A Call To Arms

Kid threw the paper down in disgust. He couldn't get away from it, it seemed. Everywhere there was news of it. The War. No one could decide what to call it...The War of Secession, The War Between States. It was a war that tore a country apart. It set friend against friend; father against son, brother against brother. It was a war that tore families apart.

Kid's own family was no exception. With his father gone and mother and only brother both dead; the only family Kid had was his Pony Express family. His wife Louise, the men he worked with - Buck, Jimmy, Cody, Ike, Noah and Jesse (although Jesse did not actually ride for the Express) --, the women who looked after them, Rachel and Emma, Emma's husband Sam (one time Marshal of Sweetwater), and last, but not least, the station master/Marshal who was like a father to the all, Teaspoon Hunter. They were his family, and like a lot of other families, they were torn by the War.

Maybe it was because they were originally from all over the country - Virginia, Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Texas, Nebraska - a mix of north and south. The Mason-Dixon had divided the family like nothing else could. Jimmy, Cody and Noah firmly believed in the Union Cause; Jesse stood with his brother Frank, believing in the Confederate Cause; while Teaspoon, Rachel and himself were caught in the middle. Perhaps he and Teaspoon most of all. Caught between the urge to fight for their home start -he for Virginia and Teaspoon for Texas - and the horrific thought of taking up arms against their family.

In a way, the War had already killed one of them. Southern Sympathisers, lead by a man named Pierson, had been raiding in the Kansas/Nebraska area. They had killed Isiah Burke, a prominent Abolitionist, leaving his widow Rosemary fit for revenge. Rose was staying with them at the Rock Creek way station when the trouble broke out.

It turned out that Jesse's brother Frank was a member of Pierson's gang. He came back to Rock Creek for Jesse, and was warned that Cody, scouting for the Union Army had found Pierson's camp. Pierson's men ambushed the Arm when the Army went to ambush them. A lot of men and boys were killed that day, but Cody and Captain Tom Erbach emerged unscathed. However that was not the end of it.

Rosemary wanted Pierson to pay for murdering Isiah, and she did not trust the Army to do it. So she decided to follow the Army to Pierson's camp and kill Pierson herself. Noah saw her leave, and, being the gentleman he was, went with her when he couldn't talk her out of it.

When they arrived at the cabin, the Army was in retreat and Pierson was still alive. Rosemary rode down the hill, bent on getting Pierson, and Noah followed her. He was shot twice - fatally - by Pierson.

Kid had found it hard to believe that Jesse, one of their own, was responsible, but Cody and Jimmy had no qualms about blaming him. When Jesse found out what had happened, he betrayed the location of where Pierson was hiding in an effort to "set things straight." He never wanted Noah or Cody to get hurt.

Jesse and Rosemary's apparent "involvement" in Noah's death drove a seemingly irreparable wedge in Kid and Jimmy's friendship. Jimmy blamed Jesse and Kid blamed Rosemary - initially. Looking back, Kid wondered if his reaction stemmed from the lack of trust Rosemary had for him because he was from the south - and how she had Jimmy doubting him. It was too late now for then to talk it out - Jimmy refused to speak to him, although he knew that Jimmy wrote to Lou from time to time.

"Hey, what are you thinkin' about?"

Kid started, and stared up at the person who had snapped him out of his reverie. Louise, his beloved wife, smiled down at him, an almost devilish glint in her eyes. He shook his head in wonderment at the beauty standing before him. He had loved her deeply almost from the moment they met (at least from the moment he had known she was a girl). It seemed virtually impossible now that he once thought she was a male. You could not make that mistake about her now - even if she wore breeches. Her figure had rounded slightly, the only concession her body gave to the child growing inside her, due in six months time.

"Kid, hey!" Lou snapped her fingers in the husband's face. "You're fadin' out on me again."

"Sorry," Kid reached out and took her hand, pulling her down on his lap. He held her tightly with one arm, placing his other hand lightly on her belly, and kissed her long and hard.

"So you haven't answered my question. What were you thinkin' about?" Lou asked when they broke apart, brushing hair back from his face. "You need a haircut."

Kid blinked at the change of subject. "Thanks. And to answer your question, I was thinkin' about you."

"Really?"

"Yeah...and Jimmy, and Noah, and Teaspoon..."

"Oh."

"I don't know, Lou, everyone thought the War would be over by now. There doesn't seem to be an end to it." He nodded to a letter which was lying on the floor. "It's from Rick Peterson, a childhood friend from Virginia. He found out where I was, and he's comin' for a visit."

Kid did not say what else was in the letter, but Lou knew there was a lot left unsaid. Fear gripped at her. Kid had told her once that if War broke out, if people tried to destroy his memories of home, he would go back to Virginia and fight. The War hit home for the just after they were married, and she miscarried their first baby just after that. Under those circumstances, he wouldn't leave her...but what about now? Would Kid leave now, when a call to arms had gone up all over the south?

Kid was worried at Lou's continued silence. "That ain't gonna be a problem, is it? I can tell him not to come."

"No, it's not a problem," she stared moodily at the crackling fire.

"Then what's wrong?"

Lou made an effort to push her worries from her mind, and grinned impishly at him. "Who say's anything's wrong?"

Kid grinned in return and kissed her firmly again. Lou shifted her position as she responded to him, for comfort and to make it easier on Kid. His lips left hers to trail kisses down her neck, and soon the War and the rest of the world was forgotten.

It was this little scene that Buck Cross walked in on. He watched his friends make out for a moment before clearing his throat. "Couldn't you two have waited until you made it upstairs?" he grinned at their flustered and dishevelled appearance.

Kid glared at the grinning Buck. "Is there anything you want, or do you just like to embarrass us?"

"Yeah, there is, actually. There's somethin'...someone out in the old caretaker cottage that you had better take a look at, Lou."

What? "Who?"

"It's Jesse."

"Jesse!" Lou exclaimed, getting up. "As in..."

Buck nodded. "Jesse James. I found him lyin' in the snow. He's pretty sick. He was near that old cottage so I put him in bed there, started a fire and came to get you."

"Do you know what's wrong with him?"

"No, he's pretty feverish, though. I couldn't see any wound, so I don't think he's been shot."

"I'd better take a look at him."

"Wait a minute, Lou," Kid placed a hand on her arm. "Think of the baby. We don't know what's wrong with him."

"Kid, I feel as though I owe him somethin' for savin' Jeremiah and Teresa. I can't just sit here and let him die. He might need tendin' to right away, and I don't want to wait for Doc. Seyton."

Now Kid could have put his foot down and forbade her to go - after all, she had vowed to obey him. But theirs was not a traditional marriage and Kid rarely - if ever - firmly told Lou what to do. Besides, he knew that Lou had a soft spot for Jesse. She always had - ever since she found him wandering on the road to Rock Creek looking for trouble. If he forbade Lou from helping Jesse, he would never hear the end of it.

"Kid..." Lou prompted him.

"I don't think it's a good idea, Lou," he said finally, deciding to try and discourage her. "What if he has Typhoid or something?"

"Um, Kid, if Jesse has Typhoid we're already exposed through Buck. We won't know until I see him." Before Kid could protest again, Lou grabbed her coat and followed Buck out the back door. All Kid could do was sigh lamely and follow.

It proved that Jesse was just suffering from cold and exposure. Hid breathing was laboured and Lou feared pneumonia, but there was not much Lou could do about it then. All they could do was sit with him and try to break the fever. This required constant care, something that Buck and Kid were unsure was possible, given their work on the pXp and taking care of Emily, who was still weak after the difficult time she had giving birth to Ike.

"Lou, I'm not sure we can do this," Kid said softly. "Maybe we oughtta get somebody from town."

"Who, Kid? We still don't know why Jesse's here. He's s'posed to be in Missouri."

"You don't think he's helpin' Frank or Quantrill?" kid grimaced at the thought. Two of Quantrill's men had kidnapped Lou in the hopes of getting to Jimmy Hickok. Their brutality had caused Lou to miscarry, and kid was afraid that something was going to happen to Lou's new baby as well.

Before Lou could reply, Buck spoke up. "Doubt it. Jesse said the Quantrill thought he was too young to be useful...and I don't think Quantrill was too happy that Jesse helped Lou that time."

"I agree with Buck," Lou added. "We can ask Jesse when he's awake and lucid. Until then, I think we should keep this to ourselves."

"Okay, so how are we gonna manage this?" If we keep this to ourselves, how are we supposed to look after him properly? Emily can't do anything to help. And don't forget Rick's comin' in a few days."

"Rick?" Buck was puzzled. He hadn't heard this before.

"An old friend of Kid's," Lou filled him in.

"Oh."

"I think Rick would notice if either of us was missing from time to time."

"I can help," a fourth voice spoke up from behind them.

Kid, Lou and Buck all whirled around to see Lou's sister Teresa McCloud, dressed in her nightgown and robe. She was shivering in the cold March air. But she had been outside the kitchen door when Buck walked in on Kid and Lou. When she heard that Jesse James was in trouble, she just had to follow and see how bad it was. Jesse was kind to her and Jeremiah when McKenna and Phillips had taken Louise. McKenna and Phillips had been after her and Jeremiah as well, but Jesse had taken them from the orphanage and saves them. Teresa was distressed to learn that Jesse was in trouble.

Now, watching the looks on their faces, she wondered if she had erred. They had just said that they should keep Jesse's presence quiet, and she just barged in. But they should be able to trust her. They should know that she would never betray Jesse's presence.

"What are you doin' here, Teresa? You should be in bed." Lou scolded.

"I...I heard Buck mention Jesse, and...and...I wanted to see how bad it was." Teresa faltered, suddenly afraid.

Lou was about to rebuke her sister, but she stopped when she saw how blue Teresa was turning. "Come here and warm up. You should know better than to get around like that in this weather."

Teresa smiled and scooted over to the fireplace, near where Jesse was lying. She watched the fourteen-year-old toss and turn restlessly, mumbling deliriously.

"I can help," she spoke up finally. "I can sit with Jesse when you guys have other stuff to do, and when Kid's friend's here."

The older three glanced at each other. "I don't know, Teresa," Kid said finally.

"Why not? Louise said somebody should be with him all the time, and you weren't sure if you could manage it on your own. I can stay with him when you can't. It's not as if you're tellin' somebody you shouldn't 'cause I already know. And I know what to do, 'cause I used to help out at the orphanage when the younger children became ill."

What about school?" Lou pointed out. "You'll need to stay here when you're supposed to be in school."

"I'm doin' all right in my classes. I can afford to miss a few days. Jeremiah can always bring work home for me."

As Teresa stared at them with her guileless blue-grey eyes, Kid found himself shaking his head in amusement. "She remind you of anybody?" he asked Buck.

Buck grinned. "Yeah, she's a but like Lou. Just as stubborn."

Teresa wrinkled her nose at them. "What do you say?" There was no answer. "Please?" she insisted.

The others burst out laughing. "I'm not sure how proper this is, but since no one else knows about it, I guess..." Kid trailed off. "I guess it's up to your sister." Teresa groaned as Lou turned to glare at her husband. "She's your sister!" he defended himself.

Lou shook her head as Teresa turned her guileless, pleading stare on her. "Oh I guess it's all right," Lou said finally. "But only during the day time. You are not stayin' up all night, understand?"

"Neither are you," Kid said firmly. "You need your rest."

Lou rolled her eyes, and Buck spoke up to forestall and argument. "I'll sit with him tonight." He took his jacket off and placed it around Teresa's shoulders.

Kid shot him a grateful look and place a hand on each of the sister's shoulders. "Come on, you two, time for bed."

Teresa groaned and Lou shot him a withering look. "I'm not a kid, Kid," she told her husband.

Teresa had to giggle at that, and kid leaned down to whisper something in Lou's ear; something which made her flush. Straightening, he turned to Buck. "I'll be down later, so you can get some sleep."

"Thanks." Buck chuckled to himself as Kid marched the girls out of the cottage. Kid may fancy himself as the head of the family, but Buck personally thought that the McCloud girls had him wrapped around their little fingers.

Onto Chapter 2