It wasn't all that difficult for Charlie to locate Scott. He was knee deep in mud near the creek, tugging a calf out of the muck,
so it could rejoin its bawling mother. When Beets and she had reached the house after their walk, Charlie asked Murdoch
which general direction Scott might be, and he gave permission for her to ride her horse that way.
Charlie rode up, and slid down from Gurth's back, standing holding the reins and watching Scott work his way thru
the mud to reach the calf.
"Can I help?" she called out to him, starting down the small incline.
"Stay up there," Scott called back. "Don't come into the high grass. I've seen two snakes just while I've been here."
"Oh," Charlie said, and stopped walking immediately, darting a wary look at her feet and the area around them.
Plucked from the mud, Scott carried the small, black calf up the incline and set him down. Startled by being stuck, and then
carried, the calf did not immediately run to freedom, but stood, as if unsure.
"What's wrong with him?" Charlie asked, as the mother cow continued to moo.
"He's just trying to get his bearings back," Scott said, pulling off his gloves, and slapping them against his leg, making bits
of mud fly.
A few moments later, after the mother cow continued to call out, the calf scampered to her, and Charlie looked up at Scott, relieved.'re
"I'm glad he's okay," Charlie said. "Why'd he go into the mud that way, anyway?"
"Just like any other young one, animal or human, he's curious, and doesn't always think about consequences," Scott said.
Beside the horses, Scott pushed his hat up further on his forehead. "Did you have your walk with Beets?"
Charlie nodded, and then hesitated, before saying, "Mr. Beets told me that you're the reason I haven't had to go away to
be boarded for school."
"He did, huh?" Scott said.
Charlie nodded again, looking at him seriously. "Thank you," she said, softly.
Scott paused, his reins in one hand, and with his other hand, he ran his finger down one of her cheeks, and ended with a tap on her nose.
"You don't have to thank me," he said, and then added, "But-you're welcome." He gave her a slight smile.
"Why didn't you tell me?" Charlie asked. "I mean-I threw such a fit about it-" she let her voice trail off, looking regretful.
"Well-it doesn't mean that you're never going to have to go," he said.
"I know," she said, still sounding regretful. "But-it helps to know that you've done what you have-" she hesitated, and then said,
feeling emotional, "It helps a whole lot, Scott."
Recognizing her expression of emotion, and what was behind it, Scott regarded her solemnly for a moment and then put his
arm around her shoulders.
"I'm glad," he said, simply, as Charlie turned, hugging him around his waist.
"I've got to get back to work," Scott said. "So I'll get in in time to get cleaned up for the company that's coming tonight."
"Oh, I forgot about that," Charlie said. She made a face. "And Lucy's coming. I don't see why Teresa had to invite them."
"She invited them because they've been friends of she and Murdoch's for years," Scott said. "And, you can be gracious about
Lucy being here. Can't you?" he asked pointedly.
"Yes," Charlie said, not because she particularly wanted to, but because she knew it's how he expected her to respond.
They mounted their horses, and then, before they set out riding, Scott said, "Miss Lyons is coming tonight, as well. She and her
sister are riding out Val."
"Oh," Charlie said. She wasn't sure what she thought about that. Scott had explained it all to her very well, and said that he
didn't believe he felt the marrying sort of love for Hallie Lyons. Still, though-
"I thought you might like to meet her," Scott went on.
Charlie met his gaze, and nodded, and Scott, apparently satisfied with that response, began riding back, Charlie riding beside him.
Charlie spent the remainder of her day helping Maria prepare some of the food for the evening ahead. Her mind was on Hallie Lyons,
and Lucy Stone, and wondering if she could get by with wearing a clean pair of overalls, instead of a dress, and her hand slipped a bit, and the knife she was
using to chop the vegetables cut the tip of her finger.
Immediately, blood began to spurt out, and Charlie sucked in her breath, causing Maria immediately to take notice.
"Tener compasion," Maria said, and directed Charlie to the pump where she began letting water pour over the cut finger.
"It's alright," Charlie told her. She told the older woman that several times, in fact, but Maria paid her no mind. The smell of the cookies
in the oven became stronger, as though they were beginning to get crisp. Johnny came into the midst of that, as Maria left Charlie to
go to the stove to retrieve the cookies.
"What'd you do?" he asked Charlie, as Maria began giving directions for Charlie to use soap to wash.
"Just cut my finger a little," Charlie said, as Johnny took her hand in his to take a look.
"Jabon," Maria said, setting down the crispy cookies.
"Wash up," Johnny told Charlie, and she obediently used some of the strong soap Maria kept setting there by the sink.
Once she'd washed, Johnny handed her towel.
"Todavia sangrando?" Maria asked.
Johnny answered her with words that Charlie didn't understand any more than she had Maria's query.
"Come on, pequeno," he told her, and Charlie followed him from the kitchen, and into the library, where he hoisted her up to
sit on Murdoch's desk, and opened the small white box he'd carried with him from the kitchen.
"What's in there?" Charlie asked.
"Instruments to sew a severed finger back in place," Johnny replied, and then laughed at the look of horror
on Charlie's face.
"Naw, just some ointment and bandages," he amended.
"Oh," Charlie said, relieved.
Johnny smeared ointment on her finger, and then proceeded to bandage it, with a speed and efficiency that impressed Charlie.
"You're good at bandaging," Charlie said.
"I've had a lot of practice," Johnny said.
Charlie eyed his curiously, and asked, "On yourself?"
"Sometimes," he said, continuing to wrap her finger.
"Have you been shot before?"
Johnny flicked a gaze over her and said, shortly, "Yeah. I have." He finished and closed up the small box, patting her knee.
"There ya go. You're gonna have to wash that every day, and then put some of that ointment on it. Make sure one of us keeps an
eye on it, so it doesn't get infected."
"Okay," Charlie said, inspecting her bandaged finger.
"Will you tell me about it?" she asked, as she slid down from the desk to stand beside him.
"Tell ya about what?"
"About bein' shot," Charlie said.
Johnny regarded her steadily for a long moment, and then said, quietly, "No, pequeno. I won't."
"How come?" Charlie asked.
"Because there's no reason that I can see, that you would need to know anything about any of that." His tone was stern, not teasing
or bantering as was usual.
Charlie squirmed under his blue-eyed gaze. She found she disliked it quite strongly when Johnny was stern with her.
She remembered, too late, what Teresa had told her about how Johnny didn't like talking about his past life all that much.
Immediately, she felt remorseful. "I shouldn't have asked you," she admitted, and asked with trepidation, "Are you mad at me for
askin'?"
"No, I'm not mad at ya," he said. "As long as you take 'no' for an answer, and don't pester me about it. Can ya do that?"
"Yes, Johnny," Charlie said, feeling humbled by the 'almost scolding'.
"Alright," he said, and tapped her nose with one finger, and handed her the small medicine kit. "Here. Take this back to the kitchen, will ya?"
"Yes." Charlie shifted the kit from one hand to the other. As he was turning to head out of the room, Charlie said,
"Scott says that Hallie Lyons is coming tonight."
"Seems like I heard about that," Johnny said, pausing to look at her again.
"Yeah," Charlie said, and there was much, much, in that one word.
"I figure if she's a friend of Scott's, then she must be real nice," he said, comfortingly.
Charlie nodded. "Yeah," she said, again.
"Don't borrow trouble, pequeno," Johnny said, then.
"What does that mean?" she asked him, earnestly.
"It means-well, not to worry about somethin' before it's actually time to worry about it," he said.
"Oh."
"You know-you have any questions about somethin', you can ask Scott about it. You know that, right?" Johnny asked.
Charlie nodded, and Johnny tapped her nose again.
"Back to work," he said.
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