Chapter 8

Kid led Katy to the stream for a much deserved rest and drink.  He tossed his hat aside as he knelt down then splashed the cool, refreshing water on his face and neck.  It might be October but the air was still warm, especially when riding as fast as he was.  He had a destination and a future to get home to and wanted to get there as soon as he could.

Wiping his face with a clean bandanna, he looked in his horse's direction and said,  "Well, girl, we're on our way now.  As soon as you're rested, we'll put some more miles behind us before nightfall."  He took a piece of jerky out of his saddlebag and started chewing on it to keep him going the rest of the day.  "By this time tomorrow, I'll be done with this - no more rides, no more chasing bad guys, and if Buck tells me everything is going according to schedule, I'll have the best surprise for Lou.  I can't wait to see her face when I tell her." 

He smiled to himself then grabbed ahold of Katy's reins.  "Come on, girl, I have a wife waiting for me at home and she's been alone far too many days.  That's a lot of making up for lost time on my part."  As he mounted, he almost blushed as his mind wandered to what his hands and the rest of his body wanted to do once at home.

Jimmy and Charlie had been riding for the better part of the day in silence.  Now Jimmy slowed down and looked at his fellow co-worker.  "Charlie, what do you say we stop here for a while, have something to eat?"

"Suits me fine,"  Charlie said then pulled his mount in the direction a lone tree.  He dismounted and took his canteen with him as he went to sit on a rock in the shade. 

Jimmy brought over the saddlebag with food from Emma and sat across from Charlie.  He handed out some biscuits.

"So, who exactly are we going to see in Rock Creek?"  Charlie asked, curious, as he broke off part of the biscuit and shoved it in his mouth.  Not bothering to wait until it was chewed, he continued,  "Mrs. Cain told me you used to ride for the Express with these guys.  How many of them are there?"

Jimmy looked at him chewing and talking.  Man, does he remind me of Cody, Jimmy thought, shaking his head.  He already knew Charlie was a talker like Cody, now he couldn't believe there were two people in this world with that big an appetite.

"The only ones left there are Kid, Lou and Buck.  Cody joined the army and Ike and Noah died a while ago,"  Jimmy answered.  He figured it was easier just to tell Charlie because if he avoided the question, the younger man would keep asking it over and over again in an attempt to wear him down.

"Mrs. Cain said you want Kid and Buck to join up with us.  How come you ain't askin' Lou to join us?  Ain't he a fighter?" 

Jimmy chuckled at that description.  "Lou is definitely a fighter, you don't want to mess with Lou.  Besides, Kid wouldn't think too highly of me if I asked her to come along."

"What's he got to do with it?  Wait a minute, did you say 'her'?"  Charlie asked in confusion.

"That's right, Lou's a girl, no, that's wrong, she's a woman ... definitely a woman,"  Jimmy admitted.  She would always have a special place in his heart, that's why it bothered him so much that he had been abrupt to her when he'd left.  She didn't deserve that, just because she followed her heart and married the man she was meant to be with.

"Women weren't allowed to ride for the Express.  How'd she pull it off?"  Charlie wondered.

"It's a long story,"  Jimmy said, reminiscing about the time he'd found out why his smallest bunkmate would never be able to grow a beard.  "Anyway, Kid and Lou are married now and getting ready to start their own life together.  I'm real happy for them but I'm not sure if they know it,"  Jimmy admitted, more to himself.

"Why don't they know it if you all were as close as Mrs. Cain said you were?  What'd you do, have a big fight or something?  Or was it over a girl?  Lou?"  Charlie nudged his partner, a smile forming.  "Come on, you can tell me."

Jimmy looked at him.  "This had nothing to do with his wife.  I kinda let my pride get in the way of some things.  I gave up the trust of friendship over a woman - all because I know everything, or thought I did,"  he said, chuckling to himself at the craziness of the situation he found himself in.  He took the saddlebag and went back to his horse with it.  "I just gotta find a way to fix it before it's too late, if he'll even listen to me, that is."  He leaned against the saddle, deep in thought.  He was going home but for the first time, he felt like a stranger returning.  How would they receive him?  he wondered.

Charlie leaned back against the tree, trying to relax while he still had the chance.  "If you and him ain't gettin' along, why were you so insistent on havin' these guys join us?  I mean, we already got a tracker;  is this Buck fella that good?"

"He's better than good and he's what we're gonna need.  The Flemington gang will be expecting company so they're not gonna make it easy on us."

"Alright, so we need Buck.  Now what about Kid?  I've heard Marshal Cain tellin' stories about you Express riders from when he was in Sweetwater.  Is Kid really as good with a gun as I've heard tell?"  Charlie fancied himself quite the gunman so he was always curious about someone who might be better than he was.  He had to admit he wasn't in the same league with Jimmy, maybe one day but not yet.  Was this Kid guy as good as Jimmy?  He found it hard to believe.

"He's one of the best,"  Jimmy said, proud of his friend.  "There's no one I'd want by my side if I ran into trouble.  And we've saved each other too many times to count."  He paused as he gathered up his horse's reins.  "But the reason I'm askin' him has nothin' to do with his gun.  I just hope he can see that."

Charlie realized the break was over so he headed back to his horse.  "Why don't you just tell him you want to be friends again instead of getting all cryptic about it?"

"Because sometimes, actions speak louder than words,"  Jimmy said, mounting up.  He didn't look back at Charlie, instead, he looked forward.  He wanted to get to Rock Creek so bad now, he needed to get this started, this time of healing and hopefully rebuilding a friendship he hoped to have for the rest of his life.