STANDING
BETWEEN LOVE AND BETRAYALSTANDING
BETWEEN LOVE AND BETRAYAL
Kid rushes for Buck’s room, but is abruptly halted when Doc Barnes calmly steps out of Buck’s room. He gently shuts the door, and before Kid can utter a word, Doc Barnes holds his hands up to warn Kid not to talk too loudly.
“Please just tell me that Buck’s alive,” Kid spoke his voice cracking with emotion.
“Buck has had a difficult night, but he seems to be as well as can be expected right now,” Doc Barnes spoke softly.
Upon hearing this news Jane stands up from her chair and walks over to stand by Kid.
Louise stands back from Kid and Jane, and observes the weak and frail condition that Jane has put herself in after only one day of caring for Buck.
“I’m sorry that I can’t make him well,” Jane spoke with tears streaming down her cheeks to Kid.
“Jane, I don’t blame you for Buck not getting better. I know with a wound like Buck’s it takes rest and a lot of time to heal,” Kid spoke reassuringly to Jane.
“What I really believe that needs to be done now, is for Jane to get a breath of fresh air, and good meal and a good nights sleep. You aren’t doing Buck any good by making yourself so ill that you can’t even stand on your own two feet,” Doc Barnes stated with authority.
Louise walks up behind Jane. She places a gentle hold on Jane’s forearm. “Jane, how about if you and I take a little walk and get some breakfast over at the hotel while Kid keeps Buck company?” Louise spoke with a reassuring smile.
Jane glances over at Kid. “You swear you won’t leave Buck until I get back here?”
“I swear. I need to have a talk with Buck. It could take awhile, so take your time.”
Kid walks past Doc Barnes and enters Buck’s room. He quietly shuts the door once he has entered the room. His eyes become fixed on the feverish, unconscious man lying in the bed directly in front of him. He has never seen Buck looking so badly from a wound. He is extremely pale except for his cheeks that are warm and blushed from his fever. The many bruises on his face from the fall he had sustained are starting to turn a deep purplish hue. The crooked smile that is now replaced with a frown has Kid thinking that his friend isn’t coming back to him.
Kid walks slowly to the side of the bed. He brushes his fingers across Buck’s forehead to check for himself the extreme warmth that is coming from Buck’s body. Kid reaches down to Buck’s side, and places Buck’s hand in his.
“I can’t fight Jesse alone. I need your help,” Kid spoke quietly his voice cracking with emotion. “You can’t die. I could never run the ranch by myself. I mean you could probably run the ranch without me. For one thing you wouldn’t have to stand between Jimmy and I anymore. But, I can’t fight Jesse alone, I can’t calm myself down after a fight with Jimmy, and I especially wouldn’t be able to keep Teaspoon from going after Jesse by himself if you should leave us. And, I know how much that would upset you, you being so over-protective of Teaspoon and all. You need to wake up, Buck. I need you to wake up.”
Kid leans his head down gently on Buck’s shoulder. “Dammit Buck, you need to wake up.”
After the intrusive visit from Jesse, Teaspoon couldn’t find a moments peace to guide his body into a deep sleep. Instead he found himself pacing the living room of his home with Rachel. When that didn’t tire the old marshal out, he decided to make the trip into Rock Creek to go over the wanted posters and other monotonous duties that comes with being a marshal.
What he found when he arrived was a sleeping Jimmy who immediately woke up simply to ask Teaspoon if he could have the day off. Figuring he would only go back home and ruin the floor boards with his pacing, Teaspoon happily gave Jimmy the day off.
Teaspoon had been sitting at his desk for hours staring blindly at one particular wanted poster. That poster belonged to Jesse James!
Sometime early in the morning, Teaspoon isn’t even sure at what time,
Jack Morgan gallantly strolls into the marshal’s office not trying to be quiet at all. Even the heavy steps of Jack’s boots walking toward Teaspoon doesn’t nudge the marshal out of his deep thinking of what he will do next to prevent Jesse James from hurting anyone else that he cares about.
“How’s your deputy doing this morning?” Jack asked boldly.
Teaspoon looks away from the poster of Jesse to glance up at Jack. “What?”
“How is Buck this morning?”
“Don’t know. I haven’t been over to see him yet,” Teaspoon spoke softly.
Jack takes the wanted poster out of Teaspoon’s hands. He glances at the poster. “How long have you been staring at this thing?”
“What difference does it make?”
Jack places the wanted poster on the desk with Jesse’s face turned away from the marshal’s eyes.
“That ain’t gonna keep me from thinking about what an evil person he has become,” Teaspoon spoke as he reaches for his cup of coffee.
“You need to give yourself and the blame that you’re carrying a break. It ain’t good for a person to carry as much guilt as you’re carrying right now.”
“It’s my fault that Buck is fighting for his life. It’s a fight that Buck may not be able to win.”
“Then if Buck doesn’t win this fight, that is when you go after Jesse, and not one moment sooner. Your thoughts at this moment shouldn’t be about how you’re going to get revenge. Your thoughts should be on how you’re gonna help Buck recover.”
“What makes you such an authority on what I should and shouldn’t do?”
“I need for you to wait until this old shoulder and arm of mine is healed. We’ll go after the James Gang together, just you and I.”
“Like the old days, Jack?”
“I came to Rock Creek because I had heard rumors that the James Gang was hiding out close to town. Coming here also gave me the opportunity to make amends with you. But, it seems to me that you really don’t want our friendship to mend. It seems to me that you’re doing everything within your power to make sure our friendship withers and dies. You care to explain that to me?”
While Teaspoon is debating over Jack’s recent question, Jack takes a seat in the chair that sits in front of Teaspoon’s desk. “I ain’t leaving until you can provide me with a logical answer to my question.”
“Jack, I honestly get the feeling that you came to Rock Creek more to visit with me then you came here to hunt down Jesse and his gang. I believe your hiding something that you ain’t too sure I’m gonna approve of, so you keep hanging around playing guessing games with me. Which is something I really don’t have time for. Why don’t you just make yourself clear on the real reason why you’re in Rock Creek?” Teaspoon spoke with a begging tone.
Jack is quiet for a moment thinking about what the repercussions will be concerning his news about Teaspoon. For a long time now he has wanted Teaspoon to know the truth about his own past, perhaps now is just as good as anytime to tell Teaspoon the truth once and for all. If for no other reason, it will at least ease his conscious. “You are absolutely right. I have been keeping something from you that I’ve been a little worried about sharing with you, especially now that you have so much on your mind. You don’t need anything else that will cloud your mind of what you must do to prevent Jesse from doing your family anymore harm.”
“Out with it, Jack. Like I said before, I don’t have time to play games. I’ve got a deputy who is still unconscious, and I have an entire town that is in a panic because of the James Gang being so close by. So if you have something to say, then just say it.”
“There’s a child.”
Teaspoon’s face goes from an angry scowl to the paleness of a shocked old man.
At that moment, Kid walks into the marshal’s office. Kid realizes that he has intruded in on a rather important conversation going on between Teaspoon and Jack Morgan.
Jack gets up from his chair rather slowly, and walks up to Kid. “I was just leaving,” Jack spoke as he turns around to view a very speechless Teaspoon Hunter. “Will further this conversation later.” With those words Jack is gone from Teaspoon’s office.
Kid walks up to Teaspoon. “Are you alright?”
“Yeah, I’m just fine,” Teaspoon spoke flatly as he once again picks up Jesse’s wanted poster and stares blindly at it. “Have you seen Buck this morning?”
“Yeah. His fever has come down. The doc seems sure that Buck will wake-up soon.”
“That’s good. We need to concentrate on how we’re gonna keep Jesse from doing anything like this again.”
“I agree.”