Where Does My Heart Beat Now- Chapter 43

*Author's Note: Gaelic words & meanings from this chapter... striapach= w***e (pronounce it like stree-up-ack, as in "lock")

Chapter 43

“Hurry up and wait… Typical.” Sean lounged around on the grass beside Gabriel and T.J. while chewing on a blade of grass to entertain himself.

They had made it to their destination atop the steep hill and could see the peaks of the Round Tops in the distance from where they sat. Granted, they were on the Union side of the reenactment site, but it was where they were supposed to commence the attack from. Once again the battle was late to begin, forcing everyone to find something to do in the meantime. Gabriel chose to send out a few scouts to find out the location of the Union cavalry and what the holdup was. That was how Casey, Seamus, and Kate found themselves riding lazily along a line of trees and a low rock wall down the hill from the rest of the cavalry. For the most part they could see a large crowd forming by the sidelines, but no sign of the Yankees. That was either a good thing or a bad thing.

“Where do you think they are?” Casey mused, and then saw two women in dresses carrying canvas buckets of ice �"one lilac woman and the other scarlet�" run out from the sidelines to help a re-enactor who had gone down from the heat. Well, if it isn’t Beauty and the B***h. Those two don’t get a break, do they?

The three scouts stopped behind the line of trees to watch Faye and Ellen attend to the man lying on the grass by himself; he was quite young from what they could tell, probably in his early thirties. Seamus was drawn to the way Ellen held the man’s head on her lap as Faye scooped a small chunk of ice out of her bucket to put to the man’s lips. When it came to the health of a man, Ellen was quick to help them from what Seamus deduced. He noticed Casey’s eyes were fixed on the women also, or most likely Faye since he had announced his love for her earlier that morning. His cousin sighed heavily, obviously thinking about her by the way he leaned forward on Dionysus and rested his chin in his hands with his elbows on the horse’s neck, just like a love struck teenage girl.

“Casey, just tell her how you feel tonight at the ball,” Kate suggested.

The light green male rolled his eyes in exasperation, “If I can get her away from all of the other men.”

“You’ll get your chance to talk with Faye. I’ll make sure of that.”

A female scream from the direction of the women caught the scouts’ attention. Looking back, they saw four Union cavalrymen emerge from the tree line to surround the two Ice Angels and the dehydrated Confederate soldier. The question of why the re-enactor had been on that side of the field was forgotten when three of the Yankees jumped from their saddles in an attempt to take the poor man as a prisoner; however, Ellen threw herself over the man to protect him from being captured, as she was not about to let them take a defenseless man without a fight. It was quite a show watching Faye and Ellen ward off the cavalrymen, that was until one of the men grabbed Faye by the waist so that he could throw her onto the back of his horse. Ellen scrambled after them, leaving the Confederate to use whatever means possible to defend himself, and managed to get her arms around the Yankee’s calves, pulling him to the ground with Faye. The lilac woman tried to get to her feet in order to get away and wound up getting tangled in her skirts, sending her tumbling to the ground with one of the other cavalrymen clawing his way after her.

“I do believe this is not part of the scenario,” Kate kept her eyes fixed on the action by the spectators, waiting to see what happened next. Those spectators have no idea that this isn’t part of the battle.

“Kate! They’re taking the women!” Seamus was in a panic as he watched the Yankees throw a screaming Ellen and Faye onto the backs of their horses before riding off into the trees with them, along with the Confederate soldier, “We have to stop them!” He kicked Hermes into a canter so that he could rescue the women, but Kate rode right in front of him, stopping Seamus in his tracks.

“No, Seamus! This is going to take all of us, because I’m positive this might be a set up.” Kate wheeled Buster around on the spot and charged back up the hill with Casey and Seamus right behind her, “We need to get back!”`

Please, God. Don’t let them hurt Faye… or the b***h. Casey was truly worried about the well-being of the two women. He was ready to do whatever was necessary to see that they made it out of there unscathed, even if that meant busting up a few blue bellies in the process. Bring it.

 

Gabriel waited anxiously beside Sean �"who had remounted Hijinx�" for his scouts to return and tell him what they learned of the Union cavalry position. A pounding of horse hooves drew his attention toward the crest of the hill where Kate, Casey, and Seamus appeared a few moments later, galloping hard his way. The three of them slid to a stop in front of him and saluted, which Gabriel returned.

“What have you learned?” He questioned.

Kate was the first one to speak, “The scenario has changed, Gabriel. Several Yankee cavalrymen have taken a Confederate soldier hostage, as well as Ellen and Faye. I’m afraid this is for real.”

“Where have they taken them?”

“Sir, they disappeared into the trees near the suttlery.” Seamus broke in, showing a deep concern by the way he spoke, “We need to save them before those damn Yankees do something to harm them.”

Who could be behind this? I’ve never known someone to go to the level of kidnapping another person at a reenactment. Gabriel rode over to one of the troopers nearby in order to discuss ammunition, “Levi, I need you to get back to camp as fast as you can and bring back all of the bullets you can find. This is going to get deadly.”

The other man wasted no time getting to the camp, and returned ten minutes later with a box of bullets, in which a good portion of the 1^st Texas loaded into their pistols. Never did any of them think they would actually have to shoot someone. During the time the troopers were preparing, Gabriel and Jesse rode among them to ensure they were ready for the attack that was just over the hill. Gabriel found Kate off by herself with her head bowed and eyes closed in prayer as she clutched the Celtic cross charm on her necklace. Riding up beside her, he gently covered her free hand with his, making her look up to see his aqua eyes gazing at her.

“Whatever happens today, know that I love you more than life itself,” Gabriel said in a whisper to help comfort her. “Just follow my command and be prepared to move fast.”

Kate’s expression turned into one of an angry woman out to kill, “Gabriel, for the love of all things holy, you had better pull that damn trigger, or so help me�".”

“Oh good, you’re ready for a fight. Save it for the Yankees, please.” Gabriel patted her shoulder and checked to make sure he was sufficiently supplied with extra cylinders for quick reloads.

“They’re down there! The Yankees are out in the open waiting for us!”

Kate and Gabriel turned around in their saddles to see a young man from a Tennessee unit riding back from the crest of the hill where he had been keeping a watch for any Union activity. He fell back into formation beside some of the other men from his unit to await orders from Gabriel. The moment had come to face the enemy head on, including the malicious man who ordered the capture of the two women and the Confederate re-enactor. Gabriel’s heart pounded erratically in his chest at the thought of riding into a real battle; their lives depended on putting all of their training to use.

Once every trooper had fallen into their position in the battle formation, Gabriel joined Jesse, Sean, and the adjutants at the front of the formation before pulling out his sword again. “For the souls of our own people… and for General Stuart. Forward!”

Moving together as one unit, the cavalry advanced in groups of four set out in columns and rows to span the hillside with Gabriel, Jesse, and Sean in the lead; like always Sean carried the 1^st Texas Cavalry’s colors. A large troop of Union cavalry waited for them near the tree line, some of them riding around to encircle the group to protect them from any unknown attackers. Gabriel swept his eyes over the blue troops, searching for the hostages while thinking of a battle plan. It was finally time for the largest cavalry charge he had ever been in.

“Captain, sound the charge!” Upon hearing the sound of the bugle call, Gabriel spurred Bo into a hard gallop down the steep hillside with the entire cavalry following suit.

Many of the cavalrymen had already brought out their weapons in preparation, including Kate, who had one of her .44 caliber dragoons at her side. They followed their general into a fight without having a clue as to how the outcome would be; however, they were willing to fight to the death if need be. Ahead of them, the Union cavalry formed into two straight lines, one behind the other, to create a defense as they waited for the Confederates to reach them.

God, watch over us and protect us, Gabriel prayed all the while keeping Bo at a steady gallop toward the enemy. The distance between the opposing sides shortened greatly with every passing second, but the moment he looked up, a gunshot disturbed the air around them followed by a scream of pain from one of the men three rows behind him; the man had been hit in the shoulder by a bullet. “Hold formation! Do not break rank!”

All at once, the Confederate cavalry drew their swords from their sheaths in preparation for the moment they would collide with the Yankees. That moment arrived faster than any of them were expecting; the clanking of metal as sword blade met sword blade resonated off of the tree line, causing the spectators to gasp in awe. From the look of things, none of them seemed to realize that the battle they were witnessing was for real. For some of the re-enactors the battle had moved to the ground after they had been knocked from their mounts. Feet moved quickly as each side remained locked in their deadly dance with one opponent ducking occasionally to keep themselves from taking a sword blade to the side of their head.

While most of the cavalry was busy on the field in front of the tree line, the Dawson’s found themselves winding their way through the trees on the tails of several retreating Federals. Gabriel had a hunch that if they followed them they would run into the person who had ordered the kidnapping. Without any warning, two of the blue coats split off in one direction at the same time the others continued on a straight path; a distraction.

“Seamus… Casey,” Gabriel called back to his brother and cousin. “Follow those two cretins! And see if you can find the women. The rest of us are staying after these guys!”

The Yankee cavalrymen in front of Gabriel and his wife made a sharp turn to the right, almost disappearing from him, but he and the others kept on them as they continued to wind through the trees. They were positive they were being led to the man in charge of everything and that the situation was sure to turn nasty.

Heart pounding erratically in his chest, Gabriel prayed silently for the safety of his wife and the rest of his family as he knew blood was sure to be shed. Keep her safe, Lord. Today is not her day to join you. He pulled up on Bo’s reins when he noticed the Yankees approach a man sitting on the back of a light brown mule a few minutes later. The brim of his hat covered his eyes, making it difficult to see who he was. To either side of the officer were four burly men, who stared menacingly at Gabriel’s group. By the way they held their Colts at the ready it was obvious shots were going to be fired soon.

“Lovely day for a reenactment isn’t it, Gabriel?”

That voice. The last time Gabriel and Kate had heard it the two of them were in Oakwood Cemetery in the midst of rescuing their daughter. Sure enough, they watched in disbelief when the man lifted his hat to show them who they would be battling in mere minutes. Max’s glare pierced deep into their souls until Kate could stand the sight of him no longer. Only when Gabriel grabbed onto Buster’s bridle did she refrain from riding over to the enemy to stab her sword through his gut.

“Today is the day you will join Nick in Hell!” Kate spat angrily, already pulling another dragoon from the pommel holster on her right in preparation.

Max glanced to the men beside him and replied coolly, “You kill me, and the two women will have their throats slit. So, I would suggest you choose wisely.”

Unbeknownst to the family, a group of Union men showed up to block the way they had come, leaving them unable to escape. The only way they would make it out alive was to drop all of the Yankees, including Max. Every one of the Dawson’s readied their weapons, for the fight began the moment a gangly soldier charged them from the side with his pistol pointed at Gabriel after Max gave the signal to advance: a simple flick of the hand in the family’s direction.

 

Seamus and Casey were quick to search for the location where they had taken the women as the rest of the family bought them the valuable time they needed; with Max and his cronies preoccupied in another part of the tree line they wouldn’t have to worry about having to ward off unexpected Yankees. Or so they thought. The few enemies the two of them did have to face were easily taken care of seeing as most of the opposition was either busy in battle with the hundred or more Confederate cavalrymen just on the outskirts of the tree line or was caught up in the middle of the battle with Gabriel and the others. The Dawson men found the women tied to a tree a ways away from what looked to be Max’s headquarters, and there were at least five guards keeping a close eye on them. However, Seamus and his cousin made short work of luring the guards away from the women, and then showed them they had the wrong idea to pick a fight with them. Seamus easily sunk the blade of his Arkansas Toothpick into the thigh of an advancing guard, dropping him to the dirt in a heap while his bowie knife found its mark between the eyes of another, more chunky guard.

Ellen didn’t know what came over her as she watched the men beat down the guards. One moment she was tied up to a tree as a very real battle took place, the next she was backed against a tree not tied up, staring into Seamus’s eyes. She could still hear the battle erupt around her, but it sounded so far off and distant at that moment, and it was so easy to push away and forget it for the time being. Seamus had her pinned underneath him, his eyes shimmering as he leant in for a kiss, and to her own surprise, Ellen didn’t resist, pushing away all caution and just getting lost in the moment, her hands running over every ounce of him. Seamus pulled her closer to him, clearly as lost as she was…

And then, as quickly as it came, it was over, and Ellen found herself back in reality, her heartbeat thumping against the wall of her chest as she tried to figure out what exactly just happened. What the hell was that? It was the first time that she experienced something like that. Did I really just have a daydream about kissing a guy…and not just any guy, but Seamus of all people? I must be going ‘round the bend!

“Dude, I don’t wanna get on your bad side.” Casey commented as they headed toward the women, “Or on the wrong end of your knife, for that matter…” Hearing a Union soldier running toward him from behind, he turned around and landed his fist in the soldier’s jaw, “That was for Faye, ya dumbass.”

“Excuse me,” Ellen said, drawing their attention after she had regained her sanity. “Ladies tied up here! Who invited the moron, anyways?”

Faye shook her head at her friend’s words. She, for one, was very thankful that the men were there to save them.

“Well, that ‘moron’ just saved your life,” Casey exclaimed, defending himself. “I’d at least expect a decent ‘thank you’.”

Seamus knelt down and cut the rope, freeing Ellen and Faye from their bonds. Faye automatically hugged Casey in thanks, causing him to turn beet red.

Seamus chuckled, “Hey, come on lovebirds. We’ve got to get out of here before we get killed.”

The four of them started for the horses so they could head back towards the others, but unbeknownst to them, they had been spotted by a Union soldier hiding in the bushes. The soldier drew his own knife and attacked, moving directly towards Ellen. Seeing the danger, Seamus knew there was only one way to intercept the attack; throwing himself in front of Ellen, he cast himself as a living shield. All that registered in his mind was the scarlet woman shrieking his name as he took five inches of blade in his left pectoral muscle. The pain was excruciating, yet he managed to overpower the man who had stabbed him, and knocked him unconscious. As soon as that deed was done, Seamus took the time to strip off his shirt and use it in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

Just like she had at Devil’s Den, Ellen found herself staring at his perfect form, amazed that anyone could appear that beautiful even when they were in pain and dripping blood. Have mercy... Then it dawned on her: he had taken a knife in the chest for her. “You didn’t have to do that,” Ellen spoke in soft tones.

“And let you die? Not on my watch,” Seamus replied while still holding the shirt to his chest. “Come on, let’s go…”

They didn’t make it more than a few feet before Kate crashed through the bushes with one of Max’s cronies chasing after her. She whirled around on him and pulled out both of her .44 caliber pistols, pulling both triggers at the same time. The man dropped dead.

“Shouldn’t have fucked with me...” Kate returned the pistols back to their holsters. The sight of Seamus bleeding through the shirt caught her attention. “Damn. What happened to you?”

“I lost a fight with a knife. Any more questions?” Seamus was a little annoyed by Kate’s questioning, but instantly forgave her when a bullet zipped past them from the direction Kate had come and stuck in the trunk of a tree, followed by Max and Gabriel stumbling through the bushes with the blades of their swords clanking together. The bullet had come from Gabriel’s Colt, obviously, because he was in the process of shoving it back in the holster on his gun belt when Max kicked it out of his hand, rendering it useless.

“What your wife said about me joining Nick today was a joke, Gabriel.” Max swung the blade of the sword around to strike his opponent across the back, only to have it repelled by Gabriel’s sword.

During Max and Gabriel’s deadly dance, Sean and the others faced a new wave of Yankees from behind the tents. Before pulling his bowie knife free from its victim’s forehead, Seamus hurried Faye and Ellen away from the scene to have them hide in the cover of some bushes. Little did the women know that they were crouched beside the spirit of Susan, who had followed her family into battle. Rejoining Casey and Riley near one of the tents, Seamus dropped two of the Union men in a matter of seconds, both with shots to the heart from one of his revolvers. Beside him, Sean accidentally amputated a soldier’s arm at the shoulder when he sliced his sword at the passing man. He had no idea his sword was capable of such a gruesome injury. To end the man’s suffering, Kate sent the single bullet from her derringer through the Yankee’s skull, silencing his cries.

“Any other time I would ask why you keep your sword so sharp,” Kate panted heavily while continuing to pick off advancing Yankees. Not seeing one of Max’s bodyguards sneak up behind her, she took a blow in the side of her face, which knocked her to the ground. At first she thought he would shoot her dead where she lay, but Casey stepped up behind the man at the last second and sunk the blade of his small knife in his carotid artery, spewing blood onto Kate and Casey both.

“And here you thought my baby knife was only good for picking teeth…” Casey directed the words toward his cousin, who shrugged his shoulders in reply.

A movement across the way caught Kate’s attention, and she could see the same man the Union soldiers had taken as a hostage slip out from his bonds before he army crawled over to Gabriel’s pistol lying partially underneath a bush. The man snatched up the pistol and fired it at the backs of Max’s knees. Max let out a cry of pain the moment he was struck by the bullets and collapsed to the ground where Gabriel threw himself on top of his enemy to keep him from scrambling away. At first, Gabriel had Max immobilized, but Max managed to throw Gabriel off of him. Kate watched in horror as Max forced himself to his feet, putting the tip of his sword against the side of her husband’s throat.

“No!” Once to her own feet, Kate ran full out toward Max, throwing her arms around his middle in an attempt to stop him from killing Gabriel. She yanked the sword out of Max’s hand, throwing it away from them, and then she surprised herself by wrapping one of her arms around his chest tightly and the other on his forehead to restrain him. The strength at which Max fought against her despite his crippled legs nearly pulled her over. “Shoot him, Gabriel! DO IT NOW!”

Remembering he was without his pistol, Gabriel picked up his sword from the ground in preparation to end Max’s life. He moved in front of Kate and Max, pressing the point of the long blade to the area just below Max’s rib cage. Not a hint of emotion crossed Gabriel’s face in the passing seconds. “Say hello to Nick for me, Max.” With a quick thrust forward, he felt the blade disappear into his enemy’s abdomen.

Kate couldn’t bear the sight or the sound of blood gurgling in the mouth of the man, and eventually decided it was best to end his suffering. She quickly jerked his head to the side, snapping his neck with a sickening crack. The body went limp in her arms, which was her indication to let go. It’s over. It really is. Her feet carried her away from the body on the ground until she reached the location where Rob was shoving his pistol back into its holster before they got to work dragging the fallen Yankees into the bushes to hide them from any spectators that happened to walk by.

Everyone else was distracted by the corpses of the dead Yankees when Susan slipped out from behind the bushes and walked towards Gabriel, going completely unnoticed. She had been observing the battle and decided it was time to do what she had come back for. In her hand was a thin strip of brown leather, or what appeared to be leather. Getting behind Gabriel she got to work, undoing his hair from its usual ponytail and shaping it to her will. The end result was something similar to that of Casey’s and Seamus’s, only without the braids that Seamus sported or the hidden bobby pins of Casey’s style. The top and front layers had been pulled back into a half ponytail with the leather wrapped around the base and secured by a leather tie.

The only thing that let Gabriel know of something happening behind him was the slight tugging on his hair. Turning around to see what had touched him, his eyes fell on those of Susan, leaving him unable to move or say anything out of disbelief. The adrenaline flowing through his body must have caused him to hallucinate, because there was no way he could be looking at his first love… not after he witnessed her crossing over into the light. Just to rule out the possibility of going insane, Gabriel rubbed his eyes in an attempt to clear them. Susan’s spirit still stood in front of him. Either I’m losing my mind or someone needs to start talking to tell me what the hell is going on here.

“Gabriel, you have protected your family from the two men that killed me. Consider this revenge for my death.” Susan spoke in her rich voice Gabriel remembered all too well. “Because of your actions here today, you have proven yourself as a warrior of God. Therefore, changes were in order.”

Gabriel ripped the mirror from Susan the moment she produced it out of nowhere and gawked at his new appearance. The first thing that caught his eye was the leather wrap around the half ponytail, “Where’d you get the leather?”

“Think of it as a medal for your victory. It’s Nick’s tanned hide.” Seeing Gabriel’s disbelieving stare she continued, “He was damned anyways, so I thought why not take something away from him just like he did to me?”

“A bit morbid, don’t you think?” His eyes widened further in shock.

The only response he received from Susan was a shrug of her shoulders. And just as quickly as she had appeared her spirit vanished into the trees as if she had been a figment of his imagination, leaving him standing in the middle of the carnage. A shiver ran up Gabriel’s spine as soon as she had disappeared.

An eerie silence crept around the clearing, the type of silence that was normal for a graveyard, not a Civil War reenactment. The battle had ended in the most violent way possible; however the enemy had finally been vanquished.

Ellen carefully pushed herself from the ground once she noticed Seamus on the other side of the clearing in the middle of pouring water from his canteen onto a handkerchief before holding it over the gash across the left side of his chest, gritting his teeth as he fought away the pain. He was hurt, and she had to help him. Snatching up her purse filled with medical supplies, she hurried over to where he sat with his back against a tree.

“Let me see it,” Ellen dropped to her knees in front of him and pulled out several items in preparation to suture the wound.

Seamus hesitantly pulled away the blood-soaked cloth to reveal a five inch long deep knife wound that still seeped bright red blood. He watched Ellen gingerly dab a clean handkerchief from her own purse around the edges to clean the area. She was surprisingly gentle despite her previously known actions toward men.

Threading a hooked needle with black suture thread, she said, “I don’t have anything to numb the area with, so I’m afraid this is going to hurt. You can hang on to me if you need to.”

An unbearable burning was felt in his chest the moment Ellen dug the needle deep into his flesh, forcing Seamus to press his forehead against Ellen’s shoulder. Over and over, the needle poked into his skin, and each time the pain intensified until Seamus felt tears sting his eyes. Eventually, he got to the point where he couldn’t take the pain, and pleaded for her to stop. “Dear, God. Please stop!” He knew pain from when he had gotten the triskele tattoo on his shoulder blade, but the pain he felt whenever Ellen would sink the needle into the area around the wound didn’t compare.

I hate to make him hurt. Ellen stopped her work and found herself rubbing his back as if making the pain leave his body. She could feel his fingers slide underneath the bottom of her dress and along the part of her leg directly above her knee. Her heart almost melted from the thought of him needing the comfort of a woman’s warm skin underneath his touch. “I just have another two inches to go before I’m done. Hang on a little longer…” Without hesitating, she stuck him once more, trying her hardest to ignore his groans of pain; her job was almost complete. That was until she got within the last inch and saw him fall back to the ground, lying motionless in the shade.

“Seamus. Can you hear me, Seamus?!” Ellen leaned over the still body of the dark green male and shook him in an attempt to wake him. Nothing. Good grief… He passed out. Seeing Gabriel and Casey nearby, she turned and called, “Can I get some help over here?”

When Gabriel heard someone in need of assistance, he was surprised to see Ellen leaning over his brother, who appeared to be sleeping. That thought was dashed the second he noticed the half-sutured gash on his chest. From the way Ellen roughly shook Seamus without any response, he knew he had to step in. After grabbing a bucket of water from one of the tents, Gabriel walked over to where his brother and Ellen were.

“Back up, unless you want to get a bath,” Gabriel tossed the contents of the bucket onto Seamus’s face once Ellen had scurried out of the way.

That did the trick. Seamus instantly flailed around on the ground, spitting water from his mouth as he wiped his face dry with his hand. For a few moments he glanced around in confusion, unsure of what had happened. Then his eyes fell on Ellen, who sat in front of him with a concerned expression plastered on her face.

“Why do I feel like I have the mother of all hangovers?” Seamus finally questioned, rubbing his temples in order to clear away the fogginess.

Ellen was the one to answer, “You went unconscious while I was stitching up your knife wound.”

“Well, that’s embarrassing. Did you finish?”

“I have a few more to put in.”

Knowing well enough that Ellen needed to finish tending to the wound, Seamus braced himself for the ungodly burning he had experienced before. The mistake was made a few moments later when he looked down to see her work; just the sight of the needle hooking into his skin was enough to make him feel light-headed, and that was when his vision went dark… again.

Son of a�" Ellen hastily tied off the last suture and snipped it while Seamus lay there unconscious. Her next issue came about when she realized that they didn’t have any more cold water to throw on him, or rather she didn’t think about their canteens having water in them. That left her with the only option she could think of… “Hope he forgives me for this later.”

Gabriel and Casey watched curiously, wondering how Ellen intended to revive their family member. Both of them cringed as she moved her hand dangerously close to the apex of Seamus’s thighs and then gave his private area a strong squeeze. Being men, themselves, they knew how sensitive that particular area was, and weren’t surprised in the least when Seamus shot up to a sitting position, swearing for everyone to hear.

“I COULD KILL YOU, YOU GOD FORSAKEN STRIAPACH!” Seamus brought his hands between his legs to stop the throbbing, all the while shooting nasty glares at a snickering Ellen. How in the hell did she find the situation funny when not one, but two areas of his body were in pain?

Leaning over close to an amused Gabriel, Casey whispered, “Good thing she doesn’t know that he just called her a w***e.”

“I’m sympathizing with Seamus right now. I wouldn’t react so nicely if a chick squeezed the s**t out of my nuts, either,” Gabriel responded, his attention still fixed on the two in front of him.

Seeing as how Seamus was fine, the small group dispersed in different directions to inspect the outcome of the battle, and to rejoin their fellow cavalry members gathered just on the edge of the tree line. For the most part, they suffered only small injuries if any, but for the ones who did have more serious wounds, Faye was already tending to them.

Not wanting to make her encounter with Seamus any more awkward than it already was, Ellen quickly disappeared to help her best friend with the men she had taken into the shade of the trees. If anything, she wanted to put as much distance in between her and Seamus as she could so as not to embarrass herself further.

What possessed me to grab him there? I can’t let myself get involved with him. Ellen thought while disinfecting a small cut on the wrist of a young man. Maybe I should consider getting to know him; he’s the only man that’s shown any interest in me and been nice. Once she had finished with the cavalrymen that needed her help, she would put all of her attention on getting made over for the ball that night. Just the thought of the silky steel-colored ball gown hanging in hers and Faye’s tent excited her.

 “I’ll see you tonight, pretty girl.”

Ellen looked up to see Casey sitting on the back of Dionysus in front of Faye and throw a wink down at the lilac-colored woman wrapping a bandage around a man with a twisted ankle. Earlier during the day she had learned of Faye’s late night trip to visit Casey and what had happened during that time span. Just the thought of Faye letting Casey get anywhere near her woman business made her blood boil. But then again, who was Ellen to judge, especially after having the daydream of kissing Seamus.

The last thing either of the two women saw was the rest of the 1^st Texas riding off to their campsite with a newly changed Gabriel in the lead. Even Seamus rode along behind his brother after managing to mount the blue roan gelding. Everyone needed to relax for the rest of the afternoon to get refreshed for the night’s ball, and for some that meant crashing on their cots with a battery-powered fan blowing on them for a little relief from the Pennsylvania heat.

 

“Is that blood on you, Gabriel? Huh? Is it?!” Mae screeched the moment she laid eyes on her returning family. All of them appeared as if they had gone through a war, which they had. That was when she caught sight of blood spatter on Kate’s cheek as the younger woman passed by on her way to her tent, “Why are you two covered in blood?! Did you get hurt?!”

Tired of hearing her mother-in-law’s frantic questioning, Kate turned on her and sighed in exasperation, almost yelling when she spoke, “Oh, for the love of�" Would you do us all a favor, woman, and pop some Prozac or somethig so you’ll get your panties out of a twist? You’re giving me a migraine.”

Leaving the distressed woman behind, Kate followed closely behind Gabriel to keep an eye on him. After their traumatic afternoon, she didn’t dare bring up the subject of Max for fear she would upset him. The two of them stepped into their tent and collapsed on the cots after taking Shannon from Ava. Gabriel held his daughter close to his chest in an effort to calm his nerves. They were truly free from their enemies since the last one had been disposed of, which meant they could drop their guard for good.

Kate rolled on her side, propping herself up on her elbow. Admiration for her husband shown in her eyes while she gazed over at him caressing their daughter; there was just something about his new hair style that struck her fancy. He looked more like Seamus and Casey than he had before, which was all right by her. The feeling of her eyelids drooping alerted her that she needed a little nap to recharge for the night. That was exactly what she did once she noticed Gabriel close his eyes. In a few hours she would get to change into her new dress to stun everyone at the ball.