I originally posted this a little while ago, but received some criticisms that made me realize that it still needed a little work. Thanks to some great suggestions from Penski, I was able to tweak the story a little and I think (I hope!) it's better for it.
Many thanks to all who offered reviews, support and suggestions, and particularly to HannaHeyes and Akeays for their good advice!
And last, but certainly not least, many, many thanks to Penski, who pointed out my plot holes, cleaned up my commas and radically reduced my run on sentences!
All seemed right with the world on the day that Hannibal Heyes and Kid Curry crossed the state line from Wyoming and arrived in the small Colorado town of Silvervale. The sun was shining and they had money in their pockets.
They were ready for a little relaxation; the past couple of months had been hard.
Their last job had been to transport four horses to a ranch owner, and had involved long days of riding and nights camping on the trail. It paid good money but they had been forced to leave the ranch quickly, only minutes ahead of a very determined posse. The posse kept them running for days; they ended up camping out in the mountains for almost three weeks before they decided it was safe to leave. They were tired, hungry, and starting to get on each other's nerves after so many hours spent exclusively in each other's company.
Thank heaven they'd been paid well enough to spend some time in the saloon, clean up and sleep in a real bed.
They rode through the dusty streets, noticing a small but shabby sheriff's office with an unfamiliar sheriff sunning himself on a chair outside. They tipped their hats to him as they passed and he returned the gesture, no hint of recognition or interest on his face.
"Wanna rest here a while?"
Curry looked around him speculatively. "Be nice to relax for a couple of days. Looks like a quiet place. Wouldn't mind gettin' a bite to eat."
"Oh, you wouldn't mind, huh? There's a place over there, let's go get some lunch."
They ambled over to the small restaurant, drawn by the enticing scents of freshly baked bread and roasting meat. They ordered a large lunch from the pretty waitress and wandered back into the street, their bellies full and their moods considerably improved.
Heyes smiled contentedly at his partner. "Saloon?"
"Don't mind if I do."
They leaned against the bar.
"Whiskey."
The bartender poured them each a shot.
"You gentlemen visiting?"
"Just passing through. Seems like a nice quiet little town."
"It is at that. Not much excitement here, if that's what you're looking for."
Curry made a face. "No, not lookin' for any excitement. A nice quiet town is just what the doctor ordered." Seeing the bartender's expression, he added, "So to speak."
Heyes gestured for another two glasses. "Got any rooms available?"
"Yeah, we got one. Good rates and it's a clean, comfortable room - if you gents don't mind sharing?"
"We're shared before and lived to tell the tale! We'll take it."
In truth, they preferred to share whenever possible. It meant they could watch each other's backs and make a quick getaway if they needed to.
"Any work around here?"
"Young Mrs. Adams down at the Silver Dollar Ranch is looking for a couple of good workers."
"Where could we find her?"
"Her place is about five miles north, just past the river bend."
Heyes tipped his hat and grinned. "Mighty obliged to you, sir. Now I think I'll just wander over there and see if they need another player at that poker table. Wouldn't mind playing a hand or two."
Curry smiled at the reference to his earlier comment. "Wouldn't mind, would ya?"
"Not at all, Mr. Jones. Not at all!"
They enjoyed one of the most relaxing evenings they'd had in a while. Heyes won a nice amount, being careful to not draw any attention by winning too much. Afterwards, they spent a little money on a bath and a haircut that they both badly needed, and then they settled in for an early night.
The next morning they were well rested and well fed after a good breakfast at the same pleasant little restaurant they went to the day before. Their moods were good as they rode over to the Silver Dollar Ranch.
It was surprisingly picturesque, with a view of the mountains rising in the distance and a flower garden outside the window. As they dismounted, a petite and pretty blonde woman completed the picture as she came out, wiping her hands on her apron.
Heyes tipped his hat. "Good morning, ma'am. The bartender at the saloon in town told us you were looking for a couple of good workers and we're looking for work right now. We've worked on a few ranches in our time and can do pretty much anything you might need."
She watched Curry dismount and smiled in return. "I am looking for some help. What brings you to town?"
Curry answered her. "Just passin' through, ma'am, tryin' to find honest work."
"Well, then I think we can help each other, Mr...?"
"Jones, ma'am. Thaddeus Jones, and this is my partner, Joshua Smith."
She acknowledged both of them, but it was clear that there was a little more warmth in the smile she gave to Mr. Jones.
"I'm sure you gentlemen must be hungry after your ride, come on in. I've just taken some bread out of the oven."
"Thank you, ma'am, but we just had breakfast," Heyes began, but Curry interrupted.
"That sounds wonderful. Managed to work up quite an appetite on the way here."
"I like to see a man with a good appetite."
They smiled at each other, feeling an instant attraction, and neither heard Heyes mutter, "A match made in heaven!"
Mrs. Adams fed them with as much food as they could wish for and told them a little of what she needed.
She was a widow and trying to manage the place on her own. She had ranch hands for the day to day things, but found she needed some additional work done and didn't want to pull anyone from their regular tasks.
She spoke almost exclusively to the Kid, gazing into his eyes as she did so. Their attraction to each other was obvious. Heyes was starting to feel extremely uncomfortable as the third wheel.
"Well, perhaps you'd like to tell us where you want us to start?"
She looked startled for a moment; she seemed to have forgotten that he was in the room.
"Oh! Oh, yes. Let me see..." She thought for a moment. "Mr. Smith, there are some repairs that need to be done in the barn. The roof needs patching and the floor of the loft needs work. You'll have to clear it out first, though. My foreman's out there now, he can show you around. Just introduce yourself. His name's Bill."
He nodded and stood up, waiting for his cousin.
"Oh, I have some repairs that need to be done in the house. Mr. Jones, could you stay here and work on them, while Mr. Smith starts on the barn?"
Curry nodded enthusiastically. Heyes smiled at the two of them and left. In truth, he and the Kid would appreciate spending a little time apart.
Mrs. Adams and Mr. Jones quickly became Mary and Thaddeus, as he oiled hinges that didn't squeak and tightened doorknobs that didn't seem to be very loose in the first place. When Heyes returned that evening, dusty and tired, he found a happy and relaxed pair sitting on the porch drinking lemonade.
"Mrs. Adams, Thaddeus."
Curry waited for her to tell Heyes to call her Mary and offer him some lemonade, but oddly, she didn't. Perhaps she just felt closer to him since he had been working next to her all day.
He also had to admit that it felt good to have the easy job for a change. Seemed like he was always the one that ended up on the long or dangerous job while Heyes got to relax. If Kid Curry lived to be a hundred, he was never going to forget hauling all those explosives to the mine, while Heyes was able to sit back and romance a beautiful lady, even if he did have to solve a murder at the same time.
Well, turnabout was fair play, he thought, smiling, as he sipped his lemonade and settled back in his seat. Heyes guessed his thoughts and grinned back at him, rolling his eyes.
"Hello, Mr. Smith, I hope you had a productive day. I should tell you both where you'll be bedding down. Mr. Smith, I believe they have a bed available in the bunkhouse, where I think you'll be very comfortable. Thaddeus," here she smiled sweetly at his cousin, "tells me that you enjoy a game of poker and I understand they frequently play cards there of an evening."
He nodded, a polite smile on his face.
"Thaddeus, I have a favor to ask of you. For the past few nights, I've been hearing noises outside my room at night. I'm so scared that it might be a bear." Curry thought he saw real fear in her soft blue eyes. "I wonder if you'd mind sleeping in the guest room for my protection? I know that I can trust you to be a gentleman."
Heyes raised an eyebrow and smiled to himself. So, she wasn't that much of a lady after all!
Curry saw nothing amiss and Heyes was happy for him to enjoy a little romance. He didn't mind bunking with the other workers and she was right, he would enjoy a hand or two of poker.
She looked back towards Heyes. "The men are probably getting ready to eat right now, you should head over and get something."
Seeing him turn to his cousin, she added, "Thaddeus and I already ate. I like to eat early and since he was here, he was kind enough to keep me company. You should take your things over to the bunkhouse and get settled in. After breakfast tomorrow, you can carry on fixing the barn."
Heyes knew that he'd been dismissed. Well, he wasn't going to get in the way of the Kid enjoying an evening with a lovely woman.
"Goodnight, ma'am. Thaddeus."
"Night, Joshua."
He looked back as he walked away and saw Mrs. Adams move a little closer to his partner. Nope, he thought, not that much of a lady after all.
It didn't take long for Heyes to realize that there were already a few snickers about Mrs. Adams' sudden infatuation with his friend.
As they sat around the table examining their cards, one of the hands, a man by the name of Curly, said, "Better him than me!"
Heyes was surprised and looked at him quizzically. She was young, rich and attractive, not a woman many men would turn down.
Seeing his puzzlement, the foreman, Bill, explained, "She's a very… determined woman when she sets her sights on something. Knows her own mind and doesn't let anything stand in her way."
Heyes still couldn't see the difficulty, neither he or the Kid had a problem with strong women. He also had a hard time reconciling that description with the petite, vulnerable young woman they had spoken to. Perhaps she had been a little open about her attraction to the Kid, but determined? He couldn't imagine it.
"You'll see," said another man - Micky, was it? - "you'll see."
Over the next few weeks, he began to.
Mrs. Adams (she was still Mrs. Adams to him, although she was Mary to the Kid, and he was now, sickeningly in Heyes' opinion, 'Thaddy') seemed to be doing everything she could to keep the two men apart.
Heyes had barely spoken to Kid since they'd arrived and while he had excused it at first - she was attractive woman and obviously infatuated with his friend - he was starting to get irritated by the Kid's behavior.
They'd been there for more than a month now and experience had taught them that it was never a good idea to stay anywhere for too long.
Heyes had been back to the town a few times, when he'd found, to his annoyance, that the Kid chose to spend all of his free time in Mary Adams' company. He couldn't deny that it felt pretty safe. He had made friends there and even shared a drink or two with the sheriff, who was a keen poker player.
Micky's aunt needed some help mending the fence around her house and Heyes, with nothing better to do with his free time, had volunteered. She'd thanked him by baking one of the best apple cakes he'd ever eaten.
On another occasion, the bartender at the saloon, Ben, had caught a stomach bug and left the owner, Queenie, without a bartender for the day. Since it was his day off, Heyes had stepped in to fill the breech, and the delectable Queenie had expressed her appreciation with something far better than apple cake...
But he was missing his friend and he was feeling restless. If he was honest, he was also a little jealous and annoyed that the Kid didn't seem to be missing him at all.
In that, he was correct.
To Curry's surprise, he'd barely noticed Heyes' absence. He'd never been in love before - not properly, not like this - and it hit him hard.
He was enthralled by her. She was beautiful, she was rich, she was sweet, and he couldn't believe she wanted HIM.
He loved to listen to her as she talked. He felt so sorry for her, widowed at such a young age and left to manage the ranch on her own. She cried as she told him about her loneliness and her sadness and how much she had longed for someone to love, someone to share her life with.
From the first moment they met, there had been an instant attraction. That first night, she had come tentatively to his room and blushing like a schoolgirl, told him she wanted him, and he had been surprised by her passion.
He couldn't get her out of his mind, couldn't begin to think of anything else. He was annoyed by Heyes' constant demands to leave.
Things had ended badly when they last discussed it.
Heyes had already been in a bad mood. It had taken him two days just to get to speak to the Kid alone.
"Kid, we need to move on, you know that."
"Why? No-one suspects anything, no-one has any idea who we are. Summer's almost over, people won't be traveling so much. Why not just stay here over the winter, what's the harm?"
"What's the harm?! What if someone does recognize us and we're snowed in here, we'll be trapped!"
"An' so will they! Anyway, why would anyone recognize us? They haven't so far."
"You know they always do eventually!"
Curry was tired of moving from place to place constantly. He loved Mary and he wasn't ready to leave her yet.
"I'm tired of jumpin' at shadows. Heck, not even the sheriff thinks we're anyone other than Joshua Smith and Thaddeus Jones. I just don't see the problem. For once, we have a roof over our heads, food to eat and warm beds to sleep in. Why can't we just enjoy a little comfort for once?"
"The problem is that you're getting too comfortable!"
Curry narrowed his eyes. "Well, that's just it, isn't it? You don't like me bein' with Mary."
"No. I don't."
Curry tried not to lose his temper. It wasn't easy. "Care to tell me why?"
"What do you think you're gonna do, marry her? Settle down and have a bunch of kids? It's not gonna happen! Do I have to remind you that you're a fugitive, that there's a $10,000 reward on your head that people keep trying to collect?"
"No, Heyes, you don't have to remind me! But how long are we gonna live like this, huh? Sure, it's a risk to stay here, but it sure as hell hasn't been that safe runnin' from place to place either! I love her, Heyes, I've never met anyone like her before! And yes, if there was any way that I could, I would like to stay and marry her and have a bunch of kids. Is that so terrible?"
Heyes paled. He hadn't thought things had gone that far.
"Kid, we can't stay here. Look, we'll come back when the governor gives us our amnesty…"
"The governor's never gonna give us our amnesty, Heyes, it's about time you stopped believing that he will! He's been stringin' us along for two years now and we're still no closer."
"It could be any day now…"
"But it won't be, an' I'm tired of runnin'. Let's just stay here and keep our eyes and ears open. If it looks like someone suspects us, we'll go then. We've travelled in snow before, we won't get trapped."
"But why even risk it? It's too dangerous!"
"Then you go. I'll stay here."
Heyes stepped back, his jaw dropping. "Kid… you know it's safer when we stay together."
Curry felt a pang of guilt, which he instantly buried. He knew Heyes wouldn't leave without him.
"So, we stay here, 'cause I'm not leavin'!"
And with that, he walked away.
That night, Kid Curry looked into the eyes of the woman he loved and told her everything. He knew he could trust her. She listened quietly to the end and then kissed him.
"You're right, my darling, you'll be safe here over the winter. We'll be careful, don't worry about a thing. I love you and I'm never going to let you go."
He put his arms around her and they kissed. As he fell asleep wrapped in her arms, her mind was working.
The next morning, she told him that she had a letter she needed to write. She sat writing in her study for most of the morning and then rode into town to mail it.
Every morning after that, she went into town to check for mail. Eventually, nine days later, she received a response. She opened the letter right there in the post office and read it. There was a document with it and she looked it over carefully.
Then, smiling, she walked to the telegraph office.
She sent two words in reply.
'Friday train'.