A Twist Of Fate
A Twist Of Fate© Laura Brown
PROLOGUE
Jimmy walked along the street, his thumbs hooked into his gunbelt and his eyes staring fixedly at the ground in front of him. The sun was beating down on his back, warming his skin and soothing away the stiffness which had found its way into his joints during yesterday’s long ride. Around him, he was aware of the bustling of the street as the people of Rock Creek went about their business. A couple of children raced across in front of him, chasing a dog with a big pink ribbon tied around his neck, but Jimmy hardly noticed - his mind was miles away. He’d had been so preoccupied for the last few days that even yesterday’s run had seemed to fly past without him noticing, only his tired body reminding him of how hard he’d ridden.
Unconsciously, his hand went to his pocket and his fingers
began to run along the rough edges of the letter which he kept there. The long
but hurriedly written letter was dated from just over two months ago and the
lack of a later edition was what was
worrying him. Since Jimmy had left Lucas Springs with Lou, Kid and Buck six
months ago he and Christine had exchanged letters just about every week, the
consistency of their writing only being disrupted by the failings of the mail
system. Even when a letter was delayed or disappeared into the system never
to be found again, another letter was never far behind. However, for two months
now Jimmy had been searching every delivery for an envelope displaying Christine’s
broad, rounded hand only to be disappointed.
He’d found it hard at first to write the letters; he wasn’t
one for words, let alone written ones. But the enjoyment he received from Chris’
long chattering letters had driven him to make an attempt and eventually they
had fallen into a very comfortable
correspondence, in which Christine wrote to him about the town and the ranch,
and he wrote to her with news about the Express Station family and the things
that happened to him on his rides. He loved getting in from a long, dusty run
and finding a crisp white envelope lying on his bunk, full of densely written
sheets of paper. Christine had a way of describing the little incidents of her
day which brought them to life. It might only be a little episode about the
young ranch hand she’d hired or how her cat drank the whole day’s
milk while she was in the yard, but she told it with the skill of a master storyteller
and Jimmy enjoyed her letters more than
any of the books he’d ever struggled his way through.
She’d also found room in her letters to write about her worries and concerns, about the ranch or an argument she’d had with one of the girls from town. Sometimes it had been all Jimmy could do to keep himself from jumping on his horse and riding off to Lucas Springs to try and fix it for her, but he hadn’t forgotten all the trouble he’d gotten himself into last time he tried to be Christine’s knight in shining armour, and deep down he had to admit that Christine was more than capable of looking after herself.
Jimmy had also found himself confiding in Christine, telling
her his own problems and concerns. Despite the fact that they were hundreds
of miles apart, Jimmy had never felt this close to anyone before and he could
feel his life changing as a result of it. He’d been thinking a little bit
more before acting lately, and his view of his future had changed from a pessimistic
one, to one of autious but sustained optimism. Christine’s letters had
always been cheerful and lively, with the exception of the painfully heartfelt
letters she’d written to him and to Buck after Ike’s death, and Jimmy
had come to rely on them. Now, after two months without them,
Jimmy was not only missing the letters, he was worrying about what was causing
their absence. For a couple of weeks now he’d been considering riding out
to Lucas Springs and finding out what was wrong. Only two things held him back.
One was the fact that he knew how unreliable the mail system could be and it
was possible that her letters had just been misdirected. The other was the more
daunting thought that maybe she just didn’t want to write to him anymore.
What if she didn’t feel the same way anymore? What if she’d found
someone else, someone who’d be there when she needed him? It was this thought
which kept Jimmy from discussing the matter with Lou and the others. He knew
they’d dismiss the notion as ridiculous but in Jimmy’s mind it was
entirely possible, and it started the old doubts growing in his mind again.
She’d be right to go and find someone else. What could he give her? How
could she possible love him as much as he loved her? Jimmy let the thoughts
fly around in his mind, and felt himself sinking back into the old dejected
frame of mind Christine had pulled him out of only months before .
Suddenly a loud angry voice broke through into his mind.
“Hickok!”
Drawn away from his thoughts, Jimmy turned and looked around
in the direction the voice had come from. Teaspoon was standing in the doorway
of his office, hands on hips and an angry frown on his face. With a sigh, Jimmy
made his way over to the
older man, wishing he had kept on walking.
“Where’s your head today, Hickok?” Teaspoon
snapped as Jimmy approached. “I’ve been hollerin’ your name for
the last five minutes while you strolled along the street with your head in
the clouds. Some people got work to do, you know. Can’t all go
wonderin’ around like Lady Muck.”
“Like who?” Jimmy asked, baffled be the angry lecture he was getting from Teaspoon.
Teaspoon shook his head in frustration and marched into the
office, Jimmy following behind but keeping close to the door so he could make
his escape if the need arose. He could hear Teaspoon muttering away to himself
as he searched through a pile of
papers on his desk. Jimmy leaned himself against the doorframe and waited for
Teaspoon to get round to the problem.
“Special papers,” Teaspoon announced, picking up
the slim package he’d suddenly noticed on the top of the pile he’d
been rummaging through. “Came in half an hour ago. They’ve got to
go out to Fort Laramie. Cody was gonna take them but he fell off
the porch and hurt his foot; can’t ride,”
Jimmy shook his head and rolled his eyes up into his head. That boy sure knew how to pick the right time to take a fall. No doubt he’d be up and around ten minutes after someone else rode out with the package.
“So who you gonna get to do it?” Jimmy asked idly, only grasping the importance of the question when he looked up and saw Teaspoon smiling at him broadly, a self satisfied glint in his eyes.
“Teaspoon!” Jimmy groaned disbelievingly. “I just got in last night; can’t someone else do it?”
“’Fraid not, son,” Teaspoon grinned. “Buck and Noah aren’t due back till tonight and Kid and Lou are still gettin’ over their colds.”
“Oh, come on! They’re fine! I saw ‘em both chasin’ Cody round the barn this mornin’ tryin’ to get back the money he owes them,” Jimmy protested.
“Well, Rachel says ‘no’ and I ain’t gonna
argue with her; are you? Didn’t think so. Now take the papers and get yourself
set to go. There ain’t no hurry but they got to get there safe and sound
so be careful, alright?” Teaspoon handed Jimmy the package
and watched him walk grudgingly out the door. “And Jimmy-” Teaspoon
called, waiting until the young man looked back round at him until he continued.
“Don’t forget to smile!”
Jimmy threw him a scathing look and continued on out the door and along the street. Teaspoon watched him go, laughing to himself as he did so. “Such a cheerful soul,” he chuckled to himself as he settled back down into his chair.
Lou and Kid looked up as Jimmy strode into the bunkhouse and made straight for his bed and his trunk.
“Hey there, Jimmy,” Kid began cheerfully.
“Don’t you talk to me, Kid,” Jimmy commanded, pulling a clean shirt out of his trunk and changing into it quickly.
“Anything wrong, Jimmy?” Lou asked innocently from her seat at the table next to Kid.
“You neither, Lou,” came the gruff reply.
Kid and Lou exchanged mirthful glances and dutifully kept their mouths shut.
Jimmy pulled on his coat and looked around the bunkhouse for the other one who’d managed to get out of the run. Not finding him, Jimmy looked back round at Lou and Kid.
“Where’s Cody?” he asked, the menace obvious in his voice.
Kid and Lou both looked up at him wide eyed, their lips pursed firmly together and their hands raised in a helpless gesture. Lou began to mumble through her closed mouth and Jimmy shook his head tiredly.
“Alright,” he hissed, “You can talk. Where is he?”
Lou threw him a cheeky smile and shrugged her shoulders. “Sorry Jimmy we ain’t seen him.”
Jimmy nodded defeatedly and snatched up the package from his bunk. As he headed for the door, the old problem nagged at him and he turned back round to face Lou.
“Have you heard from Chris lately?” he asked, knowing that the two girls had been writing to each other for some time.
Lou shook her head and looked up at Jimmy questioningly. “Nope. Figured she must be too busy to write. Everything okay?”
“Fine,” Jimmy replied quickly before he turned and strode out the door.
“Ride safe, Jimmy,” Kid called out as he watched Jimmy stride out towards the barn.
Lou and Kid exchanged brief curious glances and then turned in their chairs and looked round towards their bunks. They only had to wait a few seconds before Cody poked his head out from under Kid’s bunk.
“He gone?” the blonde rider asked, his hair falling over his eyes and a cheeky grin on his face.
Lou and Kid nodded in reply. “He’s gone. But he’s gonna kill you when he gets back,” Kid added.
Cody pulled himself up and strolled easily across the room, not limping in the slightest. “Well you two are puttin’ it on too!” he accused, straightening his hair in the mirror.
“We really were sick!” Lou cried defensively. “Least we didn’t throw ourselves off the porch to get out of a run.”
Cody shrugged, obviously not bothered by his deception. “I
got better things to do than take some stupid run out to Fort Laramie. ‘Sides,
you ought to be thanking me. This way you don’t have Jimmy stormin’
round the place like a grumpy old bear.”
With that Cody threw himself up on his bunk and settled down for some well deserved
sleep.
Kid and Lou looked round at each other and had to acknowledge the truth in that. Jimmy sure had been surly lately and as they heard him thunder out of the yard on his horse they couldn’t help but count their blessings.
