"I can handle him." Kitty took the boy in hand and pulled him down the street.
Festus shook his head. "I need a drink. It was a long trip. You sure that is your's?" Matt: "Afraid so. It has been a long time. It is good to see you."
Festus and Matt were sharing a bottle at a dark, dusty empty bar when Kitty came in, walked over to the bar, and ordered a bottle.
"I am sorry. We do not serve women in here," said the bartender. "Besides, an unescorted woman is not allowed on the street after seven." Kitty was a
little surprised and a little mad. She had been living in the east and had all but forgotten western laws regarding a single woman.
Matt and Festus stood up. "The lady is with me," Matt said.
The Bartender looked at Matt. "Marshall because you spoke for her, she may sit. But get her out of here as soon as possible. I do not want any trouble."
Matt smiled knowing what Kitty's reaction was going to be."I am no longer a Marshall. Kitty, come sit."
Kitty looked like she might kill someone. "No... I have as much right to buy a drink as anyone!"
Matt: "The truth is, no you don't. They have the right to refuse service to anyone. Come on, it is a nice night. We can go for a walk."
Kitty put her hand on her hip. "Are you sure I am legal to go for a walk?"
Matt: "You're legal with me."
Kitty fanned herself. "Why Marshall, are you sure I won't be too much trouble?" she said batting her eyes.
Matt:"Uh Huh."
Festus shook his head.
They caught the attention of the local sheriff as they walked down the deserted street. Kitty saw a bench and sat down. Festus sat beside her. "Why
don't you tell Matthew the real reason you left New Orleans?" Kitty looked a little embarrassed. "David got in a little trouble. I agreed to get him out
of town so they would not press charges against him." Matt cleaned his boots off on the sidewalk. "A little trouble?" Kitty rubbed her head. "He was such a great kid until about a year ago. Now he just seems to be going out of his way to get into trouble."Matt played with his hat. "This was not the first time...
Kitty?...Kitty?"
Kitty shook her head. "It was just kid stuff. Fights ripped up some flower garden, stole some candy, broke a few windows, scared a cable car horse with some firecrackers."
Festus shifted his feet. "Tell him."
Kitty: "I don't think he is guilty ...I mean I don't think he did it on purpose ... I think things just got out of hand."
Matt was becoming impatient. "Kitty!"
Looking really sad and disappointed, she said, "They say he burnt down a dock full of supplies for the army."
Matt suddenly got a headache. "Is that all?"
"He said they were smoking corn silk on the dock," Kitty said sounding kind of defensive. "The hay they were sitting on caught fire, then some powder went off, the dock set a riverboat that was tied up on fire and it sank. He really did not mean to do it,... I paid for all the damage, and no one was hurt."
Matt: "Uh-huh...Is that all? Has he been drinking?.. Smoking wackyweed...gambling... women?"
Kitty quietly said, "He has been drinking all his life...needed to if he going to run a saloon. He can play cards as good as me...I think he has been going to the opium dens... It is not his fault. I should have made a better home for him... been home more."
Matt stamped his foot. "I will have no more talk like that. The boy is old enough to know what he is doing."
Kitty smiled at Festus. "I thought Festus could take him up in the hills and teach him all the stuff I couldn't ..You know, man stuff."
The local sheriff came up with his hand on his gun. "Whats going on here? What's this woman doing on the street?"
Matt stood at his full height. "We are talking!"
Sheriff: "I will thank you to get her off the street. I run a clean town. If it was anyone else but you marshal." Kitty stood up. "It is ok Matt. I need to check on David."
It was decided that Matt and Festus would take the boy to the hills to teach him to be a man, not an easy task. The boy was not happy, he put up quite a fuss.
David said he was going to run off to a civilized town like Saint Louis. Kitty lost her temper. "Go ahead, start walking. Better start thinking about what kind of job you're going to get when you get there, for you will get no money from me...If you spend three months with your father and he feels you can handle it, I will turn a saloon I am opening over to you to run."
In private, Matt said he was not pleased. "The boy is not old enough for such responsibility." Kitty looked a little mad. "The government will not let me take out a loan in my own name, so the saloon is really his anyway. I sold everything I owned to keep him out of jail. I thought I could get a saloon up and running while you were gone." Matt looked surprised. You're going to open a saloon in this town?" Kitty smiled. "That would be a hoot, but no. In Silver City just over the prohibition line. I intend to sell to all the men in Kansas Who still like to drink." Matt played with his hat. "It is hard to think of Dodge as a dry town. Things have sure changed."
Matt left word for David to get his supplies, buy himself a good horse, and be ready to go tomorrow. He then went to the local doctor. The knife wound had reopened and was infected. The doctor advised a week's rest. Matt had become accustomed to not staying in one place too long, os those who would like to challenge Matt Dillon's gun could find him. Not that he was afraid, just tired of the senseless killing. He paid the Doctor. The Doctor said, "thank you, Marshall." Matt replied sadly, "I am not a Marshall anymore."
Kitty wanted to help David get the supplies and pick out the horse, but he did not want her help, informing her, "I can take care of myself." The boy bought the following items for his trip: ax, shovel, hatchet, hammer, hoe, anvil, grinding stone,animal trap, rope, books, hunting knife, several bags of clothes, fiddle,snowshoes, first aid kit, bedding, mirror, coffee grinder, dutch oven,wooden bucket, pitcher, bowl, stool, lantern, clock, 10 candles, and maps.
He then went to the stable looking over all the horses. At first, he wanted a lean black Stallion - a two-year-old that was full of fire. He thought better of it, thinking the skinny horse would not stand up to the marshal's buckskin. Over by the rail, he spotted a horse standing 20 hands tall from the ground to his withers. It seemed to be very muscular. It had a shorter back, strong hindquarters, and long hair on its lower legs covering it's hooves. The horse hooves looked like dinner plates. The horse also had huge shoulders that supported a straight head that seemed to reach the sky. David thought that big shot Marshall is going to look small riding next to me on such a fine yard attendant did not want to sell the horse to David and told him, "Thatis not the horse for you." The horse seemed to have a quiet, calm disposition so David saw no problem.
Matt knocked on Kitty's door. "Can I come in?" Kitty seemed more beautiful than ever standing in the early morning light. "Festus and I are ready to go." Kitty smiled. "David has not gotten up yet. I will wake him. They delivered his supplies last night. I think he may have bought too much." Matt smiled."That is not surprising for a first trip." Kitty played with her fingernails. "Don't be too hard on him. He is very smart, but only knows what he was taught. The fault is mine." Matt shook his head ."The boy is lucky to have a woman like you for a mother. I believe the dock fire was an accident. He is just feeling his wild oats. Maybe getting out of the city is what he needs. Don't worry. I did some things I am not so proud of when I was his age."
David walked out of the bedroom rubbing his eyes. "What time is it?" Kitty rushed to get the boy some food. "Most of the time the guys leave at the crack of dawn," Kitty said. Matt shifted his weight. "Where is your horse? I can pack him while you get dressed." David pulled on his boots. "I don't need any help from you! I can do it myself." He left slamming the door.
Matt looked at the food David refused. Kitty invited him to stay and have some food while he waited. "It looks good. I could use some coffee." Kitty looked concerned. "Are you feeling all right?"Matt sat down. "The cut in my side is giving me some trouble. I don't heal up as fast as I used to. I am fine".
He reached across the table and took her hand. Her hand felt so soft, he longed to feel them on his body. She felt a longing to feel his soft lips on her mouth. She moved her foot between his legs and rubbed up against his knee. They both felt an energy long time forgotten, making both of them feel unsettled.
David bought the horses gear at the tack harness was a heavy collar with a breast strap, and silver good luck bells. Just like the kind used to pull the cable cars back home. He also bought a fine Challenger Silver Show saddle with silver trim complete with matching leather Silver Ferrule headstall, breast collar, reins, with quick
change buckles. The saddle weighted about 28 pounds. He had it delivered to the hotel.
The owner at the stable shook his head and charged an extra two bits for extra feed. He offered David a small riding horse in trade. David refused, thinking the man wanted to cheat him. The horse came with a bridle connecting the reins. The boy walked the huge horse to the hotel to get his supplies. When he arrived, he found lots of
cowboys marveling at the fine saddle.
80 inches did not seem that tall to the 6-foot 8-inch boy until he tried loading the supplies. The horse, unaccustomed to the sounds of the gear was startled. The result was an impromptu rodeo. David's gear smashed and scattered. The horse panicked and ran away, streaming gear behind him as he disappeared into the distance. Some of the laughing cowboys retrieved the animal.
Matt rubbed Kitty's hand. "My biggest regret is how I treated you. If I had it to over.." Kitty smiled and kissed his hand softly. "You would do everything the same. It was not all your fault. I could not have run the Long Branch as your wife. We did have a lot of good times. Remember how we laughed away the hours as we raised a glass or two?" Matt smiled ."What happened to us?" Kitty laughed."We lost the thrill of just being alive. Change came along and made us grow up."
Festus entered. "Matthew, you need to do something. That yahoo kid of yourn bought a draft horse! A Shire no less. It is about the biggest horse I ever have seen. You know what that fool is trying to do, pack that thing. Matt jumped up. "He is what?" He ran down the stairs in time to see the boy throw a bundle on the horse who promptly laid down and started to roll. Matt grabbed the boy pulling him out of the road of the rolling horse. As the horse rolled he crushed the supplies. The cowboys laughed as the boy
jumped up. The boy yelled at Matt that he knew what he was doing and Matt had no right it interfere.
"Hey Marshall," the cowboys yelled. "The boy there has a good idea you can catch bad guys faster with a bigger horse."
"Move along," Matt said to the crowd. "There is nothing here to see." The Cowboys moved across the street and sat on the sidewalk. Festus righted the
horse and gentled him.
The boy took a swing at Matt. Matt said, "That one was for free, don't try it again." The boy backed up and yelled, "You too chicken to fight me, old man?" He threw
another punch and missed. Festus laughed as Matt backhanded the boy with little more effort than swatting a fly. Set him on the sidewalk. "You can get yourself killed if you like, but I will not stand by and let you hurt a horse. That is a plow horse not suited for long rides in the hills." David: "It is a fine horse stronger and bigger than yours!" Matt looked at Festus. Festus spit on the ground" It won't hurt the horse if we ride him over to Centerville. Some of those farmers will probably trade him for riding stock."
Matt explained as he repacked the horse."You only travel light. I pack only about 60-80 pounds of food, water, equipment and clothing for a hunting trip. Pack the sides even and put a cloth around anything that makes noise for it startles the horse. I normally only bring what I can stuff in a saddle bag." Matt might have just saved his breath because the boy was making fun of him behind his back, rolling his eyes and dancing around.
Matt picked up the fancy saddle and threw it at the boy. Take this back and get an extra wide western draft horse trail saddle. The boy said Matt was just
jealous of the fine saddle and refused. Matt replied, "Put it on the horse." The boy threw the saddle on the horse but the bars sat very high up, almost on top of the spine. The saddle was too narrow, the girth fall forwards almost around the horse's shoulders.
Matt had his eye on the horse. He could tell by the horse's body language, that he was uncomfortable.
The cinch was too short so the boy used a rope to tie the saddle on. One of the cowboys yelled, "Jump up on her, let's see how you look."Matt started to object. The boy took a short run, jumped on the horse's back, slipped underneath his belly, caught hold of its tail. The horse reared as the boy fell to the ground. Matt grabbed him pulling him clear.
Matt took the saddle from the horse and explained as he walked to the tackle shop. "The saddle should rest on the withers without blocking the shoulder and the back should go no further than the last rib bone. The gullet is the long empty space that runs lengthwise along the spine of the horse. A properly fitting saddle will allow you to see all the way through the gullet when viewed from the back. You should be able to fit 2-3 fingers stacked on top of the withers inside the gullet, just below the fork/swell.
Check the bar slope. The bars are the part of the saddle that forms the gullet and holds the saddle on the horse's back. The bars run along the length of the spine and should be in contact with the entirety of the horse's back if the saddle fits. If the bars are too straight, they will only meet with the withers and the croup of the horse's back, causing bridging. If the bars are too curved, they will touch only the center of the horse's back and cause the saddle to rock. All that silver will get hot in the sun burning you
"The boy was mad, but Matt traded the fancy saddle for a King Draft Saddle. It was not much to look at.
Matt told the boy to go tell his mother they were leaving and would meet her in Silver City at the end of the season.
Matt and Festus returned some of David's supplies and bought things that were needed. Then they packed the horse. The boy had not returned, so Matt went to fetch
him.
The door to Kitty's room was open a crack. Matt saw David holding Kitty's hand as she lay on a settee. "Did you eat today?" David asked. "Did you take your pills?" Kitty responded, "Don't worry about me. You understand why we had to leave New Orleans and why I am sending you with your father?" David sounded a little mad. "I know I goofed up. I am sorry it cost you your saloon. I heard people talking about that man you call my father in it true he single-handedly settled the west?" Kitty laughed. "Yeah, I guess he did. The world we lived in no longer exists. The world was changing and we got caught up in it. Matt stood pretty much alone to bring about the change. The funny thing is, if he could he would go back to the days when Dodge was a wide open city. Please give him a chance. He is a good man."David looked away from her. "Could not tell by me."Kitty spoke softly. "He did not know about you."
Matt knocked on the door.
Kitty stood on the sidewalk and watched as her men rode past. She watched as David's horse sprang into motion. It galloped along at a steady and rhythmic pace, but he began to slip from the saddle .In terror, David grabbed for the horse's mane, but couldn't seem to get a firm grip. He tried to throw his arms around the horse's neck, but he slid down the side of the horse anyway. The horse galloped along, seemingly impervious to its slipping rider. Finally, giving up his frail grip, he leapt away from the horse to try and throw himself to safety.
Unfortunately, his foot became entangled in the stirrup. He is now at the mercy of the horse's pounding hooves as his head struck against the ground over and over. David was mere moments away from unconsciousness when Festus stopped the horse and Matt rescued the kid.
Matt looked at Kitty surged his shoulders adjusted his hat and smiled reassuringly.