Ignoring the look he got from his wife, Doug said, “He was bleeding and lying on the ground. What was I supposed to do? Just let him lie there and die?”
“If he was some killer on the run from the Vigilance Committee, then yes. That’d be the smartest thing to do.”
Sue covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh, my God. Is he a killer?”
“I don’t know, but I do know those wounds are mostly from gunshots. Some of the others looked like the bayonet wounds I saw in the war, but they could have come from a knife. Either way, that young man was in a serious fight. The last time someone was tore up that bad and on the run out of Virginia City, it was from that Committee. Has anyone been looking for him?”
“No,” Doug said. Turning to his wife, he asked, “Did anyone ask about him while you were out?”
Sue shook her head. “No.”
“Then maybe he got clear of whoever shot him up,” Mather offered. “Considering the condition he’s in, they probably think the young man’s dead.”
“His name is Nick Graves,” Doug told him.
“I don’t care if his name is Ulysses Grant. If he’s a killer with other killers after him, it’d be wise for you to be rid of him. Especially since you’ve got the girls to worry about.”
“Thanks, Bill, but we can make that decision.”
“Suit yourself. I cleaned and dressed the wounds as best I could. He needs plenty of rest, but he might just make it. Judging by how he took the stitches and everything else, I’d say it’s nothing but bullheadedness that’s kept him alive this long.”
“What about his hands?” Sue asked with a wince.
“You saw ’em for yourself. They’re shot to hell, and there isn’t a damn thing I can do about that. Still, they’re not fatal wounds. By the looks of it, whoever shot him up was either trying to rip him apart or was just one hell of a bad shot. Since there was a knife involved, I’d put my money on the former.”
“What’s a knife got to do with it?” Doug asked.
“You have to get up close for it to work,” Mather replied warily. “Takes a bit more resolve.”
Doug nodded as if he was learning a foreign language. “Right. Of course.”
“So,” Mather said as he headed for the front door, “you want me to ask the marshal about your guest in there?”
Doug looked to his wife, but didn’t get much more than an uncertain shrug in return. Taking a deep breath and letting it out decisively, Doug said, “No. We’ll keep an eye on him until he’s feeling a little better.”
“That should give you until tomorrow at least,” Mather said. “He passed out when I was filing down the bone of one of his fingers. Anyone else, I’d say they would be laid up for a while, but that one in there will probably be trying to get up in the morning.”
Although he tried not to squirm at the casual way Mather tossed out those last few sentences, Doug wasn’t able to hide the fact that his face was now white as a sheet. “All right, then. What do I owe you for this?”
“We’ll work something out. Right now, I just want to get some sleep. Talk to you both later.” With that, Mather threw a wave over his shoulder and left.
Both Doug and Sue jumped at the sound of the slamming door.
“What in God’s name do we do now?” Sue asked in a frightened whisper. “That man may be a gun-fighter or an outlaw.”
“He doesn’t have a gun on him,” Doug said as if to comfort himself along with his wife. “And he’s in no shape to harm anyone, even if he…” Suddenly realizing he couldn’t comfort anyone by going along that line of thought, Doug stopped himself. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to think of anything better to say before one of his little girls came running into the room.
The girl wore a cute little blue dress, but was small enough that a potato sack could have covered her just as well. “Does the scary man want my blanket?” she asked.
“No, princess,” Doug said. “He’s sleeping just fine.”
Without another word, she nodded and ran off.
“You’ll keep an eye on him,” Sue said to her husband. “And you’ll have that gun close by when you do it. I’ll fix a plate for him in case he gets hungry during the night.”
And, just like that, the decision was made.
TWENTY
Every time Nick opened his eyes, he didn’t bother checking if it was night or day. Sometimes there was light streaming through his window and sometimes there wasn’t. The biggest problem was that he couldn’t get himself to care about where the sun happened to be. Most of the time, he wondered if he would be better off if he simply didn’t wake up at all.
Nick had never been given to self-pity, and he sure as hell hadn’t picked up anything like that from his father. In fact, Stasys’s voice passed through Nick’s mind more often than any other. He felt as though his father was constantly scolding him for the mess his life had become.
The smell of freshly baked bread drifted through the house, causing Nick to stir. No matter what else had happened or what was going through his mind, Nick was always glad to see the Hemphill family. Doug was quick with a joke and kept them coming even though Nick wasn’t in the mood to laugh. Sue always made him feel better, even by doing something as simple as dabbing his face with a wet cloth or rubbing his arm before she left. The children were heard more than seen, but their laughter would drown out the other echoes that drifted through Nick’s mind.
He never realized just how much attention he’d been paying to the sounds inside that house until a new one entered the mix. First, there was the creaking of the front door. Then, there was a rough voice from outside, which grew louder the longer it talked.
“I don’t think the question was too hard, Hemphill. All I asked was—”
“I know what you asked,” Doug cut in.
Nick winced at the angry tone in Doug’s voice. Although most folks sounded angry every now and then, Doug hadn’t raised his voice in such a way the entire time Nick had been there. In fact, it was difficult for Nick to picture what Doug might have looked like if he was angry.
When Doug continued, some of the edge was already missing from his voice. “I wish I could help you, but I just haven’t seen any strangers pass through here. It’s rare we even get to see you.”
“You can bullshit me all you want,” the first voice said, “but there’ve been reports of a man around here fitting this description. He’s wounded and he’s dangerous, so it ain’t a very good combination.”
Nick eased to the edge of the bed and then slowly got to his feet. It was an effort to stand up, but that was only because he’d been content to lie on his back and count the boards in the ceiling until now. He made it across the room and pressed his ear against the door.
“If I see anyone, I’ll let you know. That’s going to have to do for now, Marshal.”
Nick heard the hinges creak, but that sound was interrupted by a solid thump.
“Move your foot, Marshal,” Doug said.
There was a silence and then a lower, growling voice. Nick pressed his ear even harder against the door until he was able to pick out more of the marshal’s words.
“…friends that’re very interested about this fella. If I have to tell them you wouldn’t let me have a look inside, I’ll just have to let them come see for themselves.”
“Then tell them to come back on Sunday,” Doug said cheerily. “Sue’s making a cake.”
Nick waited to hear the marshal’s response, but all he heard was a shuffle and the creak of the door shutting. He opened the bedroom door to take a look out and saw Doug turning around to face him.
“Nick, you’re up!”