Chapter Eleven-Changes
Matt and Thad companionably rode side by side, having just left the Worth ranch. The boy sat a little straighter in the saddle, reflecting on his introduction to the wealthy rancher.
Matt held out his right hand in greeting the tall, friendly man in chaps and a Stetson. "Jake, good t' see you again."
The smiling man clasped Matt's hand, "It's been a while, Matt. Looks like your hunt was successful." He pointed to the dead turkey dangling from the marshal's left hand.
"Yep. Thanks to Thad, here, pointing out the perfect sized bird, we finished our hunt in record time."
"Well, isn't that just fine," Jake rested his hands on his gun belt, eyeing the unfamiliar child.
Matt placed his hand on the boy's back, pushing him ever so slightly toward the rancher. "Jake, I'd like you to meet my and Kitty's boy, Thad. Thad, this is Mr. Worth."
Without blinking an eye, Jake held out his hand, "Nice t' meet ya, boy. I've got a son about your age. What are ya, nine?"
Stunned at the marshal's introduction, Thaddeus Joseph Russell swallowed hard and shook the man's hand, answering, "I'm eight and a half, Sir."
"Guess I know where ya got your height from," Jake chortled, briefly glancing at Matt. Looking over his shoulder, he hollered to some ranch hands, "Can someone find Tommy for me? He should be in the house with his teacher."
"Marshal," Thad looked into the face of the big man riding next to him, "how come you lied t' Mr. Worth?"
Matt furrowed his brows, "When did I lie to Jake?"
The boy bit his bottom lip, focusing on the trail in front of him. "Ya know…when you told him I'm your boy. That's a lie."
"Let me explain something to you, Son. Blood doesn't always make a family. I love your mother. She's a part of me. Do you follow me so far?"
"Yes'sir," Thad nodded, scrunching his mouth to the side as he studied Matt's expression. "I'm pretty sure I understand. I know she loves you an awful lot. She was real sad last night about us movin'. I told her we don't have t' move. That I'll toughen up some."
"It's not that simple. See, your mother has waited a long time to have you live with her. She loves you more than anyone in the whole world, and she wants you to have the best childhood she can give you. And at this point in time, she doesn't think Dodge City is the right place to raise you."
"I don't understand what that has t' do with you lyin' to Mr. Worth."
"I'll make it as easy to understand as I can. I love your mama. Therefore, she's a part of me." For emphasis, Matt pointed at Thad, "You are a part of her. So, if she has a place in my heart, so do you. Does that make sense, Son? I'm not so good with words, so if-"
Thad pulled back on his pony's reins, halting the animal as he interrupted the man who had recently claimed him as his own. "I get it, Marshal. I understand," he whispered, shyly wiping a tear from the corner of his eye. "You made me feel real proud."
Matt scooted Buck as close to the pony as he could, patting the boy's shoulder. "Good. I'm mighty proud of you. Now, what do you say we trot back into town? I'm waiting on an important letter and I'd like to meet the stage."
The child beamed, "Yes'sir! I can't wait t' tell Mama I helped pluck a turkey and I made a new friend!"
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"Matt Dillon!" Kitty slammed the door as she entered the jail, "Have you lost your mind?! Telling Jake Worth that Thad is our boy?! Talk about ginning up the rumor mill…I swear to God, you and Thad will be the death of me."
Matt sat on his office chair, staring at his lady as she paced in front of his desk, her hands planted on her waist.
"Hello, to you, too," he smirked.
"Don't you realize that was a cruel thing to do?" she sighed, pushing her untethered hair out of her face. "I'm trying to get him focused on Philadelphia and you say something that makes him want to stay."
Matt dropped the letter he'd been reading onto his desktop and leaned back in his chair. He laced his fingers behind his head and stared at the ceiling.
"Well…" Kitty folded her arms in front of her chest and tapped her foot.
He let out a slow breath and stood, planting his palms on his desk. He leaned over and calmly spoke, arching his brows, "Let me get this straight. Me, as your man, claiming your son is a horrible lie. But you, moving him to Philadelphia and instructing him to tell others that his mother is a widow is an acceptable lie?"
He shoved his hands into his pockets. The two stood, facing each other, neither of them moving a muscle. The only sound in the room was the ticking of the clock on the wall.
Kitty cracked first. "You're impossible," she turned on her heel, pacing around the office, her arms flailing in the air. "You go on and on and on for the last seven years about how you can't have a permanent relationship." She huffed, "No family for Matt Dillon, no siree. Then lo and behold, today you claim my son as your own. I can't figure you out." She plopped onto one of the chairs at the square table in the middle of the room, resting her elbows on the table, burying her face within her hands.
Matt lowered himself onto the other chair, scooting it as close to her as possible. He whispered, "Didn't you just claim him a couple of months ago?"
Her head snapped up, eyes blazing with blue fury, "How dare you?" She seethed, "I had my reasons and you know it."
"And today I had mine."
She closed her eyes and massaged her temples, "Matt, I have been physically sick over how to fix this mess I made. I barely sleep and my stomach is so upset, I can't hold down any food. I just want to cry all the time…" Kitty stared at the love of her life through a misty haze, explaining, "I screwed up. I never should have handed him over. I should have left Joplin with him and used the widow story then. But nooo, I had to give him away, believing Ellie and her money would be better for him than a life with me. All I did was hand him over to a weak woman for a childhood of heartache."
Matt pulled her onto his lap, pressing his forehead to hers. He rubbed her back, soothing, "Please, give it a few weeks, Honey. Wait at least till after Thanksgiving and if things don't start to resolve themselves, I'll help you pack myself."
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The weather had been unseasonably warm over the next couple of weeks, allowing children some time to play outdoors before Jack Frost held them hostage for the winter months. Thad had met a handful of children around town, which seemed to make both him and his mother happy. A few of them attended the Dodge City school, while a couple were taught by their mothers, much the same as Thad had been.
"Mama!" Thad popped his head into Kitty's office, "I just finished my arithmetic problems. Can I go shoot marbles with Zane and Rusty?"
Kitty leaned back on her creaky office chair, glancing at her son over her shoulder. "C'mere," she curled her finger, winking at him.
"What?" he ran to her side, leaning into her as she wrapped her arm around his waist.
"You promise you finished all your arithmetic? I mean, you actually took your time doing the problems? You didn't rush?"
"I promise."
Kitty smiled for what felt like the first time in weeks. "Okay, but first you gotta do something for me."
"What?"
She grinned, pointing to her cheek, "Give me a kiss."
The boy gave her a quick peck before tearing out of her office, nearly plowing into Matt in the doorway. "Sorry, Marshal!" he apologized, not stopping for idle chit chat.
"Howdy, Matt," Kitty grinned as she swiveled in her chair, "To what do I owe the pleasure of this midday visit?"
He locked the door with a flick of his wrist and made his way over to his lady. He leaned over, bracing himself against the arms of her chair, capturing her mouth with his in a spine-tingling kiss.
"I just missed ya," he mumbled against her lips.
She held his face between her hands, gazing into his beautiful clear-blue eyes. As her lips melted into a straight line, she calmly asked, "Where to this time?"
He stood to his full height, staring down at her, "How the hell could you know-"
"I've been at this for over seven years, Matt," Kitty stood, resting her hands on her waist, "I know how the game is played." She turned around and began to shuffle papers on her desk.
The big man pressed his body against hers, encircling his arms around her waist. He breathed into her ear, "It's that damn Mesa Gang again. Just when it seems they've left Kansas, they hit another bank. They shot the sheriff in Jetmore."
Kitty closed her eyes, whispering, "How long will you be gone?"
Matt righted himself, lightly massaging her shoulders, "I don't know, Honey."
She turned to face him, pleading, "Please tell me you'll be back by Thanksgiving. It's a week away. Thad will be devastated if you don't…" Kitty paused as she closed her eyes to compose herself. "Never mind." She turned her back to him once more, stepping out of his reach, "Seems I forgot the ground rules of a 'non-permanent' relationship. Good luck, Matt," she glanced at him over her shoulder, "Be careful."
"Honey, you know I'll hurry back as soon as I can. But I've got a job t' do-"
She whipped around, her eyes brimming with tears, "No need to remind me about your job, Marshal. You'd better get going. The Mesa Gang doesn't sit still."
Matt walked to the door and unlocked it. He gripped its knob, "I'll see you and Thad when I get back, Kitty."
Don't count on it…
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"But, Mamaaaa…I don't wanna go t' Philadelphia," Thad whined, unpacking a pair of trousers from his valise just as his mother had placed them in his bag.
"Thad, this isn't up for discussion. We talked about this a month ago and the wheels have been set in motion. The Long Branch is up for sale and we need t' get to Philadelphia before the weather makes it too difficult." Kitty stuffed his pants back into the valise, "Now quit taking things out of your bag after I put them in!"
The boy ran to Doc's side, begging, "Please, Grandpa! Please talk to her! I know I said I wanted t' leave, but we just can't. At least not till the marshal gets back."
"Why don't you go on over to the jail and visit with Chester for a bit. He said he wanted to teach you something on his guitar. Then your mama and I will meet both of you at Delmonico's in a half hour." Doc gently patted the boy's shoulder, "That will give me some time t' talk to your mother."
"Yes'sir."
Kitty waited for the snick of the door latch before she turned to face her friend. "Curly, we've already talked about this. And 'Grandpa'?! I swear you did that on purpose to tug at my heartstrings." Kitty continued to pack her son's clothing.
"It just kind of happened. I picked him up at the Stubblefield's where he was playing with Zane and Rusty and Zane asked if I was Thad's grandpa."
"And you just had to say 'yes'," Kitty mumbled as she checked the drawers of the child's bureau.
The elderly physician shrugged, tugging on his earlobe, "It just kind of came out."
"Uh huh," she eyed him over her shoulder.
"Kitty, this just doesn't make sense. You initially wanted to move for the boy's sake. He seems as happy as a child locked in a candy store. I think you're mad that Matt missed Thanksgiving and you want-"
The redhead approached him, "This is bigger than Thanksgiving, Doc, and you know it." Her sad eyes told the tale of Matt having missed a litany of important events. "Sure, this year Thanksgiving didn't hurt Thad, but what about his birthday? The summer carnival? A family barn dance? The list of events Matt misses is never-ending. I can't have my son live with the same feelings of rejection that I've become accustomed to. He's been through so much already."
Doc offered Kitty his handkerchief as tears slowly slipped down her flushed cheeks. "We'd better get on over to the restaurant. Your train leaves at nine."
He kept his arm around Kitty's shoulders as they descended the back stairs from her room. The streetlights had been lit, even though it was just six o'clock. The pair slowly crossed Front Street, now walking hand-in-hand, heading toward their last supper together.
"Miss Kitty! Miss Kitty!" Chester shouted from the door of the jail.
Kitty turned to see Chester quickly limping his way over to her, waving a piece of paper in his hand.
"Pipe down, will ya, Chester! The whole town can hear you!" Doc growled, snatching the telegram from his hand.
"Well excuse me, Doc. I wasn't callin' fer you. I wanted t' tell Miss Kitty the marshal should be home real soon. Barney's been holdin' onta this telegram fer two days. Mr. Dillon should be home t'morrow."
"Chester?" Kitty leaned over to look behind her friend, "Where's Thad?"
"How would I know, Miss Kitty? I haven't seen him a'tal today."
The panicked mother grabbed his forearms, digging her nails into him, "You mean he didn't come t' see you at the jail?!"
"No, Ma'am, he didn't…" Chester slowly shook his head.
Kitty stared at Doc, her eyes wide with fear, whispering, "Doc…?"
Doc grabbed her elbows as her knees buckled, "Chester! Help me!"
The marshal's assistant scooped Kitty into his arms, just as her eyes rolled back into her head.
"Quick! Get her up to my office!"
TBC