The Last Patrol

[Elegant Ella]

Ella found Fritz and Bo talking to the guard.  She remembered his name was Malcomb Higgins.

"Gentlemen, could you give me a hand, please?"

Bo and Fritz followed her into the building. Once they were out of earshot of Malcomb, she told Fritz, "Scarlet would like your help washing her back, once she finishes washing her hair. So, give her a couple minutes, and knock loudly. There are extra towels in there, if you want to wash off as well. Bo and I will see you later at Cyrus's camp."

She let Bo sit a couple minutes while she hung up the washed clothes in her room. Once done, she picked up her writing desk, and they went out again. "See you later, Mister Higgins. Once you get off duty, you could come join us for dinner at the scout camp. I think we're having venison stew with cornbread." She took Bo's arm and walked down the steps.

[1stSgt Fritz King]

Fritz waited a reasonable amount of time...about two minutes, and then knocked loudly on the door.

"Who is it?"

Fritz grinned.  "I hear your back needs a scrubbin."

"There's only one man alive I'd let touch my back."

"Then I guess today's your lucky day!"

"If you think you're man enough to handle me," Scarlet purred, "come on in."

Fritz opened the door.  She'd stood in the tub, her back to him.  His eyes followed the golden river of hair down to the curve of her hips.  She looked over one shoulder and smiled.  "Hi honey...are you ready for me?"

Fritz closed and bolted the door behind him.  He hung his gunbelt on a hook, but carried the short Colt, and laid it on a table near the tub.

"It seems to me," Fritz replied, "that the best way to clean a woman's backside...I mean, back, is to get close."

Scarlet giggled.  He like the sound of it.

"How close would you like to get?"

Scarlet turned, showing him her all.

"Damn, I'm a lucky man."

She smiled.  "You're about to get luckier still."

He stepped closer.  Scarlet slid one hand behind his neck, and drew him into a passionate kiss.  The other found the way to the buttons on his blouse.   

[Scarlet Angel]

Scarlet finished buttoning her shirt. Looking up she caught the reflection of Fritz's smile in the mirror as he watched her.

"I will have to remember to thank Ella for telling you she'd be out of the room most of the day." He said.

"Me too." Scarlet replied crossing the room to the corner of the bed where Fritz sat getting ready to pull on his boots.

She leaned down and kissed him. He looked up at her when their lips parted. His eyes sparkled in the light. 

"What are you thinking?" She asked softly.

"I was wondering how you do it."

Scarlet grinned and her eyes danced. "I thought you knew by now." She said teasingly causing him to laugh.

Fritz put his arms around her and pulled her down on the bed. "You've been in the saddle for a week and sleeping on the ground." He ran his fingers through her hair which he'd watched her dry over the stove in the corner. "and you look great."

"What did you expect?"  She said smiling.

"I expected you to be tired...and hungry." He said recalling she'd eaten little of what the private had brought back. "So I was wondering how you do that."

He felt her stretch beneath him as she traced her fingers lightly down the back of his neck and along his spine.

"People draw their strength and energy from different things. To ride a fine stallion does not tire me. It's something I enjoy. He knows what I like and responds well to my touch." Scarlet purred pulling him into a long passionate kiss.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"It must be true." Scarlet said turning from the mirror where she was brushing her hair for the second time.

"What's that Milady?" Fritz said watching her with the smile she loved so much.

"Black beard says I know how to treat people when I like them."

"I hope you don't treat all the men you like that well." He teased.

She grinned and sashayed over to him. "Why Mr. Frisky, you should know there is only one man I treat like that."

His grin widened. "And why does he get special treatment?" He said standing and wrapping his arms around her.

"Cuz he has my heart Darlin'." She said with a kiss. "So he gets extra special treatment, because I love him a great deal." Scarlet ran her fingers along his chest. "You gonna button that before you take me to meet your men?"

"I will button it. But you need to put one on before I take you out to meet them."

"I had it on and you took it away from me. Got my trousers and gunbelt though." She giggled as she turned to find her shirt.

[Elegant Ella]

Cyrus asked, "Why did you spend more money than I am paying you to buy food for everyone?"

Ella looked up from her inventory. "I don't like what the Army calls food, and Scarlet and I are both trying to eat better. It didn't make sense to make the effort of bribing a wagon driver and then order only enough for me and my friends. This is only a couple weeks worth for your scouts and Fritz's men. I didn't get any coffee or bacon. You can get that from the mess tent. I do hope you will invite Fritz's men to eat with the scouts regularly. I'm counting on the scouts to provide the meat to go in the stews and soups, and to do most of the cooking work. I hope you and Fritz can convince the cook into giving us a reasonable allotment of uncooked beans. Cooking is more fun when you have real food to start from."

Paul, who had been helping with the inventory, looked up at Cyrus, "That's for sure. Cooking with hardtack, beans and bacon gets real boring, and eating that mess isn't any more interesting. But when you can add onions, then beans and bacon get to be worth eating."

"I even got the dried chili peppers I asked for," exclaimed Ella, holding up a small cloth sack.  She had been surprised to acquire a taste for chili beans and spicy food back in Tucson.

They finished the inventory, then Paul set a crew to work making a venison stew while Ella wrote her letters.  He used Ella's small Dutch oven as well as his own big one to bake cornbread. Ella sat on one of the log seats around the cook fire with her back to one of the tents. Chris promptly started a dice game behind her.  From the comments she was overhearing, others in Cyrus's crew was anxious to get back from Chris what he had won from them by betting on Scarlet.

She made many starts and stops on the letter to Alan. The important part of the message was that she would be able to receive telegraph messages here. It was hard to tell him how much she missed him and wanted to see him again. It was even harder to express her need to hear from him, to hear whether he still loved her.  She didn't say, couldn't say, that she needed reassurance from him to help her resist the urgings of her dreams.

Whenever she felt herself at a loss for words, she put that letter down and worked on the account of the trip out to visit the Cheyenne that she would send Deborah. She didn't know how much sympathy Alan would have for a raped woman who killed her abuser. It certainly was not a story Alan would be able to share with Dr. Abramson. The story of capturing the end of Firehorse Charley's gang would go into both letters. The story of the fight against Dick would go into neither.

It was an hour before sunset when she addressed the envelopes and sealed the letters. They went into a packet with enough money for the postage and a tip for Jesse.

She set the desk down, stood up and dusted herself off. Looking around, she saw that the dice game was breaking up.  "I've got a couple errands to run," she announced. It was interesting to watch the group decide who was going to escort her. Previously, Chris had been able to claim a position as her escort by being strongest, but today, he seemed to think he was in the doghouse. After a couple rounds of glaring, Frank and Joe stepped forward. The scouts had learned very fast that outright fighting for the duty of escorting her would cause Ella to refuse the services of the winners.

Joe carried the small pot of stew and empty bowls, and Frank carried the packet. The first stop was the stockade to give dinner to Jimmy and the guard. The other stop was the wagon yard, where Jesse was happy to promise to deliver her letters to the nearest post office, the one at Fort Laramie, and send them on their way.

Back at camp, she pretended that the campfire was candles, and said the blessing welcoming the Sabbath while the sun went down.

[Elegant Ella]

Boston, Friday May 4

A knock at the door interrupted Alan and Deborah's after-dinner conversation.  Deborah came back from answering it and said, "Doctor Coatsworth, I'm sorry to disturb your Sabbath, but I would appreciate it if you could bring your kit and accompany me this evening. A Caesarian delivery may be needed."

"Of course, Mrs. Erdbeer.  Better that I escort you now than be summoned later," he replied, heading for his room to check the contents of his bag and pick it up.

It was a mild evening as they walked with the messenger to the home of one of Deborah's patients.

Once there, Alan headed for the kitchen to start preparing it to use as a surgery while Deborah went to examine her patient. After taking off his jacket and rolling up his sleeves, he built up the fire in the stove, put his instruments in a pan of water on the stove, then cleared and scrubbed the kitchen table and counters while waiting for the water to boil.

He laid out the rest of the contents of his case that might be needed. He didn't have a portable mister for carbolic acid, but he hadn't seen any problem caused by lack of a carbolic acid spray during previous Caesarians. Deborah had bleached and ironed Alan's apron before wrapping it in waxed linen. She seemed to have the same standards for cleanliness as Ella. Ella had insisted on clean equipment during the War. That had been one of the ways she and her aunt had annoyed older surgeons, whose fancy sets of tools could not be boiled or cleaned thoroughly because of ivory or ebony handles.

Deborah appeared at the door of the kitchen, helping her patient. Alan moved to assist at getting the woman settled and comfortable on the table.  While Deborah administered ether, Alan scrubbed his hands again, then used tongs to pull his instruments out of the boiling water and onto the prepared tray.

"She's ready for you, Doctor."

Alan worked quickly, and soon had pulled twins out of the womb. Deborah took each infant from him. Both babies cried a little weakly at first, but the cries soon gained in strength. He stitched everything closed, then removed the patient's mask. She was starting to stir before he finished dressing the incision.

Deborah presented the mother with her son and daughter, then put the babies in the bassinet waiting for them. Alan helped the father carry his wife to her bed, while Deborah followed with the bassinet. Alan returned to the kitchen to clean up and put his instruments away.

The father came in with a bottle and poured glasses for Alan and himself. "Thank you. Those are the biggest twin babies I have ever seen! I was worried when I found out Hannah was carrying twins, since her sister had died after giving birth to twins a couple years ago. Hannah and I tried to take care of her sister's babies, but they didn't get strong enough to survive their first winter."

"I'm glad I could help," replied Alan, sipping the whiskey. "What are you going to name them?"

"Sarah and Mordecai. Sarah was Hannah's sister. Mordecai was my father."

Deborah came into the kitchen, "Everyone is sleeping now. I'll check back tomorrow."

[Elegant Ella]

The scouts around her stayed quiet while Ella finished her prayer, then Samuel asked, "Do you recite that every Friday evening?"

"Yes, lighting the Sabbath candles is one of the religious duties for Jewish women. I don't have any candles here, but I can still say the blessing, to mark the beginning of my day of rest."

She settled back down on the log seat, and some of the scouts sat down around her. Dinner was almost ready, and smelled very enticing. "I know that you've all been curious about me and Scarlet. I'll answer some questions about me. Scarlet has to answer for herself."

"Who and where is your husband?" asked Teddy.

"He's Doctor Alan Coatsworth, and he's in Boston now. I'm sort of a California widow, except my husband left me in Boston to go east to Vienna in Europe, to study more medicine, instead of going west to make a fortune in gold fields. Alan finally got back in March, but he is staying in Boston for another six months to share what he had learned in Vienna."

"Why are you here instead of there with him?" asked Joe.

"That's a question I won't answer," replied Ella. "Are there other questions?"

"Why would any one want to live in Boston?" asked Samuel, trying to say it in a way that wouldn't offend Ella.

"It's easier to have a successful medical practice in a city with 250,000 people. You can get as many patients as you want without having to travel more than a few miles for housecalls. I sometimes ride half the day in El Paso County to make one housecall. Alan has a joint surgical practice with his mentor, so almost all of their patients come to the hospital or the doctors' office. There is a medical school there as well, which means lots of other doctors around to share information with. But, Alan has agreed to move to El Paso to get up a joint general practice with me."

"How does anyone have room to breathe in a city with 250,000 people?" asked Chris.

"How do you have room to breathe here? Boston felt less crowded than this fort. Alan and I had the third floor of Doctor Abramson's house to ourselves. The kitchen, library and parlor were on the ground floor, and Doctor Abramson's rooms were on the second floor."

"How far do you have to ride to get out of Boston? We go out of the gates, and the land is open."

"There are open fields and patches of woods probably within 5 miles of the center of Boston on the land side, although all the farms have fences around the fields, usually stone fences. You mostly have to ride on roads.  The other way out of Boston is by ship, since it is on a bay, and actually surrounded by water on three sides."

"Fences? Is that to keep the livestock in or the neighbors out?" someone chuckled.

"Both.  Also as a place to put the stones your plow keeps finding. It's pretty impressive how many big rocks a field throws up during a couple hundred years.  Probably the most important thing about Boston is that white men have been living there since 1630. In the past 50 years, a huge project filled over 500 acres of salt marsh with gravel to make land for people to live on.  "

"What do you prefer, Ella, and why?"

"There are things about living in Boston that I miss, like stores and libraries and museums. I miss the social networks I had in Boston. With only 5 or 6 thousand people in the whole county, El Paso might be too small for more than one medical practice to make enough money to live on. It is certainly too small to support medical specialists, like a doctor who only does surgery. But I would prefer fewer people than Boston has. 20,000 people might be best. That should be big enough to support shopping and services. It has to be in the west, so I won't have to deal with eastern attitudes towards woman's proper place."

"You mean 'on her back'?" asked Chris.

"Most eastern men wouldn't say it out loud that way, but they act like they think it."

One of Dick's men approached her once Cyrus's scouts started getting their dinner. "Ma'am? I found your buttons," he said, holding out three buttons from her jacket.

"Thank you," she replied, taking the buttons. "What's your name?"

"Drew." He turned away and headed back to Dick's camp.

There was something familiar about him, but the daylight was fading, so she hadn't gotten a good look at his face. It might just be that she had seen him in the ring around her fight with Dick, but an alarm bell was sounding in her head.

"Cyrus, what do you know about Drew in Dick's crew?"

"He has a reputation for doing a good job. Did he say something wrong?"

"No, he just returned some buttons I lost. Something about him bothers me."

"I know what you mean. He never says or does anything out of line, but something is off."

[1stSgt Fritz King]

They walked slowly, purposely.  They wanted people to see them, and they wanted to be seen.  They had cleaned up pretty well.  Scarlet's golden locks spilled across her shoulders and down her back.  Around her neck she wore his yellow hat cords.  He wore her scarlet neckerchief, the one she'd made for him.  They walked arm in arm.  They'd be at home walking on any boardwalk in any town...except for all the guns of course.  Every head turned as they passed. 

Bill, Scott and the others were sitting around the campfire, smoking cigars and drinking bourbon.  They hadn't noticed the couple walk up.  Johann noticed first; he cleared his throat, took off his slouch and stood. 

Bill asked, "Johann, what's they matter with you?"  Then he turned his head.  Fritz snapped to and saluted.

"May we join you sir?"

Bill returned the salute.  "Of course Fritz, we don't stand on ceremony here.  And good evening to you, Miss Corbin."

Scarlet nodded.  "Nice to see you again, Major.  And the name's King...Scarlet Angelina King."

Some of the men looked surprised.  Most weren't. 

"Well, it's nice to finally meet you, Mrs. King.  I've heard so much about you.  Won't you join us?"

Two more camp chairs were pulled up to the fire.  Fritz took the jug that was offered and took a pull.  As usual, it was the good stuff.  He immediately handed it to his wife.  Scott said, "You might want to take it easy on..."

Scarlet threw her head back and took a long pull.  She enjoyed what she drank.  "Not bad...a little smoother than I'm used to, but not bad."

The men laughed.  She imagined them sitting around in their union suits, and laughed as well.

Scott asked, "So, tell us about yourself Mrs. King."

"Well," Scarlet began, "I hail from Texas originally."

One man replied, "they sure do make 'em bigger down in Texas."  Johann gave him a quick jab to the ribs.  "That's the Captain's WIFE you're talking about."

She continued.  "My family owns property down there.  Perhaps you've heard of them...the Longknives?"

The older men drew a breath.  The younger ones didn't get it.

Scott looked hard at Scarlet.  "Yes...I see it.  Damn, it's been a long time since I've heard that name.  Is he still alive.?"

"Alive and kicking," Scarlet replied.  "He taught me all I know.  How to hunt, fish, shoot, ride, and speak the truth."

Bill spoke up.  "Why did you marry old Fritz here?  And more importantly, how is it your dad let him live?"

Fritz laughed.  "I'm still trying to figure that one out myself."

"He was able to see beyond the uniform, and see the heart of the man...like I did."  Scarlet kissed Fritz's cheek.  It was warm. 

[Scarlet Angel]

"Did your father teach you about combat Mrs. King?" One of the men asked.

"Scarlet please." She said. "My father taught me about combat and my mother taught me about charm."

The men smiled at her comment.

"This will be no picnic." Another commented.

"I don't recall any conflict being a picnic." Scarlet replied. 

"Seems I remember your father had a reputation on the battlefield." Scott remarked. "How much like your father are you if you don't mind my asking."

Scarlet considered the statement and the question for a minute. "I don't mind your asking. How much am I like my father would be a matter of opinion and it would depend on the situation at hand. Like my father I assure you I am good at my job."

"Are you as good?" One of the older men asked.

"No." Scarlet grinned.

"No?" he said surprised.

"He has experience on me. I would be a fool to think I am as good, maybe when I am his age perhaps."

The man smiled thinking he liked the fact she was honest and a little humble.

The bottle was being passed around for the third time when Scarlet declined the offer.

"Sneaks up on you doesn't it." Scott said.

Scarlet smiled at him "I learned along time ago to limit it on an empty stomach. It's been a pleasure gentleman but if you don't mind I think I will excuse myself and find something to eat. " She said standing. "I am headed towards the scout's camp. You are welcome to join me if you like."

[1stSgt Fritz King]

"That's my cue gentlemen," Fritz replied.  "I'm going to join my wife.  You're wlecome in the scout's camp.  With your permission, sir?"

Bill nodded.  "We'll be along shortly."

[Scarlet Angel]

Scarlet smiled up at Fritz as she slid her hand into his. "What have you been telling them about me?"

Fritz just grinned making Scarlet laugh.

The scouts looked curious as the couple walked into camp. The fact that they walked so close didn't go unnoticed. 

"Come to join the party?" Chris said.

"What are we celebrating?" Scarlet asked.

"Do we need a reason?" Black beard laughed.

"The successful return of the posse. The return of you and Ella. We get tired of lookin at each other you know." Someone else called out.

"Some of us did good on a few bets" Chris said that caused a few cheers.

Scarlet looked at Fritz and grinned. "We have something else to celebrate."

"What's that?" Someone asked.

"My husband's promotion to Captain." She said just before she kissed Fritz on the cheek.

There was a short silence before someone yelled out. "Is that how you congratulate him?"

"In front of you yes." Scarlet replied.

The men laughed and raised their drinks as they called out congratulations.

Scarlet and Fritz helped themselves to the stew and took a seat around the fire.

"You a bettin' man." Black beard asked Fritz.

Fritz couldn't help but laugh. "Scarlet warned me about you."

"Tell us what it is like to be married to a woman who rides for a marshal." Black beard said.

[Elegant Ella]

The scouts and soldiers had a good time during and after dinner. A few of Dick's men joined the fun, but only those who had friends in Cyrus's camp.

Only the fact that none of the scouts had ever seen her drink liquor let Ella turn down the drinks that bet winners wanted to give her. The scouts were willing to settle for a dance, since they really did not want to offend her.

Eventually, Bo escorted Ella to her quarters and the long day was done.

[Elegant Ella]

Ella was suddenly awake, not knowing what had disturbed her. She heard the doorknob rattle. Scarlet didn't normally come back before morning, and she or Bo would knock before trying to open the door.

As the door started to open, Ella put her glasses on. The chair in front of the door scraped across the floor for a moment, until someone reached his arm in enough to lift it and move it aside. That gave her time enough to slip over the side of the bed farther from the door, taking the pistol and knife from under her pillow with her. The lamplight from the hallway showed two pairs of legs entering.

She hated to shoot without warning, but there was no reason for them to be here without announcing themselves. She closed her eyes as she pulled the trigger, to avoid being blinded by the muzzle flash.

She heard a muffled curse from one, and "Get out of here before any brass comes out." from the other. They left, leaving the door open. It sounded like one set of footsteps might be limping.

She got up and grabbed her coat and pockets, worrying. How had they gotten past Bo?

She went to the parlor and found his bedroll neatly laid out. His boots were gone, and there were no signs of struggle or blood. It looked like he had left to answer a call of nature. The men must have been waiting for a chance like that.

She went back to her room, closed the door, and put the chair back. Then she lit the lamp,  replaced the spent cartridge in her pistol and got dressed, answering the guard when he checked on her. She wiped up the blood, and found her bullet in the door jamb.

When the reaction hit, she sat on the floor in front of the door, and pulled her knees to her chest. Once she stopped shaking, she packed her bedroll and a pillow from the bed. She would still use the room for changing, and use the bathing chamber a few times a week. She had enjoyed the comfortable bed and the privacy that allowed her to sleep in a flannel nightgown, but the only way she could sleep here again would be with Bo in the room. That solution was appealing, dangerously appealing.

She curled up in the chair in front of the door to wait.


Bo was almost back from the latrine when he heard the gunshot.  Recognizing the sound of Ella's pistol, he began to run. Two men rushed out the door of the building. The guard caught the sleeve of one, but the fabric tore and the man continued down the stairs. Bo almost caught them at the bottom of the stairs. They separated, trying to go around him. One tripped and fell. The guard had followed them down, and pounced on the fallen one, while Bo pursued the other one.

The man ran like the devil was on his tail, but Bo was too fast for him. Bo tackled him. The man rolled over only for his face to meet Bo's hand, causing everything to go black. For one fleeting moment Bo wished he was not the "cool headed one." He wanted to hurt the man; the only thing that saved him was worry about Ella. Bo hauled the man back to the quarters building. The guard already had the other one tied up and stashed in the corner of the porch.

"She said through the door that she is okay. This one was bleeding, so I tied his bandana over the wound," reported the guard.

Bo acknowledged what the guard said, left the second one to the guard's attention and went to Ella's room.

When Bo knocked and asked, "Ella, are you all right?", she moved the chair away and opened the door.

She answered, a little shakily, "Yes, I'm fine. I'm ready to go to the scout camp now." They stopped to collect Bo's bedroll from the parlor.

She saw the two captives on the porch, but just said to the guard, "Good night, Mister Comstock."

She hugged her bedroll and pillow to her chest while she walked with Bo. After a couple minutes, she took a deep breath and relaxed enough to tuck her right hand into his elbow. He was tense, too, and relaxed a little at her touch. He kept thinking she had trusted him to watch over her and he had failed her.

"I don't believe Comstock let them in," she said quietly.

"I know he didn't. Either an earlier guard let them in, or they didn't enter through the main door."

"I didn't warn them before I shot."

"The warning shot was more effective. You didn't want to give them time to rush you."

"Scarlet wouldn't have hidden behind the bed. Hiding wasn't any use. They knew I had to be in the room because of the chair blocking the door."

"You weren't hiding, you were just using cover. You are better at that than Scarlet is. Scarlet wouldn't have given them a warning shot, either."


When they got to the camp, one of Cyrus's sentries went to wake Cyrus while Bo took Ella into the tent he and Tensleep occupied and helped her spread out her bedroll between theirs. Once she was settled, he left her in Tensleep's care and went out to talk to Cyrus.

After assuring Tensleep that she was fine, Ella pretended to go to sleep so that Tensleep would be willing to rest, but she was thinking about her options. After Tensleep fell asleep, the familiar sound of his snoring lulled Ella to sleep. Her dreams were based on memories of the war, and being too stubborn to quit.


"What happened? How is she?"

"A couple of Dick's men tried to enter her room. She's trying not to show anything, but she is upset and angry at them. She ought to be mad at me for leaving her unprotected," he said softly.

Cyrus could detect the anger in his voice. "Was she scared?"

"Not enough to affect her aim.  She shot one of the men who entered her room."

"Will he survive?"

"We're talking about Ella, not Scarlet. He's got a minor leg wound. She cleaned up the blood in her room, though," answered Bo with a small smile.

"What is she going to want to do? Will she leave?"

"I don't know. Probably she doesn't know yet, either." Bo stood again. "I'd better get back over there if I want to talk to them before they get thrown in the stockade for breaking into officers quarters."

"I'll go with you." Cyrus signaled to a couple of his men, and the four of them headed back to the quarters building.


The two men looked at the four coming. They recognized Cyrus and his men. "Two men being torn apart on your watch wouldn't look good," one of them said.

Comstock narrowed his eyes. "Lucky for you, you are right. What you did doesn't look good on my watch either."

Bo grabbed the one he had knocked out by the jaw and pulled him to his feet. "What were you doing in there?" he said coldly.

"We were only gonna to scare her. Didn't mean no harm."

"Liar," Bo growled, shoving the man back to the ground when three more guards came out of the building.

"We found the room they were hiding in and some of the officers are missing their sipping whisky, which we found in the room, but nothing else. We'll take them to the stockade and notify the CO in the morning," one of the guards replied.

Comstock neatly saluted.

Bo stepped off the porch and headed for Dick's camp, followed closely by Cyrus and the other two.

"Remember who you are, Bo Corbin," Cyrus said.

Bo stopped short. "That is hard for me to forget. People used to mistake me for my brother all the time. Just once I would like to act on instinct like he would have, not analyze all the possibilities. The only thing stopping me right now is the fact I don't think Ella would approve."

[1stSgt Fritz King]

Both of them sat up at the sound of the shot.  "Ella's pistol," they said in tandem.  They nearly upended the cot getting up.  Fritz didn't bother with a shirt, strapping his gunbelt on.  Scarlet made herself barely decent with his blue vest, buckling on her gunbelt as well.  They were out the tent and headed for the officer's quarters.

[Elegant Ella]

Jimmy was awakened by the cell door opening and two men being pushed into the cell. He kept an eye on them while they got settled into the bunks below him, then closed his eyes to go back to sleep.

Once the guards left the immediate area of the cell, the men started talking quietly.

"... only carries a pistol for show, that she wouldn't be able to hit anything." One of them was whining.

Jimmy realized they were talking either about Scarlet or Ella, and started paying closer attention. They were keeping their voices down, but he could hear most of what they said.

".. half-blind without those glasses. Every glasses wearer I've ever seen takes them off to sleep, and hunts for them in the morning."

Ella for sure, thought Jimmy. They weren't paying any attention to his presence, so he pretended to be asleep.

"Well, she didn't seem to have any trouble getting her glasses and pistol in the middle of the night. That chair in front of the door gave her too much warning."

"Yeah. Wonder why she put it there? The guard at the front door and Corbin in the parlor should have seemed like plenty of defense. Maybe it was protection from Corbin, but she seems easy enough with him in public."

"Once Corbin left the building seemed like the best time to grab her."

"There are tales about him. Anything less than a dozen men might not be enough to take him down."

"A shot in the back can take care of anyone."

"Guns make too much noise, but I don't want to meet his fist again. The bitch owes me for that."

"And for my leg," agreed the other.

"She's not going to trust the two who usually escort her around anymore, not after they stood back and let Dick grab hold of her."

"No, that's sure. And those two are some of the best in Cyrus's band, except for the crazy pirate."

"Next time we take more help, and grab her when she's out of the fort.  Maybe when she goes fishing. Make it look like an Injun attack."

"Take all our friends and have our party out there. Dump leftovers in the river once we're done."

"I hope she lasts long enough to give everyone a good time."

Jimmy stayed awake a long time after the two started snoring. The voices had sounded familiar, maybe  friends of Nicky. They sounded like they belonged on wanted posters, casually planning rape and murder that way. In daylight, he might recognize them.  Unfortunately, they might also recognize him. He needed to play the desperado Charley had expected him to become if he was going to survive that recognition.

Ella had said she would change his bandage in the morning. He had to warn her!  If she came into the cell, he wouldn't be able to talk to her.

He finally fell asleep, but his dreams were uncomfortable, reliving the months after Charley burned him.

[Scarlet Angel]

"What happened Mr. Comstock?" Scarlet said skipping the steps onto the porch as she eyed the two men tied there.

He looked surprised to see her dressed in a military vest and red pantaloons when his eyes reached the guns hung on her hips they shot back up to meet hers.

"These two tried to get into Ella's room." Mr. Comstock said continuing to tell her what he knew.

"Is she ok?"

"They didn't get at her. She took a shot at one of 'em and Mr. Corbin got ahold of that one." He said pointing to the man with the bloody face and broken nose.

Scarlet looked at him.

"Two men being torn apart on your watch wouldn't look good," He said nervously to the guard.

Scarlet turned as Bo stepped past her. He was angrier than she'd seen him in a long time. Scarlet could see it in his eyes as Bo eyed the man then yanked him to his feet. Bo's voice sent a chill down her spine as he growled "Liar".

Scarlet watched Bo step off the porch followed by Cyrus. Cyrus nearly ran into him when he stopped short. After Bo growled at Cyrus he glared at the two scouts that were with him then turned and continued on his way leaving them standing watching after him.

Cyrus turned back to the steps where Scarlet stood. "How well do you know him?" He asked.

Scarlet's eyes went from Bo's back to meet Cyrus'.

He came up the stares to stand face to face with her. "Who will die tonight?"

"He's not stupid. Angry, but you know yourself he will not choose a time or a place where somebody can tie a death to him." Scarlet said softly. "My best advise is to stay out of his way until he cools off."

Cyrus eyed her like he couldn't believe she was saying that to him. "What about you? Can you talk to him?"

"Am I the best one to be talking to him Cyrus? Far as I'm concerned they both should have been shot in the head when they tried to get in Ella's room."

"Yeah well they didn't and yer not stupid either. I suspect if those men turn up injured the two of you will have an alibi."

The conversation was interrupted by Dick coming towards them. "Cyrus!"

"Now what?"

Dick spotted Scarlet. "I don't know what set him off but yer man is taking my camp apart, nearly took my head off when I tried to stop him."

Scarlet put her fingers on Dick's chin and tilted his head so she could see the bruise in the lamp light. "He barley touched you. You got in his way didn't you?" Scarlet looked back at Cyrus. "Don't poke an angry bear." She said stepping past the men headed towards the camp.

The men followed after her. When they reached Dick's camp one of the tents had a slice in the side where Bo went in and broken poles and a tear where the men went out. The inside was torn apart.

"Who was in here?" Scarlet asked.

"Four men shared it." Dick answered. 

"Two of them were the ones that attacked Ella." Cyrus replied.

"Corbin tried to kill us." One of the men came up and said.

"Did he touch you?" Scarlet asked.

"Well no, we didn't give him a chance." He replied.

Scarlet shot a look at Cyrus. He knew she figured if he meant to hurt somebody he would have but he'd done a hell of a job putting fear into them.

Scarlet looked into the darkness. She could see Bo's form headed back to his own tent.

"Go back to bed Cyrus. It's over for now." She said.

"It's over. He takes this place apart and you say it's over."

"Hand to hand is not the only kind of warfare we were trained in. The mind is a powerful thing. Look at them." She replied her eyes glancing towards the men that stood looking at the tent. "They will not try to scare anybody who Bo cares anything about. That goes for you, me, Ella, your scouts. At least not for awhile and I suspect the rest of them to turn on ones who give it some thought."

[Elegant Ella]

Ella was confused briefly when she woke up to see canvas overhead, but then she remembered where she was and why. She looked over to her left and saw Bo sleeping. The weight of her gaze seemed to waken him. 

She said softly, "It's not your fault that they tried to get in. You caught them so they won't be able to try again. If I want to be safe all the time, I have to stay at the Starr."

"Or in Boston."

"Boston is more dangerous than here. We lived in a good neighborhood that was relatively safe, but I didn't dare go out alone after sunset. Maybe the best protection you and the rest of the posse can possibly have given me is training in how to defend myself, and in how to watch out for danger."

She got out of her bed roll, put on her boots and tied her pockets around her waist.  She would put them under her skirt later. Bo went out with her, and made sure the latrine was empty for her to use while the early risers among the scouts waited patiently.

There was a murmur of talk around her as those who had been awake when she arrived explained to the sounder sleepers what had happened. There was a mix of emotions expressed in the sound, both anger at the invaders, and pride that she had sent them running away. She wondered if they betting on whether she was going to treat the bullet wound.  She wondered if they were betting on whether she was going to stay.

Leaving would be so easy. Now that Scarlet and Fritz had exposed their relationship, Scarlet would be protected by the entire 2nd as well as by Cyrus's scouts. Scarlet didn't need Ella's special skills anymore.  Ella could go with Tensleep and Jimmy on the next supply train out, and deliver Jimmy to the legal system. Then she could go to Boston to settle with Alan, if she would be willing to leave the safety of the Starr once she got there. Letting fear make her a prisoner would be easy, too.

She walked with Bo to the cook fire to get some breakfast. Paul was tending the fire and had already put a pan of water on to boil for her tea and oatmeal. She was touched that he had remembered her choice of breakfast from the trip here. By the time she finished eating, Cyrus was there to get a cup of coffee.

"Cyrus, tell me honestly. Am I a source of conflict between your men and Dick's?"

"You are no more to blame for problems between the two bands than the sun or the moon. You and Scarlet have actually reduced the problems, because my men don't get bored and go looking for trouble with you two around. I asked Bo the other day if there would be any chance of getting either or both of you to stay after this is over."

Ella nodded, "If I were a source of trouble, I should leave." She looked at the men gathered around. "I would rather stay."

There were some cheers at her words.

"I want to talk to Dick and his men.  How many escorts should go with me?"

"Not as many as are volunteering, that's for sure," answered Cyrus, looking around at his men.

"Too many would look like I'm scared, but too few would be foolhardy. I want you, Chris and Tensleep. Is that enough?"

"Should be. Especially as the rest of the crew is probably going to be as close as I allow."

They headed over to the other camp. The sentry didn't even try to stop them, but said, "Dick hasn't come out of his tent yet."

"That's all right. It's mostly the men I want to talk to, anyway," replied Ella. Standing near Dick's tent, she took a deep breath and started her speech. She was normally soft-spoken, but she could make herself heard when needed.

"It's past time for me to introduce myself to you. I am Mrs. Coatsworth, Ella Coatsworth. I am a Deputy Marshal, working for Marshal Ross. I am a doctor, and can honestly claim to be a very good doctor. I worked in Union hospitals and prison camps during the War. Cyrus Kane and Captain King saw me there."

She paused for breath, and Cyrus interjected, "I am here today only because she treated me."

"I am not a washerwoman to wash and mend your clothes.  I am not a whore to entertain you or warm your blankets.  The only services I offer are tending wounds and treating disease. My actions can make the difference between living and dying after being wounded, or the difference between keeping and  losing an arm or leg. Pay me respect, and I will treat you promptly and gently. I won't deny treatment to anyone, but I will choose who to treat first, and how to treat."

She paused again, and Chris interjected this time, "It is right uncomfortable if she patches you when she doesn't like you."

By now, Dick had come out of his tent. He growled, "You can't tell my men what to do."

"That is true.  The question is whether you can," Ella answered calmly. "The last thing I have to say is that the next time someone invades my space, I will shoot to kill instead of giving a warning shot."

[Elegant Ella]

The base commander woke and remembered the alarms in the night with a groan.  He had been willing to ignore the scouts' fighting and fussing.  But invading officers' quarters was going too far. 

After breakfast, he went to his office, ordered coffee and sent a messenger to invite General Crook to meet with him at his convenience. Before General Crook arrived, one of the guards brought in a written report. Morning light had revealed footprints that showed that the invaders had entered through the window in Colonel Winslow's room and taken his whiskey bottle. Colonel Winslow had noticed the bottle being missing when he came in from supper. The invaders had taken whiskey bottles from two other rooms as well. They could have left through the window in the empty room at almost any time, but they had stayed in the empty room for some hours, while drinking the whiskey.

It was hard to avoid the conclusion that their intention had been rape. It was just one more reason that women did not belong in a war zone.  The commander groaned, dreading an interview with a teary female.  He looked again at the woman's name, and remembered what he had heard about her. He wished he had gotten a loaf of the bread, but he couldn't really begrudge the men one treat.

General George Crook was announced and shown in. "Which scouts were they?" he asked.

The commander was a little surprised that the general already knew about the incident, since he had declined a room in the officers quarters in order to sleep in a tent like his men. "They said their names are Owen Jones and Drew Hardy."

"More of Richard Kane's lot then," responded the general.

"Mrs. Coatsworth should go home. Her presence is too much temptation for rough men."

"Richard Kane's men have been involved in a dozen fights, and accused of stealing from several of the sutlers. I would say the trouble is with his men, and not with any woman. Based on what Mister Cyrus Kane and Captain King have to say about Mrs. Coatsworth, her services are more valuable than Richard Kane's."

"The scouts are your business, Sir. I will keep those men locked up until you want them released." The post commander saluted and handed General Crook the report.

General Crook returned the salute, accepted the report and returned to his tent. There, he sent for Major Schurmann.

After a brief meeting, Major Schurmann returned to his tent and summoned Captain King.

[Elegant Ella]

Jimmy woke up with names for both men. Charley had wanted to pull a train job, but didn't have the manpower for it. The expected haul was big enough to share, so Charley had worked out a deal with the Montgomery gang. These two had been members of the Montgomery gang then. Moving quietly, to avoid disturbing Drew sleeping below him, he dug into his saddlebags to find the stub of a pencil and a dime novel. He wrote a note on the half-blank last page, tore the note out of the book, folded it up and slipped it under the bandage.

A guard brought hardtack and water for the prisoners.  He didn't open the door, just passed the food in through the bars. Jimmy didn't feel like jumping down to quarrel over such poor fare. Ella had brought him a good supper last night. She likely would bring him breakfast later. A full canteen and some jerky would hold him long enough. But he did need to get down to use the bucket.


"I'm Drew Hardy, he's Owen Jones. Doncha want any of this?" asked Drew after Jimmy finished his business.

"I'm Jimmy Washington. Nah, I ate well last night. Deputy Coatsworth will probably bring me breakfast later."

"Deputy? I thought she's a medic."

"Yeah. She's a deputy marshal part of the time and doctor the rest of the time.  She came up here with her boss and her partner to hunt down Firehorse Charley."

"I'd heard he had died a couple months ago down closer to Mexico."

"Nah, he lost most of the gang there, but he escaped with four of us."

"Where are the other four?"

"Dead. I'd be with them except for stopping Coatsworth's bullet."

"I don't see how that follows," asked Owen, probing at the gash in his leg.

"I don't understand it myself. After I surrendered because of the bullet in my leg, she patched me up. Then she claimed me as her prisoner and argued the Cheyenne out of killing me."

"Sounds crazy."

"Maybe, but I'm not going to complain.  Charley and Nicky were alive when we left them in the Cheyenne camp, but they probably aren't by now. They sure won't want to still be alive."

"What did they do to rile the Injuns?"

"Captured three braves, roasted one, and started roasting a second one."

"Sounds like Charley. Who else was left and what killed them?"

"Frank and Ted met her partner's rifle. Coatsworth is a good medic, but a buffalo gun doesn't leave her much to patch up."

Ella heard Jimmy talking and realized that he had company in the cell. The other voice sounded like one of last night's visitors.  She had to face those men sooner or later, but she had hoped for later. Tensleep didn't recognize any of the words that Ella was using, but the tone was unmistakable: Ella was swearing.

She stopped short of where they would be seen from the cell, and put her tray down. She pulled out of her pockets everything she would need to change Jimmy's bandage, and to deal with her intruder's wound, then took the pistol out of its holster and dropped it into a pocket.  The knife from the back of her belt, normally hidden by the tail of her jacket, was too sharp to drop in a pocket unsheathed, so she handed that to Chris. The other two knives were not vulnerable to being grabbed by an attacker, so they could stay where they were. The last touch was to move her deputy star to the front of the jacket lapel.

She asked the guard to put a table and chair in the cell, then followed Chris into the cell. Chris was glaring equally at all three men, Jimmy standing and the other two sitting on the bottom bunk. The room was half filled by the bunk beds, and crowded. Tensleep and the guard stayed outside, Tensleep with a pistol drawn.

"Mister Washington, if you will please sit here," she directed, setting the tray on the table.  After Jimmy was settled, she unwrapped the old bandage. The paper dropped into her hand. She glanced at it, and at Jimmy, and set it on the tray hidden under the old bandage. His wound was healing well, so she applied another dose of poultice and a new bandage. She took the coffee pot and cup, bowl of oatmeal and plate of venison off the tray and set them on the table for him, then turned to leave the cell.

"Ain't ya going to take care of my leg, too?" whined one of the other men.

She turned and looked at him a long moment, then finally said, "All right". She knelt next to the bunk and put her tray on the floor under it. The bandana and pant leg were glued to his skin with blood, so she used more of the hot water to loosen the fabric before pulling it clear of the wound. "This will sting," she warned, before she started scrubbing with soap and hot water.

He gritted his teeth and endured the treatment silently.  When she stopped scrubbing, he took a deep breath and said, "That wasn't so bad." Then she swabbed the open wound with disinfectant. He yelped and jumped, banging his head on the bunk above him.

When he settled down again, she applied warm poultice and wrapped his leg with a bandage to finish. She picked up her tray, stood, and turned toward the door. Chris was still grinning. She had expected him to enjoy seeing someone else get the 'annoyed medic' treatment. Jimmy had finished his meal, so she collected the dishes.

After Tensleep was out of sight, Jimmy had helped the guard remove the table and chair, and the guard had locked the door, the other man said, "My leg needs attention, too." Ella turned back to see that he had unbuttoned his trousers and was wagging himself at her.

Ella glanced at what he was exposing, then studied the man's face. "I'll send the fort medic to take of that for you. I don't do amputations." She serenely carried her tray away.

Around the corner, she put the tray down, to find the piece of paper from Jimmy's bandages. She read it, then handed it to Tensleep.
"Andrew Harper and Owen Johnson in Montgomery gang which joined Charley to rob St. Joseph & Denver City train September 1874. They are plotting to catch you when you go fishing."

She reholstered her pistol and reclaimed her knife before picking the tray back up.

Behind her, she heard Owen's voice complaining, "That was stupid, Drew."

Drew replied, "Just giving her something to dream about."

After they left the cell block, Ella said, "I believe I have more telegraph business, Tensleep."

He agreed, and lead the way back to the telegraph office. The operator greeted them, "There aren't any messages for you yet."

"I've got a short message to send, if I may?"

He gestured her to the chair and key. Patches didn't acknowledge promptly this time, so Ella sent her whole message in normal Morse.

URGENT
ANDREW HARPER AND OWEN JOHNSON FROM MONTGOMERY GANG
CHECK HANDY ANDY
WARRANTS?

"I expect a reply in a few hours. May I bring your lunch when I come?"

"That would be a pleasure. I will look forward to seeing you then, Miz Coatsworth."

[Elegant Ella]

Owen complained, "That was stupid, Drew."

"Just giving her something to dream about."

"Jimmy here warned us that she is a lawdog. You might as well have put a sign around your neck! Stupid, stupid, stupid!"

Jimmy laughed, then said, "Nicky always said he admired the way you were still able to take your victims even after you warned them like that."

"It softened them up.  They kept thinking about what they saw, so that when I touched them, they just collapsed. Most of the time, they hadn't even dared tell anyone anyway. It would have ruined their reputations."

"It's not going to work on Deputy Coatsworth," Jimmy warned.

"Why not? She's just a woman behind that star."

"She faced down Firehouse Charley without batting an eye."

"Doesn't take any special courage to do that when he was tied up."

"She's the one who tied him up, while her partner covered him with a buffalo gun. She hog-tied him good."

"You weren't there to see her do that for yourself.  Whoever told you that must have been lying."

"Suit yourself. It was her boss told me that, and he sure sounded proud of her and her partner."

[Scarlet Angel]

"Those men thought you were tryin' ta kill them last night." Scarlet said as she walked up to Bo.

"Good." He replied flatly as he watched the stockade.

"Is Ella Ok?"

Bo continued to stare in the same direction. "She seems to be. Went over there to treat their wounds."

Scarlet could see the anger in Bo's eyes. "Best watch yourself. Something happens to those men you will be the first one they question after last night."

Bo looked at her. "I'm the patient one remember. Something happens to them that I am responsible for I will make sure I am within my rights." He said as a slow sneer crossed his lips.

Scarlet couldn't count how many times she'd said that same thing to him. She also noticed he was better armed this morning that he'd been since they arrived.

"They'd be safer if you'd thought they were going to just kill her." Scarlet remarked looking the direction Bo had been watching so intensely.

Bo pulled her into a hug. "The scouts have turned out to be pretty good cooks under Ella's influence. Let's go see what they are working on."

Scarlet saw Ella as they neared the scout's camp.

"Are you alright?" She asked.