Chapter Seven #2
"I wish I could kill this sumbitch all over again!"
Matt growled. He felt responsible and guilty as hell.
If he'd only listened to Mandy when she told him the man was out to get her...
He'd told Ted that Mandy wasn't interested in marrying him, but Ted kept insisting she would come around.
Damn, why didn't he do something sooner?
Amanda didn't regain consciousness for the ride home.
She wasn't aware that Rob held her in his strong arms for the long ride, or that they'd come across some of the Circle C hands and her father wasted no time in sending one of the men on a dead race to get the Doc out to the ranch in a big hurry.
He also told him to ask the Sheriff to come, too.
When they arrived, Matt led the way inside, yelling for Goldie to come quick. The woman wiped her hands on her apron and came running, her eyes wide as she followed Rob up the staircase and down the hallway to Amanda's room.
"Be care with her, Goldie. That bastard Ted Fox was standing over her beating her with a belt when I shot him dead. She fainted when she tried to stand up. I don't know how bad he hurt her."
"Get out and give us some privacy. She's a modest young woman," Goldie said firmly and the two men obeyed, but paced the hallway in front of her door.
Matt finally couldn't stand it any longer. "Damn it, Goldie! How bad is Mandy hurt?" he bellowed through the door.
Goldie opened it and said, "Quiet! You don't want to wake her up right now. She's going to be in terrible pain if she wakes up. Send for Doc!" she ordered.
"I did that already. He should be on his way, unless he was on another call and Gus couldn't find him right off."
"Both of you go downstairs and eat what's on the stove. You can't do anything for Mandy. She's going to need care now and I can't take care of her with you two hovering out here in the hall. Send Doc up right away when he gets here. Hear me?" she demanded of Matt.
"We will, Goldie. Do you need anything?"
"No." She shut the door in their faces.
"Come on, son. Goldie don't boss me around often, but when she does, I got the sense to listen to her." Matt led the way downstairs and into the kitchen. "You look about like I feel."
"Sick to my stomach," Rob said. "I want to cry, but men are not supposed to do that!" He swallowed hard. "I am so sorry, Matt! I should have protected her better. I told her to stay where we were while I went to check out the shots. I should have taken her with me."
"It ain't your fault, boy. It's mine. I refused to fire that son of a bitch when my Mandy asked me to. I thought she was being uppish when she said he was trying to force her into marrying him. I said I'd talk to him and tell him to leave her be, but I should have fired him."
"What a sick excuse for a man," Rob muttered darkly. "If only I'd..."
"He would have ambushed you and shot you dead. Ted Fox was good with a gun," Matt stated, taking two plates from the cupboard.
He filled them with ham, potatoes, and green beans, and carried them to the table, and then cut off thick slices of bread for each of them.
He also poured two cups of coffee and sat them on the table.
"Sit yourself down, Rob. We might as well eat or Goldie will be offended."
Rob sat down and looked at his food. He pushed the plate back and said, "I have to check on Amanda, Matt."
"Goldie will put you on a spit over a fire," Matt predicted.
"I'll risk it." He hurried up the steps and down the hallway.
He was ready to knock on the door when he heard Amanda crying.
He did not bother to knock, just opened the door and rushed inside, wanting to offer comfort and tell her how sorry he was for leaving her unprotected.
Goldie gave him a look of pure outrage and hurriedly placed the sheet over Amanda, but he'd already seen for himself, and he shook his head in disgust.
Tears filled his eyes as he knelt beside the bed and took her hand. "I am so sorry, Mandy."
"It's not your fault, Rob," she whispered. "And, you and Papa got there in time to save me from begging. Thank you. I knew you would find me."
"Doc's here!" Matt's voice boomed in the hallway.
Goldie opened the door. "Mandy is awake. Come and tell her you love her and then get out. She is in pain and needs attention."
Matt came over to stand where Rob was and said, "Baby, I am so sorry I let this happen."
"It isn't your fault, or Rob's fault, Papa. Thank you for coming to rescue me."
"Enough now, both of you men! Let Doc give her a shot and put her to sleep. She is in serious pain and trying to hide it from you both."
"Papa loves you, baby," Matt leaned down to kiss her.
"I love you, too, Papa," she said tearfully.
"Amanda..." Rob squeezed her hand.
Rob rose to his feet and left the room so the Doctor could treat her. He was furious and wanted to hit something or someone. Amanda was so little and precious. How could anyone in his right mind beat her so mercilessly?
Matt was at the bottom of the steps. "He hurt her, Matt. And all she could say was 'thank you for getting there in time to keep me from begging'. I want to kill that bastard with my bare hands."
Matt put his hand on Rob's shoulder. "Son, I'd like to kill Ted Fox a thousand times over for what he done to Mandy. But he's dead, and what we can do now is make it up to her. Come eat your supper now and when Doc comes down, we'll find out what we need to do to get our girl well."
"I love her, Matt."
"I knew that all along," the older man said with a smile.
Waiting for the Doctor to come downstairs seemed an eternity. When he did, his face was grim. "Goldie said your foreman did this to Miss Amanda, Matt...?"
"He did and he is dead." Matt wasn't one to mince words.
"He should be," the good Doctor said quietly. "Miss Amanda will heal, but she is going to be in a lot of pain for the next few days. We need to keep her sedated. I put some ointment on the welts. God, I've seen a lot of beaten women, but this S.O.B. was crazy mean."
"Damn him," Matt whispered. "Is Mandy going to be alright, Doc? He didn't force himself on her, did he?"
"No, she wasn't raped. What he did was bad enough."
"Thanks for riding out here, Doc. Want some supper? There's plenty in the pot."