A Woman's Touch

and then began to recite the tale with the fluency of someone who has heard the story many times since childhood. „The Ballards and the Stockbridges both wanted Harmony Valley. Originally because of the water.
    Later because of the mining potential. Macintosh, the original owner of Harmony Valley, wouldn’t sell to either the Ballards or the Stockbridges. From all accounts he was a tough old bastard. Things got nasty. Threats were made.
    Shots were fired.“
    „That sounds like something right out of the Old West.“
    Kyle gave her an odd look. „It was the Old West. At any rate, Macintosh finally offered a solution. He was dying and he had a daughter. She wasn’t very pretty, I’m told, and she had no suitors. Macintosh wanted her safely married off to either a Stockbridge or a Ballard. Whichever family accepted her as a bride got the land.“
    „That poor woman,“ Rebecca exclaimed in sympathy.
    „She would have been rich, regardless of which side she chose.“
    „She would have been used.“
    „I hate to break this to you, Becky,“ Kyle said harshly, „but the fact is, people have frequently married for land.“
    „Go on with your story.“
    „Well, needless to say, the Macintosh woman was courted by both sides. She eventually chose a Stockbridge. The Ballards were furious and things got increasingly violent as the wedding approached. Cattle got rustled, men got into fights in town and waylaid in the mountains. Inevitably a few folks got killed. Both sides were arming themselves for all-out warfare when the Macintosh woman finally realized just why she was being married.“
    „You mean she didn’t know? She honestly thought this ancestor of yours loved her?“
    Kyle shrugged. „She was a young thing. Her father hadn’t bothered to tell her the truth, figuring she’d be happier not knowing just why she was suddenly being courted by the two most eligible men for miles around. But it didn’t take long for her to figure things out. And when she did, she was furious.“
    „She was hurt,“ Rebecca interjected fiercely.
    „Whatever. At any rate, she kept her mouth shut and insisted on delaying the wedding as long as possible. Her father finally died. The day after the funeral, she called off the wedding. She now owned Harmony Valley free and clear, and she announced she wasn’t going to marry anyone with the last name of Ballard or Stockbridge.“
    Rebecca looked up, absurdly pleased by the unknown woman’s fortitude. „Good for her.“
    Kyle glared at her. „She started a feud that’s still going on.“
    „She didn’t start it. She was a victim of it. What happened next?“
    „The Macintosh woman finally married. She chose an outsider, someone from Denver. His name was Cork.“
    „Someone who loved her, I hope.“
    „Probably someone who wanted Harmony Valley,“ Kyle said grimly. „Good grazing land and a year-round water supply. However, he cared enough about the Macintosh woman and her land to respect her wishes. He refused to sell, no matter how much the Ballards and the Stockbridges offered.“
    „Or threatened?“
    „Probably. But Cork and his wife held out against both families. They eventually had children. Two died in infancy.
    The third, a daughter, lived to inherit the land.“
    „And promptly found herself overwhelmed by threats and offers of marriage from the next generation of Ballards and Stockbridges, I presume?“
    Kyle nodded, his eyes shadowed. „All of which she refused at first. Her mother had taught her well, it seems. But she eventually got herself seduced by a Ballard. The Ballard charm is legendary in that part of the mountains.
    According to the story, she thought she was in love and that this particular Ballard was different. When she found out she was pregnant, she accepted his offer of marriage.“
    „What happened?“ Rebecca realized she was becoming strangely fascinated by the bizarre tale.
    „Shortly before the wedding she discovered the Ballard she was about to marry had a mistress, one he did not intend to give up after the wedding.“
    „So he was just marrying the Cork woman for Harmony Valley,“ Rebecca concluded sadly.
    „You don’t have to get emotionally involved in all this,“ Kyle said sharply. „It’s ancient history.“
    „History, they say, has a way of repeating itself. What happened to the Cork woman?“
    „She followed in her mother’s footsteps. She called off the wedding at the last minute.“
    „Even though she was