Slocum 394 : Slocum and the Fool's Errand (9781101545980) Read Online Free PDF Page B

with him last night.”
    â€œI spent more time tying a man down like a dog. Besides, I don’t need to see the doctor again. I can stitch myself just fine.”
    â€œReally? Is that why the doctor had to do the job again for you?”
    Slocum studied his arm as the other man’s evaluation of his stitching drifted through his mind. Although he thought he’d done a better job than the doctor had given him credit for, it was no picnic doing it himself. The first time had been out of necessity. Doing so again would only be an exercise in bullheadedness. “Fine,” he said while pulling on his jeans. “I’ll go, but only because you asked so nicely.”
    â€œI need you stitched up properly,” she said while helping him into his shirt and buttoning it. “That way you can withstand another night here with me.”
    â€œAnother night, huh?”
    She shrugged before smirking and adding, “Or afternoon. Depends on how quickly you get to Doc Bower’s.”
    That was all the inspiration he needed to pull on the rest of his clothes, buckle his gun belt around his waist, and head for the door.
    Â 
    â€œWhat on earth have you been doing?” Doc Bower asked as he examined Slocum’s arm. “Wrestling wild animals?”
    â€œNot exactly.”
    Judging by the way he groused at Slocum, the doctor had a good idea of what had caused the tear and didn’t approve one bit. “At least you didn’t try to patch it together yourself this time.”
    â€œYeah, Doc. I much prefer the warmth of your company.”
    Bower held him at arm’s length and stared at him through a pair of little round spectacles perched upon the edge of his nose. Before too long, his sunken face broke into a wide grin that seemed like it would have been more befitting a patient who hadn’t survived one of his procedures. “Fair enough. Let me get my things.”
    Slocum sat in a large dentist’s chair in the main room of the doctor’s office. The spot where he’d been stitched up the night before was one floor directly above. Having collected a needle, thread, and smock to wear over his shirt and tie, Bower looked more like a fancy butcher when he started sewing the wound shut.
    The skin was tender after having already been ripped apart three times and stitched twice. If there had been any cobwebs in Slocum’s head after his night’s sleep followed by the morning’s activities, they were banished real quickly once the needle punctured his arm.
    Speaking as if he were conversing over a cup of freshly brewed tea, Bower said, “Sheriff Reyes has been in over his head lately.”
    â€œOklahoma Bill is enough to give any lawman fits,” Slocum hissed as the thread was cinched to squeeze together two flaps of skin.
    Bower continued his work. To his credit, he had a smooth enough touch that Slocum might not have felt much of any discomfort if not for the tenderness of the wound. Perhaps wearing his glasses improved the doctor’s performance over the previous night. “Oklahoma Bill. Sounds like one of those names the newspapers latch on to. I prefer to not get wrapped up in all the dramatics of such unfortunate events.”
    â€œMen like Bill are fond of dramatics. They’re also fond of burning through broken trails and shooting anything that tries to stand in their way. Shouldn’t discredit any lawman who brings in someone like that. Not to mention when he also brings in the rest of the gang.”
    â€œAs I was saying, Sheriff Reyes has been in over his head. Not just with this Oklahoma person, but in general.”
    Hearing the ham-handed way Doc Bower dealt with a simple nickname was enough of an amusement to take Slocum’s mind from the stinging needle and itchy thread.
    â€œI don’t know if you’ve met the two fellows who fancy themselves as deputies,” Bower continued, “but they’re about as