Chapter Text
Love at first sight. Not many people believed in it and even fewer have been able to experience it firsthand. Not so for Jarrod Barkley. He tried to think of what it was exactly that drew him to Beth. She wasn't a conventional beauty. Sure, there were probably more beautiful women out there. But she'd caught his eye when she entered the dining car that first day on the train back from Washington, D.C. and he felt compelled to talk to her. It was like his heart said, "This is the one" and he could no more resist that calling than he could being a Barkley. It was destined to be.
They talked for hours and he loved her whimsical personality. How she saw things differently than him. He was always one to see the practical side of things and she showed him there was always joy in everything, even the sad things.
When the train arrived in Denver, he knew he couldn't let her go. Writing letters and hoping for the chance to see one another again wasn't going to be enough for him. Impulsively, he got off the train and followed Beth, what followed was a whirlwind courtship. Their wedding had been simple but perfect for the couple. Jarrod knew a pang of regret that he didn't wait until he could be surrounded by his family, but Beth was now his family and she was all he needed at that moment. He knew his mother and siblings would understand and that his mother would probably plan the grandest reception for the prominent Stockton Lawyer and his new wife.
Their wedding night and the day after had been filled with passion and discovery, a time they both thoroughly enjoyed. For the first time since he could remember, Jarrod Barkley felt content and truly happy. Satisfied in all areas of his life.
Introducing Beth to his family went as he'd hoped. She'd been welcomed with open arms. Jarrod found he had a new energy about him. Life was perfect.
Then the shot rang out and everything changed. He rushed his wife back to the Barkley ranch. A hand was sent for the doc. Jarrod never left Beth's side. Her breathing was shallow, and her eyes would flutter but not open.
It seemed like an eternity for Dr. Merar to arrive, but he finally did and shooed everyone from the room, even Jarrod. Jarrod stayed just outside his bedroom door, straining to hear anything. Victoria tried to get him to sit down or at the very least drink some coffee, but Jarrod refused. His eyes stayed firmly on the door, willing it to open and for the doctor to say everything would be fine.
Finally, the door did open and Dr. Merar motioned for Jarrod to enter the room. Beth lay still, her face almost as pale as the sheets she lay against. Her breathing was still shallow.
"She made it through the surgery. We need to watch for infection. The bullet was deep, but it did miss her heart. She lost a lot of blood. It's a waiting game now, Jarrod," the kindly old doc said. He patted Jarrod on the arm.
"I'll be by in a few hours to check on her. I need to ride out to the Smith's farm, one of the young ones broke an arm. I'll come back right after I set it."
Jarrod nodded. Beth was alive and that's all that mattered right at that moment. He pulled up a chair and sat beside her, never letting go of her hand. Victoria had sandwiches made as well as a fresh pot of coffee but other than a sip of the dark, bitter liquid, Jarrod didn't partake.
Sheriff Madden arrived. Jarrod stepped out into the hallway to talk to his friend and told him what he'd seen. He was sure it was Cass Hyatt that had taken the shot. Fred promised to bring Hyatt in for questioning.
Each of the family took turns sitting with Jarrod and Beth throughout the night. Each tried to coax Jarrod to lay down and try to get some rest, but he refused. Dr. Merar returned. Since there'd been no change, he thought that might be a good thing. He promised to be back the next morning.
It was just as the sun was peeking over the horizon the next morning that Beth's eyes opened. Heath had been sitting with Jarrod who had dozed. He nudged his older brother and Jarrod immediately began talking to Beth, taking her hand in his.
"I'm here, sweetheart," he said, his voice thick with emotion.
"Jarrod," Beth whispered and then she closed her eyes again. Jarrod watched as her chest moved up and down, knowing she was still breathing. This had to be a good sign and he was going to believe that it was. He was going to look for the positive, just as Beth always did.
The doctor came by just after 8 o'clock. He'd been told Beth had woken up for just a bit and hoped this meant she would be on the road to recovery. Victoria finally convinced Jarrod to at least go get cleaned up. He was only gone 20 minutes, but he felt better having gotten a bath and put on a new set of clothes.
The vigil continued. Jarrod had a wire sent to Beth's family back East. He knew she only had her father and an older sister. The next day there was a response, they were on their way to Stockton.
It was the third day after the shooting that Fred rode out to the ranch. Cass Hyatt had an alibi, something Jarrod didn't believe. As it was, Fred's hands were tied. Silas had been sitting with Beth as the family had gathered to hear the news Fred had. Fred was just leaving when Silas called out for help.
Jarrod didn't remember running up the stairs to the room but when he entered, he saw Beth convulsing. Nick, Heath, and Victoria had been on his heels. None knew what to do. Heath ran back down and noticed Fred was still near the front door.
"Can you get the doc?" he asked. Fred nodded solemnly and hurried toward town. Dr. Merar had been on his way out to the ranch and met Fred halfway. The two men made it to the ranch in record time.
By the time the doc had gotten to Beth, the convulsions had stopped. Jarrod was beside himself, feeling helpless.
"I'm afraid it's just a waiting game now," Dr. Merar said. He didn't say it out loud, but he was surprised Beth had made it this long.
It was like the world had stopped. No one knew what to do or say. Jarrod rarely left Beth's side and only did so to clean up or take care of his needs.
The family watched Jarrod in his agony. Although none would say it out loud, it almost would have been better had Beth died instead of living in this state.
A week later, Beth's father and sister arrived. It was uncanny how much Beth and her sister looked alike. It was almost as though they were twins, although Amanda was two years older. The only difference visibly was Beth had softer features. In every other way, they didn't seem to be alike at all. Jarrod allowed them a moment of privacy with his wife, while he took some time to clean up.
When Jarrod returned to his room, he saw that Silas was sitting with Beth.
"Mrs. Beth's family is in the parlor with your mother," the dark-skinned man said. Jarrod nodded. He didn't want to leave Beth, but he knew he needed to speak to his in-laws.
"I understand. We do have the Sheriff looking into what happened," Jarrod could hear his mother saying as he made his way toward the foyer.
Calvin Randall and his daughter, Amanda, were standing in the parlor. Victoria had asked them to have a seat but neither seemed inclined to do so. Jarrod walked in and Calvin turned to him.
"I need to know what happened," the man demanded gruffly. Beth had told Jarrod that since her mother had died when she was very young, her father had been very protective of her. He didn't want her to take the teaching job in Denver and had been quite upset with her when she left, refusing to come to the station to see her off. She also wasn't very close to her sister, Amanda, who was watching Jarrod with suspicious eyes.
"We were out on a picnic. A shot rang out, Beth was struck," Jarrod said.
"Why would someone do that?" Amanda asked. Jarrod could already see that Beth's father and sister blamed him. Nothing they could say would be worse than what Jarrod had been telling himself.
"We don't have proof, but we believe it was a man I prosecuted and sent to prison several years ago. He was recently released by the Governor on a pardon." No need to sugarcoat anything, Jarrod thought to himself. They already blamed him, so he might as well lay out everything for them.
Calvin's eyes narrowed. Jarrod watched as his fists balled and saw Nick and Heath walking up behind the older man. Jarrod shook his head slightly, wanting his brothers to back away.
"The Sheriff is looking into it. We'll see that justice is served," Victoria said, hoping to defuse the situation. Calvin glanced at Victoria. He knew he needed to calm himself down.
"I'd like to spend time with my daughter," he said and brushed passed Jarrod. Jarrod watched his father in law make his way up the stairs and noticed the man's shoulders slump. He turned back to find Amanda staring at him with pure hatred.
"So, because of you, my sister is close to death," Amanda said, not holding back her anger. Amanda reached out and slapped Jarrod. Jarrod could have easily dodged her, but he didn't. Nick held Amanda back. Jarrod's hand went to his stinging cheek.
"Mother, why don't you show Amanda where she can get cleaned up and what room she'll be staying in," Jarrod said and then he walked out of the room.
Beth's family stayed for a few weeks then returned East. The entire time they were there, one could cut the tension in the air with a knife. It was a relief to have them gone. Beth never showed any improvement, but she wasn't declining in health either. She seemed to be stuck in a state between consciousness and unconsciousness.
It was a month to the day of the shooting that Jarrod noticed the left side of Beth's face seemed to be drooping. He sent for the doctor. Dr. Merar had been making frequent visits to the ranch and when he walked in, his heart dropped. Jarrod could see the expression on his face and felt an incredible sense of dread.
"What is it?" Jarrod asked. Victoria stood next to Jarrod, her hand holding tightly to his. She wasn't sure how much more her son could take.
"I'm afraid Beth may have had a stroke. The blood loss, coupled with the damage done internally…I'm sorry, Jarrod. I'm not sure what else we can do."
Victoria kept her eyes on her oldest son and saw how his normally warm blue eyes turned cold. This was more than he could handle. He said his thanks to the doctor and walked out the room.
"Victoria, I'm worried about Jarrod," her old friend said. Victoria and Howard Merar had been friends for decades. He'd delivered Audra and had been on hand when Tom Barkley was killed. He'd been with the family through joys and sorrows and everything in between.
"Me too, Howard. I'm just not sure what to do. Can Beth…survive like this?" Victoria asked.
Howard looked at the still form of the woman on the bed. "I'm not sure, Victoria. It doesn't seem likely, but there have been miracles before."
Victoria blinked back tears. She asked Howard to stay with Beth until she could have Silas come sit with her. She needed to find Jarrod. She didn't like the look in his eyes from before.
Victoria found Jarrod in the study. He had poured himself a glass of scotch and Victoria knew it wasn't the first one he'd had. He knocked it back and poured another.
"This is Cass Hyatt's fault," Jarrod said, the coldness in his voice sending shivers down Victoria's spine.
"Fred said-"
"I don't care what Fred said. I know it was him. And he's going to pay."
"Jarrod, please. Beth needs you. Don't do anything rash."
Jarrod's eyes closed in agony. He set the glass down and went back to his bedroom.
The next morning, Victoria saw Jarrod going down the stairs. He was dressed in traveling clothes and had his bags packed.
"Where are you going, Jarrod?" she asked, following him down the stairs.
"After Hyatt," he responded coldly.
"But you don't know where he is," Victoria said, trying to get Jarrod to listen to reason.
"I'll find him."
"Jarrod, if Cass Hyatt did shoot Beth-"
"He did it!"
"Alright, say he did, and you kill him, then what?" Victoria asked, frantically. They'd walked into the billiard room where the guns were stored.
"I'll turn myself in to the nearest lawman," Jarrod stated matter of factly, standing at the gun case.
"And ruin your life!"
Jarrod turned to look at Victoria. "All the life I have is upstairs in that bed, suffering."
"That's not true. You think it and you believe it, but it is not true!"
Jarrod took a rifle from the case and began loading the shells. Victoria was more frightened than she'd ever been in her life. She wasn't sure she could say anything to change Jarrod's mind, but she had to try.
"Oh Jarrod, I know the emptiness you must be feeling, but killing Cass Hyatt is not going to fill that emptiness, it will still be there!"
Jarrod turned to Victoria. "There's no use talking about it," he insisted.
"There has to be! Somehow, I have to make you understand that you're turning your back on everything you ever stood for as a man and as a lawyer. The things Beth loves you for and married you for!"
Victoria hoped that by mentioning Beth, it would push Jarrod into seeing that what he was planning was wrong, but he continued to load the shells into the rifle.
"Let me handle this," Nick said as he came into the room. He sent Victoria upstairs. All she could do was hope Nick could get through to Jarrod.
Heath found Nick sprawled on the floor, out cold. When he awoke, Nick cursed, and the two brothers went to tell Victoria what had happened. They would follow their brother and try to keep him from doing the unthinkable.
Several days later, Heath and Nick brought home a dejected Jarrod. Victoria watched as her oldest son made his way up the stairs. He went into his bedroom where Beth still lay in her unconscious state and Silas came out a moment later. The bedroom door closed. Heath told Victoria how Jarrod had found Cass Hyatt and would have killed him had he and Nick not intervened. Both men decided it was best to leave out the fact Jarrod had pulled his gun on Nick.
Cass Hyatt was sentenced to life in prison at San Quentin. When Victoria told Jarrod, she could see the shame he felt for his actions. He thanked her for the information and returned to his vigil of watching his wife.