Give My All to Jessie (Third in Outlaw Series)

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

"Pa!" Kaitlyn exclaimed when she opened the door and found her pa standing on the porch. "What are you doing here?"

Marston pulled off his hat. "I thought you said I was welcome here anytime."

Kaitlyn laughed and hugged him tight. "Of course you are." Marston patted her back awkwardly and Kaitlyn had mercy on him and pulled away. "I thought maybe you'd forgotten where I lived," she added.

"I know damned well where you live," he grumbled. "I just don't want to stop by here in the middle of the day and find you and that husband of yours.... You know.."

Kaitlyn giggled behind her hand when Marston flushed a bit and stopped talking. "Hey there, Marston! What brings you by today?" Pete asked as he stepped up behind Kaitlyn, oblivious to his father-in-laws discomfort.

"Actually it's about Rose. She's sick," Marston admitted.

Kaitlyn stepped back and motioned him into the sitting room. "What's wrong with her?" Kaitlyn asked, seeing the tense set of her pa's jaw and the fatigue around his eyes.

He plopped his hat back on his head and sighed. "She seems convinced it's the stomach sickness that's been going around. I told her I'd stop in here and see if you had anything to help her."

Kaitlyn shook her head. "No, pa, I really don't. There's not much a person with the stomach sickness can do other than tough it out. Ginger tea might help her a bit though."

"I guess I'll be picking some up at the mercantile," Marston said.

"Marston, you look exhausted," Pete noted. "Why don't you sit down for a while and take a load off?"

Marston nodded and flopped down in the armchair. "I'm wore out," he muttered. "We just got done harvesting the crops. I haven't had more than five minutes to sit all summer. Being a farmer is hard and it makes me real tempted to go back to my outlaw ways. I just wish Langley would get his ass home so Rose could stop worrying."

"And you could too," Kaitlyn said gently.

Marston nodded and closed his eyes. "Yeah, I could too."

"Marston, while you're here why don't you take a look at this revolver I took off a man last week. It's not working right and I'm hoping you can do something with it."

Pete held out the gun and Kaitlyn threw up her hands. "Pete, he's tired!"

Marston just chuckled and took the revolver. "I knew there had to be some reason the boy wanted me to stay."

Marston studied the gun a while and nodded. "I'll take it down to the shop, Pete, and get it working good. I'll bring it back when it's done."

Kaitlyn walked her pa to the door and hugged him once again. "Do you have laudanum for mama's headaches?" she asked. "I have some you can take with you if you need it."

"She doesn't have headaches," Marston countered.

Kaitlyn frowned and scratched at her arm. "Are you sure? That's one of the main symptoms of this stomach sickness."

Pete came up behind Kaitlyn and squeezed her shoulders while Marston picked at a tear in his sleeve. "I'm sure. If she had headaches I'd know about them."

"What exactly are her other symptoms?" Kaitlyn asked, her suspicion building.

"Hell, I don't know. She seems more tired lately and she's been getting lightheaded. She gets nauseous every morning and every time she cooks....." Marston's voice trailed off as his eyes widened.