The Wild, Wild West "The Night of the Still Waters" by the lurker

Jim stood on the porch of the small Inn located in Flagstaff, Arizona. It was quarter to six in the morning, and the sun was just trying to peek out above the horizon. The view from the Inn was glorious on a clear day; but on this particular day, a summer storm was moving in. The sky was filled with the many different colors of the desert. Blues, reds, oranges, yellows and tints of pink dotted the waking sky, darting in between the clouds of grey. West drained the last of the coffee from his cup and walked back inside.

He set the cup down on a nearby table, picked up his hat and saddle bag and was on his way out when the lilting voice stopped him.

"On your way already Mr. West?"

"Yes ma'am, I am."

"Are you sure you don't want to hire a guide? These parts can be treacherous if you're not familiar with the canyons."

"Thank you, but I'll be fine."

He nodded to the young woman and walked out the door. Jim went to the stable, saddled his horse and headed south. All the information he had gathered indicated that Artie had been in Sedona for about a month, camping in the different canyons and deserts, after that he had been seen traveling north toward Flagstaff. Jim decided to start north and head south, figuring he would find him somewhere in between. The biggest problem was the fact that Arizona was not a small state, and the infinite amount of areas a man could camp, made a search almost impractical if not impossible.

Still, Jim had to try. He hadn't seen Artie since the night in Lily's dressing room, when she told him she wouldn't marry him. Several days later, Gordon had sent a message on the telegraph saying that he was taking some time off, to go camping in Sedona. Artie had indicated that he planned to be back in about a month; but that was more than two months ago. While Jim knew it was possible that Artie was just too emotionally torn up to handle their type of work at the moment, he also felt confident that the man would have let him know. Something had happened to him, and Jim had no more patience for waiting.

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