Chapter 16

The Discovery

Once again, Kitty was on her way to Nina's but this time, she had help in fielding the toddler's multitude of questions. Cooper had a bit of a crush on the new cook and was eager to tag along on any or all visits even if it meant dealing with his sister's endless curiosity.

"Are we theah yet?"

"For the tenth time…" Cooper rolled his eyes in a hopeless gesture. "Not yet."

Oblivious to her brother's exasperation, Hadley squinted up at the sun and continued on her quest for knowledge. "Why does the moon chase the sun away at night?"

"Because the stars won't come out until it's dark"

"Awe they the moon's babies?"

"Kind of." Cooper hoped that would put an end to the questions but that was not to be.

"Does the sun have babies too?"

"No."

"Why not?" A note of sadness echoed in the tiny voice. "Don't it want babies?"

"Uhm...because…the sun…I don't think…" Defeat marked the young man's speech. It was time to turn to a higher power. "Momma?"

Kitty sucked in a long breath and released it slowly. "Well...I uh…Oh my goodness. We're here already." With a quick glance toward the heavens and a silent thank you, she pulled the buggy up to the cook shack.

Nina stepped out the front door, wiping her hands on her apron. "I thought I heard someone coming. I just put on a pot of fresh coffee."

The Dillons followed the new cook inside. Before Cooper settled into one of the straight back chairs, Nina remembered a chore that needed to be done. "Cooper would you take this pail of garbage up the hill to the compost bin for me?" The young boy bounced to his feet, eager to help.

"Me too." Hadley's attempt to slip away from her mother was instantly defeated.

"Oh no!" Kitty pulled the little redhead securely back onto her lap. "You're not going anywhere near that garbage! Cooper can handle it on his own." She nodded to the boy giving him leave to go ahead. Hadley had to be content with a quiet scowl as she knew Momma would not stand for any sort of outburst.

"Kitty?" Nina stood by the cookie jar, waiting for approval before offering the disappointed child a consolation prize. Hadley knew the fate of that cookie was in her mother's hands. She quickly abandoned the frown for a hopeful smile and a "please".

"Wouldn't it be nice if our problems could be solved with a cookie?" Kitty laughed as she lovingly ran her fingers through the fiery ringlets.

"It would indeed." Nina agreed as she poured a fresh cup for her guest. "I'm glad to see you are looking more relaxed. I've heard about how worried everyone has been about you."

"I know." Kitty shifted the child to a more comfortable position. "I really didn't mean to cause so much upset for my family. I just kept thinking it's almost over and life will get back to normal. And it will, especially now that you're settled in."

"I have to tell you if it wasn't for Bear and your son, it would have taken forever for me to get this place cleaned up. You must be very proud of that little boy. He is a perfect little gentleman."

The words had scarcely been uttered when the boy in question appeared in the doorway. Kitty's words faltered as she beheld her son's pale face and stunned countenance "I am…very…proud…" She rose slowly from her chair. "Cooper? What is it sweetheart?"

"Momma?" Wide eyes filled with terror exemplified the fear in his tone.

Kitty was instantly kneeling at the boy's feet. Gentle hands braced his shoulders. "Cooper, honey what happened?"

A shudder rippled through his young body and his voice trembled. "The…the man."

"What man? Cooper did someone hurt you?"

A wave of dark brown lashes fell repeatedly covering a pair of glazed blue eyes. Kitty gently shook the boy to release him from the fear that engulfed him. A mother's heart was being pulled in two directions when she heard a tearful sob cry out behind her.

"Is Coopie hewt momma?" Tears spilled past the freckled cheeks of her daughter.

Still gripping her son, Kitty turned to the tearful little redhead. "No baby. Cooper 's going to be fine." Nina quickly stepped in to help pacify the child. "You stay here with Nina. Momma will be right back." She quickly turned her attention back to her son. "Cooper can you take me to the man?"

Cooper found the strength he needed from the comforting arms of his mother. It was faint but discernible when he nodded and allowed her to lead him outside. The journey led them up the hill to the compost pile. When they had come within smelling distance of the rotting garbage, Cooper's step faltered and he peered up at his mother.

With a kiss to his forehead, she gave him leave to stay put. "Will you be alright?" One more kiss to the temple before she turned away.

A thick sweet smell clung to the air. Both hands shot up in an effort to shield her nose but the fetor was too strong. Before she could stop it, the stench was corrupting her senses and churning the contents of her stomach tossing them back up to her throat.

One more step revealed the cause of the fetid odor. It was a man, or it had been at one time. Kitty stared at the marbled flesh of the bloated face. The features had obviously been fodder for whatever varmint had wandered by. The eyes must have been a most tasty morsel as both sockets were stripped clean.

Kitty glanced back to her son. The sight and smell were repulsive but what really sickened her was the thought that young Cooper had witnessed this hideous sight. He had seen people die but he had never seen what death could do to a body.

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Kitty had fired off a shot to summon help from the ranch. Within minutes both Wylie and Lew Pitton arrived on the scene. Lew stayed with Nina while Wylie took Kitty and the children back to the house. He made sure they were settled before riding into town for the marshal. A doctor was going to be needed to examine the body and there was a good chance that at least one of them would be at the LadyK.

Too frightened to cry, Cooper stared blindly at the world around him on the ride home. Kitty kept one arm around his small shoulders while offering comfort to her other child. Hadley had been spared the hideous sight but watching her brother's reaction was enough to scare her. She buried her face in the soft cotton fabric of her mother's dress, softly sobbing.

"Wylie will you-"

"I got him ma'am." Before Kitty could ask, the young cowboy was already reaching up to take the boy down from the wagon. Cooper offered no resistance to being carried like a baby.

Kitty hugged the toddler to her chest as she ran ahead to open the front door. Her cries for help began instantly. "Calleigh! Doc! Come quick." Before she could ask Wylie to take Cooper to his room, the young man was half way up the steps.

"What happened?" Calleigh was quick to shadow Wylie as he climbed the stairs. "Is he hurt?"

"I think he's in shock." Wylie said as he settled the boy on his bed. "He had a pretty bad scare."

Doc stood in the doorway, watching as a younger pair of professional hands gently examined the boy. Tension passed between himself, Kitty and the cowboy as they waited for Calleigh's opinion.

Taking a step back from the bed, Wylie quietly relayed the gruesome discovery to Doc. "They're going to need you to identify the body." Confusion skittered briefly across the old physicians face while he waited for Wylie to explain. "It was in the compost bin." The younger man continued with a grimace. "It had been there for a while. We couldn't tell who it was."

Doc witnessed Hadley's tiny body shake in her mother's arms. "Did she-"

"No!" Kitty's fierce outburst caught the older man by surprise. She pressed the baby even closer to her breast. "Thank God she didn't see anything. Nina had asked Cooper to take a pail of garbage out to the bin and …." She paused with a worried glance at her son. "He hasn't said a word since."

"It's not shock." Calleigh announced. It was the sister not the doctor that brushed her fingers through the thick brown curls and placed a kiss to his forehead. She was actually relieved to see the first tear roll down her little brothers cheeks. It meant he was ready to face the fear that had possessed him.

There were times when only a mother's comforting arms would do and this was one of those times. Kitty quietly handed her daughter to Doc and took her place on the side of the bed. Cooper cried in her arms as she whispered soothing words. It wasn't long before exhaustion overtook both the Dillon children. Calleigh helped her mother tuck them in before joining Doc and Wylie downstairs.

"They asleep?" Doc stood with his black bag in hand.

"Yes." Kitty relaxed against the cabinet and gratefully accepted the cup of coffee he had ready. "I assume you're going to the cook shack." With a weary sigh, she abandoned her casual stance and took a healthy drink. "I need to go with you. Nina must be scared to death."

"Momma, you need to rest. This has been a harrowing experience and I know that worrying about Cooper has exhausted you."

"Calleigh's right. You've had enough stress for one day." Doc advised. "We'll take care of Nina."

"I know you will but she's going to need a woman to talk to."

Calleigh made a grab for her forearm, pulling her back. "Well it's not going to be you!"

Tension burst into the air, greedily devouring the oxygen. Self preservation caused the two men to draw closer together. While all three recoiled from the younger woman's outburst, Kitty was the first to recover. "Please don't start this again!"

Calleigh may have looked like her mother but she was every bit Matt Dillon's daughter when pushed. "I'm not starting anything. I'm trying to keep my mother, whom I love very much, from running her body into the ground. You're just starting to regain some strength."

It appeared to be a standoff, a battle of wills but suddenly the war was over. No words were spoken but a look was exchanged that said it all. Calleigh stepped closer, ending the conflict with a hug. "I'll go be with Nina." She whispered. "You go lie down. Get some rest."