"Well, Mr. Hickok, you still in for this hand," the southern gambler across from him asked.

Jimmy shook his head and finished the whiskey in the glass next to him.

The man nodded. "Not much of a challenge when it's only two playin'? I'll see you tomorrow night then?" the southerner asked.

"No, last night in town, headin' out in the morning'," Jimmy replied as he waved the saloon girl coming toward him away. He'd been watching the southerner all evening trying his best to figure out where he knew him from but still hadn't figured it out. The man didn't cheat or if he did he was the best Jimmy had ever seen. Luck had seemed to be with both of them tonight as they had both won their fair share of hands.

"I'm considering the same. Been wanting to see what's west of here. Heard I had some relatives near Sweetwater," the southerner said as he shuffled the deck of cards in his hand.

"I'm headed in that direction, to see family," Jimmy replied as he tried to figure out once again who the southerner was and why he had just told him where he was headed. The man could be someone looking to make his reputation by drawing down on him. Jimmy shook off the feeling that he knew the gambler and stood to leave.

"Would you mind some company?"

"Sweetwater is a good couple of days ride from here." Jimmy couldn't help it; he was becoming suspicious of the gambler.

"That's no problem. I've ridden more than women and a river boat, Mr. Hickok." Jimmy laughed and the southerner continued. "My pappy took up residence in Sweetwater 'bout ten or so years back. Has a place a bit out of town. Ain't seen him in a while and thought it might be nice to drop in on the old man."

Jimmy couldn't fault the man for wanting to see his father. He thought about asking who it was the man was related to but knew there were folks he'd never got around to knowing. It'd been five years since he'd been back himself. Figuring he'd warn the southerner before letting him ride along with him Jimmy said, "Ya know a lot of men think gunnin' down a man such as myself will earn them a reputation and respect." Looking the southerner in the eye he added, "It usually just earns them a grave."

"Some men think cheating a man like me at cards will gain them a reputation as a better player, it's earned a few a grave," the southerner said as he stood and offered Jimmy his hand. "Can't stand a cheat. By the way I'm Bret Garner."

"Pleasure," Jimmy replied shaking the man's hand. Jimmy still felt he knew the man but couldn't place him. "Have we met before?"

"Haven't been west since before the war," the southerner replied.

"Maybe during the war then?" Jimmy asked.

"Spent most of it in Andersonville," Garner replied his smile fading. Jimmy's questioning look had him adding, "It's a long story best saved for a camp fire."

Jimmy nodded and smiled at Garner. "I'll see you at first light then."

"See you then Mr - "

"Name's Jimmy or James to my friends," Jimmy said interrupting him.

"Then it's Bret," the southerner replied smiling. "First light it is then."

************

They'd ridden hard until they were only a short distance from the old Sweetwater station. Jimmy had heard that an Indian had bought the place and figured it was Buck. Looking toward the barn he noticed a man saddling several horses and a pony. He couldn't be sure from the distance if it was Buck but would bet his life that it was.

Buck turned as he heard riders approaching. They weren't expecting company and he was always a bit leery of strangers. Most had learned to accept him as part owner of the small ranch but others still had their prejudices. Mac had gotten in a fight just the week before with a couple of boys at school because they'd called him a half-breed. Buck watched for a moment as the two riders rode closer.

Both riders seemed familiar in the way they sat a horse. The one in black caught his attention as sun glinted off the guns at his waist. It was about time Jimmy had shown back up. He smiled to himself as he thought about the hell the man was going to catch from his wife and Rachel.

For a moment his attention shifted to the other rider but Buck couldn't place him. He was familiar but not. The man was dressed similar to Jimmy and his hair was long and his face covered by a thick beard and mustache. There was something about him but he couldn't place him.

As the men rode in and pulled to a stop near him, Buck said, "About damn time you showed back up. Lou has been threatening to ride out and find you and if I got stuck wrangling the kids again….well you can imagine what this place would look like."

Jimmy smiled as he slid from the saddle and stepped over to his old friend. He began to laugh as he wrapped Buck in a hug. "Been too long, friend," Buck said as Jimmy released him. He watched the other rider closely still trying to place him. He couldn't shake the feeling he knew the man.

"I know I should have been back before now. Now where's this surprise Lou promised in her letters," Jimmy said forgetting to introduce Buck to his companion. When Buck didn't answer but looked over at the man, Jimmy said, "Sorry about that Bret. Bret this here is one of my best friends, Buck Cross. Buck this here is Bret Garner. We met in a poker game a few days back and decided we'd travel together since we were headed in the same direction."

Buck held out his hand to the man, not sure what the response would be. The man shook his hand saying, "Pleased to meet you. Jim here has had nothing but good things to……"

"UNCLE JIMMY!!!" a shout came from the porch of the house as a boy of about twelve ran toward them followed by a girl not much younger and a small child.

Jimmy asked, "Is that Annabelle? Damn, she looks more like Lou every day."

"Acts more like her, too," Buck said with a grin.

"Uncle Jimmy," the boy said as he hugged the gunfighter with all his might. "I thought you'd never come back."

"I'm back alright. Now Mac, is that your pretty cousin behind you there?" As Jimmy disengaged himself from Mac, he addressed the young girl, "Do you remember me, pretty?"

The young girl nodded her head. Then a smile lit up her face as she said, "You made mud pies with me while Momma was in town with Aunt Rachel and Grandma."

"That I did, pretty. Now who's your little friend here?"

"Um…Jimmy that's one of the surprises Lou wrote you about." Bending down Buck picked up the four year old. "I'd like you to meet your godson, James Night Hawk Cross." Buck turned to his son, "Hawk, this is a very important man; he's your godfather."

"Son? When did you get married? Who did……?"

"Buck you better tell the kids to get a move on if they want to reach the swimming hole before lunch," Lou said as she came out of the barn. She was dressed in pants but that was where the resemblance to the old Lou ended. Her hair was in a braid to her waist and her figure was filled out with more curves than Jimmy remembered. Lou stopped as she looked up at the two men standing next to Buck. She frowned as she stared at the men trying to decide if they were a threat to her family, then suddenly her expression changed to one of recognition.

"Lou?"

"JIMMY!!!" she shouted as she ran to embrace him. A moment later she was pushing him a way and yelling at him. "Damn you, why the hell did you wait so long to come home?! You know I've had to keep your surprises on hold for five years! You could have at least stopped by sometime during all those years to hear all the news!"

Jimmy couldn't help but smile, she might not look like the old Lou but she sure did act like it. "I…well….you know….Now Lou, I got here as soon…" Jimmy stopped knowing she wouldn't buy just any excuse. "Well, I'm here now and Buck's done given me one of my surprises," he said as he took the young boy from Buck. "Now what's the other one?"

Lou smiled at Buck as he took her hand and moved to stand behind her. As his arms wrapped around her, she said, "We got married about six months after you left."

"Married?" Jimmy put on his best poker face as he said, "Congratulations. I guess that makes this one yours too?"

"Yep."

Lou's attention was drawn away from Jimmy by the man standing near him.

"Lou, this here is Jimmy's friend, Bret Garner," Buck said giving Jimmy time to adjust to the fact that he and Lou were married.

"Nice to meet you," Lou said as she nodded at the man but held on to Buck. Something about the man bothered her but she couldn't put her finger on it. Annabelle took her hand and looked up at her mother. Lou feeling her daughter tugging on her hand said, "That's my signal to go get the picnic basket. We're headed to the old swimming hole if you two would care to join us. There's plenty of food."

"Thank you, ma'am," Bret said his voice husky as he tipped his hat to Lou, "But I best be getting into town to get a room. I'll be lookin' for my pappy come mornin'."

"Think you could find your way to town on your own?" Jimmy asked as Bret mounted his horse.

"Yep. See ya at the tables, Hickok. Ma'am, a pleasure. Mr. Cross, you've got a fine family and a nice place," Bret said as he nodded to them and rode off.

*****************

Jimmy lay back with his hands behind his head. It was nice for now not to have to worry over someone calling him out. The food was good, not only had Lou turned into one fine looking woman she could cook too. Buck was a lucky man. Jimmy figured for the time being he was too; he was with friends and had a new godson he wanted to get to know. The boy looked a lot like Buck with his dark hair and dark eyes. But he had a bit of Lou here and there. Annabelle looked like her mother all over again. And Mac, it wasn't hard to tell whose son he was; he looked so much like his father.

"Mac ask about his ma and pa much?" Jimmy asked as he watched the boy jump into the pond from a branch.

"A few questions here and there but he still doesn't quite understand everything. He took to a foal that was abandoned last year though. Told Lou that he wanted to raise it like we'd raised him for his ma and pa," Buck told him as he watched his own godson climb out of the water laughing.

"How about Annabelle? She know you ain't her pa yet?" Jimmy asked watching Buck for a reaction.

"As Lou said I'm all the pa she's ever known. Kid just helped make her," Buck replied but his answer lacked conviction. He loved the child as if she had been his own but he still feared the day she'd start asking questions about her 'real' father.

"Heard you wouldn't take eight ponies for her the last time you visited your brother," Jimmy replied with a chuckle.

Buck didn't say anything for a moment then he smiled. "Cody's got a big mouth. It about got Red Bear in a good deal of trouble with his wife for that one. He'd just accepted seven for his daughter. It was an insult for me to be offered more for mine." Jimmy could hear the pride in Buck's voice.

Jimmy started laughing getting Lou's attention. She turned from the kids and joined them, sitting down next to Buck and leaning against him. "You sure do look a few years younger than you did when you rode in this morning."

"Feel a few, too. How are Teaspoon and Polly doin' and Rachel?

"Teaspoon is fine. He's lookin' for a new deputy to take over more of his duties. He said he's getting too old to chase after all the young'uns that keep gettin' into trouble. I think he just wants to spend more time with these three," Lou said as she watched her children enjoying the pond. "Polly sold the saloon last spring. Said she had her hands full taking care of Teaspoon. Rachel is still teaching and Doc Sanders proposed last month, they're getting married around Christmas," Lou said with a smile as she sat up and reached for an apple. "Have you heard from Cody?"

"Yeah, he's still trying to get me to join him. Said I'd like all the attention, whiskey, and women I'd get, but I don't think I'd like livin' like that."

"He's got his dream. He's famous," Buck replied quietly as he stood.

Buck smiled at Lou, "I'm going to check on the horses and see if Mac wants to join me and ride over to the back pasture to check on the herd there. You stay here; we'll be back in a bit." He bent down he kissed her. She smiled up at him easing the pang of jealousy he felt toward his friend.

Jimmy watched them, a spark of jealousy nipping at his heart. He had no right to be jealous he knew. He'd left her, given her away to Kid first, then left again when Kid didn't return. He'd written Lou a few times but she'd been the one to do most of the writing. It was funny to him how she always knew just where to find him.

They sat watching the two younger children as Buck and Mac rode off. "Mac looks a lot like Ike," Jimmy said breaking the silence.

"Yes, he does. He's a good boy, too. He's had his share of scrapes and trouble but he's doing really well," Lou said as she watched Buck and Mac ride off. "He's a real big help with the animals too, they take to him like they did Ike. I'm so glad Emily chose to let us raise him when she passed away."

"How's my goddaughter doing?"

"Belle, she's fine. More of a tomboy than I'd like, but ….."

"She's just like her ma then," Jimmy stated with a grin. As they watched the young girl they were discussing throw her younger brother in the air Jimmy said, "Just like you. I've often wondered if Kid had anything to do with making her or if you did it all on your own. She's you all over again, Lou."

Lou smiled the prideprided in her daughter shining in her eyes. "She's almost as good a shot as Mac, too."

"I knew she would be. Couldn't be anything less with you for a ma and Kid for her pa." Jimmy wanted so bad to ask Lou about her and Buck but couldn't find the words. Lou's next statement solved that problem for him.

"Guess you're wondering how Buck and I got together?" Lou asked turning serious.

"Well, now that you mention it, the question had crossed my mind," Jimmy replied just as serious.

"It just happened. We got up one morning and …and…oh, hell, Jimmy, I didn't realize how much I cared until I was in town one day and someone else asked me to a social. All I could think about was why hadn't Buck asked me. He heard the conversation and thought I turned the fella down because I was still pining over you and Kid. I was confused. I care about you but you do have a tendency to let me get myself in….well, let's just say you let me get into trouble a bit more than you should. Now Kid he was just the opposite of you he kept too tight a rein on me, almost suffocated me. Buck. Well…Teaspoon put it this way; he's the middle ground I was looking for. He lets me be me but keeps me reined in just enough to keep me out of trouble."

Jimmy laughed, "Sounds just like something Teaspoon would say."

Lou shook her head, "No, his exact words were more like, 'Lou now you're a spirited filly. You match up with a fella who'll let you have your head all the time and you'll run away. But if you settle on one that is gonna hold the reins too tight, well, he'll break your spirit. You need a man that'll hold the reins just tight enough to keep you out of harm's way but loose enough to let you give him a good ride.'"

Jimmy couldn't help it he started laughing until tears were running down his face. "That sounds exactly like what he'd say."

"Jimmy, why don't you see about taking that deputy job with Teaspoon? He could use a good man like you," she told him.

"I'll think about it, Lou, I promise," Jimmy said drying his eyes. 'Might not be too bad to settle back here for a while,' he thought.

*****************

In town Bret had skipped the hotel and now sat at a table by himself in the saloon. As he poured himself a fourth shot of whiskey he figured he'd best take the glass and bottle on up to a room before he gave himself away. He didn't think many of the folks in town would remember him but he couldn't be sure, not yet anyway.

He looked up as he heard the batwing doors of the saloon swing open. There he stood, the man he dreaded seeing. He'd changed a bit, his hair was greyer, but he looked as sharp as ever. The man still walked as straight as he remembered and still wore the same beat up derby hat. A slight smile spread on Bret's face as he watched the old man walk up to the bar. "Silas, whiskey."

"Sure thing, Teaspoon," Silas said as he sat the drink on the bar.

Teaspoon propped his elbows on the bar as he picked up his drink. Before he could take a sip he spotted the stranger at the table out of the corner of his eye. He threw back the shot and turned to face the man. Something about him was familiar and Teaspoon let him see the badge he wore as he turned toward him. "New in town?"

"Yes, sir," Bret said as Teaspoon walked up to his table. "Just lookin' for some relatives that settled near here." Bret knew Teaspoon was looking at him a lot closer than Jimmy, Buck or even Lou had earlier. He needed a way to distract him. "Rode in with a friend of yours, James Hickok."

Teaspoon didn't let up though, "Hickok ain't been around here in about five years, son. You've been away a bit longer than that haven't you?"

Bret looked down at his glass, he'd blown it. Teaspoon had figured it out. "'bout five or six years more."

"You been out to see your girls, yet?" Teaspoon asked.

Kid either missed the plural Teaspoon put on girls or he chose to ignore it. "I saw her. She's turned into a fine woman, more than I really thought she would. Life's been good to her."

Teaspoon wasn't sure if the southerner chose to ignore what he said or the fact that he just didn't catch it. "Not too good, she grieved terribly when we never heard anything from you. So'd the yanks get ya and keep ya from writin'?"

"It wasn't the yanks, Teaspoon. I fought for the north. Thought that by spying for them it would end the war sooner, all it did was get me thrown into Andersonville when I got caught."

"Damn, boy, that place was hell on earth from what I heard and you made it out alive." Kid knew it wasn't condemnation he heard in Teaspoon's voice but wonder. "Why didn't you come home?"

"By the time the war ended, I was almost starved to death. They carried me out on a stretcher. A fellow solider took me to New Orleans with him and his family nursed me back to health. His pa was a gambler and taught me some of the finer points of the game." Bret knew the excuse sounded hollow even to his own ears and added, "I couldn't come back. That place did something to me…..changed me inside. I had nightmares about it for nearly two years after the war ended. On the riverboats I felt free; I just started heading this way when I ran in to Hickok. He said he was finally headed back here and I asked if I could join him."

"So what'd Jimmy have to say about you bein' alive? He think you should get back with Lou? You know she's taken now don't ya?"

"I know," Kid said downing the drink in his hand and pouring another. "Her and Buck sure have some fine lookin' young'uns. Didn't take her long to get over her grief did it?"

"Took the better part of...oh...five years or so. Mac is Ike and Emily's. He and his ma arrived not long after you left. Hawke is her and Buck's, he's about….um…almost five. And Annabelle, well…" Teaspoon wasn't quit sure how to tell the man who the child was.

Jimmy walked up and caught the last of what Teaspoon was saying. "Teaspoon, Bret here is a friend. Bret, this here is Teaspoon Hunter, I told you about him." Not catching the confused look on Teaspoon's face Jimmy continued, "Annabelle is Lou's from her first marriage. Kid left to fight in the war. Said he had to fight for his home, which was Virginia. Left Lou everything when he left, the ranch, the livestock, and…Annabelle. He even left her divorce papers on the kitchen table. Lou didn't touch them for a while, almost a year to be exact. She figured that he wasn't ever coming home and finally signed them." Jimmy looked down at the glass the bartender had sat in front of him. Reaching for the bottle, he poured himself a drink and downed it before he continued. "She grieved him something fierce, almost lost herself and that pretty little one that's my goddaughter."

"Damn," Bret said the color draining from his face.

Teaspoon looked between the two men. He couldn't believe that Jimmy didn't recognize the man next to him. He started to say something when Jimmy spoke again.

"So, old man, you told her Buck was the middle ground. You could have left out the part about givin' him a good ride though," Jimmy said right before he threw back another drink.

Kid choked on his drink. "Middle ground?"

"All I told her," Teaspoon said hooking his fingers under his suspenders, "was that he was a good middle ground between the three of you. She had feelings for him we all…Me, Rachel, Polly, hell, even Tompkins…could see. She was confused and I told her the way of it. You let her run wild. Kid," Teaspoon looked directly at Bret, "he smothered her. Buck knew just how far to let her go and keep her safe. You were gone, Kid was gone, Buck was here. And nature just took its course."

"So is Annabelle, yours?" Brett asked Jimmy tightness in his voice.

"No, she's Kid and Lou's," was Jimmy's quiet reply.

"No, can't be," Bret said looking Jimmy square in the eye. Kid was still denying the fact in his mind that he was Annabelle's father. He couldn't face that fact, the fact he'd done the one thing he'd not wanted to do.

"You son of a bitch," Jimmy said slamming his glass down on the table, his voice quiet but deadly one hand going to his gun. "Who the hell do you think you are comin' here now?"

"Jimmy, let him tell…." Teaspoon started.

"I came only because I ran into you. I never figured on comin' back here….ever," Kid stated his eyes becoming as hard as Jimmy's.

"Now boys," Teaspoon said, "Don't make me throw you in jail. Can't have you disturbin' the peace."

"You're actin' like he's done nothin' wrong, Teaspoon," Jimmy said coming to his feet. "He never even wrote her. She went through everything alone. Hell, I even held Annabelle the first time instead of him."

Kid was furious that Jimmy didn't understand why he'd done what he had. He was even angrier that Jimmy would have expected him to be the first to…..Kid's mind stopped in mid-thought, as some of the things Jimmy had said earlier sank into his mind. "Why should I have been the first to hold Lou's daughter?" he asked fearing the answer.

His two old friends looked at each other, neither knowing how to tell him. Teaspoon was the one to answer him, "Seems you left more than your family, and your wife behind when you left for Virginia, Kid. You left Lou with child, a fine baby girl that's just like her ma."

It'd been his worst fear when he'd left that he'd leave her with child. He'd thought that since it'd been four months since they'd married and they'd not had a sign that she was carrying it'd be safe for him to leave. "Oh, Lord," Kid said as he pour another shot of whiskey.

**********

Walking into her and Buck's bedroom, Lou made her way around to the other side of the bed and slipped under the covers. Buck was reading, as he usually did, and she snuggled up beside him. "Sure was good seeing Jimmy again. Think he'll stick around for a while?" she asked.

"He might since Teaspoon needs a new deputy," Buck said as he laid his book on the table beside the bed and turned down the light. Rolling over to face Lou he added as he pulled her closer, "But don't get your hopes up. You know how he likes to wander."

"I know. I just wish he'd find someone and settle down. I worry about him," Lou said as she looked up at him.

Lou surprised Buck with her next question. "Did that man with Jimmy seem familiar to you?" she asked.

"Something about him seemed familiar but maybe it was just because he was riding with Jimmy," Buck replied. Buck had a feeling ever since Jimmy introduced his friend he knew the man but he couldn't put his finger on exactly what it was about him that was familiar.

"Think he might have ridden for the Express?"

"Maybe," Buck replied as he kissed the top of Lou's head.

Lou's thoughts drifted away from the stranger as Buck kissed her and she snuggled closer to him.

***************

"Hey, Bret," Jimmy said with a grin, as he walked up to his friend who was leaving the saloon.

Kid stopped and waited for Jimmy.

"Lou wants us out at the ranch for supper tonight," Jimmy said as he stopped and stood by Kid. Looking inside the saloon Jimmy asked, "Any luck at the tables?"

"Some," Kid said considering Jimmy's question. He wasn't sure it was such a good idea; he knew it was only a matter of time until Lou and Buck figured out who he was. "I don't think supper is such a good idea."

"You don't come and she's only going to get more suspicious. They're both trying to figure out who you are. Buck believes that you might have ridden for the Express and that's how they know you. Lou, she says it's something else…something more than just another rider that passed through. I say you ought to come to supper and either tell them the truth or come up with one whopper of a story for who you are and where you come from." Jimmy hated that Kid wasn't willing to tell Lou and Buck…especially Lou…who he was. He figured she deserved that much from Kid. "You know how she is….like Teaspoon once said she's like a bear after honey. Once she gets on the scent she ain't going to stop until she gets the honey…or the truth."

"Fine, I'll come," Kid said stepping down from the porch of the saloon. He stopped and looked back up at Jimmy, he willed his voice not to crack as he asked, "You sure Annabelle is mine."

"Damn, Bret. If I wasn't you think I'd of been so angry the other night." Jimmy started to walk away and let Kid still believe he and Lou had been together. Instead he turned around and stalked up to his old friend. "You know I've shot men for less than what you have done." Kid began to interrupt but Jimmy held up his hand. "I understand your reasons. Can't say I wouldn't have done the same." Jimmy took a deep breath to calm the anger he felt welling up inside. "She was never with me. NEVER," he said through gritted teeth. "I left when Annabelle was four. Lou didn't sign your papers for almost a year and I was already gone when she did. She wrote me telling me about it and how it was the hardest thing she ever did." Jimmy had looked Kid in the eye until now. Looking down the street to where Lou stood talking to Tompkins he said, "I won't tell you that I didn't consider, nor will I tell you that we didn't have our time together. But she couldn't break her vows to you. We never kissed until a couple of months before I left."

Kid couldn't keep the jealousy out of his voice when he asked, "Guess, you finally got what you wanted…my wife."

Jimmy continued to look at Lou and he couldn't help but smile, "Damn, I thought you had changed, but you're just like the rest of us….the same." Jimmy turned back to face Kid.

Kid stared at the man before him. Gone was Jimmy he knew like a brother and in his place was the seasoned gunfighter most people knew as Wild Bill.

Jimmy's face was a mask and his eyes were cold as steel. "I could have had her anytime I wanted. You smothered her, put her on a pedestal. All she wanted was to be appreciated for who she was and what she could do." Jimmy had it with this ghost that had been his best friend and as his anger grew his voice growing deeper. "I'll tell you something else. There were three times I could have taken her from you in a flash. The first was when you took up with Samantha. She was brokenhearted, cried herself to sleep…." Jimmy stopped as he recalled why he'd not taken her from Kid that time. "The second was when we escorted Elias Mills for Teaspoon. I kissed her that one time. One time. And I would have fought the whole town, if she'd of turned to me instead of you at the hangin'." Jimmy thought back to that interrupted kissed. It'd haunted every relationship he'd had since. No woman had ever tasted as sweet as Louise.

Kid balled his fist but kept it at his side. "You said three."

Jimmy smiled, "Well, there was the time we went up against Lambert. Lou looked mighty fetching in that dress."

"Thought you said to leave you out of that conversation," Kid said remembering the dress and how Lou looked in it.

Jimmy watched Kid hoping he bought the lie. Lou had looked fine dressed as a saloon girl, damn fine. But it was the time right before the wedding he was thinking about. The time she'd gone after a wedding dress and came to Fenton for him. As always she'd held her own in the fight and he'd even thought of telling her then how he felt but had stopped. She was marrying his best friend, his brother…he couldn't come between that. "Yeah," Jimmy said scratching his cheek a slight smile still on his face. The heat had gone out of him. He'd finally said all he'd wanted to since Kid had left. They'd both lost her. "And what would you have done if I had agreed with her?"

Kid's fist relaxed. He brought his hand up to his neck rubbing it as the tension in it eased. "I'd…let's just leave it at Lambert wouldn't have had to worry about us," Kid said smiling at his old friend. "And Teaspoon would have had to look for a couple of new riders." As Jimmy laughed at his joke, he nodded toward the end of the street. Kid turned seeing Lou coming down the street stopping at the dress shop, Mac and Annabelle following her. She said something to the kids as she dismounted and they rode on. "I'll tell you this but it's only between you and me. Looking back she did look fine in that dress. She'd of made a mint dressed like that on a river boat."

Jimmy laughed out loud drawing Lou's attention. She smiled at him and waved as she started toward them. Kid watched her. She'd grown more beautiful with age, if that was possible. Motherhood and marriage agreed with her….or was it marriage to Buck that agreed with her. He thought he saw a glimmer of recognition as she looked at him, so he started to walk away. "Chicken," Jimmy teased.

"Of her anger," Kid said looking over his shoulder as he became the southern riverboat gambler from New Orleans. "Always. Tell her I'll be there with you." It was a tremendous struggle not to look back over his shoulder as he headed for the hotel and a hot bath. He didn't want to insult Lou by showing up smelling of the saloon and whiskey.

"This should be interesting," Jimmy said to himself as Kid walked away and Lou approached. 'How long will it take for her to see the truth and just what will happen when she does?' he wondered.

************

Kid threw back the shot he'd ordered. How had he let himself get talked into this. Founder's Day was tomorrow and he, Jimmy and Buck were in the big race. Just like before only now there were only three of them racing. One of them would surely figure it out then, he couldn't understand why they hadn't recognized him yet.

He let his mind wander back over the last three weeks and the family he'd gotten to know again. Teaspoon had aged, but not so much that he couldn't get around. He'd out live all of them Kid figured. Rachel was now the teacher full time and her students loved her. He didn't find it surprising that Teaspoon had married Polly. He was surprised to find that Rachel hadn't married. She'd recognized him without a second glance. After she finished scolding him like a big sister, she fussed over him like a mother…until she spotted Jimmy and then it was the gunfighter's turn to be fussed at then mothered. Both men ate it up, loving every minute of her attention.

Kid shook his head. He'd never figured on coming back here. Hell, he'd never figured on meeting Jimmy in a card game. His conscious disagreed with him telling him if he hadn't wanted to run into Jimmy he'd never have traveled as far north as he had on the river. He knew Jimmy loved poker and that the further west he went the more likely he was to run into the gambler and gunfighter. But to follow him home. That had been a decision he'd made on the spot. He couldn't resist, but now at times he wished he had.

Like the time he saw Buck lift Annabelle down from her horse, a horse that reminded him of Katy. Or when he saw Lou's eyes follow every move Buck made around the ranch. Not to mention the ranch, it was a complete success…maybe not in money but in the quality of the horse flesh it raised. One good contract and they would never have to worry over anything ever again. The thing that had hurt the most was the day Buck had been thrown while breaking a new horse and he heard Annabelle scream Daddy.

He and Jimmy had ridden out to see the family and give Buck a hand with a couple of new horses. When they had arrived he was already hard at work with Mac by his side and Annabelle and Hawk sitting on the fence. Mac held the horse while Buck swung up on his back. As the horse bucked and whirled, Buck held on. Suddenly the horse stopped and reared at Mac. Buck pulled back with all his might to keep the horse from hitting his son, and both rider and horse tumbled backwards. He recalled everything now. Jimmy jumping the fence and running toward Buck, Annabelle screaming as she jumped from her perch and ran to Buck and Lou…her scream broke his heart. Hawk sat on the fence crying and he'd picked the boy up and turned away from the scene. He couldn't watch. Death was something he never wanted to see again and had kept him away from many a friend's funeral.

Jimmy walked up to him as Mac led the horse to the barn. He heard Buck and Lou arguing about him seeing a doctor and relief flooded him. It wasn't until later that he recalled that Annabelle's anguished cry for her daddy. He'd never be her father, just the man she knew as a friend. Never more. Buck would give her away, be the grandfather to her children. He'd not realized until now just how much he'd given up when he rode back to fight a war he was against.

He downed another shot as he watched the people of town head for the church grounds for the picnic that was before the race. Lou would be there. She'd told them when they were at supper a few days earlier that Jeremiah and his new wife would be coming and so would Teresa, she'd been so excited. She said she had a new dress she'd ordered just for the day. Her eyes twinkled in Buck's direction as she told him the color, deep green. Kid smiled at the memory of the look on Jimmy's face. He'd leaned over and asked his friend, "Wasn't that the color of the saloon dress she wore?"

Jimmy had choked on his lemonade at the question causing everyone to turn in his direction. Buck's eyes met Jimmy's and he knew that his friend remembered the time that Lou had worked in the saloon also. She'd looked innocent in the pink dress that she'd worn to tea at Emma's that time but the other dress…Kid figured they all agreed she'd looked too good in it. Lou had laughed at something that Buck said drawing Kid's attention back to the present.

The next day, Kid had seen Annabelle in town at the store picking up something for Lou. She'd kept eyeing the penny candy and finally he'd told Tompkins to give her a nickel's worth. He nodded and scooped out about half a bag for her. She thanked them both with a smile and took her packages and left. Kid stood looking after her. "She's a lot like her ma, but I see some of you there, too," Tompkins had said. Kid looked at him in surprise. "Don't tell me they haven't figured out that you're back?" Kid had just looked at the storekeeper. "Knew you were a good man. She's got a good family….and you didn't hear this here but a good man, too. She could have done worse and took up with Hickok but she didn't. She grieved for you and almost lost him."

"Mr. Tompkins you trying to tell me something?" Kid asked wondering when Tompkins had taken a liking to Lou.

"Always figured she'd end up with one of you…you or Hickok. Never imagined it'd be the Indian. My Jenny is living back with the Lakota and he brings me letters from her. Makes that trip once or twice a month for me." The old man never came right out and said it but Kid figured out for himself that Buck had earned the man's respect.

Another shot and he was back to thinking of his daughter again. Annabelle, Lou had named her. And she was every bit her mother's daughter. He'd watched one evening as she rode into the ranch at a full gallop followed closely by Mac. Her long brown hair flying out behind her and her blue eyes flashing. She'd pulled the horse to a sudden stop and slid off as easy as any Express rider ever could and ran to hug Jimmy telling him all about the race in between breaths. He could see Lou in every move she made, in the way she smiled and the way she used her hands. But in her eyes he could see himself also. He suspected that if Lou had been loved and raised in such a family as Annabelle had she would have been the same way. Annabelle had Lou's spirit with none of the fear Lou had carried with her. Annabelle seemed sure of herself and what she could do. She was still a bit shy around him where the boys were always asking for card tricks and about the war. She'd sit to the side and just listen. If he tried to bring her into the conversation she'd walk away…until last night.

She'd been sitting on the porch as he'd stepped outside to smoke and he'd watched her from the corner of his eye. She looked like she was struggling with something. "You know my pappy always said, it was best to spit it out and get it over with," he told her.

"Were you really in the war?" she'd asked timidly.

"Yes," he said as he swallowed the lump in his throat.

"Do you think my real father died slowly or fast?" she asked quietly.

Unnerved by her question, he responded, "I'm sorry?"

"My real father, the one that gave me to Mamma, do you think when he was killed that he died quickly or was he left behind to die slow?" she asked again.

"Many died quickly," he said not wanting to lie to her.

"Mamma said she hoped so. She told me about him all the time when I was little. Then Mamma married Daddy and she didn't talk about him so much anymore. I think she forgot him."

"Maybe it was just that she loves your daddy so much she doesn't want to hurt his feelings by talking about him so much," he'd told her.

"I guess. They still tell me stories but Mamma leaves out the ones about him and her…." Lou had come out then and stopped the conversation. Kid noticed the tears in her eyes though. She'd sent Annabelle to bed saying that it was going to be a big day tomorrow and she needed her rest. After Annabelle had gone inside, Lou had said to him, "Thank you. I've been wondering what was bothering her but she keeps a lot inside. Kind of like I did at that age."

"I'm sure she's just curious about her fa….about him," Kid replied not sure about how to approach the subject without Lou getting suspicious.

"I know she is, and I'm sure you understand that it is still hard for me to talk about," she had replied the sadness evident in her voice.

"Are you sure he was killed?" He couldn't help but ask a note of hopefulness in his voice.

Lou looked at him hard then, but something; probably the night aided him in his disguise he believed. "We were never notified of his death and his name never appeared on a list but….Kid would have come home when the war was over if he was able. That he didn't is my proof that he is lost to us." She said it with such conviction that he almost believed her. But her next words took him by surprise. "You know a lot of men came through here on their way home from the war and others to make a new life here in the west. There were quite a few from Virginia. They told us of one man that had turned his back on his home and spied for the North. Poor soul, he ended up in that dreadful prison the Rebels called Andersonville. I like to believe that my husband was that manWhether he died there or was so damaged that he couldn't make it home to us, I like to believe he still cared for us. Cared so much that he couldn't go against his belief that slavery was wrong, that by spying he hoped the war would end sooner. Maybe one day he'll come back with his family and we can all be a family again like it was when the Express was running. We still won't have Ike and Noah, but maybe the rest of us can put the past behind us and be that family again. I grieved for my husband a long time. So long I almost lost the second chance God gave me at happiness. I believe that while Jimmy and Kid were here I couldn't see the man I love for the rings those two were running around me. Buck accepts me for me but doesn't let me runaway…my middle ground as Teaspoon said." As she turned to leave she stopped in the door way, "Good night, Bret." She paused for a moment and added, "Bret, is that your given name?" He could see her face in the light from the door way, and all the emotion it held.

"No, it's just what folks in New Orleans called me. I was christened…." He started to tell her but Jimmy appeared with the horses.

"You ready to head back, Bret?" Jimmy asked his tone told Kid it wasn't a question but a strong suggestion.

"I am," he replied. "Mrs. Cross," he said tipping his hat to her, "thank you for your hospitality and the conversation."

"We'll see ya'll in town tomorrow, Lou," Jimmy said with a wave as he kicked his horse into a trot.

"You're just happy you won't have to get beat by a girl again, Jimmy," Lou teased as they rode away. She prayed her friend couldn't hear the tears in her voice.

Kid caught the hoarseness of Lou's voice that Jimmy missed. Looking back over his shoulder he could see her face in the light of the full moon. God help him, Lou knew.

************

"Bret come on, we got to get a move on if we are going to make the race," Jimmy called from just inside the door of the saloon.

"I ain't goin'," Kid replied from the bar never taking his eyes from the glass in front of him.

"Everyone is expecting you. We both signed up. Lou and the kids will be cheering us on," Jimmy said as he approached the bar.

"She knows."

"Knows what?" Jimmy asked confused.

"Lou knows it's me," Kid said as he threw back another shot.

"You told her! What the hell were…?"

"She overheard me and Annabelle talking. She figured it out on her own last night. I think she suspected it was me from the first but she never said anything," Kid said as he finally looked at Jimmy.

Jimmy could see his old friend for the first time in the man before him since he'd run into him at the poker table. He looked scared to death, as scare as he looked when Pike had Lou. "She knows," he couldn't help repeating again. "What are you going to do?"

Kid looked Jimmy square in the eye. "My first thought was to call you out and let you do the job for me." When Jimmy didn't laugh Kid added, "But we'd of just killed each other and then she'd really be mad at both of us." Jimmy's hint of a smile showed he got the jest. "I guess I'll just have to figure this one out was I go."

Jimmy could see the hurt on Kid's face. "I ain't tryin' to pick a fight with you Kid but what'd you expect…her to be waitin' on you after not all these years. War's been over for five years Kid, in all that time no one ever heard from you. She moved on. And I have to agree with Teaspoon, she's better off with Buck. You'd of smothered her and me…well, let's just say it wouldn't have been a peaceful union," Jimmy said with a wink as he took the glass from Kid and poured himself a drink.

Kid laughed out loud. "You know the other day when Teaspoon told us what he said to Lou, I still didn't understand. But after last night I have to say I do. She's happier with Buck than she ever was with me."

"Buck told me they were married twice. Once by Teaspoon and then by the shaman of Red Bear's village."

"She wanted to make sure he didn't change his mind," Kid said looking more relaxed.

"No, he wanted to make sure she was all his. Didn't want anyone white or red to try and take her from him. Not many men would want to tangle with a Kiowa war party and a posse," Jimmy replied with a laugh. "Now let's get to that race."

"What about Buck?" Kid didn't know if Lou had told Buck her suspicions yet, nor was he sure of what Buck's reaction would be.

"He'll welcome you home like the rest of us," Jimmy replied as they headed for the door.

"Lou hasn't exactly welcomed me home yet," Kid said a hint of dread in his voice.

Jimmy couldn't resist his next remark, "You mean she ain't shot you yet." At the nervous look on Kid's face Jimmy added, "She's mellowed a bit over the years. Last thing I saw her shoot was a coyote that got in the chicken coop."

"If I recall correctly she once liken me to…how did she put it…a low-down-mealy-mouth-coyote," Kid said as they headed down the boardwalk to the starting line of race.

Jimmy's grin widened as he spotted Lou in the crowd next to Teaspoon. "Yeah, but you have to remember she loved you then." He spotted Buck holding their horses at the starting line. "Come on," he said pointing to Buck.

***************

Buck watched the two men approach. He still hadn't figured who Bret was though he had a few suspicions. And if he was honest he'd have to admit he was a bit afraid. If Bret did turn out to be the man he thought he was, he could lose his family.

"Thanks for bringing the horses, Buck," Jimmy said as he and Kid reached Buck.

"They're two of the best. Lou helped pick them out," Buck said as the two men mounted the horses and they headed for the starting line. "Wanted it to be a fair race," he teased the two men. Reaching the starting line they took their places with the rest of the men. Jimmy was on one side of Buck and Kid on the other.

"If Lou was riding it'd be like old times wouldn't it, Buck," Jimmy said but Buck noticed that Jimmy's eyes were on the man on the other side of him.

Buck looked over his shoulder at the man next to him and had his worst fear confirmed.

Jimmy and Kid both could have told anyone the exact minute Buck recognized Kid. The Kiowa's face drained of all color. "Buck…" Kid started to say but Teaspoon fired the shot to start the race and they were off.

Kid fought hard to keep up with Buck it'd been a while since he'd ridden a horse this fast. Jimmy was hot on their heels expecting all heck to break lose when the race ended.

As the finish line came into view, all three riders rode as if they were still riding for the Express.

As he crossed the finish line Buck searched the crowd for Lou and Teaspoon. He slid from his horse to congratulations from several people but he only wanted to see one person…his wife.

She pushed her way to him and kissed him soundly, as the crowd around them cheered. Everyone was talking, and settling bets but they only had eyes for each other.

Lou looked into his eyes. She saw the worry there and the fear. "What's wrong?"

"He's come back," Buck said this voice guarded.

"Who?"

"Kid, he ain't dead Lou, he's here. He's…" Buck swallowed and looked heavenward. He couldn't look at Lou and see her face, see that she was searching the crowd for Kid. Looking somewhere over her head he said, "He's Jimmy's friend, I knew there was something about…"

"Buck, I know," Lou said looking up at her husband. When he wouldn't look at her she reached up and tilted his head down toward her so that she could see his eyes. They were guarded; they hadn't been that way since right before they began courting. "I know…and it doesn't matter. I love you. You're mine remember, both in the white world and in the Kiowa world. You're my middle ground…the one who keeps me safe. The one that loves me for who I am. I'm the mother of your sons and daughter."

"She's his daughter," Buck replied only a hint of hope in his voice.

"She's your daughter. You're the only father she knows or wants," Lou told him as tears filled her eyes. "You're the only husband I want." Lou didn't know what to say to make him see that she loved him, and then she recalled what she'd told Kid the night before. "I told him last night that I couldn't see you for the rings he and Jimmy were running around me during the Express. They kept me so tied in knots that I couldn't see anyone else. Kid always tryin' to protect me and Jimmy always letting me find trouble. You were always there though when I needed you. Always around when those two were fighting. You listened and didn't judge, but you also showed me when I was wrong." Lou blushed as she noticed a couple of the town busybodies staring at them. "I love you," she said as she wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a kiss that would keep the two women talking the rest of the week.

From behind him Buck heard Jimmy say, "I think it's safe now, he knows she's his."

"Looks, that way," Kid said as he watched Buck put his arm around Lou's shoulder and turn around. When his friend didn't say anything Kid said with a smile, "Well, hell, at least it wasn't Hickok here that stole her away from me."

"Can't steal something from you that you gave away," Buck said his tone serious.

"Guess not," Kid replied just as serious.

Lou nudged her husband and he looked down at her. He was smiling when he looked back at Kid. "Welcome home, Kid," he said holding out his hand.

Kid took Buck's hand but pulled him into a hug. "Thanks for taking care of...," he started to say daughter, but realized that she was Buck's daughter more than his, "Annabelle and Lou. I've noticed something, she still has her spark I think she'd have lost it if she'd stayed with me." He'd said it low enough that only Lou and Buck heard him.

Lou mouthed, "Thank you," from beside Buck as tears filled her eyes.

*************

From the boardwalk in front of Tompkins store, Teaspoon watched his children. They'd grown up real fine and he figured if the other two would settle down Lou, Rachel, and Polly would have them married by the end of the year. And he could retire.

"Plannin' your retirement?" Tompkins asked from behind him.

"Now why would you go and ruin a perfectly good moment like this," Teaspoon said pointing at the four people heading toward the picnic, "with a question like that."

"Cause if those two hang around much longer you'll either have to deputize them or arrest them," Tompkins said as they started walking toward the picnic.

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