Chapter 10 – The New Family Faces a Trying Time
We had a late breakfast at Delmonico's with the Claybornes. It went only slightly better than dinner at the O'Briens. Mr. Underwood's words as we left the judge and attorneys to themselves seemingly had no effect on Mrs. Clayborne. However, Mr. Clayborne, Gil, was different. By the time we walked with them to the train station, I could understand how Newly had become friends with the man. The train had arrived by the time we got there with Matt, Gil and Nat carrying the Clayborne's luggage. They climbed on board just before Mr. Underwood, Mrs. Clayborne's maid and Judge Landry. Within minutes, the train was leaving and our family was headed back down the street toward home.
Matt's eyes darted into every shadow, trying to penetrate it. At the same time, we both reminded Nat to remain close, but there was no guarantee that the killer wouldn't spoil our joy at Judge Landry's ruling. Since we were all together, I thought it was time to tell our children about the new arrival. I looked at Matt and gave his arm a squeeze. He understood and nodded his agreement.
"Abby, Nat," I began, "your pa and I have some more good news for you. In about six months you'll have a baby brother or sister. Over the next few days we'll let people outside the family know."
"Ma, do we have to wait until you tell all your friends before we can tell our friends?" Abby asked. "I want to tell everybody at school this afternoon."
"Of course, you can, if that's what you want. We thought that first you'd want to let them get used to your family name being Dillon."
"I think it's neat we're gonna have a new brother or sister, Ma, but unlike Abby I do want the other kids to get used to us being officially named Dillon before telling them something like that. By the way, why'd you wait 'til now to tell us?"
"We wanted to wait until we knew you'd be staying with us," Matt answered. "We didn't want anything to make you feel worse if Judge Landry said you had to go with the Claybornes."
"I can help ma with the baby. I bet all you'll get to do is more chores, Abby said teasingly."
"Helping with the baby's for girls. Besides, if you help, you're the one who'll have more chores. I didn't have to do anything different when you were born. Right now, let's celebrate never having to leave here. We've been cooped up in an old courtroom until now and I want to run. I'll race you to Mr. Lathrop's store."
Before Matt could stop him, Nat sped off down the street with Abby running as fast as she could after him. Matt let go of my arm so he could catch him before anything happened, but before Matt had taken more than a few steps at a quicker pace, a shot rang out from the nearest alley just as Nat passed it. As our son fell toward the ground, Matt raced past Abby after him, but not before a second shot was fired. By the time I caught up with them, Matt, his gun still drawn, was turning from the alley back toward our fallen son. Abby knelt next to her brother, crying. When I bent down, she buried her face in my skirts and cried even harder as I threw my arms around her. Meanwhile, Matt picked up Nat and began racing with him down Front Street.
We hadn't gone more than a block when Festus, Lionel and Doc, who had just returned from the Pruitt farm, met us. That's when I noticed Matt's coat was covered in Nat's blood. He didn't.
"Nobody leaves town," Matt barked. "Lionel, Festus, I don't care how many men you have to deputize, but I want every route out of town blocked. Nobody's to get on any stage, train or horse until the bastard who did this is caught. Doc, I'll carry him up to his bed. Do whatever you can to save him."
Matt raced through the swinging doors of the Long Branch and upstairs to our apartment while I followed behind with Doc and Abby. By the time we got upstairs, Matt had put Nat on his bed and was taking off his shirt. When we got to the bedside, I finally had my first good look at our son since it had all happened. He was deathly pale and bleeding from his head, arm and chest. Abby looked too and screamed. I think I did too as I looked up at Matt. His face was contorted in fear and anger. I think it's how he must have looked after the Dog Soldiers got through with me.
"Matt, Kitty, step back and let me look at him," Doc fumed. "How can I try to save his life if you keep me from getting close enough to see the extent of his wounds? Go make yourselves useful and boil lots of water and get as much soft cloth as you can. He's going to need a lot of bandages."
Matt and I kept busy following Doc's orders, but Abby just stood staring, unblinking at Doc working on her brother. In a few minutes, I had calmed down enough to bring a basin of warm, boiled water over to the bed to wash away the excess blood, while Matt picked up Abby. I think neither of them was aware that he did it.
Gradually, Doc's voice penetrated our numbed brains. "He's got one bullet that grazed the right side of his skull and cracked it. It looks like it didn't penetrate far enough to reach his brain, but far enough to cause a lot of bleeding. However, most of the bleeding is coming from his left arm. He must have thrown it up as he fell. The second bullet went through the arm, breaking both bones and severing an artery as it passed through into his chest. Having to penetrate his arm first kept the bullet from going deep enough to reach his heart. It's lodged against one of his ribs, but if I don't get this bleeding stopped, it won't matter. There's no time to get anyone else, so Kitty you're going to have to steel yourself enough to help, just like you have whenever Matt was wounded."
Matt sat on a chair by the table with Abby on his lap while I tried as best I could to help Doc so he could sew up the severed blood vessel and apply pressure to stop the blood flowing from the other wounds. By the time he'd finished, Nat was even paler, which I didn't think was possible, and his pulse was practically non-existent.
"We're going to have to wait until his body generates more blood before I even attempt to remove the bullets. If I tried now, I'd kill him for sure. As it is, his chances aren't very good. I'll know more in the morning, if he makes it that long. I'll stay with him for the next few hours. After that, I want at least one of you to be with him at all times. Send someone immediately to get me from my office if there's any change, one way or the other. Matt, I'm usually telling you to get some rest, but I want you to make sure Kitty does. She can't go without sleep if she doesn't want to endanger the baby that's on the way."
While Doc was trying his best to save Nat's life, Festus and Lionel were tracking down the excuse for a man who'd shot down two 10-year-old boys just so there would be no witnesses to the cold-blooded murder he'd committed. They found the gun he used in the room where he'd been staying at Farley's Rooming House, along with what the boys saw him take. Farley paid no attention to his roomers, so he couldn't respond when he heard the description. If he had, our son might not be dying.
Doc was taking Nat's pulse yet again when there was a knock at our door. When Matt asked who it was, Festus replied, "It's me Matthew. Can I come in an' talk?"
"Festus, if you're not here to tell me you got the animal who did this, go away," Matt snarled at the closed door. "Otherwise get back out there and find him."
Festus entered through the unlocked door saying, "We got him, what I mean is Burke and Floyd did. He's locked up in a cell with Lionel guarding him."
"How is it that Burke and Floyd got him and my two deputies didn't? Where'd they find him?"
"Well, he come into the Long Branch as bold as brass an asked after you, Miss Kitty. Burke was there and heard him. Burke knocked him off his feet and when he got up Floyd had that scattergun you keep behind the bar pointed right at him. So far he won't admit a blame thing, but says he has some words for you personal, Matthew."
"Matt, Doc and I can look after Nat. Why don't you take Abby and go with Festus to your office. On the way, stop at the school and tell Mr. Deckory what happened with the Judge and after."
I was reluctant to leave Nat, but I knew Kitty was right. There was nothing I could do for him and Abby sure needed some time away. I held her hand as we walked down Front Street past my office with Festus. He went in to let Lionel and the prisoner know I was coming, while I went with Abby down to the schoolhouse. After telling Mr. Deckory to change the kids' last name from Baker to Dillon, I told him what really happened to Lester Pruitt yesterday and then about Nat today. He understood Abby wouldn't be in class until we knew if Nat would make it.
I really didn't want Abby to come into the back of the jail where the cells are, but she followed me through the door. The prisoner was in the back cell and grinned at us as we walked toward him, as if he was enjoying living off the town. I figured I might as well get started questioning him although I didn't want to spend too much time away from Nat. Feeling the way I did, I left my gun belt on the peg next to the keys.
"For someone in jail accused of murder, you seem pretty sure of yourself. I can understand gunning down that stranger if you had a past together, but why bushwhack two 10-year-old boys?"
"Well, well, Marshal, I see you have another kid at home. Still, a daughter's not like a son. A son will carry on your name, while you've got to pay to marry her off and worry about what some man might do to her 'til you do or even after. I see she favors her ma, so you'll have a lot of worryin' to do. I reckon your deputy told you I asked for your woman, but I didn't really expect her to be servin' drinks when her boy was laid low."
"Festus said you wanted to talk to me, but I don't need you to tell me about my son," I said grabbing his shirt through the bars and pulling him toward me. "If you've got nothing more to say, I'll take my daughter and go home," I said, shoving him hard back toward the cot.
"Oh, I have more to say. What I've got to say is I'll soon be walkin' out of here a free man. You can't pin the shootin' of your boy and his friend on me because there were no witnesses. The great Matt Dillon got to the alley too late. You also will have a hard time makin' the charges stick for that drummer's killin', since there are no witnesses to tell a judge and jury what they saw. You've got nothin' to tie me to him except my gun and our similar way of makin' a livin'. Heck, lots of men have a gun like the one that killed that stranger and maybe the two boys. Oh yeah, I can explain away askin' the freight office manager about those two boys easily enough. I saw them and was wonderin' if their parents cared enough to wonder why they weren't in school like they were supposed to be."
"I'll find enough evidence to make the charges stick, you can bet on that. I'm sure you can answer one question for me even if you think you'll soon be walking out of here. Why didn't you leave town? I had nothing on you and no reason to go out of my way to find you based on what two boys saw. If you had, two kids wouldn't have been shot."
"Now, why would I do that? I had no reason to leave. Leavin' might make it seem like I actually did the shootin'. Besides, a few bullets pumped in a couple of smart aleck kids, especially when one's a famous lawman's son, is the most excitement I've had in a long time. It sure beats sellin' a couple dozen meat grinders to a local shopkeeper. Now that he's been shot, Marshal, you got to admit that it's a relief to no longer be lookin' into every shadow to see if it might hide a stranger bent on killin' your son."
He grinned as he said that last part. I didn't have much reason to hold in my anger and frustration before that and I had even less now. I stuck my hands through the bars again and grabbed him around the throat to choke the life out of him. It seemed the only way to shut him up.
"Pa, what are you doing?" Abby yelled. "I hate him too, but hurting him won't help Nat and Lester."
Right now my seven-year-old daughter had more sense than me. The fact that Abby was talking reminded me that as much as I wanted to squeeze the life out of the bastard, I had responsibilities. For once it wasn't the badge that made me let go, it was what I'd be leaving my little girl with if I killed him. She'd be left to be raised with my still unborn child by her mother while folks whispered behind her back about how tragic it was that her father, a once respected lawman, was hung for murder. I let go of him and he dropped to the floor, gasping for air.
Without stopping to see how bad off I'd left him, I took Abby's hand and headed out of my office toward home, barely nodding at my deputies as I went out the door and closed it behind me. We'd made barely any progress toward the Long Branch when Carl Pruitt came walking toward us.
"Matt, what are you doing standing around on Front Street when you should be after the man who nearly killed my boy Lester? Are you waiting for him to gun down another boy?" Have you forgotten your sworn duty to this town? Just don't tell me you left it to others because you had to be in court."
"Carl, I thought we'd settled this yesterday. If your boy hadn't been shot, I'd deck you for saying I would ever forget my responsibilities to the citizens of this town. You know perfectly well why I've been in court. I had both my deputies searching for the man while I was there, but he just disappeared until a half -hour ago."
"If you knew where he was a half-hour ago, why didn't you take him in then, or better yet kill him. Scum like that don't deserve to live."
"I had other things to deal with at the time. You can leave it at that, unless you really want to fight me. Burke and Floyd took him in when he showed up at the Long Branch. If you want a look at him, he's locked in a cell, but I can't guarantee what shape he's in? Now, get out of my way so I can get back to those other things."
"Burke and Floyd took him in, you say. Why weren't you the one to do it if he was in the Long Branch?" Carl asked as he saw my expression and Abby's face full of tears for the first time. "I'm sorry, Matt. I've been so wrapped up in what happened to Lester that I forgot why you were in court. When I saw Abby with you, I assumed you won and could focus on my boy's shooting. Did something happen to Nat or Kitty? Is that what you meant by other things?"
"Apology accepted. I'd give anything in the world to have caught him yesterday, but failing that, to have got him before we left the train station. Nat was shot up real bad this morning, right after the eastbound train pulled out, for the same reason that skunk shot Lester. Still, he won't be tried for shooting the boys, you know. There's not enough evidence, but I am holding him for murder. Did Lester tell you anything the other day?"
"I told you last night, he didn't even tell me he'd played hooky, let alone why. I reckon he didn't cause his ma used to be a teacher. At this point it doesn't matter that he did play hooky. I'm just glad Newly, who took over from Doc this morning, says he's going to be all right."
"That's the best news I've heard since earlier this morning. It means there's a chance he'll hang. It won't bring Nat back if he dies, but at least that piece of trash will have paid for it in some way. Without Lester's eyewitness testimony, there's a good chance he'd walk for the murder of the drummer. I've got nothing to hold him on for shooting our sons. I was a split second too late to see him. If I had, I would have killed him."
Just as Carl headed back toward his wagon, three strangers approached. It looked like I wasn't going to get back to Nat anytime soon. As they got closer I could see that the man was slightly above average height and a lawman. The woman was a respectable, rather pretty, blond, who seemed to be in her mid-twenties, much too young to be the mother of the boy with them. However, the boy was definitely the man's son. They shared the same shock of brown hair, nose and chin. He was maybe 14. They walked past us and into my office.
"I recognized you right away, Matt," the man said as he came back out. "There aren't many men as tall as you. I saw the signature on your telegram and thought it might be the same Matt Dillon who left El Paso for Dodge City more than 20 years ago. So, I decided to come for myself instead of simply answering. I brought my son Wayne along so that I wouldn't be traveling alone with Mrs. Carruthers all the way from McCook. I think she'll be able to identify your murdered drummer."
"Roy, Roy Tuttle, it's been a long time. I'm afraid with all that's been happening in the past few days, I didn't recognize you until you mentioned El Paso. Abby and I were just heading back home, but we'll take the three of you to Percy Crump's place so you can identify the body on the way to the Dodge House. I'd take you home and introduce you to the rest of the family, but Kitty's with our son Nat, who's in a bad way, so now's not a good time. Still, if you stop in at the Long Branch, tell Floyd to give you a drink on the house."
"Since your boy's sick, I don't want to keep you and your daughter. We can find the undertaker on our own."
Just as he finished his sentence, Mrs. Carruthers came racing out of my office, looking like she'd been kicked by a mule. My prisoner's shouts followed her out the door.
"Emily, come back!" he yelled. "Now that Vernon's out of the way, we can get back together."
"I had to stop and see if the man you have locked up was who I thought it might be. Now that I've seen him, I know it's my Vernon lying dead at your undertaker's establishment," she blurted as she joined the rest of her party in the street. "You must be the marshal who sent the telegram," she said, noticing me for the first time. "Sheriff Tuttle insisted on coming along with me on the train so he'd have a chance to talk with you. We both have a lot we can tell you about Luke Jenkins. Even Wayne can tell you how wicked he is. I'm only glad I found out before I married him. It was the best day of my life when I met Vernon and was able to break away from Luke. Still, he's a sly one. He has a crooked lawyer friend who will be arriving here soon to defend him."
"Your description fits in with what I think about my prisoner," I told her. "Your ability to establish a connection between him and your husband strengthens the case against him, especially given the age of the only definite eyewitness. Everything else I've got is circumstantial. From what you know of him, is he the type who could gun down a couple of ten-year-old boys to keep them from talking? He's in for a disappointment, you know, one of the boys will live."
"Matt, your son's not sick," Roy said softly. "He's the other boy who was shot. How bad is it?"
"Real bad. He's lost a lot of blood, so Doc hasn't removed the bullets yet. According to him, Nat's chances are very slim."
Matt took longer than I thought he would to return home. Even with a possibly dying son, he was still married to that badge I thought, but this time I was wrong. It was the father, not the lawman, who returned to explain that he was late because he talked with Carl Pruitt and some people from McCook, Nebraska. He wanted to be sure the gutter snake named Luke Jenkins, I now found out, would pay for shooting our son. He felt sure the combined evidence of his old friend's testimony and that of the woman he brought with him, along with Lester's, would convict him of the drummer's murder. The trial would begin Monday. Today was Wednesday and Lester had been shot yesterday afternoon. By the time the trial started Lester would be strong enough to travel by wagon into town and say his piece. It would be a small consolation if Nat died.
The next morning Nat was no better. He was still pale and unconscious. Matt forced me to get some sleep by insisting we take turns sitting by his bedside, but there was no change in our son. I could tell Doc was worried and Abby had cried herself to sleep the night before. As hard as it was on us, it was worse for our little girl. Her big brother was the one constant in her young life. She tried to help with the nursing, but there's only so much a seven-year-old can do. As the day wore on, I could see Matt's anger and frustration mount. Like our daughter, he needed to do something, but the scumbag responsible was already behind bars and his trial was only a few days away.
When Nat's condition worsened on Friday morning, Doc called us aside while Abby sat at her brother's bedside. I was trying to keep up a brave face for the sake of the rest of my family, but with Nat's life seemingly slipping away and the baby coming, I was finding it hard to hold back the tears. I guess I'm not as tough a woman as I think I am.
"I'm afraid you have a hard decision to make and it has to be right away if there's to be any chance of success," Doc told us. "I'd hoped his body would have produced enough new blood by now to allow me to operate. Instead he's been weakened further by the fever that came on last night. If those bullets aren't removed in the next few hours, he'll die, but if I operate on him in his current state, he'll die. There's only one chance Nat has and that's a blood transfusion. If it goes right, I can operate and he'll have a slim chance to pull through. If it goes wrong his condition will worsen and he'll die sooner. I'm not going to make the decision for you. As a doctor I can't. It's completely up to you, his parents."
"Doc, if you say a transfusion is Nat's only chance, no matter how slim, I'm for trying it," I said as Matt nodded his agreement. "Should we all donate blood?"
"Abby can't be the donor because she's too young and Kitty, you can't give blood because you're pregnant," Doc replied. That leaves you Matt. You know I'm not one to hide the dangers from you. I'll have to be very careful to make sure you don't give too much blood. Even so, you'll feel weak when we finish and will have to stay in bed for the rest of the day possibly. It all depends on how much blood you give and how you react to it. However, eating a good meal and drinking some juice will help."
While Doc went to his office to get the additional equipment he needed, Floyd carried the cot from the storeroom upstairs and placed it next to Nat's bed. Once everything was ready, Matt rolled up the left sleeve of his shirt and lay down on the cot. While Doc put one large needle in Matt's arm and the needle on the other end of a short hose into Nat's arm, I sent Abby to put together a plate of food for Matt and pour a glass of apple juice. The transfusion seemed to be working because Nat's color slowly improved while Matt grew paler.
A couple of hours later, Abby helped boil water and get bandages in preparation for the operation that would follow. Matt, despite what he had to eat and drink, felt dizzy when he tried to sit up, so Doc told him to remain where he was at least until he was through operating on Nat. When Doc finished, and Nat's wounds were stitched and bandaged, my man and our boy were asleep.
The next morning I awoke to find that Matt had been in bed beside me, but had awakened before me. After checking Abby's room to see that she was still asleep, I went to Nat's room to find him sitting on the cot by our son's bed. I sat down beside him and put one arm around him and let the other touch the right arm of our son. Matt's left hand was already holding the right hand of our son and now his right arm encircled my waist. All we knew was that our boy was still alive.
"I know in the past I've said how much I don't look forward to hangings. Witnessing them is a necessary, but disturbing part of my job. However, I'm looking forward to this one as much as we both looked forward to Jude Bonner's hanging. I know Jenkins hasn't been convicted of killing Carruthers yet, but I'm sure the jury will have no trouble now that Lester's recovered enough to testify. I asked Lionel to escort him to Hays for the hanging, if that's the court's ruling, but I reckon I'll go instead. By then we'll know if Nat's going to make it, so I'll feel comfortable leaving him for a few days for the satisfaction of seeing him pay for what he's done to our son. I want to see his actual death. You know, that first day, he danced around admitting shooting him. He knew I knew he shot Nat, so I nearly choked him to death through the bars of his cell, but Abby yelled "Pa," and I let go."
"Matt, let Lionel do it. Especially if Nat doesn't make it, Abby and I will need you here with us. Besides, I'm afraid your hatred and anger might make you miss one of his tricks during the trip. I couldn't bear losing you too and his escaping. Then Emily Carruthers and I would both have lost those we hold most dear without the one responsible paying for it. At least she'd have the satisfaction as a widow of knowing that the law convicted Jenkins of murdering her man. All I'd have is an aching loss and the task of raising a daughter and a soon to be born child on my own."
"Kitty, that won't happen. I'll be even more careful than usual. I want the pleasure of seeing him hang. I'll stay away as short a time as possible by taking the quickest route home. I know you and Abby will need me with you, but I need to see this through even more."
Matt had just finished talking when Abby got to the door. By the time she crossed the room to join us, we noticed Nat stir. We sent Abby to get Doc to confirm what we saw. Before she returned with him, Nat opened his eyes and whispered, "Ma, Pa, where's Abby?"
We told him. We also filled him in on everything else that happened since he was shot; the arrest of the man who shot him, Lester's recovery, the additional witnesses, and Monday's trial.
When Nat continued to improve throughout the day, Kitty and I asked Doc about Nat testifying at Jenkins' trial. He thought Nat was strong enough to give his testimony if he didn't leave his bed. Therefore, Monday morning I found myself in Judge Brooker's office along with Paul Skidmore, who was prosecuting the case, Doc and Jenkins' lawyer, Trent Lockwood. The trial was set to start in an hour, at 10.
"Judge, I know there were two witnesses who claim they saw my client shoot and kill Vernon Carruthers and the second one is the marshal's son," Lockwood whined in protest. "That still doesn't mean he should get special treatment. McCook's not a big city either. I know that in small towns everyone knows everyone else, especially if they work together. That's why I'm here, to make sure my client gets a fair shake despite lawmen and judges being in cahoots."
"You've said your piece, Mr. Lockwood," Judge Brooker replied with a slight edge of anger in his voice. "Now I'll say mine. Yes, I've come to know and respect Marshal Dillon after years of working with him, but that has nothing to do with the case to be tried this morning. If Matt or his family were directly involved in the case as victims, another judge would be presiding in my place. Your client is not on trial for shooting Nathaniel Dillon. He's on trial for the murder of Vernon Carruthers. Young Nat is a witness to that shooting. In the interests of justice, all witnesses need to be heard. If, in the opinion of Dr. Adams, Nat is too weak to come to the courtroom, I see no reason why we can't bring the courtroom to him. It's not as if we have to travel to another town. All that's necessary is to move around the corner and up the street with the minimum number of people needed to hear what the boy has to say. Well, Doctor?"
"I just removed the bullets on Saturday and one of them cracked his skull. With a head injury like that it's much too early for him to move around much and that's not taking into account that he might start to hemorrhage. He's also quite weak. I'd say all he's physically capable of at this point is to sit up in bed, with assistance, and talk. The head injury hasn't prevented him from being perfectly lucid. However, as his physician, I would ask one more indulgence of the court. If I see that the strain of testifying is too draining, I would want an immediate recess for several hours at least, so he can regain his strength."
"That's all the medical information I need to decide. We'll hear his testimony after lunch. I'll limit those in attendance to the Dillon family, myself, the jury, the accused, both attorneys and Doctor Adams. Marshal Dillon will be in charge of seeing that the accused remains in custody while the court moves from the courthouse to the Dillon residence. That way there will be no need for one of his deputies to crowd into the boy's bedroom too."
It didn't take long for Roy, Mrs. Carruthers, Burke and Lester Pruitt to give their testimony. Court broke for lunch around one. By two, everyone Judge Brooker had named was gathered in Nat's bedroom upstairs at the Long Branch. Kitty and I had already propped him up in bed and Abby had taken away his food tray. Doc was pleased that he'd eaten all of it. He placed his hand on the Bible and was sworn in.
Paul Skidmore began the questioning by stating, "Young man, I know you've been through a lot recently, so just take your time. Please begin by stating your name and where you live for the record. Then just tell us what you did and saw a week ago on the Monday past in the afternoon."
"My name's Nathaniel Dillon, but most folks around here call me Nat, and I live right here in Dodge City in this building. Last Monday I talked my friend Lester into skipping out on school for the afternoon. I wanted to see what this grandma and uncle I'd never seen looked like and I reckon I felt better having someone with me. If they spotted us when they got off the train, they'd just think we were a couple of local boys playing hooky and not that we were looking to see them. Well, my so-called kin didn't see us, but we did see something else as we followed them toward the Dodge House from the train station. Fact is, we didn't follow too closely because we knew where they were going, once we knew it was them. Anyway, we passed the alley just beyond the station leading to a warehouse where they store a lot of the stuff they take off the train and saw a man shoot another man and then go through his pockets. He put what he found in his own pocket and then picked up the dead man's case. We must have watched just a split second too long because he turned and saw us just before we turned to run. I caught the man talking to Mr. Burke out of the corner of my eye as we ran past, Lester out toward River Street and me toward the Dodge House, where I stayed for a time. By the time I left my hiding spot behind a potted plant in the hotel lobby and ran to my pa's office, Mr. Deckory was coming out after telling pa how I'd skipped school. Once he was gone, I went in and told pa what Lester and I saw and what the man looked like. By then, pa already knew there'd been a murder. He and his deputies were looking for anyone who might have seen it. That's all I've got to tell unless you want more detail."
"Thank you, Nat. I assume that Lester is Lester Pruitt, who testified this morning and that your father was concerned about finding witnesses because he is the marshal assigned to keep the peace in and around Dodge City. Please indicate your agreement with this statement by saying yes and then answer one more question if you will. Is the man you saw in this room? If he is, please point him out."
"Yes, to both your questions, sir. The man's right over there sitting in the chair by the door. My pa's standing right next to him."
"Nat, is it?" Mr. Lockwood began. "Just a few more questions. First off, how old are you?"
"I'm 10 sir. My birthday was this past May."
"Even adults have problems with identification when they're frightened, at your age it's even more likely. Are you absolutely certain that it was my client you saw that day? Isn't there even the slightest possibility that the murderer resembled my client in some way and you only think it's him because he's the man your father's deputies arrested?"
"I may be young, but I have no doubt that your client is the one I saw murder that man. It has nothing to do with who my pa's deputies arrested. I'll never forget his face. Actually, fear helped me remember what I saw. I'm sure Lester had no problem pointing him out either. Besides, I've been around the law and courtrooms my whole life. I know you're trying to twist the jury into believing I could have doubts. Well, I don't. That man is the one who committed the murder I saw."
That ended Nat's testimony and the trial resumed in its normal location at the courthouse. Instead of going back to school for the afternoon, Abby came with me to see the end of the trial. The only defense witness was Jenkins, who continued to maintain the whole thing was a case of mistaken identity combined with circumstantial evidence of having lost Emily Malden to Vernon Carruthers along with a promotion. The jury didn't buy it. Within 15 minutes they returned a guilty verdict. I sent Abby home to tell Kitty and Nat the news while I waited to hear Judge Brooker's sentence. Jenkins would be hung in Hays City on Friday.
The next morning all that changed. I'd stopped in Judge Brooker's office to tell him that I would be taking Jenkins up to Hays as arranged right after the trial when he showed me a telegram he'd just received. Jenkins would be hung right here in Dodge so that the apprentice hangman could experience his first execution on his own. I decided to head home before letting Jenkins know the gallows would be built right outside his cell.
"I want to see him hang, Pa," Nat said from his room when he heard me tell Kitty about the change. "I think it's my right, since he tried to kill me and Lester to prevent his hanging. I heard you tell ma that you wanted to see him hang too when I first came to on Saturday."
"Nat, even if Doc says you can start moving around, a hanging isn't something you should look forward to seeing. It's a terrible way to die. I know I said I was looking forward to seeing him die, but that was me trying to deal with maybe losing you. At that point, we still didn't know if you would live. Watching him die, wouldn't bring you back or make losing you any easier, you know, but right then I needed to try to convince myself that it would. It was the only way I could face even the possibility of losing you after having you as my son for so short a time. Now that it will take place here in town, I will be a witness, but only because it's part of my job. There's no enjoyment or satisfaction in it. It's just something the law requires. If I felt any joy watching it, then I'd have sunk to his level."
I confronted Jenkins with the news when I got to my office. He surprised me by indicating that he wanted to talk.
"Marshal, you must think I'm lower than a snake. Don't bother to deny it. Even your son, as young as he is, could figure out that I tried to kill him and his friend. I saw it in his face. Your boy hates me and with good reason. You do too. Still, I 'd like to tell you how I came to sink this low if you can put aside your hatred long enough to hear me out."
When I agreed to listen, Jenkins continued. "I taunted you about losin' your son and me goin' free because I was too young when my pop was killed, only five. I was jealous of what I could see he has and also because of how you earn your livin'. You see, my pop was a lawman, a good one like you. My mama faced with raising me alone married the new sheriff, a man who beat both of us nearly senseless just for breathin' wrong. When I was 12, I committed my first murder. I killed the bastard after he beat my mama to death. She was sick and was slow fixin' his meal. I was on my own and started robbin' to stay alive and to get back at my pop for dyin' and the other one for takin' over from him. To keep from gettin' caught I killed any possible witnesses. Then I met Emily and tried to go straight, but she chose Carruthers over me and he got the job I thought I deserved. In some twisted way I thought if I killed him, Emily would come back to me and I would get that job as well. I felt justified in tryin' to kill those boys, especially yours. Bein' a lawman's son, his testimony would carry a lot more weight than just any 10-year-old kid. That's why I shot him twice. Now that it's all over and I'm gonna die, all I can do is be thankful that both boys lived and ask your forgiveness."
"I can't forgive you, but I can hate you a bit less. That will have to be enough for you. I may understand why you killed your stepfather, but that's where it ends. You made your choice then to become the sort of man I've spent most of my life fighting against. There's just no sympathy in me for a man who tries to murder a couple of boys. The fact that one of them was my own son is what made me want to kill you when you were taunting me. It's also why I had to let the law do its job. What stopped me from killing you before the trial is not wanting my boy, if he lived, and his sister to remember me for violating everything I'm trying to teach them."
