A Gideon Johann Boxed Set Book 1 - 4 (A Gideon Johann Western 0)

by Duane Boehm

  “You mean to tell me that you would let an innocent man be found guilty of murder and not do anything about it?” the doctor said.

  “Doc, I am not proud about it, but I can’t bring Mr. Vander back to life and if I have a choice between Gideon and some cowboy that beat the hell out of me, I will take Gideon every time. Please, let’s move on,” she said.

  “This man must be one mean son of a bitch for you to fear him so. I’m going to have to give you some chloroform to put you out and get Delta to help hold you down while I work. It won’t knock out all the pain,” he said.

  After retrieving Delta from the back room of the saloon, Doc Abram poured some chloroform onto a white kerchief that he kept in his bag. “I’m going to cover your mouth and nose with this and you will feel like you are suffocating, but you must trust me that you are not. It is not pleasant, but it beats the pain,” he said.

  “Don’t you think that I could just bear the pain?” Mary asked.

  “If you jump when I cut you, I’m liable to lay you wide open or cut off my finger. Outcomes that I have no desire to experience,” Doc said as he covered her face with the kerchief.

  Mary became agitated, followed by delirium, before struggling to sit up as Delta and the doctor held her down until she grew still. The doctor moved her arms down by her sides and then instructed Delta to sit on her to hold her down. He sprayed his scalpel with carbolic acid before deftly slicing the wound back open so quickly that by the time Mary reacted to the pain by almost bucking Delta off her, it was done. Pus spurted from the wound as Doc started cleaning the infected flesh. After he had cleaned it to his satisfaction, he poured iodine into the cut and sewed it shut as Delta fought to keep her still.

  “Do you think that she will be okay, Doc?” Delta asked when he had finished.

  “I think so. She is young and strong and I think I got it all cleaned. She should have gotten me when it happened,” he said.

  “I tried to go get you, but she would have none of it,” Delta said.

  “Just remember that being a good friend doesn’t always mean doing what they requested, but what they need,” Doc admonished.

  “Yes, sir, I will from now on,” she said.

  “Can you stay in here with her until she gets her senses back about her and I will check on her later,” the doctor asked.

  “Sure thing, Doc Abram. I’ll be happy to do it,” Delta said.

  “By the way, do you know who the person is that did this to her?” Doc asked.

  “No, sir, she wouldn’t tell me. I have no idea,” she said.

  “Okay. I’ll see you later and thank you for your help,” he said as he left the room and headed to his office, mumbling all the way back about the predicament in which he found himself.

  It was midafternoon before the doctor peeked out his window and saw Gideon’s horse tied up in front of the jail. He quickly ambled across the street and into the office. “Where have you been all day?” he asked.

  “Old man Riley thought that he had some cattle rustled, but we found them grazing in a ravine. Sheriff Fuller had already warned me that this happens every once in a while,” Gideon said.

  “You need to go see Mary,” Doc said.

  “I was in the saloon last night and Delta said that she was not feeling well. I got the impression that it was female troubles,” Gideon said.

  “You need to go talk to her anyway,” Doc said.

  “Doc, if she isn’t feeling well, I don’t think that she will want company,” Gideon said.

  “Gosh darn it, quit being such a lunkhead. As a doctor, I took an oath never to divulge medical information about my patients. So if I had one that had the hell beat out of her and a knife taken to her breast, I could not tell you about it anyway,” Doc roared.

  Gideon rubbed the back of his neck and set his jaw. “Who did it?” he asked.

  “I don’t have a clue. She won’t tell and he has scared the hell out of her. He promised to kill you if she did not sell the saloon to him. And you have the wrong man locked up. The guy that cut her, killed Vander,” Doc said.

  “Son of a bitch. Why didn’t she get me? She knows that I would protect her,” Gideon said.

  “He has scared her so badly that she is not being rational and then there is what he did to her,” Doc said.

  “How bad is she?” Gideon asked.

  “Go see for yourself. I haven’t violated my oath yet if you don’t think about it too hard,” Doc said.

  Out of habit, Gideon worked his revolver up and down in its holster until satisfied it was moving freely. “Sounds like I have me a bad one on my hands. That girl cannot seem to have any luck. Thank you, Doc,” he said as he looked the doctor in the eyes.

  “You take care of yourself. Use your head and don’t get caught up in emotion,” Doc said.

  Gideon marched down the street and stormed into the saloon, scanning the faces of the surprised patrons before climbing the stairs two at a time. He already knew that it was Hiatt from looking him in the eyes as the gambler stared coldly back at him from the bar. All that Gideon needed was for Mary to confirm it. Trying to open the door to her room, he found it locked.

  “Mary, it’s Gideon. Let me in,” he said.

  “Gideon, I’m sick. Please leave me alone,” Mary pleaded.

  “Mary, let me in now,” Gideon said sternly.

  “Go away,” she yelled.

  He raised his leg and slammed the sole of his boot into the door, knocking it open and entering her room. “Oh, my God. He did work you over,” he said, anger rising in his voice.

  “I made that damn doctor promise me to keep his mouth shut. You can’t trust anybody,” she screamed.

  “He told me that I needed to come see you. This here is a visit. How bad are you hurt?” Gideon said.

  “I’m feeling better. Doc had to work on me today and it hurts like hell, but I don’t feel as feverish as I did,” Mary said.

  “Mary, you have to tell me what is going on. I need to help you,” Gideon pleaded.

  “Gideon, it’s all settled. I’m selling this place. Let’s just say we had some intense negotiations. You need to stay out of it,” she said.

  “Like hell I will. You know me better than that. Now who did this?” Gideon demanded.

  “Please just go. I do not feel up to having this conversation,” Mary said.

  “So you are going to let an innocent man be found guilty for a crime he did not commit, let Mr. Vander’s real murder go free, and throw away what Vander gave you all to save me. Mary, you are better than that,” he said.

  “That big mouth doctor. He’s the one that needs shot,” Mary shouted.

  “You either tell me or I’m walking downstairs with my gun drawn and I’m pretty sure that somebody will start shooting. It would be nice to know which one of them down there it is ahead of time,” Gideon said.

  “Maybe this makes me a bad person but I do not care. I’m not about to let you get killed,” Mary said.

  “Why are you so sure that I will? I think I know how to take care of myself,” he said.

  “You have a second chance at life. Take it,” she pleaded.

  “And let you throw away your second chance? I don’t think so. It’s that gambler Hiatt anyway. I saw the meanness in his eyes coming into the saloon. I’m going for him,” Gideon said and turned to walk out the door.

  Mary stiffly jumped up, wrapping her arms around his waist, and locking her legs. “Damn it, Gideon, stop. He’ll kill you going down the stairs,” she said.

  “Mary, it’s my job. I have to do this. It is Hiatt, right?” he said.

  “Yes, it’s Hiatt, but listen a minute. Calm yourself down so that you can think straight and go down the backstairs and through the back room into the saloon. Maybe he will not see you before you get to him, but Gideon, he promised me that he would kill you on sight and he meant it. I couldn’t bear that,” Mary cried out.

  He stopped pulling away from Mary and turned around, placing his hands
on her shoulders. “It’s going to be okay. I promise. Get to bed and I’ll come back when this is over. I appreciate your loyalty, but I can’t let this happen,” he said.

  Gideon took the steps two at a time down the backstairs and through the room where Vander had been murdered. Cracking open the door into the saloon, Hiatt was still standing at the bar with his attention on the front stairs. Gideon drew his revolver and came charging, raising the gun above his head with the intention of crashing it into Hiatt’s skull. The gambler caught sight of him out of the corner of his eye and to Gideon’s surprise, swiftly drew his gun, firing wildly at him from four steps away. The bullet missed but the percussion of the shot hit Gideon hard, knocking him backward and stunning him. As he fought to regain his balance, he saw Hiatt jump behind the bar, sending Delta, the bartender, and the rest of the patrons scurrying to safety. There was little time to get to cover before Hiatt would start shooting from behind the bar. Gideon ran across the saloon and dove behind a table just as another shot thudded into the floor near him.

  “Hiatt, you need to come out and surrender,” Gideon called out as he turned a table over for cover.

  “Looks like to me that you are the one that needs to surrender. I’m the one behind the bar and you’re out in the open,” Hiatt hollered.

  Gideon knew that Hiatt was right. The table would barely slow a bullet. Its only real purpose was to hide his position. He pointed his revolver towards the bar waiting for sight of the gambler. Hiatt peeked around the end of the bar and Gideon fired his gun, taking a piece out of the heavy wooden bar. Gideon then ran and dove behind another table, drawing another shot from the gambler.

  Cursing himself for not emerging from the back room with his gun pointed at Hiatt ready to shoot if necessary instead of thinking that he could subdue him without endangering the patrons with gunfire, Gideon realized that his best chance was to try to get the gambler to empty his revolver and charge him as he reloaded. He knew that even this plan would be precarious as many gamblers carried a Derringer in their jacket. From behind the bar, Hiatt’s gun and just enough of his head to take aim appeared and fired again, sending a three–inch splinter from the table into Gideon’s left arm. Gideon returned fire, but there was not enough time or view of Hiatt to have a chance to hit him.

  Mary was lying in her bed and crying, sure that Gideon was in peril. In her heart, she had always known that this would end badly. Willing herself to take action with a strength that she did not feel she possessed, she got out of bed and reached under it where she kept her dead husband Eugene’s shotgun wrapped in a blanket. She had only shot it a couple of times in her life but kept it there loaded nonetheless. Cocking both barrels, she headed towards the front stairs. The stairs overlooked the bar and as she peeked around the corner she saw Hiatt crouched behind it. Mary did not hesitate to consider life and death – nothing crossed her mind but saving Gideon. She moved the shotgun into position, aiming at the gambler just as he took sight of her and raised his gun. Pulling both triggers, she watched Hiatt’s head explode.

  Gideon, seeing Mary shoot and not knowing whether she had hit Hiatt, charged the bar in hopes of saving her. The sight that he viewed was almost sickening to even him, a seasoned veteran, which had seen more gruesome deaths in the war than he cared to remember. Holstering his gun, he ran up the stairs to Mary. She was sitting on the top stair with the shotgun on the landing.

  “Are you okay?” Gideon asked.

  “I’m fine. You’re hurt,” Mary said and pointed to his arm.

  Gideon noticed the shard of wood sticking through his shirt and the blood for the first time. Grabbing the splinter and pulling it out, he said, “I’m fine too. It’s just a splinter. Let’s get you back into bed.”

  The door to the saloon flung open and Zack came running through it with his gun drawn. “Are you okay?” he hollered upon seeing them on the stairs.

  “We’re fine. Thanks for coming,” Gideon said.

  “Why didn’t you come get me?” Zack asked.

  “I didn’t know where you were and you are not a real deputy. This wasn’t your fight, but I certainly appreciate your bravery. I have to get her upstairs and then you can help me clean up, if you would,” Gideon said as he helped Mary to her feet.

  As Gideon walked Mary to her bed, he asked, “Are you going to be okay?”

  Mary looked him in the eyes and smiled sadly. “I’m going to be fine. I killed a bad man, saved my saloon, and helped my friend. What’s there to feel bad about?” she said.

  Gideon leaned over and kissed her forehead. “If you need anything, just send for me. You probably saved my life. I had gotten myself into a bit of a pickle. You’re kind of handy to have around,” he said.

  “You’re kind of handy yourself,” Mary said as she lay back in the bed.

  Gideon and Zack had to locate a sack to tie over Hiatt’s head before they could carry him to the cabinetmaker. Delta tried to help them clean things up but ended up running into the street and vomiting. The two men busied themselves with scrubbing the blood and brains up as a crowd watched through the windows of the saloon. It took over an hour to get everything back to looking normal.

  “There are some new bullet holes to add some character to the place,” Zack said.

  “I hope the next time that they aren’t aimed my way,” Gideon said.

  “That’s for sure,” Zack replied.

  “I guess that I better go release Tyler Biggs from jail. This man, Hiatt, is the one that killed Mr. Vander,” Gideon said to Zack.

  “At least he will be gone. He never shuts up,” Zack said.

  “I expect he will have something to say now too,” Gideon said as they began walking to the jail.

  Biggs was sleeping as Gideon entered the cell area and unlocked the door. “Biggs, you are free to go. I found out that you are innocent,” Gideon said.

  Biggs followed Gideon out to the office area. “I told you that I was innocent. You think you’re so damn smart and know it all. You owe me an apology,” he said.

  Gideon spun around and caught Biggs on the jaw with a right hook that had his whole body thrown into the punch. Biggs dropped as if he had been shot. Gideon leaned over him, grabbing his shirt and lifting him off the ground. “Your horse is in the stable. If I ever see you or Runt in this town again I will beat the life out of you. You’ll think what Mr. Vander did to you was nothing. Do I make myself understood?” he said.

  Gideon waited until Biggs nodded his head before letting him up and then watched him walk woozily out of the jail. “I think getting shot at today has made me a tad irritable,” he said to Zack as the door to the jail closed and he started rubbing his knuckles.

  Chapter 17

  Abby had not told the girls or anyone else about Gideon’s marriage proposal. Her excitement was mixed with dread over how Winnie and Joann would react. There was no doubt that Winnie would take the news hard, and with Joann, Abby had no idea if it would appease the girl’s worries or upset her more. She still found it odd that Joann was not excited that her parents were finally together even if the relationships were not the normal parents and daughter variety. Joann and Abby’s relationship was becoming much more mother and daughter like even though she had no misgivings that she would ever replace Aunt Rita as Joann’s true mother. Gideon and Joann had certainly bonded, but their relationship was still evolving and trying to find its natural place.

  Abby planned to tell the girls her news that night after dinner. She walked into the parlor to recruit them to help prepare the meal and found them huddled on the sofa whispering softly between themselves.

  “What’s going on girls? Looks like some big secret,” Abby said.

  “Abs, Winnie and I want to talk to you,” Joann said.

  Abby sat down in the chair facing them. “What is on your mind?” she asked.

  Winnie looked towards her big sister to begin the conversation. Joann cleared her throat before beginning. “Abs, you know that Winnie and I have worries about y
ou seeing Gideon. We both are afraid that you will get hurt and end up with nobody. The more that I get to know Gideon, the better that I like him, but sometimes you can see the pain that he has experienced and I don’t think he will ever settle down and be comfortable with happiness,” she began.

  “I see. So you think that I need advice from an eight and a seventeen year old on love and life,” Abby said as she crossed her arms against her chest.

  “Abs, please be fair. We are just concerned and don’t want to see you end up alone. If you divorce Marcus and then Gideon runs off, you aren’t going to have a lot of options for a man. I think the good ones will be taken and you aren’t getting any younger. You and Marcus may have had some troubles, but you had a life together and Winnie. There’s still time to save your marriage,” Joann said.

  Abby studied her two daughters. Her natural inclination was to fly into a rage and set them straight, but a part of her wanted to laugh at the earnestness in which they were dispensing advice to their mother and it was certainly better than them not caring at all. “I just turned thirty–five, thank you. I’m not ready for the rocking chair and I can tell you that it does not feel much different than seventeen did except that I’m a whole lot smarter. I think that I know what I’m doing. I can understand Winnie feeling this way, but I would think that you would be way more open minded about me getting back with your father,” she said.

  “It’s not that I don’t care for Gideon. Believe me, I do, but he can’t ride into my life and you expect him to suddenly replace Marcus any more than you would expect him to replace Papa just because he is my real father. Seeing you divorce Marcus is hard on both of us,” Joann said.

  “Winnie, do you have anything to add?” Abby asked her daughter.

  “I just want to go home and everything be like it was,” Winnie said.

  “Well, girls, I had some news that I was saving for tonight after dinner, but there is no time like the present. Gideon has asked me to marry him and I said yes. He is not going anywhere. We plan to buy his old homestead and rebuild it back. So Joann, you can stop worrying that he will leave. I know Gideon Johann and Gideon would certainly never have asked me unless he was sure about it. Winnie, I know this is hard, but you have to understand that I am doing what is best for me and that you will always have your daddy and you will still see him all the time. Things will be different, but you will get used to it,” Abby said.