Choices

Chapter 10

Epilogue: So Who Is Shadow Sycksea?

Calleigh leaned back, allowing room for Kitty to top off her coffee. "It feels good to be up and around again."

"If you would stop acting as though you were invincible, you wouldn't have been down in the first place!" Kitty was quick to scold her daughter again. "Scared us all to death. And for what? So you could ride a horse that wasn't ready. Lew will let you know when he's done with a horse!"

The injured redhead looked to Newly for help, but his loyalty lay elsewhere on this subject. "Don't look at me. Kitty is absolutely right. You never stop to think what could happen if-"

"La la la la la…" Calleigh stuck her fingers in her ears, mimicking one of Hadley's performances.

"Very mature!" Kitty took a seat next to Matt. He reached over, resting his long arm across her shoulder. "So finish telling us about the dream."

Newly had pulled his chair closer, making it easier for Calleigh to lean back against him. "It was all so real. We had gone to school together and he had been in love with me for all these years."

"Isn't everyone?" Newly gave her a quick kiss to the cheek, barely slowing down the story.

Calleigh took a sip of her coffee, then continued. "He blamed you for not helping his dad save their farm."

Matt pulled back, his face reflecting a bit of shock. "Me? What did I do?"

Calleigh went on to explain about the foreclosure; and the storm; and the whole sad story. When she finished, she looked at her dad again. "Who was Shadow Sycksea?"

Matt let his arm slide further around Kitty's shoulder. "Honey, I've never heard the name before. It was just a part of your dream."

"No. I heard you talking about him." Calleigh leaned forward, her brow furrowed, as she searched her memory. "You said that he was going to kill you." Calleigh paused for a moment. "Wait, give me a minute and I can remember your exact words..."

Again, Matt expressed his innocence with a look. "It was a dream. I'm tellin' ya, that guy doesn't exist."

"But I heard you." Calleigh was adamant. "It was the same morning of the accident. I had come by the house and I couldn't find you, so I went out to the barn. At first, I didn't see you, but then I heard you talking. You were up in the loft. You said, 'Shadow Sycksea is going to be the death of me'. To be honest, it scared me and I couldn't figure out why you hadn't talked to me about this man before. Especially if you knew there was a threat." She pulled back enough to look at Newly. "I was even going to ask you if you knew anything about it."

Once again, Matt shook his head as he pondered the name. "Honey, I don't know anyone by that name. Kitty, does it sound familiar to you?"

When the Marshal looked to his wife for input, he was met with a face that was definitely remembering something. Something she obviously did not want to share with the rest of the family.

"You know what?" Kitty clapped her hands, suddenly jumping to her feet. "We need to celebrate Calleigh's recovery. Matt, where did you put that bottle of Bordeaux that I ordered." Perhaps Kitty was too subtle in her attempt to lure him back to the study, because Matt was not quick on picking up her clues.

Calleigh, on the other hand, was instantly curious as to her mother's frustrated efforts. She watched Kitty disappear into the study, then moments later, call for Matt to come give her a hand.

"I don't know where it is, honey. You put it away." He yelled to the back room and returned his attention to his coffee.

Obviously, his response was not, in the least, acceptable, as the next request held a sharp edge around the sweet words. "I said…please…come and help me…dear."

Matt glanced at Newly. Men could say more to each other in a single look, than a woman could say in thirty words to another woman. Clearly still in the dark as to why; Matt obediently stood up and left the room.

"Honey, I don't know where-"

"Get in here!" Kitty grabbed him by the arm, jerking her husband into the study. "Are you really so completely dense? The morning of the accident we were in – the - barn." She nodded, making a face that left him confused.

"Yeah. We were in the barn. So what?" He repeated the words, but was still lost as to the connection.

Kitty let her head fall forward, resting on Matt's chest. There was simply no understanding the male brain…if there was such a thing. She raised her head, placing her hands on top of his muscular shoulders. "We were in the loft because…YOU…wanted to try something…different."

Finally! The light went on and a wicked grin captured the big man, as he let his hands slip further down, around her waist. "Ahh…yes! Now I remember—we made love in the loft. That's the time we tried-"

Kitty's slender hand quickly covered his mouth. "Okay, Cowboy. We don't need to go over all that now."

Matt's huge hands cupped Kitty's bottom, pulling her up against his body. From the look in his eyes, he did want to go over it—all of it—right now. Every minute of it. "Now… I remember."

Kitty pulled out of his grasp. She swatted his hand, like it was an annoying mosquito. "Stop that! And listen… Do you remember our conversation?"

Matt scowled, confused by her bringing up extremely pleasant memories, only to become irritated with him for trying to copy them. "Let's see. I said…uh…Oh, I remember." He grinned that little boy grin that normally melted her heart. Today, however, she seemed to be immune to his charms. "I called you my, sexy kitten."

"Think harder!"

Kitty had been born and raised in New Orleans and still remembered bits of the language of her youth. That day in the loft, Matt had asked how to say 'sexy kitten' in French. It should have been pronounced 'Chaton Sexy'. Unfortunately, Matt's dialect was strictly cowboy and in his Southwestern vernacular, Chaton sounded more like Sha-dow and Sexy became Sick-sea.

As the memory became more vivid he began to realize where the confusion was born. "Oh my gosh. I said, the Chaton Sexy is going to be the death of me. That must have stuck in her head right before the accident." Matt took a step closer and pulled Kitty into his arms. "Hey, what's the big deal? She thinks it's a man. She doesn't know who the real 'sexy kitten' is."

"You don't think she'll figure it out?" Kitty wasn't as comfortable with this bit of information as her husband. "I mean, after that whole fiasco with the handcuffs… and then that thing with Frank. Once she smells a secret, she won't let go."

"Did you find the Bordeaux?" Calleigh's presence in the doorway surprised them both.

Kitty exchanged a questioning glance with Matt, both wondering if the girl had heard the conversation. "Yeah, we were just on our way back."

"Oh, okay." Calleigh turned back toward the kitchen, then stopped abruptly "Don't be long…`momma chaude'."

"Oh, dear Lord." Kitty turned, burying her face in Matt's chest.

"What was that? What did she say?" Matt placed a hand to his wife's back. "Honey what does momma…shuud… mean?"

"It's pronounced…" Kitty shook her head, her expression one of defeat. "Nevermind, it's French for…(sigh)…hot momma."

Matt tried to be consoling, but he just couldn't stop his laughter from roaring to the surface.

FIN