Faith in Rayne

by Dannie Marsden

  Lisbet sighed. “Yes my love, I remember that man. But most of all, I remember you. I remember you, so strong, so brave, so lovin’ and carin’. I remember your arms wrappin’ around me and me feelin’ so safe. I’ve never stopped feelin’ that way, Rayne. I will not, I refuse to feel any differently now.”

  Rayne hung her head, knowing that there would be no talking Lisbet into wearing a gun, and there would be no convincing her to keep their distance. With a resigned sigh she said, “Ok.”

  “I think I know, cuz I love you just as much. I just hope you’re right about this.” Rayne kissed the top of Lisbet’s head. “I should go. I need to tell Hawks about our bein’ shot at. Need to figure out who tried to shoot us.”

  “Rayne, I don’t wanna be alone tonight.”

  “I don’t either, but I can’t—I wouldn’t feel right stayin’ here, and ya can’t leave Ben tonight.” Rayne hated saying no.

  “You’re right, I’m just bein’ selfish.” Lisbet was a little ashamed that she had even suggested that.

  “Darlin’, I’m gonna head back to town and go see just what Maddie was up to this evenin’. She’s the one I’d lay money would try to shoot me.”

  Lisbet touched Rayne’s face again before giving her a kiss to her cheek. “You be careful, darlin’. Don’t give her any chance to get near ya. She ain’t done with you, ya know.”

  “Yeah, I know, and I ain’t got no plans of turnin’ my back to her. I love ya, darlin’, and I’ll be by to check on you sometime in the afternoon. So, until then, you be safe and keep your eyes open. Ya hear me?”

  “Yes, darlin’, I will. Have I ever told ya, you’re pretty cute when you're worried?”

  “I’d like to believe ya think I’m cute no matter what is goin’ on.” Rayne smiled, then gave her a kiss on the lips.

  Lisbet pulled away. “If I don’t let ya go now, I ain’t gonna be lettin’ ya go. So out the door, darlin’, before I decide to not let ya go at all.”

  With one more slow, soft kiss on the lips, the deputy headed out.

  Once outside, Rayne climbed up on her horse and headed towards town. ”God help you, Maddie.”

  †

  Rayne brought her running horse to a stop in front of the saloon, jumped down, tethered the horse to a hitching post, and stormed into the bar. The anger she felt was palpable. “Where the hell is that whore?” she shouted, as her heels hit the floorboards hard. The lively music from the piano and the laughter that had filled the room stopped abruptly. “Where is she?” she yelled again.

  “Who the hell do you think you are to burst in here and disrupt our good time?” a voice shouted from a corner of the room.

  As people’s heads turned in the direction the voice came from, Rayne’s cold eyes zeroed in on the man who sat with his black hat pulled over his eyes, the glass of beer slowly rising to his mouth.

  “Mister, I don’t believe we’ve met before, have we?” Rayne walked towards him.

  “Nope, we ain’t never met, Deputy.” The man took a drink of his beer then put the glass back on the table. “Mind tellin’ me what makes ya think ya can call these girls here whores?”

  “Cuz they are. And just who the hell are you?”

  “It don’t much matter who I am. It does matter that you learn some respect for these here women. They cain’t help the lot they have.”

  Rayne’s hand rested on the butt of her Colt, ready for anything that might happen, as she slowly approached the table. “I don’t much like a stranger tellin’ me who I should respect and what not. Ya wanna share your name with me, tell me why you’re gracin’ our little town?”

  “I got word a while back that my brother had been shot dead in a town called Telluride in Colorado. Way I heard it was he was shot in the back by a woman who weren’t happy bein’ a woman. Can ya imagine that? Guessin’ that ya can, considerin’ that you’re standin’ there pretendin’ you’re a man.”

  Rayne took a breath. Oh God, this was her nightmare come true. Only in her nightmare, she was standing in the street twenty paces away from a man dead set on killing her, and she could see the bullet leaving the barrel of the gun. She felt it hit square in her chest, and she felt herself hit the ground. She hadn’t imagined a conversation about whores and respect.

  “Well now, ya heard the story wrong. See, I’ve only had the misfortune of killin’ one man durin’ a shootout, after he and a friend of his murdered and robbed a good man. This man, he was a miner, and well, he liked to drink and gamble and run his mouth. I had a feelin’ this fella and his friend were up to no good. So, after their card game, I followed them to ol’ Horace’s place. I got there too late to keep ‘em from killin’ Horace. They came out and shot at me. I shot back. Hit one fella and the other got away. I’m gonna assume that he was a liar as well as a murderin’ coward, since you’re here sayin’ I shot your brother in the back.”

  “The man had a name. Henry…his name was Henry,” the stranger said, slowly raising narrowed eyes to look at Rayne. “Now ya see, while I don’t rightly care what he done, I do care that he’s dead. Henry Wright was my half brother, my baby brother, and ya killed him.” The man scooted his chair back, and the people in the room moved away, expecting a gunfight. He stood, reached in his pocket, and pulled out a coin he tossed on the table. “Be seein’ ya, Deputy.” He walked past Rayne and out into the darkness.

  The patrons in the saloon let out a collective sigh. Rayne turned slightly, as she gazed out into the dark night. She took a deep breath, as she walked to the bar and reached for the glass of whiskey Jonas poured for her. Shakily, she brought the glass to her lips and tossed her head back. The liquid burned all the way down her throat. With little thought, she held the glass out for Jonas to pour another, which she drank in one swallow. When she placed the glass on the bar, Jonas filled it once more. She drank it and placed a coin on the bar. She walked out, forgetting all about confronting Maddie. She needed to think.

  †

  Rayne cautiously walked to the sheriff’s office. After being shot at once that evening and having the brother of a man she’d shot and killed in town, she wasn’t feeling all too safe. She needed a place to think, a place with one entrance where she could see someone comin’. She sat near the wood stove with the rifle laid across her lap. The more she thought about things, the more she decided that Maddie didn’t have reason to want her dead, and wouldn’t have troubled herself to find her way in the dark to try to shoot her. Then again, how would a stranger have known where to look for her?

  The door opened and Hawks stepped in, his hands going into the air immediately, as Rayne lifted the rifle. “Whoa there, it’s just me.”

  “Sorry, Clinton, I just…”

  “Ya wanna tell me why ya got that rifle there ready to blow my head off?” Hawks walked in the rest of the way, taking off his hat and putting it on his desk. “Last I heard you was headed to have supper with your lady and Harry and Etta.”

  “Yup, had a mighty fine supper too, nice walk as well. Was really enjoyin’ it all, right up until someone decided to take a shot at us. I was figurin’ it was Maddie all the way in, until I walked into the saloon hollerin’ for the whore. Did ya know that fella I shot and killed out at Horace’s shack had a brother? The fella’s name was Henry. I met his brother tonight. He’d heard that a woman deputy had shot the man in the back. I’m thinkin’ he aims to kill me.”

  “Was he alone?” Clinton opened his desk drawer and pulled out the bottle of whiskey.

  “Near as I could tell. He walked out alone, leastwise. Clinton, I done a lot of things in my life that have caused me to be afraid. Things that I ain’t proud of. You asked me if I’d ever killed before, and I told ya that I had. I went to Willow Springs when I thought I’d killed my father.” Rayne saw Clinton’s look of shock. “I just couldn’t take one more beatin’ from him.” She laughed without humor. “Such a fine upstandin’ man—a man of God, made his family obey him with his fists.” Rayne looked at Hawks, who had been listening qu
ietly. “Lucky me, I hadn’t killed the bastard. No, the first one was a man who forced his way into my home. He was of a mind to assault Lisbet. I was faster than him. I shot him dead in self-defense.

  “After some time and healin’, Lisbet and me, we went on with life as a married couple. Built up our ranch, made a home, and was happy. Ben came to live with us, and we was happy.

  “Then that son-of-a-bitch of a father of mine showed up at my place, dead set on killin’ me. Again, I was faster. The one thing I ain’t never done is shoot a man in the back. I ain’t never gone looking for trouble. Why’s it always seem to find me?”

  “Rayne, I’ve known some bad people, and trust me when I say that you ain’t one of ‘em. Shit happens to good people that makes ‘em bad. You go catch some shuteye in that cell over there. Come first light, we’ll pay a visit to this here stranger and see what he has in mind.”

  With a crooked smile, Rayne replied, “Yup, a little sleep sounds good, but I already know what’s on his mind.” She stood up and walked to the cot against the cell wall.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Maddie walked down the stairs to a fairly empty saloon. An occasional table still had a man or two sitting there gambling away the last of his money or passed out with his head lying on the table.

  “Mornin’ Jane, how was your evenin’?” she asked, all smiles. “Martha got breakfast goin’ yet?”

  “Where you been? Ya missed all the excitement last night.” Jane made her way from the bar to where Maddie stood.

  “Jonas gave me the night off, so I took me a little walk. What happened?”

  “There’s a stranger in town, had some words with the deputy. He seemed nice, I mean he stuck up for us girls. Rayne came here shouting for…uh, well, I think she was lookin’ for you.”

  “Rayne was lookin’ for me? I should go to the sheriff’s office. I’m…I’ll see ya later.” she headed towards the doors.

  “Ain’t ya wanna hear the rest?” Jane asked to the fleeing back.

  “Not right now.” Maddie kept walking away briskly.

  †

  Maddie flew in through the door, all cheerful and smiles. “Howdy, Sheriff, I heard that Rayne was looking for me. Where is she?”

  “Where were you last night?” Rayne asked, as she walked out of the cell, buttoning the last button on her shirt.

  “Rayne, what are you doin’ comin’ from that cell?”

  Rayne wasn’t in the mood for questions coming from the redhead. Her patience was low, her back hurt, and her head was aching. “Maddie, I ain’t in the mood. I’m tired, I slept like shit, and someone tried to kill me last night. So one more time…where were ya last night?”

  “I…Jonas gave me the night off, so I went out for a walk. Wait. You don’t think…you don’t think I was the one tryin’ to kill ya do ya?”

  “Where was ya walkin’? Was it after takin’ a ride out on Sutter road, past Harry and Etta’s place? Ya know, it was dark, but I could swear I saw a flash of that red hair of yours as ya ducked behind a tree.”

  “No. Why would I wanna kill you? I love you. Now, that bitch you say is your wife, her I might be tempted to.”

  Clinton stepped between Rayne and Maddie. “Maddie, I can’t decide if ya just don’t care about what comes out of your mouth, or if you’re just that stupid. But I gotta tell ya, I’ve watched Rayne turn away from your insults to the woman she loves, and keep ahold of her patience and temper when, honest to God, I don’t know that anyone else would have. She’s told ya more than once that she ain’t interested in pursuin’ anything else with ya, and ya just keep tryin’. Now, considerin’ that I’m a patient man, and you’ve done a bit of disruptin’ the peace here in my town, well, that and the fact that someone tried to gun down my deputy last night; it’s time I put the law down. Let it go with my deputy and her wife, or get outta my town.”

  Maddie looked from Clinton to Rayne. “I’m sorry, but I don’t think you can speak for Rayne. And I sure as hell ain’t gonna leave town if I don’t want to.”

  “Here’s the thing Maddie, I agree with the sheriff. I don’t want you, and I don’t know how else to state it so that ya understand.”

  Maddie’s face grew red with anger, but she managed to keep her voice civilized. “Well fine then, I’ll be headin’ back to the saloon. I’m sorry to have bothered ya so much Deputy.” She turned and walked out, leaving both Rayne and Clinton looking at each other.

  After a minute or two, Hawks said, “I do believe it’s advisable that ya give Maddie some space and stay away from the saloon for a while.”

  “Yeah, you might be right. Did she just…did that just really happen?” Rayne asked unsure what to think or say.

  “I believe for the moment that it did. With very little bloodshed I might add. Though, I wouldn’t turn my back on that one just yet. Let’s go deal with the matter of the stranger in town.” Hawks reached for his hat, and together they walked out of the office towards the hotel.

  †

  Clinton walked up to the front desk. “Howdy, Lucille. There’s a stranger here in town, rode in last night. Rayne, can ya describe him for Lucille?”

  “Yup, he was about six foot two, shaggy dark hair, scraggly beard, a lean man.” Rayne recalled the man she’d spoken to the night before.

  “I know who you’re talkin’ about. He rode out before sun up. Gave me this to give to ya Deputy.” The white- haired woman behind the counter handed Rayne the folded paper. “Told me you’d be by sometime this mornin’.”

  Rayne looked at the paper that was handed to her. She looked at Hawks, as she tapped the note on the counter. “Thanks.” She stepped away from the sheriff, and unfolded the paper.

  So, Deputy, I’m imaginin’ by now you’re right scared. A wonderin’ when that bullet is gonna hit ya or from where it’s a comin’ from. I didn’t want it to be like this. Fact is, I wanted to shoot you right where you stood last nite. But then I seen the fear in yur eyes, and I figured this was gonna be a lot more fun. Don’t ya agree?

  I think I like the idea a you lookin’ over yur shoulder. Trust me when I say you’re never gonna know when you’ll die, but you will.

  Until next time, Deputy Mathews

  Yours truly

  Jacob Jenkins

  “Well, he left me a delightful note.” Rayne handed Hawks the folded paper. She put her hands on her hips and looked towards the door. She felt like she was never gonna be able to get back to her life with Lisbet. She just couldn’t see putting Lisbet and Ben in danger, and she couldn’t imagine how she was gonna get Lisbet to understand that. She shook her head and sighed. “I gotta go talk to Lisbet, she needs to take Ben and head back home where she’ll be safe.”

  “Now, wait a minute there, Mathews, shouldn’t ya think about this?” Hawks followed her out the door.

  Rayne stopped and turn as she stepped out onto the boardwalk. “Nothin’ to think about.” She faced the man. “I can’t have them livin’ here when there's lunatics out to kill me. I ain’t gonna do that to em’.” Rayne began walking again.

  “Will you just stop and think for a minute?” Clinton reached out and grabbed Rayne’s arm. “Ya can’t put your life on hold just a waitin’ for someone to shoot ya.”

  “The hell I can’t. It’s a lot better than the thought of either Ben or Lisbet bein’ killed instead of me. Now, let me go so’s I can speak with my wife.”

  Rayne began walking to the stable where her horse was corralled. She came to a dead stop when Maddie appeared in front of her with a pistol aimed straight at her.

  “Whoa, hold on there Maddie.”

  “You think you can just dismiss me like ya did?”

  “Maddie, we can talk about this.” Rayne held her hands up in front of her, as she tried to calm the redhead down.

  “Ha, when I wanted to talk about us, all you wanted to do was tell me how you didn’t wanna be with me. And now ya wanna talk?” Maddie continued, holding the gun in her shaking hands. “You think you’re gonna sc
rew me, then walk away? No, I don’t believe I’m gonna stand for that.”

  “Maddie, no. No, I don’t think that at all.” Rayne took a step forward.

  “Stop, don’t come any closer, or I’ll shoot.”

  Hawks had headed away from Rayne but turned around, set on talking some sense into his deputy. He spotted Rayne halted in the street, so he quickly stepped against the building and pulled his gun. He carefully made his way closer to his deputy. As he approached the mercantile, he crouched behind the wooden barrels. He had been lucky enough that Maddie was completely engrossed in Rayne and nothing else around her, so he could get safely across from Rayne. With his gun pointed at Maddie, he shouted, “Drop the gun, Maddie, let’s talk about all this.”

  A startled Maddie spun the gun towards the voice that had just shouted at her. “No, there is no talkin’ about any of this. If Rayne ain’t gonna be with me, then she ain’t gonna be with no one,” she screamed and pointed the gun back to Rayne. A gunshot shattered the silence of the street.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The wagon pulled up to the ranch house, and Ben ran to greet Harry as he climbed down and reached for Etta. “Hawwy, Hawwy, I miss you!” He wrapped his arms around the man.

  “Hey there, little man.” Harry picked the boy up and swung him around. “I’ve missed you too!” He drew the boy into a hug.