No Hostages
Jude Bonner walked into the Long Branch. He had taken eight men with him to Dodge. He'd left Lafite outside on the street and brought Toke and Calinga and five others into the saloon with him. Sam Noonan grabbed his shotgun from behind the bar and pointed it right at Bonner's heart.
"All right what is this? What'a'ya want in here?" Sam growled.
"Sam, be careful." Burke warned him anxiously.
"This here's a town meetin'." Bonner replied, "Now you put that piece down, or I'll have Calinga here slit this ol' boy's throat."
"You'll die first, Bonner." Sam said, his finger beginning to squeeze the trigger. Toke moved forward on Sam's left but his first shot went straight into Jude Bonner's chest. He used the butt of the shotgun on Toke's face and raised it again. Jude was on the floor. Lathrop lay dead in a pool of blood beside him. Burke was held upright between two of the dog soldiers but Sam could see the knife handle sticking out from between his ribs.
"I got one more barrel before you take me. Which one of you wants it?" Sam said as he faced six men, evil, stunned, and leaderless. There were shots from the street and the two men nearest the door went down with bullets in their backs. Calinga threw his knife, but Sam fired before it hit. Two more men went down. The men holding Burke dropped him and headed for the back door. One made it and one didn't as a bruised and battered Newly O'Brien led a bitter group of armed townsmen in through the front.
Newly bent over first Burke, directing men to take him up to Doc's office, and then Sam. He saw where the knife had gone in and knew there was nothing he could do. He held the big man's shoulders up to help him take a few more breaths. Kitty was suddenly there, kneeling at Sam's side, her soft hands stroking his face.
"Why'd you do it, Sam? Why'd you do that?" she asked him through her tears. "I would have gone with them."
"No, ma'am." Sam said. His eyes were on hers even as they began to cloud. "I knew better than that, Miss Kitty. The general was right. He was always right. No hostages. It never works. Better to fight and die."
"Don't you leave me, Sam! Don't you dare!" Kitty shouted.
But Sam just smiled sweetly at her. "My privilege, Kitty. Better me than you. No hostages. That's what ol' Stonewall always said. No hostages. It never works." There was blood now, coming out of the corners of his mouth. Sam raised a hand towards Kitty. "Don't you cry, honey. Don't you cry…" His hand dropped and his head fell back against Newly's shoulder.
Newly gently lowered Sam's body to the floor. Kitty reached down and closed his eyes. "It should have been me. Not him. It should have been me."
"No, ma'am." Newly said firmly. He stood and lifted Kitty to her feet. "Sam was right. Taking hostages never works out. We none of us would have let them take you."
"He's dead, Newly. Dead for me. And Lathrop is dead, and maybe Burke too. It's not fair. I'm not worth it."
"Yes, ma'am, you are. You heard what he said. It was his privilege. You hold your head up, Miss Kitty, and remember that," Newly said. "Do him proud."
Kitty looked at the carnage littering the floor of her saloon. "Nothing they could have done to me would be worth this, Newly. Nothing."
"We'll never know that, Miss Kitty. Not now."
