Great and Terrible Things

"This is Mr. Mosey," the girl continued, introducing us. "We're going to see if we can find him a horse so that he can be getting back to his own business." I raised my eyebrow at her lack of subtilty. The girl refused to flinch, but did have the decency to blush again.

"Pleasure to meet you Miles." I'd used his first name on purpose. He hadn't earned the respect I'd give to a man yet, not with his sneaking around the ranch last night. "We're going to the blacksmith. Come along." I started walking, not giving them a chance to argue. The two followed, somewhat reluctantly.

They were mostly silent as we made our way through town. I figured it was probably because of me so I tried to get the conversation going. "Miles, I hear you live on the next homestead over with your family. How many siblings do you have?"

The boy started talking slowly, but he clearly loved his family and quickly picked up steam. Eventually Clementine joined in. She was obviously friends with most if not all of his family. It didn't take long to realize that they might make a good match. The glances they gave each other when they thought I wasn't looking were definitely telling.

I found myself wondering if Abigail and I looked similarly ridiculous, but decided not. We were far too old to act so silly. Then again, I found myself grinning at the two very much like I'd caught William watching his niece and me on more than one occasion. Thankfully, we arrived at the blacksmith before I could put much thought into that.

The blacksmith was built short and wide. He frowned when I told him what I wanted. In part because I'd interrupted his work for something that probably wouldn't bring any business to him, but also because cavalry trained horses were as scarce around here as Abigail implied.

"Well, you could try old Pete Tillman." The man voice was deep and reverberated through his well-muscled chest. His lips were stained black from the obvious wad of chewing tobacco in his mouth. "But your best bet would be Robert Washington, unless that's a problem for you?"

"Problem?" I frowned. The man spit a stream of tobacco juice before answering.

"He's colored."

"Why would that matter?" Clementine's question surprised me and actually raised her a bit in my estimation, especially for someone from the south. Of course, she'd be raised mostly by William and he was clearly the type to care more about what a man could do than his skin color.

"Does for some," the blacksmith replied, his wide shoulders shrugging. He then gave us directions in short terse sentences. We were halfway there when Abigail and Billy found us. The latter was sucking happily on what looked like a peppermint stick. We told them where we were going.

"I thought he'd send you to Robert, but there might have been someone new in town." Abigail was obviously friends with Mr. Washington based on her tone and use of his first name. She and Billy fell in walking with us.

It didn't take long to find the place the blacksmith directed us too. There were serval horses in a corral out front. They were nice enough, but nothing special. Mr. Washington wasn't there, but his wife and son Robert junior were. I was guessing the latter was in late teens. He was also considerably darker skinned than his mother.

They did have one cavalry trained mount. The boy went into the stable and came out with a horse after I described what I was looking for. It was a gelding which wasn't the end of the world, but not really what I wanted. Still, it looked like I wasn't going to have much choice. Domino was looking better and better.

"It's a solid horse," Abigail said after giving it a once over. I'd already done the same and come to a similar conclusion. I asked a few questions and they did their best to answer, but I wasn't satisfied.

"Here comes Robert now," Mrs. Washington said in relief as she glanced down the road. "He'll answer whatever other questions you have. He also has a string of new horses with him. Maybe you'll like one of them."

I turned, saw her husband and immediately knew he was former cavalry from the ease in which he sat his bay horse, and what a horse it was! Clearly a stallion and cavalry trained. Frankly, I couldn't picture this man riding a mount that wasn't. He was leading a string of four other horses, but they paled compared to what he was riding.

"Love at first sight," Clementine snorted, watching my reaction to the horse.

"Can you blame him?" Abigail asked. She was clearly as impressed by the horse Mr. Washington was riding as me.

"Is he for sale?" I was almost certain I knew the answer, but I had to ask.

"No," Mrs. Washington sighed. "Robert won't sell Trooper no matter how much he's offered."

Two things were obvious from her tone. First, they'd been offered a lot for the mount. And second, the woman clearly didn't understand her husband's love of horses, particularly this one. I had no problem seeing why he refused to sell Trooper.

"That's too bad, but I'm not surprised."

Robert Washington was an average sized man. His hair was cut short and neat. He wore a mustache and had a small patch of hair under his lips, but above his chin. There was a confidence about the man that I'd seen many times before. Everything about him screamed non-commissioned officer. I would guess at least a first sergeant. There was something familiar about his name, but there were a lot of Washingtons in the colored service.

"Mrs. Collier." The ebony skinned man said in greeting as he rode up and dismounted with the ease of long practice. He had a surprisingly deep baritone.

He smiled at his son and handed him the lead rope before leaning down and kissing his wife on the cheek. All three were obviously happy to see each other. It looked like he's been away for a few days at least. I was too busy staring at his horse to pay attention to what they were saying, at least until Abigail introduced me.

"Robert, this is Josiah Mosey." She paused and smiled slightly before adding, "He wandered onto our ranch last night. Clementine originally thought he was a horse thief, but he's proven to be trustworthy so far." Her smiling widened considerably before she continued. "Although, I wouldn't leave him alone with this big guy if I were you."

"I won't be leaving Trooper alone with him, or you for that matter," the man grinned in response, making Abigail laugh. He then turned to me and offering his hand. "Robert Washington."

"A pleasure," I said as I took and shook his hand. "I'm looking for a Cavalry trained mount. I'd be willing to make more than a fair offer for Trooper."

"Not for sale." He hadn't even paused before answering so I didn't bother to pursue it. It was obvious that Mr. Washington wasn't going to sell the mount no matter how much I offered.

"I don't suppose you have another like him?"

"There are no others like him," the man responded with more than a little pride. "I do have one or two other cavalry trained horses, but frankly, since Mrs. Collier's brought you here, I'm assuming she's a friend. As much as it pains me to say it, you'd be better off with one of her horses if she's willing to sell you one. My best mounts were all bought up last week by Michael Murphy's foreman. Everyone's were. He bought out the Gilbert place and hired a bunch of new hands." Abigail frowned at the name.

"She offered him Domino." I'd almost forgotten Clementine was there. She and Miles looked more interested in each other than the horses, but were thankfully keeping Billy occupied.

"You're finally selling him?" Robert's interest was obvious. "I could take him off your hands, but Murphy would probably offer you more."

"Possibly, for the right owner, but Michael Murphy will never be that." Abigail's tone made her distaste for the man clear.

"Not all of us can pick and choose who we sell to." Mrs. Washington was a bit put out by the strawberry blonde's words.

"A fair point," Abigail admitted, trying to make peace with the woman. "Murphy is a bigoted fool, but his money is a good as any other."

"You're not wrong," Robert snorted. "There's no denying he dislike coloreds, even though he'll do business with us. Then again, he's pretty even handed in his bigotry. He treats Indians and women folk just as badly. Frankly, I don't think he's too crazy about white folk either."

That made Abigail laugh briefly and Clementine, who was clearly listening in, snort. Robert's misses even smiled.

"He's definitely one of the orneriest men around. The only regard he shows to anyone are his sons, Thomas and Ryan." Th soldier was shaking his head.

"And Ryan is just like his father," Clementine interjected. "I had hope for Thomas, but ever since his cousin Alby came to live with them last spring he's gotten a lost worse."

"All of the Murphy's are full of themselves, but Alby is something else. He's downright mean." This came from Miles who clearly wasn't crazy about the family either.

"No, I won't be selling any of my horses to that family any time soon," Abigail grimaced. "But I don't begrudge you doing so. Everyone needs to make a living the best way they can."

"Well then, you're a better woman than me," Mrs. Washington replied, obviously over her earlier offense and maybe feeling a little bad about it. "If the older boy treated me the way he did you, I'd be a lot less forgiving to those who did business with that family."

"Truth be told, the town made more out of what happened than it was," Abigail shrugged. "Ryan wasn't the first or only person to say some unkind things to me when I first arrived in town. He was just stupid enough to say it at a church social in front of Minister Walton."

"More likely, it was more arrogance than stupidity, but with that boy it's tough to know," Robert sighed, and the decided to change the subject. "Now if you're serious about selling Domino, let's talk."

I was curious about this Ryan character and his family, but decided it was none of my business. Besides, I needed to focus before Robert bought Domino out from under me.

"Domino's not for sale yet," I interjected. "Thanks for your time Mr. Washington, but we'd best be going. We're meeting Mr. Holbrook for lunch."

"No problem. Nice meeting you Mr. Mosey," the man said easily, but then paused as if remembering something. "You know, I heard of a Josiah Mosey with the Cavalry, down in Texas and the New Mexico territory. You wouldn't be him, would you?"

"If I were, would that convince you to sell Trooper to me?" The man paused for a moment and thought about it.

"Sorry, no," he finally said. "Maybe if you hadn't mustered out."

"Understandable," I smiled, shaking the man's hand once more. I guess I shouldn't have been surprised that some people might know me even up here, far from where I was last posted.

"It really was a pleasure meeting you, sir." I can't deny that a part of me liked the added respect in his tone, but that part of my life was over.

"You too." The man had the bearing of true soldier, one of those special ones who came along few and far between. That's when I remembered where I'd heard the name before. I'm sure there were plenty of other men named Robert Washington in the west, but I was almost certain I was. "You're Sergeant Major Robert Washington of the 5^th United States Colored Cavalry, aren't you?" The man nodded almost reluctantly. I snapped to attention and offered a salute.

"Sir, that's not necessary." He was clearly uncomfortably with my action, but he didn't deny he deserved the salute. He returned it and we both relaxed.

"Necessary? No, but certainly deserved." Sergeant Major Robert Washington was one of the two dozen or so men who served in one of the colored regiments during Great Rebellion to earn a Medal of Honor. There was no regulation that stated he should be saluted, and I probably shouldn't have done it since he wasn't wearing the medal and neither one of us were still in the service, but you did somethings instinctually. For an old warhorse like me, this was one of them. "It's an honor."

"Um, what's going on?" Clementine asked, frowning. Mrs. Washington was smiling with pride. So was her and Robert's son. They both obviously knew why I'd reacted the way I did. Even Abigail seemed to understand.

"I need to settle in this string of horses, get them fed and watered. Come along junior." He turned and left with his son. His wife offered me one last smile before joining the. Robert pulled her into a hug once she caught up.

"Isn't anyone going to answer?" The annoyance in Clementine's voice made me smile, as usual.

"My father says Mr. Washington is a war hero." Miles wasn't wrong, although that didn't explain half of it.

"Sergeant Major Robert Washington took command of a company of cavalry when all the officers were killed during one of the lesser known battles during the War to Preserve the Union. He turned the tide and helped win that battle readily." Okay, maybe I was baiting William's granddaughter, but it was so easy and for some reason I found her temper funny.

"War of Northern Aggression!" Clementine wasn't stupid, just emotional. She knew what I was doing. She took Billy's hands and stomped down the street.

"Son," I said to Miles with a barely hidden grin. "You're going to have your hands filled with this one."

"She's worth it." There was no doubt in his expression. There was also a look in his eyes as he watched her walk away that I recognized. It could be the beginning of something special. I slowly lost my smile, remembering the first time I saw the young man.

"If you really mean that," I began slowly. "The next time you visit her grandfather's place, walk up to the front door and knock. Court her the right way." Miles had the decency to look embarrassed. I was impressed that he didn't try to deny what happened. I noticed Abigail watching us intently, but she kept her peace.

"I will." Miles words were more than just a promise. They were a commitment that made me realize that maybe, just maybe Miles wasn't the only one who was lucky in their relationship.

"Good man," I said, my smile returning as I slapped him on the back. "Now go catch up to Clementine and try and keep her and Billy out of trouble. I going to impose of Mrs. Collier to show me to Mr. Tillman. The blacksmith mentioned him someone else who might have what I'm looking for. I don't expect he will based on what Mr. Washington said about this Murphy character buying up all the good horses, but I should check."

"I'll do my best, but no promises." We shared a brief laugh before he raced after them.

"That was nicely done," Abigail said once we were alone. "I saw them last night as well. I was having problems falling asleep for some reason and I heard her sneak out of the house." I remembered my own difficulty in falling asleep the night before and wondered if it was related. It was an uncomfortable thought, but one I found dangerously intriguing.

"I watched from my window as they met in the corral," she continued as we slowly began walking down the street together. There were plenty of other people doing the same, but frankly, I didn't pay much attention to anyone other than Abigail. "Thankfully, you were in loft so I didn't have much to worry about last night, but I knew I had to do something before it happened again. They make a nice couple, but I don't want them to start off the wrong way."

"Did you come up with any interesting ideas?"

"A few," she grinned. "They varied from telling Uncle William what I saw and dealing with the shotgun wedding he'd insist on, to warning the boy off and reminding Miles that my window faced the stable and that I'm a very good shot with the Henry, to trying to talk some sense into Clementine. Thankfully, you've saved me from having to use any of them."

"Frankly, I would have loved seeing you try the third option. That girl certainly has a mind of her own."

"Yes, she does, but it's a good one, if a bit too impulsive." I liked the way she came to her cousin's defense despite her frankness.

"Last year I would have bet she'd end up with Thomas, the younger Murphy boy, but she was smart enough to give up on him when he started hanging out with his cousin. Alby is trouble with a capital T. He carries two Scofields low at his waist and is clearly not afraid to use them. I hear he's fast. He hasn't killed anyone yet, but honestly, it's just matter of time."

"I know the type."

"I expect you do," she sighed, shaking her head. "I'm happy Clementine smartened up and started noticing Miles instead of Thomas. He's a good kid. He'll treat her right."

"That he will," I nodded in agreement. "And I think that there may be a core of strength in that young man that he'll need to deal with a firecracker like your cousin, at least I hope there is."

"You and me both." We exchanged a look and smiled at each other. Every time she did that I felt a thrill travel up and down my spine.

"Mr. Mosey, you are a dangerous man." The comment seemed to come out of nowhere.

"Why do you say that?" I asked, not bothering to deny it, but I had the feeling she didn't mean it in the normal way. "And didn't I tell you to call me Josiah?"

"It's been a long time since a man looked at me the way you do," Abigail replied in her typical blunt manner, but that didn't stop her from smiling nervously before adding, "And I think calling you Mr. Mosey is probably safer."

"I can't help the former. You're a beautiful woman, but you may be right about the latter."

"I'm two years past thirty and my faced is marred ugly, pure and simple. I may have been beautiful once, but it was a long time ago." I was surprised by her age. She looked younger, but in the end, it didn't really matter.

"That's still a might bit younger than my thirty-eight years, and the scar on your cheek is just that, a scar. It doesn't affect your beauty, either on the inside or out." I's been talking in earnest, but I needed to be careful. I didn't want Abigail to get the wrong impression. "I'd have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to see that, but I'm not the right man for you. You need a man looking to settle down, and if almost sixteen years in the Cavalry taught me anything, it's that I'm not the settling down type."

"And yet you're on your way back to Ohio to take over the family business."

"Yes and no," I sighed, admitting my doubts for the first time. "It's where I should be heading, but even if I go there, I can't see me stay long. Ohio holds nothing of interest for me. Well, other than my two sisters and frankly, I'm afraid they'll be strangers to me." I paused as I realized just how true my words were.

"Certainly, I have no interest in the family business. If I had, I would have mustered out and returned long before now."

"So, what exactly are you looking for Mr. Mosey?" It was a fair question. I only wish I had an answer.

"I'll be damned if I know," I sighed, cussing in frustration. Thankfully, Abigail wasn't the type to be easily offended. Still, she deserved more respect than that. I'd have to be more careful in the future. "The Cavalry's been my life for a long time and I have no idea what to do now that I've mustered out."

"Then why did you do it? Why did you leave?" Again, a good question. One I would typically avoid answering, but not with Abigail. "Was it the killing?"

"Not particularly," I shrugged, refusing to lie to her. "The God-awful truth is that some men need killing."

"Yes. Yes, they do." Abigail's voice was strong, but also somehow quiet. I was certain that it had to do with her story, but she clearly wasn't ready to share more yet.

"And for better or worse, I'm good at it." I wasn't quite sure how the conversation got here, but here it was, and it felt good to share my thoughts and feeling with another human being. Well, not just anyone. Abigail.