I do not own TYR
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Jimmy
"Rider coming," Emma called out, wiping her hands on her apron. Her eyes zeroed in on the horizon.
I was helping Teaspoon and the boys feed the horses and making sure they were settled in for the evening, we all turned expecting to see Buck and Lou riding in together. But all we could see was Buck's horse and a figure draped over the top.
"Looks like trouble," Cody yelled as we all rushed to Buck's aid, wondering and dreading where the hell Lou was.
I didn't get but a few feet in front of him, before I saw his clothes were drenched in blood. Kid obviously seeing the same thing took off towards Buck and helped him from his horse.
"I'll go get the Doc," Cody said as he quickly mounted Buck's horse and taking off towards the township.
Ike and Kid helped Buck towards the bunk house while I followed feeling useless. My mind went to the baby faced Lou. I knew that when Buck was up to it, he had nothing but bad news to tell us.
I didn't know the hell he'd been through, but I knew it was bad for him to come riding back by himself.
Lou wasn't returning.
Kid and Ike lowered Buck to the bunk. Emma instantly pushed them aside and started taking Bucks shirt from him.
"What happened to you Son?" Teaspoon asked, but I doubted that Buck could answer.
"Indians," he whispered.
"Lou?" Emma questioned, but I don't know why. Wasn't it already obvious that we had probably lost him?
"A woman," Buck muttered,
"He's with a woman?" Kid questioned. All of us confused about what was going on.
Buck was shaking his head no, at the same time Emma spoke up.
"No Lou is a woman," Emma muttered.
What? That doesn't make sense.
"Emma?" Teaspoon questioned, sounding just as confused as me.
"Sorry Teaspoon, but I saw it the first day. Couldn't you tell that her skin was softer, she was softer, prettier?"
"Obviously I didn't Emma. Why didn't you say anything?"
"I guess a part of me thought that you knew, and it didn't matter to you. I thought that if you noticed then you would have to let her go, so I assumed that you just pretended not to know."
"I think we need to get Buck up to the house." Teaspoon suggested, ignoring everything Emma had just shared.
Emma told us to use her bed, so Kid and I laid him on top, being careful not to cause him any more pain.
It was three days later until Buck opened his eyes. We all gathered round, wanting to know what had happened, and where was Lou.
"She saved me,"
"Who?"
"Lou. She has been pretending to be a man this whole time. But when I was about to be scalped she stood in front of me, begging for them to stop, to not kill me...to kill her instead."
"Why would she do that? It doesn't make any sense."
"Lou told me to tell you all, that she was sorry, that she had her reasons to lie. She is a woman. The ones that took her made her prove it. She had bandages binding her chest, so it looked like she had no breasts."
"Oh, that poor child," Emma cried.
"She called me her brother, and all I could do was watch in shock while she condemned herself." the barefaced pain on Buck's face was hard to look at.
"How the hell did we not see this?"
"I should have said something," Emma and Kid both voiced their guilt at the same time.
"I don't think she wanted us to see." Buck stated, wincing as he moved an inch in the bed. "Hang on, you knew?" Buck frowned up at Emma.
Emma nodded her head, and turned for the window so no one could see her guilt.
"How do we get her back, I mean we can't leave her out there?" Cody asked, moving the conversation along.
"I don't think we do," Buck answered honestly.
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That was three years ago. We have all grown in those years but one thing has not changed, our hope that we get Lou back.
The Pony Express was no longer in operation, but we all stayed in the same house working the land around it and doing the odd express delivery when they rarely came up.
Teaspoon became the Marshall of Sweet Water, before packing us all up and taking on the role as Marshall of Rock Creek, hoping that he may be able to use his position to find everything and anything of the Cheyenne that took Lou.
Apart from Buck, he was taking what happened to Lou the hardest. He once said he thought of us as family, so when he learnt that one of his family members had been taken, it took a piece of him as well.
Buck spends his free days, tracking and speaking with his Kiowa family, wanting to know if they had seen or heard anything. He blames himself for not protecting Lou, and thinks that the reason they attacked in the first place was because they knew he was Kiowa. I think that Lou showed him her courage and strength when she protected him, and he felt like he owed it to her to return the favour. He won't rest until he finds her, or her grave.
We have no idea if she is dead or alive, and we can only imagine what she has been through, and that is enough for us to hurt.
Emma left us two years ago and while a part of me still yearned to be more than a friend to her, Sam is a good man. She is doing well for herself and she deserves all the happiness in the world.
Noah joined us not long after Emma left, like Buck he struggles with discrimination because of the colour of his skin. Being a black man, in a town full of white ones, has taken a while for him to get use to.
And it has taken the town a while to get use to him. Noah carries a huge chip on his shoulder, and although he deserves to, he sometimes has trouble reining it in.
Noah has never met Lou, but he knows what she means to us, and what it would mean to us if we found her.
Rachel Dunn, our busty new cook also joined us after Emma left. She has bought some sunshine back into our lives. She is nothing like Emma, though I know she cares for us the same. I think her life experiences have made her the hardened woman she is today.
Since moving to Rock Creek, and after the closure of the station Rachel has taken the role as the town's school teacher.
She has had to fight her own demons, and the small mindedness of some of the town folk, but she did and the town are better off for it.
Rachel is one hell of a woman and an even better teacher.
Kid, Ike and Cody, all just survive. Ike worries for Buck, and often goes with him when he's out tracking. Kid and Cody, while they miss Lou, and still shake their heads at the thought of her as a woman, they have gotten on with life a little quicker than the rest of us.
And me, well I have been busy with all the callers wanting to take 'Wild Bill' out. But it keeps my mind off of Lou. I often sit awake at night wondering why I hadn't seen that she was a girl. I think of all the danger that we put her through over that year, and not thinking twice about it, if we knew she was a girl, I think we would have watched out for her a little more.
"Rider coming," Teaspoon called out as he made his way over to the bunkhouse.
It was Cody's turn to ride. He came flying out of the bunkhouse, and jumped on his mount. It was funny to see him so excited, for when we were riding all the time he would groan the loudest when his turn was up.
"Safe ride Cody," I called out,
"Thanks see you in two days," He and his mount flew to catch the mochila.
"Buck, Jimmy Ike and Noah, I want you boys to come with me,"
I corrected my hat, "Where we going?"
Teaspoon's eyes narrowed in on Buck, "The Arapaho, have a huge mob of mustangs for us." For extra income we would break in the horses and sell them. It didn't bring in much, but it was enough to keep us going and to keep us busy.
"Arapaho?" Buck questioned, while Teaspoon nodded, "Maybe I shouldn't go Teaspoon," Buck looked my way with question in his eyes. I just shook my head, not really sure what to say.
"Son of course you should go. Now mount up." The Arapaho are allies of the Cheyenne, and the Sioux.
Buck was positive it was the Cheyenne that attacked him, and took Lou. There is a lot of bad blood between them and Kiowa.
I watched as Buck seemed torn. I wouldn't blame him if he straight out refused to go, but I also knew it wasn't in him to shy away from anything.
So I wasn't surprised when I saw him mount up with the rest of us.
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A few hours later we saw the site of the Tepee's, and then the corral of mustangs. The landscape was definitely a sight to behold.
A small river ran through the side of the camp, and the area behind the site was thick with trees that nestled in front of a small mountain.
I could think of worst places to live. I thought to myself.
My eyes soon saw a lone Indian soldier. He seemed to be waiting for us, next to the horses. I did a quick scan of the area to see if there were others. I didn't like that it was only him visible.
We halted in front of him, and Teaspoon got off from his horse. I kept my eyes to the trees surrounding the camp. I knew there were eyes on us, I could feel them, but I couldn't see them.
The man who waited for us started ranting in his native tongue. I quickly looked in his direction, picking up on the irate tone to his voice.
I watched in disgust as Buck was looked up and down by this man that stood in front of us, why he thought he was better than Buck, I had no idea.
"I'm Teaspoon Hunter. I believe you have some horses for us?" Straight to the point, I think Teaspoon was having the same uneasy feeling that I was.
"Yes," he indicated with his head towards the wild mob in the corral next to us. We all looked that way, and I must admit there were some fine looking horses in amongst them all, while some looked fiery as hell, I was dreading trying to break them in.
Teaspoon was about to go over for a closer look, when yelling broke out from inside the camp. It was the sound of a woman, an English speaking woman.
It soon got all of our attention, including the Indian that we were with.
"I'm going to get some water," she yelled out in frustration.
"She is much trouble," the Indian horse keeper said, as the girl came out of a Tepee closest to us. She looked confused as she looked left and then right, before deciding to come our way. She was wearing a white dress, that seemed too big for her, or maybe it was because she was so tiny that nothing would fit her.
Her dark hair was loose and fell well past her shoulders. I looked to the other women that came out after her to see that this girl was wearing nothing compared to the others.
No moccasins covered her feet, they were bare. And no buffalo hide was wrapped around her on this cold day.
I could see the Indian woman shaking their heads and speaking fast to one another, but I had no idea what they were saying. And if I had to guess I would say the girl didn't either, as she just kept her head down walking away from them.
One of the horses kicked the side of the corral, startling me, and causing the girl to look up.
When my eyes saw her big brown ones I realised that it was Lou.
"Lou?" Teaspoon asked carefully, obviously seeing what I was seeing. The rest of us got off of our mounts, with Buck pushing forward to get a better look.
The girl we believed to be Lou tried to straighten out her hair and dress as she smiled at us. My god she was beautiful. How the hell didn't I see this all those years ago?
"Teaspoon?" she cried as she ran up to him and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, but she was pulled back by an emotional Buck.
At first I saw fright in her eyes, but when she realised it was Buck her face broke out in smile and her arms clung onto him.
"I never thought that I would see you again," he cried into her hair. "We have been looking for you no stop."
"I have worried that you never made it," She cried, "I was scared you died alone, and I tried, I tried to get away and go back to find you, but I couldn't. I'm so sorry Buck, so sorry." I could see her shoulders shaking as she continued to cry.
"Get your hands off of her half blood," a deep gruff voice called out as the horse guy ripped Lou from Buck's arms.
Lou quickly dropped her head to look at the ground, as Bucks hands went out to grab her.
The big Indian started talking fast but Lou seemed to understand what she was being told. But when she spat at him, he back handed her to the ground.
"How dare you," Buck howled.
"She is mine, I do as I please. Now pay for your horses and leave." He demanded.
I kept my eye on Lou, I was surprised that she didn't break when she was hit, she looked that fragile.
"Lou are you alright?" Teaspoon asked. I watched in horror as she tried to stand, stumbling as she did so.
"Do not answer the pale face, you go, you go now," The big Indian ordered Teaspoon.
"Not without the girl," I told him.
The Indian laughed as he went over to help Lou get her balance. Once she was steady the bastard hit her again. I pulled my colts free and pointed them at the dead man.
"You wanna' do that to someone your own size?"
I could hear the rest of the boys pull their guns, at the same time I saw movement in the tress behind the camp.
I knew that we were being watched.
I looked down at Lou, certain she was out cold. I panicked that if something went down, she would get hurt.
"You are no longer welcome to horses, go,"
"We don't want your horses, we want the girl," Teaspoon told him.
"She not for sale," He sneered back.
Lou was moaning as she begun to move on the ground, as some more Indian males came to join us. This was turning bad really quick, we were outnumbered and surrounded.
"We only want her, surely there is something you want or need in an exchange." Teaspoon asked.
The big one went to answer but he was cut off by another. He quickly muttered something in his ear. The big one seemed to contemplate what he was being told.
His eyes stayed on Teaspoon, "Her, for twenty guns," his eyes daring Teaspoon to deny him.
"NO," Lou suddenly yelled getting to her feet, and once again we watched as she was hit.
I pushed forward and placed my gun between the eyes of the big Indian in front of me, I knew that I would be dead as soon as my finger squeezed the trigger, but in this moment I didn't care. I just wanted him to stop hurting her.
"You have given me plenty of reason," I told him,
"You will die, soon as your bullet is fired," He warned me.
"I don't care I will die a happy man knowing that I killed you first." I told him honestly.
He made a movement with his hand and in an instant Lou was pulled up by her hair and a large hand was wrapped around her neck.
Her scared eyes bore straight into mine. I pulled my gun back, but not completely away, not willing to risk her getting hurt any more than she already has.
"We just want the girl. She was taken from us, three years ago. She is not yours she is ours." Buck tried to reason.
"Twenty guns, you can have her,"
"Jimmy we need to walk away from here today, put your guns away son," Teaspoon's voice was calm, to calm.
"Listen to your elder boy," I felt my Jaw tick, with anger as my trigger finger danced over the trigger. I really wanted this kill.
But I listened to Teaspoon and placed my guns back in their holster. I wanted nothing more than to fire my guns, but it wasn't the time.
"We will be back," Teaspoon told them, but his words and his eyes were for Lou.
"I have no doubt," the Indian laughed.
Lou was being carried away. I wanted to rip the one who held her, arms off. She looked our way with pleading eyes.
"Don't come back, not for me." All the Indian men turned their back and walked off in the same direction.
I had a sick feeling that was going to be the last time we would be seeing her. I prayed it wasn't but god hasn't been on our side of late.
