Nightmare by the poet

1 The unexplained

After having his drink with Vin, Chris felt the urge to see Mary. He had only been away for a short while, but seeing Rafe had left a bad taste in his mouth that the whiskey couldn't quench. He entered the Clarion offices and heard the sound of arguing between Mary and Ezra. Ezra's normally neat appearance was sullied by ink on his shirt and on his face. Chris had to stifle a laugh at his appearance. He went toward Mary and asked if anything was wrong. One look at the expression on Chris' face had her in a state of the giggles.

"What may I ask, do you find so humorous?" Ezra inquired.

Chris couldn't' help but join in with Mary and managed to get the words out. "Have you looked at yourself in the mirror lately Ezra?" he said stifling another laugh.

"Don't tell me. After suffering numerous indignities this town has to offer, I am blessed with yet another one" he replied.

"Don't worry Ezra. I'm sure that everyone knows your heart is in the right place no matter how much you deny it" Chris said with a smile. He then took Mary by the arm and ushered her out of the Clarion to get some air.

"Chris what's wrong?" she asked as the door swung shut.

"Nothing. I just wanted to see the prettiest woman in all of Four Corners" he said as he helped her down the street to Maria's.

"Don't lie to me. I know that you saw Rafe and I can tell that he upset you. Did he tell you why he shot me? What is it about him that has you on edge?" she asked. She was indeed stubborn and wouldn't let go of what happened.

"Mary please I don't want to talk about it. I can't give you answers if I don't have any."

"Chris please don't shut me out. I don't have the strength yet. Will he talk to you?" she asked.

"All right. I went in there with the best intentions, but he got to me. He had that same look on his face when he shot you and it took everything I had not to react. He said I should know why he shot you" Chris replied.

"If that's the case than maybe I should go talk to him."

"NO!!" he yelled.

"Well we've got to do something. I won't be made a victim. It was bad enough when Steven died. It might be a bit far fetched but maybe Orrin should talk to him. Do you think he had any idea that I was related to him when he shot me?"

"Mary I want this over just as much as you do. I can't believe he surrendered so easily after he shot you. Other questions come to mind as well. He met you the day after Vin and I left. He waited until I got back to shoot you. There are so many questions that only he can answer. J.D. said he would only talk to me, but I can't get past the harm he did to you because of me" Chris said.

"No Chris it wasn't your fault. He waited. While you were gone he tried to court me and I guess I wanted the attention. I was so blind. I didn't see it coming until it was almost too late" she said as she leaned into his chest.

He looked into her eyes and saw the exhaustion in them. "Are you tired? Do you want something to eat or do you want to go back and rest?"

"You're changing the subject. I want some answers dammit" she said with a stifled yawn.

"You're still healing. I going to get you back to bed and then I'm getting Nathan to check on you."

"Please Chris answer me" she said as she was ushered back to the Clarion and settled in the bed in the back room. Her eyes closed as her head hit the pillow. Chris stood there a moment and looked at her sleeping form. He was grateful that she didn't have to face the demon that was Rafe just yet. He nodded at Ezra and went to the clinic to get Nathan.

2 the plan

Chris left Mary with Nathan and went to find the Judge. He didn't need to look far. On the road near the Clarion was the honorable Judge Orrin Travis on his hands and knees playing marbles with his grandson Billy.

Billy jumped up and put his arms around one of the gunslingers legs. Chris grinned. Orrin Travis slowly got up off his knees and smiled.

"Billy, I need to speak with your Grandpa. I'm sure that Ezra could use your help and Nathan is looking after your Ma. Would you mind helping him?" Chris asked.

"Sure Chris" the boy replied as he went into the Clarion.

"Judge I went to see Rafe, and my gut tells me he's done this before. When he mentioned Mary it took all I had to keep my hands at my sides."

"Chris what makes you think he's done it before? J.D. said that he would only talk to you. You couldn't get anything out of him?" he asked as he dusted off his trousers.

"No. When he mentioned Mary and my sister all I could think of was Mary lying in her own blood and holding my sister as she cried."

"We need proof. Your gut won't stand up in court" he said. The judge continued "Maybe you should steer clear of him. How well do you know him? Maybe he'd talk to Josiah or one of the others. If he was denied access to you he might want to talk to someone else, if only to boast of his exploits" Orrin said.

"I thought I knew him well. He courted my sister before the war. The last time I saw him was when he hit Elaine. He had stayed in the Army. He fought the Indians on the frontier. The war changed him" he added.

"We've got him dead to rights in shooting Mary. That's enough for a noose. Is it really that important to you to learn if he's done it before?" Orrin asked.

"Yes, Judge it is. Who knows how many others he's hurt. If you had seen his expression as he talked to me: as he saw me when I saw Mary being shot." Chris rubbed his eyes to get rid of the image.

Travis patted the young man's back and said "Don't worry son, we'll get to the truth."

3 loose ends

Mary looked at Chris as she sat up in the bed. Mrs. Jenkins had just left having brought soup for all of them. Mary was grateful for all the help the town had given her since she had been shot. She had always believed in the good in people and now she was being rewarded ten fold. "I want to see him" she told Chris who was drinking his soup from a mug.

Chris looked at her with concern and shock. "Why put yourself through that?" he asked.

"I need to see how wrong I was regarding his intentions" she replied. She touched the fresh bandages on her chest. She looked at Chris and took a sip of the broth. She felt it soothe her throat and took another breath before continuing. "How could I have thought his intentions were honorable? He had me under a spell Chris. My instincts were all wrong."

"It's not your fault Mary. He even had me fooled. When he was courting my sister, I was looking forward to having him in the family. After the war he changed. This was the first time I had seen him since he hurt her" he paused a moment. "I think he's done it before."

"Oh Chris. Do you have any proof?" she asked nervously.

"No dammit."

"Then maybe it might be a good idea for me to see him. You know I don't think he expected me to live and this may be the chance to find out if he's done it to someone else" she said.

"Mary I don't want you near him" Chris replied.

"You can't protect me forever. And besides if I can help other families who don't know where their kin are, then it would be worth it" she answered as she threw off the quilt and placed a shawl around her shoulder.

Chris admitted defeat and helped her with her shoes. "Fine but I'm going with you" he said as he placed a protective arm around her shoulders. "You are a stubborn one Mrs. Travis" he added as they walked through the offices of the Clarion.

She smiled at Ezra, still covered with ink and looked at Chris. "I wouldn't have it any other way" she replied.

4 the meeting

J.D. was still reading the same dime store novel when he looked up to see Chris escorting a fragile Mary Travis into the office. He nodded toward her and Chris. "Hello Mrs. Travis" he said with a smile. He started to get up from behind the desk, but Chris made a motion for him to sit back down. "What can I do for you?" he asked.

"I came to see Rafe" she said using the prisoner's first name knowing he could hear what was being said in the small jail.

"Pardon my asking but are you sure it's a good idea?" he questioned as he looked first at Mary and then at Chris.

"Are you going to refuse her request J.D.?" Chris said with an air of authority.

"No. No, not at all" J.D. stuttered as he led her to the jail cell. "If you need anything -"

Mary interrupted him "I assure you I'll keep my distance and I'll be fine."

J.D. propped a chair near the cell and went back to his desk. Chris poured himself a cup of coffee and set up the checkerboard feigning a disinterest in what was about to transpire.

Mary gratefully sank down in the chair and for the first time since she had been shot looked at the man who had pulled the trigger. She didn't speak but sized him up. Here was a man who had caught her off guard: a man with striking brown eyes and a pleasing demeanor. How could she have misjudged him?

Rafe looked at her and waited for her to speak. He was surprised to see her up and about. Killing was something he was good at and yet he and missed at such close range. He knew that she had survived, but until this moment he thought it was a lie.

She looked at him. She felt calm as she stared into his cold dead eyes and knew that she need not say a word.

Her look unnerved him. "It's nice to see you up and about Mary" he said using her first name intentionally and smiling the grin he had when he shot her.

She didn't speak. It dawned on her that she was looking into the face of evil.

Her gaze totally unnerved him. He wanted her to say something. He got up from the cot and yelled "Talk to me you bitch!"

She got up and smiled. Then she turned around and walked toward Chris' seated form. "Thank you J.D. Chris please take me back to the Clarion"

Chris proffered his arm and smiled. He nodded toward J.D. and opened the door. As they stepped out of the Sheriff's office Chris looked at her and said "Mrs. Travis you are an amazing woman."

Mary blushed at the comment. They were far from finished with Rafe Stewart. They were headed in the right direction to find the truth. It was only a matter of time.

epilogue

For the first time in his life Rafe Stewart felt completely unnerved. He was used to his plans falling perfectly into place. Damn the boy for causing him to spoil his aim. In all the times before he had total control of his prey. They were always shocked to the point of stillness which gave him an easy shot. Perhaps he was getting lazy. Maybe the thrill was gone. It would have been worth getting caught if she had died. He had turned himself in just for the look on Chris' face.

That look was a mixture of fear and shock. It was one he would remember for the rest of his days, however brief. As he gazed at the rays of light as they came through the cell window, he remembered the looks of Billy, Mary and Chris. He relived the moment of pulling the trigger.

It was still early for supper at Maria's but Chris wanted to be alone with Mary and ask her about what happened in the jail. "I thought you wanted to talk to him" he said as he poured himself a shot of whiskey.

"Chris, have you looked at him? I mean really looked at him. You're right. He has done this before. I can't put my finger on it, but I just know he's done this to other women. We've got to find out how many" she said as she stared into her tea.

"Mary the trial starts in two days. Judge Travis has excused himself because it was you and Judge Berger is coming in on tomorrow's stage. That doesn't give us much time to get more information."

"I'll look through my files and wire the other papers in the area. They might have information on missing women. Is there any way we can get Rafe's records from the army?" she asked.

"I still have a few connections and with the Judge's help we might be able to find out more. I'm still so glad that he didn't hurt you worse than he did."

"You spoke of your sister. Have you heard from her?"

"I wired my folks in Indiana and they said Eileen is doing fine. Thank God the bastard didn't get to her" Chris said with a sigh.

"Thank God" she said as their meal came. They ate in companionable silence. As the meal ended Chris took her hand from across the table. He knew that his behavior since her shooting put her at greater harm, but he could no longer deny his concern. He led them out of the restaurant and back to the Clarion where she could start digging through her files. He needed to send telegrams throughout the area. Then the hard work would really begin: waiting.

to be continued