Old Hate - Prologue

Old Hate

Prologue
By David Pidgeon

1865

She barely heard the sound over the pouring rain, a rap against the glass of the window that caught her attention when it was repeated. She looked up from her book and could see only darkness outside. Putting the book down, she stood and walked across to the window. She hesitated before it. The noise came again and without making the decision, she unlatched it and opened it. As soon as she did, a figure entered from outside. It was a man, dripping wet. She drew in a breath to scream or shout or make some sort of noise, but he spoke.
"Jane" came his voice, hoarse but familiar.
"Hiram?"
He looked up at her, that familiar face and those same green eyes. She threw her arms around him and held him tightly to her, ignorant of his sodden clothing. He embraced her briefly before pushing her away slightly.
"Jane, I am terribly happy to see you but I am soaking wet. Do you have a something to dry myself with?"
"Hiram, what are you doing here?"
"I told you I would return, did I not?"
Tears came to her eyes and a smile to her lips, as did a scolding tone to her voice.
"Hiram, you know it isn't safe"
"I told you I would return. I gave you my word. Something dry, my love?"
"Get out of those clothes Hiram. I've still some of yours stored away in the closet"
He began to undress and in a moment of awkwardness, she turned away from him.
"I've missed you"
"You've no idea how I have missed you"
She opened the closet and moved things about in the bottom of it, pulling out the stored clothes.
"We have to leave, Jane. Tonight"
She turned to look at him, forgetting her bashfulness of a moment ago as he stood naked before her. He stared intently at her, with a look she knew.
"You know that I cannot argue with you when you look at me like that my Hiram, but why must we leave?"
"They know that I am coming here. I believe, also, that they would do you harm to get to me. I cannot have that."
He stepped forward to hold her, free of the wet clothes. He was warm, despite the rain outside and she let herself sink into him. Her lips found his, her clothes were lost and they fell onto the bed and melted together.

They lay together in the bed when he heard it, the low rumbling sound of several horses galloping.
"We must leave now" he said and stood.
She simply nodded at him.
"I'm afraid you will not have time to pack" he said, as he began to dress.
She nodded again, trying not to be afraid.
Fully clothed, he began to root through the small pack he'd carried in with him. She studied him as he did so, admiring the man she loved. He was short but had long arms and legs for his height, an unusually rangy frame. He had jet black hair and glittering green eyes, his usually neatly trimmed beard was starting to grow out. He looked tired, she thought.
He turned to look at her and could not help but smile as he saw her watching him. Then his look became hard.
"You must dress now Jane, and dress for travel."
He removed his hand from the pack, holding in it a pistol that gleamed dully under the lantern light of the room. He checked that it was loaded and, satisfied, hung it over his shoulders from the leather thong that was attached to it, leaving it swinging close to his hip on the right side.
Jane was dressed quickly and stood before him ready.
"We cannot go back out the window, we must go downstairs and hope that we can leave through the back."
She nodded.

As he opened the back door of the hotel Jane lived in, there was the crack of a gunshot from across the street and the doorframe near his head suddenly splintered. Hiram sprang backwards, keeping Jane behind him and closing the door into the street
He looked at her and she saw fear in his eyes.
"Jane, they have us surrounded."
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
A voice boomed in from the rain.
"Come out Walsh, we know you're in there" hollered one of the men outside, "come out now and we won't hurt your woman. She's free to go".
Jane shook her head. Hiram placed his hands on her shoulders and stared at her.
"We have no choice, my love. I had no choice in coming back to you and I have no choice in saving your life."
"Please, no. Please Hiram, I can't lose you again. Please" she said, weeping and grabbing tightly on to him, as if trying to hold him there.
Tenderly but firmly, he took her hands into his and pulled her to him in a crushing embrace.
His breath moved her hair as he whispered into her ear "I will always love you, in this life and the next" before releasing her.
She slumped to the floor, weeping.
Hiram opened the door.
"I'm coming out"
Through the tears she could barely see him go.