Chapter Ten

Paul sat on the faded, blue couch that sat in the living room of his parent's old home glaring at Tyrell, who was leading against a mantle that had a half inch of dust on it even if Paul had dusted it. Paul was trying to decide whether or not to wait before he had a physical fight with Tyrell.

"Just say it!" Tyrell, who couldn't take the thick air any longer, shouted. "Just say I messed up!"

Paul yelled back, as he stood up, "Why? You already know it! Though, I'd like to know what you were thinkin'! The hearin' isn't all that far away! Why make peace with Joshua and get him to try to kill your own cousin, or even a Barkley for that matter?" He would admit to being greedy, only Paul wasn't about to lay claim to downright stupidity. Well, what was considered stupid in his book anyway.

Tyrell went to respond only to close his mouth right back up. He couldn't do anything else. Honest truth was, he was still trying to figure out what on earth he'd been thinking. He turned away from the mantle and walked over to the table that sat up against the window and sat down. In a quieter tone of voice he asked, "What are we going to do if the courts won't give us the land? It's not like we can force them to give us the land back."

"I don't know right now!" Paul doubled up his right hand and pounded it into his left hand as he stood up and stormed across to the room and then slammed his hands down upon the table. "I just know that you don't go stirrin' up trouble before you have to!"

If Tyrell could have, he would have dug a hole clear to China and disappeared right then and there. His cousin had a way of making a body more than a bit uncomfortable if they, in his eyes, did something 'stupid'. Now, with the attempted shooting, Tyrell knew the sheriff and the Barkleys would be asking questions as did his brother. Actually, he would be surprised if they weren't already. "All right, calm down." He threw up his hands and looked at his brother, "I won't do anything else without the two of us discussing it first." He didn't mean a word of it, but it seemed to appease his brother, as Paul turned and walked out of the room.

~oOo~

Once again Nick stood in front of Iris' grave only this time he had purposely made it his destination. Slowly, he knelt in the still slightly wet grass; it had rained the day before. Nick didn't really care though, his mind was on the fact that history had almost repeated itself, along with the engagement announcement Heath had made. As happy as he was for his blonde haired brother, Nick was finding himself a bit out of sorts too, hence the reason for the ride.

"Guess you know about the trouble we're startin' to have and what Paul and, or, Tyrell tried to do." Nick spoke the words as he looked from the headstone, to the scenery around him and back again. He didn't care if the law didn't look at it that way, since there was no evidence, solid or otherwise, to indict who had hired Heath and, or, Maggie's would be assassin. Nick's gut feeling knew who was behind it all. "Guess you know 'bout Heath and his gal too." Nick was startled, though he started smiling from ear to ear, when a breeze across his face at the very moment he made the statement, or rather a split second later. He was sure Iris was nearby listening. As he thought on Heath and Maggie, he allowed his mind to wander to the night before Iris was killed…a night he had not thought about since she whispered her last goodbye and shut her eyes.

The moonlight lit up the path Nick and Iris were walking down, pine trees seemed to line up on each side of them as if to protect them from word and the struggles they'd been going through. "She means well, Nick; she loves ya. I can't hate her for that. She cares for her sons as much as my mum cares for me." Iris stopped walking as she and Nick drew near the creek they'd decided to have a late night picnic by.

"I didn't say I hated her." Nick growled, his frustration showing as kicked the dirt in front of him around with his boot. "I said I can't talk to her anymore; she doesn't listen when it comes to this whole mess."

"But she will, Nick, once we get that evidence tomorrow, and we will get it. We'll take it to the sheriff and then she'll have to listen." Iris hated the idea that the love Nick had for her, the love that drove him to help her clear her name, had driven a wedge between Victoria and him. It shouldn't be like that.

"You're my angel you know that?" Nick wrapped his arms around Iris and pulled her close.

Iris blushed and whispered, "I'd say the same applies to you, Nick. I ain't never known a man who would fight for me as hard as you have." Nick felt his heart skip as beat as she ran her hands up his back and clamped them down upon his shoulders. Though he was a bit taken back when he saw a few tears rolling out of her eyes and down upon her face.

"Hey," Nick quickly took one of his hands off her waist and wiped away the tears away, "why are you crying? Everything's gonna be all right."

Iris did her best to smile though more tears than appeared. "I can't help it. I'm so afraid something will go wrong; something that will either take me away from you or you away from me." It wasn't a lie and it scared her. Nick, in an effort to chase her fears away, began slowly kissing her tears away. However, it wasn't long until the kisses moved from her tears to her mouth. Those kisses deepened and before they knew it Nick and Iris were lying on the ground. The seconds and minutes ticked by, and minuteby minute they got closer to the edge.

Nick closed his eyes and, for the first time since Iris died in his arms, allowed his own tears to flow freely as he remembered how, before they even had time to think about it, they'd crossed lines society said they shouldn't, Soon afterwards they had fallen headlong into the fire. He'd promised her up and down afterwards he'd marry her within the week, even if they didn't find the evidence they were now a hundred percent sure they'd find the next day. "Life stopped me from keeping my promise to you." He said as he regained control of himself and turned his thoughts to Heath and Maggie. "But, I'm telling you this much. As much as you hated violence, if I can prove Paul and Tyrell had anything to do with the attempt on Maggie or Heath's lives, I'll make them pay. And," he said again as he stood up and wiped away his tears, "if they try anything else, I'm going to be ready." He turned away from the grave and headed for his horse. There was still plenty of daylight left, and he had work to do.