*Author's Note*

Thank you for the reviews, faves, and follows.

The photograph of Novella as a little girl with her parents Brenton and Rihanna is brought up in this chapter. I decided to give face claims for them even though they're passed on since they're captured in a picture. Brenton Landon's face claim is Scott Eastwood while Rihanna Cline-Landon-Quincey's face claim is Jessica Chastain.

And now we plop into the miniseries timeline…

Hatfields & McCoys Don't Mix Pt.1

Tolbert POV:

I woke up to a quiet empty house. After findin' Ella's I knew why. She took Rihanna an' went visitin' our Aunt Betty. Needed time to herself after our tense talk last nite. Weren't much of a talk, she accused me of seein' a whore an' I denied it. Entire nite was tense after that. Didn't talk much an' didn't make love. My wife didn't wanna deal wit' me, shrunk back from me.

I went t'my ma an' poppy's house an' et breakfast there. We had'a sit 'round an' wait for Jim t'arrive since he was comin' from town. Of course once he arrive he had'a et too. He wife wasn't much of a cook so he always got food when he came to our folks' cabin. Ma was outback doin' laundry wit' Alifair while the lil ones were off at school. Once Jim was done wit' his biscuit, eggs, bacon, an' grits we were able t'leave the house an' get to work.

But we didn't get off the porch cause Perry Cline pulled his buggy up to it an' got down wit' a solemn 'pression on his face. Standin' by his buggy at the porch steps he sighed heavily. "Boys, I got terrible news to share."

"What is it, Perry?" I asked from my spot by a few feet in front of the doorway.

"Roseanna's come back to Kentucky, but I had to take her to dear old Aunt Betty's cause of the scandalous condition she was left in." Ella was at our Aunt Betty's this mornin', reckon she knows what Perry's tellin' us. "I'm afraid that the Hatfields will be laughing and gossiping 'bout your sweet sister, whom Johnse done wrong." Oh no, this ain't soundin' too good. I don't like where this is goin'. I think I know, but I hopin' I ain't right. He took a deep breath before saying, "Cause Roseanna's carrying Johnse Hatfield's child she believes she's in love with him."

WHAT?! Oh no no no, hell no! That lyin' bastard said he nev'r touched my sister, but he got his filthy bastard on her.

"Does our pap know 'bout this?" Jim dumbly asked from his spot standin' near a porch post. I just cut him a hard look. Of course, poppy don't know, Perry wouldn't be tellin' us if he did.

"No. Your father's a strong man, but I'm afraid he news would break his heart." Perry's right, the news would break his heart. Hell, it ain't just a bastard she's knocked up with, but a Hatfield one. "If this could be remedied right away and there was a way to deal with Johnse. Then Roseanna could consider a proper hand in marriage that would care for her and the child." He was talkin' bout himself, he wanted to make an honest woman outta my sister. I knew he loved her. Him willin' t'raise a Hatfield spawn proved it.

Oh, I as gonna deal wit' Johnse. That liar's dead. D-E-A-D, dead once I get 'hold o'him. Lookin' at all my brother's I told 'em, "Come on, let's go." I spun on my heel an' rushed into the house to grab some guns. I knew my brothers were right behind me.

After grabbin' a Winchester I stormed out the house an' down the porch steps, right pass Perry. My brothers followin' me, Pharmer no doubt the one closely behind me. That fatass brother o'mine could always be depended on. "Boys! Boys! Where you goin'?!" Perry Cline called after us as we marched farther 'way from the house, outta sight, an' ov'r to where the horses were kept in the barn.

Perry POV:

I put my hat on my head, a sly smirk crossing my face, after watching those McCoy boys take off to deal with Johnse, Tolbert leading the pack. Ah, I knew I could count on my ill-tempered nephew-in-law to get things down, take care of my Johnse problem so that I could marry Roseanna. I got back into my buggy and pulled away from the McCoy house, deciding that since I was in the area I'd pay my niece a visit.

After a few minutes of drivin' further up the road I pulled to a stop in front Novella's house. The dogs were lazily sittin' by the barn, lookin' wit' brown intent eyes. They didn't bark since they knew who I was. The older one, Tolbert's hunting hound, was on its last legs these days. I'm afraid the poor thing's going to die soon.

I walked up the front porch and knocked on the door. After a few moments I knocked again. After not being answered I opened the door and stepped in while announcing, "Novella, it's Uncle Perry. Are you in?" Not getting an answer I just walked further inside. I thought she might be outside doing the wash so I started over to the back door, but stopped whenever I eyed a slip of paper with my niece's neat printed handwriting on it. I went over to the table, took the note, and read it.

Ah, so she went to spend time with Aunt Betty. Oh my, won't she be shocked when she sees Roseanna and finds out about her condition. Perhaps Novella will be able to talk some sense into the naïve girl, make her understand that my offer of marriage is a one out of love and honor.

Knowing that my nephew-in-law had developed a drinking problem after the horrid and sudden fever death of his son I decided to rifle through the house to find and dispose of all whiskey bottles. If they weren't in the house then Tolbert wouldn't be able to drink it. I found a few bottles high up in the cabinets near the kitchen pump sink. They were hidden behind cannisters. I poured the alcohol down the drain and tossed the bottles out the window, letting them hit the ground and shatter.

I went into the bedroom off of the kitchen, the one shared by Novella and Tolbert, in order to find any hidden booze bottles. Dear lord, that young man would turn into a drunkard. Truth be told his temper always made me leery of having Novella by him when they were younger, but as she blossomed he was the only appropriate suitor that took an interest in her. The other boy that asked permission to court with Novella was that damned one-eyed Hatfield, so naturally I approved of Tolbert since I didn't want my daughter tied to those lying snakes named Hatfield.

I stopped at the foot of the bed, which was messy and unmade, and looked at the hope chest there. Oh, I remember when I bought that for my niece her first Christmas in Pikeville with me after I took her in. Oh, it's been nearly eleven years since she's had it. I knew that the chest would be the perfect spot of a drunk to hide bottle so I knelt down in front of it and pushed the lid open. Looking inside of it I found no bottles, it was empty except for a yellow baby blanket and a picture frame. I suppose the blanket must've been for Bert, who was stillborn. That would explain why it was locked away. The picture I'm sure brought pain to Novella since it was of her and her parents when she was younger.

I reached into the chest to pick up the frame so I could look at it. As my hand wrapped around it I noticed the back was bulged, as if something was stuck in the frame. I quickly pulled the frame out and inspected the back of it. It looked like something was behind the photograph. I unlatched the back and took it off only to find a folded-up piece of paper. I placed the frame don and unfolded the paper, which turned out to be a legal document and a note. I read the note first, my eyes widening with every word. I was stunned, Brenton Landon's sister had a son that managed to track down my niece through that no good brother-in-law of mine Fred. A son that was involved with Essie Hatfield, daughter of Judge Wall, and had a business partnership with Hatfields on a Boon mill. A mill that he gave half a stake claim of to Novella for her wedding gift. I read over the claim paper and realized that my niece held 25% of a Hatfield saw mill. Sawyer Amsted, the cousin, held 25% while Devil Anse Hatfield held 50% claim of it.

My god, my niece has been hiding her relation to Hatfields for three and half years. I knew she was hiding it cause if Tolbert knew he would've said something. My oh my, this does make things difficult.

I can't believe she'd hide this from me though. I'm her uncle, took her in when nobody would.

I folded the papers up and stuffed them back into the frame before fixing the back on it. Turning the frame over I looked at the picture. Brenton Landon looked dashing in his hat, his snake-like charming eyes forever captured on the paper, while my sister Rihanna looked beautiful, her soft features a stark contrast to her husband's riggid ones. Little Novella was sitting in front of them looking all her mother, except I noticed that she had both her father's nose and his stature. The way Brenton held his head up and stared down the photo-camera was the exact same was Novella did.

Brenton was not a man that my father approved of. He was kicked out of West Point and disowned by his father, who owned some tobacco plantation in North Carolina-that has been since burned and destroyed decades ago in the war, before making his way up the Appalachian Trail looking for work. The cad met my sister while doing repair work for us, fixing up the barn and stables. Rihanna was set to marry a man that had just begun practicing the law near Louie-Vile, our father's new each other and he match would've brought valuable resources to the family, but Rihanna ran off with the hired help. They settled in the Blue Ridge where he was from, with some help from his cousin Fred. Both the men went to war and survived as I recall. Brenton deserted, or left a bit early, cause of the way Rihanna's birth fell. War ended in April, my niece was born early August…Brenton died in a work accident, as I heard a saw jumped the table and sliced his chest clean in half. Eww… Then Rihanna settled for Fred, who promised to take care of her. He was worse then the first husband.

My poor sister, she'd be alive right now if only she would've listened to our father and married Mr. Jeffryes. At least Novella listened to me and married Tolbert, but she's lying about having a shared claim with Hatfields. What else is she lying about when it comes to those people?

My oh my, I'm afraid that Novella may have more of her father in her then I thought. Looks can be deceiving. I hope she didn't have his spirit, but I'm afraid that she did.

I placed the picture frame back into the chest, closed it, and then left the room. Change of plans, I'm going to Ole Rand'l's fields to have a talk with him. Let him know why his boys won't be working today. Also, I decided to play it off like I know nothing about the shared lumber mill claim Novella has with the Hatfields. If I play my hand right I can see who my niece is truly loyal too. That claim might just be the key in that, or might hold profitable in the long run. I just need to write up some paperwork and have Tolbert sign it, turning the house and financial responsibilities over to me if something ever happened to him. Controlling Novella's house and finances would put her in a tight squeeze if and when, with that boy's attitude its only a matter of time, his death occurs. Novella running to cash in that claim would prove she's on the wrong side, but her never using it and choosing to let me give her an allowance would prove she's a McCoy through and through.

I know what way Brenton would play it, so I hope Novella doesn't do what he would.

Tolbert POV:

Me an' my brothers just pulled onto the main road from the side one, with me in the led, only t'run straight into Johnse Hatfield. Just the lyin' sum-bitch I was lookin' t'kill. We pulled our horses to a stop, all five us surroundin' the lone liar bastard. The dumb blonde boy smiled widely at us while cheerfully sayin', "Just the boys I wanna see. I'm on my way to your Aunt Betty's to rescue my bride. Ya'll can ride with me to fetch Roseanna."

"Just ya shut the hell up! Ya ain't lyin' yer way outta it this time!" I shouted, starin' him down as my hrse was right in front of his. My velvet voice echoed in the sproutin' green forest, boomin' an' causin' Johnse to flinch back.

"I ain't lyin'. I intend t'marry your sister. It'd be easier if our daddies weren't such horses' asses."

How dare he call my poppy a horse's ass? My poppy ain't one, but his is. He has the gall t'insult my family after shamin' it. Oh, he's a dead man. Without much thought I grabbed my pistol from my hip, stood up and smacked Johnse up side the head. He fell off his horse, thumpin' loudly on the ground. I jumped off Eldorado and angrily marched up to Johns. I kicked him in the side over and over again, the side that I shot last year too.

"What's your problem Tolbert? What're ya so hot 'bout?" Johnse asked as he tried to crawl 'way from my boot meetin' his side.

Stoppin' in my kicks I hovered over him. I grabbed him by the collar and pulled him so that he'd sit up. Wavin' my gun in his face I shouted, "I'm gonna kill ya for soilin' my sister's honor!"

"What? Tolbert, I said I'm gonna marry her." He said, his brows furrowed, lookin' at me wit' a lost look.

No, he's not. He ain't marryin' my sister. Hatfields an' McCoys don't mix. Ain't right that Johnse knocked up Roseanna. Ain't right they're havin' a baby, when my son's been rottin' in the ground for a good month. I've done right, courted an' married in a honorable way an' had chil'ren on the right side o'the bad. My sons are dead an' my daughter's deaf, no way am I gonna let Johnse near my sister an' her baby. He don't deserve them, unhonorable prick. Perry seems t'love Roseanna, wants to marry her an' take on the bastard in her belly as his own. My uncle-in-law's honorable, deservin' of my sister.

In a rage I hit Johnse hard upside the head, knockin' him out cold.

"Great, now what're we gonna do wit' him?" Jim asked, givin' me a dirty look.

"Take 'im to Uncle Harmon's old place. Hold him prisoner, then kill him after he comes to."

"How're we gonna get him there? He's out cold." Calvin remarked from a top his horse.

"Pharmer, get ov'r here an' help me sling him on the back of Eldorado."

"We're really takin' him?" Bud asked, his eyes wide as he looked at Pharmer rushin' over to help me.

"Yes, Bud, so shut up." I snapped as me an' Pharmer lifted up Johnse. Damn, boy was like haulin' dead weight.

After shovin' Johnse ov'r back my horse me an' my brothers took off towards the abandoned cabin that used t'be our Uncle Harmon's.

Novella POV:

I've been over at Aunt Betty's visitin' for a while. It was late in the afternoon, bout time for me to go, whenever dark black-grey clouds rolled into the sky an' could be seen thru the window. "You should stay here, sugar. Don't wanna get caught out in rain wit' little Rihanna." Aunt Betty told me as she walked into the livin' room, settin' a tea tray down on the coffee table that was in front of the sofa I was on wit' Roseanna.

Noddin' I said, "Yea, I'll stay til the sky clears up."

"Stay as long as ya like. Tolbert knows you're here, you left him a note, so no harm stayin'." Aunt Betty told me, kindess in her raspy voice. "I'll go check on the little one, see if she's ready to end her nap." She walked off, leavin' me an' Roseanna alone in the main room.

"You should make up wit' Tolbert. Appologize for accusin' him of what ya did, mend things."

"Why should I apologize for? I didn't do nothin' wrong."

"Novella, not bein' able to be wit' the man ya love's painful. I've been parted from Johnse for two days now an' it's killin' me. I don't want that feelin' for you."

"You think me an' Tolbert's marriage is collapsin' an' it's up to me to kiss his ass, save it."

"No, I think you accusin' Tolbert of an affair from hearsay gossip's wrong an' that's gonna tear ya'll apart. You need'a trust him, not words of others."

"Oh…" I sighed out in my flowin' voice. "So, does Johnse know 'bout the baby?"

"I dunno. I didn't get a chance to tell him 'fore Levicy kicked me out an' had Cap drop me off back home." Roseanna said, sadness oozin' from her sweet tinted voice. A long an' down look crossed over her face as he admitted, "Cap was all too eager t'bring me home. Sneerin' as he did so, pokin' fun at me shamin' my family by bringin' a bastard back in my belly." Shakin' her head she lightly scoffed, "Johnse's got such a good heart, but his brother's colder then ice. Never a kind word t'say, always a sneer or degradin' quip."

Really? He couldn't be that bad. I know that Cap comes off as a cocky asshole, but the handful of times I've had talks wit' him he's never been degradin' or icy to me. I know for a fact from my cousin, Sawyer, that Cap's just leery of Roseanna cause he don't want his brother gettin' hurt. I get it, Johnse and Roseanna bein' together's a bad Romeo & Juliet time situation.

"Well, I'm sure that Aunt Betty'll help ya wit' the baby an' the pregnancy. I'll help too, as much as I can." I assured her wit' a warm smile.

Shakin' her head she sighed, "No, I'm afraid that both Tolbert and Perry won't let ya help me."

"Why not?"

"Tolbert'll be angry I'm havin' a Hatfield baby." Roseanna told me in a small voice, causin' me to nod my head. Yea, she was right, he was gonna be pissed off. My sister-in-law took a deep an' shaky breath 'fore revealin', "On my way here, Perry offered to save my honor by marryin' me an' claim the baby as his, but I turned him down. I can't marry him, I'm in love wit' Johnse."

Honestly, I respect Roseanna for not marryin' Uncle Perry just to get rid of the stigma of bein' unwed an' pregnant. Uncle Perry might be madly in love wit' her, but she doesn't love him. She's not settlin' down just to save her reputation. Roseanna's chosen to hold her chin high an' deal wit' whatever comes her way. I amend her for her choice.

I jumped at the chance to court an' marry Tolbert cause I was afraid of bein' alone. Tolbert loved me way 'fore I loved him, loves me more too. Hell, my husband still loves me more then I love him. I love Tolbert, but I just can't trust him wit' my whole entire heart. Maybe in a way I should've been more like Roseanna, not actin' out so quickly in fear of bein' a statistic. In hindsight if I would've spurned Tolbert's courtship I wouldn't have Rihanna right now.

My daughter's my entire world. I'm sure that Roseanna's baby'll be her's too.

With a small smile I grabbed Roseanna's hand. "You're my dearest friend an' my sister-in-law so I'll support ya no matter what."

"Thank you so much. That means a lot to me." She told me, her face tremblin' wit' emotion, as she pulled me into a hug.

AN:

Oh, Perry's a shady one ain't he? Ooo, he knows about Novella's saw mill claim and her connection to Hatfields. Yikes! Yep, Tolbert pistol whipped Johnse and kidnapped him with his brothers' help. Crazy Tolbert's on the loose. Novella's stuck at Aunt Betty's due to bad weather looming. Oh boy. Next up is more twist on the shows storyline, not much just a few tweaks here and there.