Chapter 7
Kitty was exhausted. She had been on her feet for the last seven hours. To say the Long Branch was busy tonight was an understatement. She shouldn't be surprised that it was busy tonight. The drovers were in town. It would probably be busy for the next several nights. As tired as she was, Kitty really didn't mind the busyness. It made the time go by faster.
Kitty removed her dress and slipped into a nightgown. She washed her face paint off of her face, and then slipped in between the covers of her bed. She was looking forward to a good night's sleep.
Tomorrow she was meeting Lucinda and the others at Lucinda's place. One time during an outing with the girls, Kitty remarked how drab and colorless Dodge City was. The girls agreed. Today while Kitty was working Lucinda came into the Long Branch and invited Kitty over to her place. She wanted to show Kitty some of her father's land, where there was a stream with green grass and beautiful wildflowers. That sounded wonderful to Kitty. She grew up with green grass and flowers in New Orleans and missed it. She greatly accepted Lucinda's invitation. Kitty told Lucinda that tomorrow afternoon would work. She didn't have to be at work until later that evening.
The sun peaked above the horizon, greeting a new day. Kitty opened her eyes, stretched, and got out of bed. She went to the wardrobe to pick out a dress for today's outing. She decided to go with a simple one that would be easy to horseback ride in. Lucinda had told her the land they were going to was only accessible by horses. Kitty asked Lucinda if she should rent a horse from Moss Grimmick, but Lucinda told her that was not necessary. Her father had horses they could use.
Kitty looked at the clock that was sitting on her chest of drawers. It read half past nine. Knowing that Lucinda wouldn't be there to pick her up for another two hours, Kitty decided to go over to the cafe to have some breakfast. She would've asked Matt to go with her, but she figured he probably had his breakfast much earlier.
On her way to the cafe, Kitty ran into Chester. "Hello, Chester. What are you up to this morning?"
"Miss Kitty," said Chester, tipping his hat to her. "I'm headed down to the post office to get the mail for Mr. Dillon. How 'bout you?"
"I'm headed to the cafe for some breakfast. If you haven't had your breakfast, would you like to join me?" asked Kitty.
"As tempting as that sounds Miss Kitty, I already ate breakfast with Doc and Mr. Dillon," said Chester.
"Some other time then. Hey, maybe I'll see ya tonight at the Long Branch. I have to work," said Kitty.
"Miss Kitty, I think you can count on that," replied Chester.
"Fantastic! I'll see ya tonight, Chester," said Kitty as she continued on to the cafe.
Kitty entered the cafe and sat at a small table in the corner. She patiently waited for the waiter to come and take her order. She looked around at the other customers to see what they were eating. Kitty did that once in a while when she really didn't know what she wanted to eat. Seeing the food on other people's plates sometimes made it easier for her to decide.
"Hello, Miss Kitty. What can I get for you this morning?" asked Ned, the cafe's waiter.
"Good morning, Ned. Let's see. I think I'll have scrambled eggs, rye toast, a piece of ham, and a cup of coffee," Kitty responded.
"Alright," said Ned as he wrote down Kitty's order. "I'll be back in a little bit."
A short while later Kitty's breakfast was set in front of her. She ate the food and then set several coins on the table to pay for it. Kitty got up from the table, left the cafe, and walked back to the Long Branch. She still had over an hour before Lucinda would be there to get her.
Meanwhile at the Glidden ranch, Lucinda was making sandwiches for the girls and herself. They would be leaving around lunchtime, and Lucinda thought it was a good idea to eat a small lunch before they left. While Lucinda was preparing the sandwiches, her father walked into the kitchen.
"Hello, sweetheart. I'm headed out to Jake Wirth's for the day," said Mr. Glidden. "Do you have any plans?" He then grabbed a sandwich and ate it.
Lucinda looked at her father and rolled her eyes. She got out two more pieces of bread and made another sandwich. "The girls were going to come over. I plan on being with them today."
"Have a good time," he said, kissing her forehead. "I'll see ya this evening."
Lucinda knew her father wouldn't be around this afternoon. That made it so much easier for her plan to work.
The time went by quickly and before long it was time for Lucinda to pick up Kitty. Kitty was up in her room getting ready to head downstairs. She grabbed her sunbonnet before she left. Kitty walked out of the Long Branch and saw Lucinda coming down the street.
"Hi Kitty! Are ya all set to go?" asked Lucinda. She did her best to put a genuine smile on her face.
"Yes. I appreciate you picking me up. I hope it wasn't too much trouble. I could've rented a buggy from Moss," said Kitty as she climbed up into Lucinda's buggy.
"Nonsense. It was no trouble at all. The others are going to meet us at the ranch. Then all five of us will head out to the land together," said Lucinda.
Lucinda didn't want Kitty renting a buggy or a horse from Moss Grimmick. She couldn't risk Moss asking Kitty where she was going with the buggy. Lucinda did her best to cover all of her tracks.
Kitty and Lucinda pulled up to the front of the house. Adeline, Susanna, and Jo Ellen were sitting on the porch waiting. When they saw Lucinda and Kitty, they smiled and waved. Lucinda parked the buggy, and she and Kitty stepped down.
"Before we set out, I thought we could have a quick bite to eat. I made some sandwiches. Kitty, have you eaten lunch yet?" asked Lucinda
"No, I haven't," Kitty answered.
"Adeline, would you mind going into the house and getting the sandwiches? They're on the kitchen table," said Lucinda.
"Sure, no problem," said Adeline, walking into the house.
While Adeline went to get the sandwiches, Lucinda poured everyone a glass of water from the pitcher that was sitting on the porch table. By the time Lucinda had finished pouring the water, Adeline had returned with the sandwiches. The ladies enjoyed their sandwiches and then got ready to go. They walked over to the horse stable. Inside there were five horses, all saddled and ready to go.
"Kitty, you are going to love this area. It's so beautiful and relaxing," said Susanna.
"I remember having picnics there with my mother before she passed on," said Lucinda.
"The way you describe it, I can't wait to see it. You said the only way to access it is by horse?" stated Kitty.
"Yeah, there's no way a wagon or buggy could get there. If you really wanted to, you could walk. However, that would take more time and you said you have to work this evening," said Lucinda, who led the way.
After about twenty minutes of riding, the girls reached their destination. Each of them dismounted their horses and took in the spectacular view. Kitty was in complete awe. She couldn't believe she was still in western Kansas.
"Wow," she said breathlessly. "I can't believe we are still in western Kansas. Looking at Dodge and the prairie, it's hard to believe a place like this exists."
Lucinda let Kitty enjoy the view for a few more minutes before she spoke. "Listen Kitty. I brought you up here for two reasons. One reason was to show you the view, but my other reason is much more important."
Kitty was confused and looked at Lucinda. She waited for Lucinda to continue. "In case you didn't know, Matt Dillon belongs to me. I intend to have him ask me to marry him. That way he'll quit being a Marshal and become a rancher. Then he and I will inherit my father's ranch here in Kansas, and I'll live happily ever after. We'll have so much money, I won't have to work a day in my life."
Kitty let Lucinda say what she wanted to say, but then spoke. "Lucinda, I'm not the kind of girl that steals another girl's man. I even told Matt that if there was something between the two of you, I didn't want to get in between."
"Good, I'm glad you feel that way and that we understand each other," said Lucinda.
"I wasn't finished," said Kitty. "After I said that to Matt, he made it clear that there was no romance between the two of you. He doesn't feel the same about you, as you do about him."
When Lucinda heard Kitty's words, something snapped inside of her. She couldn't accept that Matt had no romantic feelings for her. Lucinda knew that if Matt didn't have feelings for her, then he probably had feelings for Kitty, especially after what her friends had told her about Matt and Kitty while she was in Topeka. If Matt didn't have feelings for her, she wouldn't be able to get him to marry her. No marriage meant no ranch, which meant no inheritance.
Kitty walked back to her horse and was about to mount it. Lucinda looked around and picked up a small, but thick branch. Walking up to Kitty, she swung the branch and hit Kitty, knocking her unconscious. Kitty fell to the ground. She was as still as can be.
The other girls, completely shocked, looked on. They couldn't believe what they had just witnessed. This wasn't part of the plan. Lucinda was just supposed to bring Kitty up here to let Kitty know that Matt belonged to Lucinda. Attacking Kitty was not part of the plan.
Adeline went over to Kitty, but Lucinda stopped her. "Leave her be."
"She's hurt. She needs help," said Adeline.
"I said to leave her be," repeated Lucinda
"Lucinda, this wasn't part of the plan. You never said anything about hurting Kitty," said Susanna.
"Hurt? I hope she dies. As long as she's alive, she's a threat to my relationship with Matt," said Lucinda. "Now get mounted."
The girls did what they were told. They had never heard Lucinda's voice sound so evil. They were afraid not to do what she said.
After riding in silence for several minutes, Lucinda spoke. "If any of you are thinking about going to the Marshal about this, I'd think again. If Kitty dies, then you are all accessories to murder. I'll tell Matt that you knew I was going to lure Kitty out there." A smirk then appeared on Lucinda's face.
The girls didn't know what to do. They felt as though their hands were tied. They didn't want to be accused of murder or be tied with a murder. They didn't want to go to prison.
As the girls made their way back to the ranch, Kitty lay unconscious, in need of medical attention. Since nobody else knew she was there, medical attention would not be coming.
TBC
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