Matt insisted that Kitty spend one more night at Doc's office. He let her pack a bag, and then detailed Bill Pence to walk her back up there while he awkwardly carried nearly two hundred pounds of gold over to the jailhouse to lock in his safe. Bill was just leaving Doc's office as Matt reached the bottom of the stairs, so he stood there while Bill descended.
"I told Kitty that Johnny Lyon was looking for her this evening, Matt." Pence said, "Told me he had something important to talk to her about."
"What did you tell him, Bill?" the Marshal enquired.
"Said I thought Kitty would be back at the Long Branch tomorrow." Bill said, "She will, won't she? Now that Marlow's been captured and his partners are dead?"
Matt held his counsel on that. "We'll see how she feels and how Doc feels about it in the morning," he said, "And I'll need to get her door fixed again before she can sleep in her room."
Bill smiled, "I'll see to that first thing tomorrow morning, Marshal," he said with a wink.
"No, Bill, you won't." Dillon told him very firmly.
"Now see here, Marshal," Bill began, but Matt interrupted him.
"I'll get the locksmith out to install a new lock on Kitty's door, Bill, and I'm going to make sure that she's the only one with a key." Matt said.
"Aw, c'mon, Matt," Bill said, "I didn't make a fuss about giving you a key last time, and I'm still half owner of the Long Branch, you can't expect me not to have a key to all the rooms."
Matt looked down at where Bill stood next to him in the semi-darkness of the alley. Lights from the street, and from Doc's front window made it easy enough for the two men to see one another. "Now you listen to me, Bill, and you listen hard. Kitty will have the only keys to that room. Who goes in and out is her choice. It's not up to you, and it's not up to me either. I'll handle the repairs to her door myself, and I'll make it clear to Tom Crider when he puts in the new lock that he's not to duplicate the keys to that door for anyone other than Kitty herself. Do I make myself clear on that, Bill?"
"You do, but I still don't like it. That's my place and I've a right to the keys." Pence told him, halfway between petulance and anger.
"As far as access to Kitty's rooms are concerned, Bill, you have no rights. None at all. You want Kitty to give you a key, you ask her. And I do mean ask. You don't threaten or bully or demand, because if you do, I'm going to know about it, and you won't like what happens then." Matt said quietly.
"Daggone it, Matt, Kitty was the best asset the Long Branch had. I haven't complained about you taking up all her time, and I'm not going to, but as far as the keys go…"
"As far as the keys go, they belong to Kitty, and she'll do with them what she chooses. Now are we perfectly clear on that, Bill, or do I need to pound it a little more firmly into your head?" Matt asked him, taking a short step just a little closer to the small, dapper man.
Bill took a slightly larger step backwards. "I understand exactly what you're saying, Matt, and I tell ya straight out I don't like it."
"You don't have to like it, Bill, but you do have to agree to it. Now are we clear?" Dillon said.
"We're clear." Bill agreed.
"Good." Matt told him. "I'll take care of that door in the morning, and once it's fixed we'll see about Kitty coming back to the Long Branch." Matt turned his back on Bill Pence and headed up the stairs.
He found Doc and Kitty sitting with Frank Reardon in the back bedroom. Frank greeted him a little blearily, "These two troublemakers been givin' me a hard time, Matt. You come to rescue me?"
Matt smiled at him, "I doubt it, Frank. Doc give you one of his powders, did he?"
"Nah, he made Kitty give it to me." Frank said, "Knew I couldn't fight a lady."
"Do you good to sleep some, Frank," Matt told him.
"Just what I said, Matt," Doc commented, "Now you sit here a while with Frank while I take a look at Kitty's ribs." Doc ushered Kitty firmly into the outer office and shut the door.
"Did you find the gold, Matt?" Frank asked, his voice much clearer than it had been a moment ago.
"Yes we did, Frank. I've got it locked up at my office and I'll send a telegram off to the Army first thing tomorrow. What are you playin' at here?"
"Kitty didn't make me drink that damn potion, at least not much of it. I was figurin' I could spell you tonight, Matt. Bet you didn't get more than a couple hours sleep last night, and I've been sleepin' most of the day." Frank said.
Matt sat down on the bed and laid a firm hand on Frank's arm, shaking it a little, "A good thought, partner, and I'd take you up on it if I needed it, but I don't. Chester's sleeping over at the jail, and Marlow's locked up tight. Doc and I are both going to sleep in that outer office tonight, and I do mean sleep. I can't promise you Doc won't come poking at you sometime in the night, 'cause that's the kind of thing he does, but I intend to get a good night's sleep and I'm not expecting any trouble."
"Why not, Matt?" Frank asked, "You know something I don't?"
"Maybe. Maybe not. But with Marlow locked up and the gold locked up, I'm expecting things to settle down." Matt told him.
"Now that just doesn't make much sense, Matt." Frank complained, "You know that both of Marlow's partners were out north of town when Kitty was shot yesterday."
"I do know, Frank," said Matt, "And Kitty knows too. I think both of us have an idea about what's going on here, and I think we'll have a quiet night. But I'm going to sleep out in the office just in case." He patted Frank's arm where his hand was still clasping it, and then moved to pick up the cup of liquid sitting by the bed, "And you're going to finish up this medicine of Doc's."
Frank shrugged, "I wish he didn't have to make it taste so bad, Matt, but if you're sure you don't need me, then I'll be glad of the relief."
Matt lifted his friend up and handed him the cup. Frank downed it with a grimace, and let Matt settle him back on the bed. "You figured out who's going to get the reward on that gold, Matt?" he asked.
"I'd say it's Kitty's, wouldn't you, Frank?" Matt said.
Frank smiled at him, "We'll just have to wait and see what she thinks about that, won't we?" They were silent for a few minutes, and then Frank said quietly, "Kitty told me you took bounties a couple of years ago. That true, Matt?"
"I didn't go out after any, Frank, but yes, where I was able, I filed for the bounties all one winter."
"I didn't ever think I'd see the day you did that, Matt."
"I needed the money, Frank. I had to get Kitty out of that business." Matt told him.
"You could have just married her, Matt. Would have been a sight easier."
Matt sighed and ran a hand over his face. He was tired, and this wasn't a conversation he wanted to have. "Can we talk about this later, Frank?" he asked.
"You won't." Frank answered.
"No. Likely I wouldn't." Matt sighed again. He'd never been able to deny Frank a straight answer, "First off, I don't think she would have married me then. Not sure if she would now. Kitty wants things from life she's not going to get as a lawman's wife – or a lawman's widow. Second, you know how I feel about mixing marriage and a badge. I know you don't share those feelings, Frank, but you do know my views on it."
"I always wondered, Matt, what would happen when your badge finally ran smack into a woman that you really loved." Frank's voice was fading a little.
"I don't know what's going to happen, Frank." Matt told him. "You stick around a while and maybe we'll both see." He laid Frank's arm back under the blanket, pulling the covers up around his friend's shoulders.
"You do right by her, Matt." Frank said, "She deserves that. Not sayin' she deserves more than you – but she deserves all of you."
"I think she probably does, Frank, but that's not going to happen right now. You go ahead and sleep on that, why dontcha?"
Frank yawned widely, the sedative pulling at him. "You just remember, Matt, that Jonathan was Michal's brother."
When Doc led Kitty back into the bedroom a few minutes later, Frank was soundly asleep with Matt sitting next to him in the chair by the bed, still laughing quietly and shaking his head.
"What now?" Doc asked.
Matt looked at him with speculation and repeated Frank's final comment. It stopped Doc for a moment. "Aren't you usually Jonathan?" he asked.
"I am." Matt agreed, "But we trade off some."
Kitty had had about enough. "I'm tired, Doc. How about you two take your quotations out into the office and let me sleep?"
"Humph," said Doc. He looked over at Matt briefly and then turned and left.
Matt took the opportunity to slip an arm around Kitty's shoulders as he led her over to the bed. "How's your side, Kitty? Doc think you can go home tomorrow?"
"He said I could go back tonight if I had a room to go to. Says it's up to you, not him," she replied.
"You mad at me about that?"
"A little," she admitted. "Matt, I want this to be over."
"I'm hoping we can do that tomorrow, Kitty, but I don't think you're going to like what happens."
"You have to arrest him, Matt?"
"You know I do, Kitty."
"Can I at least talk to him first?"
Matt nodded slowly in agreement, "But I need to be there when you do, Kitty."
"Frank asleep?" Kitty asked, taking off her robe and lying down on the narrow bed.
"Frank's asleep." Matt agreed, sitting on the edge of the bed and leaning over into the arms she raised to him. He kissed her once. "And I need to be asleep, too."
"You surely do," Kitty agreed. "Good night, cowboy."
"Good night, Kitty."
He had blown out the lamp and was almost to the door when she spoke again, "Matt?"
"You going to tell me who those people are? Jonathan and Michal?"
Matt hesitated a moment, "Jonathan and David were friends. David married Jonathan's sister Michal, and eventually, well, he did wrong by her and that broke their friendship."
Kitty took that in. "Why would he say that, Matt? He only met me last week." Her voice was troubled. "I don't like that, Matt."
She heard Matt's deep chuckle, "Don't take it to heart, Kitty. It's just how we talk to each other. You talk to Frank about it if you want to."
"Don't think I won't, Matt," she told him.
"Well just remember he's injured, Kitty. Don't rip him up too much." Matt stepped out into the front office, and within minutes he was rolled in a blanket in front of the door, fast asleep.
OoOoO
The following morning, Kitty dressed and went down to the Long Branch for coffee. Feeling more like herself than she had in some time, she sat drinking coffee with Bill Pence and let him catch her up on what had been happening while she'd been absent and then sequestered up in Doc's office. She heard pounding coming from upstairs and raised an eyebrow at Bill.
"It's the Marshal," he said, "Came in here pretty darn early with Tom Crider and started working on your door." Bill hesitated, "Matt says I need to ask you for a key, Kitty. I think I should have one."
Kitty shook her head. "I'm not willing right now, Bill, after all this. I can give you a key if I go out of town, but right now, no."
Bill started to speak, but stopped when Johnny Lyon stepped through the door and walked towards them. "Miss Kitty, do you have time to talk to me?"
"I do, Johnny." Kitty replied neutrally. "Bill could you get Johnny some coffee?"
When Bill brought over the cup and a flask of coffee, Kitty raised her eyebrows slightly and moved her eyes towards the upstairs hall. "I'll leave you two to talk," Bill said and retired up the stairs and down the hall towards Kitty's room.
Kitty poured Johnny a cup of coffee. "We missed you at Ellie's funeral, Johnny," she said. "Want to tell me about it?"
"I think you know what I did, Miss Kitty." Johnny told her, sipping the coffee and not meeting her gaze.
"Yes, I think I do. You given up on that, Johnny, or are you going to shoot me now?" Kitty said, regarding him coolly.
"I'll go tell the Marshal, Miss Kitty. He can do what he needs to. But I wanted to talk to you first." Johnny said, his eyes still on his hands.
"All right then, talk." Kitty told him.
"I did what you asked, Miss Kitty." Johnny told her, looking up to meet her gaze. "I read those letters, and I found Ellen Sue's kin. She had an aunt and uncle settled on a farm back up west of Great Bend. After the Marshal sent you out of town, I rode out there and met them. I took her letters and the Bible."
"What did you find, Johnny?" Kitty asked. "I didn't think she had anyone that close."
"Neither did I, Miss Kitty," he said. Johnny ducked his head again. "Her uncle's a good man. His wife, she cried when I told them about Ellie. They have three children and a nice place out there. I stayed with them, talked to them. They…" he stopped, and Kitty let the silence stretch, "They tried to get Ellen Sue to come live with them, but she told them she wanted to stay in Dodge so…" there was another long silence, "So she could be near me. I couldn't understand, Miss Kitty, but Ellie's uncle, he made me see I had to come back and turn myself in."
Johnny put down his coffee cup and reached over to put both his hands over hers, "I'm sorry, Miss Kitty. I was so angry. I didn't want to kill you, ma'am, but I did want to hurt you – make you afraid. I was wrong, and I'm sorry. I know now It wasn't you, ma'am. It was Ellie's own decision to stay here."
Kitty saw Johnny's eyes move up to look behind her. "Why would she do that, Marshal?" He looked back into Kitty's eyes, "Why would she do that? She could have had a decent place, Miss Kitty, living with her kin. Why would she work here at the Long Branch?"
"Sometimes," Kitty told him, but she had to clear her throat before she continued, "Sometimes love is more important than decent, Johnny. I think that's how Ellie felt. She wanted to be close to you, and that was more important than where she worked."
"When did you get back from Great Bend, Johnny?" Matt's voice behind her was level.
"I got in late last night, Marshal," he replied, "I talked to Bill, but he told me Miss Kitty was up at Doc's."
"Matt!" Kitty exclaimed, turning to raise her eyes to his, "If Johnny wasn't here Thursday…"
The sound of shots interrupted them and Matt was running out the door to the street, heading across the alley and up the stairs to Doc's office. He opened the door into the business end of Doc's shotgun. "Not here, Matt," Doc told him, "I think it was over at the jail…"
And Matt was down the stairs in three long steps and heading across the street, but Johnny Lyon was ahead of him, gun drawn and firing. "Hold it!" Matt shouted as he entered, but it was already too late. Too late for the man lying in the doorway to the cells, but not too late for Chester who stood, Winchester in hand, in front of the door to the cell where Spike Marlow was locked, blocking access to Marlow with his own body.
"I had to do it, Mr. Dillon." Chester said, "He was going to shoot me to get to that Marlow."
"You did right, Chester. No other choice. You shoot him, too, Johnny?" Matt asked, and the boy just nodded without saying a word, and then turned back out the door to vomit over the rail into the street. And in the cell behind Chester, Spike Marlow sat himself down on the bunk and buried his face in his hands.
OoOoO
Judge Beck gave Frank Reardon a week to recover enough to testify. Doc allowed him to move over to the Long Branch on Tuesday, and Kitty and her girls provided him with excellent care and much more comfort than Doc could provide. Matt and Chester teamed with a variety of deputies to see that there were always at least two men at the jail throughout that long week.
It took a while for Matt to unravel the details. He knew that the Judge was only interested in the murder charge and in hanging Marlow, but the Marshal had an additional decision to make, and he was putting a lot of thought into it. The afternoon before the trial he and Frank took a short walk out to the livery. They always seemed to be able to talk better with a task to do, and Frank was eager to stretch his legs. His eagerness only lasted about half way down the street, but Matt's arm steadied him, and he sat on a bale while Matt groomed both horses.
"Tell me about it," Frank said.
"Looks like Johnny did the first two attempts on Monday, the shot that got Kitty's hat and the 'accident' with the wagon. Then he did the shots at the stagecoach. After that he headed out to Great Bend." Matt said.
"So the snakes, and the shot that got Kitty in the ribs – those were our dead man from the jail?" Frank asked.
"Yes. Zimmerman. Army officer from Fort Leavenworth identified him when he came to pick up the gold. He, and the other two that Marlow shot, were all prisoners while Marlow was serving at the fort."
"What does Johnny say?"
Matt took a while to answer. "Johnny's not sayin' a thing, Frank. He's just waitin' for me to arrest him. It's Kitty's asking' me to let him go."
"Oh." Frank let it ride with that until Matt was done with the horses and came over to sit next to him. "What you going to do, Matt?"
"Arrest him. Leave it to the judge." Matt answered.
"Arrest him for what?" Frank asked.
"Attempted murder."
Frank just looked at him. Eventually he said, "I didn't think I'd see the time when you felt you needed to take the law into your own hands, Matt."
"Damn it, Frank, if I don't arrest him what does that say about the law? He tried to kill Kitty!"
"Did he? Or did he just try to scare her? And if he hadn't scared her, and scared you, then Zimmerman surely would have killed her, now wouldn't he?" Frank said, "You know he's not going to be convicted, Matt. You arrest him for attempted murder and you're just forcing him to go through a trial as a punishment – ruin his reputation, keep him in jail a while, make him suffer some." Frank waited a while and then said sadly, "That's not like you, Matt."
"He could have killed her, Frank." Matt said.
"You mean by accident? While he was tryin' to scare her?" Frank asked, and Matt nodded. "Well, I suppose that all depends on how good a shot he is. You know, Matt?" Matt shook his head. "Let's go see then." Frank said, working to stand. Matt helped him up and they headed back to the Long Branch.
Johnny Lyon was sitting at a corner table, nursing a beer as he had been most of the week. He stood when the two lawmen came over to him. "You drunk, Johnny?" Sheriff Reardon asked.
"Nosir, I'm not."
"You shoot with a six gun or a rifle, Johnny?" the sheriff continued.
"I can shoot with a pistol, but I'm not a fast draw, Sheriff, and I'm more accurate with a rifle," Johnny told him.
"Got your rifle with you, son?"
"Sure, it's out on my saddle, Sheriff. What's this about?" Johnny asked.
"Outside's better," the Marshal told them, and then walked over to where Kitty had been playing a hand of solitaire, the cards set out on the table in front of her. Matt picked up the ace of hearts, and stepped through the batwing doors.
"Get your rifle, Johnny," Frank told him, "We're going to do a little shooting." Then as Johnny headed out to the street to his horse, he asked Kitty, "Can you give me a little help here, darlin'? I'm not too steady on this leg yet."
Kitty walked over to him, but with a quick motion of her head she got Sam over to sling an arm under Frank's good shoulder and the three of them headed out onto the boardwalk. Matt was standing in the center of the street a little ways down. Johnny walked up to where the three of them were standing, carrying his rifle. "Can you shoot the Marshal from this distance, Johnny?"
"I could, but I'm not going to." Johnny answered.
Frank nodded at Matt and Matt held out the card, his fingers just touching the corner. "How about that card, Johnny? Can you shoot that without shooting him?"
Johnny took a quick measuring glance. "Yessir, I can, but you don't know that and neither does he."
"Go on and do it, Johnny. We need to see." Frank told him with an encouraging nod.
Kitty covered her mouth with both hands but didn't make a sound. Johnny lifted his Winchester, cocked it, and fired almost without seeming to aim. The card in Matt's hand was blown away, but his fingers weren't touched. Still holding the corner of the shattered ace, he walked back to where the four of them stood.
Matt took a long look at Kitty, and then spoke curtly to Johnny Lyon, "Get out of Dodge, Johnny. Pick up your gear at the ranch and then get out of this county. I never want to see you back here again."
Johnny stared at him, and then at the sheriff, and finally at Kitty. "Yes, sir," he said, "I thank you for the second chance, Marshal. I won't be back." He shoved his rifle into the saddle boot, mounted, and rode east out of town.
Frank collapsed, smiling, into one of the chairs outside the Long Branch's doors. "I think I need to rest myself a little while," he said, "Not sure I'm really up to all this yet."
"You want a beer, Frank?" Kitty asked.
"Yes, ma'am, I surely would," he answered. Kitty sat down next to him, and Sam went inside to pull a glass of beer. Matt looked down at them both and shook his head. Still holding the corner of the scorched playing card in his hand, he walked off towards the jail.