Kitty sat back to listen. She knew there was nothing she could do to help LeighAnn with this other than listen. That she was more than willing to do. "Alright." Kitty answered softly.
LeighAnn swallowed hard to ride herself of the nausea she was feeling at the invoked memories. "When my brother stepped in, he was backed up by a couple of our ranch hands. Baines and Harris saw they weren't dealing with just one man so they backed up and agreed to full price but they limited their purchase to just 3 horses instead of the 5 they were wanting. When they left, we thought that the was the end of it."
"But it wasn't." Kitty wasn't asking.
LeighAnn shook her head sadly. "No. After they rode off with the horses they paid for, they circled around the ranch and waited until dark. They decided they were going to get what they wanted whether we liked it or not." LeighAnn took a couple of deep breaths and then dived back into her horrible recollections. "It was after dark when they came back. My father and I were out in the barn with mare that was about to foal. Most of the hired hands had gone to town."
She smiled briefly over at Kitty. Not much more than a slight lift of the corner of her mouth. "It was Saturday night and you know how ranch hands are."
Kitty nodded. "I do. And that meant that you all were out there alone."
"Yes." LeighAnn answered. "Travis was at the ranch as well that night but he wasn't in the barn when Baines and his friend got there."
Kitty noticed LeighAnn trembling. "You okay, LeighAnn?"
LeighAnn shook her head but forced herself to continue. "They came into the barn where my dad and I were. They had guns on us and were demanding that my father give them back the money they'd paid him earlier that day. My father, of course, refused. He told them he'd put the money up and ordered them to leave. But they wouldn't go away."
LeighAnn's face softened for a moment. "My father was a strong man, Miss Kitty. He'd worked hard all his life and he wasn't afraid of anything. So when these men showed up he didn't back down from them or show any fear even though they had guns on us. He just calmly ordered them to leave and expected them to do it."
"Obviously they didn't." Again, Kitty didn't have to ask.
"No, they just laughed at him." LeighAnn closed her eyes as she went on. "And taunted him. When Baines spotted me in the back of the barn, he ordered me to come to him." She almost smiled for a second. "I'm sure you can guess what my response was."
"I can." Kitty answered.
"Well, apparently he couldn't because when I told him to go away, he ran at me and knocked me to the ground." LeighAnn took several deep, rapid breaths. "I remember him on top of me, pulling at my clothes, pinning me to the ground and…"
LeighAnn stopped again. "The next thing I knew, my brother was there. I guess he heard me screaming. He pulled that man off of me and starting hitting him. I… I don't know how many times he hit him before a shot rang out. But I know how Travis looked when the bullet hit him. I will never forget that. He just stiffened, looked at me and then fell to the ground. I crawled over to Travis and tried to help him but he was dead before he hit the ground. Baines was still lying on the ground. He wasn't fully conscious. I uh…. I sorta blocked a lot of what happened in the next few minutes out my mind but I remember seeing my father on the ground as well. I thought he was dead like Travis."
LeighAnn steadied herself and looked up at the ceiling for a moment before continuing. "Harris was standing next to my father with his gun drawn, hollering at Baines to get up."
"I thought you said Baines killed your brother." Kitty interjected.
"He might as well have." LeighAnn snapped. "If it wasn't for him, Travis and my father would still be alive. I don't know if Harris actually intended to kill Travis and my father or not but if he wouldn't have been there if not for Baines." LeighAnn stopped and took a breath. "Anyway, after he shot Travis, Harris was so intent on getting Baines to get up that he wasn't really paying attention to me. It was then that I saw Baines's gun lying on the ground next to Travis. I grabbed it. I turned and before Harris could react, I shot him, straight thru the heart.
"Oh no!" Kitty exclaimed. "LeighAnn, I am so sorry. I…
"I'm not." LeighAnn shook her head at her employer. "Harris deserved to be killed after what he did. I'm not sorry I shot him at all." She stopped for a moment. "After I shot Harris, I moved over to my father. He was alive but hurt bad. Harris had hit him over the head and dad's head was bleeding bad. I managed to get him up and to the house. Baines looked like he was unconscious so I figured he could wait. I thought he'd be there when I got back but I was wrong. He wasn't as out of it as I thought and while I was getting dad to the house, Baines stole Travis' ring and horse and rode off." LeighAnn dropped her head after finally finishing her sad saga.
"That was a terrible thing to happen to you, LeighAnn." Kitty tried to console her. "You did what you had to do then, but you don't have to do anything more. If the man I know of as Wails is the same as this Baines then let the Marshal take care of it."
LeighAnn's head came up sharply. "NO! I have traveled all over looking for this man. I have worked in one saloon after another, just hoping he would come in or I could get word of him. And I will not quit until I find him and kill him like he and his friend killed my brother and father."
"But, LeighAnn," Kitty tried to reason with her. "You said yourself that Harris was the one that hit your father and shot your brother. And Harris is dead. Let Matt take care of this other man. Let the law handle it."
"I did let the 'authorities' handle it." LeighAnn seethed. "As soon as one of our ranch hands came home, I sent him to get the doctor for my father and the Sheriff. The doctor did nothing and told me my father was too far gone and the Sheriff wanted to arrest me for killing Harris. It was only by the grace of God that he didn't."
LeighAnn's expression hardened. "My father died a few days later. After I made sure he and Travis were buried, I got a neighbor to watch over the ranch and I took off to find Baines. I figured the most likely place to find him was a saloon so I painted my face, bought a fancy dress and went to work."
She stared defiantly at Kitty. "I have followed him thru five states and three territories. The last place I was in, I talked to a man who knew him and said he heard he'd settled down near Dodge City. So I came here. And when I find him, I will kill him. I meant what I told you, Miss Kitty, when you hired me. I do want to learn to manage a business. Because, you see, when I kill Baines, I intend to return home with the money I saved and rebuild my ranch. But I have to do this first."
TBC
