This is my first story ever. I has been over at the Ranch since August, but there was some interest in it here so I'm putting it here. This was going to be a one shot, but my friends, Karen and Shauna convinced me to write the rest of it. I have to organize the rest of it into chapters yet so here's something to tide you over.
As she looked up at the sky for answers, a tear rolled down Eliza's cheek. How had her life come to this? She was ruined, turned out, and friendless. This was not how her life was supposed to turn out. She was only sixteen and already her life was broken beyond repair.
Up until three months ago, everything was going so well. Joe Turner was a handsome boy. All the girls pined after his affections. Eliza was one of them. She was attracted to his boyish good looks. He had a wry smile and a mischievous sparkle that she found irresistible. Her parents agreed to their courting. Everything was perfect. Then, like a house of cards, everything crashed.
Eliza spread a blanket out on the ground. She liked this meadow. It was peaceful and serene. She always came here to think. She sat down in the middle of the blanket and smoothed the soft pale blue fabric of her skirt. Right here felt like a fitting place to end her suffering. She pulled a knife out of her drawstring bag as a tear fell from her eye and rolled slowly down her cheek. 'This is it.' She thought. She pressed the point of the knife to the pale skin of her wrist. She closed her eyes and her lips started to move. She murmured prayers either for the courage to cut or for someone to come along and stop her. She wasn't really sure which, maybe both.
Buck was riding through some his favorite country on his way back from Fort Laramie. He had been on a special run for Sam and now he was heading home. Since he didn't have to bring back a reply, Buck was content to take his time getting back. It was a beautiful day and he meant to enjoy it.
As he was coming up on one of his favorite meadows, he noticed a girl sitting on a blanket under a tree about 25 yards from him. She seemed about his age, maybe younger, slender, and had long blonde hair cascading lightly over her shoulders. He smiled to himself trying to get up the nerve to talk to her. He couldn't help feeling something was off. Something in the way she held herself gave him pause. She looked sad. He caught the metallic glint of something she held to her arm. His lips parted in shock as he realized what was about to happen and he kicked his horse into a gallop hoping he could get there in time.
She heard a horse whinny as the knife broke skin. She opened her eyes and looked up at the approaching rider as she continued to draw the knife down her arm. She barely had time to notice the endorphins rushing through her. He jumped from his horse and quickly approached her staring at the blood running down her delicate arm and soaking her skirt. He slowed to a tentative walk as he neared the blanket.
"No, no, no, no, no!" She cried as she burst into tears. "Please don't come any closer." Her voice begged.
"I'm a rider for the Pony Express, I'm not going to hurt you." The rider said gently hoping his Indian heritage didn't scare her too much.
"Oh, I know you're not going to hurt me." She said, bowing her head in resignation. "You're going to try and save me aren't you? You can't you know. No one can." The last words came out as a whisper and she started to cry.
Buck watched as she switched her knife to her other hand. His eyes grew bigger as he realized the urgency with which she was trying to end her own life. He didn't know what to do or what to say. Then he remembered something his brother used to tell him, *"Never act until you have clearly answered the question: 'What happens if I do nothing?'"*He knew. She was going to die. "May I sit?" He finally asked.
Eliza was surprised. Her deep blue green eyes looked into his and she saw concern and sincerity there. "Please leave me alone." She answered hesitantly between sobs. "I don't ...want or need any help."
Buck lowered himself to the ground and sat on the edge of the blanket anyway. "How did you get here?" He asked gently trying to strike up a conversation to distract her.
"I walked." She replied evasively.
"That's not exactly what I meant." Buck smiled warmly as he said it. "I guess I'm just asking if you want to talk about it."
"There's nothing to talk about anymore. I've come to a decision." Eliza was losing her courage to slash the other arm, but she felt she needed to steel her resolve. Then she looked into his face. This complete stranger's face showed more unconditional love and concern than that of her friends or her entire family had managed. Somehow she felt like if she wanted he would save her and everything would be alright. She closed her eyes started to shake her head violently. "It's not real. It's just a trick. You can't really care. Why should you, you don't even know me." She raised the blade and plunged the knife into her other wrist and drew it down. She let out a small scream as she cut.
Buck looked horrified and he moved to grab her hand, but it was too late. Her blood was now flowing from both arms. He had to get her to let him help her. Not seeing anything else to do, he swept her up in his arms and held her as she cried. He was a little surprised and emboldened that she let him. Maybe he could save her yet.
Eliza decided not to fight the embrace at first. It was nice. She hadn't been held in so long. It was comforting. "I don't even know your name." She sobbed into his shoulder.
"My name's Buck. Buck Cross, how about you?"
"Eliza." She said omitting the last name. She started to push him away as she remembered that she didn't want help. "Thank you for your concern Mr. Cross, but I don't want to keep you from your job." She shoved him back harder this time and embrace was broken sending Buck once more across from her.
"Please call me Buck. I'm just coming back from a special delivery run. I don't have any return mail, so you're not keeping me from anything." He explained. "You look like you could use a friend. Even if you won't allow me to save you, at least I could keep you company." Then he added, "You shouldn't be alone."
Eliza was starting to feel a little dizzy from the blood loss. She looked up at the sky and laughed. "I would have given anything for someone to have said that to me last week, hell even yesterday."
She sat quietly looking at the beauty of the meadow and the wild flowers that had just begun to bloom. "Buck, have you ever been in love?" She asked after several minutes of silence.
Buck sighed. "I thought so, once. It didn't turn out so well. She used me."
"Well, I guess we have something in common. I thought I was in love and he used me too." She stated bitterly. She was beginning to get angry something she hadn't felt before now. Maybe she could tell this stranger her story. Maybe he would understand. The truth was she didn't want to be alone. Not now, not ever.
She kept waging the vigorous debate about whether or not to trust Buck and finally began to speak. "I fell in love with a boy. His name is Joe." She started bravely. "He was sweet and considerate and handsome. All the girls in town liked him, but he seemed to have eyes only for me." She smiled as she recalled the memory. "He even asked my daddy if he could court me and daddy said yes." She started to cry softly.
"What happened then?" Buck asked suspecting that he knew.
"Joe and I…well we…you know. I thought we were going to get married one day. I loved him so much." She felt the desperation in her voice. "I'm pregnant." She finally confessed. "But that isn't really the problem." She hastily added.
"It's not?" Buck asked surprised. "Sorry, please continue." He could see her succumbing to the blood loss, but this was taking too long. Buck was conflicted. He wanted her to give him permission to help her, but he would help her against her wishes if she passed out.
"I told Joe about the baby and he turned on me. I think he is just scared, but he decided that the baby couldn't be his. He called me a whore and left me. I didn't know what to do so I walked home and told my parents everything." She started to shake and sob at the memory. "I'm sorry, I'm sure this all sounds so stupid to you." He could see unconsciousness beckoning to her as her body relaxed and swayed. It wouldn't be long now before she passed out.
"You don't have to apologize. I'm your friend. You can tell me anything and it won't leave here." He reassured her. Then he hesitantly asked, "You're parents didn't react well I take it." Her eyes started to flutter closed.
"No," She said quietly trying to keep her eyes open. "They've disowned me. They are going to send me back east and take the baby away when it's born. I wasn't even going to be allowed back." She lamented. "See it's that I was losing everything and I felt like I was trapped, like I didn't even get a say. I lost the boy I thought I loved, I lost my family, and they were going to take my baby. What is there to live for after that?"
She started to sway and her field of vision started to darken. She felt terrified. She looked into Buck's eyes. They were still filled with concern and warmth. She spoke softly, "Please Buck," She choked, "I've changed my mind. Please save me…I don't really want to die." She fell into his arms and passed out.
"Eliza?" He gently shook her. "Eliza, wake up sweetheart." She didn't respond. Buck couldn't believe that her parents could be so cruel. He had to help her.
Buck lowered her gently to the ground and ran to his horse and grabbed bandages and bandanas out of his saddle bags. He quickly and efficiently bound her wrists with the bandages and tied the bandanas tightly around them. He felt her forehead, she was clammy and pale. He wrapped her in the blanket and picked her up and walked over to his horse. He set her on the saddle and then swung up himself and cradled her in his arms and set out for the way station as fast as could. Emma would know what to do. Eliza was a very troubled girl and her injuries were not only physical, but first he had to save her life, then he could worry about saving her spirit.
Yeah, so I don't if I can write too long without some mortal peril.