WINTER'S REFUGE

by Kattayl

Every author writes a Curry and Heyes prison story. This is mine.

19. Winter's Refuge Chapter 19

Winter's Refuge

Chapter 19

LOM

Kid held his head defiantly high as he strode out of Dr. Arden's office and towards the exit.

"Mr. Curry!"

We heard running footsteps behind us. I saw Kid's back grow straighter and his shoulders tense as he stopped abruptly and turned around. He was silent as the young guard approached him.

Catching up, the guard handed Kid three books. "From convict Heyes," he said.

"Thank you," Kid said with forced politeness to the guard.

I smiled. If Heyes was still sending books home, he planned on getting out.

Kid nodded and started walking toward the exit, books under his arm. His tall, strong bearing told all who saw him that he could never be defeated.

With just a pat on the animal's head, he mounted his horse. He sat taller in the saddle than I have ever seen him. His broad muscled back and arms were tensed. His strong hands held the reins high. He rode that way for three miles to the spot where the prison was no longer visible. He turned around to make sure that not even a hint of the prison could be seen. Then I watched as the weight of the world overcame him. His body slumped, his back bent forward. His tight grip on the reins loosened. He looked at the ground beneath us instead of the road in front of us. He looked defeated.

"Lom, do you think Heyes has any chance of doin' this?"

I thought about the answer I'd give my friend, giving him hope but not certainty. "He's had a rough time of it."

He stared at me.

"Not that you didn't, Kid. But Yuma and the railroad camp were different from here. And you made better choices."

"Tried to make Heyes see he needs to make better choices today."

"Yeah, I saw the bruise on his jaw that resembled your fist. How are your knuckles?"

I smiled as he looked at his right hand. "Don't hurt much."

"Think you got through to him?"

"I hope so, but I don't know. Didn't mean to hit him that hard. Forgot I'm a bit stronger than I used to be." Kid looked and sounded exhausted.

"When we were first talking to Dr. Arden, I was thinking of things to say to try to persuade the governor to give Heyes a new deal. I was fresh out of arguments." I tried not to let the discouragement I felt show in my voice. The Kid was discouraged enough for both of us.

We both got lost in our thoughts. As we approached the livery in Cheyenne, the Kid was again sitting straight in his saddle, but his mood was gloomy. We had the same room as two weeks ago and took the same beds.

"Familiar room," I commented, just wanting to get him thinking about anything else but our visit today. "Least we know the beds are comfortable."

"Hope it's only familiar for the next four and a half months and not the next seventeen years." He started to take his boots off and stopped. "Good to wear boots again instead of those thin prison shoes. So good." He stopped and looked to me. "Lom. got something else you should know. We've a visitor at home."

"You really should name that place. Do I want to know who's visiting you, Kid."

"He ain't really visitin' me, he's visitin' Chrissy. Luke McWinters."

"Kid, I wish you hadn't told me. I am a sworn sheriff…" I held up my hand for him to stop.

The Kid was amused. "Lom. Lom! Quit talkin' for a minute. Luke's got his amnesty!"

I was relieved. "In that case, how's Luke?"

Jed 'Kid' Curry

When I returned from Cheyenne, Chrissy and Luke were both sitting on the porch of the ranch house. I had ordered two rockin' chairs from Bridgeport. They must have come while I was away. Me and Heyes always like to sit on the porch at hotels in rockin' chairs, just talkin' and smokin' cigars. I had been lookin' forward to doin' that here, but now I feared that Heyes wasn't goin' to last the six months in general population. The rockin' chairs made my stomach sick, remindin' me of my dyin' dream. My first impulse was to call Juan and have him store them in the barn…maybe for seventeen years. But Luke was sleepin' peaceably in one. He looked calm, pain not invadin' his dreamin'. Chrissy was in the other one but leanin' forward; she kept her feet on the ground. She clutched a book to her chest, but her eyes had watched me since I turned up our road-Old Cummings Place Road, as it was now called. Lom was right, we needed to name this place, make this our own.

I rode up to the porch slowly rememberin' my drunken approach before. That was never goin' to happen again. I needed Chrissy to move forward, not backwards. Juan must have seen me comin'.

"Welcome back, Mr. Curry. She's been waiting for you."

"Hi Chrissy! Luke sleepin'?"

She watched me closely and produced a tin of the salve from her pocket. "Now! Your back."

I smiled for the first time since I saw Heyes yesterday. I took my bag off of Winter's Glory and let Juan lead him away. I went to my room and threw my bag on my bed.

"No." Chrissy moved my bag to the dresser. She again held up the tin in her hand. Obediently, I took off my shirt and sat on the bed. She moved around in back of me and gently rubbed the ointment into my healin' lacerations, then on the scars. It made the scars less tight. When she'd finished, I stood up and reached for my shirt.

"No, medicine now," she said, not lookin' me in the face. She picked up the laudanum from the bedside table.

"No, Chrissy, darlin'. I'm better and have a lot of work and thinkin' to do." Then I stopped. I had done it again, called her darlin'.

She froze for a moment then almost looked in my eyes. Shakin' the bottle of medicine at me, she firmly ordered, "Tonight, medicine."

"Yes, tonight you can give me the medicine." I was surprised but pleased she had not left the room yet. "Thank you for puttin' the salve on my back."

She looked at my bag. "More books?"

She had noticed I brought home books every time I went away. It reminded me that my Chrissy was in there fightin' to get out. Fightin' to get back to me.

"Yes, three more. You want to put them in the main room"

She took them from me but laid them on my bed. She picked up the first one, held it by the spine, and shook it.

"Chrissy, what're you doin'?"

She picked up the other two and did the same. A piece of paper dropped out of the last one. I sat down on the bed in surprise and grabbed it. It was only a quarter piece of paper ripped unevenly.

"From Heyes." Chrissy looked at me, really looked at me. "Read!" she commanded.

The writing was hard to decipher but I read it out loud. "Kid, I'll be good and stay in GP. See you one month. HH"

Chrissy ran out of the room while I studied the words again. It was written quickly, makin' Heyes' writin' worse than ever. But it had been written yesterday after I saw him because it said he'd see me in one month. Maybe the punch to his jaw had gotten his attention, maybe I should have done it sooner.

Chrissy hesitated in the doorway to my room until I acknowledged (a long Heyes type word I'd learned) her. As soon as I did, she walked in and handed me two more quarter papers.

I read the top one. "Kid, proud of you. HH" It wasn't dated so I'm not sure when he wrote it but the words made me feel good.

The second one was simply, "Thanks."

I reread all three. "Thank you, Chrissy. I might never have found these." She didn't know how the one today had pulled me back from the edge of despair. Heyes' simple 'I'll be good' was a promise to me. Hannibal Heyes always kept his promises.

"Heyes prison," Chrissy said. It was a statement. She was lookin' at me, studyin' me.

"Yes, a little over four and a half more months. How did you know?" I was discouraged when I figured out that visitin' every two weeks would not get us to six months in twelve visits. I couldn't count the first visit. That's when the six months started. So Heyes would be released when we went for the fourteenth visit. This is the type of thing I worked on when I should have been doin' the books at night. I knew just how many days, weeks and months that Heyes had left each day.

Chrissy was expressionless, motionless. I'd learned that was how she processed new information, new situations."

"You. Lom talk."

She was right. Until I'd figured out she was listenin' to everything, we'd talked freely in front of her. I should have realized she knew about Heyes. Knew where I went every two weeks.

"We did. When did you find these notes?"

She was thinkin' hard. "Two days," she finally said, but her attention went to a sound on the porch. Luke was awake and Chrissy went to him quickly.

ASJ*****ASJ

Chrissy was still Luke's constant caregiver. With an ailin' father, five younger brothers and horses to doctor growin' up, she'd been forced to learn a lot about medicine after her ma died. She learned even more from the doctor in prison. Luke was doin' better. He was even askin' when he could travel. She didn't have time to help me in the blacksmith shop for now. I didn't realize how much time she saved me each mornin' not only checkin' in horses to be shoed, but she learned how to check in other routine tasks, like repairin' shovels and chisels. She wrote down each one and gave me the list at the end of the day. She still used minimum patterned words with the customers and didn't look at them, only their horses.

Now I'm tryin' to check everyone in myself, followin' the sheets Heyes gave me. Chrissy had understood them right away, but I often don't take the time to write down everything I do. The shop is becomin' busier as word-of-mouth spreads about my work. I don't have time to make any hinges, and I know more of the ranch work is fallin' to Juan. He never complains, just does what's needed. He loves the horses, and they love to see him each mornin'. Like all of the Ortiz family, he loves and is devoted to Chrissy. I know they blame me and Heyes for what happened to her. I do too. But Juan had admitted to me once that her brothers were far more violent than us. Not all her brothers, just Mark, but the others follow him. He had grown up close to Luke and Johnny with Bobby Bell trailin' behind. Chrissy's pa had taught all of his boys and the Ortiz boys – Paul, Rudy and Juan – to shoot fast. Juan didn't care much for guns, especially the way Mark had always been pretendin' to shoot the others with his.

Now I finished in the shop by noon now instead of eleven. As I headed up to the house one day about a week after I got back from Cheyenne, Juan waved me over to the stables.

"Mr. Curry, would you be able to go into town to get the supplies today? I want to keep a close watch on Autumn's Sweetheart. She seems mighty jumpy today to me"

"Sure. You think she's pregnant?"

"We can always hope, can't we," he answered with a small grin. We weren't friends, but we worked together well.

"Sure, I'll go. You got a list?"

LOM

I was trying to debate if I should go visit the Kid during the time when we should have been visiting Heyes. I decided I'd be a reminder of where we should have been. But then I got the telegram from the Kid. Little Joey delivers telegrams for his dad and brought it to my office.

Lom Trevors

Porterville, Wy.

Everyone okay. STOP. First bounty hunter failed. STOP. Letter follows special delivery.

Jed

I knew the telegram was meant to ease my fears, but it had the opposite effect. I was worried about the Kid and Chrissy, and now Luke. I understood that they were my family. When there was no letter in two days, I got ready to leave the next morning for Three Birds.

"Deputy Harker, you didn't have to ride all the way out to my house to get your instructions. I'll be in town in the morning to catch the train."

"Ahh…Sheriff..."

I knew something was wrong. "What is it, Harker? Speak up."

"Well, Deputy Carter turned in his badge a couple of hours ago. His brother's going to California to find gold and get rich and Carter's going with him."

Harker dropped two badges in my hand. I gave him a harsh look and he continued.

"And Deputy Dennison is going with 'em. They're leaving tonight."

I was torn between duty and worry. "Thanks, Harker. We can discuss this tomorrow. You can let it be known we're looking for two more deputies."

I didn't sleep. I tossed. I turned. And I worried.

I didn't leave on the early train, I walked around town looking for possible recruits for new deputies but came up empty. When I returned to the office just before lunch, I found a thick letter from the Kid sitting in the middle of my desk and Deputy Harker nowhere to be found.

I poured myself a cup of coffee and started reading.

Jed 'Kid' Curry

Hi Lom,

Just gonna kinda write this like I was talkin' to you because I need to tell someone. I figure you are gonna want all the details anyway. Like I told you in my telegram, we're okay. Things is changed a bit but we're okay.

I went into town to pick up supplies so Juan could stay with one of our horses that was jumpy. I stayed in Three Birds and ate a late lunch with Jeff and Sheriff Birde. What I write about here I found out later from piecin' together what Luke and Juan told me happened at the ranch house. Chrissy never talked about it afterwards, but is nervous with every horse that approaches our house.

Juan was in the barn brushin' Autumn's Sweetheart. Luke was resting in his room, so Chrissy was readin' her book at the kitchen table. There was squeakin' of that loose board and a noise on the porch but no knock on the door. We figure Chrissy must have thought it was me and didn't even look up. The door was flung open so hard that it made a loud bang as it hit the inside wall. Chrissy looked up. Juan and Luke heard the bang and her scream….once. Juan got there first, enterin' through the back kitchen door.

"Dr. Lewis?" he said as he recognized the man holdin' Chrissy in one arm and a knife to her throat in the other.

The doctor looked over at Juan, frozen in the doorway. "You're one of the Ortiz brats, aren't you?"

"Sir, you're scaring her. Let her go," Juan spoke loudly hopin' to alert Luke.

"No, the rewards for Curry and Heyes eluded me, so I'll have to settle for the five thousand dollars on her." Arden was yelling hysterically. " She's an arrogant woman. Tried to run a horse ranch without a man. I tried to be that man, but she laughed at my advances."

As Dr. Lewis spoke, he tied Chrissy to one of our high back wooden dining chairs. He ran the rope twice around her back and around the rear of the chair, tyin' a knot to secure her. Then, he tied her arms to the armrests. He ran the tip of his knife down her left forearm, leavin' a jagged cut about three inches long. Blood covered her arm. She didn't react, didn't cry out again, didn't move.

"You have two choices, Miss McWinters. Either tell me how to get to Devil's Hole or die. Or both." His voice was determined but with a frantic edge. "I will get my money this time. I won't be cheated out of it like I was the twenty thousand for Curry and Heyes." He looked around frenzied. His eyes darted to every door. "Saw Kid Curry ride into town. No reward on him anymore. You cheated me out of that one. Where's that outlaw brother of yours? Trailed him here. Figured he'd lead me to you when I saw him leave Winter's Refuge."

Juan told me Chrissy's face stayed blank starin' at the bleedin' cut on her arm. But he knew she heard. I had told him she heard everything. Still, he wasn't sure if she understood the danger she was in.

Dr. Lewis drew a small gun and pointed it at Juan. "Ain't very big but it'll kill the person I'm aiming at. I'm figuring Luke might be in one of the bedrooms. Learned he was hurt when I was trailing him. If I'd caught up with him, I'd have offered my doctoring services for a price…his sister." His laugh had turned to a cackle. He motioned Juan to lead him down the hallway.

"Luke's hurt. Bad. Real bad," he told the doctor.

Doctor Lewis went into Luke's room, saw the laudanum on the dresser and a sleepin' Luke. Not gently, he pulled back the sheet and saw the two bandages, on his leg and chest. The one on his chest was spotted with blood. He pulled back the leg bandage. "Nice stitching, must have gotten a doctor out here." After seeing the wound, he didn't cover it back up but glanced around the sickroom, convincin' himself that Luke was unconscious from the laudanum. What he didn't see was Hannibal Heyes' holster hangin' on the headboard with his loaded gun.

Walkin' out of the room, he motioned Juan to walk in front of him. "Well, he's no threat. Tried to find the reward on him while I was coming here. Not one I could find."

When they returned to the room, Chrissy looked like she hadn't moved, but Juan noticed she was starin' at something different now. The stack of books in the main room.

"Sit over there and don't you move, boy," the doctor yelled at Juan.

Juan said his voice was calm, but his motions had become jerky. Juan did as he was told, sittin' close to the books. He could see a sharp kitchen knife now behind the stack. Chrissy must have put it there. Juan had never cared much for guns, but he was excellent at throwin' a knife.

The doctor pulled on the rope securin' Chrissy to the back of the chair. It was tight but one of her hands was loose. "You moving around, Missy? Didn't look like you moved but you're tricky. I didn't tie that knot too good, did I?" he spoke to himself as much as he spoke to her. He put down his knife and put the gun back in his pocket. He retied her tighter to the chair, tyin' her hands behind the wooden back this time. He tested it with a hard pull thinkin' she'd cry out but she was silent. Her arm was drippin' blood onto the floor now. The doctor cut her shoulder with the blade deeper this time. Still, she stared at the stack of books in the other room.

"Now, Miss Chrissy, I've been watching. I don't see your child here? They take it away from you when you were in prison? Or is it dead? Serves you right either way. You're not fit to be a mother." Chrissy still stared. "Would have let you have my bastards, though."

The doctor walked around Chrissy, circlin' his knife in the air, watchin' her blood drip from it onto his hand. He glanced at Juan sittin' not far away in the main room, hands in his lap. "No matter. Tell me how to get to Devil's Hole and I'll be a rich man, and I'll leave your brother alive."

There was no response from Chrissy. Juan told me later that her eyes just stared, not even the flash of emotion you could sometimes see. She had retreated completely into herself.

"What's wrong with her?" the doctor screamed, chargin' Juan with the knife.

"Tell me, now!" he screamed at her.

"Came out of prison like that," Juan told him.

Doctor Lewis went over and stood in front of her. "She talk at all?"

"One word here and there. Don't always make sense." Juan tried to control his fear and talk calmly.

Dr. Lewis looked confused. "Didn't come here to kill her." The doctor was havin' a mumbled argument with himself. He had pocketed his gun but switched the hand holdin' the knife back and forth. "Poster says Dead or Alive. An eye for an eye. A sibling for a sibling. Wonder if they'd pay for the brother dead instead. He's a sibling, too. She was such a pretty thing. Still wouldn't mind spending some time with her. Might be very enjoyable."

His eyes looked at Juan then he'd touch the knife to Chrissy's skin, cuttin' in a different place each time, just deep enough to draw blood.. "Can't travel with her. Too much trouble." The knife touched the side of Chrissy's neck but didn't draw blood. Chrissy didn't move. Her eyes did not waver.

"Didn't want to kill her. But five thousand dollars is offered dead for her if she can't tell me where Devil's Hole is. Five thousand dollars. I deserve that money. That money is rightly mine. I was cheated before, but I won't be cheated again."

Everything happened at once. Juan said it all happened so fast that except for the first sounds, he didn't know what order they happened.

Juan heard a creak of floorboards from the hallway. He had suspected Luke was fakin' sleep because he was past due for his next dose of medicine. And he hadn't bled through his bandage in a week. Juan knew Luke well; they had been friends growin' up at Winter's Refuge together. He knew he could think fast.

The doctor drew a light bloody line under Chrissy's right ear down to her neck. Not deep. "Last chance, Missy. Where's Devil's Hole? That cut's my guideline; the next one will kill you."

Chrissy remained unmoving. Juan said she was so far inside herself she didn't even blink.

Juan jumped up, and loudly knocked the stack of books over, grabbin' the knife and holdin' it behind his back.

The noise not only covered Luke's approach, but mine. I had brought Sheriff Birde home to see the mare stayin' with us to get pregnant. She was beautiful and spirited.

But I had seen a strange horse tied in front of the house. No one came to our house uninvited. People never came closer than the blacksmith shop. Silently, we tied our horses to the corral fence out of view of the house. The Sheriff went to the back of the house, and I went to the front door.

I heard the books fall over and heard the doctor's threat, although at the time I couldn't identify the voice. Avoidin' the squeakin' boards on the porch, I drew my gun and put my hand on the doorknob.

Juan threw the knife at the doctor just as Chrissy raised her knee and kicked him in his private parts. He yelped at the kick and was quick to raise his knife to Chrissy, but twisted toward Juan as his knife hit him in the back of the leg above the knee.

I opened the door quietly just in time to see the doctor pull his small gun and aim it at Juan, then turn and put it near Chrissy's head. "Don't come near or I'll shoot her."

The sheriff entered from the kitchen door not seen by anyone.

Luke, with Heyes' gun in his right hand and holding onto the hall door jam with his left to steady himself, shot the doctor in the arm. His shot sent the gun flyin' and the doctor fell. I ran forward and kicked his knife away from him. I couldn't see his gun.

Sheriff Birde advanced on him carefully. "You're under arrest, mister, for the attempted murder of Chrissy McWinters."

The doctor laughed, more of an unsettlin' chuckle. He rolled on his back. He had fallen on his gun and was now aimin' it at the sheriff.

"Ain't going to prison for that. The governor promised amnesty for that." He started to pull the trigger. I shot and the gun went flyin' to the corner of the room.

It was Sheriff Birde's turn to chuckle. "The Colorado governor promised amnesty. This ain't Colorado, mister, this is Nebraska."

Juan rushed by me. "Going to town to get the doctor," he yelled as he passed me. I heard him leave so quickly that I knew he had taken my horse, Winter's Glory, that I had tied on the corral.

I ran to Chrissy. Pickin' the doctor's knife off the floor, I cut her loose. She let her arms drop in back of her. Gently I moved them around to her lap. "Chrissy?" I knelt in front of her, holdin' a hand in each of mine. She didn't pull them away.

The sheriff had Dr. Lewis sittin' in a wood chair in handcuffs, Juan's knife still in the back of his leg.

"Owww, it hurts. Get it out. Got it out!" he yelped. He tried to twist to get it out, but the sheriff forced him back to his sittin' position. "My arm where McWinters shot me, it's bleeding. My hand where Kid Curry shot it, it hurts!" Dr. Lewis was whinin'. I could see it annoyed the sheriff.

"Knife's not killing you in there. Jed's an impressive shot. As good as his reputation. That bullet only grazed your hand, shot the gun right in the trigger. Luke's arm shot was a through and through," Sheriff Birde told him. "You'll wait for a doctor. Sheriff Birde watched Chrissy and me.

Luke suddenly stood next to me, handin' me medical supplies from the bedroom. I cleaned the crooked cut on her arm. I kept a stream of one-sided conversation up with Chrissy while I cleaned each cut. She slowly came to look at me rather than the books now on the floor. I finally saw pain cross her face as she left her protected inner world. "Oh Chrissy, I'm so sorry he hurt you. Luke, do you think we should give her some of your laudanum for the pain?" I asked. Chrissy flinched as I started to gently put pressure on the bleedin' wound on her shoulder. "Oh, Chrissy, I'm sorry I wasn't here to take care of you."

She tipped her head to the side, lookin' at the doctor in the other room then back at me. And really seemed to be studyin' me. "That man bad."

"Think we should wait for Dr. Sexton before giving her anything," Luke answered my laudanum question while taking her hand from me. "He can't hurt you, Chrissy. Blessing of the Lord that none of us are hurt seriously." Her gaze did not leave me. She pulled her hand away from him and reached out to me.

I wanted to wrap my arms around her, hold her, protect her, but I restrained myself. I didn't want to scare her. I loved her and forgave her everything, if only she would come back to me and out of herself.

"Please, remove the knife. GET IT OUT!" Dr. Lewis screamed it this time.

Sheriff Birde looked at the protrudin' knife and shook his head. "No can do. You're under arrest and I'm responsible for you. Law says I got to get you a proper doctor and proper medical care. Juan went to get Dr. Sexton. He'll take care of you and the state will pay for it."

"I am a proper doctor and I can walk you through how to do it. Or uncuff me and I'll do it."

Sheriff Birde ignored him. "She okay?"

I knew Chrissy was listenin' to my reply so I tried to make it seem optimistic (another Heyes word).

"She'll be fine. I'm fixin' her up and the doctor will finish up when he gets here. Right, Chrissy?"

"Yes, sir."

I knew I had her attention, so I tried, "It's Jed, not sir."

"Yes, sir."

She surprised me then. She leaned forward and rested her head on me. While I was decidin' if I should wrap an arm around her and touch her back lightly, she started cryin'. Not wailin', just soft tears that only she and I shared. I stayed on my knees and wrapped her lightly in one arm. She didn't pull away.

"It's okay, Chrissy. I'm so sorry you're hurt. I promise to do everything I can to protect you."

Her tears lasted until we heard the doctor and Juan pull up outside.

"Finally, the doctor. Instruct him he must take this knife out immediately and then attend to my arm and hand." Dr. Lewis attempted to stand, but the sheriff pushed him back onto the chair. "OWW!"

"The doctor will attend to the lady first," Sheriff Birde's tone was unforgivin'. "Then he'll make sure Luke didn't open his wounds and get him settled."

"But I'm in pain…terrible pain."

"Well, when he finishes with Luke, he'll attend to you."

You see, Lom, we're all okay. Dr Sexton put stitches in Chrissy's shoulder and gave her laudanum. She refused to let go of my hand, so I let her squeeze it while the medicine made her sleepy. Then I sat by her bed while she slept, her hand still in mine.

Luke tore open the stitches in his leg, but the doctor fixed him up quickly and soon he was sleepin' from the medicine, too. He had pushed hard in his leg wound to get the few drops of blood he put on his chest bandage for Dr. Lewis to find.

Juan's okay. Just scared. I told him how brave he was with that knife. Probably saved her life because Lewis was gonna shoot her. He's spendin' more time with the horses. I hear him talkin' more to them although I can't hear the words, his tone is soothin', hopefully to both him and the horses.

Dr. Lewis is in jail for attempted murder and no Colorado governor amnesty is goin' to help him. Nebraska governor was so mad he added a charge of attempted murder of a law officer because Lewis held the gun on Sheriff Birde.

So, Lom, I got plans to build a new fence around the house and barn. Have it start aways from the house so we can hear if anyone opens the gate. And we been always lockin' the front door now. Never thought to do it before.

Chrissy's scared and goes in and out of her inner peaceful world. I'm workin' on keepin' her out of it more than not. Did I tell you she knew Heyes was in prison and that's where I was goin' all the time? Before we knew she was always listenin', guess me and you had some conversations about Heyes.

Well, the big change is Chrissy don't want me out of her sight. Told you she's been a distant shadow to me for a while, but now she seems to need to be near me all the time. When life was in our old normal routine, she went to her room after dinner. She still does but if I go to the shop, I find her followin' me. I fixed up the bed in the back room so she can sleep while I work.

When I go to bed, I close my door, a habit from when I didn't want anybody to see my back wasn't healin'. Well now, I find Chrissy sleepin' on the floor right by my bed. Almost stepped on her the first time. I tell her she's safe in her room. That I'm in the next bedroom. She listens but I don't know if she understands. So, I moved a cot into my room and I find her there most mornin's.

With all that happened, I realized that if Heyes hadn't screwed up, we would have seen him two days ago. He better not mess up again.

I'll meet you in Cheyenne as we agreed in less than two weeks. I know you got someone who lets you know how Heyes is doin'. How is he?

Your friend,

Jed

Heyes

So hard to work today. The Kid and Lom would have visited today if I hadn't messed up. Took Kid's punch on my jaw to do it, but I remembered I'm a prisoner, a convict, and have no rights. The governor may be cheering for me, but he won't help me. My stomach hurt this morning from the sadness, I think, and the loneliness. Hurt so much that I couldn't eat the watery mush for breakfast. I know I promised the Kid to eat, and I am trying. But today, I miss the Kid, even an angry Kid. Dr. Arden scheduled an appointment with me today but made it clear I will be having no visitors and will stay in the shackles.

I am marched to the broom factory after breakfast with a line of other prisoners, but I hate making brooms. My mind revolts just thinking of the mundane, boring steps I have been assigned. Then I look at the high window in the room, too high to see out of it. I have decided that out of reach window is a reminder of what I am chasing-freedom. I look at it now and Kid's words come back to me. "If they ask you to make brooms, you make the best brooms you can as quick as you can for as long as they tell you." He called me an arrogant fool. Then made me believe that he was right. So, I take one long look at my high window to freedom and concentrate on making the best brooms I can.

Dr. Arden saw Lom give me the journal. Since the shiv incident, the convicts aren't allowed pencils or pens and ink in their cells. Letters have to be written in the common room in the one hour before lights out or on Sundays. But the doctor lets me write in my journal in his office after our visits. He never asks to see what I've written. He says if I want to share something with him, I can read it to him. It's the only piece of privacy I have in here. Still, I know a guard or the warden or even Dr. Arden can tell me to hand it over at any time, and I would have to. So, I never mention things that could be used against me. I am trying to be the perfect prisoner that gets released.

I miss seeing the Kid. After not seeing each other for over three years, it was so comfortable to be reunited. But he's mad at me for something. He was mad before I messed up this time. We agreed to talk about it when I get out. I smiled as my thoughts said 'when' not 'if'. I'm trying.

Oh, my mind was wandering. Have to redo what I was doing and quickly. I don't think the guards noticed. Concentrate, Heyes, concentrate.

LOM

Kid's letter calmed my worries from the telegram but added more. I would send a telegram to Colin in the Wyoming governor's office to make sure they knew what happened. And make sure that Dr. Lewis is prosecuted for attempted murder in Nebraska. I also want to know how close the US Marshals are to finding out who offered the illegal five-thousand-dollar reward on Chrissy. A sibling for a sibling was the clue they were working with, tracking down the families of those that Bobby Bell had beat in a gunfight. Or they were looking at relatives of those killed in any of the new Devil's Hole Gang's robberies. There were so many. Mark enjoyed killing.

I am staying in Porterville until our next visit with Heyes. The Kid has his hands full, but he can handle it. I admire his strength, but I realize all strength has its limits. I need to figure out how I can help him.