They rode to Phoenix and sent a telegram to Soapy alerting him to their intended visit. Then they took the train to San Francisco. Because of the late hour of arrival, they decided to stay the night in a hotel. The following morning Heyes and Curry climbed into a horse drawn trolley that made a stop near the Hollingsworth Hospital and Sanitarium where they walked the perimeters.
"Shall we go in and schedule you an appointment?" Heyes asked
"Well, that's what we came back here for," Kid replied and they headed up the walk to the main entrance.
Twenty minutes later, and with an appointment card in his pocket, Kid and Heyes walked out again and hailed a carriage to take them to Soapy's home.
"Heyes... and The Kid, so very good to see the both of you again!" Soapy said as he greeted them in the large foyer of his home.
Good to see you too, Soapy," Heyes replied with a smile.
"And Kid."
"Good to see you, Soapy," Kid replied, also with a smile.
"Your telegram said you needed a place to stay for something important. Please, come into the study and I'll pour us all a brandy and you can tell me all about it. The hotel delivered your things early this afternoon. I took the liberty of having them put in your rooms."
Soapy led them into the study and closed the doors behind them.
"So what is so urgent and important to bring you to San Francisco?" Soapy asked as he poured and handed out the brandy.
Kid and Heyes both found comfortable chairs to settle into with their brandies, as did Soapy.
"You remember Kid's always had some lung condition that makes breathing hard sometimes," Heyes said.
"Oh, yes. I recall your father mentioning that in a letter once when you were quite young."
"My father?" Kid asked.
Soapy smiled. "You're forgetting that I knew your father quite well when he and I were just lads. We kept in touch from time to time. I believe he called it...Asthma"
Kid nodded. "That's right," he said, impressed that Soapy would remember.
"Well, his asthma has been giving Kid a run for his money lately and..."
"You boys need some money?"
"Oh, no, that's not it, Soapy," Heyes quickly replied. "It's just that one of the doctors suggested Kid come to a hospital here that specializes in that sort of thing."
"Yes, I know just the place. The Hollingsworth Hospital. In fact I am friends with Doctor Sullivan. He's the Medical Director there, a fine man, and an astounding doctor so I understand."
"Well, so that's why we came here," Kid said. "To find an astounding doctor."
"Kid's got an appointment on Thursday."
"Well, you couldn't be in better hands. And you can both stay here for as long as you like."
"We appreciate that, Soapy," Kid said.
Soapy caught just a glint of a look in Heyes' eyes. "There's something else bothering the two of you, isn't there?" Soapy asked.
Heyes and Curry exchanged quick glances before Heyes tried to assure Soapy otherwise.
"No, Soapy, we're just, you know, getting all this resolved with Kid."
"Don't lie to me, Heyes."
"We're just...trying to decide what to do about the amnesty, Soapy," Kid explained. "That's just an ongoing problem that we're always dealing with."
"It has been... a long time," Soapy replied.
"Yeah, three times longer than the Governor promised," Heyes said.
"Perhaps that's aggravating the Kid's asthma."
"What?" Kid asked.
"A lot of worry, stress, can certainly have a negative effect on a lot of illnesses."
"It ain't an illness. It's just asthma," Kid said.
"Well, no matter," Soapy said with a reassuring smile. "I suppose we should leave the diagnosing to the doctors."
0-0-0-0-0-
"Thaddeus Jones to see Dr. Ingrahm," Kid said to the receptionist when he and Heyes arrived for the appointment.
"Have a seat and we'll call you when the doctor is ready to see you."
"Thank you, Ma'am," Kid replied and he and Heyes moved to a couple of chairs near the door where they sat for nearly twenty minutes before being called back to Dr. Ingrahm's office.
"Mr. Jones, I am Dr. Ingrahm. I'll be handling your treatment," the doctor, a man in his late forties said, extending his hand.
Kid shook the doctor's hand and introduced Heyes.
"Please, have a seat," the doctor said as he sat down behind his desk and opened a folder with a few papers inside. He pulled a two page form from the folder and placed it on his desk, then dipped his pen in the ink well.
"I'll need to get a brief medical history. We'll start with childhood illnesses and work our way up to the present."
Kid looked at Heyes. "Well, I had measles, and I had asthma. I don't think there was nothing else." Kid replied and Heyes nodded.
"Where did you grow up?"
"Kansas, a farm till I was eight, then an orphanage on the other end of the state."
"He got bronchitis every winter at the orphanage," Heyes added.
"No asthma attacks?"
"A few," Kid replied.
Any current health problems?"
"Just the asthma."
The history Dr. Ingrahm obtained took nearly half an hour and was quite detailed. Next he had Kid describe his symptoms during the breathing attacks and asked about treatments Kid had tried. Kid confessed that list only included coffee, tobacco, whiskey and opium. Kid went in to some detail about his concerns about using the opium and Doctor Ingrahm made several notes. Finally the doctor performed a physical examination and listened to Kid's lungs.
"And you say these attacks have increased in frequency over the past six months?"
Kid nodded.
"Were you in a new location or did you begin eating some new type of food?"
"We spent the last six months in Nevada mostly," Kid replied.
"That's when things started getting worse for him," Heyes added.
"Anything unusually stressful in your life right now?"
"Nothing that ain't been stressful for the past ten years," Kid said, including the outlaw years as well as the amnesty years but not actually mentioning either to the doctor. "Money mostly."
"I'm going to give you a list of things you can do when an asthma attack occurs. These are non-medical interventions that are often very helpful and may decrease the need for the whiskey or the opium." the doctor said, handing the printed list across the desk to Kid.
Heyes peered over Kid's shoulder as they read down the list of suggestions.
"They tried coffee with him when he was a boy," Heyes remarked. "It didn't do no good."
Kid smiled and pointed to one of the suggestions. "Steam baths, I like that."
Kid's eyes then fell on one particular suggestions. "Get away from the trigger...Doctor, I don't go shooting my gun when I get one of these attacks," Kid said in all seriousness.
Dr. Ingrahm smiled. "In this case a trigger refers to something that...causes an asthma attack."
"Ginger or garlic?" Heyes asked.
"Ginger can be made into a tea. Garlic can be crushed or minced and added to food."
"I can't swallow during an attack, throat gets too tight."
"You might try some ginger tea on a daily basis. I want you to keep a record of each attack, the date, the time, what you were doing or eating just before an attack, how long the attack lasts, that sort of thing."
Kid nodded.
"I want to schedule appointments on a weekly basis for at least a month."
Kid nodded, again knowing it was quite possible they would not be able to stay in town that long. "You think you're going to be able to cure this?" Kid asked.
"Asthma is not something curable I'm afraid, but it is controllable to some degree. We are certainly going to try to find a way to significantly decrease the frequency of these attacks."
"Doctor, Thaddeus and I lived in Wyoming for about ten years. We can't recall even one attack during that time," Heyes said.
"That may have some significance, but it may also simply be that the condition was in a dormant stage, or Mr. Jones' stress was significantly less. I'll research that some to see if there's any known medical reason why that particular location might be significant. It might interest you to know that San Francisco has one of the lowest asthma rates in the country."
"Why's that?" Heyes asked.
Dr. Ingrahm shook his head. "There's no scientific data on that. I suspect it has something to do with the generally mild climate, the salty air perhaps, even the frequent fog might have something to do with it, perhaps keeping allergens nearer the ground rather than floating freely in the air."
0-0-0-0-0-
After a nearly two hour appointment, Heyes and Curry walked out of the Medical building.
"It's only a couple of miles back to Soapy's, why don't we walk?" Kid asked.
Heyes looked at him skeptically, uncertain if that was a good idea for Kid.
"Exercise is on that list, Heyes. It ain't gonna hurt me."
"Alright, we'll walk."
They walked at a comfortable pace and visited a neighborhood market on their way where Kid bought some ginger root and a pound of the strongest coffee the market had to offer.
"Heyes," Kid said as they continued their walk to Soapy's.
"Uh-uh?"
"When we're done here, I still want to go back to Mexico."
"I figured as much."
"I just want to test the waters, Heyes."
"I know."
"I meant it when I said I wouldn't give up on amnesty so long as you still wanted to go for it."
Heyes stopped and, turning to his partner, he reached out and laid his hand on Kid's arm.
"Kid, you don't have to explain...There have been times I've had those same thoughts...Testing the waters is a good way to figure out what you really want, what we both really want."
Kid nodded his head. "Kay," he replied with a touch of a smile.
"You hungry?" Heyes asked, letting his hand drop back to his side and continuing to walk again.
"I'm always hungry."
"Looks like a deli up ahead. How about a sandwich?"
They ate a sandwich and drank coffee at the deli, then crossed the street and headed east up the steep Hyde Street toward Nob Hill. Heyes made a point of stopping to look in store windows, not wanting the climb to be too strenuous for his partner.
"Heyes, you're worrying too much. I'm fine," Kid protested.
"Kid, how often are we in such a fancy neighborhood? I happen to enjoy looking in the stores. Look, there's a men's clothing store up ahead. I could use a new hat to go with my suit."
"You could use a new suit, Heyes. But one look at the one you're wearing and they ain't even going to let you through the door."
Heyes laughed. Obviously neither of their suits came from a fine clothier. "Oh, they'll let us in. They'll keep a close eye on us to be sure we don't steal nothing, but they'll let us in. Come on, Kid. Let's see what a fancy hat costs these days."
A Derby hat purchased in any General Store sold for up to two dollars and fifty cents, a hefty price for a man making an annual salary in the three hundred and fifty dollar range. The the price of Derby Hats in this Nob Hill store started at twice that amount.
Heyes was not about to admit to being unable to afford such a pricey item and took a great interest in several of the hats that lined a long shelf. But despite Heyes attempt to present an air of aristocracy, the store clerk knew perfectly well that his time was being wasted on this customer. The clerk, however, was a gentleman and, with gloved hands, he pulled a hat from the shelf, carefully dusted the brim, and helped Heyes adjust the hat on his head as Heyes gazed admiringly at himself in the mirror.
"What do you think about this one?" Heyes asked Kid, with sincerity oozing from his voice.
"I think you look like you're going to a funeral," Kid replied and gave the clerk an apologetic look that for some reason, amused the clerk.
"Well, I guess I am just looking today," Heyes finally explained. "I suppose we had better be going, Thaddeus."
"I suppose," Kid replied and nodded a thank you to the clerk.
0-0-0-0-0-
"So how did the appointment go?" Soapy asked when they returned to the house.
"I think it was helpful," Kid replied. "Soapy, you think your cook could make some tea with this ginger?" he asked.
Soapy smiled as Kid handed him the bag. "The doctor recommended ginger?"
"Uh-uh."
"Ginger has a lot of medicinal uses. I believe I even have a book on the medicinal uses for herbs and spices."
"Oh, I'd like to read that," Heyes said.
Soapy nodded. "I'll find it for you, Heyes. Now why don't you two go change out of those clothes. We'll be dining casually for supper."
When they came back downstairs, Soapy had a pot of ginger tea and the book he had offered to Heyes, sitting on the table in the study. Kid poured them each a cup of tea and they told Soapy all about the meeting with the doctor.
"Soapy, he wants to see Kid weekly for at least a month. We can't impose on you that long. We'll look for a place to rent."
"Nonsense. A house this size can easily accommodate the three of us."
"We don't want to impose or overstay our welcome," Kid said.
"Kid, as I've said before, you boys are always welcome here. Now don't give it another thought."
"Heyes did a bit of shopping himself, today," Kid said with a grin. "Course he didn't by nothing."
"What were you looking for?" Soapy asked.
"Oh, nothing, really. We just passed a Clothier shop on Hyde Street..."
"Grenson's," Soapy said. "A very fine Gentleman's Clothier indeed. I do quite a bit of shopping there, myself. Fine tailors."
"Heyes went in to try on hats," Kid added.
"A fine selection, and I find them to be quite reasonably priced."
Kid shot Heyes a 'there you have it,' look.
"Little too steep for my pocket, I'm afraid," Heyes admitted. "But you're right, very nice quality."
"San Francisco has several very nice clothing stores, if you're truly interested," Soapy added.
"Dinner is ready," the Butler announced. They all stood and headed to the dining room.
Only Kid brought his tea.