Chapter 17

A couple of hours later Kid returned to the station after making inquiries around town about those strange men who had attacked Lou. He had managed to locate the man the girl had had that problem with at Tompkins's store a few days ago. After talking to the fella, it was clear that the man had nothing to do with the incidents of the previous night. He hardly remembered what had happened in the mercantile since he had been completely drunk that day. After that, Kid had asked around to see if anybody recalled seeing a couple of men hanging about Rock Creek's main street last night, but as expected the Southerner had not been able to find anything out. In the few snippets he had managed to get from Louise, she had said that she hadn't been able to see the two men's faces clearly since, apart from having them covered by bandanas, it had been too dark. So without a description to go by, it had been an impossible task to even explain himself.

The Southerner plodded towards Rachel's house, and when he reached the porch, he knocked lightly. Without waiting for any indication, he opened the door a crack and craning his head inside he called, "Rachel?"

"Right here, Kid!" he heard the woman shout from inside.

The young rider let himself in and crossed the lounge towards the far end. Rachel stood before the window, and in front of her standing figure Louise was sitting on a chair, her back towards him. The older woman was holding a pair of scissors and by the looks of it, she was trying to trim Lou's uneven hair.

"Done!" Rachel exclaimed with a big smile and grabbing a hand mirror from the sideboard next to her she held it before Louise's face. "Look at you, Louise! Now you have a nice, fresh air on you."

Lou stared at her own image reflected on the small mirror without much enthusiasm. After a few seconds she rose to her feet and turned round towards Rachel. "With that pretty face the Lord has given you, you don't look any worse with your hair cut so short, but on the contrary," Rachel continued, feeling that the girl was understandably upset by the whole matter. The lady knew what it was like when one was as young as Louise was and probably unsure of oneself. "In your case I would just look like a giant cob!"

Lou snorted at her words, but did not say a word. She didn't really care what she looked like; actually she'd rather have very plain looks and go unnoticed in her usual routine. Yet, she didn't say any of this to Rachel and shrugging her shoulders, she let out, "I miss my braids, though."

"I agree with Rachel; you look remarkably better without those two friends of yours," Kid talked for the first time from behind her with an ample smile.

Louise swirled around to face him and crossing her arms over chest she glared at the Southerner, clearly irritated. "Nobody asked for your opinion," she snapped coldly.

Kid shook his head amused at her persistence and cast a look at Rachel who was finishing sweeping the floor from the remains of Lou's hair. The lady smiled at the rider and once the task was done, she walked up to the pair who stood in awkward silence and passing her arm over the girl's shoulders affectionately, she said, "I'm glad to have you here."

"Thank you for everything, Rachel," Louise added sincerely, changing from the morose expression reserved for Kid to a grinning one.

"My pleasure," the station mistress replied. "But I'm afraid I have to leave you. I need to start dinner." Lou simply nodded as Rachel padded towards the door. "See you two later," the woman said as she slid outside, closing the door behind her.

"Bye, Rachel," Kid called, following the lady with his eyes, and when he turned his head back to Louise, the girl was watching him with the same fierce expression. The rider sighed wearily and asked, "What's wrong, Lou? I'm just trying to…"

Louise raised her hand, gesturing him to stop his flow of words and started in a very angered tone, "I give you three days. Three days, not one more. Then I'm out of here, understood?" Kid was about to retort when she whizzed past him towards the door.

"Where are you going?" he called after her.

Lou paused briefly at the door and turning to the rider she simply said, "To work."

"Wait! Let me go with you," Kid offered but the answer to his suggestion was the sound of the door slamming closed before his very face, almost rattling the walls around him. "Crazy girl," he finally let out and shaking his head for the umpteenth time, he began chuckling.

For some reason Lou did not carry out her threat of leaving in just three days, and it was almost a week now that she had been staying at the station. The girl and Rachel got on like a house on fire, and it was no strange occurrence to see the two women talking and sharing some laughs at the end of the day. It didn't surprise Kid that the station mistress had gladly welcomed Lou in her home since the lady didn't have much female companionship.

Most women in Rock Creek looked down on Rachel apparently because they considered she led a life less than honorable. The station mistress, though, never let herself be coerced by what others thought. For Kid she was one of the best women he had ever known, but people had these prejudices against her. The rider couldn't really understand this general hostility towards the woman. The situation was so different from when Emma had been in charge of the station in Sweetwater. The red-headed woman was greatly respected and appreciated by her neighbors. Nobody could say there were many differences between the two women's lives as station keepers but the attitude was so unlike. Kid thought that the reason for these dissimilar manners might be because Emma had been living in Sweetwater for many years and was an integrated member of its community. Yet, Rachel was a newcomer both in Sweetwater and Rock Creek, and, Kid didn't know how, there were rumors circulating about her and her past life working for a poker player or as a fugitive. Apparently, that distorted image was what was on people's minds and they simply didn't try to look beyond that. Lou, though, was so unlike all these bigoted people, and it was just natural that Rachel welcomed her friendship and company so dearly despite their age difference.

On her part, Louise also had a quite lonely existence and meeting and befriending the station mistress was a good addition for her. Kid was glad that she had finally relented and stopped her protests against staying at the station. In all these days he had tried to find out something about the two men who had attacked her, but his search had been barren. The sandy-haired rider feared that they might try something against her again if he let his guard down. As she had well stated, Louise spent most of the day working at the hotel till late, and it was when she finished her day working that Kid arranged for himself or any other of the riders to walk back to the station with her. As expected, this hadn't pleased her at all and on that first day she had found Kid waiting for her outside the hotel, she had almost bitten his head off as she barked loudly that she didn't need a watchdog and could take good care of herself. Then she had stormed off, leaving him behind.

Her attitude baffled the rider and he couldn't understand her reasoning. It seemed as if she thought that he was trying to annoy her when all he wanted was to look out for her welfare. Kid had tried to talk to her, but she had been in a foul mood for days. Anyway, there was no such occasion for him to approach Louise and engage her in conversation. The girl spent most of the day working at the hotel and when she had some free time, either he was busy with his own responsibilities or Doritha came visiting. Since the blonde girl learned that Lou would be Rachel's guest, she came to the station every single day, hogging the Southerner's attention for her as if she wanted to make sure that he didn't come close to Lou more than what was strictly necessary.

So days went by and it frustrated Kid to see how Louise had adopted that stiff attitude towards him when he didn't deserve it at all. He still didn't know what he had done wrong to suffer this treatment from her. The only moment when he saw her was at the end of the day when he waited for her to leave work so he made sure that nothing happened to her on the way back to Rachel's. Of course he had to do it unbeknown to her, walking behind her at a safe distance and keeping a low profile. Since that first day she had reacted so furiously at finding him at the hotel's door, Kid hadn't wanted to have a repeat of the same scene. Yet, he wasn't ready to let her put her safety in danger for her own stubbornness, and every single night he waited for her, hidden from her sight and then dawdled behind her till she reached the station.

The rider was still wondering who might have wanted to harm Lou. It made no sense since she had practically no acquaintances in Rock Creek and her daily life consisted of nothing more than her job at the hotel. In that foul mood of hers, Kid had been unable to ask her anything else about the attack a few days ago. He had to admit that Doritha was somehow right; he didn't know much about her other than she had two small siblings at the orphanage in St Joseph. Of course he didn't believe what his fiancée had told him about Lou being mugged by a jilted lover. It was clear from Lou's attitude toward men that Doritha was totally wrong, but still there were other possibilities that Kid had been mulling over. Maybe somebody had made romantic passes at her and Louise had turned him down flatly, resulting in that man seeking some kind of retaliation for his hurt manly pride. That was a plausible explanation, Kid reasoned. Another possibility might lie in that incident she had with her estranged father a few weeks ago, but he couldn't think who would go to all that trouble to attack the dead man's daughter. So Kid ended up at the same spot, thinking that he needed to talk to her however mad she was at him.

As all these thoughts were racing through his mind while he waited for Lou in his usual hideout, Kid almost missed her leaving the hotel and bustling towards the station. It took him a few seconds to leap into action and follow her. The streets were almost empty except for the people hanging around the saloon, breaking the night silence. Kid watched Lou's figure as she advanced along the street with steady steps; her now short hair and her petite body made her appear defenseless despite her resolute air and determination. Kid had never met a woman so intent to prove that she didn't need anybody's help or protection. The rider really admired her independence and her devotion to her two young siblings. She was virtually sacrificing her youth for them and didn't seem to care a bit that she couldn't enjoy the pleasures reserved for ladies at this tender age.

The notion brought about a sense of sadness over him, and he wished he could do something about it. He wondered if she had ever attended a social other than as the cleaning lady after everybody had left. He thought that he'd love to be able to escort her to the next dance in town, but he knew that it wasn't his place to do so. Doritha was his girl, and he just couldn't entertain those thoughts about Lou however wholesome his intentions were. Maybe one of the boys could do that for her, but on second thought he reasoned that it wasn't a very good idea after all. Strangely the notion of Lou getting close to anybody other than himself filled him with insecurity and dread; it was as if he felt jealous of the friendship she could form with other men. He liked feeling that he was special to her and wanted to protect that bond from anybody however illogical it was.

The saloon and the noise coming from the building were left behind. It was eerily quiet in the stretch Kid was crossing, following Louise with silent steps. His eyes never left her brisk figure for one second when suddenly he saw her stop dead in her tracks and stand unmoving. Kid frowned, wondering what was wrong with her and walked a few steps closer while trying to keep his presence unnoticed at the same time. Louise kept rooted to the same spot and it was when he approached that he heard her voice.

"Kid, stop that hide-and-seek game. Since you're here, you could well come to my side and walk with me like a gentleman."

The Southerner grinned as she turned round and cast him an amused look. He slowly walked up to her as he asked, "I guess I haven't done a good job at camouflaging."

"Not at all," she replied. "I noticed you right from the first day. So it was high time I stopped this fooling around of yours."

Kid walked the few last steps separating them till they stood at mere inches apart. He stared intently into her eyes, which seemed to glow brightly under the moonlight. "You mad at me?" he asked seriously.

"I should be, but I'm not," she admitted with a smile.

"That's good to know," Kid said in a low voice.

They remained silent for a few long minutes, standing in the middle of the street till Lou broke in, "Well, Kid. Shall we go on or are we gonna stay here all night?"

"Oh yeah," he promptly replied, chuckling at his own absent-mindedness, and adopting a stilted posture, he held out his arm for her to take. "Ma'am," he let out, sending her a searching look but Louise simply pushed his arm away amused as she burst out laughing.

The pair resumed their walking towards the station. Neither said a word while unbeknown to the other they both kept sending furtive glances. Kid fought in his mind to find a way to talk to her; he missed having a relaxed conversation with Lou, but right now for some strange reason he was feeling nervous and very awkward. The girl was also debating with herself how to break the ice with Kid. Once again her temper had gotten out of control, and she had taken it out on the rider, not even crossing a word with him for days. Lou absolutely abhorred anybody making decisions for her and even though she still wasn't happy about Kid's attitude, her anger had settled as the days had passed. She could understand that her friend had meant well, but at the same time she thought that he had taken things too far, meddling in her matters when he had no call for that. His attitude was infuriating, but she realized that she couldn't stay angry with him for long. Louise had to admit grudgingly that she missed him and, even though she had gotten close to Rachel, her friendship didn't prevent her from longing for Kid's company.

After a few minutes of silence, Lou cleared her throat and asked, "So how are things?"

Kid looked at her curiously, grinning at her question. Even though they hardly saw each other, not even at meal times, Lou was aware of what was going on at the station since she had been staying at Rachel's for the last week and in any case the station mistress surely filled her in on anything she might have missed. "Same old stuff," Kid replied with a snicker. "Only thing is we have a guest of late. A certain girl with a hellish character. Drives me crazy."

Louise burst out laughing at his comment. "I've been impossible, haven't I?"

"Well, nothing I haven't seen before," he replied sending her a knowing look.

After their amusement was gone, they lapsed into silence once again. Lou was feeling very high-spirited and without giving it a second thought, she asked, "So are you busy planning your wedding?" As soon as the question was out, she cringed, wondering what had prompted her to question him about anything related to his fiancée. That was what had started off the tremendous argument they had the last time, but now that she had clumsily let her tongue out of control, she couldn't do anything to take it back.

"Uh…" Kid started hesitantly, "not really." He didn't want to mention the sore point of the ranch and his disagreements with Doritha. It pained him to simply think about it and he didn't want to show his uneasiness in front of Louise, so he tried to diffuse the matter. "Anyway, things are getting kind of unclear with all the talk about war."

"What does that have to do with you?" she asked with a frown, and when his silence answered her question, she stopped him by grabbing his arm. "You ain't thinking of joining up, are you?" she asked, her big eyes searching and as he remained quiet, she repeated with more intensity, "Are you, Kid?"

"I ain't sure, Lou, but I'm from the South," he replied sincerely. The rider had no clear idea of what he'd end up doing, but lately he was seriously considering the option. He admitted he was taking the coming war as an excuse to prevent him from making a decision about his future with Doritha. Maybe he was choosing the easy way out, but after all, he strongly felt inclined to defend the land he had been born in. The idea had always been on his mind, so now it seemed more appealing after his problems with the blonde girl.

"I can't believe you're thinking of doing something like that!" Lou retorted, her voice shaking with indignation.

"You don't understand…" Kid started again but Lou cut him off in mid-sentence.

"You're right, I don't understand because it's just plain stupid."

Kid sighed wearily, tired of going over the same argument again. He had had enough discussions with his fellow riders about the subject, and he really didn't need to listen to more "sound" reasons why him fighting for the South was the wrong decision. Moreover, Doritha's relentless praise of the brave confederate soldiers ready to put their lives on the line for the South was also getting on his nerves. All he wanted was to be left alone in this matter, and right now he didn't look forward to quarreling with Louise about the same. "Look, Lou. I'm tired of everybody telling me how wrong I am. Sorry if I ain't on the right side for you but …"

"What are you talking about?" Lou replied, cutting him off once again. "I don't know which is the right side or the wrong side, and honestly I don't care. All I know is that you might end up getting yourself killed!" Her tone was loud and demanding, but at this point she soothed her stance and let out in a very soft and sad voice, "They might kill you."

Kid was taken back by her words, not expecting that response from her. She was the first person who had actually voiced her doubts about him going to the war because it might cost him his life. Everybody else had been all about the rights and wrongs of the imminent war, but nobody had even hinted what consequences he might have to face if he upheld his decision. Of course he wasn't a fool and knew what he would be willing to risk, but listening to Lou uttering her concerns pulled at his heart, and he felt moved to the extreme. He was lost at words and simply said, "Yes, they might."

The calmness in his stance and words sparked her temper once again. "Don't you even care a tiny little bit what your decision might do to others?" she barked loudly, her eyes sparkling like fire. "Have you given any thought to your fiancée, your friends or … the people who care about you?"

Her vehemence baffled him and he could hardly make a few coherent words. "Lou… I…" he started stretching his arm to touch her shoulder, but Louise shoved it away while she cried angrily, "Leave me alone, selfish heartless moron!"

Before Kid could do anything, Lou stormed off towards the way station, and it took him a few seconds to leap into action and run after her. "Lou!" he called, but in the almost total darkness of the night he couldn't make out her brisk petite figure and it was obvious that she wasn't going to answer his summons. When he finally reached the station, he headed straight for the stables. If he didn't know any better, the girl must have fled into it. While she stayed at Rachel's, Teaspoon had offered to lodge her horse, Lightning, at the station stables. So every single day after work Louise spent some time there, making sure that the animal was properly fed and groomed.

There was a lamp hanging from a post in the inside, casting its dim light all over the stables, and as soon as Kid stepped inside, he spotted the girl. Her left side was leaned against the stall where Lightning was, her back to the rider. Kid slowly advanced along while he called her name softly, "Lou." The girl didn't move an inch and stayed in the same position, and when the rider reached and stood before her, she kept her eyes downcast. "Lou…" he started awkwardly, and putting a finger under her chin, he lifted her face towards him, "Why on earth are you so upset?"

Louise swatted his hand away and said with a very miffed expression, "I don't understand why you'd be willing to risk your life like that."

"Lou… Louise, I ain't sure whether I'll go," he replied softly, which prompted a half smile from her at the use of her full name and then he added mostly to himself. "I don't know what I'm gonna do."

Lou lowered her eyes from his face and admitted in a whisper, "I've grown very fond of you."

At her words Kid smiled, feeling strangely moved by her admission. "I've grown quite fond of you too, Lou." He stopped briefly, to look into her eyes meaningfully and after a while he continued, "That's why I'd hate it if something happened to you."

Louise nodded in understanding and said with a sheepish smile, "I guess I'm having a taste of my own medicine, aren't I?"

She dared to lift her gaze to him, and it was then that she found his eyes intently boring into her. For the first time she realized that he was very close, a few inches just separating their bodies, but for some strange reason she didn't feel awkward or uncomfortable by his nearness. Actually, she kind of liked having him so close and she found herself staring back into his eyes with the same intensity. Neither spoke as they kept gazing at each other for long minutes, and when his hand accidentally brushed against hers, sending a tingling sensation all through her body, she became nervous and self-conscious, and awkwardly moved away from him.

"Uh… Kid… I," she stuttered uneasily, "I think … well… I'm uh... tired and I guess I'll go to bed now." She kept babbling on confusedly, without even casting a single look at him and finally she simply said, "Good night."

Without waiting for him to reply, she stormed out of the stables like a bat out of hell, leaving Kid in his own company, also confused and wondering what had just happened.