Revenge

A Sequel to The Contract

By

AZgirl66

Chapter 9- Truth and Consequences (1)

A/N: LovingmesomeMK, thank you so much for the guest review. I'm glad you are enjoying the story. There are some funky things going on with the ff website. I can post the chapters just fine, but there aren't any email notifications. This means that you'll just have to check the site daily for the new chapters. As a rule, I post two chapters a day. One in the morning and one in the evening. I'm also not getting notifications about PM's, so I apologize for not responding quickly. I'll make sure to check for these a couple of time a day. Without further delay...

Addie Dillon waited patiently for her turn in Mr. Lathrop's General Store. She wasn't in a hurry to get back to school, since it was the day of her math test. Every Tuesday she had a math test. Luckily, Miss Nelson needed Addie to run to the store to pick up some chalk. Seems the new boy, Chip Simms, had a voracious appetite for it. For some strange reason, he'd eaten every piece in the school. Addie had figured some of the older boys had dared the new pupil to do so.

"Excuse me," a kind-looking farm woman wearing a simple, blue dress and an old, yellow bonnet addressed Addie, "May I just say that your hair color is just lovely."

"Oh, thank you Ma'am," Addie blushed, folding her hands in front of her.

"And those big, blue eyes! My, my! I've only ever seen that color red hair combined with your color blue eyes one other time."

"Oh, really?" Addie wasn't sure what she should say to the stranger, "My mother has the same color hair and eyes, too. So do my little sisters," she moved up a place in Mr. Lathrop's queue.

"Well, I'll be," the lady smiled, but the sentiment didn't reach her eyes. "The woman I knew had an unusual first name…umm, Kitty, I believe. Yes, that's it," the stranger nodded, "Kitty Mannon. She had a little baby with red hair, too."

"She did?" Addie gulped, stepping out of Mr. Lathrop's line entirely. She couldn't believe her ears.

"Yes, indeed. She and her husband, Will, had a baby girl-oh, let's see…maybe ten years ago," the woman seemed lost in her thoughts, her pointer finger resting on her chin, "Yep. Down in Deep Ford…" the woman suddenly seemed enthralled by some calico fabric.

"Addie? Addie Dillon! Can I help you?" Mr. Lathrop asked, trying to get the child's attention.

"Yes sir," Addie shook her head, trying to remember why she was in the general store, "Miss Nelson needs some chalk."

XXXXXXXX

"You think Daddy will make it home in time for that dance?" Matthew Jr. asked his sister as they walked home from school.

Addie walked with her hands clasped behind her, looking at the ground.

"Addie! Did ya hear me?!" Matthew practically shouted.

"Huh?" she looked up at her brother.

"Do ya think Daddy's gonna make it back for yer dance?"

"No," she answered flatly.

"I do," Adam chimed in, skipping up to his sister, "Daddy won't let ya down," the six-year-old started to run up the side road leading to the Triple D ranch.

But would he really care, if he isn't really my father? Addie thought to herself.

XXXXXXXX

"How much homework do you have today?" Kitty asked her three school-aged children as they finished their snacks.

"None!" Matthew chirped, popping a strawberry into his mouth.

"I just have t' read to ya, Mama," Adam answered.

Addie remained silent, her chin resting upon her folded hands. She hadn't touched her strawberries.

"Adelaide Jane…where are you, Honey?" Kitty asked, feeling her daughter's forehead, "You feel okay? Do you need Grandpa t' have a look at you?"

"No, Ma'am," Addie answered, standing up and lazily taking her bowl to the sink.

The sound of Mutt's ferocious barking drew Kitty's attention, especially with Matt out of town. She walked out the screen door, stepping onto the front porch. She held up her hand to block the sun from her eyes. She could make out a large man on a solid white horse, heading straight for the house.

"Mama! Someone's comin'!" Ezra shouted from the yard, jumping up and down.

Kitty walked down the stairs to hold her son by his shoulders. "Ezra? Where's Uncle Festus?"

"In th' big barn, I think," the boy answered, glancing up at his mother's face. Kitty kept her eye on the approaching stranger.

"Go find him, Honey. Tell 'im a stranger's comin' up t' the house," Kitty calmly requested.

"Yes'm," he was off like a shot, running to the big barn.

Mutt continued to bark, and Kitty let him. She started to walk down the road a bit, noting the stranger picked up speed.

"Go on, boy," she urged Mutt to walk further in front of her, "you go see who that is," she said a little louder.

"Mama," Matthew shouted from the porch, "Who is it?"

Kitty didn't turn around. She just raised her voice above the barking, "Matthew, get Grandpa. Now, please." With that, she heard the screen door slam.

As the rider got closer, Mutt stopped walking toward him. The protective dog stood in the middle of the drive, barking even louder, baring his teeth. Kitty stopped a few yards behind Mutt while the rider stopped a few yards in front of the dog.

"Miz Kitty!" Festus called from behind, running up to her, shotgun in hand, "Who is that fella?"

"Helloooo!" the large, bearded man shouted, raising one hand in greeting, "It's me, Festus…Moose!"

"Moose…" Kitty whispered, breathing for the first time since she'd spotted the rider. She rested her right hand over her heart, calling, "Mutt, it's okay, boy. Come!" The obedient dog ran to his owner's side and sat, still keeping guard.

"Moose! Ya came!" Festus approached the man as he dismounted.

"Well, I got the telegram in Wichita, and I decided t' take the marshal up on his offer," the two men heartily shook hands, both smiling brightly.

Kitty and Moose approached each other, her arms outstretched, ready to embrace the man who'd saved her life, "Oh, Morris! I'm so happy t' see you! But I'm afraid I'm lost. What offer?"

Moose let go of Kitty first, looking her in the eye, "The marshal asked me if I wanted t' come an' work for ya. Here I am," he announced, his voice a little deeper and a little more gravel-like than ten years before.

"Welcome to the Triple D, Morris!" Kitty beamed, looping her arm through his.

XXXXXXXX

Dinner at the Dillon's was every bit as lively as usual. Maybe even more so, with a new person for the children to investigate.

"Miss Kitty," Moose looked around the table, filled with children, "Yer family sure has grown," he smiled, piling a healthy helping of ham onto his plate.

"That it has, Morris, it certainly has," Kitty smiled, spooning carrots onto plates for Ezra and Scarlett.

Doc entered the room, cuddling a disgruntled infant, "Sorry, Mama, she isn't gonna make it till we're finished."

Kitty took Maggie into her arms, "Morris, this is Maggie," she held up the fussy baby.

He gulped, "Another one?" his eyes bulging.

Everyone laughed at the shocked expression, even Addie. Kitty noticed that her daughter's mood had improved since the arrival of their old friend.

"She's number six," Adam offered, followed by a swig of his milk.

"So, how do ya know my mama and daddy?" Addie asked Moose while she drizzled honey onto her freshly baked biscuit.

Kitty shot both Festus and Doc a look, hoping Moose wouldn't go into too much detail.

Moose didn't look up from his heaping plate, answering, "I knew 'em in Deep Ford. Why, I remember when you was born, Adelaide," the burly man finally glanced up from his food, chewing with his mouth open.

Kitty stopped bouncing Maggie on her knee and focused on the bowl of scalloped potatoes in the middle of the large table. Festus scrunched up his mouth and made eye contact with Abelia. Doc busied himself, wiping Scarlett's mouth while muttering under his breath.

"Wait…" Matthew, Jr. paused, his fork in mid-air, pierced with ham, "Addie wasn't born in Dodge, like the rest of us?" he looked at his mother.

Kitty noticed that Addie sat straight up on the long bench, waiting for her mother to answer.

"No, she wasn't. She was born in a small town southeast of Kansas called Deep Ford," Kitty calmly answered, grinning at Addie. The nervous mother took a bite of her biscuit, still balancing the baby.

"Was Daddy there?" Addie curiously asked, seemingly challenging her mother.

"As a matter of fact, he was. Along with Uncle Festus." Kitty flatly answered.

"Was Grandpa there, Mama? Like with Maggie 'n Scarlett 'n everybody?" Adam inquired.

"Nope. The doctor in Deep Ford was a friend of ours. In fact, we named a baby after him because he was such a good friend to us there," Kitty nodded at Moose, trying to convey that it was alright that he'd "spilled the beans".

"WHO?!" Ezra shouted, standing on the bench, trying to reach the potatoes.

"Sit down, boy!" Doc admonished, "We don't stand on furniture in this house," he swiped his moustache and retrieved the potatoes himself, scooping some onto Ezra's plate.

"You, Ezra," Kitty took a sip of her milk, "We named you after our friend, Dr. Ezra Roseveare," she coyly smiled at the memory of the dear man who was going to help her escape the clutches of Will Mannon. The man who was going to marry her and take her to the Osage for protection.

Ezra happily sat back down while Addie summoned all of her courage to ask, "Why were you and Daddy in Deep Ford? I thought you both lived in Dodge forever?"

"I'll start the dishes, Kitty," Abelia chimed in, hoping to help rescue her friend.

"I'll help ya, too, B. Matthew, I'm gonna have ya help me show Moose how we do the night feed in a bit. We got a late start 'n all."

"Yes, Uncle Festus."

"Everyone clear your own plates, now. This isn't a restaurant," Doc ordered, picking up Scarlett's plate off of her high chair tray.

Neither Addie nor Kitty had moved a muscle, even though everyone else had sprung into action. The girl locked eyes with her mother. Both their mouths were straight lines. Kitty was the first to break the stand-off, "Adelaide, would you like to sleep with me tonight, since Daddy's gone?"

The little girl understood her mother's code for, "We'll talk about this later."

"Yes, Mama. I'd like that."

"Wonderful," Kitty genuinely smiled, "Now, please go water the garden for me. And see if any more strawberries are ready to be picked. I'll go feed Maggie."

Addie carried her plate to the sink, retrieved a small bucket and headed out the door.

XXXXXXXX

"This here is what we call 'th' li'l barn' or 'th' fam'ly barn'" Festus explained, as he escorted Moose into the smaller barn on the Triple D.

"Why two barns? Seems kinda…I don' know…silly t' me," Moose commented, looking around the simple structure that was an exact replica of the bigger barn used for business, only one fourth the size.

"Wael, ya see, this way, the horse bizness is sep'rite from the reg'lar goin's on of the family," Festus proudly explained.

"If you say so…" Moose shook his head.

"Listen here, Moose. Miz Kitty done ran the Long Branch saloon for a long time. She's not only the looksomest woman around, she's the book smartest, too."

"I believe ya there, Festus," Moose patted his friend on the back.

Festus continued his tour, "We don't never gotta mess with th' cows or goats or chickens. That's fer the children fer theys chores. Here, I'll show ya where we keep the grain fer this here barn," he started walking toward the grain bin.

Outside, Addie had finished watering the family garden and had decided to run to the small barn to see the horses and maybe get a chance to ask Mr. Moose about when she was born. She ran to the back side of the barn, hoping to get to visit Peaches, but she froze at the sound of the words "Deep Ford". Addie tiptoed toward the half-opened door, hoping to eavesdrop on her Uncle and the new hire.

"I think I made a mistake tonight, Festus, bringin' up Deep Ford and Addie bein' born there and all," Moose pitched some hay into an empty stall.

"Well, ya didn't know. We jus' don't talk 'bout that time. Never…" Festus scooped some oats to place in the stall buckets.

"I jus' shot off m' mouth like a fool. I know that time with Mr. Mannon was awful fer Miss Kitty. Hell, I was there an' didn't do nuthin' t' help 'er till it was almost too late. An' her bein' with child and all…" Moose's voice trailed off as he continued to pitch hay.

Addie had been frozen in her spot, unable to move a muscle. She'd held her breath, not wanting to be discovered. Could what the woman at the general store said be true? Was that man in the street telling the truth when he called Mama "Mrs. Mannon"? Maybe my daddy isn't really my father…

"Well, ya done saved 'er and Addie both an' that's all that matters. Matthew'll be plum pleased t' see that ya came t' work 'ere," Festus started to gather halters and leads, "Let's go fetch the horses and put 'em up for the night. Matthew, Jr. should be done with oats in th' big barn."

Addie was jolted out of her trance when she heard her Uncle begin to whistle for the horses. She ran as quickly as her legs would carry her back toward the house. She didn't want the men to know that she'd overheard their private conversation. Her mother had always taught her that it was impolite to eavesdrop. But her mother had also told Addie that she'd never lied to her.

TBC