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Wizards, Whiskey and Wonderful Things - Concluded
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<blockquote data-quote="Silver Moon" data-source="post: 2807704" data-attributes="member: 8530"><p><strong>Chapter 86, “Cattle Drive”, Saturday, March 18th , 1882, 9:00 A.M.</strong></p><p></p><p>Back in Promise City, Dorita is unsure what to do about the man waiting for Kate. Kate had left in the middle of the night with Ruby and Jake on what Ruby had called "a dangerous trip", but no further details. </p><p></p><p>Dorita calls Ginnie aside and tells her "See that man sitting there. He a friend of Kate's late husband. She has drink with him last night. He here now looking for her. She leave during night with Ruby and Jake. I not know why. Ruby say dangerous, me think they looking for my grandfather. Could you please go talk to that man?"</p><p></p><p>Ginnie replies, “I'll see what I can do ma'am but if you hear some things that might be umm... a little off the mark don't worry about them. I'm going to find out who he is and what he really wants first, I have learned not to trust anyone who sets foot in this town looking for Ma'am Kate or any of her friends.” "Thank you," Dorita says, "How should I introduce you to him?"</p><p></p><p>Ginnie states, “Don't worry about it I think I can take it from here I'll let you know what happens.” With that she picks up a pitcher of fresh milk and a coffee cup and heads over to the gentleman's table. "Good morning my name is Ginnie would you like milk in your coffee?</p><p></p><p>He smiles a friendly smile and says, "Yes child, that would be fine. And could you ask the woman to prepare me a simple breakfast while I wait?" She replies, "Sure Dorita makes the best food in town what are you waiting for? Oops… Shouldn’t have said that Ma'am Kate says I'm always sticking my nose in business I don't have any mind in"</p><p></p><p>He smiles, "Did I hear you say Ma'am Kate? Would that perhaps be Mrs. Katherine Kale you are speaking of?" Ginnie replies, “Yes sir, she's my teacher and other things. Sometimes I help Dorita in the morning before lessons. Why do you know Ma'am Kate? Um sir do you have a name I should call you by?” </p><p></p><p>He replies, "I am John Peters, I was a friend of Katherine's late husband Thomas. I came to this town on an errand and wanted to visit with her. Do you know where she is? She said that she would join me for breakfast this morning."</p><p></p><p>Ginnie states, “Well, she was gone when I got up this morning so I'm figuring that she may have headed out to the ranch before lessons start. So you knew her husband? She doesn't talk about him much except for the times before they came out west. What was he like?” </p><p></p><p>Peters replies, "Tom was a friendly man. He has asked me about investing in the ranch that he was planning to build. He was sick when he first came to Tombstone but got better. He often played cards with me and some of my friends. Spoke mostly of his Katie. After meeting her for the first time last night I can see why, she's quite the woman." </p><p></p><p>He drinks a sip of his coffee and says, "I'm sorry that I missed her. I had thought we would be meeting for breakfast, but I guess that wasn't definite. So you say she is probably out at this ranch of hers. Is it far? I would like to get a chance to say goodbye to her before I leave town. Maybe I could ride out there if you could give me directions. Or better yet, maybe you could show me. I'd pay you for the errand."</p><p></p><p>She answers, “It's a ways but let me get your breakfast first and I'll see what I can do.” With that Ginnie scampers into the kitchen. She tells the middle-aged wood elf “Dorita, his name is John Peters. He says he was a friend of Ma'am Kate's husband but I don't trust him. No one came to the burial when it happened other than Ma'am Kate and me. Or for that matter I don't trust anyone who ever came from Tombstone. Get Ricky in here for me.” Ginnie waits while Dorita gets young Ricardo Hueseca, a wood-elf the human-equivalent of four who is the son of one of the El Parador working girls. </p><p></p><p>Ginnie tells him, “I need you to go to the Post Office to check to see if that man John Peters is wanted for anything. Then if you don't find anything out go to the wood elf at the Marshal's office, only the wood elf, to see if this man is a bounty hunter of any kind or something else that might cause Ma'am Kate trouble. If nothing comes up check with the Deputy Sheriff to see if he knows anything about this man. If you find anything at all get back here fast before you go to the next place. Let Dorita know she'll flag me down. This is really important.” </p><p></p><p>Ginnie waits until Ricky flies out the door. She tells Dorita, “I let him think that Ma'am Kate might have ridden out to the ranch and he wants me to take him there. If I need to keep him busy I'll want someone to go with me as I don't trust him as far as I can throw him. I'll bring out two plates when I get his breakfast and see what else I can find out from him while he eats. As long as I'm still pretending to be a silly little talkative girl he'll think I'm babbling so he'll pump me for information while I try to get some from him. I'll let you know what else I come up with as I go back and forth to the kitchen. If I think there's trouble I can't get out of I'll drop my knife.”</p><p></p><p>Dorita tells Ginnie to be careful. She advises against taking this man to the ranch out of concern for her daughter Sonoma, who is the only one out at the ranch at the moment since Flint had gone with the others. Ginnie brings the food back to the table. </p><p></p><p>Peters thanks her and starts to eat while asking again about Kate. Ginnie says, “Ma'am Kate came here to make a ranch but she's also a good teacher. So what were you looking for Ma'am Kate for? It's been a while since her husband died. Where were you when they had the stone laid or the burial? Ma'am Kate was told that no one showed up when he was buried and the same thing happened when the marker was put in place.”</p><p></p><p>John Peters replies "I was out of town at the time of the first burial and I believe that the stone marker was placed when I was in jail. That was just a misunderstanding between myself and the Earps and I was let go. From what I hear similar things have happened here in this town. I'll never understand why people decided to put badges on that family. What do people in this town say about that?"</p><p></p><p>Ginnie replies, “Well, I know that the Earps aren't in the school and they don't have kids that might be taking classes with Ma'am Kate but they didn‘t stop her from putting the school together. What where you in jail for? Lots of people seem to get caught doing things they get tossed in jail for. you must not have made a lot of money at cards if you were in jail as the judge almost always gives people the chance to pay their way out of their terms. So what do you actually do for a living?”</p><p></p><p>He replies, "My being in jail was just a misunderstanding. They thought I was involved with something that I wasn't and the Judge made them let me go. Perchance did Mrs. Kale leave any sort of note for me? She was going to check with her friend Mr. Cook about a potential business matter and said she'd have an answer."</p><p></p><p>John Peters and Ginnie continue to talk. He asks her more questions about the ranch and she is vague in her answers. He asks about other places that Kate has been and how she went about getting the ranch. Ginnie quickly states something about it being "an idea that she got at the deed place", meaning the County Claims Office. </p><p></p><p>He then mishears her and says, "D-place, what D-place are you talking about? Do you mean Denver?" Ginnie says, "No, I'm not sure what I meant. I don't know if she's ever been to Denver. Have you?" He says that he has and she immediately exclaims "Really! What's it like?" He spends the next twenty minutes telling her about Denver Colorado. Ginnie continues to ply her companion with coffee and keep him talking at the El Parador for as long as possible while she waits for Ricky to return with some information. </p><p></p><p></p><p>Meanwhile, some thirty-odd miles to the west, Nanuet rides across in back of the herd while trying to gather up a rather obnoxious dark brown beast with one broken horn. Jake tries to imagine where a rib eye comes from but can't figure it out. "Hey Indian! Why don't we shoot them all and drag them to the ranch, it might be faster." </p><p></p><p>Jake then rides over towards where Katherine is looking rather exasperated. "I think I told you about that old coot, Caleb White? He used to say to me," Jake changes his voice to sound old and gravelly, " Silver Dollar, if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin. Katherine, if you can gather them all together I can beat them in a game of poker. And I never met a rib eye I didn't like. Outside of that I don't know what to do with these bloody beasts."</p><p></p><p>Kate looked around at the straying animals and the others trying to keep the slow moving cattle from wandering off in all directions. Flint seemed to be taking special delight in slapping them on the backside with his reins. "I don't know either. I never signed up for cows you know, horses are a lot more manageable. We can't afford the time it's going to take to move them, but I hate to just leave them to wander." </p><p></p><p>A moment later Jeff approached and said, "Why don't we send someone ahead to one of the ranches? They could get some experienced people to drive these cattle." Kate nodded. "Jeff, either you're a genius, or you got more sleep than the rest of us last night. That's a good idea, Jake. You and Ruby could go ahead, you already know the Shaws. I wouldn't mind letting them keep an extra animal or two for moving these beasts if it gets us back to Promise City faster."</p><p></p><p>He replies, “"That always happens, I open my mouth and I have to do work. You'd think I'd learn by now." Jake smiles to Katherine. "All right princess, wake up. We have to ride." Jake shakes Ruby gently. They take a few minutes to get ready, including have a quick bite to eat and drink. They bid their companions well and ride off to the Shaw ranch in search of some assistance.</p><p></p><p>Minerva rides zigzag along the back of the herd with Nanuet as they struggle to keep the herd from scattering in all directions. She is tired and giddy from lack of sleep and exertion but manages to keep her humor as she yells over to Nanuet "I feel about as useless as teat on a bull!" She giggles as a particularly belligerent bull suddenly decides to stop for a snack. She makes ineffective clucking noises as she tries to persuade the stubborn brute to keep moving. </p><p></p><p>She exclaims, "Gods, these beasts are about as cooperative as the Olympus Church congregation on a Saturday night! It's going to take a miracle to move this herd. Unfortunately I'm fresh out! Any idea's?" She laughs uncontrollably, overcome by the ridiculousness of their situation."</p><p></p><p>""Saying 'Ya ya' might help." Chester shrugs. "Well, it might." The cattle mill about in the middle of the road. "Come on. Get moving or we'll turn you into steaks right here. Never thought I'd be half-naked and herding cattle."</p><p></p><p>" Minerva closes her eyes to the sun and stretches her arms up to the heavens. She arches her aching back and yawns. With her dark hair streaming behind her and her breasts swelling over her bodice she is oblivious to the affect her movement has on the two men. " </p><p>"Perhaps you could demonstrate for me, Senor Chester. I am so tired, I think my ya ya may be broken!"</p><p></p><p>Well everybody is a comedian today aren't they!" Nanuet says shaking his head while wearing a smirk. "I see Jake and Ruby are riding off to get some help, somebody who knows what they are doing I hope. I guess for now we just try and keep them together and heading that way. It never looked too hard when I saw cowboys doing it, but these beasts have a mind of their own for sure." Nanuet says before riding off to wrangle up a pair of cows who have wandered off in search of their own path.</p><p></p><p>Minerva looks back in response to Nanuet's comment and starts laughing all over again. She point's behind him. " It looks like Maska and Luna want a part in this circus too!" Maska is trotting in the rear with Luna perched at attention on her back. "What an unlikely pair!"</p><p></p><p>Nanuet turns to look at the "unlikely pair" that Minerva mentioned and couldn't help but laugh. He was about to start speaking about his perplexity concerning how the owl was perched on the wolf without causing Maska severe discomfort when Minerva began responding to Chester so he deferred his attention to her. He turns and notices her stretching and immediately turns red. "Yes, I am sure we are all tired and need rest, but the more we concentrate on the task at hand the sooner we can get that respite we so desperately need."</p><p></p><p>Katherine pulled off her hat and wiped the sweat off her forehead. The sun was getting warmer by the minute, and it wasn't long before she peeled off the duster and vest. She was quiet as the others joked and laughed, trying to keep her mind distracted from the events of the last day by focusing on moving those damn cattle. </p><p></p><p>She turned to look at Maska when Minerva pointed out the odd pairing and saw the stretching the so unnerved the men. For a moment she looked down at her own neat and slim but petite figure and sighed. The next moment a sudden giggle escaped her lips. </p><p></p><p>In the last half day Chester and Nanuet had been kidnapped, Johnny Ringo had told them they were to be in a war whether they wanted to or not, and they had fought a battle. Johnny Ringo was probably in the El Parador night now, and her friends were trying to move this stubborn herd of cows more than a few feet an hour, and she was worried about the size of her bust? Kate buried her hands in the horses mane to keep from falling off as she shook with helpless laughter.</p><p></p><p>Chester, Flint, Jeff, Kate, Minerva and Nanuet continue to try to herd the cattle southward in the direction of the main road, still more than a mile away. The morning sun is bearing down on them, bearing no resemblance to the clouds and showers of the previous evening. </p><p></p><p>Ruby and Jake barely reach the main road when they hear the sound of approaching horses coming from the direction of Tombstone. It is too late to hide so they reach for their weapons and prepare for the worst. They then relax when the Wells Fargo Stage comes into view, their friend Chuck Nevers driving the stage and Newton Gilly riding shotgun. </p><p></p><p>Jake now recalls that on weekends the stage does an extra Friday night run, staying overnight in Tombstone, and then returning to Promise City in the morning. Jake checks his pocket watch, reading 9:45 A.M., which would be just about right for the stage's schedule assuming that it left Tombstone at 9:00 A.M. As he sees Jake and Ruby, Nevers slows the stage and then brings it to a halt as he reaches them. "Hello, what are you doing way out here this early in the morning?" he asks.</p><p></p><p>"Yes, a god awful time to be out if you ask me." Jake takes a deep breath and realizes just how tired he is. "We are helping out some friends who were worried about the Cowboy gang. We are headed to the Lazy-S Ranch right now. Have you fellas seen any trouble from the gang this morning or yesterday?"</p><p></p><p>Chuck says, "We saw a few guys yesterday who we didn't like the look of but none today. You're welcome to ride alongside us to the Lazy-S, more safety in numbers. If you want you can tie your horses to the coach and ride inside, we only have one passenger with us on this run. Although you may find him to be a bit talkative."</p><p></p><p>Ruby looked at Jake, "Oh please let's ride inside. I'm so tired, even if Chumbley is in there. Besides I been meaning to talk with him anyway." Ruby looks at Jake with big pleading eyes, the ones he can't say no to. "Good!" She says with a smile. "Thank you Mr. Nevers, we really appreciate it." </p><p></p><p>Ruby and Jake get off their horses and tie them to the back of the stage. They get inside and take a seat. She exclaims, "Hello, Mr. Chumbley, how are you today?"</p><p></p><p>The halfling looks up, sees Ruby, and all the blood drains from his face. He then faints dead away. Ruby then notices the two stacks of newspapers on the floor of the coach with the headline <strong>"Ruby West Murdered!" </strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Silver Moon, post: 2807704, member: 8530"] [B]Chapter 86, “Cattle Drive”, Saturday, March 18th , 1882, 9:00 A.M.[/B] Back in Promise City, Dorita is unsure what to do about the man waiting for Kate. Kate had left in the middle of the night with Ruby and Jake on what Ruby had called "a dangerous trip", but no further details. Dorita calls Ginnie aside and tells her "See that man sitting there. He a friend of Kate's late husband. She has drink with him last night. He here now looking for her. She leave during night with Ruby and Jake. I not know why. Ruby say dangerous, me think they looking for my grandfather. Could you please go talk to that man?" Ginnie replies, “I'll see what I can do ma'am but if you hear some things that might be umm... a little off the mark don't worry about them. I'm going to find out who he is and what he really wants first, I have learned not to trust anyone who sets foot in this town looking for Ma'am Kate or any of her friends.” "Thank you," Dorita says, "How should I introduce you to him?" Ginnie states, “Don't worry about it I think I can take it from here I'll let you know what happens.” With that she picks up a pitcher of fresh milk and a coffee cup and heads over to the gentleman's table. "Good morning my name is Ginnie would you like milk in your coffee? He smiles a friendly smile and says, "Yes child, that would be fine. And could you ask the woman to prepare me a simple breakfast while I wait?" She replies, "Sure Dorita makes the best food in town what are you waiting for? Oops… Shouldn’t have said that Ma'am Kate says I'm always sticking my nose in business I don't have any mind in" He smiles, "Did I hear you say Ma'am Kate? Would that perhaps be Mrs. Katherine Kale you are speaking of?" Ginnie replies, “Yes sir, she's my teacher and other things. Sometimes I help Dorita in the morning before lessons. Why do you know Ma'am Kate? Um sir do you have a name I should call you by?” He replies, "I am John Peters, I was a friend of Katherine's late husband Thomas. I came to this town on an errand and wanted to visit with her. Do you know where she is? She said that she would join me for breakfast this morning." Ginnie states, “Well, she was gone when I got up this morning so I'm figuring that she may have headed out to the ranch before lessons start. So you knew her husband? She doesn't talk about him much except for the times before they came out west. What was he like?” Peters replies, "Tom was a friendly man. He has asked me about investing in the ranch that he was planning to build. He was sick when he first came to Tombstone but got better. He often played cards with me and some of my friends. Spoke mostly of his Katie. After meeting her for the first time last night I can see why, she's quite the woman." He drinks a sip of his coffee and says, "I'm sorry that I missed her. I had thought we would be meeting for breakfast, but I guess that wasn't definite. So you say she is probably out at this ranch of hers. Is it far? I would like to get a chance to say goodbye to her before I leave town. Maybe I could ride out there if you could give me directions. Or better yet, maybe you could show me. I'd pay you for the errand." She answers, “It's a ways but let me get your breakfast first and I'll see what I can do.” With that Ginnie scampers into the kitchen. She tells the middle-aged wood elf “Dorita, his name is John Peters. He says he was a friend of Ma'am Kate's husband but I don't trust him. No one came to the burial when it happened other than Ma'am Kate and me. Or for that matter I don't trust anyone who ever came from Tombstone. Get Ricky in here for me.” Ginnie waits while Dorita gets young Ricardo Hueseca, a wood-elf the human-equivalent of four who is the son of one of the El Parador working girls. Ginnie tells him, “I need you to go to the Post Office to check to see if that man John Peters is wanted for anything. Then if you don't find anything out go to the wood elf at the Marshal's office, only the wood elf, to see if this man is a bounty hunter of any kind or something else that might cause Ma'am Kate trouble. If nothing comes up check with the Deputy Sheriff to see if he knows anything about this man. If you find anything at all get back here fast before you go to the next place. Let Dorita know she'll flag me down. This is really important.” Ginnie waits until Ricky flies out the door. She tells Dorita, “I let him think that Ma'am Kate might have ridden out to the ranch and he wants me to take him there. If I need to keep him busy I'll want someone to go with me as I don't trust him as far as I can throw him. I'll bring out two plates when I get his breakfast and see what else I can find out from him while he eats. As long as I'm still pretending to be a silly little talkative girl he'll think I'm babbling so he'll pump me for information while I try to get some from him. I'll let you know what else I come up with as I go back and forth to the kitchen. If I think there's trouble I can't get out of I'll drop my knife.” Dorita tells Ginnie to be careful. She advises against taking this man to the ranch out of concern for her daughter Sonoma, who is the only one out at the ranch at the moment since Flint had gone with the others. Ginnie brings the food back to the table. Peters thanks her and starts to eat while asking again about Kate. Ginnie says, “Ma'am Kate came here to make a ranch but she's also a good teacher. So what were you looking for Ma'am Kate for? It's been a while since her husband died. Where were you when they had the stone laid or the burial? Ma'am Kate was told that no one showed up when he was buried and the same thing happened when the marker was put in place.” John Peters replies "I was out of town at the time of the first burial and I believe that the stone marker was placed when I was in jail. That was just a misunderstanding between myself and the Earps and I was let go. From what I hear similar things have happened here in this town. I'll never understand why people decided to put badges on that family. What do people in this town say about that?" Ginnie replies, “Well, I know that the Earps aren't in the school and they don't have kids that might be taking classes with Ma'am Kate but they didn‘t stop her from putting the school together. What where you in jail for? Lots of people seem to get caught doing things they get tossed in jail for. you must not have made a lot of money at cards if you were in jail as the judge almost always gives people the chance to pay their way out of their terms. So what do you actually do for a living?” He replies, "My being in jail was just a misunderstanding. They thought I was involved with something that I wasn't and the Judge made them let me go. Perchance did Mrs. Kale leave any sort of note for me? She was going to check with her friend Mr. Cook about a potential business matter and said she'd have an answer." John Peters and Ginnie continue to talk. He asks her more questions about the ranch and she is vague in her answers. He asks about other places that Kate has been and how she went about getting the ranch. Ginnie quickly states something about it being "an idea that she got at the deed place", meaning the County Claims Office. He then mishears her and says, "D-place, what D-place are you talking about? Do you mean Denver?" Ginnie says, "No, I'm not sure what I meant. I don't know if she's ever been to Denver. Have you?" He says that he has and she immediately exclaims "Really! What's it like?" He spends the next twenty minutes telling her about Denver Colorado. Ginnie continues to ply her companion with coffee and keep him talking at the El Parador for as long as possible while she waits for Ricky to return with some information. Meanwhile, some thirty-odd miles to the west, Nanuet rides across in back of the herd while trying to gather up a rather obnoxious dark brown beast with one broken horn. Jake tries to imagine where a rib eye comes from but can't figure it out. "Hey Indian! Why don't we shoot them all and drag them to the ranch, it might be faster." Jake then rides over towards where Katherine is looking rather exasperated. "I think I told you about that old coot, Caleb White? He used to say to me," Jake changes his voice to sound old and gravelly, " Silver Dollar, if you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is stop diggin. Katherine, if you can gather them all together I can beat them in a game of poker. And I never met a rib eye I didn't like. Outside of that I don't know what to do with these bloody beasts." Kate looked around at the straying animals and the others trying to keep the slow moving cattle from wandering off in all directions. Flint seemed to be taking special delight in slapping them on the backside with his reins. "I don't know either. I never signed up for cows you know, horses are a lot more manageable. We can't afford the time it's going to take to move them, but I hate to just leave them to wander." A moment later Jeff approached and said, "Why don't we send someone ahead to one of the ranches? They could get some experienced people to drive these cattle." Kate nodded. "Jeff, either you're a genius, or you got more sleep than the rest of us last night. That's a good idea, Jake. You and Ruby could go ahead, you already know the Shaws. I wouldn't mind letting them keep an extra animal or two for moving these beasts if it gets us back to Promise City faster." He replies, “"That always happens, I open my mouth and I have to do work. You'd think I'd learn by now." Jake smiles to Katherine. "All right princess, wake up. We have to ride." Jake shakes Ruby gently. They take a few minutes to get ready, including have a quick bite to eat and drink. They bid their companions well and ride off to the Shaw ranch in search of some assistance. Minerva rides zigzag along the back of the herd with Nanuet as they struggle to keep the herd from scattering in all directions. She is tired and giddy from lack of sleep and exertion but manages to keep her humor as she yells over to Nanuet "I feel about as useless as teat on a bull!" She giggles as a particularly belligerent bull suddenly decides to stop for a snack. She makes ineffective clucking noises as she tries to persuade the stubborn brute to keep moving. She exclaims, "Gods, these beasts are about as cooperative as the Olympus Church congregation on a Saturday night! It's going to take a miracle to move this herd. Unfortunately I'm fresh out! Any idea's?" She laughs uncontrollably, overcome by the ridiculousness of their situation." ""Saying 'Ya ya' might help." Chester shrugs. "Well, it might." The cattle mill about in the middle of the road. "Come on. Get moving or we'll turn you into steaks right here. Never thought I'd be half-naked and herding cattle." " Minerva closes her eyes to the sun and stretches her arms up to the heavens. She arches her aching back and yawns. With her dark hair streaming behind her and her breasts swelling over her bodice she is oblivious to the affect her movement has on the two men. " "Perhaps you could demonstrate for me, Senor Chester. I am so tired, I think my ya ya may be broken!" Well everybody is a comedian today aren't they!" Nanuet says shaking his head while wearing a smirk. "I see Jake and Ruby are riding off to get some help, somebody who knows what they are doing I hope. I guess for now we just try and keep them together and heading that way. It never looked too hard when I saw cowboys doing it, but these beasts have a mind of their own for sure." Nanuet says before riding off to wrangle up a pair of cows who have wandered off in search of their own path. Minerva looks back in response to Nanuet's comment and starts laughing all over again. She point's behind him. " It looks like Maska and Luna want a part in this circus too!" Maska is trotting in the rear with Luna perched at attention on her back. "What an unlikely pair!" Nanuet turns to look at the "unlikely pair" that Minerva mentioned and couldn't help but laugh. He was about to start speaking about his perplexity concerning how the owl was perched on the wolf without causing Maska severe discomfort when Minerva began responding to Chester so he deferred his attention to her. He turns and notices her stretching and immediately turns red. "Yes, I am sure we are all tired and need rest, but the more we concentrate on the task at hand the sooner we can get that respite we so desperately need." Katherine pulled off her hat and wiped the sweat off her forehead. The sun was getting warmer by the minute, and it wasn't long before she peeled off the duster and vest. She was quiet as the others joked and laughed, trying to keep her mind distracted from the events of the last day by focusing on moving those damn cattle. She turned to look at Maska when Minerva pointed out the odd pairing and saw the stretching the so unnerved the men. For a moment she looked down at her own neat and slim but petite figure and sighed. The next moment a sudden giggle escaped her lips. In the last half day Chester and Nanuet had been kidnapped, Johnny Ringo had told them they were to be in a war whether they wanted to or not, and they had fought a battle. Johnny Ringo was probably in the El Parador night now, and her friends were trying to move this stubborn herd of cows more than a few feet an hour, and she was worried about the size of her bust? Kate buried her hands in the horses mane to keep from falling off as she shook with helpless laughter. Chester, Flint, Jeff, Kate, Minerva and Nanuet continue to try to herd the cattle southward in the direction of the main road, still more than a mile away. The morning sun is bearing down on them, bearing no resemblance to the clouds and showers of the previous evening. Ruby and Jake barely reach the main road when they hear the sound of approaching horses coming from the direction of Tombstone. It is too late to hide so they reach for their weapons and prepare for the worst. They then relax when the Wells Fargo Stage comes into view, their friend Chuck Nevers driving the stage and Newton Gilly riding shotgun. Jake now recalls that on weekends the stage does an extra Friday night run, staying overnight in Tombstone, and then returning to Promise City in the morning. Jake checks his pocket watch, reading 9:45 A.M., which would be just about right for the stage's schedule assuming that it left Tombstone at 9:00 A.M. As he sees Jake and Ruby, Nevers slows the stage and then brings it to a halt as he reaches them. "Hello, what are you doing way out here this early in the morning?" he asks. "Yes, a god awful time to be out if you ask me." Jake takes a deep breath and realizes just how tired he is. "We are helping out some friends who were worried about the Cowboy gang. We are headed to the Lazy-S Ranch right now. Have you fellas seen any trouble from the gang this morning or yesterday?" Chuck says, "We saw a few guys yesterday who we didn't like the look of but none today. You're welcome to ride alongside us to the Lazy-S, more safety in numbers. If you want you can tie your horses to the coach and ride inside, we only have one passenger with us on this run. Although you may find him to be a bit talkative." Ruby looked at Jake, "Oh please let's ride inside. I'm so tired, even if Chumbley is in there. Besides I been meaning to talk with him anyway." Ruby looks at Jake with big pleading eyes, the ones he can't say no to. "Good!" She says with a smile. "Thank you Mr. Nevers, we really appreciate it." Ruby and Jake get off their horses and tie them to the back of the stage. They get inside and take a seat. She exclaims, "Hello, Mr. Chumbley, how are you today?" The halfling looks up, sees Ruby, and all the blood drains from his face. He then faints dead away. Ruby then notices the two stacks of newspapers on the floor of the coach with the headline [B]"Ruby West Murdered!" [/B] [/QUOTE]
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