Chapter One

A/N I can never remember if Fred Madden is supposed to be married or not. In this story, he's a widower.

A/N This is a "what if" that has been on my mind for quite some time…it will come out in Chapter Three who the traveler is. I'll also state which episode she's from for those who don't know.

~oOo~

The wind was doing its best to discourage the loan traveler from continuing their journey. The harder it blew, the tighter her grip on her cloak became. As much as the traveler would have loved to stop and find shelter, stopping was a luxury she could not afford. She'd slipped away from her father's house in the middle of the night unnoticed. She'd then snuck into town and hid in the back of a freight wagon heading to Stockton. When the driver had pulled up a few hours later, she'd slipped out and continued on foot. She would have preferred to remain hidden for the entire trip, but she could not take the risk. Her father would be out looking for her and he would have others out looking for her. They would stop travelers like the freight driver. No, she had to keep going, and stay away from the main roads and towns.

Only when her stomach growled, was she brought out of her thoughts. It had been three days since she slipped away from the wagon, and what little food she'd taken with her was now gone. The only thing that kept her going was the fact that she'd seen a sign on fence she'd passed not thirty minutes before. It only had two words written on it, but they were words she hoped meant no more running…BARKLEY RANCH. It had to be their ranch.

As she continued fighting the wind, the traveler wondered if she was wasting her time. After all, she'd decided before she'd ever fled her father's home she would not speak a word to anyone. If it meant letting everyone think she was a mute, so be it. She had changed her appearance as much as she could; she had to hide her voice as well. For, if she spoke, she knew at least one Barkley who would know who she was right away…if he didn't recognize her anyway.

She glanced up and saw a gentleman pushing his horse against the wind. She felt her heart skip a beat. Was it one of the Barkleys or one of the trackers, who had the stupid luck of finding her so soon? She would have hidden behind some trees and tried to get a better look, only it was too late. The rider had seen her and was heading her way. She began looking around hoping to see another path or road.

For his part, Jarrod had found himself caught up in the unexpected storm. His business in Modesto had taken longer than he'd expected and he'd gotten a late start. Now, within two miles of the Barkley home, he was shocked to see a figure of a woman struggling to walk against the wind. For a moment, he couldn't help but chuckle and think; "Hope she's not here to meet an outlaw." Of course, that was a thought he was not going to repeat to anyone. Though, if truth be told, as he pushed his horse towards the stranger Jarrod couldn't help think Nick was not going to let him live this down.

"MISS!" Jarrod called out as it looked as if the woman was about to turn onto a dirt road that lay off to the right. "MISS!" he called again. This time the stranger stopped in her tracks.

"Miss!" Jarrod had to speak loudly, as he dismounted his horse. The woman's head was down and the hood of her cape covered her and veiled her face. Jarrod assumed it was because of the wind. "There is nothing down that road except a pond. However, my name's Jarrod Barkley and my family's house is just a couple of miles from here. I can take you there until this storm is over!"

Jarrod Barkley! A wave of relief rolled over the traveler as she nodded her head, not wishing to yell back. After all, Mr. Barkley might not be the only one out on the road.

With the storm still raged on, Jarrod didn't question the woman not giving him a vocal answer. He simply helped her up onto Jingo and then joined her. Soon they were making their way down the road towards the Barkley home.

~oOo~

"Mister Jarrod!" Silas, who was standing near the kitchen table, exclaimed and jumped backwards as the kitchen door flew open and the blue eyed attorney stepped inside leading a cloaked stranger inside.

"I'm sorry, Silas," Jarrod said in an apologetic tone of voice as their still cloaked visitor stepped inside far enough to allow Jarrod to shut the door, "but as wet as we are, and the mud on our shoes, I figured it was better to enter through the kitchen door rather than the front one."

"It sure is, Mister Jarrod." Silas smiled at the oldest Barkley brother. "Your mother…" his sentence was cut off when their visitor's stomach growled again. "Excuse my manners, miss," Silas' turned his attention to their unknown guest. "May I get you something to eat?"

More than embarrassed, she did not want to answer only she was terribly hungry. Slowly she removed her cloak and nodded. When she looked at Jarrod, the young woman was not surprised by the look of shock and confusion that came on Jarrod Barkley's face.

Jarrod was indeed feeling both shock and confusion. Not only had he not expected a non verbal reply, but the young woman before him had hair that had been cut up to her neck, and quite unprofessionally too. At least, it looked that way to Jarrod. Her dress was a plain gray dress that he'd seen many girls wear who worked as servants in various household, but she looked so familiar. That is what caused most of his confusion. However, the faded bruise marks upon the side of her face had caused the shock. He went to say something only to hear a door slamming and a voice he knew all too well booming through the house.

"JARROD!" Nick, who had seen Jingo in the barn, had been waiting for Jarrod to get home and, assuming his elder brother would enter through the front door, stood in the foyer yelling up the stairs.

"I'm in the kitchen!" Jarrod walked over to the kitchen door, opened it up and called through the dining room.

"It's about time…" Nick, who had made his way through the dining room and then into the kitchen, started to speak only to have his voice disappear and his jaw drop to the floor as he looked upon the guest standing in their kitchen. Like Jarrod, he knew her, though could not place their meeting. On the tail end of wondering why he felt so strongly he should know her, Nick found himself wondering one, who on earth had hurt her and, two, what she was doing on the ranch.