Unshown Moments for The Jailer Season 12

This is for Katharine-Elizabeth

"Matt, we don't have much time left." Kitty's voice was broken and tired and it hurt Matt to hear it.

Kneeling down in front of her, he met her gaze. "Kitty, anything can happen before tomorrow morning."

Kitty dropped her head, trying valiantly to keep back the tears but her struggle was in vain and soon her eyes welled up. The hand cuffs on Matt's wrists made it difficult for him, but, pulling her to her feet, he managed to drop his arms around her and hug her tightly.

"I wish I could tell you how much this hurts me." He sighed as he cradled her against his chest. "I've never wanted you to be hurt by my job."

"It won't be your job that hurts me, Matt." Kitty looked up at him. "It'll be a vengeful, crazy old woman who knows nothing but hate."

Matt nodded and increased his hold of her for a second, kissing her forehead before finally releasing her and raised his arms to let her go.

"Matt, I…" She looked up at him, her eyes showing just how much pain she was in. 'I…"

Just then the door swung open and Mike stepped in. "Times up, Lady. Get out of there."

Kitty quickly wrapped her arms around Matt again before Mike grabbed her arm and pulled her out of the shed. "I said, times up." He snapped.

"Let go of my arm." Kitty demanded once she exited the shed.

"You're a feisty one, ain't ya." He sneered down at her. "Even after Ma slapped you silly, you still want to fight."

"Yeah." She nodded. "I will fight until I die."

Mike laughed as he shoved her forward. "Well, that'll be tomorrow morning. Now go on."

Matt, inside the shed, dropped his head, staring solemnly at the floor. He knew Etta Stone wouldn't let Kitty live. He'd held out hope that she would, but deep inside, he knew it was a futile hope. Unless something happened, Kitty would die right alongside him simply because she'd had the audacity to love a lawman. "Ah, Kitty." He whispered. "I'm so sorry."

As Kitty walked back to the house, her eyes continually darted everywhere, looking in vain for any possible source of help or escape, but as she expected, there was none. Unless a miracle occurred, or she could convice Ben to help them, she and Matt would die in the morning. Him first, then her, according to Etta Stone.

In a sad way, that thought gave her a touch of comfort. She didn't know that Matt had heard Mike's comment so she thought that Matt wouldn't have to watch her die. His last thoughts wouldn't include those of guilt that she would die because of his job. And though her heart and soul would die the minute she saw him killed, she knew she'd join him shortly afterward and even in death they wouldn't be too long apart.

As Mike pushed her into the house and then over to the 'cage' as the old woman called her temporary prison, Kitty thought about the reason Matt was there in the first place. The stated reason was for revenge, but Kitty thought otherwise.

She knew that Matt would die because he'd loved her enough to give himself over to the likes of the Stones, in the vain hope that he could save her. "Oh, Matt." She whispered when the door was slammed and locked behind her. "I'm so sorry."

Ben watched his brother take Miss Russell back to the house and then glanced at the shed, where the Marshal was being kept prisoner. Two people whose only crimes had been to love each other and keep the law. When his Ma had at first told him of her plans for them, Ben was aghast and even a little outraged at the thought.

But though he'd argued that the plan wouldn't work, he hadn't argued as hard as he knew he should've and when his mother fixed him with her blue eyed glare, he'd backed down and agreed to do whatever it was that she wanted.

"Oh, my." He whispered to the wind. "I am so sorry."

The next morning, Sarah stood in the kitchen, making breakfast for the Marshal. Ma had given instructions that he was to be fed, even though she planned on hanging him and Miss Russell, this morning. Sarah blinked back a tear as she thought of the tall man and beautiful woman who were about to die.

They'd done nothing really, to garner such an end, but that mattered none to Ma Stone. She wanted vengeance for what she considered a crime against her and her husband and if she had to risk the lives of all of them, she would do it.

Taking her eyes off the gravy she was stirring, Sarah thought back to seven years prior. She had wed Lou Stone without really knowing him. He was tall, decent looking and knew how to charm and she was bereft of family or home. It wasn't until she said her I do's that she found out what kind of family she'd really married into and she'd been scared ever since.

But nothing like this. During the interval of time that she spent with Lou, before he and his brothers and pa were arrested, she knew of the crimes they committed. And though disturbing, she gradually accepted that as part of her life. The same as she'd accepted Lou and his family's abuse of her.

When most of the Stone men were arrested, Sarah remembered breathing a sigh of relief. Finally, the abuse would stop. Maybe now, she could get away. But Ben, dear sweet and gentle Ben had been there and she couldn't leave, because he wouldn't.

But now look at where they were. Lou was back, and had already claimed what she no longer felt was his. Ma had killed one of her own sons and was going to kill two innocent people and make them all guilty of murder. And Ben would do nothing. He was afraid, he'd said. Sarah sighed. So was she.

"Sarah?" Ben came in and stood behind her. His voice was sad and low. He didn't want the deaths of those two people any more than she did. "Ma says to hurry with the Marshal's breakfast."

"I… I am." She answered. "I… it…" She stopped and turned to look at him. "Ben this is wrong. Those two people haven't done anything to deserve this, especially not Miss Russell. She hasn't done anything wrong."

"I know." Ben answered, pulling her briefly into his arms. "I know, neither of them deserve this, but…"

"But what?" She questioned. Ben didn't answer but she didn't need him to. "Ben, Ma's gonna get us all killed or hung. Don't you see that? This is wrong, Ben. We oughta help those two."

"I…" Ben dropped his head. "I can't, Sarah. It's too late. I… I'm sorry." Knowing the look she would give him, Ben turned away rather than look at her. "I'll tell Ma that you're coming with the tray." Quickly he disappeared through the door, ashamed of his cowardice and wishing he was braver.

Sarah watched him go then turned back to the food. She was sorry too.

"She offered us a start, you and me."

Ben had told her about Miss Russell's offer if Ben would help them escape. It was obvious he wasn't going to. If anything, he was more frightened than she was. That meant she could either stand by and watch two people hang, who'd done nothing to deserve it, or…

Sarah quickly removed the pan of gravy from the fire and grabbed a plate. Loading the plate with biscuits and gravy and eggs, she then placed it on a tray and grabbed a cloth from the bottom drawer. The same drawer that held a spare pistol.

Sarah stared at the weapon for a moment, steeling her nerves to what she had to do. Finally, she pulled the pistol out, made sure it was loaded and then laid it on the tray, covering it and the food with a clean cloth.

"You got that lawman's food ready?" Mike suddenly appeared in the doorway, only a second after she'd hidden the gun.

"Ye… yes." She nodded. "I've got something on here, I think he'll like."

End.