Sellers definitely wasn't a criminal. Probably.

From their first few miles on the stage together, Jess had liked Sellers. He'd found the man to be interesting, straightforward, and honest. And Jess trusted his instincts. But he had to admit, when Slim had confessed to some inexplicable reluctance about the man, Jess's hackles were up. Because Jess trusted Slim's instincts, too.

But over a week had gone by, and the man was proving to be nothing more than an excellent ranch hand. He went where he was told, did what was asked, and did it well. If Slim had any concerns, they were about whether they could afford to pay Sellers the amount he was worth. Which was a relief to Jess; he didn't think he could stand it if he brought any kind of danger to the Sherman Ranch. Not when he owed them everything.

But there wasn't anything to be hesitant about, not where Sellers was concerned. Andy liked him, animals liked him, even Slim liked him after a few days. And Jess had liked him from the start. So everything was in the clear. Which was especially good today, because Jess had been working with him all day fixing the fence lines, and any significant doubt or concern would have made the job that much harder. As it was, they were making good time – they might even have enough spare time to take a dip in the nearby lake.

"So," said Sellers conversationally, breaking the silence that had fallen between them, "Andy tells me you used to make a living with a gun."

Jess had enough practice hiding his emotions that he was sure nothing showed on his face, but inside, he was grimacing. Gotta remind Andy not to go braggin' about that, he thought grimly. The last thing he needed was desperate greenhorns shooting at his back to make a name for themselves. All he said aloud, though, was, "Some truth to that."

He thought his tone would be enough to warn the man to a different topic of conversation, but Sellers didn't catch it. "Never known a gunslinger to settle down on a two-bit ranch like this. Not unless there was something in it for him."

"And what makes you think there ain't?" Jess growled. He'd heard similar comments before, more than once, but it didn't make him like it any better. "It's good country, with good people. That's more than enough."

"Sure, sure," said Sellers, backing off a bit. "Just wondered if there was more to the story, is all. Sherman seems too fond of the law to let a gunman around. Especially with his kid brother near."

Silence followed his words, but Jess had to admit that there was some truth in them. Jess himself had wondered more than once what made Slim blur his usually clear lines between black and white, just on Jess's account.

"Slim's a good man," he said, and even as the words came out, he knew they said it all. Every reckless choice, every questionable decision, every stupid confrontation Jess had to pull him out of, it all came down to the fact that Slim Sherman was a good man.

Sellers grunted. "Yeah, I been hearin' that a lot lately," he said, and for a fleeting moment, Jess wondered who else Sellers had been talking to about Slim. "He's got a good brother, too."

"The best." Jess grinned at the thought of Andy, overflowing with childhood promise and youthful exuberance. "Andy's a prize, no doubt about that. You seen his little animal zoo, with all them critters he's tending to? Not many can charm a wild thing like he can."

"I guess you're a pretty good example of that, huh?" said Sellers, but before Jess could decide whether to be offended or in agreement, the man continued, "Why, anyone with two good eyes can see you're a better brother to him than Slim could ever be."

Jess glared up, bristling like the barbed wire in his hands. Where did Sellers come off talking like that? "Now look. Andy and I may be close, sure, but Slim's the best brother that kid could have."

Sellers raised his hands placatingly. "Right, right, sure. No offense meant." Silence fell between the two men, less comfortable than before as Jess tried to shake off the irritation. Sellers, no doubt sensing Jess's ire, stayed quiet long enough for Jess to settle his ruffled feathers; when the newcomer finally did speak again, it was apologetically, as if to make up for his previous words.

"Look, we're just about finished up here. Why don't you go get started on that lake, and I'll be along?"

"You sure?" Jess glanced down the line. There wasn't all that much left; working together, they'd have it done soon enough. Which also meant that Sellers was more than capable of handing it on his own.

Sellers gave a little shrug. "Nothing I ain't handled before. Go on, Jess. We'll both have more peace of mind. You've been salivating over that lake since we rode up here."

Silently accepting the olive branch Sellers was offering, Jess happily relinquished the barbed wire and made his way down to the lake, irritation forgotten. It was late afternoon, which was the perfect time to be near water and away from hard labor, in Jess' opinion. Cool breeze from the lake's surface eased the sweat from a hot sun and hotter work, and Jess soon had his feet cooling in the water. He waded a bit, splashing his arms and his face, then returned to the shore and settled down to wait for Sellers, back against a log and hat pulled low over his eyes.

He'd only meant to relax, enjoy the sun and the scenery, but the peacefulness of the place, the cheerful songbirds and the cooling breeze, eased him almost unsuspecting into slumber. Within a few minutes of settling in to wait, sleep had taken over.

Just as suddenly, he was awakened by the crack of a gunshot. In a moment, he had flipped himself over on his belly and pulled out his gun, aiming it towards the fired shotgun before even registering who held it.

Sellers.

He should've known. He should've trusted Slim's instincts. If he had, then he wouldn't be in this mess, falling asleep in front of a man who wanted to gun him down. And who, Jess was now alert enough to register, was leading Jess's own horse.

As Jess' gun leveled at his heart, Sellers lowered the rifle toward the ground and raised a hand placatingly. "Just tryin' to keep you in one piece, Jess," he said, ice calm, like he was talking to a spooked horse, and nodded gently beyond Jess's head by way of explanation.

Jess pushed himself to his feet, still wary of the rifle in Sellers's hand, and backed up toward the lake until he could see what Sellers had been pointing at.

And there, on one of the little cliffs that made up so much of the terrain, lay the still body of a mountain lion with a large, bloody hole in its side.

For a moment, Jess was speechless. His eyes flitted from the cat to its killer and back again as he realized what had almost happened. Belatedly, he realized he still had his rescuer in his sights, and he reholstered the Colt with the same speed he used to draw.

"Reckon I owe you my hide, mister," he said, trying to keep his breathing under control. Cougars were mean critters, and he swore inwardly at the realization that he'd left Traveler tied up near the fence they were working on instead of bringing him down to the lake. If his horse had been here with him, he would've had ample warning of the threat.

Sellers shrugged as he stepped up to Jess's side. "Got a bit of a grudge against the critters, myself," he said. "Ever since one had a taste of my leg. Never could find it in myself to forgive something that's hurt me."

"Still." Jess clapped a hand on the man's shoulder. "I'm mighty grateful, and I'm not likely to forget it." He spared one more glance at the cat, one more shudder at the thought of what might have happened, then gathered his boots and moved to Traveler. "Come on, let's get back. I've lost my appetite for sittin' around."

Sellers slung the cat's body over his horse's withers. At Jess's questioning glance, he grinned. "Mighty good pelt. And I like to remember my victories."

Jess shrugged. "To each his own, I guess." He had to admit, as he tossed himself onto Traveler's back, that it was a pretty good pelt. With a glance back and a grin only a little less jovial than usual, he added, "Andy's gonna be pretty excited to hear this story. You're gonna make that kid's day."

Sellers grinned. "Well, what are we waiting for, then?" He spurred his horse forward, and Jess, glad to be alive enough to ride, followed suit.

XXX

The next morning rose early, and Andy along with it, tired and grumpy but reluctant to go back to sleep. He wasn't going to admit it to Slim or Jess, but he'd spent the night in one nightmare after another featuring cougars. He'd always wanted to see a real mountain lion up close; now that he had, he regretted it. For the sake of the mountain lion, which had looked oddly small and vulnerable slung over Sellers' saddle, but especially because of what could have happened to Jess.

The scent of bacon drifted through the door, and Andy dressed hurriedly, sleepiness quickly replaced with hunger. Not that that was out of the ordinary. His stomach rumbled practically all the time nowadays. He was out of the bedroom in a moment, bounding into the large room filled with morning sunlight and the welcome sights, sounds, and smells of breakfast.

He perched on the dining room bench and glanced across at the slumped, drowsing man across from him. "Morning, Mr. Sellers," he said, but all he got for his efforts was a grunt. Which didn't bother Andy much; he was more than used to silent mornings, thanks to Jess' particular inability to communicate until he was on his second cup of coffee.

He looked over to the kitchen, where Slim was getting breakfast ready, and crossed his fingers under the table. Last time Slim had cooked up bacon, it had been burnt nearly to a crisp. And no matter how many times Andy pretended he liked it that way, it was always a heavy blow.

"You ridin' into town this morning, Slim?" Andy called, hoping his question wouldn't distract his brother from the stovetop. It was Wednesday, which meant it was time to stock up on supplies, and Andy had a penny that was burning a hole in his pocket. He wouldn't say no to a chance to pick up some peppermint and see what some of the town boys were up to.

The answer didn't come from the kitchen. "Actually, I asked if I could ride in," said Sellers from across the table. "Get to know the town a little better."

"You'd know it pretty well by now if you'd loosen up a little on the weekends," said Jess, walking through the front door. He nodded at Sellers and added, "Wagon's all hitched up. You're good to go whenever you're ready." He grinned. "I can't figure a man who don't wanna spend his Saturday at the saloon. What else are you gonna do with all that money?"

Sellers shrugged. "I guess this'll be my chance to get rid of some – that is, if Sherman don't mind."

Slim walked in with a plate of bacon in one hand and a bowl of roasted potatoes in the other. "I don't mind you getting to know the town some, but make sure you don't enjoy yourself too much – we're going to need those supplies eventually."

"Yes sir, Mr. Sherman." Mr. Sellers slapped his shirt pocket as he rose from the table. "I got the list right here; I'll head out now."

"I didn't mean – you can have your breakfast now, you know," said Slim, but the man had already disappeared out the door.

Andy and Slim glanced at each other, then at Jess, who could only shrug. "Guess he weren't hungry." He settled at the table. "More for the rest of us."

He grabbed a handful of bacon before Slim snatched the plate out of his reach. "Don't forget we have to eat, too," he said as he handed the plate to Andy, who took it gratefully. Sometimes Jess went a little overboard with hunger.

Breakfast settled into the familiar routine of eating and drinking and passing plates, and Andy had just noticed that he was keeping up pretty well with Jess when it came to how much food they could shovel away when Slim broke the silence.

"So," he said, making Andy and Jess both look up, "what do you think of Sellers?"

Silence fell. Andy glanced at Jess, hoping he would answer first. Andy still wasn't quite sure what he felt – or, more to the point, he wasn't sure if there was any reason for feeling it.

Jess, for his part, looked more hesitant than Andy would have thought. "He's a hard worker," said Jess slowly. "He don't complain, and he's a straight talker. Not to mention saving my hide from that cougar yesterday." It was all true enough, but it almost sounded to Andy like Jess was trying to convince himself of something.

Slim nodded thoughtfully, then looked at his brother. "Andy?"

Andy studied his potatoes. "I like him fine," he said, but he knew without even looking up at his brother that Slim didn't believe him. "I dunno," he said, even though there hadn't really been a question asked. "He's nice, you know? All that stuff Jess said, and friendly to boot."

He stopped there, but of course Slim knew him well enough to know when something wasn't being said. "But?" Slim prodded.

Andy shoved the potatoes around with his fork, then pushed them into a pile, then ate one as he tried to lasso his thoughts together. "I guess…I guess it just seems like he don't like you very much."

He looked up just in time to see Slim and Jess exchange a glance, and he knew he'd hit on something they'd discussed at least once before. It should have made him mad that they were leaving him out of important conversations, just as if he were a kid, but it only worried him – if they had already noticed it, and were talking about it, then it definitely wasn't just in his mind. It was a real, honest-to-goodness dislike on Sellers' part.

"Yeah, I picked up on that too," said Jess grimly. "You sure you don't recognize him, Slim?"

Slim shrugged. "I thought I might've, once, but nothing that sticks. I certainly haven't had a run-in with him in the past." He turned his attention back to his breakfast. "At least he's polite. Maybe not the friendliest man I've worked with, but never outright rude."

"That ain't much," said Jess, biting his bacon thoughtfully. "O' course, some people just don't take kindly to takin' orders, and you give plenty of 'em."

"You would know about not taking orders, wouldn't you?" shot back Slim.

"What're you gonna do about him, Slim?" asked Andy quickly, because it looked like Jess was going to retort, and once he and Slim got started, it could go on a while. At least until one chased the other into the water trough. Not that he had a problem with Jess and Slim joshing each other, but he wanted to get this Sellers business settled first.

As Andy had hoped, the question brought Slim back to the issue at hand. "I was thinking, if you two agree, that we might ask him to move on in another week or so. We'll be ahead of the work by then, and Jess and I'll be able to manage with your help until Jonesy comes back. And he'll have enough of a stake to see him through. This was never a permanent arrangement, anyway."

He glanced at Jess and Andy for confirmation, and Andy nodded. He liked having Sellers around, but it would be nice to have the ranch to themselves again.

"A week or two," Jess repeated. He grabbed at the last piece of bacon before either Slim or Andy had a chance. "We oughta get a heap of work out of him by then. Kinda lookin' forward to taking it easy!"

Slim just shook his head as his partner leaned back and shoved the entire piece of bacon in his mouth. "What I can't figure is why I'm the one he doesn't like!"