The Outlaw's Return

Adultery is Punishable By Hanging

"Since you are not married to Mr. John here, and you are not widowed, that means you have committed adultery. Mr. John, since you lied for this woman and had no intentions of comin' clean, you are also an adulterer and you lied to a town official. See, the banker, he's also the judge."

My heart felt like it was going to stop beating and I was just going to fall over dead. John still looked calm, but I could see a flicker of rage in his eyes. I shifted in the chair and pulled my hair away from my face. I smoothed out the skirt of my blue dress John had bought for me this morning and placed my hands in my lap. John reached over and placed his hand on mine.

"Sheriff, if you had actually investigated like you should have instead of just listenin' to hear-say, you would have found out that Cassidy and I were about to get married. Again." John stated, which surprised me and the sheriff. I tried to play along, but I didn't understand how he was going to pull it off.

"Oh really? Well where is your first marriage certificate and your documentation of divorce?"

"Our house burned. We moved here to start over and get married again. Our documents, pictures, and possessions were burned with the house." John sounded so confident that it made me feel the same. I was starting to relax.

"We did not know of those circumstances. However, you lied to the judge about your marriage. That is breaking the law, Mr. John."

"I understand that, but if I had not lied Cassidy would not have been able to have her baby here in town. I was only lookin' out for her."

"Very well. I'll have this little unfortunate incident taken care of." The sheriff said with a fake smile. He had been outwitted, and there was nothing he could do. I wanted to jump for joy the second we walked outside, but I just smiled at John. He smiled back and helped me into the saddle again. We didn't talk on the way back, but the atmosphere felt so relaxed this time.

Two days past and we carried about our chores and life as usual, except for little Britt. He had a schedule all his own and it was hard to go all night and day without sleep. Especially when I had to help John pick corn and peas. He was planting watermelon now, and I knew that was going to bring in some extra money. I was just finished changing Britt when Landon came rushing in with his wife.

"We heard talk in town that the sheriff is comin' for ya'll! He's comin' to get Britt too."

That enraged me. No one was going to take my baby away from me, or punish him for something I had done. "Miss Cassidy, please let us keep Britt. Just until this blows over. You've done so much for us and I don't wanna see that baby bein' harmed over somethin' so silly." Ann begged.

I didn't want to send my baby home with anyone, but Ann was right. She knew what to do and she could keep him out of sight for a few days. I nodded, and went into the bed room. Britt was asleep. I gently picked him up and held him for a few minutes. Ann came in and touched my shoulder. I handed him to her and once they left, I fell into a blob of tears. John tried to comfort me, but there was nothing he could do. I was still hurt by what he had said the day we brought Britt home so nothing he did was going to comfort me anyway.

"John, the sheriff is here." I said quietly from the kitchen window. John stood and walked to the door with a short glance to me. We were both tired and hungry. I didn't cook breakfast because I was still upset. We were both up all night, and were both restless. I was worried about Britt and John was too. I was also worried about what was going to happen to us.

"They have a wagon." John mumbled. That wasn't good. They always put captives or criminals in wagons. Which was where they put us.

"John, even if somethin' bad happens, I want you to know I appreciate you and everythin' you've done for me. I could never thank you enough." I knew I sounded pitiful, but I did mean it and I wanted him to know that. He shot me a smirk, but never said a word.

They took us to the other side of town, where the thick woodline started. I first saw the ropes hanging from the trees, then I saw the nusse. I had panic written all over my face. John seemed as calm as ever, and didn't even flinch when they pulled us out of the wagon. The sheriff commanded John to get on the horse he was holding. He did just as he was told and was led under the tree. The deputy placed the rope around John's neck and stood next to the horse, holding his reigns. I couldn't let this happen. I couldn't let my only hope for survival and my best friend be killed because of me.

The sheriff pulled out a piece of paper and started to read John's counts of offenses. Not that any of them actually made sense, or would hold up in a real court room. Apparently the sheriff did do some investigating because he then said, "We won't even go into detail about his past. He used to run with outlaws." No one but I would know that.

"Where is your baby?" The sheriff asked me. I had to lie.

"He died last night. We buried him just before you arrived this mornin'." I sold it as best I could. He mumbled something under his breath, and I turned my gaze to John.

John and I stared at each other. He was about to die, and I would be next. I didn't notice the people standing around or the sheriff motioning for the deputy to move the horse. Once the horse did move, I started to scream. I heard loud pounding from a horse's feet, and then I heard the shot of a pistol. I opened my eyes to see John scrambling around on the ground. Everyone was frozen. John finally stood and removed the rope from his neck. He was wide eyed as he stared behind me. I was scared to turn around. Someone had shot the rope that was about to hang John.