"Lou, I thought---" Millie hadn't more than opened the door before Lou was on her feet dragging the girl inside, slamming the door shut. The stunned Millie hit the wall as she looked at Lou with a perplexed look on her face. she was about to say something when her eyes fell on the sleeping person in the bed and she went pale. "Lou?" she gasped and then turned a shocked face to Lou as she realized that the person in the bed was a man, and an Indian at that! "Lou, you're not supposed to have men in your room!" Somehow she couldn't help feeling how stupid that sounded but she didn't know what else to say. When she looked into the upset face of Lou she turned slightly pale. "You can't tell anybody, Millie! Do you hear me? Not a soul!" Lou hissed as she cursed herself for not locking the door. "But---" Millie began in a low voice, afraid of wakening the man up. "No 'but', Millie - you've got to promise me!" "But why - what's going on?" Then she looked at Lou with a troubled face. "Are you in trouble Lou?" she whispered. Lou tried to calm down - Millie looked scared and upset, but at least she hadn't stormed out of the room or started talking in a loud voice. "Well, sort of," she admitted. "Millie, you've gotta promise me not to tell anybody - can you do that?" Millie thought for a second and then she nodded. Lou was the first one that hadn't just ignored her and she really wished to have her as a friend. She just hoped that she wasn't doing the wrong thing. "Why are he here?" she asked and nodded towards Buck. "He's sick," Lou replied and suddenly realized how tired she was. In her anger over Millie's entrance she had completely forgotten about that. A loud noise from the stove also reminded her of something else. "Darn," she mumbled and quickly walked over to where a kettle almost was boiling dry. She had completely forgotten about the mullein. She quickly tried to remove the kettle with the intent to add more water. She hadn't more than picked it up before she dropped it again, shaking her hand to rid herself of the burning sensation. Millie, with a cautious eye on Buck, quickly walked over to her. "What are you doing?" she asked in a low voice, as she wrapped her apron around her hand and easily lifted the kettle of the stove. "I'm trying to fix some medicine," Lou muttered as she blew on her hand. "Mrs. Abell gave me something that's supposed to bring fever down, but it ain't helping much." "Willow bark or mullein?" Millie asked as she refilled the kettle. "Mullein," Lou said with a hint of surprise. "How did you know?" "Mrs. Abell uses all kind of herbal medicines," Millie explained. "I usually help her when the girls get sick." "Does it ever work?" Lou asked. "Always," Millie assured her. "Or at least I think so - I'm mean they all recovered, so I supposed it work," she added uncertainly. "Go figure," Lou said, using one of Jimmy's favorite phrases without thinking of it. Well, there weren't anything else to do so she reached for the small bottle of mullein. Millie watched her tentatively. "Are you planning to add that now?" she asked carefully. Lou turned to her with a question in her face. "It's better to wait a few more minutes," Millie quickly add, hoping not to anger Lou. "I'll show you." She took the bottle from Lou and with a sure hand measured up twice the amount Lou had been using and waited until the water had simmered down before pouring it in. Then she took the kettle off the stove and place it to the side. "If the water stops simmering, you just place it back on the stove," she instructed, "just make sure it doesn't boil again." Lou suddenly felt close to tears. She was tired from lack of sleep and the knowledge that all she had been doing to help Buck was wrong made her feel even more exhausted than before. Suddenly Millie's presence became irritating. "Thanks," she sneered. "I think I can handle it from here. Why don't you get back to your room and get some sleep too?" Millie stepped back when she heard the irritation in Lou's voice. "I was just trying to help," she mumbled. "Well, the best way for you to help is to keep your mouth shut and forget you ever saw him," Lou nodded towards the bed, hoping that Millie would leave. To her annoyance Millie remained in the room staring oddly at her. "What is it now?" Lou asked. Millie glanced around the room and before turning to her with a shocked expression in her face. "Lou," she whispered, "where do you sleep?" Lou had a mind telling her that it wasn't her business, but remembering Millie's kindness in making her breakfast she sighed. "On the floor." "But ---" Millie objected then hesitated. "You should get some sleep - you'll not be able to work tonight otherwise." "Well," Lou said, her irritation returning, "I might be able to get just that if I was left alone." "But you'll have to give him this every half hour," Millie objected. "You know what, Millie, that's my problem. Now why don't you just leave?" Millie looked at Lou. She looked as if she could fall to the floor at any minute and in sudden burst of devotion for a friend Millie did something she'd never even considered normally. Groping in the pocket of her apron, she found her key. "Here," she said simply. "Use my room and get some sleep. It's no 4, just down the hall to the right." Lou stared at her. She desperately needed to sleep, but Millie's offer was so unexpected that all she could do was stare. Millie swallowed. "I'll keep an eye on your friend while you rest." Lou looked suspiciously at Millie. She had seen the fear and hesitation in her face when she first had entered the room. "You're sure?" she asked. "I've done this before," Millie replied with more security than she felt. To be honest, she wasn't at all sure she would be comfortable being on her own in a room with an Indian, even if he was sick. But Lou was a friend, or she hoped she would be. And Millie hadn't had too many of them in her life. Still Lou hesitated. However, the possibility to lay down on a bed and get some rest was too much for her to turn down. And Millie was better at this than her. Besides, she was of no use to neither Buck or herself in her present condition. Gratefully, she accepted the key. "Thank you", she said with sincerity. "If there's is anything, you'll come and get me right?" "Immediately," Millie agreed. Lou was about to leave when Millie held her back. "What happened to him?" she asked with a frown. "He was shot," Lou replied, "and his name is Buck." "He's your ---?" "No," Lou shook her head knowing what Millie was thinking, "no, he's not my boyfriend - but he's a very good friend. He's like a brother." "Oh." Lou walked over to Buck just to find that he was still asleep or unconscious, she wasn't sure which and with a sigh she left the room, hoping she was doing the right thing.
Millie closed the door after Lou and turned back to the room. It would be a few more minutes before the mullein decoct was ready, so she simply stayed where she was, looking carefully at the man resting in the bed. Slowly, as if she feared that he would wake up at any minute she edged herself closer to the bed. The man in the bed was definitely Indian or at least part Indian from what she could see, although he was awfully pale. Beads of sweat showed on his forehead and his sleep was restless although he didn't move around to much. She could see his lips moving as if he was mumbling something, but she couldn't hear a sound. Placing herself on the chair Lou had vacated, she noticed the bowl with water and the rag next to it. With one eye on Buck, she dipped the rag in the water and wrung it out before carefully wiping away the sweat on his face. She tried to be as gentle as possible as she didn't wanted to wake him up. Actually she was a bit scared of him waking up. What would he do when he found her there instead of Lou? Stop that, she told herself. Lou wouldn't have left you here if you were in any danger. Lou trusted you, so you better trust her.
Three hours later Millie noticed with satisfaction that the fever had gone down and Buck was sleep was easier. It hadn't been easy getting him to drink the mullein drink, but Millie had done that before when she had helped Mrs. Abell when one of the girls had been sick. Of course none of them had ever been shot. Millie had no experience of gun wounds but she did know about fever. She couldn't help wondering if the wound shouldn't be redressed or something like that as she prepared another batch of the mullein drink. Better leave that to Lou, she thought as she suddenly became aware of a movement in the room. Gasping she quickly turned around to find a pair of dark eyes looking confused at her. She couldn't help it as her throat went dry and she raised one hand towards her throat as if to protect herself. "Who are you?" Buck croaked as he stared at the young girl. He had never seen her before and he couldn't see Lou anywhere. What had happened? he thought confused as he desperately tried to remember. "Where's Lou?" He stared at the girl who looked back at him with a scared look in her eyes. Why was she scared? he pondered. Had it something to do with Lou not being there? He desperately needed answers, but the girl was silent. Millie desperately tried to collect herself. You're acting as a silly goose, she reprimanded herself. It's Lou's friend, and he's probably more confused than you're right now. She swallowed hard and finally found her voice. "Louise is resting," she said trying to sound as confident as she could. Buck stared at the girl. He was still suffering from fever and the pain in his side had not diminished. The girl had said Lou was resting. Then where was she? And why had she told this girl about him? The thought irritated him. It was bad enough that Lou was in trouble because of him, and now she had dragged another girl into this. If he was found they would be in trouble for hiding him. not only was he suspected of murder, but he was also Indian, or rather worse, a half-breed. Didn't Lou realize this? And apart from that he still had to figure out who this girl was. Could they trust her? Or was all of this just a trap? Was Lou in danger somewhere? Thoughts whirled in his tired head and he fought in vain to get a clear idea of what was going on. Then he realized that there was something else that bothered him about the girl. She was scared. For a second he wondered what she was scared of until it dawned on him. She was scared of him. He should have seen it sooner - he had seen that look often enough. She was scared of him because he was half Indian. What an irony, he thought, he was confined to a bed, probably even to weak to stand up without feeling dizzy and yet she was afraid of him because the color of his skin. It didn't matter that he recognized the scared look in her eyes, it never mattered how many times he saw it in people he met. It still hurt that people judged him before they had a chance to get to know him. He turned away from the girl, not sure of what he was going o say. He wished Lou was back from wherever she was. The girl had said she was resting, so he could only hope that she would be back soon. Millie saw him turn away from her. Confusion and bewilderment slowly took over the first fear. He didn't look dangerous, she thought to herself. Then she realized that she must have appeared stupid. He must have seen her reaction. He probably thought she was an idiot, being scared of a sick man. Gathering what courage she had she poured the now finished mullein brew into a mug, and with a pounding heart approached the bed. "You should drink this," she said in a low voice. Buck turned to her and watch her holding out a mug to him. "What is it?" he mumbled, not ready to trust her. "It helps keep the fever down - it's mullein." Still hesitant, but as he slowly remembered that Lou had given him the same thing, he reluctantly accepted the mug. The mug shook in his trembling hands and finally Millie realized that he was worse off than she had thought and with that thought came another. She was supposed to help him get well - and she knew how. Being Mrs. Abell's help and assistant whenever someone was sick, Millie had acquired one skill in her life, although she wasn't aware of it yet; the nursing skill. Somehow she managed to put all her fears and doubts in her ability aside and with a firm hand she reached out and took the mug from Buck's trembling hands before he'd managed to spill. Helping Buck to a more upright position she then made sure that he drank every drop of the mullein. Satisfied with that she let his head fall back onto the pillows. "How are you feeling?" Millie asked with a new sincerity in her voice. Buck looked up at her. "I'm better than before," he admitted, wondering if he should ask her again where Lou was. "I guess that's the mullein's doing," Millie concluded, experiencing an odd feeling of accomplishment that suddenly made her feel a lot better than she used to. Buck didn't reply. He was still too tired and sick, but he slowly had begun to realize that Millie was not a threat. He was still puzzled about her being there, but an intense headache stopped him from pondering the matter too much. Instead he just sank back in bed and closed his eyes, until he heard Millie's voice again. "Have you eaten anything?" The thought of food reminded him that he hadn't eaten properly for the last few days. Not that he felt very hungry at the moment, he was too tired to, but still he couldn't help longing for food. "No." "You're hungry then?" Buck forced himself to look up at Millie, who smiled nervously at him. Buck couldn't help wondering how Lou ever had gotten to know this girl - she was so far from Lou in everything that he had a hard time imaging them together. "No, can't say I am," he mumbled, "I'm just tired." "I'm sorry - should have known you wanted to rest." Millie looked down at her hands, all confidence gone. "I - I'll tell Lou you're feeling better," she added and fled the room. She remembered to lock it before she left, in case someone else would get the idea of looking inside and then quickly walked over to her room.
Jimmy walked down the streets of Sweetwater towards the marshal's office after spending three useless hours playing checkers with James. They had talked about everything, Jimmy hoping that it would help ease the boy enough to talk with him about his father's death. But as soon as the subject came up, all he could get out of the boy was the worry that they hadn't caught the Indian that had killed his father. Jimmy was especially irritated that the boy had questioned why he, Jimmy, wasn't helping them catch the killer. Jimmy didn't know what to think - on one hand he believed the boy on the other he couldn't find in his heart that Buck had killed the man. There just had to be another answer. Maybe the boy didn't know, he thought, maybe there was someone else out there at that time. Teaspoon had said that Emery might have been out there as well. Why hadn't the boy seen him? Had Emery talked to the boy - told him to point out Buck as the murderer? Somehow he doubt it - he would have seen that. No boy could live with that pressure, not for long. Or could he? What if Emery threatened to hurt the boy or somebody else in the family? Was Emery capable of such cruelty? He had always thought the man was a coward, but the past weeks events proved there was more to Emery than they had thought. The man's actions the night they tried to hang Buck spoke more than words. Deep in thoughts he was startled when somebody called out his name. "Hickok!" Jimmy spun around and looked in surprise at the man leaning at one of the poles to the hotel. "You," he gasped. "What are you doing here?" "Making a living, like the rest of you - but I can honestly say that when I first heard that there was an reward for an Express rider, I was sure it was you. Of course I had to get over here - always believed you belonged behind bars, Hickok." The man grinned at him as he picked up a cigar from his west pocket and lighted it. "You're here 'cause the reward?" Jimmy felt his throat go dry. "What else," Jake Colter replied casually. "Was just on my way when I saw you." |
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