Dance with the Deacon

Edith pretty much slept all over me. Well as much as one can be on another while slumped in a hard chair. The ride was hard even on a man used to spending long hours in a hard saddle. If must have been truly miserable for a woman. The slightly padded seats of the train soon became unbelievably hard and uncomfortable. After a few hours everyone tended to wiggle their butts trying to find a spot less painful. I awoke often that night. Whenever I did I found Edith in motion trying to get comfortable. It was probably the thing that woke me.

The sun was up before I finally gave up on sleep. I walked to the end of the car where I filled my mouth with water from the dipper attached to the earthenware jug. I stepped into the space between the cars to spit the water into the cool morning air. I stood for a long while enjoying the cool air. I knew the cool wouldn't last long. The air had the feel of a morning just waiting for the sun to rise so that it could become a blistering day.

When I returned to my seat I found that Edith had managed to lie down. To accomplish it she had taken up both seats. Instead of waking her I looked for an empty seat. It seemed that if the seats weren't taken by a passenger they were taken by sleeping men or women. I had no choice if I wished to stay near my possessions I had to move Edith.

I lifted her head and shoulders as it seemed to be the easiest part to move. When I did she wrapped her arms around me. She even tried to pull me against her body. Edith it seemed was a very loving woman. When I didn't respond she made a noise in her throat then pulled away seemingly still asleep.

I leaned against the window. I could look out at the landscape covered in a kind of blue haze. The mornings in that part of the country seemed to begin in a monochrome then as the sunlight began to lighten the sky one color at a time was added until natures full pallet was visible. Yes it was true of every part of the country and I suppose every part of the world. That morning I really noticed it for the first time.

I turned my attention to the woman sleeping on my shoulder. I both noticed and remembered her appearance. I supposed it was part of my reaction to the coloring landscape. I supposed even than that I was adding her to my memories of the trip.

Edith Wilson was tall for a woman. I remembered her from the trip to the boarding house. She was at least five nine no more than and inch shorter than me. That height was unusual for a woman. Unusual enough that she got stares when she stood on the platform and again as she walked into the boarding house for dinner.

Edith was also thin. Not sickly thin like some of the women in Saint Louis had been, but just plain overworked thin. No doubt Edith had helped work a farm somewhere. She had talked about everything under the sun to me. Everything but about her husband and her life. I would have expected it to be foremost on her mind. Either she had a very private side or she wasn't as excited as she should have been at the prospect of returning home. The dress Edith wore was plain cut to minimize a woman's figure. In Edith's case it worked exactly as it was intended. It appeared that edith was almost completely without breasts. The small rise in the fabric might have been a wrinkle. Nonetheless she was an attractive woman. Men for some reason seemed to notice her before the more voluptuous women. It could be that women of Edith's dimensions were less threatening. Whatever the reason men often stared at her. She didn't mention it nor did she need to do so. I had noticed the looks again as she walked down the aisle to the bathroom. Also over dinner the night before. It must have been something she gave off . I would hardly have noticed her I told myself. Still I was sitting in the half light storing her in my mind so as to never forget her.

The end of the line was due that day. After more than thirty hours on the move the train would come to a final stop. At least final for me and those few passengers who were left aboard. The end of the line would actually be farther down the tracks but we would be leaving the train at the last town before arriving at the work camps. The arrival was supposed to be in the late afternoon but could be anytime after the scheduled arrival. It appeared that we were an hour or more behind schedule. In a time when more than one train traveled the single set of rails that could be disastrous. At that time there should have been no train coming from the other direction. We were past all the rail intersections. The train on which we all rode was the only one on the isolated track or so I thought.

I was nodding in and out of sleep when the incident began. I heard the voice through my sleep. The voice belonged to a man. He was demanding that the passengers get their valuables together. I was awake only enough to know I had to do something. I didn't want to cause a fuss but I also didn't intend to give up my wallet. I especially did not intend to give up my carpet bag.

"Come on folks we don't have long now get your things together." The voice was harsh and demanding. It seemed our bandit was a bit nervous. That was not a good sign. I slipped the small pistol from my shoulder holster. I had it on my lap as I pretended to still be asleep. I felt Edith tense beside me. The Bandit was apparently very close. I resisted the urge to take a look. I felt the pistol barrel prod me.

He expected me to wake with a start so I did of course. I pushed the pistol barrel slightly to the side as I shot him in the face. The cloud of burnt powder hung over our seats. Edith like any good woman of the time fainted. If not she pretended to faint which I think was the case most of the time. Of course if she had fainted I wouldn't have blamed her, the very dead bandit fell into her lap. I pushed him into the aisle as quickly as I could. Not soon enough to save her dress. Her lap was covered with blood and other liquids. Not to mention the solid matter from the not so good gun hand.

When he fell the gunman dropped his weapon on the floor at her feet. I reached down to find it under the long skirt. She must have really been out I thought. She didn't move even a little as I moved my hands around her feet. I also had my arms and body over her legs. She would have been beating on me if she had been awake. I did manage to recover the Colt from the floor. It was not in very good shape. I noted that instantly. Strange the things that stick in your mind.

I stepped into the aisle and over the body of the bandit. I didn't really recognize him. I moved cautiously toward the next car. It was entirely possible that he was not working alone. It was in fact likely that he had accomplices. He would not want anyone from another car coming up behind him.

If that were indeed the case either of two possibilities might occur. The others might rush the car to secure it. More likely they would just fortify their position and wait for a fool to enter the car in which they were holed up. Most of the train cars were pretty much empty. As the train went on it's way passengers left the train but few if any got on. The distance left to go got smaller all the time. As the cars emptied the conductor closed them to cut down on the amount of walking for him I supposed.

Of the five passenger cars only three were occupied that morning. I was in the car closest to the end of the train. I was forced to work my way forward. I didn't bother with the long gun. The two pistols I held in my hands would have to do. It I wasn't bushwhacked they would do just fine. Since no one from the other cars had come to investigate the shooting I had to assume someone was holding them prisoner. At that point I realized it had only been a few seconds.

I turned back to the passengers in the coach. "Folks it is likely a man with a gun is going to come checking on his friend in a second. I suggest you all get your weapons. If a man comes in with a gun shoot first then we will ask who he is." I moved to stand in the aisle at the end of the car. It was the end which let to the engine. It didn't seem likely that anyone would be coming from there.

I hoped it wouldn't be a good guy coming to investigate the shooting. If it were I hoped he would be smart enough to announce himself. Then again accidents happened. The door opened at the far end of the car. The man didn't appear to have a gun as he stepped into the car. I was about to think he was just a passenger when the gun appeared in his hand.

I fired two quick shots. I have no idea if I hit him or not. The coach quickly filled with the sound of several guns. The cloud of burnt powder filled the air around me. The smell of mostly burned black powder would make some of the ladies ill i knew. Hell, it almost made me ill. It had the familiar smell of death about it. Remembrances of the war of evil Yankee aggression would have filled my mind if I hadn't stayed focused on the man at the end of the car. It was a waste of time to pay any attention to him. He was pretty much cut to pieces.

I heard screams from the next coach. I rushed over the body of the man I killed then over the body of the man everyone in the coach had killed at least once. In the next car up I found a woman slumped forward in her seat. Somehow someone's shot had penetrated both walls of the train car then struck her in the shoulder from behind.

"Is there a doctor in here?" I asked quickly. I didn't bother looking at the wound since there was almost nothing I could do for the woman.

"You," I demanded of the man seated across the aisle. "Go into the rear car and ask. You," I said to a second man. "Go forward this woman needs help."

I had no idea what to do so I tried to hold the wound shut with my hand. I am sure I ruined the suit I was wearing but hell people everywhere wore stained clothes in those days. I was trying to hold her together when I felt someone push me out of the way. I looked to make sure it wasn't someone wanting to look at the wound out of curiosity.

"Deacon move and let me try to help her." I recognized both the voice and the face of Edith Wilson. I didn't understand at first but then I did. Edith knew something to do for the woman. Something I didn't know.

I stood close to watch as Edith ripped the blouse of the unconscious woman. She took a look at the wound then pushed the woman back to make sure there was no exit wound. She turned to me with a request for help in her eyes. I helped her move the woman so that her wound would be easier to reach. While I was moving her the crowd gathered around us.

"I am going to have to get that bullet out. We need to stop the train." She said it to me. How I got to be the leader of our little band was a pure D mystery but here I was. That little piece of white at my collar was proving to be a bit of a bother. I found the conductor more or less hiding in the caboose. I forced him to go forward with me to stop the train. He didn't much like the idea but then I knew he was a coward. I was about to threaten him when he came to his senses on his own.

As we passed through I found the woman awake. Edith had her drinking what at first appeared to be whiskey. On closer inspection I found it to be Laudanum. Edith had been only mildly lucky to find anyone on board with the drug. It wasn't totally luck as there were many people who took the drug for various pains. I had taken the mixture of opium and whiskey myself for a while. Even after the pain from the horse who kicked me was gone I still wanted the Laudanum. Daddy locked me in my room for three days until the urge subsided some. Even after so many years the sight of the bottle brought a craving. Once I recognized it I passed quickly on my trek to the engineers small work place.

The conductor explained all the events to the engineer. He shook his head. "Sam you know better. If I stop this train it is gonna play hell with the whole damn schedule. The woman will just have to take her chances."

"Stop the damn train," I replied to his argument for the conductor.

"Mister listen to me. You ain't even supposed to be here. If I stop this train there is an east bound one coming this way. I got to make it to a siding to get out of his way."

"How long to the siding?" I asked.

"Half an hour," he replied.

"How long we gonna be there?" I asked.

"Till the east bound passes us. Could be ten minutes could be an hour. If he is on time we will be there about twenty minutes."

"But we could stay there longer?" I asked.

"Yes," the little man looked nervous. "We could stay there for a couple of hours if we wanted. There will be no more east bounds until I turn around and head east." We could send a telegram from the next town to explain and redo the schedule."

"Okay then pour on the coal. We got a woman needs some cutting back there," I demanded. The little man did something because I felt the train pick up speed.

As I walked back through the car where Edith and I had slept I was assaulted with questions. I left the conductor to explain as I went in to tell Edith the news.

"Deacon, that is not going to be good for this woman. She may die." Edith looked more than a little concerned.

"Edith it is the best I can do. If we stop here all these people may die. I saw two trains run into each other in Georgia. Believe me it is not something you walk away from. The engineer is pouring on the coals. We might be able to reach the siding in less than half an hour. It is the best I can do." I wanted her to know I had tried. I also wanted her to know that it was the best decision all around. I could tell she wasn't buying it. Fortunately she didn't argue in front of the woman.

I wanted to ask where the white bandage she held against the wound had come from but i didn't. I had seen women during the war ripping up petticoats to make bandages. Mostly though it was old bed sheets.

"Well if you wont get this train stopped for me then sit here and hold the bandage." Edith almost smiled. She and I alternated holding the bandage on the weakening woman. She was filled with the opium whiskey mix when the train finally pulled onto the siding.

Edith listened to her heart. "She is getting weaker Deacon. I am going to do what I can for her. Why don't you go pray for us all."

"I might be more use helping out. I have seen plenty of gunshot wounds." I smiled at her. I realized again that she was almost as tall as me. Strange that I should think of that at such a moment. My mind worked as it wished with no regard to the things going on around it. It was the only conclusion I could reach.

Edith began to work on the woman immediately after the car came to a stop. She first enlarged the opening then found the bullet. she worked it out with what looked like long shiny pliers. The enlarged wound bled only slightly more than the original opening. When Edith finished the removal of the bullet she seemed to fit all the internal things together like a puzzle. She then used a large needle threaded onto a piece of cotton sewing thread to close the skin. I wasn't surprised to see the blood stop. I had seen it all before. Edith was a very competent surgeon. I had no idea what she was really but she had done all the right things for the woman.

"Is it gonna fester?" I asked.

"Well Deacon, you might want to pray for her now. It is likely that she will have some fever. If our delay in operating didn't make her body too weak she has a good chance. There is no doctor between here and the end of the line. She can go back on the train to see one east of here if she wants."

"You need to talk to her," I replied. "She isn't going to think she needs anything as long as she is on that Laudanum."

"I know but how do you know?" she asked.

"Long story about a older teenager kicked by a horse. I loved that stuff better than life at the time."

"It is truly the devil's brew but for a person in pain it is a miracle. It is also the best thing for a person who is dying. One day there will be better things but for now it is the best thing we have."

"Are you a doctor?" I asked it with a great deal of respect for her no matter what she was.

"Horse doctor," she replied with a smile. You might not want to tell her that without a little preparation. I expect it might come as a shock to her."

"I don't suppose you would like to come back to your seat to rest?" I asked it knowing she would want to stay with the woman.

"No but thank you for thinking of me." She flashed me a very nice but non committal smile as I walked through the door on my way to my seat. I suppose it was a combination of the restless night and the loss of adrenaline that caused me to crash. Whatever the reason I awoke only when we reached the last town before the end of the line.

When I awoke I realized someone had moved the bodies. Who and where I had no idea but they were no longer in the floor. Since they hadn't past me while I held the injured woman's bandage in place I assumed they were in the coal car or maybe tied on top of the coach. I honestly didn't give it much thought. The fate of dead bodies had a very low priority with me.

It was easy to tell the man walking down the empty aisle toward me was a lawdog. He didn't even need the badge he wore. The badge was a simple star with the word Sheriff stamped into it.

"You the deacon," he asked.

"Yes," I said it standing. "Would you mind stepping aside so I can get some water?"

He looked as though he wasn't sure what to do. I helped him make up his mind as I move toward him. He had to speak, move or try to stop me. He chose to step aside. He also followed along behind me as I walked down the narrow aisle. I took the dipper rinsed my mouth then took a long drink of tepid water.

"So exactly what happened this morning?" I was not sure what he wanted. I was pretty sure he had interviewed the dozen or so people who knew.

"Couple of guys tried to rob the train and got killed for their efforts." I was still half asleep when I answered.

"Is there some reason you didn't just give them your money?" He was on the right track but didn't know it.

"Sure, I didn't give it to them because it isn't my money." I was pretty sure he would have gotten a telegram to be on the look out for a cowboy with a lot of money. Every lawdog along the rails would have gotten a similar message.

"And whose money is it?" He asked the question while tensing. I am not sure a small town lawdog wanted to go up against such a big time killer as me, At first I laughed inward at the thought of me being a big time killer. Then I realized sadly that it was true.

"Why Sheriff I would have thought you could figure that out. It is the Lord's money. I don't think the folks who donated it would want a common thief to have it. It is money designated for the opening of churches in towns were there are none. It is to bring the Lords words to those crying out in the wilderness," It was crap all right, but he didn't know it.

"Would you mind if I take a look at your pistol?" he asked it just to have the last word I knew.

If he had asked to look in my bag, I would have killed him. Since in those days men respected other men's privacy he did not want to look without cause. I had given him none. He accepted the pistol which I handed him butt first. I still did not wish to cause any problems.

"You in the war?" He asked it pretty much knowing the answer.

"I was Sheriff."

"Tell me the difference between a deacon and a preacher?" He demanded it but softly.

"It is simple Sheriff. After the war I was called to do the Lord God's work. I was not called to preach the Gospel. I was called to do other things the church needed done. Things that no preacher could do." I was amazed at how easy the words came to my lips.

"Where you headed? I mean we got a church here in town." The Sheriff seemed more curious than suspicious.