Gunsmoke: Never Wanna Live Without You

Part 6

Three days later…

Pulling on her gloves and grabbing her parasol, Kitty walked downstairs and through the batwing doors. As she made her way to Delmonico's, the chilly wind stung her eyes and made them water, but they could have just as easily been real tears. She entered the restaurant and took a seat at the back wall. Joe came over with a pot of coffee and took her order of grits and toast. She didn't really have an appetite for anything, but she knew she had to eat something. Joe came back quickly with her food and she mechanically set about eating it. She had just taken a bite of her grits when she heard heavy footsteps near the entrance. It was Matt, and suddenly her appetite left her completely.

It reminded her of the first day she came to Dodge. The weather was murky and gloomy and she had come into Delmonico's for a quick bite of food before getting back on the stage. Then he walked in and it didn't seem so bad anymore. It was ironic how all of that had changed. Even though it was cold, it was beautiful and sunny out, but it may as well have been that gloomy first day all over again, sans the big, handsome Marshal. His eye caught hers and she looked back to her food.

"Good morning, Marshal," she heard Joe say.

"Morinin', Joe."

"What'll you have today?"

"The usual, thanks." He didn't seem too distraught over their breakup. Kitty guessed that she really was a fool to think he would be different. She pushed her plate away and stood to leave.

Matt closed his eyes as she passed him. He'd never been more taken with a woman than he was Kitty Russell, but he knew that if he allowed their relationship to continue that she would get hurt or worse. Maybe they couldn't be together, but at least he would still be able to keep an eye on her from a distance.

She was right that night in thinking that his change of heart had something to do with John. It had everything to do with John, what he stood for so to speak. Ever since the man had come to town, he was able to be there for Kitty when Matt wasn't. John carried her packages and walked her here and there and made sure she had someone to keep her company during meals. Those were all of the things that a man was supposed to do for his woman, but Matt couldn't even see to those simple tasks. And then when John had threatened her life…he knew right then that he couldn't be with her and protect her at the same time. Her safety was more important than his feelings for her.

mkmk

Later that night, Matt and Chester walked along the boardwalk. Chester must have been right about the fall making everyone placid because so far it had been a very uneventful week, not even any fights in the saloons.

"You reckon it'll be a colder than normal winter, Mr. Dillon?"

"I don't know, Chester. It did get cold a little early this year," he mulled. They continued on in silence for a few moments.

"Ya know, Mr. Dillon, I haven't seen too much of Miss Kitty lately."

"She's probably just busy," Matt said hoping that the young man would drop the subject. Fat chance.

"Well, doin' what fer heaven's sake?" he asked. "Every time I go into the Long Branch she ain't there and when she is she acts like she ain't got time to talk to me." Matt realized that Chester was just feeling shunned more than anything. "Maybe you should talk to her and make sure everythin' is alright," he suggested.

"Kitty is a grown woman, Chester. She has a right to her privacy." As far as Matt knew, Chester didn't know that there was anything more than friendship between him and Kitty. Doc was the only one that he suspected knew something. They weren't hiding, but they weren't announcing it around town either.

"I know that, but she oughta come to us if somethin' is wrong." Matt didn't say anything. He felt bad about what happened between him and Kitty as it was and he didn't want to hear Chester inadvertently reminding him of just how badly he had hurt her.

They were just a few yards away from the Long Branch when they heard shouting. Matt ran ahead with Chester bringing up the rear. He stopped just outside the doors and looked inside to see everyone at a standstill. He felt his stomach drop when he saw Kitty in the clutch of a man with a broken bottle to her neck. The stranger looked over and saw him looming in the doorway.

"I know who you are, Marshal," the crazed man yelled. He was obviously full of liquor and he was sweating profusely. "You just stay back," he ordered and tightened his grip on Kitty. Matt raised his hands in surrender and slowly pushed through the doors.

"Just take it easy, mister. Why don't you let her go and we can talk about this?" he tried to negotiate as he eased closer. He could see the fright in Kitty's eyes as the man pressed the jagged edge of the bottle harder against her neck.

"You know, she thinks she's too good for me, too good to have a drink with me, talk to me…" he was becoming angrier by the second and Matt could see a trickle of blood fall down Kitty's neck. He had to do something fast.

"Look, mister, there's no way outta here for you…and if you hurt her then I'll kill you…and if you kill her, I'll kill you," Matt threatened. His hand slowly went to his gun to show the stranger that he was serious. "If you let her go then I'll promise to let you walk out of here free and clear." The stranger squinted his eyes in disbelief.

"Free and clear, Marshal?" he asked suspiciously. Matt nodded his head once and took a few steps back to give him some room. The man loosened his hold on Kitty some, but kept her in his grip as he slowly started for the door.

"No," Matt said before he could get too far, "You let her go first or I'll drop you where you stand." The man's eyes darted around the room as he considered the Marshal's words. Surely, a man of the law wouldn't go back on his word. Slowly, he lessened his grip on Kitty and backed up towards the doors.

"You gotta keep your word, Marshal. I'm walkin' outta here free and clear," he said holding the bottle out in front of him still. Satisfied that Kitty was safe, Matt nodded his reassurance. The man turned around quickly to run, but he didn't step foot outside before a shot was fired into the back of his leg. Chester and a few men ran over to subdue him.

"Who fired that shot?" Matt yelled as his eyes scanned the room.

"I did, Marshal," said Jim Kames boldly. He was an older man who was born in a time where people took care of their own problems instead of depending on the law. "There's no way he could be allowed to leave here Scott free."

"Did you really think I was gonna let him go out and terrorize anybody else?" Matt said angry. He liked to take care of the law using as little violence as he could. Kames just stared as he put his gun away. "A couple of you men get him up to Doc's," Matt ordered as he turned around, "And Chester, you go with them and make sure he doesn't try anything," he said handing Chester his gun.

"Yes, sir."

Matt turned around to check on Kitty only to find that she was nowhere in sight. His eyes scanned the room, but he couldn't find her. "Sam, where'd, Kitty go?" Matt asked walking over to the bar.

"I saw her go into the office, Marshal."

"Thanks." He walked into the office and found it empty. He looked around and noticed that the back door was partly open. "Kitty?" he called as he stepped through it. The ally was full of empty crates and barrels full of empty bottles. "Kitty, are you out here?" he called again. He listened carefully and heard a rustling a few feet away. "Kitty?" He walked further down the ally and finally spotted her sitting on an overturned box. "Are you alright?" he asked as he bent down next to her. He placed his hands on her arms only to find that she was freezing.

"I'm fine, Matt. I just want to be left alone," she told him in a surprisingly calm voice, but he wasn't hearing her. He lifted her chin and inspected the tiny cut at the base of her throat. It made him angry that the man had hurt her.

"Who was he?" he asked tight lipped.

"Who knows," Kitty shrugged as she pulled her face away from his hand. "Some drunk who thinks he can do whatever he wants and get away with it," she said as she stood from the box and walked away. Matt stood, too and followed her.

"Kitty, I think you need to go and see, Doc. Make sure you're alright."

"I told you I was fine!" she said angry. Why was he acting so concerned anyway?

"Kitty…" he said grabbing her arm.

"Let me go! I don't have anything to say to you. Not now or ever again," she said yanking away. Matt saw her watery eyes glistening in the moonlight and it hurt like hell to know that he was the cause of them. He watched as she stormed up the ally and into the back doorway, slamming it shut behind her.

Two days later…

The door burst open and in limped Chester out of breath. "Mr. Dillon, I just came from the stage office. Did you know that, Miss Kitty was leavin'?" he asked in a panic that Matt felt down to his toes.

"What do you mean leaving? Did she tell you she was leaving?" he asked as he dropped his pencil and stood from the desk.

"Well, she had nearly every thing she owned with her."

"Did you talk to her?"

"Well…no…I saw the driver loadin' her things and I ran down here to get you," Chester explained. Matt walked over to the door and grabbed his hat off the hook. He took no more than two steps out the door before he heard the stagecoach roaring passed his office. Kitty was the only passenger on it and he saw her as plain as day through the window. She stared at him without an emotion on her face and he stood watching as she road out of his life.

"Ain't ya gonna go after her, Mr. Dillon?"

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"She what!" bellowed Doc as he stood from his chair and whipped the specs off his face.

"I'm tellin' ya, Doc. She got on that stage without a word ta anybody and Mr. Dillon didn't do a thing ta try and stop her." Doc had been out of the loop as of late concerning the goings on of the town. It seemed like there was a nonstop flow of patients for the last month and by the time he did get a break, he was too tired to do anything but sleep and he had obviously missed a lot because of it.

"Why on earth would he up and let her just leave like that?" He had always suspected they were more than friends, but maybe he was wrong.

mkmk

"Doc, Kitty is a grown woman. She can do whatever she wants," Matt said. It was becoming his mantra. And he was getting tired of people acting like he was her keeper.

"So, you have no idea why she left?" the old man interrogated. Matt rolled his eyes and slammed his pen down on the desk.

"Look, I don't keep tabs on Kitty Russell. Maybe she just decided that it was time to move on." It was bad enough that she left on the terms she did and Chester's, now Doc's, constant badgering didn't help any. And he wasn't going to tell them anything more because it was no one's business but his and hers.

"I thought you two were gettin' kinda close," Doc said confused. Matt didn't say anything and Doc looked at him suspiciously. "If you've done anything to hurt that girl…" Matt still said nothing. Doc squinted his eyes and then left the office.

To be continued…