Heyes stumbled up the steps of the Curry-Heyes house on his partner's heels. "You . . . beat me," Gasped the new professor in surprise as the mad race from stable to house ended with his partner two long strides ahead. "Leg . . . must be . . . healed up."
"Yeah," panted Kid Curry, turning and extending a hand to help his weary partner up the steps to the porch. The sheriff and professor stood on the porch for a moment to catch their breaths. They Kid leaned companionably on Heyes' shoulder. Both former outlaws grinned as they remembered dangerous old adventures they had survived together far from home, when they had no home. Now they were on their very own porch. Curry looked almost embarrassed to be so safe and proper. "Come on in, Heyes. I guess our wives and guests are in the parlor."
"Sounds strange, doesn't it?" Remarked Heyes, using one hand to put his tousled brown hair into some semblance of order.
"Sure does!" Agreed the Kid, smoothing his wavy locks and replacing his hat. "Who ever thought we'd have wives, or a parlor, either?" He reached into his pants pocket for his door key, but came up with nothing. Heyes started to reach for his briefcase, where his picklocks now lived. But the Kid waved him off and tried the pants pocket on the other side. He pulled out his door key with a playful grin of triumph. He opened the door for his cousin.
The pair went back to the parlor. Professor Charlie Homer and Doctor Grauer were sitting in worn armchairs from the hotel beside Beth Heyes and Cat Curry. The four were drinking tea from Cat's chipped old hotel china. Their polite gathering was interrupted by two sweaty, laughing ex-outlaws.
"Hello, everybody!" Said Curry, removing his brown hat. "Cat, honey, I said I'd be home on time. Here I am."
"Good! I'm glad there wasn't trouble to keep you. In town, Jed," said Cat as her husband went to her chair and gave her a kiss. She continued, "It will be a much nicer dinner with you here." Jed and his bride both radiated happiness. At the same time, Heyes went to kiss his own wife. Charlie was quiet. His smile seemed a little fragile, as he watched two couples enjoying each other in a way he no longer could with his departed Marie.
"Good evening, Sheriff Curry and Professor Heyes." Said the doctor, getting to his feet and extending a hand to the friends he had been looking after for six years. "Congratulations, Heyes, on getting such a good position."
"Thank you, Doctor," answered Heyes, wiping his palm on the seat of his pants and then extending his hand.
"And it's good to see you walking so well, Jed," said the doctor with an appraising look at his patient who no longer needed a cane after his broken leg had knitted.
"Running." said Jed Curry proudly. "I beat Heyes at a dead run from the stable. It didn't hurt at all. Just felt good."
"Did he really beat you?" Asked Cat as the doctor smiled proudly.
"Yes!" Said Heyes, slapping his cousin on the shoulder. "He sure did. He got off the mark first, but he finished first, too."
"Good for you, Jed!" said Charlie. "And you're a pretty good doctor, I guess, Grauer" he added, winking at Doctor Grauer.
"I am, at that," laughed the doctor.
"I thought you and Charlie would get along, Doc," said the sheriff.
"Get along?!" Exclaimed Charlie, laughing. "I guess you forgot that the Doc here was the one who wired me about Heyes six years ago. We've known each other for over thirty years. We just haven't seen each other in a while."
"A long while!" said the doctor, looking fondly at his old friend. "We have a lot of stories to swap. You know how Charlie likes to tell stories. He's changed a lot in other ways, but not that one."
"Are you referring to my well-earned grey hair and wrinkles, Sherwood?" Asked Charlie haughtily, pretending to be offended. But his eyes sparkled under his furry grey eyebrows.
"Who, me?" Chuckled the wizened little doctor. He rubbed the top of his own head, with its wisps of grey hair. "I'm the last one to throw stones at a handsome devil like you, Charlie Homer. I just meant you've learned a thing or two, with all those years around schools. For one thing, you've learned to drink tea instead of whiskey."
The whole room filled with laughter over that. "Let's go get cleaned up, Jed," said Heyes playfully goosing his partner in the ribs. "Or these fine folks will chase two sweaty old thieves out of this nice parlor."
The Kid said, "You're right. I'd be happier with some of this dust out of my mouth, anyhow."
Heyes followed his partner down the hall. Curry was stripping off his sweaty shirt before he got to his bed room door.
A few minutes later, Heyes sauntered back up the hall, straightening his vest and putting on his jacket. His partner came out of his bedroom door, still doing up buttons. Both of them still had damp hair, neatly brushed.
"Why do we have to dress up for our own friends in our own house? It's too hot for vests and jackets. It's August!" The Kid griped.
"I don't know. It's just how it's done, in polite society," muttered Heyes, hoping no one in the parlor could hear them. "It's respectful. The girls expect it. It's the first time we have guests over to the new place. Other than Charlie, and he's like family."
"Well, I'm taking the jacket off, first chance I get." The Kid pulled his jacket into place, but left the buttons opened in the August heat. He looked at his cousin. "But you look happy, Heyes. Is it nice being a professor?"
"It is, so far," Heyes replied. "But it hasn't been long enough for me to know much about it yet. It will be two weeks before I get to teach a single class. And I won't get paid until after that. But thank goodness I've got some time, money or no money. I've got a load of preparing to do. I can use every hour I can get."
The Kid knocked on a window frame. "Knock on wood and hope things go well. For all of us."
"Maybe we better keep going to church regular," said Heyes. "Even when you didn't line up the preacher."
The Kid chuckled. "Sister Grace would be tickled," he observed. "I wonder if she ever figured out who we were?"
There was no time to discuss the question as the two former outlaws walked in to their own parlor to sit by Beth and the guests. "Now you both look like gentlemen," said Beth. "And smell like it, too." The five of the laughed.
Heyes sat next to Beth, who leaned her head against his shoulder. He kissed her cheek. The Kid had no one to kiss, since Cat had gone into the kitchen to finish up dinner
The doctor took back up the story he had been telling. "So, as I was saying, when I was studying medicine in Boston, there was Charlie right in Boston Public Garden wearing his old cowboy hat and boots. I asked him what a rube like him was doing there."
"When I told him I was in town to get a doctorate in mathematics at Harvard, he just laughed at me," said Charlie. "He couldn't believe it. Gosh, that was a long time ago."
"Marie glared at me for making fun of you," said the doctor. "She was pretty darned proud of her grad student husband. She was so pretty!"
Charlie breathed harshly, struggling against tears. His friends were suddenly reminded that Professor Homer had been widowed for only four months. "I'm sorry, old friend," said the doctor. "That was thoughtless of me."
"No," said the old professor with a catch in his voice, "I don't want to ever forget her or those days. Those happy days." He turned his grey head quickly, so Heyes wouldn't see the tear running down his cheek.
"Well then, remember that dance at your friend's wedding. . ." Doctor Grauer began.
"Oh, yes! Good old Billie got a really good band. But later on, he got drunk and sang dirty songs so loud we could hardly hear the musicians!" Said Charlie, breaking out of his sad reverie. "His new wife was mortified. Marie said she was appalled, but she laughed as hard as any of us."
"Yes, she did," smiled the doctor. "She knew how to have a good time, did your wife. She had such fun with my Dorothy . . ." Now doctor Grauer was the one with sad memories. Despite the lack of details, it could not have been clearer that he had just mentioned a sweetheart of his own of whom his younger friends had never heard mention.
"You two were the best dancers we knew," said Charlie admiringly. His younger friends could hardly get over their surprise. They had never seen the arthritic old doctor dance. The senior professor said, "Remember that dance at Harvard where they cleared the floor for you two?"
The doctor looked decades younger as he smiled in memory. "Didn't you and Beth court on the dance floor?" He asked Heyes.
Heyes had his own mixed memories, though he and Beth held hands as he contemplated them. "Oh, yes, though it didn't go too well sometimes. You know the marshals arrested me when Beth and I were waltzing in Central Park?"
"Yes, but think of all the happy times," said Beth. "Dancing alongside all your Columbia friends and their girls on those summer nights. It was very romantic."
"Do they still have a ball to open the semester at the University of Colorado?" Asked the doctor. "They always used to, but I haven't heard a date for this year."
"A ball?" Asked Heyes in surprise. "Nobody's mentioned it. I'll have to ask, or Beth can. I do hope they have a ball! I'd love to do some dancing, while Beth can still waltz safely." Beth Heyes smiled at the thought.
"You folks can dance all you like, but I'm afraid I'm a bit far along for it, Jed" said Cat patting her pregnant belly as she came in from the kitchen. "Beth, honey, can you come help me get a few last things ready for dinner?" Mrs. Heyes got up to join her cousin-in-law.
"Do you need me to cut or carry anything?" asked the Kid, getting politely to his feet.
"Oh, that's not necessary," said his wife. "But thank you. When you shoot me a turkey, I'll call on you to carve and carry."
"Oh, Charlie, do you remember . . .?" The doctor started another story with his old friend about people the two former outlaws had never heard of. Dr. Grauer and Charlie got into an intense conversation, much happier than the one before.
Heyes and the Kid had their own things to discuss.
"Kid," asked Heyes, "will you show me those sketches for our hotel sign?"
"Oh, yeah. Here you go. What do you think?" Said the Kid, reaching for a small stack of papers on the coffee table. "I don't like this one, but what about this one?"
Heyes studied the drawings. He nodded. "Yeah, I'm with you. I don't want bullet holes. Have enough of those in us already – it ain't funny. But this one, with the crossed guns, we could do something with this. I think the guns need some work, maybe add another symbol. A safe or something. But I like the lettering. It's handsome. This one with the rough wood letters is no good. We don't want it to look too primitive – that would be uncomfortable. Don't you think?"
The Kid was thoughtful. "Yeah. It needs to be nice. But still, we got to get folks to remember us, have some way to stand out. There ain't one here as really does it. Or not the right way."
Heyes nodded thoughtfully. "Yeah, I agree. But we can talk more to that sign painter. I guess knowing what we don't want will make it easier for him to figure out what we do want. I'll go in and see him after I get some things done at school. If you're free, you can come along."
"Old Clay is gonna get plenty of exercise, with you going back and forth to Boulder every day," said the Kid.
"Oh, I won't be on campus every day," the new professor corrected the sheriff. "I'll be doing a lot of my planning here at your place, and so will Beth. We might as well be together while we can."
"Yeah," said Curry gruffly. He wished he could spend more time with his own wife.
"Come on in! Dinner's on!" called Cat to the crowd in the parlor.
The Kid grinned. He loved his wife's cooking, and he wasn't alone in that. For company, they had thick steaks, perfectly done, and fluffy biscuits.
"My, oh my, but you do cook wonderfully, ladies!" said the doctor, after he had savored a couple of bits of the steak and potatoes.
"Thank you, Doctor, said Cat softly.
"You shouldn't really include me in any praise – it's Cat's dinner," said Beth. "I spent a lot of the day planning classes and just got in here and there to lend a hand in the kitchen."
"How do you feel about the prep school at Colorado?" asked Charlie. "It seems like a good place."
"Yes, I like it," said Beth, wiping her mouth with a red-checked napkin. "The setting is so lovely! Mr. Jordan is a good supervisor, from what I can tell. The other teachers like him, that's clear enough. The building is very nice, as you know. I wish we had more recent books, and more of them, but we can get along. The most important teaching at that level for people without much academic background doesn't have a lot to do with books, anyway."
"Yes, as I found out, it's how you get people to understand working face to face that matters," said Heyes. "If you could make me into a scholar, when I couldn't even talk when we met, you can get pretty much anybody ready to do well in college."
"Oh, come on, Heyes. You were born hungry to lean, and to teach," Beth said, gazing lovingly at her husband. "Once you got past the worst of the aphasia, nothing was going to hold you back."
The new professor smiled modestly. "Thanks. But you have to admit, the aphasia made things hard. If you can work around something like that, you'll be great at dealing with guys, and women, who just don't have a lot of schooling. As long as they have any wits at all, you'll get them ready."
"We'll have to see about that," said Beth.
"I'm sure Heyes is right," said the doctor. "I knew he was smart from the moment I met him, I mean once he opened his eyes. But to enable him to do something with it, and particularly something in a classroom – that can't have been easy for either one of you."
Charlie, seeing his former student blushing in embarrassment, hurried to direct the conversation away from his old troubles. "Have you met any of your students yet, Beth?"
Beth nodded. "One of them – he works there as a sort of janitor. Mr. Jordan tells me he's fairly typical. He's very bright, but unsure of how much good a classroom will do him. He's had tutoring, but no formal studies with a group in a long time. The main thing is to give him confidence – and command of some vocabulary and facts."
Heyes nodded. "Yeah, I met Johnny in the President's office. Hale has taken him under his wing. Johnny seems like a bright kid. He just needs to be sure what education will mean to him. I told him some, but there's plenty for you to follow up with."
"It must be good for them to know they have people there, just to help them," said Cat. "People who understand that students can be smart, even if they don't have a lot of schooling."
"Yeah, I'm sure the country boys appreciate that," said the Kid softly. "We don't like to admit we don't know stuff. Having a nice, pretty lady to help will be real nice for them." He smiled shyly at Beth, who smiled back. She thought of when he had held her in his arms when she had been in despair that Heyes might die after he had been shot in the famous gun fight on the train with the elder of the Teasdale brothers. Beth and the Kid had had a special, quiet bond between them ever since, despite their radically different backgrounds.
"How do you feel about having Marvin Mosley come live with you?" the doctor asked his four hosts.
"We'll have to keep a close eye on him, but I think he's a good young man, deep down," said Heyes.
"We around here know that having broken a few laws doesn't keep a fellow from being decent," said Cat firmly. Her husband wiped his fingers on his napkin and took her hand.
"Last I saw, he was growing like a weed," said Heyes. "I'm glad he's finally getting decent food. And here, he'll get good home cooked meals. He'll appreciate that, after institutional food."
Charlie asked, "Does he know about his little brother or sister on the way?"
"Yes, I told him," said Heyes. "I know it's early. But I don't want him to ever think we're keeping things from him. He'll be fine with a baby. He used to baby-sit for some of his mother's, um, colleagues."
"What else did he do for money?" asked the Kid uneasily.
Heyes shrugged. "Whatever he could. I think the pick-pocketing was the exception, or I hope so. I bet he did a lot of sweeping up and carrying messages. And, um, various things."
Beth held his hand and sighed. "I hate to think what he had to get used to."
Heyes nodded. "Yeah. He should appreciate his new home. I doubt he's ever had a room of his own."
Charlie said, "You said you want to tutor him at home until he's doing better in school. Have you thought of where he might find friends his own age? He can't do with just adults and babies."
"We have thought about it," said Beth. "There are some good boys who work in town – Thaddeus Jones who works for the telegraph office, our stable boy – some nice boys."
"And what about girls?" asked the Kid.
"Well, we will go to church," said Beth. "And the social things they do. Franky, I want to get to know him a bit before we let him loose around too many girls. Considering what he's been used to, he might worry their parents. And us."
"Church?" said the doctor. "Don't you think that might be a hard sell with a boy like that?"
Beth chuckled. "Well, maybe. But there will be lots of young folks there, including pretty girls. So, we might not have to twist his arm as hard as you think. And he has been going to church while he's at the home for troubled boys in Wyoming."
"Yeah," Heyes agreed. "I hope he'll find friends. He needs friends his own age. And he needs some firm rules. He needs to know what he can count on. With a mother like his, he never used to know what would happen from day to day, whether he would even get anything to eat."
The Kid nodded. He and Heyes knew the feeling all too well from their days at the home for wayward boys and their days on the lam after they had escaped. Curry said, "He'll have things a bunch better here, if only he's up for it."
"What about your own children?" asked the doctor. "I can see both you ladies look fine."
From there, the conversation went to lots of questions about the coming children, both the ones Beth and Cat were carrying, and the arrival of Marvin. The doctor and Charlie had plenty of advice.
After dinner and some more stories, the doctor said. "Charlie, old boy, I need to get along home. I have early appointments. We'll get together again soon. Perhaps when you return with that boy the Heyes are taking on."
"Count on it, Sherwood, old friend," said Homer warmly, shaking the doctor's hand. "You look after yourself. Adios."
"And you, Charlie. Good-night and a good journey to you," said the Doctor. It was clear that he was loathe to part from his long-time friend after a happy evening's visit.
As they said their farewells, Jed and Heyes went out and hitched up the doctor's horse to his little medical wagon. The doctor muttered, "Thanks, Kid," and climbed aboard. Everybody waved good-bye in soft, summer evening air of twilight. Soon, the ladies and the Kid went in to clean up the kitchen.
Charlie Homer stood on the porch and watched his friend's wagon pulling down the road in the deepening darkness, a lantern on the seat lighting Doctor Grauer's way. He stood there until his friend's wagon vanished around a turn in the road.
As Dr. Homer turned to go back into the house, he realized that Hannibal Heyes was standing quietly behind him. "Can I talk to you a bit, Charlie? I know you need to get up early, too, but I'd like some advice."
"Of course, Heyes," said Charlie quietly. He sat down in one of rocking chairs on the porch. It creaked softly as he rocked.
Heyes settled on the chair next to his old professor's. The pair rocked for a minute without speaking. The two academics watched the stars begin to come out, first the evening star, and then the fainter lights appearing gradually above them. Seeing the brilliant array of the Milky Way was like greeting an old friend who rarely appeared in New York City.
Finally, the new professor spoke softly to the old one. "I've got two guys to choose from for my teaching assistant, Charlie. I'm not real sure about either one of them. And I don't want to say 'no' to either one. One, name of Willie McGraw, is very young. He's just finished his BA and isn't sure what he wants to do. He's eager to study with a mathematician with experience in New York and in mines. He's learning a mile a minute, I think. The world is a bigger place than he knew when he started studying. The other guy, Theodore Harkness, has been an adjunct for a few years and is pretty well settled in. He likes the work and I don't know if he ever wants to go any farther. He's worked with decent professors before he got here and I guess he must be the equivalent of about half way through an MA, though not officially."
Charlie nodded. "Go on."
Heyes had plenty to say. "So, I think Willie would learn more from working with me. He'll be charged up to learn how to teach. I hope he'll be good with students, but he has too little experience for me to be sure. I just don't know if he's truly ready to teach completely on his own. Harkness is good and steady. He could correct papers in his sleep and I know he can give the students good guidance in a technical way. But honestly, I don't think he could light a piece of paper afire, much less a western boy just starting college math."'
"So, what do you want to do?" Asked Charlie Homer.
Heyes sighed. "I wish I could combine Willie's enthusiasm and Harkness's experience in one man and hire him. They're smart. But whoever I don't hire as my TA will be the tutor. And they'll be teaching one class each in any case. And before you ask, no, we don't have time or money to get anyone else. I would really rather split the job so they can both do some assisting and some tutoring."
Charlie's rocking chair creaked in the warm darkness. Bats flittered and dove overhead, catching insects. "Well, why don't you."
"What?" Heyes asked, baffled. "They asked me to pick one or the other."
Homer laughed. "Split both the jobs, just as you said. Then you can match each tutor individually to the students he'll do best with. You give Willie the guidance he needs and light a fire under Harkness. Stop trying to just do just what the administrators expect. Be creative. They hired you for a reason. Be yourself. Split the job."
Heyes grinned in the gathering shadows. "Charlie, you're brilliant. That's exactly what we should do. Now I feel better. I guess we'd both better go get some sleep. I'll drive you to the station for that early train. We'll be getting the nursery ready to be Marvin's room until the real one gets built. And I've got loads of class planning to do, of course."
Charley clapped Heyes on the shoulder. "So you do. You'll do fine at all of it, Heyes. You and Beth, together, can manage anything. I'm sure of that. And with Cat and the Kid on your side, you're unbeatable. Good-night, son,"
"Good-night," replied Heyes. He stood on the porch for a few minutes, watching the stars wheel overhead and listening to the horses shifting about in the stable. Then he turned and followed his mentor into the house.
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Cat and her husband lay in bed, side by side. "Jed, how do you feel about having a pickpocket under our roof? With me. With our baby."
The Kid stroked his wife's smooth shoulder. "Heyes and me have looked after plenty of boys that age. Some of them came from real rough histories. But we know how to wrangle 'em into shape, right enough."
"But what about teaching them to follow the law and respect the property of others?" asked Mrs. Curry.
The Kid sighed. "Well, that takes a little more work. But Heyes and me have come a long way from the Devil's Hole days. Little Marvin can follow along, if we show him the way good and clear. I'm sure Heyes and Beth will figure it out. And you and me can help out."
"I'm proud of you, Kid," said his wife. "I hope we can be proud of Marvin, one day. But I'm guessing it will , like you say, take work."
"Yeah," said Curry, putting one arm around his wife, and gently touching her round belly with the other. "So will bringing up our own little guy."
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In the bedroom next door, the Heyes were discussing much the same thing. "Heyes," asked Beth, "have you heard anything more about Marvin's mother?"
Heyes spoke sadly. "No. Nobody can find her. It doesn't seem likely she's still alive. Poor boy. One way or another, he'll be mourning her. You know it's going to be hard for him to accept another mother, no matter how much better you are than the woman he's used to in every way. I hate to put you in that position."
"Yes," Beth understood. "Family is family and love is love. We can't ever attack her. He wouldn't stand for that, I imagine. I've been thinking about ways to deal with that. After all, I am an orphan myself, like he is, and you are. I have some idea of what it's like to go to another household and be raised by people who love you, but still aren't your parents."
Heyes put his arm around Beth and held her, silently and tightly. He couldn't say more clearly how much he valued her love and understanding. She leaned forward from his embrace and blew out the lamp. Then she lay back down in the circle of her lover's arms.