AN: I took a brief break from the multi-chapter story I am writing (at a snails pace) because this came into my head. Some of you know that single chapter stories are not really my thing, but here goes.
Will could still feel the sweet softness of Kitty's lips on his as the stagecoach lurched forward and rolled down Front Street. He savored the taste of her kiss even though it was not filled with the passion he'd once hoped for. It was a kiss of gratitude and fondness, a kiss that said goodbye.
He ran he thumb across his lips to remove the traces of her lipstick and saw the two men across from him watching intently. Had they been part of the last night's lynch mob? Perhaps, he couldn't know for sure. In the dark chaos of the night the mob seemed more a wild, angry animal than individual men. Even if those two hadn't been there, it was likely they didn't think much of him. They'd probably seen him, a known gunslinger, courting the lady thought of as the marshal's woman. During his 5 days in Dodge he'd often felt like the main attraction in a show. The worst was when he took Kitty to dinner the evening after he arrived. When they walked into Delmonico's heads turned and conversations stopped. You could have heard a pin drop. After a moment talk self-consciously resumed but stares were ever present. Most showed disapproval, others curiosity but all were filled with disbelief. As was his way, he'd continued to do as he pleased and was tickled that Kitty ignored the unwanted attention.
Kitty, he'd fallen for her fast. She was beautiful, smart, had a wicked sense of humor and a wise maturity. He was tired of living the hollow life of a gunslinger. For 18 years he'd traveled from town to town and shooting to shooting. All he had to show for those years was money. Not a person in the world cared about him. He was worn down and tired of living. Then he met Kitty and suddenly things seemed possible. He could make a change. He bought a run-down farm just outside of Dodge to show Kitty that he was serious about giving her a home and family. Of course if they'd married they would have moved. He knew nothing about farming, and toiling away on a dirt farm held no appeal. Besides it didn't make sense to live so close to a man Kitty had been involved with for years. They would have settled in a bigger city and he would have found a new profession. Gunslinging was all he knew so he didn't know what that profession would be, but he would have figured it out.
He closed his eyes and was picturing Kitty looking beautiful in a fine house when the stagecoach hit a huge rock. The coach bounced and his eyes sprang open. He saw that the men across the way had lost interest in him and were immersed in their newspapers. He looked out the window and went over every conversation he'd had with Kitty. Whenever he'd even hinted about getting serious, her response had been vague. Last night when they were dining in her suite, he'd decided it was time to press for a commitment. He had just begun to gently apply pressure when Festus interrupted.
After that time sped up. He was accused of murder and arrested. A mob attacked the jail and dragged him away to be lynched. To his amazement Festus and Newly did their best to protect him from their friends and neighbors. It didn't work. Neither did Kitty standing bravely in front of the crowd with a rifle. When she was knocked down he thought he was a dead man. For the first time since he was a kid he prayed for a miracle. He got one too, but had he been given a choice he wouldn't have had his miracle appear in the form of Matt Dillon. The last thing he wanted was a demonstration of Dillon's strength, integrity and what some would call nobility. The marshal took on an angry mob to protect a man who was courting his woman when he could have stayed in the shadows. No one would have known he was back in town.
As he thought about the lynch mob his fingers moved to his neck. Rope burns were faint but evident. Kitty had noticed them when she came to see him in his hotel room that morning. The marks would fade but he doubted the memory would. When those men obeyed Dillon and removed the noose, he'd been flooded with relief. His brain told him to thank Dillon, but the words got stuck in his throat. In the end he never thanked the man who saved his life and to his irritation Dillon didn't seem to notice or care.
The stagecoach reached the relay station and the driver shouted, "You can get food here and stretch your legs some. If you're changing stages this is the place to do it."
Will stepped out into the cool evening air and decided to take a walk before going inside. His thoughts returned to Kitty. He'd told her that he would never forget her and he wouldn't. He knew his love for her was in the early phase, the time when everything seemed magical and new. The kind of love that is exhilarating like a young bird taking flight. Yet he knew with a woman like Kitty, when the excitement and newness wore off, a deep, sustaining love would grow in him to take its place. Unfortunately Kitty didn't see it that way. She'd come to him that morning to explain.
"Will remember when you said that there comes a time for most of us when we question the choices we've made? I thank you for that from the bottom of my heart. Because of you I took a long, hard look at my life and the choices I've made. I came to the conclusion that my choices have been the right ones for me. Don't get me wrong, I hope some things will change one day. Yet, to the very core of my being I know what is most important to me. I know what I cannot bear to be without. I am staying with him because it is where my happiness is. Will, I hope you find your happiness too."
"Mr. Stambridge, Mr. Stambridge. " The driver's voice broke into his thoughts, "Mr. Stambridge, if you're continuing on we're leaving in 20 minutes." Will nodded and hurried inside. He grabbed a bowl of "surprise stew" and a cup of coffee. He ate as much of the stew as he could stomach, glad that he didn't know what was in it. After one cup of dishwater grade coffee he got another and thought about his next move. He'd left Dodge in a hurry. Once Kitty had told him of her decision he got on the first stage out. If he'd lingered he and she would have become awkward with each other. Besides, running into Dillon would have reminded him that damn marshal who'd saved his life also had the love of the woman he wanted.
It was time for a plan. One question was how to earn money. Going back to gunslinging might be easiest or maybe professional gambling, he was pretty good with cards. He didn't know how to do much else. Maybe he'd wander the country until his money ran out or something struck his fancy. Right now he had to decide where to go. He set down his coffee and went over to the chalkboard that listed the stagecoaches and their routes. If he got back on the same stage he'd continue to St. Louis. If he waited a few hours he could get on one to Texas or Denver Colorado. He decided to let coin flips choose his destination. Maybe, if he was lucky, he'd get on a stage that would take him to his happiness.
The End