"You never said she had a bounty on her head!" The tall tan man shouted over the din of the stagecoach wheels and the thundering quartet of hooves as they sped off into the loamy hills. The dirt path in front of them was well beaten by the storms of horses and cattle that had billowed through before yet, ever still, thick clouds of foggy yellow-red dust were kicked up into the air to settle haphazardly over the drivers. Flecks of it nestled themselves aggressively into the taller man's dark wavy hair and swept into the open windows of the cherry red coach which promptly produced a fit of choked coughs from the sole occupant rattling around inside with the jangling clinking contents of one of Galveston's finest banks. The taller man's companion sighed and gripped the rails of the wooden front seat tighter, his knuckles whitening into a pale almond brown. His full lips pouted as he shot his partner a wilted look.

"She needed help Poe, you know I can't say no to women."

The taller man grinned knowingly and gave a short whooping whistle, urging the horses faster. Their horsepower had currently allowed them to outstrip their pursuer but the younger man, Finn, knew his partner Poe wasn't going to be taking any chances.

"I get it Finn, I get it but you really don't know how to pick them buddy." He shook his head. "What are we supposed to do with Ren the Reaper on our tail? He's going to kill us!"

"I can hear you!" A petite voice shouted back at him. The two men turned back for a moment to glance down at the coach behind them.

Poe gave a belting burst of a laugh that threw his head back. The stagecoach swerved under his inattention hitting it's wheel on a rock. The coach reeled and Finn yelped clutching the railing tighter as Poe readjusted their course into the sprawling wilderness.

"I like her." He shouted with a grin.

Finn grinned back. "Me too," he admitted but his reply was lost into the dust and noise. The failure of comprehension by his partner did not make his answer any less true. He'd only just met the young girl bundled up in her ragged shirt and trousers but he liked her. She was feisty and earnest. She was different.

—

Rey braced herself against the railing on the stagecoach window with one hand as she desperately clutched her stomach with the other. The gut wrenching twists and turns of the coach were worse than any ship at sea and she willed herself not to be sick. Not now, not when she was finally almost safe.

The foreboding shadow of a man had long since disappeared into the dust but she couldn't shake the feeling of being chased. The farther she got from that unsavory port town the better. Santa Fe would be safe. There were sheep there after all. She allowed herself to drift over the idea of them as she had done many nights on the ship. White clouds of sheep rolling over green hills.

Feeling a bit calmer she poked her head out the window. She squinted into the horizon behind them pulling her shirt up to block the dust. There were no signs of him or anything.

"I think we can slow now," she shouted up at the two men. She had been lucky, incredibly lucky, to stumble upon the two but she knew that the horses were wearing from the hard run and that it would be some distance until they would reach the next station. They had been obliging but they had duties of their own and neither of them would benefit from exhausted horses.

"Great!" The taller of the two hollered back cheerfully. The interior of the coach gave one final lurch as the horses slowed their pace to an even trot. The dust filtered low to the ground like fog leaving the air above clear enough to see the heat of the day. Insects keened out into the scattered plains of short dry grass and the air hovered in a frantic dance over the ground as if the soil was too hot to touch. Rey half suspected it was and was grateful for her thick leather boots.

Above the sky had waned to a warm mid afternoon sigh of yellowed pink and mountains of cream colored clouds pillowed over the horizon. They rolled like waves, plotting a potential storm between them, as they shifted and slowly crashed into each other.

As if reading her thoughts, Finn grinned back at her.

"Looks like rain," he said turning to his partner. "We made some good distance, let's find a spot to set up for the night."

Poe dipped his head in acknowledgment and shrugged his shoulders. "Only if it's alright with the lady, we can keep going if we need to."

Rey leaned out the window. "It's okay, I think we lost him."

Poe nodded. He and Finn scanned the horizon as Rey relaxed back into the shade of the coach. She was soon lulled to sleep by the gentler pace and had no idea how far they had traveled when Finn finally shook her awake. They had come to a stop at the edge of a great hill. An edging of trees provided some shelter from the coming rain. Rey felt a sting of embarrassment as she looked around the clearing. The two men had already set up camp while she had been asleep and Rey couldn't help but feel guilty for not being more helpful. They had already done so much for her. Poe motioned for her to sit and handed her his canteen of water paired with a long strip of jerky.

"Sorry, it's not much, but we can't afford to start a fire. You can see the light for miles out here." He took a strip of his own and pulled off a chunk with his teeth. Finn did the same. They chewed in silence as the last remnants of the sun set.

The jerky was sweet and tangy with a hint of molasses. Rey devoured the strip and took another full swig from the canteen. She had been too frightened to feel the hunger but now it gnawed at her. Her stomach growled in protest demanding more food. Finn chuckled and handed her another strip.

"We usually sleep in the coach when it rains but tonight we'll take turns on the lookout."

Rey nodded. She took a sip from the canteen to clear her throat.

"Who is that man?" She swallowed looking across at the two men. They glanced at each other, their faces painted blue and black by the dusk. Their eyes spoke to each other silently reaching an agreement.

Finn was the first to answer, his eyes glinted with the scraps of starlight overhead. "His name is Kylo Ren. He's a bounty hunter."

The hunk of jerky she had been chewing on suddenly lumped in her mouth and Rey took another sip to keep from gagging on it. She swallowed it down painfully.

"Why did you call him Ren the Reaper?" She asked nervously.

Poe eyes flashed darkly. His voice was steel and Rey shivered at the sound.

"Most bounties give a choice between dead or alive..." He paused and Rey shifted in the dirt. A chill ran up her spine.

He shook his head slightly before continuing.

"They have a choice...but Ren...Ren never takes in a bounty alive."