A/N: Warning this might not be appropriate for younger readers (PG 13 rating) (violence-abuse)...

Thank you, for all the reviews, and yes I do tend to put up chapters rapidly as I get the story all worked out in my head and I am too afraid if I do not get it down fast enough I will forget my plot..I am terrible at taking notes..my penmanship is really bad. Plus I am a person who can not wait for anything... I too want to pop into the story and really slap Erling, but do not fret, Merry will do it for us!!!!!!!

Chapter 9

Watching His Back Door

The coachman snapped the reins against the horses back and with a click coming from his cheek, the horses prodding onward. The carriage pitched forward as the wheel thudded against the rocky surface of the road heading out from Buckland.

Merry and Estella sat in silence listening to the groaning of the wheels as the carriage pressed on. Merry fidgeted in his seat trying to find a comfortable position on the hard wooden seat of the carriage. This was the first time that Merry noticed just how uncomfortable sitting in this carriage was or perhaps it was the beautiful woman who sat beside him that made him feel this as he tried to think of something to say. Merry looked out of the window and watched the thick woodland trees and the rolling hills that were all too familiar to him. His eyes wandered back to Estella.

"I'm sorry about your dress being stained." Merry finally said breaking the silence from the departure from Buckland. When he looked toward Estella sitting next to him, she swept the long strands of silky light brown hair from the side of her face and tucked her hair over her shoulder. Her slender fingers moved the pleats of her dress to examine the honey that was spilt on her dress and his heart skipped a beat sitting alone with her next to him.

"I have spilt honey on my dress before and it will wash right out not leaving a stain. However, this is my favorite dress that Diamond gave me. I would cry having anything happen to it." Estella's eyes looked up slowing into Merry's light green eyes.

"You look so beautiful in that dress." As his words came slowly from his lips to compliment her.

Estella blushed from his compliment, but it almost made her heart soar from hearing it.

"Estella why did you leave without saying good-bye to me the other day at the Great Smial?" Merry knew the answer from what Pippin was able to tell him, but he wanted to hear it from her first hand.

"It was not me, Merry. My brother insisted that I leave for home at once. He was very angry at the time. You have to understand Fredegar. It is not that he does not like us being together, but rather he thought of protecting me from getting hurt, because we are poor and he could not afford a dowry. He wanted me to marry someone from our financial standing. Fredegar feels threatened because he could never be as successful as you and Pippin have become. Fredegar is struggling in keeping the store a float, in fact it has taken everything he has to purchase the tea, since the prices of tea has gone up so much. He had hoped to make somewhat of a profit, but now everyone is so frightened that the tea is poisoned, no one will buy it. Fredegar is going to lose everything including the store." Those thoughts made Estella sad thinking about how much stress this has caused her brother.

"Don't worry Estella, I promise you that I will find out what is the truth behind the tea being poisoned. I know in my heart that Fredegar has nothing to do with it. Besides if it was, mind ya, everyone would be getting sick, not just me. Seems like someone wants me out of the way." Merry wanted to find this person and soon.

"But Merry who would want to harm you and for what purpose?" Estella placed her hand over Merry's hand as she began to worry about his safety.

Merry looked at her hand on his and he slowly raised his eyes up to hers. He thought how could I have missed this beautiful woman after all these years knowing her. Merry gave her hand a squeeze not wanting to let it go. They sat there holding hands as traveled on to Hobbiton.

The coachman yelled down that Hobbiton was just over the next hill. Estella let go of Merry's hand and saw that the honey had taken all the color out of her dress and she gasped looking at it, her dress was ruined. "My dress!" Estella held the folds of her skirt to show Merry.

"How can honey fade a fabric?" Merry paused a moment and continued, "Unless that the tea is not were we need to look for the poison, but perhaps the honey."

Merry's thoughts went back to the morning of Pippin's wedding when he had gotten up early to find Erling making tea in the kitchen. Not even Hatty was up this early. Which was very usual for Erling, as he was known to sleep late. He remembered how insistent he was that Merry had his morning tea before he left that day.

"It was Erling, I am sure of it now. He was the one who took the tea to the healers to test it. He was the one who put the poison in it to through doubt toward Fredegar. It all makes sense now, but why would the Shirriff try to poison me?" Merry's thoughts raced through his mind as the tried to search for any reasoning behind all of this, but he could not think of one.

~*~

Erling mopped the floor making sure he had gotten all the honey that was spilt on the floor. He threw the empty jar in the garbage. Hatty picked up all the broken teacups and placed Estella's cake with the honey topping that she did not eat on the counter as she washed the table clean.

A knock on the door brought Hob to answer it. A tall man dressed in long velvet purple robe with a sword strapped neatly around a muscular waist and long flowing black cape leaned over to ask Hob to speak to the Master of Buckland.

Hob told the man that Merry was not at home. He presented himself as a messenger of Rohan and had a note from his King Éomer. "Please see to it that the Master of Buckland receive this message as soon as possible." The man turned and walked over to his horse, then rode away.

"Hatty, look it here, I have a letter from Rohan for Master Merry." Hob handed Hatty the letter. She could see the seal of Rohan. Hob took out his hammer from his belt and set it on the kitchen counter top and sat down in one of the chairs. Hatty sat next to her husband placing the letter on the table. "They must be ahead of schedule and they have the horses waiting for Merry." Hatty commented to her husband.

Berilac entered the kitchen when he saw the messenger ride out of Buckland. "Here Hatty, let me see it." Berilac ran his finger over the seal and then told them, "I will ride out to see if I can catch Merry in Hobbiton. Also Hatty, Ester told me that your brother has fallen on hard times and I promise I will take one of the horses and give it to him on our way back to Buckland. Merry and I both love you and Hob. We are happy to do anything we can for you." Berilac smiled at Hatty. "Master Berilac, you are such a thoughtful lad to be thinking about me poor brother, I was not aware that Ester had told you of him and his struggles. I thank you for your kindness you show my family." Hatty patted Berilac on his shoulders and he turned, walking out to the stables. Berilac saddled both his and Merry's horse and rode out to find him.

Erling smiled wickedly knowing that Ester had done what he told to her to do. He was ready to begin his plan of taking the horses, even though he missed his chance of killing Merry with the poison, he would not miss killing both Merry and Berilac with his bow and arrows when they would reached Bywater.

Erling approached his mother and father, "I have something I need to tell you both....I have quit my job as Shirriff and I am leaving the Shire forever. It is time that I find my own fortune. I plan on leaving right away and I will write you when I have found the end of my road." Erling hugged his parents and said his good-byes.

Erling knew he needed a fresh horse since he rode his horse to Buckland this afternoon. He needed to round up his men and that would take a faster horse. He threw a bridle over Ester's horse, saddled her up and took off racing the horse towards Bywater.

"I will tell the hobbits to prepare the corals for the horses." Hob said to his wife as he walked out of the kitchen.

Hatty looked at the cake with honey that she placed on the counter, shrugged her shoulders and taking a fork ate a few bites of cake with her tea.

~*~

Fredegar sat at his kitchen table with his ledgers open trying to figure out how he would pay all the debt he owned his suppliers. He could not put two pence on each bill. It was not nearly enough to cover what he owned. Fredegar shoulders slumped in defeat. He would lose everything he had.

"Freddy where are you?" Estella called out.

"Here in the kitchen!" he yelled as he stood up to met his sister. Merry walked in first and greeted Fredegar. Seeing Merry enter the kitchen, Fredegar thought, 'this was the final humiliation, asking a friend for a helping hand out.' Fredegar would have rather been dead than being reduced to this.

Merry began telling Fredegar how he thought Erling had placed the poison in the sample of tea he took to the healers and how he had tried to poison Merry. He showed Fredegar, Estella's dress as proof of his actuation against Erling.

"So you see Freddy, I can prove what I am saying. I need your help. The only way to get a snake out of his hole is to make him think there is no one watching his back door. I have a plan to catch Erling, but we are going have to work together. You do this for me, I'll see to all your debts being paid in full and some new tea too boot. Do we have an agreement, my friend?" Merry asked him. Fredegar shook his hand in agreement.

Berilac knocked at the door and Estella showed him in. He handed Merry the letter from Rohan. Merry broke the seal and began reading it.

"This could not come at worse time. I have no choice but to bring the horses back to Buckland first. Then we will trap Ol' Erling with the poison still in his pocket. Can you help me bring the horses in Freddy? The more hobbits we have the faster we will be done. Then we can see about taking care of Erling." Merry placed the letter of Rohan in his vest pocket. He approached Estella, wrapping his arms around her small waist and bringing her very close to him.

"I shouldn't be gone too long and as soon as we have finished everything, there is something I want to ask you. Wait for me here." Merry bent down and placed his lips on hers and kissed her deeply.

Estella's heart soared as she kissed the hobbit she had dreamed about all of her life. Even though everything was falling apart around her, still this was the most happiest moment in her life.

When the kiss ended, Estella looked up into his eyes and could clearly see how much Merry really loved her. He reached up and touched a few strands of her soft beautiful hair in between his finger as he smiled back at her. Letting go of her, he turned to Berilac and asked, "Will you go find Nibs and maybe get some of his brother to help with the horses?"

"Yes, Merry. I have brought your horse with me, knowing you would want to ride out as soon as possible. I have everything ready. We need to stop by Bywater before we take all the horses to Buckland. I need to drop off one horse to Hatty's brother. It seems they are really having a hard time and this horse would greatly help them." Berilac told him.

"That would be right on our way and maybe the best route to take with the horses. I'll met you and Nibs off the county road of Hobbiton." Merry walked out of Bolger's store and jumped on his horse. Berilac and Fredegar joined him as they too got on their horses and headed to Cotton's farm.

~*~

Hatty placed the cake she was eating on the counter and grabber her chest as she slumped to the kitchen floor, her old heart suddenly stopped beating as the poison coursed through her veins. She died instantly in the kitchen were she loved cooking for the Master of Buckland.

Ester wanted to join her mother for an afternoon tea and she knew she could always find her in the kitchen singing one of the old songs she had heard most of her life. Hatty could bellow out a tune when she was cooking one her finest meals for all the Bucklanders.

Ester froze in fear seeing her mother lying on the floor. She dashed to her side as she began screaming, "Mama! Mama! Wake up! Please...oh please Mama." Ester started crying as she wrapped her arms around her mother and kissed her cheek.

Hob came in to the kitchen to get his hammer he left on the kitchen counter and hearing his daughter screams ran to her side. He was horrified seeing his wife on the floor with Ester crying holding her. His hands shook as he bent down next to his wife. The tears poured from his eyes and a slow moan broke forth from his throat. Ester hugged her father tightly as he began sobbing from the pain of losing his wife. Ester could feel her father's entire body shave as the sobs came deeper from his broken heart. He reached for his wife, as Ester moved away from him. Hob wrapped his arms around his wife and said his final good-byes to the woman he had loved all of his life.

Ester saw the half-eaten cake on the counter that dripped honey from all sides. The image of her brother entered her mind of him dumping the remaining honey all over the floor, in which she thought his dramatic gesture was a little to odd even for him. She remembered how he bragged about placing the poison in the tea so the healer would think Fredegar was the one who poisoned Merry. Poisoned....echoed through her thoughts and she looked at her mother lying on the floor dead. Erling killed our mother.

"He did it....he killed Mama....he poisoned her!!!!" She shouted.

Hob looked up at his daughter and through his tears he said, "Who poisoned your mother?"

"Erling poisoned her, Da! I know he did it!" She cried.

"Your hysterical from your mothers passing." Hob tried to calm his daughter down thinking she had lost her mind to grief.

"No Da, you don't understand, Erling told me he was the one who poisoned Merry. It was in the honey. Mama ate the honey here on this cake. It killed her." Ester began sobbing.

"Daughter please you do not know what you're saying." Hob stood trying to hold on to his daughter.

"For the first time I do know what I am saying and I must warn them, I must find Merry." Ester began rambling out loud as her thoughts rushed in her mind rapidly. "Your brother would not hurt anyone, Ester, why are you so cruel in trying to hurt your brother?" Hob was thinking that Ester had totally lost her mind.

"No Da, Erling only let you see one side of him, you never knew the wicked side of Erling. He is evil, Da. He has done many evil things. When he found out that Berilac loved me and wanted to marry me, Erling did terrible things to me. Erling is my olderst son's father. I never told anyone, I was too ashamed to tell anyone. He has been blackmailing every since, always threatening me that he would tell Berilac. I can not let this go on, I have to stop him, I have to tell Berilac everything." Ester ran out of Buckland and got on Erling's horse and rode off to Hobbiton to find her husband and warn him.