The Locket

"No, it's not Lou's and it's not mine, either. It's... it's Ike's."

"Ike's?" Lydia repeated incredulously. "How could Ike have a baby?" Buck gave her a look, which suggested that he were about to state the obvious, and she held her hand up. "Okay, okay, I'll rephrase the question. If Ike died almost a year ago, how could he have such a young child? That baby couldn't be more than a couple of months old."

"How can you tell how old a baby is from its cry?" Buck asked, but he continued before giving Lydia a chance to answer. "You're right, though. Ike is only two months old."

"Ike...?" The look on Lydia's face grew more confused and hurt... and betrayed. Buck could only imagine what she must have been feeling. He remembered the hurt Ike McSwain had felt when there had been no reply to the letters he'd written Lydia, the longing he felt for her. She must have been hiding the same hurt and longing for Ike all this time; hoping that he felt the same. To find out that he'd been with another, and fathered a child...

For her part, Lydia handled it rather well. She didn't scream, or rant, or rave, or even cry. Her eyes shone with unshed tears, the expression on her face cut Buck up inside; but she never said a word. The eerie silence spooked Buck more than her screaming ever could. Finally she spoke in a choked little voice that seemed not her own. "Did he marry someone?"

"No," Buck replied, and hesitated. He did not want to tell her, not now, not this way.

Lydia had other ideas. "Please, tell me, Buck. I want to know... I need to know." Her hands were wringing, belying her calm demeanor. Buck sighed and covered her hands with his own. It was a long story; and it was going to be a long night.

It was an hour before dawn when Buck finally left a sleeping Lydia and crept across the hall to his own room. Without undressing, he lay back on his bed, expecting to drop right off to sleep. Only sleep wouldn't come, his mind was too full of images. Images of Ike, of Lydia, of the pain Ike had gone through when he gave up on trying to reach Lydia, convincing himself that she didn't care. If only he'd known what had happened. Would he have waited? Would Lydia have come back west sooner if she'd made contact with Ike? If so, would they have gotten together? Would Ike still be alive?

Buck shook his head. There were just to many unanswered questions, questions that would never have answers. And while they were running around in his head, he would never get to sleep. Deciding that a glass of warm milk was worth a try, Buck went down to the kitchen.

Only when he got to the foot of the stairs he found a lamp in the sitting room lit, and Lou and Kid sitting on a settee. Lou had just about fallen asleep, but when she heard Buck come down she opened her eyes, stretched and yawned. "How is she?"

"Sleeping, she couldn't stay awake a moment longer. She was pretty shaken. I had to tell her about Ike... and Emily."

"How close were they? Ike and Lydia, I mean?"

Buck sighed as he sat down opposite them. "Very close. Ike was pretty hurt when she never wrote back. Turns out, she was sent to Baltimore and never even got his letters. She has been pining for Ike all this time, nearly two-and-a-half years."

"And now to find out he's gone, and about Emily... She know about the baby?" Buck nodded and Kid shook his head. "Ouch, the poor girl."

"Come on," Lou said, sitting up. "I think we all need some warm milk to settle us down."

"Think you can keep it down?" Kid teased. Lou wrinkled her nose at him. Despite everything that had happened, Buck had to laugh. Lou's morning sickness was well known.

"Did she explain why she was at McCaffrey's?" Kid asked as Lou was heating the milk.

Buck shook his head. "I didn't get a chance to ask, not yet anyway. She was too shaken over Ike. I didn't want to add to that."

"True. Well, hopefully she can tell us in the morning. If I know McCaffrey, he'll be out here lookin' for her; and I, for one, would like to know the whole story before he gets here."

"But Captain, how do we know if this Lydia person is a member of the gang? I've never heard any reports of a woman bein' in the gang."

"Neither have I," Captain McMullen admitted. "But you heard the man in there. He was terrified. He knew who she was."

"Maybe she was a passenger?"

"Doubt it. The gang never seemed interested in taking hostages... " the Captain trailed off, deep in thought. "You made a pretty good point there. That would explain how they do it."

"Huh?" Lieutenant Devlin was confused.

"The gang. What if they place a member on the stage they're plannin' to rob? It makes it easier for them."

"Okay, but how do we find her? She'd disappeared, just like the gang."

"To make it look like she's an ordinary passenger, she would have had some luggage. We can go through what was left of the luggage we found with the stage. Let's hope we're real lucky and the gang got stupid and left us a clue."

"Where is everyone?" a child-like voice asked.

Emily turned to young Teresa McCloud, who was standing in the middle of the kitchen, with a puzzled look on her face. The twelve-year-old was used to everybody coming down to breakfast, not just her and her brother.

"I don't know, sleepin' I would imagine. We had an interrupted night last night."

"What happened?"

"Has this got something to do with that lady Doc. Seyton came to see?" Jeremiah asked.

"What lady? Why doesn't anyone tell me these things?"

"You were asleep."

"But who is she? She's pretty."

Emily shook her head and ruffled Jeremiah's hair, smiling when he smoothes it out. "She's a bit old for you, Jeremiah. Apparently she's an old friend of Buck and... Ike's"

"Really?" Anything else Jeremiah might have said was forestalled by Kid stumbling into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes.

"Could you please just have breakfast and get ready for school?" Kid's voice was unusually sharp, so much so that Teresa flinched. "Don't mention what happened last night to anyone."

Wide-eyed, Teresa nodded. Jeremiah frowned. "What's goin' on, Kid?" he asked.

Kid looked at his brother and sister-in-law, and regretted scaring them. "Could be nothin'," he said finally. "But there could be trouble, so could you do as I ask, please?"

"Has this got somethin' to do with that lady you sent me to get Doc. Seyton for?"

"Yes, and her name is Lydia Mitchell. Now, please, no more questions, we'll explain everything later. When we find out ourselves," he added aside to Emily as she handed him a cup of coffee. She raised her eyebrows, but wisely said nothing.

"Where's Louise?" Teresa asked after a few moments of silence.

"Fast asleep. I didn't want to wake her. She's been so tired lately."

"What exactly is goin' on, Kid?" Emily asked as soon as the children left.

"I don't know. Lydia hasn't said anything, at least not as far as Buck's mentioned. All we know is that McCaffrey's probably after her."

"McCaffrey? You don't think that she... ?"

"I don't know," Kid repeated. "She jumped off a balcony to get away from him, though. But that could mean anything... "

"Would you like to know the truth?" A third voice asked.

Sheepishly, Kid and Emily turned to Lydia. "Sorry," Kid said. "I was warnin' the kids not to say anything in case McCaffrey... "

"It's my fault," Emily interjected. "I asked what was goin' on. I don't believe we've been introduced."

"Actually, neither have we." Kid held his hand out to Lydia. "Name's Andrews, but most folks just call me Kid. And I know you're Lydia Mitchell." He grinned.

She grinned in return. "You're right. Andrews... you must be Louise's husband. We talked a bit last night."

"Uh oh."

Lydia grinned again and turned to Emily. "And you are...?"

Emily shook her hand. "Emily Metcalfe."

Lydia froze.

McCaffrey awoke that morning, refreshed. Today was the day he would get Lydia back. He had already come up with a fairly believable story of how Lydia had been sold to him as a bondservant - total fiction, he knew - but it was a good story. He forged proof, taken from another girl and with that it would boil down to choosing between Lydia's word and his. While Kid Andrews and that half-breed may not want to believe him, his "proof" should be enough to convince them; as there was no obvious connection between them and Lydia. Why would there be? They had been Express riders from a nearby town, and Lydia spoke with a slightly Southern accent - possibly from Maryland or Delaware.

He banged on a couple of doors. "Dukore! Corbett! Be ready to ride in ten minutes. We're goin' out to the pXp to get Miss Lydia back. Bring your shotguns!"

Yes sir, it was going to be a fine day.

"Are you okay?"

Lydia came to herself with a start, recovered her manners, and responded to Emily's introduction with an automatic politeness that could only be taught as a Ladies College. For once, Lydia was grateful she had been sent there.

Emily was not fooled though. She calmly appraised Lydia, noting her bandaged head and bruised face. A little wave of jealousy swept over her. Behind her bruise, Lydia was quite pretty. Emily also noted the coolness in Lydia's greeting, however polite. She had obviously been told who she was and what she had been to Ike. I wonder how close she and Ike were?

Before Lydia could say something to explain or cover her momentary lapse of etiquette, she suddenly heard a voice behind her, making her jump.

"I thought you were supposed to be in bed. Doctor's orders."

"Buck, don't do that!" Lydia admonished. "Besides, I hate stayin' in bed. I need to talk to the Marshal." Lydia started swaying on her feet, her exertions catching up with her.

Buck quickly slipped an arm around her. "The Marshal?" he asked as he eased her down on the bench. "Has this got anything to do with McCaffrey?"

"Sort of... not really. But I really need to see the Marshal. It's important. Some friends and I were on a stage headin' west, when bushwhackers ambushed us. Simon managed to kill one of them, but he and Adele were shot. They knocked me out and kidnapped me. When I came to, I found myself in a room and one of the bushwhackers guardin' me. He... he intended to... use me, so I smashed a lamp over his head. He fell, bleedin'."

"Did you kill him?" Kid asked quickly.

"I don't know," Lydia started to shake. "I got away and Sh... McCaffrey found me wanderin' along. At first he seemed very nice and offered to help me, but I soon found out he had other things in mind. He made me put on this dress - in front of him - then he said he was gonna take my locket as payment for all he's done for me. When I said no, he hit me. That's why I jumped off the balcony - to get away. You found me and brought me here. Thanks for that."

"Don't thank us too soon. If I know McCaffrey, he won't give up so easily."

"Speak of the devil," Kid muttered as they heard yelling outside.

"Hey, why don't you bring the girl out?" McCaffrey yelled. "A whore like that ain't worth the trouble." When there was no answer, he turned to his henchmen. "Dukore, I want you to go round back, to cover the kitchen door, make sure they're not plannin' somethin'. Corbett, I want you to go upstairs by the side entrance, ambush them from the top. They won't stand a chance if we surprise them."

"But there's only three of us, Boss." Dukore pointed out.

"There's only Andrews and the half-breed, plus the women. Are you tellin' me that's too much for us?"

"No, Boss."

"Then get movin'."

"Did you look through the luggage?" Captain McMullen asked.

"Yes. Sir," Lieutenant Devlin replied. "Most of it seemed to belong to the couple we found, but there was one trunk that was labeled Lydia Mitchell. It had been ransacked like the others."

"Well, the gang would do that to make sure she's not suspected."

Lieutenant Devlin looked unconvinced. "Yes, sir. Anyway, there wasn't much in the luggage, just some clothes and such. She was headed for Colorado Territory."

"They've made their mistake. That stage was on the overland route. She should have been on the Santa Fe Trail."

"Maybe she was travelin' with her friends and planned to change stages later."

"Lieutenant, I know you don't like to think that a woman could be capable of such, but this Lydia Mitchell is with the gang, It's the only thing that makes sense."

"Yes, sir," Devlin repeated. He was not as sure of this as the Captain, but one does not question a superior officer without just cause. A difference of opinion was not just cause. "But this doesn't tell us where to find her."

"No, but she must be around here someplace. Either tellin' some story to throw us off the trail, or bookin' passage on another stage ready to begin again. We'll start lookin' here in Fort Kearney, and head west, toward Lone Tree, Fairfield and Rock Creek. The gang don't seem to be working beyond that range."

"Do we even know what we're lookin' for? We don't even know what she looks like."

"Granted it won't be easy," McMullen admitted. "But we can look around for a young lady who has either booked passage on a stage, or has claimed to survive a holdup. Any objections?" The last was said in a sarcastic tone, the Captain being aware of his Lieutenant's doubts. Devlin shook his head. "Then call out the men, we start within the hour."

Simon Walters came to again, not three hours after Captain McMullen and his soldiers left Fort Kearney. He tossed his head from side to side, still feverish, frustrated that he still didn't know where he was. "Adele," he called out. "Lydia."

"Now now," Mary McMullen soothed him, wiping his brow. "Your wife's resting comfortably. I assume Adele is your wife."

"That's right," Simon rasped, sipping the water Mary held out to him. "What about Lydia?"

"You needn't worry about that Lydia or the gang. My husband's gone out to apprehend them."

"You don't understand!" Simon tried to sit up, but he was too weak. "Lydia isn't a member of the gang. She's my childhood friend from Colorado. She was travelin' with us on the stage. You've got to find her. She had nothin' to do with this!"

Oh dear, Mary thought. What am I going to do now? Scott will surely arrest her when he finds her, and he'll kill her if she tries to escape. But how do I warn him?

McCaffrey's yelling had awakened the baby. "Damn," Kid muttered.

"I must go to him, Kid," Emily pleaded.

Kid hesitated. "Okay," he said finally, handing her his revolver. "But go upstairs through the passage. McCaffrey won't see you that way."

Just as Emily got to the kitchen door, they heard a harsh voice outside, close to them. "Don't move."

"Go, Emily!" Kid yelled in return, ducking as Dukore burst into the kitchen and shot at him.

"Freeze!" Dukore commanded. He looked around, but the only woman he could see was Lydia. "Hey, Boss, there's a lady headin' your way! But I've got the half-breed and your lady friend here."

"Right!" McCaffrey yelled back, kicking the front door in. "Bring them in here!"

"You heard the man," Dukore told them. "Move!"

"Well well well," McCaffrey said as they were herded into the sitting room. "I'm glad to see you're here, Lydia. Now come along before you cause any more trouble."

"No!" Lydia swayed on the feet, clutching at Buck for support.

"She's not the one causin' all the trouble, McCaffrey." Buck said through his teeth, easing Lydia down on a settee.

They heard a thump upstairs, and Kid and Buck exchanged a glance. Was it Lou or Emily? "Ah," McCaffrey sounded pleased. "You're friends'll soon be joinin' us. Now, I don't know what this girl's been tellin' you, but she's mine. I bought her as a bondservant to use as a saloon girl. Figure I wouldn't lose her that way."

"He's lyin'!" Lydia screamed.

"I don't believe you," Buck glared at McCaffrey with venom in his eyes; a sight which unnerved some. But McCaffrey was nonplused.

"Figured you mightn't," McCaffrey pulled some papers from his pocket. "That's why I brought some proof." He held them out.

Cautiously Kid took them and read them, handing them to Buck. They certainly looked legal enough. What's goin' on here?

Unnoticed by anybody, somebody crept down the stairs, a shotgun in their hands.

Onto to Chapter 4