"How're you girls doin' ovah there?" Robert E. wiped the perspiration from his face with a dingy rag. He stepped away from the sweltering forge and maneuvered his way into the stable pen.
The girls stood on either side of the chocolate pony's rump, lightly brushing his bay coat to a glossy shine. With her slender heart shaped face, just clearing the height of the animals curved back, Katie smiled pressing the middle of her lips together. Her sapphire eyes drifted down to observe Lucy's far wandering expression. Seeing how her little charge was lost in thought, Katie shrugged happily, "Just fine, thank you Robert E."
His eyes shifted, following Katie's curious stare, and settled on Lucy. Her little hand held the currycomb lightly against the pony's thigh, no longer moving, and no longer fixed in the moment. Lucy's eyes hazed in an overcast sky, unseeing, and completely lost to the world around her.
"Lucy," Katie nervously chuckled attempting to bring her friend out of her trance.
Robert E. crushed the sides of his mouth back, feeling a little bewildered. With all the wild stories, he'd been hearing from Grace, about this Marrow woman–he had been wondering about the girls. The strife and struggle had not surpassed the town, as the gossip about Ms. Marrow and Jake had spread like wildfire. He too, like so many others had thought Ms. Teresa's return would finally put an end to all the craziness. Now seeing how thick the haze was that surrounded this small child's mind, Robert E. wondered if it might be prudent to pool the resources of the council.
"Hey, now," he gently nudged her shoulder, causing her to break away from that intangible web of thought.
Lucy blinked seeming a bit frazzled at recalling the scene around her. She nudged back one side of her lips, as she acknowledged Robert E.
"Now, where'd you go off tah?" his soft alto intoned with the melodic inquiry.
"I…I," Lucy tried, looking from Katie's encouraging lapis eyes to Robert E's warm nurturing expression. She wanted to say it. Wanted to allow them into her room and show them what fear she'd been harboring of late. After all, the town was a sort of home was it not? And its citizens the family within. They were a part of her just as much as her father, mother, and grandpaw. They were a tribe, as her grandpaw would say. And a tribe protected the young ones. However, as Lucy once again looked from her best friend to gentle Robert E. she felt a need to protect them as well. For in her mind, if she told them, they might react on her behalf and be hurt in the process. Hurt like her mother had been hurt. Hurt like her father. "I…was… just dreaming."
Robert E. pulled at the handkerchief from around his neck and absently wiped his hands. He knew she was holding back. "Musta been some kind of ah day dream." He moved as if to check the time from the banks round clock. "S'bout time for Michael tah come do his chores. You girls mind fetchin' him from his Ma's side? I'll put yah pony back for yah."
"Certainly," Katie assured him with all the charm of her mother's response.
Lucy merely nodded backing away with the currycomb still held within her hand. In the process of turning to hang the grooming tool on the 10-penny nail on the stall fence, a shadow cast between the horizontal slats. The wind cast the faint scent of roses through the wood planks, causing Lucy to feel a false sense of safety. Drawing herself closer she peered, almost playfully, between the fence only to find Ms. Marrow's disturbing viper scaled eyes staring down at her.
"Excuse me, Robert E.," she called over the fence, putting on a show of ignorance towards Lucy's presence. "I'd like to take a horse out and do some riding for the evening."
Robert E. halted himself and the pony, remaining in the small open stable. His face betrayed nothing as he nodded dropping the reins to Lucy's pony. The sooner he gave this woman what she wanted the better for the children. Reluctantly, he turned his back and hurried into the closest stable pen to retrieve her usual horse.
"And how are we this fine afternoon?" Celina's mouth curved upwards like the mouth of a rattlesnake. Her mossy eyes locked in on Katie. Moving forward continuing to ignore Lucy, Celina clasped her hands before her stomach. "You must be Dr. Quinn's Katie. How beautiful you are…just like your mother."
Katie blushed sensing the veiled insult within the compliment. However, before she could retaliate in Lucy's defense the woman turned suddenly, as though she were seeing Lucy for the first time.
"Oh! Little Lucy Slicker. But you have your mother's looks as well," her chestnut brow arched as she hooded her eyes with cynical repose. "But you have your father's eyes to make up for that."
Lucy remained silent. In her innocence, she wasn't quite positive if those malice woven words where indeed what she had heard. Maintaining her credulous expression Lucy looked to her friend. Her friend whose once soft fair complexion was now turning pink with anger. Katie stomped forward taking Lucy by the hand and pulled her close behind her. Lucy was the closest thing she had to a little sister, and if this hostility went on there would be a mighty reckoning. Katie squared her shoulders, looking dead on into Celina's smirking face. Her chin tilted forward exuding Michaela's righteous intelligence. "My Ma says there are all different kinds of beauty… But being beautiful means nothing if your insides are rotten."
It was too much. Celina couldn't hold back the sneer on her face. Her mouth dropped, about to release a fresh assault of verbal manipulation, when Robert E. made himself known. His steps were deliberate and just slightly menacing as he advanced on Celina. Roughly, he smacked the leather reigns of the freshly saddled horse into Celina's delicate hands. She winced just so, feeling a light sting from the way the leather whipped her palms. The tension was thick and storming around them. Robert E. had heard.
The lines that ran from the corners of his mouth up to his wide set nose, creased with disgust. How could someone say such things to a child? Never in his entire life had he wanted to push a woman down. But this surely, was no woman. It made him sick to have to accept the money; she insolently placed in his hand. Standing as though he had ten men at his back Robert E. made himself a barrier between Celina and the girls.
As he watched her slither onto the horse's saddle, there was a slight quake to the ground beneath his feet. It distracted him, causing him to shift away from the turning hindquarters of Celina's horse. A muted uproar was barreling through the town, and the sounds of a rushing wagon filled their ears. It all happened so fast…
Robert E. turned seeing how the sound had brought Lucy to stand in front of Katie protectively. But the sudden fidgeting of Celina's horse had spooked the pony, which was now backing nervously in Lucy's direction. He would never be able to prove that Celina had bucked her horse on purpose; however, as her mare flashed upwards and back smacking into the pony's rump Celina darted out of the stables. The pony reared frightened, kicking its hind legs out, startling Katie back but launching Lucy forward. Their hands detached in the break as Robert E. flung himself into harms way.
xXx
The empty wagon jostled horridly, seeming to catch every ground swell and grass covered ditch in the meadow. Remaining set on the task at hand, Randall's crystal blue eyes pierced narrow beneath his furrowed brow. He cracked Cin's reigns again, forcing the midnight charger fast down the sloping hill towards the bridge. There were moments when the wagon lifted just inches above the ground, before dumping itself down again with a hard thwack. Randall was sure that by the time he reached the town's open street, there would be nothing left of the wagon but the high bench and two front wheels.
Clearing the bridge, he thought he'd heard a loud echoing crack ring off in his left ear. Turning his head in the direction of the sound, he barely caught the sight of Jake rushing down the meadow, in his peripheral vision. Yet, it was the cracked and dangling rail of the now busted bridge, and the left back wheel of the wagon rolling off towards the Gazette that got his full attention. Turning back, he maintained speed, ignoring the townspeople who had rushed up on the walks to avoid being hit. Not to mention Hank who had emerged from his din to keep pace with the back of the busted wagon. Reaching the end of the clinic, Randall pulled back on the reigns. He dug his heels into the backboard, having to stand up, and lean back, with the leather straps reaching up nearly to his shoulders. The sudden halt rocked Cin's senses, causing him to rise up on his hind legs, breaking the chains off the right wooden stall rod.
Randall jumped down off of what was left of the wagon. The moment Cin' realized his human campaign was by his side, the horse set itself to rights, although remaining wild eyed and wary from the chase. Jogging lightly into the street of rattled onlookers, Randall held his cupped hands to his mouth, "Lucy!"
Several awed townies, pointed shell shocked toward the livery stables. Tipping his nonexistent hat to them with a closed smile, he added, "Thank you kindly."
"Lucy!" He continued to yell as he ran up to the coopering, not yet privy to the fact that Hank was at his heels. Nor did he know that Jake had cut through the café and would soon be coming up behind the scare of his life.
xXx
Robert E. lunged into the fray, fully prepared to take the impact of the pony's hooves. He snatched Lucy by the arm spinning her around so that her back fit up into his stomach. With his body, encasing her like a shield Robert E. awaited the crushing pain of the metal horseshoes to the back of his ribcage. He waited…There was no sound but his heart pounding away within his chest. That and the labored panting emanating from behind him. Having squeezed his eyes shut, he slowly lifted one sweat-beaded lid, before turning his head back in a bewildered state.
Jake looked as white as a ghost. His pale hands still clutched the bridle of the jerking pony, as he had pulled the creature away at the last second. Chest rising and falling, the damp square collar of his shirt had popped the top button in his mad dash towards the town. The rumpled article lay open to either side soaked in fear sweat. Jake had expected to find Lucy at Grace's, searching for him, only to catch a glimpse of Katie's coppery hair in the distance at the stables. As he'd reached the back of the livery enclosure, Jake had seen Celina rise up on the horse. Seen how she'd backed the animal up riling the pony into a bucking frenzy. With no memory of how he'd cleared the corral fence, Jake had reached the open stable in time to nudge Katie to a safer distance, and take hold of the animals bridle.
Continuing to stare into each other's frightened faces, together knowing how close the call had been, they turned at the sound of a chain breaking free. Randall having been third party to the incident had freed Cin' from the wagon and had taken off in pursuit of Celina.
With his wits returning to him, Jake tied the now calm pony to one of the nearest fence posts. His arms felt numb with the simple action as he stumbled in Robert E.'s direction. The startled blacksmith had straightened now, releasing Lucy to Jake's waiting arms. Jake lifted her small body up wrapping her legs around his waist as he squeezed her tightly in his embrace. His large white hand cupped her head to his shoulder, while the other held her back, securely to his chest. He could feel her tiny heart rapidly knocking away next to his steadily pounding one. Even as he held his child in his arms, he couldn't take his eyes off of Robert E.
The poor man was trembling, wiping his stressed face with his ivory work bandana. He was looking around, first to see if Katie was safe, then to his environment. Looking near the point of collapse, Robert E. felt a strong yet shuddering hand grab hold of the fabric above his shoulder. It held true, as he looked up into the grateful face of Jake. There was more said between them in that moment than could be verbalized, though Jake tried.
"I owe you my life," the words slipped out from between Jake's lips. With Lucy buried in the crook of his neck, Jake softly raised the inner points of his brows. The steel tones in his eyes darken into a deep muted blue, as Robert E. returned the gesture by heartily patting Jake's hand with his own. Standing as one father to another, they exchanged knowing stares before Grace ran panic-stricken into the stables with Michael in tow. The two man release one another, as Robert E. allowed himself to be encased by his loving family. It would be moments later before Teresa would make it passed the crowd, with a crying Izzy in her arms.