Chapter Two

Frank awoke in a small room filled with the setting sun. His head was a jumble of thoughts that made no sense. He went to sit up and felt pain shoot through his whole side. He lay back against the pillows and looked around. The room was small and modest. There was wash table in the corner and dressing partition. He then turned to where the door was closed. He couldn't remember anything about what happened except for being shot. Had he fallen off his horse and someone found him?

Slowly and quietly the door opened. He looked over and saw a beautiful young woman he had dreamed about. As he stared at her, things started to come back. He had seen her when he stopped in some town. Was he still there?

"You're awake," the young woman said, sitting something down of the bedside table. She looked over at Frank and then turned to the window.

The young woman was very good at making herself look busy. She quickly lit the oil lamps that were scattered throughout the room. She then turned her attention to filling the water basin. Finally after she had found all the meaningless chores to perform she came over to the bed.

"How long have I been out?" Frank asked.

"Three days," she replied simply, pulling out some fresh bandages.

It was then Frank realized that he wasn't wearing a shirt anymore. He slowly pulled the bed covers up, feeling embarrassed to be seen. He turned away from her so she wouldn't see his cheeks turning red. He noticed that she was only smiling at him.

"I didn't expect an outlaw to be so shy," she said kindly.

He looked over at her, surprised. He didn't think that she would know that he was an outlaw. He went to push himself up and noticed something holding his arms in place. He looked down and discovered that he was tied to the bedpost.

"I don't have a gun," he said. "I don't think that I'm dangerous."

The young woman looked over. She glanced at the bonds and smiled. "That's not why you are tied up."

"Then why am I?"

"When I was trying to get that bullet out you wouldn't be still. I had to do something."

Frank nodded. He slowly lifted his wrists. "Can I be freed now?"

The young woman smiled and walked over to the bed. She took his wrist in her hands. Frank was surprised by her touch. It was so soft and gentle. Her skin was smooth like silk, and yet he could feel little spots where she had had to work before. She loosened the bonds and slipped them off. Frank turned away when she looked back up at him. She turned back to working on the bandages.

"I'm Frank," he went to say his last name and stopped. "Douglas. Frank Douglas."

The young woman looked over at him. She thought about saying something and stopped. Now was not the time to be telling this man who she was. She turned away and then walked toward the door.

"Do you have a name?" Frank asked.
"You need to rest," she replied.

Frank nodded. He knew that he needed to do that, but he wanted to know the name of his savior. He stared at her and then looked out the window, where the sun had finally disappeared. He heard the door open and glanced back at her.

"Mattie," she said heavily. It was like she had something to hide about her name.

Frank nodded. "It's nice to meet you Mattie."

Mattie smiled a little. She liked the man who had come to her door. She didn't care if he was an outlaw. He wasn't a bad man. She could see it in his eyes. She watched him as he stared out the window. She could tell that he was hiding things too. She walked out and into the dimly lit kitchen.

Mattie sat down at the table with a heavy sigh. She looked around the small shop that never had the chance to get off the ground. She got up and walked over to where the wooden crates were stacked. There were still things in them. She started pulling out some things when she heard the sounds of horses outside. It was too late for men to be passing through.

Frank had just closed his eyes when he heard the sound of horses snorting. He felt the icy grip of fear clutch at him. There was no way that it was a posse. They all had gone different ways.

Could someone have followed me?, he thought.

He pushed himself and listened. He only hoped that Mattie wouldn't go outside. If it wasn't a posse it was most likely a bunch of drunks looking for a place to blow off steam. He looked around and didn't see his gun.

"Damn," he said lowly. He might be hurt, but he was still a deadly shot.

"Come on, Mattie, let us in," Frank heard one of the men yell.

"Get out of here, Buck," Mattie yelled back.

Frank could hear the horses loosing their patience at being held in one place. He could also hear heavy footsteps on the porch. He threw the covers back and stood up. His whole body screamed in agonizing protest. He shuffled forward and leaned against the doorframe.

"Buck, I said get out of here!" Mattie yelled.

"Listen Mattie, you get to stay here by my grace. Now my boys and I have been gone for a few days and we want a good meal and maybe a little company."

"The go to the whorehouse in the next town."

There was silence. Slowly Frank reached for the doorknob. It was then that he noticed his guns hanging on the hat rack. He pulled one out and then opened the door. He could see Mattie plainly. He looked around and saw the man she called Buck. He was a burly man with a thick mustache. He also had a gun hanging on his hip. Frank swore. This wasn't going to be easy.

"Mattie," Buck started. "I don't want to call my men in here and do this the hard way."

"Buck, I have nothing made and it's late."

Buck reached out and put a hand on Mattie's waist. She quickly pushed him away with a repulsed face. He sighed and stomped his foot. Mattie turned to him with a shocked expression.

"Your brother was a good man, but he wasn't that good," Buck said. "I wouldn't press your luck with me."

Mattie swung around intent on landing a smack on his cocky face. Buck was much faster and grabbed her by the wrist. He started to twist it and add more pressure. Mattie suppressed her scream. Frank could no longer take it. He swung the door open with a violent jerk and shot.

The bullet smashed into Buck's arm. He quickly dropped his hold on Mattie's wrist. She took a step back and looked at Frank. He was leaning against the wall and breathing hard. It bandage was soaked in blood.

Buck stood up with grit teeth. He reached for his gun and turned to Frank. Frank put his gun up first.

"I don't think that you are that brave, Mister," Frank said smugly.

"Who is he?" Buck demanded.

Mattie looked over at her patient and then back to her annoyance. She shook her head. "He's just some drifter. He was hurt, and I helped him."

Buck looked at Frank, who was slightly swaying on his feet. Buck smiled a little, then turned to Mattie. "I want him out of here, soon."

"I want you out now," Mattie spat.

"Fine but you better listen Missy," Buck said smearing blood on her apron. "My Pa ain't going to like this."

Mattie smiled. "Make sure to leave out the part about you being drunk. He really wouldn't like that."

Buck sneered at her and looked at Frank. "You're lucky that my men are so drunk that they didn't notice that shot."

Frank nodded. He felt pain taking over his senses again. He couldn't pass out yet. He motioned to the door with his gun. Buck took the hint and walked out.

Mattie didn't make a move until she heard the horses riding off. She let out a heavy breath and looked over at Frank. He was leaning against the door frame and looked like he might fall. She walked over to him and put arm around him.

"You really should get to back into bed," she said.

Frank smiled a little. He allowed Mattie to lead him back to bed and change the bandage. He watched as she worked. He could see that she had done this many times before. She finished and looked up at him.

"That was a stupid thing to do," she said softly.

Frank smiled. "I know, but no one said I was the smartest man in the world."