Newly slowly bent over the doctor to listen for signs of life from the man who was laying on the table in front of him. Newly sighed and looked up to the small group, "He's breathing, but it's shallow," Newly straightened himself.

"Then why did he just stop moving?" Festus asked with his voice filled with worry.

"Doc has lost a lot of blood. He just went unconscious," Newly stated. O'Brien the resumed trying to remove the bullet after he drew his right forearm across his forehead. "Once I get this bullet out and close the wound, his body will have a chance to start to generate more blood. It's going to be a long recovery for him," Newly noted.

Kitty busied herself with cotton strips and gauze in preparation of Newly's successful operation.

Newly concentrated as he slid the forceps further into Doc's side. A look of relief washed over his face once the located the bullet again. Carefully he manipulated the forceps and caught the lead projectile. Slowly, Newly pulled the long blood-covered instrument out of the doctor. Newly opened the forceps and dropped the projectile into the white enamelled tray.

Newly looked up at Festus and Sam with a slight smile on his face. He then looked over his shoulder to Kitty, "I'll need some disinfectant and sutures," he smiled.

Kitty quickly searched through the items that Sam and Festus retrieved from the doctor's office. "Here you go," she said as she walked the items over to where Newly stood. Newly smiled, "Thank you, Miss Kitty."

"How is he?" Kitty's voice was filled with fear of losing her dearest friend.

"I'll know better in a few hours," Newly stated as he began to clean the wound before closing it. He heard Kitty sigh.

"Is there anything we can do, Newly?" Sam asked.

"I'll need a hand in a minute," Newly replied. Once Newly had finished washing the wound, he placed a large neatly folded piece of gauze over the wound. "Okay, I need you both to get Doc into a sitting position so I can wrap this around him," Newly stated. "One of you will have to support his neck," he said as Sam and Festus jockeyed for positions around the table that would make the job easier on everyone.

"Okay, easy," Newly warned as he swiftly reached around the doctor, "Miss Kitty. If I could get your help," Newly look over to where Kitty stood watching. Kitty was quick to act and helped Newly with the cotton wrap.

Once he was satisfied, Newly had Sam and Festus gently lay Doc back down on the table. Newly sighed and turned to the items that were brought from the doctor's office. Newly picked up a white sheet and unfolded it before placing it over Doc. Kitty assisted and then picked up a damp cloth and blotted it across Doc's forehead. There wasn't a sound in the room.

Festus quietly walked to the door of the saloon, "I have to meet up with Matthew and the others," the hill man's voice was quite and tired sounding.

"Be careful," Kitty spoke after the deputy.

"Yes, ma'am," he tipped his hat before leaving the saloon. Kitty's eyes turned to Newly and Sam who remained next to the unconscious doctor.

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Matt reached the camp where the deputized men from Dodge remained waiting word on their next move. Matt knelt down, "I found their camp, and one of them found me," the marshal stated as he held his left forearm with his right hand as he tried to ease the throbbing pain.

"Did they follow you?" Burke whispered with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

Matt shook his head, "They hadn't by the time I left," he said.

"Do you think they will?" Ed O'Connor asked with concern.

"Likely once they find the one I killed," Matt said then pursed his lips in thought. "We'll be ready for them if they do work their way back here," Matt looked around.

"And just how are we going to do that?" Burke said somewhat sarcastically. Matt glared at the shipping clerk. "Just like we would normally, except they don't know where we are, just yet," Matt snapped back.

Burke sat back on his heels and huffed.

Matt rubbed his arm and looked at the men, "I want you to spread out. Take your horses but stay within a twenty-yard distance from each other. And every few minutes make a sound of a night hawk to keep in touch. I'll stay here."

Burke was the first to move out of the camp, followed by O'Connor and Halligan. Matt sighed and wished Festus would return soon. Then he wondered how Doc was doing and if Newly was able to help his dearest friend. The marshal's insides churned out of anxiety and the unknown for his friend, the doctor. He feared that it would be a long night.

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"White? Where are you?" Larry Talbot yelled into the night. There was no response. Talbot looked back at the others around the fire, "I think something is wrong," he stated.

"Like what? White could skin a mountain lion before it even knew it was dead. White will be back any time," Dyer scoffed at Talbot's fit of worry.

Roy Crawford watched from his bed roll, "If you're so worried, go out and look for him," he almost mocked Talbot's concern.

"Shut up, will you?" Talbot yelled at his friend. "You know as well as I do, White would have answered by now," Talbot stated.

Crawford shrugged, "Maybe you're right." he looked at the other men. "Go and see what the hell White is up to and bring his ass back here. We need to get some sleep so we can get a jump on the morning," Crawford said.

The others around the fire stood and gathered their rifles and holsters, "We'll be back soon," Talbot stated before he disappeared into the night.

Crawford watched his men leave the camp and fade into the darkness. The outlaw reached for is own rifle and clutched it tight to his chest. Suddenly a slight case of paranoia swept him as he wondered where White was and how far behind them the posse from Dodge was. Crawford's eyes darted around the darkness past the fire. Even the small sounds seemed big. Crawford swallowed.