*Author's Note*

Thank you for all the follows, favs, and reviews.

Election Day, 1882 Pt.2

Abel POV:

"This contest still open?" I heard Cap's deep timbre sound out in the air as he parted the seas, walking right in-between bystanders and up to where the judge and Squirrel were standing at. Oh shit...Shit's about to get real now...

Me along with everyone crowded around the shooting contest turned their heads towards Cap's voice only to see him with a gun slung over his shoulder, sipping on a large glass mug of ale, strolling over to the judge. Jim Vance, lookin' as unkempt and crochety as ever, followed right behind his nephew. To my shock Allie, my little sister, was right by Cap's side. Goddamnit, how she could stand by his side after all the hell that one-eyed coward let his devil of a father put her thru is beyond me. My sister had her trademark light blonde braid slung over her shoulder along with her nice dress hat perched on top of her head. She looked lovely, but too lovely to be besides her one-eyed demon of a husband.

The stout middle-aged judge took his pipe out of his mouth and dryly told Cap, "It is if ya want t'waste a bullet."

"Haven't wasted one yet." My brother-in-law stated matter-of-factly while setting his mug down on a barrel.

"How ya gonna beat that, Fog-eye?" Jefferson asked mockingly, pointing to Squirrel's mark on the target board.

My sister gave her husband a proud look before patting him on the arm and shoving him up towards the line. "Don't worry, honey. You'll beat it." Allie assured her husband, making me want to puke. God, my jaw twitched and my teeth gritted angrily as I watched my sister act like the supportive and lovin' wife to that demon. That demon I once considered a friend til I saw his true colors.

Cap had got into a stance and readied his gun only for Parris to walk up to him and point to the crooked stick while sneering, "Toe the line." Cap rolled his eyes and adjusted his foot, which was flush to the crooked stick, as Parris pointed his shine glass at the judge and announced, "Judge should've caught that."

Jim Vance placed a hand on his nephew's shoulder and told him, "Just do what ya do, son."

"What he does is miss." Squirrel taunted Cap while joining the rest of us McCoys over to the side by wooden railing. He placed an arm around his girl and brought her into his side. "He's gonna miss." He announced, more so to the girl on his side then to the rest of us, as the one-eyed shaggy blonde-haired Hatfield lined up his shot.

Suddenly, Cap pulled the trigger and the bullet went flying out of his Winchester and into the target. The bullet hit the nail on the head and ricocheted off it; right into a lantern. The lantern shattered, causing Calvin to take a quick sip from his whiskey glass and point to it while mockingly saying, "Cap, you missed completely."

I knew my brother-in-law didn't miss, but I wasn't going to tell my McCoy in-laws that. Hell, the McCoys accepted me and were good to me; I didn't want to do anything to fuck that up.

"No, he didn't." Jim Vance announced as the man by the target looked at the bent nail in awe. Pointing to the target, the gruff mountain man announced, "He hit the nail right on the dagon head.", as the marker man adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose and rubbed the bent nail with awe.

"But ya seen where that went." Calvin protested to the judge, pointin' out the broken lantern, as he stepped up to him.

"Metal ricochets off of metal once it hits it, but guess you weren't in school that day to learn that." My sister spoke, giving Calvin a smug shit grin, while standing next to her husband's side.

"Shut up, Allie. Everyone saw that shot, it broke the lantern." I snapped at my sister, giving her a dirty look, in order to keep up appearances with my McCoy in-laws. Also, I needed my sister to know that she couldn't be openly defending her husband, not when tensions were so high. Hell, the entire McCoy family knew what happened to her (cause I told them or Nancy did) and they didn't view Allie as being very smart since she stayed with Cap instead of divorcing him and seeking my hep.

Calvin stepped up into Cap's face while Parris, Jefferson, Belcher, and Squirrel (who's girl was right behind him) quickly followed suit. Of course, I joined in too, but mainly cause I had to. "I don't know how ya did it, but ya cheated." Calvin growled at Cap, who just pushed him out of his face.

"I won that fair an' square, not you." Squirrel added in, gettin' a bit close to Cap.

"My nephew won that, ya shit turd McCoy." Jim Vance growled at Squirrel, who just scowled at him.

"This is a shootin' contest, not a fight." The stout judge loudly said as he put himself between the Hatfields and the McCoys in an attempt to stop a fight from starting up.

"Yep." Cap popped his tongue while shoving one of my cousin-in-laws back, causin' him to stubble a bit.

"Calm down, boys! Calm down!" The judge demanded, pointing his pipe at everyone ready to fight. Turning to my side of the scuffle, he stated, "I understand that you feel slighted at his lucky shot, but his bullet it the nail on the head therefore he wins the prize purse."

"But it ain't fair, judge. My Sammy won it; everyone saw so."

"No, my husband, Cap, won it fair and square." My sister loudly spoke up as she looped her arm into her husband's. "Everyone saw so." Allie added in, imitating Squirrel's girlfriend.

"Hand my nephew over his prize money, judge." Jim Vance ordered the judge, who was shakily pulling a pouch out of his pocket.

"Here's your prize, now get." The stout judge told Cap, handing him the prize purse and shooin' him off as a pack of angry McCoys bitched and barked complaints and insults.

Billy POV:

"Mariah, get your ass 'way from that Hatfield." My cousin Jefferson barked at his sister-in-law as he grabbed her by the arm and drug her away from Johnse's whiskey wagon (Robert E.'s side) while my brothers and other cousins 'long wit' Bobby Belcher stormed over to my cart with scowls an' nasty looks on their faces.

"What happened at the shootin' contest?" I asked Squirrel as he stopped next to me and grabbed a bottle of shine out of the cart.

"Cap Hatfield cheated an' won the prize money." Squirrel told me, poppin' the cork on the bottle an' takin' a large gulp from it.

"Oh…" I trailed off, now understandin' why everyone was in such a foul mood for.

"Was bullshit. Squirrel should've won." Bobby Belcher scoffed, grabbing a bottle from my wagon and hoping up to sit on the buckboard.

"That's a greenback, ya know." I reminded my neighbor as my brothers began to grab bottles of shine, leaning against my wagon to start drinkin' an' brood.

Great…looks like my family's just drank up all my whiskey profits. Hell, not I know why Tolbert was always so pissy whenever everyone crowded 'round his shine wagon. They don't like to pay.

As I stood by the barrel of my shine, waitin' for customers t'show up, I saw Lias Hatfield an' Skunk Hair Wallace make their way ov'r to the shine wagon across the way from mine. They were drunk off their asses, passin' a bottle back an' forth, while Ellison an' Cotton went up to Todd. Ellison said somethin', but I didn't know what, to Todd. The asshole, who just happened to be my friend Mary's older brother, rolled his eyes and gestured for Cotton to take a seat on the buckboard of the whiskey wagon.

For some reason I felt an eeriness rise up into the air. It was as if doomsday was approachin', that's how eerie and tense things felt. As I leaned against the large barrel, I saw Lias smack Skunk Hair and point towards somethin'. Whenever I looked towards what the man was pointin' at, I saw my parents walkin' arm in arm. "Watch Ol' Rand'l put his head down." I barely heard Lias say as I turned my attention 'way from my parents. I noticed as I turned my head 'round that Mr. an' Mrs. Hatfield were walkin' arm in arm too; were gonna cross paths wit' my folks.

Ah shit…this ain't gonna be good…not wit' how tense my brothers an' cousins are right now. Hell, I don't like the Hatfields either, but I'd rather sell my shine then get into a fight an' get myself killed or 'killed' like my brother did cause he couldn't leave well 'nough alone. I had a friendship wit' Mary to live for. If I died who'd she have t'write to, t'vent to, t'confide in 'bout her loneliness an' her hardships? Nobody, that's who. So, even tho I felt my temper rise an' boil 'gainst the Hatfields many of times I couldn't be gettin' into fights an' spats wit' 'em. I needed to keep myself alive an' well so that Mary'd have somebody in her life t'care 'bout her.

Everyone on both sides of the food area watch intensely as my folks passed by Devil Anse an' his wife, Levicy. Both couples seemed curt an' tense as they quickly walked by each other. As my folks headed towards their wagon my older brother, Pharmer, loudly shouted out, "Devil Anse couldn't meet the ol' man's eyes!"

Everyone gathered 'round my whiskey wagon chuckled an' cackled in agreement wit' my brother. Well, everyone, but me. I just stood by my cart wit' my arms crossed ov'r my chest, cuttin' eyes at the Hatfield men 'cross the way. Actually, I was cuttin' eyes at Todd, but he's Hatfield kin cause of his brother so…

"Randall McCoy looked 'way like a shy schoolgirl seein' a hard prick for the first time!" Lias Hatfield crudely shouted out while Skunk Hair smirked an' chuckled next t'him.

"Ya shut yer filthy mouth, Hatfield!" Bobby Belcher ordered as he and everyone else gathered 'round me flung off their jackets and hats. Hell…they're gettin' ready to fight.

Lias marched forward and Skunk Hair followed right 'hind him after tossin' his half-empty shine bottle to the ground. My family marched over to them, meetin' them in the middle. I stayed at my wagon wit' Mariah (who had been stuck at my wagon cause of Jefferson…) while Todd, Robert E. an' Cotton stayed at theirs. Ellison Hatfield said somethin' to his son 'fore takin' off towards where his family an' mine had meet in the middle of the wagons.

"Devil Anse shit himself as he went by." One of my brothers, think it might've been Calvin, told Lias an' Skunk Hair.

"Nah, Rand'l McCoy looked off when he passed." Lias retorted right as Ellison ran up to him an' Skunk Hair. Turnin' to his lil brother, the Hatfield asked, "Didn't he look off, Ellison?"

Ellison shook his head 'fore sayin', "Both men were honorable. If one looked off then they both did."

"Course ya'd say that." Bobby Belcher scoffed 'fore turnin' his attention to Lias. "Hey, didn't ya cheat Tolbert McCoy outta almost a whole greenback ov'r a year 'go on his heirloom fiddle?" He asked the musical Hatfield wit' his eyes narrow in an accusatory way. "Yer a thievin' prick!" Belcher shouted, soundin' a bit drunk, for takin' a swing at Lias. A swing that was blocked by Ellison.

"That's 'nough. No more, ya hear me." Ellison told Bobby as he let his arm go.

"I hear ya, but don't mean I'm gonna listen. All ya Hatfields are nothin' but liars, murderers, an' cheats." Bobby spat 'fore takin' 'nother swing at Ellison.

"I said no more." Ellison firmly told Belcher as he pushed him to the ground. Pointin' at my wagon, the giant Hatfield told the dark-haired man on the ground, "No go on; git goin'." Ellison turned his back t'Belcher while tellin' his kin, "Come on, Lias, Skunk Hair, let's go."

Ellison was only able to guide the men maybe a footstep or so 'way 'fore Bobby pushed himself off of the ground an' ran over to him. Wit' a loud scream (that was inaudible) he jumped on Ellison's back an' started poundin' his fists on his shoulders an' 'gainst the back of his head.

"Ya Hatfields stay out of this." Ellison ordered the two drunks 'fore flingin' Bobby Belcher off of his back. The drunken Hatfields scurried over to where their forgotten bottle was on the ground, flopped down next to it on the ground, an' began drinkin' while a fight broke out 'tween Bobby Belcher (a drunk that had somewhat of a temper) an' Ellison.

Since Belcher was bein' flung 'round like a ragdoll, Squirrel pushed Pharmer into the fight while orderin' him to, "Help yer neighbor!"

Pharmer went to hit Ellison, but was blocked an' tossed onto the ground. He got up an' went back ov'r t'Ellison, hittin' him in the guy while he was distracted wit' tryin' to fling Bobby off his back. Right as Bobby got flung off Ellison, Jefferson shoved Bud into the fray while tellin' 'im, "Help yer brother, Bud!"

"I got a bad feelin' 'bout this, Billy." Mariah told me, chewin' on her bottom lip as her eyes welled up wit' fear.

"Me too, Mariah." I nodded. Hell, no use in lyin'. I did have a bad feelin' 'bout this fight. Was common knowledge that fights 'tween our families always turned bloody. Whether that was the intention or not.

The fight attracted a large crowd o'folks. Women, chil'ren, an' men of all ages an' families gathered 'round t'watch it. It was one of those things ya just had'a watch. A Hatfield takin' on three McCoys, yea that was a sight t'behold.

Everythin' went downhill so fast that it happened 'fore I could even process it thru my mind. One second Ellison threw Pharmer off him an' broke him arm an' the next Pharmer got up armed wit' his switchblade an' started stickin' 'im. Belcher, seein' my brother stickin' Ellison, took out a knife an' joined in. Bud went to throw a punch, but got elbowed in the nose as Ellison managed to shove Pharmer off him. Bud fell to the ground only for Jefferson to toss him a blade an' order, "Stick 'im. Stick 'im.", while makin' a stabbin' gesture wit' his hand while my other cousins an' brother just drank an' watched the fight gone bad play out.

'Fore I could even say a word, Bud picked up the knife an' Ellison pushed Belcher off of him while Pharmer (who'd snuck off to the side) grabbed a gun out of a bystander's holster an' pointed it right at Ellison. He had a crazed look in his eyes as his broken arm hung close to his chest, much like a bird's wounded wing does.

"Pharmer, NO!" I shouted; my eyes wide as I suddenly realized what my dumb fat ass brother was about to do.

Lias and Skunk Hair sprung to their feet, their eyes wide with fear as well as they too realized what was gonna happen. "Pharmer!" Lias shouted right as my brother pulled the trigger, sendin' a bullet tearin' right thru Ellison's middle.

Ellison spun 'round from the impact of the gunshot an' stood wobbly on his feet for a moment 'fore his legs gave out an' he fell to the ground. Mariah screamed so loudly that I think she burst my eardrums. It wasn't her scream that bothered me tho, it was the scream of Devil Anse. The man screamed, "Ellison!", with such fear an' panic in his usually hard an' cold tone that it unsettled me. He was standin' by the pickle booth, but made it to his brother's side in 2.5 seconds flat as soon as he saw him go down.

"They tried t'kill Ellison!" Skunk Hair screamed, pointin' to Pharmer, Bud, an' Belcher as the latter led them into a run thru some sticks an' woods in an escape attempt. One I knew woudn't be successful since Sherriff Maynard an' his deputies quickly mounted their horses an' rode off t'catch 'em while Devil Anse tore the sleeve off his shirt an' pressed it to his dyin' brother's gut, which had a hole blown in it so big you could read the newspaper thru it.

Oh god…my next letter to Mary ain't gonna be good. Ain't gonna be good at all.

Tolbert POV:

It was Election Day here in El Paso, Texas just like it was back home in the Tug River Valley. Since El Paso was a larger city, one of the issues on the votin' ballot was the move for county seat from Ysleta to El Paso. Of course, since I lived in a ranch on the outskirts o'town, I voted yes for the county seat move.

Other issues were for local, state, an' gov'ment offices (much like back East). It'd be 'nother couple years 'fore a big pres'dental election tho since Chester A. Arthur still had some years left t'his term (that he took over for Garfield when he died). I didn't vote for 'em, but for Hancock an' his runnin' mate English (who obviously didn't win). It was congressmen an' senators that were gettin' elected this year.

Hmm, I wonder if Novella Brooksdale's husband, Senator Billings, is gonna hoodwink his way into 'nother term or not. Lord knows he was heavily campaignin' 'fore I left Kentucky, no doubt he kept at it up til last nite.

Just like back home, Election Day was a big event an' a large festival was held in El Paso for it. Goddamnit, if I ev'r thought the festival in the Tug Fork River Valley was big, then the one here in El Paso surpassed that in spades. Shops, cantinas, cafes, taverns, saloons, an' the hotel were decorated wit' red, white, an' blue silk buntin' an' streamers while their doors were wide open. Chil'ren ran up an' down, goin' from buildin' t'buildin' happily snaggin' treats an' lookin' for things t'do. Women gathered 'round the sidewalks of various shops to talk or set up stalls t'sell their wares. The local train station was where the votin' was bein' held at so men lined up there in uncountable numbers.

Since I got my vote in earlier in the festival, I took t'just walkin' 'round an' takin' ev'thin' in. One thing I did notice was the lack of shine carts. If one wanted likker then ya had'a go buy it from the saloon or tavern. I did notice that much like the festival back home, musicians were playin' their fiddles, bangos, an' guitars while folks danced to the tunes. I noticed how at different places the musicians played different songs. Like at the tavern an' saloons the songs were more jigs an' reels while at the cantinas the melodies were Spanish folk songs.

I wasn't much of a dancer so when I passed by a place where music was bein' played I had'a politely decline the pretty smiles an' requests t'dance from various young ladies. Yea, seems that workin' for Zeke had made me a popular man in town wit' the ladies even tho I nev'r courted 'em nor approached 'em. Reckon me just bein' the handsome new redhead ranch hand from out East was 'nough t'peek the interest of the local ladies.

I'd just bought a paper cone o'popcorn an' was walkin' 'round ettin' it whenever I saw Mindy in the corner o'my eye twirlin' her skirt an' dancin' 'long to a Spanish melody bein' played by some musicians standin' on the porch ofa cantina. She seemed carefree as she danced, somethin' I felt jealous of since I hadn't been able t'feel carefree in a long time. A very long time.

She must've spotted me cause 'fore I knew it, Mindy was wavin' me ov'r an' suggestin', "Come dance, cowboy."

I shook my head, declinin' her wit' the remark of, "I ain't much of a dancer."

She paused in her dancin' an' gave me a shrug 'fore flippin' her blonde wavy locks ov'r her shoulder an' runnin' up to me. "Most men aren't, Tolbert, but they do it anyways cause it's the polite thing to do for a lady."

"If ya haven't noticed, Mindy, I ain't polite. Far from it, in fact." I dryly told her while poppin' some popcorn into my mouth.

"No, you're just too hung up on that ex-wife of yours back East. That's what your problem is."

"Don't talk 'bout her." I gruffly ordered the ex-whore 'fore addin' in a loud bark, "Ain't none of yer business if I still got my heart bleedin' for her or not anyhow." I stalked off, leavin' Mindy t'stand in the middle of the street by herself.

I heard her footsteps paddin' 'gainst the road as she rushed t'catch up to me. Right as I felt her reach my side a shiver went up my spine an' a hole appeared in my heart. A sense of dread washed ov'r me as Mindy placed a hand on my shoulder an' asked, "What's wrong, Tolbert? Ya seem troubled."

"I dunno, Mindy. I just suddenly got this dreadful feelin' like somethin's wrong."

"Nothin's wrong, cowboy." She assured me with a smile. Gesturin' to the festival all 'round us, Mindy told me, "Everything's fine and everybody's cheerful today."

I shook my head 'fore tellin' her, "Not 'ere, but back home." My stormy eyes locked onto her as I clarified, "Back in Kentucky."

I didn't wait for her reaction, just pulled my shoulder 'way from her touch an' stormed off down the road. Nobody could understand the dread I was feelin' right now cause nobody knew the bloody history 'tween my family an' the Hatfields. Nobody knew how bad things were an' could be back in Kentucky; West Virginia too. Wit' the hollow feelin' in my soul I couldn't help, but to worry for my family. Not just the ones that shared my blood an' name, but for Jessa an' our son born out of love an' wedlock.

I can only pray that my worried feelin' has no merit, that my relations won't be in harm's way. That Jessa an' Endor will be safe til I time I can get them outta Mate Creek an' into Oklahoma (the place I plan to go once I save up money an' gain ranchin' experience).

AN:

Yea…so…that just happened… Poor Ellison still got shanked and shot in that fight. I just didn't see a way around it since that incident was such a big and powerful part of the feud. Oh, hope you guys like the little tidbit with Tolbert.

Of course, the next chapter's gonna be Eection Day Pt. 3.