A Flicker of Light In The Darkness

Chapter 4

Second Chance

Matt had slipped into his office without anyone seeing him. The coffee was hot, so Festus must be somewhere close by. He poured himself a cup and went back to the desk to start through a month's worth of paperwork. As he took a drink, his mind wandered to Kitty and her little shadow. She was very anxious for him to make time to get to know Calleigh, but he didn't really know what to make of this situation. He was used to her taking in strays of all kinds—four legged and two; but this one was different. He had never seen her attached to a child before. Not that he didn't think she would make a good mother. He settled back in his chair, dropping the papers onto the desk. He had hoped that when he gave up the badge, they would have a baby, settle down with a real family. The thought of her swollen with his child was strangely erotic to him. He had slipped so deep into his daydreams, he didn't hear Festus enter the office. It wasn't until he heard his name being yelled, that he jerked back to reality.

"Matthew, are ya all right?"

"Yeah, I... I was just going through these posters and the mail."

"You looked like you waz a million miles away."

"Nope, I'm right here Festus."

"We sure waz glad to git you back. You waz gone a mity long time this time. So how'd you like Dodge's new citizen?" Matt shot him a bewildered look. "Miss Calleigh. She shore is a little spitfire. You'll love her, Matthew."

"I take it you've spent some time with her."

"Shore have. Wez good fishin buddies. She may look all girlie in those fancy dresses Miss Kitty buys, but she gots a lot of tomboy in there too. When we go fishin, she slips on a pair of jeans and a shirt and by golly she's jest one a the boys. Baits her own hook and ever'thing. She's smart as a whip too."

Matt listened to Festus praise this girl's attributes, of which there were many. "Sounds like this little girl is too good to be true. Has she captivated everyone in town?"

"I know how it sounds, Matthew but she's jist a really good kid. I think Miss Kitty has taken a real shine to her. And the only time Doc isn't his crotchety old self, is when she's around. She's even got a nickname for the old scudder. It's-"

"I know," Matt broke in, a tinge of irritation in his tone, "Poppy... I heard."

"Who's crotchety!?" Doc had slipped in behind Festus. "You just better watch your mouth, you sneaky little varmint. Why don't you stop running your mouth and get me a cup of that coffee." When Doc stepped aside, Matt saw that Calleigh had been standing behind him. She offered a smile and took a seat in the one of the empty chairs.

While Festus and Doc were fussing, Matt took the opportunity to take a seat closer to the girl and strike up a conversation. "Festus is singing your praises, young lady. Seems like you've captivated the whole town." He felt a twinge of guilt when he let a sarcastic note slip in. Thankfully, he then remembered she was only twelve and probably would not get the inference.

Their first meeting had not gone well. Completely out of character, Calleigh had made verbal slip-ups, which had cost her her self-assurance. But, this time she had her confidence back and was ready for him. And, yes—she certainly did catch the irritation in his tone. "You're wondering if I'm running some kind of con. Or, at the very least, what am I up to?"

He drew back slightly, momentarily thrown by her blunt honesty. "Well, I don't know that I would put it that way."

"How would you put it, Marshal? A strange person comes to town and right away, everyone is her friend. I know that in your line of work, you have to be suspicious. Like I said before, Carter had frequent run-ins with the law; we got to see them a lot."

"Carter the man you came to town with?"

"Uh-huh. Like I told the others, he wasn't bad, but he did play real close to the edge where the law was concerned. Sometimes while I was putting on a performance, he would steal stuff from the mercantile. Usually just things we needed." Her smile deepened into a full fledged grin, "Carter would always grab some candy for me." Matt noticed how disarming she could be. He understood how she had captured the rest of them. That little face screamed of innocence. Then why couldn't he get past this nagging feeling that she was hiding something? Something big.

The fussing in the background had stopped when Festus left to go check the stage that was coming in from Wichita. Doc finished off his coffee and walked over to Calleigh. I've got to run out to Myzer's place to check on his broken leg. Do you want to go with me?"

Matt spoke up before she could answer. "You all have had quite a while with our little guest here. I think it's my turn. Calleigh, why don't you and I go over to Delmonico's for a soda? That alright with you Doc?"

"Is it all right with you?" Doc passed the question on to Calleigh, but wasn't surprised when she nodded her head yes. "Well, I'll be on my way."

Matt stood up and held the door for his young female companion. Within a few minutes, they were finding a table at Delmonico's. "Is there anything you want?"

For the first time, she actually appeared to be a little shy. "Would a piece of pie be too much?"

"I think I can handle that." Matt smiled and nodded approval to the waiter. "Have a sweet tooth, do ya?"

"Little bit. Candy is okay, but pie is my real love."

"I guess traveling around like you do, you have seen your share of restaurants."

She closed her eyes for a minute, as the images flashed through her mind. With a satisfied smile, she opened her eyes and announced, "Alton, Missouri. It's a little town in the central part of the state. They had the best apple pie I have ever tasted. That was about two years ago and I haven't found anything to compare to it yet."

Matt watched her smile expand when Tony slid a fresh slice of peach pie in front of her. He watched for her reaction as she took the first bite. She chewed slowly, as to savor every morsel. "Well?"

At last, she swallowed and licked her lips. "Marshal, I think Alton has some real competition here." Despite the allure of the dessert, Calleigh sat down her fork. "Pie, and Alton County, is not what you want to talk to me about though, is it? What is it you want to know?"

Again, she had hit him with her straightforward openness, "I'm really curious about you and your skill with guns. I can't quite picture it."

"That's what drew the crowds. Maybe I could show you sometime."

"Maybe. Festus tells me you're a pretty good fisherman, too—and a bit of a tomboy."

"Yeah, but Kitty is trying to make a lady out of me." Her laugh clearly said, she thought Kitty had a tough job ahead of her to make this transition.

"What do you like?"

She pondered his question carefully, "I like Kitty; and I will be whatever she wants me to be."

He chewed at the corner of his lip. "You know Calleigh, I'm sure Kitty wants you to be yourself. She wouldn't want you to be something you're not."

"I think that's the point, Marshal, I don't know who I am. I do what I need to do to survive and try not to cause trouble for anyone. Up until now, life has been pretty mundane. All the towns looked the same. We would pull into towns, put on a show, fleece the crowd," she shrugged, with an apologetic grin, "and then, move on to the next place. For safety reasons, I tended to stay hid most of the time. But that was okay; I really like to read and that gave me plenty of time."

"How did you learn to read?"

"I had a place I stayed 'til I was about eight."

"You mean a home?"

Suddenly, her interest in the pie returned and seemed to require of all her attention. "No, it was ... just a place. I've never really had a home." He was starting to lead her to those places she wasn't ready to reveal.

For the first time since they sat down, Matt felt that she was being untruthful with him. "You said your dad was good with guns, but he was killed in a logging accident?"

"Uh-huh." She continued to toy with her dessert.

"Do you know who your dad is, Calleigh?"

She quickly shoved more than a normal sized bite into her mouth and shook her head 'no' to his question. Matt thought it might be best to change the direction of his questions. Before he could ask her anything else, she took the lead again.

"Do you see a resemblance between Kitty and me?"

He had to laugh; it was such an obvious likeness. "How could I not."

"I guess I got this from my mother." She stretched out one of the long red spirals. "She had red hair and blue eyes too. And the freckles," she added quickly. "I notice Kitty goes to great lengths to cover hers."

Matt laughed with her. "Yeah, she's pretty self-conscious about those."

"If I was as beautiful as she is, I wouldn't be self-conscious about anything."

"I don't think she even realizes how beautiful she is." He replied absently. He drifted away from the conversation momentarily, as her image came into mind. Just as suddenly, he reeled himself back. He quickly became conscious that this little girl was directing the conversation.

Steering it back to her, he said, "There's a note of pride in your voice when you speak of your mother. Do you remember her?"

He was going over those same questions. She had already told him that her mother died in childbirth. He was fishing again. Calleigh pushed her plate back and stood beside her chair. "I really should get back. Kitty will wonder where I am."

He got the hint: She was through talking. They walked along quietly, Matt, watching her as they went. He wondered if she was a runaway; but that was an awful young age to leave home. Someone should have missed a nine-year-old little girl, especially one like this.

"Don't you have any questions for me?"

She looked up at him, the face of innocence had returned. "Between Kitty, Doc and Festus, I feel like I know you." Calleigh didn't feel comfortable enough to start questioning him.

Matt nodded, a slightly sheepish grin spreading across his face. "I see. So...do you like staying with Kitty?"

"Very much," her control was back and she continued their walk. "She's been very kind to me. Everyone has but, she is special."

As they neared the Long Branch, Calleigh stopped—and grabbed his hand to stop him as well. "I'm not allowed to go in the bar. I have to use the back stairs, too."

At first, he didn't catch it, but then it hit him. Too? He had been upset when Kitty wouldn't let him use the back stairs until she could work something out. What was there to work out? As long as the girl was there...

Matt scratched his head, suddenly feeling very irritated. Who was this child that had so captured Kitty's heart? How did she always manage to get the upper hand with him? She was twelve years old, for heaven's sakes! Most of all, what was she hiding? Calleigh had let go of his hand and was disappearing into the alley. Matt instinctively called after her.

She stopped and walked back to him "Yes, Marshal?" She smiled, suddenly turning into the little girl again.

Matt was amazed at the way she could suddenly make him feel like an ogre, harassing a child. He decided to let it go with a simple comment. "Thanks for the talk."

"Sure." and she disappeared into the alley.

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Calleigh took the stairs, two at a time. That had not turned out the way she had planned at all. All of her life, she had wanted to find her father. She grew up knowing his name, but was forbidden to speak it. It took her these last three years to track him down. Every town she performed in with Carter, she would ask if anyone knew Matt Dillon. When they got near Kansas, she started to pick up pieces of information. She soon discovered, he had made quite a name for himself as a US Marshal. Calleigh smiled; she was so proud of him. She knew he wasn't a worthless gunslinger, like they had said. Why couldn't he just get to know her, like all the others? He couldn't get past his questions, to see who she was. The smile faded, as she realized her plan was falling apart.

He doesn't like me, she thought, Even worse, he doesn't trust me. She dropped down onto the sofa with a heavy sigh, much too big for such a small girl. Maybe there is still time to make this right. Tomorrow, I will talk to Kitty and maybe she can arrange another sit down meeting with him."

TBC