THIRTEEN
The crowd at the Long Branch had grown since Matt left it in the early afternoon. Nearly all of the tables had at least a couple patrons, and a few of Kitty's girls were milling around. Apparently, after twenty-four hours of hiding away in their homes without a new threat, the regular Long Branch customers were willing to venture out in public. He didn't blame them – he'd have gone stir crazy himself in their position.
Doc sat alone at a table near the door leading back to Kitty's office playing solitaire, and Sam stood behind the bar serving drinks. Matt took another look around the room to double check and still couldn't find Kitty. Hopefully Doc would know her whereabouts – he didn't want her off anywhere by herself until Caleb and his gang were behind bars. Or dead.
"Howdy, Doc."
"Oh, Matt – here, have a seat."
Doc continued his game, keeping one eye on Matt as he sat down and leaned in so he could talk without being overheard.
"Where's Kitty?"
"She's in her office working on the inventory. Said all these people were making her nervous." Doc looked warily around the room. "I don't blame her."
"I hope she locked the back door to the alley…." His eyes flickered in the direction of Kitty's office.
"She did, Matt. I made sure of it."
Anyone wanting to get to Kitty would have to go through the Long Branch – and, consequently, Doc and Sam – to do so. Good.
Doc gathered all the cards into a pile and started shuffling the deck.
"Haven't won a single game all afternoon," he muttered.
"Doc, I just came from talking to Caleb." That caught Doc's attention, and he laid the deck back on the table without dealing another round.
"What do you think?"
"He's our guy, I'm sure of it. The problem is, I don't have any proof, just my gut instinct." He shifted in his chair, his inner turmoil making him physically uncomfortable.
Doc fidgeted in his chair, too, as if Matt's mood was contagious.
"And you can't just run him out of town?"
"I'm not sure I even want to, Doc. I'd rather be able to keep an eye on him if I can."
"What about the other two?"
"I think they're brothers – Caleb said something about sending for his brothers when I talked to him. They must be hiding out somewhere outside of town."
Doc picked up the deck of cards again and shuffled them thoughtfully. "Does that clear anything up? Do you remember them from Hays?"
"That's just it, I don't. Something else he said…. I might have killed their pa. But why wait ten years to come after me?"
Matt suddenly realized his voice had risen in his exasperation, and he glanced furtively around the saloon to make sure no one had overheard.
"I wish I could be of some help to you, Matt. What would you like me to do?"
"Just keep an eye out and stay here at the Long Branch if you can – I'll feel better if I know you're surrounded by all these people." Matt stood up to leave. "I'm going to let Kitty know about Caleb. I don't want her anywhere near him."
"I'll keep an eye on Kitty, too, you can bet on it. And I'll let Sam know." Doc stood up and headed towards the bar. "We can't be too careful."
"You said it, Doc."
A knock sounded at the door to Kitty's office, startling her. Laying a hand on her pounding heart, she caught her breath and called out, "Who is it?"
"It's me…Matt."
She pushed her chair back from her desk and went over to unlock the door and let Matt in.
"Sorry about that, Matt. I just figured I'd rather be safe than sorry." She shrugged, tucking the key back in her skirt pocket and shutting the door behind Matt. "Is Doc still out there? I feel kind bad for leavin' him…." The niggling wariness at the back of her mind hadn't dissipated as she'd hoped it would when she left the noise of the bar for her quiet office. She went back to her desk chair, and Matt followed, sitting on the edge of her desk, facing her.
"Yeah, he's playing solitaire and doing a pretty bad job of it." He cracked a smile. "Doc's alright, though."
"I just couldn't handle it out there anymore. After all the quiet yesterday and today, well…. I guess it just felt too jarring. Everything was too loud, I was jumping at the tiniest things, Matt."
"That's completely understandable, Kitty. You don't have to beat yourself up over it."
"Yeah…well…." Kitty glanced down at the ledgers on her desk and closed them up, pushing them away. Her concentration was shot, anyway.
"Shouldn't you be out protecting the 'good people of Dodge'?" she asked, smirking. Sarcasm, she could handle that.
Matt snorted, shaking his head. Then a slow grin stole across his, and he looked her up and down. "Actually, I'm protecting the best person in Dodge this very minute."
"Oh, really?" Kitty stood from her chair and nudged Matt's knee with her hip, stepping in between his legs and sliding her hands over his chest and across his shoulders. "Does everyone in town get this kind of personalized service, Marshal?" she asked, innocently, arching an eyebrow.
"Only redheaded female saloon owners, ma'am."
"Is that so? Well, then I guess I'm pretty lucky I'm the only person in Dodge who fits that description, huh?"
Matt was smiling now – a grin Kitty knew he saved just for her – and Kitty couldn't help but smile in return. She'd take these small moments of happiness with him wherever she could. It was something she'd become quite good at over the years.
He gripped her hips with sure hands, but then paused for a second, the smile slowly slipping from his face. Kitty's heart sunk, suddenly remembering the danger they were all in, as if she'd ever truly forgotten.
"Matt?"
He cleared his throat, and she held her breath.
"I came by to let you know I talked to Caleb." Matt squeezed her hips and looked her straight in the eye, and she braced herself for whatever was coming next. "I can't prove it yet, but he's our guy. The other two are his brothers. I've got a hunch they're hiding out somewhere outside of Dodge, probably waiting for some kind of signal." He took a deep breath, and she breathed with him. "Kitty…whatever you do, don't let that man anywhere near you. And don't go anywhere by yourself. Promise me."
Kitty rarely saw or heard Matt so worried, so intense and insistent on hearing promises from her. She could tell he was just as scared as she was – she could admit to herself the entire situation frightened her more than she'd ever let on to anyone else – and that scared her even more. It was hard to believe things would be okay when the man you were counting on was having a hard time believing it himself. And wasn't that unfair, putting all of that pressure on him. She swallowed hard and brushed a comforting hand across his cheek, nodding in agreement.
"I promise, Cowboy."
Kitty could feel Matt's shoulders relax just a fraction, and she knew the stress he felt, the extra responsibility he assumed, was pushing him to his limits.
Matt pulled her to him then, and she sat his hat on her desk and threaded her fingers through his hair, cradling his head as their lips met. Their movements were slow and sure. This wasn't the desperate, frantic coupling they'd shared the night before, but it meant just as much.
Despite being so on edge, it wasn't long before Kitty felt a heat pooling low in her belly, a burning need to feel Matt inside of her. As she melted into him, she could feel him stirring against her stomach, and she vaguely wondered if she had remembered to lock the office door behind him.
Matt's hands were running across Kitty's back, pulling her impossibly closer, when a frantic knocking at the door startled them and they broke apart.
Kitty took a quick step back, out of Matt's arms, and fought to catch her breath, compulsively smoothing her green skirts down and brushing a strand of hair from her eyes.
Matt stood from the edge of her desk, his right hand hovering near his colt and his left pulling her behind him, and Kitty flinched. It physically hurt to see him so agitated, paranoid.
"Who is it?" he called, wary.
"It's Sam, Marshal!"
Matt relaxed his stance, but Kitty's heart beat faster at the note of panic in Sam's voice.
"Come in."
The door burst open, and Sam stood there, a wild look in his eyes.
"Marshal, Miss Kitty, you've gotta come quick – Festus's been hurt."
Festus checked in at the bank, made the rounds around town, looked in on the Long Branch, and then set out to find some work to do. It wasn't often he'd pass up the chance to hang around the Long Branch and jaw with Doc and Miss Kitty and Sam – and possibly get some free beer, to boot – but he felt anxious, skittish, and needed to keep moving around. He needed something to do with his hands.
Festus then remembered Ma Smalley mentioning something about the recent storm blowing some shingles loose at her boarding house. It would be the perfect way to keep himself busy. He talked to Ma and then found extra shingles, a hammer, and some nails in her shed before getting to work.
On a ladder, nearly twenty feet up in the air, Festus heard footsteps approaching below and craned his neck to see who it was. But by the time he realized it was Caleb, it was too late for him to climb down off the ladder. He cried out as he fell, and then he hit the ground where blackness overtook him.
Ma Smalley found Festus lying unconscious on the ground outside her house when she brought him a glass of lemonade a few minutes later.
Doc hurried up the stairs to his office ahead of Ma and the two men carrying Festus to open the door for them, the poor man moaning softly in their grasp.
"Just lay him down right there, fellas." He pointed to the examination table. "Real gentle, that's it."
He pulled off his jacket, tossing it over the back of the chair at his desk, and rolled up his shirtsleeves.
"Anything else we can do, Doc?" The two cowboys and Ma stood hovering by the office door.
"No, you've already been a big help, thank you. You just run along and give me some space now."
The men nodded and left, but Ma paused, offering, "I'll be back to check on him tomorrow, Doc," before following them out the door.
Doc took a moment to breathe, worry for Festus bubbling up inside him. He dragged a hand down his face and set to work, assessing the damage, careful as his friend cried out.
"Don't worry, old boy, I've got you."
Festus' left forearm had a clear, compound fracture, although the bone hand not pierced the skin, and he had a large gash on his forehead with a knot forming under it – those were the only obvious injuries, and he told Festus as much. Doc carefully probed Festus' other appendages and ribs and used his stethoscope to check his lungs and heartbeat – nothing else seemed to be broken, irregular or out of place. He checked Festus' pulse and found it to be a little fast, but nothing too concerning considering what he had been through.
"Alright, Festus, I'm gonna set your arm now." He hesitated for a second. "I'd give you something first, but with that head injury…."
"S'alright, Doc," Festus panted through gritted teeth. "I trust you."
"Here we go, son. One, two –" and as Doc pulled hard on the arm to set the bone, Festus mercifully passed out.
Footsteps pounded up the steps to Doc's office, and Matt burst through the door, Kitty on his heels.
"Doc, what happened?"
"I'm not entirely sure, Matt. I've been more focused on takin' care of him than how it happened." Doc's voice sounded harsh, even to his own ears, and he set about putting a splint on Festus' arm to stabilize it. "Ma Smalley found him lying on the ground, unconscious. He'd been fixing some loose shingles on her roof – she thinks he lost his balance and fell off the ladder…."
Kitty rushed around to Festus' other side and her hand hesitated slightly before she smoothed his hair away from his forehead, careful not to brush against the gash on his head. She looked up at Doc, worry shining in her eyes.
"How bad is it?"
"His left forearm is clearly broken, and he'll need stitches, likely has a concussion. I'll have to keep an eye on him for a while when he wakes up."
"He's been unconscious this whole time?"
"No, he wasn't unconscious long, passed out again when I set the arm. Kitty, can you help me with this?"
Without a word, she seamlessly slipped into action, knowing exactly what Doc needed from her. He nodded gratefully, even as he internally acknowledged the profound wish that Kitty hadn't had the necessity to learn such things.
Matt still stood by the door, and Doc looked up to see the look he gave it and the way he was studying Festus, like he was trying to solve a puzzle. Doc knew Matt suspected foul play – he had contemplated the same thing.
"I know what you're thinkin', Matt, but Ma didn't see anyone. This could just be a coincidence." Even as he said it, he couldn't convince himself.
"Yeah, or it might not be." Matt opened the door. "I'm going to go have a look around. Kitty, you stay here."
The door slammed shut behind him.
"You both think Caleb did this, don't you?" Kitty whispered as they finished with the splint.
Doc turned back toward Kitty, Festus lying on the table between them.
"I think it's a distinct possibility, Kitty. Hopefully Festus can tell us what happened when he wakes up." Doc swiped a hand over his mustache and mentally shook himself. He had work to finish. Festus needed him at his best.
Fifteen minutes later Doc had stitched up the wound on Festus' forehead.
Kitty finished cleaning the last of the blood off Festus' face and out of his hair while Doc cleaned himself and his instruments and put away his supplies.
"There you go, partner," she whispered, placing a gentle kiss on Festus' forehead. She stroked his cheek one last time, adjusted the blanket now covering him, and walked over to the stove. "How about I make us some coffee, hmm?"
"Thanks, Kitty." Doc sat down heavily in his desk chair. "Neither of us have gotten much sleep lately, have we?"
"That's for sure," Kitty scoffed. "And I don't see much sleep in our future, either."
Kitty finished preparing the coffee and pulled the extra chair over to sit by Doc. He reached over and grasped her hand, and both of them kept watch over Festus from their vantage point across the room, letting the silence overtake them, waiting for the coffee to boil. Or for Matt to return. Or for Festus to open his eyes….
Kitty's eyes welled up with tears, but she just squeezed Doc's hand a little tighter and held them back.
The coffee started to boil, and Kitty reluctantly let go of Doc's hand to stand up and pour two cups of coffee. She'd just handed one to Doc when Matt returned. Kitty could see the discouragement on his face, and it only deepened when he saw Festus still lying unconscious, no obvious change in his condition.
"How's he doin'?"
"I've done all I can, Matt. He should wake up any minute now, and then I'll have to keep an eye on him for a little while before I can give him something for the pain, something to help him sleep."
Kitty put her coffee down on the desk and wrapped her arms around Matt's waist, resting her head on his chest as he folded her into his arms.
"I take it you didn't find anything?"
Kitty felt the rise and fall of Matt's chest as he sighed deeply.
"No, Doc, not a thing. I might—"
A groan from the examination table interrupted Matt.
Like a flash, Doc shot out of his chair and over to Festus' side. Kitty let go of Matt, and they crowded around Festus, too. His head rolled from side to side, and he moaned a little louder, clearly in pain.
Doc gently placed his hands on either side of Festus' face to still his movements.
"Easy, old boy, just take it easy," he soothed.
Festus' eyelids fluttered a few times and then opened, and he squinted up at Doc.
"Doc?" he whispered.
His voice was weak, but he was awake and he recognized Doc. Kitty let out a sigh of relief and smiled tremulously up at Matt.
"Yes, Festus, it's me."
"Where's Matthew? I gotta tell him…."
"I'm right here, Festus. What is it?"
Kitty quickly switched places with Matt so he could get closer to Festus.
"Pushed…off…."
Festus' eyes drifted shut, and Matt gently squeezed his shoulder until they opened again. "Festus—Festus, did someone push you off the ladder?"
"Matthew…Caleb—Caleb pushed the ladder…over…. It's him." He grimaced in pain, and Matt took a step back as Doc leaned over him. Kitty's heart sunk – she had held out hope that Caleb wasn't to blame.
"I'm just gonna need you to stay awake a little while, Festus, then I'll give you something. We have to make sure that thick skull of yours didn't take too hard a knock."
Festus laughed weakly. "Okay, Doc…."
Matt strode toward the door, drawing Kitty's attention.
"Matt, wait—where are you going?"
"I've got all the proof I need, Kitty. I'm goin' after Caleb."
"But you don't even know where he is!" Kitty couldn't explain it, but she suddenly couldn't bear to see Matt go. Call it her sixth sense or woman's intuition, dread pricked at the base of her skull, and she was afraid of what might happen if Matt went after Caleb.
Matt crossed back to Kitty's side and gripped her shoulders. "I saw him last at Jonas' store, so I'll start there. I have to find this man, Kitty. You know I do."
Kitty nodded numbly, the fear not abating, and kissed him swiftly before he could leave.
"Be careful."
"We'll see you when you get back, son."
Matt nodded in acknowledgement, and Doc put his arm around Kitty's shoulders and pulled her close as Matt closed the door behind him.
"This isn't going to end well, Doc. I can feel it."