Who? Mina / Danny / Kevin (AU Cowboy!verse)
Not in the actual storyline, but borrowing the characters.
Angst, party of 3.
Long Black Veil
Ten years ago on a cold dark night,
Someone was killed 'neath the town hall lights.
There were few at the scene, but they all agreed,
that the man who ran looked a lot like me.
She walks these hills, in a long black veil.
She visits my grave, when the night winds wail.
Nobody knows, nobody sees, nobody knows, but me…
The Judge said son, what is your alibi?
If you were somewhere else, then you won't have to die.
I spoke not a word, though it meant my life,
for I'd been in the arms of my best friends wife.
Now the scaffold is high, and eternity's near.
She stood in the crowd, and shed not a tear.
But sometimes at night, when the cold wind moans
In a long black veil, she cries over my bones…
She walks these hills, in a long black veil.
When the cold winds blow, and the night winds wail.
Nobody knows, nobody sees.
Nobody knows, but me.
- Long Black Veil, Johnny Cash (I dig the DMB or Mike Ness covers)
He is a loaner, new to town and the friendly farm community immediately accepts him as one of their own – none more so than the assistant shopkeeper, Danny Powell. Although some of the old timers believe the friendship to be a bit one sided – that is, Daniel, younger by almost eight years, observes a fair share of hero worship, Kevin regularly denies the accusations. The cowboy never had a younger brother and thinks Danny Boy makes an excellent adoptive version. With a matching shock of pale silver hair, it is only Kevin's broader shoulders, extra four inches, and breathtaking silver eyes that set them apart.
Mina, the town's sweetheart and new bride to darling Danny Boy, allows herself to appreciate the new addition to their lives. She tells herself she is happy her husband has found a good friend – someone who is strong and loyal and refuses to admit her growing attraction to the cowboy. She rejects his lingering glances. She avoids the smoldering quicksilver stares. She denies her increasing and overactive imagination…
…she pretends not to notice when she indulges her husband it is the hard planes and muscular body of Kevin McCallum she pictures above her.
They manage to stay apart for six weeks before the passion becomes absolutely unbearable. As if the world is ending outside their door, among the earthy smells of the animals, they make furious love in an abandoned stall in the barn. Playing with her impossibly soft blonde hair, he says, "We can't keep doing this."
He said this phrase the first time, and each of the many times they have met after. Both know they won't be able to stop – wild horses couldn't keep them apart. She whispers they were meant to be together, born to find each other in this lifetime. Soul mates. Knowing she is correct, unable to deny the connection he feels for this young woman, they continue their affair, catching whatever precious moments they can.
The rain pours overhead in the dim light of the barn, when she murmurs, "We have to tell him."
The resolve in her voice causes him to notice. He takes her smaller hand in his own and asks, "Why?"
Her hand moves protectively to her abdomen and he understands. Trailing his callused fingers lightly over her still flat stomach, he says, "Tomorrow morning. After the chores. He'll…"
His voice trails off in mutual understanding. They know he'll never be able to comprehend the love they share.
"We'll try," she whispers.
The lovers never get their chance to tell Danny Boy. The following morning the horrific news breaks – the first murder in Serenity Lake since the town was incorporated fifteen years ago. Andrew, the barkeep of the Crown, is the only witness to the crime. Although it kills him to admit the truth, the distinguishing feature of the man responsible is a head of silver hair. Kevin, new to town, feels the cold sliver of distrust enter the people's mind, but silently accepts the inevitable sentence, knowing his life has been too good, too lucky to have found Mina. These precious weeks - it is more than he could have ever asked for, than he could have anticipated.
As they put him in chains and walk towards the jail, he catches her eye. In that moment, there is a look of pure pain and agony. He is sure it is reflected towards her. In a second that lasts a lifetime, he sees all that could have been...and knows she can still have that future. He vows to do whatever it takes to protect it.
Secure behind iron bars, the sheriff asks, "Son, before we make the wrong decision, I need to know, where were you last night?"
Kevin thinks of blonde hair, blue eyes, and the sweet curves of his Mina. He answers, "I… Nowhere."
"Does anyone else know where you were?"
He is loyal to a fault. It is one of the reasons Mina loves him. He cannot betray his friendship, cannot destroy Mina's life in this town. A part of him, his legacy will live on – she will make sure of it.
"No."
The trial is quick, the sentence expected. Unsurprisingly, no one steps forward to defend him. On the day of the execution, Mina wavers on attending. If she sees him, even for a moment, all will be lost - she will throw herself at the feet of the judge and admit where he was - what they were doing. And yet, this is the last time she will see him alive. Steeling herself, finding resolve, she marches towards the town center. On his way to the scaffold, he seeks her out her face and shakes his head. She immediately understands - he accepts his fate and has made peace with destiny. A trembling hand goes to her abdomen, then stills.
