Chapter 10-

Charlie rode a top of Rusher wondering where she went wrong. The day wasn't going how she planned, but when did days ever go as planned? She tried her hardest to keep her mind off things. So she looked out to the horizon. It was a bright but cloudy day. It might rain she thought. The time was roughly around 4 of the clock. A good time of the day. The grasslands around her were far off from the town and it was peaceful. The only bad thing about this was that she could hear her thoughts only too well. And when this happens, her mind isn't in the right state. It wanders off to past days. Wonderful days. But then it slowly becomes of days she'd rather not relive. It's like a nightmare while awake, during the day. She leaned her head down and closed her eyes tight.

She thought of the day she lost her parents and her older brother. That day was an utter mess.

Her family was there alongside her while Ringo and his brother and their band of cowboys tormented them. She was fourteen. Ringo would caress her cheeks. She would spit on him and be disgusted with him. She never knew Johnny to be like that. He'd act hurt because he was indeed hurt, but his older brother Josh would snap him out of his sick obsession with multiple slaps.

This wasn't the time.

Charlie's eyes fluttered open. She was losing it. She then found herself hunched over, sobbing. Head in her hands. She was shaking uncontrollably but she couldn't stop. She tried desperatley to stop. But it was to no avail. At this point she was truly repulsed with herself. She hated crying. As far as she was concerned, crying was a sign of weakness. And she was not weak. Though, even with this point flitting about in her head, she continued wailing and wallowing in self loathing.

XXXX

Doc was in the Oriental, way too early to be drinking. But he didn't care. He never did care what people thought. But what Charlie said to him really broke through. He gave her her distance though. He felt she deserved that. Hell, he thought she deserved anything and everything. Despite that, he was furious. He was angry that he couldn't be more sympathetic. He should've known that he must walk on eggshells around her. And he shouldn't be stepping boundaries. Especially since it hasn't been more than two days upon their meeting.

Doc looked at the bottle that moved from hand to hand. He debated whether or not he'd take another swig. He was undecided and just glared at the bottle of whisky. He stood up angrily, not acknowledging the stares of the drunks and gamblers around him. The bottle still in his hand, he raised his arm up and threw it across the room. It smashed, the liquid splashing everywhere.

"Hey! You got that shit on me!" One of the gamblers cried out at him.

"Oh, pardon me." Doc said lazily and sank in his chair. He stared at the ground. He jerked when he felt a pair of arms around his neck.

"Shh, my lovely Doc. I'm here." Kate's voice wasn't beyond a whisper. She slid her hand over his chest and kissed his cheek and then his neck. Then she was on his lap saddling him. She placed more kisses on his neck and moved up to his lips.

Doc looked up at his Hungarian Devil. The excitment he usually felt when he saw her wasn't there anymore. But he did look at her closely. Examining her features as she closed upon him. Then he saw her cheek. And then her nose. Her whole picture coming into focus. Bruises formed around her eyes and chin. Her nose was swollen, it looked as if it were broken. There was this long dry cut upon her right cheeck. It was cut in deep. He then pushed her away and looked at her more closely, steadying her.

"What happened to you, Darling?" Doc asked in wonder. He looked at his whore waiting for a response. She looked as if she were ready to tell in an instance but she remained silent.

Then finally, "Not here, Doc. I can't say in here." She got off him starting to lead the way. She made her way to the swinging doors of the saloon but then stopped and turned.

"Are you coming or not?" She asked in an annoyed tone.

Doc looked as if he wasn't going to move a muscle. He didn't really care. She was afterall just a prostitute. She'd go after anyone who would support her with food and proper dress. But his curiosity got the better of him. He wanted to know. So he stood up, shrugging off her annoyance with him.

"Lead the way, Dear."

XXXX

Charlie finally arrived back in town leaving Rusher at the stable for a proper night's rest. She felt safer with him there rather than him staying outside the hotel for the night. You never knew what could happen in the crazy town of Tombstone.

After lacing Rusher down in the stable, she walked the rest of the way to the general store. She had a couple bucks leftover and figured she could stock up her alcohol and grab something for the dinner at Allie's and Virgil's home, which she decided she would attend. She didn't know exactly what to get, didn't know what they needed. She concluded that they had everything already. So instead of something practical she got something good. Peach Pie, just how her nanny used to make it in good ol' Savannah Georgia. It wasn't that hard to make but she wasn't a very good cook. With this in mind, she set out to look for a bakery, if there was one.

She passed work men, house wives, and little childen on the street. They carried on with whatever it was they were doing but Charlie would recieve an occasional glance. A lot of them already knew about the incidents that took place in public. News spread fast and far in this place. She passed a Fudge Shop, a Shoe Shop, and at last a Bakery came into sight.

She stepped inside and saw a frail old woman behind the counter reading the Bible. She had on tiny spectacles that sat at the tip of her nose. Her curly white hair was up in a loose bun. Her dress was dingy but nice in a country way. When Charlie stepped further inside and coughed slightly the old woman looked up.

"Oh. Hello, my dear! Welcome to the Bakery! Could I intrest you in anything?" She stood quickly and went over to her selection of pies, muffins and other goodies.

"Yeah. You could. Have any peach pies?" Charlie asked looking over the inventory. "My name is Charlie, by the way." She forced a smile at this last bit knowing that this lady would ask her name eventually, so she decided to beat her to the punch.

"Call me Grandma Pickles. Everybody does." She let out a soft chuckle. "We actually have one peach pie and it's in the oven at this very moment. Should be done in about two minutes, I should say."

"Thankyou... Grandma Pickles." Charlie said still smiling, amused at this woman's name.

"No problem, dear. I'll go check on it now. It may need no more cooking." She scurried off to the back.

Charlie stood there thinking of the events to come. Virgil's dinner gathering. Would Doc be there? She didn't know if she wanted him there or not. But only time would tell.

"Dear? Dear?" Grandma Pickles asked. "Are you alright?"

"Quite fine." Charlie said quickly and not too sure of herself. "Was just thinking. The cost?"

"Two fifty." She said shortly not pushing the young girl.

"Thank you." Charlie said simply.

The two women handed off their trades and Charlie walked out of there as quickly as she could not yet deciding where she was going to go next.