*Author's Note*
Thank you for the reviews, faves, and follows.
Back to back updates, go me woot woot!
Oh yea, Roseanna picked up on the Cap's concern for Novella. She confronts Novella about it in the third scene of this chapter. Tolbert's going to be so thrilled this chapter *heavy sarcasm*. Yep, things are rolling pretty fast.
Hatfields & McCoys Don't Mix Pt.3
Tolbert POV:
I pushed Johnse out of the door, pokin' him in the back wit' my pistol. My brothers stood a few ways 'way from the cabin as I spurred our prisoner to pace on. Once I deemed him far 'nough from my brothers an' the cabin I ordered in a smooth-gruff tone, "Stop." Johnse obeyed, freezin' in his steps. Lazily movin' my wrist, makin' my gun spin, I told him, "Turn 'round." Twigs snapped as Johnse turned, a hollow look in his crystal blue eyes. "Ya know I wanted t'kill ya myself, but I gotta humor my brothers." I lowly told Johnse, my velvet-gruff tone mockin' him. "Now in few minutes when the sun come up I want'cha to take this pistol an' do the honorable thing, kill yerself."
"Why in god's name would I do that for?" Johnse asked, givin' me a goofy look.
"Shame an' remorse." I simply told him wit' a shrug.
"Bullshit." Johnse spat out 'fore sayin', "You're just tryin' to get outta committin' a murder."
Damn bastard, can't just do what he's told. It'd be best if he put the gun t'his head an' pulled the trigger, wouldn't cause that much of a backlash from his crazy family. Rollin' my eyes I turned t'look at my brothers. "He won't kill himself."
"Will he et posion?" Pharmer asked, pointin' at Johnse, who was quietly standin' right 'hind me. Oh, leave it t'fat ass Pharmer to suggest ettin' posion.
Well, since Johnse was too yellow t'shoot himself I'd do it. I wanted t'make it less messy, but hell he needs t'die. Unlike my brothers I ain't got a problem sendin' this piece of shit man t'burn in hell. Spinnin' on my heel I aimed an' cocked my gun at Johnse while snappin', "The hell wit' this."
'Fore I could pull the trigger, send a bullet flyin' 'tween Johnse's eyes, Devil Anse's hard deep voice commanded out of the crisp air, "Put it down!"
I turned my head 'round an' noticed that Devil Anse, Jim Vance, Cap Hatfield, Skunk Hair, and many other men includin' my own cousin Selkirk were flankin' us an' comin' in on us.
"Do as he says or I'll scatter your brains all ov'r the place!" Jim Vance ordered in a loud bellow from a top his horse, pointin' his rifle right at me.
I lowered my gun, but kept my head held up high as the devil made his way over to me wit' his Winchester aimed on my chest. Jim Vance nev'r got off his horse, just trotted it close to the cabin. Devil Anse tilted my chin up with the barrel of his gun as he stooped right in front of me. In a split second he spun his rifle 'round an' busted my cheek wit' the butt, sendin' me flyin' to the ground. I could feel blood goin' down my cheek as I sat up, seein' Cap take my brothers' guns while trainin' his pistol on them.
Johnse moseyed ov'r t'his kin only to have Cap walk up t'him an' give 'im a gun, one that belonged to one of my brothers. Devil Anse coldly looked at my brothers, pointin' his gun 'tween me an' them, while advisin' in a deep rough tone, "Ya'll better join your brother on the ground an' pray as if your lives depend on it."
Calvin an' Pharmer ran ov'r to where I was sittin' an' plopped down on their asses. Normally I wouldn't be sittin' like a chicken shit, but we were outnumbered an' unarmed. Also, my head an' cheek bone hurt like a bitch from gettin' hit. Jim, the fool, just stood still. Now's not the time, Hatfields are armed an' crazy so just kneel down an' hope t'God they don't kill us.
Devil Anse marched ov'r t'Jim an' pointed his pistol in his face while seethin', "I thought I said kneel, McCoy."
"I kneel for no man an' I only pray to God, not ya or any man." Jim defiantly said, starin' the devil down. Only time he had balls was in a situation like this instead of at home wit' his snobby wife.
"Your daddy'd be proud of ya, Jim McCoy." The head Hatfield mocked as he brought down his gun.
"Cap, Skunk Hair, torch it." Jim Vance ordered the two men near his horse as he tossed them lit torches while Devil Anse walked back to his horse. Cap an' Skunk Hair did what they were told gleefully as Jim made the remark of, "Should've burnt this shithole down years 'go."
Shit, there goes Uncle Harmon's old place. Now we ain't got a cabin t'rest in when we're out huntin' far 'way from home. The yellow-orange flames burnt wildly all ov'r the cabin. Cap an' Skunk Hair tossed the torches in windows they broke 'fore goin' back to their horses. Cap made sure t'give me a hard stare wit' his mismatched eyes too. That one-eyed bastard hated my guts, but in return I hated his too.
As the cabin burnt 'fore our eyes the Hatfields left. Cap made sure to let out a large whoop an' snicker at me 'fore he spurred his horse on into a trot, makin' him the last one of the crazy lot t'leave. That one-eyed scrawny piece of shit's got problems, bit titched in the head if ya ask me.
Reckon I better pick my ass up an' get ov'r to Aunt Betty's, see my wife an' daughter. Looks like I'll be tellin' her 'bout my foiled dawn plans as well.
Novella POV:
The mornin' sun was brightly shinin' whenever the sound of horses trottin' up to the large house could be heard. Levicy was makin' breakfast an' I was helpin' her while Roseanna was sittin' and pountin' at the table, just as she'd done since Anse and Cap left to fetch everyone to save Johnse. Levicy had just pulled a large pan of biscuits out of the oven while I was scramblin' up a large pan of eggs whenever the front door opened with a creak. I looked over at the door, same as Levicy an' Roseanna did, only to see Devil Anse walk inside with Johnse, Cap, and Jim Vance followin' in that order. Levicy was relieved and overjoyed to see her first born alive, runnin' over to him an' pullin' him into a tight motherly embrace.
"Ya look dry." Cap said in his deep wave-like tone as he walked over near the stove.
"Yea." I nodded. He leaned 'gainst the counter while I pulled the finished eggs off the stove. "I sat by the fire drinkin' coffee an' keepin' your ma company."
"The twit been there all night?" Cap asked lowly, his head tiltin' towards Roseanna.
Noddin', I said in a whisper back to him, "Yea, hasn't moved an inch since ya'll left."
Rollin' his mistmatched eyes he scoffed, "That's stupid in her condition. Bigger than shit she's gonna catch somethin', weather's been tricky."
'Fore I could say a word Levicy walked over. Placin' a gentle hand on my shoulder she suggested, "Go have a seat next to Roseanna, I'll bring the coffee."
I just gave her a tight smile, nodded, and walked over to join Roseanna. As soon as I took my seat next to her Cap marched over to where his brother, pa, an' uncle were at all awkwardly starin' at each other. The tension was so thick in the room that an axe could slice it as easy as a core of firewood.
"So, what's for breakfast? I'm starved." Johnse said in a cheerful tone as if that llast few tedious an' nerve wracking hours never happened.
"Are ya stupid? You're askin' 'bout breakfast after almost gettin' yourself killed?" Cap growled out deeply as he shook his head at his older brother.
"I didn't almost get myself killed. Tolbert got all hot-headed and knocked me out when him an' his brothers came up on me in the middle of the road." Johnse said as Levicy appeared by my side, pourin' me a cup of coffee.
As I took my cup an' drank my first sip from it I watched Cap get up into Johnse's face pushin' his shoulder an' shoutin', "You're a damn fool for ridin' into McCoy territory alone in the first place."
"None of it matters now." Johnse snapped as he pushed Cap back. "I'm safe thanks to Roseanna, who's carryin' my baby." Johnse said, pointin' to Roseanna, as Levicy set a cup of coffee in front of her.
"Roseanna's what?!" Devil Anse exclaimed while Jim just looked at Roseanna as if she was a piece of trash. Snappin' his head t'look at his wife the Hatfield patriarch asked, "Did ya known bout this?"
Levicy quickly shook her head, denyin' she knew of my sister'in'law's condition. I don't blame her, I would've done the same thing if I was her.
"She's a McCoy. She betrayed her own family, she'll betray ours too." Jim Vance told Johnse while Roseanna narrowed her brows at the large unkempy mountain man. I get the feelin' my sister-in-law didn't like the man. I personally didn't have an opinion on him considerin' I only met him once an' he seemed nice 'nough at the time.
"No, she won't." Johnse said, earnin' him a groan and eye roll from his Great-Uncle Jim. "I love her an' we're gettin' married, havin' a baby. I ain't takin' any of this no more." Johnse declared defiantely wit' his chin raised up.
"Oh, you'll take it." Anse seethed, pullin' his pipe from his mouth and pointin' it at his eldest son. He took a few large strides and got into Johnse's face. "You'll damn well take it!" He shouted, his deep voice deadly still, as he smacked Johnse hard 'cross the face.
The loud sudden echo of the slap made Cap, who was standin' near his brother, jump up and back like a skittish cat. By his reaction I quickly gathered that his father wasn't a man to strike his chil'ren often. Jim Vance just turned his head, starin' at Anse in a sort of shock as if he couldn't believe he'd actually hit Johnse. Next to me at the table Roseanna tensed up while Levicy looked on with wide eyes.
In an angered trace Anse smacked Johnse ov'r and ov'r, sendin' the poor younger man fallin' on the ground. Whenever Johnse was crouchin' in the corner, getting' beat, Roseanna rose from her seat an' begged, "Stop it, Mr. Hatfield! Please, stop it!"
"Anse! Anse!" Jim shouted as he tried to pull Devil Anse off Johnse.
Cap quickly rushed over to his brother's aid, shieldin' him from their father's hits, while Levicy rushed over to her husband while shoutin', "Anderson, don't you dare hit him no more!" With Jim strugglin' to pull Anse off Johnse and Cap usin' himself as a human shield to protect his brother, Levicy manured herself 'round to face her husband while orderin in a loud syrupy-stern tone, "You won't touch that boy no more, Anderson Hatfield!"
Man, that woman had some brass tits on her to get in the middle of her husband beatin' the shit outta their kid. It's like she wasn't even 'fraid of gettin' hit an' the only thing she cared 'bout was protectin' her son, well sons since one was shieldin' the other an' therefore gettin' whacked too. What was even more shockin' was that the devil listened to his outspoken wife too.
Anse backed away, his right hand shakin', and took a deep breath. Cap got up and then helped Johnse stand. Johnse looked like shit, clearly his pa could pack a punc. Jim just stood, givin' Levicy a raised brow look. Cap was just standin' by the window, lookin' down at his mud encrusted boots like they were the most interestin' things in the world. Johnse went to make his way to Roseanna, but was stopped by his father's hand on his shoulder.
"You'll never marry a McCoy." Devil Anse vowed to his eldest son, causin' him to get a very cuttin' look from Roseanna. Shit, honey, the man just beat the shit outta his son an' you dare to give him the evil eye? Yea, I wouldn't be… Anse returned Roseanna's dirty look wit' one so hard an' dead that it could stop the blood runnin' in one's veins. Lookin' at his son the man gave out the ultimatum of,"Ya go after it don't come back. Make your choice, son. Stay or go."
Cap an' me shared a look from 'cross the room, silently lettin' each other know that we both knew the heart breakin' choice Johnse was gonna make.
Roseanna bit her lip, lookin' at Johnse hopefully, as she stood by the kitchen table. Johnse silently looked at my sister-in-law, sorrow in his crystal blue eyes. He was silently standin' on the side of the room his family was scattered at. Roseanna's face fell an' she let out a hurt sigh 'fore turnin' 'way from the table an' rushin' out of the house.
The only sound in the quiet room was the bang of the door shuttin' behind Roseanna.
Standin' up I said, "Thanks for the coffee. I'm gonna go now."
Levicy gave me a thinly lined smiled an' nodded her head while Anse just nodded at me. Jim shrugged, not carin' what I did, while Johnse just gave me a lost look. Cap on the other hand walked over to me while sayin', "I'll show ya out."
Silently I nodded and let Cap walk me out the door. Once outside I saw Roseanna's horse in the near distance. While walkin' 'cross the front porch I kindly told Cap, "Thank you for walkin' me out."
The shaggy haired blonde just nodded, stuffin' his hands in his coat pockets. "Your husband's gonna be madder then a wet hornet when he realizes what ya done." Cap told me as we walked down the steps an' to the hitchin' post my horse was on. "Tolbert's got a bad temper, he might lose control cause of all this." He remarked while helpin' me onto my horse. While handin' me over the reins he said in his deep wave-like timbre, "Use that claim an' leave if he starts slappin' ya 'round, ya hear me."
"I hear ya, but I'll be fine." I assured him 'fore trottin' 'way from the house.
Once far 'nough 'way from the house I kicked the side of y horse, spurrin' it on faster so that I'd catch up to Roseanna down the road.
Me an' Roseanna had been ridin' side by side in silence back to Kentucky for a while now. There was a slight awkwardness and dullness suroundin' us, or at least that's how I felt. The only sound t'be heard was the trottin' of our horses on the road in the middle of the woods.
"Cap Hatfield seems t'oddly care for ya." Roseanna told me, her sweet bell like voice flat as it broke the silence suroundin' us.
Shakin' my head I told my sister-in-law, "No, he don't. He was just bein' polite since it was rainin' bad."
"Novella, Cap don't care 'bout nothin' but himself, he's cold-hearted an' callous. Spends all his free time wit' Jim Vance, who's meaner then a dog, too." She told me with a very knowin' tone in her bell-like voice. "But, he shows concern for ya and your daughter. Melts for ya actually, goes from bein' cold to a warm person." Roseanna said as we trotted further down the road. "That's not bein' polite, that's him havin' feelin's for ya."
"Oh, shut the front door, you're readin' too much into it cause you've been 'round him too long." I scoffed, blowin' off Roseanna's ridiculous thoughts.
Roseanna's mouth clamped shut an' she look straight 'head as we continued down the road. After a few minutes she sobbed, "I just can't believe Johnse let me leave like he did. Didn't come wit' us."
Um, I can believe it. No, actually I knew it was gonna happened. Sadly, I can't tell that to my sweet and naïve sister-in-law cause it'd only hurt her worse. "Yea…"
"His family's so mean not lettin' us be together. They know we're in love an' havin' a baby. How can they be like that after I lived wit' 'em for ov'r a year?" Roseanna whined in her sweet pitched tone, causin' me to just shrug my shoulders.
Yes, I felt bad for her, but if she was gonna whine an' cry all the way back to Aunt Betty's I was gonna bite my lip bloody t'keep from lashin' out at her. No use cryin' over spilt milk, what's done's done an' there's no goin' back.
Whenever we rode up to Aunt Betty's my heart dropped into my stomach as I saw Eldorado, my husband's horse, tethered to the hitchin' post in front of the porch. Oh shit, he came here instead of goin' home. Bud's horse was gone, meanin' he went back to his house. Bet Tolbert chewed him up an' spit him out 'fore he did. Me and Roseanna shared a startled look at we guided our horses to the hitch post, we both knew that hell awaited me inside our aunt's house.
After dismountin' we walked up the porch steps and into the house only to see Tolbert an' Aunt Betty sittin' on an arm char and sofa while watchin' Rihanna playin' wit' a doll on the floor. Aunt Betty gave us a weary look while Tolbert set a fiery gaze on me. Oh yea, I was in for a tongue lashin'. "Aunt Betty, ya ought'a take Roseanna in the kitchen an' get 'er somethin' t'et. I need'a talk wit' my backstabbin' wife." Tolber told our old aunt, his velvet timbre cuttin' sharply like the sharpened blade of a butcher's clever.
Aunt Betty just looked at me wit' pity 'fore risin' from the sofa an' crossin' the room to get Roseanna. Quickly Aunt Betty ushered Roseanna into the kitchen leavin' only me, Tolbert, and Rihanna in the room. Sittin' up start wit' a locked-jaw my husband firmly an' angrily told me in a smooth tone, "Bud I can see tellin' Roseanna 'bout killin' Johnse, he's still a stupid boy. No brainer that Roseanna'd run off to save him, send the Hatfields t'rescue him, so I weren't s'prised 'bout that neither. No, but I was shocked t'see ya missin' when I got 'ere. Even more so t'learn from both Bud an' Aunt Betty that ya went wit' my silly sister t'round up the Hatfields an' sic 'em on me an' my brothers."
"Tolbert-" I began only to get cut off wit' a loud shout of, "Don't ya dare Tolbert me, ya damn traitor!"
"Traitor?" I asked in a bitter voice. Narrowin' my cornflower blues at him I boldly said, "I ain't a damn traitor, I went wit' Roseanna t'save your neck."
"Save my neck, really?" Tolbert asked rhetorically as he shot out of his chair. In a quick stride he appeared in front of me. Pointin' to the large bloodied gash on his left cheek bone he sneered, "Ya see my cheek? It's split open an' gashed deep near t'bone." Borin' his storm-blue hued eyes at me hatefully he snapped, "Devil Anse did that, but ya think that's savin' my neck."
"Damnit, you got that gash cause ya were gonna kill his son. He just knocked some sense into your hard head." I told him, tryin' to make him see the reality behind everythin' that happened at dawn.
"I can't believe what yer sayin' right now, Ella. Ya soundin' like a damn fool."
"No, I'm not, you're just too mad to realize that what I'm sayin's makin' sense and's true."
"Damn right I'm mad. My fuckin' wife betrayed me. Yer s'posed t'be wit' me thru good times an' bad, but ya turned yer back on me." My husband smoothly snarl, his nostrils flarin' worse then that of a bull ready to charge.
"Tol-" I began only to be cut off wit' a loud and emotional snap of, "I love ya so goddamn much, but it don't even matter anymore cause ya sent my enemies out on me knowin' there was a high chance I'd be killed." Pointin' to our daughter playin' wit' her doll he ordered, "Get her an' go home."
Not wantin' to upset him anymore, since I knew I'd hurt him real bad, I just nodded and did as I was told. Once I had Rihanna standin' up, her hand in mine, I walked ov'r to where Tolbert was waitin' near the door. Silently he flung the door open an' motioned for me to walk outside. I obliged him, hearin' his heavy bootsteps echo behind me.
"I'm goin' t'ma an' pa's to get some work done. Done 'xpect me home t'night." I heard him tell me as I walked down the porch steps wit' my daughter.
Reckon he'll be headin' into Pikeville to visit that young pretty whore, Misty, Cap told me Tolbert's been seein' the few times he's been at the whorehouse on Friday nights. Whatever, I did what I felt was right and if that costs me my marriage then so be it. Not like my marriage was gonna last anyways since Aunt Sally says all my sons'll belong to another man. Levicy says that Aunt Sally's sight's never wrong, so one day sooner or later me an' Tolbert'll part ways and I'll move on wit' another man. A man that's not only the father of my sons, but takes on the fatherly role to my daughter as well.
AN:
And the kidnap/attempted murder of Johnse storyline is complete. Yep, took 3 parts to get it all done. Yikes, Novella and Tolbert are on the rocks now. So, will Tolbert go to the whorehouse in Pikeville to see Misty and drink or just crash on his parents' sofa and pout while getting drunk? What do ya'll think about what Roseanna said to Novella about Cap only being a nice caring human to her cause he likes her? Is she right or wrong? The guy did ask Perry to court her like 4 years prior so…LOL!