Disclaimer: All the characters from the "Magnificent Seven" T.V. series are property of Trilogy Entertainment, The Mirisch Group, MGM Worldwide.
"I've looked everywhere Ezra," JD Dunne reported to the gambler that morning, following his search of town for the whereabouts of Julia Pemberton. He had soon come to the conclusion that the lady was nowhere to be found. "If she's in town, she's hiding."
Ezra had returned from Julia's house himself, having used his key to gain entry into her home and finding the letter she had left for him. Reading its contents, she had promised that she would return in a number of weeks but somehow he had his doubts about that if she became too threatened by Walter Clemens' presence in town. While he believed that she would not desert him, Ezra did not want Julia to throw away her life in Four Corners, particularly after all the effort she had went to making a place for herself in this community.
"She is not in town." He said pulling up a chair at his table and reaching into his pocket to read the letter she had left with him once again. Accompanying the note with its elegant script promising that she loved him and always would no matter where life took her, was the deed to the Standish Tavern in his name. She had left it as a parting gift, as if the ownership of a saloon could possibly lessen the blow of losing her. "If I know Miss Pemberton at all, she has made good her escape."
"Gosh, I'm sorry Ezra." JD sat down next to the gambler, seeing the expression of unhappiness on his face and wishing he could offer the man some comfort. If Casey had just up and run off on him like this he would be similarly devastated even though Ezra seemed better at hiding his emotions than he if such a thing ever happened. "Do you think she's gone for good?"
"Not if her letter to me is any indication," the gambler sighed, gesturing to the folded piece of correspondence on the space before him. "It appears she is going to ground until Mr Clemens chooses to leave Four Corners."
"Will that work?" JD looked at him uncertainly, thinking that it was rather a simplistic solution for a complex problem. Although Ezra did not voice it, he tended to agree with JD's unspoken assessment of the situation.
"I seriously doubt it." Ezra admitted reluctantly. "Mr Clemens is tenacious to say the least." If he had tracked her across the Territory by visiting every little backwater town in existence here then it is likely that he would not be put off by such tactics. In either case, Julia would be discovered one way or another and Ezra was not about to let that happen. The fear he had seen in her eyes at the possibility of being found out was real and he knew no matter what deceptions she had used upon him, he loved her too much to allow those fears to become a reality. Somehow, he had to find her before she disappeared into the woodwork and Ezra was not ready to wait helplessly until she decided to let him know her whereabouts.
"What are you going to do Ezra?" JD asked, not believing for an instance that Ezra was willing to let this go the way things stood.
"I am going to find our wayward Miss Pemberton," Ezra said decisively and then drained the contents of his glass. "And bring her back here, kicking and screaming if need be."
"You don't even know when she went." JD countered.
"That's true but ignorance had never stopped me from acting before and I know her habits well enough to have some idea as to where she might have gone. If you give my compliments to Mr Larabee the next time you see him, please let him know that I had some personal business to attend." Ezra said deciding that now was as good a time as any to begin his search before Julia gained too much ground on him. There were a few ways she could have left town and he was going to have to investigate all those possibilities if he intended on catching up to her.
"You're going now?" JD looked at him surprised as the gambler rose from the table and drew away having every intention of making good on his statement.
"It is as good a time as any, Mr Dunne." Ezra retorted tipping his hat slight at the young man before turning towards the batwing doors when suddenly two women made their entrance into the saloon. It was early morning in the saloon so patronage was hardly at peak capacity and their presence was largely ignored by the few customers who were there. Ezra studied both women carefully and deduced immediately that they were strangers in town, obviously from the south of the border since both were Hispanic in origin. Mother and daughter, he ventured a guess by the similarity in their features. The mother seemed a stoutish woman who might have been handsome in her day while her daughter with the sculpted cheekbones and exotically dusky skin was extremely attractive. However, it was not that which captured Ezra's attention so much and for the few seconds that he studied them, he wrestled with trying to determine what that was.
After a moment, he realised it was because that there was something familiar about them that Ezra could not place and found himself forgetting Julia for the present. Since the saloon was now his, he thought sarcastically, he had a right to greet his customers and conceded that it was the best excuse he could think of at this moment to force an introduction. Crossing the floor, he met them after they had stepped through the doors and the matron had paused to scan the length of the room with her sharp eyes.
"Ladies," he tipped his hat to both of them as he arrived and offered his most charming smile. The older woman did not seem impressed but her daughter blushed and flashed him a radiant smile that all the more confirmed Ezra's suspicion that he knew her from somewhere, even though for the life of him he could not remember. She was not more than twenty he estimated, who was already quite the beauty and wondered with typical male curiosity what she would look like when she blossomed into adulthood. "Welcome to the Standish Tavern, I am the owner Ezra Standish," He bristled with annoyance when he realised how good it felt to say that. "May I be of assistance?"
"I am looking for my daughter." The older woman said, flashing the daughter at her side a dark look for responding to this stranger with his handsome features and charming smile. The stare was enough to drive the girl back into submission and she dropped her gaze from Ezra's and shifted it elsewhere.
"Your daughter?" Ezra stared at the woman in confusion, wondering why she would believe her daughter, obviously not the one at her side would be here unless....
"Inez." The woman stated firmly, confirming Ezra's dawning realisation.
"You are Mrs Rosillos?" Ezra said breaking into a genuine smile. "Why it is a pleasure to meet you Madam. I have heard a great deal about you. May I call you Paloma?"
She started to thaw slightly as she realised that he did indeed know Inez and in her daughter's letters home, she had referred to the men who had defended her against Stefano and assumed this must be one of them. "Si Senor and you are?"
"I am Ezra Standish, as I said I own this establishment." The gambler answered and then added with a smile that bordered on smug satisfaction. "And now that I think about it, your daughter's employer."
Okay, so perhaps he was not that angry with Julia for buying this place for him from his mother.
"And you must be Calla." Ezra turned to girl who had now fastened her attention on JD and was offering him that same smile of radiance.
"Si." She nodded. "I am Calla."
"We have come a long way to find Inez Senor Standish," Paloma interrupted, not liking any man to pay too close attention to her daughters, either of them. "Is she here?"
"Yes, she is resting." Ezra answered. "She does not work that much in the saloon these days with the blessed event almost upon her. As a matter of fact, I shall be most curious to see how she manages this establishment once the baby does arrive. "
Paloma Rosillos looked at him sharply. "Baby?"
Ezra froze as he saw the blank look in her eyes. She had no idea what he was taking about. Oh hell. He swore under his breath realising what he had just done. "Maybe I ought to refrain from saying more. It does appear to be a family matter."
"You have said enough Senor Standish," Paloma retorted, her full ire bristling into effect while Calla merely looked shocked. "My daughter did not tell me she was married. Why is she married and still working in a place like this?"
Oh hell.
For the first time in his life, Ezra had no idea what to say. With the exception of Casey Well's invitation to the livery stable to sow some wild oats (what had happened there?), he had never found himself so tongue tied and unprepared to respond. All he could manage was a rather stuttered response of; "I really think you need to speak to her yourself."
Drawn by the commotion and dying to find out who that beautiful girl Ezra was talking to, JD left his table and came up to the trio and noticed Ezra stammering which was a shock in itself. Ezra was the most articulate person he knew. The man could cheat you out of every cent you owned and still speak perfectly enough to make you believe that he was doing you a favour. As he reached them, he saw the girl's eyes widened as he approached and JD found himself responding to her attention by offering her a small smile.
"What's going on?" JD asked.
"Mr Dunne, meet Paloma and Calla Rosillos, Inez's mother and sister." Ezra replied, relieved for the distraction provided by the young man and prayed that it was nearly enough to shift the conversation away from this explosive topic. It had never occurred to him that Inez would not tell her mother about her pregnancy although in retrospect, he supposed she would not. After all, Inez was as he mentioned on numerous occasions, the product of a traditional Catholic upbringing. For her to not only be pregnant and unmarried must have been the height of shame not only for herself and her faith but to her the family she had left behind. Ezra had a terrible feeling, the reunion was going to be anything but pleasant when the family finally encountered each other.
"Well its nice to meet you ma'am." JD said immediately removing his hat. "Inez will be plenty pleased to see you, what with the baby coming and all."
Ezra rolled his eyes in resignation and watched in dismay as the hope of avoiding the subject burst into flames as the fire in Paloma's eyes was reignited.
"My daughter has married and did not even tell me?" Paloma hissed and then lapsed into a series of colourful Mexican expletives that was familiar to all of those who knew Inez with any depth of familiarity. Judging by the woman's temper, it was obvious that the apple did not fall too far from the tree.
JD, horrified by the thought of upsetting the lady, tried to make amends. "Oh no ma'am, Inez would never do anything like that. She ain't married!"
"JD!" Ezra almost shouted as the words escaped the boys lips and groaned after it did because the expression on Paloma's face had no description. All colour drained from the woman features as she stared wide eyed at the news that her eldest daughter was pregnant and unmarried.
"Where...is...she?" Paloma asked. Her voice barely a whisper.
"Second door after the stairs." Ezra said reluctantly and gestured to the flight of stairs at the corner of the saloon.
The woman said nothing further and stormed away, grabbing Calla by the hand as she marched towards the stairs.
JD saw what had happened and knew immediately that something really bad was about to take place. Without looking at the gambler, the young man asked very calmly, "Ezra, what did I just do?"
Ezra took a deep breath and decided he was not going to make JD feel any more worse than he would after Paloma had found Inez and the inevitable confrontation between mother and daughter took place. "Nothing that would not have transpired anyway, Mr Dunne." Ezra said kindly. "However, if you are feeling remorseful for spilling the beans so to speak, I suggest you go find Mrs Larabee. I have this premonition that when this is all over, Inez will require a friend."
JD nodded, not exactly certain what Ezra meant by that but knew enough about the gambler to trust his instincts. "I'll do that." He replied and started towards the doors to the saloon when Ezra had another thought and called after him.
"Mr Dunne," Ezra stopped him in his tracks. "Perhaps you better find Buck as well."
Inez was starting to feel better.
Perhaps everything had not gone according to plan and she now found herself engaged to be married even though she was uncertain whether or not it was right thing to do but she did have a home to go to and that was certainly a step in the right direction. Yesterday afternoon, Mary had driven her to the Travis place and they had spent an hour or two looking over the property, in particular the house. As far as Inez was concerned, it was as near perfect to anything she had envisioned for herself and her child. Deciding that she would indeed take Mary up on her proposal, she had spent the morning signing lease agreements and paying money to take possession of the place. Following that, she had been on something of a shopping spree and was now surrounded in nursery furniture and all the other things she had cumulated over the past nine months for the baby. Buck had promised to come by later today and help her move all her belongings into her new home.
Amazingly enough, even the idea of marrying Buck did not seem so bad now even if she still had her reservations. He had not spoken anything further about the wedding and she guessed that he would not until she brought the subject up. Inez felt somewhat guilty at how she had accepted his proposal, knowing that it had hurt him a little that she had been so begrudging about it. She did love him and she did not wish him to think that she was marrying him simply for the baby but at the moment, Inez was not sure of that herself and did not want to lie to him by telling him otherwise.
At least not until she was certain of how she felt.
It was not as if he had not been bending over backward to prove that he could change. In fact, Inez could not deny that she was impressed by how far he had come since learning about the baby. She heard no more that he was still the philandering rogue he used to be and did not leave a trail of broken hearts behind him like some men left dead bodies. The fact that he had entered this horse ranching venture with Chris and Vin proved that he was trying to provide for her and the baby. Despite all the doubts that kept her from giving her heart fully to him, Inez could not deny that her love for him had grown which was why she was so afraid of him.
From the onset of their relationship, Inez knew just how much she could love Buck. She did not want to be like her own mother who spent most of her life pining for the father they had lost too early. Her mother had never remarried because no suitor could stand up to the memory of the husband gone. Inez was terrified of loving any one person that much and then losing them and Buck, who acted as one of the lawmen in this town was as great a risk to life and limb as the rest of the seven. Inez did not know how she would cope losing him and so she had kept him at arm's length, particularly since she had learnt about the baby. While she did not want to rob him of the experience of the child they had conceived, she was not prepared to let him become a part of her life yet, jus the baby's.
Inez was in the midst of packing when the door swung open behind her abruptly and Inez thought she was getting another visit from one of the drunks who occasionally stumbled in here by mistake and were ejected most forcefully. However as she turned around and saw who was standing in the doorway, Inez suddenly wished it was some inebriated lout. The alternative, any alternative, had to be better than this.
"Mama?" Inez exclaimed, feeling as if all the air had left the room because she had trouble just getting the words out of her mouth.
"Look at you!" Her mother blazed foregoing any greetings or salutations and launching straight into the matter at hand.
Her condition was impossible to hide at this stage of pregnancy and Inez knew denying it would be ridiculous so she did not bother. "Mama, I can explain...." She stammered, rising from her bed, her hand sliding to her swollen protectively as if she felt it necessary to shield the baby from the unpleasantness about to take place.
"Explain?" Paloma strode to her and struck her hard across the back of the head like she had done when Inez was a misbehaving child. "I am told you are unmarried!" The woman roared in fury. "I raised you better than to bring shame upon us like this!"
"I have not brought shame upon anyone!" Inez cried impotently, slinking out from under her mother's reach and put a suitable gap between them. "I am having a baby! Your grandchild!"
"You are having a bastard child with no husband!" Paloma shouted, cruel in her rage.
"How could you!" Inez said horrified, unable to believe that such words could have come from her mother. "I expected this from strangers who could not care less but you? You are my mother!" She said fighting the tears and frustration. Was there no end to the recriminations? Of all the insults she had been subjected to over the months, this was undeniably the worst. "I could not help this any more than I could stop it and I refuse to let you or anyone tell me that this child is a disgrace! It is only a disgrace to small minded fools! I had not believed I would have to count you the same, mama!"
"You were always a headstrong child!" Her mother declared fiercely, not prepared to let her daughter explain anything with anything. In her view there were no words that could justify the unfortunate state her daughter now found herself. "You were headstrong when you had the village's best suitors ask for you hand! No, you would not accept them, you were too good to be a farmer's wife. Look at you now!"
"I am perfectly happy with my life." Inez retaliated, feeling her initial shock and pain fading away to be replaced by the purer emotion of anger. Her baby was not a mistake! She may have been angry by some of the consequences of its presence into her life but she was never sorry had chosen to have it and no one was going to make her feel ashamed of that! She was not going let anyone make her resent her baby, not even by her mother. "I have a job in this saloon and I have a home to go to and since you have not bothered to ask, the father and I will soon be married."
"What kind of man would wait so long to marry you?" Paloma demanded, with every indication that the news Inez had just delivered had done little to appease her anger. The sin had been committed in the eyes of God and in her opinion. There was no correcting it after the fact.
"A good man." Inez declared firmly, not about to hear any disparaging remarks about Buck on top of everything else. "One that I love and who loves me!"
"You have brought shame upon me Inez," Paloma said finally, turning on her heels to leave. She had decided that there was no reasoning with her daughter who had plunged herself headlong into sin with her illegitimate offspring. "I raised you as good Christian girl, not to bandy about her favours like the village tramp! Is it not bad enough that the whole village blames us for what is becoming of Alejandro after his son's death? Do you know what hardship we had to endure where you ran away from home and left us there to face his anger? He made our lives very hard but I knew I had a raised a daughter who would have fought to preserve her virtue. Now I find that you have been giving it freely in this place! Like a paid whore."
"I am not a whore!" Inez shouted, something inside her finally snapping. She had been branded with that unfair appellation so many times that she could tolerate it no more. "I made to love Buck because I wanted to, not because some filthy pig expected it of me when he dragged me out of my house one night, willing to force me in front of our entire village!" She was incensed that her mother would even question her virtue regarding her experience with Don Paulo.
"What you have done now is against the laws of God and how I have raised you," her mother interjected, the plea falling on deaf ears. It was what Inez more or less expected from Paloma who was just as stubborn and headstrong as she about her own point of view. "I came here because Don Alejandro has our house burnt I'm certain and has driven us from the village in revenge for his son's death. I assume he will be coming for you sooner or later. I could have taken refuge with my sister at Ciudad Juarez but instead I came here to warn you." Paloma's eyes moved over Inez's body, resting at her belly and then added with glacial indifference. "I need not have bothered. You are as good as dead to me now."
Those words had more effect upon Inez than anything else the woman had said since her tumultuous arrival. Hearing her mother disown her like that was a blow that left Inez reeling and she stared at her mother in a mixture of astonishment and heartbreak.
Paloma in turn did not wait to see what her statement had meant to her daughter and promptly turned on her heels to leave the room. She stormed out the, not seeing that she had departed with Inez trembling in her wake. Only when she had passed through the door, did Inez find her voice to speak. "Mama, please!" She cried out, unable to handle everything and this too on top of everything else.
There was no answer.
Inez took a deep breath to regain her composure in the chaos following the brutal scene between herself and Paloma before going after her mother. She had no sooner crossed the threshold of her doorway and looked beyond the banister to the floor below, dreading to think how many people had heard the exchange between them. To her mild surprise, she only saw Ezra, JD and Mary. Mary was staring up at her, sympathy and heartfelt concern etched in her face as she conveyed in her eyes to let her help. Unfortunately as much as Inez would have liked to take Mary up on that offer, Inez was the only one who could possibly resolve this situation between herself and her mother.
"Inez, I'm sure she doesn't mean it." A familiar voice called out.
Inez looked down the walkway that Paloma was presently walking, dragging her younger sister Calla behind her. Calla's expression showed the same feelings as Mary but she was just as helpless to her mother's wishes as Inez herself.
"Mama's just angry." Calla tried to reassure her sister as she followed her mother, hoping Inez understood that mama's opinions were not her own.
"I will speak my own mind Calla!" Paloma snapped at her to be silent.
However, the matter was far from over as far as Inez was concerned and she continued following her mother, calling out after her. "Mama, why did he burn the house now? Why after so long?" It made no sense why he would come after her at this point. Stefano Paulo had been dead for more than a year. She had expected vengeance to come soon after his death, not now! Especially now!
"Who can say?" Paloma whirled around and faced her pregnant daughter almost wild with anger. "He claims now that you lured Stefano that night, that it was all your fault that Stefano became so obsessed with you! He believes that you tricked Stefano to this town," she looked about the room with clear disapproval. "So that you could have your lover murder him!"
Inez could not believe it. How on earth could anyone come to that conclusion when the entire village of Val Verde had been witness to what Stefano had been attempting to do that night, not to mention how he had behaved all his life with the girls in the village. He had brutalised so many and the only reason that retribution had not been demanded was because the Don had appeased their families with compensation in some shape or form. "That's insane!"
"Do you not understand you foolish girl?" Paloma declared, making her descent down the stairs. No one was brave enough to be in her way as she hurried down, pulling her younger daughter along helplessly. "He is insane !"
"Mama, please!" Inez implored, trying to think of something to make her understand as she blew out of the saloon like an ill wind, leaving all kinds of destruction in her wake. When she had gone, Inez did not know whether or not it was a good thing. There was a well of pain flowing inside of her that was slicing up her insides with the efficiency of a well aimed knife. Of all the humiliation she had endured this past months, this had been the one she dreaded most. It was part of the reason why she had neglected to reveal her condition to her mother in her letters home. However in all honesty, even Inez had not envisioned that Paloma's reaction would be this incendiary.
As she regained her senses, she remembered that the saloon was empty, with table and stools vacant. Grateful that there were no prying eyes bearing witness to what had just transpired, Inez found herself sank to the steps of the stairs and sat down. Her mind was still reeling from what had taken place and much of her thoughts were still a jumble of emotions, slowly gaining recognition of present events as opposed to the whirlwind of angry words in her head.
"Where is everybody?" She asked no one in particular after awhile.
Her word prompted the others into movement who had been uncertain whether or not to approach her. Mary was the first one to reach Inez even though it was Ezra who answered her.
"I closed the place." Ezra answered gently, "I thought it might be wise."
"Thank you." Inez replied with genuine appreciation, although normally she would have taken issue at his audacity in closing the place so when he had no authority over the saloon.
"Inez, are you all right?" Mary asked tenderly as she sat next to Inez on the steps and slipped her arm over her friend's shoulder and gave her a well needed hug.
The expression on her best friend's face was one of utter sympathy and Inez felt heartened knowing that Mary was there because she really needed someone support right now. The sorrow she felt at her mother's reaction was like near unbearable, though she was fighting admirably to keep it at bay. However, that soon dissipated as she felt a growing physical discomfort. At first she had attributed it to the quick exit from her room and down the stairs in pursuit of Paloma having tired her out. However, the pain was intensifying and she could feel a stabbing of pain in her lower back, protesting from the exertion of energy and musculature in her fragile state.
"I'm sorry Inez," JD added his voice to the feel of Mary's arms around her shoulders as the editor of the Clarion news sat next to her. The youth was feeling even worse than ever for inadvertently blurting to Inez's mother about her condition and her state of marriage prior to her unceremonious entry into Inez's room. After seeing how the woman had taken the news and how she treated Inez after, JD felt terribly guilty that he was responsible for it. A part of him could not associate anyone's mother being so harsh with their own child. His own mother had been kind and understanding, even when he did something stupid. Hell, even Maude did not treat Ezra the way; Inez's mother had just torn strips of her. JD could not believe how unreasonable the woman had been. "I didn't mean to tell her that you weren't married. I didn't know you hadn't told her."
"It's all right JD." The bartender shook her head feeling no malice towards him at that news because in all truth there was and had only ever been one person who was responsible for this situation and that was herself. "I knew she was going to be like this. Maybe that's why I did not tell her. I was hoping to wait...." Her voice drifted away as she followed that thought to its conclusion and then raised her soulful eyes to meet their gazes. "I don't know what I was thinking."
"You have nothing to be sorry for Inez." Ezra who was kneeling before her, he placed a hand on her cheek. "You are not to blame for your mother's failings. Trust me, I know. Your choices are your own and if she cannot support you in the decision that you have chosen to make then it is her lost and our gain."
"Thank you Ezra," Inez whispered, her lips quivering as she fought not to be overcome with emotion. She wanted badly to cry, could feel hot tears pressing against the wall of her eyes, trying to flood her cheeks with a flow of sorrow. "It means much to me to hear you say that." Her hand touched his and for a moment, she used her grip on him to steady herself.
"Come on," Mary urged her to stand up. "We'll go to my house, you can stay with me tonight. I don't want you left alone."
Inez was about to protest when she started to notice the pains in her lower back becoming increasingly sharper. It seemed to poke and prod, worsening with the seconds that passed until finally, it was to a point she could not longer ignore and it began to register in her face. Involuntarily she winced and everyone noticed the action almost immediately. She felt her skin start to perspire as the pain became more intense and drove all worries about her mother away from her mind for the present.
"Mary.." Inez looked up at the blond woman with apprehension. "It hurts."
"What?" Mary said immediately, sharpening her thoughts into focus faster than anything else that had happened so far with that one statement. By equally sharp contrast, JD and Ezra immediately descended into predictable panic as most men faced with such a situation were apt to doing.
"She says it hurts!" JD cried out, sounding even younger than he looked, if such was a thing was possible.
"Mary." Inez started to get frightened because she knew what was supposed to happen when she went into labour and did this not feel like it. "I think it is the baby." She managed to say before uttering a soft gasp as the pain surfaced sharply for an instant and caught her by surprise.
"JD, get Alexandra!" Ezra ordered as he and Mary started helping Inez to her feet immediately. The young sheriff nodded wildly and practically bolted out the door. As they helped her to stand, Inez uttered a small cry of pain, contracting her body into a question mark as it moved through her. The action sent a wave of panic through the gambler as he struggled to maintain his grip upon her when she had buckled so suddenly. He had not idea how Mary was able to maintain her poise. While he was quickly becoming a bundle of nerves which each strained utterance made by Inez, Mary was keeping a poker face that left his jaw agape with astonishment had he not been so panic already.
"Is it the baby?" Ezra asked, wishing someone would tell him something. He was completely out of his depth here. "Is it the baby coming? Is she going into labour? What on earth do we do?" He had no idea that he was rambling.
Mary dispelled the notion soon enough. "Ezra will you get a hold of yourself!" She snapped because they did not have the time to deal with his hysterics while Inez was in this way. "Let's just get her up to her room." Mary did not believe this to be contractions because Inez's water had not broken. However, with all the stress that she had endured today, premature labour was not entirely impossible. "Inez, we're taking you to your room, do you think you can make it?" Mary asked her, since Ezra was able to do nothing but obey her instructions mutely.
"Yes." She groaned painfully, feeling a fist of pain tightening inside her lower spine, threatening to break her in half as it intensified with each agonising. "Get Alex please!" She groaned again.
"Already done," Mary answered with the same voice she tended Billy's cuts and bruises when he was hurt. Incidentally it was also the same voice she used whenever Chris needed to be kept in bed after he was wounded. The uses for it seemed never ending. For the moment, it appeared, Inez was in need of the same calm that no doubt infuriated her son and husband during those times. "You need to calm down. Remember what Alex taught you about breathing?" Mary reminded her firmly but gently in order to slice through the panic that would only worsen the situation if Inez did not get it under control. "We'll do it together."
Inez nodded anxiously and watched Mary who started first. After a moment, she started undertaking the breathing exercises herself as she was lead to the top of the stairs and then down the corridor which emptied into her room. Ezra watched with a mixture of fear and fascination at what Mary was doing, admiring the lady's presence of mind and supposed that this was one arena where she was wholly an expert, having had a child once before. He also observed that the breathing exercises that Alex had prescribed seemed to have the effect of calming the patient more than anything else and wondered if that were not true object of the game.
They reached Inez's room soon after and Ezra helped Mary lead Inez to her bed, where upon lying down, the woman pulled her knees under her swollen stomach in an effort to control the pains shooting through her body. He noticed that the room was in a state of chaos with every indication that Inez had been planning to vacate the premises permanently. Most of her belongings were tucked neatly in boxes, while that old, worn carpet bag she had carried when she had first breezed into town and his life with was sitting on a chair, crammed full of clothes and other personal items. Seeing it made Ezra he could did not want any harm to come to Inez, just as he knew for certain he could not imagine Julia not in his life.
"Ezra," Mary turned to the gambler now that Inez was lying on the bed. "I can take it from here." She said kindly, seeing his concern but also understanding that he was uncomfortable about being here, like any man would be when confronted with such a situation. He was remaining because he had to and Mary decided it was time to relieve of that duty since she needed him for a far more important task. "Ezra, we need to find Buck."
"I sent Mr Dunne to find him at the same time as yourself, I do not believe that he is in town." Ezra answered. "However, it would probably serve if I make some deeper inquiries." He suggested.
"Don't bother," Mary said quickly, having a better idea than most where Buck would be today. "I'm pretty sure his with Vin and Chris at the ranch. Ezra, he needs to know what's happening."
Ezra met her gaze and showed his agreement with a slight nod. As he retreated out of the room, hearing, Inez's strained cried behind him, he hoped that Buck's efforts to be a good husband and father would not be for nothing.
Alexandra Styles walked out of Inez's room less than an hour later and descended down the steps to the floor of the Standish Tavern. Her appearance was met with a flurry of questions; loudest of which came from Buck Wilmington who had arrived in town not long after experience the longest ride he had ever had to endure in his entire life. Following Ezra's news that Inez was ailing, the lawman had climbed in his saddle and ridden back to town at full gallop, having never pushed his mount so hard in his life. He hardly considered the danger of that action, knowing only that he had to get back here as fast as he could. After what he had been told about the possibility Don Paulo's father coming after him and Inez, Buck could not imagine how things could be worse.
Until now.
Alex ignored all their questions and had one of her own to ask. "Okay," she said taking a deep breath and staring them all down, in particular Mary, Ezra and JD who were here when Inez first showed symptoms of her present condition. "Someone want to tell me what the hell happened here today?"
Mary swallowed; certain that Alex's question was motivated by more than just curiosity but from a medical need as well. "Inez's mother and sister came to town." Mary answered, not just for Alex but for the benefit of anyone else who was not appraised of what had taken place in the saloon today. "She was not happy to find out about the baby or the fact that Inez was not married."
"Aw hell..." Buck started to swear, having a fair idea of what happened after that. In fact, they all did.
"They had a terrible fight," Mary continued revealing events that were a surprise to no one after her initial statement. "Her mother was really brutal and more or less disowned Inez."
"Well that explains that." Alex nodded and let out a sigh, wondering how people could be so stupid and telling herself that she would not mind going to see Mrs Rosillos if just to deliver a swift kick in the woman's sanctimonious behind. "For starters, she's fine Buck." Alex looked at the man to reassure him of that first and foremost. He accepted the news gratefully for he let out a grateful sigh. "She went into false labour." Alex explained. "It's can be brought on by extreme stress."
"Well today would have certainly qualified as such." Ezra muttered under his breath.
"Now," Alex continued, not finished and giving the gambler a look to quiet until she was. "She's asleep now, I've given her something to relax. However, she cannot handle this kind of pressure. I understand she was walking around town in this heat yesterday?" She looked at them.
"She was looking for a place to stay." Buck admitted reluctantly, suddenly feeling extremely bad because Inez was doing a lot of things for herself she should not be. She had allowed him to be part of the baby's life; perhaps he had better start paying more attention to Inez, even if she was being stubborn and independent. Just because Inez would never ask for help but that did not mean Buck should try and provide it.
"Well that stops immediately." Alex said in no uncertain terms with a tone of voice that broke no argument. Even Chris knew better than to argue with her when she was like this. "Let me explain something to you. A woman pregnant has more four times more blood volume in her body than normal and veins that stay the same size. When she feels distressed like she was today, the flexibility of those veins are hindered and something is likely to rupture, do you understand? If she is subjected to any more pressure than she is already, both she and the baby will be in serious danger. I kid you not. Has she actually found some place to live?" Alex asked no one in particular but expected an answer nevertheless.
"Yes," Mary responded, feeling suddenly that they were all children in a classroom being reprimanded by an angry schoolmistress for not paying attention. "Chris, I rented the farm to Inez. I was going to talk to you about it." She glanced at Chris with whom she was sitting next to.
Chris shrugged, having no particular problem with that and even considered it a rather amicable solution to Inez's predicament. "It's a good idea." He flashed her a small smile and she rested her head against his shoulder in a gesture of gratitude for his understanding.
"Great," Alex said hands on her hips as she faced Buck. "Move her in there and get her out of town. She's been putting up with enough judgemental asses to last a lifetime. She'll stay in bed today to rest but try to get her out of here tomorrow. I would suggest that we keep dear old mom away from her until the lady calms down."
"I ought to go over there right now and tell that old bat....."Buck grumbled, seething with rage that Inez's mother whom he had never met, could be so unkind about her daughter's situation. In fact, he was starting to question why he was risking his neck to protect a town that could treat the woman he loved so badly.
"You'll just calm down and do nothing of the sort." The doctor said abruptly and cut him off before he could go any further on that line of reasoning. "What you will do is move her things out of that room," she looked upstairs indicating Inez's present place of residence. "And get it to the homestead so Mary and I can deal with it later today. I've had to let Nathan take some of my house calls so I'm free for the afternoon. Mary?"
"I'm good for this afternoon." Mary agreed, aware of what Alex was intending. "Chris, you can keep an eye on Billy?"
"Yeah, no problem." Chris shrugged and shared a look of discomfort with both Vin and Buck. Mary and Alex caught the exchange almost immediately and knew their men well enough to know that something was.
"Okay, what is it?" Alex stared at Vin because she knew he would crack first. The tracker however, said nothing, waiting for Chris to do the honours and hoped he would do it quickly, because he knew Alex's patience was about as inflammatory as Inez's mother at this point. There was nothing more the love of his life abhorred than having her patients put through unnecessary discomfort because of the foolishness of the people around her.
Ezra answered for all of them, since he had a fair idea of what was troubling them so. Aside from this issue of Paloma Rosillos rather scathing view of her daughter's pregnancy, the lady had brought further news with her arrival and it was one that could not be ignored. "Apparently, Inez may be in danger from an old enemy."
Alex rolled her eyes and shook her head, somehow unsurprised by the news. "Somehow, I knew it could not be that simple. So I gather she needs protection?"
"I had a visit from Raphael yesterday," Chris pointed out. "He said something like this might happen."
"Chris you didn't say anything to me." Mary looked at him with a hint of annoyance, wondering why he would leave out information like that.
"Raphael said it was rumour." Chris returned her gaze. "We were going to keep an eye on her but like you said, she had enough things to worry about without troubling her with something as vague as hearsay."
Mary could appreciate that and offered him a slight smile, showing him that her annoyance had passed and things were right with them again.
"I'll stay out there with her." Buck volunteered immediately. "She's going to be my wife. So she's my responsibility."
"I'll ride shotgun with you Buck," JD immediately added, deciding that he could offer his support to both of them and alleviate some of his guilt over his disclosure to Paloma earlier. Even if Inez had absolved him of his guilt, JD felt that the news might have been better received if it had been broken to the lady a little better.
"Thanks kid," Buck patted the younger man's shoulder as a gesture of gratitude. "I'd appreciate that."
"Well since Inez' mom is here," Vin drawled, "I guess its safe to assume it ain't just rumour no more. I think it might be an idea if I rode out to Purgatory and see if there's anything to know. You're up for a ride pard?" Vin looked in Chris' direction.
"I think so." Chris tipped his hat in the tracker's direction.
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to bow out of any participation in this endeavour gentlemen," Ezra spoke up before he was allotted some duty he would have to refuse. "I have some personal business to attend to."
"What personal business?" Chris asked, stiffening with annoyance. It was not uncommon for Ezra to try and slither out of what he considered menial labour but Chris was under the impression that Inez was a friend and the gambler would want to help.
"I'll explain later," Vin said quickly. "He needs to go."
Chris looked at Ezra and could see that whatever bothered the man was indeed worrying him because it was written clearly on his face and that in itself was a testament to the seriousness of his claim. Ezra could hold a poker face better than anyone Chris knew, if he was worried enough for it to show then it must have been a good reason. Besides, Vin seemed to believe that Ezra had legitimate reasons for going and the tracker's word was good enough for him.
"Sure," Chris nodded, understanding that it was important to Ezra, whatever the reason and that should have been enough for him. He was past the days when he worried whether or not Ezra would run out on him and the others. The gambler had put his life on the line too many times already for Chris to ever doubt his loyalty to them.
"Thank you." Ezra said flashing Vin a look of thanks for his support in convincing Chris that he had to go.
"Buck," Chris said to his old friend, moving along to the next point on their unspoken agenda. "Can you see to it that Josiah and Nathan keep an eye on Inez's mother."
"Yeah," Buck said reluctantly, feeling extremely hostile towards the woman at this point and felt that she did not deserve the protection after the unforgivable way she had treated her daughter. "I suppose we ought to make sure the lady is safe."
Chris tried to stifle a smile because he could almost guess the thoughts running through Buck's mind at this moment in regards to Mrs Rosillos. Not that he could blame the man of course. If anyone had done that to Mary, Chris would have been similarly incensed. "Just put Josiah and Nathan on it and for your sake, just keep away from her."
"Hell I ain't gonna be bothered by that old nag...."
"Who's going to be your mother in-law." Ezra could not help pointing out with a smug smile.
Despite the seriousness of the situation, no one was immune to seeing the humour in that remark, except perhaps maybe Buck.
"You're all heart Ezra," Buck grumbled good naturedly and then looked at Alex. "Can I see Inez?"
"Sure," the doctor nodded. "Just don't get her excited okay?"
He looked at her with innocence no one believed and remarked, "Now would I do a thing like that?"
Inez was not asleep.
She could not even though Alex had advised that she ought to get some rest. No matter, how much she tried, her thoughts kept returning to that terrible confrontation with her mother even more than the possibility that Don Paulo might be coming after her. Suddenly in the face of her mother's terrible disapproval, that seemed like the lesser of both evils. She caressed her swollen abdomen and felt her heart breaking each time she heard the words 'bastard' echo in her ear. Her child was not going to be a source of shame for anyone. She loved it unconditionally, no matter how it would come into this world.
She looked around the room at all the purchases she made today that included rattles, bassinette, toys and clothes. The furniture she had bought had already been sent on to the homestead and Inez comforted herself that soon she would be away from this room and would be glad for the anonymity that would be provided leaving out of town. At least, she would not have to put up with any more nasty jibes from the townsfolk or her family. The pain that had caused her friends and herself so much concern had subsided now and Alex had reassured her that it had been a result of the stress she was under. She could attest to that fact most profoundly. Ever since this had begun, she had been feeling the walls of her safe existence closing in around her and Inez was not sure how much more she could take.
A slight tap on the door snapped her out of her ruminations and she offered a dispassionate for whomever it was to come inside. She had not particular wish to see anyone but had neither the energy or disposition for a debate when she told them to go away. The door swung open and to her surprise, she saw that it was Buck. Furthermore, Inez was further astonished by the fact that she was pleased that he was here and could draw comfort from his presence.
"Hey Inez." He said tenderly. "How you doing, darling?"
She extended her hand forward and surprised him by that action but Buck did not argue and intertwined his fingers between hers.
"Better now," she said with a smile and honestly meant it as she felt his touch.
Buck was pleasantly surprised by her reaction and decided that he was not about to argue with it. "I heard about your mother."
"Yes," she let out a deep sigh. "My mother." Inez tried not to let Paloma's words echo in her mind again but they seemed to resonate with just the thought of her.
Buck saw the hurt cross her face at the mention of the subject and somehow had a feeling that Mary's description of Paloma's reaction being brutal did not come near to describing it. The pain he saw in Inez's eyes made him want to put his fist through the wall but Buck focussed because he loved this woman and for her, he was willing to do anything.
"Inez, our baby is wonderful thing." Buck said after a moment of deliberation. "It's the finest thing that I have ever done in my life and I thank you every day for giving me to chance to be apart of it. I know it didn't happen the way it should have but I ain't sorry that it did. This last few months, I've come to find out what is really important to me and I know that I love you and I love our baby and no matter people may say, there is no shame in that."
"Thank you Buck," she whispered, grateful because those words were exactly what she needed to hear, especially from him. "I knew I should have told her before this but I just couldn't bring myself to do it." Taking a deep breath, she found herself realising that as painful as it was for her to accept Paloma's anger, Inez should not have expected her mother to behave any other way.
"Look," Buck stopped her from further recriminating herself. "She just needs time to cope with things. It ain't easy to accept when you're god-fearing folk like she is. Give her some time, she'll come around and if she doesn't that she's missing out on one hell of a baby." Buck said with an encouraging smile.
He sincerely hoped that this would not be the case however. Buck had seen from experience what such division could do to a person or a family. When Sarah Connelly had defied her father's wishes and married Chris, the old man broke off all contact from his daughter and stayed away, missing the next eight years of his life and never getting to know the grandson who passed too early from this life. His regret had driven him mad and Buck did not want to see Paloma Rosillos suffer that same fate, although at this point in time, she would have richly deserved it.
"Buck," Inez spoke, bringing up the next source of concern. "Mama and Calla were driven from the village. She says that Don Paulo's father now blames me for his son's death that he may come after us."
"I know," Buck nodded. "Raphael rode up to the shack yesterday and told he had been hearing rumours. I didn't bring it up with you because I wasn't sure then whether or not it wasn't just that, rumour. Vin's riding into Purgatory with Chris tonight, to see if there is any news about Paulo coming across the border. In the meantime, we're going to get you set up at your new place. JD and I will take some of your things across today and Alex and Mary will get it ready for you tomorrow."
"I should help..." Inez started to sit up in her bed but Buck would hear none of it.
"They got it under control and you need to rest." He said firmly. "Besides, Alex will have my hide if I let you leave this bed." He added with a smile.
Inez swallowed thickly, overwhelmed by all the friends she really had around her and realised she was never alone as she thought. "Thank them all for me." She replied, hiding how much all their aid really meant to her even though Buck could see it reflected in her eyes.
"I will." He nodded. "You're not alone Inez." He leaned over and kissed her on her forehead. "You never were. I promise you, we'll get through this."
As Inez offered him a warm smile, she almost believed it.
It had taken most of the night of riding from one place to another but eventually, Ezra managed to call in all his favours, actually marks who owed him and had never been quite up to paying their debts, to find out where Julia Pemberton had gone. He had ridden out of Four Corners, shortly after he was certain that the others had things under control with Inez and the Mexican required his assistance no more for a short time. He had spoken to the stage depot in Four Corners and discovered that Julia had not taken the stage out of town. He had not expected she would and gathered she must have ridden to wherever she intended on hiding out, or at least somewhere she could find alternate forms of transportation by person who would not recognise her.
Sure enough, he soon learnt her horse was not saddled at her home or the livery and was able to make a determination of where she would go on her own. Julia was not the best rider in the world and thus whatever her destination, the journey would not be too far or too difficult. Thus Ezra began riding immediately to Bitter Creek. The stage came to Bitter Creek once a day and if Julia intended progressing her journey from beyond that town, she would have to catch the stage that left Bitter Creek early the next morning to Sweet Water or some other location. Ezra rode half the night for him to reach Bitter Creek and following his arrival in the community, had to shift through the numerous lodging houses and hotels to find her.
Of course it was not hard to find Julia Pemberton, even if she was not using that name and while it was easy to use an alias, she was not exactly the most conspicuous female to be able to become lost in a crowd. Julia's physical beauty was in fact a liability in this case because it made people notice her instead of allowing her to fade into the background. After searching through most of the local accommodations of Bitter Creek, which was no easy thing to do considering the hour, Ezra managed to find the listing for Maude Standish on one hotel registrar. Since he had sixth sense whenever his mother came anywhere within two hundred miles of him, Ezra guessed that it was most likely not Maude occupying the room the hotel attendant did direct him to after slipping the man a crisp five-dollar note for the information. Particularly after the man had said with a salacious leer what a 'looker' Maude had been.
Ezra merely agreed and took spare key to the room before heading up the stairs towards it. It was in the small hours of the night and no one was about as he reached the corridor and soon after the door to which the key opened. He opened it stealthily, hearing no sound as he turned the lock and entered the darkness of the room. A crack of light illuminated a nightstand and wash basin on a side table as he pulled the door apart and attempted to slip in. He had taken no more passed the threshold of the doorway when suddenly he heard the heavy click of a gun hammer cocking into place.
"Julia, it is me." Ezra said not at all afraid by the sound.
"Ezra?" Julia exclaimed and heard the shuffling of sheets and movement before the room was illuminated by the lamp that was at her bedside. As was her habit since he had first met her, Ezra discovered that Julia had not overcome her compulsion to wear nothing to bed. She stood shakily on the mattress of the bed on her knees, aiming a derringer at him.
"Will you please put that down before we both regret it." He instructed, closing the door behind him as he entered the room.
Julia let out a sigh of relief, thinking her intruder had been Mr Clemens, the Pinkerton detective, although now that she thought about it, she might not be any safer with Ezra having discovered her whereabouts. "Ezra, what are you doing here?" She demanded as she dropped the gun onto the sheets before her.
"Take a wild stab my dear." He retorted and picked up the weapon and checked the chamber only to discovered that it was not loaded. "These things work better with bullets." He pointed out as he tossed her the robe draped over the edge of the bed.
"Are you kidding?" Julia frowned, slipping on the garment. "I have to keep that thing by my side at night, I could shoot something off."
Ezra was not even about to debate the logic of that statement and decided that he was too tired and weary for it anyway. He had endured a long day and would really like to stop for a rest but he knew if that if he allowed her the opportunity, she would run again and this time it might not be as easy to find her again. "Get dressed, we are returning to Four Corners."
"No! Ezra!" Julia said firmly. "I thought I explained it to you in my letter. I'm not letting that man tell papa he's found me."
"Julia, I am not going to let that happen." Ezra said sitting on the bed next to her and making Julia look at him. "I promise you, it will never come to that."
"You don't know my father," she protested, making no move to get dress or show any signs that he was swaying her with his words. Although she wanted to go back to Four Corners, Julia knew she could not. Did he not realise that she missed the place terribly, that her one-day as a fugitive was so torturous she could not imagine maintaining a permanent existence like this? However, Julia did not fear being away from Four Corners as much as going back to the life she had known in Philadelphia, where there were no choices at all and every part of her life controlled by people who had no idea of what she wanted. She knew that if her father were to come to Four Corners, he would most likely destroy Ezra before he allowed her to be with the gambler. Donald Avery loved her that much that Julia was certain that he would do that. "You don't know what he would do to get me back."
"I know that you are afraid and that is enough for me to understand that your secret will not be exposed." Ezra tried to convince her, hoping that in some way, he could shatter the boundary of those fears that were so ingrained within her being. "I will think of someway to convince Mr Clemens to forget about you but I cannot do that without your assistance and I certainly cannot do that from here. Julia we need to go back to Four Corners, with the people who could help us out of this situation."
Julia wanted to believe him. She wanted desperately to think that Ezra could deliver her from her fate but at the moment, her fear was almost something tangible that could be felt. There were secret things she told no one about her relationship with her father, things that she did not admit to herself. There were memories she offered people and a persona that she displayed so that everyone would believe one thing about her but the real truth was far more awful than anyone could possibly imagine. To speak those aloud would be to open up Pandora's box and she did not know if she could stand what people would learn upon that exposure. She could not bear anyone to find out, not her friends and god forbid, not even Ezra.
Especially not Ezra.
"No," she shook her head. "I can't." She met his gaze. "I'm sorry Ezra, I cannot go back with you."
"I understand," he nodded in understanding, drawing closer to her as he saw the terror in her eyes and realised for the first time that there was more to this than just discovery, something dark and sinister than he had not suspected before. "And I beg your forgiveness."
"Your forgiveness?" She looked at him, not comprehending.
"Yes," he nodded sombrely. "For doing this." Without saying a further word, he threw a balled fist into her face and knocked her out cold. Julia slumped to the bed without uttering a single word. Ezra winced as he saw the red felt on her alabaster skin and hoped she would forgive him when she woke up.
Sometimes, a gentleman just had to what a gentleman had to do.