A/N: So I'm back once again with a story about Liam and Lucy. I'm really not sure where this one came from. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!
Giggling, the five year old girl raced out of the kitchen. "Lucy Sawyer!" a heavyset woman called, hurrying after her. Lucy ducked down to the ground to hide, holding her hand over her mouth to keep her giggles silent. The porch creaked as the woman came out. "Come back here! Miss Jenny wants to talk to—Oh, where did that girl go? Lucy!"
After a moment of scanning the yard, the woman went back inside and Lucy peeked back up. Grinning in triumph, she scrambled up and ran for the barn. Most of the stalls were empty but a few horses blinked at her as she hurried past. Reaching the ladder, Lucy climbed up to the hayloft. It was there that she began to move slowly and carefully.
The hay rustled as she moved over it. Lucy reached a small corner where a grey striped cat was curled. It lifted it's head to stare at her. "Hello Momma kitty," Lucy whispered, remembering how her father had told her to speak softly. She set her ragdoll on the hay beside her to watch with her. "I just want to see your babies."
The mother cat lowered her head and licked the backs of one of the squeaking newborn kittens. Keeping her hands to herself, Lucy leaned in closer to watch. She stayed like that for quite some time content to be where she was.
Finally, the five year old became bored with the kittens who had settled down to sleep. Lucy crawled across the hay, slipping several times as she went, and went to the ladder. It was harder getting back on the rungs but she followed every step her father had told her. She was almost to the bottom when hands grabbed her under the arms.
"Let me go!" Lucy immediately protested as she was lifted up. She kicked her feet wildly, angered at having been caught.
"Calm down, Miss Lucy," a laughing voice told her. She was set on the ground and she took the opportunity to whirl around to confront the man. He pushed the brim of his cowboy hat back and knelt down to be eye level with her, his brown eyes revealing his amusement. "Now, I don't think you're supposed to be up in the hayloft
on your own, are you?"
Lifting her chin defiantly, Lucy scowled. "I'm old enough, Mister Barry," she insisted. "Besides, how else am I supposed to watch the kittens? I was good and didn't try to play with them."
John Barrington, son of the owner of the Double Square ranch, laughed again. "I know your daddy isn't going to be happy to hear that you've been disobeying him and me," he pointed out. He stood up. "Momma cats don't like people knowing where they've got their babies, Miss Lucy. She'll probably move them and you won't ever find them."
Lucy's eyes widened. "No!"
"It's true," the young man told her. "You just ask your daddy when he get's back."
Lucy frowned as she considered that. "But if I do that, he'll know I've been in the hayloft," she said thoughtfully.
"Regardless of whether you tell him or not, he'll know, Miss Lucy," Barrington advised her. He plucked a strand of hay from her blonde hair and tickled her cheek with it. "Now, I think it's time that you ran along back to Mrs. Parker's kitchen. She's the one who is supposed to be looking after you, isn't she?"
The girl scuffed her feet on the ground. "I guess," she admitted reluctantly. "But Miss Jenny came and I don't like her."
Understanding dawned on the man's face. "Well, she's probably gone by now," he said. "Off you go then."
With a huff, Lucy ran for the barn door. As soon as she stepped out, she paused, looking over her shoulder. Barrington had vanished further into the barn. With a mischievous grin lighting her face, the girl dodged to the right and headed for the garden. She twirled as she went, swinging her doll.
She collided with a pair of legs and fell back. Gasping, she hit the ground with a hard thud, her doll flying out of her hand. She looked up and her eyes widened in surprise.
"Hello, Lucy. You're just the girl I was looking for."
Carrying his tack to the back of the barn, Liam Sawyer nodded at the men he passed. It had been another long day rounding up cattle from the far edges of the ranch and he was as tired as any of the other men. Liam was looking forward to his meal, having his daughter's arms around his neck, and then his bed.
Leaving the barn, the fair haired young man walked towards the main house where the windows were lit up. The sound of the Barrington family talking and laughing together could be heard. For a moment, he felt a stab of longing to be part of such a family: close and trusting. He shook his head as he entered the kitchen.
"What are you shaking your head at, Mr. Sawyer?" Mrs. Parker asked as she bustled around her domain.
Unwilling to admit he was thinking of his family and how much he was starting to dislike being called 'Mr. Sawyer' Liam forced a smile. The respect he had always wanted didn't mean as much now that he knew it wasn't his real name. "Not a thing, Mrs. Parker," he answered cheerfully. "How was Lucy today?"
The woman paused in her work and turned to face him. "You mean you haven't seen her yet?" she asked in surprise. "I thought she would be waiting at the door to tell you all about how she got away from me to go visit those kittens in the barn."
"She's not with you?" Liam asked feeling the stat of unease.
Mrs. Parker frowned. "No, sir," she answered. "She always comes back unless she finds you first."
Spinning on his heel, Liam bolted from the kitchen. "Lucy!" he shouted as he ran. He ignored the questions and calls that followed in his wake. He shoved open the door of his small cabin. "Leah Lucille Sawyer! Answer me right now!"
There was only silence in the dim cabin. With panic rising with every second, Liam rushed to the tiny bedroom he shared with his daughter and found it empty. Turning, he ran out of the cabin, almost colliding with Barrington.
"Sawyer, what's wrong?" the other man asked. "We could hear you shouting inside."
"I have to find Lucy," Liam told him. "She's not with Mrs. Parker like she's supposed to be and she's not here."
Barrington let out a low curse, sending a look at the swiftly setting sun. "I'll gather the men and as many lanterns as we have on hand," he responded, reaching to clasp Liam's shoulder. "Don't worry, Sawyer, she can't have gotten very far. We'll find her."
Shaking the other man's hand off, Liam started for the garden, a place where he knew Lucy loved to play. He was halfway there when he stepped on something that wasn't a rock. Pausing, he looked down and slowly knelt down. He picked up his daughter's ragdoll, the one Victoria Barkley had given her and Lucy had barely let go of since then.
"Oh, god. Lucy."