Chapter 2 #2
“He was in a farming accident. Some newfangled machinery he was trying out backfired on him and crushed his chest. He lived for two days before passing away.”
“Oh, I’m so sorry,” she said.
He shook his head. “It was difficult, but Mother and I managed to keep going. I just … I’d like to be a good father myself someday. It was hard growing up without having Pa around to show me the ropes. I’d like to make up for it somehow, you know?”
Suddenly there was a cry from the men at the bar, and before Kevin knew what was going on, a man landed on his back on their table.
Kevin pushed his chair back as their bowls and glasses of small cider came crashing down. The table began to tip as the man who had pushed the first one onto their table pounced and began to hit him.
Anita had also shot backward, but not before her bowl of stew was knocked onto her lap. She had a wet brown stain on the front of her skirt, and her eyes were wide in fear.
Kevin tried to move toward her, but someone grabbed him by the front of his shirt and lifted him from his seat.
“Hang on!” Kevin cried, lifting his arms to try to fend off the angry man who now filled his view. “Stop! I’ve got nothing to do with—” He was cut off as a fist connected with his jaw.
Kevin gasped as he tasted blood in his mouth. He hated fighting. It wasn’t in his nature, but sometimes, there was nothing for it. He retaliated by punching the assailant.
Instantly, the man let him go, clutching his head and groaning.
Kevin fell to the floor as he lost his balance. He rolled to avoid two other men who were trying to wrestle with each other. Where was Anita?
Looking around as he tried to get up without getting clobbered, he spotted her.
She was pressed against the wall, her hands up and trying to inch toward the door.
That was good. If she could get out, she would be safe.
But also, the train had already left town, so she couldn’t outright flee.
That was also good, because Kevin already had feelings for her from their letters, and after meeting her today?—
Someone cannoned into Kevin as he stood upright, and he found himself slammed into the wall.
For a moment he was lost. His head rang, and his lungs felt like they had never had air in them.
He bent over as the man who had tackled him let go, and then he fell over another man who was trying to rush at them both.
Hugging the wall, just as Anita was, Kevin hurried toward her. His breathing eased up a bit, and he found he could breathe without much pain. So his ribs weren’t broken. Thank you, God.
He managed to dodge several more brawlers and finally reached Anita.
Punches continued to fly, men crashing into tables and chairs. There was broken crockery all over the place, and glass shards littered the floor.
“Are you okay?” Kevin asked.
She shook her head. Her eyes were wide, and she was shaking like a leaf in a gale.
“It’s okay. I’ve got you,” he said, taking her by the hand. “We’re going to get out of here just fine.”
Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention, and Kevin turned. A man had picked up a chair. He aimed it at another man, and it came sailing through the air toward Kevin and Anita. Kevin ducked, dragging her down with him.
He needn’t have worried too much; the chair soared over them and hit the window behind them. It shattered, casting glass out into the street.
Things paused momentarily as men turned to stare at the shattered window, which gave Kevin and Anita a chance to rush out the door at last.
Only when they were a block away did Kevin remember about the cart. “We have to go back,” he said.
Anita shook her head vehemently. She had a cut on her cheek that was dripping blood onto her blouse. She took out her handkerchief and pressed it to the wound. “We can’t,” she said. “It’s mayhem!”
“Yes, but the cart and all the groceries and things are there,” Kevin protested.
“Fine,” she said. “But we aren’t sleeping there tonight.”
“No,” Kevin agreed wholeheartedly. Maybe if it had just been him, he would’ve barricaded the room door and been fine. But Anita wasn’t used to all this chaos. She couldn’t be expected to lie shaking in fear alone in her room all night! “We’ll have to find somewhere else.”
They ran back up the street and around the saloon building to the stables. They found their cart, and Kevin wasted no time in driving it away. He didn’t want to be there when the sheriff and his deputies arrived.
As they drove down the street, he put his arm around Anita’s shoulders.
“We’re okay,” he said. “Unfortunately, this sort of thing happens around here sometimes. Neither of us is hurt, so it’s all okay. We just need to find somewhere else to stay.”
“Do you know of anywhere?” she asked.
He shook his head. “I don’t come to San Antonio all that often.”
She shuddered, and he drew her closer for a moment. “I can see why not. It’s not like this in your town, is it?”
He shook his head. “No, we’re a tiny community all working together for a common cause,” he said.
“If we fight, it’s more like a mild disagreement than this.
” He thought about the bandit attacks but decided now wouldn’t be the time to mention those.
Anyway, there hadn’t been one in months.
The bandit leader, El Aguila, it seemed, had decided to leave them alone.
Kevin still thought that was strange, given the man’s reputation for cruelty and stubbornness, but he tried to avoid thinking about it too much.
“So, where should we go?” Anita asked.
“I don’t know,” Kevin said, slowing the horse down and stopping at the edge of the road heading out of San Antonio. It seemed he had unconsciously turned them to head home.
“Oh, I know,” Anita said. “I have a card.” She dug in her skirt pocket and pulled out a little piece of pasteboard. She handed it to him.
“The Lucky Bull?” he asked.
“I met the owner’s wife today,” Anita said. “She was at the station seeing her son Clive off to university. He’s the first in the family to go.”
“That sounds promising,” Kevin said with a nod.
“It’s not far from here. We’re just a bit south of this address.
I don’t think I’ve ever been to that part of town.
I’m sure they’ll have rooms for us.” He wasn’t sure of anything, but he wanted to seem in control and on top of things.
He didn’t want her to worry. It was his job to protect her, after all.
It didn’t feel like he’d done a very good job so far, what with the thief at the station first and then the brawl. He’d do better, he promised himself.
With a flick of the reins, Kevin turned them in the direction of the inn.