ExPLANations

Sam's POV

Katherine and I waited for ten minutes until I was sure that Trout had not alerted the townsfolk. Maybe it was just a vision in my head, but if I didn't carry out the plan I had in my head now, we were done for.

I turned to Katie, whose eyes were leaking with tears again. I smiled and caressed her cheek again.

"Hey now… what's the matter?" She looked up at me and sniffled.

"Oh, Sam… the feather you gave me… Trout burned it!" My heart leapt to my throat as I heard this; I waited for Katherine to explain herself. She choked, and took a breath.

"I was looking at it yesterday… thinking about you" she laughed a little through her tears. I smiled and ran my hand through her hair, relishing in the feeling of soft silk against my fingertips.

Katie leaned her head against my chest and continued. "Trout came in and asked me to go on the picnic with him again" I frowned. It figured that he wouldn't rest until she said yes. "I said no" she looked up at me, fire in her eyes.

I nodded, revealing I understood.

"We got into an argument… then he saw the feather. He demanded that I tell him who gave it to me"

I let go of her, and looked at her confused. "Why didn't you?" I asked.

She gave me an 'are you serious?' look. "He would have killed you!" She hissed.

I nodded, gathering her into my arms once more. "He kept demanding to know… but I couldn't tell him… he'd been holding the feather to the candle, and when I had refused to say for the fourth time… he burned it"

Sadness overcame me at the loss of my mother's feather, but the jewel I held in my arms at this moment was safe. I was relieved. "Then what happened?" I asked, burying my face into her hair.

She giggled and grasped my jacket in her fist. This action as opposed to her rubbing my chest, made me smile. We may be alone, but we were still not married. Katie turned her head in the other direction… I guessed her neck was starting to hurt.

"H-he" I turned her face toward me "What did Walker do, Katherine?" she gasped at my blatant use of her Christian name, but I was serious. She looked down, then over to the door.

"He grabbed my shoulders roughly to stand up" I listened as she told me the argument, all the while trying to keep hold of my temper. That brainless, spineless, fish-smelling rat!

"He told me to kiss him… then when I said no he got into my face…" she looked down at the floor again, this time, walking away from me and leaning against one of the desks.

"I couldn't help it, Sam" she smiled lightly. "I smacked him so hard, he moved back into one of the desks."

Neither of us could hold our laughter in for a moment longer. We laughed. To think that my Katie was strong enough to injure Trout Walker the way she had. She was one fine lady, as I pictured my father would have said if he were still alive.

"What happened then?" I asked, folding my arms across my chest and leaning against the desk across from her. I must have been frowning, because she looked up at me with a guilty expression on her face.

"He started for me, but I ran out the door. Sam, if I hadn't been able to go home that night, there was no telling what would have happened." My jaw clenched in anger. I didn't want to think about what would have happened.

She could have been strangled, dumped in the lake, or abused and assaulted… all three made me furious. I took a deep breath, looking around the schoolhouse window.

I could see a couple of horsemen in the distance, coming this way. Trout was up to something, and I swore to myself that either he or I would draw our last breath before he would hurt Katherine.

"Dumb excuse for a dog" I muttered under my breath. Seemed much better than some of the other names I could come up with. Being that I was with Katherine at the moment, I controlled my tongue and my temper… then again, she would probably be able to come up with just as many names for Trout Walker as I.

This thought made me laugh to myself. I shook my head as Katherine looked at me. I took her into my arms again and rubbed her back up and down. What if my dream of Katherine and I settling at the onion grove was not out of reach?

As I continued to think about it, I noticed the horsemen were coming closer. I turned to Katherine, putting my hands on her cheeks as I looked into her pretty blue eyes.

"I want you to burn out the candles right now" she looked at me confused, then nodded and did as I'd asked. When we were sure that all of the candles were extinguished, Katherine and I embraced in the dark.

The horsemen outside rode by the schoolhouse, looked inside, and then rode away. I snickered. Figures. Trout would have actually come inside the schoolhouse to look. These morons just continued to ride, eager to get out of the rain.

"What are you going to do?" Katherine asked a minute later. My mind was reeling. If Katherine could make it home on her own and I went to ask Henry for a favor… then inconspicuously lead the sheriff in the wrong direction… it was a wild idea, but one that might work, if Katie and I worked together.

I gulped, looking up at the ceiling one last time, in the same spot I had when I told Katherine I could help in the first place. I turned to her, taking hold of her hands in the dark.

"Katherine, do you trust me?" I asked. She looked around for me in the dark, but couldn't see my face.

"Of course, why do you ask?" I explained to her my plan. If I were to get Henry to gather the preacher and a couple of the townsfolk and bring them to her house on the pretense that they wanted more peaches, which they would get, she and I could be officially married.

The grin on her face was wider than I had ever seen it, her blue eyes dancing in the dark light. "Sam!" she hissed. I chuckled and held her as she snuggled into my chest murmuring excitedly. Then she gasped. "What about Trout?"

I grinned. "I can fix that" she grinned mischeviously. As I walked her home, Mary Lou was already by the barn, grazing. I grinned and petted her. "Hey there, old girl… come to join the party?" Katie laughed before I took her into the house.

Taking one look around, my heart sank. We would never be able to reside in the town that hates me… simply because of my skin color.

I told Katherine to pack only what she needed. My mother had been about her size, so until she could make her own, my mother's clothes would have to do. Katie didn't mind though… just as I hoped she wouldn't.

I went back to Mr. McGregor's store, finding the gentleman stocking up for the night. He turned to me. "Ah! Sam! It's good to see you! Haven't seen you around these parts in a while" I could hear Henry's snort.

I smiled and addressed both gentleman with what I wanted and what I had in mind. If there was anyone I could trust, it was Mr. McGregor… he had a heart of gold and did not believe in separation… especially where love was involved.

"Hmm… that is serious… and Kather…I mean… Miss Barlow… she's safe?" I nodded. "For the time being… Henry, I need to call in that favor" Henry nodded. His brother Matthew was a preacher from Montana, who happened to be visiting during the time Mr. McGregor had been away.

Mr. McGregor's eyes twinkled in the light. "If you and Miss Barlow don't mind, I'd like to invite one other guest…Mrs. McAdams" Henry laughed out loud, which Laurence did not chastise him for; instead, he blushed slightly.

I grinned and nodded. Surely Katie wouldn't mind. "Of course" Soon, all six of us, including Matthew's young son John headed back to Katherine's house. She met us at the door wearing the same dress as before, but with a white apron.

I tried not to laugh. She laughed back at me. Matthew grinned and explained that where God was joy and love could never cease to abound.

Shawn: crunch...crunch...crunch...: Where's Kate?

Gus: about to blow a gasket while sitting next to Shawn in an unfamiliar house: I don't know, cut that out!

Shawn shrugs: munch munch munch

cq: Next!