Wild Kat and the Bad Man (someone's_kitten and somedude)

[Someone's Kitten]

Katherine Hammond got off stage in the little town of Oakwood in the Arizona Territory and crossed the dusty street to the hotel one of the other passengers told her was pretty cheap. She went inside to rent a room and was back in the street a few minutes later after learning a room would cost $1.00 a day. She thought about the small amount of money she still had and decided she needed to find a job and a cheaper place to sleep.

She asked at the hotel if she could leave her bag and asked for a job. After two hours of going from place to place asking for a job and trying to find a place to stay Kat was exhausted and worried. No one wanted a single woman about the place when there are women-starved men around. Especially when she was as pretty as Kat with her dark auburn hair, big blue eyes, slender figure and creamy complexion.

Kat looked across the street at the saloon, the Golden Horseshoe. It was the only place left that she hadn’t tried. She didn’t want to work in the saloon but maybe they needed someone to cook or clean up. She’d do anything. All she wanted was to save enough money to get to her Jason’s people in California.

Tears started to gather in her eyes at the thought of her brave, handsome, dead husband. They had only been married a few weeks when his patrol met up with a band of Indians that didn’t take kindly to the horse soldiers demands that they head back to their reservation. Jason, a lieutenant, had been one of three soldiers killed that day. Within a week Kat had become a widow, buried her husband and lost her home at the Army fort. She couldn’t go back to her parents. They had disowned her when she ran away to marry Jason. Jason had family in California and that’s were Kat was headed.

She’d travel as far as her money would let her, then stay over in some town until she made enough to move on to another town. “Well,” she told herself, “sitting here isn’t going to get me a job and it isn’t going to get me a place to sleep. Let’s see what this saloon looks like from the inside.” So, she walked across the street and taking a deep breath, she pushed open the door and went inside.

[somedude]

Bumpy McHannon was the owner and saloon keeper of the Golden Horseshoe in the dusty little town of Oakwood. Bumpy was a big, fattish fellow with not much hair on his head and a face that had earned him the moniker that had replaced his given name so long before he thought of himself as Bumpy. The big saloon keeper had lived in Oakwood nearly since the town’s founding and had built the Golden Horseshoe fifteen years before and next to Mad Annie’s Sportin House it was the oldest building in town.
Oakwood had been founded along Oakwood Creek to serve the silver mines in the surrounding Arizona hills and Bumpy had built his saloon because miners always wanted a drink. He had done well for himself and Oakwood had done well for itself as well over the years as the town had grown. Bumpy McHannon was the longest tenured citizen of the town and knew everyone and could have been elected mayor save for everyone in town knew him too well to want him as mayor.
As he stood behind the bar of the Golden Horseshoe wearing a whiskey stained apron over his clothes cleaning glasses with a dirty rag he saw a girl out the window he did not know. She was a pretty little thing that made Bumpy think ungentlemanly thoughts as he watched her. It was mid afternoon so it was slow in the saloon and the saloon keeper spent his time watching the newly arrived in town girl as she traipsed from one place of business to another.
Bumpy figured the girl was looking for a job and noticed she had no luck at Smith’s Hardware across the street. From the look on her face her luck did not improve at the Oakwood General Store and he was sure old man Blenheim did not need her help at the livery. There just was not much honest work for a young woman in the little Arizona town and Bumpy knew that even Mrs. Whiter who ran the boarding house who had only one arm did not want a hand around the place even though she needed one.
Bumpy though needed a saloon girl and glancing around the white plaster walled, pine board floored and battered table filled bar room of the Golden Horseshoe he thought about how nice that new girl would look waiting tables and flirting with customers. Then when he looked back out the window he saw the girl headed for the swinging door of his saloon. Which it looked like this was gonna be Bumpy McHannon’s lucky day.
As the girl pushed through the door and into the Golden Horseshoe Bumpy whistled and his smile turned into a leer. Close up the girl was even prettier and the sweet faced, blue eyed, auburn tressed, porcelain skinned and slenderly curvy little thing would look even better in the attire of a saloon girl.
“Howdy missy, welcome to the Golden Horseshoe,� Bumpy greeted the pretty new arrival in his drawling voice as their eyes met across the bar room. “What can I do fer ya?�

[Someone's Kitten]

Kat stopped just inside the swinging door of the saloon and looked around. A balding man with a big stomach covered in a dirty apron was the first thing she saw. He didn't look at her like she had two heads like some of the other shop owners had and his greeting was a lot nicer than the suspicious looks the people had given her when she asked about a job.

"Howdy mister," Kat replied to his greeting and took a look around the saloon, taking in the plaster walls, the board floor and rather old and rickety tables and chairs. It didn't look like much at first glance but Kat looked beyond that and saw that the walls were fresh painted, the floor swept and the table and chairs scrubbed clean. She sniffed the air and though it smelled of liquor and beer and cigar smoke it didn't smell musty and rancid like she was afraid it would.

Finally, Kat turned to the big man and said, "Hello. My name is Katherine Hammond and you can give me a job." She watched the friendly face showing a grin that made him look like he might be leering at her, waiting for him to give her the same mean glare she had gotten from everyone else.

[somedude]

Bumpy watched the girl look around after she had returned his howdy and waited for her to answer what he could do for her. The more the big saloon keeper watched her the more he liked the look of her and the wider his big toothy grin got. The girl was a real looker and if she was looking for a job she would make on hell of a saloon girl that was for sure.
Then when the girl turned to Bumpy and told him her name and told him he could give her a job his leering grin turned into a slow smile. “Well Miss Katherine Hammond ole Bumpy McHannon might just be able to help ya out on that,� the saloon keeper told her in his most friendly, Bumpy is your pal voice. “Just so happens I got an openin fer a job here at the Golden Horseshoe that you would be perfect fer,� he said with wink and his big hands folded on his grimy apron covered belly.

[Someone's Kitten]

"Hello, Mr. McHannon," Kat said, walking over to Bumpy and offering her hand. "I'm pleasd to meet you." She watched as his big hand swallowed up her small one, but his touch was gentle, lighter that she would have expected from such a big ma.

"I'm just passing through Oakwood, Mr. McHannon. I'm on my way to California. I've got family there." Kat didn't feel the need to tell Bumpy the family was her dead husband's parents. She didn't think it was anyone's business. "I'm running short on money and I need a job that will help me earn enough to pay my way." She turned and walked toward the window, looking out into the street before she continued.

"To be honest, working in a saloon is not something I want to do, but no one else will hire me."

[somedude]

Bumpy took Miss Hammond’s hand when she offered it and shook it gently, his pulse speeding up quite a lot from the feel of her small, soft hand in his. Releasing the girl’s hand reluctantly the big saloon keeper listened without comment as she told the brief tale of why she was in Oakwood and looking for a job. Then he watched Katherine as she turned away and moved to look out the window before she related the fact that she was not thrilled about the idea of working in a saloon.
“Aint too many folks hirin women fer honest work in this town that’s fer sure,� Bumpy agreed when she said no one would hire her, then smiling his Bumpy is your uncle smile he started his sales pitch for the job he had for the girl, “But I have honest work fer ya Miss Hammond! It pays $3 a night and aint disgraceful and aint back breakin either. All you gotta do is wear pretty clothes, serve drinks and talk to lonely customers.�

[Someone's Kitten]

Katherine turned and looked at Bumpy as he told her about the job he had for her. The $3 a night perked her up a little. But working in a saloon? How could that be considered honest? And what did he mean by “pretty clothes�? Katherine knew she didn’t have a choice, though. She didn’t have enough money to move on and she didn’t have enough to stay.

“I have to admit $3 a night is a lot more than I was hoping for,� Katherine replied looking at Bumpy suspiciously, “but it makes me wonder how ‘honest’ the work is going to be if I’m going to be paid that much and I doubt that I have anything you’d consider pretty enough for me to wear. I don’t have anything much different than what I’m wearing.� She held out the skirt of her plain cotton dress.

[somedude]

Bumpy met the girl’s suspicious look with his best reassuring smile as she gave voice to her interest in the job’s salary, doubts as to its honesty and her concerns about the prettiness of her wardrobe. The big saloon keep tried no to leer at Miss Howard as she held out her plain cotton dress, his mind full of images of her in saloon girl garb that done made his heart beat faster with lust and greed as he eyed the girl for size.
“Well I wouldn’t be worryin yer pretty head about not havin pretty clothes Miss Howard,� Bumpy told her as he raised his gaze back up to her eyes once more. “I’ll be providin yer clothes fer yer job here at the Golden Horseshoe. And I can assure ya that it’s the most honest job yer gonna find in Oakwood. All you’ll be doin is smilin at and talkin to my customers and servin em drinks. The other jobs here in town fer a girl like you involve doin a lot more’n that with the customers,� he declared, shaking his head as if the thought of Katherine having to take up being a sportin woman would be the greatest of shames.

[Someone's Kitten]

Katherine watched the man's face as he looked at her. She may have only spent a few weeks on an army post but she'd learned enough about men who hadn't been around women for a while to recognize the look she saw.

"Mr. McHannon, you and I both know that your job is the only one I'm going to get in this town so I have to take it. Why don't you show me the clothes you want me to wear. That way I'll have time to make them as presentable as I can before I start working." She turned away from him and walked toward the middle of the room, pausing to look around at the number of tables and chairs.

"I also need your guarantee that your customers don't touch me." She looked at Bumpy again. "I don't mean to be difficult Mr. McHannon but I need to look out for myself. If you can do that for me I can take this job. Then all I have to do is find some place to live while I work for you."

[somedude]

“Well ya don’t be needin to be worryin yer pretty head about a place to stay,� Bumpy answered the girl’s final statement last. “I got a room in the back you can stay in if ya take the job,� the big saloon keeper told Katherine with another of his Bumpy is your uncle smiles before taking out a stout hardwood bludgeon from beneath the counter he assured her, “And ya don’t have be worryin about my customers gettin fresh with ya either because I’ll give em a rap on the head if they do!�
Then replacing his club beneath the bar Bumpy led Ms. Howard into the back of the saloon to show her the room that would be hers is she took the job. The clothes she would wear for the job were also stored there so ole Bumpy was killing two birds with one stone as he solicitously escorted the young woman into the back of the Golden Horseshoe. Where he led Katherine was to a narrow pinewood door behind which was a narrow, white plaster walled room with an even narrower brass framed bed.
In one corner of the small room before a battered mirror stood a wooden clothes dummy upon which hung the outfit Katherine would wear for the saloon girl job. It was quite the outfit too. The main part of it was a green and black satin dress with plenty of black lace that was cut to leave shoulders and arms shamelessly bare, show some bosom and was short enough to daringly show ankle. To go with it were black silk stockings, black fingerless satin gloves, black velvet suede boots, a black feather boa and to top it all off was a little black hat with a big crest of black feathers.
“Well this is the room ya can have ifn ya take the job and this is the outfit ya’ll be wearin,� Bumpy declared as he motioned around the room and at the saloon girl garb upon the wooden dummy. “Whatda ya think missy?�

[Someone's Kitten]

Kat stared at the dress, keeping her face turned so her new boss wouldn’t see her expression. What did she think? How could she answer that? It was nothing like anything she’d ever seen before and nothing like anything she’d ever have pictured herself wearing. She blushed down to the soles of her feet when she thought about what she’d look like wearing that dress.

“I like green,” she said. Breaking her silence seemed to galvanize her into action.

“I’m going over to the hotel and get my things,” she told the saloon owner. “I’ll be back and try on the dress and make any alterations needed to make it fit,” she added. And any alterations to make it more suitable for a young woman who had no intention of making a spectacle of herself even if she was working in a saloon, she told herself as she hurried across the street to get her valise.

Fifteen minutes later she was locked in her room in the back of the saloon snipping, sewing, ripping and tearing until she had managed to make a proper dress out of the outfit Mr. McHannon wanted her to wear. Examining herself from the bottom up she was pleased with what she saw. She’d kept the shoes and stockings. They covered her ankles and legs after all. The skirt was lengthened some by removing the ruffles that were sewn onto the skirt and re-attaching them at the hem. Some of the lace was gone and added at the neckline to cover more of her chest and shoulders and she’d folded a piece over on itself a few times to tie as a choker around her neck and another to tie her hair back.

The gloves, boa and hat were nowhere to be seen. They were stuffed under the bed, truth be told and Kat wasn’t sorry to see them go. She did wonder, as she looked at herself in the poor excuse for a mirror, what Mr. McHannon would think when he saw her. Her knees shook as she unlocked the door of her room and stepped through, walking out to the saloon and her boss.

“Um… Mr. McHannon... I’m ready to start working.” She waited as the big man slowly turned and looked in her direction. The expression on his face made her shake in trepidation.

[somedude]

Bumpy’s eyes went wide as turning as he stood behind the bar the big bartender caught full sight of Katherine in the modified version of her saloon girl outfit. At first he was shocked by what the girl had done to the clothing he had provided for her job but before very long he decided he liked the changes and very much liked how the girl looked. His eyes narrowed a bit in lust as he ran them in open admiration over the obviously nervous Miss Howard and inside his head Bumpy could hear the tinkle of silver dollars from all the drinks his new saloon girl would sell looking that good.
“Ya most certainly do be lookin ready to start workin,� Bumpy agreed with a grin after he had admired her for a long moment. “Though yer shakin like a leaf,� he observed as he noticed how Miss Howard was shaking profusely. “Ya want a shot of whiskey to calm yer nerves before work missy?� the bartender asked, sounding very much Bumpy is your uncle out of honest concern.
Then not waiting for the wide eyed Katherine to reply Bumpy took a brown glass bottle of quality whiskey from the shelves behind the bar and filled a small shot glass full of fiery amber liquid. “There ya go ifn ya want it,� he said and pushed the shot of whiskey across the bar toward the girl with a solicitous smile.

[Someone's Kitten]

Kat was self-conscious enough in the get-up the saloon owner had given her to wear despite the changes she had made to it. She stood in the doorway twisting her hands together behind her back worried at the look on his face. He didn't seem any too happy with what she had done to the dress and she wondered what form his anger was going to take. His face cleared a moment later though and Kat relaxed, only then realizing how much she was counting on the job.

She frowned when Mr. McHannon offered her the shot of whiskey. She had never touched hard liquor other than a drop of sherry on holidays or special occasions. Kat was nervous though, shaking so hard she could barely stand and she had often heard her father say that a drop of the "creature" would calm him. So, she stepped forward and picked up the drink, taking a tiny sip when he poured the whiskey into the little glass and pushed it toward her. It tasted horrible and burned on her tongue then remembering her father again she tilted her head back and took the entire contents in one gulp coughing and gagging as it burned it's way into her stomach. Her eyes watered as she tried to catch her breath, gripping the edge of the bar to steady herself.

"How do you men drink that stuff?" she gasped. She wiped her tearing eyes with the back of her hand and stood away from the bar to look around the saloon. Her breathing was a little erratic and her throat still burned, making her voice hoarse.

"You don't seem to have much business, Mr. McHannon," she said. "Why do you even need someone to work for you?"

[somedude]

Bumpy watched with quite a lot of amusement as Ms. Hammond eyed the whiskey warily and grinned as she took a tentative sip and made a rather put off face. The big bartender’s grin widened when she knocked back the whole shot in one gulp and he had to work to keep from laughing as she wavered with watering eyes holding on to the bar tightly. Her gasped inquiry about men being able to drink whiskey did make him chuckle though and her observation about his saloon’s level of business and why he needed someone to work for him made him laugh out loud.
“It’s a little early to be a havin a lot a customers in yet missy,� Bumpy told the girl once he had stopped laughing. “Be givin it a little while longer n we’re gonna be up to our ears in miners comin off wokin at the mines and cowboys comin in fer a night on the town,� he said and waving around at the empty saloon he declared, “Then this place’ll be filled ta the rafters and ya’ll be jumpin from table ta table faster’n bacon slidin on a griddle!
“Now as far as me needin someone ta work fer me well that jumpin from table ta table is a big part of it because yer gonna be showin off yer ankles, makin nice with the customers and getting em to spend more n more as yer servin and sellin drinks.� Smiling at the thought of Katherine jumping from table to table serving his customers and enticing them to buy more of his hooch Bumpy then went on to inform her, “Yer also here ta be bringin more customers through them doors so go stand out on the front porch n wave at all the men folk ya see.�

[Someone's Kitten]

Katherine looked hard at Mr. McHannon.

“You want me to… to… to stand outside this saloon and wave at strange men?� She was practically spitting as the words left her mouth.

He was asking her to put herself on display, to show herself off in the ridiculous costume he was making her wear and lure men into the saloon so he could sell them liquor!

Katherine wasn’t a religious girl. She had gone to church because it was expected of her and didn’t know what, if anything, she believed in but she had been raised to be a lady and there were some things a lady just didn’t do. But then she shook her head. Those things included drinking hard liquor, which she had just done, and wearing clothes that showed off too much skin, which she was already wearing.

Working in saloons, traveling across the country by alone and running away from home to get married were also on that list along with many minor and petty transgressions she didn’t want to think about.

“Just do what he wants,� she told herself. “Don’t think about it. Do it and get paid and leave as soon as you have enough to get to San Francisco.�

Katherine sighed a deep and heavy sigh and looked Mr. McHannon in the eye.

“Alright. I’ll do it. I’ll do what you want,� she told the saloon keeper. “But as soon as I have enough money saved I’m leaving. I thank you for the job and all but I still have to leave for San Francisco as soon as I can.�

The red haired young woman turned and headed toward the door but stopped half way there. She saw something in the corner that gave her an idea. Leaning against the wall was a rather disreputable looking broom. The handle was scarred and scratched and some of the bristles were either gone or broken, but it was all she needed to give her and excuse for being out in front of the saloon. Katherine grabbed her savior and headed out the door before Mr. McHannon could say a word.

Katherine spent the next hour sweeping the boardwalk and nodding to the men passing by. Many approached her and tried to strike up a conversation but Katherine discouraged them politely and suggested they go in and have a drink. She behaved like a lady and for the most part was treated like one. Things worked pretty well since that was where they were heading anyway.

Of course, the men had lots of questions for her, like where she came from: “Back east.� What she was doing in town: “Passing through.� Why she was working at the saloon: “Needed money.� And, what her name was: “Kat.�

The name was born when she started to answer the first man and stopped after getting one syllable out. She really didn’t want anyone knowing her real name. The man she was talking to heard “Kat� so that was what she decided to call herself.

[somedude]

Bumpy watched Katherine out the windows of the Golden Horseshoe as she pretended to sweep the porch, tickled by the girl’s pretense at doing something other than being out on the porch to attract customers. Attract customers Ms. Hammond did. Though she was sweeping rather than waving the new saloon girl attracted men like moths to a lantern and seemed to do a fair job of chatting them up. The saloon keeper observed his new saloon girl’s interaction with the men who approached her as he cleaned glasses and wiped down the bar with a dirty old rag and was more than pleased to see how many of the men Katherine talked to ambled on into the saloon for a drink.
As the sun moved lower in the sky the Golden Horseshoe filled up with more and more miners and cowboys and shopkeepers and clerks looking to wet their throat at the end of a long day and get more of an eyeful of Katherine Hammond Bumpy was quite sure. Doing a mental headcount as the saloon filled up the big saloon keeper could here the tinkle of silver dollars that would be spent that night and found himself congratulating himself on the hire of his new saloon girl. Plenty of the boys who bellied up to the bar asked about “Kat� the new girl and assuming that was what Katherine was calling herself Bumpy nodded happily and told them she’d be around all night.
Then when the sun was set Bumpy figured the customers were tired of serving themselves so he called out, “Kat, come on in! It’s time fer ya te be waitin tables!�

[Someone's Kitten]

Kat heard Bumpy’s call from inside the saloon and noticed that several of the townswomen had heard him, too. They had been watching her for the last few minutes with obvious looks of disapproval on their faces and had Kat thinking that she was glad to be leaving this town once she earned enough to get her to San Francisco. Kat wasn’t happy about having to work in a saloon but it irritated her that these women would judge her without even knowing her. She wasn’t looking forward to facing a room full of men who were drunk or getting there still when her employer called to her to come and start waiting on tables she gladly left the boardwalk and the glares of everyone looking at her.

Of course, stepping through the swinging doors of the Golden Horseshoe was another matter entirely. This was almost more than Kat could handle as she looked around and all the men sitting at the tables or leaning on the bar. One or two of them actually stood as she entered the room but quickly sat again when their companions laughed and started teasing them. Bumpy was leaning on his side of the long wooden bar and gesturing for her to get on over there.

He had several mugs of beer lined up in front of him and handed her a tray when she reached the end of the bar after leaning the broom back in its corner.

“Here, take these to those men over there,� he said, gesturing to a table near the door, “then start seeing what the others want.� Kat moved the mugs to the tray and lifted it, surprised at how heavy it felt. She set a mug in front of each of the men, having enough to go around, then turned to the nearest table and before she could even ask each man held up an empty glass and asked for a beer.

Kat wasn’t sure how many drinks she served over the next few hours but was glad most of the men were drinking beer. It was easier to keep track of the few that asked for whiskey and not make mistakes about who ordered what. Handling the other things the customers asked for was something else.

Everyone was respectful at first but as time wore on and the beer flowed more freely tongues loosened and remarks became more rowdy and hands less controlled. Kat was able to sidestep most of the touches that came her way and ignored the remarks. Occasionally a hand made contact and after realizing that Bumpy was too busy to notice Kat began to glare and hold the tray between the offender and her body. Once, when a particularly stubborn gent tried to put an arm around her she dropped his beer on the table in front of him, pretending to be startled and was happy when he seemed to decide his beer was more important than her.

It wasn’t hard work but it was tiring and Kat was thankful when Bumpy finally looked her way and motioned her over to the bar.

“It looks like everyone is set for right now, missy,� he told her then gestured toward the back and her room with his head. “Why don’t ya go take a little rest now. Jest ‘member ta lock the door behind ya. Don’t want no one followin’ ya, now do we?�

Kat realized how tired she was and that her feet were achy, too, and thanked Bumpy before taking him up on the offer.

[somedude]

Bumpy watched Kat work with a great deal of interest at first, curious to see how the girl would do waiting tables in his saloon. Soon that interest turned to satisfaction as watching his new saloon girl move about the patron filled Golden Horseshoe he noticed she adapted well to the work and certainly drew the customers’ attention. She also was good at keeping the orders straight and getting the beers and whiskies and such Bumpy poured for her back to the customers in a timely manner.
Ole Bumpy could hear the tinkle of dollars literally and figuratively as he poured and Kat served and the miners and cowhands and such drank and drank and drank. This was the most customers the ole Golden Horseshoe had had in quite some time and Bumpy knew it was do to his new saloon girl drawing in all those men starved to lay eyes upon a pretty girl. Grinning a big ole grin the big ole bartender filled his cashbox as fast as he filled mugs and glasses as he watched Kat serve and swerve amongst the table and try to avoid getting more than eyes laid upon her.
When he figured the girl was looking tired and the customers were well liquored and his cashbox well filled Bumpy motioned Kat over and told her to go rest with a warning to lock her door behind her. Bumpy was not as bad as a lot of people thought and while he would try to get your last dollar and your boots too he was always protective of his saloon girls and plus Kat was such an innocent girl he just could not help but feel extra protective. So he watched his new saloon girl head on back to her room with his hand on his keepin order club to make sure no one followed before turning his attention back to bartending.
After Kat had retired safely to her room the patrons of the saloon served themselves and Bumpy found himself fairly busy filling mugs and pouring whiskeys for the men who came up to the bar for further refreshment. Many of those who came up to the bar commented on the new saloon girl and complimented the big bartender on his choice for his new girl. Which to the latter he grinningly replied that he was a smart enough man to know opportunity when it walked through his swinging doors and asked for a job.
One of the drunker customer’s compliments about Kat were less than polite and Bumpy gave that miner a dark glare and warned, “Just you be rememberin that any saloon girl at the Golden Horseshoe had better be bein treated and talked about with respect or you’re a gonna have to be answerin to ole Bumpy himself!”
The miner took one look at the big saloon keeper and swallowed and nodding he mumbled an apology before laying down his money and carrying off his whiskey. Watching him go Bumpy had to wonder at himself for a moment because though he always looked after his saloon girls he normally did not feel so protective and well downright grandfatherly toward them and that was how we was feeling toward Kat.
“Must be bein that I’m a gettin sentimental in ma old age!” Bumpy muttered and slipped the drunk’s coins into his money box before he set to wiping down the bar shaking his head at himself for being a sentimental old fool even as he smiled at the thought that he if he had a grand daughter he would not mind one like Kat.