Ch. 2: Hanging Day
Sandy was led into a small room; with cold, steel bars making three even smaller cubicals for prisoners. The sherriff walked out without saying a word, leaving Sandy standing by herself with no clue what to say.
She gazed at Cole for a minute. His head was between his knees, and his hands resting on the back of his neck. She had to fight the tears when she saw that his wrists were shackled (no doubt by insists of the Pinkerton men).
"Cole?" Her voice broke as she spoke; scared to death that this would be the last time she would talk to him.
Cole's head shot up at the sound of another voice. "What are you doing here?" he reprimanded, but Sandy couldn't help but notice the look of relief cross his face.
Sandy stood straighter, lifting her chin (hoping she might gain confidence), and replied bravely, "To see goodbye." Her eyes started to tear up, but she held them back, and she thanked God that he didn't notice.
Cole stood up from the cold bench, and forced himself to walk slowly to her instead running. He then clasped his hands onto the metal bars as Sandy walked closer to the cell.
"I . .I had to see you before . . ." Damn! She was losing her composure.
Cole lifted his hand, making the shackles clang against the bars, and lifted her chin. Sandy suddenly felt embarassed under his gaze, seeming like he was inspecting her, trying to find something written on her face. She blushed at this, causing Cole to give a small, sad smile. Sandy returned the favor, but this act caused the dam to break, allowing the tears to cascade down her cheeks.
Seeing this, Cole leaned towards the bars, bringing her lips nearer as well, and kissed her softly on the lips.
It was sweltering the day of the hanging, and Cole could feel it bearing down on him.
Well, at least they're not burning me at the stake. he thought grimly as he tried to keep as much dignity as was allowed when you were being marched up to the gallows.
Sandy watched bravely as the love of her life walked proudly to his death. She hadn't realized how tight she was gripping her fan until she looked down to see that her knuckles were white. Forcing herself to release her grip a bit, Sandy strained her neck to keep Cole in view. When she finally moved around a lady that wore a huge hat and seven little children clinging to her, she had to keep from gasping. The noose was around Cole's neck, and his eyes were locked onto hers.
She looked so frightened, that Cole wanted to hold her in his arms and tell her it was all right. But of course, one obsticle stood in the way of letting him do what he wished; which made him madder than hell. That's probably why he spat in the old general's face; that and his pride.
When Cole looked back at Sandy, he found that she had that sad little smile on her face. And suddenly, he wished she wasn't there; wasn't seeing him like this; wasn't watching him die.
Sandy saw the change of emotion on his face as the inevitable grew closer. She was trying to figure out what he was thinking, when she saw his head snap up to look in the distance. Soon, she heard what he had heard; the sound of hooves pounding on the dirt road.
As Sandy ran for safety, she smiled and knew he would live.