Chapter Two

It was noon before the young woman rode into Lodi, her arm around her patient's chest. Unable to come up with anything to make a travois out of, she'd had no choice but to help the stranger, who had been just conscious enough that morning to move with her help, into the saddle; it had not exactly been easy considering how short she was. The young woman was more than grateful when the sheriff of Lodi came running up to her and reached up for the stranger in her saddle, as he'd begun to fall and she couldn't keep him in the saddle.

Sheriff Lee didn't have to ask who the hurt man was; he knew. Still, he didn't feel he had time to ask what the gentleman was doing with a woman he had never seen before. "Who are you, and where did you find him?" the sheriff asked as he hurried towards the doctor carrying his injured friend.

"Name's Marissa Adams," she said as she dismounted and paid a young boy who happened to be walking money to take her horse to the livery stable, "I came across him last night." She went on to quickly explain what had happened. "There's a dead man three of four miles out of town, didn't have anything to bury him with so I cover him up the best I could with rocks." By the time she finished talking they had reached the doctor's office. The doctor had seen them coming through the window and stood with the door wide open.

"What happened?" He asked as the sheriff laid the doctor's newest patient upon the bed that sat in a room near the back of the office.

Marissa repeated what she'd told the sheriff then said, "I have no clue to who he is. He had no identification upon him. Those other two fellows must have taken it, if it even existed in the first place."

"I don't need it. He and his family are good friends to many people in this town. I'm going to the telegraph office and send a telegram to Stockton." Sheriff Lee told her as he hurried out the door. The doctor shut the door to the examining room, but not before asking her if she had some time to spare, as he would need help taking care of the man. He had a few other cases he needed to check on as soon as he was done here.

Marissa would have rolled her eyeballs, only it gave her the excuse she needed to avoid going to her aunt and uncle's. After telling the doctor she'd stick around, Marissa sat down telling herself that the sheriff could have at least told her who the injured fellow was before he ran out the door.

While she waited, Marissa thought on her own situation and San Francisco. No one had forced her to accept her aunt and uncle's offer; okay, probably because the law was on her side. Still, with the death of her parents and brother, her aunt and uncle had meant well. After giving it a lot more thought, Marissa decided that while she would stay and help the doctor with the injured stranger; she was also going to write a letter thanking her aunt and uncle for offering to let her live with them. She'd make sure they knew she really was grateful for the fact that they were concerned about her being alone in the west and would promise to visit them. However, she was going to also stand her ground and explain that, while she liked San Francisco and loved the idea of spending time there, she had no desire to live in that city on an everyday basis. For their peace of mind, Marissa would point out that her skills in sewing were excellent; she held a teaching certificate and she'd done her share of domestic work. So they needn't worry about her being unable to provide for herself. By the time the brown hair, middle aged doctor opened the door to the exam room, Marissa had a peace of mind when it came to her welfare; one that had evaded her since her parents' and brother's death.

"I apologize," Dr. Tanner said, as he smiled at the young woman before him, "I should have asked you how much experience you've had, if any, when it comes to the medical field. The only excuse I have is I've been extremely busy and did not take the time to think properly when I saw who the sheriff was bringing in."

Marissa gave him a polite smile as she glanced towards the open door. She could see the man she'd saved lying on the bed with bandages wrapped around his abdomen and shoulder. "First, don't worry. I've helped take care of plenty of hurt or sick people, though no, I have never been to medical school. Second, you know him and the sheriff knows him, but Sheriff Lee said he was sending a telegram to Stockton."

"Yes, we do." Dr. Tanner sat down in a chair that sat next to his desk; since he had to leave soon, he didn't want to get comfortable in the one he usually used. "Mr. Barkley is from Stockton. His late father and I were good friends for a number of years until the good man died; may he rest in peace. Since then, he and his brothers have made a number of trips to Lodi. Most of the trips have been business trips as the family owns a ranch, along with a couple of mines and such. Well," he said as he scratched his chin, "I guess, technically, his hot tempered brother, Nick, inherited the ranch when Tom passed on. Still, the family works it together; it doesn't matter what else they do, they still help each other out." He went on to praise each and every one of the Barkleys, telling her more than she really thought proper. After all, she was a complete stranger to the Barkley family.

"So, which one is he?" Marissa asked after running all the names she'd been given through her head, though even as she asked she figured she knew. After all, the good doctor had been more than detailed in his description of each one of the Barkley family.

Doctor Tanner started to reply when a young boy ran through the front door yelling something about his mother and the baby. "Sorry," Dr. Tanner stood up, ran around his desk and grabbed his black bag that sat on a shelf that was built into the wall. "Mrs. Gibbons doesn't believe in long labors. I have to go now!" He said as he flew out the door.

Marissa shook her head, stood up and walked into the room where the man who she could only say for sure was one Mr. Barkley lay and sat down beside the bed. "Well, mister," she said as she let out a chuckle, "looks like if I'm ever going to learn your first name for sure you're going to have to be the one to tell it to me." She then leaned back in the chair she was using and began going over the different options that she had to choose from when it came to providing for herself. As she did that, Marissa remembered her families good friends, Paul and Charlotte Marlow, along with the fact that they'd been after her to visit them. She couldn't help but laugh as she thought on Paul and Charlotte and looked at the unconscious man before her. All of a sudden, a visit to Stockton seemed as good as an idea as any. First chance she got, she was going to send her own telegram to that town.