"Marshal Dillon?"

That afternoon, Matt looked up from the paperwork on his desk, to see Wade standing unsteadily in the doorway. A gun on his hip that looked too big for him and an outfit that simply screamed, 'dude trying to be a cowboy'. Matt would've laughed but he wasn't in a very jovial mood at the moment.

"Thought Doc said you were sick and supposed to be in bed." Matt's voice was as gruff as he meant it to be.

"He suggested it." Wade smiled. "But I've not always been the best at heeding suggestions I don't like."

"Yeah, I know someone like that." Matt muttered. "What can I do for you, Mister?" He didn't rise and he didn't offer a chair or coffee to the young man.

Wade took no offense and came fully into the room, tripping over the door frame as he entered. But he caught himself before he could fall and moved over, taking a chair by the small table and sitting down. "I came to talk to you, Marshal. I know you're concerned about Kitty and you don't trust me because you don't know me. But.."

"You're right." Matt interrupted him. "I don't know you. And right now, I'm not sure I want to. By getting Kitty to go out to San Francisco for you, you might very well have put her in danger. Did you ever think about that?"

"I never asked her to go." Wade pointed out. "She volunteered. As for her being in danger, I doubt that. She's very good at cards and from what I saw, very good at dealing with the type of men who handle them."

Matt glared at the cowboy want to be. A plaid shirt, leather vest and tooled leather boots didn't make this kid a westerner who understood the way things were out on the frontier or how men who handled cards, handled women who were alone.

"Look, Mister. Other than getting Kitty involved in your problems, I have no idea why you're here in Dodge or here in my office. So why don't you tell me?"

"My name is Wade Russell. I am Kitty's brother and you can quit being so hostile to me." Wade answered. "I didn't come out here to create problems or get anyone involved in them. I came to ask my sister to teach me to play cards and to get to know her. And Kitty is my sister no matter what you think. I plan on becoming a part of her life and making her a part of mine." He met Matt's angry glare evenly. "And I plan on doing it publically, Marshal. Not hidden from everyone."

Matt took a deep breath before he said something he knew he'd probably regret later. Finally getting to his feet, he gave himself a couple more minutes by heading to the stove for a cup of coffee. "Kitty is a good friend of mine." Matt finally turned back to Wade. "I care about what happens to her and I will not sit idly by and let you or anyone else hurt or use her."

"A friend?" Wade arched a brow.

Matt opened his mouth to reply when the jail door was suddenly flung open and Wilbur Jonas stumbled in. "Marshal Dillon, you'd better come. Chester's over to my store and there's a tough there trying to make trouble with him."

Matt sat his cup down, grabbed his gun and hat and ran out of the door in front of Jonas, leaving Wade where he sat. But Wade wasn't content to sit and wait and he quickly rose and followed behind Matt and the grocer.

When he arrived, Matt had already come to a halt and was facing down a brute just barely smaller than he was. Thick waisted with a broad chest, and not one, but two pistols hanging from his hips, he snarled as Matt approached.

"What do you want, lawman?" He growled.

"Watch out, Mr. Dillon." Chester warned as he struggled to his feet behind the ogre.

He had been on his way to Doc's for some kind of medicine when he heard Jonas crying out upon seeing the bandit stealing an apple from his boardwalk display. Not sure of where his boss was and certain this was one thing he could handle on his own, he'd confronted the thief and demanded that he return the stolen merchandise. It had gone downhill from there.

"Sure." The bully had grinned as he threw the apple to the ground and then jumped Chester, pummeling him to the ground.

Jonas, understanding that Chester was outmatched had gone for Matt. And now here Matt was, trying to resolve the problem without gunplay or anyone getting hurt. "What's this all about, Mister." Matt kept his right hand close to his gun.

"Ain't about nothing." The filthy man shrugged. "I was just minding my own business when this fella here jumped me. I was just defending myself. Nothing for you to get involved in."

"He's a liar, Mr. Dillon." Chester objected loudly as he swayed a little on his feet. "He was a stealing an apple from Mr. Jonas and I was stopping him."

The thief cast a jaundiced eye at Chester before abruptly grabbing him by the scruff of his neck, drawing his gun and placing it against the now frightened assistant's head. "Now you all just keep yer distance, ya hear." He ordered. "Drop your gun lawman unless you want this gimp here shot."

"I'm not going to do that, Mister." Matt shook his head. "But you need to."

The scruffy man cocked his pistol and pressed it tighter to Chester's temple. "I said drop your gun, Lawman."

Seeing no other option, without getting Chester shot, Matt did as he was ordered.

Chester gasped, trying to stay on his feet and pull his head away from the gun. He was certain the end was near.

Standing well behind and to the side of Matt, Wade witnessed the confrontation with interest and no small amount of awe and fear. Though New Orleans had seen its fair share of duels, they were ordered and neat, nothing of this sort. The way things looked at this moment, the marshal and Chester were both sure to be shot by this villain as he watched.

Wade had never been the bravest of people but he didn't feel that he could just stand by and do nothing. And after all he'd faced down that man in the saloon so he should be able to help here. Slowly, he backed away and even more to the right moving his hand to his newly purchased gun.

Matt saw Wade out of the corner of his eye but he didn't let it distract him. The bandit with a gun on Chester was his main concern. "Look, Mister. There's no need for this. Drop your gun and no one gets hurt. You only took an apple. I won't even lock you up for that."

"No." The petty thief shook his head. "I know better than that. I ain't letting go of my gun or this fellow either."

Before Matt could reply or even take a breath, a gun fired and the man, with a sincere look of confusion on his face, dropped his gun and fell face first onto the street, his gun firing as it hit the ground.

Chester, who'd been getting increasingly lightheaded, rubbed a hand across his face before his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell lifelessly to the ground.

Matt whirled around to see where the shot came from and saw Wade smile happily at him before he closed his eyes and Wade too went down.

TBC