Buck stepped off his grey and walked back to the pack horse, who had a nice sized elk slung over his back. He waited for Vin to step up to him. Buck glanced at the cabin over the packhorse's neck, then looked back at Vin. "She knows?"

Vin nodded. He drew in a breath and slowly let it out, looking at the cabin and then back at Buck. "Yeah, she was there." Vin looked at Buck and then toward the house. He looked back at Buck. "Want some help?" He gestured with his head toward the elk." Wan'na finish dressing it out in the barn?" He nodded toward the elk. He saw that they had gutted it.

Buck had been looking at the cabin, too. He shifted his glance at Vin, then looked at JD coming out of the barn, dragging his feet, scuffing the ground still.

"Yeah, figured I'd check the cellar out and then cut it to hang properly." He saw Vin nod, Buck moved toward the barn, leading his grey and the pack horse.

­­­­­­­­­­­­­ The cold cellar was cleaned and the elk carcass butchered. Vin was impressed with Buck's skills with a knife at carving the meat into manageable quarters.

JD decided there was some work in the barn. There were small places on the barn roof that needed patching. JD took care of that.

Vin had walked the stream that fed the barn and found it starting to choke with water plants and grass. He had seen a hoe hanging on the wall of the barn, had soaked the loose head a few hours, and then went about cleaning the little stream. It flowed water for the horses in the barn.

Vin had also chinked the western side of the cabin in a couple places where the weather and a couple low branches had done some damage. There were always things to do around a place to keep them in good standing.

They had not seen Darcy before sunset. They cooked a few beans and dried meat for supper. Vin had been keeping an eye on the windows, but he never saw a light. He went to the door of the cabin and knocked, taking her a plate of the beef and beans.

He opened the door. "Darcy, brought you something to eat…" He stepped into the room. He saw no fire in the fire place. "Gonna set it here on the table…You need to eat something…" He stood next to the table for a long moment, the place felt empty, she wasn't there. He left the plate.

Walking back to the barn, he saw Buck leaning on the inside of the barn door, looking out up at the night sky as the stars started to show. The last trailing edges of deep, deep red were fading in the western sky.

"She alright?" Buck cast a glance at Vin in the darkness.

"Don't think she's there"

"What?" Buck straightened. "We need to go find her?"

"No…She'll be alright…She's safe, wherever she is." Vin glanced toward the cabin in the darkness. He thought for a long moment. "She'll be there in the morning…"

"Think she might be with the mare?" Buck was worried because the smell might draw coyotes or other predators.

Vin looked back at Buck. "No, she said her good byes…"

JD, in the barn, struck a match and lit the lantern. He glanced down at the leg on the draft horse, seeing that the bandage had been changed. The horse was actually putting weight down on it. He looked up as Buck and Vin came into the barn, he held the lantern so they could both see the dressing. "She changed the bandage…Look how much the swelling has gone down." Shaking his head he headed for the area they had taken over as their sleeping quarters. He hung the lantern on a peg. "Gets me how she comes and goes without us seeing her." He spread his ground tarp out and then threw his bedroll down on it. Kneeling down, he rolled it out and sat down on it. Taking his hat and jacket off, he set them at the top of the bedroll, next to his saddlebags. Then he slipped out of the twin holsters that held the Ivory handled Colts. Sitting cross legged, he reached for his saddle bags and set them next to him and brought out his gun cleaning kit.

Buck moved over to the area he had claimed and rolled his bedding out. Removing his holster, he rolled it up, pulling his Colt SSA out he lay down, set the holster at his head. Reset his hat, he cradled his gun to his chest and rolled over with his back to the others the light, and went to sleep.

Vin walked back out of the barn. He wasn't sleepy. He moved over to where some wood was piled and sat down on it. Listening to the night sounds, he was also listening for Darcy.

M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7M7

Darcy was on the porch in the morning. Her hair was washed and combed. She wore one of the dresses Mary had sent, but she still didn't have shoes on. She was sitting on the porch when Buck came out of the barn. He had automatically glanced toward the cabin and was surprised to see her sitting there. He stopped, nodded to her, saw her respond and he turned and walked back into the barn.

Vin came out, dropping his hat on his head he walked over to the steps in front of the cabin. "Morning…" He smiled at her. She had the blue ribbon in her hair. He saw a pot of coffee and cups sitting on a table next to her chair.

"Coffee…" Her green eyes fixed on his. She moved her hand toward the coffee pot. "Buck and JD come too."

"Alright…give us a minute to get the horses hobbled out on the grass, we'll come up." He nodded and turned back toward the barn.

Vin sauntered over to barn and walked in, when he came out he was leading Peso, the pack horse and the draft horse.

Buck was leading his and JD's horses

JD was slowly leading the injured draft horse, who was walking slowly, but walking on all four legs.

They hobbled the horses and then made their way back to the porch. All three of them stood at the steps, giving Darcy plenty of room.

She poured them each a cup of coffee and handed them their cup. They thanked her.

Vin didn't hesitate. He drank the brew. L,eaning against one of the uprights for the porch he sipped the coffee.

JD turned and sat on the lower step of the porch and looked out across the meadow, the hobbled horses out grazing, the morning sun slanting through the mist rising from the ground.

Buck, his eyes on Darcy, smiled at her. "Smells real good Miss Darcy…" He turned and looked out at horses and smelled the coffee again. "Yep, mighty fine…"

Darcy's green eyes went to Vin. She saw him wink at her as he took another sip.

"Feel up to talking?" Vin saw her think about it. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Buck glance at him and then start to move off, back toward the barn. JD followed.

Vin pointed to the steps. "Gonna sit here if it's ok?" He saw her nod. He moved up the steps and sat on the top step. He looked out across the landscape and then back at her, not really sure how she would take to the plan.

"Not gonna leave my home…" Darcy's voice was soft but firm.

He looked at her over his shoulder. "No, it's your home, where you were born and raised. You belong here." He set the cup down, turning a little more toward her. "But you need someone here with you---"

"You stay, bring wagon here." Her voice carried a hopeful note to it.

Vin locked eyes with her. "Darcy I can't stay---"

"You wander…" There was a sad note to her voice. She broke the stare, looking out across the meadow. "Can't stay…" She looked down at her hands that were clenched in her lap. "Your Ma said you were a wanderer."

He smiled at her, even though she wasn't looking at him. "Yeap, she did say that…" He shook his head. "But, I think I got a fix for our problem---."

There was a whistle, Buck. "Vin!"

Vin looked over at Buck who was standing outside the barn. He saw him point. Vin came to his feet and stared through the morning mist, seeing a single rider, dressed in black, riding a black horse.

Vin sat back down, looking at Darcy. He saw her hands whiten as she tightened her grip. "Darcy I got a family needs a place to stay." He watched her eyes shift from watching Chris riding in to look at him.

"Family?" She looked at him a long minute, then looked back out at Chris's form getting closer. Vin waited, watching her eyes. He saw the surprise.

He waited until she looked back at him. "The Taylor's need a place to live, to farm."

Vin looked back at Chris and saw the wagon following behind. That's what Mrs. Taylor had talked to him about before he had left to follow Darcy. She had been worried sick about the Darcy living here all by herself, and Vin had told her that Darcy wouldn't come live in a town. It was then that Mrs. Taylor had looked at him and said.

"Well then, we will just have to go look after her…"

-30-