A Broken Outlaw (Belles & Bullets Book 7)

by Caylen McQueen

  “No!” Clara pushed him back to bed. Because she was young and quite pretty, he didn't protest too hard. “Get back under those covers, Josiah Cole! You aren't going anywhere!”

  “But I need to find my friends and--”

  “No!” Clara repeated as she pulled a small bottle and spoon from her apron. “It's time for your medicine, Mr. Cole.” Every time he said he needed to find his friends, Clara feared he was talking about a sweetheart. Medicine was her excuse to keep him at the hospital. She wasn't ready to lose him.

  “Nah, I don't want it,” Josiah insisted. “I need to leave.”

  Ignoring him, she unscrewed the medicine's cap. “But it'll help with the pain.”

  “I'm not in that much pain anymore.”

  “Really?” Clara's eyes brightened, but her nose wrinkled. She was happy and sad at the same time.

  “I'm ready to leave, Nurse Clara. I really am.”

  “B-b-but you still have bandages!” Clara exclaimed. “And isn't your ankle sore? You're not ready yet!”

  “My ankle's not so bad anymore.”

  “Ohhhh...” Clara was desperate to keep him, so she resorted to desperate measures. “If you don't behave, I'll... I'll turn you in for a bounty!” So he would know her threat was empty, she ran her fingers through Josiah's disheveled blond hair, which was probably the most blatantly flirtatious thing she had ever done. “You know, it's a good thing all this hair didn't get singed off in the fire. It would've been such a shame to lose this beautiful hair.”

  “Clara...” Josiah sighed her name. He knew she fancied him, but he didn't know how to react. She was pretty, but he had other plans.

  “Will you stay? Please? For me?” Clara begged him. “Just one more day, Mr. Cole, then I swear I'll let you go!” When he didn't respond right away, she added, “I won't make you take the medicine, I promise!”

  “Good. Because that stuff tastes awful.” Josiah's head hit the pillow, and his lips made a frustrated sputtering noise. “Alright. I'll stay.”

  “Thanks.”

  When Clara leaned down to kiss his cheek, he teased her, “Do you kiss all the patients, or am I getting special treatment?”

  “You're getting the special treatment... of course.” As she headed for the door, Clara winked at him. “But I do have other patients, so I'll be back in a bit. Don't go anywhere, Josiah! Don't you dare go anywhere!”

  Sighing, Josiah stared at the ceiling. There was nothing to do in a hospital room. He was so bored, he almost reread the girls' fairy tale. He studied the hands on the grandfather clock as the minutes ticked by. 1:30... 1:33... 1:35.

  At 1:36, he heard a familiar voice in the hall.

  “I'm real glad I could see you again, Nurse Debbie. Or do you prefer Deborah? I prefer Debbie, myself. You look like a Debbie.”

  “No way...” Josiah whispered to himself as he slid from bed. Fearing he'd be caught by Clara, he tiptoed to the door and peeked into the hallway.

  Patrick Amberley was standing a few doors down, flirting with a nurse.

  “You know, Debbie, you're probably the most beautiful woman in Gravestone,” Patrick told the girl. “You've got these big, brown eyes that make a man melt. I haven't seen you around here before. You must be new, because I would have noticed a beauty like you.”

  “I've been in Gravestone for almost a year now,” Debbie timidly informed him.

  Well... I was in jail, so that might've had something to do with it.” Patrick leaned against the wall and grinned at her. “I guess you could say I'm an outlaw. Is that going to be a problem, Nurse Debbie?”

  “Patrick Amberley!” Josiah shouted down the hall. “What the hell are you doing here?”

  At first, Patrick looked like he'd seen a ghost. All traces of color drained from his face. A few seconds later, his grin expanded to reveal his teeth. “Josiah Cole? The real question is... how the hell are you alive?” If not for the fact that Josiah was shirtless, he might have greeted him with a hug. After removing his hospital gown, Josiah only recovered some of his clothes before Clara caught him.

  “You thought I was dead?”

  “Damn right I thought you were dead! The whole roof and a half-ton of burning rubble came down on you! How the hell did you survive a thing like that?”

  Josiah returned to his room and motioned for Patrick to follow. As much as he wanted to continue his pursuit of Nurse Debbie, his friend was more important, so Patrick said farewell and chased after Josiah.

  “Remember that gaping hole in the floor?” Josiah explained. “When I saw the roof coming down, at the last second, I jumped down to the lower level. I really messed up my ankle for a couple of days, but it seems to be alright now. I'm a fast healer. I landed right in a fire, actually, so I had to roll to put it out. I've got burns all over my body, but it could be worse. Anyway... that entire room looked like Hell, so I needed to get out fast. I wrapped up that little girl in my coat, kept my head down, and searched for a way out. The only door was blocked, so I had to escape through a window. I used the mechanical arm to punch through the glass.” Josiah directed Patrick's attention to the corner of the room, where his arm was temporarily stored.

  “Well... shit.” Impressed with his friend's story, Patrick whistled. “I had no idea. I'd been telling everyone you died. It certainly looked like you died!”

  “You told Carol?”

  Patrick nodded slowly.

  “And how did she react?”

  “You know how. She was devastated. She spent the last two days crying her eyes out. She's like a different person now. Actually...” Patrick glanced in the direction of the grandfather clock. 1:43. “Actually, Jo, she's leaving Gravestone at two o'clock. She booked a flight out of West Columbigo. She's going home. When she thought you were dead, I guess she had no reason to stay, so...”

  “Two o'clock?” Josiah sprang from bed, recovered his shirt, and thrust his arm through one of the sleeves. He had no time to fuss with the mechanical arm, so he decided to abandon it—temporarily, at least. “Do you think I could catch her if I hurried?”

  “Sure. The skyport's not too far from here.”

  “Shit, Pat, button me up!” As Patrick buttoned his shirt, Josiah was wincing. It was humiliating, to be sure, to be dressed by his friend, but he had no time to waste. “Wish me luck!”

  Josiah didn't wait around for Patrick's reply—he was through the door in an instant. He even ran past Nurse Clara, who tried to block him with an outstretched arm. He pivoted out of range, murmured an apology, and fled the hospital before anyone could stop him.

  It was Monday Market Day on the streets of Gravestone, which meant the path to the skyport was more clogged than usual. As he made his way forward, Josiah had to dodge clusters of shoppers as he weaved through the crowd. He accidentally bumped an old lady, knocking her coin purse out of her hand. Even though time was scarce, he stopped to check on her and collect her scattered coins.

  “Are you alright, ma'am?” Josiah asked as he handed her a roll of dimes. “I didn't mean to run into you. I'm real sorry, sweetheart.”

  “Oh, honey, it's okay.” The woman's liver-spotted fingers trembled as she returned the coins to her purse. Josiah handed her a few quarters, a rolled up bill, a nickle, and he searched the ground for more.

  “Do you see anything else? Have I missed anything?” He spotted a dime by his boot, so he picked it up and passed it to her.

  “No, dear. I think that's everything. You're free to go.” The old woman lovingly patted his arm. “You're a very charming young man.”

  “Thanks. And again... I apologize.” Josiah bowed to her, then he spun on his heel and continued his sprint to the skyport. Along the way, he stopped at one of the market stalls. He had a few minutes to spare, so he decided to buy a gift for Carol. At first, he paused by a flower stall and examined the roses, but something didn't feel quite right. Carol Cassady was a unique girl who deserved a unique gift, so he passed on the flowers. Instead, he bought a helium balloon in the shape
of a flower. Smiling at the balloon in his hand, Josiah whispered to himself, “I can't go wrong with this, right?”

  With his gift in hand, Josiah charged in the direction of the skyport. When he reached the first airship, he spotted a clock. 1:51. There were only nine minutes until Carol's airship lifted off, so he needed to find her. Fast.

  Only one airship was boarding passengers, so he assumed it was the right one. As he approached the queuing travelers, Josiah slowed his pace and searched for Carol. She wasn't in the back of the line, the middle of the line, or even the front of the line. Carol was halfway up the gangway, and the ticket taker was right in front of her.

  “Carol!” Josiah hollered her name as loudly as he could. “Carol Cassady! Carol Cassady, I love you! Don't go!”

  When Carol turned around, she turned slowly. Josiah was standing near the queuing passengers, wildly waving his balloon to get her attention.

  “Josiah Cole?” Tears exploded from Carol's eyes as she raced down the gangway. “Are you real?” She laid her hands on his cheeks, half-expecting him to disappear. “Are you?”

  “Of course.”

  “You're not... dead?” As she caressed his cheeks, Carol cried so hard, she could barely catch her breath.

  “Do I look dead?” Josiah asked with a chuckle. He tried to dry her eyes with the sleeve of his shirt, but the tears kept coming, so he gave up. Several of the airship's passengers were staring in their direction. He couldn't blame them for being curious, but they needed privacy. With one arm, he lifted Carol off her feet and carried her a short distance away.

  When he set her down, she shrieked, “You stupid poop!” Out of nowhere, Carol's tears stopped, and she whacked him in the head with her boarding pass. “Why'd you let me think you were dead? It's been two days! Ugh!”

  “I was in the hospital. I couldn't get away.” Josiah tugged the collar of his shirt, directing her attention to the burns on his neck. “I ran into Patrick, and he told me you were leaving, so I ran here to catch you.”

  Carol cocked her head and asked, “What's with the balloon? Is it a gift for someone?”

  “Yeah. For you.” Josiah finally handed it over. “I thought you'd appreciate it more than flowers.”

  “I do. I love it!” As soon as the balloon was in her hand, Carol heard a familiar buzzing noise in her bag, so she peered inside. Gogobot had somehow come to life on his own, and he was clapping for Josiah's return. Recognizing his need for freedom, she took him out and placed him on the ground. “It looks like someone else is happy to see you too.”

  “Gogobot? Yeah, he's my biggest fan,” Josiah claimed. He smiled down at the little robot, who excitedly hugged his leg.

  “I've never seen him come to life on his own before. He must really like you.”

  “Can you blame him?”

  “No, not really.” Carol's red-rimmed, watery eyes were suddenly narrowed. “Waaaait. What did you say a moment ago, right after you called out to me? Did you say you... that you...”

  “Loved you?” Josiah finished for her. “Indeed I do.”

  “You do?” Carol didn't know what was more difficult to believe: that Josiah loved her, or that he was back from the dead. It felt like a dream, so she pinched herself a few times. By some miracle, she was still awake, and Josiah was still standing right in front of her.

  “You're an amazing mechanic, Carol Cassady,” Josiah told her. “You really can fix anything. As cheesy as this sounds... I feel like you repaired me too. When I lost my arm, something inside me was broken. For the longest time, I didn't feel quite right. But then... you fixed me. You made me feel like it was okay to be myself again.”

  Carol's reaction to his speech wasn't quite what he expected. To his surprise, she growled, “You bastard!” Her tears returned, so she tried her best to rub them away before they fell. “You're making me cry again! Why?”

  “All my life, I never needed anyone,” Josiah continued. “I was always happiest on my own. But then you came along and... and you scrambled up everything in my head. Now I can't be without you. If you got on that airship today, I'd lose the best part of me... because the best part of my life is you, Miss Cassady. You're my reason to keep going, to keep living. So... you can't go. You can't leave me.”

  “Pfft! I'm obviously not leaving, you dope!” Once again, she whacked his head with her boarding pass. “Gee! Do you really think I'd leave after all that?”

  “You still haven't told me how you feel about me,” Josiah pointed out. “I just said I loved you. It'd be nice if you... I dunno... returned the sentiment?”

  “Hellooooo?” When Carol raised the boarding pass again, Josiah flinched, so she spared him another blow. “Have you been asleep this whole time? Do you not know me at all? Do you think I'd cry my eyes out over anyone else? Of course I love you!”

  “Does that mean I can kiss you?” Josiah asked with a grin.

  “It means you better kiss me, or I'm going to lose my patience with you, buddy!” Carol rolled her eyes at him. “I swear, Jojo, you can be such a--”

  He silenced her with his lips.

  And suddenly, Carol Cassady was the happiest girl in the world.