"Well ain't he a sweetheart?" Jess commented to Pete as the grim-looking man in the mirrored glasses trotted on to the foreman's shack.  "Him and Jacobs should have a real nice teatime, huh?"  Although her tone was lighthearted, her dark eyes narrowed slightly as she watched the hulking figure retreat.  No reporter worth their salt would go to the boss first, before even looking over the scene.<i>Huntington...Huntington...</i>she was wracking her brain trying to find any previous knowledge of the name.  The girl back in town was rich, there was no doubt of that.  But how?  Ranching?  Railroads?  Mining?<br/><br/>Well, that would certainly explain why her stooge was poking around on things.  Maybe she'd written Missy Huntington off a little too quickly.  All of a sudden, it seemed a bit more prudent to begin heading back to town.  She was about to bid a fond farewell to the young man beside her, when she suddenly recalled the business that had sent her up to the mine in the first place.<br/><br/>"So say, Pete," she resumed, turning back to face him.  "I'm still looking to sell those horses, and a wagon if you all could use it.  I've got four Belgians down in town, real sweethearts.  Who do I need to talk to about that?"<br/><br/>The young man rubbed his chin.  "Probably the assistant foreman, Carlos, but I ain't seen him today.  He's usually down at the Dusky Belle most nights though."<br/><br/><i>Of course he is</i>.  Well, it wasn't a completely fruitless trip after all, but the walk back was certainly going to be annoying, especially considering she'd be coming home empty handed.  Hopefully Jules hadn't paid off the men who'd helped unload the wagon yet, otherwise it would probably be succotash<i>again</i>for supper, and Jess would rather eat one of the horses at this point.  "You don't fancy buying a horse yourself, do you?" the woman asked hopefully.  "I'll cut you a deal and let one go for forty dollars, though any one of them would be worth at least twice that much."  Probably an overestimation of the beasts' value, but forty dollars would be better than nothing.<br/><br/>Not that it mattered; Pete could only laugh at taking on the cost of a horse at this point.  So did several other men she asked as they were departing.  Frustration was about to overtake her when suddenly she heard someone calling out a Miss Prewitt.<br/><br/>"Yes?" she asked, sweetly, turning around to face the speaker.  To her disappointment, it was not a potential customer, but Huntington's hulking...whatever he was.  And while several of the nearby men instantly distanced themselves from the woman, Jess herself stood her ground, even smiled back.<br/><br/>"Seems like you could do with a few<i>more</i>questions yourself, handsome.  Might I suggest:  'What's your name, Miss?' and 'What's your business?'  rather than just assuming you know one gosh-darn thing about me or my job.  After all, we all know what happens if you assume."  She took a few steps towards his horse, glancing cautiously at his rifle.  "For example, I'm<i>assuming</i>that even though you look like one tough customer, you're not the type of fella to shoot an innocent woman just for asking a few innocent questions.  Now, is that assumption going to put a bullet in my pretty little head?"<br/><br/>Jess quickly covered her mouth, as though she'd said something obscene.  "Oops, now that was a question, wasn't it?"  Another pause.  "Well tarnation, there's another one.  Seems like I'm gonna have to disappoint you, Mister.  Questions are something of a habit of mine.  But I'll make a bargain with you:  I won't ask any more questions of these fellas up here, if you don't mind my asking a few of you instead.  Besides, I could use a big strong man to escort me back to town.  What do you say?"