Three days later, Chris and Buck rode into Stacey at sunset. They guided their horses to the livery and wearily slid from the saddle.
"Let's get a drink and something to eat," Chris said. "If Vin is in town, he's probably in the saloon anyway."
"You think he'd stay in town?"
"Probably not, if he has Ella. But if I know Tanner, he probably camped outside of town with a view of the road in. If he doesn't contact us before dark, we'll get a room and wait."
Buck nodded, rubbed the kinks out of his back. The two men made arrangements for their horses with the livery operator, then trudged down the street. They stepped into the saloon and took a look around. Tanner was not in the room. Chris headed toward a table in the back of the room where they could keep an eye on the door and still have the wall at their backs. They ordered beer and food.
Vin didn't contact them, so they took a room at the boarding house across the street from the saloon. Both men drifted off to sleep fairly quickly, the long ride taking its toll.
Chris heard the soft noise, his hand wrapping around his gun before he was fully awake.
"Just me, Cowboy," the soft voice said.
"You keep doing that and you won't have to worry about hanging," Larabee told his friend. Vin chuckled, keeping his voice quiet, not wanting to wake Wilmington.
Chris sat up, watching the shadow of Vin move away from the wall into the low light of the coming dawn.
"You found her."
"Yep."
"Where is she?"
"Not far. 'Bout a four-hour ride from here."
"You left her alone?"
"Nope. Don't worry. She ain't going nowhere."
The way Vin said that told Chris that something unusual was going on, but he knew better than to press for more right now. You could never tell who might be listening.
"Wake up Buck. We'll get some breakfast and get going," Chris said as he slid out of bed and started to dress.
Vin nodded and walked over to the man sleeping on the other bed.
"Bucklin, wake your ass up!" he called. Wilmington stirred. "C'mon, Buck, we gotta get moving." The sleeping man grunted, turning onto his back. His eyes slid open.
"Vin, one of these days, I'm gonna shoot you," he grumbled.
Tanner chuckled. "Yep, but not today."
"We gotta ride, Buck," Chris said as he pulled on his boots. "We'll grab some breakfast and head out."
Buck rubbed his hand over his face and glanced at both men. "I suppose I have to wait to get any details." Vin just raised an eyebrow. "Forget I asked," Buck said. "I'm not sure I'm awake enough to hear it right now, anyway."
After both men dressed, the trio left the room.
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The trio rode out of Stacey an hour later. Vin refused to give the other two any details while they were in town. A mile out of town, Chris patience finally gave out.
"You gonna tell us now, Tanner?"
Vin glanced over at his friend, then let his eyes slide over to Buck. He sighed.
"She was found wandering around in the desert," he answered, then looked away.
"Found by who?"
"Some friends of mine." Several seconds of silence followed.
"Tanner," Chris snarled.
"Look, the people that found her tried to help her. She turned on them. Someone got killed."
Chris and Buck were stunned. "She killed someone else?" Chris asked.
"Yeah. A little boy. He was only three."
"Oh, God!" Chris cried. "That woman..." He took a deep breath. "She ain't getting away this time. If I have to keep her hog-tied all the way back to Four Corners, she is not getting a chance to escape again."
Buck nodded his head in agreement, but Vin kept quiet. He knew that Ella would never make it back to Four Corners. Hell, she wouldn't ever leave the Indian village.
Four hours later, the trio reined in on the same hill Vin had topped when he'd first arrived a few days earlier. They looked down on the village. Vin had told them that they needed to wait until they were acknowledged before they entered the area. Once again, it was the youngsters who noticed the strangers first. Kanahe looked up at the cries of the children and waved at his friend.
Larabee started his horse forward, only to be stopped by Tanner.
"Chris, before we go down there, you need to know something," Vin said.
"Well, what is it? I want to get down there and make sure Ella knows she's gonna hang for killing my family."
Vin nervously licked his lips. He glanced at Buck, then looked down at the ground. "She won't hang, Chris," he said softly.
When he didn't elaborate, the black-clad gunslinger moved his horse closer to the tracker. "What the hell are you talking about, Tanner? That bitch is going back to face trial."
"No, she won't. They won't let you take her."
"I ain't leaving without her," he snarled. "You are just going to have to make them understand that she has to pay for killing my wife and son." Chris was angry and Vin didn't blame him. But he wasn't the only one to lose a son.
"Chris..."
"No! Dammit, Tanner, I've waited over three years to find out who killed my family. Now that I have the proof, no one is going to stop me from bringing her in. No one," he stated, poking a finger into Vin's chest.
"Chris, you gotta understand..."
"I understand that the bitch that killed my family is down there. She is the reason my wife and son burned to death and she's close enough for me to finally see justice done."
Buck Wilmington was watching the two friends go head-to-head. He didn't know why Vin was trying to keep Chris from bringing her to trial, but he'd been around the former bounty hunter long enough to know there must be a reason.
"Calm down, Chris, let the man talk."
"I don't want to hear him say anything about her not going with us when we leave."
"You gotta understand," Vin pleaded with him. "You aren't the only grieving parent here."
The anger at Tanner died quickly. Chris closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Shaking his head he opened his eyes and glanced over his shoulder toward the village. "Sorry, Vin. I know another child is dead. I didn't forget that. But, it's all the more reason to be sure she stands trial."
"She'll pay for what she did, Chris. But it'll be Indian justice."
Chris frowned. "Indian justice? What the hell does that mean?"
"Chris, you know that no white man's jury is gonna care that an Indian child died. And you also know that there's a chance that Ella won't hang for killing your family."
"I'll make sure she hangs."
"You won't be on the jury. You gotta know how hard it is for a jury of men to sentence any woman to hang. 'Specially one as pretty as Ella. She can talk her way outta this. Oh, she'll probably spend some time in jail, but there ain't no guarantee that she'll die."
"She definitely won't hang if we don't at least take her back for trial," Chris snarled.
"Look, you two, why don't we quit arguing about it and just head on down to the village," Buck suggested. "My butt is getting sore and that old Indian down there is startin' to give us funny looks."
Tanner and Larabee turned to look down. Kanahe was still staring up at the trio, no doubt wondering why they hadn't entered his village.
Vin nodded. "Let's go down. You can talk to the Chief and the boy's mother. Maybe then you'll understand better."
"I plan on taking her back, Vin. If that means I have to take her from those Indians, I will."
"Now, Chris, don't be trying to start a fight with those braves down there," Buck said. "There's a lot more of them then there are of us."
"I'll do whatever I have to do to bring my family's killer to justice. And I'll go through anyone who stands in my way," he said, staring at Vin, his message clear.
Vin's face went hard. "Tell me, Larabee, which one of those Indians you gonna kill to find justice for your family?" Tanner asked. "Cuz they ain't gonna let you take her out of there." Vin spurred his horse forward past the other two men and started down the hill.
Chris watched his friend ride away and cursed.
"C'mon, pard, let's get down there and see what's going on. Maybe we can work out a compromise."
Larabee didn't say anything, but followed the big man down the hill into the village.
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Buck and Chris reached the bottom of the hill. The older Indian stood with his hand on Vin's shoulder, speaking quietly to him. Vin nodded and turned around to face the two newcomers. They dismounted and allowed one of the boys to take their horses.
"Welcome," Kanahe said.
"Thank you," Chris replied.
"Kanahe, this is Chris Larabee and Buck Wilmington, my friends," Vin began the introductions. "Chris, Buck, this is Kanahe, the leader of this village. And my friend."
Vin glared at Chris, daring him to dispute the tracker's relationship to the older man.
"It is good, Silent One," Kanahe assured him in English. "We will try to help your friends understand. Come, we will eat." He turned and walked away, fully expecting the others to follow him.
They four men settled around the fire, along with several of the other men. Two of the Indian women moved around them, offering bowls of food and skins of water. Several of the children, curious about the new white men in their camp, gradually crept closer. One brave young boy moved to stand next to Buck, intrigued by the bushy mustache. As the child leaned closer, Buck chewed more slowly, watching from the corner of his eye.
The boy raised a tentative hand and touched the furry creature on the big man's upper lip. Buck twitched, which caused the child to jump back in fright. Kanahe laughed. Wilmington reached up and smoothed the hair down again, watching the boy. He looked at Kanahe and winked, moving his mouth, making the mustached wiggle.
The boy giggled and moved closer. He touched the hair once more with a finger, moving slowly in anticipation of more twitching. Buck nipped at the finger. Again the boy jumped back
This time more of the Indian villagers laughed at his antics. The only one not laughing was Chris Larabee. He looked up from his bowl and saw Vin watching the young boy, a crooked grin on his face. Larabee sighed and turned to watch his old friend entertaining the boy.
He felt a sharp pain, remembering Buck playing with Adam the same way. Looking around, he noticed the other Indian children moving closer, smiles on their faces. One shy little girl, who couldn't have been more than five years old, moved closer and stood next to Chris. Her wide, dark eyes gazed up at the light haired man. She'd never seen anyone with yellow hair before.
She reached up and touched a blond tuft that escaped his black hat. He slowly turned his head to look at her, smiling at the beautiful dark-skinned face, with her curious child-eyes. She smiled back and softly spoke to him. He turned to Tanner for a translation.
"She said you have soft hair, like a...um...like a ...bunny," he mumbled.
Buck almost choked on his food. "Oh, pard..."
"Don't start, Buck," Chris scowled. The girl frowned at the look on his face, looking between the two men. Chris, realizing his mistake, smiled at the girl again. "Sorry, sweetie, I didn't mean to scare you. I'm just upset with my friend. I'm glad you like my hair," he said, muttering the last part to the amusement of Kanahe, who translated for the little girl.
She turned and looked disapprovingly at Buck. She raised a fist and shook it at Buck, speaking sternly to him, her words unknown but her intent perfectly clear. Then she turned back to Chris. She patted his cheek and smiled, speaking again in that soft voice.
Vin and Kanahe laughed.
"What?" Buck asked. "What did she say?"
"It seems your animal magnetism ain't working on Morning Flower," Vin told him. "She said you shouldn't make fun of Yellow Hair just because his hair is prettier than yours. She said you're just jealous. And she told Chris that, if he wants, he can stay in the village forever."
Buck patted his hair and frowned. "I don't have pretty hair, huh? Maybe not, but I got a mustache," he said, smoothing it down with a thumb and forefinger.
Vin relayed his words to Morning Flower. She just shook her head and turned back to Chris. Running her finger across his bare upper lip, she smiled and commented again.
"She said Chris is more handsome because he's more like Indian men. And everyone knows that Indian men are braver and fiercer than white men. So Chris must be brave and fierce too," Vin translated. She patted Chris on the cheek again and then left with the other children, who were being called away by the women.
"Hmmm. I'm brave and fierce," Chris commented. "That beats animal magnetism any day of the week."
The men's laughter helped alleviate some of the earlier tension. None of them were surprised that a child was the cause.
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"Okay, Vin, where is she?" Chris asked.
Tanner glared at his friend for several long moments, then gestured to an area behind Chris. As went to stand up, Vin stopped him.
"Chris, wait. There's some things you need to know..."
"All I need to know is that the woman who killed my family is here. And I intend to see her and take her back to hang."
Chris stood up and began to move toward the area. He was stopped again when Kanahe and two Indian braves blocked his path.
"Get out of my way," he said quietly, the menace obvious in his voice.
"Chris! Show him some respect," Vin snarled. As much as Chris was his friend, he wouldn't have Kanahe pushed aside. He was the leader of the village and it was his right to say how things would be done. Larabee stared at Vin, then looked down, ashamed at his own high-handedness.
"I'm sorry." His words directed at Tanner and then at Kanahe. "I'm sorry, Kanahe. Vin's right. This is your home. I should ask your permission to see her. But..."
"Chris Larabee, do not trouble yourself with this," Kanahe said. "You will see her, but there are things you must understand first."
Although Chris was anxious to see Ella Gaines, he knew he must be patient. But patience had never been one of his strong points.
"C'mon, Chris, sit down and let them tell us what they need to," Buck said, taking Chris' arm and pulling him back to the fire. Larabee took a deep breath and let it out, trying to draw in some calm. He nodded and sat back down.
As they settled back around the fire, a scream shattered the quiet.
"Shit!" Buck jumped up. "What the hell was that?"
Kanahe and Vin exchanged a look, then Vin turned to the others.
"It that Ella?" Chris asked quietly.
"Yes," Tanner replied. Chris nodded.
"What the hell are they doing to her, Vin?" Buck asked, sickened by the screams. "It sounds like they're killin' her!"
"She far from dying, Buck. They're teachin' her a lesson in pain."
Chris flinched as another scream echoed around the village. The Indians went about their business as if it was normal hearing a woman scream like that. But then, he guessed it was by now. She'd been here over a week.
"Chris, we can't just sit here and let this go on," Buck insisted.
Larabee ignored him. "I want to see her," he told Kanahe. "I won't interfere, at least not yet. But I want to see her."
Kanahe didn't respond for a long time. Then he nodded. Chris stood and walked toward where the screams came from. Vin caught up with him just before he entered the clearing.
"Chris, remember what I told you. Ella killed Little Dove's son. She is the one giving out the punishment. Please, she won't understand if you take away her right to justice."
"What about my right to justice, Vin? I want that woman to pay for what she did to my wife and son."
"Chris, I understand that. And she will pay for that. But she must be made to pay for the Indian life she took as well. And that won't happen in a white man's court. Little Dove speaks English Chris. Talk to her. Listen to her. That's all I ask."
"Alright. I'll talk to her. But first I want to see Ella."
Vin nodded and turned to lead Chris to where Ella was being held, Buck and Kanahe following the two men.
They entered the clearing and Chris froze. Like Vin earlier, he could only see Ella from the back. But unlike Vin, he knew who it was before he could see her face. He stared at the marks on her back. He stomach churned as he remembered the smooth skin that he'd spent many nights caressing. That skin now sported several jagged cuts, blood flowing freely from the most recently applied.
"Dear, God!" Buck gasped. "Cut her down! How can you do that to a woman? How could you do that to anyone?"
Buck started forward, only to be stopped by a strong grip on his arm.
"Chris?" Buck's raised his eyes until his gaze settled on his old friend's face. Larabee clutched Buck's arm, but was watching the scene before him, staring at the marred back of the woman he'd once thought about spending his life with.
Chris was torn. He'd thought he loved her once. But whenever he remembered those days spent in passion in her bed, the vision of his burnt out cabin always pushed thoughts of her away. And the rage returned. His stomach protested his thoughts of life with Ella.
He'd had hopes of settling down again, of maybe even being a father again, when she'd presented him with the ranch she'd bought for them. Those thoughts were overwhelmed by the guilt that was now his constant companion. The guilt of knowing that his past with her was the cause of his family's deaths. The guilt of knowing he had bedded the woman that he would later learn had killed that family.
A scream brought him out of the despair he'd been drowning in. His grip tightened on Buck's arm, when the bigger man tried to pull away from him.
"Leave it be, Buck."
"Chris?" Wilmington turned to face him, shock and confusion evident on his face. "How can you let them do this to her? I know what she done to your family, but that doesn't give anyone the right to torture her," he pleaded.
Vin and Kanahe stood a distance away, waiting for the two men to finish their discussion. Vin had known that Buck would react this way, it was why he'd hoped that Chris would come alone. But, he also knew that Buck had lost family that night too. Sarah and Adam were as much a part of Buck's family as Chris was. And Buck was carrying his own brand of guilt having been the one to talk Chris into staying that extra night in Mexico.
He knew that it would be difficult for both men to deal with this confrontation with Ella. But it was necessary. The wounds had been festering for far too long and needed to be cleansed. After seeing Chris with Ella, he'd known that the man was ready to put his grief in the past and get on with his life.
But Ella wasn't the one he should spend that life with.
She was a murderous bitch who needed to be shown a small portion of the pain she had inflicted. And Vin knew that a white man's court would never allow that to happen. Oh, they might hang her. Might. But the chances of that were just too slim for Vin's piece of mind. More than likely, they would put her in prison. But even that wasn't assured.
Vin knew that Ella's looks and charm could keep her from ever seeing the inside of a prison. As he'd told Chris and Buck earlier, a male jury could all too easily be swayed by a pretty face and tears. He'd seen it happen. And he just couldn't take the chance of Ella being found innocent.
He had almost decided to wait until she was dead before wiring Chris. He hadn't wanted to put his friend through this. Hadn't wanted to force him to make this choice. But he also knew that Chris deserved the chance to confront her. He only hoped that the two men didn't try to take her by force. He knew if that happened, he would have a tough choice of his own to make.
"I promised not to interfere before I talked to Little Dove, Buck. Let me hear her side of the story first."
"Chris, we can't let them continue to torture her. It's barbaric. These sav…these Indians can't be allowed to do this."
"Savages? Is that what you were going to say, Buck?" Vin asked from behind them. Buck turned to face him. "They aren't savages!" He turned and called to the Indian woman standing behind Ella. White Dove looked at him, then at the two white men with him. She put the switch on the ground and walked toward them, her head raised in silent defiance.
As she got closer, they could see the pain and grief in her eyes. Vin spoke softly to her in her own language. She nodded and walked toward the center of the village.
"She is willing to tell you her story," Vin said, gesturing for them to follow her. Chris took one last look at Ella, before turning and following, along with Buck, Kanahe and Tonti.
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"Little Dove, this is my friend Chris Larabee. The white woman also killed Chris' young son and his wife. This happened years ago, about the time that your youngest son was born. The other man is Buck. He is family who also grieves their loss." Vin spoke to the woman in English as the group settled around the fire.
"Chris, remember that The People don't speak of the dead by name," Vin reminded him.
Chris nodded. He was familiar with that custom. Vin and Josiah both had mentioned it to him in the past.
Little Dove, like many others in the tribe, spoke English well. Her voice was soft and filled with a pain only a parent who had lost a child could understand. Since Vin had told her that the white woman had also killed Chris Larabee's wife and child, it was to him that she directed her words.
"We helped this white woman. She was sick and hurt when she was found. She was brought to our village and tended until she was well. Red Cloud and Swift Eagle were going to take her close to the white man's town. She was to be given a horse and supplies for the ride. They would have ridden with her for a distance so that she would be safe. She did not want to wait until the braves were ready to take her.
"She was afraid of us, even after we helped her. She would not talk to us, even though we spoke in her tongue. She wanted to leave, so she stole a horse. But she was not used to riding without saddle and at first had trouble controlling the horse."
"Then it was an accident!" Buck interjected. "You can't kill her for being scared."
White Dove turned her sad eyes toward the big man. "No. She quickly learned to control the horse by holding his mane. She began to ride out of the village, but the men stopped her."
"Why?" Chris asked. "Why did they stop her if they'd planned to give her a horse anyway? Why not just let her ride away?"
Kanahe spoke up then. "Because the horse we planned to give her was old, unable to work any longer. The horse she tried to steal was with child and my village needed the new colt."
Chris nodded his understanding and looked back at Little Dove. She took that as her cue to continue.
"Kanahe tried to tell her that she could leave, that we would give her another horse. She refused. She didn't want to wait any longer. As the men got closer she began kicking at them and turning the horse in circles. She was good on the horse...for a white woman."
"That doesn't surprise me," Chris said. "She was always a good horsewoman. So, you tried to stop her and she panicked. What happened after that?"
"She began screaming. Some of her words I did not understand. But she said that if we did not let her go she would damage our village. And then she would tell all the white men in the town that we harmed her. We feared that she would bring them back to destroy us. So Kanahe told the men to step back and let her go."
"I don't understand. If Kanahe told them to let her ride out, how did she end of killing your son?" Chris asked.
Pain flashed across Little Dove's face and her eyes watered. "She was angry. She told Kanahe that we should not have tried to keep her here. She turned her horse in circles and then she faced Kanahe again. She smiled. She looked evil. She told Kanahe that he would..." Little Dove turned to Kanahe and spoke briefly in their native language.
Kanahe looked at Chris. "She told me that we would regret keeping her here. That we would suffer for not following her wishes."
Little Dove watched Chris' face to be sure he understood. "She then turned her horse and looked at the women who had been around the sewing fire. They were standing now watching to see what would happen. She began to ride toward them. They ran. Tunah picked up my son and began to run with him. She stumbled and fell. My son fell from her arms. The white woman turned and rode her horse over them."
"Oh, God!" Chris said, closing his eyes. Buck just sat there with a stunned look on his face.
Little Dove took a deep breath, trying to keep her tears from falling. "Tunah has many bruises and cuts on her back and her legs. My son was struck in the head with a hoof. He was not breathing when I got to him. The white woman laughed. I heard her laugh as she tried to ride away." Little Dove put her head in her hands and wept.
Tonti took up the narrative. "My wife sat on the ground, clutching our son to her chest. I could not allow the woman to escape. I was in the path of her horse. I leaped at her and was able to drag her to the ground. I wanted to beat her to death. But Kanahe stopped me."
Kanahe placed a hand on Tonti's shoulder. "It was decided to have a tribal council to determine her fate. We had the boy's, how you say..." He turned to Vin and asked a question in his native language.
"Funeral," Vin supplied.
Kanahe nodded. "We had the boy's funeral and then the council met. Many, including Tonti, wanted to kill her and leave her body to the animals. But Little Dove would not allow it. She insisted, as the mother of the child killed, that it was her right to determine how the woman died. And of course she is correct. So, the woman's fate is in Little Dove's hands."
"Chris, we can't let them just kill her!" Buck pleaded. "That's murder."
"Is it?" Chris replied. "Is it any different than hanging her would be. Face it, Buck, she has to die for what she did. And, God forgive me, I'm not opposed to seeing her suffer some before she does."
"Chris!" Buck was shocked. He knew that Chris Larabee had been through hell since his family's death, but he never thought he'd hear the man condone torture, especially not the torture of a woman.
"What do you want me say, Buck? That bitch killed my family! My wife and my son. He was only five! Then she killed another child-a three-year old boy...deliberately ran him down! She needs to die!"
"She needs to be brought back for trail," Wilmington insisted.
The others watched the two men grapple with their consciences. Vin watched two friends possibly being torn apart. He would do what he could to help.
"Buck, if you were on that jury, would you convict her?" Vin asked.
"Of course I would."
"And would you sentence her to hang?"
"Without hesitation."
"Then what's the problem? She's gonna die either way."
"My way, she wouldn't be tortured first! My God, Vin, did you see what they're doing to her?"
"Yeah, I did. And I can't say I wouldn't do the same, if it was my child."
Buck's jawed dropped. Then he smirked.
"Well, I can't say that don't surprise me, Tanner. Always knew there was a little bit of..."
"Buck!" Chris snapped, knowing what his friend was about to say and not wanting him to make any enemies in the village, especially Vin Tanner.
Wilmington jerked and looked over at Larabee. For several long seconds they glared at each other. Then Buck seemed to reign in his rage just a bit and calmed down.
"Are you just gonna go along with this, Chris? You ain't never hurt a woman in your life. Least not on purpose. How can you allow this?'
"You're right, I would never hurt a woman. But that ain't a woman over there, Buck. That's a monster. It's bad enough that she hired Fowler to kill my family. But she killed a young child just to make a point. Did you hear what Little Dove said? Ella turned her horse and rode straight for Tunah and the boy. Deliberately ran them down. And laughed about it, Buck! She laughed after trampling a three-year old boy! He was younger than A..." He glanced around, remembering Vin's warnings. "He was younger than my son."
Chris reached over and grabbed Buck's arm with his hand. "Imagine if that had been my boy. And if we'd seen it happen. I can't get that imagine out of my head, Buck. Maybe Vin's right. Maybe this is the best way to handle it.'
"What?! Chris, we have to take her back for trial. We have to do this the right way. We're lawmen, for God's sake."
"My son was only five years old, Buck. She has to pay for what she did."
Buck jerked his arm out of Chris' grasped.
"I can't sit here and condone this! And I can't sit here and listen to that woman's screams. I understand you want justice, Chris, but this ain't the way. Nobody deserves to die like that. Nobody."
"Suit yourself."
Buck stood and walked away. Chris and Vin followed him with their eyes, then turned to look at each other.
"You want I should go talk to him?" Vin asked.
"No, he's too angry right now. I want to see her."
Vin nodded and turned to Little Dove. "May we go speak with the woman now?"
Little Dove raised her head. She glanced at Vin, then turned to look at Chris. These white men had accepted her story as truth before even talking to the woman. Even the angry one had known the truth, even if he didn't accept the punishment the woman was receiving. She and Chris stared at each other for a long time before she gave a small nod.
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