Chapter 50 – Adam and Kitty as Hostages
I was finally getting out more and also getting my figure back. I needed new dresses and hats to go with them. There was nothing for it but to take a trip into town and visit the dressmaker and milliner. Matt was in his office at the courthouse and our two oldest were in school. Besides it was one of those early autumn days when the weather was simply perfect. Therefore, while Maria was asleep, I hitched up the buggy and went back in the house for my four-month-old daughter and Adam. Albert had put her carriage in the small storage area in the back, so all I had to do was rely on one of the many helpful men around Dodge to help me lower it to the street and raise it back up once I finished my shopping. Adam, trying to be the big brother helped to drive the buggy, taking one of the reins in his small hands so I had one hand free to hold onto his baby sister.
Between visiting and shopping the afternoon was soon gone. I let Adam run over to the school to try and catch his older brother and sister. School let out and it wasn't long before my kids spotted me. Mr. Lathrop had gotten some chocolate in, so it wasn't hard to convince Adam to wait while I finished up with the dressmaker. I promised to meet him in the mercantile and gave Abby permission to go off with her friend Lucy. She'd been helping me out so much lately that she hardly had time to have fun with her friends. Nat, of course, had his job. That meant Adam would be on his own for a bit, but people around town know to keep an eye on my younger son to prevent him from getting into too much trouble. He was already in the mercantile when I got there.
"Mama, man outside Dodge House ask I tell pa look like. Call pa Judge Dillon," Adam informed me as he picked out the candy he wanted. "He back in hotel, I here."
Anytime someone asks about Matt, especially a stranger, I'm suspicious. Still, I tried not to let it bother me too much. I'd tell Matt about it tonight, though. In the meantime I finished my shopping.
"Do you want my helper to load your buggy with your purchases now or are you going to stay in town until Mr. Dillon and Nat are ready to go home, Miss Kitty?" Mr. Lathrop asked. "I expect the judge will be quite busy when the trial of the man who robbed the freight office and shot Burke begins in a couple of days, so you might as well spend as much time as you can with that husband of yours now."
"I think I'll start for home now, so I'd appreciate help with loading. I want to have supper ready by the time he gets home and Abby may be late getting back to help me."
As we started off down Front Street toward home, I thought a stranger I spotted holding the reins on his horse as we passed by might be the same man I glimpsed in Mr. Lathrop's store coming up to the counter while his assistant loaded my purchases. Still, I couldn't shake the feeling we were being followed during the entire trip home. I kept glancing back, but didn't see anyone trailing us.
I kept quiet all through supper, but the stranger and his questions about Matt bothered me. My uneasy feeling earlier of being watched hadn't gone away either. It had gotten worse. He tried to hide it, but I knew Matt noticed something was wrong.
"Kitty, what's wrong?" he asked when we were alone in our room after putting a no longer hungry Maria in her cradle. "I've known you too long for me not to notice."
"I'm probably making too much of it, but ever since Adam told me a stranger asked about you, I've had this feeling of being watched. I can't be sure, but I think the man Adam talked to might have followed us home."
"I think you're right to be concerned. The stranger could have some connection to the upcoming trial. Make sure you have one of the rifles or a pistol within easy reach and at the first sign of trouble get to my office and call Lionel. We should tell the kids to stick together tomorrow on their way to school and I'll tell Nat to come into town armed."
I didn't like it, but I had to leave before the kids in order to be ready for the start of the trial. I wanted to clear out any other outstanding cases in case it ran longer than expected. I had a hunch the man who spoke to Adam and Kitty felt was watching them on the way home was the man who sent the lawyer from Carson City to defend Jeb Foster. Although I try not to look at the facts before the two lawyers present them at the trial, Dodge is still a small town and old habits die hard. Lionel arrested Foster as he came out of the freight office and Burke identified him as the one who shot him during the robbery. I kept my eye out for the stranger, but saw no sign of him. Still, I was glad to find my family safe when I returned home that night.
Maybe Kitty and I were worrying for nothing I thought when I got to the courthouse the next morning. Again the kids went off to school without me, but as long as they kept with each other I was sure nobody would try anything. Besides, if they did, Nat was quite capable of handling the situation. If anything, he's even faster than me and just as accurate with a pistol. Of course, he does have youth on his side.
I was walking toward the courtroom deep in thought when a man jostled me. He apologized a bit too quickly and kept his head turned away from me as he hurried past so I couldn't get a good look at him. I couldn't shake the feeling that he'd bumped into me on purpose. I was sure he'd put his hand in my pocket, so I checked. Sure enough, I found a piece of paper that hadn't been there before. What was written on it put a real scare into me.
"We've got your woman, baby girl and little boy. Any attempt to contact the marshal or his deputies or to delay the trial will result in their deaths. If you see to it that Jeb Foster does no jail time, they'll be set free."
I read the note twice more to be sure I had it right. Nothing was said about Nat or Abby so I had to hope they were safe for now. Still, it would ease my mind some if I could get word to them that I needed to see them. Meanwhile I had no choice but to convene the trial and hope for the best.
Once the trial began, I scanned the courtroom, hoping to spot the man who gave me the note. It was useless. He never gave me the chance to get a good enough look at him to be able to pick him out from the other strangers in the room. He might be anyone. I had to force myself to concentrate or else I might provoke the very action I wanted so desperately to prevent.
Lionel was completing his testimony about the arrest when I saw Nat walk into the room. At least one of my kids was safe.
"There will be a very brief recess while I find out why my son is in this courtroom instead of in school. Nat, come up here."
"Son, I know why you're here," I whispered when he reached the bench. "I want you to go back to school for now. I'll adjourn the trial in about an hour, as soon as Doc leaves the witness stand, so you and Abby can meet me for lunch at Delmonico's. Give Mr. Deckory as little information as you can in case somebody's listening. Just make it clear that the two of you will be absent the rest of the day at my request. We'll make our plans when I next see you. "I apologize for the interruption," I added so everyone could hear as Nat left. "Just a minor family emergency."
I didn't see anyone else rushing to leave, so I had to believe talking to Nat wasn't considered undue delay in the proceedings. I hoped Doc would be able to get word to Festus. If Mr. Deckory talked to Festus, Clem or Lionel it would look suspicious. I couldn't take that chance, not with Kitty, Adam and Maria's lives at stake.
Doc was in front of Delmonico's when I got there and walked into the restaurant with me. We sat down to wait for the kids before ordering.
"Matt, something's very wrong. You can't pretend with me."
"You might say that, Doc. You'll know all about it when Nat and Abby get here."
I didn't get a chance to tell him anything more because the waiter walked over with a note.
"Sorry to do this to you before you have a chance to eat, Doc. I found this note for you on my tray. It looks like you're needed somewhere unless you have a secret admirer nobody in town knows about."
"Looks like we'll have to do our talking later. There's been an accident over at Miss Pry's place. She may be feisty, but she's not getting any younger."
My two older kids arrived a few minutes after Doc left. Whoever I was dealing with was plenty smart. He'd studied my habits well and knew I might try to get word to my replacement through Doc. We had to be very careful. I didn't want whoever was behind this to think I was doing anything more than having a meal with my kids.
"How did you find out?" I said quietly to Nat as he and Abby sat down. "I want an explanation."
"Pa, I found a note in my school desk and so did Abby. I was able to talk to her during recess when I asked Mr. Deckory to excuse me for a few minutes. That's when I came to the courthouse."
"What we've got to do is figure out a way to bring them safely home. There's no way we can let Festus know so he can alert Lionel and Clem without getting them killed and no certainty they'll let them go unharmed if I do what they want. We can only hope my plan works, but I'll need your help. For some reason I'm having trouble thinking clearly."
"We're with you all the way, Pa. I know you want us to head home," Nat continued, "but then what?"
"Abby, when you get there, go into the house and act like you're starting to prepare supper while Nat puts your horse away and joins up with Albert. I don't want you to stay, though. I want to be sure at least one of you is safe, so only stay a minute or two before heading out the back door to the O'Briens. Once you're there, tell them everything. Newly will know what to do to help and Wade can join him if he's around. Then stay put until you hear from me."
"I'll stay with Uncle Newly and Aunt Paula, if you're sure that's all I can do to help. I've got a question, though. What if they're holding ma and the little ones in the house?"
"Approach very cautiously. If they're in the house, go directly to Newly and Paula. The main thing is for you to be safe. I can't risk losing you too. It's bad enough I'm asking Nat to risk his life. If things turn out badly, I'll quit being a judge and spend what's left of my life tracking them down. It won't matter how I do it because I'll have murdered my family and will deserve to die. At least I'll know that you'll be looked after and won't have to worry about keeping a roof over your head and clothes on your back."
"Pa, there's one more thing Abby can do while she's in the house. She can sneak into your office and call Lionel. That's one way to get word to him. His girl is now the telephone operator."
"That's a good idea, son. Miss Fallon can easily get word to him and I'm sure she can be relied on to keep quiet about what she knows. Abby, try to tell her just enough to let him know just how serious things are without giving out too much. We don't know, but somebody might be listening."
We'd hardly touched our food, when it was time to put my plan, such as it was, into action. Nat and Abby turned toward the livery while I slowly returned to the courthouse. I couldn't see Foster's lawyer mounting a defense that would keep the jury from finding him guilty. I'd have to pronounce sentence on him. Maybe I should take the chance that the man behind this would honor the promise on his note and suspend Foster's sentence. If he didn't, I would have ignored the consequences of the law for nothing. No matter what I did, I could be responsible for killing those most precious to me.
I was alone in the bedroom with Maria, who was sleeping in her cradle. Adam was in his room, or so I thought. It would be just like him to disobey when it was most important that he take our warnings seriously. I couldn't worry about that, all I could do was take as many precautions as possible. First, I took the time to make sure there was a gun or rifle within easy reach in every room except Adam's. I'd already locked the front door and was about to lock the back door when Maria started to cry. My baby daughter was awake and hungry. Finally she was finished. I put her down on our bed long enough to cover myself when she started to cry again. Sure enough she needed to be changed.
Just as I closed the second pin on her diaper, a slight noise distracted me. If I were to grab the rifle leaning against the wall by the nightstand, I'd have to put Maria back down on the bed. I bent to put her down, freeing my right hand to reach for the rifle when I was stopped cold.
"I wouldn't do that, ma'am," a strange male voice told me as I felt a gun in my back. "I'm gonna back off just enough so you can turn around with the baby. By the way, it was mighty careless of you to lock up the front but leave the kitchen door unlocked and let your boy play outside. Still, I can tell your man told you to take precautions before he left for town this mornin'."
When I turned, I saw a man about six feet tall, wearing clothes that could have been worn by at least half the men around Dodge, holding on to a blindfolded Adam by his ear with his left hand. With his average build, hat pulled over his eyes and masked face, I wouldn't be able to pick him out from any of the other strangers passing through town. Even the gun he was pointing directly at me and Maria was the type of pistol carried by nearly every man who wore a gun. I knew if I tried anything, Maria or Adam might be killed, so I just stood there in my bedroom, staring at the man while a second one came up behind me and blindfolded me. The two men took up positions on either side of me, grabbing hold of my arms as they did so.
"You, the boy and the baby are comin' with us," the second man told me. "Since you can't see just where you might be goin', we'll help you into the wagon we've got waitin' outside. Then we'll go for a ride. The blindfolds will come off once we've got you securely tucked away."
I couldn't be sure, but I sensed we were moving toward town, but across the prairie rather than along the Hays Road. After traveling for a half-hour, we stopped and the two men helped me and Adam down from the wagon and into a house. They led us into a back room and told us to sit on the floor. Then one of the men grabbed my ankle. I began to instinctively pull away.
"I wouldn't do that if you want that handsome boy and pretty little baby of yours to remain alive. If we didn't have some more business to complete and the boss wouldn't object, I might try to get better acquainted with more of you than just that ankle," a third stranger said as he fastened a chain to my ankle. "You must have been some looker a few years back. You're still quite an eye full even now."
With that last comment, he pulled my blindfold off. I could see I was in the bedroom of Tom and Phoebe Huggins cabin on the northeast edge of town, but I couldn't see any sign the old couple was anywhere around. If they had been Tom would have blasted them with his shotgun for chaining a prominent citizen to his bedstead. Two of the men headed out the bedroom door while the third grabbed the chair by Phoebe's dressing table and placed it sideways in the doorway and sat down, effectively blocking the exit. He kept his gaze on the closed bedroom window. Even if I wasn't chained to the bed and didn't have a baby in my arms, I would have been hard pressed to find a way to get out of there.
As we sat and waited, I kept quiet and tried to study him, memorizing as much as I could about him. That wasn't much. Like the other two, everything about him I could see was average. He kept his hat pulled down and even if he turned his face toward me, I couldn't have identified him because of the bandana that covered the lower half of it.
Ten minutes into my captivity, just before I was about to try to initiate a conversation with my captor, he moved his chair aside. Two more men, just like the other three, moved into the room. They gloated, but said nothing when a very scared Adam turned toward me.
"Mama, reckon pa mad us cause not do all said. You mad too not stay in room. They not hurt you ?" he added as his face took on an expression I'd seen so often on his father.
I looked at my son and thought about all the times Matt had that same look of concern on his face when we were in the clutches of a band of outlaws. I could hear him just as if he were in the room with us saying, "Kitty, are you sure you're all right?" By now Matt had to know what had happened and he had to have received instructions telling him exactly what he was supposed to do to keep us from harm. If I knew my man, he was angry, scared and planning how to turn the situation around – all at the same time. Under the circumstances, there was nothing for me to do but wait, try to comfort the baby and keep my younger son calm while awaiting the outcome.
"Mama, scared?" Adam asked, interrupting my thoughts. "I try be brave, help you."
"Yes, my brave little man, I'm scared, but you can still be brave while you're frightened. Remember, as afraid as you are, your pa's even more scared right now. He's afraid whatever he decides the result will be harm coming to us. Still your father will make a decision despite how scared he is, because he won't let his fear rule him."
Time wore on. The man ogling me was gradually letting lust overcome loyalty to his boss, whoever he might be. If he decided to act on impulse, there was nothing I could do, chained as I was to the bedstead and with a baby in my arms. Adam noticed him inching closer and glared at him like Matt would, especially when he couldn't do something about it. Our boy wanted so desperately to protect me, but even if he were his big brother's age, he still couldn't do anything from where he was chained on his side of the bed. I'd laugh if our situation weren't so serious.
I'd just got back to the barn after chasin' down some strays who'd gotten themselves tangled up in Mr. Greenway's fence over by our east pasture when Nat came in leadin' his and Abby's horses. It was a might early for them to be home from school, but even if it wasn't, his look told me somethin' was terribly wrong.
"They've taken ma, Adam and Maria so pa won't sentence Foster to any jail time," Nat whispered so low I could barely hear him. "Where did you say you found that stray?" he added in a slightly louder than normal voice. "Pa said I should ride fence with you over to the east pasture while Abby fixes supper for everyone."
As we led our horses out, Nat filled me in on the rest of Mr. Dillon's plan, includin' meetin' up with Doc Newly and Wade once Abby got hold of them. By the time we were mounted and headin' east, I spotted what looked like Abby's red head disappearing over the hill toward the O'Brien place. We rode slowly, stoppin' for a spell over by a small outcroppin' of rocks where Doc O'Brien and Wade met us seemingly by chance and offered their help in gettin' the fence mended before dark.
We was followin' the trail left by the wagon Miss Kitty and the little ones was taken away in when Wade spotted a rider comin' toward us. We stopped and let him get closer. It was an Indian from the Wichita Reservation. I was all for movin' on, but Doc Newly seemed to recognize him as John Eagle Wing, their chief, so we waited to see what he wanted.
"I have come to bring gift for papoose, son of friend Dillon," he said addressin' Nat like he was leadin' us, "but I see you have other than happiness on your mind. You follow wagon tracks while man, trying not to be seen, follows you. I offer my help."
"Thank you, Chief Eagle Wing. We are most grateful for your help getting my ma, sister and brother away from the men our follower is with."
"Wagon trail heads to Dodge City, but I don't believe it leads all the way there. You ride straight to where there is fence between your lands and neighbor lands. I will see where is hiding place at end of trail and meet you at fence. Do you want to stop follower now?"
"No, I don't want him to think we're doing anything more than looking for breaks in the fence," Nat said, soundin' like his pa as he took full charge. "It's best he continues to believe we don't know he's there."
Before he left, Chief Eagle Wing showed us how to spot the man followin' us. He continued goin' southeast once he saw us stop at the fence where a couple of posts appeared to be leaning, but then stopped under the cover of a stand of trees. We set to work. Mr. Dillon's Indian friend soon joined us and described the house where they had Miss Kitty and the little ones. We followed, all the while listenin' to what John Eagle Wing had to say. It was the Huggins place just past the northeast edge of town.
There were five of us, but Nat reckoned we had a better chance if we split up and approached the cabin from different directions. One of the men at the cabin had seen the chief and by now had told the others about it. When he saw him ride by, it looked like Mr. Dillon's Indian friend had come from the south and was headin' east as soon as he saw how close he was to a white man's home. He joined us and agreed to remain east of the cabin, until needed. Nat thought it best if Doc Newly and Wade rode all the way up to the cabin as if he and his foreman were headin' for town together, but Doc Newly was stoppin' on the way to check on his patients, Mr. and Mrs. Huggins. That left the rear to Nat and me.
We hid our horses in a stand of trees on the far side of the hill behind the Huggins' place, then crept forward on foot, carryin' our weapons with us. I held my rifle as if I was hopin' for a spare prairie chicken or two to add to tonight's supper. Nat still had his pistol in the gun belt around his waist. Nobody saw us as we came right up to the back of the cabin.
Nat peaked in the window. Then quickly ducked back down to join me.
"There's two of them in there," Nat whispered. "One's sitting on a chair in the doorway with his feet up. The other one's leaning way too close to ma and Maria for my liking. The squirt's trying to get him away from ma, but something's holding him back. I suspect they've limited their movement somehow. Let's wait for the signal, then we'll both climb in through the open window while they're distracted."
"Let's go Doc!" Wade shouted as if in anger. "The Huggins' nephew's made it quite clear we're not wanted right now. Why don't we just stop by on the way back? I'm leavin' now!"
Doc Newly might have said somethin' as he turned his horse toward town to follow Wade, but we didn't hear it. Instead, we heard a loud bang as a rock hit the side of the house and then the sound of booted feet runnin' to investigate. This was followed by another bang against the front, causin' the two in the back room to turn that way. Nat and I scrambled inside. As I climbed in, I saw him put his finger to his lips so Adam wouldn't say nothin'.
"Unbuckle your gun belts and toss them into the front room, then turn around real slow. You don't have to worry about what's going on in there. We've taken care of your pals, including the one following us from the ranch. Ma, Adam, you alright?"
"We're fine now, son. That is, if you get the key to unlock us."
"Before our friends out front cart all of you off to jail, whichever one of you has the key, toss it over here. That is if you don't want to get shot."
I herded the two I had in my rifle sites into the front room where Doc Newly, Wade and Chief Eagle Wing had the rest rounded up while Nat used the key to free Miss Kitty and Adam from the bed frame. I saw him hug them close as he bent to unlock the leg irons holdin' Miss Kitty and the handcuffs holdin' Adam.
"How come get us 'stead pa, Nat? Where he?"
"Pa has to be in the courtroom so they don't know you're being rescued, Squirt. Even pa can't be in two places at once, you know. Now let's join him, but first I have to get our horses."
The trial was over, all except for the jury's verdict. I doubted they'd take very long reaching a decision and I knew that decision would be guilty. The only thing I was sure of other than a guilty verdict was that Eileen Fallon had talked to Lionel. Festus had come in to tell him his girl had something to tell him that just couldn't wait and then stayed. Lionel was sitting just behind his prisoner and Festus was now sitting next to Doc talking, as usual, but watching the room. At least that one piece of my plan worked, but time was running out for the rest of it. Lionel must have put a plan of his own in play because I didn't see Clem anywhere.
The jury didn't take but five minutes. All I could do was trust to luck and I didn't seem to have too much of it right now. If I stalled for time, I'd be killing them and if I sentenced Jeb Foster to what he deserved I'd be killing them, but then I had no guarantee they wouldn't be killed if I gave him parole or even the suspended sentence they really wanted.
"We find Jeb Foster guilty of robbing the freight office and wounding Nathan Burke in the attempt," they replied in answer to my question.
"Mr. Foster, you've been tried and convicted do you have anything to say in your behalf before I pronounce sentence?"
"Yeah, Judge, I do. You better be careful what you say or your sentence will be much worse than mine."
"That may be, but I still sentence you to ten years in the Kansas State Prison. It's as fair a sentence as I can give you considering the crimes you're guilty of committing."
"Dillon, you should have paid attention to what my brother said. You may have sent him to rot in prison for ten years, but at least it will be all over for him when he gets out. You've just murdered your woman, boy and baby girl and that will hang over you for your entire life even if you never see the inside of a jail cell."
I barely noticed Lionel and Festus grab Foster and his brother. All I could think of was how right the bastard was while I sat there, staring down at the desk in front of me. I didn't even hear Doc come forward or feel him put his hand on my arm.
"Matt, I wish we could have talked earlier, but I don't believe it would have made things any easier for you. Telling you now that you made the right decision isn't gonna make you feel any better either, but by golly you did. All I can say is I feel in these old bones of mine that Kitty and the children are just fine because they have to be. If I'm wrong your decision will be eating at both of us for the rest of our lives, but at least you didn't betray everything you've ever stood for."
"You're right Doc, it doesn't make me feel any better. I wish I could be as sure as you are that they're still alive. For that matter, I don't even know if Nat, Abby and Albert are unharmed. It was a foolish plan."
"Pshaw, Nat and Albert are very capable and quite able to protect Abby. I'm sure they carried out your plan with no hitches. In a few minutes you'll know how right I am."
The two of us remained in the now empty courtroom. Doc kept a comforting hand on my arm while I held my head in my hands. I was startled out of my reverie by a voice I never thought I'd hear again.
"Why so glum, Cowboy? Maybe I can help if you want to talk about it."
I was on my feet and my arms were wrapped around Kitty in a heartbeat, a grin of relief on my face. I'm not the most demonstrative man in public, but then Doc isn't exactly the public. Besides, if I didn't give Kitty a long, passionate kiss of shear relief, I'd never hear the end of it from him. When we broke off the kiss, I became aware that Kitty was alone.
"Where are the kids?" I asked, just a hint of fear in my voice. "Nothing's happened to any of them, I hope."
"Newly took Maria back to his house. By now, between Paula and Abby she's bathed and changed. I can't imagine you wanted a smelly baby around when we first saw each other again."
"Is that a fact? Maybe I would have kissed both you and our baby daughter, smelly or not."
"Maybe you would have, but it's a fact you wouldn't have been as happy. Adam went with Nat, Albert, Wade and John Eagle Wing to the jail with their prisoners. I expect they'll be along directly."
Adam and Nat came bursting into the room followed by Festus, Albert and John. My two sons were definitely still in one piece.
"Pa, Nat super! Neat meet Chief Eagle Wing. Not know real Indian chief friend."
When Adam finally let Nat talk, I learned how he, with the help of John, Newly, Albert and Wade overcame the four men holding Kitty, Adam and Maria captive and also took care of the man who had been following them. I knew Lionel and Festus had taken care of Foster and his brother, but it still didn't explain where Clem had been or what became of the messenger who was to notify the gang of the sentence I gave Foster.
"Golly bill, Matthew I thought you knew, else I woulda tol ya sooner. Clem was hid out behind the courthouse and took care of that one as soon as he walked down the alley to his horse."
"I did notice Clem wasn't in the courtroom, but I had other things on my mind. I'm sure there are more details, but right now I'd just like to get home with my family, or at least to the O'Brien place, and that means everyone in this room. Festus, I 'd appreciate it if you and Nat would fetch Doc's buggy and bring the rest of the horses here."
"I'll do 'er, Matthew. I'll be back before you and Miss Kitty can say a rat run over the roof of the house with a piece of raw liver in his mouth."
Paula O'Brien and Abby prepared a dinner that even the finest restaurant in New Orleans or San Francisco couldn't top, but then undercooked beans would have been delicious to me right then. The early part of the day brought out all the fears that had kept me from marrying Kitty and raising a family with her. The late afternoon brought me all the joy I'd been missing during those same years. We ate and talked and drank and then repeated it until we were all ready to bust. Now all I wanted to do was go the short distance to home. My reverie stopped suddenly when I felt the sharp jab of an elbow in my ribs.
"Cowboy, I see I finally got your attention. You're two youngest need to be carried home and Paula and Newly need to get their own family to bed," Kitty whispered. "Look at their two boys and Adam, they're asleep in their chairs."
We made our way slowly over the hill toward our house so as not to wake the children. Festus helped Nat, Albert and me to put up the horses and buggy while Kitty and Abby went inside to put Maria and Adam to bed and John and Doc sat on the porch talking. The rest of us soon joined them, except for Albert, who decided to head for his room in the barn.
"Matthew, I'd best be getting' back to town. Yer old jail is a might crowded right now, so I reckon Lionel and Clem could use my help."
"Goodnight, Festus. You know you're always welcome to spend the night. That goes for you too, John. As for you Doc, you're staying even if I have to force you."
"I do not feel comfortable in white man's soft bed, but I do want to speak with you and your woman and your son, who has proved himself a brave warrior like his father, before I make my camp. I had come to honor your papoose but that I could not do until she, her brother and her mother were safe."
The four of us walked into the main room and joined Kitty and Abby inside. John took out a medicine bag he'd been carrying all day and gave it to me.
"This is to bring luck to your little one and keep her safe. I also have an eagle feather for he who will grow into fine warrior, for, though still a boy, he has shown us the brave he will become. May this feather remind him of that."
John agreed to camp just to the east of our barn because of the late hour and was soon gone. Doc then headed for his room and Abby and Nat said their goodnights as well. Kitty and I stood in the main room for a few minutes, our arms around each other, and then headed down the hallway to our bedroom. We took one final peek at Adam sleeping peacefully in his bed, then went back to our bedroom and closed the door. Then we gazed at Maria and placed the medicine bag in her cradle before getting ourselves ready for bed.
"I'm really lucky, I have everything I've always wanted. I don't mean the money I inherited; I've found that's not so important. I've made a real home with a good man and four children who are everything a mother could want. Nat, especially is showing that he's well on his way to becoming the kind of man his father is."
"Kitty, not long ago, Nat asked me if I was ever scared and I replied, many times, but I tried not to let my fear keep me from doing what I should do. Today I realized I'd let my fear keep me from giving you all that you wanted for too long. Doc tried to get me to see how much of a fool I was being by denying full happiness to both of us, but I was too stubborn to act on his advice. Today I realized I came very close to my fears becoming my nightmare, but the joy I felt when you walked into that courtroom made the earlier part of the day seem like just that, a bad dream."
The End
