Chapter 1: "An Unexpected Disappearance"

She thought back to the day when she first saw him. She was instantly intrigued by him. There was something about this man that drew her to him. No matter how hard she tried, she could not deny that she had fallen in love with him. To her it was love at first sight. She had loved him for some time. In fact she could not remember when she did not love him. Or maybe she didn't want to remember when she didn't love him.

She loved him and she knew that he loved her. She had no doubt about that. He told her that he loved her multiple times. She only wished that he would make it official. Her one wish was for him to ask her to be his wife. Oh how she would dream of her wedding day. But those were only dreams. He would often remind her that his job, his way of life did not offer him the chance to be a husband or to have a family. His job had enemies, enemies that could go after a wife and a family. She did not care about that. She loved him and wanted to be his wife.

Then one day the unexpected happened. She found herself pregnant. What should she do? Should she tell him that he was going to be a father or should she leave town? This was not an easy decision. She did not want him to marry her out of obligation to her because he had gotten her pregnant. On the other hand, he did have a responsibility to her and her unborn child. Depending on the situation, she felt that a man had a right to know he was going to be a father. It was settled. She would give him the news. They were going to have dinner together that night. She would tell him then.

They settled down at a private table in a back corner of the restaurant. She was grateful for the table they were given. It offered privacy. But did it offer enough privacy? Maybe she should give him the news after they leave the restaurant. Yes, that's when she would let him know he was going to be a father.

After finishing their meals, he dropped some money on the table to pay. Once he did that, he scooted his chair back, stood up, and helped her with her chair. She stood up, and they left the restaurant. As they walked through town, she mustered up the strength to give him the news. She stopped walking. He took a couple more steps before he realized she was not at his side anymore.

"Why did you stop?" he asked. "Is something wrong?"

"I'm not sure," she replied. "I don't think anything is wrong. I have something to tell you, but I don't know how you'll react."

"I guess we won't know how I'll react, until you tell me," he said. He had no clue what she was going to tell him.

Taking a deep breath, she began to speak. "I'm pregnant. You're going to be a father." She waited for his reaction.

He stood there silent, no emotion on his face. But that didn't last long. A huge smile spread across his face. He looked at her with awe. "You're having my baby?" She nodded yes. "I definitely wasn't expecting that. We have to get married and soon."

"I thought you didn't want a wife and family because of your job and your enemies," she said.

"Well, things have changed now," he responded. "I'm not going to abandon the two of you. I have a responsibility to the two of you. We'll get married next weekend."

"Whoa, slow down. You haven't even asked me to marry you," she said. "What makes you think I even want to marry you? Besides, a girl waits her whole life for this moment."

He smiled at her. She was right, and he knew she had been waiting for this moment. He took off his hat and took her hand in his. "Would you do me the honor of being my wife? You would make me the happiest man in the world."

Her eyes pooled with tears. "Yes! Yes, I will marry you!" He took her in his arms and kissed her with all the love he had.

The wedding was going to be next weekend. That did not leave much time to prepare. She had to get a dress. Since she did not have a lot of time, she knew she couldn't be too picky about her dress. Oh well, that didn't matter. She was sure he would love any dress that she chose. They also had to invite people to their wedding. It was a good thing that those who were closest to them lived in the same town.

The wedding day arrived and she was as nervous as could be. Then again it could be a mixture of her nerves and her pregnancy. She wasn't quite sure. What she was sure of was that she would be the wife of the man she loved. An hour later they stood before the minister.

"Do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death parts you?" asked the minister.

"I do," he said.

"Do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and in health, until death parts you?" the minister repeated.

"I do," she replied.

"You may kiss the bride," the minister said as he closed his book.

That's exactly what happened. He took his bride in his arms and kissed her.

The marriage and the pregnancy were both off to a good start. However, four months later, almost seven months into her pregnancy, that all changed. He told her he was leaving. She begged him not to go. He told her had to go. He had to leave because of his job. She knew how much his job meant to him, but she thought their marriage and their unborn child would change things. She was obviously wrong.

When he walked out the door, she expected him to return like he always did. But as time went on and days turned to weeks, it was clear to see that he wasn't coming back. She cursed him and his stupid job. She wanted to hate him, but couldn't. Why not? Because she felt that if she hated him, then she hated the child that was growing inside of her, a child that was a part of him. She definitely did not hate the child she was carrying. She loved the child that moved inside her and kicked her. She loved the child she was certain was going to be a girl.

Two months later she lay in bed as another contraction wracked through her body. The pain was terrible. Maybe she should hate that man for putting her through this and not being here. The contractions seemed to be on top of one another. It wasn't long before she felt the urge to push.

Realizing the head was crowning, she was instructed to push. The head was not out yet, but it could be seen that the baby would have red hair, just like his or her mother. A few big pushes later, the baby was born.

"It's a girl," the doctor announced.

He swatted the baby's backside to initiate the first cry. Hearing her baby brought tears of joy to her eyes. She had a daughter. She knew she would. She would love her daughter with all her heart. If only her daddy could be here. The doctor handed her the swaddled baby, and she eagerly accepted her.

She stared at the sweet face of her newborn, and then looked out the window. She whispered, "Wayne Russell, I don't know what riverboat you're gambling on right now, but I want you to know you have a beautiful daughter. As much as I want to make you look bad in front of her, I won't. I don't want her to think you left because of her. For her sake, I will act as though I am proud of you." Beatrice Louise Russell then looked back down at her newborn daughter. She kissed the soft red curls that covered the top of her daughter's head. "Kathleen Beatrice Russell, welcome to the world. I love you so much. This wasn't the life I was expecting for you, but sometimes things in life are unexpected. It may be a long time in the future, but I hope you find a man that loves you, treats you with respect, and gives you all that you deserve."

The End

*Author's Note: I don't know the name of Kitty's mother or Kitty's middle name. In another fan fiction story of mine "What's In A Name" (part of the Matt and Kitty: A Timeless Love Story), I gave Kitty's mother the name Beatrice and made that Kitty's middle name.

*In the episode "Daddy-O" (Season 2), Kitty tells Matt that her father left before she was even born.