开云体育

Forgot to add the last of the Seven men who protect Four Corners.

Nathan Jackson:
A former slave and resident healer/Doctor though he has had no formal
training. He used to be a stretcher barrier in the army which is where he
picked up his doctoring.

John Dunn aka JD:
The youngest of the seven, fast with a gun, but still has a lot to learn.



The story begins part two:

“I should go see if Mrs. Potter needs any help.” She looked down to where
Ezra still held her wrist. His thumb rubbed a small circle against the skin
on the underside of her wrist.

“Is that where you’ll be waiting out the storm?”

“I-,” Ezra cut off her words.

“It would please me to know where you’ll be and that you’ll be safe.”

“Yes, I’ll stay with Mrs. Potter.”



Emma tried not to think about Ezra as she moved goods from the wooden walk
into Mrs. Potter’s store. His attentiveness and concern was something she
hadn’t experienced from a man in a long time. She had heard the stories and
rumors of the person he had been before coming to Four Corners, but that was
not the man she saw now.

Sudden darkness pulled Emma from her thoughts. The sun had disappeared
behind rolling black clouds. Dust and dirt swirled in the street. Emma
grabbed a basket of apples wishing they’d had time to bring everything in.
It took both Mrs. Potter and Emma to push the door closed, wedging a sack of
flour against to keep the door from swinging open. They huddled in the
store room with Mrs. Potter’s two children. The raging howl of the wind
outside deafened any attempt to talk. After what seemed like days, the
sound of the wind died.

Emma dared a look through the front windows. Glass and wood littered the
road. A handful of people ran between buildings and voices screamed out for
help. She watched Buck tear out of town with a pair of men headed north.
Mrs. Potter’s storefront had survived without damage but the same could not
be said for other businesses along the main street. Emma spared a look to
the sky. Even through the quickly darkening evening, she could see the
clouds remained and rolled.

"You get through okay, Mrs. Clark?" JD Dunne had emerged from the sheriff's
office next door. Emma liked the young man. He remained her of her brother


"Yes, I was in Mrs. Potter's."

"Vin says it ain't over. Says storms like this come in waves."



Cheyenne found Blaze first, then Josiah's horse not far from where they had
been tethered. Blaze's bridle was caught on some bushes, but he didn't spook
when she approached and untangled him. Josiah's horse was nearby and easily
caught too. After looking them over to be sure neither horse was injured
she lead them back over to where Josiah lay trapped beneath the tree, and
secured them until she could finish her other tasks.


Next she found the saddles covered beneath more fallen branches jerking and
pulling at them with all her strength until they loosened and finally
slipped free. She then set about saddling the horses and taking the extra
rope from Josiah’s mount she tied one end to Blaze's saddle horn. Then
digging through the mud beneath the thick branches close to where Josiah was
pinned she slid the other end of the rope under it then took that end and
tied it to Josiah's mount's saddle horn making a loop under the fallen part
of the tree.

She positioned herself next to Josiah and bent down trying to get her arms
under enough that hopefully with the horses pulling at it she could lift it
just enough to free her guardian from his trap. Taking in a deep breath,
she prayed her plan would work and not cause Josiah more pain. Letting her
breath out she whistled and Blaze began to pull causing Josiah's horse to
follow suit. She strained to lift the tree. At first nothing happened. She
whistled again and called out to Blaze. "Ha!" she yelled and both he and the
other mount began to once again pull, this
Time the tree moved. Josiah cried out in pain. "Whoa!" she yelled and the
horse stopped moving. She hurried to Josiah's side.

"It's okay, I'll be all right...Keep going Annie."


Hesitantly, she tried again. This time she could feel the tree lift ever so
slightly. "Go Blaze pull!" she encouraged her horse. The tree limb moved;
Josiah cried out again but she didn't stop the horses. She knew this was
Josiah's only chance to get free. If she had gone for help as he had wanted
her too, he could have very well been dead by the time she returned. Within
minutes the tree was off Josiah and she called the horses to a stop and
hobbled over to him. He was grimacing in pain and trying to sit up, but
couldn't. He clutched at his ribs and his left leg hurt like hell.


"You cannot ride," she said knowingly.


"Think my legs broke Annie"


Cheyenne nodded her understanding. Once again she was off ignoring her own
injuries as she set about making a travois attaching it to her saddle. She'd
seen her father do this many times as a small child when he would take his
furs to sale in town. Once she'd finished, she helped Josiah on to it. She
fastened it on to her saddle and tied Josiah's horse to hers. Once she was
sure Josiah was secure, she mounted her horse, and set off back to town the
wounded Josiah in tow.
· * * *

Molly watched the people of the town work frantically to deal with the
damage. A woman on horseback who looked ready to fall off the beast came
into town, a man lay on a makeshift stretcher behind them clearly hurt.
Molly watched people approach them when someone came up to her.

"Miss O'Rourke?" the woman's voice inquired. Molly turned to see a blond
woman a few years older than her holding the hand of a young boy. The woman
s apron was smudged and strands of hair had come out of the knot her hair
had been arranged in. "I'm Mary Travis. I hope you came through the storm
alright though there's talk of more weather on the way."

"I think the stage avoided the worst of it though it got stuck. I'm very
happy to see you - I hope you made it through alright?" Molly inquired.

"Some broken windows but nothing too terrible. This is my son, Billy, he'll
be in your class when school starts," she announced proudly. Billy looked
up and gave her shy smile.

"Very pleased to meet you, Mr. Travis," Molly held out her hand and the boy
shyly shook it.

"I have your room all ready," Mary told her, leading her down the boardwalk.


"My things are still on the stage, they said they'd be bringing them once
they got the coach free..."

"Chris, Chris," Billy pulled from his mother’s hand and ran towards a man
that if Molly didn't know better she'd think was the banshee. Dressed head
to toe in black with a black gun belt hung low on his hip he walked the way
she'd seen men of considerable means walk down the streets of Baltimore, his
stride spoke of influence and power of a man that you did not disagree with
and that you did not deny.

He walked the way Darren walked.

His demeanor changed only slightly as Billy ran up to him and was swung up
in his arms. The shadow of a smile crossed his face. Molly stopped walking
and moved off to the side, hand clasped at her waist, eyes turned down. She
d made herself invisible to powerful people this way since she'd entered
service when she was twelve. A man like this would pass by her and not even
know she was there. As if she needed further proof of just how far away
from what she knew she was she heard Mary mention her name and the sounds of
footsteps approaching. Molly raised her head just enough for a showing of
differential respect.

"Molly this is Mr. Chris Larabee, he's one of the protectors of this town,"
Mary finished her introduction. He tipped his hat to her.

"Ma'am," Molly gave a soft nod of acknowledgment in response. She resumed
her quiet stance out of the way as Mrs. Travis and Mr. Larabee checked in
with each other about damage done by the storm. Mrs. Travis explained that
she was taking Molly back to her place and they'd wait out any other storms
there. Mr. Larabee responded that someone named Vin though it'd be best if
most folks waited the worst out in the saloon. Soon she and Mary were
making their way down the boardwalk again.


Chris met Ezra as he headed toward the Potter's store. Chris had seen Miss
Emma helping Mrs. Potter move most of her goods in before the storm hit and
guessed she waited it out there.

"Mr. Tanner is under the impression that Mother Nature is not finished
showing her wrath this evening," Ezra drawled in greeting. Chris nodded.

"Might be a good idea to take his advice and get as many people to the
saloon as possible," Chris responded.

"Who is the young lady with Mrs. Travis?" Ezra nodded at the two women who
were making their way inside the Clarion's storefront.

"That's the school teacher, Molly O'Rourke," Chris answered. There was
something about the girl that struck him as off. Judge Travis had said he
knew of one of the families she'd worked as a private tutor for in Baltimore
and that she came highly recommended. She'd attended some fancy finishing
school and knew Latin and French. He'd expected a young woman who was more
confident and though he was well aware his appearance and reputation had
most people giving him a wide berth, Molly looked like she was trying hard
not to be noticed, not to draw his attention.

A crash of thunder that sounded more like a bundle of dynamite exploding
filled the air. Ezra and Chris spared only a glance for each other as Ezra
ran toward the Potter's store and Chris ran across the street for the
Clarion. Lighting lit up the sky in crazy zig-zag patterns as he opened
the door and ran through.

"Mary?" he called out. She appeared from the back with Billy at her skirts
and Molly only a few steps behind. "Mary we gotta get to the saloon," Chris
said. He half prepared for an argument from the normally stubborn woman but
the presence of her son had her agreeing with him. The four of them went
back outside. The wind was blowing harder than the first storm. Chris
picked up Billy instructing the boy to put his face against Chris's shoulder
so any flying dust or debris wouldn't hit him. He spared a glance behind
him to see Mary and Molly struggling against skirts blowing around their
legs.

Molly gripped Mary's hand tight, the wind pushing from all directions. The
thunder sounded again and Molly froze when lighting struck the top of a
weather-vain on top of a building across the street. Suddenly something
struck her forehead causing her to stumble and go to her knees bringing Mary
with her. The world spun in a crazy dance and darkness pricked the edge of
her vision. Then she was being lifted, held against something solid and the
smell of prairie grass filled her nose.

"I gotch'a darlin'," Mr. Wilmington's voice reassured. Soon she was being
lowered down and she could hear many voices around her. Something was being
pressed against her forehead. "We'll have Nathan take a look at'cha soon,"
he said.

Molly nodded but the movement caused a spike of pain to flow through her
head. She wanted to speak but it was taking all her effort not to go into
the darkness that still threatened at the edges.

"Now you stay awake for me, you hear?" Mr. Wilmington's voice commanded
gently. Not wanting to risk more pain by nodding Molly reached for his hand
and squeezed it. He moved to sit next to her, his hand still holding hers
as the world fell apart outside.

· * *

"Emma?" Ezra's voice was lost in the howl of the wind. He pushed on the door
to the Potter store. He clung to the door handle as the wind threatened to
pull him down the street. The door opened from inside sending Ezra tumbling
through the doorway. Mrs. Potter stood over him her face twisted in a scowl.

"Mrs. Potter, I am pleased to see that you have survived without any damage.
But the storm seems to have returned bringing as Mr. Sanchez would say, 'the
wrath of God'. Mr. Larabee is trying to gather everyone in the saloon
together."

"You can tell Mr. Larabee that we are quite secure here. I'm not taking my
children out in that." She pointed to the dust and rain swirling outside the
windows. Ezra had never found it productive to argue with the widow and
could only nod his head.

"I believe that Mrs. Clark is here, as well?"

"Yes." She turned toward the back room. "Emma." Mrs. Potter's daughter slunk
into the doorway. "Where's Emma?"

"She went to get Mr. Cat. The back door blew open and he ran out." Ezra
pushed past Mrs. Potter to the back room. He saw nothing but blackness.
Night had over taken the town with the resurgence of the storm. He felt his
way along the back of the buildings calling out for her but the only
response was the cries of the wind.

****

"Damn cat." Emma swore as she grabbed for the animal and missed. She should
have let the cat fend for itself, but Alice Potter had started to cry. She
knew how much this cat meant to the little girl. It was the last gift her
father had given her before his murder. In the darkness, Emma could barely
make out shapes. Was that movement to her right? She turned away from the
building, fighting against the wind to follow the cat.

She stopped at a sound fighting against the wind. Was that her name? Was
someone calling her? The wind swallowed the rest of the sound. She pushed
ahead, the air thick and heavy. A shock of lightning struck a tree ahead of
Emma. She fell backwards, her head striking the ground. The world had gone
silent. Her eyes were open but all she saw was blackness. Not the blackness
of the night but the blackness of nothingness. Her hands grasped for
something to hold on to, rolling to her stomach. She pushed up to her knees.
The air smelled of smoke.

Deep ragged breaths came from her chest. Town would be to her right. She
couldn't be more than a few feet from the saloon or another building. Her
steps were hesitant. The world remained dark and silent. She called out,
hoping someone, anyone would hear. Her hands searched the air frantically
for anything, but found nothing.

****

Ezra entered the saloon through the kitchen. The main room was a mess of
voices and sounds. People huddled in groups, seeking comfort from the raging
storm outside. He spotted Chris on the far side of the room speaking with
Mary Travis. Ezra's eyes searched the room's occupants for Emma.

"I thought you were bringing Mrs. Potter and her kids."

"I endeavored to convince her that the safer spot to wait out the storm was
here, but she refused my invitation. She believes that she and her children
are safer there. And I did not wish to attempt to carry an unwilling Mrs.
Potter over here." A smile tugged on the corner of their mouths at the
thought of Ezra trying to carry Mrs. Potter anywhere. "Have either of you
seen Emma?"

"No." Mary shook her head. "I haven't seen her since the storm began."

"I thought she was with the Potters." Chris was sure he had seen her there.
He searched the crowded room just as Ezra had been doing.

"She was, however, the young Miss Potter's feline companion decided that the
storm would make an excellent time for a getaway. Em--Mrs. Clark was
attempting to retrieve the animal and I have been unable to locate her."

"I'm sure she's fine." Mary laid a hand on Ezra's arm. It hadn't escaped her
that he had twice referred to the young widow by her first name. "She
probably just holed up somewhere else till this passes."
· * *

Vin held tight to his hat as he trudged urgently onward along the wooden
walk toward the boarding house where he and Nathan had taken the injured
Josiah and Cheyanne earlier. He ducked protecting his eyes as blowing debris
and dirt whirled past him. Chris had thought it best if they would get
everyone they could into one place, namely the saloon, in hopes it would be
safer than trying to hunker down and weather the impending storm on their
own. Vin was on his way to help Nathan bring in Josiah and Cheyanne, but by
the looks of things now. He wasn't sure they were going to be able get back.
**
Nathan had already talked it over with Mrs. Kimball the proprietor of the
building earlier that day and made plans to use the boarding house as a make
shift hospital in anticipation of people getting caught and hurt in the
storm even before the first wave had hit. So when Josiah and Cheyanne had
arrived back in town wounded and drenched it had been the first place he
brought them
Now with the second half of the violent storm hitting even harder he was
doubly glad he had. He just prayed there would be no casualties. He looked
over at the still sleeping Josiah and wondered how the man could sleep threw
the thundering and banging against the outside walls of the building as the
wind unleashed its fury. He hadn't even stirred earlier when Nathan and Mrs.
Kimball had bound the splints along both sides of his broken leg to keep it
straight and set in place while it would heal over the next few weeks.
**
Mrs. Kimball sat nervously behind the front desk praying for a quick end to
the violent weather outside. She jumped every time she heard the thunder
crack or something outside slam into the building. So when Vin practically
blew through the door as he entered she nearly fell off her chair startled
to the point of screaming. “Good Lord!” she exclaimed as Vin pushed against
the door to shut it just as the rain started to beat down with a vengeance.
“Sorry ma’am,” Vin apologized quickly. “Chris thinks it's best if we all
wait this thing out at the saloon, thinks it'll be a might safer there. I'll
gather up the others if you'll wait right here.”
Mrs. Kimball nodded to afraid to move anyway.
Just as Vin opened the door to Josiah's room Josiah's eyes opened scanning
the room from wall to wall finally setting on Nathan. “Where am I?” he asked
momentarily forgetting what had happened. Before Nathan could answer Vin
spoke as he entered the room.
“We need to get him to the saloon, storms get'n worse, Chris thinks we'll
all be safer there.”
But before they'd take a step forward it sounded as if rocks were pounding
down on the roof top and windows. Suddenly they heard the unmistakable sound
of breaking glass shattering and the howling wind sounding as if it had
broken threw the walls then a scream from upstairs cut through the air like
a knife.
“Cheyanne?” Josiah asked desperately, “where's Cheyanne?”
“I'll get ‘er, Nathan get Josiah ready to move” Vin ordered as he ran out
the door sprinting past Mrs. Kimball and up the stairs taking two at a time.
**
Cheyanne had already been awake when the roaring wind and rain began
pounding at her window. She had gotten out of bed to brave a look outside
when the white rocks as her people called the hail that had begun to slam
into the window frightened her. She had grabbed the small quilt from the end
of her bed and threw it around her shoulders and was making her way to the
door when her window abruptly shattered causing a surprised and fearful
scream to escape her. The wind blew wildly threw the window tossing hail and
rain threw the opening and blowing in debris from outside, knocking over
anything inside the room that wasn't nailed down. Cheyanne had tried
desperately to open the door but unable to do so against the pressure of the
wind. She fell to the floor crawling into a corner of the room and huddled
there.

Vin slammed himself against the door to Cheyanne's room trying to open it
calling out for her. He pushed and leaned into it until he thought he would
break his shoulder before the door gave way. When finally it did give way
and he burst through it. “Cheyanne!” he called out over the sound of the
howling, scanning the room for her. Then he spotted her and quickly made his
way over to her. Helping her to stand then taking her hand he led the way
out of the room. Cheyanne, though limping from her injured knee, fallowed
close behind him with a deadly grip on his hand and the other holding tight
to the quilt around her shoulders.
By the time they had reached the bottom step Nathan and Josiah were in the
lobby Josiah leaning on Nathan for support and trying to keep from putting
weight on his broken leg. Mrs. Kimball was doing her best to help Nathan,
Vin quickly went over and took her place with Cheyanne next to him “you two
stay close” he encouraged the two women.
Before they could get to the door another window shattered on the other side
of the lobby. They could see how intense the storm had become in just a
short while.
“Were' not gonna make it” Vin announced he'd been afraid of this to begin
with but wasn't sorry he'd come. “Best we hunker down here and ride it out.
Nathan, can you and Mrs. Kimball find some blankets and pillows maybe a
lantern? Maybe we can hold up in Josiah's room only one window in there and
we can tip the bed over in front of it. Nathan agreed and helped Vin to move
the bed and set it up against the window then moved the heavy dresser
against it to hold it there should the window break and the wind threaten to
knock it over. He helped to get Josiah settled in then hurried to help Mrs.
Kimball find more blankets and whatever else they may need to settle in for
what was sure to be a rough night.

**
When morning finally came, the winds had died; the rain and hail had stopped
The sun began to show itself. Vin's eyes fluttered open he smiled inwardly
as he looked down at the still slumbering Cheyanne who had fallen asleep
sitting on the floor and leaning against the wall between he and Josiah,
sometime during the night she'd repositioned and her head was now leaning
against his shoulder her blanket lay over her and down into her lap. Mrs.
Kimball leaned against the wall not far from him with a pillow behind her
head and wrapped in a blanket. Nathan was on the other side of her.
Vin tried to move slowly as not to wake her but as he stirred Cheyanne's
eyes slowly opened. “Mornin’,” Vin greeted her with a smile, trying to hide
the fact that he enjoyed her leaning against him. Embarrassed when she
realized where she had been laying her head, Cheyanne quickly moved away
causing Vin to break out in a bigger grin; but tried to conceal it as not to
embarrass her more. Within moments the others one by one opened there eyes
and began to wake.
“Listen,” Nathan broke the silence They all turned to him “It's stopped, I
think it's over.” Smiles crossed every ones lips and while Nathan and Vin
helped Josiah to stand with Cheyanne doing what she could. Mrs. Kimball made
her way over to the door and opened it. Tables and chairs lay disheveled all
over the floor, curtains were blown off, paper and debris lay everywhere.
She made her way to the front door that miraculously had sustained very
little damage and opened it. Walking outside within a few minutes the others
were standing beside her. The devastation they beheld was unbelievable.

· * *

The storm had lasted the rest of the night. Molly was exhausted. Afraid of
having her fall asleep before a man named Nathan could look at her, Mr.
Wilmington had kept her awake telling stories of adventures he'd had most of
which were just outrageous enough that Molly thought he was making them up
and most of which included a friend of his named Chris. It became clear as
he told his stories that Chris was the Chris Larabee Mary had introduced her
to. Mr. Wilmington had to have been just as tired as she was and a couple of
times she urged him to sleep. As the morning drew near, the storm dissipated
until the early sunrise began to show through the windows.

People began to cautiously venture outside to look over the damage. Mr.
Wilmington helped Molly to stand, the side of her forehead was throbbing and
all she wanted was to take a hot bath and sleep. She'd never gotten to
change out of her gritty travel clothes after arriving in town. She had
taken her hat off at Mrs. Travis's and her hair, which had been arranged in
a chignon, was now in complete disarray. Slowly she let Mr. Wilmington lead
her to the saloon doorway. He called out to a young man, addressing him as
JD" and asking where Nathan was.

"He's at the boarding house," the young man answered acknowledging Molly by
touching the brim of his hat the style of which reminded Molly of the men
back east. "Looks like they got hit pretty hard. Saw Vin with Cheyanne
though and he said they came through it okay."

Another man approached them. Though his clothes were dusty they were of high
quality suggesting a person of wealth.

"I'm hoping I can impose upon you gentlemen to form a search party with me.
It seems Mrs. Clark may be missing," his heavy southern accent was laced
with worry.

"I'd be glad to go with you, Ezra, but Molly here's been hurt and I need to
get her to Nathan," Mr. Wilmington replied.

"I'll take her to Nathan," Mr. Larabee's voice replied. "Buck, you and JD go
with Ezra. We should also see if anyone else might be missing." Molly did
not want Mr. Larabee taking her anywhere. Mr. Wilmington had taken care of
her and he was really the only person she knew here. He put both his hands
on her shoulders and gave them a gentle squeeze.

"This here's the Chris I was telling you about last night. He's gonna take
you to Nathan have him take a look at that bump on your pretty head there
alright?" Molly swallowed hard and nodded. What other choice did she have?
I'll come check up on you later," he said before going off with JD and Ezra
to look for the missing woman.

"Think you can walk?" Mr. Larabee asked her. Molly nodded again though she
was far from sure of her footing. The last thing in the world she wanted was
for this man to have to carry her through the streets of the town. Mr.
Larabee took a hold of her arm as she stepped down from the boardwalk to the
street. Her knees nearly gave out as a wave of dizziness hit her and her
stomach rolled in protest. If there were a God in heaven she would not vomit
in front of his man. His arm came around her back steadying her.

"I'm sorry, I just need a moment," Molly said softly gathering her wits
about her. One foot in front of the other was all she had to accomplish.

"That's a pretty nasty bump on your head. Maybe it's not such a good idea
you walking," Mr. Larabee said to her. A lot more people were out and about
now and she was well aware of several of them taking interest in the new
woman being braced in the arms of one of their protectors. It was not the
first impression she wanted to give them. Her response was to start walking;
keeping her eyes focused down to keep the dizziness at bay she put one foot
in front of the other having to trust that Mr. Larabee would lead her in the
right direction.

Soon they reached the boarding house and Mr. Larabee helped her up onto the
board walk. He called for Nathan and a tall dark skinned man appeared.

"Molly O'Rourke, new school teacher. Buck said she got hit in the head last
night on her way to the saloon," Mr. Larabee's voice spoke.

"Come on, honey, let's get you inside and take a look at that," his deep
voice was gentle as he took her arm and led her inside the boarding house.
Several beds had been lined up in the main parlor. It reminded Molly of the
hospital where Miss Laura had volunteered. A man lay in one of the beds, his
leg in a splint, his eyes closed and a young woman who appeared to be Indian
sitting next to him.

Nathan led her to another bed and helped her sit. His fingers began touching
her head carefully and in spite of herself Molly cried out in pain.

"You're gonna have a nice sized goose-egg there for a while I'm afraid,"
Nathan said to her. "I want you to stay here for a little while so that I
can watch you." Molly saw over his shoulder that more people were being
brought inside that were clearly hurt and she wondered if he had anyone to
help him. She didn't want to take up a bed that may be needed for someone
more hurt than she was. She began to protest when he cut her off.

"I want you to just lay down for while alright? Keep this cold cloth on your
head and I'll check on you later," his tone brokered no argument as he
gently he pressed her back into the bed and placed the cloth on her head.
Before she realized it sleep over took her.


Cheyanne spent the morning helping Nathan by fetching water, bandages and
anything else he needed. She liked being useful though she tried hard to
avoid most of the town's people. She also spent time watching over Josiah
who was sleeping off and on. Most of the town's people who were hurt only
required patching up. The only other person in a bed besides Josiah was the
girl that Chris Larabee had brought in. She had long reddish hair and dark
eyes. She had been sleeping the last few hours and was now starting to stir
and was softly talking. Suddenly her body jerked and she began yelling,

"Mr. Thomas stop...Brendan, Brendan help us..." She sat upright just as
Nathan came rushing into the room.

"What happened?" Nathan asked Cheyanne.

"A nightmare I think," she answered him knowingly. Nathan had been the one
to tend to her after her own real life nightmare. Cheyanne watched Nathan
approach the girl and speak quietly to her. Their voices were soft but it
was clear that she was denying anything was wrong. It was also clear to
Cheyanne that she wasn't being truthful. Something had happened to that girl
It was also clear that she wanted to leave the boarding house and that
Nathan wasn't so sure it was a good idea. Then Nathan called Cheyanne over.
She stood and made her way to them.

"This here's Cheyanne, she's a friend of mine. Cheyanne this is Molly O
Rourke, the new school teacher. Can you walk with her over to Mrs. Travis's?
Come get me if she gets in a bad way? Josiah's just gonna keep sleepin' for
now anyway." Cheyanne nodded and satisfied Nathan led them to the door.

"Thank you for everything you've done for me, Nathan," Molly said as they
reached the door. Nathan made her promise to come see him if she got faint
or dizzy and only after she agreed did he let them go out the door.

"What possessed Emma to go out in that damn storm?" Buck asked as they
saddled their horses. Ezra tensed at Buck's use of Emma's first name. He
had seen Buck flirt often with the seamstress, though she always rebuffed
him. At least in public she had. Ezra relayed the story of the Potter cat.
"A cat? She went after a cat?"
Buck didn't know as much about tracking as Vin, but more than the other two.
Even with his skills, not even Vin could have followed any trail Emma might
have made. The storm had left the surrounding area a muddy mess. Any
footprints she might have made were long gone. The three moved west from
town thinking that Emma might have been turned around in the dark and
stumbled away blindly into the storm. They stayed within visual distance of
one another as they scoured the area. Any places a person might have taken
refuge in the storm were few and far between out here.

Scrub brush lay in battered clumps in the drying mud. Ezra felt any hope he
had at finding Emma sinking fast. He pulled his horse to a halt near an
outcropping of rocks. Four Corners was still visible behind him, but far
enough away to be just a hazy shape on the horizon. He drew a long drink
from the flask he always carried. He wondered if anyone even knew if she had
family that should be told. A faint moan from behind the rocks pulled him
from his thoughts. Ezra hopped down from his horse and his heart stopped for
a second when he saw her.

"Emma." Ezra dropped to his knees next to the woman. She was curled into a
fetal position pressed against the rocks. She was dirty, her dress torn, but
he didn't see any obvious injuries. "Emma? Can you hear me?"

"Gr-Grace," her voice was a whisper. Her eyes fluttered open for a second.
Emma is my mother."

Ezra stood and fired his revolver into the air to draw Buck and JD to him.
Buck was the first to arrive. Neither man needed to speak. They both could
see that she needed to get to Nathan as soon as possible. Ezra mounted his
horse and let Buck lift Emma into his arms. Her eyes opened again for a
moment as she was settled against him.

"Ezra?" Her voice weak and crackling, he still liked the way his name
sounded coming from her. He tightened his arm around her.

"I do believe I asked you to take refuge during the storm, not chase errant
felines." He thought he saw a trace of smile around her mouth. JD rode ahead
to let people know that Emma had been found. The pace returning was slower
than Ezra wanted, but it was difficult to ride and keep Emma from falling
from the horse. Buck did his best in helping to lead the gambler's mount.
Ezra tried asking Emma more questions but she had slipped into
unconsciousness. Her body shook as if chilled but Ezra could feel her hot,
damp skin.

Ezra hadn't bothered to notice the state of the town before they left. But
now he saw it as they rode down the main street. Broken boards and glass
littered the ground wherever he looked. The sounds of hammering could be
heard as some began the long rode of repairs. Nathan and Vin waited in front
of the boarding house. Vin took Emma's limp body from Ezra. He looked to
Nathan for direction.

"We're full up in here." He jerked a thumb behind him. "How bad is she?"

"Nothing appears broken, but she's running a fever." Ezra dropped down from
his horse. "What about her own room?" Ezra couldn't see the older boarding
house from here to see how it had survived.

"Place half collapsed. She might be lucky to get some of her things out of
there but no one's going to be staying there for a while."

"Then we'll put her in my room. In the saloon." The suggestion was met with
raised eyebrows and silence. "I am assuming that the saloon survived the
storm and that I am not half-owner to half a building."

"Survived just fine, but-," Nathan wasn't sure how sure how to say what they
all were thinking. JD, however had no problem blurting out the question.

"But is that proper?"

"At this time, I am not concerned with propriety."



Lily Patterson swept broken glass from the front windows. It would be weeks
before everything in the saloon was repaired. Though she knew that wouldn't
stop folks from coming to drink. The saloon had managed to weather most of
the storm without damage. A few windows would need to be replaced and there
was a hole in the roof above one of the spare rooms. Luckily, her and Ezra's
rooms were spared any damage. She hadn't relished the idea of trying to
replace her wardrobe. She looked up as Vin came through the swinging doors
carrying Emma Clark. Ezra was right behind them.

"Ezra? What's going on?" She didn't know the young widow well, except to
have her make a pair of dresses. But she seemed to be a well-bred and well
educated woman.

"She was caught up in the storm. It seems our makeshift hospital is full, so
I'm going to put her in my room."

"Your room?" The disapproval was evident in her tone.

"Yes, I am quite aware of how that might appear. However, at this moment my
only interest is seeing that she receives the care she needs."

Lily followed Ezra and Vin up the stairs. Those in town, more proper than
her, already spun wild tales since she and Ezra kept rooms under the same
roof. If word spread that Emma was ensconced in his room, things for the
young woman would be far worse. "Put her in my room."

"It was not my intention for you to offer your room, Lily." Lily nodded to
Vin as he hovered in the hall unsure what to do. He pushed open the door to
Lily's room and disappeared inside. She smiled at Ezra and gave his arm a
gentle squeeze.

"I know that your intentions are far more decent than most would assume."
She had seen the way Ezra looked at the seamstress when she came into the
saloon. Lily had also seen the stolen glances from Emma at Ezra when she
thought no one was looking. "Tread carefully."

? ?
Linda