Chapter 10
"Teaspoon what are you doing?" Cody asked the man who was standing there with a 'Y' shaped stick.
"Quiet, you're disturbing the currents." Teaspoon said to the blonde rider.
"Currents? What are you talking about Teaspoon?" Jimmy asked.
"The water currents under the ground, my family's been witching for three generations. Ain't dug a dry well yet." Teaspoon said.
"I think he's lost it." Ike signed to Lou.
"I think you're right Ike." Lou said under her breath as they followed Teaspoon who was moving the stick back and forth over the ground.
"There! There's water about twenty feet down." Teaspoon said as he jabbed the stick in the ground.
"You better be right Teaspoon, cause that's a whole lotta digging if you're wrong." Jimmy said.
"Just get busy." Teaspoon said as he moved to the shade to take a nap as his boys started digging the new well.
A few hours later found Ike, Lou, and Jimmy sitting around the edge of the hole while Cody took his turn.
"That's it Teaspoon, can't go no further, there ain't no water here." Cody said as he struck rock.
"Course there is Cody; ya got to get under the rock." Teaspoon said moving to the hole.
"Under it! This rock probably goes all the way to China!" Cody exclaimed.
Teaspoon hopped down into the hold to take over and Ike and Jimmy pulled Cody out.
"Nonsense. You boys just don't know the value of hard work. Ya got to get down here and really dig in." Teaspoon said as he started busting up the rock.
A few swings later he stuck water causing it to shoot up in the air like a geyser. Ike and Cody went to pull Teaspoon out of the hole but he pulled them in. Jimmy pushed Lou in and jumped in after her. After the hard work they had been doing the cold water felt great, fortunately for Lou though she was wearing a dark colored vest over her white shirt or Teaspoon might have come face to face with her secret.
Ike punched Jimmy on the arm for not thinking about that when he pushed Lou in. By the time they climbed out of the hole they were all completely soaked and caked in mud. When they returned to the station it was just in time to see a beautiful woman being dropped off in front of Emma's. Teaspoon walked over to the woman as the riders followed.
"Can I help you miss?" Teaspoon asked the young woman.
"Yes, I'm looking for a Teaspoon Hunter." The woman said looking the all over.
"Well now ya found him. I'm Teaspoon, we was out digging a well, and ya caught us." Teaspoon said in explanation for their appearances.
"I'm real glad to meet you Mr. Hunter; I've come a long way to find ya. My name is Elizabeth Kelly." The woman said with a smile.
"Yes." Teaspoon said he had no idea who this woman was and why she was looking for him.
"I believe you knew my mother, Beatrice." Elizabeth said in explanation.
"Beatrice? Yes I knew a Beatrice a long time ago. Why don't you go on up to the house while I go gets cleaned up and then we can talk?" Teaspoon said.
"I look forward to it." Elizabeth said as Teaspoon took her up to Emma's and then went to get cleaned up leaving the boys still standing there.
"Who do ya reckon that was?" Lou asked no one in particular.
"I don't know, but she's beautiful." Ike signed with a bashful smile.
"That she is Ike, that she is." Cody said with a wide grin as the riders turned towards the bunkhouse to go get cleaned up.
After Teaspoon and Elizabeth talked Teaspoon went off by himself to read a letter she had given him from her mother. Buck had returned from his run by this time so he was with Ike when Elizabeth came out of the house. As she was walking with them she said, "I've read so much about the Pony Express in the papers. They say you boys are heroes."
"We're not heroes, we just deliver the mail." Buck said with a slight grin.
"Oh but you are. What a cutie, what's its name?" She asked as she spotted the small donkey in the corral.
"Sampson." Buck answered leaning against the railing.
"Come here Sampson." Elizabeth called to the donkey.
Ike walked up and whistled and Sampson trotted right up to him. "He sure loves you." Elizabeth said.
"Ike says it's because he feeds him." Buck translated for Ike.
"Ike says there's a wild herd nearby; if you want he can take you to see them." Buck translated once again for Ike after she had seem to taken a liking to Sampson.
"Now Ike where's your manners. Miss Kelly just got here from a long trip, I'm sure she's tired." Cody said coming up at that moment.
"Well actually I would like to see some of the country side." Elizabeth said to Cody.
"And I know just the spot, nice little pond surrounded by willows." Cody said laying on the charm.
"Don't you boys have chores to do? Elizabeth would you like to accompany me?" Teaspoon asked as he appeared at the corral in his best suit.
"Church ain't till Sunday Teaspoon." Cody teased him.
"Don't sass me boy." Teaspoon said as he was walking away with Elizabeth.
After they left Ike signed something to Cody that Buck wouldn't translate and stormed off.
"What's with him?" Cody asked confused by Ike's behavior.
"He likes her. Go easy on him." Buck told him and then followed Ike into the bunkhouse.
Teaspoon led Elizabeth to Emma's porch. The letter she had given him told Teaspoon that he was a rich man. Beatrice had opened a bank account in his name; there was over ten-thousand dollars in it. Not only that but Elizabeth was his daughter. Not all the riders took this news well. They thought with Teaspoon coming into that kind of money would mean he would leave them. Nobody wanted Teaspoon to leave.
Teaspoon hadn't decided what he was going to do yet but there was going to be a costume dance in town and Teaspoon planned on escorting Elizabeth.
"Boys I want ya'll to come and represent the station." Teaspoon said to his riders.
"Do we have to?" Buck asked he was never comfortable in social settings.
"Yes, you boys do." Teaspoon responded.
Lou groaned, she liked dances but she didn't want to go as a man. "Now this here dance is a costume dance, that means you boys need to think of what you want to go as." Teaspoon explained.
A slow smirk spread on Lou's face as she came up with a plan. The night of the dance Lou saddled up her horse early to go into town. Buck came out to see what she was doing.
"Lou where are you going? You know Teaspoon said we all had to go to the dance." Buck asked when he saw her.
"I know, don't worry I'll be there." Lou said with a smirk that Buck recognized.
"What are you planning Louise?" he asked with a grin.
"You'll see Buck." Lou said before kissing his cheek and mounting up. "Don't worry I'll be there."
With that she rode into town and towards the saloon. Dismounting she walked in the saloon and immediately found Molly who led her upstairs to the waiting bath. After the bath Molly helped her put her costume on. Once she was ready she looked just like a princess and with the half mask she was wearing Teaspoon and the towns people shouldn't be able to recognize her. Molly helped her down the back stairs so no one would see her and then Lou went to the dance.
The dance had just started when she walked in. She spotted Buck right away but before she could make her way over to him Cody stepped in front of her. "May I have this dance ma'am?"
"Of course Mr. Cody." Lou responded taking his hand as Cody led her out on the dance floor.
As they were dancing Cody kept trying to figure out who the masked beauty was but couldn't place her. After the dance ended Cody was going to go ask Elizabeth to dance but Ike was dancing with her. So he turned back to ask the masked beauty for another dance but she was gone.
Lou made her way through the crowd and was almost to Buck when Kid stopped her for a dance. She accepted. Kid also felt there was something familiar about this girl but couldn't place her either. After the dance ended Lou slipped off to get to Buck but Ike stopped her for a dance.
"Of course Ike." Lou said as Ike led her out on the dance floor.
Ike knew right away who Lou was so when the dance ended he made sure they had ended up right in front of Buck. "Thanks Ike." Lou said before kissing his cheek.
Lou then moved to Buck, "I told ya I'd be here" Lou said in Kiowa.
Buck looked up at her, his eyes going wide, a smile spreading on his face. "You look beautiful." He whispered.
"Thank you Buck. So are you going to ask me to dance?" Lou asked with a sly smile.
"My dear lady, may I have the honor of this dance?" Buck asked bowing to her.
Lou giggled as she said, "Yes you may Mr. Cross."
As they danced Teaspoon caught sight of them. He could see that Buck was quite taken with the young beauty. He had seen her dance with some of the other boys too, but not the way she danced with Buck. The way they moved with each other made it look like they were made for each other. They were in perfect sync.
Teaspoon wanted to find out who this girl was so when the dance ended Teaspoon stepped forward to claim the next one. "May I have this dance ma'am?"
"Oh… of course Mr. Hunter." Lou said nervously. She wasn't sure if her mask would hide her identity from Teaspoon but she didn't want to be rude.
As Teaspoon dance Lou around the floor Buck and Ike watched hoping and praying Teaspoon wouldn't recognize her. Just as the dance was ending Teaspoon caught sight of the silver cuff on Lou's arm. Teaspoon held Lou's arm up to look at it. "Where did ya get this?" he asked since he recognized it as being the one Buck had given him to give to Ike.
"I … uh… I …" Lou stammered out, why had she been so stupid!
"Who are you?" Teaspoon asked eyeing the girl.
Buck and Ike had noticed the problem and had moved to Lou's side. Buck put his arm around Lou's waist. "Teaspoon maybe we can step outside?" he asked indicating with a nod of his head that they were making a scene.
Teaspoon nodded and followed the three out of the building. "Alright now who are you?" Teaspoon asked as soon as they were away from the crowd.
"Teaspoon this is the woman I love and the woman who is just like a sister to Ike." Buck said still trying to keep Lou's identity secret.
"Buck I have never seen either of you two boys around any young woman more than once." Teaspoon stated eyeing the three in front of him.
"It's alright Buck." Lou whispered in Kiowa just before she reached up and pulled her mask off.
Teaspoon's eyes got huge, "Lou?"
"It's Louise actually." Lou said with a slight grin.
"You're a girl!" Teaspoon exclaimed.
"Well yeah." Lou said shrugging.
"What? When? How did this happen?" Teaspoon stammered out.
"I was born this way Teaspoon." Lou said snickering.
"That's not what I mean. How did I not notice before?" Teaspoon asked shaking his head in wonder.
"I don't know Teaspoon, maybe you chose not to because you'd have to fire me if you knew." Lou replied.
"Why would I do a fool thing like that?" Teaspoon asked.
"Because I'm a girl." Lou said perplexed.
"Yes you are, but your still one of the best damn riders I've ever seen. Sides you're family." Teaspoon said with a grin.
"So you're not going to fire me." Lou said smiling.
"Nope…have to say I'm rather relieved. The way you three acted had me worried." Teaspoon said causing the three friends to laugh. "Do the others know?"
"I think Emma is the only one that doesn't. Even Sam knows." Buck said.
"Well let's just keep quiet about me knowing for now. I wanna see how long it takes them to let something slip." Teaspoon said with a sly grin, the three riders snickered.
"Well I better go change back into Lou." Lou said before she left the men standing there.
Once everybody was back at the bunkhouse Jimmy said, "Where were you Lou? Teaspoon said we all had to be there."
"Oh I was there." Lou replied with a wink at Buck.
"Where I didn't see ya?" Cody asked.
"Really? Well I saw you and my toes definitely felt you." Lou snickered.
"Huh?" was all Cody could say.
"You danced with her Cody." Buck said laughing.
"I did?" Cody asked he couldn't believe he had danced with Lou and hadn't known it.
"Yup, so did Kid, Ike, Buck, and Teaspoon." Lou replied.
"You danced with Teaspoon!" Jimmy exclaimed and then added, "And not me?"
"You didn't ask." Lou pointed out.
"Hell I don't even know which one you were." Jimmy said.
"You were the one dressed like a princess, the one wearing the pink half mask." Kid said when it finally dawn on him why that girl had seem so familiar.
"Yup." Lou said with a smirk.
"Gees Buck you are one lucky man. She was the prettiest girl there." Cody said causing Lou to blush.
"Yes I am." Buck said looking over at Lou with a look that made her blush even more.
Lou quickly told the guys goodnight and climbed into her bunk. A few days later Elizabeth's true identity came out. She was really Amanda O'Conner and was a scam artist. But she had a change of heart; she didn't want Teaspoon to get hurt so she told him the scam.
Teaspoon and the boys came up with a plan to capture her partner. After her partner was taken care of Amanda decided to go to St. Louis. Teaspoon told her to take the money, said he had everything he needed right here. He wanted Amanda to have a chance at a new life. Amanda agreed to take it on one condition. She wanted Teaspoon to be her partner. She wanted to open up a real classy saloon. It would be an even split. Teaspoon agreed.
Amanda said her goodbyes to her new family and told Ike to save her a dance before she kissed him on the cheek. After the stage coach left the Express family returned to the station. "I can't believe you gave up all that money." Cody said to Teaspoon as they sat around the bunkhouse table.
"I didn't need it Cody. I've got a roof over my head. Emma puts good food on the table for all of us, and I have the one thing that matters most in the world." Teaspoon said looking around at his boys.
"What's that Teaspoon?" Kid asked.
"Family. You 'boys'" Teaspoon paused for a minute to wink at Lou, the others didn't notice, "are like 'sons' to me."
All the riders smiled at that, they had come to think of Teaspoon as their father. Lou was glad that Teaspoon knew her secret and that he was letting her stay because Teaspoon was right, everything she needed was right her around her.