5 CHAPTER IV: Words Of Encouragement

I slowly and calmly entered the barn, it was still dimly lit by the lone lantern that hung by the door. Reaver, illuminated by the lamp's light, was clearly agitated. He was tossing his head and pawing at the frozen ground beneath his hooves like it had personally offended him. "Hey, there big guy...easy buddy," I spoke gently to him, trying to calm him down. "It's alright." Reaver turned his burning white gaze to look at me. "It's alright, it's just me, nothing to be afraid of. There, good boy." Reaver slowly began to calm, his moonstone white eyes slowly turning back to their empty coal black.

I walked over and gently patted his nose "Dutch spooked you pretty good huh? I think you spooked him more though." Reaver gave a heavy snort in response, almost like he was scoffing at me. "Hey now, don't use that tone with me…here." I reached into my backpack and brought out something to feed him. Reaver snatched the food with his dagger-like teeth, throwing his head back and swallowed the morsel of food whole.

I turned as the barn door slowly opened and a shadow was cast into the barn. Reaver spooked but didn't rear this time, just merely stared at the door, stamping his right hoof and snorting. "Shh, easy boy…" I gently scratched Reaver's neck and behind his left ear lightly as the barn door shut. The lantern illuminated the figure that stood in the doorway. Dutch.

"You should get inside with the others Miss." Reaver snorted and grunted, staring Dutch down with his piercing white gaze. Dutch seemed weary as he noticed Reaver staring at him. "That horse of yours don't like me too much."

I clicked my tongue lightly, getting Reaver's attention. "C'mon big guy, look at me." Reaver turned his ear towards me but didn't move his head. "Reaver." My tone was a little sterner and he finally turned his head. "What's gotten into you? Huh?" Dutch, noticing the stallion's attention was elsewhere, took a step farther into the barn.

"Miss, you really should get insi-"

"He showed you something, didn't he?" I cut Dutch off before he could finish "I noticed how you looked when I mentioned Reaver's name out there a minute ago."

Dutch cleared his throat, seeming a little unsure "Listen, Miss…"

I turned around to face him fully. "What did he show you?"

Dutch sighed "Somethin' that weren't nice, now please...come and join the others?" I looked between Reaver and Dutch, petting the stallion one last time, before nodding.

"Alright, where are they?"

Dutch opened the barn door, removing the lantern from where it hung on the nearby hook, and motioned me in front of him. "The largest cabin there on the left." I nodded and shivered, walking into the knee-deep snow. "Here." I felt a warm and heavy blanket drape around my shoulders and I clung onto it tightly.

"Thank you."

When the pair reached the door to the large cabin, Heather handed the large blanket back to Dutch. "Someone else might need it." She said, earning a strange look from Dutch as he accepted the blanket back and taking the lead, heading inside before her.

"Davey's dead Dutch." A woman's voice said as they came through the door.

"There's nothing more we could have done." Another voice said

"Well, what are we gonna do? We need supplies." Hosea spoke up, concerned since there was little to eat. A small fire burned in the fireplace in the center of the room, everyone was quiet, waiting for their leader to speak.

"Well, first of all, you all are gonna stay here, get yourselves warmed up. I sent John and Micah scouting out ahead of us before this storm came through. I'll take Arthur, see if we can find one of 'em."

Arthur looked unsure "In this?" He sounded as unsure as he looked.

"Just for a short bit. I don't see what other choice we have." Dutch looked back behind him and gently ushered Heather forward, towards the rest of the gang. Everyone immediately turned to look at her, and she shrank under their gaze.

Arthur noticed her hesitation "It's alright, don't be scared. Ms.Grimshaw, can you help this kid get warm? She's been out in that cold 'bout as long as the rest of us."

Ms.Grimshaw nodded and motioned Heather over "This way dear, with the other ladies, come on." Heather looked back at Arthur, who merely nodded at her, before following Ms.Grimshaw.

Dutch waited as everyone got settled a bit before speaking. "Listen...listen to me all of you, for a moment." The room went quiet, the only sound being the wind howling outside the cabin walls. "Now we've had...well, a bad couple of days. I loved Davey...Jenny...Sean, Mac...they may be okay, we don't know. But we lost some folks."

The air in the room turned mournful, a few people whispering sadly as Dutch resumed talking "Now if I could...throw myself in the ground in their stead...I'd do it...gladly. But...we're gonna ride out...and we are gonna find some food. Everybody, we're safe now. There ain't nobody following us through a storm like this one...and by the time they get here...well we're gonna be...we're gonna be long gone." A few unsure glances passed between a few members of the gang, which didn't go unnoticed by the leader. "We've been through worse than this before. Mr.Pearson…" A heavyset balding man turned toward Dutch at the sound of his name being called "Ms.Grimshaw, I need you to turn this place into a camp. We may be here for a few days."

They nodded and quietly started getting things set up as Dutch finished talking "Now all of you...all of you...get yourselves warm. Stay strong. Stay with me. We ain't done yet!" Dutch turned around and grabbed a lantern that was sitting on a table and called over his shoulder as he headed out the door "Come on Arthur."

Arthur sighed and patted Hosea on the shoulder "Keep an eye on the kid will ya? She looks pretty spooked."

Hosea turned around "Is that the girl you were talking about on the way up here? The one you found in the barn?"

Arthur nodded "Yeah, which is why I'm tellin' you to keep an eye on her."

Hosea looked over at the girl "Arthur, why is she dressed like that?"

Arthur sighed "Dutch and I will explain later, just…"

"Keep an eye on her, I know. You and Dutch be careful out there." Hosea put a hand on Arthur's shoulder and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"We will, I'll try and bring back what I can, and Hosea...don't go into that barn." Hosea gave Arthur a concerned look but nodded in response.

"Arthur are you comin' or what?!" Dutch called from outside.

Arthur sighed in a bit of annoyance, before giving Hosea one last look, and heading out of the warmth of the cabin and into the frigid cold once more.