This is not a trick, you are not dreaming, and your eyes are not deceiving you. This is actually an UPDATE!

And I'm very sorry for the wait, I honestly hadn't realized how much time had passed until I received a PM from a reader a few weeks back. At the moment I'm working on a lot of different projects. I can't guarantee that updates will come frequently, but I will not give up on this story. I'm promising you guys that now.

P.S. Are there any Sons of Anarchy enthusiasts out there? I started watching the show and have literally been haunted by a story idea ever since, but don't have anyone to bounce the idea off of. If anyone would be interested in hearing it, PM me please!

Disclaimer: Own nothing.

March 1883

The next person to fall victim to the Hatfield and McCoy feud wasn't another nameless bounty hunter or another one of the countless Pikeville deputies, but someone actually bearing one of the family names – not two weeks after the break in at her and Dr. Tiller's office, the body of Paris McCoy was found propped up against a tree on the outskirts of Pikeville.

It had taken a week or two for the details to come out, but once they did it wasn't hard for Evelyn to figure out that Will had been the one responsible for Paris' death. And when she'd finally found it in her to ask him about it, he had confirmed her suspicions by simply saying, Yes – I saved my Pa, then continuing on as though she'd never asked him about it in the first place.

Now Evelyn understood why he'd killed Paris, of course – after all, she had been the one to warm him that the McCoy would probably be lurking around and Will had only done what was necessary in order to protect his family. But the knowledge that he had actuallykilled the man still bothered her. It wasn't because she was sad that Paris had died (she'd never been particularly fond of him or his flirtations), but rather more because Evelyn was beginning to worry that Will had become far too accustomed to killing. It troubled her that he seemed so nonchalant about it – not once had he shown any real remorse for what had happened to the McCoy brothers and he had certainly never expressed regret at having to kill the seemingly endless waves of bounty hunters continuing to cross into West Virginia. He'd remained apathetic and unrepentant to it all for so long that when he finally did began to show signs of everything starting to take a toll on him, Evelyn's concern increased tenfold; she wasn't sure what frightened her more, him remaining indifferent to all of the killing going on or the thought that this mess was finally starting to affect him.

Evelyn knew all too well what Will was struggling with. His family was in danger, he was being hunted, and his fiancée was putting herself at risk by spying on the enemy. More often then not Will's demeanor was stressed and anxious, even a little on edge; other times she'd catch him staring off into the distance with a frown on his face, obviously lost in his own troublesome thoughts. But though she would never dare to put any blame on him for the way he was acting, it still frightened her to see him in such a state. She was beginning to fear that the real William Hatfield – the spirited, confident, charming man she had known and loved for nearly her entire life – would begin to fade away if something didn't change in regards to this feud.

It was thoughts like there that kept her awake on nights like this.

Will had come to spend the night with her in Dr. Tiller's office and fallen asleep over an hour ago. But despite having had an incredibly busy day at work and the hour getting to be fairly late, Evelyn had yet to get even a wink of sleep. There was far too much on her mind, far too many things that had been bothering her for there to be any hope of obtaining rest right then. She rolled over with a long heave and re-settled into a new position, letting her eyes roam freely over the handsome, sleeping face of her fiancé once she was able to see him.

She had to smile to herself, because for once the expression on Will's face was that of peaceful relaxation, not the rough, intimidating one that he presented to the public on most occasions. The sight of him like this, at ease and content, warmed her heart. It was a rare occasion indeed these days that William Hatfield looked this relaxed. It made her wonder – was he only like this when he was with her? Was there a way for Evelyn to bring this sort of safety and comfort to him more regularly?

As soon as she asked herself that question she immediately knew the answer, because who was she trying to fool? Of course there was a way, Evelyn knew that very well, and Will had certainly started dropping not-so-subtle hints about wanting to have The Talk; he was more then ready to finally announce that they planned to marry.

She lay there for a moment or two, imagining that they were in their home and in their bed, not in a back room of a doctor's office. It made Evelyn yearned to have him with her like this every night, not just whenever he was able to conjure a good enough excuse for getting out of the Hatfield house. She was ready to be married to him, ready to have the home and the future that they had been dreaming of for so long. In that moment, it was as all of the patience in her had suddenly disappeared – Evelyn suddenly had no more desire to play these risky games. Will was trying to fight through one of the most trying times in his life and by God, Evelyn was going to be there to support him and make sure that he survived this mess. The time for secrecy had passed; the time for honesty had come.

Having made up her mind on the matter, Evelyn propped herself up on an elbow and gently shook Will's shoulder with her free hand. "Will, wake up." She said softly to try and rouse him from his sleep.

The Hatfield stirred before blinking up at her sleepily, not completely coherent just yet. "Darlin'?" He asked with a voice thick from sleep, sounding a little confused as to why she'd woken him. "Wuzwrong?"

"Nothin', nothin's wrong." She reassured him when he started to sit up in alarm. He paused at the gentle hand on his shoulder and frowned down at her in confusion. "I was just…thinkin'." Evelyn began to explain with a shrug. "Couldn't really sleep so my mind started wanderin'."

Now that Will knew there was no immediate danger, he let out a long sigh before straightening up and resting his back against the headboard of the bed. "Thinkin' 'bout what, Evie?" Will asked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"Many things. Worryin' over this nonsense with the bounty hunters, thinkin' 'bout how this mess with the McCoys just keeps gettin' worse 'n worse…" Evelyn paused for a moment. "Been thinkin' 'bout our relationship, too." She told him honestly.

Will's eyebrows immediately came together with her last statement. "Our relationship?" He echoed with a bit of a wary tone. "What about it?"

Evelyn sighed and sat up fully in bed, turning a serious expression on Will. "Remember when I first informed ya I planned on stayin' in Kentucky?" She questioned him, earning herself a nod. "We agreed that if nothin'd changed, that if this feud was still goin' like it was, then we'd go to yer Pap 'n tell 'im'bout us."

Will's interest had definitely been piqued by the topic of conversation. "Yeah…" He responded slowly as a hopeful gleam entered his good eye. His next words were still said out of firm caution, however. "Seven months was the agreement – that ain't changin'." Will added matter-of-factly, the expression on his face momentarily daring her to argue with him about it.

"I know." Evelyn told him. Then she offered a small smile. "I started discreetly movin' my effects outta the McCoy house recently," She revealed, making him blink in surprise. "'Cause the more I think about things, the more I feel…well, I believe the time's come fer me'ta leave Kentucky an' us'ta tell yer Pap the truth." Evelyn explained quickly, watching as Will's eyebrows shot up to his hairline. "This whole thing just keeps gettin' worse 'n worse and I can't stand'ta see ya fightin' this on yer own anymore. I just think – "

Will had listened to her brief rant in relatively stunned silence, but quite suddenly he was wrapping his hands around her arms, pulling her forward, and silencing her with a fervent kiss. Evelyn was surprised by the move for a moment but then smiled against his lips and returned his kiss, locking her arms around him as he held her even closer. He didn't release her for a long while but when he did, they were both breathing heavily and he was smiling at her with a wide, heart-warming grin.

"You agree with me then?" Evelyn questioned with what she was certain was a very sappy smile on her face.

"Yer damn right I do." Will said before pulling her in for another kiss to seal the deal.

So they had decided to wait one more week, that way Evelyn could finish moving the possessions she considered most important, so they could prepare themselves for whatever was about to come, and so Will could begin buttering up his father in hopes of making 'The Talk' a bit easier (hopefully).

As Evelyn nervously smoothed out the non-existent wrinkles in her skirt, checked her hair, then smoothed out her skirt again, she had to wonder where in the world that week had gone. There had been an initial sense of comfort whenever she had known that there were still seven days to prepare for this, but Evelyn would swear that the week had flown by in the blink of an eye – how in the hell was it time already?

The redhead sucked in a shaky breath then chanced a glance at the clock – 2:54.

At three o'clock Evelyn was going to leave work early, then she was going to meet with Will at the clearing before the two of them made for the Hatfield house together. They had gone over what they would say over and over again the past few times they'd seen one another, but Evelyn still had to wipe her palms on her skirt as nervousness began to creep up on her again and get the better of her. In fact she had been so anxious about the upcoming meeting that she'd barely gotten any rest the past few nights, having spent the majority of the time tossing and turning. When she had finally gotten to sleep, her mind had been plagued with nightmares centering around her and Will finally admitting everything to Devil Anse before both of them were promptly shot when the dream version of Will's father went into a murderous rage; Evelyn had startled herself awake more then once throughout the course of last night, her heart pounding and her breathing a tick harder then usual in response to the garish images.

As Evelyn tried to forget about her fretful night of sleep, she wrung her hands together and found her eyes glancing back towards the clock for what had to be the thousandth time that afternoon – 2:55.

The redhead sucked in a deep breath before heaving it out. Was it just her, or was time creeping by excruciatingly slow today? Evelyn was sure it was only because she'd been staring at the clock practically all day long, but it felt as though a lifetime had passed since she'd woken that morning. She frowned in disapproval, glaring at the clock as though it were committing some form of treachery against her, then began to pace impatiently near the front door.

Enough of this, she finally thought to herself when she could take the waiting no longer.

She roughly pulled on her gloves, yanked her saddlebags down from their hook, then marched towards the door with determined steps. She only hesitated when she heard footfalls on the floorboards behind her and cast a look towards Dr. Tiller, who'd just emerged from one of the patient rooms and was watching her over the top of his spectacles.

"Goin' somewheres?" Dr. Tiller asked casually – why was he looking at her as though he knew something that she did not just then?

"I…I've got a meetin' with someone." Evelyn lied with an innocent shrug of her shoulder. "Can ya handle the office on yer own?"

Dr. Tiller pursed his lips and then nodded. "Yes, I'll be just fine." He reassured her, walking in Evelyn's direction so that he himself could open the front door for her. "There's no rush'ta get back, so take yer time." He added, motioning for her to get going. He was behaving a bit oddly, but Evelyn still nodded and shot him a grateful smile before stepping outside. "Oh, and Evelyn?" When the younger doctor looked towards him with a questioning look, he smirked at her. "Good luck with Devil Anse."

Evelyn was so shocked by his words that for a moment, she had absolutely no idea what to do or say in response. She stared at Dr. Tiller wide eyed, trying to form the correct words (any words, really) while feeling completely and utterly bewildered as to how in the hell the man had known what she had planned for that day. "You…what…I – "

"Ya think I don't hear you 'n Cap whisperin' 'bout things like this whenever he comes'ta visit?" Dr. Tiller shot at her with a shrewd look. "I may be old, but I ain't deaf 'n I sure ain't slow, neither." He added rather huffily, looking mildly offended but also slightly amused. Then he motioned for her to leave yet again. "Best be on yer way. Cap's prob'ly waitin' for ya."

Then he was shutting the door, leaving her to gape at the place he'd just occupied in wonderment – that had certainly been a surprising turn of events. Dr. Tiller had always known that she and Will were friends, but neither had ever outright told the doctor that they were anything more and they'd always kept displays of affection to an absolute minimum in his presence. She supposed she shouldn't be that surprised in the end though, seeing as Dr. Tiller was the one person (other then Cotton) who saw them together the most.

She finally turned from the office with a shake of her head, taking a moment to breathe in the fresh, March air and reminding herself that Dr. Tiller knowing about her and Will's relationship was the least of her concerns right then – after today, things were going to be very different but whether that would be a change for the better or change for the worst, she didn't know yet. Evelyn just hoped with all of her might that luck was finally on their side and that she and Will would have Devil Anse Hatfield's blessing come nightfall (she also hoped neither of them would end up shot at any point that day).

But as Evelyn finally made her way down the steps and started down the street, intending to go and collect Copper, something peculiar caught her eye. There was a dark haired man loitering around by a stationary wagon just outside of Judge Wall Hatfield's office. He was leaning heavily against the wagon, drinking what appeared to be copious amounts of whiskey, and looked entirely too familiar; Evelyn squinted her eyes as she tried to get a better look at the man.

Were her eyes playing tricks on her, or was that really Jefferson McCoy?

Evelyn would admit that the McCoy's presence alarmed her a bit and she glanced around to see if anyone else had taken notice of him, which no one seemingly had – what in the hell was a McCoy doing wandering around (quite conspicuously) on Hatfield territory anyway? Did the drunken fool have a death wish? With a shake of her head she rolled her eyes and stomped her way in his direction, determined to lecture him and then send him on his way back to Kentucky. There had been enough death and despair surrounding the two families without adding this idiot's demise to the list.

"Jefferson!" Evelyn half-called, half-snapped to grab his attention as soon as she was within hearing range. He whirled around in surprise, looking a bit unsteady on his feet and sloshing some whiskey onto the ground. "What in the hell're ya doin' here?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips sternly once she'd reached him. "Are you tryin'ta get yerself shot? If a Hatfield finds you – "

"I ain't gotta worry 'bout that no more." Jefferson interrupted matter-of-factly, waving his hand (and the whiskey bottle – she had to take a step back to keep from getting the drink on her skirt) dismissively. "Johnse's gonna see'ta that, don't you worry."

Evelyn was immediately left feeling confused by Jefferson's words. "What?" She asked uncertainly, not entirely sure she understood what he was trying to tell her at the moment – as far as she knew, Jefferson McCoy and Johnse Hatfield were hardly even acquainted, let alone friends. "What do ya mean he's gonna 'see'ta that'?"

But before he could answer, the door of Wall Hatfield's office swung open and two people came rushing out in excitement. They paused at the top of the steps to kiss each other very enthusiastically before breaking apart with mischievous giggles and continuing on towards them. Evelyn's eyes widened when she quickly recognized who they were – one was the tall, blonde-haired Johnse Hatfield, while the other was the very woman Evelyn had never quite seen eye to eye with; Nancy McCoy.

"Evelyn!" Nancy greeted with a broad smile, waving at her eagerly – warning bells instantly rang in every corner of Evelyn's mind, because for as long as she had known her, never once had Nancy McCoy greeted anyone with that much cheerfulness. "I was hopin'ta see ya here!" She continued as her and Johnse came to stand before her, bemusing Evelyn even further.

"Hi there, Farmer." Johnse said with an equally wide grin on his handsome face. She couldn't help but notice that he and Nancy had their arms wrapped securely around one another, nor could she overlook their sappy expressions.

"Ya know Evelyn?" Nancy asked in apparent curiosity.

"Oh yeah, she's friends with my brother." Evelyn's eyes widened as Johnse nonchalantly revealed one of the secrets she'd been working very hard to keep under wraps for all these years – what in the hell was he doing? Was he trying to get Evelyn in trouble by telling the world all of her secrets? Nancy didn't look overly surprised to hear this, but Evelyn didn't think to be worried about this in her now semi-panicked state. "Anyways, what brings ya here?" Johnse asked conversationally.

"I was just…I…" Evelyn struggled to get the words out, still trying to figure out what sort of alternate universe she'd just been thrown into. "I saw Jefferson 'n thought I'd come talk'ta him." She finally answered quickly, glancing back and forth between the trio with blatant perplexity. There was something off about this whole interaction and Evelyn just knew that there was something she was missing. "What're you two doin' here?"

Nancy and Johnse took a moment to beam at each other before directing their attention back to her. "We just got married." Nancy announced.

Four words. All it took was those four words to make every ounce of hope or optimism in Evelyn's body completely disappear. As the words sunk in she felt a wave of disappointment wash over as her stomach turned uneasily – were they being serious? Had this actually happened? "You…yer what?" Evelyn asked slowly, having to swallow past a sudden lump in her throat.

"We got married." Johnse repeated before producing a marriage certificate and presenting it to Evelyn like it was a brick of gold.

Oh my God…This can't be happenin', she thought to herself as her eyes quickly scanned over the document. After a moment or two she handed it back to Johnse, trying valiantly not to let her hands shake, and took a steadying breath before plastering on a smile. Why did this always happen? Why, whenever she and Will were finally and the brink of something important, did something always interfere? Was it just not meant to be? "Congratulations." Evelyn managed out in what she hoped was an even voice, despite feeling completely deflated.

"Thanks." Johnse said proudly before pressing a kiss to Nancy's temple. "Now if ya don't mind, the wife 'n I have some, uh…marital business to attend to." He stated suggestively, making Nancy dissolve into a fit of giggles. Evelyn thought she was going to be sick to her stomach. "Bye, Farmer."

"Bye, Evelyn." Nancy echoed, smirking at her before allowing Johnse to pull her towards the wagon.

"Goodbye." Evelyn said distractedly, hardly noticing as Jefferson hopped into the wagon with the newlywed couple and waved in parting. Johnse waved one last time, Nancy shot her a look that was hard to decipher, then the trio were riding off in the wagon. "Damnit." Evelyn cursed a bit uncharacteristically under her breath, watching them depart.

Suddenly she was dreading going to the clearing, because meeting with Will meant that she would have to break the news about Johnse's impromptu marriage. And that was something that she knew without a shadow of doubt, was not going to go over well.

Hunnam looked on from his place at the saloon as Dr. Farmer conversed with a trio of people just down the way. He was fairly certain that the blonde-headed fellow she was conversing with was a Hatfield – though he didn't know which one – but he didn't dare to go after the man guns a'blazing just then. No, he was far more interested in whatever the pretty redhead was up to. That was why he'd been posted up in this tavern in the first place and had remained there for the past few hours, just watching and waiting and biding his time.

After a few minutes of conversation, the trio Dr. Farmer had been chatting with piled back into their wagon and departed, leaving the woman to stare after them for a long moment. He watched as she finally turned on her heel, expecting her to head back towards her office (which he and his cronies had broken into about a month prior), but was surprised when she instead headed for the town stables.

"Where are you goin'?" He mused aloud in a low voice, keeping his eyes trained on her with rapt interest.

"What was that?" Asked Ferguson (one of his comrades) around a hiccup. The man was a bit portly with long, scraggly hair and currently enjoying a very full glass of whiskey. "Ya say somethin'?"

Hunnam shot the man an annoyed look then directed his attention back to the window, ignoring his question. When Dr. Farmer emerged from the stables atop her horse a handful of minutes later, excitement ignited within him and he couldn't suppress the predatory grin that stretched across his pale face. "Git yer stuff together." Hunnam ordered gruffly, quickly getting to his feet. He didn't know where she was planning on going, but he was definitely going to find out. "Time fer'a bit'a fun, boys."

As Dr. Tiller had predicted, Will was already at the clearing by the time Evelyn arrived. She knew that he was going to be beside himself with anger once she told him about Nancy and Johnse, especially seeing as he'd often expressed his mounting irritation with Johnse on the numerous occasions his older brother had done something foolish. And as Evelyn came riding up to house (which now only needed one wall and a roof), she tried to mentally prepare herself for the storm that she was about to face – when Will jogged down the porch steps to greet her with a big smile on his face, his happy expression instantly left her feeling guilty since she knew she was about to wipe that look clean off his face with her unhappy news.

He wasted no time to lock his hands around her waist and help her down from Copper's back, immediately pulling her in for a kiss once she was close enough. "Today has been the longest day." Will said when he finally pulled away, reaching a hand up so he could brush some hair away from her face. "I been goin' insane with anticipation."

"Me too." Evelyn agreed, offering a weak smile – the idea of ruining the day that had been so important to both of them pained her, especially when he was looking at her with so much hope and love, but she also knew that she had no option; she had to tell him what was going on. "Will…" She started with a sigh, placing a soothing hand on his chest. "…I need'ta tell ya somethin' 'fore anythin' else's said'r done."

Will's frown was immediate, and as he eyed her with furrowed eyebrows it felt as though the air around them had dropped ten degrees. He straightened up a bit and slowly pulled back from her. "Yer not havin' second thoughts, are ya?" He asked with a measured tone, his expression completely unreadable.

"No, that's not the problem." Evelyn quickly reassured him, shaking her head vehemently. "I swear to you, its not."

He visibly relaxed at hearing this and pinched the bridge of his nose for a second, sighing in relief. "What is it, then?" Will asked once he'd dropped his hand and focused in on her again.

Evelyn sucked in a deep breath, stalling for a second until Will raised his eyebrows at her questioningly. "It's about yer brother." She finally blurted out, now wringing her hands together nervously.

"My brother?" Will repeated in confusion. "Johnse?" When she nodded her head in confirmation, the expression on Will's face went flat and his mustache ruffled a bit as he crossed his arms over his chest. "What'd 'e do now?" He asked, sounding reluctant to actually know the answer.

"I saw 'im in Mate Creek just now, visitin' with yer Uncle Wall." She revealed hesitantly – now or never, Farmer. "But he wasn't alone. He…he was with Nancy McCoy." Will's shoulders visibly tensed again, making Evelyn suspect at once that he might already be putting the pieces of the puzzle together himself. "They…they had just gotten married." Evelyn finally revealed before tensing and waiting for his reaction.

"What?" Will asked in an incredulous tone, his hands dropping back to his sides in absolute shock. "Are you bein' serious?"

Evelyn only nodded meekly in response. For a long second they were both completely still – in the next moment she winced as Will cursed loudly and then began pacing around the clearing, calling Johnse every foul name that he could think of as he began ranting and raving. She watched him helplessly, wanting to reach out and try to calm him down, but gave him his distance as he started kicking timber around and continued swearing to high heaven out of anger. He finally paused, breathing heavily and seemingly tried to collect himself whilst glaring at nothing in particular, before finally turning on his heel and storming over towards the nearby river.

Evelyn reached a hand in his direction and watched him go, wincing to herself when he upturned a table and sent a pile of tools crashing to the ground on his way towards the river. She had known that Will would be angry, but it was a rare occasion indeed that he reached this point of rage – she hesitated by the house, sighing to herself as Will came to a halt on the bank of the river, before finally trailing after him. If he heard her approach he didn't acknowledge it, merely continued to glare at the flowing water in front of him. Evelyn wasn't sure what his reaction would be when she reached out to place a comforting hand on his back; his muscles were tensed and it was clear he was still extremely angry, but to her relief he didn't flinch underneath her touch or push her away.

"Will…"

"I hate 'im." He spat out hastily, not even sparing her a glance as she rubbed soothing circles over the taut muscles of his back. "Every time we try'n do somethin' important – every goddamned time – he does somethin' stupid to ruin it." He continued on, putting voice to the very thoughts she'd had after learning of Johnse's unexpected marriage. "He's selfish, he's irresponsible, and he's a damned fool. I hate 'im." Will ranted in a venomous tone.

She cringed and hesitated for a few seconds, wanting to give Will a chance to suck in a few calming breaths before speaking again. "Ya don't hate yer brother." Evelyn told him gently, sliding both her arms around his waist from behind and resting her cheek on his shoulder.

It took a couple of moments, but Will finally relaxed into her comforting embrace a little bit and let out a long heave. "I do right now." He stated with a shake of his head. "I swear he does things like this on purpose – he's purposefully tryin'ta ruin my life, I'm sure of it."

"No, he isn't." She countered patiently. "Johnse is just…" Evelyn sighed and shook her head, trying to find the right way to describe her future brother-in-law. "…well, he's Johnse. And he tends'ta listen to the wrong region of 'is body." She stepped around Will then and placed a hand on his neck, forcing him to meet her gaze – she understood his anger, but also figured it would be in everyone's best interest to talk the enraged Hatfield down before he ended up murdering his own brother. "Will, I'm upset too, but Johnse ain't tryin'ta ruin our lives."

Will let out a long heave, the expression on his face softening some, then shook his head in resignation. "Why today? Of all the days this could'a happened, it had'ta be today."

"That's just our luck, I s'pose." Evelyn said with a shrug. "We'll just wait'a bit longer, give this time'ta blow over before – "

"What?" Will interjected with a frown, making her fall silent at once. "Ya wanna wait longer?"

She didn't know what surprised her more, that Will seemed upset with her for wanting to wait longer or the fact that he still wanted to go through with their plans, despite the fact that Johnse was about to raise all sorts of hell with Devil Anse. "Is there any other option, Will?" She countered pointedly. "Yer Pap's gonna be furious when he finds out 'bout Johnse 'n Nancy. There ain't no way in hell he's gonna agree'ta us marryin' if we go to 'im now 'n ya know it."

Will opened his mouth to respond, the look on his face letting her know good and well that they were about to get into an argument, but just as the words formed on his lips, another unexpected, unfamiliar voice sounded in the air.

"Well, look-ee here."

The air around them shifted so rapidly that it was though someone had changed it with the mere flick of a switch – Will's anger, the trouble that Johnse had unknowingly stirred up, the argument they had been on the brink of; it all quickly became forgotten. Will whipped around in the blink of an eye and immediately placed himself protectively in front of her, both of their gazes turned on the two bounty hunters that had just arrived. One was portly with scraggly hair while the other was a very stocky looking man boasting an unkempt beard; both had guns slung over their shoulders and similar malicious smirks on their ugly faces.

Evelyn almost immediately recognized them as the men that worked with Hunnam, having seen them with the albino several times – she moved closer to Will's back and glanced around nervously, certain that if these two were here, then Hunnam himself could not be very far away. Why didn't I have my gun with me? Why?!

"You boys lost?" Will called out in a no-nonsense tone, straightening to his full height.

"Reckon we're right where we need'ta be, actually." The stocky one retorted, currently looking as though he didn't have a care in the world. When he noticed her peering at him from around Will's shoulder, he raised a hand and waved a bit condescendingly. "Afternoon, Dr. Farmer."

"This here's private property." Will snapped, making the bounty shift his attention away from Evelyn. "I suggest ya get movin' on."

"Ya see, Hatfield…" The scraggly-haired man said with a note of impatience. "We'll be gettin' on soon enough. Thing is, we ain't goin' alone – no, siree." He explained, now beginning to casually make his way towards them. Will reached back to keep a hand on her, ensuring that his body was completely shielding hers. "There's a price on yer head, Hatfield – wanted, dead 'r alive." The man came to a halt, regarded Will with a sniff, then leaned to the side to spit out some of his tobacco. "Way I see it, we can do this the easy way 'r the hard way. Easy way, the doc goes free. Hard way…" The man smirked and shrugged, not needing to finish his threat for them to understand what he was saying.

When Evelyn chanced a look up at Will's face, she almost flinched at the fierce expression etched into his handsome features. He ground his teeth together as he seemed to contemplate the options laid out before him, his good eye glancing back and forth between the two bounty hunters as he sized up his competition. And in that moment, as she realized how dangerous of a situation they were in, Evelyn could not remember another time where she had been this completely and utterly helpless – what was she supposed to do? The bounty hunters would have no qualms killing Will if he didn't come with them willingly, hell, that was what they had been trying to do for months now. But even though Evelyn would rather (attempt to) fight instead of watching Will be carted off by bounty hunters, she knew there was no way Will would do anything that might result in her getting hurt. They were stuck and they both knew it.

"Will, don't even think about it." Evelyn warned in a low voice, tightening her grip on him when she saw the shift in his expression.

Will glanced back at her for a quick moment before slowly reaching for the pistol on his hip. "If I come with ya, she goes free." He instructed, taking his pistol out of its holster before tossing it away. Evelyn immediately shook him, feeling her heart launch up into her throat at his words, but he ignored her and proceeded to raise his hands up in surrender. "Deal?"

The two bounty hunters shared a look that made her instantly feel like something very bad was about to happen. "Yeah, sure. Girl goes free." The scraggly one agreed. He then nodded and his partner came over, roughly grabbing Will by the arm and jerking him away from Evelyn.

"Will!" Evelyn said with a hitch in her voice, reaching out to try and grab ahold of him as he was pulled away from her. Before she could close her hand around his arm, however, the other bounty hunter intercepted her and held her back– this was not happening, this could not be happening! If he left with these men then he'd probably be killed! Why was he not fighting? Why was he giving up so easily?. "Will, ya can't – " She began protesting.

"Don't worry 'bout me." Will interrupted, shooting a look at her over his shoulder – there was a pleading look in his eye that made her have to swallow past a lump in her throat. "I can take care'a myself, darlin'." He told her. "You just worry 'bout gettin'ta – "

Will's words came to an abrupt halt in the same moment that the crunch of approaching footsteps reached her ears. Evelyn took one second to study the now far more alarmed expression on the Hatfield's face before turning her head towards the newcomer – Hunnam had just crept out from the copse of trees nearest to the river and was making his way towards her, watching her with a steady, predatory gleam in his light-colored eyes. Her blood ran cold – there might have even been a moment where her heart stopped beating altogether – but despite her brain screaming at her to run, Evelyn felt rooted to the spot as he closed in on her. Once he was close enough Hunnam locked a hand around her wrist in a vice grip and pulled her close; there was a smirk of triumphant on his face.

"Afternoon, Dr. Farmer." He said lowly. "Go on." Hunnam then instructed, not taking his eyes off Evelyn as he waved his cronies off. "I'll be along shortly."

Hunnam's words immediately sent Will into a rage. "Wait a damn minute." He growled out dangerously, struggling against the bounty hunter's hold so forcefully that the man's partner had to help keep the Hatfield within their grasps. "That ain't the deal! Ya said she goes free!"

"And free she'll be." Hunnam responded, finally shifting his attention over to Will. "Soon as I'm done with 'er, anyway."

Evelyn sucked in a shaky breath, unable to hold back tears as the bounty hunters began dragging Will away and she was hit with the gravity of the situation. The Hatfield was beside himself with anger, struggling against his captors and shouting every curse word he knew in the direction of Hunnam, but the bounty hunter in front of her seemed completely unaffected by Will's behavior. Before long Will was completely out of sight, leaving her alone with Hunnam in the one place that should have been her safe haven – she could still hear the echoes of Will calling her name resonating through the trees.

He was eerily silent for a long moment as he tilted his head and studied her, and Evelyn could do nothing but stare right back, unable to force movement into her limbs.

"Ol' Ran'll McCoy know 'bout yer…boyfriend?" Hunnam finally asked, reaching a hand up and trailing a fingertip along the side of her cheek. Evelyn shuddered in disgust at the touch and closed her eyes, wishing and praying that this was all just a nightmare and that it wasn't really happening – she was harshly brought back to reality when Hunnam leaned close, his nose grazing her cheek. "Guessin' not." He breathed in her ear before circling around behind her.

It was the feel of his hand sliding along the length of her back that brought life back to her limbs. She immediately tried to run away from him, determined to at least put up some form of fight, but she didn't make it far before Hunnam was grabbing her by the arm. With a firm yank her back connected with his chest; in the next moment he had a painful grip on her hair.

"Where the hell do ya think yer goin'?" He growled in her ear, jerking on her hair for good measure.

Instead of answering him verbally, Evelyn decided to do what felt most sensible given the circumstances – she threw her left elbow into his side with all of her might, making him grunt in pain and slacken his hold on her. He hurried to recover and regain his hold so she threw her elbow a second time, catching him square in the nose. It took a third time to make him release his hold on her completely.

As Hunnam doubled over in pain and sank to his knees, Evelyn scrambled to get away from him as quickly as her legs would move – she didn't know where she was going or what she was doing, she just knew that she had to get away. He seemed to realize that she was going to escape, however, and lurched forward to grab her around the ankles; she barely managed to get her hands up for protection and narrowly avoided going face-first into the dirt. He still seemed to be trying to catch his breath and there was blood dripping from his nose, but Hunnam's blatant fury seemed to be overshadowing any pain he might be feeling. He began to drag her back to him, his teeth gnashing in anger, but she managed to free herself by kicking at his hands.

"You bitch!" Hunnam cried out as she freed herself and hurried away from him again.

As she hurried forward on hands and knees, Evelyn not only knew he would catch up to her but also that she might not be able to overpower him for a second time. She glanced backwards to see that he was getting to his feet again and about to come after her, making her quicken her pace. Just as Evelyn turned forward again her hand encountered something solid and hard – she glanced down in surprise to see that she had scrambled her way right into the numerous working tools Will had angrily thrown around not ten minutes previous. There was a fleeting moment of optimism where she quickly located the tool she thought would do the most damage; Evelyn had just managed to close her fingers around a hammer when Hunnam caught up to her and hauled her up by the waist.

He whipped her around to face him, unaware of the weapon in her hand. "Yer gonna pay fer – "

Hunnam's threat immediately died off as Evelyn reared back and swung the hammer at his head with all of her strength. His eyes bugged as the metal tool made contact and his knees almost immediately gave out; she watched with heaving breaths as he collapsed to the ground, where he remained motionless. For a long moment Evelyn could do nothing but watch with mounting nausea as blood began to trickle into Hunnam's white-blonde hair, unsure if she had killed him or simply knocked him out. Evelyn took a step back, dropping the hammer as she tried to ignore the sickness rising up, then –

BANG!

The shot jeered her back to life and Evelyn began to panic, now harshly reminded that Will was still with the other bounty hunters and might now be shot. "Will!" She cried out, listening to the call echo around her and praying that she would hear an answer. Just as she opened her mouth to call his name again –

BANG!

The second shot had her dropping to her knees and beginning to search frantically through the grass and leaves – she had no idea if Will was dead or alive, but as soon as she had something to protect herself with she was damn well going to find out. Where is it? Where is it?! When her hands finally closed around Will's pistol, she took a second to make sure it was loaded; thankfully, Will always kept the barrel full these days. She thought her heart was going to pound right out of her chest as she got to her feet and started in the direction Will had gone, but when the crunch of approaching footsteps registered in her ears she thought her heart had stopped beating altogether.

Evelyn raised the pistol and turned towards the sound, trying to keep her hands from shaking. "Who's there?" She called out. Please be Will, please be Will! "Tell me or I'll shoot!"

There was an audible sigh of relief, then a hand stuck out from around a tree. "Please don't shoot me, darlin'."

A sob rose in her throat when he walked out from behind the tree, alive and breathing, and the gun in her hands soon fell discarded to the ground. She hurried over to him, feeling the dam break as he rushed to meet her, then threw her arms around him in a tight hug once he was close enough. Will began pressing kisses to every inch of her face, running a soothing hand over her back as he consoled her, but finally pulled back so that he could get a look at her.

"Are ya hurt?" He asked, taking a moment to inspect her – she shook her head 'no'. "Where's Hunnam?"

"There." Evelyn told him in a timid voice, pointing out his motionless form. "I hit 'im with'a hammer."

Will frowned before letting out a long heave and wrapping her back in his arms. "I'm sorry, Evelyn." Will apologized sincerely, pressing kiss after to kiss to her hair. "I'm so, so sorry."

Evelyn shook her head again, feeling a million different emotions right then – terror because of what Hunnam and the bounty hunters had tried to do to them, anger because Will had given himself up so quickly, relief because they had both managed to escape the ordeal relatively unscathed…it was nearly impossible for her to grasp onto a coherent thought and her mind swirled around so quickly that she thought her head might explode. "You gave yerself up." She finally said, looking at him in blatant disbelief. "They were gonna kill you, Will!"

Will frowned and shook his head. "Those drunken fools weren't gonna kill no one." He countered. When she felt her anger towards him grow Evelyn tried to pull away, thinking it would feel good to hit him. However, he tightened his grip on her to keep her in place. "I knew what I had'ta do 'n knew I could do it, I was never in any real danger, darlin'. It was Hunnam I didn't expect." He explained, anger flicked across his features now. "Lord only knows what that bastard wanted'ta do. I'll never forgive myself fer leavin' ya with 'im, Evie. Never."

Evelyn felt a very strong urge to yell at him for being so reckless with his own life, even thought about arguing with him just so she could relieve some of the storm raging inside of her right then, but his words made her hold her tongue and push past the temptation. They had both nearly suffered terrible fates but had managed to make it out alive – Will's readiness to give himself up for her sake was something that needed to be addressed, but that conversation could be held later. Now was the time to rejoice in the fact that they had survived.

"Hey…" Evelyn said in a much gentler tone, moving a hand to his neck to catch his attention. "It's alright, Will." She reassured him.

"No, it – "

"Yes, it is." She interrupted. "For now, for today, it's alright." She stressed, trying to make him understand what she was trying to convey to him.

Will regarded her for a long moment before wrapping a hand into her hair and pulling her lips up to his. Evelyn returned his desperate kiss, knowing that he was feeling the same thing that she was right then – they had both come so close to losing this, losing each other.

"This will never happen again." Will told her once he'd finally pulled his lips from hers. "I swear it – you will never be in this kind'a danger again." After Evelyn nodded her head in understanding, he pressed a lingering kiss to her lips then pulled away from her completely. "I…I need'ta get rid'a these bodies 'n we need'ta clear out, case someone's out here 'n heard somethin'." He told her regretfully, brushing his knuckles along her face. "I'll come'ta Tiller's tonight. "He then informed her, leaving no room for argument. "Will ya be alright 'til then?"

"Yes." Evelyn reassured him, offering him a half-hearted smile – she knew without them even having to say it that their meeting with Devil Anse was going to be postponed after all. "I'll be fine. Just…" She glanced towards Hunnam, still feeling uneasy. "Be careful, alright? Please?"

Will nodded and then kissed her forehead. "I love you, Evie."

She couldn't resist caressing his face, especially so since she was still alive and able to do so. "I love you, too, Will."

With that being said Will led her to her horse and helped her atop Copper's back, keeping steadying hands on her as she settled into the saddle. Once she was comfortable, Evelyn couldn't help but smile down at him sadly – what was supposed to have been a very important turning point in her and Will's lives had turned out to be entirely catastrophic. He seemed to be reading her thoughts because he sighed and leaned forward to kiss her skirt-covered leg, keeping a firm hold on her for a moment. Her heart thudded hard against her ribs when he closed his eyes, seemingly savoring her closeness, and he only looked back up at her when she placed a hand on his shoulder. Will pulled himself together again and nodded at her, grabbing her hand so he could kiss it before taking a step back.

"I'll see ya soon, I promise." He told her.

"You better." She warned. Then she glanced back towards Hunnam. "Will, I don't know if 'e's dead'r not…"

Unsurprisingly, Will looked unaffected by the news as he nodded his head slowly. "I'll take care of it." He stated straightforwardly. "Take the back road out."

Evelyn nodded, smiled at him one more time, then led Copper towards the back road Will himself had cleared. She knew it would take longer to get back to Mate Creek by going this way, but if it meant not having to see the bodies of the other bounty hunters then Evelyn was perfectly fine with that.

She chanced a look over her shoulder before she was out of the clearing completely and Will raised his hand to wave goodbye, watching her leave with an expression that was hard to decipher – the last thing she saw before rounding the bend was Will leaning down to scoop up his gun before heading towards the still form of Hunnam. About half a minute later, as Copper broke into a trot towards the main road, the silence of the forest around her was broken up by a loud BANG, signaling the end of the bounty hunter named Hunnam.

Thoughts?