Chapter Twenty Four
"Matt, something's been worrying me." Kitty turned away from the breakfast she was preparing to look at Matt.
"What's wrong?" he asked sharply, hastily setting down his coffee cup and getting up to stand next to her.
"Relax, Matt. It's Chester I'm worried about. And Joe. But since you're up, how about setting the table? They'll be here any time."
"Honey, you don't need to worry about Chester. I told you last night; the stable is plenty warm to sleep in with all the horses in there." Matt pulled out drawers looking for the silverware.
"It's in the right drawer. Chester's back in town with a nine year old boy and not one word about where his mother is. Doesn't that concern you?" Kitty moved the platter of bacon over to the warmer and opened the oven door for the pan of biscuits.
"No, but if you think there's something suspicious about it Newly is who you should be talking to. I'm getting out of the law business, remember?"
"Oh, would you be serious? Are you trying to tell me you didn't wonder about Chester's wife?"
"No, I didn't. It's not any of my business. Yours, either. If he wants us to know anything about her he'll tell us."
"Well, I think I hear them now, so maybe the subject will come up during breakfast."
"Now, Kitty…." Matt warned as Kitty waved him toward the door.
The subject did not come up at breakfast, despite some rather broad hints on Kitty's part. Chester talked about working his way to Colorado after he left Dodge, taking farming, ranching and even a couple of deputy jobs, and about how he and Joe had been drifting the last couple of years, mostly working odd jobs while they looked for a place to settle. Chester sidestepped every one of Kitty's leading questions until she finally gave up and Matt changed the subject, hoping to steer the conversation away from what he considered Chester's private business.
"How long were you planning to stay in Dodge, Chester? I hope you and Joe can stick around long enough to do some hunting with me once my retirement starts."
"Well, now, that depends. I mean, sure we can stay long enough to do some huntin'. But I'll be lookin' for work, so, you know, we'll be movin' on if I don't find any here." Chester's attention was focused on his plate as he ate his third helping of breakfast, covered with that speckledy gravy Miss Kitty made especially for him. He didn't catch the look Matt and Kitty shared when his last words gave them the same idea. The farm.
"How about some more coffee, Chester? Matt?" Kitty asked, after Joe asked if he could be excused to go play with Pumpkin, who'd been attacking their feet all through breakfast.
"Thanks, Kitty." Matt held out his cup. Chester, who thought Miss Kitty's coffee was still a mite weak even after all these years, took another cup to be polite and sat back, deep in thought. Any fool could see she was curious, but he just couldn't bring himself to tell her about Josie. Leaving her and the baby in Colorado was one of the hardest things he'd ever done, and he didn't want to talk to Miss Kitty about it, especially now. It would just upset her. He knew her well enough to know she probably wasn't going to let it go, though, and made up his mind to tell Mister Dillon about it. He'd let him decide if she oughta be told.
...to me you're as fair as you were, Maggie, when you and I were young…
"When You and I Were Young, Maggie"
Music by James Butterfield
Lyrics by George Johnson
A/N Kitty sang a version of the song above in the season four episode "Sky" when Chester taught her to play the guitar.
I apologize for the brief chapter, especially after the long wait, but that's all I was able to get past my writer's block in order to move from where I left off to the rest of the story. Thank you all for sticking with the story this long, and I promise to do my best to get the rest of the chapters out sooner.