Caleb stared at the dying man for a moment, took in the smoking gun in his boss' hands. Her blouse was mussed some, telling Caleb all he needed to know for the time being. "You hurt?" he asked, scanning her for obvious injuries.

Kitty looked up at him. "No, just mad; they got Jethro though." She pointed in the dog's general direction so Caleb waded into the scrub brush, looking for Jethro. Caleb didn't want to leave the dog behind; if he was dead, Kitty would benefit from seeing her beloved pet properly buried. Aside from that, there was a chance he wasn't dead, and Caleb had taken a liking to the dog as well. As he looked for Jethro, Caleb kept an ear out for Kitty, wanting to be sure she was safe.

 ∞

From the ground, the dying man gasped as he stared up at the mounted pair and searched the area with his eyes, obviously looking for the source of the arrow. Kitty looked down at him. "I told you that Infinity would always take care of me. If you had listened, you wouldn't be headed toward Eternity now."

He covered the wound in his abdomen with one hand. "Please," he begged. "Finish me." 

Kitty knew that, even if his friends were to get him to the town's doctor, the man would be dead within a couple of days, having come to the end of his life in indescribable agony. Remembering how he'd treated her as a child and what he'd planned for her, Kitty felt no pity for the man. She shook her head as she gathered up her shotgun and shells from under the wagon.

An idea of how to explain the appearance of her wild rescuer flashed through her consciousness. "You need to live long enough to warn others of the ghosts that are not afraid to leave my ranch in order to protect me. If your friends bother me again, I'm sure the ghosts will return."

He shook his head, denying the idea she was working to plant into his brain. Kitty allowed her choice to take on a note of scolding, as if he should already know. "My whole place roams with the ghosts of my family and with injuns who were shot a long time ago by the army, Billy. Those who stay on my ranch take care of me."

He shook his head again and swallowed convulsively. "That weren't no ghost."

"No?" argued Kitty, trying to sound casual. "Then how did he disappear so quickly? I don't remember hearing any footsteps, either. That was my dad and I'm sure Ghost-Who-Rides will be along shortly for his arrow. He once had a hundred horses before the army shot them. On moonlit nights, sometimes I see him riding with his wife and sons over my range."

"But its daylight," protested the dying man. "And that arrow wasn't no ghost arrow."

"And this is my horse, with no saddle, no bridle and no way to let himself out of the barn, either," retorted Kitty, leaping astride her horse. "Ghost-Who-Rides is a lot stronger than the spirits of his wife and sons. He appears from time to time in the daylight; he and Dad were always friends and he makes a good cowpoke, too." From Porgy's back, Kitty winked at the man.

She could see inside her destroyed wagon, noticed that just behind the seat lay the Winchester's box, miraculously untouched, along with the wrapped package of shells and reloading supplies she'd bought to go with it. The rifle had been protected from the gunfire by the wagon's seat and front wheels. With a grin, Kitty kneed Porgy close enough to the wagon to retrieve her few things that were still usable, knowing that her attackers would likely burn the wagon to hide the evidence of their crime.

After a moment's thought, she grabbed the fuel well of her ruined lantern as well; no sense in letting expensive kerosene go to waste, after all. When she'd gathered into her arms what she wanted, Kitty looked down at the man on the ground, who was desperately holding onto the hole in his gut. "You tell the others," she ordered, "I am still protected."

Then Kitty wheeled her horse, guiding him entirely by her knees, and set him on the path toward home. Caleb joined her, riding his own horse. "Ghosts of people killed by the army?" he asked, shaking his head. "Some people fool easy."

"Those ones do," Kitty agreed. "Enough people have gone missing on our land for them to believe what I tell them."

"There're more?" he asked. When Kitty nodded, he stopped his horse. "Set that stuff aside. We gotta' stop this fire before it hits the fence."

"Caleb, are you sure?" Kitty bit her lip. If anyone saw Caleb and told the sheriff, it would not end well for Caleb!

He chuckled. "They can't kill a ghost, Miss Kitty." Even she had to laugh at that.

Carefully, Kitty stashed her things with Billy's gun belt, made certain that her own gun was fully loaded and brought Porgy back in line with her friend's horse. The other men weren't hard to find. Having heard Kitty's scream, they'd gone to join their friend. Not too much longer after that, two more were wounded and the rest had fled. Caleb had used Kitty's shotgun and kept mostly out of sight, doing more to frighten the others than Kitty and her .45.

Stopping the fire was another matter, entirely. Eventually, the pair of them used their ropes and a wagon wheel to drag over the burning ground. Kitty used the acrid smoke as an excuse for her tears until the pair was able to retrieve Kitty's things and head for home.

While Kitty gathered what she could from the destroyed wagon, Caleb managed to get the harnesses off of the dead team. He stripped Kitty's saddle and hackamore off the dead horse and saddled Porgy while Kitty gathered up Jethro in her slicker. The dog was alive, barely.

Kitty rode in silence for a while and Caleb let her ride a little ahead in order to let her cry in privacy until she was calm again. She figured that her tears made him uncomfortable, as most men were around a woman's tears. Kitty waited until her breathing was normal before slowing Porgy enough for him to catch up. "How did you know?" she asked quietly when his horse was abreast of Porgy.

 ∞

"That horse was downright restive," Caleb answered Miss Kitty's question with a nod toward Porgy. "Truth to tell, so was I. I figured with the way you treat that horse, he'd find you sure enough, so I saddled up and followed him. I'm sure glad I was right." He eyed the tear tracks on her cheeks and her puffy eyes but didn't comment further. Caleb had been raised around enough sisters to know better than to say anything about her tears. His heart longed to comfort her but the price on his head warned him against it. In her arms, Jethro rode silently, the dog's breathing faint.

"Had a mite bit of trouble after sundown," Kitty explained calmly. "They shot Falling Leaves first, so I hid under the wagon; managed to get a few of them before they lit that fire. I got the most important things back but we're going to be needing a new wagon, among other things."

"And the horses," added Caleb as he remembered the dead draft team.

"The team is down to Dan and Molly and we'll be needing a new remuda horse," Kitty clarified with a hint of anger. "Porgy'll do for now." Her tone was clipped, so Caleb fell silent. Jethro's breathing grew labored as he struggled to breathe. Tears fell silently down Kitty's cheeks as she held the dog, dropping Porgy's reins to be able to stroke Jethro's head as she held him. The ranch house was still several miles away when Jethro coughed, stiffened and fell slack. Tears pricked Caleb's eyes and fell despite his struggle to hold them back. Kitty lifted her reins again despite her weeping and kicked Porgy into a faster pace. Caleb followed suit and the pair rode swiftly until they reached the house.

Caleb jumped off his horse first and lowered the bundle of things from the wagon before taking Jethro so Kitty wouldn't have to drop him in order to dismount. Carefully, he laid the dog's body in the shade of the barn before leading the horses inside. Kitty followed him silently and picked up a curry but Caleb shook his head. "I'll do that, Boss. Why don't you head into the house with your things? I only have a few more chores to finish up here and then we'll bury Jethro proper." It seemed like the least he could do for her, and he didn't exactly have any other way to help ease her grief.

Her smile seemed pay enough as Caleb stripped the saddle from his mustang. "You spoil me, Caleb," she replied. "I got you the rifle you wanted and a box of shells. The rest of that stuff is for making your reloads."

"In that case, why don't you grab that powder and lead? I'll let you know when I'm ready."

"I don't want to go into the house until Jethro's been cared for," Kitty said quietly.

"Alright then, Boss. You can go sit with Jethro while I take care of the horses, if you want." He could see the lines of exhaustion on her face.

"Thanks, Caleb." Kitty's voice sounded strangled and Caleb realized she was crying again. He poured his energy into the horses before going to find a shovel, trying in vain to ease the heaviness in the pit of his stomach.

After the dog had been buried under his favorite tree, Caleb gave Miss Kitty a brief hug before he sent her on into the house. "I'll bring the milk and eggs along later. You get some rest." He'd been worried sick about her absence and with her return; he was having difficulty fighting off the urge to hold her close. Kitty thanked him again and left Caleb to do chores.

He grinned, thinking of what she was to find inside her house. She would walk into the fixings for a nice, hot bath. Caleb didn't think he'd ever met the woman who hadn't wanted a bath after spending the night out on the open range, so he'd filled the reservoir on the stove as full as he could make it and then put her biggest kettles on the stove, full of water and heating up before he'd left. He'd even hauled the tub in and set it up along with a towel from her clothes lines.

Knowing she would be occupied by her bath and a nap for some time, Caleb put the horses up and puttered about. He cleaned his new rifle thoroughly, split firewood for the forge and then for the house, stacked corn cobs outside the smokehouse and repaired a section of fence that protected some of the row crops before finally heading into the barn for evening chores.

Only when he'd stripped off his shirt to wash under the pump did Kitty call for him to come in for dinner. Caleb had to grin when she didn't ask for water.

"Did you rest well?" Caleb asked from the doorway, watching her dish up their dinner. She was looking a little more refreshed but there were still dark circles under her eyes and a haunted look that worried him. She nodded despite the sheen of tears in her eyes.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Caleb asked as he crossed the kitchen. He'd spent most of his adult life in the company of other men. Such a life didn't exactly let a body get used to a woman's emotions and he'd been away from his sisters for a very long time. Feeling awkward, Caleb sat down.

Kitty didn't answer. Instead, she sat his plate down in front of his seat at the table and poured his coffee. "Ya spoil me, Caleb," she said instead. "Thanks for the bath."

Caleb noticed that her hands were shaking and he hadn't missed the slight brogue in her voice. "You're welcome," he told her, not sure what else to say.

Quickly, she turned her back to him under the pretense of dishing up her own dinner. Caleb hadn't missed the well of tears in her eyes though. She dished up her plate and sat down with it. "Jethro isn't here to beg," Kitty noticed afresh. "They shot him while he was protecting me from . . ." Her voice trailed off discretely but Caleb knew exactly what 'from'.

Shock over the attack and anger flooded Caleb afresh as he eyed the lines of stress on her face. "Maybe you'd better start at the beginning?" he suggested.

She nodded and began her tale without eating. "I went to town for supplies, got a good price for my produce; made my purchases. The storekeeper's boy wasn't there but I didn't pay much mind to it at first. It was getting late before we finished loading the wagon, so the storekeeper invited me to stay overnight but I wanted to get home. His wife is such a busybody!"

Caleb nodded to show he understood her reasoning, having met the woman in question. Kitty took a bite, chewed thoughtfully and swallowed, looking as if she wished she hadn't bothered with the food. "I guess he was trying to warn me to stay but I didn't take the hint. Long about dark, they ambushed me, shot the horses and pinned me down under the wagon. I had my shotgun and my sidearm to keep them away. They couldn't get near so come morning; they set fire to the grass in order to flush me out. That distracted me long enough for them to shoot Jethro and get the drop on me from behind."

Idly, Kitty stirred at her dinner with her fork, pushing it around her plate. "I'd spent all night listening to them tell me what they had planned." She looked up and saw his attention fully on her. "Let's you and me say it wasn't pretty. They'd planned to let you take the blame for it, d'ya'see?"

Caleb nodded, thinking of his wanted poster. "Yeah," he agreed bitterly. "I get it."

"It was about then that you and Porgy showed up." Kitty looked away and Caleb wondered what more she might be keeping back. "A few of them got back to town," she finished. "I guess branding will have to wait another day while I go back to town and explain the bodies to the marshal. Now Jethro is dead and that stupid Jim Grady got away clean!"

Kitty kicked the table leg moodily and threw her fork onto her plate with a clatter. "He always comes out on top, it's not fair!"

"Their kind mostly does," agreed Caleb mildly, "but he'll get his in the end, you can be sure of that."

He thought about it for a moment. "If the marshal has questions, I'm sure he'll come ask. He seems like an honest man and your wagon should tell most of the tale on its own. What say we go and do the branding as planned? After all, they attacked you, not the other way around. You've broken no laws. Defending yourself from attack ain't illegal, especially for a woman."

"I'll have to go to town eventually," she pointed out, sounding a little more rational. "I'm gonna' need a new team and a new lantern at the very least."

"Did they hurt you at all?" Caleb asked in concern, seeing her turmoil. She shook her head. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Yeah," she answered after a moment. "Not this time. Just shook up, I guess."

"Well, then the last thing you need is another trip to town. When you do go though, I'm going too." Caleb didn't see the sense in asking after her cryptic remark about 'this time'.

"But Caleb," she protested through wide eyes, "what about that poster?"

"What sort of man would I be, to let that stop me from protecting you?" he reasoned. "I can wait at the edge of town for you, next time." He paused. "Even if you weren't my boss lady, Caitlin, the hardest thing I have ever done is to wait here, knowing you were out there somewhere, maybe hurt and needing my help. I was a coward not to ride out with you yesterday."

"But I told you to stay here," she protested, lifting her head to stare at him.

"I know," he said simply. "Makes no difference, from where I sit."

"No, Caleb," Kitty argued firmly. "It's my job to protect the secrets this ranch holds, you included. I've sage-henned between here and town often enough, that there was no reason for you to worry until you did."

Her words irked Caleb. He disliked the insinuation that he was hiding behind her skirts even though he knew it was the truth. She looked at him steadily, as if reading his mind. "Protecting Infinity is a job I'd have been born for if I'd been born a Slocum. Still, I am a Slocum and my being off an orphan train doesn't change that at all. We Slocums have been protecting Infinity for as long as it's protected us."

"I don't like the idea of my being here putting you in danger," he admitted. "I'd sooner leave and take my chances than to put you at risk."

Kitty grinned and finally started eating her dinner. "Do you really think you're the first man with a price on his head to come here? I keep telling you; Infinity has a way of making people disappear, that it has a way of taking care of me. Did I ever once outright tell you that any of them died on account of this ranch or me?"

Caleb had to think about that. She'd implied it often enough, perhaps, but never once had she said that anyone had actually died from crossing her fences. "No, Ma'am," he answered slowly.

"Then you can disappear too. No one ever has to know where you are." There was a note of pleading in her voice as she suggested it. "The town will believe you dead, same as all the rest. Please, stay?"

Caleb couldn't resist reaching across the table to lay his hand on hers. "I'll think on it," he promised. "In the meantime, there's branding to be done and more work than I can shake a stick at before winter." He paused to grin. "And when I do ride on, I would very much like to return long enough to meet this Mr. Grady. After all, any man who would hurt a lady like you needs some remonstration."

Kitty looked pointedly at the size of the hand covering her own and grinned. "I would enjoy introducing the two of you, just not yet." Her grin widened at his puzzlement. "I'd hate for him to turn you in and Jim Grady can always be counted on for something like that, especially if it has to do with me."

"Why?" Caleb frowned. It didn't seem right for a man to hate a girl like her so. The more he heard of this Jim Grady, the more protective of his boss that Caleb felt.

"Do you remember me telling you about my school days?" Kitty grinned at him.

Caleb shook his head. "You said the other kids were rough on you."

"Until my cousins taught me to wrestle," she reminded him. "Jim's pa runs the general store."

At that, Caleb had to laugh, remembering that she'd given the boy two black eyes for bullying her. Kitty grinned as well. "Maybe you're right about the branding. I'm actually looking forward to it this year, having some help." She paused before she explained, "branding time was something we did together, in the old days. It was hard but it was fun; sleeping out, cooking over an open fire, working all together."

Caleb attacked his meal. "Then I'd better hurry up and get on to bed," he agreed mildly. "Shall I mention it to the others on my way to the bunkhouse?"

When she tried to feign ignorance, he grinned and winked. "Something tells me that your secrets use black arrows, Boss," he reminded her, "which I have seen on no less than two occasions. I had heard rumor back in town, that Lazy 8 cattle all end up at the rail station during the dead of night and I know for a fact that you could never run herds of steers from here to there on your own."

Kitty nodded. "You can tell them, then," she sighed. "Just don't expect much of an answer."

"I never do," he pointed out with a grin, "unless they figure I overstepped my bounds, that is." She shot him a questioning glance and his grin widened. "When I do that, they answer with black arrows." He was rewarded by her laughter.