Okay I had to edit the last chapter because I forgot Brian got left at camp. Oopsies. Anyway, please review, fav, follow, and thanks for reading. Oh, and another shout out to Ronin Kenshin. Mwuhahahahaa!

Chapter 33: Trouble

After collecting the money for the pelt and body, Lilly went to go check on her husband and Mr. Holmes. Holmes was fit to ride but Arthur suffered a few claw marks to his thigh so he needed a carriage ride most of the way back to camp. Lilly helped him in carefully and they got going with Tessa, Doc and James following behind them.

"So your arm healed up just like that?" Arthur asked his wife.

"Yes. Very strange. Same thing happened with James."

"Hmm. Now we know why they didn't croak from bein' shot by that Brutus feller," Arthur said. "Makes me wonder what else you three are capable of."

"I'm sure all will be revealed in time."

"You think so?"

Lilly frowned. Should she tell him about the rest of her dreams? She decided not to. Lilly didn't want him worrying about Sean. Or her burning at the stake, especially now that she was with child. "It's a hunch, really, but I think I have these gifts for a reason. I ain't sayin' I got a huge destiny or anythin', but...I dunno, maybe The Morrigan needs me for somethin'. I don't know."

Arthur chuckled. "I ain't sure I told you this, but remember the day I saved you? It was the red child who told me where you were. I think she was The Morrigan. Said you didn't remember her."

"Huh." Lilly couldn't remember if he ever mentioned it. "I see. Well, she's been around for a while. I remember her from my tree, you know. I used to call her Morgan."

"Ha! Coincidence?"

"I doubt it."

The carriage ride was a long one and they didn't get to Rhodes until the next morning. Lilly had given Arthur plenty of alcohol for the pain during the night so by the time they got out, he was quite inebriated but able to walk with a limp.

"Aaaaahhh," he groaned with a stretch. "So good to...to be outta that, hahahaaa, carriage."

Lilly laughed and grabbed the horses. "Now, can we please get goin' home?"

"Yes but...oof," Arthur pointed to a bench and Lilly walked him over to it. As she helped him sit down, he yanked her with him and kissed her. "Yes, mo stór, we can go home. But not yet." Arthur laid a sloppy kiss on her.

Lilly laughed with amusement into his mouth. "Arthur, ya drunk shite...stop it."

"No. I wanna kiss my wife," he cooed.

Lilly pushed him off. "I wanna kiss you too, but we need to get you home."

"Oh aye, but I dunna wantah go home yet, me wee lassie..."

Lilly giggled happily at his impersonation of an Irishman. "Now you're just bein' silly."

"Aye, that I am, lass. It's me way of courtin' ya."

Lilly laughed again. "Ya already courted me, Arthur. Ya already have me."

"Mmm, if I did, you'd kiss me, woman," he said, resuming his regular cowboy voice.

Lilly rolled her eyes and kissed him gently. "Ya big randy bithiúnach."

"Am I big?" Arthur said with a drunken smile. "I don't think you'd know, but..."

Lilly's mouth dropped and she scoffed in disbelief. "You are a cad!" she said, smacking his arm.

Arthur laughed and grabbed his arm to fake his pain. "Oohoo. Ouch. Ya hurt me, me bonnie wife."

"Oh shut up."

Arthur began to cackle and Lilly giggled into a fit. She rested her head on his shoulder and stared out at the town. "You never told me the rest of your dream, Lilly."

She tensed. "I don't remember the rest."

"Lillian, I can tell you're lyin'."

"Arthur, I don't remember the rest."

"Oh really?" He looked at her with a serious look. "Lillian. Was it bad?"

Lilly huffed. She hated him trying to push her into doing things. "I do not wish to discuss it."

"...Fine." Arthur slowly got up. "I'm gonna head home."

"Without me? What about me being by myself?"

"You got James with you." He hobbled over to Tessa.

"Can I at least help ya on yer horse?" Lilly scowled.

"I got it!" he snapped.

"Stop actin' like a big dumb brute! Ya ain't one and ya know it!"

It took him a bit, but he finally got on. "I'll see you later."

"But Arthur, I-" Arthur turned and galloped off. Lilly growled in frustration. "Stubborn arsehole!" She looked at James and sighed. "Follow Arthur, make sure he gets home. Don't get seen."

James tracked after Arthur and Lilly giggled. How the wolves understood her every word, she had no idea. Perhaps they were freaks like her. Lilly spotted a white Arabian and a brown Ardennes across the other side of town. Hmm, what was Da and Bill doing here? She clicked for Doc and he followed her. "What say you, Dubh Sainglenn? Shall we go have a visit?"

The horse neighed and Lilly lead him over to the Count and Brown Jack. She hitched Doc up and walked inside the sheriff's office.

"Of course, of course. Oh, and here is my dear daughter, Lilly Callahan. Arthur's wife," Dutch said. Lilly raised a brow. Callahan? She didn't bother to ask about the pseudo name. "Girl is a hunter, girl is a killer. Lilly, you've met but not been introduced to Mr...oh, I'm so sorry, Sheriff Gray."

"How are you doin', ma'am?" the sheriff asked, sounding drunk as a skunk.

"I'm good, sir," Lilly replied casually.

"Hey, you're Irish. Mr. Macintosh, you ain't Irish, are ya?"

"No. Lilly here is adopted, but she's my daughter just the same."

"Oh that's just wonderful. Hmm, but a tough business you and the boys had, Mrs. Callahan."

Lilly looked at Dutch who winked at her, then she glanced back at Sheriff Gray. "Yes. Quite unfortunate, sir."

"Life can be tough."

"Aye, that it can be."

"And no man owes another anythin'," the sheriff preached loudly.

"No, sir." Lilly bit her lip, trying to prevent herself from laughing. The sheriff was obviously daft, but adorable.

"But still," the sheriff got up. "I feel you were hard done by...losin' your enployment like that." The man wobbled near her and the smell of alcohol made her feel queasy. Shit. "But still, here in Rhodes we have work enough for honest men and women."

The man offered her some moonshine but she declined. "I'm sorry, sir, but I can't have alcohol. My husband and I are expectin'," she said.

"Ah, well congratulations."

"Speakin' of Arthur, where is he?" Dutch asked.

Lilly crossed her arms. "Home. Got his leg sliced up by a cougar like the eejit he is," she said with a scowl.

"Uh oh. He okay?"

"Yes, but he will be out of commission for a while. I should help pick up the slack."

"Sweetheart, you know how I feel about you takin' risks now that you got a baby on the way," Dutch scolded. Lilly discreetly showed Dutch her forearm with the scars from the cougar and he looked at her in shock before an expression of full awareness appeared on his face. "Then again, you are a force to be reckoned with, pregnant or not."

"Most women are!" the sheriff laughed. "Excuse me a moment." Sheriff Gray stumbled through the door and fell as the door shut."

"Lillian, how did you get that scar? And why is it already healed?" Dutch asked with humor.

"The cougar. And hell if I know why it healed right before my eyes," Lilly chuckled. "I keep wonderin' how much more of a freak I'm gonna turn out to be."

Bill got up and looked at her arm. "What happened to the cougar?"

"I killed it, of course."

"Well, since Arthur is out, could you go and ask one of the other boys to come and take his place? Maybe John or Micah or Sean? I got a feelin' we're about to do somethin' dubious." Bill and Dutch laughed. "Oh, by the way, we been deputized."

Lilly's mouth went agape when she looked at Dutch. "Have ya gone soft in the head, old man?"

"Amongst these drunkards, hillbillies, and slavers, good honest thieves like us? We're bound to be moralizers in a place like this." Sheriff Gray came staggering through the door. "Oh! Sheriff Gray! You are back."

Lilly sighed. "I'll go see who can come, Da." Lilly sighed. "Excuse me, gentlemen." Lilly left the office and immediately went to her satchel bag on the horse. As she grabbed the dramamine and teaspoon, she felt a hand on her shoulder and she spun around.

"Oh. Hi Arthur."

He looked mad. "Why did you send James with me?"

Lilly sighed. "To keep an eye on you. I was worried about your leg."

"Well I'm fine." Arthur looked at the buiding. "Is Dutch in there?"

"Yes." Arthur limped up the steps. "Wait just a god damn minute, Arthur!" she snapped. "They're about to go do somethin' dubious so don't you think about doin' it. Not with your leg!"

Arthur chuckled bitterly and looked at her. "Now you know what it's like to be concerned for a spouse's well being, huh?"

Lilly scoffed. "Excuse me fer givin' a fuck, ya stubborn, bitter arse!"

"I'm stubborn? I'm stubborn?! What about you?! Goin' off and killin' a god damn cougar, endangerin' our baby!"

"Obviously I handled meself just fine! Yer so concerned fer me and the baby that ya can't even look after yerself! Ya could'a died yesterday and where would that leave us?! Huh?! Me tah raise a baby without its father?!"

Arthur sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "Lillian, I ain't the one who's pregnant. I just want you two to be safe!"

"We are safe! I can keep us safe and yesterday I proved it! So stop actin' like the baby and I are Isaac and Eliza!"

As soon as Lilly said that, she regretted it. The look on Arthur's face was the kind of ferocity she hoped never to see from him. He approached her slowly and got in her face. "Not all of us are freaks of nature, Lillian."

Talking about his dead son and Eliza were one thing, but throwing the biggest insecurity Lilly had in her face was a new low and Lilly had nothing else to say. She turned and walked away from him, mounting Doc and leaving to go back to camp. James followed along with her.

21-year-old Lilly, in her summer gunslinger outfit, was brushing down Holly as she looked over at the lake by Blackwater. She smiled when she saw a herd of wild horses running along the shore. She gave Holly an apple and continued brushing when she smelled pine trees, a once pleasantly intoxicating smell of her guardian Arthur. Now it gave her a feeling of disdain. They'd had a fight a few days ago in the lake and both were not speaking to each other. Well, her moreso than him, but Arthur still seemed to do nothing but avoid her.

"Don't mind me, just grabbin' Boadicea," she heard Arthur say.

"Fine," she muttered, continuing to brush Holly. Lilly saw him saddle up his champagne colored Missouri Fox Trotter and mount up, but other than that, Lilly paid him no mind at all. He left without so much as a goodbye and Lilly shut her eyes as she stopped brushing her horse. She suddenly growled and kicked over an empty bucket. "Feckin' gobshite bastard!"

Lilly was sad when Arthur didn't come back to the tent. It'd been days since they'd spoken to one another because of their fight in Rhodes. Arthur saw fit to ignore her any time she tried to speak and sleep elsewhere each night, so she eventually ignored him despite herself. She missed him, but she was still mad about what he said to her. Lilly knew he only said it out of anger, so her longing outweighed her fury, whereas he seemed to be the exact opposite. And the tension was felt throughout the whole camp and after about a week and a half, Sean and Karen confronted her about it.

"What's goin' on with you two?" Karen asked Lilly, sitting down with her and Sean while eating stew.

Lilly poked at her food while holding her head up by the jaw. "We had a fight," she mumbled. "A bad one."

"What was it about?" Sean inquired in a concerned.

"Why don't you go ask him, deartháir?" she grumbled.

Sean sighed and got up with his dinner stew, walking away. Karen scooted closer to Lilly and rubbed her back. "How's my little niece or nephew doin'? Is he or she causin' her momma some trouble?"

"I still got mornin' sickness but it ain't as bad as it was." In fact, Lilly found she was hungry for not just pickles and ice cream and salted meat, but now she craved berries. Little Jack went out with Mary-Beth the day before and picked some for her, and Lilly thanked hin profusely. Lilly took a bite of stew lazily. "Why did I have to bring up Isaac and Eliza?" she asked rhetorically.

"Uh oh. Is that why you ain't speakin' to one another?" Karen asked with a sigh.

"Yes. That and his response was very unpleasant."

"How unpleasant?"

"Not all of us are freaks of nature, Lillian," Lilly said in Arthur's voice. She took a deep breath. She'd been having bad dreams about being a freak ever since. Not night terrors, thankfully. Just bad dreams. And every night she woke up alone. She hated it. "All because I told him to stop treatin' me like I was Eliza and the baby like Isaac. I mean, I saved his fuckin' life from bein' eaten by a cougar, and what does he do? He gets mad because I won't talk about a certain thing. But...gah, he don't like havin' Eliza or Isaac brought up, neither."

Lilly got up and walked off. "Lilly! Where ya goin'?"

"Out!"

Lilly got to Liath, saddled him up, and left the camp. She whistled for the pups and they came running. Fuck what she wasn't allowed to do, she was going hunting. And boy, did she hunt. Lilly and her boys killed boars. Lots of them. She'd skinned at least a dozen and then she killed a good sized buck. She skinned him and put the carcass on Liath. The body would go for a decent price. She hunted two wild turkeys as well. After all that, she felt so much better. Hunting was her biggest stress reliever. Well, it was at one point. It got shoved into second place once her and Arthur started their relationship. Ugh, she couldn't think about him or that now. It made her whole body yearn for him. Once Lilly was in Rhodes with Brian and James, she went on her way to the butcher. After selling everything, she'd made thirty dollars. Not too bad at all. When she was done, Lilly traveled south through town and caught a glimpse of women scattered around a wagon. Lilly looked at the crowd curiously and trotted over with her horse and wolves.

There was an older woman standing on a box, ranting about women's suffrage and Lilly smiled. This wasn't something she expected to see in the south, but she was happy she did. All the women were wearing teal colored sashes and some even held signs about voting and second class workers. Lilly continued listening to the older woman when some of the ladies caught sight of her wolves and backed up in fear.

Lilly held up her hand. "Relax, they're docile. For the most part."

One particular blonde haired woman in a white dress with teal bows approached her. "Excuse me, Miss, but are you a supporter of our cause?"

Lilly smirked. "Yes."

The blonde woman gave Lilly a quick curtsy. "Miss Penelope Braithwaite."

Lilly's smirk turned into a big smile. "Mrs. Lilly Callahan," she said, tipping her bulldogger hat. Suddenly she remembered the name. Oh. That boy named Beau had been scolded by the sheriff for talking to her. Was Beau part of the Gray family? "Huh, do you know a guy named Beau? Is he a Gray?"

"Yes," was all Penelope could say with a blush. "I...we're only acquaintances. His family and mine are, well..."

Lilly got the sense there was more going on with that but she didn't pry and changed the subject. "I was only curious. So, women's suffrage, huh? You guys doin' a rally today or somethin'?"

"Yes, ma'am." Penelope looked down at Brian and James. "My, you surely must be a progressive woman to have obtained wolves. And the size of them...I don't believe I've even heard of wolves being this big."

Lilly laughed, getting off Liath and shoving her thumbs into her pockets. "They're Canadian. Everythin' is bigger in Canada."

"I see. May I pet them?"

"Of course, Miss Braithwaite."

Penelope bent down and held out her hands. The boys sniffed, then licked her hands and Penelope giggled. She scratched the top of their heads. "They're such gorgeous creatures. What are their names?"

"Well thank you, Miss Braithwaite. James and Brian."

Miss Braithwaite stood and eyed Lilly. "Well, it was a pleasure meeting you, Mrs. Callahan, but if you'll excuse me, I must put these signs onto the wagon."

Lilly looked behind Penelope and shrugged. "I can help if you need it."

"Oh, that would be lovely! Thank you."

"No problem," she said and followed the blonde woman over.

They both got to work putting up signs about women's rights. They chatted away about the movement, about the comings and goings of the area, and about their interests. They had just finished hanging the signs when Penelope looked over Lilly's shoulder.

"Beau!" Penelope gasped. "Oh...oh dear. And that man who delivered, um..."

Lilly looked as well and saw Beau...with Arthur. Great.

"Oh dear, indeed," Lilly replied with an eye roll. "That man is my husband."

"Oh. Oh! He spoke of you so fondly!"

Lilly raised a brow in disbelief at Penelope. "Did he? When?"

"When he delivered a letter for me this morning. Excuse me..." Penelope went and greeted Beau. "Beau, what are you doing here?" she asked as they held hands.

"I cannot let you go through with this," Beau whispered. "You'll be killed!"

Lilly watched them with amusement. "I'm prepared to die for the cause, Beau. You know that," Lilly heard Penelope say.

Beau stared at Arthur. "Do something, please!"

"Do what? Fight this mob?" Arthur motioned to the crowd of ladies. "They'd eat me alive."

"This is no laughing matter, sir. They need protecting from...certain elements. Mostly my family." Beau urged Penelope again. "Penelope, I beg you!"

Lilly stood next to Penelope. "Oh fer feck's sake, Mr. Gray. Just let the girl's voice be heard."

"Mrs. Callahan!" Penelope giggled. "Such language!"

Beau looked at Lilly. "Oh yes. I remember you now. Your husband here helped with catching those Anderson boys."

"Yes, and he did it rather splendidly. However," Lilly pulled out her repeater and cocked it. "Since my husband here is too afraid of gettin' eaten alive by these so-called..." Lilly arched brow. "Poor, defenseless, fragile little ladies, I'll shoot anyone who gets..."uppity". Is that to your satisfaction, Mr. Gray?"

"Thank you, Mrs. Callahan," Penelope said gratefully.

"You're welcome."

Beau gawked at Lilly then looked at Arthur, who seemed mad for calling him out, yet amused for using the word that had some humorous and sentimental value. "You're right, Arthur. Your wife is quite a woman."

Lilly blushed. Now she felt bad. "Hmm."

Arthur cleared his throat. "Well, I ain't too sure about this, Miss Penelope. Folks 'round here do get rather "uppity" about women's rights, I've noticed. You sure you wanna go through with this?"

"Yes!" Beau said. "Please listen to the man, Penelope!"

Penelope and Lilly scoffed. "I'll tell you what!" Penelope snapped. "Your friend here can drive the wagon for us! It'll allow us to shout all the louder!"

All the women of the movement let out a big 'hurray', and Lilly bared an enlivened smile. Penelope brought over the older woman who went by the name Miss Calhoon to Arthur. Lilly got on Liath and grinned at all the women.

"Olive Calhoon. Normally, I like to drive myself, but today, I feel like a man joining us sends the right message," Lilly overheard the woman say.

"Oh!" Penelope interrupted. "Don't forget Mrs. Callahan there! She's gonna walk with us too! She's mighty progressive!"

Arthur cleared his throat. "Yes. That would be my wife. Mighty progressive."

Lilly tilted her head and stared at Arthur with puzzlement. Miss Calhoon eyeballed Lilly and the wolves. The Irish woman waved a hand in greeting. "Well, she certainly looks it, Miss Braithwaite. Come, let's get going!" She walked away but turned to Lilly. "I trust you can keep your wolves in line, Mrs. Callahan? We don't want a massacre."

Lilly nodded. "Of course!"

Arthur followed Olive to the wagon as some of the women climbed into it. "Well, I ain't never been in a protest march before, madam."

"Well, just treat us like the sheep and the folks attackin' us like the...well, wolves, and I'm sure you'll feel right at home!" She patted the seat next to her. "Shall we go?"

Arthur climbed in and Lilly approached the back of the wagon on Liath with Brian and James. The women stared both in awe and in shock at her large wolf pups, and began gossiping amongst themselves. Lilly rolled her eyes in annoyance. "If ya ladies got somethin' tah say about me or me wolves, ya can say it tah me!"

She heard Arthur laugh. "Please don't make my wife angry, madams! Mrs. Callahan is quite the force to be reckoned with!"

Lilly smiled to herself. Most of the women apologized softly. The wagon started to proceed and the women began singing. Lilly felt it was a very nice tune. They eventually made their way down the main street and passed the Sheriff's office. It was at this point when the hecklers began chiming in. Lilly heard men booing them, telling them to go home. A couple of men got a little too close to the wagon to yell at the women. They were quickly silenced, however, by the growls and snarls of Brian and James. Some of the ladies stopped singing to laugh at the men.

"Ha! Did you see the look on his face?" one of them shouted. More laughter erupted from the wagon.

The caravan stopped in front of the Bank of Rhodes. Lilly got off and hitched Liath to a post.

"Ladies, get down!" Miss Calhoon yelled, climbing out of the passenger seat.

Arthur and the rest of the women got out, and they continued to sing. Lilly heard more hecklers. "Oh, looks like the circus is in town!" one of them yelled.

"Shut your mouth!" another man said to the women.

The ladies climbed the steps as the insufferable men around them continued to throw insults and angry shouts of protest. Lilly shook her head and stood at the edge of the steps to keep the mob at bay. She kept a close eye on James and Brian who were getting visibly irritated with the crowd.

"Easy, my boys, easy," she cooed.

The pups whined at her. Lilly absentmindedly pet their heads as Miss Calhoon began speaking.

"Ladies and gentlemen," she said with her arms raised in peace. "This is a great day for all of us. For today is the day we begin to live as equals."

One particular man in the crowd laughed. "Ha! Equals! Haaa!"

"Yes, equals, sir!" Miss Calhoon spoke to the man. "Fair and equal."

"This is unnatural!" he shouted. "This is nonsense!"

The crowd was a mix of women cheering and men arguing. "Fair, equal, and free. Just as the Founding Fathers intended."

"Founding Fathers, not Founding Mothers, you silly old goat!"

Lilly rolled her eyes. "Oh shut up, will ya?" she shouted. "Who the hell are ya tah judge about what's unnatural?"

The man stared at her incredously. "Well, I know havin' wolves at your beck and call ain't natural, you damn witch!"

Brian and James snapped at the man and he jumped back with a screech. "Boys! Behave yourselves!" she shouted.

The wolves resumed their relaxed state and the man pointed at her. "You're a witch!"

Lilly stuck her tongue out at him and turned back to Miss Calhoon. "I apologize for the interruption, ma'am. You was sayin'?"

Miss Calhoon nodded in approval and continued her speech. Lilly crossed her arms while listening, but she became uncomfortably aware of the eyes on her. She looked around and saw many of the men, and even some of the women, looking at her suspiciously. She frowned with anxiety, suddenly feeling very self-conscious. Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Beau talking to some people.

"...you got anything better to do?" Beau said. Lilly looked over and saw Arthur approach them.

One of the men growled. "You always was a-"

"Beau!" Arthur said. "Weren't we just leaving?"

A fat man in a green shirt pointed at Arthur accusingly. "Who the hell is this?"

Arthur pointed between the buildings. "Follow me 'round here," he said to Beau. "Come on."

Lilly watched sadly as Arthur and Beau left. "And what is America, but a land of the future?" Miss Calhoon shouted. "A land of equality, a land of progress!"

Lilly once again felt eyes on her and decided to take her leave. "Alright, let's go, boys."

Lilly returned to camp. She felt pretty good now. As she got in, Abigail confronted her. "Hey Lilly."

Lilly smiled as she got off the horse. "Hey there, Abigail. How are you?"

"I'm fine. How are you feelin'? With the baby, I mean?"

"Better. Not so much throwin' up now, but gosh my...well, my uh..."

"Breasts are tender? That's normal," she whispered, giggling with a covered mouth.

Lilly cackled. "Thank God. Um...about, um, my emotions, I have noticed I been feelin'...uppity, lately."

"Uppity?"

"Pissed off."

"Oh. That's normal too. I mean, you remember how I was when I was carryin' Jack?"

Lilly shuddered. "Abigail, I think your temper more than rivaled mine."

They both laughed and walked along, talking more about pregnancy and what Lilly should expect. Lilly was surprised that her thicker and shinier hair was also a consequence to pregnancy. Abigail then asked about Lilly's baby bump.

"I don't know if I have that yet, I haven't really checked." Lilly rubbed her stomach. "Oh shit." Her abdomen was a little swollen and Lilly could no longer feel the faint traces of her abs. Lilly untucked her shirts and looked down. "Ha! I got one already?"

"Looks like it!" Abigail laughed. "Lilly, you don't know how happy Jack and I are about you and Arthur havin' a baby!"

Lilly giggled, rubbing her belly. The surrealness of her pregnancy suddenly felt, well, more real. "I'm pregnant. I never thought I would be." Lilly fingered the scar she had from falling out of a tree and getting impaled by a rather large and thick stick...or a small, thin branch, depending on one's perspective. She thought about the day in the hospital when confronted by the doctor about her womb.

The doctor came into the room where Lilly was resting. He sat down in a chair next to her and smiled. "You're goin' to be just fine, Miss O'Callaghan."

Lilly grinned. "Good."

The doctor suddenly frowned. "Miss, if I may be frank with you, I noticed something during your surgery."

Lilly lowered her eyes. "I was hoping you'd miss it."

"A bad doctor would've missed it, but I think you are lucky to have a good one for a surgery like that."

Lilly laughed. "Yes. I am. Thank you for savin' me."

"You're welcome. But, uh...may I ask what happened?"

Lilly squinted her mouth and her eyes filled with sadness. "Back when I was a child, I lived in Saint Denis. I went to a...special school. It was exclusive for only girls and boys with...a certain potential to learn a various set of skills. Anyway, one of the requirements was to...give up one's fertility. Willingly or not. I fought it, so instead of surgery, they used...other means. To teach me a lesson about being disobedient."

"I see. That is a horrible thing to experience. Do your fathers know?"

"Nobody knows. Just me. And," Lilly sat up with difficulty. "I'd appreciate it if you...made something up. This is a very private matter for me and I'd rather they not know."

"Would you like me to tell them your fall and the puncture to your stomach caused you to go barren?"

"...Yes, if it's not too much trouble."

The doctor patted her hand. "Of course not. The confidentiality between a doctor and a patient is a binding, oral contract." The doctor stood. "I will tell them the news."

"Thank you, doctor."

"For now, just relax. We will need to keep you overnight for observation, just in case."

"That's fine."

Once the doctor left the room, Lilly leaned back and closed her eyes, tears streaming down her face.

Lilly smiled softly and tucked her shirts back into her pants. "I was wonderin' why my pants were gettin' a bit snug."

Abigail crossed her arms with a frown. "Are you and Arthur still fightin'?"

"Fightin' requires talkin' to each other, so no."

"I'm sorry to hear that. When we all heard you two finally got together, everyone was happy. Well, Javier and Bill were slightly disappointed and Micah was, well, he was Micah about it."

Lilly cackled loudly. "I bet he was."

"Hey Lilly!" Lilly heard Hosea say.

She looked around, spotted him and waved. "Yes Athair?"

He approach both the women. "I need you for somethin', if you're up for it?"

"Sure."

Abigail excused herself and Lilly said goodbye. "I was goin' to have John help me with our newly requisitioned supply of moonshine but Dutch needs him for somethin', and I can't seem to find Arthur. Could you help me out?"

"Of course, Athair."

"Good. Oh, and bring the boys. We may need them."

Lilly whistled for Brian and James and they came bounding out of the bushes. "Lead the way."