RESCUED: CHAPTER 17
"Matt!" It was Dave Henry rapping on the door. "Matt! Somebody here to see you!"
Matt forced his eyes to focus on the clock on Frank's bedstand. He'd been up with Frank most of the night, offering him water when he was conscious and worrying over the increasing size of that lump on his chest when he was not. He dragged himself out of the big chair and turned up the lantern.
"Come on in, Dave."
Matt's gaze shifted immediately from Dave to the tall young man standing next to him.
"Marshal," the man waited for no introduction. "I'm Doctor Brooker."
"Doctor who? Where's Doc Adams?"
"You were out of town when I took over farm calls for Doctor Adams, Marshal. Now, is this our patient over here?" Joseph took two steps toward the bed before he felt the big man grab his arm, spinning him around to look him straight in the eye.
"I SAID . . . WHERE . . .IS . . . DOC ADAMS?" Matt's eyes were immediately hard as steel. A moment passed while they studied each other.
"I, sir, am Doctor Joseph Brooker," he started in slowly with a soft voice, retreating into the respectful style that had served him so well with Doc's clients. "I am Cyrus Brooker's son. While you were in San Francisco, Galen Adams hired me to do his field work so he could stay in Dodge and provide his services as a surgeon to those needing same. As I recall, he mentioned to me that YOU are the one who encouraged him to hire another doctor. I, sir, am that doctor, and I can assure you I'm a very good one. I wish we'd had the opportunity to meet when you returned to Dodge, but you seemed to be quite busy. Marshal, I have been sitting on a horse all night to get here. So with your permission, may I please see the patient?"
Halfway through Joseph's polite speech, he felt Matt's hand relax on his arm, and by the end he'd dropped it altogether, leaving the two of them in silence. Matt knew Frank needed a doctor desperately, but it had been a good six days so he risked taking one more minute.
"I'm sorry, Doctor Brooker. I'm Matt Dillon." He extended his hand, waiting for the young man to put down the two bags he'd brought in the room.
Joseph's warm smile and hearty handshake ended any hostility that might have been brewing between them.
"I apologize too, Marshal. I should have introduced myself properly instead of just walking past you like that. A lawman has to be careful."
Matt stepped respectfully aside and motioned the young doctor toward the bed. How could any doctor be so young? How could Doc trust this kid with his patients?
Brooker sat gently on the edge of the bed and started his examination with the basics. He felt the unconscious man's brow, took his pulse, checked pupillary reflex and listened to his heart. As soon as he pulled the stethoscope out of his ears, he turned toward Matt and spoke.
"What can you tell me about this patient, Marshal?"
"Call me Matt." He smiled softly, doing his best to cement their relationship. "His name is Frank Reardon. He's my deputy. He got ambushed last Thursday half a day's ride from here out on the prairie. The Comanches wrapped his ankles and his wrists with barbed wire, pulled his shirt off, pinned his badge right into his chest, and left him out there to die. I found him day before yesterday."
Brooker was silent for a moment, only imagining what anguish the deputy had endured.
"All right, thank you." He turned back to Frank and pulled the sheet away. Then he gently probed the huge lump on Frank's chest, which by this time looked even worse than when Phyllis had first drained it. Saying nothing, he moved to Frank's wrists next, picking up each arm and carefully inspecting the myriad of holes and slashes. Matt watched as long as he could, frustrated at how long the examination was taking.
"His ankles are the same. Just more of the cuts because it seems like he fought some to try to stand."
Brooker nodded up at Matt and smiled, understanding the big man's urgency, but as a doctor, feeling none of his own. Methodically, he finished examining the second wrist and started in on the ankles. Finally confident that Matt wasn't going to try to interfere, he risked using his first name.
"Matt, Kitty sends word to let you know that everyone back in Dodge is fine."
"Thank you. Can I call you Joseph?"
"I was hoping you'd do that."
"Thanks, Joseph. You're better than a telegraph."
"Decidedly!" Joseph smiled and continued to speak softly. "I carry messages and I also practice medicine. Now tell me, how long has Frank been unconscious?"
"Don't know how long before yesterday. When I hauled him off the prairie he woke up three or four times but not for very long. Last night Phyllis and I drained that knot on his chest and he came to a while later. Drank a little broth and water. By midnight he was out again."
"Yes, I noticed that you drained his abscess. Looks as though you may have used a knife of some sort."
"Excuse me, his what?"
"His abscess." Joseph pointed at the lump. "This thing on his chest."
Matt fished his jackknife out of his pocket and showed it to Joseph, intimidated to the point where he felt the need to add, "held it in the fire a long time first."
"That's good! You did everything right. The only thing you didn't know how to do was keep it open."
"Yeah, well, it hurt him so bad he'd have killed me if I tried it again. I'm sure you know how."
"I do know how, Matt. You go find a helper and tell him or her to boil a couple of narrow strips of cloth for ten minutes. Something like half an inch wide, maybe two or three inches long. Bring the whole boiling pan in here please."
"You're gonna open that up again?"
"I am. With your help, I intend to save this man's life."
Joseph used his private time to fashion a small instrument table next to the bed. He opened both cases and carefully retrieved what he needed, then took Frank's vitals again. Matt waited quietly next to Phyllis while she boiled the little strips of cloth, all the while wondering what the young doctor had in mind when he said "with your help."
"Phyllis, will you come in there with me? I'll probably need to hold him down again. You'll need to help the doctor."
The kind woman nodded and smiled, so Matt carried the scalding water for her and they entered the room.
"Phyllis, this is Doctor Brooker from Dodge. Doctor Brooker, Phyllis is the cook here and she's a real fine nurse too."
"Hello Phyllis," Joseph smiled and spoke her name gently. "Always grateful to have a good cook on staff, and a good nurse too."
Phyllis blushed at the compliments and folded her hands behind her back. It didn't take the young doctor long to call her into service.
"The water glasses on the other bedstand, Phyllis. Are they clean?"
"Yes Doctor. I brought both of them in late last night. They haven't been used."
"Good. Put six drops of this into one of them and fill it up with the hot water." He handed her a brown bottle, and she carefully fulfilled his request, setting the glass within his reach. In no time, the place looked more like a doctor's office than a guest bedroom. She and Matt watched him dip his scalpel blade into the glass.
"Just hold him carefully, Matt." Joseph instructed. "He's too weak for chloroform. I don't think he'll fight this."
Both of them watched in awe while the young doctor wiped the lump with the carbolic solution, then immediately make two small incisions, one on each side of the lump. Frank groaned, but as predicted, he didn't have the strength to fight. The same ugly pus they'd seen the night before ran down his chest, this time from both of the holes. As soon as he was confident that Frank wasn't going to fight, Joseph retrieved his forceps from the table and deftly pushed the steaming strips of cloth into the site, pushing then pulling until both ends were exposed through much larger holes. Phyllis remained actively interested while Matt looked away, his gut churning at the thought of what Frank was going through. There was just something about watching a friend. . .
"May I clean that up for you, Doctor?" She asked.
"Thank you. That'd be great. You can dip a hot cloth into the basin now."
"Matt," Joseph looked up, knowing his other helper needed a little comfort. "If we succeeded here, Frank will be back among the living by sometime tonight. It's the infection in this nasty abscess that's caused his fever. That's why you and Phyllis got a response last night. But it closed up again, Matt. It has to stay open so that pus can all get out. My little contraption will keep it open."
"Contraption?" Matt was almost ready to smile. This young man knew a lot about relating to people. Maybe he'd inherited some of that from his father.
Joseph smiled. "It's called a drain. This one's an improvised version, but it should work. Phyllis . . ." he handed a jar to her. "This is cloverine and carbolic salve. If you'll please smear it lightly over the deputy's leg wounds, you'll be all finished here. Then we're going to let our patient rest."
"You hungry, Doctor?"
"More than you can believe," he smiled.
"I'll bring some food for you men when I'm finished here."
His broad smile was all the response she needed. The last meal he'd had was at Kitty's kitchen table the night before. Matt was grateful for the food, but even more grateful for the opportunity to sit and talk privately with Joseph.
XOXOXO
Frank drifted in and out of consciousness all afternoon. Joseph and Matt managed to get him to drink a bit of water and even sip some of Phyllis's beef broth. His vitals were improving, his fever subsiding. Conversation around the dinner table that night was brisk and upbeat at the news. Dave Henry shared in the delight, but it wasn't long until he steered the conversation back to the mess on the prairie.
"Matt, how we gonna get past this thing with the settlers?"
"We beat that to death last night, Dave. It's not goin' away. The settlers are here to stay, their wire right along with them. Doctor, you need to tell Dave about our conversation this afternoon."
All eyes were on Brooker, no one for a minute expecting the young physician to have any sort of opinion about the encroaching outlanders. He took a long sip from his coffee and drew a deep breath before he spoke.
"Marshal Dillon rescued the deputy from a sheep ranch southeast of here. The people had been shot, but their sheep had all been dead from disease for quite some time. While the marshal was gone, Doctor Adams and I treated some sheep ranchers who had Anthrax. They had a homestead somewhere down this way. Could have even been the same people. Are you familiar with Anthrax?"
"No!" Dave and Susan riveted their gazes on the young man.
"I'm not surprised. It's prevalent east of the Mississippi where I came from, but apparently hasn't hit Kansas yet. Seems like these settlers brought it in when they moved here. Sheep are the primary hosts, of course. But if your cattle share the same graze with infected sheep, they can contract it and die."
"Can people catch it?"
"Yes, Mr. Henry. It can make people very sick. But the form of Anthrax we found on these sheep ranchers isn't deadly in people."
"Praise be to God for that!" Susan laid her hand gently on the back of Dave's.
"There's a solution, Dave." Matt interrupted before Joseph got inundated with questions. "Give up your free graze and hold herd on your own ranch."
"What?! Have you taken leave of your senses? We've got eight thousand acres here!"
"Fence it, Dave."
"Same question, Matt."
"Then work away a section at a time. The homesteaders won't all get here at once, and they won't all have sheep. They're getting off the train at Ashland, and that's where they buy the wire. Fence your east and south lines first, hold herd on the other two. Then finish a line at a time."
"By God, you stop 'em at Ashland! You're the United States Marshal! You got a responsibility to the citizens of Kansas!"
"You know I can't do that, Dave. Whether you and I like it or not, the government wants the west populated. They're giving away land grants like candy."
"Mister Henry, the disease knows no boundaries. Other than keeping the animals away from each other, there's no good solution." The calming softness of Joseph's voice instantly thwarted a quickly brewing argument between the two powerful men. Silence hung over the table for the better part of a minute.
"Thank you, Doctor." Dave finally conceded, his voice subdued. "Guess nothing ever stays the same. We'd have been blindsided by this disease if you hadn't been here to tell us."
"Forewarned is forearmed," Joseph nodded in agreement.
"The doctor says Frank should be able to travel in two days. If you'll let him stay that long, I'd appreciate it."
"Frank can stay as long as he needs to, Matt. We'll round up some clothes and boots for him tomorrow. Got one guy here real close to his size."
"He'll need a horse and saddle, Dave. Hate to put you out like that. I can send a courier from Dodge right back here with all your belongings."
"No problem, we'll outfit him. Doctor, that brings up a question. Can our horses get this disease?"
"Yes. It's actually even worse in horses."
"No more broodmares on the Dovetail, Dave." Susan reminded her husband.
"We'll bring 'em down here." Then he turned to Brooker again. "Doctor Brooker, I hope you'll stay right here with us until Frank's ready to travel. I think we could all learn a lot from you."
"I'd like that. I've never been on a working cattle ranch, so you can teach me a lot too."
"Dave, Susan . . ." Matt raised his coffee cup in a toast. "Thank you. And thank Paul for me, too. You ever need a friend in Dodge . . . well, you know you've got one. You always have."
"You're so welcome, Matt." They both returned the toast.
XOXOXO
At sunup, Frank was sitting up in bed looking ready to take on the world. When Joseph walked in the room, Matt was surprised that they already knew each other. Then it dawned on him: The San Francisco trip.
"Hey! Hello! You're that new Doctor Brooker! What're you doin' way down here?"
"I'm glad you remember me, Frank." Joseph was bright and smooth. "Doc Adams sent me to take care of you."
"Feels like you did good. Darn sight better than that big galoot you got next to you. He like to have killed me."
"He saved your life."
"Awww, don't be sayin' stuff like that in front of him. Goes right to his head."
Joseph had worked around Doc just long enough to know that this was the way men out here thanked each other, so he just smiled and went to work. He cleaned up the chest wound and changed the drain with nothing more than a grimace from Frank. Phyllis's knock on the door interrupted him, but the plate of hot food she brought was the best medicine Frank could have. He stopped working while he watched the deputy dig in, sliding each bite off the fork with his front teeth.
"Those lips took a bad burn, Frank." Joseph offered. "They'll be ready to use in a couple of days."
"No kissin' then."
Joseph's grin was broad. "Try to hold off for a few days."
"I'm ridin' up to Dodge, Frank." Matt announced. You're in good hands here. We had a lot goin' on after you left."
"Oh, see, he's gonna get all the kissin." Frank took another bite. "Like WHAT was goin' on?"
"I'll fill you in, Frank. I watched it all unfold. We'll have a couple days to talk, and then you can ride back with me." Joseph reassured him.
"Look, Doc. If Matt's got work to do I've got work to do." Frank argued. "Soon's I finish this food, you get me on a horse. I've been lollygaggin' long enough."
"Not a chance, Frank. You can't ride till I pull that stuff out of your chest, and unless you want to ride in your bare feet, you won't get boots on till the rest of the swelling goes down in your ankles. You're stuck here with me."
Frank took two more big bites, sopping pork gravy up with his biscuits. "And Phyllis too. Let's not forget Phyllis. Thank God for a woman who can cook."
"We've got that to look forward to, Frank!" Joseph grinned again.
"Matt, I need to tell you some stuff."
"Okay Frankie."
But instead of telling, Frank went back to his food, his gaze alternating between his plate and Joseph. It only took a few seconds for the young man to realize what was happening. Frank didn't want to say it, but he needed privacy. Joseph rescued him immediately.
"Look, Frank, I'm headed for the kitchen to get a plate of that breakfast for myself. Matt, if I don't see you again, tell Doc Adams this guy's got grit!"
"He already knows that, Doctor. Bring him back alive!"
"That's the plan."
"You want some of this food?" Frank asked as soon as Joseph had pulled the door closed behind him.
"Nope. Phyllis has my saddlebags packed with all kinds of stuff. I'll eat while I ride."
"Wish I could ride."
"You will real soon. You and me, we got unfinished business Frankie. We got a lot we need to do."
"Don't let on about this to the army, Matt."
"Whaaatt?" Matt's eyes were wide. "That's our job, you know the law!"
"I know the law," he said softly. "Let this one slide."
"What are you sayin'? That raiding party killed those settlers and tortured you and left you to die! My God, Frank! You shouldn't even be alive!"
"I know I shouldn't. And I got no right to ask after you savin' my life. Just hear me out. It was my job to stop 'em. I sure would have, I just got there too late. The people were already dead when I showed up. I know you want to run out to the fort and have 'em send a whole patrol down here lookin' for five desperate braves. The Comanches are men, Matt, just like you and me. They're desperate to save their hunting ground so they can feed their families. Desperate people are capable of desperate things. There's what's right to do and there's the law, and they are NOT always the same thing! 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay.' That's in God's book Matt. God's law is bigger than our law. Don't tell the army about this. I'm askin' you as my brother, big marshal man. Just this one time, let it slide."
Matt was quiet for a minute. Frank had always had an affinity for the natives, even back when they rode together in Texas. He had a thriving business with the Utes as recently as when he was in Trinidad, helping them survive in a place being swallowed up by miners. The understanding Frank had was the best kind: The kind born of personal experience. Silently, he looked out the window over the beautiful grassland of the ranch that would soon be protected by barb wire. He thought a minute about the life he had in Dodge, and the family he'd give his life to save. Finally, he turned back to Frank.
"It'll be our little secret, my friend."
tbc
