Chapter 27
Morning finally came after a restless night for Jack, and he woke up to the loud voices of the three men. He rubbed his eyes with his small hand, and little by little realization of where he was and what had happened bitterly sank in. The boy morosely rose to his feet, and silently he shuffled towards the creek where he neatly washed from his face the remainder of the night's sleep. The water was freezing cold, unlike the lukewarm water that Lou always left for the two boys in the morning.
Even at this considerable distance from the makeshift camp, Jack could hear the loud voices and as he walked back to the place, he kept his eyes downcast, feeling unable to bear the view of the three men as a reminder of how foolishly he had got himself into that situation. None of the three adults took any notice of the boy, who had stood apart from the group sitting around the fire. Jack watched them from his sheltered position next to a tree and scrunched his nose in disgust as he realized that they were eating the heated concoction that his father had cooked the night before, accompanied by the always constant presence of the whiskey bottle.
The three men took their sweet time to finally gather their gear and get ready to ride off. Nobody had addressed or looked at Jack in all this time as if he did not exist, but when it was time to set off, Robert Martin approached his son and with a very serious expression he said, "Come on, Jack. Let's get a move on." The man grabbed the boy by his arm, but Jack pulled himself free of his hold while he exclaimed, "I'm not going with you! I wanna go home!"
Robert Martin snickered and shared a bemused look with his two mates. "Don't be stupid and make us waste our time!" the man barked and tried once again to clutch his son but the boy retreated as if he were scolded. "No! I wanna go home!" he repeated in a shout.
Robert Martin impassively stared down at Jack for a few moments, and while turning around to walk to his horse, he said spitefully, "Go back to that fool and his bitch! See if I care!"
His words ignited the boy's fury even more and he barged against his father, repeatedly hitting him on his back with his little fists. "You can't talk about them like that! You can't!" Jack exclaimed in a shrill voice.
Robert Martin swirled around to the boy, his hand lifted threateningly and one single glare on his part was enough to still his son, who froze straightaway. Once again he turned towards the horse and mounting, he said, running out of patience, "Let's go once and for all!"
"You gonna leave the boy here?" Larry asked, taken aback by the man's resolution. He had no idea whatsoever about what it meant to have a child under his responsibility, but anyone knew that leaving a young boy alone in the middle of the wild wasn't appropriate at all.
"That'll teach him!" Robert Martin stated without the slightest hesitation and neither of the two men said anything more. After all, this had nothing to do with them and their mate was the boy's father after all who supposedly should know what he was doing. Martin spurred his horse forward, and the two other men followed him instantly. Jack stared after the three riders as they disappeared into the thickness of the forest but he never spilled a tear. His resolution to go back home had been born stronger, and his entire heart was just intent in carrying out his intention.
It was noon when Teaspoon and Kid spotted smoke rising in the distance from what it seemed to be a camp fire. They had been riding for a few hours now, struggling to catch up with the man who had Jack. Kid feared that somehow they've been wrong all the time, and Robert Martin was safely riding in the opposite direction they were heading. In that case, Kid knew that they could well say good-bye to the idea of getting the boy back. Nobody had any idea what the man had his mind on and he might take his son just anywhere, which would make the search almost impossible. For that reason, Kid prayed that they were on the right track.
This morning they had found the remains of a camp, which they had initially thought might have been the spot where Robert Martin had stopped to spend the night. Yet, when they discovered additional prints on the place of at least two more people, Kid wasn't sure anymore. It could be that Robert Martin wasn't on his own, but he couldn't really tell. As they approached the source from where the smoke came from, they also found the hoof prints of three horses, which left Kid completely confused. A hillock stood before them, and on the other side the Southerner prayed they would lay eyes on Robert Martin and Jack. They pranced up the hillock, and once on the top they crept behind the shrubbery and the trees. From there they had a clear view of the three men who were oblivious to the fact that they were being watched.
"Is that him?" Teaspoon asked as he noticed Kid's hard eyes looking intently at one of the men.
"Yes," the Southerner hissed in a strained voice.
"And the others?"
"The fellas I guess he hangs about with," Kid replied as he remembered seeing these same men that first day they had bumped into Robert Martin. "But Jack ain't with him," he said through gritted teeth. "That rat's gonna pay if he has done something to him."
"Calm down, son," Teaspoon tried to soothe him as he knew that Kid's nerves were playing havoc on him, which was clearly understandable. The hours passed, and as their search for the boy had apparently proved barren so far, the young man's temper was continually on the verge of flaring.
Kid did not try to respond to Teaspoon's words, and instead crept a few meters close as the marshal motioned to do so. They watched the three men for a while as they were clearly in the middle of a heated fight over a game of cards. Robert Martin had a grip at one of the other men's collar while he waved his fist menacingly. It was obvious that Jack was nowhere to be seen, and once tired of watching the pathetic scene below them, Teaspoon rose to his feet and called out loud and clear, "This is Marshal Teaspoon Hunter. Lift your hands above your head right now!"
No sooner had the words been uttered than the three men unholstered their guns and began shooting at the direction the marshal's voice had come from. The trees gave Teaspoon and Kid a good protection against the bullets, but the three men down the hillock did not have that much luck, and soon Robert Martin's mates were hit and lay on the hard ground. The old marshal was about to continue shooting, but Kid grabbed his arm in a strong hold, stopping his intention while he said, "Stop it, Teaspoon! We need him alive if we want to know where Jack is."
His words were unnecessary, though, since Robert Martin had already dropped his gun. "Don't shoot, please!" the man pleaded in a scared voice as he lifted his arms in defense. The marshal and Kid slid down the hillock towards the man, and as Robert Martin caught sight of the Southerner, he snickered and said, "I should have known that you were behind this." Kid stared at him hard without saying a word, and Martin turned to Teaspoon and said, "I've done nothing, Marshal."
Kid decidedly barged against the man and grabbing him strongly by his shoulders, he threw him against a tree without loosening his grip at any minute. "Nothing?" the former rider barked heatedly. "What about stealing my money and using an innocent child?"
"I don't know what you're babbling about," Robert Martin defiantly denied his words.
"Don't you?" Kid replied sarcastically, his grip secure on the man, and gruffly shoving his hand inside Martin's jacket inner pocket he produced the bundle of banknotes. "And what happens to be this?" Robert Martin didn't say anything, but kept looking at Kid cockily and unashamed. "Where's Jack?" the Southerner asked again.
"I don't know," he replied breezily.
Kid was running out of patience and grabbing his gun, he plunged it into the man's neck. "Answer me, Martin. Where's Jack?" he repeated the question, his face contorted with anger and when the man seemed to have no intention to answer, Kid pulled the hammer of his shooter threateningly.
This action spurred Robert Martin and he called frightfully, "Marshal!"
"Answer him," Teaspoon talked behind the two men. Though keeping an eye on Kid, the marshal had wanted to let his former deputy handle the situation on his own. He could understand the frustration and powerlessness that the young man was feeling, especially with the cocky attitude of that Martin.
Robert Martin squirmed in Kid's hold as he nervously said, "I swear I don't know. He changed his mind and didn't want to follow me anymore. It's the truth, I swear."
"And you left a seven-year-old child all alone and lost in an area he had never been to before?" Kid barked the question as he plunged the gun deeper into the man's neck. Robert Martin closed his eyes, expecting a bullet to pierce his throat at any moment, but to his utter relief Kid loosened his grip on him and lowered the gun. He glared at the cowardly figure before him for a few minutes and threw the bundle of notes still in his hold at the man's face, which scattered down all over the place. "Take this damn money and run as far as you can. God protect you if I see you around my family again!"
Robert Martin silently crouched to pick up the banknotes around the place, looking pathetic to the two other men's eyes. Kid swirled around and began walking back to where they had left the horses. Teaspoon caught up with him and asked, "You sure what you're doin', Kid? He could spend some time behind bars."
Without stopping his steady walking, Kid turned his head to the marshal and mumbled gravely, "I couldn't care less." Despite what Robert Martin had done to his family, the Southerner felt forced to make some concessions for the man. As Teaspoon had rightly said, whether he wanted it or not, he was the boy's father and Kid felt he had to put aside anything else for the children's sake. "All I care about right now is to find Jack."
Teaspoon tapped him on the shoulder encouragingly as they reached their horses. "We will," the marshal said and without further ado they mounted and rode away from the place without a single look back.
It has now been several hours they had been searching for any clue leading to Jack, but so far they had not found anything. Teaspoon and Kid had ridden back to the place where Jack and his father had made camp the night before, hoping that the boy had stayed there, scared of roaming the area on his own. They had already ridden through it but maybe, just maybe he could have been hidden or something. As Kid suspected, Jack was not anywhere to be seen. He was a very determined boy for his age and if he had left his father to go home, Kid knew that he'd try to do just that by himself despite his age.
As the morning progressed and the search did not shed any light on the whereabouts of the child, Kid was getting more and more frantic by the minute. Thinking about everything that might likely happen to the boy was enough for him not to falter and keep persisting. He might fall into a pit, somebody might hurt him; the Southerner cringed uncomfortably as danger after danger crept into his mind ominously. Besides, the boy must have not eaten a bit in hours. All Kid hoped was that they could find him before the sun set, because to think of Jack all alone here at night was something that he didn't dare to even imagine.
They had bumped into a few travelers and drifters on the trail, but none recalled having seen a boy all by himself in the area. Kid's throat was already sore of calling Jack's name for hours now. He sighed deeply for the umpteenth time and riding at his side, Teaspoon suggested as he noticed the weary expression in the young man, "Why don't we try to go upriver?"
Kid simply nodded and they turned their horses towards the river. Its water ran rough and violent. The image of Jack accidentally falling into the turbulent river crossed Kid's mind threateningly, and he had to shake his head to erase the thought away. The two men dismounted their horses as they began walking along the river bank in its narrowest section while they continued calling the boy's name loudly. In the distance the pair could see a man, probably a hunter, sitting at the bank and washing his feet in the river. When they reached him, the man turned his curious eyes to them.
"Excuse me, sir," Kid addressed him politely, tipping his hat in greeting. "We're looking for a young child, brown eyes, chestnut hair and this tall," he explained, gesturing with his hand to show Jack's height. "Have you by any chance come across him?"
The man studied the two men hovering over him for a few seconds and then he let out, "You mean the little fella?"
Kid's eyes shone with hope instantly and asked eagerly, "You've seen him?"
"Sure I have," the man replied with a smirk. "A little chatterbox. Hungrier than a blind dog; he simply wolfed down the little lunch I had to share."
"When was that?" Teaspoon asked, cutting off the man's detailed account.
He scratched his head thoughtful and answered, "About fifteen or twenty minutes ago. Then continued upstream." He had found this little boy who was definitely lost and though cautious at the beginning, when the boy had seen that he meant no harm, he had accepted the bread and meat the adult had offered. The hunter had really enjoyed the company but hadn't managed to make the boy tell him anything.
"Thank you, sir!" Kid exclaimed, shaking the man's hand quickly and both men jumped onto the horses and rode towards the direction Jack had taken as fast as the narrow path let them. Kid pushed Katy hard while he called Jack's name even more loudly and eagerly. He scanned every piece of terrain as he rode along. Teaspoon followed closely and suddenly the path along the riverbank was cut off by some land elevation and they had to stop.
"What now?" Kid asked to himself, throwing his hands to the sky in frustration. It was then that movement to his right caught his attention and out of the corner of his eye he saw a small figure inching out from behind a tree.
Jack had heard some men's voices shouting his name and thinking that it probably was his father and those horrible men, who came back for him, he had hidden behind the tree. Yet, when he had spotted Kid and Teaspoon from behind his hideout, his heart leapt in joy and he dared to leave the safety the tree offered.
As soon as Kid spotted the boy, he jumped off Katy and almost stumbled over to get to him. "Jack!" he exclaimed as he reached the seven-year-old and drew him into his hug.
Jack remained motionless, his eyes downcast and his arms sagging to his sides. Mixed feelings were coursing all over him; he was clearly more than glad to see Kid but at the same time, he was totally ashamed for what he had done.
Kid pulled away and stroking the boy's head gently he asked, "You all right, Jack?"
The boy simply nodded, his eyes still downcast and at some point he dared to lift his gaze towards the young man and whispered his question, "Are we going home?"
Kid smiled brightly, sharing a knowing look with Teaspoon as he said satisfactorily, "Yes, Jack, we're definitely going home."
It was late in the afternoon when the ranch came into view, and never before had that sight brought so much comfort and ease to Kid. Jack had not said a word during the entire ride home as he sat in front of the man on Katy, and Kid wondered what his young head was thinking about after the last two days' incidents. The Southerner had no clear idea of what had happened between Jack and his father out there. Did the boy's silence mean that he wasn't happy about returning to them or was there something else that he wasn't saying yet? For the moment all Kid cared about was that the boy was safely back, and there would be more than enough time later to talk about everything.
Both Kid and the marshal stopped the horses just at a certain distance from the house from where they scanned the deserted and silent yard. Suddenly, the door opened and Lou dashed out, followed closely by Tommy and Rachel.
"Jack!" Louise shouted as she ran towards them like a mad woman. Kid helped the boy off the horse, and in no time Lou was engulfing Jack in a tight embrace. "Oh my boy, I missed you so much!" she exclaimed, feeling all the tension of the last couple of days leave her.
It had been an unnerving wait, and Lou had almost gone nuts with worry. Feeling the boy between her arms, Lou just couldn't believe yet that Jack was safely back to her, like Kid had promised. She pulled off slightly and cupped Jack's face in her hands, staring at him with a wide smile. "Look at you!" she said, sounding as cheerful as she felt right now. "All covered in dust like a real cowboy!" She could tell that Jack was troubled and awkward around them, and the last thing she wanted to do was to make him feel more uncomfortable. She needed a distraction that lifted that serious façade the boy had right now. Lou had no idea of what had happened out there and was dying to have a conversation with her husband about it.
At his remark the boy faintly smiled for the first time, and Lou hugged him again as Tommy joined in the embrace from behind. "Kid, I'm assumin' that we ain't getting much of a proper welcome from these women," she heard Teaspoon say and couldn't help but laugh at his remark.
"Oh you hush, Teaspoon," Rachel teasingly ordered and approached the marshal and gave him a hug while Louise kissed her husband tenderly.
"That's definitely much better," the marshal let out with one of his characteristic exaggerated expressions, which brought a peal of laughter from both women.
Tommy came running towards Kid and threw himself against him like he usually did. The man scooped the boy up in his arms and asked, touching the child's tiny nose with his index finger, "You been a good boy while I was away, Tommy?"
The boy nodded energetically and exclaimed, "Auntie Rachel slept in my room and … and … I got to sleep in the big, big bed with ma."
Kid had to laugh at the child's enthusiastic account and added, "You lucky boy!" Tommy flashed his bright smile in self satisfaction and tenderly rested his chestnut head on the young man's shoulder.
"Stop the chitchat, you two!" Lou jokingly called after a while and approaching Jack, she said, "Come on, honey. You and Kid need to get rid of all that dust that you picked up on the trail as soon as possible." She was beginning to worry as the boy continually kept his attention to the ground and had not said anything at all so far.
Jack lifted his sad eyes to Louise shyly and replied with a simple 'Yes, Ma'am' and let her steer him towards the house while the other three adults and Tommy followed them closely.
It was dinner time when Jack dawdled down the stairs very slowly, step by step. He had taken a bath and changed into fresh clothes, but not even the sensation of being clean had brought any comfort to the boy, and he still was in low spirits. Neither Kid nor Lou had mentioned anything about what had happened; nothing about the stolen money, his flit or his father. Louise had gotten the bath ready for Jack and helped him out of his grubby clothes and then gave him a proper scrub while Kid kept bringing up hot water. They never talked about the last couple of days, but just kept joking around the boy. Jack hadn't spoken much either during all this time, and later he had remained in the bedroom, sitting morosely on his soft bed while Tommy played on the floor. It was when they heard Kid calling for dinner, that Jack slowly rose to his feet and shuffled out of the reclusion of the room. Tommy had already dashed out of the bedroom and down the stairs in no time, but Jack just took his time to follow his brother.
As Jack entered the dining room, Tommy was already sitting at his usual place at the dinner table, a napkin stuck in his collar and holding a spoon and a fork in his two little hands. The seven-year-old boy crossed the room silently and walked casually towards the kitchen. The door was open, and he could make out Kid and Lou's figures talking to each other with serious expressions. As he came closer, he froze, hearing what the couple was saying.
"Make sure the boys are ready first thing in the morning," Kid said, "We'll leave for the orphanage at the crack of dawn."
Lou nodded her agreement and added, "The sooner we do this, the better." As she turned round, her eyes fell on Jack, who stood on the threshold as if in shock. "Hey, honey!" she exclaimed cheerfully. "You hungry?"
The boy just shrugged his shoulders but never said a word. "Good," Lou replied with a big smile and grabbing him by the shoulders, she steered the boy to the dinner table and sat him on his chair. She had to laugh when she caught sight of Tommy all ready to start eating while he raucously clattered the cutlery in his hands against the table. "Patience, Tommy-boy," she said among giggles. "I'll bring dinner over in a second." Before turning around, she stooped and hugged Jack for the umpteenth time in the day, still in disbelief that he was back safe and sound. Planting a quick peck on his soft cheek she whispered in his ear, "I'm so glad that you're back, honey, really glad."
Jack remained as impassive and motionless as he had been since Kid and Teaspoon had found him earlier in the day. He awkwardly glanced at the end of the table and saw Kid sitting down for dinner. As their eyes met, the young man cast a smile in his direction, but Jack averted his glance at once and kept looking down at the empty plate before him.
Lou came back shortly with a platter of steaks, and after she served one each, accompanied by roasted potatoes, peas and carrots, she sat down to enjoy the family dinner. Jack knew that this was his favorite, but for some reason he didn't feel like eating at all. Faintly he heard Kid say grace, and then the clanking of the forks and knives against the china plates reached his ears. The boy remained in the same position, eyes downcast and his hands resting on the table. Kid and Lou shared a look as they noticed the sullen attitude in Jack.
"Ain't you eating, honey?" she asked while she cut the steak in tiny pieces for Tommy.
Jack remained silent, not lifting his glance at all, and when it seemed that he wasn't going to talk, he blurted out, "I did it. I took that money." His voice was raspy and soft, but he still kept his eyes downcast.
Lou and Kid exchanged a glance and the young man simply said, "We know, Jack." No sooner had he uttered those words than Jack burst into hot tears, sobs racking his little body. "Hey, hey, buddy," Kid said tenderly as he left his seat and crouched before the boy. "What's that for? Everything's fine."
"I don't want to go back to the orphanage," the boy wailed bitterly.
Kid placed a finger under Jack's chin and lifting his face towards him, the man looked at the boy intently. "Who said anything about that, Jack? Nobody's sending you back to that place. What would we do without you then?"
"Really?" Jack hiccupped, his tears receding little by little.
"Really," Kid replied with a placid smile, and realizing how that idea had got into the boy's head, he added, "We just need to go to the orphanage to sign some documents, that's all, but we four are coming back after that."
Relief flooded throughout the boy, but at the same time emotion took over as everything that had happened whizzed through his mind; the money, the nasty words, the lies, the slap. All that had made him see that his father was not the great person he had always dreamed he'd be. He was the man who had abandoned him and Tommy and never came back. Jack regretfully thought that his deception to Kid and Lou was unforgivable, but strangely enough there was no recrimination or anger coming from either of them.
Kid was staring at him with clear and soft eyes, which told him that he didn't have anything to worry about and, casting a sideways look at Lou, he noticed she was gazing at him with the same emotion, her eyes bright with unshed tears. The boy could feel that they genuinely cared for him, that he was surrounded by people who had really become a family to him and tears began to flow from his eyes while he threw himself to Kid's arms, hugging him tightly. "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry," he kept repeating as he sobbed bitterly and without even realizing it, his mouth began uttering a word that stunned and filled the couple with great tenderness. "I'm so sorry, Daddy, so sorry, Daddy" The boy kept repeating the same over and over again, and Kid cooed him as he held him against his chest comfortingly, silently thanking heaven for the gift of making his family whole again.