Chapter Nineteen

MISSING

JACOB HAD TO STAY WITH the livestock the last two hours of the night. He asked Harlan and Lena to keep an eye on Faith and their wagon.

When he returned to the wagon at four, the fire hadn’t been started. Faith usually tried to have the coffee going by the time he got back when he had watch duty during the last shift.

“Faith,” he called at the wagon flap. No answer. He crawled inside. The bed stood empty. His heart sank to his toes.

He rushed to the Haywoods’ wagon.

“I didn’t hear a thing,” Harlan said. “Maybe she walked out for some reason. If there’d been a struggle, I’m sure we’d have heard it. Lena’s a real light sleeper.”

Jacob started going from wagon to wagon. Marshall, Obadiah, and John helped him search. No one had seen Faith.

“I’ll go get some of the soldiers from the fort to help us search there and the outside area,” Marshall said. “I’m sure she’ll turn up.”

At six o’clock they still hadn’t found her. Jacob saddled his horse and began searching with the soldiers.

“We’re running way behind where I’d like to be,” Marshall said. “Normally, I’d hold the wagon train up for you, but I’m still afraid of the possibility the train might be caught in the mountains in a snowstorm. I’ll give you to eight o’clock, but then we’ll be pulling out.”

“You do what you need to, but I’m not leaving without my wife. We’ll catch up with you if we can.”

Jacob felt as if he were riding in circles, as he gripped the reins so hard his knuckles turned white. He tried to keep a soldier in sight but spread out enough to be useful.

His mind rode in circles, too. Rattlesnakes had become common. What if she’d been bitten? Had someone taken her off? He couldn’t imagine she’d gone anywhere on her own. Perhaps an Indian had kidnapped her, but then surely Harlan would have heard a struggle or something.

The worry gnawed at him like a plague of infested rats. He tried not to think he’d lost Faith like he had Lucille and Rudy, but the thought nagged at him anyway. If that happened, he didn’t know what would become of him.

Dense darkness fell underneath a cloudy sky with still no sign of Faith. After asking at the fort one more time, he reluctantly walked back to his wagon. When he got there, the Haywoods’ wagon stood beside his.

“We didn’t want to leave you and Faith,” Lena said. “We thought we’d wait and see if we could help. Then, the four of us can travel together to catch up with the others.”

Jacob had to fight back the tears, and his throat became sore from swallowing them. Oh, God, please may the four of us be going to catch up with the others. Protect Faith wherever she is and help me to find her, I pray. Amen.

Lena offered him some supper, but he couldn’t eat. His stomach had tangled into knots the moment he’d found Faith missing.

“I know you haven’t eaten anything all day,” Lena said. “You need to eat to keep up your strength. You can’t find Faith if you keel over.”

He forced down a bite, but he had a hard time swallowing it. He kept wondering what he would do if they couldn’t find Faith or if they found her dead. The grief of just thinking about it pulled at him like a raging river or that quicksand they’d struggled through, and he felt as if he were being towed under. He put the plate down in despair.

He didn’t try to go to bed. He couldn’t lie in that bed without Faith. Lena and Harlan had wanted to keep him company, but he needed to be alone. He didn’t feel like talking.

He toyed with the idea of lighting a torch and continuing his search, but the soldiers had said finding Faith in the dark would be near impossible, and they needed some rest to continue in the morning. He knew it would be futile for him to try alone. He worried that they hadn’t already found her, because he knew the longer it took, the less likely it would be to find her unharmed.

He sat beside the fire for a long time, but he knew his body had moved beyond tired. Eventually, he grabbed a quilt and lay under the wagon, but he didn’t sleep.

He got up before daylight and rekindled the fire. He sat staring at the blaze for a long time before he made some coffee and tried to read his Bible. He couldn’t keep his mind on the words, so he gave up and prayed. He poured his heart out to God, but it still felt raw and bruised when he finished.

At daylight, he walked to the fort. The officers had asked around but hadn’t found a single clue or lead. How could someone just disappear without a trace, especially his Faith? He knew she would have wanted to stay with him, so something must have happened to her. He tried to push down the panic that thought caused, but it proved too strong.

He went back to the wagon and saw Harlan with the oxen. Jacob hadn’t even thought of them. Thankfully, Harlan had.

The three of them were discussing what they should do when Marshall came riding up. He had to know something. Jacob held his breath.

“We’ve found her,” he said before he’d completely dismounted. “She’s been tied, gagged, and hidden in Iris’ wagon, but she’s okay.”

“Glory be!” Lena shouted.

“What happened?” Jacob asked.

“Kenny, that’s Iris’ driver, went to your wagon and told Faith you’d been hurt and needed her. She ran off with him, and he led her to their wagon. They hit her over the head, dragged her into their wagon, and bound and gagged her. Iris covered her with a quilt. I don’t know how long it took for the poor girl to wake up, but Kenny got concerned. He finally came to me and told me what had happened.”

“Why in the world would Iris do that?” Harlan asked.

Marshall shook his head in disgust. “If Faith never showed up, Iris thought Jacob would go with her. I think she planned to send Kenny on whichever trail Jacob didn’t choose to take. Faith would have gone with Kenny, but Iris hadn’t told Kenny that part yet. I really think Iris has gone mad with her obsession to get her way. None of this makes a lick of sense. I don’t think they even thought about what they’d do with Faith in the long run.”

“She must have been responsible for the other mishaps, too,” Jacob said.

“That’s true, although she had Kenny do part of the mischief. He put the bull snake in your bed, but she thought you’d be on guard duty, and Faith would receive the scare. Iris shot the gun close to Faith herself. Kenny shot the rock with a slingshot. He says he meant to scare her, not hit her in the head. Iris also admitted to planting the brooch in Faith’s wagon.”

“Did she start the prairie fire, too?” Jacob asked.

“No, that must have started on its own.”

“Why did Kenny agree to all this?” Harlan asked.

“He thought they were funny or harmless pranks to begin with. He knew the snake was harmless, and he didn’t mean to actually hit Faith in the head with the rock. She either moved or his aim was off. After the kidnapping, though, he realized things had gotten out of hand, and that’s when he came to me.”

“Where are the wagon train and the others?” Harlan asked.

“They’re going to wait for us. Obadiah is with them, and I put John Brenner in charge until I get back.”

“Let’s get going,” Jacob said. “I want to see Faith.”

“You saddle up your horse and ride on, son,” Marshall said. “Just follow the wagon trail ruts. Faith’s with my missus for now. I’ll hitch up your team and bring them on with the Haywoods.”

“Thank you, sir.”

As Jacob rode the southwest stretch, he realized he hadn’t asked Marshall what would happen to Iris and Kenny. Well, that wasn’t important when compared to Faith. His wife had been found alive, and he now rode toward her. Thank You, Lord!

 

Faith sat in a chair beside the Marshalls’ wagon peeling potatoes. He saw her before she saw him, and he rejoiced at the sight. As soon as he dismounted, he looked up and saw her come running to him.

He caught her in his arms and held her tightly. He didn’t ever want to let her out of his grasp again. He felt her tears and pulled back enough to see her face.

“Did they hurt you, darling?”

“Not seriously. I have a sore knot on my head and rope burns from where they tied me up, and I tried to wiggle out, but I’ll be fine. I’m sorry, Jacob. You told me to be careful, and I didn’t think this through before I ran off with Kenny. Of course, I didn’t realize who he was at the time, but I guess I should have. When he said you’d been hurt, I panicked and rushed so I didn’t even notice where he took me.”

“Sh-h-h. It’s all right as long as you are. Don’t worry. We’re back together now, and that’s what matters. I’ve worried enough over the last twenty-four hours for both of us. I made it, barely, by prayer and supplication. God granted my requests this time, or maybe He granted yours, but I have you back, and that’s what’s important.”

She looked as tired and worn-out as he must. He wanted to take a nap with her in his arms, but their wagon hadn’t returned yet. Instead, he borrowed a quilt from Mrs. Marshall and they spread it under a small tree beside the nearby stream. There he lay beside her and held her close. She seemed to need this as much as he did.

“Go to sleep if you can,” he told her. “We both had a rough night.”

“Yes, I remained too cramped to sleep. They tied my feet and my hands behind me and then tied a short lead to Iris’ cot. I lay on the floor of the wagon bed all night.”

He picked up her hand, saw her red, raw wrists, and kissed the inside of her lower arm just above the rope burn. He felt a slight tremble run through her. The way she responded to him never ceased to thrill him.

He kissed her tenderly. She’d been through a lot, and she needed his gentleness now.

She lay on his shoulder and he saw the goose-egg-sized knot even through her hair, but he didn’t touch it. It looked ugly, bruised, and sore.

“Does your head hurt?”

“A little. I hardly notice it now that you’re here.”

Jacob lay still hoping Faith would fall asleep. Much later he heard the two wagons come in, and he sat up. Faith looked up at him, and he hoped she’d been able to take a nap.

He helped her up, grabbed the quilt, and they walked back to camp. Lena ran and hugged her gently.

“All of you eat with Wayland and me,” Mrs. Marshall said. “I fixed enough.”

They ate fried potatoes, beans, and cornbread. The potatoes weren’t bad, but the beans and cornbread were not nearly as good as what Faith cooked. He realized anew how much God had blessed him.

“Your second cow had her calf last night,” Harlan said. “She seems to be doing fine, but you might need to see to the calf. I also milked the other one for you, but she’s not giving much milk now.”

“Thank you. The cows slipped my mind. This trip’s been hard on them, too, but they’ve made it so far. I’ll keep the new mama tied behind my wagon where we can see to her calf until it’s stronger.”

“We might as well stay here and move out first thing in the morning,” Marshall told them.

“What’s going to happen to Iris and the boy?” Lena asked.

“The council will meet and decide,” Marshall said, “but I don’t think the men will want to hang or severely whip a female. At least, they didn’t seem to when Faith came before them accused of taking Iris’ brooch. I don’t rightly know what else to do with Iris, though. What do you and Faith think, Jacob?”

“I think Iris needs some punishment,” Jacob said. “The shot could have killed Faith or someone else. Kenny’s should be lighter, because he did eventually let you know what was going on. But kidnapping is serious, and I think Iris meant Faith harm.”

“I’m willing to forgive and forget,” Faith said, “as long as the trouble is really over, and Iris isn’t our neighbor, where I have to contend with her.”

“That’s very reasonable of you, Mrs. Parker, but are you sure? Jacob is right. What Iris did is serious.”

“I’m just happy that she didn’t cause any permanent damage, and my Bible tells me that God expects us to forgive. As long as Iris won’t try anything like this again, I’ll be happy.”

“Well, we’ll see what the council thinks. In any case, I’ll have the pastor speak with her.”

 

The council met that evening, but Jacob didn’t go. He stayed with Faith, as it would be better to let the others handle this matter. They knew how he felt.

Marshall stopped by after the council meeting. “Iris has promised to leave with the group going to California. Lester and Morton Agner have agreed to look after her until they get to California, but they told her they wouldn’t put up with any of her shenanigans. They told her, if she didn’t mind herself, she’d be left on her own. The council took how you felt into consideration, Faith. If you and Jacob had pushed for punishment, I think the council would have gone along.” The wagon master shook his head. “I’ve got a feeling she’ll end up marrying some poor soul who’s struck it rich and spend his gold for him.”

“I assigned Kenny to help the preacher’s family. He’s not a bad kid. He just needs some guidance. I think he became infatuated with Iris and wanted to please her. That’s probably how he got so involved in all this, but I really do think he’s learned his lesson.”

Jacob held his tongue, but he didn’t feel the justice in this. Iris needed some kind of punishment. Otherwise, it looked as if what she did didn’t matter, but perhaps it would be better to leave it all in God’s hands. That’s what Faith would say, anyway.

 

Jacob lay beside his wife in the wagon and thanked God for the privilege. Being around Faith was helping him see what strong faith really entailed. If he understood why God did things, then he wouldn’t need trust and faith. When he didn’t understand but chose to trust anyway, his faith grew the most.

Faith snuggled against him, and he scooped her closer. He felt a tug on his heart and realized he loved her so much it almost hurt.

 

They reached the California cut-off without incident. The wagons camped by the nearby Cassia Creek. In the morning the two groups would go their separate ways, so the women decided to have a good-bye party for supper.

Faith cooked biscuits, the last of her dried green beans she called ‘leather britches,’ and apple cobbler from dried apples. Jacob hadn’t tried to tell her not to overdo. She’d already resumed her normal tasks, and he knew she wouldn’t agree to taking it easy.

As usual, everyone ate first. If Jacob and Faith hadn’t been near the front of the line, they wouldn’t have gotten any of Faith’s dishes. Hers were cleaned out early.

“Every waltz is mine,” he whispered when they heard the music start.

Iris came, but she sat demurely off to the side and only danced if someone asked her. She danced three reels, one with each of the Agner brothers and one with Obadiah.

Most of the people were ignoring the fiery redhead. Jacob noticed she didn’t look nearly as provocative as usual, a definite improvement.

After they finished eating, Faith wanted to speak with her, so Jacob followed. Iris stood when she saw them approaching. She looked skittish, almost scared.

“I wanted to say goodbye and wish you well on the rest of your trip,” Faith said. “I hope California is good to you, and I hope you find out what an awesome friend Jesus is the way I have. Do you know how much He loves you?”

Iris only gasped a little more than Jacob. She seemed at a loss as to what to say, so she extended her hand tentatively. “Thank you, but don’t worry about me. I can assure you I’m absolutely devoted to self-preservation.”

Faith hugged her former enemy. “Learn from all this, Iris,” she whispered. “Learn, change, and make the right choices.”

After that, it seemed the atmosphere became more relaxed and others spoke to Iris, too. Jacob realized he’d just witnessed many of Jesus’ teachings put into action, and he swelled in pride for his wife.

“I believe everyone has a heart for God,” Faith said when he told her how he felt. “I think we’re all born to yearn for Him, but some folks just prefer not to recognize it.”

When Jacob pulled her into his arms for a waltz, he felt as if they were dancing on air. It surprised him to realize being with Faith thrilled him even more now than it had in the beginning. He had begun to understand that a love like theirs only grew stronger over time. Thank you again, Lord, for all Thy many blessings.