Gunsmoke and Spies 14

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Amanda held on tightly to the reins of the loping animal she was atop, praying heavily she wouldn't fall off and resisting the urge to cry out each time she came close to it. So far, Lee and the Marshal did not know she was behind them, and she wanted to keep it that way. But as each mile passed, she was beginning to fear that was exactly what would happen.

When Lee and Matt finally slowed, Amanda was none too slow in pulling her own mount to a stop and hastily dismounting. "There's a reason I have an allergy to horses and mules." She whispered to herself, as she pulled the recalcitrant animal behind her to cover. "I hate riding them."

Not knowing that Amanda was behind them, Lee and Matt found some huge boulders to hide behind and settled down to wait. They didn't have to wait long.

Only moments passed before they heard the creak of wagon wheels and saw an army supply wagon slowly make it way towards them. When the wagon finally came abreast of them, Matt and Lee exchanged "I knew it" glances as they recognized the supply sergeant out at the fort, Abe Logan.

Keeping their presence secret, they continued to wait until they saw two riders approaching from the west. One, a black haired man with a scar on his cheek and an irritated frown on his sun darkened skin, was apparently unhappy with his riding partner.

The other man, greasy blond hair and grizzled, bearded face, seemed to be no more pleased than his companion. "I told ya they was locked up tight when I left." He could be heard saying as they approached. "That one were near dead. I know'd she was. I'm a good shot."

Lee glanced over at the rigid expression on Matt's face and understood the emotions currently coursing through him. Silently he reached over and placed a steadying hand on Matt's arm. Matt looked down at the hand, then over to Lee, giving him a slight nod. Lee returned the nod and braced himself for the confrontation soon to come.

When the men reined in, Logan greeted them as old friends. "Hey Saldez, good to see ya, Compadre."

"Logan." Saldez returned. "Jew got de rifles?"

"Shore do." Logan answered as he jerked a thumb to the back of the wagon. "Only got three crates though. Dillon and some other man was out at the fort yesterdee. Made the captain suspicious so he clamped down on things a while. I already had these out of there or I'd a not got 'em."

Saldez turned an angry glare at the other man before turning back to Logan. "I see to that lawman later." He snarled. "But now I see to dem." He pointed at the crates.

That was what Matt and Lee were waiting for. With little more than a nod between them, both men rose, guns drawn and pointed at the three men. "Alright, hold it!" Matt demanded taking a steady grip of the rifle in his hand.

For a moment everyone froze. But all too quickly, it all broke loose. With a cry of "HAH!" Hayworth viciously spurred his horse and leaped forward towards Matt and Lee. Saldez jerked his horse in the opposite direction and took off at a clip. Logan seeing an opportunity for escape, frantically pulled on the reins still in his hand and turned his wagon, trying desperately to head back in the direction from which he came.

As Hayworth madly rode towards him, Matt took a leap to the side and brought his rifle up. Using it as a club, he whirled and knocked the man from the saddle as he passed. As soon as Hayworth was on the ground, Matt dropped his rifle and grabbed him with his bare hands, intent on beating him to death for shooting Kitty.

Lee started to try and stop him but he saw Saldez rapidly disappearing in the opposite direction and knew he couldn't let him get away. Jumping atop his horse, Lee raced after the bandit. Pushing the animal beneath him to its limits, Lee finally caught up with Saldez when they reached a flat open stretch of terrain. He knew his smaller mount would not be able to keep pace with the large and powerful gelding Saldez had and decided there was only one course of action available to him.

Letting go of his reins, Lee took a leap and practically landed on Saldez' horse. Grabbing hold of Saldez, Lee wrested him from the back of the madly racing animal and pulled him to the ground. Once they landed, Saldez sprang back up, intent on getting away and willing to kill Lee to do so.

While Matt and Lee were occupied with subduing Hayworth and Saldez, Logan was smiling, thinking he was about to get away unscathed. However, he was soon stopped in his tracks as he came around a curve and found Amanda, once again atop the mule, Festus' rifle in hand and pointed squarely at his chest. "Stop right there." She demanded.

Matt knew nothing of Amanda being there and cared little about Logan. He had the man that had hurt Kitty and he intended to return the favor. However, with just two punches Hayworth was down for the count and as much as he wanted to, Matt could not bring himself to complete the kill. Something inside of him wouldn't let him do it. Dumping the unconscious man on the ground, he stood back trying to regain his breath and his composure.

Meanwhile, Saldez was still up and prepared to fight as he moved forward and took a swing at Lee. Lee ducked the punch and twisted to the side, delivering a punch of his own to Saldez' jaw. Saldez staggered but remained upright, until Lee rapidly punched him again and then once more, knocking him cold. Gasping for air, Lee looked down at the desperado at his feet. "Shoulda never touched Amanda." He told him.

An hour later, back at the rendezvous sight, Matt leaned against a rock. He had handed Lee his handgun when he had returned, unable to fully trust himself not to finish what he wanted to. Now the three would-be gun runners were tied up and lying in the back of the wagon.

Lee was currently giving Amanda a lecture about her refusal to stay where he told her to stay. Matt could tell the lecture was having little effect on the stubborn brunette as she stood there with her arms crossed firmly in front of her, a defiant expression on her face.

"But, Lee," Amanda protested. "If I had stayed in Dodge, Logan would have gotten away. Besides, we're partners. It's my job to back you up."

"You're… you're job…?" Lee sputtered. "You could've been killed, Amanda."

"But I wasn't, Lee." Amanda's voice softened as she reached out and grabbed Lee's hand. "I wasn't hurt, Lee. But I was here, with you, the way I'm supposed to be. Lee, we're partners in life as well as our jobs. We're supposed to be together, in everything. No matter what the circumstances. We're a part of each other. We belong together."

Something in what she said, struck Matt and he suddenly understood what Kitty had said many times and what Lee had been talking about on their way to the fort. Just as Lee and Amanda were as one, so was he and Kitty. They too belonged together, they always had.

Suddenly realizing that silence had ensued between his two companions, Matt looked up to see them locked in an embrace. Once again thinking of Kitty, he straightened and cleared his throat. "Uh umm. I think we'd better get these three back to town, before it's gets too late, don't you?"

Lee nodded, giving Amanda a kiss before releasing her. "Yeah, I think it's about time we all went home." He said.

TBC