"Isn't that cute?" Trevor Mackey said, rocking back and forth in a chair in front of the saloon doors with his younger brother. He curved his lips into an ugly grin, showing off his rotted teeth, as he watched the little converse between Chris and Mary across the town lot.

          "Yeah," Nicholas said. "We gotta do something with that. You think that woman is a threat to us?"

          "Threat? She's the newspaper lady who appears to have an attraction toward our leading man." Trevor laughed. "She's no threat but we need to get rid of her."

          "Why do we need to do that for? She's an obvious weakness for Chris." Nicholas said at his observation.

          "No," Trevor said quickly. "It's the boy. Reminds him of his own son he lost a few years back." He gritted his teeth, laughing quietly to that thought of Chris being in misery and pain.

          "How do you know that, Trevor, the woman he was talkin' to is-"

          "Is the boy's mother. Mother and child should be a great notice that Chris has an enemy lurking around."

          Nicholas didn't like the kind of talk coming from a man he looked up to for guidance and the right ways of doing things in life. Yeah, he had a few bad apples on his plate but that didn't mean he knew right from wrong. Killing women and children, or even threatening their lives, shook him up and he wouldn't stand the time talking about to anyone, not even his older brother. He had to speak up.

          "Trevor, hurtin' the mother and child won't do us no good. They did nothin' wrong!"

          Trevor shot him a nasty glare, "Stop your whinin', Nick! They are the perfect opportunity to show Chris Larabee we mean business. Even if that means taking two innocent lives to prove it. So be it."

          Nicholas pulled away from his brother's glare and took a sip of his whiskey he held to his lips. He had to say something, put an end to his brother's plan that included the mother and child. Yeah, he wanted revenge for his father's death, he wanted that revenge by feeling Chris Larabee's blood running through his fingers, but he did not want a mother and child's death on his soul. Something he would never forgive himself for. Nicholas had to find a way to keep them out of it, and his brother from finding out the soft spot he never knew he had.

          The evening clouds darkened over Four Corners like a blanket and could see nothing in the dark sky but shining stars. It was the perfect evening to celebrate Billy's birthday and Mary couldn't have been prouder by the way the dinner began, turned out, and ended with Judge Travis laughing and the children following in his laughter at his jokes. The surprise of Billy's grandfather was a delight in the child's eyes and he was glad Chris came too.

          Chris sat at the end of the table, across from Mary at the opposite end and Judge Travis sat in the middle of the Potter children and across from Billy who had a side of the table all to himself. Mary dropped her dinner folk, and took a sip of her water in the fancy wine glasses she hadn't unpacked since their move from her and Stephen's homestead on the outskirts of Four Corners. She circled her fingers around the glass top; crossing her eyes with Chris's every other second, and every other laugh and gesture.

          Mary couldn't look away from his strong presence. The lively look he held this night, and for the first time Mary saw him with a glitter in his eyes with contentment. He changed his clothes to a nicer dark maroon shirt, and he wasn't wearing his usual duster. He was free from his gun belt for a change, hung with his duster on the coat hanger in the corner behind him. He didn't wear it but it was close enough to reach for in case of an emergency. But Chris shook his head, thinking there couldn't be any interruptions tonight given the fact the town hadn't had any gun plays for a week's time.

          So Chris sat back to enjoy the birthday dinner invitation and take it easy for a change and allow himself to settle down and control his emotions through anger and thoughts. This wasn't about him, it was about the proud eight year old sitting beside him with that big smile smacked across his face.

          "Did you enjoy your dinner, Billy?" Judge Travis asked then he took a sip of his beer. His grandson beamed with glee and Travis let out a loud chuckle that continued on until Chris's stern expression cracked, and Mary laughed as she set her water down, and then when the Judge didn't stop, the Potter children joined in and then the whole dinner table burst out in a fit of laughter. Chris didn't know what was so funny, he was baffled, but he joined in the laughing anyway because it felt good to do it.

          "I'm sorry, Judge, but what is so funny? Did I miss something?" Mary asked after a few moments of constant giggling.

          Travis shook his head, "Not a thing, Mary. I just needed the laugh." He looked across the table at his grandson. "I think we all did." He winked at Billy then before turning around his chair, excusing himself from the table, and disappeared behind the swinging doors to the kitchen.

          Mary looked at Billy then with a curious wonderment then at Chris who was looking right at her for an explanation to the Judge's unusual behavior. Chris leaned off his elbows and put his hands in his lap waiting for some kind of look to cover Mary's face but she gave nothing because she did not know herself what her father-in-law was up to.

          Then Judge Travis came back out of the kitchen holding two brand new fishing poles in his hands with a big smile. "For you, Billy!" he walked over to the bright-eyed boy and handed him one of the fishing poles. "I had these hand made by a friend of mine down by the homestead. Your grandma just sent them up to me as I arrived in town. What do you think?"

          Billy took the shiny fishing pole from his grandpa, setting the butt down and examining the metallic green body, and the strong wooden grip.

          "Grandpa," Billy exclaimed and jumped to his feet, and wrapped his arms around the Judge's waist. The pole fell in midair and Chris reached out and grabbed it just before it hit the floor. Billy was too excited to notice he had lost hold of it but luckily had a friend around to take it as he jumped up and down in the high heavens, waving his arms in the air.

          Chris laughed at this, shaking his head then he looked across the table again at Mary gazing right back at him. His laughter then faltered and he swallowed hard, trying to push back the sudden attraction he felt toward Mary. He had to get rid of it and the only way to do that was to uncover the gift he had secretly brought with him to give Billy.

          "Billy...." Chris said then stood from the chair to stand over the child. Judge took the fishing poles and set them aside as Chris took the floor now and pulled out the small gift wrapped in a fine leather handkerchief from his pocket and handed it over. Once Billy got situated back into his chair, Chris did the same and watched Billy unwrap it.

          A shiny blade popped into eyesight and Billy held up the pocket knife in front of the burning candles overhead. The boy was in awe and so was Chris as he looked at Mary then sideways at Judge Travis to make sure they were all right with the small, dangerous gift. They said nothing, did nothing, and just examined the small knife as Billy did.

          "Wow, Chris, it's...." Mary began but stopped in mid-thought.

          Billy looked over at his mother, "Ma, look at it! Isn't it neat? Thank you Chris!"

          "You gotta be careful with that knife now, Billy." Chris said quietly. "It's a Larabee heirloom. Been in the family for years. My grandfather gave it to me, and I...."

          Mary knew what Chris was going to say but she was glad he stopped his train of thought, his guidance to Billy. Fact of the matter was Chris didn't have a son anymore to give his personal belongings to. Special objects that had been in the family for years, and he didn't have anyone else to pass on what he needed to. Mary was glad Chris had chosen her son as that one person to help carry on the Larabee family tradition. Because he had to know Mary would accept anything he'd give her son. May that be advice, or razor sharp blades that came from the family....Mary was honored.

          "It's really something, Chris." Judge Travis said, kneeling to one knee to inspect the pocket knife better. "Something really special, Billy. Now you gotta take care of this. Always keep it. Chris gave you something special and you need not to disappoint him."

          "I won't, grandpa!" Billy exclaimed, looking over the nicely shaped blade.

          "Just be careful with it, Billy." Mary said. She looked over Chris one last time before standing to her feet and excusing herself out of the room.

          This was almost too easy, Trevor Mackey thought. To have to exchange the burning birthday candles with mini explosives was like warmth to the soul. It sounded and tasted so good to him. And in a few moments, the Travis boy and his mother would know exactly what trouble they were in for. They had a connection to Chris Larabee, and anyone close to the gunslinger would have to cost their life to make the man as miserable as possible to the brink of insanity.

          It was only too bad he couldn't get to his wife and son sooner than the hired assassins. Trevor would have been more than welcome to put an end to Chris's happiness without the money.

          Nicholas, with his dark blond hair blowing across his stare, he leaned against the wooden house panels that held up this building, The Clarion, he knew this wasn't right and that he had to stop Trevor from doing harm to an innocent mother and boy. He thought back to what he tried to figure out about what to do, but nothing came of interest when it included both the Mackey brothers ended up in jail for the rest of their lives, or worse yet, dead.

          He slammed his back against the panel, trying to calm down his nerves as he watched his brother mess with several dynamite sticks in their satchel.

          "What is y' doin'?" Nicholas asked sharply.

          Trevor didn't have the nerve to turn toward his brother and explain what so he snickered over his shoulder instead, "Givin' the boy my own present."

          Nicholas shook his head, his hair swaying against his clammy forehead, and moved closer to his brother and took the explosives from his hand. "No, Trevor. Not this way. You can't go harmin' a boy who did nothin' to ya."

          Trevor snapped the dynamite sticks right back out of his brother's hand. "What the hell's the matter with ya, boy?" anger boiled in his blood as he took his stare away from him. "We're here to put an end to Chris Larabee's life and the only way to make him sore's to harm the only two people who really mean something to him. People a lot like his own damn family."

          Nicholas knew he had no argument with Trevor because whatever he was going to do, he was going to do it, and he couldn't stop him unless he wanted for them to get made and thrown in jail for trespassing on someone's property. He allowed Trevor to act out in whatever way to make him happy then later he would have to tell someone before the finale came and went before he knew it.

          "What're ya plannin' to do then?" Nicholas asked.

          "Just give the mother and boy a scare," Trevor laughed wickedly. He took the smallest sticks of dynamite he had and stood on his legs then tip toes to unlatch the window that belonged to the kitchen of The Clarion building. Trevor widened his eyes with pleasure when he saw a bright blue and white cake with nicely written Happy Birthday Billy! in the center. He then looked to the side of the cake on the kitchen counter top and found eight white candles and he reached inside the kitchen and grabbed those candles and replaced them nicely with dark, ashy dynamite. The candles were little, enough not to give too much away that they were explosives, but the side effect were they were too small to do any harm besides blow up the cake itself.

          That should be an end to this evening filled with joy and family. Something the Mackey boys had never experienced.

          Trevor jerked his arm out quickly when he heard laughter coming from the other side of the door and floor creaks alerting him someone was on foot and heading toward the kitchen. Trying to keep his giddy in, Trevor quietly closed the window and bent down to be level with Nicholas, sitting in the grass.

          He put a finger to his lips, telling his younger brother to be quiet until they heard the explosion, then they could make a run for it, laughing and running until they were out of breath. Trevor had to hear it, and the screams and he wouldn't leave until he did.