I do NOT own The Big Valley or any of the original Barkley characters. ^ I was told Strawberry was not like it was portrayed on the show, that it was a mountain community, with redwood trees. Due to the story, I'll be turning a small part of Strawberry into what I've been told.

Blindsided

Chapter Five

Brigham stood watching a few deer grazing almost right outside the window. He'd woken up in the middle of the night and, not being able to get back to sleep, had decided his time could be better used going over the problem he'd acquired. He sighed as he turned his gaze to the young woman sleeping on the bed and then turned his attention back to the deer outside.

"Mr. Peterson and his men, there are three of them, will meet you in Sonora and from there you can head northeast into Strawberry and then into Nevada…" The letter he'd been given by the young man his boss had sent contained all the details pertaining to the job he and Jack had been hired for. It was no place for a young woman. If only he knew he could trust her, he would let her go in a heartbeat, but he didn't. Had she had earned the respect and admiration associated with the Barkley name, or was she a black sheep of the family? If only he could be sure. It was that, the uncertainty, that kept him from freeing her.

He sighed again; his whole life had been like that. From an early age, he'd learned to be careful with whom he trusted any information with. There were only two kinds of people in his world, friends and enemies, and even the friends were kept, to some degree, at bay. Those were the only categories he knew anything about, anyway.

His mind replayed his life for him. By the time he was sixteen, Brigham had been in more scrapes and seen the inside of more law offices than a body that age usually saw. By the time he was twenty-one, he knew more roads and paths than he thought possible. The roads he knew ran all over California and as far as the Mississippi River; he'd never been east of that.

Now? He was tired of moving, tired of the jobs he felt compelled to take by an unseen hand. That tired feeling wasn't being helped by finding himself with a young woman to protect, a Barkley at that. He might have swore but he feared waking his "guest" up, so as it was he only muttered in frustration, "Why couldn't you just have stayed on your ranch."

Unbeknownst to Brigham, Audra was already awake, had been for a few minutes. At first, she automatically grabbed her crop, but loosened her grip on it as she watched the man by the window. She didn't understand him at all. Here he was, a wanted man she was sure, yet he was treating her like a lady and had kept his partner from taking advantage of her. As she studied him closer, she realized just how worn out he really looked, like someone carrying too heavy of a load.

Finally Brigham felt Audra's gaze and turned his head. "Good morning, princess, sorry if I woke you up." He had been doing his best to be quiet and not disturb the young woman.

Audra sat up, agitated that he was still calling her princess. "I have a name you know!" Her agitation could be seen in her eyes and heard in her voice.

Brigham only chuckled and stepped away from the window. "That you do, princess. You'd best get out there and start cooking something for breakfast. Jack's grumpier than all get out in the morning, until he gets something in his belly." When a disgusted look came upon Audra's face, Brigham let out a roar of laughter, left the room and headed outside.

Out on the porch, Brigham again took time to try and work things out in his head. Reno, Nevada. That's where they were supposed to be heading, but he didn't like the idea of taking the young woman out of California. It was going to be hard enough to protect her without adding the danger of the job awaiting them.

"Stand there long enough you'll turn into a statue." Jack almost succeeded in making Brigham jump ten feet in the air when he walked out the front door and started speaking.

"Wish I would." Brigham replied, looked at his partner as he took a deep breath and enjoyed the fresh smell in the air, the kind that only came in after a good storm and then went back to looking over the scenery before him. "We best get moving once breakfast is over, got a long ride ahead of us still."

Jack leaned against the outside wall and hesitated to speak his piece. Brigham was either your best friend or worst enemy; Jack didn't want him for an enemy. Still, he had to take a chance. "I may not agree with having her here, but we can't take her into Nevada with us. Still, if you're bent on having her in on this, I have an idea."

That got Brigham's attention and he whirled around to face his partner. "What is it?" At the moment, he'd consider anything.

"Strawberry," Jack said as he glanced towards the front door. "Why don't we meet the boys in Sonora as planned, travel with them to Strawberry and then, instead of leaving a couple of them in Strawberry as our California contacts, the two of you stay. You stay in the part that's in the beautiful mountain area, the part with those gorgeous Redwood trees. That woman of yours would just love it." He hoped the man wouldn't think he wanted to be put in charge on a permanent basis, he didn't, but it was the only thing he could come up with that would keep Brigham's girl out of the trouble he knew was waiting for them once they arrived in Nevada, 'them' meaning him and whoever was with him.

Brigham sat down on the steps and scratched his chin. Jack said nothing knowing full well the man was deep in thought. 'I'm only thirty-two; I'm not that old but I sure feel it. Maybe, stayin' in Strawberry wouldn't be so bad. Jack and the men are more than capable of doin' the main part of the job. After Jack's had plenty of time to get to Nevada, I could keep my promise and tell her the basics without endangering any of the men. Give me time to know whether or not I can trust her.'' Even with these thoughts, Brigham hesitated. He'd spent too many years 'up front', could he really handle being 'behind the scenes'? Just as he was about to tell his friend he'd take his chances in Nevada, he could smell bacon floating through the slightly opened window and heard Miss Audra humming slightly. He shook his head and then stood up. "Let's eat breakfast." He looked at Jack and added, "I'll think about it."