•Tombstone• Brothers Under The Sun

Chapter 15

𝓣𝓱𝓮𝓻𝓮 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓷𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓮 𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓹𝓱𝔂𝓼𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓵 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓵 𝓹𝓪𝓲𝓷. 𝓝𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰.

Leaning back in the chair, Elle gritted her teeth together and groaned as the Doctor took out the bullet from her arm. Blood began to pulse out of the wound once the silver dot was out. She gasped for air as she felt a sense of relief that it hadn't shattered into her bones. Sweat stained her face and she opened her eyes, staring at the ceiling.

"There we are." The Doctor mumbled, placing the bullet in a dish. Clinking around as it dropped.

The doctor then cleaned the wound and pulled out a thread and needle. Elle picked her head up and looked at the doctor brought it closer to the skin. She clenched her jaw and shut her eyes. The needle dig into her skin and she let out a groan in pain. Her other hand, held a white cloth tight, her knuckles turning white. Opening her eyes for a moment, black spots clouded her vision which made her dizzy. Shutting her eyes, she calmed herself and suffered through the pain. Once the doctor finished he placed her arm in a sling, telling her to take it easy on the arm because the stitches would break. Not wanting the pain she nodded her head as it leaned back on the wall. Leaving the girl alone, the doctor excused himself, he had to check on Virgil who was in the next room.

Opening her eyes again, she watched the ceiling and the black dots began to disappear into the air. Lifting her heavy head off the wall she looked down at her wound and let go of the air she had held in. Her arm, no longer skin coloured, now painted in the deep red of her own. She had taken off her jacket and her button up, leaving her in a loose undershirt which wasn't tucked in her pants very well anymore. She huffed and felt her stomach turn at the sight of her wound. Deep red seeped through the black thread, oozing onto her skin, rolling down her arm. A dark purple formed around it as it started bruise.

The door opened again and in walked Doc Holliday, still wearing the grey shirt, now less stained in his sweat. Drops of blood painted his right arm and shoulder from when Elle needed help walking. She found herself dizzy and stumbled onto Doc and Wyatt on their way there.

"You look worse then me Darlin'." He said, a coin flipping between his five fingers, across his knuckles.

"That's sayin' a lot." Elle huffed.

She looked up at him, he watched with a cautious eye as she leaned her head back. To dizzy to keep it up on her own.

"Virgil'll be fine." Doc said sitting in front of Ellanora where the doctor once sat.

"And Morgan?"

"Just a graze, fixed in no time."

Elle nodded and lifted her head on her own again. She watched as Doc flipped a coin on his knuckles. Elle sighed and closed her eyes.

"I must say," He said breaking the silence, Elle opened her eyes. "For a lady, you've got good aim."

"Thanks?" Elle laughed questioning his complement, if it even was one.

"I am complementing you Darlin'."

"Oh," Elle threw her head back and chuckled, "he does have a heart."

Doc say back in the chair and scuffed. "You make bein' nice hard."

"When are you ever nice?" Elle raised her eyebrows at the man, smirking.

Doc looked at the girl and stood up. Shaking his head he walked towards the door. "No thank you?" He questioned.

"Just go Holliday." Ellanora said annoyed, turning away Doc left laughing to himself.

Ellanora Couldn't help but laugh to herself as well. Leaning back, she closed her eyes again, taking a deep breath, she felt calmer.

The next day the streets were filled with cowboys. They held banners and signs saying they're friends, and brother to Ike, had been killed and murdered for no reason. The sun was starting to set, giving the place a glow of orange. Wyatt, Elle and Morgan watched from Morgan's porch as they walked past. Elle sat hazily on a rocking chair, her eyes heavy with exhaustion. Wyatt sat next to her, watching them march by, like a parade. Morgan looked tired, he looked older now, his boyish charm had slipped from his body and died the day before.

Curly Bill walked up to the three from the line of cowboys and Wyatt nodded as he approached.

"I'm sorry. If there was any-" Wyatt began.

"I know." Curly Bill cut him off nodding, "just did what you had too. That banner and stuff," he pointed to the banner that said Murder on the streets of Tombstone and looked at Wyatt, "that's Ike's. Don't worry about it."

Curly Bill then nodded to Morgan and tipped his hat to a sleepy Elle, who nodded back at the man. She still hated him for killing her friend Fred White. She wanted to shoot the back of his head as he walked off.

Sighing, Elle slowly stood from her chair and bid a good night to the two Earp brothers. "Do you need company back to your hotel?" Morgan asked standing up.

Elle shook her head and smiled at the man, "I'll be alright, I just need to clear my head." She turned and stepped off the porch, but turned back once she heard Wyatt say something.

"Get some rest now Miss Raycroft." Elle smiled at the man and walked off down the street.

On her way she passed Boot Hill, where the cowboys were having their burial for their three fallen friends. She watched as they placed the bodies down. Ike Clanton looked up from his brothers grave and saw Elle as she walked past. His eyes burned holes into Elle. She saw fire and hate.

Narrowing her eyes she continued on and walked past where Fred White had been put to rest. His body was taken to his hometown, but a grave was still placed in his honour. He had no family in Tombstone, they were far from this mining town. Feeling the pain flare up in her shoulder, she walked away from his headstone and slowly walked to the Grand Hotel.

Opening her door, she looked back into the hall and saw the number 7 hung on its wooden frame. No sound came from the room, no coughing. Nothing. She remembered the night she stayed with Holliday, making sure he would survive the night. She remembered her dream, or was it a nightmare? She remembered his voice calling her name.

"Elle." He spoke before she had disappeared over the hill on Ash.

"Elle." The voice in the darkness rasped out. It wasn't the voice she had heard in her dreams, it was the voice Doc Holliday. He had called her Elle.