As time went by and Angel Eyes did not return, Emma carried on with daily life, despite her concern. She had a young son to raise and he would remain her top priority. Fortunately, Angel Eyes always gave her a generous sum of money before he headed out on a job, and she knew she could go to the bank for more it his absence was extended. That was one thing she didn't have to worry about for the foreseeable future.

Her mother stopped by frequently and and swapped out with Tom staying with her at night. They kept Emma busy so she'd not spend much time dwelling on the whereabouts of Angel Eyes.

And, to her surprise, the doctor began dropping by on a fairly frequent basis. At first, it was under the pretense of medical concern; following up on her sprained ankle far more than was necessary, but soon evolved into him stopping in just for coffee and conversation whenever he was in the area.

It slowly dawned on her that he was interested in her. He was either quite brave or stupid, considering the well-earned reputation Angel Eyes had in town. But it was just as much her fault as his, considering she did nothing to discourage him. She eventually realized that she was attracted to him as well, but at this point didn't think it would be wise to act upon it. They could, however, be good friends.

Meanwhile, Angel Eyes was comfortably recuperating from his gunshot wound at Jesse Bannister's home. Jesse's sister took care of him and the two spent many hours alone together. Before long, they fell in love, during which time Angel Eyes did not spare a single thought for Emma. He'd never actually been "in love" before, so he couldn't think of anyone but Anna during this time.

One day, while Anna was outside feeding the chickens, Jesse and Angel Eyes were in the kitchen having coffee.

"I'm planning on taking a trip to Cactus Flats to do some gambling," Jesse said. "Anything you want to tell Emma while I'm there? I'll be glad to stop in on her to see how your boy is doing."

"Yeah, well, all right," the other man agreed, somewhat embarrassed he hadn't thought of it on his own. "I guess she must be worried after all this time. But don't tell her anything about Anna. That's something I need to tell her in person. I'll write a letter tonight you can give her."

"When do you plan to go back there to tell her?" Jesse asked.

'After my next job in the area, I think," he decided. "I need to see Lee and do right by him.'

He penned a short note that evening while Anna was getting a bath, then gave it to Jesse to deliver:

Dear Emma,

Sorry I haven't been in touch with you. I was shot in the left shoulder after my last job and I've been recovering at my friend Jesse Bannister's house. It hurt bad, but I'll be fine.

I've also had to lie low, as I've heard the sheriff has been out looking into this. He will likely give up soon, though.

I'll be there to see you and Lee before too long. Give him a hug for me and let him know I'm thinking of him.

AE

Jesse left the next morning, taking the train, with his horse in the livery car. During the journey, he wondered if Angel Eyes would break Anna's heart, as he was about to do to this Emma. He'd always told Jesse that he wasn't in love with Emma and that their relationship was merely a comfortable and convenient one.

He thought things might have deepened between them once their baby had been born, but apparently not. Angel Eyes had been a man of his word. Jesse hoped the hired gun would not abandon his son. He had a hunch that things would likely be different between him and Anna, however. Only time would tell.

The train arrived in Cactus Flats a bit ahead of schedule. He decided to check in at the hotel and have a bite to eat at the cafe before going out to see Emma.

Once he'd had his immediate needs satisfied, he rode his horse out to the Sentenza place. As he approached the house, he saw there was a white horse attached to the front hitch rack, but didn't give it much thought as he dismounted and left his horse next to the white one.

There was a bit of a wait after he knocked. When Emma finally answered the door, she looked up at Jesse with an uncertain expression. Angel Eyes had never brought Jesse around to the house before, so she did not know him.

"Yes?" she asked. "How may I help you?"

"My name is Jesse Bannister," he replied. "I'm a friend of Angel Eyes and he asked me to come see you."

"Please come in," she invited, opening the door wider. "I'll put on a pot of coffee."

Jesse followed her inside, silently noting her slipping a derringer into her apron pocket. Angel Eyes had trained her well.

As they entered the kitchen, Jesse was surprised to see an unfamiliar man sitting at the table, drinking coffee. What was going on here?

"This is Dr Jeremiah Garrett," she introduced. Indicating Jesse to the doctor, she said, "And this is Jesse Bannister."

After the two men had shaken hands, Dr Garrett stood and said, "I must continue on my rounds." Pausing to give Emma a meaningful look, he added, "Thank you for the coffee."

Emma put on a fresh pot as soon as the physician had left. A few moments later, she served Jesse a mug of coffee, along with a plate of recently baked cookies. Taking a seat across from him, she refilled her mug, then said, "Where is Angel Eyes? Is he all right? Why hasn't he come home?"

"He sent a letter for you," Jesse told her. "I'll let you read it first, then I'll answer any questions you may have."

She quickly scanned the brief note. Folding it back up, she asked, "You do know what he does for a living, right?"

"I know," he affirmed. "He's a hired killer. I've known Angel Eyes for about fifteen years, since he was still a bounty hunter."

"So, how did you find him and know that he needed help?" she asked. "He prefers to work alone." After a pause, she quickly added, "Not that I'm not grateful, of course."

"He didn't get shot while doing the job," Jesse explained patiently. "After completing it, he rode about ten miles before coming upon the saloon where I was playing cards. He came inside to rest and get something to eat. He sat down and joined the game when he saw me."

Taking a drink of coffee, he continued, "About an hour or two after he came in, this sodbuster suddenly burst in, and yelled 'this is for my brother', then shot him in the left shoulder. That was stupid, because Angel Eyes is right handed. And he responded right away, shooting the sodbuster between the eyes."

"Then what?" Emma asked.

"I took him to my house," Jesse replied. "A livery is just across the road from the saloon, so we got a wagon from there, and one of my buddies drove it, while I rode in the back to take care of him. Once we got him there, we got the doctor to come out to patch him up."

"When was this?" she asked.

"Six weeks, maybe two months ago," he estimated.

"And what is his condition now?"

"He's pretty much healed," he admitted.

"I'm curious why he hasn't contacted me before this," she said. "Has he been working?"

"No, he hasn't had any jobs since this happened," he told her. "He's had to lie low because the sheriff has been actively investigating the death of his most recent target. But he's about ready to take the next new job that comes along, because it seems the sheriff has closed the investigation because of lack of evidence."

"It's not so much for me that I ask these questions, but I have a little boy here who's wondering where his Daddy is," she said. "Lee loves Angel Eyes and always can't wait to see him."

At that moment, Lee walked into the kitchen, regarding Jesse with a curious expression. He crawled into Emma's lap and took a cookie off the plate.

Jesse reached into his pocket and brought out a small toy, a carved wooden horse. Holding it out to Lee, he said, "I'm a friend of your Daddy, and he wanted me to give you this."

The little boy brightened immediately, reaching for the toy. "Daddy's horsey!"

Angel Eyes was like a brother to Jesse, but he knew his friend could be so self absorbed at times. In truth, Jesse had carved the miniature horse himself and had suggested to Angel Eyes that it be given to Lee. He knew the man cared about his son, but he'd lived on his own for so long and didn't always know how to show it.

"Thank you so much for bringing it," Emma said, interrupting his woolgathering. "Do you have any idea when he might be coming back here?"

"He told me he's ready for a new job, so I can't imagine it would be too long," Jesse told her. Reaching back into his pocket, he handed her a generous sum of money. "He said this should tide you over until he can return."

Jesse left soon after that, feeling vaguely uncomfortable. Although he was happy for his sister and Angel Eyes finding each other, he felt sorry for this woman and their son, who would be seeing far less of his father from now on.