Author's Note- Hello! It has been a long time since I last posted a story on this site. I am trying to get back into the writing game. I recently saw "The Hatfields and McCoys" on the History Channel and was very intrigued by the story. Forgive me if this isn't historically accurate and if the dialect is a little off because I'm still working on it. This story will follow the general plot of the miniseries with a little Nancy/Cap romance thrown in there. I have no idea how long it will be- probably until I get bored with it. I hope you enjoy. Please read and review! I'd appreciate it.

THE OTHER SIDE OF THE RIVER

She felt the sun burning her hair. She made her way through the rows of corn as she tried to follow the sound of her father's footsteps and rapid breathing. She could hardly see him through the tall stalks, yet she could have sworn that he was looking back at her over his shoulder as he ran.

"Daddy!"

He did not slow down. She yelled for him again. He ran faster. She could hear her brother screaming her name as he tried to catch up with her. "Daddy!" she yelled again. "Daddy, wait!"

She finally lost sight of her father. Her brother grabbed her from behind, wrapped his skinny arms around her shoulders and pulled her against his chest. "Stop," he whispered. "Stop."

It was very quiet for a minute. The storm clouds had arrived suddenly and she could feel the rain. She got the sense that they were waiting for something to happen but she didn't know what it was. Then she heard the gunshot and her mother's crying and all that was left was the comforting feeling of her brother's chin pressed against the top of her head…

Nancy McCoy woke up unsettled and covered in sweat. She wasn't sure anymore if the sweating was due to the miserable summer heat or the recurring nightmare she'd been having for weeks. The dream always involved some frantic pursuit of her Pap and always ended with a gunshot. But last night's dream had been different. Worse than usual. This time she'd actually felt the bullet rip through her own stomach, as if it had gone right through her Pap and into her.

Nancy sat up and pushed a few strands of sweaty hair off her face. She looked over and saw Charles Haskins sprawled out next to her, naked as anything and…excited to see her, obviously. She looked up. He was grinning at her. His teeth were crooked, she noticed. "Hey, there."

Nancy shifted just to make sure the sheet was covering all of her naked body. She may be a whore at night but she always tried to be a lady in the morning. "Was you watching me sleep?"

Charles nodded. "You look so beautiful when you sleep. Couldn't help it." He tried to reach out to stroke her hair, but Nancy ducked her head. "That's…strange." Her eye caught an empty bottle of whiskey on the nightstand. It all made perfect sense. She didn't think there was anything wrong with indulging in the drink, except that she often ended up fornicating with Charles Haskins while she did it. Charles moved closer to her and she felt his erection pressing against her thigh and she shuddered. "What was you dreaming about?"

"Angels," she said quietly.

"Were they beautiful?"

Nancy thought of her Ma and Pap. "Yes. The most beautiful."

Charles kissed her neck. He wanted to do more than just talk and Nancy thought what the hell and was about to let him proceed when she heard a horse approaching outside. She slapped Charles on the shoulder. "You gotta go! Now, right now!"

"What for? You ain't even going make me breakfast?"

"That's my brother! He finds us in this condition and he will shoot you dead without thinking twice bout it!" Nancy leapt off the bed. "I didn't think he'd be back from his trip this early. Damn!" She ran around in a circle twice and then stopped. "Where the hell your clothes at? You came with clothes on, right?" Charles stared up at her blankly; too distracted by the way the sunlight was hitting Nancy's voluptuous, pale body to be of any use. "Pig, you better get a move on if you care about your life! My brother will murder anyone that even looks at me funny!" Charles scrambled out of the bed and pulled on his clothes. Nancy heard the front door open. She grabbed Charles by the shirt collar and shoved him toward the window. "Get!" Charles slithered through the open window and ran like mad into the woods. Nancy noticed he'd left his boots behind and kicked them under the bed.

"Nancy! You awake?" Jeff knocked on her bedroom door.

"Uh, ain't dressed yet! Give me…give me a minute."

Nancy threw on a dress and tried to make herself look decent, or at least like she hadn't just been violated repeatedly by that dog Charles Haskins. She pulled her hair into a sloppy bun and headed for the kitchen. Jeff was sitting at the kitchen table. They didn't have much and never had. Nancy and Jeff lived in a small cottage not a mile from the Tug River that had once belonged to their mother's brother before he died. The cottage had two small bedrooms, a small kitchen, and a small living room. Despite the size, Nancy had done her best to make it a nice home for her and her favorite brother. She knew now that she wasn't meant to have fancy things. She looked over at Jeff and thanked God that she at least had him. Nancy sat down at the table. "How was the trip, brother?"

Jeff slathered butter on a piece of bread and shoved it into his mouth. "Decent enough. I was worried about leaving you alone here so James and I hurried on back. But you look like you held up just fine." He gently punched her shoulder and she punched him right back. "You still act like I'm ten, Jeff. I'm eighteen now. Nearly nineteen, come to think of it."

Jeff frowned and puffed out his chest. "We all each other got, Nance. I gotta take care of my baby sis and I take that responsibility real serious."

Nancy rolled her eyes and kissed her brother on the cheek. "I know. And I love you for it. Now stop eating all that bread and let me make you a real meal." She stood up and walked over to the kitchen to cut up some potatoes. She saw Jeff pull a bottle of whiskey out of his knapsack and tried not to puke at the very sight of it. Jeff took a big gulp. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"Heard a funny story today while I was riding through town. I ran into cousin Samuel. He told me that our cousins took Johnse Hatfield hostage. They took him to Uncle Allen's old place, remember that cabin? Done near killed him, too. Except his Daddy came and saved his life."

Nancy stopped chopping the potatoes and turned to look at Jeff. "And why'd they do that?"

"Roseanna's with child! A Hatfield child! Can you believe it? I can't damn believe it." Jeff slapped his knee and took another excited gulp of whiskey.

"They should have killed him."

Jeff shook his head. "Johnse ain't nothing. He ain't the Hatfield to worry about. He's too busy thinking about his dick anyway. But if a Hatfield put his hands on you, I'd probably try to kill him too."

Nancy quickly turned back around and looked out the window so Jeff wouldn't see her reaction. Johnse Hatifeld. She thought about his hard chest and his powerful blue eyes and the way that he had held her wrists down as he kissed her collarbone and then slowly moved downward...Nancy hadn't let herself think about it for the last few weeks because it made her feel crazy inside. She'd gone for a drink across the river in West Virginia one night because she was lonely and the drinks and company were always better over there. Johnse had been there too, drunk as hell and making a fool of himself as usual. After he'd threatened to fight everyone in the place and slapped by a prostitute, he'd stumbled outside and declared he was going to visit Roseanna. Nancy had offered to show him the way to her old Aunt Betty's house. At first she planned to drop his drunken ass off somewhere in Kentucky and let him try to find him own way home. Then about halfway through the ride she had the idea that it may be fun to seduce Johnse instead. It would be a nice little way to get back at those nasty Hatfields, because as a woman that was about the only weapon she had. She figured that he wouldn't be able to get it up and then she could laugh at him and tell all the girls on both sides of the Tug what a failure he was in bed. Instead it turned out to be the most amazing sexual experience of her whole life and she hadn't dared mention that night to anyone. She'd been quite drunk herself and she thought at one point she may have told Johnse about Roseanna's pregnancy, which Aunt Betty had told her about in the strictest confidence. Anyway, it was a night she'd rather forget but couldn't.

"I hate them Hatfields," she muttered. Jeff nodded in agreement and finished off his whiskey.

It was another scorcher in Logan County. Cap Hatfield took off his hat and wiped the sweat off his forehead with the sleeve of his shirt. He was wearing his Sunday best and it was damn near killing him. "Ma, can't I take off this jacket? It don't make no sense when it's a hundred degrees out."

"No. You may not." Levicy Hatfield reached over and fixed his shirt collar even though there wasn't anything wrong with it. "You look so handsome, William. Doesn't he look nice, Anse? I have the best looking boys in all of Logan County." Anse looked over at Cap and simply grunted. He was wearing his Sunday best too and looked about as thrilled as Cap. They had just arrived in the town square for Anse's lunch meeting with Mayor Jenkins. Levicy and Anse were going to have lunch with the Mayor and his wife while Cap entertained the Mayor's oldest daughter Julie, an arrangement that Cap and his parents had been arguing about for days.

"I don't know why you couldn't bring Johnse," Cap said for the tenth time. "He's better with girls anyway. And he don't have a bad eye."

"Nonsense. You are good with girls, too. And you just as handsome with that eye as ever. And Johnse has other…things on his mind," Levicy said. She gave Anse a look that Cap couldn't quite read, but he knew that she was referring to the "Roseanna mess", as they all called it, that Johnse had recently found himself in. Cap didn't know why anyone was the least bit surprised about it. Cap was almost sure that Johnse had probably impregnated other things in the past, but the family was so bent out of shape about this time just because Roseanna was a McCoy. "So you mean that if I'd knocked up a McCoy girl then I wouldn't have had to come today either?"

Anse stopped walking and turned around. He stuck his face right up into Cap's face so their noses were almost touching, an intimidation tactic that Cap had grown very familiar with. "I know you didn't just talk back to your momma. Did you?" Cap looked down at his feet. "No, sir."

"Let me explain something to you, son. This meeting is very important for me. And for your momma. And for you and all your brothers and sisters. If I'm planning to expand the business then I need the support of our Mayor. You understand that?" Cap nodded. Anse's eyes softened a bit and he patted Cap's shoulder. "Good then. And you going to take Julie on a nice walk and treat her real good, right? Make her feel nice and special, right?" Cap nodded again.

"Julie is a very nice girl. She'd make a lovely wife," Levicy jumped in. Cap rolled his good eye and followed behind Anse.

Cap got the hint alright. Julie may be a nice enough girl but Cap found her dull and sort of repulsive. Cap decided to keep these opinions to himself for now. He knew that this meeting was half about the family business and half about starting a courtship between Cap and Julie. A marriage between Cap and the Mayor's daughter would be very beneficial for the family, beneficial enough that no one really cared how miserable it might make Cap. But that was just the burden of being a Hatfield. Sometimes he wondered what the hell he'd done to deserve being born one.

They walked into the restaurant and found the Mayor and his family sitting in the back. Cap sat down next to Julie and tried to force a smile on his face. "Hello, William," she said coyly. "It's lovely to see you again." Cap returned the pleasantries. Julie was an eighteen year old girl with a boyish body and bright red hair, something Cap really didn't like, and a pig-like nose that Cap also didn't like. She was wearing a frilly outfit that Cap really really didn't like. Cap wished he could order a drink but his Ma had already told him he couldn't.

They ate lunch and kept the conversation light. The business talk would come later. Mrs. Jenkins spent much of the conversation talking about all of Julie's talents- she was an excellent piano player, an excellent cook, and excellent knitter, an excellent everything. Meanwhile, Julie kept touching Cap's thigh under the table and he kept pushing it away. And not because it was making him excited.

Finally, the Mayor suggested that Cap and Julie excuse themselves. They decided to take a walk through the town. Cap took off his jacket because he didn't really care about impressing Julie anymore. They talked about the weather and how it seemed to be the hottest summer they could ever remember. Julie talked about her piano lessons and her new Election Day dress and the bitter fight she was in with her best friend Susan. He wasn't much of a talker himself, but Cap was bored. Julie could sense it and decided to change the subject to something he could relate to. "So, I heard your brother Johnse has found himself in quite a predicament."

Cap shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "You'd have to be more specific."

"I heard he got kidnapped by those nasty McCoy brothers and they nearly beat him to death and left him for dead in the Tug. And I heard it was all because Roseanna is carrying Johnse's twin babies."

"Hmm." That was mostly wrong.

"So is it true?"

So she was dull and a gossip. "It's kind of personal family business. Rather not talk bout it." Julie giggled and rested her hand on his shoulder. "Oh, come on, Cap. Everyone in town is talking about it anyway."

Cap decided that this might be the best time to tell Julie what he really thought about her and just shut the book on the whole thing. Before he could respond, he heard someone call his name. He looked over and saw his Uncle Jim and his friend Skunk standing in front of Lucky's Saloon. He waved back and had a better idea of how to handle Julie. He grabbed her hand and walked over to the saloon. Jim looked at Skunk and winked. "Why, we didn't mean to interrupt nothing!"

"Oh, it's alright. This is Julie Jenkins. Julie, this is my Uncle Jim and Skunk. Hey, do you mind if we go inside for a minute? Before we head back to the restaurant?"

"Oh, ok," she said hesitantly.

The four of them walked inside Lucky's. It was only two in the afternoon and the place was already crowded and rowdy. Cap was delighted to see that Julie looked uncomfortable. If she spent fifteen minutes with Jim and Skunk when they were drunk, she would never want to speak to him again. Jim was a pervert when he drank and Skunk was crude as could be. Cap ordered a shot of whiskey and asked Julie what she wanted to drink. Julie looked horrified. "Why, I don't drink! And if I did, I certainly wouldn't at this time of the afternoon." Cap shrugged and ordered two more shots for himself. Cap got his drinks and they walked back to Jim's table.

Cap took his shots all at once. Jim and Skunk clapped and Cap sat back in his seat with a satisfied grin. Julie didn't look as impressed. Cap waited a few minutes and listened as Jim told a story about a one-legged prostitute he'd had a few nights before. Halfway through the story, Cap excused himself to get another drink from the bar.

Cap walked up to the bar and sat down on a stool to wait for the bartender to notice him. He looked around and noticed the young woman sitting next to him. He smirked when he saw that it was none other than the lovely Nancy McCoy, Harmon McCoy's youngest daughter. Cap had known of Nancy since she was born. He even remembered playing with her once in a while before the whole feud mess started, but they hadn't been particularly friendly in years. But Nancy had sure grown into a fine type of woman. She had black as night hair and pretty skin and he couldn't help but notice the way her breasts could hardly fit into the bosom of her dress. He looked up from her chest and found that she was staring at him staring at her. "Hello, Miss. McCoy. Strange seeing you here." He tipped his hat.

Nancy took a shot of whiskey and slammed the glass down on the bar. She glared at him. "Hello, Cap. I see you've met my breasts."

"Just trying to catch up with all the other men here who have seen them."

"I ought to slap you for that but I won't cuz I'm a lady." She pulled her shaw over her chest and smiled sweetly. "How is your brother Johnse?"

"None of your business." The bartender came by. Nancy asked for a beer and Cap asked for more whiskey.

"Roseanna is my cousin and best friend. So it sure is my business."

"Why don't you just make it your business to make sure you McCoy girls stay away from the Hatfield men? If you all can help yourself that is." The bartender delivered the drinks. Cap took a shot and looked over at Nancy. She was looking at him like she just might kill him. Cap was happy he'd gotten a rise out of her. "I know what it is," she said and took a sip of beer. "You must be awfully jealous of Johnse. All the girls love him and you probably can't get a date if your life depended on it."

Cap frowned. Nancy sure had a mouth on her. The drinks probably didn't help any. He could see that her gloomy brown eyes were watery and unfocused and she'd had about enough of the drink. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to see Julie standing next to him. "Cap? I'd like to go now." She leaned in closer and lowered her voice. "And you ought not talk to her."

"Well, wasn't I was wrong," Nancy said loudly. "I guess you can get a date!" And then she laughed hysterically.

"Don't bother us," Julie snapped. She wrapped her arm around Cap's. "Come on. I reckon our fathers are waiting for us. And I don't want to be seen around these type of people." Nancy stopped laughing, narrowed her eyes and looked Julie up and down. Then she glanced at Cap. "Honey, he don't even like you."

Cap was suddenly very uncomfortable about the whole situation, especially since Julie tightened her grip on his arm and Nancy was swaying on her chair and looking at Julie like a wolf looking at its next meal. "Uh, Julie, maybe you better head back and I'll meet up with you."

"Why? So you can talk to this McCoy trash?" She let go of his arm and stepped back.

Nancy shoved back her chair and stood up. The whole bar was paying attention to them now. Jim and Skunk looked absolutely giddy and were inching their way closer to the bar. Cap didn't say anything and took another shot. He was looking at Nancy, who looked pretty unsteady on her feet. "What did you say?" Nancy asked slowly. Julie put her hands on her hips and repeated herself.

"The McCoys ain't trash." Nancy picked up her beer. She stepped closer to Julie and dumped the beer on her head. Julie screamed as the beer flowed over her. "On second thought, maybe we are," Nancy said. She set the empty glass on the bar and grinned. "And looks like you just been trashed." The crowd cheered.

Julie turned to Cap, who had hardly moved a muscle since Nancy had gotten off her chair. She wiped the beer off her face with both hands and then shoved Cap in the chest. "Just wait till my father hears bout this!" She ran out of the bar. The crowd quickly lost interest and went back to their drinks. Cap stood up and decided he wouldn't be going back to the restaurant. Best if he just headed home and waited for his parents to get back and give it to him. He set some money down on the bar and looked over at Nancy. She looked incredibly satisfied with herself and was already sipping happily on a new beer. She looked at him slyly as if she expected him to be upset. Instead he tipped his hat at her again. "Thanks, I guess."

"What?" she said, surprised. Cap sighed and headed for the door.