Family Matters

Chapter 3

The morning train departed at a ridiculous hour by Russell standards, but neither woman was complaining. After everything she had been through, Laura was not sorry to be putting hundreds of miles between herself and St. Louis. The extra day at the hotel had helped them to explore their budding family dynamic, but it was time to go home-after a little side trip. Kitty was both grateful and proud that her daughter had ultimately handled a difficult situation with such maturity, and as a result they were soon to be on their way to Dodge City for a wedding. Their friends were going to be in for the surprise of their lives.

As they settled into their seats for the long voyage, Matt reached into his bag and pulled out a book he had bought in the station while Kitty and Laura were answering the call of nature. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave was his favorite biography, and learning that he and his daughter shared an interest in history he thought it might be a welcome way for her to pass the considerable time of the trip. He handed Laura the book, ever mindful that their relationship was in its infancy and careful not to come across as too parental or overbearing. "I thought you might enjoy something to read on the train," he said in a way that indicated this was merely a suggestion. "You don't have to, of course, or if you've already read it—"

"No, I haven't," she interrupted, taking the book with a smile. "Thank you. That was very thoughtful."

Kitty gave Matt a loving look of approval. He was clearly balancing his roles of father and newcomer to the family quite well.

Laura stared out the window as the train slowly pulled away from the station. In a few hours they would be in Dodge City, Kansas, a place famous for outlaws and heroes, where countless wagon trains had endured cold winters and hot summers along the Santa Fe Trail…where her parents had met and fallen in love. It was such a foreign phrase to her, one that was going to take some practice. My parents. A part of her was anxious at the thought of the coming changes, no longer just the women sharing a home together, doing womanly things and making their own decisions. She had never lived with a man before, not unless the past week with Gil counted, and she had decided it most certainly did not. In fact, after getting to know Matt Dillon for a grand total of two days, she wasn't inclined to consider Gil Cloyd a man at all.

"Will my name change?" Laura blurted out, breaking a brief silence as the thought suddenly occurred to her.

"What?" Kitty asked, caught off guard.

"My last name," she expounded. "You're getting married, so you will be Mrs. Dillon. Will I be Laura Dillon?"

Kitty and Matt glanced at each other quizzically, having not considered that little detail. "Would you mind changing your name?" Kitty wondered. Laura wasn't quite sure of her answer, but she didn't want to offend her father. "You can be honest," he prodded, sensing her hesitation. "You've been a Russell your whole life, I understand if you're not particularly keen on the idea of changing that. It's your decision."

"Oh, I'm not saying that," she responded quickly. "I really haven't had a chance to think about it. I guess I was just wondering." Her mother had always treated her as though her opinions mattered, and Laura was pleased that Matt Dillon seemed to be the same kind of parent. Some of her friends seemed to live in dictatorships, and she could only imagine how their fathers would react. How many men would allow their daughters to decide their own last name? The idea of living with a man—at least this man—was beginning to sound less scary to her.

It was a clear, sunny autumn day as the train chugged along at full speed toward a short layover in Kansas City. Kitty and Matt sat side by side sharing sections of The St. Louis Republic newspaper, while Laura read her book directly across from them. She had become engrossed in the autobiography during the first few pages, knowing the story from history class but finding it even more interesting from a first person perspective. It was still hard for her to believe that something as barbaric as slavery had actually existed in her mother's lifetime. Men of color were not only free but had the right to vote now, and she wondered if that same right would ever apply to women. Perhaps someday her children or grandchildren would be just as appalled at that historic injustice as she was about slavery.

The stop in Kansas City was brief, just long enough to load and unload passengers. Dining cars made it possible to keep layovers at a minimum during long journeys, a convenience most travelers appreciated. As the train once again pulled out of the station, Laura sat her book down and watched through the window as Missouri turned into the plains of Kansas. She hadn't known there was that much corn in the whole world.

"Where are we staying in Dodge?" she asked out of curiosity.

"I suppose we'll get rooms at The Dodge House," Kitty replied casually.

It sounded like a nice place, she thought. "Is The Dodge House downtown? I'd like to be close to everything in the city since it's my first trip there."

Matt and Kitty looked at each other and burst out laughing. "Oh, it's close to everything," Matt assured her.

"What's so funny?" Laura wondered.

Kitty put her paper down and gave her daughter an affectionate pat on the knee. "Honey, you'll practically be able to see the whole city from your hotel window. Dodge is nothing like New Orleans. Downtown is one street."

"Everyone lives on ONE street?" Laura marveled, wide-eyed. She couldn't even imagine a town that small.

Matt chuckled. This girl really had no idea what life was like outside the big city. "No, most of the townsfolk live on farms and ranches surrounding Dodge. But Front Street is the center of town, where you'll find all the businesses and services—stores and shops, the post office and bank, restaurants, saloons, hotels and boarding houses. Pretty much everything a person needs is a short walk down Front Street."

That sounded a little less shocking, but Laura was still having trouble envisioning a one-street downtown. She was becoming more and more curious about this place her mother had called home for so many years.

"Do you still have friends there?" she asked Kitty.

"Yes, quite a few," Kitty replied. "Of course some have died or moved on, but many people I knew in Dodge are still there. I was very touched that they all came to The Long Branch to see me again."

Matt put his hand over Kitty's and squeezed. "Laura, your mother was always one of the most popular people in town. Everybody was thrilled to see her."

Laura smiled. "I'm very interested to meet them all."

Matt pensively rubbed the stubble on his chin, trying to imagine the town's reaction upon seeing Laura Russell. "Well, I'm quite sure they'll be interested to meet you too." Laura couldn't help but note his tone of amusement. "Does anyone there know about me?"

Matt chuckled and shook his head. "Not yet," he informed her. "A couple of our good friends are supposed to meet us at the station, and I asked them to bring a rig big enough to fit three people. This might be the most excitement Dodge City has seen in a long time."

TBC