Summary:  An attempted murder and a trial are the settings for a “Who Done It” mystery.
Rating and Reader Alerts:  G
Words: 20,300

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The Brandsters have included this story by this author in our project: Preserving Their Legacy. To preserve the legacy of the author, we have decided to give their work a home in the Bonanza Brand Fanfiction Library.  The author will always be the owner of this work of fanfiction, and should they wish us to remove their story, we will.

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BLACK SHADOW

 

FRIENDLY ANNOUNCER:  “Hello all you fanfiction readers out there in fiction land!  I’m your friendly fanfiction announcer!  You’re about to embark on a mystery adventure in reading, so tell all your loved ones, friends and neighbors to gather round the old computer screen and enjoy tonight’s presentation…or TODAY’S presentation if you’re reading this during daylight hours.  Our adventure this month is brought to you by…is brought to you by…Hey, Eileen!  Who’s our sponsor this month?!”

“Leonard’s Liver Hut!  Can’t you remember anything!”

“Oh…yeah.  Our adventure this month is brought to you by…drum roll please.”

DrumRollDrumRollDrumRollDrumRollDrumRollDrumRoll……..

“Alright, already, enough drum rolling.  Sheesh…good drum rollers are hard to find these days.  Our adventure this month is brought to you by…uh…oh shoot!  I forgot the sponsor’s name again.  All those drum rolls made me lose my concentration.”

“Leonard’s Liver Hut!”

“Yeah, that’s it.  Leonard’s Liver Hut.  The best place to find your liver.  Whether on the stick, or off the stick, nobody does your liver like Leonard.  And remember Leonard’s slogan:  Liver Lovers Love Leonard’s Liver!  Now that that’s out of the way, our adventure is called…drum roll please.”

DrumRollDrumRollDrumRollDrumRollDrumRoll….

“Enough already!  Sheesh!  Our mystery adventure is called…Blaaaaack Shaaaaaadoooooow!  OOOOOO, doesn’t that sound scary!  It was written by the famous world-renowned writer of fanfiction…Eileen K!  applause please.  Applause…please.  Applause…where is that dadburn applause cue card holder!  Oh, forget the applause!  Boy…you just can’t find good applause cue card holders these days!  And now,  OUR FEATURE PRESENTATION!”
BLACK SHADOW
By: Eileen K.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: This story was written strictly in fun and for your entertainment.  No intent of having hard feelings against anyone was meant.  I hope you glean some entertainment from this story and hope no one feels offended at their characterization I portrayed.  It was a fun story to write and we can all remember it is strictly fiction, and  in no way captures the characters’ true nature or mannerisms.  A special thanks to everyone who allowed me to use your name in this story.  The only fictional character in this story is the news reporter.

Disclaimer: This story is a total fabrication of the author’s imagination.  The Bonanza characters were created by David Dortort.  Any resemblance to any other person, place or thing, whether living or dead is coincidental, and on all the rest, I refuse to answer to, on the grounds that I might incriminate myself.  Read this at your own risk if thou must, but I will not be held responsible for any laughter you may incur in the process of reading. 

FRIENDLY ANNOUNCER (again) “Now that the formalities are out of the way…and as they say on Broadway…ON WITH THE SHOW!!!”

******

Virginia City and Fiction City are so close in size and proximity, that most folks mistake one for the other, therefore, Fiction City and Virginia City are synonymous with each other, and if you’re from Virginia City and folks ask if you’re from Fiction City, you answer, “Close enough.”

This week we find ourselves in Fiction City. . .or is it Virginia City?  We find ourselves in Virginia City. . .no. . .I mean Fiction City. . .Oh never mind. . .we find ourselves somewhere.

******
FRIENDLY ANNOUNCER (again): “Violin music can be heard playing softly in the background as we look in on our sleepy little community today.  We see the town is quiet this morning.  Not much is going on just yet as the sun has just peeked up over the horizon.  Whoa…wait a minute…I think the community of Fiction City is about to wake up.  Let’s see shall we…………………………….

******

It was a beautiful day in Fiction City.  The sun was shining brightly, birds were chirping out their morning songs and everything was just perfect in the perfect little community.  Everyone felt so safe and sound.

The shop owners either whistled or hummed as they opened their doors this bright morning.  And if they couldn’t whistle or carry a humming tune, they just snapped their fingers or tapped their foot to some kind of beat.

Soon the little town was in full swing; people going in and out of each business establishment; people greeting one another with happy greetings, warm smiles and friendly handshakes.

Delicious aromas emitted from Ellie’s Café.  Standing out in front of the café, Ellie placed a sign in the window advertising her specialty of the day: “The Meanest Chili In Town”.  And when Ellie says mean, she means MEAN!!

She heard a horse approaching, and knowing the clop-clop of those hooves anywhere.  she smiled and turned.

“Morning, Hoss,” she said to him as her smile widened.  “Got time for a cup of coffee and a  doughnut?  On the house.”

He nodded at her and stepped down out of the saddle.  “Mornin’, Miss Ellie.  I reckon I got a few minutes.  ‘Specially for one a-them jelly-filled doughnuts ya make.”

“I just happen to have a dozen or two made fresh this morning.”  Ellie beamed him another smile and held onto his arm as they entered the café.

Meanwhile down the street, Ben stood in front of the Livery, looking up and down the street, his hands on his hips and a slight frown across his forehead. Clad in a leather apron and a bridle in her hand, “Shorty” Short Shanks stepped out into the street beside Ben.

“Howdy, Ben,” Shorty said in greeting to her friend.  “Fine morning.”

“Hello, Shorty.  Yes…fine,” Ben replied, though he said it a bit absent-mindedly.

“Lose your horse?” Shorty asked him, then laughed.

“Hm?  Oh, no…he’s tied up in front of Lynnette’s Vet Shop.  She’s filing his teeth.  You haven’t seen Little Joe have you?”

“As a matter of fact I did.  He was in my barbershop first thing this morning.  He came in for his monthly hair curling session.  I asked him if he wanted me to cut it too, but he just sorta glared at me and went on about his way.”

“Do you know where he went?”

“I think he said he was going to the saloon.  Some fellas ran in here and said that Sunshine and Debpet were going to put on a show down there this morning, and when Little Joe heard that, well he just kinda got in a sudden hurry to leave.”

Shorty leaned over to Ben and cupped her hand around her mouth and in a secretive way said, “That Debpet…she’s one a-them…chanteuse’s.  And that dance Sunshine does…well, let me tell you, shakin’ all those body parts the way she does…she just might come unhinged or something.”

Ben could hardly keep a straight face listening to Shorty describe Sunshine’s and Debpet’s hidden talents.  “Well I never would have thought that of those two,” Ben said, still trying to hide a smile.

“Oh me either, me either,” Shorty said, wagging her head.

“Well, Shorty, I better get on down to the saloon and find Little Joe.  See ya.”

“Yeah, so long, Ben.”

Meanwhile, on his way to Rebecca’s Seamstress Shop, Adam met Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy.  “Good morning, Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy. Nice day today,” he said to her and touched his hat brim with two fingers.

Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy looked at him, lifted her chin, and drew her hand back, striking his right cheek with the palm of her hand.  Adam’s hand flew to his burning cheek, a look of stark surprise on his face.

“That’s for yesterday when you sneaked up behind me and pinched my…well, you know what you pinched!”

“Yesterday?  I wasn’t even in town yesterday.  I haven’t been in town all week.  How could I possibly have pinched your…”

“Well you certainly DID!  I certainly ought to know when a man pinches my…well, never mind.  Maybe you’ll think twice next time!”

“I didn’t even think about it the FIRST time!  You must have me mixed up with somebody else, Miss Uptight.”

“I certainly do NOT!”  Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy pulled at her gloves and readjusted her cape and pulled her collar just a little bit higher.  “I’ve seen you a million times and with you being on the school board, I was not mistaken.  Now if you’ll excuse me, Mr. Cartwright, I have a VERY important meeting to attend.”

“What is it this time?  Ladies Temperance or A Hundred Reasons To Hate Adam Cartwright?”

“Humph!”  Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy lifted her chin at him again and walked stiffly away.

He could only wag his head in wonder at the Uptight Schoolmarm.  He thought she was very attractive, but she had as much use for him as an old worn out shoe full of holes.  He wagged his head again and turned into Rebecca’s Seamstress Shop.

With measuring tape around her neck, scissors in hand, and a mouth full of pins, Rebecca looked up from the cloth she was working on when the door opened.  “Morning, Adam,” she mumbled through closed lips, to keep the pins from falling out of her mouth.

“Good morning, Rebecca.”

Rebecca removed the pins from her mouth and came out from behind the cutting table.  “What can I do for you today, Adam?  Did that shirt fit?”

He gave her a puzzled look.  “Shirt?  As a matter of fact, that’s why I came in, I need one.  This is the last one I have.  Every time Saloon Girl Becky, Chanteuse Debpet, Dancer Sunshine and Student Miss Maggie see me, all four try to rip my shirt off.  By the time they’re done, all that’s left is the pocket.  So if you could make me another one, I sure would appreciate it.”

“Of course I’ll make you one, but you were just in here yesterday and said you needed one in a hurry.  Don’t you remember?  I worked on it all day and you picked it up last night right before I closed.  Don’t you remember?”

“First Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy and now YOU.  You must be mistaken, Rebecca, I haven’t been in town all week…until today.”

Rebecca frowned.  “Well that’s odd, that you don’t remember.”

“Like I told Uptight, it wasn’t me.  Maybe you’re both working too hard and just THOUGHT you saw me in town.  Now…how soon can I have another shirt made?”

“Well, I’ll get right on it.”

“Thanks, Rebecca, and maybe if you double-stitched the seams, it won’t be so hard to rip to shreds when those women attack me.”

“No problem.  I should have it for you by the end of the day.”

“Thanks.”  Adam left Rebecca’s and moved on down the street, always on the lookout in all directions for Saloon Girl Becky, Chanteuse Debpet, Dancer Sunshine and Student Miss Maggie, and always planning an escape route should he meet up with them.  If they got hold of the shirt he had on, his last shirt, he would have to go around shirtless the rest of the day.  Which made him thankful he wasn’t the Sheriff and had to wear a badge pinned to his chest.  That would hurt!  He shuddered at the thought and placed  a hand to his chest and moved on down the street.

Adam passed the Livery and stopped when Shorty called his name.  “How’s that appaloosa workin’ out for ya, Adam?”

“What appaloosa?”

“That one I sold to ya yesterday.  How’s he workin’ out?”

“Look Shorty…I don’t know anything about an appaloosa, because I wasn’t even in town yesterday.  There’s something very strange going on around here.  First that Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy woman says yesterday I sneaked up behind her and pinched her…”  Shorty’s eyebrows raised in curiosity.  “…well, never mind what she said I pinched…which I didn’t…then Rebecca says I came in yesterday for a shirt…which I didn’t…then you ask me about a horse you said you sold me!  Now what is going on?!”

“Gee, Adam, don’t get so ruffled up at ME, I just asked how that horse was doing.  I don’t believe I’ve ever seen you so upset.”

Adam looked at Shorty and realized he HAD spoken rather brusque to her.  “I’m sorry, Shorty.  It’s just that something very mysterious is going on.  Three people saw me in town yesterday, only I wasn’t IN town yesterday.  It makes me feel a bit uneasy…sort of like when something bad is about to happen.”

“In Fiction City?!  No way!  Nothing exciting ever happens here…unless you call Lynnette’s Hotel getting new curtains for the dining area, exciting.”

“Yeah, that’s pretty exciting alright,” Adam said sarcastically and wagged his head.

“It made headlines in the Fiction Gazette.  Biggest news this town’s had since that new Librarian came to town, then before that, there was the story about…”

“Well, all that sounds right interesting, Shorty, but I better not keep you any longer.  I’ll be seeing you.”  Adam nodded his farewell to Shorty, then continued on down the street.

“Yeah, see ya, Adam!”  Shorty waved, then turned to go back inside the Livery.

The saloon was a lively place this particular day.  It was all Val could do to keep the drinks coming.  She emptied one bottle of Dr. Pepper after another.

(Dr. Pepper?  That’s what I said…Dr. Pepper.  This is a wacky story remember, so anything can pop up around here.  Anyway…)

She emptied one bottle after another.  The place was packed with customers waiting for the floor show to start.  Joe held up his empty glass and Val scooted out from behind the bar and made her way over to his table.  “Here ya go, Joe,” she said and poured more Dr. Pepper in his mug.

“I don’t know when I’ve seen this place so busy, Val.”

“Yeah, I know.  It was a good idea I had to let Sunshine and Debpet express their talents in here.  I’ve made more money in the last week than I did all last year.”

Joe laughed and turned his head when other patrons began whistling and cheering as Chanteuse Debpet and Dancer Sunshine made their appearance on stage.  With bows and throwing kisses at the audience, Chanteuse Debpet and Dancer Sunshine held up their hands for quiet.

“Thank you for the wonderful welcome fellas!  We’re so glad to be here this morning, and we hope you enjoy the songs and dances we’ve prepared for you,” Chanteuse Debpet announced.   Then with a nod of her head at the piano player, they began their rendition with Chanteuse Debpet singing “Early One Morning” and Dancer Sunshine interpreting the song through dance.  The audience erupted into claps, whistles and “Yippee’s” and “WooHoo’s”.

Saloon Girl Becky sat down beside Joe and leaned over to him.  “Where’s that tall, handsome brother of yours, Joe?  Did he come in town with you?”  She had to almost yell in order to be heard above the singing, shouting and whistling going on.

“Which brother is that?” he yelled back then smiled mischievously at her, knowing full well she was sorta stuck on his eldest brother.  He shook his head.  “He left early this morning, I haven’t seen him.”

“Oh darn!  I was hoping I’d be able to get a look at him before I went to work at the Library.”

“Boy, that sure is some show those two are putting on!  I sure didn’t know they could sing and dance like that.”

“Yeah, they’re pretty good, I suppose.  Well…see ya, Joe, gotta go pour some more drinks.”

“See ya round Saloon Girl Becky.”

Chanteuse Debpet and Dancer Sunshine had just finished their performance, and were bowing and throwing kisses at the clapping crowd.

On his way to the saloon, Ben decided to stop and get the mail.  He stood in line as Postmaster Dakota handed mail to Student Miss Maggie.  “Oh, I hope one of these letters is from Boston College!” Miss Maggie said in excited tones, while she sorted through her mail.  “I applied to three colleges, but I hope Boston College accepts me!”  Her happy face turned sad when none of the letters proved to be from any college.  She turned and walked slowly to the door.

Dakota looked at Ben and winked playfully and held up another envelope.  “Oh, well will you look what I found stuck in my cubbyhole…a letter from Boston College addressed to a Miss Maggie.  Ben, you know anyone by that name around here?”  Dakota smiled mischievously as Miss Maggie whirled around and ran back to the mail counter.

“Oh, Dakota!  You were teasing me!  Is it really from Boston College?!”  Her face was all smiles.

“Look for yourself.”

Miss Maggie took the envelope with a shaky hand, held it and stared at it.

“Aren’t you going to open it?  I thought you couldn’t wait to hear from them,” Dakota said to her.

“I think I’m afraid it’ll be a rejection letter.  Not too many colleges want female students.”  Miss Maggie held the letter out to Dakota.  “YOU read it for me.  I’m much too nervous to.”

Dakota took the letter, broke the seal and read it.  Hardly daring to breathe, Miss Maggie waited for Dakota to finish reading.

Dakota looked at Miss Maggie then at Ben, and refolded the letter.

“Well?  What did it say?!” Miss Maggie asked eagerly.

Dakota handed the letter back to Miss Maggie.  “I’m sorry, Miss Maggie…”  Dakota began then paused.  Miss Maggie looked crestfallen when Dakota said those words.  “…but Fiction City is going to lose one very fine resident when she attends Boston College in the fall.”  Dakota smiled from ear to ear, as did Ben.  When the reality of Dakota’s words hit her, Miss Maggie squealed and clapped her hands, then she hugged Ben.

“Did you hear that, Mr. Cartwright!  I’m going to college…to Boston College…in the fall!  ME…Miss Maggie!  Oh wait until I tell all my friends!”  With another quick hug of Ben, Miss Maggie was out the Post Office door in a flash.

Ben and Dakota chuckled at her excitement.  “There goes one happy young lady,” Ben noted.

“Yes, she is.  I’ll tell you…she’s deserving of it.  She worked very hard to pass those college entrance exams.  I’m real proud of her.”

“The whole town will be when they hear about it.  Got any mail for me?”

“Three or four,” Dakota replied and handed the letters to Ben.  When another customer walked up to the mail counter, Ben stepped aside, opened the letters, read them, then left the Post Office, making his way over to the saloon.

Ben weaved his way through the crowded saloon to Joe’s table.  “Sure is crowded in here.  How can you think straight with all this noise?!”

“Sit down, Pa.  I’ll buy you a Dr. Pepper.”  Ben sat down and Joe held up his hand to signal to Val.  Bringing a bottle with her, she placed it in front of Joe.

“Hi, Ben.  What’s your pleasure?”

“One of those is alright,” he said pointing to Joe’s bottle.

“Coming right up.”  Val weaved her way through the crowd back to the bar counter.  Soon she returned with a bottle of cold Dr. Pepper, then weaved her way back behind the bar.

When they were finished with their drinks, they left the saloon and walked across the street to Lynnette’s Vet Shop.  Ben walked up beside Buck and gave him a loving pat on the neck.

“He’s all ready, Ben.  That jagged tooth he had must have given him real fits.  But…he’s fine now.”  Lynnette smiled and rubbed Buck’s head and patted his neck.

“I was starting to worry about him not eating.  I sure would hate to lose him.”

“Oh, he’ll be fine now.  In fact, he’ll probably eat you out of house and home now.”  Lynnette laughed, and Ben and Joe joined her.  Ben paid her, then he and Joe went on about their way.  Lynnette changed from her Vet frock into her hotel manager attire and headed for the hotel to admire the new dining room curtains that had caused such a stir in town.

Down the street, Hoss emerged from Ellie’s Café with Ellie firmly attached to his arm.  “You sure you don’t want another doughnut, Hoss?”

“No, Miss Ellie.  I think that dozen and a half ya fed me’ll last most a-the mornin’.”

“You’re sure?  Because it won’t take long to whip up another dozen or more.  I’d cook or bake anything for YOU, Hoss.”  Ellie looked up at him and smiled shyly and blushed.

“Yessum, I know.  I guess yer jist about the best cook around here.”

“You better not let Hop Sing hear you say that.”

Hoss chuckled.  “No, I guess not.  Well, I gotta go now, Miss Ellie, and thank ya for the coffee and doughnuts.”

“My pleasure, Hoss.”

“Bye now.”

“Bye, you great big hunk of manhood.”

“Bye, Miss Ellie.  I like you too.”  Hoss smiled, tipped his hat to her and mounted Chubb and moved on his way.  Ellie sighed deeply then turned to go back inside the café.

Before Hoss and his horse traveled ten feet he heard his name being called.  He pulled back on the reins and turned around in the saddle to see who had called to him.  Barreling full steam ahead down the street towards him was Blue Velvet.  With her skirts hiked up to her knees, she was running so fast, afraid he’d get away before she could talk to him, she almost ran smack-dab into Chubb before she stopped.

“Hold up there, Miss Blue Velvet.  What’s yer hurry?”

“Hi, Hoss,” Blue Velvet greeted him, panting and swallowing rapidly, being out of breath from all that running.  “I was afraid you’d leave town before I got a chance to ask you.”

“Ask me what?”

Blue Velvet looked up at him and smiled her best smile.  “Would you take me to the dance  tonight?  Dancer Sunshine has been showing me some new dance steps, and I promise not to step on your feet this time.”

“Well, Miss Blue Velvet, Miss Ellie’s awready asked me to take HER.”

Blue Velvet stomped her foot and jerked her arm down at her side. “Darn that Ellie!  She always beats me to you every time!  Dadburn her anyway!”

“Well…uh…listen Miss Blue Velvet.  I don’t reckon there’s a law agin a feller takin’ TWO purty lil gals to the dance, is there.”  Hoss flashed her a smile and she forgot all about being upset at Ellie.

“I reckon not, Hoss.  You’ll take ME too?  Really?”

“Why shur I will.  ‘Sides…there’s ‘nough a-me to go round fer three or four gals.”

Blue Velvet grabbed his leg, squeezed it and squealed with delight.  “Oh thank you, Hoss!  I’m just so happy!”  She squealed and squeezed his leg again.

“Uh…Miss Blue Velvet, I shur do like all that squeezin’ yer doin’, but my leg’s goin’ a-mite numb.  Ya mind not squeezin’ TOO awful tight.”

Blue Velvet eased up on squeezing him and an embarrassed smile graced her lips.  “Sorry, Hoss honey, must be all those arm exercises I’ve been doing lately.”

“Yessum.  Well, Miss Blue Velvet, I gotta go now and find Pa.  I’ll see ya  tonight.”

Blue Velvet wiggled her fingers at him and giggled.  “Bye, Hoss.  I love you.”

He tipped his hat to her and smiled.  “Yessum.  I like you too, Miss Blue Velvet,” he replied and urged Chubb on down the street.  Blue Velvet stood like a love-sick girl until her sweetie had disappeared around the corner at the end of the street.  She sighed deeply, then went on about her business.

Ambling on down the street, Adam heard the clicking of heels on the boardwalk behind him.  Recognizing them as the sound that women’s heels make, he was almost afraid to turn around for fear of being mauled, groped and woman-handled, but he stopped and turned around anyway, out of curiosity if nothing else.  Plowing smack into him, Miss Maggie was almost knocked off balance, and she would have been, had Adam not reached out and grabbed her to keep her from falling.

“Oh, Adam!  Look!  A letter from Boston College!” she exclaimed excitedly, waving an envelope in his face.  “I’m going to Boston College in the fall!  Isn’t that wonderful!” she added as he righted her solidly on her feet again.

“Boston College, hmm.  Very prestigious school.  Congratulations.”

Miss Maggie threw her arms around him and planted the biggest kiss on him she had ever planted on anyone before.  “Thanks, Adam.  Of course I’ll miss you, but I’m looking forward to going to college.  Well, I gotta go tell everybody else!  Bye!”

Miss Maggie let go of him and hurried on down the street.

“Yeah…bye.”  He wagged his head, chuckled, then placed his hand on the Library door and pushed it open, causing a bell to tinkle overhead.  Eileen stopped her shelf straightening, and turned around to welcome her customer.

“Oh.  Good morning, Mr. Cartwright,” she said in a pleasant voice.  “What can I do for you so early this morning?  Finish that book already?”

“What book?”

“Why the book you borrowed yest…”

Adam held up a palm in front of her.  “Let me guess…the book I borrowed yesterday.  Right?”

“Yes, that’s right.  Though I thought it strange you would be interested in that subject.”

“What subject?”

“Embroidery Made Easy.”

“Embroidery?! And you say I was in here yesterday, and checked it out?”

She nodded.

Adam shook his head in exasperation.  “I didn’t pinch Uptight’s…” he cleared his throat then continued.  “…and I didn’t buy an appaloosa horse and I sure as the devil didn’t borrow a book on embroidery!  What is it with this town!  People accusing me of things I didn’t do…”

“Ah-ah-ah…don’t be in such a sour mood on such a pretty day, Mr. Cartwright.  It isn’t good for the digestive system.”

“I am not in a sour mood!  I’m in a perfectly equitable mood!  It’s just that everyone else is all mixed up when they said they saw me in town yesterday!  I was not in town yesterday!  That’s what’s wrong!”

“Yes, Mr. Cartwright.  Whatever you say, Mr. Cartwright.”

“Don’t patronize me.”

“Oh, I wasn’t.  I was just agreeing with you.  Now…what can I do for you today?”

Adam suddenly realized how upset he was, then returned to his solemn self.  “You’re right…I shouldn’t be such a grouch.  I apologize for blowing off steam at you.  You didn’t deserve that.  I’m sorry.”

“Apology accepted.”

“The reason I came in is, I’m terribly puzzled about something and I thought maybe you would shed some light on the matter.”

“I’ll try.  Just what is it that puzzles you, Mr. Cartwright, that you seek advice from the lowly town Librarian?”

Adam leaned forward on the counter that separated them.  “Well first of all, you can stop calling me, MR. Cartwright, and call me Adam,” he said as he looked at her with a gleam in his eye.

She dipped her head at him and smiled slightly.  “As you wish.  However, that doesn’t seem like much of a puzzlement to me, Mr. Cart. . .Adam,” she said, correcting herself.

“No, that’s not it.  The real puzzlement is this, have I ever been rude to you?”

She looked at him.  “No. . .I don’t think so.”

“Have I ever been unkind to you in any way?”

“No, Adam, you’ve never been unkind to me.  You’ve always been a perfect gentleman.”

“Then, have I ever done or said anything to you that would make you dislike me?”

Eileen shook her head.  “No, of course not, but. . .” she replied.  Her brows knitted together slightly.  “What’s this all about?”

“Well I’ll tell you.  I would like to know why every time you meet me on the street or in the café, or anywhere for that matter, all you ever do is nod your head at me, and walk on.  Why don’t you stop and talk to me?”

Taken aback by his question, Eileen looked at him and blinked her brown eyes several times before she answered, then a tiny smile graced her lips.  “Well, Mr. Cartwright,   it’s  very  hard  for  me  to  strike up  any kind of a  sane  conversation  with a man who has a constant cloud of women hovering about him all the time,” said Eileen before she turned back around to continue straightening the bookshelves behind her.

Adam straightened up from his leaning position on the counter and looked at her, then stepped behind the counter and stood next to her.  “Have I made you feel unwelcome since you’ve come to town?” he asked her in a quiet voice.

Eileen turned to face him, and looked into his serious brown eyes.  “It hasn’t been YOU who’s made me feel unwelcome, Mr. Cartwright,” she said as she lowered her head.

He put a finger under her chin and lifted her head up.  “Then who?”

Eileen shook her head slightly.  “Names aren’t important,” she said, then stepped away from him.  “Besides. . .it’s probably my fault for not mingling with all the exciting, bubbly women who hang all over you when they see you.  But I guess the reason I don’t do that is because I’m NOT exciting OR bubbly.  I’m a quiet sort of woman who doesn’t like to have center stage or vie for a man’s attention.  I’m sure that’s hard for you to understand, especially with the kind of life you lead. . . .always on the go, with spirited women after you all the time.”

Adam took a step towards her.  “On the contrary, Eileen, more often than not I wish for a quiet woman to spend some serene time with, because  I’m a quiet sort of person too.”  He stood so close to her, she believed she could hear the beating of his heart.  Or, was it hers she was hearing?  Either way, it unnerved her and she stepped away from him, and walked towards the front door.  “I find that rather hard to believe, Mr. Cartwright.  Every time I see you, you seem to be enjoying all the attention heaped upon you by  the majority of the townswomen.”

He stepped over to her.  “Will you please stop calling me, MR. CARTWRIGHT,” he drawled out.

“As you wish. . .Adam.”

“Of course I enjoy all the attention, what red-blooded man wouldn’t.”

“Come now, Adam. . .are you trying to tell me that you prefer a quiet, dull, uninteresting woman to a lively, spirited, vivacious one?”

“Just like a spirited horse, you never know what a spirited woman will do.  But. . . .the quiet ones. . .you can depend on them.”

“So I remind you of a horse, huh.”

Adam’s eyes widened.  “No. . .No.  I didn’t mean it that way.”

Eileen smiled a playful smile at his expression, then her smile faded.  “A person like me could never fit into YOUR world, Adam,” she said quietly.

“MY world?”

She nodded her head, and walked to the table in the middle of the room and sat down.  Adam joined her.  “Yes.  Your world of  the satisfaction you receive from taming a wild stallion. . .the thrill of coming out the winner in a fistfight. . .the danger of a gunfight.  MY world is quite different.”  Adam leaned back in his chair and listened as she talked.    “I’ve been to the rocky coasts of Maine and have seen the massive lighthouses as they shine their brilliant light through the dense, heavy fog safely guiding ships to their shores, and I’ve heard the foghorn’s lonely wail through the stillness of the night.  I’ve been to China and felt silk so soft, it was like a puff of air across my face.  I’ve been to India and watched them weave colored threads into beautiful brocades.  I’ve been on great lion-hunts in Africa.  I’ve seen castles in England and Scotland so huge you could put this whole  town  inside one  of  them.  I’ve  been  to  Calcutta  where  they  eat  exotic foods like. . .pigeon and. . .monkey.”  Eileen looked at him with misty eyes.  “That’s my world, Adam,” she said to him, while he watched her face glow with excitement, then change abruptly to sadness.

“I don’t call that a dull, uninteresting life.  It must have been very exciting to you, but I’m curious to know why you gave all that up to come here to live.”

“I didn’t give it up, Adam.  I’ve never BEEN to any of those places or seen those things with my eyes.  I’ve never experienced any of those things first-hand.”

“But you said. . . .”

Eileen’s eyes welled up with tears as she continued.  “I’ve only been to those places and experienced all the excitement they afford through my books.  BOOKS are my life, Adam.  Only in my mind and in my heart have I seen  all  those  things.   I’ve  been  there. . .in my mind and my heart. . .through my BOOKS.”  The tears she tried hard to keep from falling, fell down her face and dripped off her chin.  “I know what it’s like to sit  and listen to a poet pour out his heart as he performs a reading.  I know what it’s like to see a fine, beautiful painting an artist shares on display in New York.  I know what it’s like to hear the beautiful music of  a great symphony.  In my mind and my heart I know all about those things, because they’re in books!  No one seems to care about the finer things in life.  All they seem to care about is drinking, gambling and hurting each other.”  She closed her eyes, forcing more tears to fall down her face.  Then she felt a gentle touch on her face as the tears were wiped away.  She opened her eyes slowly and through misty eyes she looked into compassionate, brown eyes, as his hand rested under her chin. 

“I think that was a very sane and exciting conversation, and I want to hear more about your travels and experiences,” he said as he smiled at her.

She moved her head away from his hand and sniffed.  “You’re making fun of me,” she said as she started to stand up.

He reached out and placed his hand on hers.  “I’m not making fun of you.  I want to hear about other things you’ve read about, because I have a love for books, too,” he said quietly.  “Maybe I can share with you some things I’VE read about.”

Eileen looked into his eyes, then stood up and looked out the Library windows, then walked towards the door and opened it, and stepped outside.  As she did, she heard a rustling of fabric and saw a patch of blue disappear around the corner of the Library and fade away into the morning shadows.  Adam followed her out, and stood beside her.  “I still want to hear about what you’ve read, but right now I want to ask you to the dance tonight.”

“Dance?  But why do you want to take ME to the dance?  Why not one of your cloud of followers?”

“Because you’re the only one who doesn’t try to rip my shirt off every time you see me.”

“Do they really do that?!”

“Every time.”

“You must go through a lot of shirts that way.”

“Let’s just say that Rebecca makes a good living sewing shirts for ME, and green jackets for Little Joe,” he said with a chuckle.  “So will you?”

She looked up at him.  “I don’t think. . .I’m afraid it would be a very dull evening for you, because I don’t dance very well.”

“Let me decide whether it’s dull or not, and we don’t have to dance, we can just enjoy watching everybody else dance and enjoy a fun evening together.  What do you say?”

She cocked her head at him and frowned slightly.  “You can have your pick of ANY spirited girl in town, ANY girl. . .”

Adam took her hand and held it. “Yes, I can, but I picked YOU to ask to the dance, so will you?” he asked again with a tiny smile playing at the corner of his mouth.

“Don’t you think we would run the risk of getting mobbed by a bunch of women if we went out together in public?  You might get hurt.”

“I’ll take that chance.”

“I. . .”

“Please?” he cut in quickly.

“I still don’t understand why you’re asking ME and not one of the many others who are interested in you.”

“I’m asking you because you intrigue me, and I want to know more about you. . .so will you?”

Eileen let out her breath slowly.  “I’ll think about it.  You come by the Library tonight before I close up and I’ll let you know then.”

“Can’t you let me know now?”

She shook her head.  “I said I would think about it, and I will.”

Rustling fabric and several pairs of running feet were heard on the board walk, and Eileen and Adam looked in the direction they were coming from.  “Uh oh, looks like you’ve just been discovered,” Eileen said to him.

“Yeah,” he said as he braced himself for the onslaught.

Saloon girl Becky; Dancer Sunshine; Student Miss Maggie, and Chanteuse debpet, reached Adam at the same time and encircled him, each grabbing for an arm.  He looked in Eileen’s direction with pleading eyes, while she smiled sweetly at him.  “I should have the answer to your request by the end of the day, after I’ve had a chance to research it thoroughly, Adam,” she said to him, while he was being dragged and pulled in four directions by the four women who descended upon him like ravening wolves upon their prey.  And so far, he managed to keep his shirt on.

She stood for another full minute watching as he was led away.  “Uh, Becky!  Let go of the poor man and come to work.  You’re late as it is.

“I know, Eileen, but I just can’t help myself, he’s just so…dreamy.”  Becky looked longingly at Adam and fluttered her eyelashes at him.  He smiled politely at her and then was dragged mercilessly away by the other three women, still managing to hold onto his shirt.

Eileen placed her hand in the middle of Becky’s back and nudged the love-struck girl forward into the Library.  Eileen turned and looked down the street. “Sometimes good looks can be a curse, Adam.  And you certainly have your share of good looks.    Poor man. . .all he wants is to be left alone, but he’s too kind to tell them,” she said as she watched them disappear around the corner of the doctor’s office at the end of the street.  “Oh, well.”  She stepped back inside the Library and closed the door behind her.

******

The streets of Fiction City were quiet as the shopkeepers closed their doors for the night, and  Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey began their closing-time patrol of each business establishment.  On the other side of town, Eileen had just pulled down the shades on the Library windows, when Adam opened the door and stepped inside.  “I thought I heard you ride up, but I really didn’t expect you’d come,” Eileen said to him.

“You said I could come back for the answer to my request at closing time, didn’t you?  And I see you’re getting ready to close.”

“So I did, and so I am. . . But I really didn’t think you’d be interested in coming back.”

“I’m here. . .What’s your answer?  Will you accompany me to the dance tonight?”

Eileen opened her mouth to speak to him to refuse his invitation, but instead she said, “I’ll tell you this. . .if I’m not there by seven, then don’t expect me.”

“Can’t you give me a more definite answer than that?”

Eileen shook her head.  “No.  I really can’t.  I don’t want to give the women of Fiction City any more reasons to dislike me, although I don’t know WHY they do.  I think it would be better if none of them knew you had asked me to the dance.  If I come, I’ll be there by seven.”

“I’d be glad to come and escort you.”

“I’d rather you didn’t.”

“You’d have to be out and about alone at night.”

“Yes, but that’s the way I want it.  This is a quiet, peaceful little town, I’m not afraid.”

“Why don’t you have Sheriff Lily, or Deputy Grey escort you then?”

“I will. . . . .IF I decide to come, that is.”

“I really hope you do.”

Adam opened the door and stepped outside.  He touched her on the nose and smiled. “Don’t be late.  If I get mauled and woman-handled, it’ll be all your fault for being late,” he said in a  teasing tone of voice.  “Please come. . . .as a favor to me,” he said quietly.  He leaned down and placed a tender kiss on her lips, then with a smile, he was gone.  Eileen stepped outside and watched him mount his horse and gallop away.  She touched her fingers to her lips and smiled and stepped back inside the Library and turned the lock until it clicked, and turned and walked towards the back room.

A few seconds later, she heard his familiar footsteps on the boardwalk, and a tap on the window of the Library door.  She turned the lock, then opened it.  “Forget something, Ad…”

A black-clothed figure stepped out from the black shadow of the building and loomed over her.  Screaming and feeling a sharp pain, on the side of her head, she fell to the floor.

*******

The dance inside the town hall was in full swing.  The Fiction City Slickers Band composed of Shorty, Dakota, Candyfan and Miss Maggie, played lively tunes on their banjo, guitar, violin and harmonica respectively.

Hoss seemed to be enjoying himself, but he looked a little tired and out of breath.  Just as soon as Ellie finished one dance with him, Blue Velvet grabbed him and swung him out onto the dance floor for another do-si-do go round.  She had greatly improved in her dancing and only managed to stomp on his feet twice per dance so far.

Joe stood by himself near the refreshment table.  His followers were either in the Slickers Band or hadn’t arrived yet and he just couldn’t bring himself to dance with an Adam follower, or one of those followers of someone named Candy who he didn’t even know existed.

Ben stood near the door talking to Therapist Daydreamer about a dream he had in which he dreamed his hair was only a toupee and not real.  Being the wise therapist that she was, Daydreamer told him not to worry about it unless he woke up one morning and his hair stayed on the pillow when he lifted his head.

Someone called to daydreamer so she excused herself from Ben’s presence and told him her expertise was needed elsewhere.  She mosied across the room, while Ben turned his attention to outside.

Standing outside in the shadows for safety from his female followers, Adam waited for Eileen to arrive at the dance.  With the help of a small bit of moonlight shining, he took out his pocket watch and checked the time. He looked over when he saw his father emerge and walk towards him.  Without waiting for his father to ask, he said,  “She’ll be here.” 

“I thought you said she told you if she wasn’t here by seven not to look for her?” Ben asked his son.

“That’s what she said, but it isn’t seven yet,” Adam said, checking his watch again.  “There’s still a couple minutes.”

Adam looked up when he heard horses approach.  It was Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey.
“Good evening, Adam. . .Ben,” Sheriff Lily said, in greeting as she and Grey stepped down off their mounts.

“I thought Eileen was going to have one of you escort her here.  Where is she?” Adam asked with a puzzled look on his face.

“I’m afraid I have some bad news for you, Adam.”

“Bad news?”

Sheriff  Lily  nervously fingered  her  hat in her hands.  “When was the last time you saw Eileen?” 

“Late this afternoon. . .around five o’clock I guess.  Right before she closed up.  Why?”

Sheriff Lily looked at Adam for quite some time before she spoke.  “I hate to have to tell you this, Adam, but I’m going to have to put you under arrest,” she said to him. 

“Under arrest?”

“For what Sheriff?” Ben asked hurriedly, as he stepped to Adam’s side.

“Attempted murder,” Sheriff Lily replied.

“Attempted mur. . .What are you talking about Lily?” Ben responded quickly.

“That’s what I said, Ben.  Late this afternoon, I was making my usual rounds when I stopped at the Library.  I always walk her to her room at Lynnette’s Hotel, because of the part of town the Library is in.  It was just a few minutes after closing time and that’s when I saw the Library door open and Eileen laying on the floor, in a pool of blood.  Her head had almost been split open.”

Adam straightened up and he opened his mouth and a frown etched into his brow.  “What happened?  Is she alright?” he asked Sheriff Lily.

“First, tell me about your meeting with her.”

“Well, I went to see her, right before closing time to invite her here to the dance.  I told her I would see her about seven and then I left to go home.”

“And that’s all?”

Adam nodded.  “Yes, Sheriff.  That’s all.”

Sheriff Lily looked at Adam.  “Well, Adam, I’ve got a witness who says they saw you attack her.”

“The witness is lying, Sheriff,” Adam responded.

“No, I don’t think so.”

“Well who’s the witness?”

“Eileen.  She said it was you.”

“Eileen?  Why would she say that?”

“She told me you left, just like you said, but then a couple minutes later you came back to the Library.  She said she opened the door and saw you and the next thing she knew she was waking up in the doctor’s office.  She told me this after she woke out of unconsciousness.  But she’s unconscious again, and the doctor doesn’t hold out much hope for her recovery right now.”  Sheriff Lily took hold of Adam’s arm, Deputy Grey took hold of his other arm.  “I’m sorry Adam, but I’ll have to take you in until we can clear this up.”

Adam nodded.  “I just can’t believe she would say that I tried to kill her.”

“Lily, what happens if she dies?” Ben said to the Sheriff.

Sheriff Lily looked at her friend intensely.  “I think you know that answer as well as I do, Ben.”

“I’m sorry, Adam.  I wish I didn’t have to do this, but you’ve been accused of a serious crime and I have to take you in.”  Sheriff Lily was very sympathetic towards the eldest Cartwright son.

“Well…I’ve been accused all day of things I didn’t do, what’s one more accusation,” Adam said sarcastically, and  mounted his horse and followed behind the Sheriff with Deputy Grey following behind him.

***************

The sound of the jail cell clanging shut behind Adam made his stomach lurch.  He took his hat off and flung it hard down on the cot inside the cell.  Ben stood outside the cell, watching his oldest son.  “Don’t worry, son, we’ll get to the bottom of this.”

“I just refuse to believe she’s accused me.  I wish I could see  and talk to her.”

“I’ll see if I can talk to her.”

“Good.  But, Pa, don’t get upset with her for accusing me.  Listen to what she has to say.  I just can’t believe she would falsely accuse me.”

“I’ll see what I can find out.”

“Let me know how she is, will you.”

“Yes, of course I will.  Right now, I’m going to talk to the Sheriff.”

“Oh, will you tell Sheriff Lily that I don’t want visitors. . .well, except you, Joe and Hoss, of course.”

“I’ll tell her, but why don’t you want visitors?”

“Well let’s just say I wouldn’t want the jail to be stormed by certain townspeople.”

Ben smiled slightly.  “You mean your female followers?”

“That’s exactly what I mean.  I don’t think I’m up to that right now.”

“I’ll tell her.”

Adam managed a smile, then sat down on the edge of his cot, and leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, and resting his chin on his clasped hands.  Ben left the cell area and stepped into Sheriff Lily’s office and closed the cell area door behind him.  “Lily,” he said, “I’ve got to talk to you about this.  You know Adam. . .he wouldn’t do anything like this.”

“I know he wouldn’t Ben, but an accusation has been made against him and I have to do my duty of following through with it according to the law.  I didn’t want to arrest Adam, but I had no choice.  I hope you know that.”

Ben put a friendly hand on the Sheriff’s shoulder.  “Of course I know that.  Just how bad is the girl, Lily?”

“She’s pretty bad off right now, Ben.  Doc Milesky doesn’t know if she’ll pull through or not.”

“Could I go see her?  Maybe talk to her. . .”

“Last report, she was still unconscious.”

“She’s POSITIVE it was Adam?”

“She named him, Ben.  I don’t know how much more positive a person could be.”

“You know her pretty well, don’t you?”

Lily nodded.  “I know her very well.  I walk her home every day.”

“Does she seem the type to. . .accuse and lie on purpose?”

Lily shook her head adamantly.  “No.  Not Eileen.  She’s about the sweetest, most generous woman I know.  I’ve never heard her say an unkind word about anybody.  But the way I’ve seen how the other women in this town shun her, I wouldn’t blame her for having something against somebody, but she always speaks kindly about everybody.”

“Well, in any case, I think I’ll see if I can’t talk to her myself.”  Ben walked towards the door, then stopped and turned around.  “Oh by the way, Adam said he’d rather not have visitors, other than myself and his brothers.”

Lily smiled.  “I think I can accommodate him on that.”

“Thank you, Sheriff.  Goodbye,” Ben said, then he was gone.

“Goodbye, Ben.”  Sheriff Lily looked at the closed door that separated her office from the cell area.  “I hope, for your sake Adam, that Eileen doesn’t die,” she said out loud to herself before she sat down behind her desk.

******

Eileen lay in Doc Milesky’s back room, fighting for her life.  “Hello Doc,” Ben said as he entered the office.  “I’d like to talk to Eileen if I could,” he added.

“I’m sorry, Ben, but she’s still unconscious.”

“Do you think she’ll be alright?”

Doc Milesky scratched her head.  “I don’t know, Ben.  She was hit pretty hard.  It’ll be a pure miracle if she does.”

“Doc. . .you heard her tell Sheriff Lily what happened to her. . .did she say WHY she thought it was Adam?”

“No Ben.  Just that it was.  She was pretty firm about it.”

“I asked Lily this, so I’m going to ask you too. . .Does she seem the type to lie or accuse  someone deliberately?”

“No, Ben.  Not Eileen.  I would stake my reputation as a doctor on the fact that she believes it was Adam.  Ben. . .I know Adam. . .and I don’t believe he would do something like this, I also believe Eileen when she swears to the fact that it WAS Adam.”

Ben shook his head in anxiety.  “There’s something wrong, here. . .there’s just something wrong.  Adam didn’t do it. . .Eileen SAW him. . .And  they’re  both  telling  the 
truth. . .something’s wrong.”

Nurse Rebecca came out of the back room.  “Dr. Milesky, it’s Eileen, she’s waking up.”

Dr. Milesky went hurriedly to the back room and over to Eileen’s bed. Ben followed her.  The doctor put the palm of her hand on Eileen’s forehead.  “No fever. . .yet.  That’s one good sign anyway.”

Eileen groaned and moved her head from side to side and her eyelids fluttered open several times before she came awake.  Her hand went to her head.  “Oh my head,” said Eileen as she closed her eyes and moaned with the pain.

Ben touched her lightly on the shoulder.  “Eileen, dear, it’s Ben Cartwright.  Do you feel like talking and answering a couple of questions?”

“I’ll try, Mr. Cartwright,” she said weakly.

“Ben, I don’t want her upset or tired out.”

“I promise not to do either.”

“Alright then.”

“Eileen. . .are you ABSOLUTELY sure it was Adam who attacked you?”

“I’m sure Mr. Cartwright.  I don’t want it to be him any more than you do, but it WAS him.”  Eileen groaned again.  “Oh my head. . .it hurts so bad,” she said as she squeezed her eyes more tightly shut.

“Nurse Rebecca will you please administer a teaspoon of laudanum to her to help ease the pain.”

“Of course doctor.”

“Oh Mr. Cartwright,” Eileen called to him.

“Yes, Eileen?”

“Did the Sheriff arrest Adam?”

“Yes.  Yes she did.”

“Tell him. . .tell Adam I’m sorry.  Tell him I wish with all my heart it hadn’t been his face that I saw.  Please tell him that.”

“I’ll tell him.”  Ben turned to the doctor.  “Thank you, doctor, for letting me talk to her.  Do you think she’ll recover alright?”

“I think she has a very good chance, now that she’s regained consciousness.  I’ll keep her here until she’s able to be up and around.  Nurse Rebecca and I are going to take turns staying with her around the clock.”

“Good.  Adam will be glad to know that.  He’s very worried about her.”  With that said, Ben was gone, going straight to the jail to see Adam.

***********

Ben stood on the opposite side of Adam’s cell, Adam’s back to him.  “Eileen said to tell you she was sorry and wishes it had been someone else she saw.”

Adam placed one hand on each side of his jail cell window and looked out into the night.  “Somewhere, out there, Pa, is the man who should be in here.  Whoever he is, Eileen felt confident enough to open the door to him.”

“We’ll find him, Adam.”

“I hope Eileen will be alright.”

“Doc Milesky and Nurse Rebecca are doing all they can for her, but you must try not to dwell on it, son.”

“You know…I can figure out any architectural problem and figure out any blueprint that’s put in front of me, but for the life of me, I can’t figure out a woman when she’s so wrong about something but thinks she’s so right.  Eileen really believes I tried to kill her.  I don’t understand.”

“I know she does, Adam, but the truth will come out in time.”

“Sure, Pa,” Adam replied unconvinced, then lay down on the cot and clasped his hands behind his head and stared at the ceiling.  Ben knew his son would rather be alone, but he spoke to him anyway.    “I need to get going and tell Joe and Hoss everything, so I’ll see you in the morning. Try to get some sleep, Adam.”

He only stared at the ceiling and didn’t answer his father.  Ben stepped into the office area and started towards the door.  “Oh Ben,” Sheriff Lily called to him.

Ben stopped and turned around to face the Sheriff.  “After my investigation is complete, and if there’s no other suspect, Adam will be bound over for trial on attempted murder.  You know that don’t you.”

Ben nodded.  “Yes.  I know that.  Let’s just hope your investigation turns up someone other than my son as being the last person to have seen her.”

“For Adam’s sake, I hope so too.”

Ben merely nodded, then was gone.

***************

Meanwhile, in a cabin miles away from Fiction City. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 

“Hello Boss.”

“Don’t ‘Hello Boss’ me.  I told you not to hurt her. . .you were only supposed to scare her enough to where she would leave town.”

“So I got a little carried away.  So what?”

“A little carried away!  I’ll tell you so what!  If she dies, everyone will know it was YOU who attacked her,” Boss said.

“And how are they going to know that, friend?”

“Because I’ll tell them. . .friend.”  The words were spoken in a hateful tone of voice.

“Well now I wouldn’t be so quick to speak up about it if I was you.  Because if YOU tell, then I’ll be tellin’ a few things myself. . .like who paid me to get rid of the Librarian.”

“Don’t. . .you. . .threaten. . .me,” Boss said, drawing out the words clearly and without doubt as to the meaning of the tone of voice.

“Oh I’m not THREATENING you, it’s a PROMISE.”

“You stay here and lay low until this thing blows over.  As soon as she gets well, I think she’ll probably leave town.”

“I don’t plan to stay in this dump too long.”

“You’ll stay as long as I tell you to stay,” Boss stated firmly.

“Well now, I don’t think you’re in too good  a position to be givin’ orders.  Remember, I know who paid me.”

“And I told you not to threaten me.”  Their eyes locked in defiance of each other.  “I’ll be back in a couple of days with some more food.  In the meantime, you stay out of sight,” Boss said while walking towards the door.

“Whatever you say. . .Boss.  But just remember one thing, my silence can get expensive if this thing isn’t cleared up quick.”

Their eyes locked in defiance of each other again, then Boss left, leaving the other one alone in the deserted ramshackle cabin.

*************

Eileen opened the Library door and black shadows grabbed at her.  She screamed as a hard object struck her.

Her eyes were wide as she came fully awake.  Breathing heavily and perspiring profusely, she looked at Nurse Rebecca who was immediately at her side.  “A nightmare again?” she asked Eileen.  “That makes three nights this week.”

“Yes,” she said breathlessly.  She turned her frightened eyes to Nurse Rebecca’s blue ones.  “I saw him. . .Adam. . .it was Adam.  But I KNOW he couldn’t hurt anybody.  But it was him.”  Eileen sobbed as the memory of her attack flooded her mind.

Nurse Rebecca consoled her patient as best she could and knew it would be a long time before Eileen would be able to have even one full night of complete sleep.  She felt sorry for her and wished she could tell her it would all be over soon, but she knew by the talk she was hearing around town, it wasn’t going to be over soon.

*************

“Adam,” Sheriff Lily said while she slid a food tray into his cell.  “I’m not having any luck at finding any clues to Eileen’s REAL attacker.”

Adam nodded.  “I just wish I could talk to her,” he said as he looked up at the window in his cell.

A knock on the outside cell area door diverted Adam’s attention away from his thoughts and he turned to look in that direction and stepped over to the cell bars. 

“Hello, Sheriff.  Mind if I talk to the prisoner?” 

Sheriff Lily looked the stranger up and down.  “Who are you?”

“My card.”

Sheriff Lily read the inscription on the small card.  “Madison Craig, Fiction Gazette”  Sheriff Lily looked up from the card to the stranger named Madison Craig.  “Fiction Gazette?  Oh, you must be the new reporter, I heard was coming to town.”

“Yes, I got in late last night, and just heard about what happened.”

Adam looked the reporter up and down and watched while she took a pencil and pad out of her bag.  “Care to give a statement, Mr. Cartwright?” she asked while she stepped over in front of his cell.

He looked into her pretty face and pretty or not, he answered,  “No I do not.”  He turned his back to her and walked away.

“ANY statement at all would be better than NO statement,” she replied.

Adam remained silent.

“I’m going to ask you to leave, Miss Craig,” Sheriff Lily said kindly to her.

“But Sheriff, there’s a story here…Surely you’re not going to deny me the right to get that story,” Madison insisted.

“Right?!  What. . .right?!” Adam blurted out as he turned around to face her.  “The right to give you permission to spread your gossip that I tried to kill the Librarian?!” he added sarcastically in an angry tone.

Madison Craig’s hand was moving quickly as she wrote on her paper.  “Did you?” she asked while she wrote.

“Sheriff. . .get her out of here,” Adam said through clenched teeth, while he turned his back to her again.

“Aren’t you going to answer my question?”  Madison called out over her shoulder as Sheriff Lily ushered her out quickly and closed the door behind her.

Sheriff Lily stepped back into the cell area.  “Sorry ‘bout that, Adam.  Better eat before your food gets cold. Ellie might not take too kindly to her food not being eaten,” she said with a laugh in her voice.

“I can just see tomorrow’s headline in that paper,” Adam said as he wagged his head back and forth.  “ADAM CARTWRIGHT CONFESSES TO ATTEMPTED MURDER!” he added bitterly as he stretched forth his hand out in front of him and cupped his hand and swept his arm in the air.  Then, stepping out of his normally quiet demeanor for a moment, and in a gesture of uncontrolled anger, he kicked the cell door, causing it to rattle loudly.

“Adam, I hate to tell you this now, but Judge Elizabeth has ordered a trial on the charge against you.  Eileen’s well enough to testify now.”

Adam breathed deeply and let it out slowly.  “When?”

“Just as soon as Michelle gets back in town.  Judge Elizabeth has appointed her to handle your case, besides being the Mayor, she’s also a lawyer you know.”

“Yeah, I know, but who’s representing Eileen?”

“Daydreamer.”

“She’s just a therapist.”

“I know. . .but she’s also an attorney.”

Adam wagged his head back and forth. “Michelle will eat her alive.”

“Michelle may be a tough attorney, but she’s fair.”

Adam sat down on the edge of his cot and leaned forward.

“In the end Adam, the truth will set you free.”

“I just hope the end doesn’t come too late for me to enjoy being set free,” he replied in a dejected tone of voice.

*************

In the ramshackle cabin, miles away. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

“So there’s going to be a trial, huh?”

The Boss threw the paper down on the floor of the cabin in anger.  “Yes, there’s going to be a trial.  I didn’t want it to come to this.”

“Take it easy, Boss.”

The Boss’ face screwed up in anger.  “If you hadn’t been so stupid and hit her so hard, it would have been all over by now!”

“Yeah, yeah, well what’s done is done.  Maybe I could just fix it to where that Librarian was made to die.  Then she would be out of the way and they would have to let Cartwright go because there wouldn’t be no witnesses against him.”

The Boss’ head jerked up and looking with wide eyes, exclaimed,  “NO!  I want no part of a killing!  What you did was bad enough.  But NO KILLING!”

“Just a thought Boss.”  The words were spoken nonchalantly by the speaker.

“I’m going back to town to see if I can hear anything else.”  Turning to the accomplice, Boss said, “Just be sure you stay hidden until it’s safe.”

“Don’t worry about me, Boss.  I can take care of myself.”

“It’s not YOU I’m worried about. . .I’m concerned about MYSELF should any of this gets out.”

“Yeah, I can see where you WOULD be worried,” the accomplice said with a smirk on their face.

The Boss looked daggers at the accomplice.  “Just do your part and stay hidden.”

“Sure Boss.  Sure.”  The smirk transformed into a devious grin as the Boss left the cabin.

**************

Rebecca, the town seamstress, worked diligently and quickly to finish two blue dresses so she would be able to attend the trial when it started in an hour.  She had been so busy tending Eileen in her nursing capacity, her sewing work had piled up on her.

Val took over as ticketmaster when the previous manager retired. She had just handed a pretty woman in a blue dress a ticket that would take her to San Francisco.  Val closed up shop and ran to the courthouse, not the saloon, because Judge Elizabeth had ordered the saloon closed twelve hours before the start of the trial.

Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy already had her place secured in the courtroom.  She had announced to the school children the day before that school would not be in session during the trial of her not-so-favorite Cartwright, so she could attend.  She wouldn’t miss this trial for love or money.

Shorty had just finished giving an out-of-town customer a shave and haircut and as soon as he was out of the door, Shorty closed up shop and ran to the courthouse to attend the trial.

Lynnette sipped her glass of iced tea between registering hotel guests who had come in for the trial of Adam Cartwright.

Ellie had already closed the café and was seated directly behind Hoss.  Every once in awhile she and Blue Velvet fought over the chair directly behind him, so to make it fair, Hoss suggested that they each share half of the chair, so they could both be seated directly behind him.  It was uncomfortable, but they endured it just to be near their sweet man.

Miss Maggie, Chanteuse Debpet, and Dancer Sunshine were all seated together, crying into their handkerchiefs at the possible fate their beloved Adam was facing.

Trials are always big news in every town, but when a trial took place AND involved someone as important as a Cartwright, Fiction City was a busy, busy place.

Eileen sat looking straight ahead with Daydreamer beside her, writing on a paper pad.  The courtroom was filled to capacity and buzzing with excited tones as Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey, arrived with Adam Cartwright wearing handcuffs.

They passed in front of Eileen and she looked at Adam as he looked at her.  They each saw sadness and hurt in each other’s eyes instead of animosity towards one another.  Sheriff Lily urged her prisoner forward to take his place beside his attorney.

With sketch pad in hand, Candyfan’s hand moved swiftly and accurately over the paper as she drew the scene before her.

Madison Craig, also with pencil and paper in hand, feverishly wrote down every word she could hear plainly AND some she COULDN’T hear plainly.

Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel on the wooden disk on her desk to signal quiet in the room.  The voices of spectators dropped to hushed tones as the Judge began.  “This trial has been called to establish the guilt or innocence of Adam Cartwright in regards to a charge of attempted murder,” Judge Elizabeth said as she leafed through the papers in her hands.  Looking up now she continued.  “How does the defendant plead to this charge?”

Adam was leaning forward in his chair with his arms crossed on the table in front of him, his expression sober and solemn.  Michelle stood up at her place beside him.  “My client pleads not guilty, Your Honor,” she said.

The Judge turned to Saloon Girl Becky , who also served as court clerk when needed.  “Let it be shown in the records that Adam Cartwright pleads not guilty.”  Turning to Daydreamer, the Judge said, “Can you show sufficient cause against this defendant?”

Daydreamer stood up and faced the Judge.  “Yes, Your Honor.  We can place the defendant, Adam Cartwright, at the scene of the crime on the day and time in question, and my client will testify to the assault.”

“Let it be so stated,” Judge Elizabeth said to Becky.  “Call your first witness for testimony,” she said to daydreamer.

“I call Sheriff Lily to the stand please,” Daydreamer said loudly and plainly.

Sheriff Lily was sworn in by Becky and promised she would tell the truth.

“Sheriff, please tell us everything you know about the night the attack against Eileen K. occurred.”

“Well, I was making my rounds as usual.  My last stop is always the Library.  This particular night when I got to the Library, I saw the door was open and then I saw Eileen laying on the floor just inside the door.  There was blood everywhere.  Her head had a large cut on it, she was unconscious, and had a concussion.”

Michelle jumped up from her place beside Adam. “Objection.  The Sheriff is not a medical authority, and as such, is not qualified to offer any definitive medical observations as to whether Eileen was or was not suffering from a concussion.  I ask that her statement regarding the concussion be stricken from the record.”

“Sustained.  The witness’ statement regarding the concussion shall be stricken from the record.”  Turning to Sheriff Lily, she said, “Will you please rephrase your answer.”

“I saw Eileen laying on the floor in a pool of blood.  Her head was bleeding, and she was unconscious.”

“What did you do?” Daydreamer asked the Sheriff.

“I checked to see if she was still breathing, then I picked her up and ran with her to Doc Milesky’s office.”

“When did Eileen regain consciousness?”

“Not until after Doc worked on her to get the bleeding stopped.”

“Did she say anything to you when she regained consciousness?”

“Yes she did.  When I asked her if she saw who attacked her, she told me that she had.”

“Who did she say attacked her?”

Michelle stood up quickly again.  “Objection Your Honor.   The Sheriff testified  that my client’s accuser had just come out of an unconscious state.  Therefore, I contend she probably was not rational at the time, and may have been dreaming the whole ordeal.”

Daydreamer spoke up quickly.  “Your Honor, I’ll be able to substantiate this witness’ testimony by my client’s own testimony, who is QUITE rational at this time.”

“Objection overruled,” Judge Elizabeth stated.

“Sheriff, who did Eileen say attacked her the night in question?  Did she name him?”

Sheriff Lily looked at Adam, who remained motionless.  “She told me it was. . .Adam Cartwright.”

The courtroom became like a hive of overworked bees.  Madison Craig was writing as fast as her hand would move and Candyfan had already used up four sheets of sketch paper capturing the illustrations that would appear in the morning edition of the Fiction Gazette.  Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel down hard on the small wooden disk.  “Order!  Let’s have order folks!” she ordered.

The Judge continued once the order was restored to the courtroom.  “You may continue Daydreamer.”

“I have no more questions for this witness, Your Honor.”

“Michelle, would you care to cross-examine this witness?”

“Yes, Your Honor.  Thank you.  Sheriff Lily, what time would you say it was when you reached the Library on the night in question?”

“It was about five or six minutes after Eileen closed.”

“Five or six minutes.  Was it five minutes or was it six minutes?”

“Well I can’t be ABSOLUTELY sure. . .”

“Sheriff, my client’s welfare is at stake here.  A minute can make a difference as to his innocence or guilt.  Now was it five minutes or was it six minutes?”

“Five.”

“Five minutes after closing.”  Michelle looked at a piece of paper in her hand.  “This is Eileen’s statement she made to you after she regained consciousness.  According to that statement, she said Adam Cartwright came to the Library at closing time, stayed a couple…which is two…minutes then left.  Is that right?”

“Yes.  That’s right.”

“Sheriff, the Library is on the corner of the street isn’t it?”

“Yes.”

“How long do you think it would take a person to step from the side street beside the Library to the Library door?  Five minutes?”

Daydreamer stood up quickly.  “Objection!  Your Honor, I don’t see how this line of questioning is relevant.”

“On the contrary, Your Honor, this line of questioning is VERY relevant in order to establish my client’s innocence in this matter.  I’m trying to establish a time element,” Michelle countered.

“I’ll allow this line of questioning, Counselor, but make sure you get to the point of the relevance quickly.  Objection overruled.  Proceed.”

“Thank you, Your Honor.  Will you answer the question, Sheriff?”

“It would probably take just a few seconds to get from the corner of the building to the Library front door.”

“A few seconds.  Sheriff, how long do you think it takes to get from the Library to the end of town and back. . . .if you were riding a horse?”

“Probably two to three minutes each way.”

“Two to three minutes.  And it was five minutes after closing time that you discovered Eileen on the floor of the Library?”

“Yes.”

“Did you see my client the night in question in the vicinity of the Library when you made your rounds?”

“No.  I didn’t see him at all that night.”

“Alright.  We have my client arriving at the Library right at closing time which is,
 what. . . .five o’clock?”  Sheriff Lily nodded.  “My client stayed two minutes then left, and five minutes after five, you discovered Eileen on the Library floor.  Correct?

Sheriff Lily nodded.  “Yes.  That’s correct.”

“Suppose someone else was hiding in the shadows beside the Library.  According to your testimony, Sheriff. . .it would take only a few seconds for them to step out and stand in front of the Library door.  Isn’t that what you said?”

“Yes.”

“When you were making your rounds that night, was there a lot of activity on the streets?”

“No.  It was fairly quiet.”

“When you were making your rounds on the street the Library is located on, did you see or hear anyone leave the area on a horse?”

“No.  The street was deserted.  Everyone had already closed up and gone home.  Well, except for Eileen, and I was on my way then to walk her home.”

“So the street was deserted. . .except for yourself of course.  So why didn’t you see or hear Adam Cartwright riding away from the Library that night?”

The Sheriff looked at Michelle but didn’t answer.

“Well Sheriff?”

“I don’t know.”

“Doesn’t it seem a little odd to you, Sheriff, that if a crime had just been committed, you would have seen or heard something or someone?”

“I suppose so.”

“Well Sheriff, what you’re telling me is that my client arrived at the Library right at five o’clock, talked with Eileen for two minutes, and to be conservative, let’s say it took him only TWO minutes to make that trip out of town; he spends another two minutes coming back into town, and commits assault on her.  That makes it six minutes after five, one minute AFTER you found her, then he spends another two minutes riding out of town.  Why didn’t you see all that?  You were right there.” 

“I don’t know”

“Sheriff, how long have you known Adam Cartwright?”

“Several years.”

“Being a Sheriff, you pretty well know how criminals act, how they live their lives, the kind of character they have.  Would you say Adam Cartwright lives, acts and has the character of a criminal?”

“No.  Of course not.  He’s a respectable man.  His whole family is.”

“How would you describe Adam Cartwright’s character?”

“I would say he has impeccable character.”

“You speak very highly of him.  A person that is greatly respected and with such impeccable character, like you say he has. . .in your opinion, as a character witness for Adam Cartwright, do you think he could be capable of committing such a horrendous act like he’s accused of?”

“I personally don’t think so, but he was ident. . . .”

“Thank you Sheriff,” Michelle cut in quickly.  “No further questions., but  I would like to reserve the right to call this witness again if needed, Your Honor.”

“So recorded.  You may step down Sheriff.  Do you have any other witnesses you would like to call, Daydreamer?”

Daydreamer spoke clearly.  “Yes, Your Honor.  I call Doc Milesky to the stand.”

Doc Milesky rose from her place and was sworn in and took the witness seat.  “Doc Milesky,” Daydreamer began.  “Will you please describe the injuries sustained by my client at the hand of her assailant.”

“She had contusions, abrasions and a severely deep gash on the side of her head above her right temple causing unconsciousness and a concussion.”

“As a medical expert, would you say that the blow to her head would have been fatal had she been struck just right?”

“Objection, Your Honor.  Counsel is leading the witness.”

“Sustained.”

“I’ll rephrase the question, Your Honor.  In your medical expert opinion, Doc Milesky, WHICH injury, if any, could have been fatal to my client?”

“The gash above her temple.  An inch lower would have caused instant death.”

The courtroom became a noisy buzz of voices again.  And again, Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel for order.  Candyfan’s talented artistic hand flew over her sketch pad, capturing the courtroom scene.  Madison Craig’s hand was also busy pushing her pencil across her pad of writing paper trying to write every spoken word.  Chanteuse Debpet, Student Miss Maggie and Dancer Sunshine continued to cry into their hankies every time they thought about their beloved Adam facing such a horrendous charge.  Ellie and Blue Velvet were only interested in getting Hoss to notice them.  They tried tickling his earlobes and reaching around him and patting his face.

Once the Judge restored order, Daydreamer continued.  “Doc, when Eileen regained consciousness, did she say anything to you?”

“Yes, she did.  She said…let me see if I can remember her exact words…she said… ‘Why, Adam.  Why’.”

“She talking about Adam Cartwright wasn’t she.”

“Objection, Your Honor.  Counsel is leading the witness again.  Besides, there must be a dozen men around named Adam.”

“I’ll rephrase.  Who did Eileen specifically name as her assailant?”

“After she gained full consciousness to where the Sheriff could question her, she said the man who attacked her was Adam Cartwright.”

Dancer Sunshine, Chanetuse Debpet and Student Miss Maggie wailed out loud and stood up and rushed to Adam and encircled him as they wailed like banshees.  Uptight Schoolmarm Sneddy hurrahed, clapped and whistled her approval of Adam’s incrimination.  The crowd of spectators stood up and began pointing their fingers and talking loudly.  Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey had a devil of a time trying to pry the three weepy women away from Adam.  Candyfan grabbed another pencil and flipped over another page on her sketch pad to capture the outburst.  Madison Craig filled another page of notes on her pad.

Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel and yelled.  “Order!  Order in this court!  I will not have my courtroom turned into a circus!  Anymore outbursts of this nature and I’ll have this courtroom cleared!”  Judge Elizabeth was stern and definite in her statements and the crowd quieted down to where you could hear even the finest silk pin drop.

“Now,” Judge Elizabeth continued.  “You may proceed with this witness, Miss Prosecutor.”

“I have no more questions for the doctor.  Your witness, counselor.”

Michelle stood up from her place at the defense desk, but didn’t approach the doctor.  “Doc Milesky…in your expert opinion…when a person sustains an injury of this nature, can they be disoriented, confused and unaware of what’s happened to them after they wake out of unconsciousness?”

“Yes, they can and more often than not, they are.”

“Thank you, doctor, no further questions.”

“I have one on redirect, Your Honor.  In your expert opinion, Doc Milesky, did Eileen appear to be disoriented, confused and unaware of what happened to her when she regained full consciousness?”

“In my opinion? No, she was not disoriented or confused and she was fully aware of everything.”

“Thank you, doctor, that’s all.”

“Do you have any further witnesses or evidence, Miss Prosecutor?” Judge Elizabeth asked Daydreamer.

“Yes, Your Honor.  I call Eileen K., to the witness stand.”  Eileen stood up slowly and walked just as slowly to the witness chair and after being sworn in by Becky, promised to tell the truth.

Daydreamer smiled as she spoke quietly and calmly to Eileen.  “Don’t be afraid, Eileen.  Please tell the court and the jury what happened on the night in question.”

Eileen looked at her attorney with wide eyes then glanced at Adam, who continued to lean forward on the table in front of him, staring intently at her.  He knew her testimony could convict him of attempted murder.  If convicted, he could spend as many as fifteen years at hard labor in the Territorial Prison.  His eyes told her to tell the truth regardless of the outcome.

“Go ahead, Eileen, tell what happened,” Daydreamer gently urged her client.

Eileen pulled nervously at her handkerchief  while  she  talked.  “Well. . .I. . .Adam
had. . .come to the Library at closing time to. . .” she glanced at him again.

“To what, Eileen?” Daydreamer asked.

“To find out my answer about attending the dance with him that night.  He and I had talked earlier in the day and I told him to. . .come to the Library for my answer.”

“Did he come at closing time?” Daydreamer asked her.

Eileen looked at Adam through misty eyes and thought she saw him smile at her slightly, but she couldn’t be sure, so she blinked her eyes rapidly several times to clear them.

“Answer the question, Eileen.”

Eileen looked at her attorney.  “What?”

“Answer the question.  Did Adam Cartwright come to the Library at closing time?”

Eileen felt such a great amount of emotion come over her that she could only nod her head in answer.

“Answer out loud, please,” Judge Elizabeth said kindly.

With her head lowered, Eileen answered, “Yes,” softly.

“Louder please, Eileen,” Daydreamer urged.

Eileen raised her head and looked at Adam.  “Yes.  He did.”

The courtroom became alive with activity again as people leaned over to one another whispering to each other.  Ben, Joe and Hoss all shifted in their seats, but Adam remained motionless.

Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel for order.  “You may proceed Daydreamer,” she said when the crowd grew quiet.

“What happened then, Eileen?” Daydreamer asked her.

Eileen closed her eyes and took a deep breath and let it out, then opened her eyes.  “We talked a couple of minutes, then we said goodbye and I closed and locked the door.  A few seconds later I heard a knock at the door and thinking it was Adam coming back, I opened the door.”

“Was it Adam Cartwright at the door?”

Eileen looked at Adam, whose expression hadn’t changed since he sat down.  She looked at her attorney and put her hand over her face.  “I don’t. . .I can’t. . .”

Daydreamer saw Eileen was faltering, so she quickly said, “Was it Adam Cartwright standing at the door of the Library when you opened it?”

“Yes,” Eileen said with great difficulty.

Daydreamer placed a soothing hand over her client’s hand.  “I know this is hard for you, Eileen, but it won’t last much longer.  What do you remember happening next?”

Eileen gained her composure then replied, “I saw him raise his hand, then I screamed and then I felt pain in my head.  The next thing I knew I was waking up in Doc Milesky’s office.”

“One more question, Eileen.  Are you one-hundred percent sure it was Adam Cartwright you saw with an object in his raised hand ready to strike you, and was it Adam Cartwright who struck you in the head?”

Eileen looked at Adam with a deep frown etched into her forehead.  With her chin trembling and tears falling down her face she replied, “Yes.  It was.”

Once again, the courtroom buzzed with voices and the Judge had to restore order.  “Proceed,” Judge Elizabeth ordered when the noise had quieted.

“I have no more questions for this witness, Your Honor, but I reserve the right to call her again.”

“So recorded.  Your witness Michelle.”

“Eileen, I know how difficult this is for you, and I’ll try to be as gentle as I can in my questioning.”

Eileen sniffed and nodded her head.

Michelle looked at a piece of paper in her hand.  “Eileen, you stated that you and Adam talked a couple of minutes, said goodbye and you locked the door.  About how long would you say it was between the time the two of you said your good-byes and you locked the door?”

“A minute.  Maybe two.”

“Why didn’t you lock the door immediately?”

“I don’t know. . .I. . .I watched him ride away.”

“You watched him ride away.  You went back inside and locked the door then?”

Eileen nodded.  “Yes.”

“Did you hear Adam Cartwright ride up the first time?”

“Yes.  I knew it was him by the sound of his horse.”

“Did you hear Adam ride up the second time?”

Eileen thought for a moment.  “No. . .I don’t remember hearing. . .him ride up the second time.”

“You don’t remember hearing him ride up. . .yet you KNOW it was my client who attacked you.  Is that right?”

“Yes.”

“How do you KNOW it was Adam Cartwright who attacked you?”

“Because I saw him.”

“You SAW him.  Was it still daylight outside?”

“It was getting dark.”

“You could see it was my client even though it was getting dark outside and he stood in the dark shadows of the building?!”

Daydreamer stood up abruptly.  “Objection Your Honor!  Counsel is badgering the witness!  My client is not on trial!”

“Your Honor, I’m merely trying to establish whether my client was at the scene of the crime at the time of the attack, just as my opponent has tried to do.”

“Objection overruled.”

Facing Eileen, Michelle continued.  “Could you see my client clearly even though it was almost dark outside, and he was in the shadows of the building?”

“Yes.  The lights were still on in the Library.  I saw him.”

“Describe him as you saw him.”

“Do I have to go through this again?” Eileen asked the Judge fearfully.

“Yes, I’m afraid you do,” Judge Elizabeth said kindly.

“He was dressed in black, just as he always is.  Black shirt.  Black pants.  Black hat.  Black hair.  It was Adam.  It was Adam!” 

“Couldn’t it have been someone else you saw?!”

“No!  It was Adam!”

“Was it?!  My client had already left!  The Sheriff testified it takes at least two minutes to leave town, yet you stated in your testimony it was only a few SECONDS later that you opened the door and saw my client standing in the doorway.  Wasn’t it someone else you saw, Eileen?!  Wasn’t it?!”

Eileen put her face in her hands.  “No!  No!” she shouted.

Adam stood up suddenly from his place.  “Michelle, stop!” he said loudly.

Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel.  “Sit down, Mr. Cartwright!”

Adam pointed to Michelle.   “Tell her to stop!”

“Mr. Cartwright. . .sit down!” Judge Elizabeth ordered again with a bang of her gavel.

Michelle went quickly to Adam’s side while Daydreamer went to Eileen who was now trembling and sobbing uncontrollably.

Michelle took hold of Adam’s arm. “Sit down, Adam.”

“I don’t want you doing that to her,” he said in a harsh tone to her.

Michelle pulled him down into his chair beside her and looked him in the eyes. “Don’t you understand. . .if I can’t shake her testimony. . .if I can’t find a flaw in it. . .you’re going to spend the next fifteen years breaking rocks in prison!  I’ve got to be hard on her!”

“She’s been through enough as it is, you don’t have to go about it that way,” he replied.

“We have to do everything we can to prove your innocence, Adam.  EVERYTHING.”

“Not like that,” he answered in a calm, low voice.

“Alright.  Then we’ll find another way,” Michelle said, relenting.

 “Your Honor, my client needs time to compose herself.  May we please have a recess?” Daydreamer said to the Judge.

“This Court will reconvene tomorrow morning at ten o’clock.  Court is adjourned,” Judge Elizabeth said as she banged her gavel down on the wooden disk.

Madison Craig wrote as fast as her fingers would move, and she hoped she would be able to read what she wrote once she was back at the newspaper office.

Candyfan’s talented artist’s hand flew across the paper of her sketch pad as she captured the court scene being displayed in front of her.

Daydreamer put her arm around Eileen’s shoulders and led her away from the witness box, where they were met, in the middle of the room, by Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey with Adam between them.  Eileen and Adam looked at each other.  “I’m sorry.  I didn’t want it to be you,” Eileen said to Adam while she cried.  Adam nodded his head.  “I know,” he replied quietly.

Ben, Joe and Hoss followed Sheriff Lily, Deputy Grey and Adam back to the jail, while Eileen was escorted to Doc Milesky’s office, where she was given a sedative by Nurse Rebecca.

Bartender Val opened the Fiction Saloon and offered free sarsparilla to anyone who wanted it. Saloon Girl Becky and Lynnette, leaned on the bar exchanging ideas about who they thought was telling the truth.  “I know the Cartwright’s and I know Adam wouldn’t hurt anybody,” Lynnette stated.

“Well I know Miss Eileen.  She’s as honest as the Cartwright’s.  She wouldn’t accust somebody wrongly,” Saloon Girl Becky said.

“Well SOMEBODY is lying,” Val commented, as she wiped the counter in front of her.

“Yeah, but which one?” Candyfan asked as she grabbed her violin case and opened it.  “How about a little music to liven this place up?’ she remarked.  Her nimble fingers moved quickly up and down the strings of her violin as she drew the bow back and forth across the strings at the same time.

Shorty sat in her barbershop fanning herself as she sat in one of the two barber chairs, waiting for customers to come in.  Dakota sorted mail at the Post Office.
****************

At the ramshackle cabin miles away. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

“Well now…That Cartwright boy just might get convicted after all,” the accomplice said while reading the juicy article Madison Craig had written about the trial.  Candyfan’s drawings were so lifelike, one could almost see the anguish on Adam’s face.

“I didn’t want this,” Boss said while crumpling the newspaper and throwing it in the fire.

“Want it or not. . .you got it.  After Cartwright’s convicted and sentenced, we’re home free,” the accomplice said with a sneer on their face.

“Home free nothing.  With Adam out of the way, we BOTH lose.”

“How do you figure?”

“Just take my word for it.”

“I’m getting mighty tired of being cooped up here.  I need a little entertainment to keep from going crazy.”

“You stay put.  You know how you get when you go seeking. . .entertainment. . .as you call it.”

“I’m bored to death in this rat hole!”

“I’m warning you. . .you leave here and show up in town and all our plans are washed down the gully.”

“How much longer?”

“I don’t know, but we’ll both get what we want if we’re patient.  I’ve got to get back to town.”

Boss left the accomplice standing in the middle of the ramshackle cabin once again.
*************

Adam heard a gaggle of giggles outside his cell window and turned around to face the window that was high up on the wall.  He saw the four smiling faces of Saloon Girl Becky; Dancer Sunshine; Student Miss Maggie and Chanteuse Debpet, looking right at him.

“Ladies. . .please.  I’m trying to wash myself,” Adam said as he grabbed his shirt and shoved his arms in the sleeves and pulling shirt tightly around him.  “Do. . . .you. . . .mind,” he drawled out in an annoyed tone of voice.

All four women shook their heads.  “We don’t mind a bit.  You just go right ahead.  Forget we’re even here,” Becky said as she flashed him her most winsome smile.  Then the four of them giggled again.

Adam walked over to the cell doors and called out.  “Sheriff Lily!”

Shortly, the Sheriff entered the cell area and Adam pointed to his cell window.  “I know Bartender Val runs the public bathhouse. . .but this is a little ridiculous.  This is a little TOO public, don’t you think.”

“I’ll take care of it,” Sheriff Lily said, with a smile, then added, “You’re just too charming for your own good, Adam.”

“Now you sound like my brothers.  Just get rid of my audience so I can finish, will ya.”

Sheriff Lily left the cell area with a loud, hearty laugh.

She found the four women had stacked boxes beneath Adam’s cell window and all four were perched on the top one.  “Alright ladies.  Show’s over.  Come down and move along,” she told them.

Reluctantly, the four of them came down from their lofty height and walked away with pouty expressions on their faces.

Sheriff Lily merely shook her head.  “It’s almost dangerous to be young and handsome this day and age,” she said out loud as  she stood under Adam’s cell window.

“You’re tellin’ ME,” she heard a deep voice say as the words drifted up and out of the cell window above her head.  Sheriff Lily looked up over her head at the window and laughed.

*******************
The next day at ten o’clock sharp, Judge Elizabeth banged her gavel once on the wooden disk.  “This court is once again in session,” she declared.  “Daydreamer, do you wish to recall any witnesses or have any new testimony to introduce?”

Daydreamer stood up beside Eileen.  “No Your Honor.  We rest our case against the accused,” she said, then sat down.

Turning to Michelle, Judge Elizabeth said, “Do you wish to recall any witnesses or have any new testimony to introduce?”

Michelle stood up beside Adam.  “I have a request of the Court before I proceed with my client’s case, Your Honor.”

“State your request.”

Before Michelle could state her request, a noisy ruckus could be heard in the hallway and Deputy Grey entered, pulling a man along wearing handcuffs.

“What’s the meaning of this intrusion, Deputy Grey, and who is that man?” Judge Elizabeth ordered.

“I found him skulking around down by the Vet’s office.”

“Bring him forward.”

Madison Craig’s hand moved swiftly as did Candyfan’s.  People whispered and talked to the one sitting next to them. Ellie and Blue Velvet used this opportunity to plant kiss after kiss on each side of Hoss’ face while Little Joe looked on and cackled.  Adam studied the man in handcuffs closely.

Deputy Grey stood with the man in front of Judge Elizabeth’s bench.  The man was tall, with black wavy hair, wearing black pants, vest and red shirt.  His black hat was pushed back and rested on the back of his head.

“Now, Deputy Grey, you said you found him snooping around the Vet’s?” Judge Elizabeth asked.

“Yes, Your Honor.”

“If you’ll just let me explain why,” the man spoke up.

“Go ahead.  But first tell us your name and what you’re doing in Fiction City,” Judge Elizabeth said to him.

“I tried telling your Deputy, but I was just handcuffed and dragged over here.  My name is Canaday and my horse hurt his leg and I was just trying to find the Vet to have him look at it.”

“Her,” Deputy Grey corrected.

“What?” Canaday asked.

“Her.  The vet’s name is Lynnette and she’s a girl.”

“Whatever,” Canaday replied.

“You’ll have to forgive us, Mr. Canaday, we’re in the middle of a trial so none of the businesses are open right now.”

“I can understand that, Judge, but I really need to get my horse’s leg tended to and be on my way and could you please uncuff me.”

Deputy Grey looked at Judge Elizabeth and she nodded.  “Lynnette, why don’t you go ahead and take care of the man’s horse for him,” Judge Elizabeth said.

Lynnette nodded and Canaday followed.  “I don’t want anything to happen to him, he’s an appaloosa and there aren’t too many of them around,” Adam heard the man called Canaday say to Lynnette as they passed by.  Adam leaned over to Michelle and said something to her.

“Are you sure, Adam?”

“It just all seems to fit, Michelle.  Several people said they saw me in town the day before Eileen was attacked, only I wasn’t in town that day.  He’s the right height, black hair, clothes, except for the red shirt and he has an appaloosa horse that Shorty said he sold me.”

“It could just be a coincidence, Adam.”

“All of it?”

“There’s two things, though…he doesn’t resemble you in the face at all, so he couldn’t be your look-alike, and if he IS the one who committed the crime, he wouldn’t be stupid enough to show himself in town in broad daylight for fear of Eileen recognizing him.”

“He wouldn’t have that fear if he thought he had killed her.”

“That’s true, but he still doesn’t look like you.”

“I know.  That’s what confuses me.”

“I’m going to try something, Adam.  It may be a long shot, and it may even backfire and get you convicted anyway.  Do I have your permission to try?”

“What do you have in mind?”

“Trust me on this, Adam.”

“Alright, do what you have to do.”

Michelle nodded.

“Michelle, are you ready to present your defense?” Judge Elizabeth asked.

“With the Court’s indulgence, Your Honor, I would like to go to the scene of the crime and have my client and his accuser re-create the incident.”

Daydreamer stood up quickly.  “Re-create the incident. . .Your Honor, I must protest!  My client has been through the incident once, and she almost lost her life because of it, must we subject her to it again?”

“Your Honor, I realize it’s still broad daylight, but if you would just bear with me.  I want to have this whole thing clear in my own mind before I attempt to present my client’s case before this Court.  Surely my worthy opponent won’t deny my client the chance to prove his innocence.”

“Your Honor. . .I’m only thinking of my client.  She’s been through. . .”

“It’s alright,” Eileen cut in as she took hold of Daydreamer’s arm.

“Your Honor, may I have a moment to concur with my client?” Daydreamer asked Judge Elizabeth.

“One moment.”

Daydreamer sat down next to Eileen.  “Do you know what you’re doing?  This could harm you emotionally.”

“Yes, I know what I’m doing.   I can’t deny the chance to help clear Adam.  I don’t know how it could help him, but if there’s a chance, I want to do it.  He’s just as much of a victim as I am.  Please Daydreamer.”

Daydreamer stood up and faced the Judge.  “Your Honor, my client has agreed to go along with the request, but I must insist that if my client becomes upset in any way, proceeding with the re-creation will stop.”

“Very well.  This Court will assemble and reconvene at the Library, immediately,” Judge Elizabeth said with a bang of her gavel.

***************

Judge Elizabeth, the jury, the accused and accuser, their lawyers and all the townspeople, except for Lynnette the Vet were gathered inside the Library to witness the re-creation of Eileen’s attempted murder.

Adam stood at the corner of the building, as the re-creation began to unfold.

“Alright Eileen, walk us through what happened that night, though I realize it’s daylight and everything won’t seem exactly as it was,” Michelle said to her.

“Well, I had pulled the shades down and Adam came through the door, we talked about the dance that night for about two minutes maybe, then he left.  I walked out behind him and watched him ride away.” 

“Did he gallop away, or did he walk his horse?” Michelle asked.

“He galloped away.”

 “What then?” Michelle asked.

“I went back inside and locked the door.”  Eileen went inside and locked the door, then a knock sounded on it and she walked over to the door.  “I thought it was Adam coming back, so I unlocked the door and let him in.  That’s when he stepped into the doorway with his arm raised.”

Adam raised his arm and stepped into the doorway in front of Eileen.  She looked up at him and her eyes grew wide with fright as she remembered that night, then she shook her head.  “No.  No.  This isn’t right.  There’s something different.”

“Different?” Michelle asked curiously.  “What’s different?”

“I’m not sure.  Everything happened like we showed you, but Adam seems. . .different.  Could we just do the part when he steps in front of me?”

“Alright.  Let’s do that part again,” Judge Elizabeth ordered.

Adam stepped outside around the corner and Eileen closed the door, then opened it again.  Adam immediately stepped in front of her, and she looked up at him.  “His eyes!  It’s his eyes!  They were. . .BLUE!  It WASN’T Adam!  The man who attacked me had BLUE eyes!”

Ben, Joe and Hoss looked at each other and smiled widely. 

“Are you sure, Eileen?” Daydreamer asked her client.

“I’m positive.  He had BLUE eyes. . .Adam’s eyes are BROWN.  That’s why I couldn’t believe it was him, but I didn’t know why.”

“And now you do?” Daydreamer asked.

“And now I do.”

“Your Honor, we withdraw the charges against Adam Cartwright,” Daydreamer responded.

“Very well.  Let the records show, charges against Adam Cartwright for attempted murder are dropped and the case against him dismissed,”  Judge Elizabeth declared.  “Court adjourned,” she added.

The whoops and hollers that followed the Judge’s adjournment were heard all over town as the townspeople rejoiced over Adam Cartwright’s innocence.  Saloon Girl Becky; Dancer Sunshine; Student Miss Maggie, and Chanteuse Debpet, wrapped themselves around Adam and showered him with hugs and kisses to show their joy at his proven innocence.  His father and brothers looked on in amusement, while Eileen watched in sadness, not because she was sad about Adam’s innocence, but because she wanted to express to him her own happiness about it, but the cloud of women hovering around him, prevented her from doing it, so she turned and walked the distance to Lynnette’s Hotel and up to her room where she spent the rest of the day sailing on a clipper ship with its white, billowy sails blowing in the breezes as she sailed across the vast Pacific Ocean. . . .She spent the day reading her beloved books.

While the town was rejoicing about dismissing the case against Adam, Michelle had pulled Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey aside and told them what Adam had related to her.  The three of them went immediately to Lynnette’s Vet Shop.  Sheriff Lily walked up behind Canaday and looked in his saddlebags and pulled out a black shirt.

“This your shirt, Mr. Canaday?”

Canaday turned around and looked at the shirt in the Sheriff’s hand.  “Yes, but why do you want to know?”

“Mr. Canaday, come with me please.”

When the Sheriff drew her gun, Canaday let out his breath in a whoosh, rolled his eyes upward and raised his hands.  “Not again.  What for this time, Sheriff?  Owning a black shirt?”

“No son, something more serious…suspicion of attempted murder.”

“What?!  Sheriff, are you crazy!  I just rode into this town!  I haven’t tried to kill anybody!”

“Then you won’t mind coming along so I can ask you some questions.”

“Do I have a choice?”

“No, son, you don’t.”

“Take care of my horse, Miss Lynnette, I wouldn’t want anything to happen to him.”

With his hands raised, Canaday walked towards the jail ahead of Sheriff Lily and Deputy Grey.  Michelle followed them out of the Vet shop then went her own way.

******

Canaday didn’t put his hands down until he heard the cell door clang behind him.  He turned and with a quick jerk of his hat off his head, he threw it down on his cot and planted his hands on his hips.

“Now look, Sheriff…what kind of a town is this…you take strangers just passing through and lock them up?!”

“What kind of a town do we have…a nice quiet, peaceful town…a town people aren’t afraid to live in and we want to keep it that way.  And I lock strangers up when I feel I have just cause.”

“And what cause do you have for locking me up?  You said something about an attempted murder…who am I supposed to have attempted to murder?”

“Our Librarian, Eileen.”

“Well, bring her here, she’ll tell you I’m not the one.”

“You sure you want to take that chance, son?”

“Sheriff, I’m innocent!”  He spread his hands out in front of him for emphasis.

“So was Adam Cartwright, and the only reason he was exonerated was because he had brown eyes.”

“What?  Sheriff, you’re not making sense.  Who is Adam Cartwright and what does the color of a man’s eyes have to do with anything?!”

“There was  a man seen in town the day before the incident who looked like Adam Cartwright; who dressed like him; and who bought an appaloosa horse from our Livery owner.  The man who attacked Eileen looked like Adam Cartwright; dressed like him and had blue eyes.  You fit every description, except you don’t look like him in the face.”

“I’m not that man, Sheriff!  I swear it!  I’ve been in Utah for the last month and just now drifted over this way.  I bought that appaloosa six months ago back in Colorado.”

“Is there anyone I can telegram who can vouch for you?”

“No.  I’m a loner.  No family…no friends.  And the man I bought the appaloosa from, left town.”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Canaday, but the evidence is just too great against you to let you go.  After I do an investigation…”

“Sheriff, I’m innocent!”

“After I do an investigation, and that investigation clears you, or if you can come up with somebody who saw you somewhere else on the day in question, I’ll let you go.  Until that time, you’re a guest here.”

“Some guest accommodations!  A jail cell!  I hope you don’t treat ALL your guests this way!”

“I wish I didn’t have to treat YOU this way, because for some unexplainable reason, Mr. Canaday, I like you.”

“I’d hate to see how you treat people you DON’T like, Sheriff.”

Sheriff Lily turned to walk away.  “Uh, Sheriff?”

“Yes, son?”

“Most people call me Candy.”

Sheriff Lily smiled at him and nodded.  “I’ll get you some dinner…Candy.”

“Thanks.  And, Sheriff?  I really am innocent.”

“For your sake, Candy, I hope I can prove that.”  Sheriff Lily left the cell area and the office and walked to Ellie’s Café.

******
As soon as the news was out that Sheriff Lily had arrested someone who could be Eileen’s attacker, the jail had a constant flow of curious townspeople wanting to get a look at “the scoundrel” as Candy was called by many of them.

Likewise, when Adam learned of the arrest, he made a trip into town to satisfy his own curiosity.  He tethered his horse outside the Sheriff’s office and pushed and elbowed his way through the crowd to the door.  He persuaded Sheriff Lily to let him in.

Once inside, he handed her his gun, and walked to the cell area and stood in front of Candy Canaday’s cell door.

“Who are YOU?  I suppose you’ve come to gawk at the ‘criminal’,” Candy said sarcastically.

“Name’s Adam Cartwright, and I don’t think you’re a criminal.”

“Adam Cartwright?  The man on trial.  Looks like I’ll be following in your footsteps.”

“Not if we can prove your innocence.”

“WE?  Look, Cartwright, I didn’t ask for your help in proving anything, just like I didn’t ask to be locked up for something I didn’t do.  Now just leave.”

“I’m giving you my help because I want to and because I don’t think you’re guilty.”

“Well you’re the only one in town who thinks like that.  One more day in here and I’ll confess to being guilty, just so I can get out of this cell for awhile, even if it is just to walk across the street to the courthouse.”

“You don’t want to admit to something you didn’t do.  Isn’t there anyone who can prove you weren’t here that day?”

“Nope.”

“I’ll do all I can for you, Mr. Canaday, because I know how frustrating it can be to be falsely accused.”

“Thanks, Mr. Cartwright, but I don’t know what you can do that the Sheriff hasn’t been able to do.”

“Adam.  Call me Adam.”

“And my name’s Candy.”

“I’ll do what I can, Candy.”

“I appreciate that.  I’m sorry if I sounded rude to you earlier.”

“That’s understandable.  I’ll see what I can do and I’ll talk to you later.”

“Well, I’ll be right here,” he said sarcastically.

Adam grinned at Candy’s wit, then left the area and the office.  He made his way across town to the Library where he knew Eileen would be working late.

Eileen was just about to lock the Library door when Adam pushed it open.  She gasped and faltered on her feet when she saw him.  He reached out and grabbed her to keep her from falling backwards.

“Oh, Adam…you startled me.  I wasn’t expecting anyone.  What can I do for you?” She stepped back out of his hold.

“I came to ask if you’d come down to the jail and take a good look at Candy Canaday.”

Eileen stepped away quickly and stood with her back to him.  “The Sheriff has already asked me to do that.  I don’t want to see him.  I still have nightmares about that night.”  She turned around and faced him.  “He was the one who attacked me that night, Adam, how can you ask me to look at him again.”

“Is he?  Is he really the one who attacked you, Eileen?  What if he isn’t?  What if he’s innocent like I was?”

“Innocent?  But it WAS him.  He had your hair, your clothes, and the blue eyes.”

“Yes, but he doesn’t look like me in the face.”

“Yes he does.  I saw him that night.  He looked just like you, except for the blue eyes.”

“But Eileen, Candy Canaday doesn’t look like me.  You have to come and look at him.”

“No I don’t.”

“He might be innocent.”

“But…”

“If you believed he was innocent, wouldn’t you want to help him?”

She looked up at him.  “You really DO believe he’s innocent don’t you, Adam.”

“Yes, I do.”

“Well…Daydreamer said I wouldn’t have to face him until the day of the trial.”

“Well if you can identify him as NOT the man who attacked you, then there won’t have to be a trial.”

“Well, I don’t know…”

“I’ll go with you.”

“Alright.  I trust your judgment, Adam.  I’ll get my wrap.”

******

Adam and Eileen were just about to enter the Sheriff’s Office when Hoss rode up. “Hey, Adam!”

Adam left Eileen standing by the door and went over to talk to his brother.  “You know that ol’ cabin a-Harvey Sapp’s?” Hoss asked him.

“Yeah.  What about it?”

“I was out that way lookin’ for strays a while ago, and somebody’s stayin’ in it.  I saw two horses tied up.  Adam, one was a appaloosa.”

“An appaloosa?  You sure?”

“Horses is one thing I know, Adam.”

“Well I saw Candy’s appaloosa still stalled at the Livery when I was walking Eileen here.  I’ll tell the Sheriff.”

“Ya think whoever it belongs to is the same man who attacked Eileen?”

“That’s exactly what I’m thinking, and so will the Sheriff.  Stick around, he might want you in on the posse.”

“Sure thing, Adam.”

Adam went back over to Eileen.  “You might not have to go through with the identification after all.  Go on home and I’ll see you later.”

“What is it, Adam?  What did Hoss tell you?”

“Never mind, just go on home.”

“But I don’t understand…first you convince me to come look at that man, and now you’re telling me I don’t have to.  What’s going on, Adam?”

“I think your mystery attacker is about to be captured and unveiled.”

“What?  But I…”

Adam gave her a slight nudge forward.  “Now go on, do like I ask.  I’ll see you later.”

Being very confused and puzzled by Adam’s behavior, but trusting him, Eileen went on her way.

When Adam told the Sheriff what Hoss had revealed to him, they immediately left the office to round up additional deputies.  Deputy Grey stayed behind to guard the prisoner, in case it was just a trick to get everyone out of town in order to get the prisoner to break jail.

Every available person wore a deputy badge and followed Hoss, Adam and the Sheriff to a cabin miles outside of Fiction City.

******

Before reaching the cabin, Sheriff Lily stopped the posse and spoke to them.  “If the man we’re looking for is in that cabin, I want him alive…if possible, but remember…he’s dangerous.”

Everyone looked at everyone else, then Sheriff Lily led the way towards the cabin.

“Remember everyone…he’s dangerous,” Sheriff Lily told the posse before they surrounded the cabin.

When the posse was in place around the cabin, Sheriff Lily called out for the man inside the cabin to surrender.  When he threw out his gun and stepped outside, every mouth dropped open and every eye widened when they saw who it was.

Put under arrest and after confessing to being Eileen’s attacker, the prisoner named another person as his accomplice, who was called Boss.  Sheriff Lily and the posse made the trip back to town with their prisoner, then locating and arresting Boss, put them both in jail.

Eileen was summoned for identification of the prisoner as her attacker and after her positive identification, Adam was summoned, because the business with Boss concerned HIM.

Stepping into the cell area to converse with Boss, Adam almost fainted when he saw the both of them.  Eileen’s attacker could have been Adam Cartwright’s double if it hadn’t been for the moustache and the fact HE was a SHE and called himself/herself Psycho Emmy.

However, Boss was the one who left Adam totally flabbergasted.  Boss was really Laura Dayton disguised as Madison Craig.  Laura came back and wanted renew her relationship with Adam, but when she thought Adam was interested in Eileen, she hired Psycho Emmy to scare the Librarian into leaving Fiction City, but when it turned into attempted murder, she knew there was no turning back.

****************

Judge Elizabeth deemed Psycho Emmy in dire need of some counseling by Therapist Daydreamer.  And so with the trial and conviction of Psycho Emmy and Boss Laura Dayton behind her, Eileen decided to leave Fiction City.  Sitting on the bench outside the stagecoach depot, with ticket in hand, she didn’t notice anyone near her until the rays of the sun were blocked by him standing in front of her and she looked up at him and smiled.

“Hello Adam,” she said softly as she stood up.  “I’m glad to see you, but you didn’t have to come see me off.”

“You’re really leaving.”  It was more of a statement than a question.

She nodded.  “Yes.  I am.”

“I’d like to know your reasons.”

“The reasons aren’t important.”

“They must be. . .you’re leaving because of them.”

Eileen didn’t answer him, because their attention was diverted to the stage as it pulled up alongside them and stopped.

“Well I guess this is good bye,” Eileen said to Adam while Val helped the stage driver load her bags onto the top of the coach.

“I’d still like to know WHY you’re leaving, Eileen.”

“I told you. . .the reasons aren’t important.  Let’s just leave it at that, Adam.”

“I thought you were the kind of person that could make your own decisions.  I guess I was wrong about you.”

Eileen’s eyes widened in surprise at his remark.  “I’m very capable of making my own decisions.”

“Well  it  appears  to  me  you’re  letting  these. . . .reasons. . . you  say  aren’t
important. . .make the decision for you.”

Eileen tilted her chin up at him and squared her shoulders, and narrowed her eyes at him, and took a deep breath, ready to open her mouth.  He had seen that look on women before and knew he was about to receive a piece of her mind whether he wanted it or not.  He was glad other passengers had gathered near the coach, and hoped Eileen would decide not to give him that piece of her mind.

Eileen let out her breath, and her shoulders relaxed a bit.  “I guess I better get in the coach,” she said quietly and turned towards it.

Glad that her piece of mind STAYED in her mind, he asked quickly, “Where will you go?”

She turned back around to face him again.  “Oh, I don’t know.  Someplace that needs a Librarian,” she said with a slight laugh in her voice.

“There’s a need for one right here,” he said softly.

She smiled at that, then looked into his dark eyes and thought to herself. . . .Those wonderful eyes. . .I’ll never forget those eyes.  “I’ve already turned the Library over to Becky.  Goodbye Adam,” she said quietly, then turned towards the coach again.

 “Eileen. . .”

“Yes?” she said, turning to face him.

“Won’t you stay?”

“I can’t.  Besides, this really hasn’t felt like home.”

“Home is where you hang your hat. . . .or in your case. . . .your bonnet.”

Eileen smiled at that.  “I can’t keep the stage waiting any longer,” she said, turning again to step into the coach.

“I guess I WAS wrong about you.”

Eileen turned around to face him.  “Wrong?  What about now?”

“I didn’t think you would run away.”

“Run away?  I’m not running away from anything.”

“Aren’t you?”

“No.  What would I be running away from?”

“You’re running away from your responsibility of  the Library, from the town, from me, from yourself.  Adam held her arm.  “Won’t you please stay. . . .as a favor to me.  Now what do you say we run off together and visit some exotic place?”  Adam said, as he raised his eyebrows and one corner of his mouth turned up into a smile.

Eileen cocked her head and looked up at him and smiled.  “Why Adam Cartwright. . .you wicked man,” she said in a teasing voice.

“I meant via one of your books.”

Eileen laughed out loud at him.  “I know that’s what you meant, silly.”

“Miss,” the driver called down.  “The stage is ready to leave.   You coming?” he asked again.

Eileen looked at Adam and knew she had found in him, a true friend for life.  “No driver.  This handsome man and I are running off together to some exotic place,” she said softly.

Adam smiled.

“Say what?” the driver asked, with a puzzled look on his face.

Adam looked up at him and cleared his throat.  “She said she was staying,” he replied.

“Oh.  Well then I guess I better be gettin’ her bags down,” the driver said as he climbed over the back of the driver seat and handed her bags down to Adam.

Adam and Eileen walked away from the stage depot arm in arm.  “I hope Lynnette hasn’t rented my room out already,” Eileen remarked as they walked.

“I told her you would be coming back.”

Eileen stopped walking and looked at him.  “Is that a fact.  And just HOW did you know that?”

“Well everybody is saying how much charm I have, so I thought I’d use it on you to see if I could persuade you to stay.” 

“Looked like it worked,” she said, then smiled sweetly at him, and they continued walking, his arm around her shoulders, and hers around his waist.

“What distant port shall we visit?” he asked her.

“Well, once upon a time, I read about a place called. . . . . .”  Her voice trailed off as we hear music begin to play.  Short,. Dakota, Candyfan and Miss Maggie used their musical talents playing “Early One Morning” on their respective instruments, while Adam and Eileen walked off into the sunset together. . .Or is it RIDE off into the sunset. . .oh well, you know what I mean.

Chanteuse Debpet and Dancer sunshine were so thrilled at Adam’s innocence, they put on a free show for the whole town in the city hall.  During the same evening, Candyfan was awarded the contract of her dreams…to show and sell her drawings in the San Francisco Art Gallery.

Candy Canaday was offered a job on the Ponderosa and was convinced to accept the job by an enticing smile from Rebecca and a promise to sew only red shirts for him.

Laura Dayton was never heard from again, and so the little community of Fiction City went on about their every day business.

So until the next episode of Fiction City, and as the last chords of the music fade away, Fiction City is once again a safe, happy haven for all its residents.

Wait a minute!  Who is that lurking in the shadows with a sinister smile on his/her face…could it be…could it possibly be Psycho Emmy?!  And is Fiction City REALLY a safe and happy haven once again?  Only time will tell.
THE END

Another Author’s Note: I hope you enjoyed reading this story as much as I enjoyed writing  it.   And  as  Fairy  Tale  endings  read. . . . “And  they  lived  happily  after
ever. . .ahem. . .ever after.”  Especially Ellie and Blue Velvet, for after all their constant pursuance of Hoss, he agreed to court them both. 

“So until the next episode in the life and times of the residents of Fiction City, this is your Friendly Announcer saying, I hope you enjoyed our adventure story for this month and will be tuning in next time for another exciting time of reading around the ole computer screen. So until then, this is your Friendly Announcer signing off.”

Now it’s:  THE END
Author: Eileen K.