*Author's Note*

Thank you for all the follows, favs, and reviews.

Oh, once again a back to back udate. Yea, I'm just cranking them out since there's not much to do with being home all day. LOL!

The Funeral & Midnights

Johnse POV:

When I walked into my cabin my beautiful sweet wife was slouched on a chair, cryin' and shakin' uncontrollably. I rushed over to her side, concerned that she was hurt or somethin' had happened to our baby. "Roseanna, what's wrong, my beautiful sweet darlin'?" I asked her as I crouched down in front of her, takin' her hands in mine an' pullin' them 'way from her face.

"Nancy came over and told me that Tolbert's done gone been murdered." Roseanna revealed in a loud, but shrill cry.

My brows furrowed as I asked, "Murdered? By who?"

"By our cousin, Shaw." My wife sniffled, tryin' hard to hold back her tears.

"What? That can't be true. Shaw's been busy workin' and helpin' Jessa tend to their new baby."

"It's true and ya know it is, Johnse. It's true cause Nancy wouldn't lie 'bout that."

"Just cause she says so don't make it true, Roseanna." I told my wife since I was leery 'bout believin' Nancy's word 'bout Shaw murderin' Tolbert. I know the two don't get 'long, but I just don't see my cousin killin' my brother-in-law unless provoked and as far as I know there's been nothin' done to provoke him.

"Johnse…" Roseanna trailed off, shakin' her head sadly. She took her hand out of mine and wiped away at some tears on her face. Her shoulders sagged and her blue eyes fell onto the hand I was still holdin' as she sadly sighed, "I know he done it, Johnse. I just know cause Tolbert's been a problem for Shaw and he's the type to make problem's disappear."

I felt horrible that my wife was sad and that my cousin, who's a close friend of mine, may or may not be the cause of that sadness. I cupped my wife's cheek and told her, "Rosie, my sweet wife, I'm so sorry 'bout Tolbert. Truly, I am."

"Nancy told me that I might not be welcomed at the funeral tomorrow; that poppy's still not wantin' me in the family."

"Oh…Roseanna…" I sighed, my face fallin' as the weight of what Rand'l turnin' her out truly meant for her. It wasn't right that she couldn't attend her brother's funeral cause we got hitched, cause she took on my name of Hatfield an' bore my daughter. Wantin' to make her feel better, I suggested, "We could bring some flowers by the gravesite in a few days; ya could say goodbye t'your brother proper too."

"Yea, I'd like that." My sweet darlin' wife sadly nodded, her eyes red from cryin'.

Oh, how I just wanted to make everything all better for her. I knew I couldn't tho since there was no way to bring her brother back from the dead. All I could do was be there for her, hold her an' comfort her as she cried an' mourned.

Jessa POV:

The moonlight softly lit up the bedroom I shared with my husband as I laid in bed with him. We were on our backs, our shoulders touching, while staring up at the ceiling. I could smell the faint hint of whiskey on his breath as we laid side by side, silently in the night. I was suffering guilt and feeling a sense of lost from Tolbert's death while Shaw was brooding. Honestly, he's been brooding ever since he came home from work. Whatever happened today drove him to drink nearly half a bottle of whiskey.

The air was thick and tense between us, so much so that you could hear a pin drop. I was startled out of my endless ceiling staring by Shaw's baritone timbre slicing thru the silence with the biting and snide question of, "Reckon Tolbert's funeral's gonne be held either tomorrow or the next day. You're not gonna stick Mary with the kids so you can go, are ya?"

"No, Shaw, I'm not going to go to his funeral." I assured my husband since I honestly had no intention of going to my ex's funeral. I didn't have a right to be there and going wouldn't do any good.

"Why not? Thought you loved the ginger fuck?" Shaw asked bitterly, never taking his honey eyes off of the ceiling. Oh yea, he was drunk and the whiskey was doing all of the talking. Lucky me.

"I cared for him, Shaw, but I wasn't in love with him." I honestly answered my husband. I know, it sounded horrible, but I don't think that I was truly in love with Tolbert. Once, I loved him, but our bad communication and mistrust ruined that love. I did care for him tho, genuinely I did. He'd always have a special place in my heart as the first man that caught my eye and as the father of my youngest son. Turning my head and looking at Shaw, I revealed, "You're the one I love, Shaw. The one I wouldn't know how to live without."

He turned his head, looking at me with honey eyes that held a heaviness in them. "Really? You really love me?" Shaw asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

Rolling onto my side, I nodded. "Yes, I do." I placed a gentle hand on his chest while revealing, "I was so scared of losing you when you were kidnapped and I purged myself on the stand to keep you from hanging." My indigo eyes locked onto his honey ones as I admitted, "I really do love you, Shaw, even tho I prolly shouldn't considering what you're capable of."

He rolled onto his side, causing our faces to only be an inch apart, while telling me in his rumbling timbre, "I'm capable of a lot of things, things that nightmares are made of even, but I'll only do them to keep our family safe." I nodded even tho what he told me sent a chill up my spine. He placed a hand on top of mine (that was resting on his chest) and clarified, "And when I say family what I mean is us and our kids. Uncle Jim too, but nobody else."

"Shaw, what about your dad and the few Hatfields you get along with?"

"I don't trust my dad as far as I can throw him." Shaw revealed, taking me aback since I thought my husband was on good terms with his father. "Sully's only got something up his sleeve; only thinks about himself. I've learned that from living with him as a teen. He's only out for himself." Well, that explains why my husband was so cunning. He observed his dad; learned how to outwit the man too.

I just gave him a curious look, silently urging him to explain to me why he didn't count Hatfields as his family anymore. I mean as far as I knew he was close to Johnse, just like I was close to Roseanna, so I don't know why he wouldn't trust him anymore.

Shaw's face got hard as he spat, "I'm nothin' to the Hatfields. Nothin', but a useless Vance Bastard."

Oh no, something definitely happened today at work. "Shaw?" I asked as a way to get him to say more if he wanted to without actually pestering him for answers.

"Devil Anse brought Cap back into the family fold. Gave him back his job of patrolling with Uncle Jim; demoted me back to stackin' boards as if all the months I spent workin' for him and kissin' his ass meant nothin'. Absolutely nothing."

"Oh…"

"Goddamnit, Jessa, Cotton's on a higher scale then me cause he's a Hatfield bastard. I'm just a lowly Vance bastard, a fuckin' mistake my dad made that got me stuck in the family. Damnit, I'm nothin', but a bottom feeder; I don't matter one bit to Devil Anse. Not one bit."

"Oh, Shaw, I'm so sorry." I sincerely told my husband since I did feel bad that he felt worthless. Nobody should feel that way. Nobody.

"I'm not puttin' the lives of you and our kids in the hands of people that don't treat me like a full-blooded member of the family. I'm gonna do whatever I gotta do to keep us alive, even if that means backstabbin' and makin' deals with Bad Frank." Shaw told me, his baritone timbre firm and full of resolve. "I swear, baby, I'll kill whoever I have to in order to keep our family safe." My husband vowed to me with a serious look in his honey eyes. "I won't let Endor grow up feelin' like a useless bastard, like he doesn't truly belong anywhere, like I did. No, that boy's gonna be an Eldridge like our other kids and he's not gonna know nothin' else."

"Shaw, I know raisin' him as your own's gonna be hard considering who he looks like and I just want to thank you for taking on the task."

"He might be a ginger, but he's your son, Jessa, and that's the only reason I need to make him my son. You took on my daughter; I take on your son and we raise them alongside our eldest boy."

"Reckon loving you might not be so bad." I honestly told him with a ghost of a smile on my cupid bow lips.

"Reckon not." He smirked half-heartedly. "I love you, Jessa, but I just don't trust ya right now. Don't know when I'll be able to 'gain either."

"I understand, Shaw." I sighed with a heavy heart. I didn't blame him for being hurt and distrustful of me. If the roles were reversed, I'm sure I wouldn't trust me either.

"Come 'ere, baby." Shaw ordered, holding his arm out from me to snuggle into his side. Without a word, I complied and snuggled into him. He wrapped his arm around me as I laid my head on his chest. He placed a kiss on top of my head before telling me, "Let's just go to sleep and worry about salvagin' our marriage in the days to come."

"Okay." I simply told him, nodding against his chest, since I was tired and needed some sleep. Only lord knows how much sleep I'll be able to get before Endor wakes up hungry and wet; needing me to take care of him.

Billy POV:

So many people, both kin an' friends, neighbors too, were gathered at the gravesite for Tolbert's service. Of course, off to the side Nancy was wit' her husband (who was holdin' their baby). I swear, my cousin had a sour look on her face as she watched the preacher say words for Tolbert. Abel had a blank look on his face, almost as if he didn't feel anything or couldn't bring himself to be surprised at my brother's 'death'. My sister, Alifair, had the lil ones wit' her while my brothers Pharmer and Bud were the barriers that separated her from poppy. Poppy was standin' by mama while I stood by mama for 'moral support'. Calvin was by me an' the preacher's daughter was by him. Jim, his wife, an' their baby were right behind me an' mama. I think he was standin' there in case mama fainted or somethin' from grief. Unknown to my eldest brother, mama was gonna be just fine since Tolbert wasn't really dead, but was holed up in Aunt Betty's waitin' for the dead of night so that he could ride off west somewhere.

Talk 'bout Aunt Betty, she was off to the far side playin' the role of mournin' auntie very well. Complete wit' dappin' at her eyes wit' a hankie. Jefferson and Sarah Wolford (who looked a bit pudgier then normal) were standin' not that far from Nancy an' Abel. Mariah was wit' 'em too, but the mailman wasn't since he had work today.

My cousins Parris an' Squirrel were to the far-left wit' their girls. Parris had a whore while Squirrel had a nice girl. Somebody from a poor farm family that lived an hour or so outside of Pikeville. Word had it he met her when she went into the general store lookin' t'buy some sacks of flour an' sugar. I liked her better than I liked the whore. Oh, Aunt Benina was standin' right behind her only sons as she attended her nephew's 'funeral'. She looked very upset, but reckon so considerin' where she was.

"Come now, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to such and such a city, spend a year there, buy and sell, and make a profit"; whereas you do not know what will happen tomorrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapor that appears for a little time and then vanishes away." Reverend Garrett's voice boomed loudly in the air as he stood in front of Tolbert's casket, clutchin' tightly to his bible. "We view death as an enemy, even as a curse when it happens to unexpectedly to someone so young. We're always unprepared for death when it strikes a young person, we viewed has havin' plenty of livin' time left." The preacher straightened his back as he continued his sermon with, "Unexpected grief tends t'make us turn inward with questions. Questions such as "Why did they die?" or "How did this happen?", but I tell ya that the lord does not what you thinkin' such thoughts. One should remember how Tolbert lived his life, not that he was tragically murdered by a vindictive, hateful, and jealous adversary he had since his youth."

Oh, yea, preacher, this sermon's a real winner. Hell, everyone here's twitchin' wit' anger, ready to curse the ground the Hatfields walk on. Hell, if the reverend doesn't wrap this up soon somebody (most likely Jefferson since he's drainin' a flask) is gonna blow up an' make a scene.

"Although Tolbert has met his end much too soon, he's in paradise wit' our savior Jesus Christ. There, when it is our time to meet the lord, we shall see him 'gain." Reverend Garrett concluded, raisin' his hands dramatically in the air.

Jefferson pulled his flask away from his lips only to loudly slur, "Somebody oughtta go do eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, on that Vance Bastard. He murdered my cousin just like his uncle murdered my pap. Same way an' all; I think somethin' needs t'be done 'bout it."

Yea…I knew that was gonna happen.

Everyone looked at Jefferson, givin' him narrowed looks of disapproval. The preacher looked a bit taken aback by my cousin's drunken outburst while the grave diggers were lowerin' the casket into the ground, not payin' any mind to the scene 'round them.

Placin' a hand on Jefferson's arm, Sarah softly told him, "Jefferson, calm down. Now's not the time honey."

Knowin' somethin' needed to be done to end the awkward situation, I bent down and scooped up some dirt and went to my mama, "Let's go place some dirt on Tolbert's casket for his final restin'."

'Fore I could lead her ov'r to my brother's casket (that was filled wit' sandbags), poppy knocked the dirt from my hand and gave me a nasty look. God, his sharp look froze the blood in my veins, that's how frightenin' it was. Wit'out a word, poppy turned his back to the preacher, gravediggers, and the casket that'd just been lowered in the ground and stormed off towards where his wagon was at.

Well, guess the funeral's ov'r now.

Tolbert POV:

It was well after midnite an' I was gallopin' down a backtrail, goin' west. I didn't wanna run like some coward, but I knew that my mama was right an' I had'a leave an' make folks think I'm dead so that I could stay alive. I was headed to St. Louis, Missouri for starters. I reckon it'd take me a few days to get there. After reachin' St. Louis I plan on ridin' on to Kansas; then eventually to Oklahoma if I got 'nough money on me after makin' rest stops at saloons an' hotels.

I hope to make it to Oklahoma to get some o'that free ranchin' land in Tulsa. Perhaps after strikin' up my own ranch I'll have 'nough clout to return to the Tug River Valley to reunite with my family; bring Jessa and Endor back to my ranch too. I know, it's a lot of hopes an' dreams to have, but if I can just get some land in Oklahoma, I might have a real chance at gettin' my woman an' son back. 'Specially if I make a lot of money as a cattleman.

Wit' the moon lightin' my path an' the stars in the sky as my compass, I spurned on my horse on as fast as he could gallop. The sooner I was outta Eastern Kentucky the better. Looks like I'll be travelin' all nite an' day to make it to the middle of the state. Once there I'd be able to take a load off, get a drink an' a room at a saloon.

God, I hope I'm doin' the right thing in listenin' to mama an' fleein'. I'd hate for somethin' to happen to Endor an' Jessa due to the feud an' me not be able to stop it.

I couldn't think like that tho. Nope. I just shook my head, clearin' all thoughts from it, an' continued t'ride thru the backwoods headin' to only god knows where in the middle of the state.

AN:

Well, like all funerals in this story, Tolbert's 'funeral' was something else wasn't it? Of course, Jefferson had to put his two cents in. How do you guys feel about that late-night heart to heart Shaw and Jessa had? Oh, and poor Roseanna and Johnse. At least Tolbert's death isn't breaking them up, but it's bringing sorrow to their marriage tho.