HONORABLE INTENTIONS
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
By the time we made it to Glady's Moore's my chest was gettin' tight again and I was strugglin' to hold back that dad blamed cough. I slid down off the back of Slim's horse, holdin' tight to the cantle, and fightin' back a dizziness that hadn't really quit.
"You okay, Pard?"
I lifted my head and squinted up at Slim. "Yeah." But talkin' got me coughin' and it was real hard to catch my breath.
"Jess?" I felt Slim beside me, trying to pull me up straight. The cough didn't last long this time and when my breathing got back to normal, I stood there, sweatin' and shiverin' and wishing I was any place but outside in my wet clothes with my head achin' and my hand hurtin' and that burnin' fire in my chest.
"What set that off?" Slim asked.
"Guess... I still...got some of that river...in me." I wheezed out.
"You gonna be able to keep riding?"
"Yeah," I said, studying Slim's face. "You?"
"No choice."
"I reckon not," I said, and looked around for my horse. He was still tied to the hitching rail where I'd left him this morning. I walked over to him and ran my hand down his neck, scratching under his chin. "Hey, boy. Sorry I left ya so long."
He whinnied quietly and nuzzled against my shoulder. "I bet you could do with a drink. Just hold on a little longer."
Slim tied his horse next to mine and we walked up to the front door. Gladys Moore had it open before we had a chance to knock. She looked between the two of us, frowning first, then offering a small smile.
She said, "You better come in."
"Thank you, ma'am," Slim said, "but we gotta keep riding. Jess needs to get out of those wet clothes. We just wanted to check you were okay."
"I'll be a whole lot better when I hear Deevy's rotting behind bars." She fired at us.
And I couldn't help smilin'. Yeah, I figured she was going to be fine. As long as she's got that temper to keep her goin'.
"Yes ma'am." I said. "I'm sorry 'bout what happened, 'bout me not stoppin' him and you being tied up and all."
"Ain't your fault, Mr. Harper. Ain't nobody's fault. Men like Deevy just got a mean, yellow streak through them."
"I reckon so." I felt that tightness pull around my chest again and started on another bout of coughin'. Didn't last long this time.
"What's the matter?" Miss Moore asked, lookin' from me to Slim.
"Ain't nothin', I said, shivering again."Took in some water from the river." And I let loose with more coughing.
"Come on, Jess. We better get you home." Slim put a hand on my shoulder.
"You want me to fetch you a blanket?" Miss Moore asked, "Long way to be travelin' in them wet things."
"We'd be much obliged to you, ma'am," Slim said before I had a chance to answer. "I'll get it back to you soon as I can."
I weren't in no mood to argue, 'sides, I was shivering hard enough to rattle my teeth loose from my gums.
"Come in." She said, and me and Slim stepped just inside the door and it sure was good to be out of that breeze for a few minutes.
Gladys went to a wooden chest standing against a wall under a window and fished out a blanket, bringin' it over to where we were waiting and draped it over my shoulders. One handed, I pulled it tight around my body, mighty glad to have that extra layer over my wet shirt.
"Much obliged," I said.
She smiled again. "You take care, Jess."
"Yeah. You too. "
Slim tipped his hat to Gladys, mine was probably half way to Fort Laramie by now.
We watered our horses and mounted up then turned their heads towards home. Neither one of us were in any condition to handle more than a walk and it was a long slow journey headin' back to the ranch.
My cough seemed to be gettin' worse and my breathing weren't feeling right, neither. It got so bad I had to hang on to the horn just to stay in the saddle. That's when Slim suggested we take a break. If I coulda got my voice to work with more'n a croak I would a said no, but Slim was off his horse and pullin' me down 'fore I had a chance to argue.
He ground tied both our horses and they wasted no time helpin' themselves to a thick patch of grass just off the side of the road. Me and Slim eased down so we was resting against a rock and I huddled under the blanket tryin' to find some warmth.
"You doin' okay, Jess?" Slim asked, studyin' me like I might go belly up at any second.
"Been better." I said, trying to hold in another cough.
"That river water's sure not agreeing with you."
"No." I hugged my arm across my rib cage, trying to ease the ache from all that coughin'.
"You hit your head while you were in the water?" He asked pointing at a spot behind my right ear.
I reached up and fingered the cut on my head, feelin' blood still oozing from it. "No. I weren't lookin' where I was goin' and ran into the thick end of Deevy's rifle."
Slim frowned then pulled a bandanna from his pocket and pushed it against the cut behind my right ear.
"It's bleeding some, but it doesn't look too bad. Might not even need stitching."
"I knew this was my lucky day." I said, wonderin' what else could happen.
"Well, it could a been worse."
"Yeah. Sure."
"Help me bind this round your head," Slim said, handing one end of the bandanna to me. "Hold it there, just above your ear while I wrap." I did as he said and when he was done he tucked the other end under, yankin' a clump of my hair with it.
"Ow! Easy."
"Sorry." He stood up, wipin' his hand on his pants "You feeling any better?"
"I'm all right," I said, hopin' for some truth in my words. "Your shoulder still hurtin' you?"
"It hasn't gotten any worse." He grabbed hold of my arm, pulling me to my feet. "Come on, Driftwood, let's get you home."
We mounted up and headed back along the road to the ranch, still keeping the horses to a walk. I reckoned we'd been on the road for near two hours when that tight feelin' in my chest was squeezin' harder and I was really fightin' to breathe. Slim kept lookin' back at me and the look on his face told me he wasn't real happy.
"I don't like how that cough isn't lettin' up, Jess."
"It'll...have to...stop soon, I reckon. Can't be much... more water left...to spit up." I said, still strugglin' to breathe.
"Maybe we should a got you to the doc's instead of heading home."
"It ain't nothing a good hot meal and... and one of Daisy's brews won't fix."
"Yeah, maybe you're right." But he didn't sound convinced.
The sun was just above the western foothills when we finally made it over the rise and the ranch came into sight. Breathin' was still an effort and I couldn't seem to fill my lungs without settin' off a cough.
A cool wind had kicked up as we pulled the horses to a stop by the corral. Slim dismounted, tied his horse to the fence rail then came around to my left side.
"Can you get down?" He asked.
I nodded and shrugged the blanket off. That breeze hit me right away and I started shivering all over again
A gust of wind blew through the yard, skitterin' a lone tumbleweed along with it. I grabbed the blanket off the saddle and made a clumsy attempt to wrap it round my shoulders.
"Come on, let's get you inside."
Slim hooked his hand under my arm, keeping me on my feet and we headed for the house.
"Slim! Jess! I I thought I heard you ride in." Daisy came towards the corral but stopped when she got a good look at us. "Oh,my. What's happened? Jess, are you all right?"
"There's somethin' wrong with him. I'll explain when we're inside. We need blankets, Daisy," Slim said as he hustled me along.
Inside, Daisy had a fire goin' and Slim guided me to one of the chairs in front of it and sat me down. I hunched over tryin' to draw as much warmth from them burning logs as possible.
Then Slim was beside me, but he was on his haunches, huggin' his arm real tight and I glanced up at his face. He'd gone awful pale and his eyes were squeezed shut.
"Daisy!" I coughed around her name. "Daisy, Slim's hurtin' real bad," I called out.
She came out from our bedroom carryin' an armload of blankets and dropped them on the floor near my chair, then she turned her attention to Slim and I broke out in another coughin' fit, my chest feeling like it were being torn in two.
"What have you boys been up to?" Daisy clucked at my side. She was kneeling next to Slim and had her hand on his right shoulder, her other hand was fiddlin' with the sling.
"I'm alright... See to Jess... He's not good, Daisy."
"You come and lie down, Slim, then I'll check on Jess." She helped Slim to his feet and over to the couch. I could hear my pard trying to protest but Daisy wasn't havin' none of it. Once he was settled she asked, "Is someone going to tell me what's going on?"
"Jess. Got tangled up with Deevy, ended up in the river. Had to pull him out," Slim said.
"With your arm in that condition?" Daisy asked. "Oh, Slim."
"No choice. He would a drowned."
"I really don't know what I'm going to do with you two," she said, shaking her head, and moving over to where I was sitting.
"Where's...Mike?" I asked, taking real small breaths.
"He's at the Fergusons' like we agreed." Daisy brought another chair to the fire and draped a blanket over it. "You better get those wet things off, Jess. Do you need some help with your boots?"
"I can do it," I said, reaching down with my left hand and yanking at my boots.
"I'll go and heat up some water," she said, throwing another log on the fire before heading back to the kitchen.
The cinders sparked and glowed red, swirling up the chimney as the fire caught onto the new wood, the flames lickin' at it and warming the room.
Keeping my busted hand still as possible, I stripped down to my long johns and pulled the blanket Gladys had give me tight around my shoulders. I wasn't so cold with most of the wet things gone and the fire cracklin' in the hearth.
I leaned back in the chair resting my hand across my belly, with the cold easing up it was startin' to ache again. The bandages were damp, hanging loose and ratty, didn't look nothing like they did when Daisy first wrapped them this morning.
It felt like my cough was finally letting up and I let my eyes slide shut, didn't reckon I could a kept 'em open even if I wanted to. It was mighty good to be sittin' in a solid chair, no water, no wind, and the warm glow of the fire sending out its heat.
Reckon I must a dozed off 'cause the next thing I knew, Daisy was shakin' me gently, and holding out a cup.
"Jess, here, I made you some coffee."
I untangled my good hand from the blanket and took hold of the cup. Smelled like there was more'n just coffee in it and I raised an eyebrow at Daisy.
"Just a couple of spoonfuls in there, it'll help to warm you up." She smiled at me.
"Thanks, Daisy, I reckon it will at that." I took a sip, enjoying the feel of the hot coffee and whiskey warming a path down my throat and into my belly. "How's Slim?" I asked twistin' around in my chair to get a better look at him.
"He's sleeping. I gave him something to help him rest; he was in a lot of pain but flat refused to go to bed."
"Yeah, I reckon he was." I shook my head. "Sure didn't do himself any good hauling me out of the river like he did."
"No. But he couldn't very well leave you there, could he?" Daisy pulled the blanket from my shoulders and replaced it with the warm one draped over the chair.
"No, I guess not." I took another sip of the coffee. "He sure was hurtin'."
"Well hopefully you'll both stay put long enough to give yourselves time to heal. How's your hand feeling?"
"I know it's there," I said, "but it ain't so bad when I ain't movin' it around or doing somethin' stupid."
"Finish your coffee and I'll fix the bandages for you." She fussed with the blanket again, making sure I was completely covered, except for the hand holding the cup." Slim said something about you coughing."
"Yeah, I reckon I swallowed half the river but it seems to have eased off some." I took another long swig of the coffee and ended it with a sudden, chest rattlin' coughing fit, sending a spray of coffee across the hearth and a message to Daisy I was a darned liar.
Daisy took my cup before I spilled anymore and put it on the table and I worked at gettin' myself under control. 'Fore I started to choke it finally let up but it was feeling like it wouldn't take much to set me off again.
I leaned forward in the chair, takin' small breaths, knowin' now that it wasn't smart to try and breathe too deep.
When I looked up again, Daisy was beside me, this time offerin' me water instead of coffee.
"Take small sips, Jess. Slim was right, I don't like the sound of that cough. How long were you in the water?'
"Don't...rightly know. Felt...like a life time." My chest was hurtin' to breathe again.
"How did you get that cut on your head?" Daisy was checking the bandanna Slim had wrapped above my right ear.
"Deevy. Hit me." I said.
"You sit back. I'm going to tend to your hand and that cut and then I think bed might be the best place for you."
"Ain't no need for..." but my protest was cut off with more coughin'.
"No arguments, young man. You've been through a lot in the last two days and you need to rest."
I nodded, seein' as how talkin' didn't seem to be doin' me no good. But I weren't plannin' on going to bed no matter what Daisy insisted. Not when Deevy was still out there somewhere.
Daisy gathered up more bandages, rewrapped my hand while I squirmed in my chair. She tsked and worried over the cut on my head but declared I wouldn't need stitching. She insisted I change into dry underwear and then she put my right arm back in a sling. By taking it slow, I managed to get into clean long johns without setting off any more coughin'.
"Got anything to eat, Daisy? I ain't...had nothin' since...breakfast. I'm about...half starved."
"I'll have supper ready in few minutes."
"Sure." I nodded "Daisy?"
"Yes, Jess?"
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." She patted me on the shoulder and then headed off to the kitchen.
I was just startin' to doze off again when I heard the horses makin' a ruckus outside. I glanced over at Slim, he was sleepin' the sleep of the dead.
Slowly, I made my way over to the window, 'fraid to move too quick. The sun had dropped behind the hills and the yard was all shadows. But I could see the horses dancing around in the corral. They weren't happy 'bout somethin'.
I went to the bedroom and pulled on some pants, leavin' all but one button undone, no time to be fiddling one-handed with the rest of 'em. I grabbed socks from a drawer and went back out by the fire, pullin' them and my boots on.
"Jess?" Daisy was standing in the kitchen doorway, "What are you doing?"
"Somethin's spookin' the horses." I said, returning to the bedroom and grabbing my scatter gun from beside the chest of drawers. Daisy was close behind me. "Might be...nothin,' or might be that rogue...mountain lion back." Yeah and it might be Deevy or that fella Mose saw yesterday. "You stay inside. Keep... keep the door shut. I..." My chest exploded in another coughin' fit and I had to lean against the wall to keep my balance.
When it let up I was findin' it even harder to take a breath.
"Jess, I don't think you should be going outside… the night air won't do you any good."
"Have to, Daisy. Can't afford...to lose any...stock." I shoved the scatter gun under my left arm and headed for the living room, picking up the 12 gauge from beside the fireplace and handing it to Daisy. "I'm...not expectin' trouble...but if there is, you know what to do..."
"What's going on?" Slim was awake and pushing himself up, his right arm wobblin' with the effort.
"Nothin'." I said. "Go back to sleep."
"Then why're you holding that scattter gun?" He was sitting up, scrubbin' at his eyes.
"Insurance. Gonna...check on the stock. The horses...they ain't happy 'bout something and I'm just gonna settle 'em down. You...stay put." Long as I kept my breaths short, the coughin' seemed to stay quiet.
"I'm coming with you." Slim started to push himself to his feet.
"No you ain't." I pulled my arm from the sling. If there was trouble, I didn't want to be tangled up in it. "Slim, you're all doped up on laudanum, I don't need to be worryin'...'bout you out there...as well as me. Now stay... stay where you are. You wanna be useful...take care of Daisy."
'Fore he could argue any more I pulled the door open and stepped out onto the porch.
Continued in chapter fourteen