Kitty knocked gently on the inner door of Doc's office. She heard him stir and lean to the door. "I have some breakfast for you."
Doc didn't move from the bed, he only pulled the blanket up slightly further. "Thanks Kitty." His voice was calm and rested. Kitty smiled as she turned the doorknob and entered the room and set the tray down on the small table beside the bed. Gently she sat down on the edge and looked at her friend. "How you feelin' today?"
"Feel like I've been beat up." He touched his temple.
"Well for all it's worth you sound better." Kitty smiled.
"Hum" Doc huffed. "Say what did you bring up here anyways?" He pointed to the covered tray.
"Well, let's have a look." Kitty reached for it and sat it on the bed beside the doctor. Pulling the gingham cloth back she revealed some toast, eggs and bacon. "How's that suit you?" Doc looked down at it and smiled. "To a tee!" He picked up a strip of bacon and started to eat. Kitty stood. "If you want, I 'll make us a pot of coffee." Doc nodded in favour of the coffee and muttered, "You should give up the Long Branch and work with me. You make an excellent nurse."
Kitty stopped at the door frame and her left eyebrow rose in curiosity. "So you've given up on the proposals and you just want me to work with you now?"
Doc laughed but immediately winced in pain caused by his rids. Kitty stepped to his side. "Sorry Doc." She tried to sooth the pain by settling him back tot he bed. She rubbed his shoulders. "I shouldn't have joked." Although she did find it funny.
Doc opened his watering eyes. They still twinkled. "I deserved it. All these years I've been proposing and I just threw it out the window when I needed a nurse..." He relaxed back to the bed and Kitty swept her hand over his forehead pushing his hair back in place. "You knew I wouldn't let you off that easy. Now you just rest and take your time with your breakfast while I play nurse and fix us some coffee." She stood and smiled at the weary man before her and then left the room to make the coffee on the little wood stove in the outer office.
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Red was making good progress to Dodge. His tongue wet his lips as he thought of a good shot of whiskey and a puff on a fine cigar and a steak with all the trimmings. The drink would be followed by another and another. Total greed had completely taken over his reasoning.
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Matt and Festus rode toward the hills where they thought the gunshot came from. They cleared a hill and entered the shaded area where Garrett and Red spent the night. The two abandoned horses milled around the creek and looked up at the approaching riders. Their ears turned forward with caution.
"Whoa." Matt pulled on Buck's reigns. Festus halted Ruth not far behind.
"Looks like they spent the night here, alright." Festus dismounted and scouted the area. He checked each horse. "Ain't this Mr Bodkin's horse, Matthew?"
"Sure looks like it. That must have been the one they stole to get Doc out to Old Dodge Town." Matt reasoned.
Festus examined the next horse. "There's dried blood all over the saddle on this one." Festus scrunched his right eye up and look at the marshal. "That would be the dead man's horse. Come on, we have to go." Matt urged.
"What about the horses?" Festus asked as he approached Ruth.
"We'll take them with us." Matt said as he scanned the horizon. "We may need them, depending on what's happened out there." Matt was referring to the single gunshot they heard earlier.