When they reached the kitchen, Eileen tugged on Lucy’s skirt. “I don’t like it here, Lucy.” Tears rolled down her cheeks.
Lucy scooped Eileen up into her arms. “Hush, darling, it will be all right. There’s flour for biscuits and beefsteak for dinner. That’s more than we had in Wabash. I know it’s going to be an adjustment, but let’s wait and see how things are tomorrow. We’re all at sixes and sevens with Mr. Stanton’s illness and the long trip. I’ll make sure things work out for you both.”
Jed crossed his arms and glowered at her. “Mr. Nate acts like this was all your fault. Is he going to send us back?”
Lucy had been wondering the same thing, but she managed to smile. “Nate is just shocked at what his father has done. It will be fine once he gets used to the idea.”
She hoped that was true. She was willing to give Nate the benefit of the doubt, but her charity was growing thin. The thought of their tiny home, rude though it might be, filled her with a sense of nostalgia and longing.
But no. Danger lurked in Indiana. She had cut ties and no one knew where they were. It was better that way. This was a new start away from whatever danger had come calling.
Lucy put Eileen down and surveyed the kitchen. Dingy cotton covered the open shelves. A teakettle and coffeepot sat atop the wood cookstove, blackened by years of abuse. The wooden table was battered and smooth with use. She peered into the coffeepot and the dark liquid inside smelled horrible. But then, the entire kitchen reeked of stale food.
Wrinkling her nose at the strong smell, she poured the black coffee into a cup. She eyed it. Maybe she should see if it was any good. She took a cautious sip and shuddered at the bitterness. From the strong, acrid taste, it must have been made this morning. There was no time to make fresh though. A sugar container was on the table, so she took it, then stirred some sugar into the cup.
Sugar. What a luxury. There seemed to be plenty too. She dipped her finger into the coffee and tasted it. Shivering at the still-bitter taste, she added more sugar, then poured another cup for Nate and added sugar to that cup also. At least it might be drinkable now.
“Watch your sister,” she told Jed.
She carried the coffee back to Henry’s bedroom. He was sitting up against the pillows. Though Henry looked wan and weak, his eyes were not so dull. He took the coffee eagerly, and she handed the other cup to Nate. Both men took a big gulp. Nate’s eyes widened and he choked but managed to keep it down. His father was not so charitable. Sputtering, Henry spewed the coffee from his mouth. The dark liquid pooled on the quilt in front of him.
The eyes he turned to Lucy were full of reproach. “Sugar! You put sugar in my coffee?”
“I’m sorry.” Lucy took a step back toward the door. “It was bitter. I think it was old.”
Nate wiped his mouth. “It’s supposed to be bitter.” He took the cup from his father and brushed by Lucy on his way to the door. “She doesn’t know coffee from syrup. You should send her back to where she came from.”
Henry scowled. “Lucy is your wife, and the sooner you adjust to that fact, the better.”
Nate put a hand on his hip. “She’s not my wife, Pa. I never gave you permission to bring me back a bride.”
“You signed a proxy statement, Nate. It’s all legal, and you’d best make the most of it.”
“The proxy was to sell cattle! Not marry me off.”
The two men glared at one another, and Lucy thought they looked like two roosters squaring off for a fight. If she had the nerve, she’d douse them both with cold water. They deserved it. Henry for bringing her here without telling her his son hated women, and Nate for not giving her a chance to prove herself. Well, she would show them. She wasn’t afraid of hard work, and when Nate realized it, his apology would be sweet.
Still lost in a pleasant daydream of Nate groveling at her feet, she didn’t notice Henry’s gray color until he choked. Sinking weakly back against the pillows, he clutched his left arm again. Lucy started to his side, but Nate beat her to it.
Drops of perspiration beaded Henry’s face. “Quit fussing,” he muttered. He rallied a bit and clenched his son’s hand. “Promise me you’ll try to care for your new wife, Nate,” he whispered. “If I thought I’d done anything to harm her and those children, I would turn over in my grave.”
Nate patted his father’s shoulder. “You’re not going to die, Pa.”
Henry tried to rise in the bed. “Promise me.”
Nate stilled, and his shoulders slumped. “I promise.” He shot a dark glance toward Lucy as if it were her fault his father was so insistent.
“I want her and the children to move in with you. I’m not sure the noise would be good for the old ticker.” Henry’s voice was weak, but the odd gleam in his eye made Lucy wonder if he was using the situation to his own advantage. “Once I’m well, we’ll see about getting you a decent house for a family.”
Nate’s brows drew together, but he nodded. “Whatever you want, Pa.” The look from his gray eyes as he turned toward Lucy was anything but meek.
The time ticked by slowly. When Lucy had finally begun to wonder what had become of the doctor, he came bustling in. A stringy man with grizzled hair, Doc Cooper reminded Lucy of a miner rather than a doctor.
“What’s this nonsense, Henry? You’re too ornery to die on us. Let’s take a look at you.” Dr. Cooper jerked his head at Nate, Lucy, and the children, and they obeyed the silent admonition to leave him alone with Henry.
EILEEN RUBBED HER eyes and leaned back against her brother in the rocker. “I don’t like our new brother. I want to go home.”
Holding her, Jed gave the rocker a push with his foot and somehow managed to give her a reassuring smile when he wanted to tell her they’d just pack up and leave. “We have to make the best of it. We don’t have anywhere else to go right now.”
Lucy had told him they had an uncle in the area. Maybe they could find him and he’d help Lucy get a job. Jed too. He could stock shelves or something at the general store. Maybe take care of horses. He liked horses.
“Is our new grandpa going to die?” Eileen asked.
“I hope not.” Jed looked around the ranch. As far as he could see, there were cattle grazing on a thousand hills. Several whitewashed barns were in the back lot and fences penned in a remuda of horses. A few chickens pecked in the dirt in the side lot by the barn. He’d never been in a place where he felt so alone. No city, no people. Just the big, blue sky overhead and the sense that he could see forever.
Eileen tugged on his shirtsleeve. “Look, Jed, kittens.”
Half a dozen kittens played in the dirt by the barn door. “I see them.” He slid off the rocker and set her on her feet, then took her hand. “Let’s go look around.”
Even the dirt was different here. Dry and dusty. It left a fine red layer on his shoes as he led his sister across the scrubby yard. While his sister knelt and cooed at the kittens, he studied the landscape back here and imagined himself riding the low-lying hills. His friends back in Wabash would be envious if they could see him now. They had read of the exploits of Jesse James and Cole Younger and dreamed they would be the hero to bring them down. He pretended to draw a gun from a holster and shoot at the chicken pecking near the water trough. If that had been Jesse James, he would have nailed him.
A horse’s nicker from inside the barn caught his attention. He walked into the cool, dim building. A beautiful gray horse stared at him from a stall. He’d never seen a horse so fine.
He touched the horse’s nose and found it soft. Its lips nuzzled his chin. “I don’t have any sugar for you.” A bag of oats hung on the far wall. He took a handful from the sack and held his cupped palm to the horse. A thrill shot through him when the horse ate it. If only he could have this horse. It was love at first sight.
When a sound came behind him, he assumed it was Eileen until he smelled an unfamiliar hair tonic. When he turned, he saw no one.
“Hello?”
No one answered him, and if it weren’t for the spicy scent still in the air, he would have thought he had imagined it. That smell . . . Terror enveloped him and he couldn’t move. Why was he so afraid? It was only hair tonic.
He swallowed hard and shuffled his feet. With the paralysis broken, he listened. The hair on the back of his neck prickled at the ominous silence. He wanted to run, but he was part of this family now. If the man wasn’t answering, then he was up to no good. Jed took a pitchfork in his shaking hands and sidled toward the darker areas of the barn. He pushed each stall open with the tool.
When he was in the last stall, he heard Eileen call his name. He whipped around to make sure she was okay, but when a rustle came behind him, he knew he was in trouble. He half turned, but a blow came out of nowhere and knocked him to his knees.
His ears rang and he nearly blacked out. He shook his head and staggered to his feet in time to catch a glimpse of a man’s jeans and boots disappearing out of the stall.
“Eileen, run!” He stumbled to the front barn door. When he exited into the sunshine, he blinked to clear his vision. Eileen was picking up the kittens as though she were trying to save them too. At least that man hadn’t hurt her.
He heard hoofbeats and ran to the side of the barn where he saw a rider galloping away on the back of a black horse. He’d never be able to identify the intruder. All he’d seen was the man’s clothing and hat. Not his face.
He needed to tell Mr. Stanton, but what if the news made him sicker? Maybe he should wait and tell the younger Stanton when no one else was around.
“Something wrong, kid?” a voice said behind him.
He turned to see a young cowboy atop a huge roan. The man’s cowboy hat was pushed to the back of his head, and his blue eyes were smiling though his lips were in a straight line.
“There was a guy in the barn. He hit me and ran.” Jed turned to point to the rider, but he was already out of sight. “He’s gone.”
The cowboy frowned. “He hit you?” He dismounted and came to stand by Jed. “You’ve got a knot on your head.”
“It’s where he hit me.” Jed became aware that he was still clutching the pitchfork. He loosened his grip and put the tines in the dirt. Suddenly dizzy, he leaned on it. “Don’t tell my sister. I don’t want to worry her.”
“Who’s your sister?”
“Mr. Nate’s wife. I’m Jed. Who are you?” Jed eyed him. What if this guy was in cahoots with the other one?
The man’s eyes registered shock. “Nate’s married?”
“Mr. Stanton arranged for the marriage by proxy.” The man still hadn’t said who he was. “Who are you?” Jed asked again.
“Roger Stanton. I think I’d better see what Pa has done to my brother. I’ll be in as soon as I take care of my horse. Pa has some explaining to do.”
Jed started to tell him that his father was sick, then decided to hold his tongue so he could get inside and tell Lucy there was another Stanton to deal with.