Sweet Things ~ (Billy the Kid - Tom Blyth)

3

I wake up with a horrible headache. I reach my hands up to my head, trying to block out the pain. That's when I notice I'm still in Billy's bed, but he's gone. I sit up, rubbing my eyes, and see it's nearly mid morning. Why would Billy let me sleep this long?

I get myself up and walk to the bathroom. I freshen up and am startled when I hear voices. Billy and some I don't recognize. When I enter the entryway of the inn, Billy is standing at the door, talking to the sheriff and a deputy. My heart sinks in my stomach.

"Yes, sheriff. We don't know who they were. As I said, they nearly-" Billy pauses when I notices me walking behind him. He wraps an arm around me.

"They are in the barn." Billy says. The deputy nods and immediately walks outside. The sheriff hesitates for a moment, then with the tip of his hat he follows his deputy.

Once the door is shut behind them, I collapse. I wrap my arms around Billy, and he pulls me into a tight hug. "It's going to be okay, Cass," he reassures me, "they are going to take care of it. We aren't in the wrong." He places his chin on the top of my head and I bury my face in his chest. I never want to let go.

"I'm just scared Billy. Even more than before." I look up at him, and his blue eyes penetrate into me. I start to have thoughts about the horrors of last night, and to distract myself I get on my tip toes to meet his lips. His kiss tells me more than words ever could. It's reassuring and lets me know that he's right. We will be okay. We'll make it through this as long as we stick together, as we always have.

His hands slide up my back and around my neck, up to my face. He doesn't pull away, he deepens the kiss, walking me backward until I'm sitting on one of the tables. We both become hungry for each other and something tells me of if I don't stop it now I won't be able to at all.

I cup his face in my hands, pulling away. He puts his hands over mine. "You don't have to be scared Cass. Not when you are with me. I won't let nothin' happen to you. Ever." He presses our foreheads together, then takes my hand, leading me towards the kitchen.

"You read my mind Billy." He smiles at me. We are both starving. I haven't eaten since our picnic yesterday. We busy ourselves cooking, eating, then cleaning. We are nearly done cleaning when we hear a commotion from the dining area.

Billy instinctively gets in front of me as we walk out of the kitchen, keeping me in his sight but safely behind him. The door busts open and Jesse runs in, breathing heavily.

"Jesse? What are you doing here? I thought you were-" Jesse cuts him off, still breathing heavily, struggling to get the words out.

"Did you run here or somethin'?" I ask. He nods his head, finally find the air to respond.

"Billy," he says, "you guys gotta get outta here. Right now." We both give him puzzled looks.

"You guys know those fellas that attacked you last night?" We both nod, unsure how Jesse knows about it. "Well, apparently they worked for some Mexican leader around here. Something about wanting Billy dead." Billy turns around, his head in his hands.

"Where are we supposed to go Jesse?" Billy asks. Jesse shakes his head.

"I suggest you guys head for Texas. This guy is super wealthy but doesn't have any power over there. I'll come along, to help navigate the state and what not. Billy here hasn't been there much." Billy nods at this, turning to me. He places his hands in my shoulders, an urgent look in his eyes.

"Cass, go pack right now. Pack light, only what's important." I nod and rush off to my room. I choose to bring a few changes of clothes, a picture of my mother, and a few other trinkets from my childhood that are sentimental to me. It takes me a few minutes to decide what to bring, and when I leave my room Billy and Jesse have packed food and supplies for the journey.

"Ready?" Billy takes my hand, and we head out behind the inn to the barn. I'm glad to see the men's bodies have been removed, even though that's an image I will never get out of my mind. We mount our horses and quickly ride off out of town.

We ride for a few hours before we stop to eat some of our food. Today is warmer and the sun beats down on us. Billy goes off to find more water and I stay at our little camp with Jesse.

Jesse tells me stories about him and Billy in his gang. I mostly tune him out, nodding and laughing occasionally. I'm too tired to entertain Jesse right now. He's a good guy to be around, but he can be relentless if you accidentally get him talking about his days in the gang. It's not until he mentions another woman that I tune in.

"..and she said, "screw you Jesse!" and she slapped me so hard I.." he continues through the story, seemingly oblivious to the sour look on my face. Who was this woman? Was she with Billy or Jesse? Lost in thought, I stare off into the trees until I feel a soft kiss on the top of my head.

     I look up and see Billy smiling down at me. "Miss me darlin'?" He hands me a jug of water and I drink it eagerly. The morning had left me thirsty.

     "Of course I did." I stand up and he wraps an arm around my waste, pulling to him. I didn't think it was possible, but our kisses get better every time.

     "Jeez, get a room!" Jesse teases. "So much for him not being "your boy"" he laughs and Billy tosses him another jug of water.

     "Hey, a lot happened in the past two days." I smile  and sit back down. Together we form a circle and make a small fire to cook a rabbit Billy shot.

     "You woulda known, had you been here Jesse!" Billy laughs and tosses Jesse a package of crackers. I scold him, telling him we need to ration our food better.

     "Oh I was just running an errand Billy. I was gonna tell ya." Jesse tears open the crackers, tossing a few into his mouth at a time.

     "What kind of errand?" I ask, turning the rabbit over the fire.

     "Well, I went and saw an old friend." Jesse shrugs his shoulders like it's no big deal, but Billy and I continue to press for information.

    "Aw c'mon Jesse. Who'd you go see? Do I know him?" Billy asks and Jesse shakes his head.

     "Not him," Jesse pauses, "her."

     "Ooooh!" I exclaim, assuming Jesse is seeing someone. "Who is the lucky lady?" I smile, excited to her about Jesse's girl.

     "It's not like that anymore Cass," he sighs, "her name is Barbara." I tilt my head, not knowing anyone named Barbara. I look over to Billy and see he's gone white as a ghost.

**sorry this chapter is short and took awhile, school has been super busy recently. We have a snow day so I'll try and get a chapter out in this story and my Sejanus Plinth story! Hunger Games fans please check that out! Thank you <3333