Blowing in the Wind

Chapter Twenty Six

Kyle Jensen had come to the conclusion that it was just too high of a risk riding in the boxcar get clear to Stockton…a notion that was only solidified, when he'd almost been caught switching boxcars once the train stopped in San Francisco. That being the case, he began going over various places he could get off the train heading to Stockton and the different routes he could take to get to his destination. Not knowing about Steve's plans, Kyle figured he would still kill two birds with one stone as it were. After all, with Steve and John both in Stockton, he wouldn't have to try and follow any sort of trail. Having made his decision, Kyle managed to open the boxcar door even with the train moving.

He waited until the train had to slow down, due to a bend in the route they were taking, and then he jumped from the train, hit the ground and started rolling down a small hill. Once he stopped; Kyle stood up and brushed himself off. Looking around, he was relieved to see a fire burning in the distance. He was hungry and hoped to get some free food. If not, he ran his hand over the gun he wore at his side, he'd just take some.

~oOo~

To look at the old grey haired woman who sat next to the campfire, one might think she was older than she was, or wonder what she was doing camping out instead of living in a home-any home. Truth was, Hannah Givens was younger than many thought her to be…though she was pushing fifty. In her early years, she had spent time with her family traveling from one end of the country to the other; her father had never been able to stay put for very long. Later, she'd gotten a job with the circus and worked with them for many years. Never having married, she had been invited to live with some friends in Sacramento. She'd accepted…if they didn't mind her arriving by her own schedule…she didn't care to travel in anything but her own wagon.

When Hannah heard footsteps approaching, she looked up. She didn't know the stranger who was coming towards her, but she knew the aurora that was around him. She'd felt it too often through her life. He was a bad one; unhurriedly, she turned her attention to the stew she was making.

Kyle, seeing only the old woman, smiled slyly to himself as he stepped closer to the fire. "I saw your fire..."

"Sit down." Hannah interrupted him as she pointed to a nearby rock. She had little use for men like this one, though she would not let anyone go hungry.

Kyle didn't appreciate being interrupted, but since the woman was already dishing him out some food, he did as he was told. He looked at the wagon and-due to the pictures of animals and the word Fortune Teller on the side of it- he figured he'd have a little bit of fun while he ate. As Hannah handed him the plate full of food, along with a spoon, he nodded towards the wagon and said, "You any good?"

Hannah, who had turned her face away from him, shrugged her shoulders. "Some say so," She wasn't about to give the man before her any lengthy reply. Not only did she already dislike him, there was no reason to waste her breath on someone whose body language already told her he wasn't serious.

"How about telling me my future?" Kyle gave a half heart laugh as he pulled a few coins out of his pocket.

Normally, Hannah would have told him to keep his money-that the pictures and words on the wagon were only pictures that told of a life she once had. However, the extra money would come in handy, while she travelled to her friends' home. That being the case she held out her hand and took the money. "Let me see your hand."

Kyle laid down his spoon and held out his hand. Hannah took it and began tracing his palm with her pointer finger. After a few minutes, she let go of his hand, sat up straight and looked him in the eye. "Everything in life is blowing in the wind and, if one is not careful, that wind will be the death of them. Listen to me," Hannah Givens said as she leaned forward and looked at Kyle with a look that came close to passing as insanity. "You are following three birds, but I tell you this…give that hunt up. One bird will have flown the coop before you ever reach your destination and the other two will be joined by another-even stronger than the one you have lost by coming here. The bond they form will be unbreakable by the time you get to your intended destination. Turn and run as fast as you can before the blowing wind uses those three birds to bring you down. That is, if you want to keep living and breathing on this side of the grass."

For a split second, Kyle felt chills run down his back. While the talk about him hunting birds was foolishness, there was something about the woman that actually scared him. Maybe she actually knew what she was talking about. However, he quickly shook that feeling off. She was just an old woman who was simply trying to get a rise out of whoever crossed her path. Thinking that like, Kyle sneered, drank down the last of the drink she'd given him and turned around.

"Thanks for food, but I've got a long way to go and not much time to do it in." He then hurried away from the campfire and left as fast as he could. There were two men that were going to pay dearly for the wrongs Kyle thought they had committed. Come to think about it, after he got to Stockton and dealt with Steve and John, he just might deal with that fancy attorney as well. After all, Jarrod had had the nerve to protect John and, by taking the bullet meant for Mr. Summers, made it so that Kyle was wanted by the law. Kyle had to find some transportation even if he had to 'borrow' it for a little while. After all, there was no way he was walking to Stockton.

The old woman was relieved the stranger got on his way, but shook her head just the same as she looked at her mule, that was letting out a 'heeee hawww'. "I warned him, can't do anything else." She turned her attention to the fire and started muttering about the wind, three birds and the fool who wouldn't listen to her.