Ruth put the blankets down on the floor close to the fireplace and then Kid laid the man down on top of them.
Ruth went over and uncovered a couple hot coals from the buried ash and got a fire going again. If only she could rekindle Kid's love for her as easily.
She turned around. Kid had sat down on the floor with his back settled against the adobe wall and it didn't look like he was going to be moving anywhere anytime soon.
"You going to spend the night in here?" she asked. "I thought you'd sleep out in the wagon. I got to be in here to take care of him, you know."
"You thought wrong then. I'm not leaving you alone with this man."
"It's not your job to watch over me anymore."
"Just because I want to divorce you doesn't mean I want to see you dead. The discussion is closed."
She rolled her eyes and shook her head and did her best to ignore him as she went to feel if the man's fever had gotten any better or worse. It still felt about the same as far as she could tell.
The smell of his unbathed body was overpowering and made her gag, especially in a cramped space like this. Something had to be done or she was going to be sick. A washing probably wouldn't hurt his fever either. She went out to the wagon without a word to Kid and got a bowl of water, a rag and a bar of soap.
"What are you doing?" Kid asked when he saw her with the items.
"What's it look like? Somebody's got to bathe the man."
"Well, it won't be you," he said right away.
"What's the difference? I've already seen him half naked."
"And that's a fact I'm not too happy about. Being divorced doesn't mean you can throw decency out the window. I hope this isn't a preview of your future."
"Well, I hope it ain't either cause I don't enjoy bathing stinking men. But if you're so eager to do it, far be it from me to stop you." She handed him the supplies and watched him start with his face. She couldn't figure Kid out. He was still acting like a jealous husband, but maybe old habits died hard and he would've likely protected any lady's virtue this way. Once she was satisfied that he was doing a thorough job, she turned to get started on making some beef tea to help fight the fever.
Fresh beef would have better, but dried beef was all they had. Brewing the tea reminded her of her grandmother, who'd taught her how to make it, and the tears welled up. Sometimes she didn't really believe she was gone. She had the illogical thought that if she went back to Virginia, she would see her there waiting to greet her. She knew she was gone with her head, but her heart wasn't quite ready to accept it. And now she was losing Kid too. That would feel like another death.
She wiped the tears with her sleeve before they fell. This was no time to feel sorry for herself.
When the tea was sufficiently warm, she asked, "Is he decent?"
"As decent as he can be in a loincloth, but his bath's done if that's what you mean."
And he did smell better, but now it seemed the smell of the beef was getting to her. She hoped that didn't mean the meat was getting putrid, but it had looked fine. She took a sip to be sure before she gave it to him. Didn't taste like it though she couldn't say she particularly enjoyed the taste.
She stooped down and raised the Apache's head, letting the tea dribble into his mouth. He was swallowing, which was a good sign. She slowly got about half a cup down him. Her legs had gone to sleep by that point and she decided to give them both a rest. She gently laid his head back down and carefully got to her feet and wait for the tingling and prickling to stop, so she could walk straight.
She set the cup down on the mantle. It suddenly felt very hot to Ruth, but she couldn't risk letting a breeze in because a neighbor might see their guest and because of the sick man himself as the evening air wouldn't be good for his fever. Letting the fire die down was also out of the question as he needed to keep warm. The poor man was already shivering up a storm.
She rolled up her sleeves and undid the first few buttons of her top. That felt a little better but not much. She noticed with a start that Kid had been watching her and she recognized that look. He was still physically drawn to her.
He noticed that she noticed and he looked away quickly. "I hope you're going to right yourself when he comes to."
"Maybe I will. Maybe I won't. You're so sure he's going to kill us when he comes to, I don't see what difference it makes."
She pulled out a folded paper from her Bible that had her Bible study notes on it and made a fan of it. As she fanned, she thought more about the look he'd given her. That ruled out his having lost his desire for her, but a man could be attracted to a woman without loving her. So that brought her back to what had she done to make him want a divorce so bad.
"Kid, why are you so bent on leaving me without even trying to work it out?" she asked softly in a tone that cut Kid to the core. "What did I do?"
"I told you, you didn't do anything," he said sharply. "I-"
A groan interrupted whatever it was he had been about to say. Their Indian friend was waking up.