It sat in his mind like a splinter.
Bearing almost uncanny appearance to its physical counterpart, the splinter inside the mind of Don Alejandro Paulo had been there for some time, burrowing its way through his consciousness, slowly driving him mad with the insistence of its presence until everything around it festered and decayed. Those in the household of the senior Don Paulo might agree that the same was happening to their master and had been doing for some time now, ever since the news reached that his son was dead.
In truth, no one in the border community of Val Verde was particularly surprised to hear that Don Stefano Paulo had come to a bed end. No one that is, except his father who was blind to the flaws obvious to everyone else but him, regarding his son’s nature and character. From his youth, Stefano had assumed the respect garnered by his father for a lifetime of honour and regard for those around him, was Stefano’s to expect as well. When the young man learnt otherwise, he was often capricious and cruel in the methods he employed to redeem his wounded ego and while the older Don would always ensure those harmed were duly compensated, he did nothing to penalise the son he adored so much.
The gossipmongers who whispered their stories about Stefano’s behaviour blamed the cause of his inherently sadistic nature on the lack of a mother in the boy’s life. Donna Paulo had died giving birth to her only son and her loss had broken the heart of the husband she left behind. Thus Alejandro felt perfectly within his rights to give the child that was as all he had of her now, everything that love and money could buy. In doing so, he unleashed a wolf among them. Those who knew both father and son felt upbringing had nothing to do with it. Stefano was just one of those unfortunate realities of life where greatness was known to have skipped a generation and in Stefano’s case it was a bad thing for everyone involved.
By the time the boy had reached his manhood, the people of Val Verde had learnt well enough to keep their daughters from his notice. With his father’s men ever at his side, loyal to the son as they had been to the father during the Don’s time in the service of Santa Ana and the Mexican Army, he strutted through the small village and took what he wanted. Before they learnt better, many young girls had been defiled and violated, mostly against their will. The families that Alejandro could not compensate, he coerced with subtle threats against their livelihood until he was assured that his son could not be harmed or held accountable for whatever crimes the boy committed.
Alejandro was by a nature, a fair man. Most of the Val Verde held him in high regard even if they disliked his son intensely. For most part, the Don managed to keep his offspring under control, sending him away to school in the larger town of Ciudad Juarez for most of the year. Unfortunately as time grew and age caught up with Alejandro, there was no longer any way to keep the boy from his home. The ranch and estate through which Alejandro had made his fortune required youth to maintain its upkeep and finally when the boy turned twenty, he was recalled to take his place at his father’s side.
For most part the reunion and the months that followed was happy ones, there was no sight of the behaviour that had made Stefano so hated prior to his exile. Alejandro contented himself with the knowledge that his son’s youthful indiscretions had faded away upon reaching manhood and there was nothing to fear. Stefano proved himself to be responsible and dependable as he took on the part his father required of him and after awhile, even the villages of Val Verde had decided that perhaps the young man had changed for the better.
Until Inez Recillos began working at the main house.
Her mother, Paloma had been a trusted and faithful employee of the Paulo household for many years and the Don had to confess that from the lady’s homely features, he would not have guessed her for producing such a beautiful daughter. And there was simply no denying it. From the moment she had blossomed into womanhood, Inez had been one of the most sought after maidens in Val Verde. Men had asked for her hand from the moment she had been considered old enough to marry but Paloma would have none of it and neither would Inez for that matter. Like her mother, Inez was proud and she was filled with the youthful ideal that one must loved the man she wedded. As a man who had adored the wife who had left him, Alejandro admired that in the girl and was more than happy to provide her with employment when she wished to make her way in the world.
It was only after he had seen how Stefano regarded the young lady that Alejandro began to perceive a problem with the decision he had made. The boy was more than infatuated with her, he was obsessed. He made several entreaties to woo the young lady but while she was polite in her refusals, it was still a rejection and Alejandro could only watch helplessly as disaster prepared itself to strike. He did try to stop the situation from spinning out of control by informing Inez that her services were not required at the house, hoping her absence would take Stefano’s attention from her. Inez had accepted the situation, aware of the danger herself and had gone quietly, not wishing to provoke Stefano into something they would all regret.
Unfortunately, neither of them could count for Stefano’s reaction to their efforts.
Of course he said nothing to let on that he was displeased and waited until the night of a village festival to act. Alejandro did not witness the events himself but when he was told later on, was able to have a good idea of what had transpired. His son had broken into the Recillos home during the celebration and had dragged Inez out of her home and then attempted to violate her before half a dozen witnesses. No one of course dared to stop him and the young woman was forced to defend herself, using a broken bottle as her only weapon. Tearing a sizeable gash in Stefano’s throat, she climbed onto the first horse she saw, nearly hysterical, Inez rode out of town into the night and did not come back.
Stefano’s injuries were not serious but the scar left by Inez burned into his mind and no matter how Alejandro tried to convince him to let the matter go, the boy was determined to exact his revenge. Each time he looked into the mirror, Stefano saw the scar across his neck that would remind him forever that a woman had bested him and escaped with her crime unpunished.
As the time progressed, Stefano’s hatred grew more intense until finally he announced that he was leaving to find Inez and would not stop until he brought her home to face justice over her actions. Despite the bad blood between their families, Alejandro assured Paloma that Inez would not be harmed and allowed the faithful servant to work in the house still. Determined that Inez would be returned home unharmed by his son, Alejandro sent one of his best men to accompany the boy on his quest. Rafael was a man of honour and a believer in the old ways, if he swore to the Don that Inez would be returned unharmed, Alejandro could be assured that was how it would be.
Thanks to Rafael’s reports, Alejandro was kept abreast of his son’s activities even if the news was not always pleasant. Inez had been fleeing from town to town like a fugitive, with Stefano never more than a few weeks behind her. Those she had befriended were often killed for their trouble and Alejandro felt a pang of sadness at the actions of his son even though he dreaded the day when Inez would make friends that Stefano could not frighten or kill. Unfortunately that fear culminated into reality with the arrival of the younger Don into the town called Four Corners.
Inez had decided she was done with running from his son and Alejandro could almost envision the look of defiance on her beautiful face when she made that decision. With her lover coming to her defence, the day of reckoning finally arrived for Stefano and he was killed, run through by the sword he would have used to kill Inez’s lover. Alejandro accepted the news stoically at first; telling himself over and over again that the deed was done and no amount of vengeance would bring his son back. It added further insult to injury when he learnt that Rafael had fled rather than come home and face his judgement, having been partially responsible for the death.
Don Paulo returned to life in Val Verde without his son, all the while forcing himself not to think of the fact that the boy had been killed in the streets. When the body was returned to him, he felt numb and allowed his most trusted friends to handle the funeral arrangements. Paloma had left his employ then, aware that there was simply too much between their families for her to continue working for him. Don Paulo made no effort to stop her and spent much of his time alone, ruminating on the lonely years ahead with no wife or son to mourn him when the end finally came.
He did not know what inspired him to keep tabs on Inez’s progress. He had told himself over and over again, that he was beyond the petty needs of vengeance, that what was done was done. There was point in lingering on the notion of such a thing when it served no purpose. Revenge would not restore his son to him and would only complete the descent into darkness that Stefano had embraced so willingly until he became consumed by it. However, as the days of loneliness seemed to stretch with no end inside, the old Don started thinking about Inez and the part she had played in the death of his beloved. She and her lover.
Then he learnt about the baby.
At first he was outraged by audacity of her. How dare she presumed to bring life into this world when she had been the instrument of seeing his son’s ushered out of it. For the first time in too long, he began to feel the waves of anger churning inside his gut until his fury was a fire stoked from embers of defeat and despair. Suddenly, reality began to shape differently in his mind. It was not Stefano that had pursued Inez but she who had lured him with her heavy lashes and her coy smile, teasing his desire into an obsession he was not responsible. It was Inez who had dragged him to that gringo town across the border. It was Inez’s lover who had murdered his boy.
Suddenly, the idea of vengeance did not seem so foolish and began to take shape in his mind as he thought more and more about the life she was leading while having denied Stefano his own. The Don smouldered at the idea that Inez was playing whore to the man who had taken his son away from him and was not bearing his bastard child. A child who had no reason being alive when Stefano was dead. With each passing day that he envisioned the child growing and slumbering inside Inez’s belly, Don Paulo became angrier, his hatred for her becoming a kind of sickness that was reaching critical mass.
When the house of Paloma Recillos, occupied by the lady herself and her younger daughter Calla was razed to the ground, every one in Val Verde knew that the Don had been responsible even if no one was brave enough to say it out loud. Paloma and Calla had managed to escape the fire in time but were not foolish enough to remain in town if this was the first expression of the Don’s long dormant need for vengeance for the death of his son. Before the embers of the home she had raised two children in on her own had become cold, Paloma and Calla were already riding hard towards the border. If this was only the beginning of the Don’s revenge than Paloma did not anticipate a lot of time to pass before he would go after her daughter.
As they left Val Verde behind them, possibly forever, Paloma Recillos could only hope that Inez still had her guardians in the town of Four Corners.
She was going to need them soon enough.
Inez knew this decision she made was never meant to be easy.
Of course, it was not so much a decision made as one forced upon her, no matter how much Inez Rosillos might believe that she had come into this situation by choice. She had not. A night of inebriation and passion had brought this upon her no matter how times she chose to tell herself that she had felt that the time had been right to indulge her desire for Buck Wilmington. The decision was made by the tequila running through her veins that night, not the need for him, which she had managed quite successfully to restrain until their encounter in the saloon. Even now, Inez blushed furiously whenever she recalled how demanding and passionate she had been in her desire to have him. Suffice to say, she had not been able to look at Ezra’s favourite card table again, and God only knew how the gambler would react if he ever learnt what had transpired on the felt-covered surface that night.
She did not regret the act that had brought her here to this point in her life because their coupling had been everything she dreamt it to be. Like every woman in Four Corners, who had chanced to idle away with secret curiosity the truth regarding Buck Wilmington’s prowess between the sheets, Inez had wondered how true those stories actually were. While she knew with some measure of pride that it was she he loved, Inez had chosen to keep him at arm’s length because she was never devolving into just another notch on his belt if she ever gave in to him. Strangely enough, when Inez succumbed to her desire for him, he had been more surprised than she. The result of that incredibly steamy night of lovemaking which still had her tingling from lips to curled toes when she thought about it, was this bundle of joy presently making her advance across town a sheer hell.
It was not easy to cross the short distance between the saloon and the main street of town when her body felt it was busting at the seams. Heavily pregnant, Alex had estimated that Inez had another week or two before her baby was due to finally arrive. Unfortunately, the doctor had also added that pregnancy seldom went according to plan, and if the baby chose to make its arrival sooner, Inez should not be surprised. It was this advice that had her waddling across town, searching for a place to rent. Inez had no intention of raising her child, illegitimate as it was, from a room inside the Standish Tavern.
However, coming to this decision had created another problem, and this was one to which there were no easy solutions. The lodging houses already considered Inez a bad influence because she was unwed and pregnant. Add to the fact that she was also Mexican and most of the good Christian folk were ready to brand her a wanton, among the other things that were whispered in quiet sniggers whenever she happened past. Thus, she knew without even bothering to inquire at their front doors that she would not be welcome there even if she dared to ask about renting a room on their premises. This did not leave a great many opportunities because Four Corners was not that big a place which limited space for rentals. While Julia Pemberton had offered her a place to stay now that Rain had found herself alternate accommodations, Inez found that she could not impose herself and a baby on the emporium owner, no matter how generous the offer. Besides, she wanted a place of her own, where she could put wallpaper up for a nursery and indulge herself in the foolishness entitled to all new mothers.
It did not take long for Inez to realise that she was not considered in the same ilk as most new mothers since they usually tend to be married. With that stigma following her closely, Inez soon found that no one was willing to rent her any premises because she was what had been brazen enough to deem ‘not the kind of bad influence’ they would like in their presence. Bad influence, Inez had snorted walking out of place, with her head held high and full of dignity, how could Inez influence anything? She was so full of child she could barely see her shoes, let alone spread her wanton immorality to anyone else with a display of loose living.
Despite their rude and sometimes cruel rejections, Inez was determined that they saw nothing of the pain she felt. She would share her stung feelings with no one because she was too stubborn to allow them the satisfaction. Only after Inez was out of their sight would the tears come and Inez made sure that they were gone from sight before she entered another place and start the cycle anew. She had spent most of the day enduring this torture until her back was so sore she could barely stand, but Inez did not relish having to return to the saloon and have everyone look at her and make a comment on how she was a woman ruined. One who could not even find a place to live.
"Look," Inez said to Wally Levinson, who possessed a set of rooms above his barbershop that was barely fit for human habitation without extensive work on her part. Unfortunately, it was also the last place left in town where she might acquire permanent lodging for herself and her baby. Standing in the front room which did not look very impressive, there were cobwebs in every corner, broken windows and a ceiling that appeared it would leak the next time it rained. Inez knew that she was at the end of her rope and had to convince Levinson to lease this hovel to her because no one else would. Despite her attempts to hide the desperation from her face, Inez felt her heart sink as she realised that he was aware of her limited choices as well. "I can fix the place up by myself, I do not require you to make any improvements. I’ll even pay whatever price you think is fair." Her ability to negotiate had gone the way of her reputation since the news became known about her pregnancy.
"You ain’t in any condition to pay it, Darlin," he said with suggestion clearly in his eyes as he travelled up and down her body with a lascivious leer on his lips that made her skin crawl. Levinson was an ugly man with slicked-back hair and rough, craggy skin who did not give patrons much of an incentive for better grooming at his barbershop. "Maybe after the baby, you can do a little something for me." He grinned and reached for her cheek.
Inez slapped the hand away before it could even make contact with her skin. "How dare you?" She said indignantly and took a step backwards.
"Well, don’t get too uppity now," he straightened up with anger at her refusal. "It ain’t as if you don’t know how to do a little something for a man. You didn’t get that way being all sweet and innocent. You gave Wilmington little bit, and if you want this place, you’re just going to have to be a little nicer to me."
"I'd rather live on the streets," Inez bit back.
"Get out of here you whore!" He shouted angrily, grabbing the offending hand and dragging her towards the door that emptied into the steps that led into the street. "I don’t want your kind in here anyway." Levinson shoved her past the door, making a great show of his ire for those in the street.
Inez felt her cheeks flush with crimson embarrassment as she stood at the top of the stairs, the centre of focus for anyone in the immediate vicinity. She could see the women whispering amongst themselves, with their narrowed eyes as they glared at her and left Inez with no doubts as to the nature of their discussion. The men merely shook their heads in disapproval, leaving the scandal-mongering to the women who were more adept as such gossip than they were. They were all wearing the same expression of distaste on their faces as Levinson continued his tirade of ejecting from his premises.
"I don’t want your kind of filth here." He concluded and slammed the door behind her as he withdrew in the building.
Inez stood at the top of the steps, unable to say a word and fighting back the tears that threatened to overwhelm her. She was so tired of walking, and she longed to sit but knew that she could do neither until she was safely inside her room at the saloon. She needed to be far away from the eyes of those ready to brand her a whore because she was pregnant without a husband. Even though her lips trembled and her eyes glistened with tears that had yet to spill down her cheeks, Inez swallowed the lump of humiliation down her throat and raised her chin with pride, unwilling to let them see that she was hurt.
Her determination to hold herself with dignity made the onlookers continue on their way, deciding that there was nothing else to see here. Inez was glad because she would like to disappear into anonymity when the back of resolve shattered, and the tears she had been holding back all day finally came. Telling herself for the hundredth time that she should have expected this the moment she decided to raise her child without a husband, Inez took a moment to regain her composure but found that was never nearly as easy to do as she intended.
"My dear, are you all right?" A sympathetic voice asked her.
Inez looked up and discovered it was Audrey King that had spoken to her. Unlike the other women she had seen earlier, Audrey did not wear the same vicious expressing, oozing disapproval and Christian outrage at her condition. Instead, the schoolteacher appeared to be staring at her with concern.
"I’m fine," Inez said, struggling not to cry. The lady bartender had never felt so vulnerable in her life, and she was so exhausted. Inez had spent all day walking around Four Corners in the heat searching for a new abode, and every disappointment was followed by unkind words from those who believed Inez was no better than a working girl. Her lower lip quivered as she spoke and knew that she nearing the edge of her emotional control.
"You do not look at it," Audrey said automatically. "You need to rest and right now." The schoolteacher was not exaggerating. If anyone of these nasty prudes had bothered to look, they would see the young woman on the verge of heat exhaustion. The girl had no business being on her feet when she was so obviously close to term. Surveying the immediate area for a comfortable place so that she could get off her feet, Audrey sighted Josiah Sanchez’ church. She knew at least there, Inez could sit for a while without being insulted by everyone who felt like it. "Come along." She took Inez’s arm by the elbow and guided her towards the church.
"Thank you.’" Inez whispered in a small voice. "You’re very kind."
"And you’re very brave," Audrey said with sincerity.
"Brave?" Inez shook her head in disagreement. "I am not brave. I am stubborn, stubborn and foolish."
"Its no sin to want to bring life into this world Inez," Audrey remarked as they crossed the street and made their way slowly towards the church. Inez could not walk very fast and just judging by the strained and flush expression on her face, Audrey could tell that she was very near the end of her wits. Audrey did not know Inez that well, having met her several times as one was apt to do in a small town and could imagine the trials Inez must have endured these past months as her pregnancy became visible. Audrey supposed that as a good Christian woman she should have nothing to do with Inez but then anyone who would turn away when this young woman needed understanding and support during this time, would hardly be Christian at all.
"I did not want, I had no choice," Inez muttered, knowing that she was very close to letting herself be overwhelmed with self-pity. Inwardly she felt stupid that she allowed this to affect her the way it had, after all, insults like this were not unusual to her, not now. Throughout her pregnancy, she was treated as a pariah, and while it was hurtful, she managed to maintain her dignity. Yet today, it felt as if the culmination of all those unkind words, nasty looks in the street, derisive whispers following the back of her were gathering for a final assault on her delicate state of mind. "I let one night of passion take place and look at what I’ve done to myself." She glanced at her belly, feeling shame for the first time over her situation.
"Now stop it," Audrey said firmly as they reached the foot of the steps leading to the main entrance of the church. "You are extremely upset, and you have a right to be. The coming of a child no matter how it entered the world should be a cause of celebration, not of sorrow. You chose to have your child and raise it instead of discarding it the moment it is born or worse yet, attempt to end its life in the womb. What you have chosen to do is hard enough when one is married but alone?" Audrey shook her head, unable to fathom what it would have been like to have her Lilith without her husband’s support. "I could not do it."
"I do not whether I can either," Inez confessed, and the words sounded like ashes in her mouth. "I cannot even find a place for us to live in. I will not raise my child in a saloon. My baby deserves a proper home, not a small room where it spends the day listening to drunks and working girls."
Audrey could see her problem and knew no solution. While she would suffer a great deal of disapproval if she offered Inez a room and Audrey was quite willing to do it, she had the feeling that Inez would not accept. She wished that there was something she could do to help the young woman who was terribly depressed over this one issue which seemed to be the impetus that was compelling Inez to question her entire decision to have her child.
"Good morning, ladies." Josiah Sanchez entered the conversation when he emerged from the entrance to the church. The former preacher had heard the duo talking while inside the building and came out to investigate.
"Good morning Josiah," Audrey smiled at him in turn. "Do you think the Lord will take umbrage at us for using his house as a temporary refuge?"
"Not at all," he said, joining them on the street. "It is there to offer refuge and sanctuary." At this point, Josiah noticed that Inez had not spoken and then took a closer look at the young woman. Josiah’s relationship with Inez was a close one. Inez was a product of her Catholic upbringing where the preacher in their lives was not someone to be seen merely on Sundays, but also a spiritual adviser in all things. Their friendship had evolved beyond that in the years since Inez arrived in Four Corners. So Josiah knew she was quite distressed by the forlorn look on her face.
"What’s happened?" He asked automatically.
"Inez just needs to sit down for a spell Josiah," Audrey said looking at him intently, trying to signal with her eyes that this was a subject best discussed indoors, away from the prying eyes that had been the cause of Inez’s upset. "She’s been walking around all day, and I think it’s taken its toll on her."
"Of course," Josiah answered, even though he did not understand what could be so essential to make a woman in the ninth month of her pregnancy take to the street, especially when its effect on her was apparent. Inez looked flustered and was breathing hard, increasing Josiah’s concern, which was exacerbated by the fact that he knew nothing about women in this condition. Helping her up the stairs, he saw the extent of her anxious state of mind when she let out a sigh of relief when she passed the threshold of the main entrance. Josiah exchanged a glance with Audrey, trying to discern what would demoralise this earthy young woman to such an extent that she would feel such relief just being off the street. He did not believe it simply had to do with exhaustion.
Josiah did not press until Inez was nestled on a pew and Audrey had asked directions to the back room, where she could brew a cup of tea for Inez, since the lady seemed to need it, leaving her to Josiah for the moment. Inez was still quiet, trying to regain her composure, Josiah guessed and not doing a very good job of it. "I’m sorry, Josiah," she said after a moment, raising her eyes to meet his. "I did not mean to impose on you like this."
"Don’t you worry about it," Josiah replied, taking the seat on the pew beside her. "You want to tell me what’s wrong."
"Oh Josiah," she leaned her head against his shoulder. "I don’t know what to do. When I found out about the baby, I knew there were going to be problems, but now I can’t even find us a place to live! I don’t want to raise my baby in a saloon. I owe it a better life than for it to grow around gamblers and drunks."
"Inez," he said, reaching for her hand. "I think the only thing the baby will really need is you. It doesn’t matter where it grows up as long as you are there for it."
"I know you are right, but it's getting so hard," she whispered. "If I were smart, I would just accept Buck’s proposal of marriage and be done with it. Then at least my child will not be considered a bastard." She said with unusual bitterness.
"If that’s what you want, it would be the smart thing to do." He nodded but not agreeing. "But if it isn’t what you want, then you’re compounding one problem with another."
"I’m scared, Josiah." She said finally, telling him the truth she had been starting to feel this morning, pressing up on all sides of her with every place she visited looking for a home. Until now, Inez successfully drove away all her insecurities about what she was planning to do. Sheer determination to override all the negatives in her decision had gotten her this far. She had no idea why it was bothering her now that she was in the 11th hour of her pregnancy. She had endured months of cruel taunts and derisive remarks and though she had been stung had not nearly been as affected by them as she was this morning.
"You ain’t got nothing to be scared about." Josiah declared firmly, unaware that his powerful voice was comfort in itself to Inez. "You got friends that will help you through anything, who don’t give a damn about whether or not you are married. Your child is a source of inspiration and hope for all of us. We won’t let you feel fear because we’ll be standing right there by your side even if you don’t need us."
Inez wiped the tears that ran down her cheeks at his words, wondering if he had any idea how much she needed to hear those words of comfort. "Thank you, Josiah." She replied, wrapping her arms around him and giving him a grateful embrace. "I know I’m doing the right thing, and it will all work itself out later, but I guess it just got to me today."
"You don’t got to explain." Josiah smiled warmly; glad he was able to help and hoped that she and Buck worked things out soon. She was a strong woman, possibly one of the strongest he had ever met and worth the effort that Buck was presently putting into winning her affections. While Buck would never really lose the eye for the ladies, Josiah had been impressed by his abstinence from partaking of the company of the opposite sex since he learnt he was to be a father. Furthermore, Buck’s role in the horse ranching venture he had partnered with Chris and Vin to get running, proved he would soon be able to provide for a young family.
She was about to respond when Audrey emerged from the next room with a steaming cup of tea. Josiah found himself feeling a surge of affection for the schoolteacher who had been kind enough to see past convention and tradition to offer Inez the help she needed when she had been so distraught. Audrey handed her the cup and then sat on the other side of Inez as the Mexican sipped the warm beverage and allowed its calmative effects to get her nerves under control.
"Are you feeling better now?" Audrey inquired, encouraged by the absence of Inez’s previous flustered state.
"Yes," Inez answered, shifting her gaze between Audrey and Josiah as she responded. "Gracias to both of you." She smiled and surprised herself when it did not feel forced. "I think," she said, taking a deeper sip of her tea. "That I will take myself home and leave this whole business of house hunting for a day or two, today’s experience has taught me that I have to rethink my plans a little."
"Well, don’t be too discouraged." He said making a mental note to bring this subject up with the rest of the seven when he saw them later that day at the saloon. Clearly, Inez was going to need some assistance in finding a place to stay and in her condition, she was hardly in the position to go knocking on doors as today had proved so prolifically. Besides, knowing how stubborn Inez could be, hell would freeze over before she would ask for help.
Declining any need for assistance as always, Josiah and Audrey watched Inez’s departure a moment later, feeling deepening concern for her welfare. Neither spoke as they saw her make her way out of the building and Josiah reminded himself to have another talk to Buck. He did not like to meddle in other people’s affairs, but the situation between the duo needed resolving. Until today, Josiah had not realised how much of a strain she was under and wondered if Buck knew himself how close Inez was inching to breaking point.
"Poor thing." Audrey sighed after Inez was no longer in sight, making preparations to leave herself.
"It ain’t easy for her." Josiah agreed and wished that sometimes, people were not so damn judgemental. The only one who had the right to do that was the Good Lord himself. "She’s a stubborn woman with a lot of pride. It’s a hell of a combination."
"Any possibility that she and Mr Wilmington will marry?" Audrey turned to him and asked.
"I’d say a good chance," Josiah replied, considering the question. "When both of them grow up." He said with a hint of a smile and then faced her. "Ma’am, it was mighty nice of you to offer your kindness to her. It has been rough on her, more than she lets on, I think." He said, still staring at the door as if Inez was still in his sights to be seen.
"It’s my pleasure Josiah," she flashed him a radiant smile when he glanced in her direction again. "I have my own ideas on what it takes to be a good Christian and being vicious is not one of them."
"You are a truly a lady without peer." He bowed gallantly and took her hand in his, planting a soft kiss on her hand.
Audrey blushed despite herself and cleared her throat. "Josiah, would you like to come to supper one night?"
Now it was Josiah’s turn to be surprised, and suddenly his smooth and confident manner vanished as he pulled his hand back and stared at her with a hint of anxiousness. "I’d like that." He said after a moment knowing that he would like to spend the evening with her even though he never expected her to be the one to ask first.
"Tomorrow night?" She suggested, wondering whether the impulse to ask him had come from. Of course, she was attracted to him since their first meeting, but Audrey was still too raw from the loss of her husband at the time. She had been unprepared for the introduction of a new man into her life. Audrey knew Lilith came to see him at the church some times which was a source of complete amazement to Audrey because her daughter had never seemed to like churches or men of the faith before coming to Four Corners. However, she took to Josiah with the same affection that she had regarded her father and Audrey felt deeply grateful to the man for that alone. "I know Lilith would be thrilled."
"I’ll look forward to it," Josiah called out as she started to leave, wondering what other surprises the day had in store for him.
***********
It was late afternoon when Inez finally stepped through the batwing doors of the Standish Tavern, feeling as exhausted as she looked. Although the patrons of the saloon had become accustomed to seeing her in this condition, it was not easy for Inez to endure their eyes as she moved slowly through the place, trying to reach her room at the top of the stairs as quickly as possible. Even though she had enough duties to keep her busy without being at the front bar, Inez nevertheless felt as if she was not doing as much as she ought to. Rain had been terrific in her place, and Inez could not help feeling slightly jealous at how the customers had taken to her. Especially when the Mexican looked at herself in the mirror and saw her body twisting out of shape and felt her back aching no matter how hard she tried to get comfortable in a chair or on a bed.
To make matters worse, Buck Wilmington was in the saloon, sitting at the table occupied by Ezra, Vin, Chris and JD. Of all the people in the world she could have encountered this afternoon, he was the one she least wanted to see. Even though it was no fault on his part, Inez felt mocked by his presence. She felt angry that he was not suffering what she had been going through these past months, even though he was just as responsible for her conditions as she was. How is that a man could father as many children as he liked, married or not and still be considered a stud animal to be admired by others while women were vilified as whores if they happened to be unmarried if they were with child? The unfairness of it all infuriated her and made her, in turn, mad at him. Deciding that it was best she avoided him altogether, Inez headed towards her room instead of the kitchen as she originally intended. After the day she had, she could think of worse things than hiding in the confines of the home she did have.
Unfortunately, Buck had seen her and immediately left the game he was playing and headed in her direction. Inez groaned inwardly, not at all prepared to deal with him in any shape or form in the condition she was in at this moment. However, her present shape and size made it somewhat difficult to avoid him, and Buck reached her in seconds.
"Hey Inez," he greeted.
"What do you want, Buck?" She snapped.
Buck stiffened, seeing that she was in one of those moods again and prepared to adjust his own demeanour to compensate, otherwise, they would be screaming at each other in seconds. "Ezra’s says you were looking to move out of the saloon."
"Yes." She said shortly, not wishing to let him know just how dismally that idea had developed since its original inception.
"That’s good," he replied, trying to be supportive, aware of how difficult it was in town for her, with people’s attitude to her pregnancy at the moment. Moving out of this place into a real home seemed like a good start "Did you find anything?"
"No," Inez answered coldly, barely able to contain her temper now because she really did not want to discuss this with him. She could just hear what he would say as surely as he had spoken it a thousand times before, that she would not have to endure this if she had just married him.
"At all?" Buck looked at her, somewhat surprised. "Ezra’s says you were gone for most of the day."
"I didn’t find anything all right!" She exploded. "Nobody in this town wants to rent premises to a whore! The only people who were remotely interested wanted me to have sex with them first. Look at me, Buck! Am I in any shape to have sex with anyone? It was sex that got me into this mess in the first place! Now, will you please leave me alone!" With that, she continued up the stairs, leaving the room in stunned silence and surprising herself by not giving a damn any more.
Buck watched her disappear into her room once the rumble of noise had returned to the saloon following her outburst. He turned around and found a few patrons regarding at him with amusement. But the expression of his friends at their table mirrored none of this. Instead, they all seemed equally concerned about the scene they had just witnessed. Buck decided that this had gone on long enough, he and Inez needed talk. Throwing caution to the winds, he hurried up the stairs in pursuit, determined he was going to get through to her once and for all.
For nine months, she had fought him and swore at him and done everything possible to keep him away. While she included him in the progress of the baby’s development, she was determined that there would be no repeat of the night that had seen its conception. Buck could not understand why she was still keeping him at arm’s length when he had proved to her, much to his own amazement, as a matter of fact, he could be faithful to her. Staying away from other women had been the most laborious task Buck had ever set himself, but he did because Inez was worth it. He loved her from the start, and he was determined to show her that he was worthy of her love.
She was probably going to throw him out, Buck thought as he reached the door to her bedroom and took a deep breath. He glanced at the floor and saw Chris peering up from under his hat and giving him a nod of encouragement. Buck felt like he was about to enter the lion’s den. Anyone who had ever seen Inez’s temper would know that was not a far-fetched comparison. Buck decided he was not going to knock either because doing so would give her the chance to lock the door on him and he wanted to have this out once and for all.
Barging into the room, without giving her any warning whatsoever, Buck froze at the doorway when he found Inez lying on her bed sobbing. Any thoughts he had about taking the bull by the horns evaporated at that moment, and he stood there dumbfounded not knowing what to say. He had this whole speech prepared in his head in the few seconds he had marched purposefully to her door, and in typical female fashion, she had come up with the perfect rebuttal before he even had a chance to open his mouth.
"What do you want?" She looked up at him, eyes filled with tears. She did not make any move to throw him out, and that alone told Buck that something was very wrong, aside from the obvious.
"Darling, what’s the matter?" He said closing the door behind him and stepping forward gingerly, still uncertain that there was no danger. She continued to weep, paying no attention to his presence inside her room and Buck took a moment to examine the surroundings, since decor had been the last thing on his mind when he was here last. It looked nothing like a room in a saloon, there were flowers in a vase and curtains on the only window. While nothing could mask the noise of the revellers below, he was surprised by how cosy it looked.
"Oh Buck," she sat up in her bed and tried to stop her tears but seeing him only made her cry harder and harder because he was the whole reason she was in this mess. "Look at me!" She exclaimed. "I’m fat and ugly, the entire town thinks I’m a whore! I can’t find a place to live, and I’m going to be raising our child here!" She looked around the room distastefully. "Oh Buck, I’ve made a mess of everything!"
Buck sat down next to her on the bed and handed her his handkerchief, actually his scarf, but he didn’t think she’d complain at this point. "Inez, you haven’t made a mess of anything. People in town are just old fashioned that’s all, they don’t mean to bad." Buck did not believe that for a moment but provoking her anger was not a good thing to do at this point. "I’ll ask around, we’ll find you something, I promise." He wrapped his arm around her. "Inez, you ain’t alone in this. I’m gonna be there every step of the way."
She dried her eyes and looked at him. "Thank you, Buck." She swallowed, feeling guilty that she was so hard on him and almost believed him when he said that. Inez really did need some good news at this point.
"Inez," Buck said, taking a deep breath, hoping this did not make things worse now that he had managed to stop her crying. "Maybe we ought to really think about getting married. It’s time Darlin’, " he implored her earnestly.
Strangely enough, she did not refuse outright or protest vehemently as she usually did, instead, she sat down and considered the question. Until today, Inez had been convinced that she could carry this baby on her own and raise it. However, her experiences today drove home that if she had difficulty enduring the insults and the terrible things people said to her now, what was her child going to endure? She did not want to leave Four Corners or the friends she had made here. Inez would not have made it this far without their friendship and support, and running was the coward’s way out, and no one could ever accuse her of being that.
"I think you’re right, Buck." She nodded, meeting his gaze thoughtfully.
Buck stared at her. Of all the responses he had expected from her when he put forward the question, that was the answer he least expected to get back in return. His jaw dropped open, and all he could do was stare. "You serious. You’re not just toying with me?"
"Buck," she let her gaze drop to her swollen body and replied. "Do I look like I am in any position to toy with you?"
He had to say no.
"So you’ll marry me," Buck asked again just to make sure, he had not misheard. For some reason, he was not elated even though by all rights he ought to. After months of pursuit and abstinence, it appeared as if all his efforts were rewarded. Except Buck looked into her eyes now and saw nothing that might indicate the passion they felt for each other the night their child was conceived in this room. She looked at him like a creature defeated, begrudgingly accepting his proposal because she had no other alternative. Even though he did not voice it, Buck was hurt to think that she agreed only because she had to, not because she loved him and wanted to spend her life with him.
"That’s what I said," Inez replied with a small smile, searching herself for the happiness she should be feeling at a time like this and finding none. All she could feel was this deep well of confusion that did not abate even when he leaned over and kissed her. Inez felt his mouth against hers and felt nothing more than the satisfaction of knowing that she had done the sensible thing. In truth, she was still uncertain whether or not this was the right decision to make.
In the last few minutes, Inez told herself that it was time she stopped being selfish. Her desire to prove herself to everyone she was capable of handling any situation even one as volatile and challenging as this was proving her undoing. Her child was not a point Inez had to make, it was a life deserving of all the things she was capable of giving it, and that included a name and father. Buck Wilmington might not be the ideal husband, and she could not say if she would make him an equally good wife, but Inez loved him, and she knew at the very least, he would be a devoted father to her child.
Right now, Inez had more need of him for that than anything else.
"When do you want to do it?" He asked stiffly, still feeling as uncomfortable about the whole thing as she did, but neither could say voice it because there was too much at stake.
"I’m not sure," she replied, aware that something had changed between them and not for the better. "I’ll sleep on it."
"Good," he nodded slowly and got to his feet. "I’ll leave you to get some rest," Buck answered, trying to sound as casual as possible, but everything in his eyes indicated otherwise.
***********
"Well, she hasn’t thrown him out yet." JD pointed out as he looked up at the door behind which Inez’s room was.
JD, as always was more vocal about his curiosity even though everyone at the table shared it. Ezra kept glancing surreptitiously to the room when he thought no one was looking, in between dealing cards to his companions and checking his own hand. Of the seven, he felt most protective of Inez because of their deep friendship and mutual partnership in the running of the Standish Tavern. Inez, in tandem with Nathan Jackson, had been a plague upon his conscience, always giving him that subtle nudge back to the path of righteousness whenever he considered straying off it in the eternal search for monetary gain. He hated the fact that her reputation was sullied by the situation she now found herself in and worst of all that it was sheer pride that kept her from redeeming herself.
"I am certain that Mr Wilmington will let us know how he progressed in due time," Ezra said without looking up from his cards even if he was mindful of everything transpiring around him. "In the meantime, would you be so kind as to tell me if you wish to sit on those cards or not?"
"Sorry," JD said sheepishly and quickly averted his attention to the hand he was holding and tossed down two cards after a brief examination.
"Maybe they’re finally talking," Vin added his own speculation. "If you ask me, they should have done that long ago." The tracker drawled lethargically. It was late in the day, and the saloon was almost filled to the brim. It appeared as if everyone wished to escape the heat of the afternoon sun and had remained inside the establishment longer than they should have.
Chris did not comment, mostly because it was none of his business and because he was the last one to make conversation about anyone’s relationships, least of all Buck’s. While he had to admit that Buck’s relationship with Inez had never been a simple matter because they were both so stubborn and proud to compromise on anything, he had hoped that there would be some form of détente declared in light of the child that was coming. Chris could picture Buck with a child because his old friend had been so good with Adam. As difficult as it was for Chris to remember, he knew that Adam had adored Buck almost as much as he had loved his father and Buck had been similarly grieved when Adam and Sarah were lost.
"He’ll figure it out," Chris said quietly, his tone of voice indicating to the others to keep him out of any further conversation regarding this particular subject. No sooner than the words have left the gunslinger’s mouth, the door to Inez’s room swung open, and Buck walked out of the room, looking not at all happy.
"I guess they didn’t talk as much as we thought," Vin remarked quietly as Buck started down the stairs.
However, Chris was watching Buck closely as the man descended the stairs, aware that something was wrong. Buck was one of the easiest people to read because he felt things passionately and freely, it was one of the reasons that made him and Chris such life long friends. Yet as the lawman approached his friends, Chris could not fathom what was going on in his eyes. The look in them was cold and impenetrable, immediately putting the gunslinger on guard, even though there was no reason to be so suspicious.
"I’ll see you, boys, later," Buck said pausing at the table long enough to make that statement before he started out of the saloon. There was enough menace in his voice for everyone at the table to know that it was not wise to inquire what had happened up during his encounter with Inez. Buck did not wear this expression on his face often, but when he did, even Chris knew he was not in the mood for company. Unfortunately, JD had not learnt this particular lesson yet and missed all the signs altogether.
"Hey Buck, what happened with Inez?" JD called out before anyone could stop him.
Ezra winced. Vin rolled his eyes in resignation and Chris’s breath held for a moment as Buck Wilmington turned around and walked back to the table slowly. With that same expression of stone, he looked at the younger man and answered. "Inez has agreed to be my wife. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have arrangements to make." Saying nothing more, Buck left the table and subsequently the saloon as well.
"Well, he is thrilled," Ezra remarked.
Vin shrugged, not making any response to that while JD was more confused than anything. For the last five months, Buck had thought of nothing else but the idea of marrying Inez. He had spoken about it, ruminated endlessly on why she refused him and even called her crazy when she claimed she could do everything herself. Now that she had finally agreed to the marriage, they thought Buck would be ecstatic about it, not angry and sullen as he was now.
Chris told himself that Buck was an adult and could handle his problems on his own. Chris told himself this repeatedly, over and over again in the seconds following Buck’s departure from the saloon. However, he also remembered Buck had always been there for him when Chris needed his most, whether it was in a fight or just to play whipping boy to Chris when he needed to vent his anger and grief out on something or someone. Buck Wilmington had kept him alive when he was ready to kill himself after Sarah and Adam died and suddenly Chris came to the realisation that it was his turn to do the same for Buck.
"Deal me out." The gunslinger stood up abruptly and tossed his hand on the table. Without offering any explanation, Chris hurried out the saloon.
"Buck!" Chris called out as he caught up to the man who was making his way down the boardwalk towards the direction of the lodging house where he had a room.
Buck looked over his shoulder at Chris’ approach and paused. "What’s up?" He asked tautly, his voice almost as icy as some of Chris’ best efforts to appear unfriendly to potential enemies.
"Just wanted to see if things are okay," Chris replied. "You seem a little bothered."
"It ain’t like you to care, Chris," Buck retorted sharply. "Do us both a favour and let it go."
Now Chris was sure something was definitely wrong.
He did not like seeing Buck this way. He was the only one who was supposed to be this disagreeable about anything. The dynamic of the seven operated with him being the lone, brooding leader, while Buck the happy go lucky ladies man. Start interchanging these roles, and the whole thing collapsed.
"Not so fast pard," Chris said in that laconic voice of his that indicated he was not going anywhere until he had his answer. "For years, you’ve been sticking your nose in my business." Chris pointed out. "I’ve told you to get lost, hell I’ve even hit you a couple of time, wanted to shoot you at others, but you’ve held on harder than a flea on a dog. So you don’t get away so easily now that the tables are turned." Then in a gentler voice, Chris urged. "Come on, Buck, what’s wrong?"
"What’s wrong?" Buck swung around and glared at Chris. "I’ll tell you what’s wrong. She’s marrying me all right but not because she wants to, she’s doing it because she has to."
"Buck, you don’t know that," Chris said, trying to come to Inez’s defence and at the same time, reassuring Buck that this was not the case. Inez did love Buck that much was plain to anyone who’s ever seen them argue. He could not fathom why Buck would think such a thing.
"Yes, I do." Buck returned sharply. "When you look at Mary, you know exactly what she’s thinking. You love a woman enough, and you can see her soul through her eyes. It’s a wonderful feeling when you gaze into a woman’s eyes and know that she loves you without hesitation or doubt. I looked into Inez’s eyes a moment ago, and all I’ll saw was a whole lot of nothing!"
"Then, don’t marry her." Chris retorted and cursed himself for doing so as soon as the words left his lips. Damn, he was not good at this sort of thing!
"She’s carrying my child Chris!" Buck roared as angry as Chris assumed he would be. "I can’t just walk away! Whatever has gone on between Inez and me ain’t the baby’s fault. I know what it's like to grow up without a father Chris, I know what it's like to have people look at you and say the things they do when they think you ain’t listening. I don’t want that for my child."
"Buck, she loves you." Chris tried to convince him because he needed to believe it and because Chris thought it was the truth. "She’s scared as hell at the moment, and she has every right to be." He searched himself for the right words and knew he was grasping at straws when he opened his mouth again. Buck was staring at him, relying upon Chris to say something that would prove his beliefs about Inez was wrong. "People have been treating her like trash since the baby started showing. After a while, that’s got to take a toll on a person. I think a lot of what she feels for you is hidden under a lot of hurts."
Buck swallowed hard and nodded, not hearing what he needed and feeling so many doubts because he had not. He loved Inez, and he wanted to make her happy, but he did not know what to do now. "Doesn’t this just take the cake?" Buck sighed. "All these years and all those women and I find the one that I know can make me forget all the others and she doesn’t even care that I would give up anything for her. All she needs me for is my name."
"Buck I’m sure it ain’t like that at all," Chris spoke up in Inez’s defence and wondered what in God’s name had happened between them in that room to bring their relationship to this. "This should have been seen to long before it got to this point. Inez is about to have a baby while under pressure from everyone, including you, to do the right thing. That’s got to make a person a little crazy."
"I hope you’re right Chris," Buck said finally as he resumed walking again. "I really do."
Chris hoped he was right about Inez too, but in truth, he was not so sure.
***********
Shortly after Chris Larabee and Buck Wilmington had made their abrupt departure from the Standish Tavern, the trio left in the wake of Buck’s startling news was discussing amongst themselves the ramifications of a Buck Wilmington, married. The concept alone was so alien to everyone present that they were only able to process the information with a new round of drinks. Understandably, JD was the more confused about them all and considering the nature by which Buck had delivered his announcement, neither Vin nor Ezra could blame him for his puzzlement. Indeed, they were somewhat bewildered themselves at Buck’s reaction when everything they knew regarding his attitude towards marrying the sultry Mexican barmaid should have implied that this ought to be the happiest day of his life. Instead, the ladies man acted as if he was going to be marched up to the altar at gunpoint.
"I don’t understand either of them." JD declared. "I mean, she loves him, he loves her. It should be simple."
"It should be Mr Dunne," Ezra agreed to take a sip of his whisky. "But things seldom are. Inez is a proud woman with specific ideas of marriage and a very Catholic upbringing. She has discarded much since fleeing from the nefarious Don Paulo to survive, but at the very heart of her, she is a traditionalist and Buck is hardly the most ideal material for a husband."
"That’s true." Vin nodded but then surprised himself by rallying to Buck’s defence. "But he ain’t been near another woman in months." The tracker pointed out.
As they continued their discussion, none of the lawmen paid much attention to a well-dressed man who passed them by as he entered the saloon. The stranger was immediately greeted by Rain who was tending bar the counter and the trio paid him little mind than that, assuming him to be just another one of the passengers from the recently arrived stage, looking for a drink after a lengthy journey. The stranger in his tweed suit spoke briefly to Rain after she had served him his drink and then headed in the direction of the table she had pointed him towards when he had made his inquiry of her.
Ezra, Vin and JD were still engaged in their discussion about Buck Wilmington’s relationship with Inez, when the stranger reached their table and immediately halted them from continuing their conversation any further.
"Do something for you, mister?" Vin asked politely, unaware that in Chris’s absence, the others looked to him to take the lead. His hand dropped under the table and immediately drifted towards the Winchester resting in its holster. Unconsciously, Ezra shifted his grip slightly on the table, moving it into position should the derringer up his sleeve be required. JD was not so subtle, and his movements were noticed almost immediately when he went to do the same. However, the distraction he provided, gave Ezra and Vin time to be prepared to back him up if there was danger here.
The stranger was a heavy man in his late forties, his bald head hidden under a bowler hat in better condition than the one worn by JD but not too dissimilar. He had noticed the suspicion in Vin’s voice when the younger man had asked the nature of his business at their table and placed both hands on the table where they could see it, to convey to them that he meant no harm. "My name is Walter Clemens." He introduced himself first. "That charming young lady over there," he glanced at Rain and offered her a smile even though she was serving customers and did not see it. "Indicated that you are the law in these parts."
"We just keep an eye on things," Vin replied. "What can we do for you, mister?"
"I am a detective from Pinkerton." Clemens introduced himself, deciding that it was best to get to the point. The men before him did not appear to be the patient kind.
"You are a long way from the east, Mr Clemens," Ezra replied first because he knew that Vin did not think much of Pinkerton detectives, not after that the last one in town had tried to frame Josiah for several serial murders.
"I go where the job takes me," Clemens replied. "Might I sit down?"
"I don’t see why not." Vin kicked a chair gently towards the man from where he was seated.
Clemens sat down promptly and took a sip of his glass of Red Eye before addressing the men before him once again. "I’m wondering if you’ve been aware of any new arrivals in the last year and a half." The man inquired.
"Railroads coming this way Mister," JD retorted. "Lots of people have been coming through."
"You would have noticed this person." Clemens returned promptly. "I've been employed by Donald Avery of Philadelphia."
"Donald Avery, the real estate magnate?" Ezra asked for clarification.
"It figures you’d know that Ezra," Vin said with a half-smile. When it came to knowing where the money was, Vin knew no one else with as much acumen as Ezra Standish. The man could spot money a mile away and smell it too, Vin was sure.
"It just so happens that Mr Avery is a millionaire. He used to buy land, make it a dozen times more valuable than it is and then sell it for an extremely tidy profit." Ezra retorted haughtily.
"You keep yourself very well informed Sir," Clemens said with a hint of admiration.
"I enjoy reading business news," Ezra explained. "One can never tell when an interesting snippet of information might serve one’s purposes."
"Whatever," Vin shrugged. "What does Mr Avery want here?" He asked Clemens, getting back to the subject at hand.
"He’s searching for his daughter," Clemens answered automatically. "Apparently she ran away from Philadelphia a year and a half ago, leaving a very disgruntled fiancee standing by the altar and almost driving the old man to his death bed from the shock. I’ve traced her movements as far down the line from Philadelphia to Eagle Bend but no further. I’ve spent the last two weeks visiting every town in the Territory trying to find her, so far no luck."
"The Territory is a big place," Vin commented. "There are towns here that ain’t on maps if she’s hiding. She could be anywhere."
"I suppose," Clemens admitted, unhappy about the prospect about spending more time here than necessary. "Fortunately, the old man in quite determined to find his daughter and he’s willing to pay. Until he decides different, I’ve got a job to do."
"We’ll help if we can," JD volunteered. "What can you tell us about her?" He was eager to sink his teeth into a little bit of sleuthing work with a Pinkerton detective.
"Quite a bit," Clemens responded. "She is apparently quite the beauty. Most of the men I talk to about her were not willing to even admit to seeing her, determined to protect her secrecy. Apparently, the lady was extremely accommodating if you get what I mean." He said with a suggestive tone in his voice.
Suddenly, Ezra had a very bad feeling.
"Tell me," he said casually, betraying nothing in his smooth southern voice. "Does the lady perchance have a name?" Ezra was almost afraid to ask, but he had to know.
"Yes she does," Clemens replied feeling somewhat foolish he had not mentioned it before this and fumbled through his pocket for a few seconds before producing a worn photograph which he placed at the centre of the table for all to see.
"Like I said, beauty isn’t she?" Clemens commented, unaware of the fast and furious glances that were being exchanged at the table as Ezra Standish, Vin Tanner and JD Dunne found themselves staring into the elegant features of Julia Pemberton.
"Yes," Ezra said quietly. "Quite the beauty."
When Chris Larabee initially made the decision he would take up the reins of his former vocation as a horse rancher, he was motivated by the belief it was a man’s duty to be able to provide for his family. After all, as financially independent as Mary was on her own, Chris knew he could not expect for things to remain as they were. Chris wanted to contribute something to their lifestyle instead of maintaining the status quo of a dollar a day existence. Horse ranching seemed to be the most logical choice at the time, since in all honestly he was not equipped to do much else, although admittedly he had never tried. However, as the venture became more than just discussion to Vin, Buck and himself, Chris found himself looking forward to it.
It was hard starting the actual work because the doing of it brought back memories of Sarah and Adam and Chris was never able to cope well with those. He was aware it was easier to think about them now that he was married again and no longer suffered the painful ache that those recollections brought with it. It surprised him, even more, when he found he was able to talk about his lost family and focus on the good times they shared now he had some answers to the questions plaguing plagued him in the three years following their death. Chris was aware he was healing, and the obsession with tormenting himself with grief had released him in the wake of his marriage.
When he put the first nail in the first corral that they started to build on the parcel of land chosen for their little enterprise, Chris felt those memories flooding back. But Chris surprised himself when he shrugged away the grief they engendered and kept going. There was a time when he would have been completely overwhelmed by it and was secretly rather proud of himself he managed to keep it under control instead of allowing it to control him as it often used to do.
The more he and the others continued working on the ranch, building stables, corrals and all the other structures necessary for the business they intended to nurture on this stretch of earth, Chris found another surprise in store for himself. He missed working with his hands and using tools instead of a gun. There was something deeply satisfying about seeing something one built with one’s own hands. Chris never thought he could have become so accustomed to anything as domestic as mending fences or going to horse sales again after the life he led, but he did. It was not just the work but also the camaraderie of working alongside Vin and Buck.
Occasionally Ezra would take a look at the books and point out they should not be spending too much money on this and that and managed their finances rather expertly. Hence, they received maximum use out of their combined resources. Other times Nathan would pitch in when he was not busy with the healing he did when there was no trouble around while JD would delight in accompanying them to the horse sales. It was not hard to remember how young JD was when one saw his enthusiasm and Chris admitted the kid had a good eye for horseflesh considering he had come from the east and spent most of his life in a city. Josiah who had more or less finished the work on his church except for a few embellishments would come out to the ranch mostly to commune with nature and God as he put it.
Even though Vin and Buck were technically his partners, the truth was the ranch had become a group project. Cis enjoyed working with his friends during the day for something other defending the town against outlaws and all the other trouble that seemed to come with being lawmen. After months of work, the ranch had taken definite shape, and it would not be long before they could officially say they were open for business. Chris was especially pleased Vin had become attached to the shack that had been his home in the early days of his life at Four Corners. Even though the young man’s wagon was left at the side of the house, Chris knew Vin enjoyed the solitude of being away from town as well as having someplace to call home. In truth, Vin spent more nights with Alex than he ought, but Chris knew what it was like to love a woman and yet wish to spare her reputation.
Buck, on the other hand, was working hard in every possible to prove to Inez that he could be a worthy husband. It had surprised even Chris, the determination in which he launched into this endeavour. With a child on the way, Chris supposed Buck would act no other way. Chris was aware of Buck’s history that his mother had been a working girl, and his fine appreciation of the fairer sex had come from association with the girls occupying the bordello he was raised in. Whoever had been Buck’s father was probably a question, not even his mother could answer, and Chris knew Buck did not want his own child to end up the same way of never knowing its father.
Buck was in a foul mood today, and it was odd, seeing him this way. Chris had become accustomed to Buck’s easy-going personality and seeing him mad for this long bordered on the fascinating. Chris smiled faintly as he saw Vin trying to draw the man into conversation when usually it was the other way around. Both men were attaching gates to one of the holding pens since there would be horses occupying the enclosure soon enough. Judging by the frown on Vin’s face, his attempts were proving tedious as Buck did not seem in the mood for it. Chris left them both, deciding he would occupy his time working on the barn until the point when Vin’s temper got the better of him, and Chris would have to pull them both apart.
He was still involved engaged in this worthy pursuit when he suddenly heard the slight trot of an animal on approach. Chris put down the tool he was using and walked out the barn door to see a rider nudging his animal to the house. With the noonday sun burning down on him, Chris squinted through the sweat in his eyes to see whom his visitor was. As always, his holster remained slung over his shoulder as he started walking towards the shack, poised to fire if the stranger was here for any dark purpose.
Upon reaching the shack, Chris realised there was no danger, well, not really. The Mexican standing at his door, knocking politely was no enemy. He wore the suit of a Mexican gentleman, but the ornate holster and gun that slung around his hip indicated he was anything but. His approach brought the man’s attention to him, and he burst into a grin as he saw Chris.
"Compadre." He greeted. "I came here to find you, and I see you have become a farmer."
"Raphael," Chris replied with just as much humour. "I ain’t no farmer, I’m a rancher."
"You giving up the gun?" Raphael teased as he met Chris in a friendly handshake.
"Does it look like it?" Chris asked, glancing at the weapon draped over his shoulder.
"That is good," the man smiled. "I would be distressed to know that I will never see more of your work."
By work, he, of course, meant Chris’s gunslinging abilities. Raphael who was rather talented with a gun himself had ridden into town two weeks after Inez had first arrived, alongside Don Paulo who had an obsession with the young woman and was determined to have her one way or another. As one of his protectors, Raphael was wrestling with his conscience and duty from the moment he arrived in Four Corners because the Don' actions were questionable, to say the least. As one of the old school to whom honour was not just a word but a way of life, Raphael eventually chose principle over duty and saved Buck’s life. The last time Chris had seen him, Raphael was going to ground, sure the Don’s father would demand retribution.
"You have a lady now?" Raphael met his eyes with a raised brow.
"A wife." Chris nodded because it was an unspoken rule among the men of his professional ilk that domestication like this was usually brought on by an attachment of the female variety.
"Congratulations," Raphael replied. "I hope she is a good woman, but beautiful."
"You’ve seen her." Chris reminded. "She was with Inez that day."
Raphael thought a moment, recalling the faces of the crowd because men like him always noticed everyone on such occasions. "The one with the golden hair," Raphael replied, remembering the lady in question and had to admit she was quite the beauty. "I compliment you on your choice. She is magnifico."
"The best," Chris answered truthfully, unaware of the emotion that crept into his voice as they sat on the porch and caught up with the news in each other's lives. "So what have you been up to?"
"I’ve seen a little of this country, and I am now on my way back across the border," Raphael answered. "There is a job waiting for me in Bolivia. A town there requires a man of an honour to be the law, an old friend suggested that I take it."
"That’s good," Chris said, genuinely pleased for the man. Raphael was one of the few people Chris had taken an instant liking to even if they were both on separate sides when they first met. Fortunately, their friendship had transcended that minor setback easily, and they parted as friends with a healthy respect for one another. "So are you staying a spell or you’re gonna keep going?" He inquired.
"I have to keep going, unfortunately," Raphael replied. "It is unlikely that I will be this way for a while, but I thought I might say goodbye as well as relating some valuable information I think you should know." His manner hardened indicating whatever intelligence he intended on passing was not entirely pleasant.
Chris tensed immediately, sensing a shift in the casual mood of the moment into something darker. "You got my interest."
"Your compadre," Raphael remarked. "The one who fought Don Paulo, is he still here?"
"He’s here." He answered tautly.
"I have heard the news from some friends of mine who come from Val Verde that Don Paulo’s father is not well."
Chris sensed ominous news about to reach him and straightened up, staring intently at the Mexican as he waited silently for Raphael to tell him the rest. "How bad is he?"
"Bad enough that his mind is no longer what it was. They say that he now believes his son was unjustly murdered by Inez’s lover and that he may seek revenge."
The timing could not be worse as far as Chris was concerned. With a baby in the equation, protecting Inez was extremely difficult even if everything Raphael was telling was the product of hearsay. However, Raphael was not alarmist. If he had made a detour from his present destination to pause and give them this warning, then it was not to be taken lightly.
"Inez family still lives in the town." Raphael pointed out. "It might be a good idea if the lady makes some inquiries into the welfare of her mother and sister. If the Don chooses to carry out his vengeance, they would be the most obvious targets."
Chris agreed, but Val Verde was on the other side of the Mexican border, and Chris was reluctant to cross into Texas with Vin Tanner at his side to retrieve Inez’s family. Vin was still wanted in Texas and going around the state to get to Mexico would take the time they did not have. "Is he likely to kill them?"
"Once upon a time, I would have said no," Raphael admitted honestly. "He was a good man in his day, but his son was always causing trouble. However, a man like that with only one child tends to protect that one child no matter how badly he behaves. He loved his son, misbegotten as the boy might have been. I do not know what he is capable of, but I can tell you the man can be ruthless if you inspire his wrath. I would take my warning seriously Larabee."
Chris did. Any threat to the people in his life was usually met with Chris’s fiercest determination to protect them at all costs. In truth, he had always suspected that Don Paulo’s father would make an appearance at some point. However, he had expected retaliation to come soon after the death, not almost two years later. "I’ll tell Buck, but I tell ya, this ain’t the best time for this," Chris admitted.
"Is there ever a good time for such things?" Raphael looked at him with a raised brow.
"No," He replied. "But Inez is about two weeks or less from having a baby."
Raphael said nothing, feeling something twitch inside him uncomfortably. Like just about every man in Val Verde, Raphael had once entertained thoughts about Inez although nothing had come from it. He felt slightly disappointed she was now irrevocably lost to him even though he was mystified at why he ought to feel this way when there had never been anything between them. He supposed it was like men to feel this way about any beautiful women they never possessed. "My congratulations to the lady but you are right, it makes things difficult."
"We’ll figure something out," Chris replied, trying to sound confident even though Inez’s pregnancy made things exceedingly difficult. If it were anyone else, Chris would suggest Vin take them out of town and hide them someplace in the wilderness. With Vin as a guide, the chances of anyone finding them were remote. However, Inez could not be spirited away into the wild, not with a baby about to make its arrival at any time and even sooner if the lady was aggravated. She needed to be near a town with a doctor when the time finally came upon her.
"Larabee," Raphael considered another point. "It puzzled me why Alejandro would have taken so long to avenge himself upon Inez. I thought perhaps it had been his illness that had sent him over the edge and made him come after the Senora now but I wonder…." He paused as his mind latched onto a most uncomfortable thought.
Chris caught the sudden reflection in his eyes and immediately reacted. "What?"
"Perhaps the reason he is choosing to take his revenge now is because your compadre has much to lose. Like a wife and a new baby."
Raphael’s struck a raw nerve because Chris knew from personal experience what torture that loss was for any man to endure. "You think he’s coming after Buck now so that he can kill Inez and the baby?" Chris’s voice was barely a whisper as he spoke.
"Yes," Raphael nodded, unsettled by the discourse he saw in Chris’s eyes and wondered what inspired it. It could hardly be the threat he had outlined to Inez and the child. Larabee and his men were extremely efficient, the Mexican was confident they could effectively take care of whatever threat Don Paulo could throw in their direction. He was sure that following his warning, Inez would be duly afforded whatever protection she might need until the crisis had passed. "The Don would rather leave the enemy alive to pay the penance of his crime rather than kill him outright and end his pain. Don Paulo is an intelligent man, and his actions are similarly intelligent, I have seen him with enemies before and he dealt with them in the same manner."
"We’ll be ready for him if he comes this way," Chris said sourly, meaning every word of it should Don Paulo make an attempt for Buck or Inez. Chris disliked anyone who would use a man’s family as revenge and felt a personal stake in seeing the same thing that happened to him would never happen to Buck.
"I leave it in your hands' compadre." Raphael nodded, with no doubt in his mind that it would be that way.
***********
Raphael stayed for a little longer, moving off the subject of the Don before the Mexican was on his way. His journey continuing to the south of the border once again. Chris bid the man farewell hoping that it would not be the last time he saw Raphael since there were few men he considered friends and Raphael seemed to be one of them. Following his departure, Chris went to find Buck and Vin, guessing that they were still working on the gate and was relieved to see that neither had inflicted bodily harm on each other yet. He supposed he should have never thought otherwise. Vin knew how to let a man be when he did not want to talk. After riding with Chris for so long, how could he not know how to do that?
Instead, he found the work progressing quite adequately and was felt somewhat guilty he was the bringer of such dark tidings. It wasn't as if Buck didn't have enough to worry about at this moment. Now he had to deal with the emergence of an old enemy as well. It did not seem fair to Chris. In either case, his old friend had a right to know, and as it always inevitably fell to him to deal with such things, Chris decided not to waste time with it. If there was trouble coming, then they would have to deal with it now.
"How you doing boys?" Chris asked as he saw Buck holding the newly constructed gate in place while Vin was securing the new steel hinge attached to it onto the fence post.
"We’re getting there," Buck said as Chris came to help him with gate. Buck discarded his shirt while his long johns were damp with perspiration under the arms and at the edges of his collar.
"Did I hear someone ride up?" Vin inquired, meeting Chris gaze briefly before he turned his attention back to the hinge he was screwing into place within the wood. The tracker had also discarded his shirt but had no long johns and showed how hard he had been working by the sweat forming on his bare skin.
"Yeah," Chris nodded. "Raphael."
Buck looked at him. "That fella who used to ride with Don Paulo?" The big man recognised the name immediately and did not let his surprise detract his attention from what he was doing.
"Yeah him," Chris said shortly as Vin tightened the final screw on the hinges and the gate was able to be supported without their strength to hold it up. Closing it shut, the trio regarded their work with some measure of satisfaction before they returned to the subject being discussed.
"How’s he doing?" Buck inquired as they walked back to the house for a drink of water after their labour in the sun.
"Heading back across the border," Chris explained. "Seems he has a job waiting there."
"I’d like to have said hello," Buck said with a hint of disappointment, never having the chance to say how thankful he was to Raphael for standing up to the Don and saving his life. When the duel with the man, had gone Buck’s way, Paulo, the coward that he was ordered the hired guns on his payroll to end the fight with a gun. If not for Raphael’s timely intervention, he would not be standing here.
"Well, I had a feeling he wanted to get going as soon as possible." The gunslinger remarked as they reached the water barrel under the pump and Buck cooled himself by using the dipper for drinking.
Vin could see something in Chris’ manner that told the tracker immediately that there was more to the visit than just a hello. Chris was tense, more so than was normal for him and the man did not get that way without good reason. "Came here for anything in particular?"
"Yeah, he did." Chris nodded and met Buck’s gaze. "It seems that he heard some rumours and thought he’d better stop by here and let us know, so we can be ready if anything comes our way."
Buck looked sharply at Chris. "Meaning what?"
"Meaning that Don Paulo’s father may finally be coming after you and Inez," Chris answered, deciding there was no way to make this news any easier to hear and so the best thing he could do was to just say it.
"Shit," Buck swore under his breath. "Now? He’s coming after us now?"
"Ain't no time limit on revenge Buck," Vin drawled. "You killed his son, a thing like that just don’t go away, it gets worse over time."
"I know that," Buck said sharply. "But Inez, she’s in no condition to handle something like this…." He lapsed into silence, worried not only about how she would take such news but also how it would affect her physically. The baby was not long for coming into this world.
"Well, we got to move her from the saloon," Vin said decisively. "She can’t stay there, she’s wide open."
"She could stay with us for a while." Chris offered. "I don’t see Mary having any trouble with that."
Buck was certain that Mary had no objections, but Inez was another matter entirely, she was exceedingly proud and accepting someone’s charity was not something she could swallow easily. Hell, he had enough trouble trying to convince her to marry him and then promptly told himself not to go there. "I suppose, but I was hoping someplace out of town."
"Here?" Vin suggested. "A couple of us could keep an eye on her while we worked on this place."
"No good," Chris shook his head, not that it would not have been the ideal venue for Inez to be kept in safety. Don Paulo’s men knew about the shack. They had been here personally with the man when they first rode into town, and they saw who had stood with Buck during the duel with Don. The connection could be made, and that could lead them here. "They’ve been here. If she’s gone, they’ll know we stashed her somewhere, and this is the first place they’ll come."
"We could keep her at Nettie’s," Vin suggested again.
"I don’t think so," Buck said automatically. "Look, Vin, I know you think Nettie is a fine woman and I ain’t disagreeing with you there but she…"
Vin stiffened, filling with the usual hostility that came whenever any disparaging remark was made against the lady. Chris saw the reaction and quickly moved to intercede. "Vin, Nettie’s got some pretty Christian ideas about what it is proper and what ain’t. I’m pretty sure she’d find Inez pretty improper at this time don’t you?"
Vin blinked at Chris’s words and felt an immediate halt to his annoyance. As much as he thought about Nettie, the woman was indeed very old fashioned about such things, having been reminded of how she reacted when she once caught Alex and h imin a less than discreet position. He could not deny that Chris was right in this respect and understood why Buck had rejected Nettie’s as a possible safe house.
"Okay, not Nettie’s," Vin conceded with a loud exhale, not liking to admit that Nettie could be painted with the same brush as all those hypocrites in town in respect to Inez’s pregnancy. "Where then?"
"I don’t know," Chris replied. "In the meantime, we’ll get Ezra to keep a close eye on her while she’s at the saloon. Maybe we’ll stick around the saloon for a while. At least until we think of something else."
***********
Unbeknown to Chris Larabee, at the same time he was making that declaration to Vin Tanner and Buck Wilmington, his wife Mary was already one step ahead. Prompted by the intelligence reaching her, how Inez was humiliated by Wally Levinson after walking from one end of town to the other looking for a place to set up a home with her baby, Mary paid Inez a call. It was not the first time she visited Inez at the saloon even though the community generally frowned upon the practice. Still, they accepted Mary Larabee was a woman of permissible eccentricities. Mary was their voice when they needed it raised in protest, and they attributed much of their prosperity to her husband and the men he rode with. Thus she was allowed her unorthodox behaviour even if that meant association with a known wanton though they could not understand the friendship any more than they condoned it.
Inez had taken to her room and remained there her acceptance of Buck’s proposal of marriage and had no wish to see anyone. Although she was not hostile when Mary found her, the editor of the Clarion News was perceptive enough to see the surroundings she kept herself presently, bothered her, even more, when she had company. Mary had a solution to her problems and hoped that Inez would not be too proud to accept it even though Mary was making the offer with the best of intentions.
"You don’t seem overly excited for a woman whose going to be married," Mary remarked as she pulled a chair next to Inez’s bed where the lady was lying. The room was not big enough to support and more than a bed, a chair and a dressing table and stand for a washbasin. She could understand why Inez was determined to find a new home. This was no place to raise a child.
"Why should I be happy?" Inez grumbled, still locked in the depths of her sombre mood with everything that had taken place on the last day. "I am doing it for all the wrong reasons, and I’m sure Buck knows it too."
Mary made no remark about that despite what Chris had told her about Inez’s statement being true. "You love him, don’t you?" Mary asked the question that should have settled all of this.
"Of course I love Buck," Inez admitted begrudgingly. "But I feel I am not honest in my reasons for marrying him. All I can think of is the baby, of it, deserving a name and a father. Not whether or not I need a husband to love me and share this with me."
"Inez, wanting the best for your child is always admirable," Mary reached for her hand. "But you cannot base a marriage on such uncertain foundations. I know you have fears for your baby and they are valid reasons, but you need to look into yourself to see if you are ready to marry Buck. A child is not stupid, and you don’t want to find yourself resenting a baby for making you do something you should not have."
Inez swallowed thickly and closed her eyes because she wrestled with all of these worries. She was at a crossroads. There seemed no alternative but to take the path before her because anything else was too hard. "I love Buck, and I know he’s been trying so hard to prove to me he can be a good husband and father, but there is something inside of me that is still afraid of being hurt by him. Perhaps it is knowing just how much he could hurt me if I let him into my heart completely."
"We all take risks like that Inez," Mary remarked as she poured the tea she had taken the liberty of making in the kitchen downstairs before coming to the room. Handing a cup to Inez, Mary eased back into the wing chair and continued. "When you entered a marriage, you leave yourself wide open to hurt. There is no escaping that part of it. You plunge over a cliff and hope that there are no rocks beneath you and you will float."
"You make it sounds so inviting." Inez teased as she took a sip of her tea.
"Thank you," she laughed. "Can you believe I write just as enthusiastically?"
Both women chuckled for a few seconds and allowed the humour to drain from them before speaking again, enjoying the pleasant aftertaste left in its wake. "Thank you for coming to see me, Mary." Inez smiled warmly, reaching for Mary’s hand and squeezing it.
"Well, expect Alex and Rain to turn up at some point today," Mary remarked. "I don’t know about Julia though, she’s been very scarce today."
"She’ll turn up when she turns up." Inez shrugged, knowing Julia loved doing the unexpected when one was least prepared for it.
"Anyway, I came here to see you for a specific reason," Mary said getting down to business, now Inez was a little more at ease and in her opinion, responsive to the suggestion she was about to make.
"I thought it was just the pleasure of my company." Inez looked at her with a raised brow.
"Naturally," Mary replied with a smile and then sobered when she began her proposal. "Now I think we’re both agreed that this place," she let her blue-grey eyes sweep over the room. "Is wholly unfit for you to raise a child."
"To put it mildly," Inez frowned unhappily at having it pointed out to her even if she was well aware of the fact. However, Mary’s friendship with Inez thrived on theirs being able to say out loud what most were too polite to.
"Well, as you know," Mary began. "I still have the place that Steven and I owned just out of town. It's not too far away so you can still get to the saloon to manage it. There’s a good couple of acres around the house in the rare instance you actually want to grow anything on it. Steven had ideas about wheat, but he liked farming much as I like churning butter and I think the real reason he bought it was for the nice trails you could ride through. The house is in good condition, I’ve seen to that although you have free license to fix it up the way you like."
Inez just stared at her for a moment, unable to believe Mary’s words and allowed her to continue.
"I was keeping the place for Billy, but I don’t really think that he wants to go back. Too many bad memories of what happened there, I suppose. As for myself, Chris and I like being in town, me for the paper and him because he can keep an eye on things better if he were in town most of the time."
"Mary I can’t afford to buy the place from you…." Inez stammered even though it sounded just perfect.
"Buy?" Mary looked at her. "Heavens, no!" She exclaimed. "I never expected that from you Inez but the place has been empty for so long I do need someone in there."
"I will not accept charity," Inez said firmly, just in case the conversation was heading in that direction.
"Tell me something I don’t know," Mary gave her a look. "No, I am proposing a business arrangement. A rental agreement between you and me with an option to buy in the future if you feel that you would like to take it off my hands. Lord knows the added income would be nice until Chris’s horse ranch takes off and you’ll have someplace decent to live and raise your baby and not feel like you’re being forced into this marriage with Buck. Perhaps now, you can make a choice with a little less pressure bearing down on you."
"Oh Mary," Inez put down the cup of tea and leaned forward and embraced the woman warmly, not an easy thing to do since she had no waistline to speak off. "You don’t know how much this means to me…."
"I know exactly how much it means to you Inez," Mary said softly. "That’s why I know you have to have that place. It’s of no use to me now, and it gave Steven and me a great deal of joy when he was alive. I want it to be the same for you."
"I don’t know what to say," Inez replied, a little awed by the whole idea. She had seen the residence once or twice, whenever Mary went to the house after a big storm or some natural calamity threatened property damage to property to check to see if repairs were needed. Mary had never liked going on her own and Inez had often accompanied her for moral support. While it was not a sprawling mansion or anything, it had rooms, a kitchen, a fireplace and a garden that was left to neglect since the family last lived there. Possibilities started emerging in her head almost immediately.
"Say, yes." Mary declared.
"Yes!" Inez said eagerly, not wanting her best friend to think that she was even remotely anywhere near having second thoughts.
"It’s a little bare with the furniture though." Mary continued. "There is only a bed and a dresser in one room, a kitchen table and a few other chairs."
"I’ve saved money," Inez put that concern to rest immediately. "I can afford to buy new furniture, not a lot but what I will need."
Mary was about to respond when suddenly the door to Inez’s room knocked, and the bartender sang out promptly for whomever it was to come in.
"Hey there." Alexandra Styles announced herself as she entered the room.
"You’ll have to sit up here," Inez gestured to her bed as Alex approached them. "Mary’s got the only chair."
"Ooh, I am lucky," Alex teased, "Buck’s been dying to hear that invitation."
"Very funny." Inez retorted but found her mood too good, to spoil after what Mary just offered her.
"We’re just talking about Inez’s new place." Mary offered, exceedingly proud that she had been able to do this thing for her friends.
"You found something?" Alex brightened up, hearing that news. "Great, where?"
"Mary’s old house out of town." Inez declared happily.
Alex flashed Mary, a smile of admiration and showed her approval with her usual trademark sarcasm. "You really want Mary as your landlady?"
"Well, she has you for her doctor." Mary returned just as sweetly. "That’s living dangerously as it is."
"Touche’" Alex laughed. "I’m so happy for you. I hear its really nice out there and peaceful too."
"I could use a little of that after the last few months." Inez let out a sigh of relief, pleased to have this one worry of her mind.
"No argument there." Alex agreed. "By the way, any of you seen Julia?"
***********
Twenty-four hours earlier, things had been normal in her universe. Far from just normal actually, damn near perfect. She had everything she had ever wanted in her life; independence, some measure of wealth, a position in the community that was self-made and most importantly, a man that she simply adored. However, with the arrival of Walter Clemens to Four Corners on the stage, all that had changed and now she was here in the house she had grown to love and would sorely miss, packing.
Julia Pemberton told herself that this was the best thing for her to do. She would get out of town for a few weeks, hide herself in obscurity until the man was gone and then return home and undo whatever damage, hopefully, if any, that he had done during his inquiries here. Of course, she would drop Ezra a little note that she was going and that ought to keep him from worrying too much during her absence. It was probably the coward’s way of doing things, but at the moment, Julia did not care. She had too much in Four Corners to lose any of it, and so she was doing the most natural thing for her when things got bad, run.
Twenty-four hours ago, she had been working in her office, going over fabric samples, trying to decide which ones she was going to select for the Emporium when the salesman came back this way in a week, believing that to be the height of tedium. She would gratefully endure that chore rather than to have a repeat of the unfortunate confrontation she had with Ezra regarding Mr Clemens’ arrival. Naturally, the bastard had to go to the saloon first, which was more or less Ezra’s permanent place of residence whenever he was not doing whatever it was he did for the town.
When she had seen Ezra, she thought that he had come to whisk her away for dinner or something as he tended to do on occasion and felt the familiar joy of seeing him, until she saw the look in his eyes and knew immediately that something was wrong. In truth, she had seen something there for quite a few weeks but whatever it was, was something Ezra was not prepared to discuss even though he shared her bed at nights and woke up from terrible nightmares that left him in a cold sweat. While they had a rule of never keeping secrets between them, Julia could see something inside Ezra that was raw and wounded and knew that whatever it was, she would have to wait him out. However, when he walked into her office yesterday, it was she who was soon on the defensive.
He closed the door behind her, and the first thing he had said to her was;
"Julia Catherine Avery," he stated and drove whatever she was about to say from her lips as she stared at him like a cornered animal. "Born in Philadelphia, only daughter to Donald Avery and…" he snorted as he said this. "Eleanor Pemberton Avery on November 6th, 1854."
Julia swallowed the lump in her throat, having no idea what to say and unable to deny any of it, except how he had come across that information. "Ezra I can explain." She stammered.
"Trust me," he stared at her. "I have every intention of letting you do that."
"How did you find out Ezra?" Julia asked because how raised some rather unpleasant possibilities. "Is someone here?"
"As a matter of fact," he said coolly, realising by her reaction everything Clemens had told him, JD and Vin was the truth. Even though none of them had revealed to Clemens that the woman in the picture was anyone they recognised, Ezra was astute enough to know her anonymity would not last. Clemens was a professional and no doubt he was asking around town right this moment, trying to see if they could find the woman in the picture. "There is a Pinkerton detective by the name of Walter Clemens, newly arrived off the stage, seeking with the tenacity of a bloodhound the present whereabouts of a Julia Avery."
"Oh, boy," Julia exclaimed and started thinking fast. "It's just him? No one else?"
"Are you referring to your father or your fiancee’?" Ezra asked sharply.
"Ezra," Julia exhaled loudly, not wishing to deal with him right now when her secret was so close to being uncovered. "He was going to marry me off to this son of a bitch that wanted me so he could get his foot into Philadelphia society. I had no choice in the matter. If I didn’t marry him papa would disown me, I had no choice I had to run!"
"What about the aunt who left you all her money?" Ezra asked since her story did not make sense if that was the case.
Julia shifted uncomfortably and guessed she had no choice but to tell him. "There was no aunt!" She exclaimed. "The rest of my family hates me. They think that because papa let me get away with everything all the time that it was what I deserved, to be married to Roderick Packard, condemned to being window dressing at his arm. The man is old Ezra! He’s almost fifty! I couldn’t stand the thought of him touching me, let alone being married to him."
She had returned to her desk after retrieving a leather valise from her cupboard. Pulling the bag open, she began emptying the contents of the drawer into it.
"What are you doing?" He demanded even though it was rather obvious.
"What does it look like?" She retorted.
"You are not implying you are intending on leaving?" His expression was near horrified.
"I have no choice, I cannot let him find me," Julia stated, trying hard to remain composed. She did not want to leave Four Corners any more than he wanted to go but to stay and let Clemens find her was not an option. He would bring her father here, and no doubt close on the heels of her father would be a furious Roderick Packard who had enough money to see to it that Julia pay dearly for the insult of jilting him at the altar. Just as he would take his vengeance out on anyone else, she might care for.
"Where did you get the money, Julia?" Ezra suddenly asked. From the day she had arrived in town, Ezra had assumed that some rich relative was paying all the bills. The Emporium she bought and refurbished, the house she lived in, the money for that had to come from somewhere. Ezra had never asked before because it was none of his business, but now, its origins had an urgency about it.
"I couldn’t just leave without any money," Julia said, going to the wall where a picture was hanging and removed it to reveal the small safe she had secreted behind it. Ezra had known of its existence, although this was the first time he had seen it for himself. "None of my family was going to help me, and I wasn’t willing to pay the price my male friends would like." She paused and met his gaze directly. "I was done playing the whore to anyone. I wanted a new life where I did not have to rely on this face and this body to get by, so I took steps to see to it that I would be financially secure."
Ezra did not like the sound of this.
"Papa had a safe like this one." She said opening the safe on her own wall at present. "I found out what the combination was because I knew he didn’t entirely trust banks, so he had a good deal of cash in the safe at all times."
"Oh, Lord." Ezra winced and found himself a chair upon hearing that. "How much did you take?"
"Just enough to survive. I had a lot of jewellery of my own, wedding gifts you might say….."
"How much did you take Julia?"
"With the jewellery and money combined?" She looked at him nervously. "Sixty two thousand."
Ezra’s eyes widened. "Sixty-two thousand dollars! You stole that kind of money from your father?" He exclaimed in shock.
"Papa is a millionaire!" Julia snapped. "He would have hardly noticed it."
"You have to give it back." He stated.
"Like hell, I do.’ Julia exclaimed looking at him as if he was mad. "It’s my money. If I had been born a man, he would have left it to me. Instead, he was going to marry me off to some coarse pig and put it in trust under my husband authority. How fair is that?" However, as she opened the safe and began removing its contents, Ezra saw a hefty stack of bills, along with bonds and other important papers that indicated she was far from financially destitute.
"How much is left?" He asked unable to deny that she had a valid point but their immediate problem required solution as well and for the moment, this seemed like the most sensible course of action.
"What do mean left?"
"Julia, you have expended a great deal of money on the emporium and the house, I am assuming that you do not have a great deal of it left."
"Well," she cleared her throat. "Actually, I have a little more than what I originally started out with." She blushed slightly and brought Ezra to her from his chair, requiring an explanation to that statement.
"How much more?" He was almost afraid to ask as he rose to his feet.
"As you know," she said with a nervous smile. "The Emporium has been doing well and making a profit within six months, and I thought that instead of letting that profit go to waste I might consult a lawyer in Sweetwater who specialised in investment opportunities. So I bought into a few little businesses which amazingly enough have been doing spectacularly well." She said this all without taking a breath which meant she was edging to a grand sum that was going to make his head swim.
"How… much?" He said slowly.
"Ninety-two thousand dollars." She confessed.
Ezra had to sit down again. "You have close to a hundred thousand dollars?" He could barely get the words out. "And you did not feel it necessary to tell me? What kind of properties?"
"Oh, a little railroad stock here and there, some shares in a gold mine and a couple of large stores in Eagle Bend and Sweetwater, one little place here…" She said quietly, hoping the first few examples would snare his interest so that the last would not.
No such luck. "Here?" He looked at her. "What did you buy here?"
"Promise me you won’t get mad." Julia declared, staring at him thoughtfully.
"Do not tell me…" Ezra started to groan as the realisation came upon him. "Please, I do not want to know….."
"Well, you always said that you hated your mother owning the Standish Saloon so when she was here the last time, we talked. I offered an excellent price and then she doubled it," Julia replied with a dark expression on her face as she revealed that snippet of information. "The woman has no shame. It was going to be a surprise…."
"A surprise!" He glared at her. "You thought I would be surprised! Well, I am surprised Julia by a lot of things. We had an agreement! No secrets."
Julia took a deep breath. "Ezra I couldn’t tell you."
"Why not?" He accused. "Did you think the money would have some bearing on how I felt about you? That I care so much that you are a millionaire’s daughter?"
"Of course not," she stammered. "I don’t know why I didn’t tell you. I didn’t want any part of Julia Avery any more. You wouldn’t have liked her. She was a spoilt, opinionated brat who used every man she came across for some ulterior motive. When I left home, I left her behind. I never lied to you about anything except that."
"Well," Ezra said, trying to calm his anger down. "We will deal with this when Clemens is gone, but for right now, he is here, and while Mr Tanner and Mr Dunne are assured of keeping their secrecy regarding your identity, I am certain that the rest of the town will not. Somehow, we are going to have to think of something."
"I am thinking of something," she declared, continuing with her packing. "I’m leaving."
"Except that." Ezra stopped her hand from reaching for the safe again. "You are not going to run like some terrified child. As one who has done that on numerous occasions, I can tell you it reeks of permanence."
"I can’t let him find me." She said firmly.
"We will just have to return the money to your father and tell him that you have a life here," Ezra replied.
"Return the money?" She stared at him. "Are you out of your mind? We’re talking about almost a hundred thousand dollars?"
"Will you kindly stop reminding me how much money is involved, I find it is severely hindering my ability to keep my greed in balance!" Ezra snapped. "I am attempting to handle this responsibly."
"Why don’t we get away from here?" Julia exclaimed. "We could travel a bit and come back when he’s gone!" She suggested.
"And that is not helping." He looked at her critically. "Julia, you have to give the money back."
"No," she said defiantly. "I don’t have to. It’s mine. I earned, and I’m not giving it up and its a hundred thousand dollars!"
God this sounded so familiar, Ezra thought to himself and suddenly had an idea of how he sounded to the rest of his friends. He winced hearing the figure once again, wishing she would refrain from bringing up just how much money was involved. He was fighting his baser instincts like she could not possibly imagine. "Yes, but when you give back what is owed, you will still have a considerable amount of money left and your house and the Emporium."
"But giving back the money will tell papa where I am, and he will come here," Julia said, trying not to hide the real fear she had. "I’m not ready to face him, Ezra, if ever."
Ezra could understand her dilemma, yet he could see no solution out of the problem. "Julia, you have to face him at some point."
"No," she shook her head. "I won’t. He’ll come here, and he’ll try to take me back!"
Ezra started to see the real cause of her hesitation and realised it was not about the money at all. Julia was terrified out of her wits of being discovered by her father. "Julia, you know I will not let that happen."
"You don’t know my father." She stuttered fearfully as it started to overcome her. She snapped the bag close. "I won’t let him take me back, Ezra! I won’t go back to that again!" Without saying another word, she grabbed the bag and ran out of the room.
Whether or not he followed her, Julia was not sure because she had not looked back to find out. She had not even gone back to her house, she had climbed on her horse and ridden immediately to Bitter Creek, to leave forever. However, sense prevailed, and she returned the next morning, making her way straight to her house and careful that no one saw her when she did. Julia set to work immediately, packing her trunks and ensuring the necessary arrangements would be made for an absence of some weeks.
She wanted to say goodbye to Ezra and explain what she was trying to do, but somehow, she knew he would only attempt to talk her out of what she intended and that unacceptable at this moment. Once preparations were made, Julia penned a letter to Ezra and one to Mary because Mary was the only other person in Four Corners who knew that Julia Pemberton had been her own creation. Locking the door behind her as she gazed at her house one final time, Julia hoped Ezra would understand and believe she would come back when it was safe.
If he did not, then it would matter little anyway.
***********
"Now you know what you’re going to say to her?" Nathan asked Josiah as the preacher left the front entrance of his church and started making his way to the home of Audrey King.
"Yes," Josiah looked at the healer as Nathan dusted some lint off the shoulder of his coat. "Nathan, I have been to supper with a lady before this."
"Yeah,’ Nathan replied, more or less ignoring the remark. "But she ain’t like Miss Maude, Mrs King, now she’s a fine lady."
"You don’t need to tell me that." Josiah becoming slightly annoyed that Nathan underestimated his ability to recognise that Audrey was a proper, Christian woman who was just out of the ordinary enough to be very attractive to him.
"Give her these." Nathan handed him a bunch of flowers tied with string.
"What’s this?" Josiah groaned, starting to wonder if Nathan thought him to be a complete novice at this. He knew how to charm a lady. He knew verse and prose, and he certainly knew how to talk to one without saying anything stupid.
"Well, I don’t you see bringing her anything." Nathan pointed out with a smug expression on his face that only deepened Josiah’s desire to wipe it off.
"Give me that." Josiah snatched the flowers from the healer and then said firmly. "I think I can handle things without your assistance, Brother Nathan."
"All right, all right," Nathan said backing off because he recognised the line of tension in Josiah’s voice that said he was going to hit something soon and if Nathan was not careful it was apt to be him. "Have a good time Josiah."
"I’m having supper with the lady and her daughter." Josiah let out a deep breath. "I look forward to a pleasant evening, but there is no good time to be had."
"Of course," Nathan said with a completely straight face and only succeeding in making Josiah’s eyes roll with resignation as the preacher turned and walked away. When he had put suitable distance between himself and Nathan, the healer was joined by the familiar voice of JD Dunne.
"Hey, Nathan, where’s Josiah going?" The youth inquired.
"Going off to dinner with Mrs King," Nathan said with a faint smile as he started back towards the saloon since he had the rest of the night to himself and Rain seemed to be spending most nights in there anyway.
"She’s a decent woman, not anything like Maude, although don’t tell Ezra I said anything," JD remarked as he walked with Nathan and then muttered. "Hope he brought her flowers."
***********
Josiah found himself in front of Audrey’s front door a short time later, still stinging with annoyance at Nathan’s presumption. After all, he knew how to talk to a lady. Josiah had done it on numerous occasions even if he was not always lucky in love. In truth, the fairer sex always had the power to move him considerably although he had to confess to being a romantic, which sometimes clouded his judgement a little. However, he did not feel this way for Audrey, and he liked the woman herself who had shown him yesterday afternoon what she was made of when she had offered kindness to Inez when the young Mexican had needed it most.
In truth, he had wanted to approach Audrey for some time now but had been held back for several reasons, the most prominent being the fact that she had only recently lost a husband and it was never wise to crowd a widow in mourning. However, he had become fast friends with her daughter Lilith, who was now Billy Travis constant companion. Lilith was not like other children, and she had some unusual hobbies, the least of which was an untapped talent in magic which Josiah had been attempting to temper before she caused mischief. He poured over the books she brought him, somewhat fascinated by the pagan practises that surprisingly enough made no reference to the devil or anything remotely associated with hell. The craft of spells and magic were not always dark, and some of the incantations were scribed when the first Christians were a handful of fisherman.
Tapping lightly on the front door, Josiah adjusted his collar and straightened his hat, suddenly revisited by all of Nathan’s warnings that Audrey was a real lady and should be afforded every courtesy. As he felt the anxiety catch up to him, Josiah swore a silent curse at Nathan and hoped the man was happy for the nervousness he had caused. Josiah had little time to indulge in his insecurities when the door swung open, and Audrey appeared before him.
"Josiah, please come in."
"Good evening Audrey." He tipped his hat and then removed it before following her inside the house.
He had followed her a few steps up the hallway when she noticed the flowers in his hand, and he found himself presenting them to her.
"They’re lovely Josiah," she smiled radiantly and then took a deep breath of them. "What a nice thought."
Josiah cleared his throat and felt a little guilty considering how he had rebuked Nathan about all his instructions before arriving here. "It’s the least I can do in exchange for some good home cooking, Audrey."
"Well taste is first," she said with good humour as she led Josiah into the living room where Lilith was sitting rather uncomfortably in what appeared to be her Sunday dress, trying not to fidget while she sat perched on a chair.
"Josiah!" The young girl beamed at him.
"Why don’t you look nice Miss Lily." Josiah offered her a warm smile and noticed Lilith’s cheeks turning a shade pink whenever he called her that.
"Lily," Audrey turned to her. "You think you can keep Mr Sanchez company while I got fetch him some lemonade to drink before supper?"
"Sure mama," Lilith answered dutifully and faced Josiah again, undoubtedly pleased by his presence. Her mother withdrew to the kitchen, and Josiah found himself a place to sit on the sofa.
"It's about time Josiah," Lilith hissed once her mother was gone.
"Time for what?" Josiah looked at her blankly.
"Do you know how long I’ve been working on her to ask you for supper?" The little girl said with a loud exhale to emphasise the effort expended by herself.
"You shouldn’t be doing that." Josiah chuckled. "But thank you anyway."
"Of course I should," Lilith sighed wondering if these grown-ups had any sense whatsoever. "I have to wait for mama to work up to it herself, she’d never ask you. Besides, I know she likes you."
"We’ll see," Josiah replied and hoped the young woman was right. If not, it was going to be a long night.
"I’ve looked everywhere Ezra," JD Dunne reported to the gambler that morning, following his search of town for the whereabouts of Julia Pemberton. He soon came to the conclusion the lady was nowhere to be found. "If she’s in town, she’s hiding."
Ezra had returned from Julia’s house himself, having used his key to gain entry into her home and finding the letter she left for him. Reading its contents, she promised she would return in some weeks, but somehow he had his doubts about that if she became too threatened by Walter Clemens’ presence in town. While he believed she would not desert him, Ezra did not want Julia to throw away her life in Four Corners, particularly after all the effort she went to making a place for herself in this community.
"She is not in town." He said, pulling up a chair at his table and reaching into his pocket to read the letter she had left with him once again. Accompanying the note with its elegant script promising that she loved him and always would no matter where life took her, was the deed to the Standish Tavern in his name. She left it as a parting gift as if the ownership of a saloon could possibly lessen the blow of losing her. "If I know Miss Pemberton at all, she has made good her escape."
"Gosh, I’m sorry, Ezra." JD sat down next to the gambler, seeing the expression of unhappiness on his face and wishing he could offer the man some comfort. If Casey had just up and run off on him like this, he would be similarly devastated even though Ezra seemed better at hiding his emotions than he if such a thing ever happened. "Do you think she’s gone for good?"
"Not if her letter to me is any indication," the gambler sighed, gesturing to the folded piece of correspondence on the space before him. "It appears she is going to ground until Mr Clemens chooses to leave Four Corners."
"Will that work?" JD looked at him uncertainly, thinking that it was rather a simplistic solution for a complex problem. Although Ezra did not voice it, he tended to agree with JD’s unspoken assessment of the situation.
"I seriously doubt it," Ezra admitted reluctantly. "Mr Clemens is tenacious, to say the least." If he had tracked her across the Territory by visiting every little backwater town in existence here, then it is likely that he would not be put off by such tactics. In either case, Julia would be discovered one way or another and Ezra was not about to let that happen. The fear he had seen in her eyes at the possibility of being found out was real, and he knew no matter what deceptions she had used upon him, he loved her too much to allow those fears to become a reality. Somehow, he had to find her before she disappeared into the woodwork and Ezra was not ready to wait helplessly until she decided to let him know her whereabouts.
"What are you going to do Ezra?" JD asked, not believing for an instance that Ezra was willing to let this go the way things stood.
"I am going to find our wayward Miss Pemberton," Ezra said decisively and then drained the contents of his glass. "And bring her back here, kicking and screaming if need be."
"You don’t even know when she went." JD countered.
"That’s true, but ignorance had never stopped me from acting before, and I know her habits well enough to have some idea as to where she might have gone. If you give my compliments to Mr Larabee the next time you see him, please let him know I have some personal business to attend." Ezra said deciding that now was as good a time as any to begin his search before Julia gained too much ground on him. There were a few ways she could have left town. Ezra knew he was going to investigate all those possibilities if he intended on catching up to her.
"You’re going now?" JD looked at him, surprised as the gambler rose from the table and drew away having every intention of making good on his statement.
"It is as good a time as any, Mr Dunne." Ezra tipped his hat at the young man before turning towards the batwing doors when suddenly two women made their entrance into the saloon. It was early morning in the bar so patronage was hardly at peak capacity and their presence was largely ignored by the few customers who were there. Ezra studied both women carefully and deduced immediately that they were strangers in town, obviously from the south of the border since both were Hispanic in origin. Mother and daughter, he ventured a guess by the similarity in their features. The mother seemed a stoutish woman who might have been handsome in her day while her daughter with the sculpted cheekbones and exotically dusky skin was beautiful. However, it was not that which captured Ezra’s attention so much and for the few seconds that he studied them, he wrestled with trying to determine what that was.
After a moment, he realised it was because there was something familiar about them that Ezra could not place and found himself forgetting Julia for the present. Since the saloon was now his, he thought sarcastically, he had a right to greet his customers and conceded that it was the best excuse he could think of at this moment to force an introduction. Crossing the floor, he met them after they had stepped through the doors, and the matron had paused to scan the length of the room with her sharp eyes.
"Ladies," he tipped his hat to both of them as he arrived and offered his most charming smile. The older woman did not seem impressed, but her daughter blushed and flashed him a radiant smile that all the more confirmed Ezra’s suspicion that he knew her from somewhere, even though for the life of him he could not remember. She was not more than twenty he estimated, who was already quite the beauty and wondered with typical male curiosity what she would look like when she blossomed into adulthood. "Welcome to the Standish Tavern, I am the owner Ezra Standish," He bristled with annoyance when he realised how good it felt to say that. "May I be of assistance?"
"I am looking for my daughter." The older woman said, flashing the daughter at her side a dark look for responding to this stranger with his handsome features and charming smile. The stare was enough to drive the girl back into submission, and she dropped her gaze from Ezra’s and shifted it elsewhere.
"Your daughter?" Ezra stared at the woman in confusion, wondering why she would believe her daughter, obviously not the one at her side would be here unless….
"Inez." The woman stated firmly, confirming Ezra’s dawning realisation.
"You are Mrs Recillos?" Ezra said, breaking into a genuine smile. "Why it is a pleasure to meet you, Madam. I have heard a great deal about you. May I call you Paloma?"
She started to thaw slightly as she realised that he did indeed know Inez and in her daughter’s letters home, she had referred to the men who had defended her against Stefano and assumed this must be one of them. "Si Senor and you are?"
"I am Ezra Standish, as I said I own this establishment." The gambler answered and then added with a smile that bordered on smug satisfaction. "And now that I think about it, your daughter’s employer."
Okay, so perhaps he was not that angry with Julia for buying this place for him from his mother.
"And you must be Calla." Ezra turned to the girl who had now fastened her attention on JD and was offering him that same smile of radiance.
"Si." She nodded. "I am Calla."
"We have come a long way to find Inez Senor Standish," Paloma interrupted, not liking any man to pay too close attention to her daughters, either of them. "Is she here?"
"Yes, she is resting," Ezra answered. "She does not work that much in the saloon these days with the blessed event almost upon her. As a matter of fact, I shall be most curious to see how she manages this establishment once the baby does arrive. "
Paloma Recillos looked at him sharply. "Baby?"
Ezra froze as he saw the blank look in her eyes. She had no idea what he was talking about. Oh hell. He swore under his breath, realising what he had just done. "Maybe I ought to refrain from saying more. It does appear to be a family matter."
"You have said enough Senor Standish," Paloma retorted, her full ire bristling into effect while Calla merely looked shocked. "My daughter did not tell me she was married. Why is she married and still working in a place like this?"
Oh hell.
For the first time in his life, Ezra had no idea what to say. Except for Casey Well’s invitation to the livery stable to sow some wild oats (what had happened there?), he had never found himself, so tongue-tied and unprepared to respond. All he could manage was a rather stuttered response of; "I really think you need to speak to her yourself."
Drawn by the commotion and dying to find out who that beautiful girl Ezra was talking to, JD left his table and came up to the trio and noticed Ezra stammering which was a shock in itself. Ezra was the most articulate person he knew. The man could cheat you out of every cent you owned and still speak perfectly enough to make you believe that he was doing you a favour. As he reached them, he saw the girl’s eyes widened as he approached, and JD found himself responding to her attention by offering her a small smile.
"What’s going on?" JD asked.
"Mr Dunne, meet Paloma and Calla Recillos, Inez’s mother and sister," Ezra replied, relieved for the distraction provided by the young man and prayed that it was nearly enough to shift the conversation away from this explosive topic. It had never occurred to him Inez would not tell her mother about her pregnancy although, in retrospect, he supposed she would not. After all, Inez was as he mentioned on numerous occasions, the product of a traditional Catholic upbringing. For her to not only be pregnant and unmarried must have been the height of shame not only for herself and her faith but to the family she had left behind. Ezra had a terrible feeling, the reunion was going to be anything but pleasant when the family finally encountered each other.
"Well, it's nice to meet you, ma’am," JD said, immediately removing his hat. "Inez will be plenty pleased to see you, what with the baby coming and all."
Ezra rolled his eyes in resignation and watched in dismay as the hope of avoiding the subject burst into flames as the fire in Paloma’s eyes was reignited.
"My daughter has married and did not even tell me?" Paloma hissed and then lapsed into a series of colourful Mexican expletives that was familiar to all of those who knew Inez with any depth of familiarity. Judging by the woman’s temper, it was apparent the apple did not fall too far from the tree.
JD, horrified by the thought of upsetting the lady, tried to make amends. "Oh no ma’am, Inez would never do anything like that. She ain’t married!"
"JD!" Ezra almost shouted as the words escaped the boy's lips and groaned after it did because the expression on Paloma’s face had no description. All colour drained from the woman features as she stared wide-eyed at the news that her eldest daughter was pregnant and unmarried.
"Where…is…she?" Paloma asked. Her voice barely a whisper.
"Second door after the stairs," Ezra said reluctantly and gestured to the flight of stairs at the corner of the saloon.
The woman said nothing further and stormed away, grabbing Calla by the hand as she marched towards the stairs.
JD saw what had happened and knew immediately that something terrible was about to take place. Without looking at the gambler, the young man asked very calmly, "Ezra, what did I just do?"
Ezra took a deep breath and decided he was not going to make JD feel any worse than he would be after Paloma had found Inez and the inevitable confrontation between mother and daughter took place. "Nothing that would not have transpired anyway, Mr Dunne," Ezra said kindly. "However, if you are feeling remorseful for spilling the beans, so to speak, I suggest you go find Mrs Larabee. I have this premonition that when this is all over, Inez will require a friend."
JD nodded, not exactly sure what Ezra meant by that but knew enough about the gambler to trust his instincts. "I’ll do that." He replied and started towards the doors to the saloon when Ezra had another thought and called after him.
"Mr Dunne," Ezra stopped him in his tracks. "Perhaps you better find Buck as well."
***********
Inez was starting to feel better.
Perhaps everything had not gone according to plan, and she now found herself engaged to be married even though she was uncertain whether or not it was the right thing to do, but she did have a home to go to, and that was undoubtedly a step in the right direction. Yesterday afternoon, Mary had driven her to the Travis place, and they had spent an hour or two looking over the property, in particular, the house. As far as Inez was concerned, it was as near perfect to anything she envisioned for herself and her child. Deciding she would indeed take Mary up on her proposal, Inez spent the morning signing lease agreements and paying money to take possession of the place. Following that, she embarked on a shopping spree and was now surrounded in nursery furniture and all the other things she bought over the past nine months for the baby. Buck had promised to come by later today and help her move all her belongings into her new home.
Amazingly enough, even the idea of marrying Buck did not seem so bad now even if she still had her reservations. He had not spoken anything further about the wedding, and she guessed that he would not until she brought the subject up. Inez felt somewhat guilty at how she had accepted his proposal, knowing it had hurt him a little she had been so begrudging about it. She did love him, and she did not wish him to think that she was marrying him merely for the baby, but at the moment, Inez was not sure of that herself and did not want to lie to him by telling him otherwise.
At least not until she was sure of how she felt.
It was not as if he had not been bending over backward to prove that he could change. In fact, Inez could not deny that she was impressed by how far he had come since learning about the baby. She heard no more that he was still the philandering rogue he used to be and did not leave a trail of broken hearts behind him like some men left dead bodies. The fact that he had entered this horse ranching venture with Chris and Vin proved that he was trying to provide for her and the baby. Despite all the doubts that kept her from giving her heart entirely to him, Inez could not deny her love for him had grown, which was why she was so afraid of him.
From the onset of their relationship, Inez knew just how much she could love Buck. She did not want to be like her own mother who spent most of her life pining for the father they lost too early. Her mother never remarried because no suitor could stand up to the memory of the husband gone. Inez was terrified of loving any one person that much and then losing them. As one of the seven lawmen in town, the possibility of Buck dying was not impossible. Inez did not know how she would cope with losing him, and so she kept him at arm’s length, mainly since she learnt about the baby. While she did not want to rob him of the experience of the child they had conceived, she was not prepared to let him become a part of her life yet, just the baby.
Inez was packing when the door swung open behind her abruptly, and she thought she was getting another visit from one of the drunks who occasionally stumbled in here by mistake and were ejected most forcefully. However, as she turned around and saw who was standing in the doorway, Inez suddenly wished it was some inebriated lout. The alternative, any alternative, had to be better than this.
"Mama?" Inez exclaimed, feeling as if all the air had left the room because she had trouble just getting the words out of her mouth.
"Look at you!" Her mother blazed dispensing with any greetings or salutations and launching straight into the matter at hand.
Her condition was impossible to hide at this stage of pregnancy, and Inez knew denying it would be ridiculous, so she did not bother. "Mama, I can explain…." She stammered, rising from her bed, her hand sliding to her swollen protectively as if she felt it necessary to shield the baby from the unpleasantness about to take place.
"Explain?" Paloma strode to her and struck her hard across the back of the head like she had done when Inez was a misbehaving child. "I am told you are unmarried!" The woman roared in a fury. "I raised you better than to disgrace us like this!"
"I have not disgraced anyone!" Inez cried impotently, slinking out from under her mother’s reach and put a suitable gap between them. "I am having a baby! Your grandchild!"
"You are having a bastard child with no husband!" Paloma shouted, cruel in her rage.
"How could you!" Inez said horrified, unable to believe such words could have come from her mother. "I expected this from strangers who could not care less but you? You are my mother!" She said, fighting the tears and frustration. Was there no end to the recriminations? Of all the insults she had been subjected to over the months, this was undeniably the worst. "I could not help this any more than I could stop it and I refuse to let you or anyone tell me that this child is a disgrace! It is only a disgrace to small-minded fools! I had not believed I would have to count you the same, mama!"
"You were always a headstrong child!" Her mother declared fiercely, not prepared to let her daughter explain anything with anything. In her view, there were no words that could justify the unfortunate state her daughter now found herself. "You were headstrong when you had the village’s best suitors ask for your hand! No, you would not accept them, you were too good to be a farmer’s wife. Look at you now!"
"I am perfectly happy with my life." Inez retaliated, feeling her initial shock and pain fading away to be replaced by the purer emotion of anger. Her baby was not a mistake! She may have been angry by some of the consequences of its presence into her life, but she was never sorry she chose to have it, and no one was going to make her feel ashamed of that! She was not going to let anyone make her resent her baby, not even her mother. "I have a job in this saloon, and I have a home to go to, and since you have not bothered to ask, the father and I will soon be married."
"What kind of man would wait so long to marry you?" Paloma demanded, with every indication that the news Inez had just delivered had done little to appease her anger. The sin had been committed in the eyes of God and in her opinion. There was no correcting it after the fact.
"A good man." Inez declared firmly, not about to hear any disparaging remarks about Buck on top of everything else. "One that I love and who loves me!"
"You have brought shame upon me, Inez," Paloma said finally, turning on her heels to leave. She decided that there was no reasoning with her daughter, who had plunged herself headlong into sin with her illegitimate offspring. "I raised you as a good Christian girl, not to bandy about her favours like the village tramp! Is it not bad enough that the whole village blames us for what is becoming of Alejandro after his son’s death? Do you know what hardship we had to endure where you ran away from home and left us there to face his anger? He made our lives very hard, but I knew I had a raised a daughter who would have fought to preserve her virtue. Now I find that you have been giving it freely in this place! Like a paid whore."
"I am not a WHORE!" Inez shouted, something inside her finally snapping. She had been branded with that unfair appellation so many times that she could tolerate it no more. "I made to love Buck because I wanted to, not because some filthy pig expected it of me when he dragged me out of my house one night, willing to force me in front of our entire village!" She was incensed that her mother would even question her virtue regarding her experience with Don Paulo.
"What you have done now is against the laws of God and how I have raised you," her mother interjected, the plea falling on deaf ears. It was what Inez more or less expected from Paloma who was just as stubborn and headstrong as she about her own point of view. "I came here because Don Alejandro has our house burned and has driven us from the village in revenge for his son’s death. I assume he will be coming for you sooner or later. I could have taken refuge with my sister at Ciudad Juarez, but instead, I came here to warn you." Paloma’s eyes moved over Inez’s body, resting at her belly and then added with glacial indifference. "I need not have bothered. You are as good as dead to me now."
Those words had more effect upon Inez than anything else the woman had said since her tumultuous arrival. Hearing her mother disown her like that was a blow that left Inez reeling, and she stared at her mother in a mixture of astonishment and heartbreak.
Paloma, in turn, did not wait to see what her statement meant to her daughter and promptly turned on her heels to leave the room. She stormed out the, not seeing Inez trembling in her wake. Only when she had passed through the door, did Inez find her voice to speak. "Mama, please!" She cried out, unable to handle everything and this too on top of everything else.
There was no answer.
Inez took a deep breath to regain her composure in the chaos following the brutal scene between herself and Paloma before going after her mother. She dreaded to think how many people heard the exchange between them. To her mild surprise, Inez only saw Ezra, JD and Mary. Mary was staring up at her, sympathy and heartfelt concern etched in her face as she conveyed in her eyes to let her help. Unfortunately, as much as Inez would have liked to take Mary up on that offer, Inez was the only one who could possibly resolve this situation between herself and her mother.
"Inez, I’m sure she doesn’t mean it." A familiar voice called out.
Inez looked down the walkway that Paloma was presently walking, dragging her younger sister Calla behind her. Calla’s expression showed the same feelings as Mary, but she was just as helpless to her mother’s wishes as Inez herself.
"Mama’s just angry." Calla tried to reassure her sister as she followed her mother, hoping Inez understood that mama’s opinions were not her own.
"I will speak my own mind, Calla!" Paloma snapped at her to be silent.
However, the matter was far from over as far as Inez was concerned and she continued following her mother, calling out after her. "Mama, why did he burn the house now? Why, after so long?" It made no sense why he would come after her at this point. Stefano Paulo had been dead for more than a year. She had expected vengeance to come soon after his death, not now! Especially now!
"Who can say?" Paloma whirled around and faced her pregnant daughter almost wild with anger. "He claims now you lured Stefano that night, and it was all your fault Stefano became so obsessed with you! He believes that you tricked Stefano to this town," she looked about the room with clear disapproval. "So that you could have your lover murder him!"
Inez could not believe it. How on earth could anyone come to that conclusion when the entire village of Val Verde had been witness to what Stefano attempted to do that night? Not to mention how he behaved all his life with the girls in the village. He had brutalised so many, and the only reason he escaped retribution was because the Don appeased their families with compensation.
"That’s insane!"
"Do you not understand, you foolish girl?" Paloma declared, making her descent down the stairs. No one was brave enough to be in her way as she hurried down, pulling her younger daughter along helplessly. "He is insane !"
"Mama, please!" Inez implored, trying to think of something to make her understand as she blew out of the saloon, like an ill wind, leaving all kinds of destruction in her wake. When she had gone, Inez did not know whether or not it was a good thing. There was a well of pain slicing up her insides with the efficiency of a well-aimed knife. Of all the humiliation she endured these past months, this was the one she dreaded most. It was the reason why she neglected to reveal her condition to her mother in her letters home. However, in all honesty, Inez had not envisioned Paloma’s reaction would be this incendiary.
As she regained her senses, she remembered the saloon was empty, with table and stools vacant. Grateful there were no prying eyes bearing witness to what had just transpired, Inez found herself sank to the steps of the stairs and sat down. Her mind was still reeling from what had taken place, and much of her thoughts were still a jumble of emotions, slowly gaining recognition of present events as opposed to the whirlwind of angry words in her head.
"Where is everybody?" She asked no one in particular after awhile.
Her word prompted the others into moving, uncertain whether or not to approach her. Mary was the first one to reach Inez even though it was Ezra who answered her.
"I closed the place." Ezra answered gently, "I thought it might be wise."
"Thank you," Inez replied with genuine appreciation, although she usually would have taken issue at his audacity in closing the place so when he had no authority over the saloon.
"Inez, are you all right?" Mary asked tenderly as she sat next to Inez on the steps and slipped her arm over her friend’s shoulder and gave her a well-needed hug.
The expression on her best friend’s face was one of utter sympathy, and Inez felt heartened knowing Mary was there because she really needed support right now. The sorrow she felt at her mother’s reaction was like near unbearable, and she was fighting admirably to keep her anguish at bay. However, that soon dissipated when Inez felt growing physical discomfort. At first, she attributed it to the quick exit from her room and her pursuit of Paloma having down the stairs. But now the pain was intensifying, radiating from the lower back to the rest of her.
"I’m sorry Inez," JD added his voice to the feel of Mary’s arms around her shoulders as the editor of the Clarion news sat next to her. The youth was feeling even worse than ever for inadvertently blurting out Inez's condition and her marital state to her mother. After seeing how the woman had taken the news and how she treated Inez after, JD felt responsible for it. A part of him could not associate anyone’s mother being so harsh with their own child. His own mother had been kind and understanding, even when he did something stupid. Hell, even Maude did not treat Ezra the way; Inez’s mother had just torn strips off her. JD could not believe how unreasonable the woman had been. "I didn’t mean to tell her that you weren’t married. I didn’t know you hadn’t told her."
"It’s all right, JD." The bartender shook her head, feeling no malice towards him at that news because in all truth there was and had only ever been one person who was responsible for this situation, and that was herself. "I knew she was going to be like this. Maybe that’s why I did not tell her. I was hoping to wait…." Her voice drifted away as she followed that thought to its conclusion and then raised her soulful eyes to meet their gazes. "I don’t know what I was thinking."
"You have nothing to be sorry for Inez." Ezra, who was kneeling before her, placed a hand on her cheek. "You are not to blame for your mother’s failings. Trust me, I know. Your choices are your own, and if she cannot support you in the decision that you have chosen to make, then it is her loss and our gain."
"Thank you, Ezra," Inez whispered, her lips quivering as she fought not to be overcome with emotion. She wanted badly to cry, could feel hot tears pressing against the wall of her eyes, trying to flood her cheeks with a flow of sorrow. "It means much to me to hear you say that." Her hand touched his, and for a moment, she used her grip on him to steady herself.
"Come on," Mary urged her to stand up. "We’ll go to my house, you can stay with me tonight. I don’t want you left alone."
Inez was about to protest when she started to notice the pains in her lower back, becoming increasingly sharper. It seemed to poke and prod, worsening with the seconds that passed until finally, it was to a point she could no longer ignore, and it began to register in her face. Inez winced involuntarily, with everyone noticing the action almost immediately. Her skin became moist with perspiration as the pain became more intense and drove all worries about her mother away from her mind.
"Mary..." Inez looked up at the blond woman with apprehension. "It hurts."
"What?" Mary's eyes widened her focus sharpening with that one statement. In stark contrast, JD and Ezra immediately descended into predictable panic as most men faced with such a situation were apt to do.
"She says it hurts!" JD cried out, sounding even younger than he looked if such was a thing was possible.
"Mary." Inez started to get frightened because she knew what was supposed to happen when she went into labour and did this not feel like it. "I think it is the baby." She managed to say before uttering a soft gasp as the pain surfaced sharply for an instant and caught her by surprise.
"JD, get Alexandra!" Ezra ordered as he and Mary started helping Inez to her feet immediately. The young sheriff nodded wildly and practically bolted out the door. As they helped her to stand, Inez, uttered a small cry of pain, contracting her body into a question mark as it moved through her. The action sent a wave of panic through the gambler as he struggled to maintain his grip upon her when she had buckled suddenly. He had no idea how Mary was able to maintain her calm. While he was quickly becoming a bundle of nerves which each strained utterance made by Inez, Mary was keeping a poker face that left his jaw agape with astonishment had he not been so panic already.
"Is it the baby?" Ezra asked, wishing someone would tell him something. He was entirely out of his depth here. "Is it the baby coming? Is she going into labour? What on earth do we do?" He had no idea that he was rambling.
Mary dispelled the notion soon enough. "Ezra will you get a hold of yourself!" She snapped because they did not have the time to deal with his hysterics while Inez was in this way. "Let’s just get her up to her room." Mary did not believe this to be contractions because Inez’s water had not broken. However, with all the stress she just endured, premature labour was not entirely impossible. "Inez, we’re taking you to your room, do you think you can make it?" Mary asked since Ezra was able to do nothing but obey her instructions mutely.
"Yes." She groaned painfully, feeling a fist of pain tightening inside her lower spine, threatening to break her in half as it intensified with each agonising. "Get Alex, please!"
"Already done," Mary answered with the same voice she tended Billy’s cuts and bruises when he was hurt. Incidentally, it was also the same voice she used whenever Chris needed to be kept in bed after he was wounded. The uses were inexhaustible. For the moment, it appeared, Inez needed the same calm that no doubt infuriated her son and husband during those times. "You need to calm down. Remember what Alex taught you about breathing?" Mary reminded her firmly but gently to slice through the panic that would only worsen the situation if Inez did not get it under control. "We’ll do it together."
Inez nodded anxiously and watched Mary, who started first. After a moment, she started undertaking the breathing exercises herself as she was lead to the top of the stairs and then down the corridor, which emptied into her room. Ezra watched with a mixture of fear and fascination at what Mary was doing, admiring the lady’s presence of mind and supposed that this was one arena where she was wholly an expert, having had a child once before. He also observed that the breathing exercises that Alex had prescribed seemed to have the effect of calming the patient more than anything else and wondered if that were not the real object of the game.
They reached Inez’s room soon after and Ezra helped Mary lead Inez to her bed, after which the woman pulled her knees under her swollen stomach to control the pains shooting through her body. He noticed that the room was in a state of chaos with every indication that Inez had been planning to vacate the premises permanently. Most of her belongings were tucked neatly in boxes, while that old, worn carpetbag she had carried when she had first breezed into town and his life with was sitting on a chair, crammed full of clothes and other personal items. Seeing it made Ezra realise he did not want any harm to come to Inez, just as he knew for sure he could not imagine Julia, not in his life.
"Ezra," Mary turned to the gambler now that Inez was lying on the bed. "I can take it from here." She said kindly, seeing his concern but also understanding he was uncomfortable about being here like any man would be when confronted with such a situation. He was remaining because he had to, and Mary decided it was time to relieve of that duty since she needed him for a far more critical task. "Ezra, we need to find Buck."
"I sent Mr Dunne to find him at the same time as yourself, I do not believe that he is in town," Ezra answered. "However, it would probably serve if I make some deeper inquiries."
"Don’t bother," Mary said quickly, having a better idea than most where Buck would be today. "I’m pretty sure his with Vin and Chris at the ranch. Ezra, he needs to know what’s happening."
Ezra met her gaze and showed his agreement with a slight nod. As he retreated out of the room, hearing, Inez’s strained cried behind him, he hoped that Buck’s efforts to be a good husband and father would not be for nothing.
***********
Alexandra Styles walked out of Inez’s room less than an hour later and descended down the steps to the floor of the Standish Tavern. Her appearance was met with a flurry of questions; loudest of which came from Buck Wilmington who had arrived in town not long after experience the longest ride he had ever had to endure in his entire life. Following Ezra’s news that Inez was ailing, the lawman had climbed in his saddle and ridden back to town at full gallop, having never pushed his mount so hard in his life. He hardly considered the danger of that action, knowing only that he had to get back here as fast as he could. After what he had been told about the possibility Don Paulo’s father coming after him and Inez, Buck could not imagine how things could be worse.
Until now.
Alex ignored all their questions and had one of her own to ask. "Okay," she said, taking a deep breath and staring them all down, in particular, Mary, Ezra and JD who were here when Inez first showed symptoms of her present condition. "Someone want to tell me what the hell happened here today?"
Mary knew Alex’s question was motivated by more than just curiosity but from a medical need as well. "Inez’s mother and sister came to town," Mary answered, not only for Alex but for the benefit of anyone else who was not appraised of what had taken place in the saloon today. "She was not happy to find out about the baby or the fact that Inez was not married."
"Aw hell…" Buck started to swear, having a fair idea of what happened after that. In fact, they all did.
"They had a terrible fight," Mary continued revealing events that were a surprise to no one after her initial statement. "Her mother was really brutal and more or less disowned Inez."
"Well, that explains that." Alex nodded and let out a sigh, wondering how people could be so stupid and telling herself she would not mind going to see Mrs Recillos if just to deliver a swift kick in the woman’s sanctimonious behind. "For starters, she’s fine, Buck." Alex looked at the man to reassure him of that first and foremost. He accepted the news gratefully for he let out a grateful sigh. "She went into false labour," Alex explained. "It can be brought on by extreme stress."
"Well, today would have certainly qualified as such," Ezra muttered under his breath.
"Now," Alex continued, not finished and giving the gambler a look to quiet until she was. "She’s asleep now, I’ve given her something to relax. However, she cannot handle this kind of pressure. I understand she was walking around town in this heat yesterday?" She looked at them.
"She was looking for a place to stay," Buck admitted reluctantly, suddenly feeling extremely bad because Inez was doing a lot of things for herself she should not be. She had allowed him to be part of the baby’s life; perhaps he had better start paying more attention to Inez, even if she was stubborn and independent. Just because Inez wouldn't ask for help didn't mean Buck shouldn't try to provide it anyway.
"Well, that stops immediately," Alex said in no uncertain terms with a tone of voice that broke no argument. Even Chris knew better than to argue with her when she was like this. "Let me explain something to you. A woman pregnant has more four times more blood volume in her body than normal and veins that stay the same size. When she feels distressed like she was today, the flexibility of those veins are hindered, and something is likely to rupture, do you understand? If she is subjected to any more pressure than she is already, both she and the baby will be in serious danger. Has she actually found someplace to live?" Alex asked no one in particular but expected an answer nevertheless.
"Yes," Mary responded, suddenly feeling they were all children in a classroom being reprimanded by an angry schoolmistress for not paying attention. "Chris, I rented the farm to Inez. I was going to talk to you about it." She glanced at Chris with whom she was sitting next to.
Chris shrugged, having no particular problem with that and even considered it a somewhat amicable solution to Inez’s predicament. "It’s a good idea." He flashed her a small smile, and she rested her head against his shoulder in a gesture of gratitude for his understanding.
"Great," Alex said hands on her hips as she faced Buck. "Move her in there and get her out of town. She’s been putting up with enough judgemental fools to last a lifetime. She’ll stay in bed today to rest but try to get her out of here tomorrow. I would suggest that we keep dear old mom away from her until the lady calms down."
"I ought to go over there right now and tell that old bat….."Buck grumbled, seething with rage that Inez’s mother whom he had never met, could be so unkind about her daughter’s situation. In fact, he was starting to question why he was risking his neck to protect a town that could treat the woman he loved so badly.
"You’ll just calm down and do nothing of the sort." The doctor said abruptly and cut him off before he could go any further on that line of reasoning. "What you will do is move her things out of that room," she looked upstairs indicating Inez’s present place of residence. "And get it to the homestead so Mary and I can deal with it later today. I’ve had to let Nathan take some of my house calls, so I’m free for the afternoon. Mary?"
"I’m good for this afternoon." Mary agreed, aware of what Alex was intending. "Chris, you can keep an eye on Billy?"
"Yeah, no problem." Chris shrugged and shared a look of discomfort with both Vin and Buck. Mary and Alex caught the exchange almost immediately and knew their men well enough to know that something was.
"What's wrong?" Alex stared at Vin. The tracker, however, said nothing, waiting for Chris to do the honours and hoped he would do it quickly because Alex’s patience was about as inflammatory as Inez’s mother at this point. There was nothing more she hated more than having her patients put through unnecessary discomfort because of the foolishness of the people around her.
Ezra answered for all of them since he had a fair idea of what was troubling them so. Aside from this issue of Paloma Recillos rather scathing view of her daughter’s pregnancy, the lady had brought further news with her arrival, and it was one that could not be ignored. "Apparently, Inez may be in danger from an old enemy."
Alex rolled her eyes and shook her head, somehow unsurprised by the news. "Somehow, I knew it could not be that simple. So I gather she needs protection?"
"I had a visit from Raphael yesterday," Chris pointed out. "He said something like this might happen."
"Chris, you didn’t say anything to me." Mary looked at him with a hint of annoyance, wondering why he would leave out information like that.
"Raphael said it was a rumour." Chris returned her gaze. "We were going to keep an eye on her, but like you said, she had enough things to worry about without troubling her with something as vague as hearsay."
Mary could appreciate that and offered him a slight smile, showing him that her annoyance had passed and things were right with them again.
"I’ll stay out there with her." Buck volunteered immediately. "She’s going to be my wife. So she’s my responsibility."
"I'll ride shotgun with you Buck," JD immediately added, deciding that he could offer his support to both of them and alleviate some of his guilt over his disclosure to Paloma earlier. Even if Inez had absolved him of his sin, JD felt that the news might have been better received if it had been broken to the lady a little better.
"Thanks, kid," Buck patted the younger man’s shoulder as a gesture of gratitude. "I’d appreciate that."
"Well since Inez’ mom is here," Vin drawled, "I guess it's safe to assume it ain’t just rumour no more. I think it might be an idea if I rode out to Purgatory and see if there’s anything to know. You’re up for a ride pard?" Vin looked in Chris’ direction.
"I think so." Chris tipped his hat in the tracker’s direction.
"I’m afraid I’m going to have to bow out of any participation in this endeavour gentlemen," Ezra spoke up before he was allotted some duty he would have to refuse. "I have some personal business to attend to."
"What personal business?" Chris asked, stiffening with annoyance. It was not uncommon for Ezra to try and slither out of what he considered menial labour, but Chris was under the impression that Inez was a friend and the gambler would want to help.
"I’ll explain later," Vin said quickly. "He needs to go."
Chris looked at Ezra and could see that whatever bothered the man was indeed worrying him because it was written clearly on his face and that in itself was a testament to the seriousness of his claim. Ezra could hold a poker face better than anyone Chris knew if he was worried enough for it to show then it must have been a good reason. Besides, Vin seemed to believe that Ezra had legitimate reasons for going, and the tracker’s word was good enough for him.
"Sure," Chris nodded, understanding it was important to Ezra, and that should have been enough for him. He was past the days when he worried whether or not Ezra would run out on him and the others. The gambler put his life on the line too many times for Chris to ever doubt his loyalty to them.
"Thank you," Ezra said, flashing Vin a look of thanks for his support in convincing Chris that he had to go.
"Buck," Chris said to his old friend, moving along to the next point on their unspoken agenda. "Can you see to it that Josiah and Nathan keep an eye on Inez’s mother."
"Yeah," Buck said reluctantly, feeling extremely hostile towards the woman at this point and felt that she did not deserve the protection after the unforgivable way she had treated her daughter. "I suppose we ought to make sure the lady is safe."
Chris tried to stifle a smile because he could almost guess the thoughts running through Buck’s mind at this moment in regards to Mrs Recillos. Not that he could blame the man, of course. If anyone had done that to Mary, Chris would have been similarly incensed. "Just put Josiah and Nathan on it and for your sake, just keep away from her."
"Hell, I ain’t gonna be bothered by that old nag…."
"Who’s going to be your mother-in-law." Ezra could not help pointing out with a smug smile.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, no one was immune to seeing the humour in that remark, except perhaps maybe Buck.
"You’re all heart Ezra," Buck grumbled good-naturedly and then looked at Alex. "Can I see Inez?"
"Sure," the doctor nodded. "Just don’t get her excited okay?"
He looked at her with innocence no one believed and remarked, "Now would I do a thing like that?"
***********
Inez was not asleep.
She could not even though Alex had advised that she ought to get some rest. No matter how much she tried, her thoughts kept returning to that terrible confrontation with her mother even more than the possibility that Don Paulo might be coming after her. Suddenly in the face of her mother’s terrible disapproval, that seemed like the lesser of both evils. She caressed her swollen abdomen and felt her heartbreaking each time she heard the words ‘bastard’ echo in her ear. Her child was not going to be a source of shame for anyone. She loved it unconditionally, no matter how it would come into this world.
She looked around the room at all the purchases she made today that included rattles, bassinette, toys and clothes. The furniture she had bought had already been sent on to the homestead, and Inez comforted herself that soon she would be away from this room and would be glad for the anonymity that would be provided leaving out of town. At least, she would not have to put up with any more nasty jibes from the townsfolk or her family. The pain that caused her friends and herself so much concern had subsided now, and Alex reassured her it was the result of the stress she was under. She could attest to that fact most profoundly. Ever since this had begun, she had been feeling the walls of her safe existence closing in around her and Inez was not sure how much more she could take.
A slight tap on the door snapped her out of her thoughts. Inez beckoned whoever it was to come in. She had no particular wish to see anyone but had neither the energy or disposition for debate if she told them to go away. The door swung open, and to her surprise, Inez saw that it was Buck. Furthermore, Inez was further astonished by the fact she was pleased he was here and not anyone else.
"Hey, Inez." He said tenderly. "How you doing, darling?"
She extended her hand forward and surprised him by that action, but Buck did not argue and intertwined his fingers between hers.
"Better now," she said with a smile and honestly meant it as she felt his touch.
Buck was pleasantly surprised by her reaction and decided he was not about to argue with it. "I heard about your mother."
"Yes," she let out a deep sigh. "My mother." Inez tried not to let Paloma’s words echo in her mind again, but they seemed to resonate with just the thought of her.
Buck saw the hurt cross her face at the mention of the subject and somehow had a feeling that Mary’s description of Paloma’s reaction being brutal did not come near to describing it. The pain he saw in Inez’s eyes made him want to put his fist through the wall, but Buck focussed because he loved this woman and for her, he was willing to do anything.
"Inez, our baby, is a wonderful thing," Buck said after a moment of deliberation. "It’s the finest thing that I have ever done in my life, and I thank you every day for giving me to chance to be apart of it. I know it didn’t happen the way it should have but I ain’t sorry that it did. This last few months, I’ve come to find out what is really important to me and I know I love you and I love our baby and no matter people may say, there is no shame in that."
"Thank you, Buck," she whispered, grateful because those words were exactly what she needed to hear, especially from him. "I knew I should have told her before this, but I just couldn’t bring myself to do it." Taking a deep breath, she found herself realising that as painful as it was for her to accept Paloma’s anger, Inez should not have expected her mother to behave any other way.
"Look," Buck stopped her from further recriminating herself. "She just needs time to cope with things. It ain’t easy to accept when you’re god-fearing folk like she is. Give her some time, she’ll come around and if she doesn’t, that she’s missing out on one hell of a baby." Buck said with an encouraging smile.
He sincerely hoped that this would not be the case, however. Buck had seen from experience what such division could do to a person or a family. When Sarah Connelly had defied her father’s wishes and married Chris, the old man broke off all contact from his daughter and stayed away, missing the next eight years of his life and never getting to know the grandson who passed too early from this life. His regret had driven him mad, and Buck did not want to see Paloma Recillos suffer that same fate, although, at this point in time, she would have richly deserved it.
"Buck," Inez spoke, bringing up the next source of concern. "Mama and Calla were driven from the village. She says that Don Paulo’s father now blames me for his son’s death that he may come after us."
"I know," Buck nodded. "Raphael rode up to the shack yesterday and told me he had heard rumours. I didn’t bring it up with you because I wasn’t sure then whether or not it wasn’t just that, rumour. Vin’s riding into Purgatory with Chris tonight, to see if there is any news about Paulo coming across the border. In the meantime, we’re going to get you set up at your new place. JD and I will take some of your things across today, and Alex and Mary will get it ready for you tomorrow."
"I should help…" Inez started to sit up in her bed, but Buck would hear none of it.
"They got it under control, and you need to rest." He said firmly. "Besides, Alex will have my hide if I let you leave this bed." He added with a smile.
Inez swallowed thickly, overwhelmed by all the friends she really had around her and realised she was never alone as she thought. "Thank them all for me." She replied, hiding how much all their aid really meant to her even though Buck could see it reflected in her eyes.
"I will." He nodded. "You’re not alone Inez." He leaned over and kissed her on her forehead. "You never were. I promise you, we’ll get through this."
As Inez offered him a warm smile, she almost believed it.
***********
It had taken most of the night of riding from one place to another, but eventually, Ezra managed to call in all his favours, actually marks who owed him money, to find out where Julia Pemberton had gone. He had ridden out of Four Corners, shortly after he was sure that the others had things under control with Inez and the Mexican required his assistance no more for a short time. Ezra had spoken to the stage depot in Four Corners and discovered that Julia had not taken the stage out of town. He had not expected she would and gathered she must have ridden to wherever she intended on hiding out, or at least somewhere she could find alternate forms of transportation by a person who would not recognise her.
Sure enough, he soon learnt her horse was not saddled at her home or the livery and was able to decide where she would go on her own. Julia was not the best rider in the world and thus whatever her destination, the journey would not be too far or too difficult. Thus Ezra began riding immediately to Bitter Creek. The stage came to Bitter Creek once a day, and if Julia intended progressing her journey from beyond that town, she would have to catch the stage that left Bitter Creek early the next morning to Sweet Water or some other location. Ezra rode half the night for him to reach Bitter Creek and following his arrival in the community, had to shift through the numerous lodging houses and hotels to find her.
Of course, it was not hard to find Julia Pemberton, even if she was not using that name and while it was easy to use an alias, she was not precisely the most conspicuous female to be able to become lost in a crowd. Julia’s physical beauty was, in fact, a liability in this case because it made people notice her instead of allowing her to fade into the background. After searching through most of the local accommodations of Bitter Creek, which was no easy thing to do considering the hour, Ezra managed to find the listing for Maude Standish on one hotel registrar. Since he had sixth sense whenever his mother came anywhere within two hundred miles of him, Ezra guessed it was most likely not Maude occupying the room. Especially after Ezra slipped the hotel attendant a crisp five-dollar note for the information and he added with a salacious leer what a ‘looker’ Maude had been.
Ezra merely agreed and took the spare key to the room before heading up the stairs towards it. It was in the small hours of the night, and no one was about as he reached the corridor and soon after the door to which the key opened. Opening it stealthily, Ezra heard no sound as he turned the lock and entered the darkness of the room. A crack of light illuminated a nightstand and washbasin on a side table as he pulled the door apart and attempted to slip in. He had taken no more passed the threshold of the doorway when suddenly he heard the heavy click of a gun hammer cocking into place.
"Julia, it is me," Ezra said not at all afraid by the sound.
"Ezra?"
This was followed by the shuffling of feet before the room was illuminated by a bedside lamp. As was Julia's habit since Ezra first met her, Ezra discovered that Julia had not overcome her compulsion to wear nothing to bed. She stood shakily on the mattress of the bed on her knees, aiming a derringer at him.
"Will you please put that down before we both regret it." He instructed, closing the door behind him as he entered the room.
Julia let out a sigh of relief, thinking her intruder had been Mr Clemens, the Pinkerton detective, although now that she thought about it, she might not be any safer with Ezra having discovered her whereabouts. "Ezra, what are you doing here?" She demanded as she dropped the gun onto the sheets before her.
"Take a wild stab, my dear." He retorted and picked up the weapon and checked the chamber only to discovered that it was not loaded. "These things work better with bullets." He pointed out as he tossed her the robe draped over the edge of the bed.
"Are you kidding?" Julia frowned, slipping on the garment. "I have to keep that thing by my side at night, I could shoot something off."
Ezra was not even about to debate the logic of that statement and decided that he was too tired and weary for it anyway. He had endured a long day and would really like to stop for a rest, but he knew if that if he allowed her the opportunity, she would run again and this time it might not be as easy to find her again. "Get dressed, we are returning to Four Corners."
"No! Ezra!" Julia said firmly. "I thought I explained it to you in my letter. I’m not letting that man tell papa he’s found me."
"Julia, I am not going to let that happen," Ezra said, sitting on the bed next to her and making Julia look at him. "I promise you, it will never come to that."
"You don’t know my father," she protested, making no move to get dressed or show any signs that he was swaying her with his words. Although she wanted to go back to Four Corners, Julia knew she could not. Did he not realise that she missed the place terribly, that her one-day as a fugitive was so torturous she could not imagine maintaining a permanent existence like this? However, Julia did not fear being away from Four Corners as much as going back to the life she had known in Philadelphia, where there were no choices at all and every part of her life controlled by people who had no idea of what she wanted. She knew that if her father were to come to Four Corners, he would most likely destroy Ezra before he allowed her to be with the gambler. Donald Avery loved her that much that Julia was sure that he would do that. "You don’t know what he would do to get me back."
"I know that you are afraid, and that is enough for me to understand that your secret will not be exposed." Ezra tried to convince her, hoping that in some way, he could shatter the boundary of those fears that were so ingrained within her being. "I will think of some way to convince Mr Clemens to forget about you, but I cannot do that without your assistance, and I certainly cannot do that from here. Julia, we need to go back to Four Corners, with the people who could help us out of this situation."
Julia wanted to believe him. She wanted desperately to think that Ezra could deliver her from her fate, but at the moment, her fear was almost something tangible that could be felt. There were secret things she told no one about her relationship with her father, things that she did not admit to herself. There were memories she presented to people and a persona she displayed so that everyone would believe one thing about her, but the real truth was far more awful than anyone could possibly imagine. To speak those aloud would be to open up Pandora’s box, and she did not know if she could stand what people would learn upon that exposure. She could not bear anyone to find out, not her friends and god forbid, not even Ezra.
Especially not Ezra.
"No," she shook her head. "I can’t." She met his gaze. "I’m sorry, Ezra, I cannot go back with you."
"I understand," he nodded in understanding, drawing closer to her as he saw the terror in her eyes and realised for the first time that there was more to this than just discovery, something dark and sinister than he had not suspected before. "And I beg your forgiveness."
"Your forgiveness?" She looked at him, not comprehending.
"Yes," he nodded sombrely. "For doing this." Without saying a further word, he threw a balled fist into her face and knocked her out cold. Julia slumped to the bed without uttering a single word. Ezra winced as he saw the red felt on her alabaster skin and hoped she would forgive him when she woke up.
Sometimes, a gentleman just had to what a gentleman had to do.
Purgatory had not changed.
It was one of those places trapped in amber, frozen in time because the world had left it behind long ago. Vin Tanner had no doubts ten years from now; he would ride into this town and find it to be just the same as it appeared today. Dusty and windblown from sand storms that scoured past this way sometimes and filled with men who wanted only to be forgotten while they lost themselves in bottles of cheap rotgut or in the arms of the whore they had paid for. When he and Chris Larabee rode into town that night, little about the place had altered since their last visit. Both men were aware of everything as they headed towards the main watering hole where information was easiest to come by. This was not the place to let down one’s guard. That kind of ignorance could get you killed faster than it would take for trouble to find you. Vin had learnt of Purgatory during his bounty hunting days when it was necessary to go underground for information when seeking a particularly elusive target.
Inside the cantina, it could not really be called a saloon since it was merely a room with a countertop for serving drinks with a few chairs scattered around for the paying customers. At this time of the evening, the establishment was full of working girls making the rounds, seeking potential clientele. While some offered smiles at Chris and Vin, a slight shaking of their heads indicated they were not interested and the ladies were on their way, moving on to the next possibility. The two lawmen went to the counter and ordered drinks before Chris searched the room for one face in particular. She was usually here at this time of night, that is if she had not snared a customer already and was presently undertaking the transaction in some seedy room elsewhere.
"There she is," Chris said to Vin as the tracker tossed two bits at the bartender and picked up his beer as Chris made his way towards the lady in question.
Maria was in the process of soliciting when she saw Chris approach and immediately desisted, choosing to meet the gunslinger halfway. She flashed him a genuine smile as he approached and was glad to see he was well. The last time Maria saw him, his friends had knocked him silly and carried him home because he was needed there urgently. She had a chance to be favoured with his affections and could not deny she missed him, unashamed to admit he was one of the few customers with whom she actually enjoyed the experience of lovemaking. However, as he approached, Maria saw the wedding ring on his finger and guessed immediately his circumstances had changed since their last meeting. While she was disappointed, in a way, she was also glad for him. The sorrow often displayed by him over the loss of his wife was so deep she felt pity for his overwhelming grief and was pleased he had picked up the reins of his life.
"Senor." She smiled. "It is good to see you."
"Its good to see you too," Chris answered and surprised himself with how genuine he had felt about that statement. Before Mary, this woman had nursed him through a lot of hard nights when the ache for Sarah had been so bad; he would have likely done something foolish if not for her. "This here is Vin Tanner." He introduced the quiet tracker to the sultry Mexican beauty.
"Ma’am." Vin tipped his hat politely. Chris obviously thought a lot of the lady, and so Vin afforded her every respect.
They found themselves a table and Chris bought Maria a drink before they got down to business. Maria was a veteran of Purgatory and was smart enough to keep her eyes and ears open to source out obscure pieces of information that ultimately ended up being invaluable to him. "You hear anything about anyone from across the border hiring local talent and sending it up Four Corners way?" Chris asked.
Maria considered the question. "Not really Senor." She shook her head in answer, but a slight crease had appeared in her dusky skin as the question bounced off her.
"Is not really mean absolutely no, or you ain’t sure?" Vin questioned for the purpose of clarification. He had caught the reaction in her face when it etched into a frown. To him, at least, it appeared as if she was uncertain about something that might relate to what they were asking, even though she had yet to voice it and seemed somewhat unsure on its relevance.
"I do not know whether or not it is what you are talking about," Maria confessed, taking a sip of her whiskey. "A few weeks ago, I had a man who came from your town. He was Mexican, and I have not seen him before. His name was Luis, and he was on his way across the border to a small town not far from Ciudad Juarez if I remember right."
It did not seem related, but Vin remembered Inez’s home town was a small village not far from Ciudad Juarez and urged her to continue. "Go on."
"Well," Maria continued. "He paid for me for the whole night because he had a lot of money to spend. It seems he had been living in Four Corners for awhile. A few months, I think." She tried to recall exactly what he had said that night. "He said he was paid to stay there and keep an eye on someone I think."
Vin and Chris exchanged glances but said nothing, waiting instead for Maria to give up all the information she knew on the subject. "There is not much more Senors," she explained genuinely sorry she could not help them any further. "He was there to watch over someone, and when I saw him, he was returning home to report his news to the Don of some small village."
"Thank you, Darlin." Vin gave her a slight wink as Chris pushed a crumpled note in her direction. A dollar for ten minutes of work was considered generous, and she offered him a warm smile as she rose to her feet to leave. She still had business to conduct, and she sensed the two men before her had things to discuss.
"It was good to see you, Chris," she said affectionately as she prepared to depart, lowering her lips to his in a gentle kiss of goodbye before she disappeared into the crowd.
Chris shrugged, feeling slightly embarrassed in front of Vin who was ignoring his discomfort and more focussed on what Maria had told them about her ‘client’. "Looks like Don Paulo had Inez watched for quite some time." He commented once they were alone again.
"Yeah," Chris nodded in agreement but could not fathom the timing. "I still don’t get it though. If he had her watched for months, that means he’s been thinking about revenge for longer than that."
"And if he’s had someone good enough to watch her all this time, with none of us being the wiser then why didn’t he just kill her and be done with it?" Vin questioned further as they tried to unravel this puzzle that did not seem to make any sense with the clues they had so far been provided. It felt as if they were missing something, something vitally important.
"Or Buck for that matter." Chris reminded. "He’s got as much to do with the man being killed as Inez. More so in fact, since Buck’s the one who actually ran Paulo through with that oversized butter knife."
"This smells really bad Chris," Vin replied because he had something of an idea and the concept was so distasteful, particularly where Chris was involved, the tracker was reluctant to bring it up. "He must know Inez is having a baby. You think he waited this long so he could kill the baby as soon as it was born. You know as some kind of sick lesson to Buck about how it feels to lose a child?"
Chris did find that distasteful, but it was not a possibility he had not already considered. From the onset of discovering Don Paulo’s father intended revenge upon them, Chris had assumed the timing had been based on that. After all, why else would the man wait so long to take his vengeance on his son's killers? Instead, the man had waited until two weeks before Inez’s baby was due to be born to make his move and terrorize her family. Did he intend to kill mother and child, as a lesson to Buck Chris knew all too well? That could be done any time in the last nine months and be just as prolific. There was no reason to wait until the child was almost born unless…
"Christ," Chris exclaimed softly because the idea was simply monstrous.
Vin looked sharply at Chris, alarmed by the sudden statement and the look of growing horror filtering into the gunslinger’s face. "What?"
"Maybe, he don’t intend to kill the baby at all." Chris met the tracker’s cobalt coloured eyes.
"Not kill the baby?" Vin did not understand but felt poised on the edge of something dark, and Chris’s words were going to pull him over the edge. "What else would he do if he ain’t out to kill Inez and the baby?"
"Oh I think he’ll kill Inez all right" Chris quickly reiterated. "But I don’t think he’s going to kill the baby. I think he’s going to steal it."
"Jesus," Vin uttered a shocked gasp. "That’s sick."
"It is but it’s almost beautiful in its cruelty. Think about it Vin, he kills Inez and takes the baby. He has to kill Buck too or else it ain’t gonna work. However, before he kills Buck, he lets Buck know whose going to be raising the kid after he is dead."
"Great send-off," Vin muttered, his insides twisting with disgust at the psychology at work and prayed Chris was wrong, that no man was pushed so far over the edge to take their vengeance out on an unborn child, deciding its fate before it was even born.
"Yeah but perfectly reasonable if it was your child that was killed," Chris replied, knowing full well what kind of dangerous fantasies whispered in the mind of the surviving parent of a dead family. How many times had he wallowed in a drunken stupor and conjured all kinds of death for his family’s murderer? It was not lost upon Chris he could have gone the way the Don had now become. Bucks, as well as Mary, had been his salvation because his old friend had goaded him, most of the time unwillingly, into realising life went on, and he had to let go of Sarah and Adam, no matter how hard it was to say goodbye. Once, he had lashed out at Buck because he had been angry, he no longer remembered what Sarah looked like or how Adam called him pa. Now, Chris understood it was necessary to forget, to let the mind acknowledge those people were gone and let the rest of him heal with that realisation. There was no way he could have maintained a relationship with Mary or enjoy the bliss following their marriage if he had not made that final crossing from grief into remembrance.
"We still ain’t got no idea if he’s got men in place or are they still coming," Vin grumbled, unhappy at their lack of information, particularly now after hearing Chris’ theory on what the Don’s real intentions were.
"Well, we’ve learnt enough to know he is coming and beyond that, we can wait him out." Chris pointed out, appreciating Vin’s dislike of the situation. He was not any happier about it either. Buck and Inez were his friends, and any threat against them and their child was met with extreme prejudice by him. "Or we can take a ride out to Val Verde before he gets here."
"I could do that." Vin agreed. "Do we keep going on or head our at first light tomorrow?"
"No, we’ll get back to town first," Chris replied. "Let the others know what we’re doing." In truth, Chris was more specific about letting Mary know more than anything else. The last time he took a trip across the border, things had ended badly, and he was definitely not making the same mistake this time around. They also needed to make contingency plans in case they got to Val Verde and found things much worse than they were. In truth, Chris preferred any confrontation with the Don to be conducted outside of Four Corners, well away from Inez or her baby.
The woman had enough troubles to deal with at the moment.
***********
"I am never ever going to forgive you for this!" Julia Pemberton swore just before she flung a vase at him.
Ezra ducked, watching it sail overhead before impacting quite spectacularly on the wall behind him and spraying his coat with broken fragments before the bulk of the debris scattered all over her floor. Julia had not spoken a word to him since he had brought her back from Bitter Creek. Granted, she had been unconscious for half the journey back. Upon regaining consciousness, Julia had fired a litany of abuse at him that continued throughout the trip back to Four Corners. Now she was in her house, her anger showed no signs of abating as she now had ammunition to fire at him.
"Julia, I promise you. I did this for your own good." He insisted, trying to approach him and was forced back by the venomous glare she received when he took a step forward to cross the space between them.
"You…you…hit me!" She shouted angrily.
"And you have no idea how abhorrent an act that was to someone who subscribes to being a perfect gentleman and conducting oneself in a civilised manner." He retorted with typical Ezra calm which only served to infuriate her even more. Julia was pacing the floor, working herself into a proper state of unrest as she raged.
"Ezra, you have no idea what I am running from!" She barked, wishing she could tell him so he would understand her reasons.
"My dear," Ezra met her gaze with a hint of criticism in her eyes. "I am the last person on earth to make this admission, but you need to let the money go. You obviously have a great deal of savvy at making up for the loss, and you have enough left to you once you return whatever you stole from your father. If you do that, he has no power over you, and I swear on my word as a gentleman, I will not let him touch you."
"It's too late for that," she snapped and lashed out. "He’s already done that."
"What?" He stammered, not understanding for a moment and then started to realise as he saw the expression draining into her face. Finally, he could comprehend the reason for the deep-seated fear she had been displaying ever since news about Clemens reached her. She no longer paced, and the rage had oozed away to reveal something else, a terrible agony of unspoken truth she had shared with no one until this moment.
"When I was a little girl," she said quietly. "As soon as I was old enough to understand anything, I realised I was alive, and my mother was not. To my father, nothing else was more important for me to know. Oh he spoiled me, he gave me everything I ever asked for, I had the best money could buy, but these things never came free. There was a price tag attached to it none of my family ever knew about or even suspected. "
"Julia I never…" Ezra tried to close the gap between them, but she only drew away, almost until her back was to the wall. The pain in her eyes as she spoke about something so deeply personal it cut him to pieces inside mostly because he understood what it meant to keep secrets like that. When Julia had come home following the events that transpired at Faulkner’s excavation, she found nothing amiss. Ezra revealed nothing about what had happened to him or between him, Mary and Alex. Like her, the wounds were too fresh and although he knew she guessed something was wrong, Julia had not pushed. Now the tables were turned, and he had to ask himself, whether or not he wished to do the same or respect her privacy. Even though she could not say it out loud, he had some idea of what she was edging reluctantly towards.
She had faltered in her attempt to tell him the truth. Just the memory of it, beyond the picture-perfect images she had created inside her mind, was enough to make her shake like a little girl once again. She closed her eyes and the darkness that came brought the memory back even more potently as she saw herself, a small and vulnerable, listening to her breath in the dark, praying the sounds she heard in the night were anything but a door turning. Papa’s dove, she would hear him say, and until she was 18 years old when she had discovered the only way to make those nightmares stop was to replace his face with someone else’s. The rest of her family had called her a wanton without the slightest idea she had lost her virginity when she was twelve years old.
Other girls would have gone to pieces, but Julia did not, she created a vision of beauty where her father was perfect, and the nightly horrors were a bad dream that she had to endure in exchange for freedom during the day. She had taught herself to stand it because she would bed any man that could take away the feeling of revulsion and in their eyes, she was a siren to die for, not a creature living under the shadow of abuse. When papa became old, and Julia did not have to hear those words whispering in her ear when she was roused out of her sleep, then her life became mildly tolerable. She had beaten him at his own game by waiting him out, and now he was too old, she believed she had to only wait until he died and then she would indeed be free.
Until Roderick Packard entered her life.
He was just another man who saw her as a vision of something else. To her father, she had been Eleanor Avery, but to Roderick Packard, she was the thoroughbred in which he hoped to charm Philadelphia society into accepting him. They were two entirely different men, but they were going to use her the same way. She had run because she had no choice and papa had always assumed just because she tolerated everything he did to her, there was no spirit left to chase her own dreams. He was wrong, and she had fled, coming to Four Corners and finding her own life, one that did not rely upon her face for its existence. She was not prepared to give it up, not for anything.
"Julia I did not understand," Ezra whispered softly, taking his hands in her and telling her with a look she did not have to continue, he did not need to know even though he had guessed in these last few minutes. Julia had always said her father doted on her, lavished upon her all the love he never had a chance to give his wife. It was not until one applied those words in context did Ezra realise how monstrous the statement really was.
"Ezra, I can’t let him find me." She started to cry. "I just can’t."
"I will not let him harm you," Ezra said firmly, staring into her eyes as he spoke. "I promise you you will never have to leave Four Corners or ever be subject to your father’s twisted desires again, but you have to trust me, Julia. I have ruminated considerably on the problem at hand, and I do believe I may have a solution, but it will take both of us to carry out this scheme. I cannot do it without you, and you do not have a choice but to help me."
Julia swallowed hard and nodded slowly. "I’m sorry, Ezra," she whispered as he bundled her up in his arms and held her close. Feeling the safety of his embrace was enough to dispel some of her fears if not all of it. "I’ve never spoken to anyone about what happened with papa. There was a time when I did not even think what he did was wrong. He certainly never did. As far as he was concerned, he loved me the same way he loved my mother."
Ezra tried to imagine what it was like and felt his heart constrict in his chest at the very thought of a helpless little girl, unknowing the deep love and affection her father was displaying towards her was anything but healthy. It explained in great depth why a highborn woman of her class would take lovers with as much frequency as she might change dresses. There was the puzzle he had been attempting to unravel since the day he met her and understood until now why it had been elusive because not even Ezra could have deciphered the hidden meaning of her words.
"I cannot imagine what horrors you must have endured." He said softly, still holding her in his arms. He wanted to protect her and keep her safe from the monster who would trick a child into believing such was the way it should be between a father and a child. The sins of fathers were great of late, and he wondered if he should not count himself fortunate he barely knew his own before his passing. "It must be awful."
Her eyes hardened. "I didn’t know it was meant to be any other way." She whispered softly as he stroked the delicate strands of her red hair. "Except I could never stomach it and then I was sixteen, someone else looked at me that way, and it did not hurt so much. I tell people my father was wonderful and Josiah reminds of papa except Josiah doesn’t do the things papa does. Josiah is the way I always wanted papa to be."
"He will never hurt you again," Ezra declared and meant it absolutely. When they had first come together, Ezra had known he had loved her from the start, he just did not realise for one moment how much. He was somewhat astonished they had survived the first month when in his mind, he had envisioned she was a bright spark in his life that would end eventually, as all the good times in his life often did when he least expected it. However, Julia had surprised Ezra by not vanishing, and with the months that tumbled past, Ezra came to realise she was a permanent fixture in his life. He would die to protect her, just as he would die without her.
Julia met his gaze and found that she believed him just as she trusted him when he claimed to have a solution to of her predicament. "I love you, Ezra," she said softly. "I would not still be here if it were not for that." She offered him a faint smile, but her eyes still showed her fear.
"I know that my darling," Ezra whispered in her ear. "And I promise you will never have cause to regret it."
Ezra hoped the plan he had in mind was a sound as his confidence.
***********
Men were in place.
They had arrived a little more than a week ago, posing as the drifters that inevitably came to a town like Four Corners and stayed a spell. In service to Don Alejandro Paulo for longer than the time spent in this small community, they remained anonymous, being instructed repeatedly on this point. At the same time, the leader amongst them kept their quarry under close surveillance as the days progressed. The warning to stay away was not to be taken lightly for the lady was under the protection of seven men who acted as the law in town. Each in their own way formidable and combined they were a force to be reckoned with and certainly not to be underestimated. Judging by the esteem she was held by these men, it was almost assured they would kill anyone who would attempt to harm her.
It was a strange arrangement for any outsider not familiar with the situation surrounding Inez and the seven. Most of the men had attachments elsewhere and Inez herself, according to rumour, was with child to one of the lawmen. However, this union had not been sealed in a matrimonial ceremony despite the scandalous nature of her position. Except for a select few, it became evident to the Don’s men, the lady had been publicly vilified by most of the town’s folk for her unfortunate condition. To them, it made little difference because she had a part to play in Alejandro’s plan that did not require her reputation to be pristine.
Every man in town at the behest of Don Alejandro Paulo had been in loyal service to the man over the years. Most had taken this task begrudgingly, aware this was a necessary evil to be carried out if the man was ever to pick up the reins of his life once more and be the leader and pillar they had once known. They could care less for his son and cared more for the fact his death had driven his father to the edge of sanity, rather than any real need for vengeance. Don Stefano Paulo had been since childhood, a capricious being who engender no loyalty in the men who served his father, possibly because they saw the jarring contrast between father and son. However, if it required the death of this woman and her lover to bring Don Paulo senior back to his right mind, then it was a price they were happy to pay.
Since the boy’s death, they noticed the change in the man’s behaviour. He had become more erratic, and the compassion that inspired their loyalty was well run dry. He obsessed more and more about his son’s death and began to forget the boy was a burden from the day he was born. Those in his service, humoured him because he was a father in grief. Yet as the months progressed, his sorrow showed no signs of abating and became gripped with the need for vengeance. They knew of no other way to help him other than to satisfy the need so that perhaps he could go on living again.
This morning, one of the men stationed in the saloon where the lady worked, reported she was preparing to leave the room she occupied since arriving in town and was planning to move to a new location outside of it. This, coupled with the fact that two of the seven were seen riding out of town at dawn, brought a whole new perspective to the situation. Although an unexpected wrinkle had emerged in the appearance of Paloma Recillos in town, the warning she had given her daughter had only served to further their cause since the attention of the five remaining lawmen were divided between offering Inez and her mother protection. Since Paloma had not been receptive to her daughter’s condition as any good Christian woman would be, they were not guarded together and once again, the number of those protecting Inez was further lessened.
They gathered in the livery in secret later that morning, when the new intelligence had been collected, and decisions had to be made as to their next course of action. Ramirez, who was the makeshift leader of the group, shared his men’s desire to have this duty over and done with. It reeked with dishonour, but their conditioning to offer the Don’s unswerving loyalty urged them to continue. Ramirez was a man in his late forties, in the service of the Don for nearly two decades. He was aware of how much the man was twisting inside from the death of his son. As he gathered his men inside the livery, he almost felt relieved very soon the Don would have his vengeance and perhaps they might get back the master they had served for so long.
"We move as soon as it gets dark," Ramirez informed his men behind the livery stable. They could not converge like this for long. Their anonymity had been assured the past week because they had not openly gathered in these numbers. Instructions were communicated between the group, one at a time and always under cover of darkness and at some isolated location that would not arouse suspicion. The need for secrecy was a must. The agent who had stayed here for months watching the lady had reported on the efficiency of her guardians and Ramirez was not prepared to take any chances.
"What about the ones guarding the old lady?" One of his men inquired.
"Let them stay where they are," Ramirez replied. "If they wish to believe the old lady and her daughter are in danger, then so be it. It only helps us they remain in town with the women and not at the farm with Inez and her lover."
"Do we take her lover?" Someone else asked.
"No," Ramirez shook his head. "Wilmington dies tonight." He said grimly, knowing in the pit of his stomach it was nothing less than murder they were committing and men of honour did not find such a task palatable. "Don Paulo was particular about that." He swallowed the bile in his throat at hearing the Don’s orders play in his head and knowing this part of the plan fell to him. "None of you need worry, you are only required to take Inez back to Val Verde. The task of killing Wilmington is mine."
"You Ramirez?" Eduardo, one of the younger men in the group, looked at him. "You intend to do this alone?"
"Yes," Ramirez nodded sombrely. "The Don would have me deliver a message to Wilmington before he dies, so he can go to the grave knowing what it is the Don has planned for Inez and his child."
"Does he intend to kill the baby?" Someone asked because no one was familiar with the plan beyond acquiring the lady and returning to Val Verde.
As the statement was made, all eyes looked at Ramirez in question, and the man knew if it were indeed the plan to commit such a monstrous act of murder, he would not have participated in it. There was no amount of loyalty in any of them would allow such a thing to transpire. As it was, Ramirez would be happier if the Don had hired men who were accustomed to such work to handle this situation for him. Still, Alejandro trusted no one other than those he knew and thus Ramirez was forced to carry out this undertaking himself. "Of course not," Ramirez said quickly before the idea was allowed to take root and he was faced with dissension. "I have only been told we are to bring Inez back to Val Verde."
The others seemed satisfied with even though Ramirez knew they were all in two minds about what the Don required of them. Loyalty alone was fuelling their incentive in this matter, and Ramirez knew they all had doubts already as to the fate of Inez Rossilos when she finally returned home, in particular, that of her child. While it was one thing to take vengeance on a wanton who had found herself in the circumstances Inez had, it was another thing entirely to place blame upon a child who was not even conceived when the younger Don Paulo had been killed.
In truth, he knew precisely what the Don had planned for Inez, but he was not voicing it to the others as of yet. He had no idea how they would take it because he was still mixed about it himself and the truth was, he needed them too much at the moment to jeopardise their appointment tonight.
"One other thing," Ramirez warned as he prepared to disband the group once more. "Stay indoors today. Paloma and Calla know us all by sight, she cannot be allowed to bring us to the attention of Inez’s guardians."
The others seemed to agree and nodded their approval with his suggestion when he finally gave them leave to go. Accepting some last-minute instructions on when they should rendezvous for their nocturnal incursion and their subsequent journey home to Val Verde with Inez Recillos in their company.
***********
After her fiery exit from the Standish Tavern, it was Josiah Sanchez who finally dared to approach Paloma and Calla Rossillos at their lodging house. He needed to explain to them in light of the danger represented by the vengeful Don Paulo, it was best to move to alternate accommodations. Ambivalent as she was in accepting anyone’s help, particularly those who in her view, were responsible for her daughter’s decline in morality, it helped when she learnt Josiah was a man of the cloth. It did not matter he had not been a practising clergyman for some time or he was more a man of the law than he was of God, the fact he had been a preacher was enough to warrant her trust.
Fortunately, with this advantage, Josiah was able to convince Paloma perhaps it would be wiser if she took refuge in his church for the duration. With the threat of Don Paulo’s revenge on Inez more or less confirmed with her arrival in Four Corners, the task of guarding her would be much easily carried out inside the confines of his church rather than the small, cramp space of their room in the lodging house. Besides, Josiah hoped perhaps time with Inez’s friends might convince the lady that her daughter was not the bad seed she believed her to be. Like the rest of the seven, Josiah was aware of how brutally she had received news of Inez’s pregnancy. While Josiah had not turned away from the Lord so wholly as to forget the commandments, he did know God seldom viewed any one person so unilaterally, and if the Almighty could do then perhaps, it would not harm men to do the same.
However, the woman was damn near impossible to convince, and no matter how much he tried to reach her on this point, Paloma was immovable. Calla, however, did not appear as judgemental and was caught between her loyalty to her mother and her sister.
"Give it up Josiah." Nathan had suggested after he had witnessed another pointless discussion between Josiah and Paloma. Nathan had to give Josiah some credit for his determination. The preacher was fired up to solve this situation and did not intend on giving up, no matter how stubborn Paloma was her daughter was nothing more than a whore. Nathan could appreciate the flare of anger in Josiah’s manner as those words were used and found himself having to bit his tongue and keep his own annoyance in check at the term being used to refer to Inez. Just like the preacher, Nathan thought very highly of Inez, and even though he was annoyed Rain was working in the saloon, he had to be grateful Inez had offered Rain the job in the first place, allowing her to stay in Four Corners. "There ain’t no way you gonna convince that woman of anything."
"It’s the challenge that makes us," Josiah said sipping a cup of coffee and glancing at the back room where Paloma had taken her daughter after their latest debate on Inez’s situation.
"It’s a shame she’s gotta be so thick-headed." Nathan shook his head in distaste, wondering why it was so crucial that ceremony was observed with such rigidity it eclipsed the joy of new life coming into the world. "I mean with Inez only being weeks away from delivering, it would be good for her to have her momma nearby."
"Her mother is a proud lady," Josiah pointed out. "Sometimes you raise your expectations of how you want your child to be, it ain’t easy discovering they can’t always live up to the dream." Josiah knew personally what it was like to be raised this way. His missionary father had such lofty dreams for both his children, and while Josiah had managed in part to fulfil some of his father’s wishes, his sister’s struggles for her own identity had led to tragedy.
"Hello." A decidedly feminine voice sang out from the main entrance of the church. Nathan and Josiah turned to see Audrey King standing at the door as if awaiting permission to enter even though it was public domain.
"Audrey, nice to see you," Josiah said, feeling a genuine wave of pleasure stealing across his face at the sight of the widow. After their supper together, an evening which Josiah thoroughly enjoyed, the widow was more at ease with being around him and had dropped in on occasion to say hello whenever time allowed for it. On this occasion, she came armed with a basket, and although Josiah could not see what was in it, he could undoubtedly smell the tasty aroma of warm biscuits.
"I made biscuits today," Audrey replied, feeling a little bit embarrassed, debating whether or not she was too forward with this gesture. "I thought Mrs Recillos might like them. Mary told me she was here."
Josiah shrugged, uncertain whether or not company for the lady was such a good idea at the moment. "I don’t know Audrey," Josiah explained honestly, not wishing to lie to her but not wanting Mrs Recillos' venom aimed at her in any way. Since their supper, Josiah was finding he had real feelings for the woman, but he was determined not to rush her because he sensed she still had reservation about him. However, the truth was, he did not know enough about Audrey to gauge how she would react if Paloma took her act of kindness badly. " The lady’s awful mad and she don’t like too many people asking her about her daughter. If you’re going to see her, I suggest not bringing up Inez."
"Yeah," Nathan agreed, noticing the chemistry between the two and trying not to smirk as he spoke to her. "She gave Josiah an earful already."
"Well," Audrey said confidently on that point at least. "I did not intend to bring it up. I just meant to be friendly." Really, her reason here had more to do with seeing Josiah than Inez’s mother but Audrey had not wanted to seem too forward by just appearing on Josiah’s doorstep.
"That never goes astray," the preacher grinned. "She’s in those rooms back there." Josiah gestured toward the back rooms that ran at behind the congregation hall of the church. As he watched her walk past him, attempting to face the lion in his den, Josiah hoped sincerely she would not get bitten too severely.
When Audrey had inquired after Inez, Mary had told her the whole story of how badly Paloma had taken the news of Inez’s pregnancy. Remembering first hand how distraught the poor woman had been at her treatment by anyone who felt it their business to offer judgement on her condition, Audrey’s heart had gone out to Inez. While she had no intention of making any entreaty to Paloma, she wondered how any mother could treat her daughter that way at a time like this. Lilith, with all her flaws, was still her daughter, and while Audrey would have liked a child with her own flamboyant disposition, she loved her daughter nonetheless for those very differences.
Knocking on the door to Paloma’s room, she heard a taut invitation to enter and reconsidered the idea of making contact with the woman. However, since she was the door already, it seemed like a moot point since she had made her presence known previously. Audrey peered into the room and saw two women, one who looked nothing at all like Inez and another who appeared to be a younger version. The girl seemed to be very unhappy, and Audrey had the distinct impression she had intruded upon a private discussion.
"Senora Recillos," Audrey introduced herself as Paloma began to eye her sharply. "I am pleased to meet you and your daughter, I am Audrey."
"Are you another of my daughter’s ‘friends’?" Paloma regarded her with a tone of voice that was anything but pleasant.
"Yes," Audrey replied, determined not to be intimidated by the woman’s imposing stare. She could well understand how distressed Inez must be after a verbal barrage from her mother. Paloma looked as if she could cut a person to ribbons with the sharp edge of her words. "Inez is a friend of mine, but I came to see you for no purpose other than to offer a greeting to our fair town. I am new to Four Corners, and I know what it is like to be a stranger in a new place."
"You were not chased out of your home," Paloma retorted. "We were."
"Mama!" Calla spoke up with a surge of dismay. "I’m sure Miss Audrey was only nice."
"I am no fool," she whirled on Audrey. "I know you are all trying to convince me my daughter is a saint. Do not waste your time, Inez is dead to me now." Paloma said fiercely.
Audrey nodded slightly, keeping her own annoyance under control and forcing herself to remember Paloma was furious and was lashing out at her because she could not do it to Inez. "That is unfortunate," Audrey replied after a moment. "Tell me Mrs Recillos, would you rather her be dishonoured than dead?"
Paloma stared at her, unable to fathom when Audrey continued. "It’s actually worse for you to have your honour stained than it is for you to bear her dying, isn’t it?"
"I love my children, you with your nice clothes and your soft hands, do you know what I have endured to raise them, to see they are brought up well?" Paloma snapped, feeling defensive because this stranger’s question had struck a nerve and Paloma found she could not find a satisfactory answer within herself to respond.
"We all endure that Mrs Recillos," Audrey looked at her sharply. "Some of us fail. But we all stay up at nights and worry about our children, even those of us with soft hands." She concluded, without a hint of bitterness at Paloma’s earlier insult.
"She was raised better than to become pregnant like this," Paloma said defiantly. "I raised her to have respect for herself and the ways of God."
Audrey let out a heavy sigh. "We all raise our children according to our ways, but it does not always happen. This is not a perfect world Mrs Recillos, what we want for our children is seldom what occurs. Children have a mind of their own, and no matter what we may dream for them, they must find their own way and unfortunately, sometimes the way is wrong. When one is young as they are, with their entire lives before them, what need is there to stop and think of consequences? Why think about what awaits at the end of life when there is so much today before them? Mistakes are permissible in youth that what being young is all about. We learn from what we err in our childhood. I am sure, Inez more than anyone is aware of that now. Rebuke her if you wish but do not call what she has done a disgrace. There are not many who could have faced the judgement of this town, but she has done it, without fear or hesitation. All that matters to her is the child, not the disgrace. It’s a pity you cannot say the same."
"That is not true," Paloma retaliated, but she could not find the argument to refute anything Audrey had said. It was true, Inez had put the child before the disgrace, and Paloma had not. Paloma had disowned the child to avoid shame. There was something unforgivable in that act that made the woman unable to say anything in her defence. "It is not true." She muttered, trying harder to convince herself than those present.
"Yes, it is mama!" Calla cried out. "I love Inez, and I don’t care she’s going to have a baby. She said so herself, she is going to marry soon, what difference does it make?" Calla had been too afraid to speak out; allowing herself only bursts of defiance to express her dismay at the situation that had developed between her mother and her sister. "I want to be apart of my niece or nephew’s life mama, and I think you are wrong to be so cruel to Inez, especially when Don Paulo is coming after her. What if he harms her mama? What if something happens to her and the last words you said to her, are truly the last things she will ever hear from you?"
"You will not speak to me with such insolence Calla," Paloma retorted angrily. Her voice was little more than a whisper and Audrey could see she was struggling to justify her actions towards her daughter when both a stranger and her child had brought up valid points to which there was no argument she could use.
However, Calla was beyond hearing and promptly hurried out the door, leaving Audrey alone with Paloma. "I hardly know Inez Mrs Recillos, I do not know whether we could even be called friends. When I came in here, I did so intending to welcome you to Four Corners, not to change your mind about your daughter. No one can make that decision but you, and it is one you must make alone." Audrey turned towards the door, prepared to take the same path out of the room Calla had used a short time ago.
"Wait," Paloma said suddenly, the hostility drained from her face as she stared at Audrey. A faint whisper of a smile curled the corner of her lips. She swallowed hard as if she was trying to make a momentous decision before speech finally left her lips. "I would like it if you stayed awhile," Paloma said finally.
A slow smile of equal brilliance stole across Audrey’s face, and she answered with some measure of satisfaction. "It would be my pleasure, Mrs Recillos."
"Paloma," the woman returned. "My name is Paloma, Audrey."
"It is good to know you, Paloma," Audrey replied and held up the basket in her hand was forgotten in the last few minutes. "I had come bearing biscuits." She offered the woman a friendly smile.
Paloma met her gaze and answered. "Perhaps, we can have it while we sit and I let you tell me how brave my daughter has been."
***********
Ezra only had to look at Julia to know her need to run was overwhelming.
It was no easy thing he was asking of her, and he knew it, which was why he agreed to accompany her when she finally sent for Clemens who had by now guessed Julia Pemberton and Julia Avery were one and the same person. Before he flashed that picture of Julia in his possession to any more people in town, Ezra had convinced her she needed to put an end to his inquiries before the entire town pointed the man in her direction. While Clemens had not revealed why he was searching for Julia, the photograph was recognised by enough people for him to know his search for the lady had finally come to fruition.
Julia had sent for the man to meet her in her office at the Emporium with Ezra standing close by to offer moral support. While it might look like to Clemens this was just another meeting, it was anything but that. Ezra had a plan to put it into effect, but there had to be some established foreground to work with. As the door knocked and Ezra saw Julia shudder in her chair, Ezra knew his plan had to work or else she would disappear out of his life. He had the sneaking suspicion she was just terrified enough to sacrifice their relationship in her flight.
"Come in," Julia swallowed thickly, trying to hide how she truly felt by slipping a mask of indifference over her face almost as flawlessly as he concealed his emotions from everyone he knew as a professional requirement.
Ezra, who stood by her side as she sat at her desk, squeezed her hand gently to show her she was not alone in this. "Are you ready?" He inquired hastily before Clemens made his entry into the room.
Julia nodded and answered softly. "As I will ever be." She said reluctantly.
Ezra had no more chance to add any last-minute instructions when Clemens walked into the room. He stared at Julia first and then at Ezra, with a hint of accusation about the gambler’s deception when they had first met.
"Miss Avery." Clemens declared.
"Pemberton." Julia corrected. "I prefer you call me Miss Pemberton." Her tone bore none of the fear that been so transparent to Ezra a second ago, and he felt proud of her ability to maintain the facade so well.
"Miss Pemberton." Clemens nodded in understanding, not wishing to upset the lady since their business was hardly pleasant.
"I believe you have already met Mr Standish." Julia introduced Ezra as she beckoned Clemens to take a seat.
"Yes," Clemens retorted eyeing Ezra critically. "I am assuming you and Miss Pemberton have an attachment of sorts?" In truth, Clemens knew perfectly well they had because, during his inquiries around town, he had learnt about Julia’s life here and her known confederates.
"I apologise for deceiving you earlier Mr Clemens," Ezra apologised. "As you can appreciate, I was unwilling to make any disclosure until I was aware of Miss Pemberton’s version of the facts."
"I do," Clemens replied with surprising empathy. "Now, Miss Pemberton as you probably are aware by now, your father has hired the Pinkerton Agency to locate you."
"Mr Clemens," Ezra said coolly. "You have found Miss Pemberton, and you have performed your task admirably despite the challenges of finding her. Nevertheless, Miss Pemberton is under no legal obligation to return with you anywhere, and she does have a right to her privacy."
"That is true." Clemens agreed, realising now with whom he would be dealing with and shifted his focus accordingly. "However, I am not the law. I am a private citizen from a private agency. I can pass this information to her father, and I am informed there is a matter of some money…." He looked at Julia, having guessed already that the amount in question was used to finance the establishment of the business they were presently in.
"I am willing to pay that sum back in full," Julia stated firmly. "However, I do not wish my whereabouts to be disclosed to my father."
"I cannot help that," Clemens replied sincerely.
"What exactly would it take to make you forget you found Miss Pemberton, Mr Clemens?" Ezra looked at him.
"Are you proposing a bribe?" The detective stared at him with an unreadable expression.
"You are not a government official to make that illegal," Ezra remarked automatically, unperturbed by his manner. However, he had to know how the man thought to be able to devise a way to rid Julia of her problem.
"A bribe is still a bribe." The man pointed out. "I am not swayed by such things and my job is something I take seriously, as my duty to my clients. I am afraid any monetary remuneration is quite impossible to sway that task."
"Then you leave me no choice Mr Clemens," Julia replied, remembering what Ezra had told her to say in case this response was received from the man. "I cannot allow my father to find me. I would, however, ask you to take the money I owe my father back to him and you may tell him my present whereabouts, I do not think it will make any difference by the time he arrives here."
"I take it you will be departing," Clemens said uncomfortably. He had no reason to stop her from going because as Standish had pointed out, she was of sound mind and of adult age to be able to move about freely. While he had been hired to find her for Donald Avery, there was no way he could coerce her into going with him, if she chose otherwise, which apparently she had.
"I have no choice but to leave," Julia answered. "By the time, you depart, Mr Standish and I will be preparing to quit Four Corners permanently. However, if you can run one errand for me. I will appreciate it."
"Your father is determined to find you, Miss Pemberton," he pointed out. "If it is not I who comes after you, someone else will. Would it not be simpler if you just accompanied me back to Philadelphia and tell him for yourself your reasons for leaving. He strikes me a most understanding man."
Julia stiffened visibly, and Ezra said the dark hatred that surfaced in her eyes from that one statement. Suddenly, Ezra had some idea of what kind of abuse she must have endured to provoke that much anger. He had never suspected its existence, and Ezra felt some measure of guilt at that because it was something he should have seen. Ezra made it his profession to read people and even if he had not been able to see through the well-crafted illusion, Julia had fabricated about her father. He supposed any false truth was better than the reality of it.
"Miss Pemberton’s issues with her father are not your concern as are her reasons for not seeing him Mr Clemens," Ezra spoke for Julia, knowing she took great offence to the man referring to her father as an ‘understanding’ man. Besides, the trap was set for Clemens, and this interview had outlived its usefulness. "If you would give us a date for departure, then we can make the arrangements to transfer the cash to your person."
"Of course," Clemens replied, having guessed he was being dismissed. "I will let you know about my travel arrangements as soon as I have the information. Good day Miss Pemberton," He tipped his hat in her direction and then nodded slightly at Ezra’s direction before leaving the room.
When he was gone, Julia let out a sigh of relief, glad that the whole process was finally over. She knew as well as he did Clemens had taken the bait, and the success of their entire scheme hinged upon that one fact. Ezra had promised her if their plan worked, she would not only continue her anonymity from her father but also allowed her to retain the money she had absconded from him during her initial flight from home.
"You really think this will work?" Julia looked at Ezra hopefully, wanting him to give her good news. In this matter, Julia did not think she could stand it to be otherwise.
"Not only will it work," Ezra allowed himself a confident smile, now more or less satisfied he knew what made Mr Clemens tick and understanding gave Ezra an exploitable weakness they could use to their advantage. "It will work well. Trust me." He offered her a smug grin before leaning over to plant a kiss on her lips. "I told you," he said as his features softened. "I will not let any harm come to you."
"I hope so," she answered, not sharing his optimism even if she believed he would protect her from her father. "I hate to leave this place if this doesn’t work."
"It will work." Ezra retorted quickly, unprepared to let that happen under any circumstances. Both their lives were too seeded in Four Corners to walk away from it, and he knew Julia did not wish to begin life on the run. She was in her element as the owner of the Pemberton Emporium, and Ezra truly believed it was the first time in her life where she felt her physical attributes were not all there was to her existence. She had a sense of accomplishment here Ezra was determined she keep.
Ezra just hoped the gamble he was taking with her life would work because he was not prepared to lose her.
***********
When Inez Recillos stepped through the door to her new home, she had expected to see clutter and chaos stacked in boxes everywhere, with no sense made to anything. However, when she finally arrived at the homestead she had newly leased from Mary Larabee and entered the threshold of the front door, she had reason to pause and utter a quiet gasp that bordered on awe and surprise. Even Buck and JD who were with her, acting as guardians while this threat of Don Alejandro Paulo’s loomed over her head, were somewhat astonished by what Mary and company had managed to accomplish making the house suitable for habitation.
It was almost nightfall, and Inez had spent the day with Buck, gathering the last of her things from the saloon for the big move to the homestead. Despite herself, Inez felt strangely nostalgic at the departure from the home she had known for the past two years. While it was odd feeling sorry to leave a place that was nothing more than a room in a saloon, Inez could not deny her sadness at having to say goodbye to the premises. So much had happened since she first arrived in Four Corners, and this room had a fixed place in the history of her life here.
Even Ezra felt somewhat melancholic as she left the saloon and apologised profusely he could not be present for her journey to her new home since he and Julia were facing something of a minor crisis of their own. Inez did not know the full details but guessed what it could be if the news around town about a Pinkerton detective search for Julia was accurate. She knew Mary, Alex and Rain had been taking turns putting the house in order before her arrival, but even Inez was somewhat awed at what their combined efforts had managed to yield in little under a day.
"Wow, this looks really nice," JD exclaimed boisterously as he helped Buck with the last of Inez’s things and set down in what passed for the parlour of the home. He recalled what the place had looked like the last time they were here when Chris Larabee had set a deadly trap for the men who had murdered Steven Travis, using Billy as bait. The killers had attempted to draw Chris and Billy out of their hiding place by setting fire to the house. Fortunately, as always, the rest of the seven had made a timely arrival and prevented a second tragedy from occurring and extinguishing the flames in time to preserve the building. Since then, JD was aware of some renovation work taking place to restore the house to some semblance of habitability. However, even he was impressed with the finished product before them.
"Thanks, JD," Alex greeted as she stepped out of the kitchen. She was putting the finishing touches on that part of the room and was glad to have all of it done by the time Inez had finally arrived. "We worked around the clock to get it done tonight. When it’s all said and done, you owe us a dinner of that great Mexican food you cook at the Tavern." Alex smiled as she approached Inez.
"Done," Inez exclaimed as she embraced Alex when the woman neared her, fighting to keep the emotion out of her voice. After the awful exchange with her mother, Inez was glad to know she had so many friends to help her. The last few days had been an eye-opening experience, revealing to Inez was not alone in her situation. If anything, Inez learned just how many people she had in her life who were willing to ignore the scandal and ignore the town’s intolerance of her. It stung her deeply, her friends were more understanding than her mother whom Inez had not seen since their quarrel in the saloon. In truth, Inez had done a good deal of thinking the night before to know it would not make any difference if her mother never wished to speak to her again.
"It sure is Alex," Buck agreed, expressing his admiration for what all the women had done with a wide grin. "It looks real nice."
"Well," Alex said with a smile. "After everything you’ve been through lately, it’s the least we could do."
"No, kidding." JD could not disagree. "Buck, I’ll take a ride around the place and check things out. You can stay here with Inez if you like."
"Nah," Buck shook his head. "I ain’t gonna be stuck here listening to two women nagging about things." As he made the remark, Buck threw a perfectly devilish grin at the three women present.
"And such a wise decision is," Alex retorted sarcastically, "considering the wealth of material we have to work with where you are concerned."
"I do declare Doctor Styles," Buck teased, enjoying the jousting verbally with the doctor. "Your tongue is sharper than a scalpel."
"So they tell me." Alex laughed. "I have no idea how Vin puts up with it." She gave Buck a little wink of mischief.
"Hey," Inez interjected, "do I have separate you two?"
"No I’m screaming surrender," Buck threw up his hands, conceding defeat. Besides, he did want to join JD and take a ride around the homestead to make sure there was no one about. Buck took Inez’s safety very seriously and knew in her present condition, she would be able to do little to defend herself if trouble came her way. Buck would spare her that if he could help it. As it was, her mood towards him had improved significantly in the last day. For the first time since accepting his proposal, it felt as if Inez's reasons were not motivated by the impending birth of their child, but love for him. Knowing he had finally succeeded in engendering such emotion in her made Buck all the more determined not to squander the chance. "You gals going to be alright?" He asked as he started to walk out of the house.
"We’ll be fine." Inez smiled at him. "You take care of yourself."
Once again, the show of emotion made Buck swell inwardly, and he threw her a happy grin before answering in departure. "You get some rest, I’ll be back later."
"Looks like things are working out between you and Inez," JD said as they left the house and took a quick ride around the Travis homestead. It was already dark, and Buck was not too eager to spend too much time away from the main house where Inez and Alex were presently situated. With no idea how far ahead Don Paulo’s plan of revenge had progressed since chasing Paloma and Calla Recillos out of Val Verde, Buck did not want to take any chances.
"I guess they are," Buck said with a smile, unable to deny how pleased he was his relationship with Inez was finally on the right track. He spent the day with her and was amazed at how much about Inez he did not know. While Buck had spent the last two years lusting and pursuing her, he found he knew very little about Inez personally. Not only was she going to be his wife and the only woman he had loved in recent years, but she had also transformed into a riddle, he wanted to spend his whole life trying to unravel.
"Have you set a date for the wedding?" JD inquired, unspoken in his own joy at his friend’s circumstances. As far as JD was concerned, Inez could become the madam of a bordello, and he would still have considered her the finest woman he ever knew, next to Mary Travis, although he found Inez more approachable of the two. Inez had always reminded him of his ma because she was strong and formidable like his mother had been but had a tender side that seemed to emerge only when she was around him. He remembered the occasions when she had tended to him when he had been wounded or sick, where she had sat at his bedside and sang songs to him in Spanish that lulled him to sleep even though he did not understand the words. Buck and Inez were two of the most important people in the world to him, and JD was thrilled they were finally sealing their union in a more formal arrangement.
"After the baby comes, I think," Buck replied evasively because he and Inez had not really discussed the subject in length. Personally, he would prefer to be married before the baby arrived, but he could appreciate why Inez would want to wait until after its birth.
"I guess it’s hard to plan a wedding when you have no idea when the baby is going to show up," JD answered, seeing the intelligence in waiting.
"Yeah," he nodded. "Nothing worse than going into labour on your wedding day." Or a wedding night. Buck smiled inwardly, feeling a bit of the devil in him as the thought crossed his mind. "I’d like it to be a special day for her," Buck added after a moment. "I don’t want her to worry the baby is going to show up in the middle of it."
"Are you scared Buck?" The youth inquired, looking at him.
"Of what?"
"Of being a father," JD answered because Buck had never seemed the type to strike him as fatherly even though his behaviour to JD had always been that. Somehow when it was directed at JD, it did not seem paternal even though JD knew Buck was looking out for him more than he did the others.
"A little," Buck confessed, having never been asked the question before this. "But to tell ya the truth, I’m kind of looking forward to it, you know." A slow smile stole across his face. "Time was, I was terrified of it, but after I got to thinking about it really, I knew I wouldn’t mind a family someday. So it didn’t turn up the way I expected it would but I got more than most men do in the same situation. I love Inez and I do want to marry her so I ain’t complaining."
JD was about to respond when suddenly Buck heard something in the darkness and silenced him with a look. His eyes scanned the immediate vicinity, trying to see past the foliage surrounding them. "Quiet." He whispered cautiously, and JD nodded quietly, as the two studied the surrounding area with deep scrutiny. Buck was uncertain of what he had heard, but upon hearing it no more, he relaxed a little but not much.
"What was it, Buck?" JD asked, not having heard the sound himself but relying upon the stony expression on Buck’s face. Buck was rarely serious about anything, but when it was needed, JD knew Buck’s instinct was sharp and never to be underestimated.
"Nothing." He shook his head, unable to identify the source of what he heard as that made by man or animal but could not dismiss this tightening across his chest. "Come on," he urged, turning his horse towards the house. "Let’s get back."
"If you say so Buck," the younger man agreed, realising Buck’s concern had not evaporated even if his suspicion of something amiss had not been confirmed. Without offering any further argument, JD directed his horse to follow Buck back to the house.
In the darkness the Buck had not been able to penetrate, Ramirez and his men finally let out their breaths when they had seen him and his young companion withdraw. While it might be simpler to kill Wilmington now, Ramirez wanted the element of surprise on their side when they finally emerged from their hiding places. Watching the two lawmen disappear into the night, most likely on the way back to the house, Ramirez knew they had to be intercepted before they got there. Once the coast was clear, he turned to his men and whispered quietly when he was confident his voice would not carry across the woods or give away their position.
"You know what to do."
"Si Ramirez," his younger comrade nodded. "We’ll take the woman."
"Good," Ramirez answered, motioning them to get on their way. He had his own task to fulfil and the involved a rendezvous with Don Paulo’s killer.
It would be the last rendezvous the Buck Wilmington would ever make with anyone.