Chapter Five

Timothy stood near his bedroom window and looked out; he could see Nick, Heath and Jim Barkley standing near the corral fence. He remembered how this Nick and Heath Barkley had spoken kindly to him and what a good feeling he got from them. Still, he couldn't help but wonder if it was all an act. Only when Ruth walked up next to him and joined him at the window, did he turn his eyes away from the men. "Do you think they can be trusted?" he asked.

Ruth sighed. She'd been so young when her father had joined the Confederate army, even though he was from the north. While she remembered very little of his words concerning his brother in law, or any of the Barkley family, she definitely remembered her father saying Jim was rather selfish and hard-nosed. He'd said Jim's family were all that way. From the little she'd seen, Jim Barkley didn't seem like the kind of person her father had made him out to be; still, she'd been wrong about people before. It had almost cost her Timothy once. "I don't know. Perhaps, though the more important question is…do we want to chance that right now? If you do, I'll sit down with Uncle Jim and tell him everything I've left unsaid and correct assumptions he's made because I said nothing when we first got here. I mean, I'll tell him every little detail of our story. Or, if you don't, we'll continue as we are. However, we can't leave here. It's like I said, there is no other place for us to live. All we can do is pray what I was told as a child will, eventually, prove to indeed be dreadfully wrong."

Timothy's eyes widened, and he threw his arms around Ruth. "Would they separate us?"

Ruth sighed. "That all depends on if what I heard as a child is correct. That is, if Uncle Jim is indeed as two faced as he was supposed to have been. If he isn't, no, I can't see him trying anything. After all, I'm adult. If he," She sighed as she looked lovingly upon Timothy, "If he is indeed the kind of man father made him out to be, he'd still pull something. If that's the case, I can't see things staying the same." At that moment, she wished like crazy she would know within a short period of time whether or not the Barkleys could be trusted or not.

Timothy let every memory he had replay itself in front of his eyes. Every single one of the memories held Ruth in them. He remembered how she'd done everything she could to make sure he never went hungry…even when it meant skipping a meal herself. He remembered the few times he'd been sick and how she'd stayed up all night with him. He remembered all the good times too, and all the laughs they'd shared. "Don't tell them if you don't have to, please. I don't want take the chance that things wil change." He then fell silent. He never had been one to talk much and, at that moment, he felt like he might as well have talked all day.

Ruth gave him a small smile as she held onto him. He was her world. How could he not be when she'd been taking care of him since the day he was born, most of the time by herself? Still, she was growing tired of the game they played. For the first time in many years, she prayed her father had been wrong. She prayed that her Uncle Jim and, from what she saw now, his nephews would prove to be trustworthy.

~oOo~

Jim looked at Heath and Nick; the three of them had once again been discussing young Timothy. "Heath, I know you and the boy don't have the same exact problem." Jim said as he let out a long drawn out sigh. "But you have had to make adjustments in order to continue making your way in life; that is, in the manner you want. Like I said, Timothy has barely said more than a handful of words since he and his mother appeared on my doorstep, but he's said enough to know that he highly doubts he can do anything really worth while, even when I've heard Ruth tell him different."

Heath and Nick looked at each other. They understood Jim's concern for the young boy and what he was thinking. They also wondered just how much Heath would be able to help the young child. After all, the two of them were only going to be in Abbottsville for a week.

Heath shrugged his shoulders. "I'll be happy to do what I can, but I don't know that I can do or say anything in a week's time that will make any real difference. I mean, it takes longer than a week to break through one's wall."

"Tell me about it," Nick said without thinking. The moment the words were out of his mouth, Nick was kicking himself, as he saw Heath stiffen ever so slightly. "Well, from what you say, you have more than a couple of horses for me to look at." He threw Jim a smile, doing his best not to look at Heath-fearing that he, Nick, would say something else that would add another brick to the wall that still seemed to partial exist between them. "I don't see a problem."

"Like I said, I'll do what I can." Heath said as he turned around and went back inside.

Jim, who had also seen Heath's reaction to Nick's words, and felt the tension afterwards, looked at Nick. "Thought Jarrod wrote the two of you were getting along?"

Nick sighed. "We are…to a degree. It's just that, try as I might, I can't get really get past that wall of his. If Timothy is as bad as Heath is when it comes to not talking, I don't see what good Heath will be able to do."

In the little time Nick had been in his home, Jim had sensed something was off-one of being he wasn't so loud. A thought came into his head, and Jim found himself saying it out loud. "Is there a chance you're trying too hard? Have you tried simply being yourself?" He turned and walked away before Nick could answer, leaving the dark haired rancher to think on his uncle's comments.