Thank you to those who reviewed. I hope you enjoy my added scene from Penance!
In a livid whirlwind, Josiah stormed out of the room, knocking over a chair as Vin darted after him. Without missing a beat, Poplar was on the preacher's heels, seething like a poisonous snake coming in for the kill.
"No!" Chris grabbed Poplar's arm, halting him.
"That man should be incarcerated, no matter whose friend he is in town." The Pinkerton agent spat disdainfully.
"Not while I'm around."
In the dim light Poplar's blue eyes widened. For a moment the room hushed into a tense stillness. Poplar's brow furrowed but he relented, retracting his arm and slowly walking out the door towards the hotel. Chris heard Mary's breath release in relief.
"Damn fool." Chris growled, unsure himself if he meant Josiah or the agent. He ran a hand over his face in frustration.
"I don't understand what's gotten into him." Mary's perplexed voice came from behind him.
"Whatever it is, his stubborn streak is going to get him in trouble." He shook his head, looking toward the blackness beyond the open door.
"And Poplar's going after the wrong man. I know Josiah would never have threatened me, even if his knife was under the boardwalk." Chris' memory flashed back to earlier that night, standing in the street with Vin when Mary's terrified scream cut through the darkness, chilling his bones. He turned to face her.
"You okay?" The candles around them flickered in response to his movement, causing her shadow to shiver on the back wall.
"I should be asking you that question."
"I'm fine. As long as Billy doesn't know about what happened. I don't want to scare him." She tucked a loose golden lock back into the low bun on her head.
"I don't think JD would say anything to worry him."
"You're right." She agreed, her expression turning to contemplation. "He's probably waiting for me at home."
"I'll walk you home." Chris went to the coathanger by the door, gathering her shawl from one of the hooks. He held it out for her. Mary accepted, turning around so that her back was facing him. He placed the shawl on her shoulders, completing an embrace from behind. His mind instantly fantasized about keeping his arms wrapped around her but he brushed the intrusive thought off and dropped his arms.
"You never did answer my question."
"What's that?"
"If you want to talk about what's bothering you, I'm here." She pulled the shawl against her torso and turned around to face him, her crystal blue eyes gazing up at his. For several moments they were comfortably within inches of each other before either moved. Chris abruptly side stepped, putting a hand on her back to guide her towards the door. Briefly, she turned around and blew out the candles to leave the room shrouded in blackness.
Once they both were outside Chris pulled the door shut. "We just can't afford to lose any of us. I don't want to see Josiah forced to leave for something he didn't do." Taking out his keys, he locked the door as Mary waited patiently behind him.
"But he's being so damn hardheaded that there's nothing I can do except give Poplar my word that he's got the wrong man." He stowed the keys back in his duster's pocket and they began to simultaneously walk towards The Clarion's office.
"And that's not working well." Mary commented.
"No it ain't." As they walked through town neither paid attention to the raucous laughter or the sensuous lights beckoning them inside the saloon, though it was the only illumination on the street.
"I don't know that there's anything else you can do. Both you and Vin are trying to help Josiah but it's really up to him to save himself." Seeing his displeased reaction, she added, "You're not deserting him. Don't be hard on yourself."
"I'm not giving up on him." He replied firmly.
"And you shouldn't. But you also shouldn't blame yourself if things go poorly."
They walked on, reaching the newspaper office in short time and stopping in front of the door. The kerosene lantern outside was lit, casting a yellow glow on the two of them. She pulled out her keys but stopped to at him, putting a hand on his sleeved arm and squeezing. "I know it might not feel like it right now, Chris but you are a good leader. But even good leaders don't have all the answers every time."
Chris responded with a small smile. "Do me a favor?"
Mary inclined her head in anticipation of his request. "Don't walk around at night by yourself 'til we catch him." He brought the back of his hand up to her cheek, grazing it gently. She smiled. "I don't want anything like tonight to happen again."
"I'll be careful." She promised, closing her eyes briefly. Slowly reopened them and turned to unlock her door. She stepped inside. "Goodnight."
"Goodnight." The door closed and he waited until he heard the click of the lock and saw a few more lights brighten in the back room. He began to make his way to the church to find Josiah and Vin, thoughts whirling in his head. Mary was right - he couldn't save Josiah but he would do everything in his power to discourage Poplar from going after the preacher. The Seven had to look out for each other. Sighing deeply, his troubled thoughts turned to back to the journalist.
When they returned from the wagon train two months ago it seemed impossible that they would be so friendly in such a short amount of time. It had taken a good three weeks for them to get on full speaking terms again but when Mary did come around he made it clear she was not just a friend, indulging in some romantic advances when they were together. He didn't know what exactly he wanted but days like today gave him pause. When she ran into the street petrified from a near death experience, when her steady gaze arrested him moments ago, he was reminded of how much he cared for her. But he was at a standstill. Other than showing her he cared, Chris wasn't sure what he wanted with her. It wasn't as if marriage was on his mind but the thought of another Gerard character sweeping Mary off her feet made him sick to his stomach.
As he huffed his way up the church steps, he gave up on reasoning with himself. He would have to let it go for now. Whatever was between him and Mary would have to wait. He would just do what felt right and hope all turned out well in the end.
Thank you for reading! I hope to have the next installment, the climax to this thread, up by the end of the month. As always, reviews and constructive criticism is very much appreciated.
