DISCLAIMER: The characters and situations of the television program "Lonesome Dove: The Outlaw Years" are the creations of Rysher Television, and have been used without permission. No copyright infringement is intended. This story is not to be published on any ftp site, newsgroup, mailing list, fanzine or elsewhere without the express permission of the author. "Maria Bennett" and all original material included in this story are the creations of Darcie Daniels.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
This story takes places AFTER the Unbound revised version. The episode "Circles" does not exist after this.
Thanks to Deb for her never-ending support.
Setting: late February, 1881.
Maria was losing the battle. There was no doubt about it. If she tried to attack, a hail of fire would barrage her. If she ran to another spot, more fire would greet her. She could only wait for his move. Then perhaps she could get him.
Austin was not about to do that, either. He was not kidding when he said he was good at snowball fights. Maria misjudged him entirely. She was good, but he was even better.
She could hear him laughing as she dodged a cold, deadly missile. She felt the ice chunks ricochet off the tree she was hiding behind. One false move and that was the end of her.
"Give up?" Austin yelled from his strategic position.
Maria could hold out for hours behind her defensive post. "Never!" she shouted back. It was a good thing they decided to have the fight in the woods, Maria thought. She could never hold her head up in town again after such a whipping otherwise.
Another ice ball replied in turn. This time, it managed to knock her glasses off her head. Miraculously, it did not hit her face.
But she was blind without her glasses. Maria knew she was in for it now.
She threw a missile of her own in the direction of Austin's voice. She had to have time to recover her glasses.
She squinted, searching for the wire rims in the snow. She spotted them and reached out for them. Instantly, Austin barraged her with a hail of snow fire.
It hurt, but Maria would be damned before she let him know about it. She grabbed her glasses and ducked behind the tree. Her arms instinctively wrapped protectively around her head from the ricocheted fire.
Suddenly, his attack stopped. All was quiet.
Austin was up to no good, Maria thought as she peered cautiously from around the tree. She braced herself for the hail of fire, but nothing came. Perhaps Austin was trying to sneak up on her somehow ... perhaps he would try to catch her by surprise.... In the next moments, she would have to be especially vigilant.
She clutched an ice ball as she heard a crunch in the snow behind her. If Austin thought he could surprise her, then he had another thing coming. Maria grinned to herself. She was expecting him.
The crunching stopped, as if he knew that she was prepared for him. Perhaps he even thought she saw him. She did not have to see him ... but she knew where he was now.
Maria remained quiet. Austin was a fool for leaving his former position. Now she had the advantage. She could attack him instead. He could not be much further than a few yards now. He was hiding in the trees.
She proceeded with stealth, clutching her dress and the ice balls at the same time. She decided not to give a whoop, for it was undignified. Besides, he could hear her approaching footsteps in the snow anyway.
She almost laughed as she reached his position. Her arm prepared to throw a deadly missile. Austin would, at last, be vanquished.
She jumped from behind the tree, ready for the attack. She did not know what she heard first ... the gun-click or her own involuntary cry of surprise. It was not Austin at all, but a wounded man crouched in the snow. His gun was aimed at her defensively as his other hand tried to still a bloody wound from his torso.
Maria dropped her snowball as the man lowered his gun, either from weakness or in assessment that she was harmless.
Her heart pounded from the shock of seeing the stranger.
Then Maria felt the barrage of ice balls hit her painfully and squarely on her back. Austin had not left his position at all, and she fell trying to dodge his terrible storm of fire. She shouted at him to stop, but still he attacked her ferociously.
"Austin, for name of God!" Maria begged him, losing her glasses once again. The poor stranger needed help, and he might be hit accidentally by Austin's fire. Maria hoped that she was taking most of the shots. She moved to better protect the wounded man.
"Give up?" Austin yelled at her. He apparently could not see the stranger.
"Yes," Maria conceded to him in exasperation. "Yes!" she yelled again when another snowball hit her. She quickly replaced her glasses. One lens was broken. She turned to see how badly the man was hurt. He was still in a crouched position, clutching his torso. "Help me!" she shouted to her cousin.
Mercifully, Austin ceased the barrage of fire.
She kneeled towards the man, but he tried to move away from her. He had no success. He was in obvious pain.
The man was in his thirties, and he wore a beard similar to General John Bell Hood, except that he had more blond highlights. His front was covered in blood. Maria could not see what wounded him, but she understood immediately from the position of the wound that the stranger was in serious danger.
"No," his Southern voice told her as she edged closer. His teeth were clenched. "Get Clay. Get Clay. No doctors."
Maria looked at him in confusion. This man must have known Mr. Mosby.
"No town," the Southern man told her. "Get Clay."
She could hear Austin laughing as he approached her position.
"I told you I was better than you," he smirked triumphantly when he reached her.
Then Austin saw him. Her cousin's face twisted in recognition.
It only took seconds.
Austin whipped out his gun and cocked it at the stranger, his finger pressing upon the trigger.
The stranger, too, aimed his gun.
A shot exploded as Maria screamed, diving protectively for her cousin.
Maria did not remember falling, nor did she remember how she ended up in Dr. Cleese's office, but that was where she was when she woke up. She had lost her glasses somewhere, and her head hurt.
It hurt to squint, but Maria saw that Austin was there, looking rather grave. Uncle Josiah sat quietly with his son. Mr. Call stood in the corner. His posture was slumped, as if under a heavy weight.
She could hear Dr. Cleese working on another patient in the next room.
Maria tried to sit up, but she groaned for her efforts.
Mr. Call was first by her side. "So you're all right then," he stated nonchalantly as he could, his pale blue eyes betraying his concern.
Maria looked at her blood brother in confusion. "I suppose so," she replied, thinking about how sweet he was to visit her while she was ill. "My head hurts. But how did I get here?"
Then she remembered - the wounded man. He was still out there. He needed help.
"There's a man out there," Maria told them anxiously. "He's wounded. He was a friend of Mr. Mosby's, I think."
"You don't remember, then?" Austin questioned her. "About how he shot you?"
Maria's head really hurt now. It hurt to try to remember anything. She shook her head, but it only made it hurt worse.
Austin stood up angrily. Josiah tried to calm him down.
"Easy, son. Easy."
Austin ignored him, pacing about the room. "Shelby could have killed you. He'll pay for this, I swear."
Mr. Call's blue eyes were resolute and determined, looking over at the next room. "Robert Shelby ain't going no where, Austin."
Maria looked at all of them, not paying attention to anything they had just mentioned. "Do you mean to tell me that I've been shot?" she asked incredulously. She did not remember getting shot. She looked at her body for missing limbs, but did not see any.
Mercifully, Josiah answered her. "You were grazed in the head. You've been unconscious for an hour."
Maria squinted, partly because she could not see and partly because of her headache. "Dr. Cleese just barely took a bullet out of my arm last month! Now I get hit in the head?" she demanded an answer from no one in particular. "What am I - a bullet magnet? How many times in one year do I have to get shot?"
Austin stopped pacing and looked at her, trying not to smile. "That's nothing," he offered. "I got shot about 4 or 5 times once and still walked out of it."
Austin and Mr. Call exchanged quiet looks, as if remembering the incident. Both looked like they were in pain.
"Your headache will get better, I 'spect," Mr. Call finally grunted for her.
Mr. Call took many hits to the head, Maria knew. He ought to know.
"That is most comforting, both of you," Maria told them. "All of this is very reassuring. I don't think I'll venture outside anymore. I'm likely to get shot. Maybe next month it will be in the leg. I've yet to be shot there!"
Josiah sighed deeply. "Such is the price we pay for this town. God exacts his vengeance at a heavy cost."
Austin, Mr. Call, and Maria all sighed in turn. Josiah was in a justice sort of mood. There was little to do but wait him out.
Then they heard Dr. Cleese move about in the adjoining room. They heard Mr. Mosby question him.
"Will he be all right, Doctor?" he questioned, his smooth voice deep with concern.
"I think so," Dr. Cleese answered in fatigue. "Your friend has suffered an animal attack and was tore up pretty badly, but he should recover if he rests."
Austin's face again twisted in anger. He stalked out of her room. Mr. Call, shaking his head, followed him. Josiah stood up, too. He sighed pathetically, "I have to keep the peace." Then he also left, leaving her all alone.
It was not fair, Maria knew. They should have stayed in her room. After all, she was the one with the headache.
Maria heard what was next.
"You're not going to let Shelby go, Mosby," she heard Austin tell the town proprietor. "I'll watch him myself if I have to."
Maria only heard Mr. Mosby scoff.
"He's a murderer," Austin's bitter voice said. "He's been on the run for 3 years. He just tried to kill my cousin. He's going to hang this time."
The silence was cold. "There'll be a trial," Mr. Mosby's steely voice told him.
"Yeah, I know the kind of trial you'll let it be," Austin replied sarcastically. "He'll be out sooner than you can order lunch!"
Maria heard some scuffling. She sat up, defying the ache in her head. She had to see what was going on.
The scuffling ended. She heard Mr. Call's calm voice tell Mr. Mosby, "The trial will be fair, Mosby."
Maria again heard a moment of silence. "Undoubtedly, Mr. Call," Mr. Mosby said smoothly. "Whatever makes you think it wouldn't be?
Maria sighed and then moaned. This was all making her head pound.
"Now," the town proprietor said dismissively, "I'd like to visit my friend, if you don't mind. I suggest that you do the same."
It was a good suggestion, in Maria's opinion. Austin, Mr. Call, and Josiah returned to her. Mr. Mosby remained in Mr. Shelby's room.
Dr. Cleese entered her room to check on her.
"You're lucky, Miss Bennett," he told her, examining her wound beneath the bandages. "You could have been killed."
Maria squinted over at the room next door. That was her thought precisely.
It was, without a doubt, one of the worst days of her life. Maria could not remember when she had been so sick. Dr. Cleese told her that it was her concussion, but Maria could not understand how a head wound could cause such turmoil on her stomach. She spent most of the day hunched over Dr. Cleese's basin. Not only that - but she was also dead tired -- but Dr. Cleese said she had to stay up for the entire night and early the next morning. It was a precautionary measure for concussion patients.
Dr. Cleese tried to ease her as he could, but Mr. Shelby developed a high fever that needed his attention worse than she did. Between trips to the basin and trying to rest, she heard both Dr. Cleese and Mr. Mosby trying to calm Mr. Shelby. The poor man was moaning in delirium. Maria felt pity for him.
She felt pity for herself, as well. Austin did try to comfort her, but he seemed to care more about what was going on in the next room than he did with her. The very least he ought to do is play a game of rummy with her or read her something. Instead, Austin was preoccupied with Mr. Shelby. Maria knew it was all because of his hatred for Mr. Mosby. Maria doubted that Austin even knew Mr. Shelby.
When it came to his shift, Josiah was worse. He read Revelation to her, and Maria could not stand that as she was hunched over the basin. She wished that he would just go away and let her sleep. She need not be disturbed by visions of four horsemen at this time. He droned on and on for what seemed like hours. She heard Mr. Mosby tell Dr. Cleese several times that he wished Josiah would read something else.
"Newt," Josiah said warmly when Mr. Call came to relieve him, closing his Bible. He patted his son-in-law on the back.
Mr. Call always reacted the same with any token of affection - he awkwardly tried to shrug him off. "Josiah. How's Maria?"
Maria answered him from inside the basin. "It's the end of the world." Then she heaved the remaining contents of her stomach. "Everyone just go away. Leave me alone."
"Nope. Don't have nothing to do tonight," Mr. Call told her. "You're always jawing at me to talk to you. Well, here I am. I ain't going no place."
Then he looked over to her uncle. "You can go, Josiah. I'll stay with her."
"Thank you, Newt," Josiah told him, once again patting him on the shoulder. He turned to leave.
Maria was glad that Josiah liked one of them, at least. He held some sort of odd grudge against her because she looked like her mother. Maria pestered him to tell her why it was he hated her mother, but her uncle never told her.
He still did not tell her, but at least he was kind enough to try to sit with her. Maria nodded to her uncle as he left the room.
"Really, Newton, you can go. I'll be fine," Maria reassured him, knowing that once he left that she could go to sleep.
"Like I said, I got nothin' to do."
Normally, she would be delighted that Mr. Call would offer his time to her, but Maria was quite tired. All she wanted to do was sleep.
She watched him settle in a chair. His legs were spread out, and his body was slouched down. She envied him. He looked downright comfortable.
She sat on a chair, too.
"So," Mr. Call shrugged.
"So," Maria repeated. She waited for him to start the conversation. This might take awhile.
"I ain't never been hit on the head so bad it caused my guts to rip out. He must have hit you pretty good."
Maria nodded. Mr. Call did have a head of iron.
"You been heaving all day?"
"Yes," Maria answered him, praying that last time was indeed her last visit to Dr. Cleese's basin. She had nothing left to give.
"You gonna throw up all night, too?"
"I hope to God not."
They heard Mr. Shelby moan.
"He's been like that all day?" Mr. Call nodded over to the other room.
"He's had a fever for the last several hours. He's actually settled down somewhat."
"Mosby still in there?"
Maria became fed up with this preoccupation over Mr. Mosby. "Well, why don't you go over there and see? Tell him 'hello' for me. Be sure to give him my love."
Mr. Call looked away. There was no way that he was going to do that.
Maria laughed at him. "Yes, Mr. Mosby in there. He's been watching over his friend nearly all day. His friend must be very special."
Mr. Call nodded, as if remembering a time when he had a good friend like that.
Maria felt deeply for him. She knew that at one time he and Austin had to be very close. Now, their relationship was damaged. She was unsure how to help them.
"So, Newton," she said, trying to ease her blood brother's pain by changing the subject. "Tell me a love story. Make it good. Dr. Cleese says I have to stay awake all night."
Immediately, Mr. Call's pale blue eyes became irritated. "I don't know no love stories, and I ain't no storyteller. So you can forget it."
"Of course you do," Maria told him reassuringly. "I have full confidence in you."
Maria yawned. She was very tired.
"Go ahead. Tell me one," she ordered, yawning uncontrollably.
"I think it best you stand up," Mr. Call suggested, actually pulling her. He began to walk her around the room.
"Oh, Newton," Maria declared, squeezing his arm. "You are a dear."
She laughed as he grimaced. He desperately wanted to pull his arm away from her. But still, he dutifully paced with her around the room.
"How delightful!" Maria commented, squeezing his arm a little harder. "Remind me to thank Mr. Shelby. I should get shot more often."
"That so?" Mr. Call questioned her, threatening that he might be next to do it.
Maria thought he was highly entertaining and told him so, "Oh, Newton. You are such a silly goose, but I love you anyway."
He only grunted and eased her back into the chair. He knew that she was insane. But still, he had a look about him not knowing whether to be flattered or scared.
Maria yawned again. All that walking was tiring.
"Let me sleep just a few minutes, Newton. Then you can wake me up."
Dr. Cleese then entered the room. He looked extremely fatigued.
"She needs to stay awake all night, Mr. Call. Concussions are serious injuries. Miss Bennett needs to stay alert."
Maria groaned. At least her stomach was feeling better, though.
Dr. Cleese left the room to attend to Mr. Shelby. Maria had not heard him moaning in quite some time. Perhaps his fever had broken, and he was getting some rest. Lucky him.
"So," Mr. Call grunted.
"So," Maria repeated.
This was going to be long night.
"Just let me sleep," Maria begged him as Mr. Call gently slapped her cheeks.
"Hold on a few more hours. You can tough it out."
Maria did not hear him. She was already dozing off.
This time Mr. Call poked her in the ribs.
"Ow!" Maria protested, rubbing her side.
"Now you stay awake. I ain't gonna to tell you again."
"Newton!" she again protested.
"I'm gonna make you some more coffee, so sit tight. I'll be back in a few."
She watched Mr. Call leave. Dr. Cleese had shown him where the coffee and his stove were, and she could hear him stirring about. It did not matter to her. Maria was glad that Mr. Call was gone. Now she could finally get some sleep. She supposed Dr. Cleese was asleep in Mr. Shelby's room. He had not attended to her in many hours.
"Clay," she heard the stranger's Southern voice suddenly say. He sounded fatigued.
"Robert," Mr. Mosby said in obvious relief. Both men's voices were strained.
Maria knew that she should not listen to the men, but she could not help it. It was a relief to her another voice other than Mr. Call's.
"I'm sorry I got you into this, Clay. I had no intention of ever coming back here again. You know that."
"Hush, Robert," Mr. Mosby's voice said reassuringly. "Don't concern yourself about it. Everything will be fine. Just get some rest."
"I didn't have a choice," Mr. Shelby told him with urgency. "You've got to believe that. A bounty hunter trailed me around Missoula and forced me over this direction. He almost had me," Mr. Shelby paused, his voice starting to laugh, "when a wolf got him. Unfortunately, the wolf had plans for me, too. I shot the white bastard right out from on top of me. That thing was like a white devil, Clay. I swear -- it was the most amazing thing I ever saw."
Maria could believe that. A few months ago, she had her own white wolf trailing her. Most everyone in town thought that she was crazy for seeing it. It was just as Mr. Shelby described it - a white devil. She would have to tell Mr. Call. He would probably be most interested to hear about it.
"It's over now, Robert," Mr. Mosby soothed. "You're in my town now. You needn't worry."
She did not hear anything for a moment. "Your town?" Mr. Shelby asked incredulously.
"I'm town proprietor," Mr. Mosby's voice intoned rather wickedly. "The citizens of Curtis Wells come to me for all their daily needs."
Maria could hear Mr. Shelby chuckle. "Well, I'll be damned, Colonel Mosby! Who would have thought that about you?"
"I must admit," Mr. Mosby's voice smiled, "the thought is rather odd considering what we did when we were thirteen. But since then, you know I've always followed the path of righteousness."
Mr. Shelby laughed again. "In a pig's eye."
"Yes," Mr. Mosby agreed. "That's it exactly."
By that time, Mr. Call returned with the coffee.
Maria yawned. She hoped sometime, somehow, someone would let her sleep.
"The danger is over. You can rest now, Miss Bennett," Dr. Cleese told her.
Maria did not hear him. She was fast asleep, slumped against Austin's shoulder. Austin had come to relieve Mr. Call hours ago.
She vaguely remembered Austin carrying her in his arms. She was glad. He was taking her home.
She made a grunt of protest as he set her down shortly afterward in a chair. She snuggled deeply in the chair, trying to shut out the voices in the room. All she wanted was some rest.
"You're not letting him go, Mosby," she heard Austin's voice say, as if in a dream.
Maria thought she heard men's voices arguing, but by that time, she had tried to cover her head to shut out the noises. It felt good to sink deeper and deeper into sleep.
It felt so warm, so inviting. She had begun to dream about Aunt Elinor's house in Maine. Maria and her aunt always had tea. They discussed books and music. Her aunt always smiled warmly at her. It felt so real.
Aunt Elinor stood before her, welcoming her with open arms. Her aunt then frowned at the voice.
"You killed Brody in the livery 3 years ago. Now you almost killed my cousin. You'll swing for this, Shelby," Austin said.
The voice was bitter. It tried to invade them, to kill them. It was nasty.
"Never mind him, Maria," her aunt said, taking her into the parlor. The tea set was there. Her aunt even made cookies.
Maria gratefully smiled at her aunt as the older woman handed her a teacup.
"Be careful," Aunt Elinor told her, "it's hot."
"They'll have to hang you twice," the bitter voice said.
Maria frowned upon the invasion.
"Maria," her aunt Elinor told her authoritatively, dismissing the bitter voice, "you'll learn in your life that men are silliest creatures on the earth. Take them to your heart, but don't forget to use your head."
Her aunt always seemed to make sense. "Yes, Aunt," Maria replied, biting down on a cookie.
As usual, the tea was delicious. It was warm and soothing.
"Here, dear," her aunt said, taking her hand. "I want to show you something."
They placed down their teacups. Her aunt led them to the attic.
Maria was happy. Her aunt was going to show her what her aunt termed "the treasure chest." It was full of seashells and family mementos. Her aunt kept the old pictures of her mother and father in that chest. It would be good to see them again.
It was a warm and happy feeling to go up to the attic again. Maria felt so safe and loved. Her aunt loved her very much. Her aunt always told her things about the world. Her aunt always gave her the best advice.
She adored her Aunt Elinor. Maria knew that her aunt loved her, too. It was a wonderful feeling.
They were in the attic. Aunt Elinor opened the chest. Maria could see all the wonderful things inside of it.
Her aunt tenderly held a picture.
"This was your mother, dear," she said, turning the picture towards Maria.
"Look at her!" the bitter voice shouted like an explosion. Maria felt a tugging on her head as everything warm disappeared.
She cried out in fear. She was no longer in the attic with her aunt, but somehow years and years ahead in Dr. Cleese's office. Austin was tugging at her face, turning her towards some stranger lying on the bed.
"Look at her!" he said. "You almost killed her."
Her heart pounded furiously. Maria was startled awake, and she tried to calm down.
"If she hadn't dove for you," the stranger's Southern voice dangerously drawled, "you'd be dead. In fact, I'm sorry that she was ever there. We wouldn't be having this discussion now."
Her cousin snarled.
Maria was confused. She ought to be home now.
"Austin, why are we here?" she questioned.
"Hush," he told her impatiently, looking momentarily sorry that he woke her up. "I'll take you home in a minute."
Maria squinted to see all of them. They were in Mr. Shelby's room. Dr. Cleese was there -- very upset that Austin would disturb his patient. Mr. Mosby stood protectively in front of Mr. Shelby. Mr. Shelby was much better than when she had last seen him, though he still looked quite fatigued. Several men guarded Mr. Shelby. Austin's face twisted in a bitter smirk.
Now Maria was fully awake. It made her angry. She should be home, asleep in her bed. Instead, Austin was apparently engaged in some verbal sparing with Mr. Mosby and Mr. Shelby. Her cousin did not even have the courtesy of depositing her in her own bed before he set out on his vendetta. Her cousin was an idiot.
"Austin," she snapped at him. "I haven't slept in a day and a half! For crying out loud, don't you have the sense to take me home?"
Her cousin looked resentful that she would reprimand him in front of the other men. Mr. Mosby and Mr. Shelby only seemed amused. Maria did not care. Austin deserved it.
"Austin, take me home," she demanded again, her fists clenched.
Her cousin looked hatefully at her. Maria stared back at him in anger.
Mr. Mosby interrupted them, his voice smiling, "I'm glad you are feeling better, Miss Bennett."
Her fists relaxed, but her gaze did not flinch from her cousin's. "Thank you, Mr. Mosby. That is most kind."
Her cousin only looked more hatefully at her. He did not like Mr. Mosby's interference.
Austin finally relented. "Come on, then," he snarled at her, grabbing her painfully by the arm.
It only made her angrier as he dragged her out of the office. Her cousin was no better than a bully. Maria knew that Austin had better be careful. Inevitably, bullies always met their match on the playground.
"Where's Austin?" Mr. Call asked nonchalantly, kicking at a piece of ice on the walkway outside the newspaper office.
Maria frowned in anger as she cleaned her old set of glasses. It had only been two days since she had been shot, but that was no matter to her cousin. Austin was, no doubt, at Dr. Cleese's office. He apparently felt that Mr. Shelby had to be watched.
"He was to guard the 'fugitive,'" Maria answered sarcastically, huffing hot air onto her lenses. "He doesn't want Mr. Shelby to escape."
Mr. Call shrugged unconcernedly. "He got a nice bounty out of it. It's all I know."
Maria harrumphed, finally putting on her old lenses. Austin had no business doing that kind of work. "I don't know what's got into him. I doubt he even knows Mr. Shelby."
"He doesn't have to," Mr. Call replied, his pale blue eyes looking off into the distance. "His blood is up, that's all."
Maria knew that Mr. Call was referring to his bounty hunting. The bounty hunting had to disturb Mr. Call. He returned to Curtis Wells looking most haggard at times.
"What do you do to get out of that feeling when you're on a bounty?" she wondered.
Mr. Call's body turned back towards her. "Get them."
That suggestion was of no help, Maria knew. Maria impatiently pulled Mr. Call inside the newspaper office.
"That may be for you," Maria agreed, "but what if it's an innocent man?"
Mr. Call's pale blue eyes narrowed at her.
"Look at this," Maria indicated to an old piece of paper on the table. The words "Notice," "Hanging," and "Justice" were clearly pictured on the paper. "I found this among the old editions that my uncle used to write. Look ... it says that the gallows would be ready to use shortly after Mr. Shelby's trial. He was proclaimed guilty before he even had a trial!
"And look," she continued, this time pointing at an old edition of the MONTANA STATESMAN, "My uncle writes here that there were no witnesses to the killing. Mr. Shelby claims that it was an accident. Who's to say it wasn't, Newton? The man may very well be innocent."
Mr. Call frowned. "That's for a trial to decide."
"It didn't look like he was going to have a fair one, by the looks of this," Maria pointed out. "It says that the judge found evidence linking him to a previous crime in Curtis Wells, but Uncle Josiah writes here that this saddle issue was completely inconclusive. Personally, I don't understand what a Confederate saddle has anything to do with anything, but I don't know enough about horses to know."
Mr. Call shook his head, as if shaking off a bad memory. "All I know is this. I remember Judge Calder. The man didn't understand what was right."
Maria smiled at him. She was always proud of her blood brother's sense of justice.
"Then you see," Maria stated. "Mr. Shelby could be innocent after all."
"That may be," Mr. Call concluded. "But that remains to be heard."
"Mr. Mosby?" Maria asked with astonishment. She was surprised to see him at the newspaper office, even though Austin told her that he might try to visit her. Austin told her that she was not to talk to Mr. Mosby - that he might try to question her about the shooting and try to unduly influence her -- but Maria thought that was ridiculous. It had now been six days since her shooting, and Mr. Mosby did not try to contact her even once. Even so, Austin had Josiah stay with her. Josiah usually preached, so it was a relief when Josiah said he would step out for a bit. Maria herself was about to leave the newspaper office when Mr. Mosby stopped her at the door.
"Miss Bennett," Mr. Mosby acknowledged her in a low tone. "May I have a word with you in private?"
Maria's eyes narrowed at him in curiosity, but she opened the office door and invited the town proprietor inside.
Maria took off her muff and scarf. Mr. Mosby lowered his hat.
Maria watched him. He had to be here because of Mr. Shelby. She knew that he was not there just to visit her - they had not spoken for a long time. Maria knew that was mostly her fault. She was in love with him, but she knew that he did not love her. For a while, it had been too painful to speak to him. After that initial pain was over, Mr. Mosby was preoccupied with other things. The railroad would be coming to town soon, and Miss Florie was also pregnant with his child. Maria wondered why Mr. Mosby had not married her yet. Mr. Shelby's upcoming trial had to be another burden for Mr. Mosby to bear. The town proprietor had to be under a lot of stress.
Maria had learned the best way to deal with Mr. Mosby was to be direct. "I'm sorry about your friend, Mr. Mosby. I hope that he is doing well."
Now Mr. Mosby's eyes narrowed curiously at her, as if questioning her sincerity. After a moment, his face relaxed. "Robert is better. In fact, they moved him to the jail this morning. But, thank you, Miss Bennett. I appreciate that."
Maria was about to offer him some tea when he added, "And I assure you that Robert feels badly that he hurt an innocent woman. He says it was an accident."
Maria frowned at him. She still could not remember getting shot.
"You believe that, don't you, Miss Bennett?"
His voice was determined, almost as if willing her to believe it.
Maria sighed. Austin had told her that Mr. Shelby had shot her deliberately. Indeed, that was what he was telling the whole town. Now Mr. Shelby had a different story. Maria simply did not know. She could not remember.
"I really don't see why it matters what I believe, Mr. Mosby," she responded. "The trial is supposed to be about Mr. Brody's death, not my shooting. As far as I'm concerned, one event has nothing to do with the other. And as for Mr. Brody, I'm inclined to believe Mr. Shelby - that is was an accident."
Mr. Mosby smiled weakly at her. "It was, as was your shooting. But I think you fail to see the point here. Austin is telling the whole town that Robert shot you in cold blood. It's making Robert look like a ruthless killer ... shooting an innocent woman. It will undoubtedly influence his entire trial. Austin is making you an issue, whether you want to be or not. You have to remember that it was an accident. My friend's life could very well rest upon your testimony. So, please, try to remember. Think, Maria, think."
The truth of his words stunned her. It was as if a heavy burden was upon her heart. She wanted to help Mr. Shelby, but she could not. She could not remember what happened, no matter how desperately she tried. Dr. Cleese said that it was unlikely that she would ever remember what happened to her in those few awful minutes. Maria frowned. She still could not remember.
"The evidence against Robert is weak, at best, concerning Brody," Mr. Mosby stated. "I'm afraid it all rests upon your shoulders, Miss Bennett. It's only Austin's word against his. You're Robert's only hope now."
Maria winced in pain. The burden of it enclosed upon her, crushing her as if she was nothing. "I want to help, Mr. Mosby, but I'm not sure what I can do."
"Don't let Austin do this," Mr. Mosby pleaded with her. "He'll railroad my friend into a hangman's noose."
"Just like the way you tried with me, Mosby?" Austin's voice loomed from the doorway. "Or don't you remember that?"
Both Maria and Mr. Mosby turned to him in surprise. Maria was unsure of how long her cousin was standing there.
Mr. Mosby's tiger-like eyes narrowed at him dangerously. "Too bad I didn't succeed," he drawled out lazily. "We would all be better off."
Austin's mouth twisted in hate, and he rushed towards Mr. Mosby. Maria quickly stepped between them, fearing for her cousin's safety. She felt a sickness in her stomach. This revenge business was getting out of hand.
"Austin, please," Maria begged. She wanted him to stop this madness. Someone was going to get hurt.
Austin ignored her. "Get out, Mosby," he ordered, snickering. "We'll see you at the trial."
Mr. Mosby stared coldly at him, and then he nodded at Maria. "Think about what I said," he told her quietly. Then he placed his hat solidly on his head and left.
Maria sighed. She was afraid that was all she could do - think of Mr. Shelby. Mr. Mosby was right. Mr. Shelby's life may very well be in her hands. It was not a good feeling.
"Anything you say, Miss Bennett," Mr. Ike told her as he pocketed the money she gave him.
Maria watched the town sheriff as he motioned to his deputies to step outside of the jail, leaving her alone with Mr. Shelby. Maria had to give Mr. Ike credit about one thing - he could be bribed dependably.
Robert Shelby was the only man incarcerated that night inside the Curtis Wells jail cell. He was clean-shaven since the last time Maria saw him, and it added youth to his appearance. The dark blond curl that fell on his forehead gave him even a more boyish look. His hazel eyes, however, belied his weariness and hinted at an age that Maria could only guess. They winced in pain as he struggled to stand up to talk with her.
"No, no," Maria denied him. "Please, don't get up. You're still injured. You have to rest."
It took an almost Herculean effort to pull himself up, but Mr. Shelby succeeded. He supported his weight on the bars of the jail.
"It won't matter by tomorrow anyway," Mr. Shelby's Southern voice told her. "The trial will decide it all."
Maria frowned as she heard the resignation in his voice. He had little hope. She wished that she could help him in some way. The man held himself with such pride and nobility. Maria felt that he should not be inside a jail cell.
"I wish I could offer you a chair, Miss Bennett, but ..." his voice trailed off.
"You know who I am, then?" Maria inquired, amazed at his memory.
Mr. Shelby smiled at her, almost as if it were ironic. "Why, naturally. You're the snow maiden who was about to pummel me with a snowball. Then you dropped it and then came to my aid. A man could hardly forget that."
Maria blushed, looking away from him. She did remember that, at least.
"I'm sorry that I shot you," his voice said very quietly. "It was an accident."
Her dark blue eyes focused back on him. She believed the sincerity of his words. "I don't remember what happened, Mr. Shelby," Maria stated. "Austin tells me that you shot me deliberately, but I don't want to believe that. Austin seems to believe it, yet ..."
"I shot at your cousin in self defense. You dove to protect him, and you were hit purely by accident. Believe me, if I could take that back, I would. It would be one among the many things I wish I could take back."
Maria did not doubt his sincerity. "I just can't remember."
Mr. Shelby's face rested between the cell bars. He closed his eyes, as if shutting out his fate. "I'm glad I never took to gambling like Clay. I'd have no luck for it."
Maria's heart tightened in pity. "I wish there was some way I could help you."
Mr. Shelby opened his hazel eyes and regarded her. "Once upon a time, a snow maiden leaped in front of me to protect me from a hail of snowballs. Now, she wants to come to my aid again. Perhaps I'm luckier than I thought."
Maria's eyes brimmed with tears. She covered her mouth to prevent a sob from escaping.
Mr. Shelby sighed in fatigue. "If you can't remember, you can't remember. It will only be Austin's word against mine. My word means nothing in this town, even though Clay says that I might have a chance." He began to chuckle at the irony. "Perhaps I shouldn't have told Clay that I wanted a fair trial, after all. A man just gets so tired of running. I'm sick of running. I don't think I can run anymore."
Her tears fell freely for him.
He smiled warmly at her, almost as if trying to comfort her. "You wouldn't believe all the changes around here. Curtis Wells is different from how I remembered it. It's still a backwater town, but perhaps it really doesn't matter where you die after all."
"Please, Mr. Shelby," Maria begged him to stop, wiping her tears. "I'm so sorry."
Mr. Shelby slumped against the bars in fatigue. "Don't trouble yourself about it, Miss Bennett. None of this was your fault. It will all be over tomorrow."
The fatality in his words struck Maria like a blow. She could not stand it any further.
She ran out of the town jail into the night. She knew that she had to do something to help Mr. Shelby, but she did not know what she could do. She prayed that she could remember.
"Mosby's in there now, I suspect," Austin said an hour later, watching the jail from the newspaper office window. "Trying to comfort a dying man, I suppose. No one will believe Shelby. By noon tomorrow, he'll be hanged from the neck until dead."
Maria's lips tightened in anger. "Why are you doing this? You don't even know the man! What did he ever do to you?"
Austin turned to face her. "He shot you, that's why."
Maria did not believe that was his reason. "You're doing this to get back at Mr. Mosby, aren't you?"
"I'm doing this because Shelby tried to kill you."
Maria stomped her foot. It was like arguing with a brick wall.
"Are you positive that it was deliberate?" Maria questioned him. "Are you absolutely sure?"
"Why?" Austin snapped. "Do you remember something else?"
Maria shook her head, wishing that she did.
"You don't believe me," he accused her, the hurt in his voice barely evident.
"Austin -" she tried reasoning with him. She could not answer his question.
"You either believe me, or you don't."
"Austin, it's not that. It's -"
"You'd take the word of an outlaw over the likes of your own family." Austin's jaw twitched in disgust.
"I just think you might be mistaken, that's all."
"Mistaken?" he asked incredulously. "Mistaken? I was there. Remember? Oh, that's right. You don't."
Maria stomped her foot again. "You may remember it that way, but if you're wrong? That man could die because of you. You don't want that on your conscience."
"He has to pay for his crimes."
"Just like how Mr. Mosby tried to make you hang for a robbery you didn't commit? Is that the kind of justice you're looking for? He was wrong. You know that. What you're doing to Mr. Shelby is even worse."
"He shot you," Austin told her desperately.
"Yes, but I think that it was an accident. I don't hold him responsible for it. Neither should you."
"I took out my gun to bring Shelby back to town, and then he shot you. If I hadn't wrestled his gun away from him, he would have killed us both. But if you want to go on dreaming that it was an accident, then go ahead. You're a fool. Next time you might not be so lucky."
"I think that's what you want to believe, Austin," Maria told him. "You keep on telling yourself that. I just can't believe it was deliberate."
"It doesn't matter anyway," Austin replied. "Since you don't remember anything, it will only be my word against his."
Maria pleaded with him, "You can't do this, Austin. It's not right."
"It's not right that Mosby gets away with everything in this town, is it? Well, this time he's not going to bail someone out. Shelby is going to pay for his crimes. Mosby will have to sit and watch."
Maria shook her head incredulously. "This is was never about me, was it? You have to forgive Mr. Mosby. Someone is going to get hurt."
"Yeah," he said quietly. "Shelby."
Maria watched him leave. She sighed. She had to stop this somehow.
"I've got the perfect solution," Maria suggested to Mr. Call when she found him asleep in the livery that night. She was almost sorry that she woke him up. He was more grumpy than usual. "I say we hit Austin on the head and tie him up somewhere until after the trial. That way he can't hurt anybody."
"I ain't gonna hit nobody over the head lessen it's you. Now go away, and leave me be!"
Mr. Call rolled back into the hay, pulling his saddle blanket over his head.
Maria ignored him. "But we just can't let him do this. Robert Shelby is an innocent man."
"That's for the court to decide. Now git."
"Don't you see?" Maria implored him. "Austin telling everyone that Mr. Shelby tried to kill me is only going to make them think he deliberately killed Mr. Brody. It's not fair. It's not right. You know that."
"It ain't none of my affair," Mr. Call mumbled underneath the saddle blanket.
"Listen. Austin has got himself into a mess that he can't handle."
"What else is new?"
"We have to help him! Would you like to see someone shoot himself in the foot? That's exactly what Austin's going to do if he's not careful. He'll send an innocent man to the gallows. Imagine the guilt that he'll feel if he sent the wrong man to hang."
Mr. Call did not say anything.
Maria sighed. Her blood brother was probably asleep. "Newton, wake up. This is important."
Mr. Call still did not say anything.
Maria moved towards him to shake him, but he removed the saddle blanket before she had a chance to touch him.
"Austin likes to play games. You know that, Maria. He almost sent Unbob to hang once on account of it."
Maria winced. She was unaware of that, but it sounded like something her cousin would do during a bullying moment.
Mr. Call continued, "He knew that he was innocent. I'm not sure how he'd have felt if he sent him to hang. It's not a good feeling, I tell you, when you make that mistake."
Maria watched as Mr. Call's eyes looked down in shame. He did know what it was like to see an innocent man hang.
"Then we can't let Austin do this," Maria concluded. "For his own sake."
Mr. Call shrugged. "I'll talk to him. All right? First thing in the morning."
Maria knew that her blood brother was the best man in the world. "Thank you, Newton! I knew that I could depend on you."
She wanted to give him a hug, but he already pulled the saddle blanket over his face.
"I don't know what you expect, though," he grumbled underneath the blanket. "Me and Austin ain't exactly the best of friends."
Maria frowned. That was not the most reassuring thing her blood brother could have said.
"Seems to me like you gotta make a stand," he continued. "About who you're gonna help. You gotta do what you think's right. You're the only one who knows."
"You a bounty hunter now, Austin?" Maria heard Mr. Call's voice smirk to her cousin in an alley the next morning. Mr. Shelby's trial was only a couple of hours away.
Neither Mr. Call nor Austin saw her watching them from around the corner. Maria knew it was rude to eavesdrop, but this was important.
"What are you going on about, Call? I got places to go. Can't stand here listening to you all day."
"You turned a profit bringing in Shelby, is all. Thought bounty hunting wasn't to your liking," Mr. Call said dryly.
Austin glared with impatience. "What's it to you, anyway? Oh, I see," Austin's voice darkened. "I brought in someone you couldn't. Must be eating you that you couldn't bring in a fugitive that's been on the run for three years. Maybe you should hang your belt, Call. You're losing your touch. Let someone else do it for a change."
Mr. Call's head shook at the ridiculousness of it all. "When are you gonna stop playing with other people's lives? This ain't no game, Austin. Shelby is gonna hang because of you. You best be damn careful before you stretch a man's neck. You want to be right."
"Oh, I'm right," Austin's eyes narrowed dangerously. "He's gonna hang twice. There ain't nothing anyone can do about it."
Mr. Call scoffed. "Well, you best think about this. Mosby ain't gonna just let you hang his friend. He'll be after your blood next."
Austin apparently did not even consider that as his jaw twitched almost imperceptibly. After a moment, he asked belligerently, "Since when do you care what Mosby does?"
"I don't. Just looking out for Josiah, is all," Mr. Call shrugged. "Wouldn't want him to be standing over your grave. He's been through enough."
Austin shook his head incredulously. "Leave Father out of this. You're just mad that I brought in Shelby before you. The great 'Newt Call' isn't so great anymore. It eats at you, doesn't it, Call? It eats at you until you're raw. You're so raw you're spitting bullets, aren't you, Call? Aren't you, Call?"
Mr. Call stared at him, his pale blue eyes cold. He could not be taunted or bullied.
"You best be careful, Austin," Mr. Call advised him, his voice dangerous. "You ain't impressing anybody."
Austin snickered and then stalked away from him. He was so angry that he did not notice Maria when he walked past her. Mr. Call did not notice her, either, when he did the same.
Maria sighed as she watched both of them walk in opposite directions. That did not go well.
Mr. Call had said something that Maria had not considered until he mentioned it. Should Mr. Shelby hang, Mr. Mosby would definitely be angry. Maria knew enough about Mr. Mosby to know that Austin would pay the price in blood. This was getting worse and worse.
Now it seemed like both Austin and Mr. Shelby's lives were in her hands.
Maria prayed that her eternal soul would not be damned in a few short hours.
"Now, Miss Bennett," Mr. Mosby asked her smoothly at the trial. "Do you know something your cousin does not? Is there something you remember?"
Maria tried to concentrate on Mr. Mosby instead of thinking about all the men staring at her at the Ambrosia Club. Mr. Mosby, Dr. Cleese, and her uncle Josiah conducted the trial as a group of twelve men heard the case. Mr. Shelby sat in front. It was a visible effort for him to sit erect, yet he managed to maintain some dignity. Austin sat with a bunch of angry townsmen very near to Mr. Shelby. Maria hoped that the men would not harm Mr. Shelby before the verdict was decided.
That seemed impossible. Mr. Shelby told the jury that he shot only in self-defense, but then Austin gave testimony that the Southern man shot her in cold blood. She could tell by both the looks on the townsmen and the jury's faces that they believed her cousin. The jury would undoubtedly come back with a guilty verdict for Mr. Shelby concerning Mr. Brody's death unless Maria thought of something. She only hoped Mr. Mosby would ask her the right questions.
"Miss Bennett," Mr. Mosby reassured her. "I know that this is trying for you, but please tell us what you remember. A man's life could be at stake."
Maria knew that very well. Not only was Mr. Shelby in danger, but her cousin's life was at stake, too. Austin did not know or care. Maria did not know which was worse.
Maria looked over to Mr. Call. He sat in the back near the entrance. He looked like he was asleep. Maria frowned. He was of no help.
"Miss Bennett?" Mr. Mosby asked her again.
Maria was unsure how to start. "Austin and I were having a snowball fight in the woods. Then I heard -- "
"This is ridiculous," Austin interrupted from the crowd. "I told you all that before. She doesn't remember anything. You're wasting our time."
"Would you kindly refrain from your outbursts, Mr. Peale?" Mr. Mosby ordered very dangerously. "No one has heard her side of the story."
Austin glared at him.
"Easy, son," Josiah said. "Easy. Let her talk."
Dr. Cleese interjected, "Please continue, Miss Bennett."
Maria silently thanked him. Dr. Cleese seemed to be the voice of neutrality in the "courtroom" of the Ambrosia Club. Mr. Mosby obviously believed Mr. Shelby, and Josiah believed his son. It was a good thing there was no medical emergency in Curtis Wells. Dr. Cleese normally did not conduct trials.
"Go on, Miss Bennett," Dr. Cleese told her. "What is your testimony regarding Mr. Shelby?"
Maria was silent. She wanted to tell them that Mr. Shelby shot her accidentally. Then he would be free, for everyone in the courtroom knew that the evidence regarding Mr. Brody's death was weak. But that was an outright lie - she did not remember if it was an accident or not. All she knew was that she believed that Mr. Shelby was innocent. Maria wished they had not made her swear on a Bible. If she lied, she would never get to see Aunt Elinor in heaven. She would burn in eternal hell.
"Ah, she doesn't know anything," Austin said accusingly. "Shelby shot her, and she doesn't remember. That's why she's not saying anything."
Maria knew that she had to stop Austin. She had a sick feeling that he was going to hate her for what she was about to do, but it was the best for everyone.
"Mr. Shelby put the gun down," she stated emphatically. That part actually was true. Maria did remember Mr. Shelby lowering his gun right as she dropped her snowball.
She saw the murmuring of the crowd. Her statement seemed to sway them in Mr. Shelby's favor. They must have thought she was referring directly to her shooting, not minutes before.
It was not her fault if that was what they thought. It wasn't as if she technically lying, Maria reasoned. She prayed that no one would ask her directly if she remembered the shooting. She regarded Mr. Mosby, willing him to ask her the right questions.
"So you're saying that he put the gun down before your shooting, Miss Bennett?" Mr. Mosby restated for her.
What he said was true. Mr. Shelby did put the gun down before she was shot. "Yes," she answered with a nod.
"Really," Mr. Mosby nodded conclusively. "That would indicate he meant you no harm, wouldn't it, Miss Bennett?"
"Mosby," Josiah sighed. "You're leading her. Stop putting words in her mouth." Dr. Cleese nodded with Josiah in agreement.
"Forgive me," Mr. Mosby smoothly apologized to the jury with small grin. "So do you believe Mr. Shelby's testimony that he shot at your cousin in self-defense?"
As long as Mr. Mosby did not ask her directly whether she knew for certain the facts of her shooting, Maria felt that she was not lying. She did, in fact, believe Mr. Shelby. It was an accident.
"Yes."
"So you do not believe, as your cousin Austin suggested, that Mr. Shelby shot at you with intentions of murdering you, Miss Bennett?" Mr. Mosby continued.
"No, I don't believe that he meant to hurt me."
Maria could already hear the townsmen whispering to themselves. She could see Austin glaring at her.
"So you believe that Mr. Shelby did not shoot at you in cold blood but that all this was an accident?"
Maria looked at her cousin. She could already see the hate form in his eyes. Then her eyes turned to Mr. Shelby. He regarded her hopefully.
"Miss Bennett? It was an accident. Is that what you believe?"
Maria had to answer Mr. Mosby truthfully. "Yes," she stated almost inaudibly.
Yet the crowd heard her and murmured loudly. She had completely discredited Austin with one word. Now they seemed to believe Mr. Shelby.
Mr. Shelby sighed in relief.
Maria knew that she had just ruined any closeness that she ever had with Austin. Her relationship with him was over. She felt like she was about to cry.
"There you have it, gentleman," Mr. Mosby nodded conclusively to the jury. "This woman almost lost her life because of this, yet she says that it was an accident. She does not hold the defendant responsible. Neither should you."
"Now wait a minute," Austin stood up desperately, arguing to the crowd. "Don't believe her. We all know she's crazy. Just a couple of months ago she was ranting about a white wolf stalking her. No one ever saw it. She's known to see things. You can't believe a word she says."
The townsmen began to nod to themselves. They remembered that.
Maria knew that her cousin hated her now. Austin was trying to make her look like a fool. She looked down to the ground in shame. She had done this to herself.
"Miss Bennett is as sane as you or I," Mr. Mosby argued for her benefit. "Why, we all know about wolf sightings around here. Why, everyone in town locks in their children up at night for their own protection."
The jury and the townsmen nodded their heads.
"Yeah, but she saw a white 'ghost' wolf," Austin accused her. "Funny how no one saw it but her. Ask anyone in town. No one saw it. You all remember how she ranted on about it."
Tears formed in her eyes as Maria saw the crowd again side with her cousin.
Josiah nodded warily in agreement. "She did rant on about seeing it. I don't think anyone did see that wolf."
Maria covered her face to hide her tears.
"I saw one," Mr. Shelby offered warily. "It was a white wolf, too."
The crowd seemed stunned by his statement.
"You would," Austin accused him. "You'd say anything to save your neck. Maria is just plain crazy. You can't believe a word she says. No one saw that wolf but her."
"That's not true," she heard a voice say in the back of the room. She looked up through her tears to see Mr. Call stride up towards them. Apparently, he was not asleep at all but had heard the whole trial. "My father saw that wolf and shot it dead. He's not crazy. He's about the sanest man I know."
Everyone knew about the famous Texas Ranger Woodrow F. Call. The man was no nonsense. If he saw the wolf, then there was a wolf.
They also believed Newt Call. He was a man of his word.
"Captain Call did mention something like that to me when he brought Miss Bennett to my office," Dr. Cleese remembered out loud. "At the time, I did not pay much attention because I was bandaging her wounded arm."
The townsmen and jury once again murmured loudly. They believed her, and in believing her, they believed Mr. Shelby.
"What verdict do you find for the defendant, gentleman?" Mr. Mosby asked of the jury.
"Not guilty!" the men resounded in an awkward round. Everyone in the saloon seemed to jump up spontaneously, offering Mr. Shelby congratulations.
Maria still sat in the witness chair, weeping into her hands. She knew that Austin must have hated her, or he never would have tried to humiliate her as he did. Mr. Call did his awkward best to try to comfort her, and they both watched Austin storm out of the Ambrosia Club.
There was nothing they could do.
"A room, please," Maria asked in a dead voice. The woman tending the front desk of the Lonesome Dove did not say anything to her, but she silently handed Maria a set of keys.
There was an awful scene at the newspaper office soon after the trial. Austin yelled at her and threw her things onto the street. Josiah tried to calm him down, and her uncle ended up telling her that it was best that she left the office. Josiah helped her pack as Austin slammed the newspaper office door. The glass shattered all over the floor. Maria cut her hands trying to clean it up. It was not so painful as the way Austin had treated her. She felt like she was sobbing one endless sob since the trial ended.
Now it was a few hours after the trial, and she had no tears left to shed. She turned to drag herself up the staircase to her room. She wanted to avoid the dinner crowd. Maria felt like shutting herself in a room for a couple of days. That would make her feel better. If it did not, Maria decided that she would sit by Mr. Call all day. He was always a comfort to her.
"Miss Bennett," Mr. Shelby's voice stopped her. She turned to him.
He looked years younger, and his eyes twinkled like a giddy schoolboy. Although he was still in obvious pain, he looked like he might do a somersault at a moment's notice.
"You have no idea what you've done for me," he told her.
Already Maria could see the townsmen start to crowd into the Lonesome Dove behind him. Apparently, the celebration followed him from the Ambrosia Club. She could see Mr. Mosby ordering the steak dinners for the entire crowd.
She was glad for Mr. Shelby, but she was dead tired. Maria only nodded at him in reply.
"I can't remember the last time I was truly free," he said, his voice starting to chuckle. "Why, if you could only know how grateful -"
He stopped in mid-sentence, deliberating something. Apparently, he decided what he needed to do.
He caressed her face and pulled her into a kiss.
It was quick, but it stunned Maria. She had not expected that.
"Thank you so much, Miss Bennett. I am forever in your debt."
Maria frowned. She had lost her cousin and her home in a matter of hours. She also figured she was probably eternally damned for "not technically lying." She knew it that it did not make sense, but she blamed the man standing before her anyway. Maria wanted nothing from Mr. Shelby. She wanted to be left alone.
She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand and shook her head in hopelessness of it all.
Mr. Shelby's hazel eyes narrowed at her curiously.
Maria did not care what he thought. All she wanted was to go to sleep.
Maria heard the sounds of celebration for most of the night throughout the town. Maria felt like there was little to celebrate.
END
November 2001