Chapter 34

A week passed after Thanksgiving, and things grew more awkward around the Cooper house. Bliss noticed the obvious tension between Clint and Damian, and it made her imagination run wild. What was Damian really up to? What did Clint suspect?

To try to put her curiosity at rest, she decided to question him about it one evening.

Clint had stepped out for some fresh air a few minutes earlier, so she walked out onto the back porch where he was sitting on the top of the two steps, leaning against the wooden railing.

He turned around when he heard the door open.

"Care if I join you?" she asked.

Clint motioned to a seat beside him and she took it.

"Something wrong?" he asked.

She shook her head. "Just curious."

"What about?"

"Damian. What do you know about him?" she asked.

He looked over at her. "I don't think you need to be worrying about him."
"Now, Mr. Slade, you're the only person around here that I trust not to keep much from me. I want to know what's going on," Bliss pressed.

Clint nodded. "Fine. I don't have anything set in stone, but I'm pretty sure that he's with Joe and Abel."

Bliss was taken aback. Why would Damian be with them?

"What makes you say that?" she asked.

"Well, neither Joe nor Abel can write a word, so there's got to be a third person. Remember when we took that trip to Plateau and Damian mailed that letter?" Clint asked.

Bliss nodded.

"He obviously wasn't sending it to the newspaper office. The day after we got back, we received the first note with Joe's alias initials signed to the bottom of it. I don't think this was a coincidence. I also think that, from what you told me, he put something in my drink. I never sing... even when I'm drunk," Clint ended his words with a smile.

"Well, you did this time," Bliss teased. "You also told me I was your only friend in the world."

"What?" Clint asked in a disbelieving voice.

"You did. I knew better than to believe you, though," Bliss nudged his arm with her elbow.

Clint shook his head. "You know that I had no idea what I was saying, right?"

"So you're saying I'm not your friend?" Bliss smiled.

Clint's face turned blood red. "I didn't say that at all, did I?"

Bliss chuckled. "No, you didn't. I'm just teasing you. We both know you consider me at least a little bit likable."

Clint's eyes sparkled when he looked over at her. Bliss recalled what Grace had told her about Clint and Colt arguing over her. Was it really true?

At this moment, she could truly believe it.

"Maybe a little bit," Clint winked at her.

Bliss cocked her head. Did he really just flirt?

Something really had changed drastically about Clint, and it wasn't for the worse.

Suddenly, a gunshot rang through the air from the direction of the barn. Bliss jumped and her heart stopped for a moment. Clint jumped up and jerked her to her feet.

"Get in the house," he demanded, drawing his gun from his holster.

Bliss obeyed him with pleasure as terror surged through her. She rushed into the house and watched from the window as Clint walked gingerly around the house to get a view of the barn. She heard a horse's hoofs beating hard and fast away from the ranch just as he cleared the corner.

"What is it, Bliss?" Grace asked, coming up behind her.

With the threat gone, a crowd had begun to gather around the barn door. She saw Clint jog across the yard to get to the barn and see what the commotion was about. She saw him look in the door, then put his hands on both sides of his head in frustration. He ran his hand through his hair before resting them on his hips. He looked toward the house, and then went inside the barn.

"I don't know, Grace, but I'm gonna go find out," Bliss said, walking toward the door.

She exited the house and walked across the yard toward the barn. The crowd of cowboys didn't see her at first, but she could overhear them talking and Clint's voice above the rest of them.

"None of you say a word to Miss Cooper. I'll take care of that," he said.

"What do you think she'll do?" one of the cowboys asked.

Clint sighed. "I don't know. Just... just don't say anything before I see her, okay?"

The cowboys parted so that Clint could get through them, but he spotted her and stopped dead in his tracks in the middle of the crowd.

The cowboys spotted her and stepped aside as they always did.

The sorrow behind Clint's eyes when he looked at her and the way he bit his bottom lip made her heart sink. Something bad had happened.

"Wh-What is it?" she asked.

Had Daddy been in the barn? Where was Colt? Who had been hurt?

No answer came. She walked forward and tried look inside the barn, but Clint stepped in the way.

"What happened?" she demanded, trying to push past him. "Who's hurt?"

Clint took her by the shoulders. "It's your horse, Bliss. But you've got to go back to the house now, okay?"

"What happened to Butterfly?" Bliss shoved past him.

Surely, they hadn't shot her!

She rushed through the doorway and ran down to Butterfly Kisses' stall. The moment she saw what was on the inside of that stall, she froze. Blood gushed from a wound of her horse's head and spilled out onto the fresh hay on the ground. The horse was so still... so lifeless.

Bliss' hand covered her mouth and she rushed to open the stall door. Butterfly couldn't be dead.

She knelt on the ground, her horse's blood soaking her dress where her knees hit the ground. She rubbed her hand along Butterfly's jawbone, breaking down in tears. It really was true.

She sobbed over Butterfly's motionless body, feeling her heart break as the only living connection to her mother snapped in two.

She felt two strong hands grab her arms from behind and pull her to her feet.

"Come on, Bliss. There's nothing you can do for her," Clint's voice said.

Bliss tried to stem the flow of tears, but nothing she could tell herself made her feel any better.

"She was all I had left of momma," she told Clint.

"I know," Clint said softly, pulling her close to him and wrapping his arms around her.

She rested the side of her face against the rough fabric of his faded blue chambray shirt and let her tears flow.

"Who could have done this?" she sobbed.

Clint heaved a heavy sigh and held her tighter. They both knew who was responsible.

"I'm so sorry," he offered hoarsely.

Bliss clung to him, never wanting to let him go.

"I'll have a few of the cowboys take care of her. Come on, let's get you back in the house where it's warm," Clint said as he led her out of the barn with one arm around her shoulder.

Bliss took one last glance at her beloved horse before exiting the barn.

"She was a good horse," she said, wiping away the last of her tears. "I didn't even take her riding this morning. She loved to ride."

Clint rubbed the top of her arm with his hand. "She loved you to pieces."

Bliss nodded. "I know she did. Momma gave her to me on my last birthday before she died. Butterfly was just a filly then. She had those little freckles on her forehead, and the moment I saw her, I knew I had to call her 'butterfly kisses' after what Momma called freckles."

They reached the back porch and Clint stopped before opening the door.
"You know I'm gonna go after them, right?" he said.

"No," Bliss twisted to face him. "You can't."

"Why not? They deserve to be punished for what they did," Clint reasoned.

"No, I don't want you hurt. Believe me, I'm upset, but there are two of them and one of you," Bliss told him.

Clint stared at her a moment, then nodded. "Okay. But only because you don't want me to."

Bliss sighed. "Thank you."

*****

Clint led Bliss into the house and shut the door behind them. Grace took one look at Bliss and pressed her lips into a thin line.

"You just sit down darlin', and I'll have you some tea steeped in just a minute."

Bliss nodded. "Thank you."

She sat down at her usual place at the table and Clint sat in his straight across from her.

"What happened out there?" Grace asked as she put some water on to boil.

Bliss looked up at Clint, and he knew that she didn't want to say it.

"They shot her horse," he said.

Grace gasped. "No! Why would they do such a heartless thing?"

Clint clenched his jaw. "Because they are just that heartless. This is just the beginning. They're trying to get Miss Cooper afraid so she'll be too scared to do much when they come back on this property to get to that money."

Bliss crossed her arms. "There are better ways of striking fear into one's heart, you know."

"Not to these men. From now one of us men is gonna have to stay up at night and stand guard. We can't take any chances," Clint said.

Grace set a cup of steaming tea in front of Bliss and sat down at the table.

"Can I get you anything, Clint?" she asked.

Clint shook his head. "No, thanks. I'm good."

"Where's Daddy?" Bliss asked.

At that moment, the front door opened and Sherman's voice echoed down the hall to the kitchen. Clint sighed and braced himself for whatever the man thought of him.

"What kind of man shoots a girl's horse?" Sherman asked.

"Apparently these men. No one really saw the man. He rode away before we could get a good look. I came after you as soon as I caught on to what was going on," Colt's voice said.

"Please tell me that no-count gunman went after him," Sherman grumbled.

Clint's jaw clenched. He looked up at Bliss, who gave him a pitying look and bit her bottom lip.

"I don't know. I hope he stayed near Bliss," Colt said.

"Pshh," Sherman's boots could be heard clomping down the hall.

Clint turned to face the doorway just as Sherman appeared.

Colt brushed past him and entered the kitchen. He looked and Bliss and walked to sit in the chair beside her.

Clint stood and walked over to the back door. "I think this no-count gunman will put himself to good use with a shovel. I'll be back when we get the horse buried."

With that, he stepped out into the cold air and walked over to help the cowboys behind the barn where they were already working on digging a hole. He walked inside the barn and grabbed a shovel before joining them.

"How's Miss Cooper doing?" one of the cowboys asked.

"She's alright," Clint answered, putting his shovel to work.

"Why are you out here with us instead of in there with her?" Another one of the cowboys asked.

Clint looked back at the house. "I'm... I'm not wanted in there right now."

*****

Bliss ran her forefinger around the rim of her teacup, not meeting her father's eye when he sat down at the head of the table.

"That no-count gunman was too busy comforting me to think about riding off after that man. When he told me he was going after him, I stopping him. I won't have him hurt. Not by those men, not by you, not by anyone," she stated.

She felt her father's gaze on her. She snapped her eyes up to look him in the eye.

"I mean no disrespect to you, Daddy, but you've got to get over your prejudice of him. He's a good man with a kind heart. I didn't think this at first, but something about him has changed in the past week or so. He's a different person. Where he was once rough and rugged, he is now kind and gentle. I have no doubt that he would protect me with his life. It's sad that you don't see that," she continued.

"Bliss, I'm not prejudice against him. I just haven't been impressed by his skills of protecting you. I'm paying for more than a shoulder to cry on, honey," Daddy explained.

"I haven't been hurt yet, have I? As far as I'm concerned, he's done his job fine," Bliss defended.

She shouldn't have to defend him. That was the whole point.

Bliss stood and took up her teacup. "Grace, I'll bring your teacup back shortly."

With that, she walked back to her room and closed the door behind her, allowing her grief to overtake her in as many emotional ways as possible.

Sorry of you guys have already read this! I still feel bad about that... Leave feedback again? :D lol