all the time about things. Why did she suddenly need privacy?
"What about us?" He faced front, suddenly preoccupied by a book sitting on one of the pews. Did she intend to end it between them? Is why she needed to be alone with him? His heart sank at the thought of not having Audrey in his life. He was hardly a young man but even Josiah recognised he was head over heels in love with the lovely schoolteacher.
Audrey caught the strained expression on his face and was suddenly struck with the realisation he was mistaken about her intentions. Exceedingly mistaken, in fact about what she had intended to convey to him and wondered how a man so perceptive at times could get it so completely wrong and she did not need to be a school teacher to answer enigma.
He was a man.
"Oh, Josiah!" Audrey exclaimed. "It's not bad news." She declared and took his face in her hands so he would look at her and understand. "I just thought we needed to talk about us."
"Us is fine," Josiah said inwardly relieved even though he did not show it as he met her gaze.
"I agree." She said softly and lowered her lips to his with a gentle kiss, which he returned quite readily before pulling back to meet his gaze. "We’ll have the whole house to ourselves tonight Josiah. Gloria is keeping Lilith with her until tomorrow afternoon."
It took a few seconds for Josiah to understand what she was getting at and when he did comprehend mysterious smile on her face, his eyes widened in nothing less than fear. Swallowing thickly, he drew away from her and stuttered a response. "Are you suggesting I..." he could not even bring himself to complete the sentence.
"Stay the night." She answered and removed the last vestiges of doubt in his mind regarding his intention.
"Audrey..." Josiah started to answer and once again he was stammering. "Are you sure... I mean it's a big step...a very big step."
"Josiah," she smiled with not a shred of doubt or fear in her eyes at what she was alluding. "We are hardly children any more and I want to be with you."
How did women manage to do ? How were they capable of dropping such startling news on a man and yet be capable of remaining so calm and aloof as if they had just made some inconsequential remark about the weather?
"I want to be with you too but this is sudden." He answered; trying to keep the turmoil in his stomach from churning to such a state he needed to throw up. It was not as if he did not want to be with her. Hell yeah, he wanted to spend the night with her and enjoy the bliss of her body just as completely as he enjoyed her soul but it was too soon.
"How is it sudden?" She countered. "We have been seeing quite a bit of each other these past months and it is time we moved on."
"But this ain’t right...." he continued to protest. "You’re a lady and a proper Christian woman. Our union should be sanctified in marriage."
"Now Josiah," she sighed. "I’m not proper and I know you’re just trying to protect my honour. My honour is just fine and we’re not having some sordid affair. I love you and I think you love me too. A relationship can’t stay trapped in amber, it has to move on."
"But why now?" He asked, still refusing to believe what she was offering was purely arbitrary without some deeper intention he was not yet privy to. "We’ve been doing just fine the way we have been."
"We are fine and this won’t change things," she kissed him again. "This will only make it better. Now I know you’re protesting out of some desire to protect me and I love you even more for being so honourable but I promise you I want this. You don’t have to worry I’ll regret it because I know I won’t."
Oh hell.
Josiah did not know what to say and what was more he did not know how he felt about her offer. He did love her and this much he had realised with complete certainty in the last few minutes. However, it astonished him she could just come out with something like this and knew his Audrey did not make such choices lightly, if at all. Something was at work here. There was no way this could be coming from her so blithely unless something else had motivated her to behave this way. He racked his mind in the seconds after she had spoken, waiting for his answer, trying to understand what could have made her come to the conclusion she had when it came to him with a flash.
Lilith.
Lilith had done this. was no charm she had been making. She had been conjuring again. It was the only thing could explain Audrey’s aberrant behaviour. He knew Lilith wanted them to get together but this was unforgivable! She had stared him in the face and uttered a bald-faced lie at making some charm for Billy when all this time she had been conjuring a spell to make her mother want him like this. How could she toy with people’s emotions like this? All this time, Josiah thought he had made some impact on her with his presence but the anger bubbled inside of him at the realisation he had failed. He could not really be angry at her he supposed, after all, it was her desire to see him become a part of her life inspired this course of action.
Somehow, he had to talk to Lilith and get her to reverse the spell she had cast on Audrey without letting the lady know she had been a pawn in a bout of magical conjuring.
"Josiah say something," Audrey spoke up, snapping him out of his ruminations.
Josiah faced her and decided upon his course of action at instant. "Audrey, if you are sure about this then so am I." He replied placing his hands on her shoulders, hoping would satisfy her until he was able to lift the spell placed upon her before the time make good on his agreement.
"I am sure." She said firmly. "So why don’t we go to supper at the hotel as planned and let whatever happen next come naturally."
"Okay," Josiah offered her a smile of agreement, determined by the time supper came along. It would be a matter of making certain things came about naturally and not because of any magic spell.
***********
When Audrey finally left Josiah, she made mention of going to town to run some errands prior to heading home which gave the preacher the opening he needed to find the lady’s daughter and question her about what mischief she had caused with accursed book of magic. Josiah had no doubt Audrey’s desire to get to know him in a biblical way was no doubt inspired by some love potion probably found its origins within the Book of Shadows Lilith was so fond of studying. Even though she had promised him never to conjure any of the enchantments contained within it, he had not stopped her from reading the book.
Going to Audrey’s house, he pounded on her door for a few minutes and was greeted with silence, a state of affairs which only served to prove Lilith was just as absent from her home as Audrey was. As Josiah departed from the schoolteacher’s home before she made a return and had reason to question why he was seeking her daughter with such determination, he wondered where Lilith could be and made his next port of call at the Larabee household. He assumed Lilith would be at Billy’s side, no doubt offering moral support for the youth’s duel with Ezra Standish.
However, upon arriving at the Larabee household and was greeted with the same quiet as he had at Audrey’s house, Josiah decided his best bet would probably be the Standish Tavern. After all, he realised after he had left the building home to Chris Larabee and the Clarion News and searched all the usual places she might be then his best bet would be to wait it out at the saloon for the duel. After all, when Billy arrived there, Lilith would sure to be with him.
The first thing Josiah noticed when he arrived at the establishment was the larger than normal crowds who appeared as if they were waiting in anticipation for something to happen. He saw Inez behind the bar, offering directions to the barmaids she had recruited to deal with the extra patronage and went to the counter to seek if there was trouble afoot.
"What’s going on?" He asked the sultry Mexican once she was done with the waitresses who scattered around the room to deal with the customers on the floor.
"I don’t know," she said somewhat mystified herself as she started to pour him a drink without his needing to tell her what he wanted. Josiah tipped his hat at her as he picked up his mug of beer and took a sip, grateful for the libations after the morning he had just endured. "I could be wrong but I think they’re here because of Ezra’s card game with Billy."
Josiah raised his brow. "Surely you jest."
And then again after further thought, the notion did not sound so preposterous. How many people here had lost their money to the gambler at one point or another and would not mind seeing the gambler taken down a peg or two? More than Josiah could count. Even if Ezra won his little match with Billy, he was still going to look ridiculous doing it, to say nothing of the fact of what would actually happen if he lost. Josiah shook his head unable to believe Ezra had let himself get into a situation like this and then wondered why he was in the least bit surprised, after all, for his sophisticated, polished exterior, the man could behave surprisingly juvenile.
"He’s a brave man." Josiah had to admit.
"Brave is not the word," Inez shook her head in disapproval. "I do not wish to be around when Mary catches him."
"Oh yeah," Josiah remembered particular minefield Ezra had stumbled into and grimaced as he envisioned the carnage would take place when the editor of the Clarion News found out Ezra was gambling with her son again. "You’d think he’d learnt the first time."
"Not Ezra," Inez remarked, remembering just how furious Mary had been after the incident at the schoolhouse where Billy had been caught gambling, thanks to Ezra’s tuition in one aspect of the craft. Mary had stormed into the saloon following her interview with Audrey King who informed her Billy had won a wealth of lunches because of his skills and spent the next hour screaming at the gambler. Chris Larabee had witnessed the entire incident, unprepared to lift a finger to help one of his men. Not that anyone would expect him to since gambling was not the lesson of choice for an eight-year-old in any one’s opinion.
"This time, it ain’t just Billy that’s going to get grounded for a month." Josiah smiled trying to imagine how Mary would enforce that particular punishment and then thought to himself if anyone could put the gambler through his paces, it was definitely Mrs Larabee. After all, one did not get to be Mrs Chris Larabee without a certain amount of ingenuity, not to mention enough patience to sink Noah’s Ark in the great flood.
"Well, I can live with it," Inez said with a smile. "I would not mind being left to run the saloon on my own without Ezra telling me how to do things."
"He still lording it over you he now owns the saloon again?" Josiah inquired and bit his lip when he saw the smouldering look in her eyes at being reminded about that particular point.
"Oh, every single time he has a chance." She grumbled. "I swear if she was not one of my dearest friends I could just kill Julia for buying the saloon from Maude for him."
"Some acts of kindness can have grave implications," Josiah said out loud not at all referring to Inez’s situation with the Standish Tavern and Ezra but rather an issue closer to home. He glanced at the clock on the wall and noted the time was fast approaching for the appointed hour of Ezra’s duel. "Sometimes, one needs to consider whether the outcome is all that terrible." His gazed melted into a place where only he could see and Inez decided she had too much to do now the afternoon crowd had arrived prematurely to interpret what was on Josiah’s mind at this time.
Following Inez’s departure from the bar, Josiah retired to the table normally occupied by the seven whenever they were present inside the saloon. After a while, Buck emerged from the kitchen and they had a brief discussion where the big man actually offered some valuable insight into his situation with Josiah having to tell him about the finer points of his predicament. For instance the part about the whole thing with Audrey being brought about by Lilith’s creating some kind of love potion which she used on her mother and him.
For a man who could be just as ridiculously juvenile about things as Ezra Standish, Buck was capable of displaying surprising depth whenever he wanted. He supposed no one could pull Chris Larabee from the mire of grief following the death of the man’s wife and child without having a lucid understanding about people. Buck had made some interesting insights into his relationship with Audrey and further convinced Josiah the initial impulse it was too soon for himself and Audrey to move their relationship to such an intimate level was right. Besides, he did not need the interference of a child to make that decision for him.
Unfortunately, the man who had led him to make this decision was soon running out of the saloon upon hearing the mention of the name ‘Millie’.
***********
Josiah was getting impatient and he wondered if he was wasting time here when he ought to be on the streets of Four Corners searching for Lilith. Even though the saloon was full and the time was drawing closer and closer for the duel to begin, there was still no sign of Billy and by that same extension, Lilith either. He needed to see her before his supper engagement with Audrey or else things could become exceedingly awkward when he had to explain to the lady this was not really her will at all but the by-product of magic. Furthermore, he had to explain this desire for him was no doubt fed to her in the form of some kind of love potion concocted by her daughter.
It sounded so much more plausible when he was thinking it.
"Mr Sanchez is there some reason why you are fidgeting like a five-year-old?" Ezra asked, having observed the man’s behaviour during the last hour to know there was definitely something wrong with the usually at peace preacher. While Josiah had refused to discuss the present trials his relationship with the lovely Mrs King was enduring, Ezra could tell it still preyed on his mind heavily because Josiah was one of the most laid back people he knew, next to Mr Tanner.
Unless of course, you brought up the subject of a wedding, Ezra thought with a wicked smile.
"I’m fine." He growled. "When is this thing gonna start?"
"You are referring to my little challenge with young Master Travis?" Ezra looked at him innocently.
"No," Josiah retorted. "I mean the pissing contest you two are playing at because of a woman." He replied with uncharacteristic venom.
"My goodness," Ezra stared at him with some measure of surprise at that kind of language coming from the erudite preacher. "You must be singularly preoccupied with a conundrum." The gambler remarked facing front again. "However since the only civilised query I am able to extract from you refers to the game I am playing with young Billy, I am pleased to tell you the games are about to begin." He tipped his hat in the direction of the batwing doors.
Josiah sat up immediately and saw Billy entering the room but no sign of Lilith. He watched the young boy meander through the bodies of the room and realised there would be no little blond girl with sun-streaked hair in attendance. Letting out a groan of frustration at her absence and realising he was fast running out of time, Josiah let out a short growl and left the table without saying a word to Ezra. The gambler barely noticed his departure since the man was too busy ignoring the jibes and sneers rippling throughout the room regarding his match with an eight-year-old.
Josiah spent the rest of the afternoon searching for Lilith without much success and when he did get a lead on her, it was usually a few minutes after the child had departed. The preacher was starting to wonder if Lilith’s love potion involved some vanishing spell as well. Finally, he came to the unhappy conclusion he had no choice but to confront Audrey and tell her the truth. As much as he hated revealing Lilith’s secret to her, he had no other alternative. Audrey was not acting on her own volition and he would not take advantage of her.
Their supper engagement was still a few hours away when Josiah turned up at Audrey’s door, hoping he could just phrase this right so he would not insult her. The last thing he wanted to do was to make Audrey think he did not want to be with her because he surely did. However, he refused to take advantage of her because of a spell that had no right to be cast upon them. If he had been able to find Lilith it would have made things less complicated. However, he had to face up to the fact even if he did find the young girl, she might not be able to undo what she had done in time to make Audrey change her mind.
"Josiah, what a surprise," Audrey said as she swung the door and found herself facing him.
"Audrey I need to speak to you," Josiah asked as he stood by her doorway, hat in hand feeling like a condemned man about to step up to the hangman’s noose.
The expression on his face immediately brought worry lines to hers and she gestured him to enter, apprehensive about the reason for his sudden arrival when they were due to have supper in a few short hours. Josiah said nothing as he followed her into the house, aware she was just as concerned about his statement as he had been earlier when she had made similar remarks about needing to talk.
"What’s wrong Josiah?" She turned around and faced him once they were inside the confines of her parlour. "Is it because of what I said this morning?" She asked, wondering if her forwardness had frightened him off. Had she misjudged him that badly?
"No," he shook his head and placed his hands on her shoulders, not wanting her to get the idea he was upset about that at all. It was not her fault how she was behaving. It was the love potion. "Audrey, it’s got nothing to do with that." He paused a moment, knowing it was not exactly true and began again. "Well it is, but not in the way you think."
"You don’t think I’m a wanton do you?" She asked, horrified her intimate offering might be construed as the actions of an immoral. Audrey was afraid this might happen, after all, he was a preacher once.
"Of course not!" Josiah exclaimed, mortified she could even think such a thing. "I would never think that!"
"Oh thank goodness," she let out a sigh of relief. "For a moment, I was really worried you being a former man of the cloth and all...."
"No," he shook his head so she would dispel the notion out of her mind for good. "I think what you have offered me is something special I will look forward to accepting one day when you are making the choice of your own free will."
Audrey looked at him sharply. "My own free will?" She knotted her brow in confusion as she raised those pools of azure coloured eyes to his. "What do you mean Josiah?"
He took a deep breath and cleared his throat, preparing to launch himself into the explanation he had rehearsed in his mind over and over again during the walk here. "Audrey, do you believe in things unseen?"
She considered the question even though she was still rather confused at its relevance at the moment. "Well yes," she nodded. "That’s the basis of faith is not? To believe in things aren’t tangible in a real-world sense."
"Okay," he exhaled once again. "Then you have to believe there are forces existing in the world that may not make sense but do exist even though we’ve been taught not to believe in them."
"Josiah," Audrey placed her hands on her hips and stared at him impatiently. "What are you talking about?"
"Magic." Josiah declared, deciding there was no proper way to word this except in the most direct manner. "Do you believe in magic?"
"The whole world is magic Josiah," Audrey retorted. "There is magic in the beauty of things, in the stars up in the sky, at the smile of a baby. Those things are magic."
"No you don’t understand," he sighed with a hint of frustration. "I’m talking about real magic. The kind that makes witches fly on brooms and pulls rabbits out of hats. I’m talking about spells and enchantments."
Audrey’s eyes widened. "Do you believe in these things?" She asked tentatively.
Obviously, she did not know Josiah Sanchez quite as well as she originally thought.
"Yes I do," he answered truthfully. "I never used to but now I do and you’ve got to believe me when I say to you offering yourself to me is not something you wanted to do. It was because of some love spell or maybe even a potion given to you to make you think you wanted to be with me." There, he said it and waited in anticipation for an answer as she stared at him with an expression on her face he could not quite fathom.
"You’re saying someone put a spell on me to induce me to invite you into my bed tonight?" Audrey asked slowly.
"Yes," he nodded sombrely, waiting for a more telling reaction other than this cool, deliberate air he could not unravel. "You’re not doing this because you want to, you’re doing this because you’re under some kind of enchantment."
"Enchantment." She nodded as if trying to absorb the information Josiah had just imparted to her.
He could not blame her of course. It was not every day a person was told everything they accepted about the worlds was false and even their own actions were suspect when magic could easily manipulate them into perpetrating an act completely alien to their normal behaviour.
"And who put this enchantment on me?" She probed further.
Now Josiah had reason to pause because he had not wanted to bring Lilith’s name into it but could not see how he could avoid it now he had mentioned the spell. Perhaps, telling her the truth might allow Audrey to provide some insight on how they could reverse the effects of the incantation. Or at the very least, Audrey might know where Lilith was.
"I’m afraid it was Lilith," Josiah answered after a momentary pause.
"Lilith put a love spell on me?" Audrey asked.
"She’s been fooling around with that book for some time and she doesn’t mean to cause harm," Josiah quickly spoke up in the young girl’s defence. After all, what she had done was out of love for both of them, not in malice. "I think she just wanted to get us together."
"I see." The lady nodded, once again slipping into that enigmatic place where what she was thinking became a riddle he could not unravel.
"I guess she wanted us to be a family and got tired of waiting." Josiah tried to explain. "You have to believe me, more than anything I wanted to get closer to you but this is not you and I won’t take advantage of the situation when you are clearly not in your right mind."
"Well," Audrey let out a deep breath and a humourless smile crossed her lips. "I guess that would not be right if I came to this decision because of some love potion addling my brain."
It was at this point it began to dawn on Josiah perhaps, he was in trouble. "Audrey....."
"Don’t Audrey me!" She roared. "If you did not want to sleep with me, all you had to do was say so, Josiah Sanchez!"
"No!" Josiah exclaimed horrified realising he had just aimed his oarless boat up a creek with a very, very big drop. "That’s not true! I do want to sleep with you!"
"Of course you do!" She shouted back in nothing less than fury. "You know of all the excuses you could have come up with, this has to be in my opinion, the worst one I have ever heard in my entire life! It just so happens Mr Sanchez I am not under the influence of any love potion, enchantment, spell or whatever the hell you want to call it! Not at all! I wanted to sleep with you because I care for you deeply, not because I’m under the influence of some magic trick!"
"But...but...Lilith...!"
"What about my Lily?" She glared at him with eyes burning with blue fire, not at all lessened in intensity. "How dare you use my daughter for such a pathetic excuse! Lilith is a little strange and she has a penchant for books that are less than orthodox but how dare you accuse my child of being some kind of....of....witch!"
"But it’s true!" Josiah cried frantically. "She created a love potion!"
"A love potion!" Audrey rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Will you listen to yourself! You’re talking about a nine-year-old for God sakes!" She started to turn away from him.
"Audrey," he caught her arm, trying desperately to convince her he was not stark, raving mad because she was sure as hell was looking at him like he was a lunatic. "I swear to you, everything I said is true. Lilith is a very powerful magician. Its really quite amazing!"
"You just don’t give up do you?" Audrey cried out disgusted. "I refuse to let you slander my child any further! If you cannot deal with commitment of progressing our relationship along then I am afraid I did not know you as well as I thought!"
"Audrey that’s not true!" Josiah protested as she turned on her heels and stormed out of the parlour. "I do want to be with you!"
"Well, you have a funny way of showing it!" She said finally before disappearing into her bedroom and ending their discussion with the hard slam of door mere inches away from his face.
Josiah was aghast and unable to believe she had taken it so badly. He thought she might be upset but even he did not fathom just how upset she was going to be about this. This was all Lilith’s fault and he had just made things worse by telling Audrey that. Worst of all, he had not the slightest clue as to how to make things right between them and wondered if things could deteriorate any further.
"Hello, Josiah." A youthful voice immediately sliced through his thoughts as he stood outside Audrey’s door. "What’s going on?"
Josiah’s gaze moved sharply at the hallway and found Lilith staring at him oddly, trying to discern what it was he was doing there.
"Lilith!" Josiah strode immediately towards her. "What did you do?"
Lilith looked at him blankly. "Do?"
"You cast some crazy love potion on your ma, didn’t you?" He accused. His anger was up and he knew he should not be so cross with Lilith but the scene that just took place justified his response.
"Love potion?" Lilith started to stammer, unable to comprehend what Josiah was talking about as the big man came to a stop before her and towered over the little girl like a glowering giant. "I didn’t cast any love potion." She replied.
"Now Lilith," Josiah calmed himself down before he said something he would regret. "Now I saw you this morning with all that stuff you were supposed to make for a lucky charm. It was not, was it?"
Guilt crossed Lilith’s features mostly because she hated lying to Josiah about it and it appeared the truth was needed to clear up this particular misunderstanding. "No, it wasn’t." She admitted reluctantly.
"Then what was it?" He asked satisfied he was right and even more so when she told him the truth.
"It was a love spell but it didn’t work," Lilith confessed. "I didn’t have all the stuff I needed cause I didn’t want to find a frog and put its eyes out."
"It must have worked Lilith," Josiah pointed out, glad she had not blinded some poor amphibian nonetheless. "Your ma has been acting...." he paused to rephrase his words carefully in order to make it suitable for a minor audience. "Differently."
"But the spell wasn’t cast!" Lilith exclaimed and then added. "And it was not for you and ma. It was for me and Billy."
Josiah merely stared at her.
"What do you mean?" He demanded. Suddenly, an ominously sick feeling was starting to rise up his gullet like bile.
"I didn’t give ma any love potion! I wouldn’t do that to you or ma! I did it for me and Billy and it couldn’t work because I didn’t have all the stuff I needed to finish the spell off. I swear Josiah, I didn’t do anything to you or ma! Not after the last time!"
During her last conjuring, Lilith’s spell had caused Audrey to be killed and Josiah knew she was telling the truth because the experience of being without her mother had been fearful enough without his having to hold her to that promise of dabbling in their lives again. Which mean everything that took place today had no enchantment attached to it and Audrey’s desire to be with him...
Oh hell!
Josiah swore under his breath and immediately hurried to Audrey’s door once again "Audrey, I’m sorry. I didn’t know what I was talking about! I made a mistake!"
"No, I made the mistake!" Audrey’s voice wailed through the door back at him. "You’re just afraid of commitment Josiah!"
Josiah let his hang bang against the door and groaned. "No, I’m not afraid of commitment! I want to be with you! I just thought....."
"You thought that the only way I could want to be with you is through a stupid love spell!" Audrey cried out. "I don’t know what’s worse, the reason you came up with such an excuse or the fact you think I’d actually believe such a ridiculous story!"
Lilith listened to the grovelling and pleading for another ten minutes, unable to keep from thinking adults could be very strange as Josiah continued to beg her mother about ‘being with her’ though Lilith felt there was something about that sentence she was missing completely. Finally, the young girl decided she had better things to do than witness Josiah and her mother engaged in their weird games and remembered she had to spend the night at Gloria Potters and went to get ready for the sleepover.
She had no idea what Josiah and her ma had planned for the evening as she collected her things for the night away from home but had no doubt it would involve a lot of apologising if her ma’s screaming was anything to go by.
A hell of a lot of apologising.
After the day before, Chris Larabee was more than happy to join his friends within the confines of the Standish Tavern where most of the seven with the exception of JD and Nathan was present at their usual table. Vin was the last to arrive having just returned from Coventry when heaccompanied Alex when her services as a physician was required at the convent situated outside the town. The day was meandering towards midday with patrons starting to fill the establishment for the popular lunchtime menu to which Inez was presently in the kitchen preparing, while Rain patrolled the fortifications of the bar, serving drinks to thirsty customers in the meantime.
"I’m telling you," Buck grumbled as he continued to relate the nightmare he had been forced to endure the evening before. "It was the worst night of my life. I thought the time I got sick on rotgut and chilli in Purgatorio where I spent the whole night puking my guts out could never be topped but last night....." he merely shook his head in disbelief at the ordeal of the night before.
"Thank you Mr Wilmington," Ezra Standish winced as he pictured that image in his mind. "I think you have cured me for the need to have an afternoon repast." The gambler replied before taking a sip from his glass of whisky as if to wash the taste from his mouth.
"What are you complaining about?" Chris retorted remembering the incident all too well. "You weren’t the one who had to hold his head down so he wouldn’t drown in puke."
"Oh please!" Ezra protested as he was bombarded with that disgusting picture as well. "What are you two trying to do, make me similarly nauseated?"
"So you had Inez and Millie under the same roof all evening?" Vin asked, changing the subject much to the gratitude of the gambler.
"Yeah," Buck nodded. "Millie told Inez how I had been running around all day trying to avoid her."
"That was indeed a sight to behold." Ezra commented, taking great relish in imparting his account of events in gratitude of Buck’s charming visual description earlier of his night in Purgatory. "Lawman Buck Wilmington, running for dear life with a gun in one hand and an infant’s bassinette in the other."
"Very funny!" Buck muttered as the three men around him started to laugh out loud, making no attempt to hide their amusement at the sight that must have been. "What was worse, they spent the rest of night talking about personal stuff.
"Personal stuff?" Vin looked at the big man in question.
"Yeah," Buck nodded. "Personal stuff about how I did certain things around the house...."
"And around the bedroom right?" Chris did not need to hear the rest and continued to chuckle. "Think of this way, if they all got together they could write a book about you."
"I’m glad you’re finding this so amusing," Buck glared at his old friend through narrowed eyes. "You’re not the one who had two women discussing which dimple about they liked best and I’m not talking about the one on my face!"
All that statement managed to do was produce another round of riotous laughter around the table as Buck’s cheeks reddened in embarrassment at the lack of sympathy from his so called friends. "Can we please change the subject?"
"Hey we ain’t the one who brought it up." Vin said swallowing a mouthful of beer. "So you get what you needed doing at Sweetwater all right pard?" The tracker looked at the gunslinger.
"Yeah," Chris nodded, issuing a patented Larabee glare at Vin to not bring up the details of what that shopping venture in Sweet Water was about lest the man wanted to wake up and find himself shaved bald. "I ran into some old friends who needed a little mediation."
"Mediation?" Ezra inquired, hardly seeing Chris Larabee as some one who could play negotiator unless it was with the gun and that infamous sneer promising threat to life and limb to all parties concerned.
"Yeah," Chris shrugged, having no desire to discuss Gunderson and the rest of his inept gang. "I sorted it out. The ones who ain’t dead are sitting in the jailhouse."
"Trust you to turn a shopping trip into a gunfight." Buck remarked. "Is Mary okay?"
"She didn’t notice a thing." Chris said with a smile. "She was more interested in shopping then what I was doing. What about you Vin? Everything go down okay in Coventry?"
"Yeah," the tracker nodded with something of an enigmatic expression on his face only Chris was adept enough to catch. "Weather got a bit much though."
"Yes I would imagine," Ezra nodded in agreement. "We got a mere smattering of it in town but judging by those clouds it must have been quite violent in the vicinity to Coventry."
"Pretty much," Vin did not try to hide the fact, remembering what he and Alex had gone through trying to reach Coventry. "The ferry across the river decided to break up when we were on it so both of us took a swim."
"Shit." Buck declared. "I guess you weren’t hurt right?"
"No but Alex got the hell scared out of her. Didn’t help much we got caught in a land slide after, but it worked out fine when we got to the convent and got cleaned up, and married, not to mention a warm bed."
The three men with him were in various stages of drinking when they paused and looked at the tracker.
"Would you care to repeat that last statement Mr Tanner?" Ezra said glancing at the others to confirm they had heard the same thing as him.
"Well we got caught in a landslide." Vin repeated innocently.
"After that!" Buck insisted.
"Oh, you mean getting to the convent?" The tracker knew he was being a little evasive but could not help enjoy taunting his friends a little. After all, considering all the good advice he was given about weddings of late, he felt justified in torturing them just a little in return.
"About getting married." Chris growled.
"Oh that?" Vin allowed a little smile to cross his lips. "Yeah, well there was a priest and we didn’t really want to sleep in separate rooms after the day we had so I thought what the hell."
"You sly dog!" Buck slapped him on the back. "How long was it gonna take you to tell us!"
"Just a little while longer." Vin grinned as congratulations were made all around from his friends.
"Trust you to put a lady through an ordeal like that an expect her to just marry you at the end of the day, Mr Tanner." Ezra retorted and then decided it was just like Vin to take care of such a momentous day in his life in such a manner.
"Congratulations pard," Chris extended a hand towards Vin who shook it warmly. "You’re a lucky man She’s quite something."
"That she is." Buck agreed and raised his glass to make a toast. "To Mr and Mrs Tanner, God help them both."
"Hear, hear," Ezra raised his glass to join in when suddenly Josiah Sanchez burst through the door covered in flower petals and a stem protruding for his hat. The expression on his face was nothing less than stormy and he went to Rain and ordered himself a drink, drawing a wide-eyed response from everyone who saw him. Fortunately, no one was quite brave enough to ask him to explain his present dishevelled state. Grabbing his mug of beer, his friends saw him approaching the table looking like a bear with a thorn in its foot.
"Morning." Josiah sat down and let his eyes move over their astonished expressions, daring anyone to ask.
"Everything all right Josiah?" Buck finally broke the silence.
"I’m going to say this only once," Josiah looked at them with a voice rumbling like the tremors of a particularly violent volcano preparing to erupt if offered the proper provocation. "I...do...not...want...to...talk...about...it."
"Fine." Chris answered.
"No problem." Buck replied automatically.
"None of my business." Vin shrugged.
"Absolutely Mr Sanchez." Ezra made the same safe response.
"Hey everybody." Nathan Jackson managed to slip through the doors of the saloon while everyone was focussed on Josiah’s entry into the establishment.
"Nathan!" Rain exclaimed as she saw him and immediately forgot that she was serving a customer and quickly emerged from behind the bar to meet the healer with a warm embrace and an even warmer kiss of greeting.
"The man of the hour!" Ezra exclaimed as the lovers exchanged affections openly and without a care in the world if the saloon was watching their display.
Earlier that morning, Chris Larabee had received a telegram from Sheriff Brooks, informing him Nathan had been instrumental is solving the murders in Hadley’s Hope. None of them was surprised Nathan would miss the most important exams of his life in order to help George Brooks because it was just the person Nathan was. There was no way he could turn his back on people who needed help and made those who considered him their friend, feel all the more privileged for having him in their lives. Josiah who had no idea what was going on was soon appraised of the situation from Vin and was soon joining the others in their appreciation of Nathan’s efforts in the town of Hadley’s Hope.
"I’m guessing you heard about what happened in Hadley’s Hope huh?" Nathan asked, somewhat embarrassed by all the attention as he came to their table with his arm still around Rain.
"We are very proud of you Nathan." She said what the others would not express with as much feeling.
"Good work," Chris tipped his hat towards the healer as he pulled away from Rain to take a seat. The lady flashed him a radiant smile and returned to the bar, with every intention of bringing her love a drink.
"Thanks," Nathan smiled. "The exam people were pretty good about me not getting there. So I have to go back next week and do it again."
"Hopefully you won’t get side tracked this time." Vin drawled.
"Well I think we ought to raise a glass to our very own sleuth." Ezra remarked and lifted his glass again, beckoning the others to do the same.
"Seems to be the day for it and all," Buck added. "What with you solving the case in Hadley’s Hope and Vin getting married."
"Vin got married?" Both Nathan and Josiah said in unison as they stared at the tracker, who merely shrugged.
"It’s been one of those days." Buck confessed. "I don’t think it can get much stranger than this."
Buck spoke too soon.
"WHERE IS THAT SMOOTH TALKING, LYING, LOW DOWN CARD PLAYING NITWIT!"
"Oh Ezra," Buck said in a sing song voice following a series of loud expletives which had every man in the room ever so grateful the source of that typhoon was not coming for them. "I think Mary has found out about your little card game with Billy."
Ezra’s face went white as he heard the lady’s angry footsteps approaching the bat wing doors of the saloon.
"Mr Larabee....." Ezra glanced at Chris in pure helplessness.
"Don’t even think about it." Chris said firmly, not even looking up as he continued to drink his beer, seemingly unconcerned about Ezra’s situation. "I have to live with that."
"Come on Mary," Julia Pemberton’s voice followed swiftly behind the ominous advance of the Clarion News’s editor in chief to the saloon doors. "He didn’t mean to do it and it wasn’t as if he was playing poker or teaching him how to play craps! It was go fish!"
"Julia do you have any idea how ridiculous that sounds?" The unseen Mrs Larabee turned on the unseen Miss Pemberton before they reached the doors, much to the horror of Ezra whose face was turning beet red with mortification. "You expect me to believe my son challenged Ezra Standish to a card game and that Ezra being the adult that he was, not to mention southern gentlemen he confesses to be, did not have the sense to turn it down?"
"It was a point of honour!" Julia exclaimed as Ezra sunk lower and deeper into his chair and wished the floor would swallow him up. Around him, no one was keeping their sniggers from turning into peals of bawdy laughter.
"Oh please, how much honour can there be for a grown man to accept the challenge of an eight year old child for a woman!" Mary returned.
"Trust me," Julia said in a low voice, smouldering with chagrin at having to defend her lover. "I’m trying to understand it myself."
By now, everyone at the table, with the notable exception of Ezra was ready to split their sides with the growing absurdity of the situation. Even Chris was openly laughing and Inez had been drawn out of the kitchen to investigate the storm brewing outside the room. Ezra had started to get up, deciding this would be a fortuitous time to make an exit when he felt both Josiah and Buck’s hand on either shoulder.
"I don’t think so Ez," Chris said with a smug smile. "I think you need to sit this hand in."
"But Mr Larabee!" Ezra protested as Mary burst into the room and allowed her blue grey eyes to scan the room for her quarry with Julia following closely behind, trying to remind her murder was a capital crime.
"There you are!" She hissed and stormed over to him with every man at the table moving their chairs a little bit of an inch or two away from Ezra, leaving him surrounded in an island of space. The gambler had never felt more alone or vulnerable as he stared at the face of Hurricane Mary.
"Now Mrs Larabee...." Ezra started to stammer, searching for the charm that was his only weapon of defence at the moment. "You must believe me there was an extremely good explanation for what happened with young Master Travis."
"Really?" Mary folded her arms as Julia offered Ezra a look of utter sympathy as well as apology because it was now in the hands of God for she could do nothing more for him. "I for one should be very interested in hearing that explanation. No doubt it will be extremely illuminating and would go a lengthy way to convincing me why you should not be EVISCERATED!"
Ezra looked around at the faces watching this exchange and saw no help forthcoming. Of course, he could hardly blame them for staying out of the firing line. Not even Chris Larabee was about to incur Mary’s wrath. Only divine intervention could get him out of this predicament now.
JD Dunne burst through the doors at that precise moment.
He was wearing no shoes, no shirt; the upper portion of his long johns was exposed beneath pants buttoned up all wrong in the front. He swallowed hard as he paused a moment, covered with sweat and more terrified than any of the seven had ever seen him in all the time of their acquaintance. The youth’s lingering was no more than a second before he was off and running again, clutching his hat to his head as he raced through the establishment and fairly leapt behind the bar counter like a jack rabbit.
"John Dunne, you get back here!" The roar of Nettie Wells filled the room, followed by a plaintive squeal by Casey.
"Don’t shoot him Aunt Nettie!" The young girl cried out.
"This just gets better." Nathan remarked and sat up in his chair as they saw the lady and her niece burst into the room. Nettie was carrying a double barrel shot gun as she strode into the saloon as if hell riding with her. It was the angriest anyone had seen Nettie, ever and the presence of a gun made Chris and Buck get to their feet immediately to investigate, especially when it appeared her quarry was the terrified Mr Dunne.
A second after Nettie’s dramatic entrance into the saloon, Alexandra Styles arrived at the Standish Tavern and upon seeing the doctor, Casey immediately turned to her. "Alex you gotta talk to her!" The young woman cried out frantically. "She’s going to kill him!"
"Nettie, calm down." The doctor hurried after the older woman who was searching for JD, certain she had seen him enter the establishment a few minutes ago. Nettie was beyond reason as she clutched the formidable looking weapon, seeing nothing else except JD.
"Calm down my ass!" Nettie snapped at the doctor as Chris and Buck met up with the armed woman.
"What’s going on?" Chris demanded and cast a glance at Rain who was looking mystified as she saw JD cowering fear behind her bar counter and for that matter, behind her.
"That boy....." Nettie sputtered in rage as her eyes burned with fury. "He...he...." She could not even say it for being so angry. The image of what she had seen prior to this explosion of rage was burned into memory and she was far from thinking clearly.
"It wasn’t his fault!" Casey cried out trying to convince Nettie it had all been her idea. "I wanted to!"
"You mean JD and you were....." Buck’s eyes widened in astonishment as he began to understand the reason for JD’s appearance and Nettie’s fury. As the realisation dawned on everyone else, all six men looked at the direction of the bar where JD was hiding himself and decided the young man had a very good reason for concealment.
"Our boy’s all grown up." Buck started to grin.
"This is not helping Buck!" Alex hissed. "The woman has a gun!"
"Of course." Buck’s expression became serious again for about a second before the damnable grin crossed his features again to Nettie’s state of mind than her unexpectedly coming home early to catching her niece and her beau letting nature take its course in the girl’s bedroom.
"Now JD, you got to get out here." Buck called out, deciding it was best to sort this thing out.
"Like hell I will!" JD cried out from behind the bar.
"JD." Chris tried instead and spoke in that voice which no one; not even Vin had the courage to defy. "Come out now."
Slowly, JD emerged from behind the bar, looking like a rabbit caught in a hunter’s sights, ever mindful of the gun Nettie was holding. The youth looked extremely nervous, not to mention terribly embarrassed his tryst with Casey could become so public. Fortunately, he was put at a little more at ease when he saw Alex sneak up behind Nettie and retrieve the shotgun before she handed it to Vin, who held onto it for safe keeping and for JD’s continued existence.
"Without going into the details," Chris measured his words carefully. "What happened?"
"You have to ask?" Buck looked at him.
Chris glared at his old friend with a stare that could have ignited him on the spot before taking a deep breath and realising he really did not have to ask since it was quite obvious what had taken place. "Nettie, they’re just kids and you know how they are." It was not much of an excuse but Chris had no idea how to proceed with something like this.
"It ain’t proper!" Nettie swore angrily, not about to put anything down to youthful discretion. "I will deal with Casey later but JD needs to account for himself."
"How?" Buck demanded, putting a protective arm around JD who was humiliated enough by this entire situation. "It ain’t something that can be changed. It’s a done deed."
"Except the usual way." Mary remarked reluctantly, more aware than anyone what needed to be done.
"The usual way?" Everyone looked at her.
Nettie caught on first. "They’re too young!"
"Well not that young." Buck started to say when he caught on. Inez who had come up next to him during the exchanged promptly elbowed her husband in the side and cut off any glib remark he had to say.
"Too young for what?" JD finally found his voice.
"Marriage." Ezra responded. "Mr Dunne, I do believe it is time you made some honourable recompense for last evenings occupations."
"Last evening?" JD looked at him confused. "We’ve been at it since lunch...."
Nettie’s face became darker, Mary smacked her forehead, Alex rolled her eyes and Chris decided he was going home. Buck just grinned wider.
"JD," Vin said helpfully. "Shut up."
"Well that seems the proper thing to do...." Nettie frowned staring at her guilty niece and her soon to be nephew in law. She was not happy about the situation but Mary was right. There was not much else to be done. "But it’s going to be a long engagement.".
"But Aunt Nettie....." Casey started to protest, uncertain whether she wanted to marry JD. She knew she loved him but marriage...well that was really big. JD was giving her the same look of uncertainty.
"Now would be a good time to be quiet." Alex offered her new husband’s warning to the young lady.
"Well this is just shaping up to be a very strange day." Buck let out a deep sigh. "First Vin gets married and now looks like our little boy’s gonna be a husband." He ruffled JD’s hair and engendered a deep frown from the youth.
"Married?" Inez turned to Alex sharply. "You two are married?"
"When did you two get married?" The second demand came from Mary.
"Well..." Alex started to explain. "We thought...."
"And you didn’t even tell us? Your best friends?" Julia accused just as hotly.
"How could you do that to us Alexandra Styles..sorry Mrs Tanner," Rain said sarcastically. "You did not even give us the chance for a bridal shower, or even let us to throw you a celebration..."
"And cake!" Mary declared.
"Why am I not surprised that would come from you." Chris remarked, giving his wife a look.
Eventually, they came to the decision JD and Casey would announce their engagement, even though it would be a rather lengthy one as that was the only way Nettie would accept the situation save filling JD full of lead. In the meantime, Alex spent the next week listening to jibes and sarcastic remarks about keeping her wedding a secret from her close friends and Josiah after much pleading and grovelling, managed to convince Audrey that he was not afraid of commitment.
And Ezra sneaked out during the confusion and was not seen for the rest of the week.