Kid and Louise were grateful that he was finally going to open up. They eyed him curiously.

Jimmy took a deep breath. He was about to reveal some unresolved issues from the past that he had always just hoped to forget. It's now or never I suppose. It took all of Hickok's strength not to haul out and deck the man in front of him. He pushed Harvey's shoulder, forcing him to collapse to his knees.

"Harvey used to be in with a gang when we first started getting settled as neighbors. He tried to force me into it too, and that's when I made the decision to turn him in." Jimmy wanted to make this story as brief as possible. Unfortunately he knew there would be questions.

"Your friend here doesn't know how good he would have had it." Cutter turned to Jimmy. "You realize I was the only one to get away. I would be willin' to bet that's why you were so surprised to see me." He laughed again to himself, but that soon turned to angry growl. "All the boys with me were hung. I'm still holding you responsible, Hickok."

Jimmy leaned down into his face. The firelight accented the shadows around his eyes, causing Harvey to see just how irritated he was becoming. "We were just boys...I wasn't going to ruin my life. You didn't stick to robbing, Harvey, your gang murdered innocent people!!"

Lou, who had been bandaging Kid's grazed arm, looked over at Jimmy. She could tell just how provoked he was. Silently she prayed that he would be able to control his temper. Last thing they needed was to have to explain to the marshal why he had shot a "presumed" innocent man. She looked back to Kid who smiled warmly and gratefully touched her hand as she tightened the last bandage.

Slowly walking over to Jimmy, Lou reached out and touched his arm. Jimmy instinctively pulled it back. "I'll be fine, Lou."

She was about to instantly argue. It was so hard to see him injured, physically, and mentally. "Jimmy..."

He cut her off. "Let me finish first, please." Smiling slightly, she backed away. Jimmy continued, noticing how Harvey had wisely chosen to remain silent. Lou nodded, acknowledging that she was ready to listen.

"We were about 14 at the time. I asked him not to keep it up. But when things fell apart with our parents, I decided for sure that it had to stop. I wouldn't be honest if I told you that I didn't think about joining him. Boyish fun I guess you could say." Jimmy stopped long enough to make sure Harvey was looking at him. "It took me two months to do it. I kept hoping you'd change."

"Yeah, well you missed some good times James." Harvey said, breaking his silence.

Jimmy ignored him. "It started out small; Rob the man walking down the street. Then, they went for a general store...of course from there it kept getting bigger, until it finally lead to murder. My only regret, Carter, is that I didn't turn you in sooner. Those people you held up would still be alive. How and why I called you my friend, I'll never know." The sadness seeping in, Jimmy had to walk away. He had always regretted having to turn Harvey in, not because of what he did, but because it tore at him that he chose to live that kind of life. Just think where you'd be if you HAD followed him. He clenched his fists. Harvey, we could have made something of ourselves! Jimmy, feeling alone, sat down in the darkness.

Lou, who had silently followed him, approached as quietly as she could. "Jimmy"? She called softly.

He looked up. "Yeah. Did you just go off and leave Kid"?

She lowered herself down to sit beside him. "Yes, actually he suggested I come see if you were alright."

When he didn't respond she leaned down towards his face. "Well"?

Jimmy didn't move. Instead, he tried to avoid the question. Lou could be so frustratingly good at getting him to spill everything.

He spoke in a low whisper. "I don't know, Lou. I thought this part of my life was behind me. Did I make a mistake"?

Lou was surprised. "How can you ask that? He murdered people. You had to turn him in."

"No, that's not what I meant." He massaged his forehead. "Did I make a mistake by staying with all of you....and working for the express?? It seems like I've only brought trouble." He didn't want an answer, but rather Jimmy wanted so much for the answer to appear to him.

Lou tried to decide if she should remain silent, or tell him how she really felt. She went for the latter. "Jimmy, I can't imagine these past couple of years without you. I don't want to think about it. You have not done anything wrong....so stop being so hard on yourself. When you say that, you're not thinking about anyone else. What about me? And Kid, you're his closest friend, don't we all count for something in your life"?

She didn't want to hear his answer, so she stood up and took his arm. "Come on, let's get some rest. We have a prisoner to take to the marshal, and mail to deliver."

He squeezed her hand affectionately. "Thank you, Lou."

"Don't thank me. Just get things sorted out!"

She turned and started to walk towards camp, but he grabbed her arm. "Lou, when we get back, can you and I talk? There's something I need to tell you."

Lou nodded slightly confused. "Of course."

He smiled gratefully. She took his arm and they started back to the warm fire. This feels right. Jimmy thought. But it's not going to be.

Chapter 8

It was a chilly night, and Lou instinctively huddled herself into the warmths of her coat. She knew it was going to be another sleepless night, and that trying to fight that would be futile. Instead she just sat up staring into the fire watching the sparks dance around the flames. As many times as she had re-lived Jimmy's last conversation, she couldn't figure it out. What is this all about? Or do I even want to know....

The next morning proved to be a quiet one. Hardly any of them spoke a word. Even Harvey seemed to respect the ambience of the moment. In the past, any problems they had faced together were usually discussed and each of them gave their opinions. For once though, they kept it all to themselves.

Kid was tightening Katy's girth when he looked over at Jimmy. "We best take Cutter with us to Fort Kearny. No reason to double back."

Jimmy nodded. As much as he wanted to turn back and give Harvey over to the authorities, they needed to get their message delivered. However, he had a sick feeling that it would be a long ride. "Yeah." Was all he was able to say.

Having tied Cutter securely, the four riders began their journey onward. There was a constant uneasiness that seemed to hang over their shoulders. Although nothing was said, Kid, Jimmy and Lou knew that the anxiety would be gone once Harvey was off of their hands.

Kid, who had been trailing behind, sped up to reach Lou. He waited until he was sure Jimmy wouldn't be able to hear, then he turned to her. "Lou, what was it Jimmy told you last night? And don't tell me it wasn't anything....I saw your face when you came back."

She glanced over at him. The last thing they all needed was for Kid to become jealous. Lou couldn't honestly answer him, because even she wasn't sure what Jimmy had been driving at. Although, she did have a pretty good idea. "I don't know, Kid. He still said there's something he wants to talk to me about." She hoped that he'd be satisfied with that.

Kid gripped Katy's reins tighter. He had a bad feeling about the whole situation, but wisely decided let it rest for the moment. "When he tells you, let me know." The tone in his voice made it clear that he had just given an order, not a request. Depends on what he really talks to me about. She nodded affirmatively, and smiled at him. He returned the expression, letting all of his affection towards her gleam through his pale blue eyes.

Fort Kearny amazingly quiet and calm. It was the type of atmosphere that could only bring upon one feeling....suspicion. They approached the main gate and were greeted curtly by a young man in a Calvary uniform. He asked them what their business was about, and told them to proceed once they showed the envelope with the mysterious document.

Jimmy halted and turned to Kid. "You take Harvey to the marshal, I'll see that this is delivered."

Kid hesitated, "Yeah, I can turn him in, but what do I tell them....we have no proof of anything." Jimmy licked his very dry lips. Kid was right, how would they prove that Harvey had done any of that? You don't just turn in a man and say 'here hang him, he tried to kill my friend and steal my mail'. They'd take one look at you, and tell you to back to that rock you climbed out from underneath.

He took a deep breath. "Fine, then let's get rid of this delivery, then deal with him later." He looked over at Harvey who gave him a mischievous smile. Disgustedly, Jimmy turned away.

"What do you mean this isn't worth anything!?" Jimmy exclaimed.

The man stared into his eyes. "Just what I said. We got the real map yesterday."

Lou grabbed the paper from Jimmy's hand. "Then what is this supposed to be? Looks like a map if I ever saw one!"

Seeming quite angered by his persistent visitors, the major cleared his throat. He realized that was a habit whenever he felt his tolerance level fall. "Look, you were just decoys....bait, whatever you want to call it! Someone had to get the message through, so we figured that if it were announced that a military document was being brought here, any southern sympathizer would go after it. You really don't think we'd announce such an important document, do you"?

Without thinking Jimmy went at the man. He'd played the delivery man for too long; risking his life for some lady who wanted to tell her sister out West the latest family news, or a military document that he was hunted for by some fortune-seeking outlaw.

Kid and Lou both grabbed his arms pulling him away from his grip on the soldier's throat. "Jimmy, no. Come on."

"I've risked everything." He yelled as they pushed him out the door. "You don't care who gets killed in the process of your war games!"

Stomping out, Jimmy mounted his horse and rode off. He didn't take the time to look back and see the bewildered expressions on his friend's faces.

Chapter 9

Kid stood watching Jimmy ride off, his hands gently rested on his hips. He waited until he was out of sight before turning to Lou. "Well, guess we better find a way to get him somewhere." He pointed to Cutter.

Lou didn't know what to say at that point. She had seen emotional ups and downs before, but Jimmy had just created a new method. "I guess the only thing we can do is take him with us. It's obvious they don't want to have much to do with us here."

Kid agreed. Teaspoon should be able to do something, and if this man was an outlaw like Jimmy had claimed, there should be some record from his trial. "Let's get back as close to home as possible." Without another word, Lou followed his example and mounted her horse.

As they rode, Kid thought about the day's events and they had been a decoy. In some ways he couldn't blame Jimmy for riding off like he did. Kid had to admit that he was quite furious as well. But he also had to admit to himself that even though he could partly understand....it still ticked him off that Jimmy had left them with his old friend, which only made it seem right that he should take more responsibility.

Completely lost in thoughts, Kid wasn't aware of the repeating question that came from Lou. She had to repeat herself four times, so finally on the fifth try, she pulled an obliging acorn from a tree and threw it at his head. There was a slight hesistation before he turned to glance behind. "Oh, I'm sorry. Did you say something"? His innocent expression clearly stated to Lou that he hadn't been ignoring her like she had assumed.

Her coy look couldn't have been more expressive. "No, I didn't ask you a thing. I'VE ONLY tried talking to you four times, Kid! If you're starting out this young, I'm afraid to be with you when we're old." She rode up closer to him, not taking her eyes off of Harvey. This time she saw something that scared her....Kid hadn't even seemed to respond. He always had a comeback when she teased him.

"Is something on your mind"? Her tone showed sincere concern, and Lou felt bad for the slight outburst she had given him....even if it was mostly in jest.

Kid looked deep into her eyes. He knew at that moment that there was no way he could love anyone more than he did her. "Lou, I'm sorry, it's just that I've got so much on my mind."

She tried desperately not to laugh. "Yeah, I've noticed. Anything you want to talk about? I'm here you know."

There was a slight hesitation, but Kid knew it would be pointless to ever hide anything from Lou. She always had a way of finding out his deepest secrets. Heck, he couldn't ever buy her anything without her finding out when she would sneak peeks through his belongings. "What are we going to do about Jimmy? Nothing I say seems to help. He's drifting far away, Lou, and it scares me to think what he might do to himself."

Lou opened her mouth, but Kid quickly cut in. "And before you say it, yeah, you can't save a person from themself."

They both smiled. "It's true, you know." She said.

"Yeah, I know."

They rode in silence for what seemed like ages. The recent rain showers had brought upon humid dampness. It's strange how the weather can make your mind feel closed off. Kid mused. And that was exactly how he felt....closed off. Harvey broke his own barrier of silence. "Especially Hickok. He's always been a stubborn one."

Kid shot back a dirty grimace. "I don't recall anyone asking your opinion."

He shrugged. "No, but I've always been inclined to give it anyway." Cutter figured that his only way to get out of this would be to make friendly with these two. Then perhaps with all that was going on, they might just see things his way. Unfortunately for him, things weren't looking that promising.

Lou tried to finish her statement once again. "But truthfully, Kid, this is something that Jimmy has to work out for himself. You can't carry the weight of the whole world by yourself, you know."

He nodded. "You're right."

Hoping to get his mind off of the subject, Kid noted that darkness was coming. They had made good time for the late start back from Ft. Kearny....even though they hadn't actually gone completely into the town. Merely they had reached the outskirts where the military base was operated.

Lou, who had apparently been mirroring his thoughts, stopped Lightning. "Why don't we make camp before it gets too dark. I have a feeling it's going to be a rainy night, and these are probably the only clump of trees the rest of the way back."

"Good plan." Kid said.

Then suddenly a voice came from the shadows. "Yeah, I think that is a good plan."