Dick decided to set up camp at Chavez's request, so they stayed the evening at their current location, near a canyon of sorts in the heart of New Mexico, on the outskirts of the Mescalero reservation. If Dick was being honest, he truly had no idea which way to go anyway. Doc had mentioned asking that Starr woman for help, but he didn't want to stoop to her level. She would probably tell him to go straight through whatever hell bent force was after them. God damn, that woman got on his last nerve. He wasn't even sure why anymore. It was easier to be mad that she was an outlaw and had kept it from them, than to accept she was useful, for a woman. He refused to be smitten with her like the others seemed to be --- well except Doc who seemed to have fallen for that China girl from the New Years party. Then again, he wasn't too sure about Billy. Bonney liked to heckle the girl, much like she did with him, and he hated it. And Steve, he didn't think that boy much cared about women, unless they were women of the evening.

Grumbling under his breath, he eyed the woman in the waning light. He had to admit, she was a good looking woman, even though she wasn't his ideal type. He preferred a more daintier type of woman, that wore dresses and behaved as a woman should. But if he were being honest, she was rather pretty, with hair like spun gold, but wildly tangled down to her backside, and deep green eyes that sparked with a fire whenever he talked to her. The girl was slender, but the shape of her figure was sadly hidden by her manly clothes. He noticed that she liked to stay clean, wandering off to a creek or the river to clean off if she was able. His gaze lifted to her lips which either held a dark frown or a knowing smirk. It was her mouth that really got his hackles raised. That tongue of hers, was like a whip; she tended to speak her mind, no matter who she upset. Still, he had to admit, she had been useful and was skilled, even though he refused to admit it out loud. He had seen her throw that knife killing Baker. If he hadn't been so angry at the time, he might have been impressed. He couldn't be sure who the better knife smith was, Chavez or her...

Damn, why the hell was he even thinking about her so intently? It annoyed him. He was not like the other fools in his group. He needed to have a clear head on his shoulder. The justice they all wanted for John depended on that. Now if only he could get them all to stop killing their bounties - especially Billy. That Bonney was a loose cannon and he was getting on his last and final nerve. Movement caught his eye and he frowned seeing Chavez walking over. The Mexican-Indian man had black and white war paint over his face and a cup of something in his hand.

Raising a brow at the man, Dick watched as the other boys moved to sit around the fire. The woman was still standing on the far side of him, eyeing Chavez with amusement in her eyes. Did she know something he didn't? Wait, now she was looking at him. It was hard to see her expression clearly in the dancing fire light, her hat shadowing her eyes, but he swore she just winked at him! Brazen woman! He bristled and squared his shoulders before jerking his gaze away from her and moved to sit down.

~~~

Laughter filled Kristal again as Dick cringed vividly at her wink. He was such a stiff and she enjoyed giving him a hard time, mostly because he had been such an ass to her from day one. Stuffing her hands into her pockets, Kristal leaned against a boulder to watch Chavez.

Chavez looked at every one of them and then into the fire before he began. "We've come to a place where we are lost, no? When an Indian is lost, he must reach into the spirit world to find the way. On the Spirit Road, he'll be shown a sign. This is the way to the Spirit Road. We're lost right now... But I'll find us the way." He held the cup up in front of him, and then placed it to his lips and took a sip.

A grunt of annoyance came from Steve and the dirty man slowly shook his head, "Oh Christ, Chavez! That's all we need, is some more of your red-ass... Navajo mambo-jahambo... We're running out of time here, Chavez." He rolled his eyes watching as Billy took the cup.

The blond boy looked at the cup in his hands before he took a small sip. Charlie sat near Billy watching him as the boy coughed. "That any good?" He asked making a face at the anticipation of drinking something he wasn't sure about."

Billy didn't look at Charlie, just tilted his head from side to side in answer. Apparently the drink wasn't terrible, but not great.

Swallowing with unease, Charlie watched again as the drink was handed to Doc. "Chavez, what is that?"

The man with the painted face didn't turn his eyes away from the fire. He was focused on the flames and merely answered, "Peyote."

Kristal chuckled softly. She hadn't been a hundred percent sure, but she did have a feeling that was what was in the cup. Mostly from seeing the ingredients Chavez had picked up earlier. She knew enough about some of the native tribes in the local territories. Some, had even given her tribal names in their own language to be used by members of those tribes. She did know of the local Mescalero Tribe, but unfortunately was not familiar with them. Remaining back, she refused to take the drink, knowing exactly what it was used for and what it could and would do.

Taking a drink, Doc swallowed hard before handing the cup to Charlie. The dark haired boy looked at the drink making a face. He wasn't sure about this. Slowly, he lifted the drink to his face. The smell was terrible, but he took a small sip. The bitter liquid made him make another face.

"Dick?" Charlie questioned and held out the drink to him.

Dick eyed the drink but didn't take it. He merely watched as Charlie shrugged and handed it across him to Steve.

Licking his lips, Steve held the cup in hand. Staring down at the liquid left in it, he flicked his finger inside the cup. It sloshed and he thought he saw something move around in it. The boy eyed it with hesitation, before biting the bullet and taking a drink. "Oh... ugh!" The boy groaned, gave a belch and then took another drink...

***

Dawn broke, lighting the sky in hues of orange, yellow and pink. The weather was cool, with a dusting of snow in some areas, that the sun hadn't quite managed to melt just yet from days prior. The chill in the air was refreshing and kept the heat of the day at bay.

It was a glorious morning!

Standing nearby, on a ledge high above the others, Chavez stood shirtless, arms spread out. The man turned in place, listening and absorbing everything around him.

Doc stood on the ridge, a serious expression crossing his face, his thoughts slow but sharp. "Butterflies... yeah... just like a butterfly flies to a flower... stays with it. It doesn't know why. It just feels it... Oh, yeah...she's my flower and I'm her..." The poet's mind was on a sweet porcelain-like china girl, that he was absolutely smitten with.

Suddenly a gunshot sounded echoing through the canyon. Steve scrambled out of a cave below with his gun and looked around with wide eyes. "Did... did you guys see the size of that... chicken?" Looking around with narrowed eyes, Steve turned suddenly and scrambled back into the cave.

Jumping a little at the sound reverberating around him, Doc then continued on unphased, "I'm her butterfly. Oh..."

Bolting up right, knife in one hand and her gun, cocked and ready in the other, Kristal looked around. "What the hell's goin' on?" She growled, groggy. The sound of the gunshot echoing across the canyon walls had woken her up. After the whole peyote drink from the night before, she had left the boys to their merriment and headed to her bedroll to get some shut eye. Now she was being awoken, rather unceremoniously, with the sound of a gunshot ringing around her. Were they being attacked?

Dick quickly appeared over the ridge with his rifle in hand about to shoot. He too looked like he had just woken up. He appeared a bit bedraggled, wearing simply a shirt and trousers. His normal vest and neckerchief was missing, along with his gunbelt. The man glanced around at all his comrades a frown on his face half expecting there to be trouble. What he saw brought confusion to his face instead. He turned to see a disheveled Kristal standing up, weapons in hand and raised a brow. Her hair was a wild mess and she looked like she was about to murder someone. "Sleep well?" He taunted lightly, happy to be the one to goad her for once.

"Hell no!" Kris grumbled, and replaced her knife and gun at the belt that was still strapped to her hip. "I'm gonna kill whoever's shootin' that damn gun at this godawful hour."

To her surprise, Dick actually chuckled, though it sounded dry. "Woke me up too." He was in a rare decent mood despite being woken up so abruptly.

With narrowed eyes, Kristal's sharp green gaze caught sight of Charlie standing on one side of the ridge, and then turned over to Doc who was on another crest staring at the distance, talking about flowers and butterflies. Still taking in her surroundings, she saw Chavez on a ledge far above them slowly circling. Rolling her eyes, she knew what he was doing - seeking the spirits to guide them. She swore, her body tensing when that damn gun went off again and resounded through the canyon. "Steve..." She growled.

Shortly after, Steve's voice called out, "oh, God! You guys! You guys!"

Dick shook his head, glancing up at Charlie who was now retching. "At least now you know who it is." The man couldn't help but smirk finding it slightly amusing. Though, he was also worried about why his comrades were behaving this way. They were all acting crazy.

"Unfortunately." The blonde responded and then realized what she had just seen. Was Dick smirking? She didn't realize the man knew how to smile let alone smirk. "I saw that, Brewer." Kristal announced pointing at his face with a smirk of her own.

"What?" Dick questioned, quickly frowning. "You ain't seen nothing Starr."

Kristal laughed and shook her head, "whatever ya say, Brewer." Her gaze continued to watch him. "Didn't think ya even knew how ta smile." He glared at her and she chuckled some more, shrugging in the process. "Ya know, Dick... I ain't the bad guy here." Her gaze turned to all the men and then caught sight of Billy who flipped his gun somewhere behind him and was now staring at his hand as if wondering where it had gone. She shook her head at the idiocy of it all. "Jus' 'cause I'm an outlaw, don't mean I'm so awful. As far as I reckon, I ain't done nothin' against you."

"Did you see the size of that cock-a-doodle-god-damn-do?" Steve's voice shouted from behind them and once again a gunshot sounded.

"Ain't all outlaws bad?" Dick stated harshly. Seeing her frown and look away from him, a sigh left Dick's lips, "ya accused McCloskey. Got him shot and killed. He was..."

"He wasn't, Dick." The blonde interrupted, her laughter dying away and the hurt returning, but she quickly hid it. "He never was a Regulator. He was a Murphy man through an' through. I'm sorry it had ta be like that." Kristal paused and stared off into the distance. "I accused him, because he was harrasin' me. Every time I turned around he was there. In the woods...," Kris paused again, not sure she should even finish.

"Go on... in the woods?" Dick was watching her, wanting her to continue, curious as to what she had to say.

"I fell... blacked out fer a minute. I still ain't too sure it hadn't been him that tripped me in the first place." The woman slowly started back up, refusing to look Richard's way. "When I came to, that asshole was on top o' me. Tryin' ta force that damn drink on me, holdin' me down. God only knows what he would'a done — well tried — if Billy hadn't shown up." She paused her gaze finally turned on Dick, eyes flashing with a deep pain before it was gone. In it's place was a strong and determined resolve. "Believe it or not, I don't lie awake at night over ya... However, fer John's sake... can't we at least be civil?"

Dick didn't say anything at first. He merely took in her words, his eyes turned to Bonney who was staring at his waggling fingers. The man then fell backwards. Shaking his head, he continued to consider her words. So, Billy had been the one to stop whatever had gone on between McCloskey and Starr? All this time, Bonney knew what had been going on, and neither he nor Kristal said anything. He again shook his head finding the whole thing hard to believe. "I dunno, Starr. I'm trying to keep the peace..." At her raised brow, he frowned, "the peace, meaning not killing our wanted bounties. And you seem to be making it more chaotic. I didn't want to kill anyone. Not Hill. Not Baker or Morton. And certainly not McCloskey. Even if he was doing what you claim. He didn't need to die."

Lowering her eyes, she followed his gaze to Billy. "I understand that... I mean, I certainly don't agree. McCloskey deserved ta die fer what he would'a done had I not been able to protect m'self or someone like Billy show up. He would'a jus' tried with some other unsuspectin' gal." She shrugged and then added, "besides, I think even deep down, ya knew there weren't gonna be no justice if ya took them Murphy men in. Murphy would see to it. He'd get them off free an' clear. He's got the money an' backin' ta do it." Kristal sighed and glanced at Dick out of the corner of her eye, "ya are right, though, I ain't got no qualms in killin' people. Don't matter if it's a man, woman or what color their skin is. They do me or someone else I care about wrong, I won't hesitate."

"Yeah? And who do you care about, Starr?" Dick found himself asking, before he caught himself. Why the hell did he care who she may or may not care about?

Raising a brow, Kristal turned fully to him. Her gaze eyed him curiously, noticing how when he asked that question of her, he had been looking at her and now he wasn't. Why did he want to know that? Thinking about it, she realized this whole conversation was odd. The man was talking to her, conversing, not arguing or talking down to her. "Not many I do care 'bout. But Tunstall... he was one o' them." Her voice softened some and she turned her eyes to the ground. "Tunstall was a good man, one o' the few I've ever met. He... kinda reminded me of a father figure. I ain't ever really had one o' those. It was... nice." She shrugged again, "an' in turn, I guess all y'all fell in that category too. John cared fer all o' ya... fer some strange reason... I feel... I might too."

Dick's brows rose at her admission. He was curious about her answer wanting to know more, but his own stubborn nature held him back. "My problem is, Starr. You've been guarded and don't trust us. How am I supposed to trust you?" Dick remarked.

Green eyes snapped back up at Dick, her smirk returning. "I'll tell ya this, Dick. I haven't left. So, considerin' what I jus' said, on some small level, I trust y'all. What y'all got... this family, friends... whatever the hell ya wanna call it, is something I ain't ever had. Maybe... I don't wanna lose that." Her gaze then turned away, "although, I'll admit it's hard fer me ta trust. 'Specially when folk treat me poorly, don't respect me. Jus' 'cause I'm a woman an' a outlaw, don't mean I'm weak or a whore... Or that I don't have feelin's. Even though I'm good at hidin' 'em, don't mean I ain't got 'em."

Dick couldn't keep the surprise out of his eyes as he looked at her. Something shifted in her eyes that he couldn't quite catch. Had that been pain? Regret? Sadness? But, unfortunately the woman looked away, and then moved to gather her belongings. He stared at her for a moment digesting what she had said. It took several minutes for him to really process it all. The sound of Steve's gun went off again, and he swore inwardly before grumbling, "godless heathens."

Again, Kristal chuckled just to his left now moving towards where her horse was hitched up. "What'd ya expect? It's peyote."

Eyeing her, Dick shouted to the men in his group, "Regulators! Saddle up." He then watched as she moved around him, her bedroll in her arms. "That why you didn't drink any?"

Kristal paused as she walked away, glancing back at him. "Hell no! I know what that shit'll do. Seen it happen a few times before. I steer clear. I've seen some insane shit, Brewer. This is mild. Although, I'm assumin' Steve's seein' giant chickens?" She shook her head, her tone somewhat questioning, "that's a new one." She laughed again and started to walk away.

"Then why didn't you stop 'em?" Dick asked, his voice edging with anger, eyes flickering with irritation.

Again, Kristal paused, but this time didn't turn. Instead she just shrugged. "Why? It's mostly harmless. Used in rituals and shit. Figure that's why Chavez did it. He's up there callin' on the ancient spirits fer help."

Dick eyed her, his dark gaze curious. It wasn't the first time he questioned who this woman truly was. And part of him wanted to learn more about her on a deeper level — how she knew so much about the local natives and their practices and whatever other knowledge she might possess. She was smarter than he had originally given her credit for and it pained him to realize it.

"As long as they don't do nothin' stupid, Dick, they'll be fine. No worries, darlin'." Kristal glanced back at him, a smirk still on her face. Moving to pick up some more of her supplies, she took a step around him and then paused, not bothering to look back again. "'Sides, they got you ta look out fer 'em. I wasn't too worried, with you an' me here ta keep an eye out. Though, I could'a done without being woken up with a ringin' in m' ears." And with that she continued on her way to her horse.

Richard was left frowning after her, his gaze turning on his fellow Regulators as they moved to their horses. He was still curious as to the woman's previous words, and he realized that he really knew nothing about her. Had he been unjustly hard on her...? She was an outlaw and supposedly had killed many before ending up with John and his fellow Regulators. And she often spoke her mind and did her own thing when it was convenient for her... Then again, was it convenient for her, or was she protecting herself and those around her? It made him question much of how he had treated her. It was unfair of him to judge her simply for a title added to her name. Maybe he should try more? After all John would have wanted him to. He grumbled under his breath and sighed, wondering how life had come to this, before heading to his own horse.

The group moved to their horses. Chavez ran and jumped onto the back of his horse with a war cry and then kicked the beast into movement. Billy struggled a little getting on his horse. In the end he managed, however backwards, repeating "Regulators" with a laugh. Charlie, all smiles, his curly hair a wild tangled mess, managed to get on his mount just fine as did Doc, but both were still feeling the effects of Peyote.

It was Steve who was a bit concerning. He approached his horse, looking around suspiciously. He then leaned in close to his horse, "hey dog." The horse ignored him. "Hey dog." The man tried again. The horse still ignored him. "Did you see the size of that chicken?" The man then attempted to get on his horse, again firing the weapon still in his hand. His poor horse whinnied and pranced around, but otherwise let the man get on his back much to Kristal and Dick's surprise.

Dick shook his head and glanced towards Kristal who was cinching her bedroll to her black mustang's saddle. "I hate to admit this... but I am glad I still got someone sane to watch my back."

Hearing Dick, Kristal turned with a raised brow. Had the man just admitted something to her that was remotely in the form of a compliment. "I like ta keep m' wits about me, Brewer. Can't do that by drinkin' peyote. It's why I don't drink, period."

"You ain't ever drank before?" Dick blurted in surprise.

A frown flickered over her face, a shadow darkening her eyes to a deep hunter green. "Not by choice." She stated simply, her voice closing off. Clearly she didn't want to talk about it.

"Wait... what do you mean?" The lead man queried. "If not by choice... then what? I don't see anyone forcing anything on you."

The man's comment caused the corner of her mouth to tilt upward in a slight smirk but her gaze was still dark and guarded. "Maybe now... yeah." She let out a sigh and reached for the saddle horn, before swinging herself up onto the horse's back with little effort. "My life wasn't as grand as ya might think it was, Brewer. I've always been tough, but I didn't always have the strength or the means ta keep shitty people at bay. An' the only one I ever had ta watch m' back, was me." She saw him open his mouth and shook her head quickly cutting him off. "Let it go... I don't wish ta talk about m' shitty past. I ain't one ta complain." She nodded in the direction that Chavez was leading the others, "might wanna catch up." She then went silent.

Thinking she wasn't going to say anything else, Dick frowned. He wanted to know more. To his surprise, she then added, though didn't look his way, "jus' so ya know, I ain't one ta turn tail. I'll have all o' y'all's backs... jus' ain't too sure if y'all got mine..." Before he could say anything she turned her horse to fall back and follow behind calling back to him, "ya can go ahead, I'll bring up the rear."

Dick eyed her, curiously. Had he been too hard on her this whole time? What was her story? Hadn't they all come from somewhere, some walk of life that hadn't been so grand? And here he was being a complete prick to her - had been a complete prick to her. For some reason he felt guilty as hell. "I... yeah, you're right." Though, he doubted she even heard him. He kicked his horse into a trot behind the others, noting the woman falling in line behind him. Remaining silent, he was lost in thought and suddenly felt like a shitty human being.

***

Nearly an hour later, the group, led by Chavez entered one of the local reservations. They trailed behind each other still high on the peyote. Chavez was straight faced, not bothering to look around. He felt responsible for getting them all through this. He was the one following the spirits of his people. Loud singing could be heard from behind Chavez. It was off key, but happy.

"Gather 'round the coal house, babe. Two hands 'round and go again. All around the left and turn to your partner." Charlie sang, unabashed as he nodded to those he passed with a smile on his face.

"Howdy." Billy called out from behind Charlie, nodding his head. He was still riding his horse backwards, completely unaware that he was doing so. "Howdy." He called out again, smiling. Blue eyes took in one of the older female tribe members and he tipped his hat to her. "How are you, sir?"

"Hey, Chavez," Charlie called out to their fearless leader, who was still wearing the skull like face paint, "how come they ain't killin' us?"

It was Dirty Steve who answered, acting like he was all smart. "'Cause we're in the spirit world asshole! They cain't see us!" He then gave Charlie a broad grin, all smug that he knew and his friend didn't.

Charlie nodded in response, finding that answer suitable. After all, that made perfect sense to him.

The blonde, Scurlock rode behind, smiling and nodding his head to every passerby, even the dogs that barked at them.

As they rode, Dick stiffened. He tried not to show his fear or worry, but it was hard. This tribe was known for scalping any 'white' folk who came on their land. They were not known for leniency or mercy. But here they were, watching them stroll over their land like complete idiots.

"Ya look like ya got a stick up yer ass, Dick. Relax. They won't harm us." Kristal stated with a smirk, completely at ease, clicking her horse to move up to his side. She swatted his arm playfully, before pulling her hat off to run a hand through her hair,"lighten up darlin', yer gonna make 'em nervous."

The woman's motion had shifted her hair over one shoulder. It was then that Dick noticed the feather, beads, and leather woven into a strand of Kristal's golden locks. It reminded him of the natives that were around them. His brows drew together and he opened his mouth to question her but was cut off by Charlie's off key singing.

"There's the girl with the golden hair." Charlie continued to sing in the background and Dick shook his head. The man wasn't the best singer. Yet, he absentmindedly wondered if Charlie was making up the words because of Kristal?

"Why ain't they?" Dick questioned, tipping his hat to them in an effort to show them respect. "You know, attacking us?" He figured he'd ask about the feather in her hair later, when they were safely away from the reservation.

Kristal spoke softly to one of the native women in a foreign tongue. The woman spoke back and Kristal nodded in return before glancing at Dick who was looking at her curiously. "Maybe they really think we're in the spirit world?"

"That's a load of horse shit and you know it." Dick claimed.

Kristal merely chuckled and continued forward, ignoring the questioning looks Dick was giving her. Again she spoke in native, to a man. He nodded his head and motioned forward. As Kristal passed him, he called out in native, which made Kristal laugh. This only served to make Dick even more curious as they continued forward.

Billy only vaguely noticed what was going on behind him. He again nodded to another native, "hey did you know we're in the spirit world?" The man then laughed finding the whole thing hilarious.

Dick just couldn't relax, he continued riding trying to ignore the stares and whispers, but it was hard to do. Kristal continued to speak to a few more natives. Some responded and some didn't. However, what really surprised him, was when a little boy came forward, rushing up to her. Kristal had paused her horse long enough to keep from running the child over. The boy reached up, offering her something, before his mother apparently called him back. Glancing back at the blonde woman Dick eyed her, watching. A soft smile flickered over her face as she stared at whatever was in her hand. She then made clucking sounds to her horse and stuck the object into her pocket. Frowning, Dick made a mental note to question her about it later. Hell, he had a number of things to ask her about and hopefully she would even answer him candidly for once.

They made it through the Mescalero Reservation in good time and without any trouble on their part. The group rode till midday when the men started to feel the affects of the Peyote wearing off. Kristal disappeared for a bit only to return dragging a deer behind her horse. They settled down for the day, the men realizing that they were insatiably hungry. The Rio Tularosa ran a short walk away from them as they began to build a fire. Dick was still periodically finding himself turning his gaze on the blonde woman. She was now skinning the deer with Chavez, being careful to keep the hide in tact. He noticed how the blood spattered across her hands, arms, and even cheek and nose making her appear almost savage. Much more than what those Indians on that reservation had appeared. Yet, the half smile on her face softened her features.

Setting up his bedroll, Dick tried to push her from his thoughts. Her words from that morning still bothered him and he desperately wanted to know what she had been talking about. Hearing her laugh, he turned to find Chavez joking with her over the deer. Frowning, he turned his back on her. A shadow then stood over him and he looked up to see Doc looking at him with confusion in his eyes.

"Need something, Doc?" Dick asked avoiding his friends gaze. He didn't want to deal with whatever this was right now.

"Answer something for me, Richard..." Doc trailed off. He waited until the man looked up at him with a questioning gaze before continuing, "did something happen this morning while we were all out of our minds?"

Shaking his head, he played dumb, even though Dick knew his friend understood him rather well. "I don't know what you're getting at, Doc."

"The hell if you don't." Doc said a little harsher than he meant. He then sighed and leaned down when Charlie looked over at him curiously. "You keep looking at her..." Dick still feigned innocence. "Shit, Dick, you keep looking at Kristal. And, you complimented her on bringing back that deer. You haven't been acting like yourself, not where she's concerned. What the hell happened?"

Dick didn't quite understand his friends sudden concern. "Nothing... Just realized something." At Doc's raised brow, Richard sighed, "I've been pretty hard on her haven't I?"

The blond man's eyebrows rose, "you sure you didn't drink any of that shit Chavez gave us?" Doc shook his head when Dick just gave him a pointed look. "Fine, yeah, you've been an asshole. Hell, we all figured you hated her." Doc shrugged. "Why do you care, now? You haven't cared much for her since she arrived at John's ranch."

Knowing his friend was right, Dick stood weighing Doc's words with a frown. "She mentioned some things to me... just got me thinking is all."

"What kind of things?" Doc queried, his gaze shifting to Kristal who was now cutting out the meat from the dear to put on the fire.

Shaking his head, Dick hesitated. "She stated she had a hard life... kinda curious if that's what made her the way she is?"

"Isn't that what's made us all the way we are? John was the only one to help us get out of that. That cared enough to help us learn and grow in the hopes that we could have a better future." Doc stated simply.

"Yeah, but we all know each other's backgrounds. What do we really know about her?" Dick stated. It clearly bothered him.

"Guess, we don't. Unless she's willing to share with us." Doc shrugged and glanced at his friend. "She's with us now... she's chosen to stay with us. Whatever her past, that's all it is now, it's in the past..."

"Yeah, but shouldn't it be different for a girl... woman?" Dick's question made them both turn back to Kristal in thought. Apparently both had thought the same. Life was hard in the western territories that was for damn sure, but it didn't mean there weren't refined ladies, like Mrs. Ellis and Mrs. McSween. Finally the dark haired man shook his head, "forget I said anything, Doc."

But Doc couldn't do that. Dick had him thinking. He was wondering now what the woman had gone through to make her seem so hard and distant. But that wasn't the only thing. He was also wondering what had made Dick suddenly have a change of heart towards her? Maybe something had indeed happened that morning, more than he realized. He had been out of his mind with that Peyote drink, seeing and thinking odd things.

Dick was looking at her again, and Doc shook his head. Yes, something definitely had to have happened, because his friend no longer glared at her. In fact, Dick looked at her with something else, a mixture of guilt and pity perhaps? Maybe something else? It was a good thing they were camping along the river for a couple days because he hoped maybe he could discover exactly what the hell was actually going on with his friend.