Chapter 2

Grabbing a satchel, Margaret packed a few dresses, a second pair of slippers and the family Bible. While Margaret packed, Jennifer, still wearing her brother’s clothing, packed the canned food, a skillet and a pot, along with the coffee pot into a large carpet bag.

“You, you can’t take that coffee pot,” Jonah declared.

“You shant need it; coffee is for adults,” Jennifer sneered, grabbing Margaret’s hand. “Come, my Peggy Sue.”

“Oh no! Oh no; my wife shall not be leaving with you,” Jonah declared, hoisting himself to his feet.

“I ceased being your wife the very moment you gambled my virtue away,” Margaret declared.

Jennifer made quick work of lashing the satchels to the pommel of the horse’s saddle. Then, swinging herself into the saddle, she reached down and pulled Margaret into the saddle in front of herself.

Margaret sat side-saddle as was fitting and proper for a young lady. Jennifer rested one hand on Margaret’s belly and used her other hand to hurry the horse toward the railway station. Entering Clarkston County, Jennifer slowed their hard trot to a walk, one eye looking about for Robert Myndee or any of Mr. Myndee’s hands.

At the Clarkston County rail station, Jennifer bought tickets for herself, Margaret and passage for their horse to Kansas City, Missouri.

“Kansas City?” Margaret asked when they were out of earshot of the station master.

“From there, we’ll head into the state of Nebraska,” Jennifer whispered as they anxiously waited for the 11:45 train.

When the 11:45 train arrived, Jennifer helped the porter put their luggage, including saddle into the compartment. She then escorted Margaret into a passenger car. Before leaving, Jennifer bent and gave Margaret a lingering, passionate kiss to her moist lips. Then, blushing hotly as a few passengers gave her little smirks, Jennifer returned outside and assisted in bringing their horse onto the cattle bar.

Thanky, sir,” the colored porter said. “Most’uns? Just leave it to us. And let me tell yah, some them horses? They mite high strung there.”

“She’s my horse,” Jennifer said simply, making sure the horse had some oats.

“Oh, yes sir, yes sir, and a might fine horse she is too,” the man agreed and waited for Jennifer to step off before closing the door to the cattle car. “Thanky again, sir.”

Jennifer returned to the passenger car and found a young dandy attempting to strike up a conversation with Margaret. The young man was seated next to Margaret, trapping Margaret between himself and the window of the car. Margaret was clearly uncomfortable but the dandy pressed on.

“Sir, I do believe you are in my seat,” Jennifer said.

“Oh, I don’t believe so,” the young man snickered, eyeing the slight man.

“That is my wife,” Jennifer claimed.

“Be off with you, Sonny,” the dandy smirked, shoving Jennifer.

“Ah! Ah! Let, let go! Let me go!” the young man gasped out.

When he had moved to shove Jennifer, Jennifer had grabbed the young man’s hand in her right hand. She then placed her left hand against his elbow and bent his arm at an unusual angle. Since she was slightly behind the dandy, Jennifer had excellent leverage.

“Be off with you, Sonny,” Jennifer hissed, giving a little more of a push to the man’s arm.

“Ah!” the dandy gasped out. “Yes, sir, begging your pardon sir!”

“Your wife am I?” Margaret teased as Jennifer sat down next to her.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Shall I call that dandy over?” Jennifer smiled.

“No,” Margaret said, softly kissing Jennifer’s lips.

The train coming to a screeching, grinding halt woke Jennifer from an uneasy sleep. She smiled, glancing down; Margaret was slumped against her, beautiful face relaxed in slumber. Jennifer softly kissed Margaret on her head and the blonde sleepily looked about.

Dawn was beginning to creep along the eastern horizon as Jennifer looked through the grimy window of the car. Catching the eye of a colored porter, Jennifer asked how long they would be in the station.

“We be here ’bout forty two minutes,” the man said, checking his pocket watch.

Jennifer bought them some cornbread cakes for their morning meal. They also availed themselves of the facilities behind the station. Then, Jennifer checked on their horse. With only ten minutes until departure, Jennifer did not exercise the beast but the helpful porter told her that their next stop would be in roughly two hours and they would have twenty nine minutes for Jennifer to walk the horse.

“Oh, thanky sir,” the porter smiled when Jennifer slipped him a two bit coin.

The stop was Beechnut, Missouri. Allowing the horse to canter about, Jennifer noticed the telegraph wires that ran along the tops of the trees. Looking north and south, she could not see where the lines originated or concluded. The friendly porter stated that, yes, the telegraph went the same distance of the trains.

“And a telegraph takes but a few seconds to travel,” Jennifer said, handing the reins to the porter. “Please hold my horse; I’ll be but a moment.”

Margaret smiled when Jennifer bustled onto the car where she waited. Her beautiful smile faded when she saw the stricken look upon Jennifer’s face.

“We must get off here; the next stop is Kansas City,” Jennifer hissed, eyes sweeping about to make sure no others heard her words.

Margaret proved her worth as a wife; she did not question Jennifer. She just followed Jennifer from the train.

The porter was relieved to see Jenifer approaching; he had other duties to attend to. He grumbled under his breath but did help Jennifer locate their satchels. A fifty cent piece did still his tongue though.

“Now, what?” Margaret asked as the train let out a long whistle then slowly lurched, gaining speed as it left the station. Once the caboose passed them, Jennifer urged their mount across the railroad tracks. There were patches of snow dotting the brown vegetation along the trail’s edge and an occasional clump of dead trees, but there was no sign of life along the trail.

“Telegraph,” Jennifer said, pointing to the lines above the treetops.

“And? Jennifer, we have telegraph lines in Blouchen County,” Margaret reminded her sister in law as she attempted to get comfortable in the saddle.

“Precisely. No. Robert Myndee and his hands would not be able to give chase. But Robert could telegraph ahead, have some hired hands waiting upon us as we arrived at the Kansas city station,” Jennifer stated as she urged their mount forward, heading west.

“Oh!” Margaret gasped, then frowned. “But, Jenny, how would he know where to telegraph?”

“Sweet Margaret, my beloved Peggy Sue,” Jennifer smiled, softly rubbing Margaret’s belly. “Two people waited on the eleven forty five train. Two people bought tickets for Kansas City. The station master would surely tell Robert Myndee of our destination.”

Travelling west, horse plodding along the hard frozen ground, the two soon left all sign of civilization behind. Since they were no longer in the eyes of decent folk, Margaret twisted about, hefting a shapely right leg up and over to straddle the saddle facing forward. Jennifer removed Jonah’s hat from her head, allowing her long brown hair to tumble down. She rested the hat on the pommel in front of Margaret.

“Oh! I, this…” Margaret gasped as she settled onto the saddle once more, bare legs hanging over the saddle.

With a chuckle, Jennifer once more rubbed her hand over Margaret’s lower belly. Margaret let a guilty little giggle escape as her bare haunches and furry cleft rested against the worn leather of the saddle.

“Jenny!” Margaret hissed as Jennifer’s impertinent hand came to rest against her furry cleft.

“Jenny!” she squealed as Jennifer lightly bit down on her earlobe.

“Yes, my Peggy Sue?” Jennifer asked, gently kissing Margaret’s neck.

“Jenny, it, it was one thing when we were on the train, pretending to be man and wife,” Margaret groaned as Jennifer’s hand continued to massage her furry cleft through her bunched up dress.

“Peggy Sue, I, I’m not pretending,” Jennifer whispered hotly into Margaret’s ear. “I, I love you truly.”

“Oh!” Margaret grunted as Jennifer’s fingers lifted the hem of her dress.

“Here, reins. Hold the reins,” Jennifer suggested, placing the leather straps into Margaret’s hands.

“And what…Jenny!” Margaret asked, then squealed as Jennifer’s other hand came to rest upon her right breast.

“Such beautiful…” Jennifer whispered into Margaret’s ear as her fingers twisted and tugged Margaret’s nipple through the bodice of her dress.

“I, oh, oh Jenny!” Margaret hissed as Jennifer’s fingers now toyed with her very wet cleft.

Margaret mewled in climax as Jennifer’s thumb diddled her nub of pleasure while three of Jennifer’s slender fingers thrust into her wet folds. Thankfully, Jennifer’s other arm was clasping her tightly as Jennifer fondled her heavy breast, else Margaret would have surely toppled from their steed.

“Happy St. Valentine’s Day, my dear, sweet, beloved Peggy Sue,” Jennifer whispered, delivering another kiss to Margaret’s neck.

“That, that was yesterday,” Margaret giggled.

“Happy St. Valentine’s Day, once removed then,” Jennifer smiled, pulling her fingers from Margaret’s cleft.

“Jenny, what, what are you doing?” Margaret asked as she heard a strange sound from directly behind her.

“Tasting your sweet nectar, dear Peggy Sue,” Jennifer admitted, sucking her fingers clean of Margaret’s essences.

“And what, what do I taste like, my beloved Jenny?” Margaret giggled, leaning back to rest fully against Jennifer.

“The sweetest of honey,” Jennifer assured her, delivering another kiss to Margaret’s neck.

“I, I’m hungry,” Margaret suddenly declared.

“In truth? So am I,” Jennifer said, taking the reins once more.

She found a clearing that had some dead and dying grass. Hobbling the horse’s front legs, Jennifer quickly assembled some branches. She then made a circle of stones around the mound of branches. A wide Eyed Margaret watched as Jennifer quickly, methodically started a blaze by rubbing two sticks together.

With a large knife, Jennifer hacked a can of beans open, and dumped the contents into a pot. Then, scooping snow into the coffee pot, Jennifer set about making coffee.

“I, I would truly be lost if it were not for you,” Margaret praised, hugging and kissing her friend after Jennifer stepped back to allow time to progress.

“Were it not for me, you would be home, with your husband,” Jennifer sadly said.

“No. Remember? If it were not for you, I would be dancing at the Paddlewheel,” Margaret said angrily.

In time, both coffee and beans were heated. To her chagrin, Jennifer saw that she’d packed only one cup. Margaret softly kissed Jennifer and whispered that they would share the cup.

“After all, we are man and wife, true?” she said, eyes twinkling merrily.

“Oh if only that could be so,” Jennifer said sadly.

After they’d eaten, Jennifer made sure to quench the fire with handful of snow. Only when she was sure that the embers were cold did she retrieve their horse.

The sun was directly ahead of them, making it quite difficult to see the path. By chance, Jennifer happened to glance back and noticed a small dot on the trail behind them. As she watched, the dot grew nearer. A sudden jolt spurred Jennifer to urge the horse to a steady trot.

“What? What is it?” Margaret asked, jerked awake by the increased speed of their mount.

Riders coming up fast,” Jennifer hissed as they rounded a slight bend in the trail.

Jennifer urged the horse off of the trail. A few yards beyond the edge of the trail, behind a thicket of scrub brush, Jennifer forced the horse onto his side. Handing Margaret one of the revolvers, Jennifer quickly instructed Margaret on how to aim and shoot the revolver. She then made Margaret promise that she would shoot, she would shoot any man that came toward her.

“Down, get down, behind the horse,” Jennifer hissed before taking the Henry repeating rifle and trotting across the trail.

Jennifer almost squealed when five riders appeared on the trail just a moment after she’d had crossed to the other side and secreted herself. The riders suddenly halted and looked around.

“Them, they was right here,” one of the men, a unkempt looking man wearing threadbare Confederate uniform trousers said, spitting a bit of his tobacco onto the trail.

“How you could see anything; we was looking right in the sun,” another man declared.

“That campfire back there weren’t that old,” another man agreed, removing his hat and scratching his balding head.

“Remember, that Myndee fellow said the blonde’s be left alone; he just wants her returned to him,” the first man said.

“The other one? The brown haired girl?” another man queried.

“Do whatever we want,” the bald man grinned oafishly.

The first man spat again, still looking around. Jennifer took careful aim and squeezed the trigger. She heard Margaret scream when the shot rang out. One man looked toward the sound of the scream. Another man looked toward where his companion now lay on the hard trail, a large hole in the side of his head. The fourth and fifth man drew their weapons to fire toward the source of the shot. Jennifer pumped the lever and put a bullet into the chest of the fourth man. Rolling rapidly to her right, she pumped the lever and shot the fifth man just as he squeezed off a shot toward where she had just been.

Jennifer was amazed when she heard a shot ring out and saw the second rider fall from his horse. She managed to hit the last man in his chest and he slipped from his saddle to lie on the hard frozen trail.

For several long moments, Jennifer waited; one or more of these bounty hunters could be playing possum. Finally satisfied, she slowly rose to her feet.

“Oh! Oh Jenny, I, I was so… When you didn’t come out I was so afraid one of them might’ve got you,” Margaret sobbed, racing across the trail to hug Jennifer.

“No, no, don’t think none of them even knew where I was,” Jennifer admitted.

Making Margaret stand on the edge of the trail, pistol at the ready, Jennifer walked around, nudging each of the mercenaries with the barrel of her rifle. She marveled that the five horses remained still and reasoned that they must have been in the War of Northern Aggression and used to the sounds of battle.

“I, I, killed…” Margaret said, then suddenly vomited heartily.

Margaret sobbed as she assisted Jennifer in dragging the five men’s bodies from the trail into the thicket of bushes. She refused to assist Jennifer in stripping the bodies, of ransacking their pockets and their boots.

“They got no need of any of their possessions,” Jennifer stated as she dumped their ammunition into her saddlebags. “But if we’re to stay alive out here?”

Three of the horses had very distinctive markings; they would be easily identified. Jennifer removed their saddles and blankets. Finding some tools in one saddlebag, she bent to the arduous task of removing the horseshoes from the animals’ feet, then set them free. The fourth horse was a sorry looking nag; Jennifer guessed that this horse was quite long in the tooth as she also removed the animal’s horseshoes and sent it on its way.