Bill had been watching Katherine all morning, partly out of duty, and partly out of curiosity. He skulked along behind her like a feral dog as she marched all over town trying to find out about her brother. He admired her spirit and he also admired the hypnotic sway of her skirts as she walked. He remembered her sitting all of those mornings at the General's offices, and despite what he had come here to do, he liked her better this way. She seemed to be more free than he'd ever seen her, but for how long was anyone's guess. He watched her through various windows and knew from the bewildered expressions on the faces of the people she was talking to that they were of no help to her. This was working in his favor and for the time being he was content to be in the shadows.

It was different when she went to the whorehouse. She walked in gingerly, but when she didn't return in a few minutes, he thought that maybe she'd found some one to talk to. He had to go see the Colonel today anyway, so his vantage point from the livery would be close enough to watch for her exit. He brought his stall-crazy roan out to the fence and began to brush him. The horse was anxious and anticipating a ride, so the longer that Bill took, the more agitated he became. The situation worsened when Bill heard Jack's familiar step behind him. Their confrontation was less than friendly, and frankly the whole relationship was beginning to wear at him. Jack knew well enough that there was no one on this earth for Katherine except Bill-- It was he who'd sat by her through all of those lonely afternoons in the city, speaking of her every night in the barracks, and it was he who had buoyed her spirits on the ride to St. Louis, so it was only natural progression that he would see Katherine through all of this foolishness and when she settled down it would be him that married her. The rationale was wasted on Jack.

He left Jack in an ill mood, and his own mood wasn't helped by the fact that as he rode towards the barracks, he saw Katherine leaving the whorehouse with a smile on her face. He cursed under his breath and damned the new fire that he'd more than likely be asked to put out. Even worse, Katherine left in the company of the pretty green-eyed whore he'd had his drunken sights set on in the not-so-distant past. The two shared a familial embrace and it was enough to cause Bill to see red. He spurred his horse harder than he needed, and rode at a gallop towards the Jefferson Barracks.