WINTER'S REFUGE

by Kattayl

Every author writes a Curry and Heyes prison story. This is mine.

25. Winter's Refuge Chapter 25

Winter's Refuge

Chapter Twenty Five

HEYES

They can't lie to me anymore after today. I know the Kid's dead. He won't be here for our visit. Lom and Dr. Arden will make up another lying excuse like the Kid's too hurt to travel. But I know he's dead. They don't want to tell me because they want me to get out of here. That's what the Kid wanted for me. I've been dreaming of walking into Dr. Arden's office for our visit every night over and over. Nightmares every time. The lights in the hallway are turned off at night now. That wouldn't happen if the Kid were alive to pay for the oil.

In my nightmares when I walk into the office either only Lom is there smiling telling me the Kid will be here next time. He's too hurt to come. Or I dream the Kid is looking out the window and turns to greet me with that big hug, but by the time he reaches me, he's gone. I'm only hugging the air.

I do my work well. I promised the Kid I would make good brooms and I do. I don't care to eat. Without the Kid's help, his strength, I won't make it out of here. I know it.

Dr. Arden said he went and saw the Kid and Juan. He said he saw them with his own eyes. I think he's telling the truth, but not all of it. I'm sure he went to the Kid's funeral, saw him laid out in his Sunday best with his own eyes. It was nice that he went. I wish I could have gone. I did pick books to send with Lom when he comes to keep up the charade that the Kid can't travel. But I know the truth. I am alone.

JED 'KID' CURRY

My thoughts had solidified (another word I learned from readin') by the time I got to the train station in Cheyenne. I had one goal, take care of my family, and my way of doin' that was to get as strong as I can to protect them. I need to work hard to regain some of the strength that the fire took from me. But I will be as strong as ever. Lom wasn't there to meet me. After I looked for him, I went over to the telegraph office. I wore my boots on my burned foot today. I tell myself I am strong and ignore the burns throbbin' on my foot from the tight boot. A telegram was waitin' for me tellin' me he'd meet me in the doctor's office. I immediately thought something was wrong with Heyes. Dr. Arden and Lom had been whisperin' at the ranch and I doubt it was about directions to Bridgeport. They probably think I'm not strong enough to handle what it is. But I am strong enough to handle anything.

I rent a horse and think of all the things that could have gone wrong with Heyes these last two weeks. I should have gone last time. With Lom's help, I could have made it. Or maybe not. In truth, I didn't feel better until Dr. Arden came and found the splinters. I couldn't have made it then, but now I'm almost there. And I'm worried about Heyes.

The same trustee came and took my horse. "Thank you," I told him. He nodded as he walked away with a slight grin. Silence is the rule here but does not apply to me. I knocked at the forbiddin' door. In my dreams, it has become the door to hell, but I tried to block that thought. It is the door that leads to Heyes. I'm not lookin' forward to the walk to the doctor's office on my sore foot. But no one will ever know.

"Jed Curry to see Hannibal Heyes and Dr. Aiden Arden."

The guard stepped back and indicated the bin for my gunbelt. The healin' burns on my shoulder cause me to falter on the belt hook. "No tricks, Kid Curry! We know who you are." Now that Lom isn't with me, their guarded politeness has disappeared.

"I ain't one of your prisoners. Got a pardon and an amnesty," I growled back. I fell in line behind the first guard. I refused to look down. I stood straight and walked tall.

The guard in back of me chuckled. "The guards around here are all guessin' how long it will be before you are back in prison with your partner."

I held my tongue. I learned silence can be a verbal weapon. The guard shut up when he saw he hadn't riled me. He didn't know inside he made me feel like a convict worth nothing again.

The guard knocked on Dr. Arden's door and opened it without being invited. Lom was sitting in the far chair. The doctor stood and held out his hand. "How are you feeling, Mr. Curry?" I had noticed he had difficulty calling me Jed, so I didn't correct him.

"Doin' well, Doctor, thanks to you." I shook his hand and nodded to Lom.

"How's Heyes?" I asked, tryin' hard to think they weren't keepin' a secret about Heyes from me. I went and stood by the window, crossin' my arms across my chest.

"Depressed. He's convinced you're dead. He's lost the ability to speak. He's completely regressed like when I first met him."

"But you told him you saw me? You treated me?" I took a step toward the desk, then thought this sheltered man might consider that aggressive. Instead, I turned and looked at the sky out the window. Standin' hurt my foot, but no more than sittin' down.

"Yes, but he twisted it. In his mind, I went to your funeral and saw you laid out in your best clothes." Dr. Arden sighed. I felt sorry for him. He had tried to do something positive for Heyes, but Heyes didn't see it that way.

"I'm glad you came, Doctor. You helped me and Juan a lot. Thank you."

Lom leaned forward in his chair and closed his eyes for a minute. He looked as if he had a stomachache. When he opened his eyes, he looked better. He was as worried about Heyes as I was. "What can we expect of him, Doctor?" And what can we do to help?" he asked.

The doctor put a chalkboard and chalk on his desk. "Heyes can sometimes write some of his words to communicate. That's how he told me about the funeral. He's lost weight, not eating. I am not even sure what kind of reception you will get, Mr. Curry, since his belief that you are dead runs that deep."

I heard him, but I was lookin' at Lom. "You okay, Lom?" He was bent forward again but this time it looked more painful than a stomachache.

"Will be. Must have eaten something bad for lunch."

I didn't believe him. I really looked at him and he was pale. I don't remember when I'd seen him eat a whole meal.

"Excuse me, gentlemen. I need to check on something before Heyes arrives." Dr. Arden rushed out of the office. Lom looked after him, shakin' his head.

"Lom, what's the matter?" I asked again.

"I'll be fine."

I put two and two together. "This is what you and the doctor were whisperin' about, ain't it?"

He bent over double in the chair again.

"Yes. Dr. Arden guessed I have appendicitis." Lom didn't look at me. I know he'd been hidin' it because of me.

I remembered the gang member we called Rover. Had a stomach ache for days. He rested but never felt better. All of a sudden, he was in desperate pain. Heyes figured it was quicker to take him to the doctor rather than send someone to get the doctor and have him come to the Hole. We wrapped Rover in blankets and Heyes himself took him into town, but he died that night.

"Lom, I'm healed. Get it taken care of. Can Dr. Arden do some…"

The doctor returned looking efficient and in charge. "Sheriff Trevors, I believe that a…" He looked at Lom then at me.

"The Kid knows," Lom got out. He was sweatin' heavily now.

Dr. Arden nodded. "Good. I believe that your appendix is about to burst, may be doing that as we talk. I have prepared the surgery room in our infirmary, and we should go there now."

"Here? Now?" Lom asked.

"Immediately."

Lom didn't have the strength to resist. When he stood, he sat right back down. I picked him up in my arms. "Lead the way, Doctor."

We went out through the back door, down the hallway, to his private office. He knocked on the door at the end of the corridor.

"Mr. Curry, I can send someone to get a stretcher for him." He looked at me concerned.

"No need. Quicker this way. I got him and I ain't gonna drop him. He's sure lighter than that beam in the fire."

When the door opened, a guard was standin' there and looked harshly at me and Lom. Dr. Arden pushed right past them. Need to get to the surgery room, now. Go in front of me and open the doors." When the guard hesitated, he added, "You can lock them all behind you.'

I was concentratin' on movin' fast with Lom and hardly noticed the pain in my foot, or the fact that I was locked deep in the prison.

Dr. Arden had an operatin' table prepared for him and a man that I assumed was the prison doctor standin' by.

"Arden, I did as you wanted and washed everything, but I think it's an unnecessary waste of time."

Dr. Arden ignored the remark sayin' to me, "Get his clothes off and in that box. Take it out of here and with you."

From the urgency in his voice, I knew to not protest and undressed Lom quickly. When I was done, he told me to knock on the door we had come through. When the guard entered, he told him, "Take Mr. Curry to my office; he can wait there. You can bring convict Heyes there for his visit; the warden has approved them meeting in private. Just wait outside the door until I finish and come." As the door closed, the last thing I heard was the doctor sayin', "Ether, please."

I started to feel trapped, but I looked at the box of Lom's clothes and was thankful once again for Arden. Now that the pressin' need of our rush to the operatin' room had passed, the pain in my foot returned. The burn on my shoulder started to throb. The guard unlocked the door to the familiar office of Dr. Arden. After I entered, I heard it lock behind me.

The knowledge of being confined, alone in a prison unnerved me. I set the box on the desk and picked up one of the books Heyes had chosen for me to take home. Then I heard footsteps in the hall and the familiar drop of the shackles on the floor. I stood right in front of the desk so I would be the first thing Heyes would see. When the door swung open, a guard entered first, the same guard who had escorted me when I got here.

"Warden's orders, you two can be alone in here. Know that there is a guard at each door," he snarled.

Lookin' down, Heyes entered with a sad resignation.

"Heyes!" I said as soon as the door closed behind him. He just looked up, not really seein' me, not believin' I was there. So, I grabbed him as I had been doin' to start our visits and swung him around in a circle. He was hittin' me on the back as we spun and tapped me on the chest a couple of times before raisin' his eyes to my face. He was confused, but his eyes caught mine and I held them. "Missed you, Heyes."

He took my hand and led me to the desk. "Kid real?" He wrote on the chalkboard.

"I'm alive, Heyes, just like Lom and Dr. Arden told you."

He poked me again then looked around. "Where are they?" he wrote in chalk.

"Lom got sick. The doctor's takin' care of him," I answered but his mind had already jumped elsewhere.

He jotted down, "Kid burns?"

"Yeah, I got burnt pretty bad."

He reached up and touched the healin' wound on my temple then grabbed my short hair and pulled.

"Oww, Heyes, that hurts. What are you doin'?"

He erased his chalkboard and wrote, "Testing you're alive. Want to see burns."

"Aww, Heyes, you saw the one on my head."

"Test," he wrote. "If Kid real."

I sighed but I had been wantin' to get the boot off my foot. Heyes watched closely as I started to take off my boot then he grabbed it and pulled it off. He reached inside it and pulled out the bandage. My foot was raw and red. He picked up the chalk, but I grabbed his hand.

"Can you use words, Heyes?"

He pushed my hand with his fingers and looked again at my foot. Shakin' his head he wrote, "In my dreams you here, alive, and then go poof, gone."

I realized why he kept touchin' me and askin' me if I was real. "Nightmare? I thought the lamps and oil helped with those?"

"Lamps out, no oil," he wrote. "Kid dead; doesn't pay for oil."

"No, we did…I'll talk to Lom about it."

He pointed at my shoulder but still said nothing.

"You want to see the burn on my shoulder?" I asked him.

He nodded, but was looking down again. I took off my shirt and my long john top and threw them on the desk. My shoulder was bandaged lightly, he pulled it back gently. The cut where Dr. Arden had removed the splinter was still red and ugly but healing.

Suddenly, Heyes grabbed me in a bear hug, then let go and smiled at me. "No poof," he wrote.

I reached over and pinched him hard on his arm. I'm sure it hurts.

He did try to hit me back just looked down, submissive even to me.

"Why?" he wrote on his chalkboard.

"Well, I was gonna punch you on the jaw again but it still has a slight trace of the bruise my fist left. Anytime you think I'm not alive, touch that. The pain will remind you I'm alive and you're gonna get out of here."

He touched it gingerly then looked at me. "Works," he wrote.

He believed I was alive, finally. "Can you use your words now?"

Trying very hard, he let his hand rest on my arm. Finally, he wrote, "No words. Gone."

He looked around again and wrote, "Lom real sick? Gone a long time." His eyes were filled with concern. He walked to the window and came back and sat down. I had moved my sore foot to the empty chair.

I didn't want him to worry, but I needed someone to talk to and Heyes had always been my confidant, another word from my book learnin'.

I told him about how Dr. Arden had come to the ranch and doctored me. And I told Heyes about Lom's emergency surgery goin' on right now. It was good to talk to someone, but I couldn't tell him everything. I didn't tell him about Chrissy…or the babies. I think he knew I wasn't tellin' him everything, but he seemed happy I was confidin' in him.

It had been a long time since I carried Lom to the infirmary. I leaned my head in my hands. My temple was startin' to throb. And I think Heyes picked up on my thoughts. He was sittin' next to me and put his hand on my good shoulder. He couldn't reach his chalkboard.

"K—K—K," he tried to say. Frustrated, he swept my clothes off the desk in anger.

"You started to talk!"

He grabbed the chalkboard. "CAN"T!" he wrote and sat down, dejected and depressed.

I pulled up the patience I used with Chrissy. It was harder with Heyes. I needed him to get out of here. Be my partner, again. Talk with me, tease me…help me. But I knew first he had to get better. Inside, my hate of the prison system grew, but I put on my poker face; that hate was not a path I would allow myself to go down. I knew just what to ask him. "Heyes, we still partners?" It was the question he always asked me.

His mood seemed to lift a bit. "Al…al," he started to say. Then he looked at the ceilin' and got that look on his face when he was tryin' to come up with a plan. "Always!" he blurted out.

I know a smile crossed my face. Heyes looked quite proud of himself.

We heard the back door of the office bein' unlocked and a very tired Dr. Arden entered. The white coat he had on over his clothes was splashed with blood, Lom's blood.

I stood to greet him, knockin' over the chair my foot was restin' on in the process. "Doctor, are you alright?" I asked, as he flopped in his desk chair.

His tired body moved slowly, but when he looked at us, his eyes were calm. "Yes, I'm fine. Thanks for asking. It was just a longer operation than I had anticipated. Sheriff Trevors pulled through and he will recover. His appendix was close to bursting. Good thing it happened when he was near someone that could operate. I warned him about that."

Relieved, I sat back down. Heyes had just been starin' at Arden. I don't think he'd ever seen him in anything but a full suit. He'd dressed very informal when he came to the ranch.

The doctor gained his composure quickly and directed the conversation towards us. He does like to be in charge of all conversations. "Heyes, do you finally believe Mr. Curry is alive now?"

Heyes nodded sheepishly and patted my knee, my burnt knee. He felt me pull back in pain.

And Dr. Arden noticed my boot on the floor and the condition of my foot. "Mr. Curry, you should not be wearing a boot on that foot. You should know better. I'll be right back."

Heyes picked my shirt and long john top off the floor, and I put them back on. They did irritate the shoulder wound but it was tolerable. The doctor came back with a pair of the soft indoor shoes that the prisoners wore. "Mr. Curry, wear these."

I looked at them but did not take them. They were a symbol of imprisonment, of lashings, of slavery to me.

"Mr. Curry, I understand your reluctance to wear these, but your foot will not heal wearing that boot. You might do permanent damage to your ankle and knee when you limp to favor it. You know you are no longer a prisoner, just consider them a medical device to help you recover.

I took them but didn't put them on. "Can we see Lom?"

"He should be waking up soon so yes, you can see him. He's not a prisoner here so must leave as soon as he's able, maybe tomorrow. Unfortunately, Heyes, you must return to your cell."

"Doctor Arden, Heyes wrote that the lamps are out near his cell. You need more money for oil?"

"No reason they should be out. I'll check with the warden."

Heyes stood, I thought to prepare to leave, but instead bent over and took my other boot off, pointin' to the prison shoes when he was finished. He put my boots in the box with Lom's clothes. We locked gazes for a moment and I understood that this was his way of tryin' to take care of me. It was a small thing, but I leaned my head forward against his for a second.

When the guards started to open the main door, Heyes took his chalk and wrote, "Take care of both of them," and handed it to Dr. Arden.

"I will do my best," he answered.

ASJ*****ASJ

Dr. Arden led me back to the prison infirmary. We picked up a guard as soon as we left the doctor's office. I wore the soft prison shoes and had to admit my foot felt better than in the boot. Lom was layin' in the far bed, separated by space from the three prisoners nearer the door. He looked small and weak.

LOM

When I opened my eyes, I couldn't imagine where I was. The windows I could see had bars on them and there were guards standing at the door. A doctor I didn't know was talking to me. "Finally awake, Trevors. Thought you'd be tougher than that ether."

"Water, please," I asked.

"When the trustee comes around, I'll tell him to give you water."

And then I remembered – the prison. The pain in my stomach and my side. Dr. Arden. The Kid carrying me like I weighed nothing. It all came back. And then I fell back into a sleep troubled with walls that moved in on me and made the room ever smaller until I could not breathe.

"Trevors!" I knew that voice. It was Dr. Arden talking to me. I opened my eyes and looked at him and could see the Kid standing next to him.

"The operation was a success. I will order some pain medicine for you." The doctor was all business. I was alert enough to realize he didn't use my title of sheriff as he usually did. No need to let everyone know I was a sheriff in here.

"Hey, Lom, how you feelin'?" the Kid asked and I could see the worry on his face. The last thing the Kid needs is someone else to take care of right now.

"Feeling better, Kid. Much better in fact. Water?" I think I had asked for that before.

Dr. Arden spoke in a very authoritative voice. "Water, here please."

The prison doctor looked at him. "He's on the list to get water on our next rounds."

"Hmpff." I thought Arden was going to stamp his foot, but he walked over to a water pitcher, poured a glass of water, and brought it back to me. "Don't try to sit up. Mr. Curry, would you lift his back slightly so he can drink?"

With a wink to me, the Kid did as asked. I drank all the water. "More?"

"Not right now." The doctor indicated that the Kid should lay me down again. "There was pain medicine in that water. I need you to sleep."

I nodded and felt my eyes closing. I had something I needed to say to the Kid but couldn't remember as sleep pulled me away.

JED 'KID' CURRY

Dr. Arden seemed distracted as I followed him back to his office again. "Sit down, Mr. Curry…er Jed, or stand by the window, whichever makes you more comfortable. I know being locked in some of these rooms must bring back harsh memories. I find it hard and have never been a prisoner."

I stood lookin' out the window. In truth, his office reminded me of the headmaster's office at Valparaiso. Nothing good happened to us in that office. I wondered if Heyes had the same feelings in here.

Dr. Arden didn't wait for a response from me. "We don't have a lot of time. I want to get back to Sheriff Trevors. I think I'll stay with him tonight. My opinion of prison infirmaries is not good, and the new doctor doesn't seem competent to me."

"You're gonna stay overnight locked in here with him?" I asked to confirm.

"Yes. It appears he had been denied water when he first asked for it. I would like him to go home tomorrow."

"He'll be comin' to the ranch. We'll take care of him."

"That's the other thing I wanted to talk to you about. You are taking on a lot, Jed. You are not far removed from prison yourself."

I didn't like where this talk was goin'. Sounded to me he didn't think I could take care of my family. "I'll take care of him. It's what I did in prison, get strong to take care of my family. Lom's family."

Dr. Arden was silent for a moment. I know that trick. Silence makes the person talkin' nervous and they keep talkin'. I stayed quiet.

"I just mean that at some point, you may need help and I am offering my services…my friendship to help."

I didn't know what to say so I stuck out my hand to him and said, "Thank you."

He seemed pleased and shook my hand. "I included a medical journal in the stack of books from Heyes. There is an article in there about a case somewhat like Miss McWinters, although I think you two had a strong bond before she went to prison. You may find it helpful in part."

I looked at the stack of books; it was now on his desk with my boots on top. '

"Also just wanted you to know what are probably the next steps for her."

"I'm helpin' her get better."

"Indeed, you have done an extraordinary job with her recovery. I am very impressed. As she improves more and starts to take down that protective wall she built in my mind, she will experience a sense of loss of what she had. You must give her a sense of what she has and something to look forward to. Has she cried?"

This was a time to be honest. "She has, a little."

"Good. She's allowing herself to feel emotions again. You can expect sudden crying jags as she gets better. Don't try to stop her, just comfort her if she'll let you." He looked embarrassed as he continued. "I didn't get the chance to examine her and I understand why. But there are certain injuries that a woman that was in her er.. position might have sustained on her…her private parts. I can prescribe something to ease the pain and promote healing. Maybe you can talk to her about letting me examine her with you present."

"Maybe. That other's good to know, thank you…again."

He waved off my thanks. "Are you sure you can take care of Miss McWinters and Lom…and soon Heyes? His transition will not be easy, and the presence of Miss McWinters might complicate it."

"I'll take good care of them." I told him, but his words gave me things to think about and prepare for when I got home. "Rudy will help me. And I expect workin' with our horses will help Heyes, too."

A knock came at the private entrance to his office. The doctor opened the door and held a mumbled conversation with the person there, then turned back to me.

"Mr. Curry you can have your choice. Go back to Cheyenne tonight and return with a wagon to transport Sheriff Trevors to the train station tomorrow about noon. Or you can stay in the prison for the night."

I know I backed away from him.

"Not in a cell. My private office down the hall has a couch that is almost comfortable."

"I'll be goin' back to Cheyenne with our horses tonight and I'll be back tomorrow with a wagon. Ain't ever spendin' the night in prison again."

"Very well, er Jed. I will have the sheriff ready to travel at noon, you should be in plenty of time to catch the afternoon train. If you come an hour earlier, I may be able to arrange another brief visit with Heyes. No promises, though."

"Thanks. Anything I can bring from Cheyenne that will make Lom's travel easier?"

"I would suggest pillows and blankets. The ones here are neither soft nor warm."

Balancin' my boots on the books, I knocked on the front door of the office and waited for the guard to enter and escort me out. "Please have both my horse and my friend's brought around," I asked.

"No convict tells a guard what to do, Kid Curry," the guard almost spat my name. I just walked toward the exit carryin' the books and my boots. I was trying to decide if I should mention to Lom how the guards treat me when he's not with me.

Outside, the trustee brought me and Lom's horses when he saw me. Then started to take Lom's back.

"I'm takin' both horses back with me, sir." I used the sir on purpose. As he brought the horses near, I added lowly so the guard couldn't hear, "Gonna come with a wagon and two horses tomorrow. Blankets will be in the back and pillows. If one or two blankets disappear, I don't mind, but no more than that. And I need all the pillows.

The trustee said nothing but waited while I put the books in Lom's saddle bags and tied my boots to his saddle. He held the horse while I mounted and at the last minute gave me a sly wink.

When I got to Cheyenne, I sent a telegram to Rudy tellin' him I was bringing Lom home after surgery and to prepare Heyes' room.. Then I walked to the mercantile to buy Chrissy the two presents I had promised her. The first was the seeds. I bought carrot seeds and what the clerk called a wildflower mix. But he also had some petunia and daisy seeds. My ma liked daisies. So, I bought both of those, too. I wasn't sure about the second present until I saw the music box. It played a pretty tune I didn't recognize. The top had inlaid woodwork in the shape of flowers. There was just room in the box for the seeds I was buyin'.

Goin' to the hotel, the clerk started to give me the same room.

"Wait a minute, only one of you today?"

"Yeah, just me," I told him.

"Let me give you a room with one bed. Save you some money."

I was touched by him wantin' to save me some money. "Thank you," I hesitated. I almost called him sir but I use that word carefully.

HEYES

The Kid is alive. I look at the bruise on my arm where he pinched me and I remember with certainty he is alive.

Dr. Arden said we would meet tomorrow and discuss our plan of action for my last twenty-eight days. I have to be careful. Nothing seems to go right for me. I don't want to lose my chance when I'm so close.

LOM

Woke up several times during the night. I believe Dr. Arden is sleeping in the bed-really, they are only cots-next to me. He told me the Kid is coming to take me to the ranch later today. I don't like the feeling in this building any more than he does. I used to be afraid that even though I've been a law-abiding sheriff for many years, someone would recognize me from my time with the Devil's Hole Gang, or before that with the Crossing Rivers Gang, and I would be arrested and spend time in this place, a sheriff among outlaws. I wouldn't have lasted long.

When the Kid and Heyes brought me that paper on amnesty, I not only asked for amnesty for them but for myself. It would have been hard to explain how I knew them without confessing my past life. The governor was impressed with my honesty, and my record as sheriff, and granted it that night. Now here I am anyway. Dr. Arden calls me Mr. Trevors instead of sheriff. I'm thankful he thought not to use my title. He seems to be guarding me as much as doctoring me tonight. I feel too weak and sore to travel, but I don't care. I've only been locked in here less than a day and the oppressive air seems to be forcing its way into my mind. How did the Kid and Heyes…and Chrissy survive their time?

HEYES

The guard came and got me while I was working on the brooms. I think Dr. Arden has told everyone I can't speak anymore. When I should say yes or no sir, I just look down and wait for the billy club to hit somewhere on my body. But no guard has hit me.

"Come on, convict, Dr. Arden wants you in his office." It was the older guard whose daughter had drawn me a rainbow. I carefully pressed that drawing in one of my books. I look at it often. I had forgotten about rainbows, but this one is my dream of freedom.

I look down when he speaks to me, and he ignores that I didn't answer. I have a sore on my left ankle that opens every time I wear the shackles. It started when I worked in the kitchen with them on. When I was in the infirmary after the riots, no one even looked at my feet. And I'm scared of anything that might cause trouble. It doesn't bleed a lot, just enough to stop the healing. And it gets a little worse each day. It opened again this morning when I walked to the broom factory. The bleeding usually stops by the end of the day when they put the shackles on to take us to dinner. We get a water break midday but that's all. It's enough.

When the guard goes to fasten the shackles around my left ankle, I feel him stop. He touched the wound, wiped at it really. I'm sure it was still bleeding a little.

"You know, this convict is only going to Dr. Arden's office, and we'll just have to take these right off again. I'm going to leave these off. His wrists are shackled anyway. "

I kept my head down staring at a bug crawling across the floor.

"Let's go," the guard finished.

I saw the guard in the lead, who I had never seen before, shrug his shoulders as he led us to the doctor's office. The doctor had said he would meet with me today. This is not our schedule. But yesterday he was busy helping Lom. The lead guard knocked and pushed open the door. The older guard I knew took off the wrist shackles and let them fall to the floor. "Lock the door behind me," he said as he followed me into the room.

"Gotta stay with you until the doctor shows up."

He indicated for me to sit down. "How long you had that wound on your ankle?"

I shrugged my shoulders and looked down. I had glanced at the doctor's desk when we came in…no chalkboard.

"Sorry, I forgot you can't talk," the guard apologized to a convict. Even in private, this was unusual.

We heard the office door being unlocked and I expected Dr. Arden.

"Heyes!" The Kid's enthusiastic greeting was followed by a bear hug that lifted me out of my chair before he saw the guard sitting next to me.

He put me back into the chair as gently as if I were a child. I marvel at how strong he has become.

JED 'KID' CURRY

I knew Heyes was in the doctor's office but did not expect the guard. I remember the one who had yelled at me when I rushed to hug Heyes before the door was closed. "Sorry, didn't see you there."

"You haven't done anything wrong, Mr. Curry. This is your time to visit. In the doctor's office, hugs and talking are allowed freely."

"Thank you," I said, formally. But I didn't add the sir.

I pulled the last chair over and sat next to Heyes. "Last I heard, Lom's doin' good. Get to take him home today."

Heyes sighed in frustration. He wanted to say or write something, but he couldn't. He pointed in the direction of the infirmary, then at me, then lifted his arm up and down in a movement I didn't understand.

"Yes, I'm takin' Lom home today. Didn't understand the other arm gyrations."

Heyes' eyes got big and he moved his head to the side, thinkin' I guess. He reached his thumb and first finger held together to his lips and expanded them as he moved them away. Then he pointed to me. I knew exactly what he was sayin'.

"Heyes, I know a lot of big words like gyrations. I read most of the same books you did when I was in Yuma. Lom sent the same books, for the most part, to…" I hesitated. I almost said to all of us. "Sent them to both of us, but I didn't get that Walden one you sent home. Readin' it now."

He smiled and patted me on the shoulder.

"Excuse me." The guard looked comfortable in the third chair, except for the rifle held ready in his arms. "I think I know what it meant before."

Me and Heyes looked at him expectantly.

"I got a five-year-old. She does that when she hears a train."

Heyes nodded his head and pointed at the guard. I thought back to that part of the conversation. "Yes, Heyes, I'm takin' Lom to my ranch on the train. Me and Rudy will take care of him there."

I had told Heyes about my trip to Winter's Refuge with Juan yesterday, leaving out the picture. He brushed my new curls like he did when we was little and he was proud of me. He pointed at my heart then made a muscle with his arm.

"Strong heart," the guard translated .

I couldn't say anything. My heart wanted to see Heyes out of here and at the ranch.

Dr. Arden entered hurriedly from the back office door. He looked confused to see the guard sittin' with us, who immediately stood up at his entrance.

"Sir, couldn't leave a convict in here unguarded," he explained. "And needed to tell you he has an open wound on his left ankle that looks like it's infected."

"Thank you, that will be all for now."

"I'll be right outside the door. Knock when you're done."

Dr. Arden had rushed around the desk and grabbed Heyes' ankle. "Why didn't you show me this before? It's infected and I don't have time to deal with it." He seemed flustered and hurried.

"Mr. Curry…Jed, I need to go back to the infirmary. Lom is being prepared to leave. I am worried for his safety, several of the convicts recognized him. An unarmed sheriff in a prison is always in danger." He had taken some bandages from his bag in back of his desk and was cleanin' Heyes' ankle of blood. "Definitely infected. Heyes, how could you have let this fester," he finished sharply.

Heyes looked down, shuddered at the criticism. I wanted to defend him but didn't know what to say. Now Dr, Arden pulled Heyes' shoe and sock off. "Don't have time to do this gentle, Heyes. This is going to hurt. Jed, hold that ankle just like this and DON"T let it move."

I did as I was told, catchin' Heyes' eyes as he started to look up. The doctor started to pour the powder directly on his ankle. I could feel his involuntary attempt to pull away to avoid the pain, but I held it firm. And I saw the pain on Heyes' face.

"Done." The doctor wrapped Heyes' foot and ankle. "Jed, go knock on the door for the guard. I need you to go get the wagon ready at the entrance for Mr. Trevors." He turned to the guard and handed him a hastily scribbled note. "Please return Heyes to his cell, not the broom factory. He's to stay there the rest of today and tomorrow. His meals should be brought to him, and he needs to stay off that ankle."

"Yes, sir," the guard answered.

As Heyes stood up, the doctor handed him a cane. "Do you understand, convict?"

Heyes fixed his eyes on the floor and started to hobble to the door. I grabbed his shoe and sock and when I handed them to him, I gave him an easier bear hug.

"Mr. Curry, get that wagon ready." The doctor was gone out the back door.

I looked at the guard knowin' I couldn't walk the hallways here unguarded. "Williams, escort Mr. Curry to the front door and give him back his gun and the gun for Mr. Trevors. I'll escort this convict to his cell."

At the foot of the front steps, my rented wagon was ready. The blankets and pillows in the rear had been tossed and pushed to the back. I expected that and at a quick glance I could tell that most of the blankets remained. A nice warm blanket would be a treasure to prisoners here in Wyoming durin' the winter. Where I had been in Arizona, they were only distributed on a few cold nights. I never saw a blanket at the railroad camp except to wrap a dead body.

My wait by the wagon was short; the front door of the prison opened. Dr. Arden, carryin' his medical bag, directed two men carryin' Lom on a stretcher. I could see gettin' him down the steps was gonna be difficult. I nodded at Dr. Arden as I climbed the stairs. Without a word, I gently picked Lom up and cradled him in my arms. His eyes looked dazed, and I knew the doctor had given him a strong pain reliever for the trip. I lifted him over the side of the wagon. Dr. Arden had climbed in the end and was there to settle Lom as best he could. He waved the trustees who had carried the stretcher back inside the prison. I watched them get sucked back into that darkness.

"Going with you as far as Bridgeport, Mr. Curry. I want to make sure those stitches I put into your friend hold." I looked at the doctor closely, his eyes were even redder than before.

Again, I was surprised by the doctor. I think the sheltered man was growin' up in the west. But right now his breath stank of whiskey. And he was most definitely drunk.

On the train, with Lom settled, I found Dr. Arden starin' at me. When I noticed, he asked, "Mr…er Jed, are you afraid of anything?"

"Afraid of a lot of things, but don't let them stop me. Why?"

"I was raised to be afraid of almost everything. When I first met you, I had read most of the dime novels about you. They make you out to be an outlaw hero."

"Ain't an outlaw anymore and I ain't a hero."

"Those books, and others like them, are where I got the strength to break from the family practice and move west. It is nothing like Philadelphia. When I was asked to work with Hannibal Heyes as a favor to the governor, I jumped at the chance to see what made him what he is. I found a broken, scared man. I've been doing my best to help him."

He looked at the peacefully sleepin' Lom in his medicated dreams. "Then, I heard about Heyes' deal and that you were coming to visit him. I was anxious to meet you."

"Ain't nothing special." This conversation made me uncomfortable, but the doctor was determined to keep talkin'.

"You weren't what I expected, but you are something special, Jed Curry. You are a man of strengths."

I looked at him and it was a harder look than I intended because I was tired. "I got strong workin' as a blacksmith for the railroad. That's why I signed onto that contract."

"Not just physical strength, Jed, although you are one of the strongest men I've ever seen. I heard about what you did to free those men in the fire. Each time I hear it, you seem to get stronger."

I laughed a little. "Yeah, that beam was heavy, probably over three hundred pounds, but the way I heard it last time, it was seven hundred and another beam was layin' across it."

"That's how legends are born."

"Someone called me that after the fire. I'll tell you what I told him. I already been a legend, one of the leaders of the most successful outlaw gang ever, and the fastest gun in the West. Workin' not to be a legend no more, just Jed the blacksmith." I was tellin' him the truth. It felt good to talk to someone about these things.

"Jed, from what I've seen, you are a self-made man of strong will and determination, a man with strong friendships and loyalties, a man with strong control over your emotions and your actions."

I looked at him like he was crazy.

"You are also an artist. I saw that lock you designed and created," he said. "But most of all, you are a man of heart!"

"What did you mean a man of heart?" I asked. It reminded me of when Heyes had called me strong heart earlier. "I'm simply a man who has vowed to take care of his family, whether they are related by blood or not. I got as strong as I could to take care of my family. No one is ever goin' to hurt my family again."

Dr. Arden smiled. "You're right. And if you let me, I'd like to help you."

I nodded at him. "Why do you want to help me?"

"The relationship Heyes and you have is strong, strong enough to withstand prison. I've never really had any friends; acquaintances yes, but real friends, no. I thought maybe I could learn from you how to make friends." His words were slightly slurred from the alcohol. His gaze was intense.

"Seems like you got a good start on that the way you been helpin' me and Heyes and now Lom."

That made him stop talkin' finally. He rested his elbows on his knees and put his head in his hands. "I'm sorry. I don't drink. I was so nervous about doing this that I took a drink of some whiskey I took from a convict… er patient. Seems to have gone to my head."

"How much did you drink?"

"Just a glassful. Vile tasting the first sip, but after that not so bad."

"A water glass full?" I asked as I started to smile.

"Yes, and a little more. I guess it relaxed me. Sure relaxed my tongue. I'm sorry if I embarrassed you." His head started to droop forward.

"Doctor." He didn't look up. The alcohol was hittin' him hard. "Dr. Arden," I called again. No reaction. I tried to remember his first name. "Aiden, look at me."

Slowly, he raised his eyes to me. "Doctor, I think you should stay in Brodgeport. You're goin' to have one helluva headache." His eyes were closin' to a forced sleep. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

"No, I was afraid of an attack on Mr. Trevors."

"Sleep, Doctor, I'll watch Lom. We'll see how you feel when we get to Bridgeport."