Jake by Cynthia Woolf

the posters.
    “Starving,” said Jake and Becky together.
    Jake got cups, plates, and utensils from the cook tent and they dished themselves generous portions of the food. He liked that about Becky, she ate like a person should. Not the tiny portions that could barely keep a bird alive, like Elizabeth and her mother did.
    He hadn’t thought about Elizabeth in a long time. Pretty much since he met Becky. And now wasn’t the time to start thinking about that part of his life. This was his life now and he better keep on his toes if he wanted to continue living it. Those bounty hunters had proved that to him.
    After they finished eating they went to the Finnegan camp and were surprised to find Billy there. He should have still been at The Gem getting drunk. Instead he sat calmly by the fire. Sober. He wondered what Billy was going to try next.
    “What are you doing here?” asked Jake, when they got close to Billy.
    “I live here. What’s your business? Sniffing around my daughter, keeping me from raising her as I see fit,” spat Billy.
    “She’s a grown woman and you abused her, but not anymore because if you do, I’ll see it’s the last time you raise a fist to anyone.”
    Billy turned red and the vein popped out in his forehead. Jake struck a nerve but Billy didn’t say anything. Instead he turned to Becky, “Pack yer things. Yer leaving.”
    “I’m not going anywhere.”
    “Don’t sass me, girl. Yer leaving” His Irish brogue was more prominent the angrier he got. “Yer new husband will make ya mind him even though ya don’t mind me. You think I was bad, wait until Winters gets hold of ya. He’ll take the starch out of ya.”
    “Husband? What are you talking about? I’m not married and I’m not getting married.”
    Billy looked away. “I got the gold and already spent it. You belong to Edgar Winters now.”
    “You sold me?! To that old lecher? How could you?” Becky yelled at Billy and pushed him away from her.
    “I needed the money and he had it.” Billy said, no remorse evident.
    Becky burst into tears and went into the tent. Jake had had enough. He lifted Billy by the front of the shirt and sent his fist into his face. He landed on the ground next to the camp fire. Jake advanced on him, picked him up and sent another blow into his stomach and a second one into his face.
    Billy got back up, wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. “You can beat me as much as you want, you can even kill me but it isn’t goin’ to change the fact that Winters’ owns Becky now.”
    Jake went into the tent where he found Becky on her cot crying. He sat down next to her and took her into his arms, holding her while she cried.
    “I always knew he didn’t love me, but I thought if I was good enough, worked hard enough, he’d change his mind,” she said between sobs.
    “That’s never going to happen, sweet girl. But he can’t sell you. It’s illegal.”
    She grimaced. “You, of all people, know the law has nothing to do with Deadwood. He can do as he pleases.”
    “Then we’ll fix it so he can’t sell you. We can run away. Go someplace else far away from Billy.”
    She laughed. A sad, mournful laugh. “We can’t go anywhere with that bounty hanging over your head.”
    “Then, we’ll,” he grasped for a solution. “We’ll get married. If you’re already married to me, he can’t sell you to Winters.”
    She was quiet for a long time. So long that he thought she hadn’t heard him.
    “Becky?”
    “You would do that for me?” she sniffled and wiped her nose on her sleeve.
    “Yes. Anything. But it won’t be easy on you, I’m still a wanted man.”
    She wiped the tears away with her hands. “All right, let’s do it before I change my mind.”
    They walked out of the tent and went over to Buster. Jake saddled him while Becky put the bit in his mouth and buckled it on.
    “Where do you two think yer goin’? Winters will be here soon to get Becky.”
    “You deal with it old