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Unfinished Business
Ch. 4
By Alias
e-mail: [email protected]
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News from Aliasland: Sigh, Ivanhoe. Gotta go read it. Least I know the story ahead of time this time. As opposed to the Weepy Doc. Whoo-ee did I have a time figuring that out. Got it figured out in the end though. What�s that? Oh, right, get to the point. Right, ok. Didn�t I tell you that I�d get right back to work on Unfinished Business as soon as I finished "The Last Story"? Well, didn�t I? Meanwhile, I�ve started two more fanfics(Non mag7 sorry, but you Herc fans might wanna contact me about �em.) Anyways, more to occupy the five seconds of spare time. Oh, and there�s that new debate topic(And I never got to do the scantity of life/ quality of life one. I was really looking forward to that.) Whoops, don�t get to say any more, Debbie�s comin� up with that "Get back in your cell and start writing Missy" look. I�m tellin� ya, that lady�s a slave driver. She�HEY!!!! PUT THAT CATTLE PROD UP!!!! I�M GOIN�!!! I�M GOIN�!!!!! For my own safety, I�m gonna shut up now.
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Vin looked at the- until recently- plain wooden cross. He stood up, looking over at Ezra.
"When did you find out about this?"
"Just this morning. One of the children saw it and came and found me."
"What was the kid doing here?"
"He did not say. I assume it would be to much to hope that this is a coincidence?"
"Probably."
"I killed him."
Ezra glanced at the bounty hunter, one brow quizzically arched.
"Got drunk, tried pickin� a fight with me. Drew on me when I walked away."
"Ah." Ezra remembered that incident. The dead man�s friends had left town before anyone could learn his name. He supposed that they knew it now. "I suppose the question now is, do we tell Miss Wilmington?"
"Tell me what?"
Both men jumped slightly at the sound of Laurie�s voice, neither having heard her coming. They unconsciously blocked the grave with their bodies as they stood up, blocking off her view of it.
"Are you two hiding something?"
Ezra stepped forward.
"Of course not Miss Wilmington, you surprised us is all. Might I inquire as to why you have sojourned here?"
She indicated the wildflowers in her hand. "I have some flowers for Ma. What were you two talking about telling me?"
Ezra hesitated, knowing that the girl would take it better if Vin, and only Vin, were to tell her, but not quite knowing how to excuse himself.
"I believe Mr. Tanner should tell you. If you would permit me, I would be honored to take care of these for you." Before Laurie could answer, Ezra took the flowers and went to Marjorie�s grave.
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"Well?"
Vin looked at the light in Laurie�s eyes, surprised to realize that he hadn�t seen it before. Between everything that had happened to her when she first came to town, the initial animosity that Fout Corners had had towards her when she bought the saloon, and then, just as she was beginning to be accepted, all this, she hadn�t had a moment to relax, to be happy. And now, maybe, she did.
Something told him that nothing was worth killing that light. But something else, something stronger, told him that keeping the truth from her, no matter what the reason, could kill that light forever.
"Vin?"
He stepped aside, letting her see the grave. The almost instant dying of the light in her eyes answered the question that he was about to ask before he could ask it. But he still had to ask it.
"You knew him?"
"That was�I mean�how?" He moved to stand beside-and slightly behind-her, not sure if she would bbe able to stay up by herself.
"Tried pickin� a fight with me a few weeks back. Drew on me when I tried walkin� away." She remembered that. She had thought that the man had looked familiar, but his face had been badly scarred. She doubted the explanation she had heard him give to another customer had been true, but his money was still just as good. She also remembered the look he had given her, but then, it hadn�t been much different than the looks she got from many of her other customers on a regular basis.
She realized that she had drifted when she felt Vin�s hand on her shoulder.
"You alright?"
"Yeah, I�m fine, I was just�thinking." She glanced up, seeing his next question before he could ask, or decide not to ask. "He was Eric�s cousin, a couple of years older than him." She paused, not wanting to ask, but having to. "Do you think Eric will come after you?"
"Probably, but I�ll be waiting for him." His gaze drifted over to where Ezra was still arranging the flowers on Marjorie�s grave.
"Might wanna stop him �afore the flowers get all wilted."
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Laurie gave the flowers a once-over, relieved to see that Ezra�s continuous rearranging hadn�t bruised them very much.
"Hey Ma." Laurie tried to picture her mother�s face as it had been before they had come to Fout Corners, before she had been hurt in the stagecoach accident, but couldn�t. Ever since Marjorie Wilmington had died, the images of her in Laurie�s mind were of after the crash, and the weeks that she had spent on her deathbed after that.
"Life stinks, you know that? I mean, what is it that makes people-other people that is-work? The way that they�re supposed to I mean. In society. You look at other people, other women, who stay in their proper place and do their proper roles and do the proper thing, and you wonder how the hell they can do that and not go crazy. I tried it Ma, I really did. But all that junk, dresses and manners and being the pretty scenery, it wasn�t me. I couldn�t do it." She stopped, wondering where all that was coming from, and flopped down beside the grave resting her chin on her knees. "I guess I�m saying this because�well�maybe part of that is whatever it is that helps you to understand your feelings, or something liike that. I don�t know, you never really told me how to understand all that stuff. I guess that you probably woulda gotten around to it, but�well�it�s just� there�s this guy who I care about. At least, I think I care about him. Maybe. I�m not really sure. I just know that�well...when he�s around, I feel�different. I guess. Safe. And funny. Kinda nervous. But really comfortable. You, uhm, you remember Vin don�t you? Vin Tanner? About five or six years older than me, long hair, brown eyes, kinda scruffy looking?" She stopped remembering how Vin had looked that morning, hat off, the wind blowing his curly hair, the sun creating a halo behind him, making his hair look almost blond around the edges. She shook her head, bringing herself back to reality. "But, that doesn�t really matter. I mean, he doesn�t care about me, not like that at least. He watches out for me, a lot. Definitely more than he should have to. But there�s a reason for that. Part of it is that he�s really a pretty decent guy. The rest, well�Buck pretty much told him that he was supposed to be my body-guard or some such, and you know how�uhm, persuasive Buck is when it comes to me."
Laurie glanced up when she noticed that she was barely casting a shadow, realizing that it was almost midday.
"It�s getting late, and I gotta go. There�s a party tonight, and I�m supposed to help Mrs. Travis set everything up. Plus, I have to get the saloon locked up, and Buck said something in his telegram about looking for his pocketwatch."
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Laurie looked at the dancing citizens of Four Corners. When Nathan had told her to lock up the saloon because she wouldn�t have enough business for it to be worth her while, she had thought he was crazy. Now, looking at the party-goers, she was glad that she had. She woulda kicked herself for weeks if she�d missed this social. It was so much better than the prim and proper socials she�d been to back east. Plus, volunteering to help Mary Travis set things up earlier that day had given her the chance to get to know the widow better-and to bring up Chris�s name as much as possible.
Now, watching Mary�s eyes repeatedly drift over to the darkened corner where Chris had been all evening, she really wished that she could find a way to get the older woman to pay attention to the feelings she obviously had, but was practically oblivious to.
Nearby, Ezra was gracefully dancing with Karen Blair, who was giggling as he deftly moved them safely among the other dancers. From the look on Ezra�s face, he was starting to asking her to dance earlier, as she�d somehow managed to fend off all other comers since, and had giggled during every dance. To bad he couldn�t take a cue from Chris and just walk off. J.D. was dancing with Casey Wells, and they were the opposite of Ezra and Karen, just barely managing to stay a hair�s breadth away from the other couples. Josiah was talking to a girl she didn�t know, although she matched the description that Laurie had of Rain, the girl who Nathan was in love with. Over in his corner, Chris had been covertly watching the party all evening. She noted that his eyes had kept finding their way back to Mary. If only they�d each glance at the other at the same time�
What she didn�t see, however, was Nathan or Vin. She moved towards Josiah and the girl she assumed was Rain, hoping that they would know where the others were.
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Vin watched Nathan dab at a cut on the girl�s mouth from across the room, silently cursing himself for not thinking that she might have gotten hurt for helping him.
He was still cursing himself when Nathan walked up to him.
"I need to go tell Rain what�s going on, can you stay with Allie?"
"Sure."
Vin sat down in the chair that Nathan had vacated, looking at Allie�s beaten arms and face.
"Was it him?" He didn�t bother saying Collins�s name. There was only one �him� that he�d be asking her about.
"Yeah."
"I�m sorry." For once, he didn�t control his face, letting the guilt he felt was over it.
"Not your fault."
"If I hadn�t asked you to go to his room that night�"
"It woulda happened anyways. I know men like Collins Mr. Tanner, known more than I woulda liked to. He woulda got what he wanted no matter what you had done. If not to me then to someone else."
"Doesn�t make me any less guilty."
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Laurie liked Rain. She�d meant to just ask her and Josiah if they knew where Nathan and Vin were, but they�d ended up talking. She could see why Nathan loved her, and could tell that the two of them would have a good, long life together if given half a chance.
They were talking-or rather, laughing-about how Nathan and Rain had met, when the subject of their discussion walked up. Laurie was si busy fighting the image of Nathan hanging upside down, that she forgot to ask about Vin. Didn�t stopp her from hearing though.
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Rain gave Nathan a swift hug, feeling safe as his strong arms folded around her. She had been nervous about coming here tonight, but she had always been interested in learning more about the white man�s ways of celebrating, so when Nathan had asked her to come�
"I missed you." She whispered.
"I missed you too."
"What happened?" She knew that only something important would have made him leave her tonight.
"A girl-Allie Porter-got beat up real bad tonight. Gotta get back to her in just a minute."
"Know who did it?" Josiah�s gentle voice cut in.
"If she knows, she ain�t sayin�. Rain, I hate to do this, but�"
"Go. Josiah and Laurie have been keeping me company."
"Laurie?" Nathan glanced around, looking for her.
"Yes. She was right over-" But she wasn�t, not anymore.
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Laurie hurried down the street, listening to the sounds of the dance diminish behind her.
Allie Porter�damn, she knew that girl. She was only seventeen. She also remembered Vin talking to her the night that Eric had come to town. She didn�t know if Allie�s bebating was connected to that, but something told her that it was.
She was halfway to Nathan�s when an arm snaked Around her waist, and a hand clamped over her mouth.
Kicking her legs didn�t do her any good, but one arm was free, and she jabbed it back into her attacker�s ribcage. Gasping, he let her go, but by the the time had regained her footing and spun around to face him, he had recovered enough to deliver a fist to her jaw hard enough to send her sprawling to the ground.
The last thing Laurie saw before she passed out was Eric Collins�s leering face.
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