Jimmy, on the other hand, didn’t have any doubts that Lou would carry through with her threats of shooting Kid and him if they didn’t do as she said. In her right mind, he knew, Lou would never have drawn a gun on Kid, no matter how angry she was at him. She knew only too well the consequences of drawing a gun on a person you never intended to shoot in the first place. It left yourself open for a lot of hurt for all concerned, if you managed to not get shot in the process. But in her right mind was the key phrase here. Lou had been acting mighty peculiar, and looked even worse, ever since he had first found her outside of the stables. It clenched his idea that Lou was hiding something else from them…and he feared that he knew what the answer was. Lou was seriously ill, maybe even dying, and running away from Rock Creek was her idea of protecting them all from her imminent death.
Kid cleared his throat and said, “Put down the gun Lou. If you really want to leave that badly, Jimmy and I won’t try to stop you.”
“You really don’t think I’m going to believe that, do you Kid? Back up and give me some room to move.” Lou ordered.
“Okay.” Kid said and backed up a couple of feet. "just take it easy Lou!"
Jimmy took the opportunity to move closer to Lou, but stopped abruptly as Lou turned at an angle so as to train the gun on both him and Kid at the same time. “Don’t try anything stupid Jimmy. Don’t make me shoot you.”
“No one’s going to make you shoot anyone Lou. You’re going to do that all on your own as long as you keep that gun out. Why don’t you put it away?” Jimmy said.
It was at that exact moment, that Buck and Ike reappeared from the shadows of the nearby buildings. Lou hastily moved to cover them as well as they came to a stop next to Kid, their eyes widening as they took in the gun in Lou’s hand. It was just the opening that Jimmy needed to move in and rush Lou from the side. One arm wrapped around her waist, while the other one reached for the gun that she held in her hand. Lou fought to free herself from Jimmy’s gripped and keep a hold on her gun. The gun went off in the midst of their wrestling with it, forcing Kid, Buck and Ike to hit the ground to prevent from being hit by stray bullets. In the end, Jimmy’s strength won out over Lou’s desperation and he was able to pry the gun from her fingertips. He shoved the gun into his belt and keeping a firm grip of the still struggling Lou, he pulled out his bandanna and quickly tied her hands together.
“You lowdown, no good varmint! You two-bit gunfighter! If this is the way you treat women, no wonder none of them stay around!” Lou spat fierily, drawing back a leg and kicking Jimmy in the shin.
“Ow! Dang it Lou, cut that out!” Jimmy exclaimed, reaching down to rub a hand over the tender area.
“Aw, does him have a boo-boo?” Lou said tauntingly. “Good! You can expect to get more bruises than that, if you don’t untie me right now Hickok!”
“Jimmy what the hell do you think you’re doing?” Kid exclaimed angrily. “You can’t just truss her up like a turkey, no matter how mad she makes you!”
“Who says I can’t? Would you like me to untie her and give her back her gun so she can shoot us all with it?” Jimmy asked.
Kid stopped to think about what Jimmy had said. There was no way he wanted Lou to have her gun back again. At least, not until after she had settled down some and could think straight again. Still it didn’t set right with him to keep Lou tied up. They had come after her to help her, not hurt her anymore than she was already hurting.
“Jimmy will let you go Lou, if you promise to not try another stunt like you just did.” Kid told Lou.
“The hell I will!” Jimmy exclaimed. “ I say we keep her like this and hightail it back to Rock Creek! Let Teaspoon and Rachel try and talk some sense into her.”
“Why don’t we tie you up and see how you like it?” Buck declared. “Lou’s not some outlaw you’re taking in for the bounty money, Jimmy. She’s our friend, part of our family!”
“I don’t hear you making any better suggestions Buck! If I untie her, she’s just going to pull some crazy stunt again to get away and hurt either herself or one of us! She’s sick and we owe it to her to help her get better, whether she likes it or not! Even if it means forcefully taking her back to Rock Creek!” Jimmy shouted.
“Well, I’m not going to have any part of forcing her to go anywhere!” Buck said, starting toward the stables to saddle his horse.
(Neither am I!) Ike signed before turning to follow after Buck.
Kid stared at Lou for several minutes. Though she still struggled against Jimmy’s hold on her, she hadn’t said anything for several minutes. It was almost as if the fight had gone out of her, but if there was one thing he knew about Lou, she was probably cooking up some way to free herself later on. They would have to keep a close watch on her on the way back to Rock Creek. For now, he would leave the guarding of her up to Jimmy.
“I’ll go get the horses.” He said quietly, abruptly turning and strolling toward the stables before Jimmy or Lou could say anything else.
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