____________________________________________

"Whoa..."

Robin nearly tripped over his own two feet descending from the dusty train car, suddenly forced to squint as his eyes adjusted to the bright September sun that shone on the small farm town of Adel.

The sound of a bell came from the large spire, emerging from what appeared to be a grandiose courthouse that lay beyond the train station. The low and sorrowful tone of the old bell sounded like a grandfather's hum against the late summer wind, which lazily whispered into Robin's ear, the breeze's cool air giving Robin a slight bit of relief from the sun's hot rays. It almost felt as if the town of Adel was extending a welcome to Robin as he made his way through the nearly abandoned train station.

When Robin reached the other side, he paused to admire the craftsmanship of the ornate courthouse he had seen from afar. The eight muddy red-tiled spires starkly contrasted with its white exterior walls, and the large bell tower rose toward the sky with a golden clock at its center. The building reminded Robin of some of the old castles in the hills of his homeland, Kingsbury. This courthouse stood as if it were a king's palace, standing protectively in the center of the small, weather-worn town around it.

The rest of Adel's downtown consisted of significantly smaller, flat-roofed buildings that surrounded the impressive courthouse. Though these surrounding buildings were colorful and lively, they were clearly not as well maintained as the courthouse at the town's center.

As Robin approached the nearest corner of Adel's square, he heard the soft sound of laughter and light piano music.

Just what he wanted to hear.

Quickening his pace, Robin followed the sound around the side of the building and peeked down a dusty alley, finding at the end of it an outdated wooden structure with the name "Deadwood Saloon" in flaking red letters. Despite being hidden, the old saloon appeared bustling with customers, with a few drunkards already tumbling down its front steps, blinking quizzically at the late afternoon sun.

Robin smirked and hurried down the dusty alleyway, carefully holding his leather suitcase at his side while he eyed the drunken men that littered his path.

Pushing through the wooden swing doors and into the boisterous saloon, Robin made his way past the tables full of farmers and day workers to a surprisingly tidy and well-kept wooden bar near the back. The shelves of the saloon's bar were stocked and clean, and the large mirror behind the shelves reflected Deadwood's interior, giving the saloon the false appearance of grandeur.

Robin slowly lowered himself onto one of the cracked wooden stools, which groaned under his weight. Quickly placing his leather bag protectively between his feet, Robin shot a warning glance at the dirty old farmer sitting next to him. The drunken old man looked at Robin in amusement and offered a welcoming nod as he let out a deep chuckle at the younger man's suspicion. Robin could feel a slight heat rise to his chest in embarrassment, returning a quick, polite nod in response before hesitantly loosening his grip on his bag.

Robin turned and attempted to call out to the lady behind the counter for a shot of whiskey but was interrupted by a different patron down the bar.

Robin clicked his tongue and let out an irritated breath, eager to get the information he needed from this woman, whom he overheard the other men call "Miss Jackie."

This "Miss Jackie" was a muscular older woman with dark skin and tight curly hair, which she had carefully put up in a bright purple bandana. Her purple bandana was almost a piece of art itself, seemingly handmade, intricately embroidered with red and blue beading that sparkled in the low lighting as she waltzed around the saloon. Necklaces, bracelets, and, most noticeably, rings adorned almost every inch of her skin. Miss Jackie wore more accessories than Robin had ever seen the average person wear at once. The sound of her ring collection tapping against the glasses and mugs was like an underlying accompaniment to the saloon's piano.

As Robin watched the older woman stray from the bar to check on patrons seated throughout the saloon, he caught himself unconsciously fiddling with his depleting bag of coins at his belt. Robin's anxiety to find his way to this "Sunshine Acres" was growing by the second.

Fortunately for Robin, the bar's hostess didn't linger with the rowdy group of farmers, quickly leaving them in a roar of laughter as she grabbed a few dishes from a nearby empty table and stepped behind the bar, heading in Robin's direction.

"Excuse me, Miss," Robin quickly called over the bar once the woman was finally within earshot. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure thing, Sweetie. Go ahead," Miss Jackie shouted over the din, lifting her head to smirk at him while pouring a couple of shots of whiskey, scooting one to Robin with a large, warm smile. The old woman's teeth were an impossible shade of white for her age, and her smile seemed to light up her face in a way that made Robin feel as if he were in the safest place in the world, not in a rundown bar in the middle of nowhere. Robin had seen the hostess give this same smile to the farmers as she made her rounds earlier, and having it directed at him, Robin realized that Miss Jackie's smile was likely the real appeal of this otherwise rundown bar.

Robin gratefully took the whiskey, trying his best to return the natural friendliness of her smile with the polished politeness of his own.

"I'm looking for a sorceress."

"HA!"

The old woman instantly responded with a shocked laugh, dropping the glass of whiskey she held in surprise, causing it to shatter against the counter with a loud crash. Miss Jackie let out a string of curses and wiped her hands on her apron as she shook her head at the damage.

"Might as well admit you're lookin' for trouble, boy," Miss Jackie muttered before chuckling at his question, shaking her head as she picked up the pieces of broken glass from the old wooden counter.

Robin's smile faltered.

"Oh, well...I'm so sorry to have startled you, Miss. I didn't mean to cause alarm..." Robin stammered, trying to find a way to remedy the conversation. "Um...How about I... I can fix that glass for you," Robin offered, holding out his hand for the broken glass. "If you would like?"

Miss Jackie snorted and cocked her head at this offer, raising a thin eyebrow as the look of suspicion in her eyes deepened. "So, you can fix a broken glass," she replied, almost sounding impressed, yet her eyes looked him up and down with worried curiosity. "And are you a sorcerer, too, then?"

"Oh no, Miss. Just a magician. I have a bit of magic that allows me to fix things. That's all," Robin said as he took the glass pieces from her, putting them back together one by one until the glass appeared as if it had never been broken.

"Ah," Miss Jackie said with a weak laugh after watching his magic work. The old woman still seemed hesitant, but her shoulders relaxed slightly. "Just another magician, huh? Well...that's nice...."

Miss Jackie's thoughts trailed off as she carefully inspected the whiskey glass. She slowly turned from Robin before walking past the swing doors behind the bar without another word. Robin shifted in his seat, suddenly worried that he might have scared the kind lady away by inquiring too soon about the sorceress.

A moment later, Miss Jackie returned and began filling up shot glasses with whiskey again, stealing another suspicious glance at Robin as she did so.

"I'm sorry again, Miss, if I startled you... but what did you mean by...," Robin asked, lowering his voice, "by 'looking for trouble'?"

Miss Jackie shook her head and held up her hand to silence Robin as she turned to deliver the whiskey shots to the farmers at the end of the bar.

Robin began to feel fear creep back into his stomach as she returned. The old woman carefully leaned on the bar across from Robin, now giving him her full attention.

"I just mean," she said, leaning further over the counter as her deep, dark eyes searched his quizzically, "that you don't seem like the normal type to be seeking her out, is all."

Miss Jackie once again chuckled at her own statement as she tilted her head, scanning his entire face cautiously, as if staring at him long enough would tell her all she needed to know.

Robin sat in silence, squeamish under her intense gaze, unsure of how to respond.

"Tell me. Why on earth are you looking for our Miss Ivy?" Miss Jackie finally asked, leaning back from the bar to cross her arms over her chest. Whatever this old woman had read from Robin's face wasn't enough to answer all her questions, it seemed. "You talk like someone from Kingsbury, boy. What are you doing all the way out here in the Great Plains searching for her?"

"Well..." Robin started, perplexed as to how to answer. "I'm technically not looking for a sorceress... I'm looking for a place called Sunshine Acres. A rancher from a different Sunshine Acres told me the quickest way to find the Sunshine Acres in Adel is to ask about a 'jewelry sorceress.'"

"Uh-huh," Miss Jackie hummed and narrowed her eyes, acting as if he had dodged her question on purpose. "And what might you be wanting with Sunshine Acres?"

"Ah. Right. Well... you see, you were correct about the accent. I am actually a doctor from Kingsbury, and I have traveled to the Great Plains to find my brother, Otto. He told me to meet him at 'Sunshine Acres,' though he didn't specify which one... so I am having to check each one to try and find him," Robin said with an awkward, slightly bitter laugh. "The previous Sunshine Acres I visited was the last one on my list, so I had almost given up hope, but the rancher told me to look into a 'Sunshine Acres' in this town, even though it's not an 'official' Sunshine Acres on any maps. So I am here for one final attempt to find my brother before giving up, heading home, and sending him an invoice for all the money I wasted," Robin finished, ending his rambling with an even more awkward and bitter laugh.

Miss Jackie gave him a weary look at his reply.

"And this brother of yours, does he work for the government?" Miss Jackie murmured, leaning forward and lowering her voice as she glanced toward the drunk man snoozing beside Robin.

"What?!" Robin let out a snort in shock at her question. "No. I mean... not... that I know of?" Robin added, feeling more unsure of why the hostess was asking such a question than how to answer it.

Miss Jackie hummed in thought, fiddling with the many rings on her knobby fingers as her thoughtful gaze landed beyond the wooden swing door of the saloon.

As the older woman seemed to be debating whether or not to give Robin the information he needed, Robin couldn't help but hold his breath, anxiously fiddling with his coin pouch at his hip, telling himself to wait until she turned him down before offering her what little funds he had left as a bribe.

"Well... like I said," Miss Jackie finally said with a sigh, "you don't seem like the normal type to be asking after Miss Ivy, so I'll give you the directions to Sunshine Acres. However, I'll just let you know," Miss Jackie murmured as she leaned back over the counter, her nearly black eyes piercing into Robin with a warning glare as she drew near him, "this Miss Ivy is a woman capable of many things. So don't you, or your brother, go around underestimating her. Do you understand me?"

Suddenly, a flash of gold seemed to shimmer through Miss Jackie's aggressively protective glare. The gold stripe disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, the only reminder of its presence being a sudden chill that ran up Robin's body.

"Oh. Um... I won't," Robin said, his words more of a promise to himself than to the strange woman before him.

"And," Miss Jackie continued, pulling herself off the counter and dusting off her cowhide skirt, "if you are looking to get to Sunshine Acres, take the tram and jump off at two and a half minutes past the third stop. That will land you on the path to the jewelry sorceress or Miss Ivy's Sunshine Acres," Miss Jackie finished, grabbing some additional whiskey glasses from below the counter before pointing out the door. "The tram stop is on the other side of the town hall. It runs every half hour."

Robin turned and looked at the large wooden clock hanging over the saloon door. It showed that it was twenty minutes past four in the afternoon. He would have to hurry.

Robin thanked Miss Jackie for her help and quickly drank his shot of whiskey, leaving two gold coins for the intimidating old lady.

Robin carefully repeated the steps Miss Jackie had told him as he walked over to the town hall, anxiously trying to remember how not to miss his stop—or rather, his jump—to Sunshine Acres.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Author's Note:

The Town of Adel in this Novel is based on the real town of Adel, Iowa. I drove through the town once and thought it was the perfect setting for a novel.

Here is the picture of the real court house: