Some Very Busy Days
I only glimpsed Festus and Newly over the next couple of days. Even Doc seemed to have more out of town patients than usual. Several times I've seen Miss Kitty deep in conversation bending close to the one she's addressing so as not to be overheard by the sharp ears of our guest of honor. I've similarly spoken to other customers we wanted to be sure would attend the party. We were doing our best to set things up while keeping it quiet, but then there was Nathan Burke, the Adams Freight manager and town gossip.
"Miss Kitty, when do you think it will be safe to tell Burke?" I'd asked when she was alone with her books in the office with just two days to go. "You know how hard it is for him to keep his mouth shut."
"About the same time I convince Matt he can do double duty by eating his supper in the Long Branch," she replied. "It will be one way to make sure he eats something while working. Matt eats a ton when he can sit down for a meal, but is satisfied with a bite of jerky, if he remembers to eat at all, when he's busy."
We didn't manage another formal meeting during the two days that would either bring success or utter failure. We conspirators exchanged updates in passing with me behind the bar as the natural go between. By early on the special day the ranchers and farmers Mr. Dillon had come to know more than casually were in on the plan as were the business owners such as Mr. Lathrop, Hank and Mr. Bodkin. Those Texans known to have a clear animosity toward Kansas law or unable to keep from getting carried away after a long cattle drive had been encouraged to confine themselves to every watering hole but the Long Branch with assurances that their bosses would keep their activities below the point when someone would call on a peace officer. Now the Long Branch cook and his somewhat more skilled counterpart at Delmonico's were preparing what amounted to a free supper that was a bit fancier than the daily free lunch.
So far so good, but would we get everyone inside the barroom who should be there on time? If we did manage that would the cowboys we hoped would stay in line with the encouragement of their trail bosses actually do it? Even chancier was the behavior of the hangers on such as the gamblers and visiting cattle buyers. Poker and such when coupled with drinking more whiskey than would allow a man to remain sober led to trouble. Far too often the combination meant brawls and gunfights at the drop of a card or a spilled glass of beer or whiskey bottle. Here it was late morning and we still didn't know if the marshal would show up, let alone arrive on time for his party.
I was just putting the finishing touches on the regular free lunch when Mr. Dillon strode through the batwing doors. He walked up to me his face void of all emotion.
"Sam, is Kitty around?"
"She's in her office Marshal," I replied.
A few moments later they walked out of that room and stopped at the bar to let me know they'd be having their midday meal at Delmonico's. I don't know if Mr. Dillon saw it, but she gave me a quick, slight nod. It was her signal for me to talk with Festus and Doc about final arrangements. Burke and the other businessmen whose wives didn't provide their meal during the workday would soon arrive to join us for the meeting. I only hoped a warning would be enough to keep Nathan Burke from blabbing the details of the party tonight to stranger and local alike. Festus wasn't much better when he got excited. If either or both did it would spell disaster.
The deputy, in the company of John Charron and Luke Cumberledge, who only managed to patch up their dispute last season, was the first to arrive. I'm not sure which of those two is a better friend to our marshal, but it's sure better that those two Texans now engage in friendly drinking rather than deadly rivalry. By the time they sat at a round table in a quiet corner of the room with their plates of food and mugs of beer Newly entered with Burke and Jonas to fill the last remaining spots at the planning table. It forced the other regulars and some of those crowding into Dodge for the cattle season to belly up to the bar. I put Rudy in charge and let Netty and Lola handle the waitressing while I joined the rest of the party planners with my own lunch platter and beer in hand.
"If you boys kin handle yer drovers I got the rest o the outfits all squared away," Festus stated as he turned his head toward Charron and Cumberledge. "All o them will stay away from the Long Branch tonight."
"How about the businessmen?" I asked Burke, Jonas and Newly. "Will they be coming along with their wives or special ladies? Sorry Burke I didn't mean to spring this on you last minute, but I reckon you already know. Just don't let anyone else know about it. Between Doc, Festus, Newly, Jonas and me we've reached everyone who needs to be reached," I added when Burke showed signs of being hurt.
"I've told every farmer and rancher I've seen on my rounds who Matt's befriended about tonight," Doc said. "Jonas and I made sure we left off those who needed to be left off."
"Sam, what about the food and drink?" Newly asked. "Did you help Miss Kitty with that same as I helped Festus and Doc with letting people on the list of who to invite know about her surprise for the marshal's birthday?"
"I spoke with Delmonico's," I began in answer to his questions. "They'll provide extras beyond what the kitchen here can prepare. It should be quite the spread of hot and cold food for folks to enjoy. Rudy and the seasonal bartenders know the locals and will be introduced to anyone else who's to have more than one free beer. They know only the people sitting with the marshal should get all the whiskey and beer they want and champagne when the surprise is sprung. It will be up to Miss Kitty how much brandy and champagne is drunk at her table to go along with the specially ordered meals from Delmonico's. She's baking the birthday cake herself after she gets back from eating with our guest of honor. Everything seems set. That is if she convinces the marshal to stop in here for supper at the right time."
We finished going over what we could just as Miss Kitty returned. Mr. Dillon had gone on to his office without taking time to stop in for a quick beer. She said that it was a condition of joining her for a quick meal tonight at seven before going back out on his rounds. Rudy and I with Tilly, Netty and Lola's help began setting things up for the evening as soon as the midday crowd left while Miss Kitty disappeared into the Long Branch's small kitchen to bake the cake for her table while the cook dealt with any extras. At least he didn't have to deal with the large cake for those enjoying the eats placed on the food table. Ma Smalley would be baking that.