CHAPTER THREE
A knock at the door interrupted further revelations. Lou opened it and found six very curious young men standing outside in a huddle. "I'll be back in a minute," she said over her shoulder to Jack, and went out into the hall, closing the door behind her. "Come out to the parlor, boys. I want to talk to you before I go and introduce y'all to her." The boys followed dutifully, like a row of baby ducks after their mother. In the kitchen, while Rachel prepared the meal, Lou stood before her friends like a tiny drill sargeant, her usually friendly dark eyes looking at them sharply, leveling them with their gaze. "You boys listen to me, all right? Now, I ain't sayin' you can't be funny or friendly, or even charmin', 'caues God knows y'all got it in you, and I think Jack could keep up with the best of you." Here she fixed her steely eyes on Cody. "I think she's gonna be real nice to have around. All I'm tellin' y'all -- and notice, I said *tellin'* -- all I'm tellin' y'all is to be gentle right now, and let her ease into life here with us, not be dunked in head first. We're the first to know about her bein' a girl, and it's been a bit upsettin' for her, although I think deep down she's happy, so take it easy on her, okay?" She didn't budge till she heard five voices agree, and saw Ike nod. "All right, then, follow me." At Jack's door, she knocked and poked her head in. "The boys would like to say hello. That okay with you?" Jack had sat up against the headboard, a pillow propped behind her, and she had quickly thrown on her shirt. It was dusty and had dried patches of blood, but short of greeting her saviors for the first time in her unmentionables, it was the best that could be done. She nodded at Lou, and color flushed high in her cheeks. It had been a long time since she had had to meet a group of men, or any men at all, without the protective shield of a male exterior, and she suddenly felt very vulnerable. Knowing Lou would be among them was the only thing that made it bearable. As they filed in, Jack's face grew softer in appreciation. In these men's eyes she saw kindness and concern, and their patient glances at Lou as they waited for further instruction touched Jack very much, and made her more than a bit wistful for the relationship Lou was lucky enough to share with them. "Hello," she said to each of them as they stopped before her. Lou made her way to the head of the bed, seating herself beside Jack, importance radiating from her in her new position as Jack's protector and friend. "Jack, I'd like for you to meet Ike McSwain, James Hickok, Buck Cross, Noah Dixon, William Cody, and this is the Kid." Each rider stepped forward, removing his hat, and extending his hand for Jack to shake. It was impossible to miss the soft caress in Lou's voice when she introduced the last rider, but Jack kept that secret thought to herself. "Boys, this is Jill Townsend. Jack," she amended. "Hello," they chorused. Jimmy wondered if anyone else felt as ridiculous as he did. What the hell had possessed them to think this girl was a boy? Any fool with half a brain would have seen through the clothes and the chopped-up chin-length hair, right through to the soft mouth and graceful neck, to the big, expressive eyes. But he reminded himself that their first introduction had been to a wounded, defensive creature who had left no time for closer inspection in any form. You would have thought their experience with Lou had taught them the lesson of looking deeper, but a man just didn't expect lightning to strike twice. This time it had come right out and slapped them in the face. "I must thank you for saving me," Jack offered sincerely. Cody -- always Cody -- dipped a graceful bow, flashing his impish, triangular smile at her. "A pleasure, ma'am." Despite Lou's warnings, Kid couldn't resist slapping Cody on the back of the head. "Fool," he hissed through his teeth. Buck and Ike rolled their eyes at one another. Jimmy and Noah just looked amused. For her part, Jack had to fight the urge to giggle. "They're all right, really," Lou assured her sarcastically. "It's even possible to be fond of 'em, but I won't hold you to it." Jack noticed Noah looking at her with the same honest admiration she had given Lou. "If you don't mind my sayin' so, Jack, it's gonna be quite a place with you and Lou both around here." "Is that a good thing?" Jack asked. "Very," he said, and smiled a smile that warmed Jack deeply. "Jack, you mind tellin' us what happened to get you all banged up like this?" ventured Jimmy. Jack shrugged. "There isn't much to tell, really. What with the Express shut down, the boys and I were getting restless at the station -- I'm sure you don't need me to explain -- and our station master decided to send one of us on a run to St Joe. Nothing important, just some letters to business associates of the firm's. We all wanted to go so badly there was nearly bloodshed. We drew straws, and lucky me, I got to go. I stopped about forty miles outside of Rock Creek night before last, and I guess these men had been following me all along. I was setting up camp, and they sneaked up behind me and let me have it but good. They took everything -- the letters, my money, the things I'd bought in town. Everything. Then they left me, and I made it here somehow." "Do you think you might recognize 'em, or be able to give a description of 'em?" asked Kid. Jack shook her head. "Unfortunately not. It was getting very dark. The most I could see was that two of them were very tall and thin, and the third rather short and round. Then they blindfolded me, and I didn't see anything after that." Lou pat a hand on Jack's head and looked seriously into her eyes. "Jack, how do you feel?" Jack tried to smile, but faltered within seconds. It was something in the kindness of Lou's eyes, the undercurrent of empathy in her voice. Jack's face crumpled and tears began to fall rapidly down her cheeks. She closed her eyes, not wanting to see their shocked expressions, and turned her head away towards the wall. But small, warm arms went around her, and Lou pulled her into a tight, protective embrace. Gratefully, Jack buried her head in Lou's shoulder and sobbed, her thin body shaking within the circle of Lou's arms. The boys stood there, helpless to say or do anything. They all felt a horrible, overwhelming anger. Ike saw red fury in Jimmy's eyes. Then Jimmy spoke up from the corner of the room, his voice low and hard, "We'll find the men who did this to you, Jack. We'll find them, I promise you." Jack wanted to say something, to acknowledge his offer of assistance, but it had all suddenly hit her in an overwhelming rush, and she couldn't open her eyes. Instead she clung to Lou and a few moments later heard them all shuffle out, closing the door behind them. When Jack opened blurry eyes, the room was filled with the dusky light of early morning, and she was alone. For a second she couldn't remember where she was, but as soon as she moved her aching wrist it all came back to her. She must have fallen asleep just after the boys left the room. The last thing she remembered was resting her head on Lou's shoulder and Lou talking to her in a calm, easy voice, telling her about Rock Creek and her friends in the Express, not saying much of anything, just soothing with the sound of her voice. Jack sat up carefully and planted her feet on the floor. Her entire body was stiff and sore and moving it took more strength than she had to spare, but she fought against the dizziness and sat straight. There was a big, round mirror resting on a vanity table across from the bed, and Jack now had a full view of herself. For the first time she saw the damage that had been done to her, and her mouth fell open at the sight. Her eye was horribly puffy and bruised, her neck swollen with purple fingermarks, her hair matted and dirty against her head. "Good God," she exclaimed aloud. She was still wearing her filthy shirt and long johns. She felt disgustingly dirty, and longed for a bath. Her tired muscles cried out for hot, steaming water, and every inch of her skin begged for a bar of soap. Gritting her teeth at the pain, Jack stood on wobbly legs. Oh, God, the pain was excruciating. It felt as if her bones were rubbing against a steel brush rather than each other. She made another brave effor to walk, and before she realized it, her knees buckled and sent her crashing to the floor. As she went, she reached out to the vanity for support, and instead brought several trinkets and boxes down with her. She heard footsteps cutting through the hall, and the door to the room flew open. Rachel and Jimmy rushed inside. "Oh, my goodness, darlin', you all right?" Rachel exclaimed. Jack looked up at them, grinning sheepishly. Her long, dark bangs fell in front of her eyes and she blew them out of the way. "I'm fine, Rachel. Just got a little ahead of myself and tried to walk on water." Rachel and Jimmy laughed. "Here, let me help you," offered Jimmy. Strong arms reached underneath her and hoisted her over to the bed. "Phew. Thanks." Rachel watched them, her eyes lighting up as she did. It was bad, she knew, but already she was imagining how love on the horizon. Poor Jimmy was having such a hard time over Lou, it was be so nice if he could...she didn't allow herself to finish the thought. She had learned the hard way that it didn't pay to take a hand in other people's business. "As long as you're all right..." Rachel began. Then she realized that Jack and Jimmy weren't paying her any attention. Jimmy was standing over the bed, smiling down at Jack, and she was laughing at something he was saying. 'Not yet,' Rachel thought to herself as she went back into the kitchen. 'Not yet. But...maybe some day.' To be continued... Back to part two Feedback |