Please see chapter 1 for warnings and disclaimers.

CHAPTER 14

"You awake?" Ethan whispered to his sister mindful of the sleeping Rob nearby. Atwood was on watch but had moved away for a time, probably needing to relieve himself.

"Of course I am," Eliza whispered back without opening her eyes.

"Smooth move with that kerchief."

"Will only help if they're looking for us."

"Whadya mean? Course they are."

Eliza's silence spoke louder than words might have.

"Come on. You don't really think he'd just let us go."

"I don't know, Ethan. I'm sorry but I don't. I mean his life would be easier without us."

"Well I do know. He'll be coming for us. They'll be coming for us."

"Even if they are, they would have had to track us to where I dropped that handkerchief."

"I left a trail of marbles for a good while. That should give Vin a nice start."

"And after all that trouble you went through to win them," the girl's hushed tone held a hint of humor as well as admiration for her brother's quick thinking.

"Hey! You two keep quiet over there and go to sleep," Atwood stated coming closer to the fire.

Knowing better than to antagonize the brutal criminal, the twins did as they were told.

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Ethan sighed heavily taking a bite of the hardtack Atwood had given him. What he wouldn't give for one of Ms. Bennett's fluffy buttermilk biscuits slathered in some fresh churned butter. He sure hoped Pa and the guys hurried up. He'd gotten used to having regular meals.

The boy cast a worried glance toward his sister, riding straight backed in front of Rob with a scowl on her face. He knew she really doubted Ezra would come for them and he wished he could make her understand what he knew in his heart to be true. Wild horses couldn't keep their father away. Of course trust always came hard for Eliza. Ethan just hoped she wouldn't do anything rash before their rescuers showed up.

A short time later Atwood called a halt to water the horses. After the hardtack, Ethan's mouth felt as dry as a desert and he was more than happy to scoop handfuls of the clear creek water into his parched mouth. Atwood had set him the task of filling up the canteens, reminding the boy that any attempt at escape would result in his sister losing a finger or worse.

Eliza's hands and feet were bound and she had been roughly shoved under a large oak tree. Ethan's complaint about the coarse treatment of his sister had earned him another sharp backhand across the face. He now sported a black eye as well as a split lip.

An odd whistle from a bunch of cattails and long grass caught the boy's attention. He cast a furtive glance over his shoulder at Rob and Atwood then edged closer to the grasses. He had to quell an exclamation when he saw Vin's steady blue gaze peering out from the tan stalks. The sharpshooter motioned him to be silent and stay near the creek.

"Boy, what's taking you so long with those canteens?" Atwood demanded.

"Got one full a silt. Trying to wash it out," Ethan prevaricated.

"You better make sure that it is thoroughly cleaned," the weasel faced man intoned. "If I get a mouthful of mud, I'll take my riding crop to you again."

At that point several things happened at once. Guns went off, the horses spooked, Rob fell to the ground, four horses galloped in, Vin dived for Ethan while a similarly hidden Nathan went for Eliza. Realizing what was happening, Atwood also dove for the girl but was intercepted when one of the riders jumped from his horse to tackle him.

Despite his small stature, Atwood fought fiercely. Still he was no match for the enraged Ezra Standish. Recognizing that he could not best the gambler, the charlatan went for his gun which had been knocked from his grasp, but Ezra had his own weapon trained on the man before Atwood could reach the revolver. The Southerner approached the balding man with death in his eyes, raising his Remington to place against the man's forehead.

A gentle hand on his arm stayed his movements. He looked down into the green eyes of his daughter who Nathan had cut free. Her hair was in tangles and she had a cut on her face, but he didn't think he'd ever seen anything more beautiful.

"He's not worth the bullet, Daddy."

Ezra's eyes went back to Atwood and he slowly lowered his gun. "You are very lucky, sir, that I do not wish my child to witness an execution, no matter how justly it is deserved." Ezra holstered his .44 before he continued, his voice as hard as granite, "But rest assured, if you EVER come near my children again, I will kill you." With that, Ezra drew back his fist and hit Atwood squarely in the face, dropping the slight man to the ground.

Eliza grinned up at her father and he wrapped his arms around the girl, pulling her close. Moments later Ethan slammed into the pair, enthusiastically joining the embrace. The trio moved off without a backward glance, letting the other peacekeepers deal with the downed miscreants.

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Upon hearing the loud thumping on the stairs, Ezra set down his book and stood, brushing the wrinkles from his trousers. He looked up to see his son barreling toward him at an alarming speed. Ethan jumped down the last few stairs, landing squarely in front of the well-dressed card player. Ezra's raised eyebrow communicated his displeasure at the boy's antics, but Ethan just gave his father a cocky grin.

"I'm ready."

"I can see that," Ezra replied calmly, giving the boy an appraising look before judging his appearance to be adequate.

"Don't know why we gotta get all dressed up, it's just a picnic, Pa," Ethan said good naturedly, pulling at the collar of his new shirt.

"A picnic where we are welcoming Four Corners very first school teacher to town. I would like for you and your sister to make a good impression."

A snort from the top of the stairs drew his attention, "Like that is such a very worthy cause," Eliza remarked with an edge of sarcasm.

Ezra couldn't help but smile. His daughter wore the green dress he had purchased for her just over a month ago and was pretty as a picture as she descended. It didn't seem possible that not even two months had passed since his children had entered his life. Already, he could not fathom a life without them.

The changes in Eliza were monumental. Today her reddish gold curls were brushed to a sheen and hung nearly to her shoulders, the sides swept back with silver combs. An easy smile graced her lips, as it often did now, though she still proved to be far more serious than her fun-loving brother. The difference in her outward appearance was nothing compared to her inner transformation.

"It is indeed a worthy cause, young lady – a fact which I expect both of you to remember. Mrs. Travis and I went to a great deal of effort to secure a teacher for this town. You will show the utmost respect for her at all times." His gaze shifted to his son. "Doing otherwise will result in my extreme displeasure and your extreme discomfort. Do I make myself perfectly clear?"

"Yes, sir," Eliza responded with an expressive roll of her eyes.

"Sure, Pa," Ethan agreed. "In fact I'm helping Levi and Mrs. Potter –"

"Mrs. Sanchez," Eliza corrected.

"Oh, yeah, Mrs. Sanchez," Ethan laughed. "Anyway, I'm helping with a special welcome surprise."

"Just so long as this surprise is under the direction of Mrs. Sanchez," Ezra said pinning his son with a knowing look. "There will be no pranks on your teacher."

Ethan's penchant for jokes had already earned him more than a little unwanted attention. He had an impressive portfolio of essays on the inadvisability of many youthful hi-jinks. Ezra had found that the imposed writing assignments provided an effective deterrent for his son's exuberant mischief making. Of course some of the lad's more dangerous and high-spirited antics had met with a bit firmer chastisement, and the boy had developed a healthy respect for his father's rules.

"Course not!"

"Very well. Shall we go?"

Ethan ran through the door jumping off the steps to raise a formidable dust cloud with his landing. Ezra just shook his head, his gold tooth flashing as he smiled.

"Do you care to wager on how long that new shirt of his stays clean?" Eliza asked with a laugh.

"I think not," Ezra replied holding the door for his daughter and moving to place an arm around her shoulders, pleased that she no longer shied away from physical contact.

"I don't know that I'll care much for school," Eliza observed wrinkling her nose.

"I am sure you will adjust, my dear. Your mother would have wanted you to have a proper education."

"I suppose," Eliza commented laying her head comfortably against her father's side. "I think she must be pretty happy, to look down from heaven and see us all together. We got off to kind of a rough start and sometimes I'm still not really happy about your rules or Uncle Chris's either, but we make a good family. Don't you think, Daddy?"

"Yes, Darlin' I do and I think your mother is every bit as happy as I am and that is very happy indeed."

THE END