Chapter 7 - A New Day Dawns
Nat Dillon awoke with the sun in his eyes. He turned his head away from the glare and would have cried out in pain for his effort if he'd had the strength. Instinctively he'd turned toward where his little brother was staked out, but couldn't even make out if the boy's head was turned toward him. Next thing he knew, Tim Butcher was looming over him.
The strong man had brought a stool with him. He placed it next to Nat and disappeared from his view, but soon returned with a plate of eggs and side meat and a cup of coffee and sat down to eat.
"Yer awake. Don't know about Timmy yonder," he said between mouthfuls. "Hope it didn't get too cold overnight, but not to worry. It will soon be more'n hot enough. Looks ta be another August scorcher," he added as he picked up a cup Nat hadn't seen and poured the water it contained on the ground next to the young man's head.
Nat found he was too parched to reply. Instead, he tried to see beyond Butcher to where Adam lay. The effort didn't escape the man, who refilled the cup and poured the water out by Adam's head, making sure Nat could see it. Then he returned to the stool to continue his meal, periodically waving the bacon and forkfuls of eggs under the lad's nose just out of reach of his mouth. Finally, he finished eating and surprisingly released Nat so he could, while still chained, carry the breakfast dishes to the pool to wash them, dry them and put them away in the cave, making it clear that any attempt at escape would result in another beating for Adam.
Nat forced himself to move through the pain and weakness. He somehow managed to clean the dishes and get up and down the ladder with the soap, dishrag and towels and everything else Butcher had brought outside with him. He could hardly remain standing when he made the final climb up the ladder with the man he now knew would be his murderer right behind him. All he wanted now was to see if Adam was still breathing and turned in that direction, but Butcher grabbed him from behind and threw him to the ground. Nat couldn't get up, so he meekly submitted to being staked out again.
"Adam don't matter now, 'cause both of you will soon be dead. He ain't dead yet but it's real close so I won't bother to take the strap ta him agin. You ain't in much better shape, but will be more fun 'cause yer awake. I don't mind tellin' yah, you boys mighta lasted longer had yah larned yer place better and not tried to get me last night. Course, that ain't the only reason I'm puttin' an end ta yah. You tried too hard to help yer little brother and won't give up on yer pa carin' enough to try to save yah."
Nat knew time was running out and it wasn't just the large knife in Butcher's hand. He'd called his brother Adam, not Timmy. Nat choked off a scream at the first cut in his left arm. Another jab and slice of the knife went in his left leg. Then it was his right leg and this time he screamed despite his parched throat as he felt the blood seeping down the leg and then he felt the knife plunge into his right arm. There were several more cuts to his torso before he passed out, his last thought being that Adam was next.
Matt Dillon, Festus Haggen and Newly O'Brian dismounted from their horses as they approached the small waterfall at the rear of the plateau where Butcher was finishing making the multiple shallow yet painful cuts into Nat except for the one cut into his right leg. It was relatively shallow, but the blood was flowing freely from it. The worried father and his two friends knew nothing of this. They weren't even sure it was the right place, but Matt followed his gut feeling and began to explore the area. He saw what looked like fresh footprints that matched Nat's large feet, now as big as his own. The strange thing was they were farther apart than the one's they'd been following since last night to the graves.
Matt sent Festus down the path, where the footprints did match those from last night, while he and Newly climbed stealthily up the incline at the rear. Newly emerged in the cottonwoods behind and off to the side from where Adam was staked. He stayed hidden, holding his medical bag, which he'd thought he might need, waiting for Matt's signal. Meanwhile, the retired marshal's head peered over the rise where his eye caught what looked like a prisoner staked out Indian style. Drawing his gun he raced to the spot only to find it was his son Nat, whose leg was bleeding profusely. The man responsible was bending over his younger son, the one conceived on his honeymoon with Kitty, with a knife.
"Get away from him and drop the knife or you're a dead man!" Matt yelled while trying to stop the flow of blood from Nat's leg.
The man turned, but instead of dropping the knife threw it, striking Matt in the left shoulder as he turned and raced forward. Matt fired his gun, but distracted by the blood pouring from Nat's right leg and the pain in his shoulder, his bullet barely grazed the burly man as he disappeared down a hole. Slowly, he became aware he was yelling for Newly, who had stopped to see to Adam, to come help stop the bleeding. Before Ford County's younger doctor could reach his side, they heard two shots fired.
"He's dead, Matthew. He give me no choice," Festus stated as he came up to the mesa from the cave below. "How'r the young'uns?"
"Alive, but barely," Newly replied. "Festus, is there any way to heat my instruments so I can sterilize them? I'll also need fresh water to wash Matt and Nat's wounds and to try to get some down the boys' throats. Then you can ride that mule of yours back to where we left the Dougherty's. We'll need their wagon to get everyone home."
Newly managed to suture the severed artery so Nat's leg was no longer bleeding while Festus went back down the ladder. By the time he returned with the water, he was cleaning Matt's shoulder so he could see the extent of the damage. As usual, the protests of the lawman turned judge that it didn't matter about him, went unheeded. Festus was the one who lifted Adam's head and pushed the cup of water between his lips after completing releasing him from the bonds Newly hadn't gotten to before Matt called him to Nat's side. Festus then did the same for Nat. He made one more trip into the cave to toss the keys to the irons around the boys' ankles and wrists up to Matt and Newly before galloping off on Ruth.
Matt unlocked the irons on both his sons and tossed them into the cave below. Showing his impatience, he paced back and forth from Nat to Adam wishing there was something he could do before Festus returned. Meanwhile, Newly put salve on the welts raised by the strap that Butcher had repeatedly used on their exposed backs and buttocks. Finally, Newly could no longer take Matt's pacing.
"Why don't you go downstairs and look for whatever evidence you can find. I know there won't be a trial and the piece of trash that did this is dead, but at least it will keep you occupied. You know I'm doing everything I can to keep these boys alive."
Resigned to the fact there was nothing else he could do until the wagon arrived, Matt descended the ladder after sticking the keys to the irons in his pants pocket. He put the damper on the stove, removed the coffee pot before it boiled out and kicked the dead body several times with his boots. He knew it really made no difference, but it made him feel better. It was something he'd much rather have been doing while the redheaded demon lying on the cave floor was still alive. With a great deal of effort he stopped himself from mutilating the body and looked for what had produced the welts on his boys' backsides. He soon found the strap on the table where Butcher had left it when he picked up the knife.
It was early afternoon when the small band pulled up in front of the Dillon house. Kitty rushed out to meet them, followed closely by Abby, Albert, Paula and John. Maria, the youngest Dillon and the younger O'Brian boy Liam were asleep in Maria's room. Kitty reached the wagon as Matt emerged carrying the still unconscious Adam, now wrapped in one of the blankets from the cave, snuggled against his right shoulder. She threw her arms around both of them while peaking around her husband for a glimpse of her oldest child. Only after feeling more than seeing Matt wince, did she notice his left arm was in a sling.
Neither parent wanted to be far from their sons so they placed both of them in Nat's larger bed. Once they were bathed and new salve applied to their welts, they were clad in clean pajamas. Once the boys were settled, Newly took the time to thoroughly examine the knife wounds on all three of his patients and put fresh bandages on them. Abby hovered nearby while Albert Goode went to the barn to take care of the morning chores that had somehow been forgotten and Paula went to fix a meal for the returning menfolk and the Daughertys, who she prevailed upon to remain at least for a while longer.
As soon as Newly finished his ministrations, Kitty turned to him and asked, "I know Matt will survive his wound, but what about the boys? How bad are they hurt?"
"You're right about Matt, Kitty. The wound was fairly deep, but it didn't hit anything vital. He'll be stiff for a week or so, but it'll heal nicely. I can't say for certain about Nat and Adam except that Nat would already be dead if we'd arrived any later than we did. Both boys still have a long way to go, but I'll know more about their chances once they're awake. All I know is they're severely dehydrated and completely worn out physically and that's without taking into account the beatings. Before you ask, unless they tell us, I don't think we'll ever know the extent of the abuse they suffered. I sure can't tell from simply examining them."
It was late evening and the August sun was setting. The Daughertys had gone to town with Festus, who promised to bring Doc back in the morning and the O'Brien family were over the hill back in their own home, only a phone call away if there should be any change. Newly assured them there was nothing more he could do for now so Matt and Kitty sent them home. Abby and Albert joined her parents in Nat's bedroom from which she'd left just long enough to put her baby sister into her crib for the night.
Following instructions, the four people in the room had made every attempt to get at least a few sips of water between the lips of the two unconscious boys. Their reflexes had allowed them to swallow a cupful each. Still, the parents, sister and foreman, who was more a cousin than a hired hand, kept an anxious watch for any sign of improvement or decline. Matt sat next to Nat's head with Abby beside him looking at his older son's pale face while Kitty sat opposite him with Albert opposite Abby in a similar pose next to Adam. Both parents periodically softly brushed hair off each boy's forehead or squeezed a hand. The movement was so slight, they almost didn't notice it, but there was soon no doubt.
"Mama, Pa," Adam croaked as his eyes fluttered open. "Water."
Matt was around to the other side of the bed in two strides with a glass of water in his hand. As Kitty held the boy's head up, Matt put the glass to his lips.
"That's enough for now, son. Rest easy," whispered the relieved father.
Adam drifted off to sleep, tuckered from the effort of asking his parents for water and drinking it. Despite the relief, the group continued their vigil. Two hours later Nat opened his eyes. He too asked for water but his whisper was so soft they almost didn't hear it. He too drifted into a normal sleep after the effort of drinking a few sips. Nat remained asleep, but Adam awoke after another four hours of sleeping complaining he was hungry as well as thirsty. Kitty fed him some beef broth while Matt, simply glad to see his sons were alive shushed him when he tried to talk about what happened. It wasn't long before he too was asleep again.
Albert excused himself and headed to his rooms in the barn. Abby looked at her parents and wondered if they'd listen to her.
"Ma, Pa, I can sit up with them if you want. I'll come get you if either of them wakes up before morning."
"Stay here sweetie, if you want, but your father and I aren't leaving this room tonight. We're still worried about your brothers. However, each of us will take turns looking in on Maria until both boys are awake."
As the sun rose the next morning all the Dillons, including little Maria were gathered in Nat's room. None of them had gotten much sleep, except for the two boys in the bed. Adam was again the first to awake. This time he was stronger and more aware of the pain from the knife cuts and welts from the beatings with the strap. That's when Albert entered with Newly, Paula, John and Liam carrying breakfast trays and Newly's doctor's bag.
Adam tried to stand to eat his breakfast, but found his legs were too weak to hold him up for long and the pain was still there. Matt and Kitty, after Newly changed the dressings on his wounds, finally got him settled back in bed, propped up on pillows and as many other soft things as they could find to place behind him and still have something left over for Nat when he at last awoke. Since Maria wasn't still fully weaned, Kitty was forced to excuse herself to take care of the needs of her youngest child. Newly by this time had moved on to tending to Nat with Abby assisting him. Paula had her hands full keeping her two young boys from getting in the way and Albert had retreated to the barn after eating his eggs and ham before they got cold. This left Matt the task of helping his independent minded younger son get the soft boiled eggs and toast that Newly would allow him down his gullet. Adam did manage to hold the glass of milk with both hands, but that was only after he'd built his strength up by downing the egg, and rasher of bacon.
Everyone who was awake had managed to eat something and Paula and her children had returned to their home when the next round of people arrived. Festus had returned with Doc and Lionel Walker, the young man from Denver Matt had trained as his replacement. Doc led them straight to Nat's room, but it was Festus who spoke first.
"Mornin' Matthew, Mz Kitty, Mz Abigail. I brung Doc with me just like yah asked, but Lionel jist had ta come along too. Mornin' ta yah too, Adam. Didn't notice you was awake at first."
"Just ignore him. You know he's insufferable. Right now I need to make sure my grandsons haven't suffered at the hands of that young man who calls himself a doctor. Of course, I gave him most of his training, so I suspect he didn't do too badly at restoring them to health."
"Grandpa?" came the whispered question. This was followed by an even softer whisper, "water."
Doc went immediately to Nat, the older of the two boys he looked upon as grandsons, who was obviously now awake. Everyone waited patiently and silently while the old man assured himself that the two boys in his adopted family would heal.