At the ranch Mason Kendall wondered where his daughter Lucy was. They hadn’t seen her going or coming. She also hadn’t left a message behind.
Foreman Jack Edwards said to his boss, “Slim Watts is behaving suspictionously well now your daughter is gone. He has never done that before.”
“I want him to disappear. Fire him”, Mason said worried.
Jack nodded.
He walked to the hand and said, “Watts, get lost. Mr Kendall has fired you. Get your stuff and disappear.”
Slim looked at the foreman and asked, “What am I glad that I can leave here. It has something to do with the disappearing of that gal, hasn’t it?”
“You mean for sure Miss Kendall? I think you have to do something with it”, Jack bit at him.
Slim made sure that he got away and went to look for Lucy Kendall. Since his first working day he had fallen for her but she didn’t see him standing. Lucy had lost her heart years ago to the foreman. The love was mutual to approving of Mason.
Here by Slim got vindictive feelings towards Jack and Lucy. Slim knew The reason why Lucy had disappeared trackless very well. Only he hadn’t told anyone that. After his dismissal he decided to look for her. Though he underestimated her concerning he staying-power.
“Jack, I give you the order to look for Lucy. God knows where she is. You know for yourself how much she means to me”, Mason said in his office.
The foreman said, “I leave at once Mr Kendall.”
Jack didn’t know where he had to start. He did take care of that he had enough water and food with him for the first few days. The foreman hadn’t forgotten to take munitions along plus his revolver and rifle. Jack hoped one thing and that was to find Lucy somewhere lifeless. He and his boss wouldn’t survive that.
Meanwhile miles away from where Jack and Slim were the young cattle driver Rowdy Yates found an unconscious person on the open plain. He rode to it and dismounted. He kneeled down by her. The unconscious girl woke up but she didn’t know where she was. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked into those of Rowdy.
He asked, “I am Rowdy Yates. Who are you?”
“Lucy Kendall. Where am I? What has happened?”, the girl asked slowly.
“You are in a wild area. I just found you. Can you get up?”, Rowdy asked worried.
With his support Lucy got up. Now she was standing straight she was smaller than when she was lying down. Rowdy estimated her at a year of sixteen but he could be wrong as well. Lucy wasn’t really dressed as a lady but more as a cowboy.
She noticed how Rowdy looked at her and said, “I know what you are thinking. Why isn’t she dressed as a lady? Father always wanted to have a son instead of a daughter. My mother died at my birth so pa raised me as a boy. Besides playing cards, drinking and shoot I can also cook. And very delicious too.”
Rowdy began to smile and said, “I take you along to the others.”
Lucy walked a bit crippled to her horse. With his support she came on the horse and Rowdy mounted on his. Together they rode to the camp where Rowdy also belonged too.
When they rode into the camp scout Pete Nolan stroke against the trail boss Gil Favor. Favor looked into the direction of Rowdy and walked to him. He wasn’t the only one who wondered who the stranger was who had come along with Rowdy. The other cattle drivers did that too. The twosome dismounted. Lucy twisted her right ankle but she could hold on to her horse.
Favor noticed the situation Lucy was in and so he said, “Welcome miss.”
“This is Lucy Kendall. Lucy, this is Mr Favor and that is the field cook Wishbone. I found her unconscious a bit backs iets”, Rowdy said very calm for his own behavior.
Favor gave her a nod and said, “They look tougher than they are.”
Because everyone was looking at her Lucy became a bit shy and she didn’t know where she had to look or what to say.
“Okay boys. Show is over. Get on with your work”, Favor said after a while.
The men went back to work.
“What must I do Mr Favor?”, Lucy asked after she had conquered her shyness.
“First let Wishbone look at your ankle. Just sit down at that strong box”, Favor said and he pointed at a strong box.
Lucy went to sit on it and took with a lot of pain and difficulty her boot off. Mumbling Wishbone came with the first aid kit. After that he examined the ankle.
He said, “It is heavily bruised. I will wrap a bandage around it. Be careful with walking.”
Lucy nodded. Rowdy gave her a little wink. A bit further away Favor was thinking about what to do with their ‘foundling’. He hardly could leave her behind at the prairie. Besides he would get into trouble with the other men. But the trail boss also knew that the presence of female company didn’t always go 100 % well. Finally he decided to add her to his crew.
He walked up to her and asked, “Miss Kendall, would you like to ride along with us as long as needed?”
“I would love to Mr Favor. The ranch of my father is 60 km away from here. There is more than enough water and food”, Lucy replied while she put on her boot again with much difficulty.
“Then we go to your ranch”, Favor decided.
When Wishbone had heard that they had gotten a female driver’s mate he began to rave again. Favor knew how the cook was so he just let it go by. After all he was the boss and not Wishbone. The cook wasn’t really used to female company. His helper Mushy did like Lucy but he wasn’t the only one. Although she was the only woman in the camp Lucy didn’t let get the men to her. Firstly Favor had some doubts about Lucy but once he saw how experinet she was with the herd he was satisfied. He let her ride in front next to Rowdy. That was for her not bad because especially with him she could get on with. That was also the case the other way around.
“You mustn’t think that Wishbone doesn’t like you. He always yells so but he likes you very much”, Rowdy said suddenly.
“I am quite used to this. This ain’t the first time that I do this work”, she explained.
“Why does your revolver is not on the right side?”, asked Rowdy.
“I am left-handed. Pa had it made especially for me. I can draw quite fast”, was the answer of Lucy.
It was already late but still Lucy couldn’t get to sleep. The pain in her right ankle began to get worse. Wishbone already had taken care of it and despite there was a bandage around it the ankle kept on hurting.
Suddenly Lucy felt the barrel of a rifle in her back.
She heard a hoarse voice saying, “Don’t move an inch. Or otherwise you are dead. geweest. I know who you are and what you are doing here!”
She recognized the voice and looked behind her. The hoarse voice belonged to the former stable hand of the ranch of the Kendall family, Slim Watts. A few weeks earlier slim was fired because he was bothering Lucy instead of working. Slim laughed mean and put the rifle next to him. He put his arms around her but with his rifle Lucy knocked him out cold. She got up and limped to the camp where Favor and Rowdy sat.
“Miss Kendall, what is the matter?”, Favor asked direct.
“I just got bothered by Slim Watts. He is a stable hand at our ranch”, Lucy said quick.
They noticed that there was more at the matter.
“He has raped me a while ago”, Lucy said a bit upset and she started to sob.
“I have heard such stories about him more often”, said Rowdy.
He looked at Favor and went to Slim. Favor looked after Lucy. Meanwhile Slim had woken up but he didn’t see Lucy anywhere. Rowdy had gotten backup from Pete.
Together they sneaked up to him from behind and Rowdy said, “Hands in your neck Watts!”
At the same time they both pointed their weapons at the hand. Slim did everything without protest. The men tied him up very tight. In the meantime Lucy could think quite reasonably after she had calmed down.
The presence of Lucy didn’t stay unnoticed with the cattle drivers. Despite that she wasn’t quite shy. Favor had noticed that she was a lot with Rowdy. He didn’t like really although he knew him better.
One morning a cowboy came riding to them.
Lucy recognized him right away and called, “Jack, come here.”
“Miss Lucy, how did you get here?”, Jack asked and he rode towards her.
He dismounted and took the girl into his arms. Rowdy saw that from a distance and he became very jealous.
Favor noticed that, “Perhaps that is an known friend of Lucy. According to me you are madly in love with her.”
Rowdy looked at his boss and said, “We are just friends.”
Favor looked at him for a second and walked then to Jack and Lucy. He noticed that the foreman was good for the girl.
Jack and Lucy made a stroll to be able to talk.
“Lucy, we were all worried about you. Especially your father and me”, Jack said quietly.
Lucy sighed and said, “I have been raped by Slim Watts. Because I knew that pa would get angry I left. Help me Jack.”
“We will tour hands on that bastard. As soon as this is over we marry”, said the foreman.
He took her into his arms and kissed her. A moment later they walked back to the camp.
With a cup of coffee Jack told who he was and why he had come.
Favor said, “We are just going to your ranch. Surely you can ride along.”
“Alright. Then I can keep an eye on Lucy right away”, was the answer of Jack.
Rowdy became more jealous but didn’t let it show.
The cattle drivers had left Slim behind in the burning sun. This made him more angrier with Lucy than he already was. He managed to get loose and mounted on his horse.
Slim said to himself, “Now shall that rotten brat walk around on earth no day longer and those cattle drivers neither.”
Though he didn’t know that Jack Edwards had come too. But he would know that soon enough.
After while Pete was one of the first to see the town coming into sight. He turned his horse around and rode to Favor who rode at the back. Looking at the face of Pete he saw that they were in reach of the civilized world in their reach.
“Mr Favor, Coupeville is in sight. That is where the ranch of Kendall is, isn’t it?”, asked the scout.
Favor nodded and said, “Let the herd go passed it.”
Pete nodded and with Joe Scarlet he rode to the front. Rowdy also rode at the back.
Favor decided to make camp at about 4,5 km distance from fstand of Coupeville. He knew that they could expect another visit Slim Watts. For that reason he didn’t leave Lucy without the guarding of Jack. This was for him no objection at all.
Lucy laid somewhere quiet but she couldn’t get to sleep at all. There from too much had happened the last couple of days. She knew that Jack was close by but still….. Suddenly Lucy and Slim were standing face to face again. Slim had followed her to the camp of the cattle drivers.
“So. There you are then Miss Lucy Kendall. Nice to see you again. You still owe me something”, Slim said laughing.
Lucy laid on the ground and got scared. Slim wasn’t to be trusted, no matter what mood he was in. He went to sit next to her and looked her over.
“Get lost Watts. Leave miss Kendall alone. Or you are dead”, Slim heard saying.
At the same time three revolvers got pointed at him by Rowdy, Pete and Jack.
Quickly Slim took Lucy under gunshot and said threating, “You drop your weapons or I will shoot Lucy dead.”
He took her along after the cowboys had dropped their weapons.
In a house Slim said, “Now you make coffee for me!”
She did that and in his coffee instead of sugar she did a large heap of sleeping powder. After that she brought him his delicious coffee. Lucy stayed in the kitchen and saw through a window Jack, Pete and Rowdy coming. The men came inside via the back door.
“I had to make coffee for that creep. Instead of sugar I have done this stuff in it. Now he isn’t saying anything at all anymore”, Lucy whispered to them in the kitchen.
Pete looked at the label and said, “That can be right because this is not sugar nor sleeping powder but cyanide. Now he will be in dreamland forever.”
“Cyanide? I thought that it was sleeping powder”, Lucy said dry.
Everyone began to laugh.
Jack took her into his arms and said laughing, “What are you such a lovely grape. You go back to the camp while we warn the sheriff. We come later.”
When Pete and Rowdy were back in the camp they told Favor what had happened. The fact that Slim had been swept away from earth did him much good because now Favor was also relieved.
Two hours later Jack and Lucy came back too. Jack helped Lucy on the ground.
Favor walked to them and asked, “Miss Lucy, everything alright?”
Lucy nodded and said, “I am just a bit tired.”
“We are home tomorrow”, Jack said calm.
Lucy soon fell asleep with Jack next to her.
The next morning the crew went to the ranch of Mason Kendall. Favor, Jack and Lucy rode in front. When they got the ranch in sight the rancher was already waiting for them. Mason was very amazed when he recognized Favor.
“Gil Favor, what are you doing here in God’s name?” , Mason asked when he had come off his horse.
“Rowdy, one of my drivers, found Lucy unconscious. We have received her and brought her home. Last night we got robbed by Slim Watts. But your daughter has dealt with him merciless”, replied the trail boss.
Jack and Lucy also had dismounted. Mason took the apple of his eye into his arms and nodded approving to his foreman.
“Mr Kendall, I want your permission to marry Lucy”, Jack said at that moment.
Mason said with a smile, “Of course you get my permission to marry Lucy. Gil, here by I invite you and your cattle drivers to the wedding of Jack and Lucy.”
“May the animals graze here on your meadow until we go on?”, asked the trail boss.
The rancher couldn’t refuse that request. Jack told what Slim had done to Lucy. It shocked the rancher but that Slim was dead gave him satisfaction though.
When Jack and Lucy got married Favor and Rowdy were their witnesses.
Before the cattle drivers went further Lucy said to Rowdy and Favor, “Thanks that you have helped me and brought me home.”
“You’re welcome. We did it with a favor Miss Lucy. I mean Mrs Edwards”, said Favor.
A bit later the trail boss called with a clear voice, “Head ém up. Move ém out!”