Ghosts of the Past [ RDR2 - Arthur Morgan ]

Chapter 44 - Micah's problem.

Word count -1982
We're really coming to a close soon. And I just wanted to thank everyone to sticking along for the journey. I hope you have all enjoyed it! Don't know what I'm gonna do without Rose and Arthur to write about soon.

CHAPTER 44 - Micah's Problem.

"Oh love - don't go gettin' shy on me now." He winced slightly, A grimace clear on his face at the pain emanating from his torso. "Be a good girl, kneel down for me and get me fixed up, good and proper."

Sometimes, being a camp doctor has its downsides. Rose knew it was coming eventually. That Micah Bell would get himself hurt, and she'd be stuck patching him up. She didn't have the full picture, but something had happened earlier that day between Dutch, Micah, Arthur and Cornwall in Annesburg. "Have a bit of respect, please. You know what that word means right?" Rose asked in return. "I'm a taken woman."

Micah was unbothered by her rebuttal. But wasn't he always? "Reckon you just need a ride on a real cowboy. Show you what you're missing."

Pressing down far harder than necessary on the wound that covered his ribs, she frowned with irritation. "Don't be a child." She snapped in response to his yelp "It's just a graze."

Micah's groan morphed into a sickly-sounding laugh. Though no one else seemed in on the joke. "You're feisty." He crooned "You're wasted on that saddle-sore bastard." His words only seemed to gain him an impatient tut in reply. "I'm telling ya—" he pushed on regardless, "I could treat you real nice..."

"You keep going, I might just slip a little cyanide into your whiskey." Rose snapped at him. The. Then she grabbed a large bandage and, unfortunately, had to effectively wrap her arms around him to pull it around his body.

That was when Micah hummed, voice gravelly. "Ain't you a sweet embrace."

She tightened the fabric harshly. "You'd have better luck flirting with the sky, Bell."Her voice didn't sound like her usual soft southern drawl. In fact, it was sharp—harsher than she'd let slip in three years. Not since she left her husband. She hadn't hated anyone enough to speak to so cruelly—until now. "You're patched up." She stated firmly, the words were clear - Go away.

Still with some swagger in him, Micah pushed himself off the table, landing his feet on the soft dirt below. At his full height, he towered over Rosemary - she wasn't a particularly tall woman after all.The way he looked at her, standing just close enough to make her feel boxed in against the wagon, set her nerves on edge. "When all this goes to shit-" Micah began quietly.

That sentence alone shocked Rose. The only people she'd heard admit the gang was crumbling were Sadie, Jacob, and Arthur. To hear Micah not only see the impending breakdown, but openly admit to it, was not something she'd expected.

"-You come find me." He finished with a grin. "I'll still be standing."

Desperate to keep up the appearance of being unbothered, Rose slipped out from between Micah and the wagon and looked him up and down scathingly. "When all this goes to shit, Bell, I'll be too busy looking for your grave."

Micah lingered just long enough for Rose to wonder if he might say something else. Then, with a deep breath, he turned on his heel and sauntered toward Dutch's tent—where he always was. Rose fell back against the wall of the wagon with a huff of air, rubbing her eyes to ease out the frustration building quickly in her head.

"You look awful." Jacob Coors commented, jumping on to the table Micah had just vacated "I mean it. Like a raccoon."

"Gee. Thanks." Rose muttered irritably.