Chapter Three
The house was quiet when Lou awoke a couple hours later. Rachel had gone to school, and she assumed Kid was somewhere around the station with Jimmy and Buck, since there were no runs today. Since she and Kid got married Teaspoon had put her in charge of scheduling the runs. Even thought hey were getting fewer and fewer, they still took up too much of Teaspoon's time. The war in the East had stirred up hostilities among the citizens of Rock Creek, and it was all Teaspoon could do to keep the peace in town. Lou had gladly taken over the managing of the station, especially since Teaspoon had arranged for her to be paid what the company had been paying him. So she knew the boys were all around her somewhere. She just wished one of them would decide to bring her some lunch. She was starving! As if he had read her mind, Jimmy lightly knocked on her door and entered, carrying a tray of something that smelled completely wonderful. "Hey Lou. How are you feeling?" he asked, setting the tray down beside her bed. "Hungry," Lou teased. "Is that your cooking, or do I get real food today?" "Very funny," Jimmy attempted to scowl. "If you're not careful, I"ll just take this back downstairs and let you starve," he threatened. "Okay, okay, I'll be good," Lou laughed. "I'm hungry enough to eat my own cooking right now." "Well fortunately for the rest of us, the doctor forbade that." "Who cares? I hate cooking anyway. What's on the tray," Lou eyed the tray hungrily. "We heated up some of Rachel's stew or you. There's some bread and butter there too." "Why don't you stay and visit with me while I eat?" Lou requested. "I've barely seen you since Kid and I got married." Jimmy's mood immediately sobered. He knew the reason he hadn't seen much of Lou was because he'd been avoiding her. His friendship with Kid was rocky at best, and he didn't know how to treat Lou now that she was married to Kid. He knew the way he and Kid had been acting was hard on Lou, and he vowed to himself that he would do his best to reestablish the relationship they had. Lou didn't need to be worrying over that in her condition. So he sat beside her bed and attempted to push his fight with Kid to the back of his mind. "Okay," he said smiling. "But I can't stay very long. We've been trying to break that new horse, and Kid and Buck might kill themselves. I've got to stick around and make sure they do it right." Lou laughed. "You're starting to sound like Cody." "Speaking of Cody," Jimmy reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded envelope, "We just got a letter from him. Why don't you read it when you're done eating?" Lou took the letter and set it beside her. She set the tray in her lap and began to eat the stew. "Tell me what's been going on around her the last few days," she demanded between bites. "Teaspoon has suddenly decided the station needs about a thousand repairs," Jimmy laughed. "You know how he gets. So for the past two days we've been fixing fences and roofs, and steps, and anything else he could think of. And today we've been trying to break that stupid horse. I've never seen a more stubborn creature in my life." Lou laughed. "Well, you, Buck and Kid are three of the most stubborn people I know, so surely you can outlast that horse." "Lou, I believe that horse is more stubborn than you," Jimmy teased. "Oh, you boys don't stand a chance then," Lou retorted. The two talked for a long time. They had both missed the closeness they had shared before, and it was nice to have that back again. After Lou was done eating, Jimmy carried the tray back downstairs, and she picked up Cody's letter, anxious for news of the ex-rider. Since he went off with the army, his letters were few and far between. Lou wrote to him faithfully once a week, filling him in on all the station news. Cody however only wrote about once every month or so. His scouting work kept him really busy, but when he did write, his letters were usually nice and long. From the feel of this one, Cody hadn't disappointed her. She settled back to read. "Dear Rachel, Lou, Teaspoon, Kid, Jimmy, and Buck, How is everything in Rock Creek? Are you guys managing things without me? I knew it must be hard. I'm sure everything is falling apart without my expertise. Yes, Lou, you can laugh; I have learned to make fun of myself. Nothing new has been happening with me. Things have been kind of boring actually. We get up at dawn for revelry, then I spend the whole day scouting the area. I come back to camp at dark, and report to Captain Erbach. Only after that do I get to eat supper, and then I fall right to sleep. But we'll be moving soon, so at least the scenery will be different. Rumor has it the war is moving this way. Already there have been border skirmishes further south, but our company has not been involved in any fighting yet. I'm sure we will be before too long, but I tell you, that is not the kind of excitement I'm anxious for. Of course, I will fight bravely, like I do everything. One day the name William F. Cody will be know all over the country, no the world. When people think of the word hero, they will think of me. Books will be written about me--lots of books. And no Jimmy, I won't write them myself." Lou couldn't help but laugh. Cody could always manage to cheer her up. She read the rest of the letter, and by the time she was finished, she was laughing so hard, tears were rolling down her face. Kid picked that very moment to walk into the room. "Lou, what's wrong?" he asked, rushing to her side when he saw her crying. By now, Lou was laughing so hard she could barely breathe, so she just held up Cody's letter. Of course, to Kid it still looked like she was crying, so he read the letter with a knot in his stomach. When he got to the end and still hadn't seen anything bad he looked at her puzzled. "Lou, why are you crying?" By this time Lou had managed to calm herself down somewhat, but at Kid's question she burst out laughing again. "I...wasn't....crying...silly," she managed, taking huge gulps of air. "I....was...laughing." Kid just looked at her like she had gone mad, shook his head, and walked out the door.
After dinner that night Kid approached Jimmy, who was sitting on his bunk cleaning his guns. Buck was chopping wood for Rachel, so they were the only two in the bunkhouse. "Jimmy?" "What do you want Kid?" "Look Jimmy, I know things have been bad between us, and I just want to say, I'm sorry." Jimmy looked at Kid in surprise. Had he really just apologized? Kid was always so sure that he was right, so it was very rare for him to apologize. "Look Jimmy, I was wrong, and I know it. I was upset that you and Rosemary didn't tell me about Pierceson, and I know that's not really an excuse, but that's what it was. And then when Noah died, I blamed her, but took it out on you. Anyway, I was wrong, and I'm sorry." Kid waited nervously for Jimmy's reply. "Me too Kid. It was wrong of me to not tell you about Pierceson and the list. I know I could have trusted you, but I listened to Rosemary," Jimmy said humbly. "We've been friends too long to let this war come between us." "So can we agree to disagree?" Kid asked. "Just as long as you know my opinion is the right one," Jimmy teased. "Not on your life," Kid retorted. "Haven't you learned yet that I'm always right?" "Yeah, sure. You're always right like Cody's always serious," was Jimmy's comeback. Kid laughed. "Now wait a minute. I'm right a lot more often than that," he protested. "I'll give you that," Jimmy agreed. "See," Kid said smugly. "I was right." He ducked to avoid the pillow Jimmy threw at him.
Chapter Four
Chapter Two