01x03 - Boots with My Father's Name

[bunniefuu]

Well, it's about time!

The train stalled
right outside of Sacramento.

- I was ready to walk.
- Welcome home, Gene.

- Oh!
- Oh, Ma!

- Audra.
- How's the scholar?

If I get any smarter, they're gonna
be unveiling a statue of me...

- right in the center of campus.
- Oh, h*!

When you wrote and told me what they were doing
to honor Father, I was so proud I could bust.

We didn't know about it ourselves
till just a couple days ago.

Dave Wallace rode over and calmly said,
if we didn't mind...

the townspeople would like
to do something to honor Father.

If we didn't mind?

- Welcome home, Mr. Eugene.
- Silas.

- My, my. You've grown a whole foot.
- I hope not, Silas.

- Wait in there. I'll be right with you.
- Come in here, Gene.

- Get in there. - Ouch.
- Right over there.

That's it. Now turn around.
Let's see what's been happening to you.

- I think he's grown a little bit.
- Just in the head.

He always did have
a bit of a fat head.

- Is that so? Where's Heath?
- He's around somewhere.

- I'll go outside and look.
- Uh-uh. Sit down right over here.

Mother said you were to wait.

- Wait for what?
- Just wait.

Ah. Here we are.

- Father's?
- Mm-hmm. He wore them on special occasions.

I know you think
I'm being sentimental...

but it would make me very happy if you would
wear them this evening at the commemoration.

I'll have you know I offered
to cut off my big toe, but, uh-

And I'm a size larger than Jarrod,
so it's up to you, little brother.

- Sit down there and slip 'em on.
- Well, I'll try.

They look a little small.

- Come on. Let's see what happens.
- Come on, Eugene.

I'm trying it.

- They're a little too tight.
- Pull 'em on.

Pull.!

- A little harder.
- I'm sorry, Mother.

It was a silly, sentimental
idea to begin with.

- Oh, no, no, no.
- What about Heath?

He's a Barkley son too.

He'd wear 'em.
I know he would.

Ah! Gene, you old son of a g*n.

How are ya?
Boy, you have grown a foot!

It seems all that knowledge
went to my feet.

They were Father's, Heath.

Mother'd like one of us to wear them
at the commemoration this evening.

Well, go ahead. Try 'em on.

Well, what do you know?
Looks like the best foot wins, huh?

Congratulations, Heath.

Heath, it seems to me
we have forgotten one small detail-

whether or not
you'd like to wear them.

Well, uh, sure I would.
Of course I would.

Why wouldn't I?

It's, uh, just that-

Well, I'd...

kinda like to have a chance
to think it through.

I don't much go for fancy boots.

Maybe some other time.

- Get up off that bed.
- Gene, I don't owe you any explanations.

- Get up off that bed!
- Now, if you'll just simmer down-

Gene, I don't wanna fight you.

All right now. Take it easy.

If I were in his shoes,
I might feel the same way. So might you.

Now git.

Come on.

- Thanks, Nick.
- I said I might feel the same way.

If you're goin' with us,
you'd better get dressed.

Come on. Hurry up.
We got a lot to do before the ceremony.

- I can't breathe. Can you?
- No, I can't.

Heath, if you'd rather not go,
we'll all understand.

Maybe it's hard for me
to forgive Tom Barkley for what he did.

But whatever he was to me
and to my mother...

I know he was a great man
to the people in this valley.

So, as, uh,
part of this family now...

I'd kinda like to...
go along and honor him for that.

If it's all right with you.

Giddap.

I'm sure it's the most beautiful statue
in the world.

Wait till it's unveiled.

I know it's a little early in the mornin'
to start celebratin'.

I'm sorry.

The last thing in the world
I wanna do is hurt you.

Maybe I shouldn't have come.

But I thought if I could
just sit on what I feel...

at least for one day,
this day-

But-

I brought 'em with me-
the boots.

- You'd wear them?
- Say the word.

I told you
I understood how you feel.

Maybe I more than understand.

Maybe I'm afraid you have a right
to feel the way you do.

Thank you for offering.

I'd do anything for you.
Anything.

You know that, don't you?

And I meant what I said.

Whatever he was to me,
to my mother...

I know he was
a great man to others...

to his children, to you.

He was a great man,
a wonderful father.

A wonderful father...
and husband.

I never meant for you
to question that.

Tell me about your mother.

She was beautiful.

Warm and soft.

And in a way, very strong...
like you.

And your father.

Of course, you never knew
who he was until the end, but-

Did she ever talk about him,
the man who was your father?

- I don't remember.
- But you must have asked.

When you were a little boy growing up,
you must have wondered.

It's over!
History- ancient history!

- Don't dig it up.
- And if I have to?

We'd only been married a few years
when Tom went to Strawberry.

He'd invested in some mines.
We weren't rich then, but-

Strawberry was the beginning.

He sold his interest, made a good profit
and went on from there.

Yes. Strawberry was the beginning.

Did your mother love him?

Oh, please, Heath.
I've got to know.

When I was a boy, Strawberry
was a boomtown, busting with life.

Then the mine slowly gave out.

Now it's all but a ghost town
living with memories.

When I was a boy...

it seemed my mother
laughed a lot...

talked a lot about him...

talked in a way
that made me think...

my father was the greatest man
who ever lived.

If he did love her...

then I've been lying to myself,
haven't I?

You can't say that.

Whatever he was
to my mother...

you know what he was to you.

Do I?
Can I ever be sure?

Do any of your people
still live in Strawberry?

Just Aunt Rachel.

Rachel Caulfield.

She's not my real aunt, but she's
all the family we ever had... or needed.

She was my mother's best friend...
and mine.

Aunt Rachel and Hannah,
they, uh-

They helped raise me.

There was no one else?

Not that I can remember.
If there was, they, uh-They left long ago.

- There is somebody else, but-
- Tell me.

My Uncle Matt and his wife.

We weren't close.

I hardly ever saw them,
and that was too often.

Please. Let it die.

Well, sometimes-

Sometimes a thing
just won't die.

Your father I were married
so happily for over 25 years.

And if, most of those years,
I was lying to myself-

Oh, Heath, I've just got to know...

for both of us.

Whoa.

Eh, luck's really run out.
I can't even beat myself at solitaire.

I'm gonna pay ya.

You think I'm gonna run outta town,
stick you with a couple of beers?

Three today.
Two from yesterday...

when you was, uh,
a little short.

- I ain't never tried to beat you out of-
- Don't tell me your troubles.

I ain't gettin' rich
around here neither.

I'd like to get paid- tomorrow.
Not day after tomorrow.

Tomorrow, or no more beer.

- Oh, you lose your way, ma'am?
- No, not if this is Strawberry.

Well, it was Strawberry, but now-
Well, you name it.

I'm looking for a woman
named Rachel Caulfield.

- Rachel Caulfield.
- Do you happen to know her?

- I knew her real well. Yep.
- Knew?

Well, she's dead.

Oh. Well, uh,
when did it happen?

- Oh, about a month and a half ago.
- How?

Oh, she's dead, ma'am.
That's all I know for sure.

Oh.

It's mighty hot out there. Could I sell you
something cool to drink maybe?

No. Uh, do you know
a woman named Hannah?

Oh, yes, yes. A little, uh, green cabin,
picket fence in front.

- Right out the edge of town. Can't hardly miss it.
- Thank you.

Uh, could I sell you
something cool to drink maybe?

- No, thank you.
- You look like you-

You're a mighty handsome
woman, Martha.

Too much woman for him.

Uh, can I, uh-

- Can I give you a hand?
- You'd like to, wouldn't you?

Well, that's no secret.

Hey.

Why don't we, uh-
Why don't we go away together?

Find ourselves a new life.
Good life.

Like I said...

a lot of woman.

You know, uh, you're the only thing
that keeps me tied to this town.

Oh? All the time I thought you were
countin' on findin' a good vein of ore.

Yeah, and I'll bet,
if I did hit pay dirt...

- you'd come runnin' to me, wouldn't ya?
- Maybe.

But you're not gonna find it
sittin' there polishin' that r*fle...

and shootin' the sign
across the street.

I thought I told you
not to fire that thing in here.

Is that right, Matt?

You ought to know better
than to let him do that.

Sure. 'Cause one day
he's gonna k*ll somebody...

and they're gonna march in here and sue us
for every cent we haven't got.

We got somethin' to talk about.
Get him outta here.

Uh, Mr. Phelps, I think the man
would like you to leave.

Hmm. Is that right?

Ain't you got nothin' better to do
than hang around here wastin' our time?

What's the matter, Matt?
You expectin' a big rush of business?

Like maybe one check-in?

Like I said, Mr. Phelps,
if it's gold you're looking for...

you're not gonna find it in here.

Well, maybe not gold.

But there are other things.

If you're lookin' at me, I'm not about
to exchange one failure for another.

Now clear out.

My husband wants
to talk to me alone.

You shouldn't be leadin' him on like that.

Who said I was leading him on?
What did you want to talk to me about?

She's here in Strawberry.

- Victoria Barkley.
- You sure?

She asked Walter where Rachel was.

Walter should've sold her a shovel
and told her to start digging.

Don't laugh about that, Martha.

- Don't you ever laugh about that.
- All right!

All right, Matt! I won't laugh!

But I'm not gonna cry
over spilt milk either.

She went over to see Hannah.
She'll ask questions, sniff around.

Oh, what does Hannah know?

And whatever she suspects-
A half-mad old woman like that?

Hey, Matt.

Maybe- Maybe it was providence
that brought Victoria Barkley here.

No, Martha. No.

After what happened,
I thought we decided we weren't-

You decided. You. You.

You decided.

Because you're a man with the spine
of a worm, I let you make that decision.

But now that she's here,
no matter what her reason, she's come to us.

I'm not about to let her
slip through my fingers.

Pardon me.

Whoa.

Miss Leah.

Lord in heaven. Miss Leah.

Oh. For a minute...

I thought you was
Heath's mother- Miss Leah.

She dead.

And Rachel, she dead too.

Both my good friends is dead.

Maybe they k*ll me too.

Who you be?

I'm Victoria Barkley.
And you're Hannah.

Heath told me
about you and Rachel.

Heath?
You know about Heath?

He lives with me now-
with me and my family.

- He all right?
- Oh, he's fine.

Then that's all that matters.

Heath's fine.
That's all that matters.

Heath's fine.

Heath's fine.

That's all that matters.
Heath's fine.

Heath's fine.

Heath tells me
you and Rachel helped raise him.

Leah- Miss Leah, she work hard.

But a boy growin' up
without a father?

- Do you remember his father?
- It was different then.

Everything different.

Miss Leah, she was young...
and so pretty.

Could had most any man.
She picked that one.

- Then you knew him.
- He give her a child-his child-

then he go away and leave her,
never come back.

He was married.
Did you know that?

People say... she bad.

A woman have a baby
but no father to claim him.

People say she bad.

Did he know about the baby?

She was a good woman.

She loved that man.

It can't be bad when a woman
love a man like she did.

Can it?

No. No.

If she loved him the way you say she did,
she couldn't have been bad.

And he, if-

If he loved her the same way-

Did he love her?

He was my husband.

She love him.
She love him very much.

Hannah?

Did he love her?

She was a good woman, Miss Leah.

You believes that, don't ya?

Yes. Yes, I believe that.

Heath tells me
his Uncle Matt still lives here.

Could you tell me
where I might find him?

Tell me where I can find
Heath's uncle and aunt.

- What you want with-
- Things-Things you can't tell me.

- Leave 'em be.
- If they're here, I'll find them.

- They at the hotel.
- Thank you.

Stay away from them.
Hear?

Hannah, what are you afraid of?

Leave me be!
Leave this place!

Let the dead rest in peace
and the living to the time they got.

Leave me be.
Leave this place.

Leave 'em be, miss.

Leave 'em be.

Oh.

Come in.

What do you think?

- Fine, fine. Uh, where's Mother?
- Out.

- I brought this one along too.
- Out where, Audra?

- It's cut kind of low in front.
- Audra, we're having dinner with the mayor.

I don't suppose a low-cut dress
would be quite the thing.

Did she happen to say
when she'd be back?

She probably went shopping or visiting
or something. She'll be back.

When she gets here, let us know.
We'll be downstairs in the bar.

Get rid of the dress.

- You, uh, bought and paid for that, huh?
- Yes.

- Barkley?
- Yes.

- I'm Matt Simmons. This is my wife, Martha.
- How do you do?

I saw your carriage there.
I was hopin' that you'd come by.

I wanted to see
where Heath grew up...

and talk to people
who knew him.

It's our pleasure, Mrs. Barkley.

- I have a pot of coffee perking.
- Coffee would be very nice.

- It may not be as good-
- It will be fine. Thank you.

Uh, will you have a seat?

Take that chair there.
I think you'll find that more comfortable.

- Is that all right?
- Thank you.

We, uh, heard
that you'd taken Heath in.

It was right kind of you.

Yes, uh, Heath's
a very lucky boy, but-

But then you're a fine woman, Mrs. Barkley,
taking an orphan in like that.

Not very many people
are that high-minded enough...

to accept that kind
of moral obligation, but-

I- I can understand it.

- Uh, I've got some biscuits.
- No, thank you.

Yes, we, uh, Matt and I-

We can understand
how it is.

We never thought to press you
about this, Mrs. Barkley, but-

If you felt
you owed Heath something...

you owe us something too...
for keeping him alive.

Oh? You helped Heath
and his mother financially?

Yes. We kept both her and the boy
you've taken into your home...

after your husband
ran out on them.

And now you'd like to be repaid
for your sacrifice.

We leave that to you, ma'am.

Don't you think
we deserve that?

How much?

Well, you seem to be more
than a fair-minded woman, Mrs. Barkley.

Why don't we just
leave that up to you?

Because it's very difficult
to put a value on what we did for them.

Would $5,000 be enough?

Well, I'm sure $5,000
would be more than enough.

All right. But first, there are some questions
I would like you to answer.

- That is, if you don't mind.
- No. No, of course we don't mind.

Did you know Tom Barkley?

- We knew him very well.
- He come courtin' my sister.

We seen him often. Yes.

- Where did they meet?
- In a bar.

- Uh-
- My sister, Leah, worked in a bar.

She was a waitress in this bar.

Don't take that as anything else.
I didn't even want her to work in that place.

So, they met in a bar.

- I suppose my husband dropped in for a drink.
- Maybe so. Yes.

And one thing led to another.

Just what are you driving at,
Mrs. Barkley?

I would hope the truth,
Mrs. Simmons.

Oh, I-
I see what you're getting at.

You'd like to believe
that Leah was... cheap.

- Right?
- I didn't even suggest-

You'd like to make it out
that she went with all sorts of men...

that Leah was nothing more
than a little entertainment.

Martha, I don't see
any reason for-

No, that- that-

That was the reason
that you came here for. Isn't it?

Was the loving husband in love with
another woman all the time he was with you?

Well.

If you want the truth...

I'll tell it, Mrs. Barkley.

I'm sure you will, Mrs. Simmons.

You bet he loved her.

And any fool who cared
to look could see it.

Loved her the way all of us would love
to be loved and never are.

And when she was carrying Heath-
carrying his child-

it became a special kind of love.

If he loved her-

if he knew about the child-
why did he desert her?

Your husband was a shrewd man,
Mrs. Barkley.

He wanted to become
rich and powerful.

And a man like that, no matter
how much he loves, has to be ruthless.

- My husband never hurt her.
- Ruthless. Ruthless and clever...

the way all rich
and powerful men must be.

No. He had a wife and family...

and he was on his way to making
that fortune when he left Strawberry.

He wasn't about to take
a millstone around his neck-

a woman carrying
his illegitimate child.

Now, you, uh-You were
about to write that check, Mrs. Barkley.

My son Jarrod is a lawyer, and, for years,
he's been lecturing me...

to think before I scrawled my name
on the bottom of a check.

And I, well-
I think it's finally sunk in.

So, uh, you won't mind if I...

think about this a bit, will you?

You just had to cut her down,
didn't you?

She was all ready
to write that check...

but you had to twist the knife
in her gut and bleed her.

- She hasn't left yet.
- She will, and she'll take the money with her.

All right! All right!

Maybe she thinks
I lied about Leah.

Maybe she thinks she does,
but she doesn't know.

She doesn't know, and, if I know her,
she's got to know.

And we're gonna have another chance
with Victoria Barkley next time.

No, Martha. No.

We can't. You let her go.

Rachel's dead,
and nobody suspects a thing.

And we're gonna
leave it that way.

You can leave it that way,
but I can't!

No matter what the risk is, I've got to have
my chance to escape from this cemetery.

Matt, I'm-
I'm still an attractive woman.

There are men who could love me,
but- but not this way.

Not with- not with the dust
eating away at my clothes and-

Matt, I-
I had soft skin once.

My hair-

I've got to be a woman again!

Now, if it's with you, I've got to have
enough money to make a fresh start.

And as long as
Victoria Barkley is in town...

I've still got a chance, Matt.

Miss Barkley.

Walk on over to the house.
I'll meet you there.

Matt. Matt!

I was right. She is staying.

Put her carriage in the stable.

In the name of heaven, Martha.
What good is that-

- We can't keep her here.
- We can try, Matt.

I told you I was getting out of here,
with or without you.

I'm sick and tired of being tied to a failure,
stuck to a man who's too scared to even try.

Now do as I say!

Do as I say,
or I'll find a man who will.

It's here.

It's here somewhere, your husband's letter.
It's just got to be.

Hannah,
Mr. and Mrs. Simmons told me...

that my husband
met Heath's mother in a bar.

Your husband-

He never come lookin'
for Miss Leah.

She found him in an alley
back of one of the saloons.

He was beaten
near half to death and robbed.

Lucky he wasn't k*lled.
There was lots of killin's those days.

She took him home,
made him well.

They also told me they took care
of Leah and the baby.

That woman
never cared for nobody but herself.

And from the looks of it,
she ain't doin' too good a job of that.

They've asked me for some money.

You don't think they deserve it?

I'll tell you
what them two deserves.

No. It don't make
no difference now.

Rachel dead now.

Ain't nothin'
ever gonna bring her back.

Hannah?

Did my husband love Leah?

Everybody love her, Miss Barkley.

She was small...
and so pretty.

And when she laugh-

She had the nicest laugh.

But most of all, ma'am...

she was a good woman.

She was a good woman.

I'm sure of that.

I'm sorry, Miss Barkley.

But I can't tell you
what you ask.

I don't know
did he love her or not.

Maybe only the two of them
know that.

And Rachel, she know.

But Rachel dead now.

Maybe it's best you go, miss.

Not until you find that letter.

It's gone now!
It's gone, you hear?

- You go, too, before-
- Before what?

You stubborn, all right.

Ain't nothin' gonna
turn you back, is there?

When I first spoke to you, you said
you were afraid they might k*ll you too.

Why would Mr. and Mrs. Simmons
want to k*ll you?

- I didn't say they wanted- - You didn't say
they k*lled Rachel, but you think they did.

What happened to her?

It's no use. It's gone.

I'm not leaving here until
you tell me what happened to Rachel.

I guess I knows that.

When we hear
Heath was livin' with you...

them two-
they want to ask you for money.

They want to bother you.
Rachel, she stop 'em.

She say Miss Leah
woulda want it that way.

A little while later...

they find Rachel dead.

She went
and fell into a mine shaft.

Law shoulda been called,
but nobody cared enough.

And me, I was-

I was too scared lest they throws me
in the bottom of a mine shaft too.

I can't read,
so's I don't know what's in here.

But maybe this'll answer
some of your questions...

about your husband and Miss Leah.

Thank you.

Miss Barkley, you wanna
thank me good and proper?

You read what's in here,
and you get yourself outta this place.

If the answer to your question
ain't in this letter...

then they ain't
no answer for you.

Not in this world anyway.

Thank you.

It's not like Mother tojust leave
without saying a word...

and not tell us
where she's going.

It's all my fault.

I was so busy admiring myself
and trying on my new wardrobe-

Don't be silly. Did she say anything
to you before she left?

She said she might visit a few
ofher friends and not to worry.

But I was so busy
looking at myself...

I didn't think
to ask her what friends.

I don't think she wanted us
to know where she was going.

Mr. Simmons.

Mr. Simmons.

Mr. Simmons.

Yes?

My, uh, carriage, Mr. Simmons.

Now, Mr. Simmons.
Right now.

Stable.

I'll take you there.

Well, Mrs. Barkley. I trust Hannah
told you everything you wanted to know.

Yes, everything.

Then if you'll write that check,
you can be on your way.

I'm afraid you'll have
to be a little patient.

There are several details
that must be ironed out.

What did that half-mad
old woman tell you?

Oh, she's not quite sure
you helped out as much as you claim.

Oh?

All right.

You offered us $5,000,
Mrs. Barkley.

We'll settle for half.

That's a very fair offer.
I'd accept it if I were you.

I'm sorry, but I'll have
to think it over.

What did she tell you?

- Some crazy story about how Rachel got
herself shoved down- - Shut up, Matt. Shut up.

It was an accident.

- Rachel died in an accident.
- I'm sure it was.

Mrs. Barkley.

You must understand.
We were just taking her for an outing.

She wandered away from us, fell through some
rotted boards into an abandoned mine shaft.

That's the way it happened.

Well.

We'll just have to take you
to where it happened...

and we'll just have
to show you how it happened.

It's bad enough leaving here without repaying
us for what we did for Heath and his mother...

but leaving here
thinking we're murderers-

Why, Mrs. Barkley,
we can't have that.

I don't know what you have in mind,
but I have four sons.

- They'll come looking for me, and they'll find me.
- I'm sure they will.

- Matt, help the lady out-
- No!

Oh, Heath! Heath.

- What's wrong?
- Nothing. Nothing.

Nice seeing you again,
Uncle Matt, Aunt Martha.

- Where's the carriage?
- In the stable.

Let's go.

Matt, they've got to be stopped.

You always said...
nobody could prove anything.

So I guess there's nothing
to worry about, is there, Martha?

They'll be headin'
through Shadow Mountain.

Good place to arrange
another accident?

- Well, I'm not gonna stay here and wait.
- Then you'd better get out.

I've had my fill of k*lling.
I'll tell you something else, Martha.

Whatever you had in mind
for Mrs. Barkley...

I think I would've stopped you.

Why, you poor, miserable soul.

You nothing!
You're not a man!

You're not even half a man!
You're nothing!

You're a weak, groveling nothing!

Half a man! Half a man!
When you were born, you were nothing.

And when you die, you're nothing! Nothing!

Phelps.

Phelps. Phelps.

Phelps!

- Phelps.
- What is it?

I knew it could be like this for us
from the beginning.

Just like this.

- What is it you want me to do, Martha?
- k*ll them.

I knew there was a catch.

- They can hurt me.
- You think that's reason enough for me to-

Us. Us. They can hurt us.

Well, that's a little better.

You see? All my practicing with the r*fle's
gonna come in handy.

- You should've told me.
- I couldn't take that chance. You might have k*lled them.

No. No, we'll tellJarrod, and, if there's
a way, the law will be back for them.

There was something else, Heath-
a letter.

It told me everything.
I want you to know too.

May I read part of it to you?

"You're a wonderful woman, Leah,
perhaps the only woman in the world...

"I could have loved as much
as I love my wife.

"And, someday very soon,
I hope you'll meet someone.

"You'll fall in love
as you deserve...

"and he will love you
as you deserve to be loved.

"And you'll be as happy as I am...

"as proud as I am of my family.

"You must marry, Leah.
You must have children.

You were meant for that. "

- Then he didn't know.
- No.

No, he didn't know about you.

Ha.

Sorry we couldn't get back in time
for the ceremony.

It doesn't matter.

It's a fine-lookin' statue.

Yes.

Ma!

- Mother, we've been lookin' all over for you.
- Where have you been?

Hey. You're wearin' them-
Father's boots.

Come on. We'll get some of that champagne.