The morning was bright and beautiful with a slight breeze blowing. Just enough to ease the heat so it wasn’t quite as hot as the last few days had been. The milder weather was greatly appreciated since everyone was rushing around trying to prepare for the crossing.
Brandy and the children sat around the fire and ate their breakfast of biscuits and molasses. They had been allowed to sleep later than normal. She figured it was because they had to cross the river and the darkness would only add to the danger.
The lead wagons had already started moving toward the water. She and the children finished their breakfast quickly, then packed everything back into the wagon. Ellen and Mary washed the dishes and placed them in the special box at the back of the wagon. Brandy went to get the oxen.
“Brandy, you must get in line. You have to go across the river, too,” Thunder snapped as he rode past them.
“And good morning to you, too,” she called to his back. Damn man! He was so frustrating!
Billy chuckled as he hitched the oxen instead of the horses. “Mary, get the cow and lead him behind the wagon. Brandy, you ready?”
Brandy raised a brow. Billy was beginning to issue orders like Thunder. Or maybe she was just being oversensitive. “Yes. Let’s go.”
They had to wait since they were the next to last wagon. She would have pointed out that small fact to Thunder, if she’d had the chance. Why hurry when they just had to wait for their turn? Maybe he just didn’t know how to say good morning. She smiled at that.
It was interesting watching the other wagons float across the river on the large boats she’d heard Ward call scows. The extra horses, cows, and oxen swam their way to the other side. So far, everything seemed to be going smoothly.
It was midday when their turn finally came. With a wave of the hand from the boatman, they were motioned to move forward. Billy guided the wagon to the edge of the riverbank, where he unhitched the team. Several men rolled the wagon upon the scow, which was basically a flat barge with no sides. They placed blocks of wood in the front and the back of the wheels so the wagon wouldn’t roll into the water. Brandy paid the fee of a dollar for the wagon, twenty-five cents for the yoke of oxen, and twenty-five cents for each horse.
Once the wagon was secured, Thunder told them what to do. “Everybody get in the wagon. Brandy, Mary, you can stand by the sides, and Billy and I will follow with the rest of the horses.”
The boatman shoved them away from the riverbank, and the scow glided through the water, pulled by a tow rope on the other side. The muddy-colored river spanned out in front of them. Brandy was surprised at how routinely everything seemed to be moving. She glanced at the opposite shore and saw that the other wagons were hitching up their teams and starting to move out. They would have to catch up with them by nightfall.
“What’s that in the water?” Mary asked as she peered over the side of the scow. Suddenly, her scream pierced the air.
“Woman overboard,” the boatman shouted.
Brandy swung around just in time to see Mary topple off the side of the boat. Her head went under immediately.
Panic seized Brandy. There wasn’t anyone to help Mary. Without thinking, Brandy jumped into the water. Father Brown had taken them to a lake many times when it was hot, but Mary had never been able to swim.
As Mary’s head surfaced, she screamed, “I can’t swim!” Water covered her mouth and silenced her screams and she went under again.
Brandy jerked her skirt up to her waist and tied it in a knot so it wouldn’t catch around her legs again. Then she started swimming toward the girl. It seemed like forever before Brandy finally reached Mary and was able to grasp her arm and yank her up.
Mary coughed and thrashed her arms wildly as she panicked, hitting Brandy in the head.
“I’ve got you, Mary. Calm down,” Brandy told her as she struggled to keep her own head above water. “Tread water with your arms like this.” She demonstrated with her free hand. “Or we’re both going to go under.”
Mary calmed a little. Brandy looked to shore but they were in the middle of the river, which was much too wide to swim. The scow was being towed by a rope, so it kept on going across.
Out of the comer of her eye, she saw Thunder and Billy, but they were too far away.
She heard the boatman call to shore. “They’re going to drown.”
Scared, Mary started thrashing again. “We’re going to die, Brandy. We’re going to die!”
This time they both went under.
Brandy was determined that they would get out of this alive.
They hadn’t come this far to drown.
God would give her strength. She shoved Mary to the top and then followed, gasping for air. She was losing strength, and she wasn’t sure how much longer she could hold on. She just knew that she had to, no matter what.
Thunder watched helplessly as the two heads bobbed in the water. His heart was beating so fast he could imagine it bursting from his chest as he urged his horse to swim faster, but it still wasn’t fast enough. With the clothes that the women had on it would be like a weight dragging them down. What if Brandy died? He felt a sensation so unfamiliar to him it almost robbed him of his breath.
They were going under. He reached out.
Suddenly, a hand swept down and grabbed her. The next thing she knew, she was being hauled beside a horse. “Wait! Get Mary first,” Brandy insisted.
“Billy has her,” Thunder said.
Brandy didn’t realize how the sound of Thunder’s wonderful, deep voice could calm her. Even if he didn’t sound pleased. She floated beside his horse as they swam to the other bank. When the horse had gained his footing, Thunder let Brandy slip to the ground. She stumbled, but managed to get back up by herself. She wrung the water from her hair and shoved it behind her back and out of her face. Next she wrung the water from her skirt.
Thunder was beside her in a split second. “Next time, I will make you both get into the wagon! That was a damned foolish thing to do. And where did you learn to swim?”
“Father Brown took us to a lake when it was hot,” Brandy informed him and gave him a puzzled look. Then anger sparked in her eyes. “But I knew how to swim before then. I was taught when I was a child. The only thing I know is that Mary went overboard, and I just couldn’t let her drown,” Brandy stormed back. “What is it about the daylight hours that make you so ornery?” she demanded as she brushed her wet skirts down. She glared at him. He merely smiled, making her that much angrier.
Brandy marched over to Mary. “Are you all right?”
Mary had been on her knees, throwing up water. Once she had settled her stomach, Brandy reached down and helped the girl to her feet. Mary wiped her mouth with her skirt. Finally, she turned and faced Brandy. There were tears in her eyes as she answered, “Yes.” Then, after an awkward moment of silence, Mary said, “Thank you.”
Ellen and Scott came running. “Brandy, you saved Mary,” Scott shouted and looked at Brandy as if she were a hero.
“You sure did. Mary would have drowned if you hadn’t been there,” Ellen seconded.
“She would have done the same for me.” Brandy shrugged. Thinking that they needed a little bit of humor, she added, “Or at least thrown me a rope.”
The children laughed.
“I hope we don’t have any more rivers to cross,” Ellen said, worry in her eyes. Poor Ellen was afraid of everything.
“I’m sure we will.” Brandy squeezed Ellen’s shoulder. “But probably none as deep or as wide as the Missouri.” Brandy smiled and said, “Let’s go change clothes. There is only one wagon left and then we’ll have to be back on the trail.”
“The excitement is over,” Thunder told them. “It’s time to catch up to the rest of the wagons.”
Mary and Brandy left the others and went to the wagon, where they changed clothes. When Brandy had trouble with the buttons, Mary brushed her hands away and buttoned Brandy’s blouse.
Brandy smiled, and together they moved on with the wagon train. She sensed that something had changed between them, but it was still too fragile to talk about.
The train only gained two miles before it was time to circle up. Today had been long, but not as long as the days that lay ahead, Brandy thought.
Mary and Billy dug a pit for the fire and placed two forked sticks in the ground on each side of the rocks. Then they laid a pole across the two sticks to hold the heavy black kettle to cook in.
Brandy, Ellen, and Scott gathered buffalo chips to burn in the fire.
“What are buffalo chips?” Scott asked as he placed one in the basket.
Brandy laughed. “You don’t want to know. Nettie said they burn just as well as wood, and there aren’t any trees so we have to have something,” Brandy explained, not bothering to tell him that the chips were dried dung.
“What we having to eat?” Scott asked.
“Nettie said that MacTavish killed a wild hen of some kind, so we will actually have meat tonight.” Brandy looked down at the basket of chips. “I think we have enough for now.”
“Good. I’m starved,” Scott shouted and ran ahead of them.
Brandy turned to Ellen. “I can finish this up if you want to milk the cow.”
“All right.” Ellen headed in the same direction as Scott.
Brandy caught sight of a horse and rider and knew by instinct that it was Thunder.
“How are you doing since your near-drowning in the river?” he asked when he got close enough.
“I’m fine. Are you going to eat dinner with us tonight?”
His gaze traveled over her face and searched her eyes. Warmth crept through Brandy’s veins.
Finally, he said, “I have to do some scouting ahead, so I’ll be gone for a couple of days.”
She swallowed hard, feeling very uncomfortable inside. “Please be careful.”
He gave her that half-smile that she liked so much. “I will, but I think I should be saying the same to you after what happened today.”
She laughed. “You may be right.”
“Do stay out of trouble, and if you find that impossible, Ward said he would look out for you.” Brandy gave him a sassy frown, and then she shifted the basket to her other hip and moved over to his horse. She placed her hand on Thunder’s leg and gazed up at him as she tried to read his unreadable features. “Come back soon,” she said, almost in a whisper.
He placed his hand on hers, and she couldn’t help but notice the tingle of excitement rushing through her. “I will be back. Take care of yourself,” Thunder said in what sounded like a strained voice.
She backed away from his horse and nodded, and then he rode off. She willed him to look back. If he did, it would mean he cared.
But he didn’t look back.
That night after dinner the story of Brandy rescuing Mary was told over and over again. The children told it so much that Brandy was embarrassed and uncomfortable. She needed to do something to shift the attention off herself. “Let’s hear one of your stories, MacTavish.”
“Please,” all the children chorused. Amy clapped her little hands as she sat in Nettie’s lap.
“Let me see now . . .” MacTavish rubbed his red beard as he thought. “How about a ghost story?”
“Yeah,” Scott answered, his eyes as wide as saucers.
Everyone gathered around the fire with MacTavish at the head of the circle.
“I know many tales, but I believe I’ll tell ye the story of the Gray Lady.” He paused, then began. “There is a Scottish baronial mansion that stands overlooking Brodrick Bay. ’Tis an enormous castle. That’s where the ghost lives to this very day. Sometimes, when yer in the library you can hear clump, clump, clump . . MacTavish thumped the cooking pot with a spoon very slowly for effect “Eerie footsteps in the room above yer head.”
“Have you heard it?” Billy asked.
“Aye. And Nettie, my girl, actually saw the ghost.”
Ellen gaped at Nettie. “Really?”
“Aye,” Nettie said with a nod. “The Gray Lady came in through the side door of the sitting room I was in. She seemed to float across the room, but paused midway to look at me. And then she did the strangest thing . . .” Nettie paused.
“What?” Scott prompted, leaning a little closer. “She walked right through the wall.”
Several of the children gasped.
Brandy had gotten caught up in the story herself. “Are you certain?”
“Aye. Right though the brick wall. Found out later that there used to be an archway in the wall, but it had been bricked up for twenty-some years.”
“I would have liked to have seen that” Scott said as he sat back on his heels.
Nettie rose with a sleepy Amy on her hip. “ ’Twould make the hairs stand up on the back of yer neck.” She chuckled. “Ye can finish the story, MacTavish. I’m going to put this wee lassie to bed.”
“What did the Gray Lady look like?” Mary asked, mesmerized by the story.
“’Tis said she looks like a dairymaid. She’s been seen many times going down a back stairway, dressed in gray with a white collar.” MacTavish paused. “One morning the butler—”
“What’s a butler?” Scott asked.
“He’s a mon who opens the doors of great houses.”
“Why? Are they heavy?”
MacTavish chuckled. Brandy stepped in. “People with lots of money have servants who do different jobs around the house so that they will not have to.”
Scott thought about it for a moment and then asked, “Why don’t we have servants? Then we wouldn’t have to milk the cow.”
“Because we don’t have any money,” Brandy said simply. “Now be quiet so MacTavish can finish his story before bedtime.”
MacTavish stroked his red beard. “Where did I leave off?”
“With the butler,” Billy prompted.
“Ah, yes. One day the butler noticed someone walking down the stairway.” MacTavish leaned forward as if he were going to tell a secret. “It was the Gray Lady. She paused beside a mon who was doing odd jobs around the castle. This time he was scrubbing the floor. The lady seemed to stop and talk to the mon before moving on. But when asked who had spoken to him, he gave a funny look and said no one.”
Everyone was quiet for a few minutes. Then Mary broke the silence. “Do we know why she haunted the castle?”
“ ’Tis said that the girl was a serving wench at the castle at the time that Cromwellian troops were billeted there. The general in command had an affair with her, and she became with child. In those days, such girls were simply thrown out of the castle. She was so heartbroken that she killed herself, and that is the reason that her spirit still haunts the castle. She is looking for the man she loved.”
“That was a good story,” Brandy said as she rose, and stretched her back. “Let’s thank Mr. MacTavish and get ready for bed.”
Later that night, Brandy dreamed of ghosts and castles, then the ghosts faded and were replaced with dreams of Thunder and his wonderful kiss. She was going to miss him over these next couple of days.
Maybe even his bossiness, too.
For the next several days, the routine was the same. They rose early in the morning and traveled until dark. Brandy’s hands were healing, so she helped Billy out with the team and wagon.
Finally, after a grueling four days, they stopped early because they had come across some trees that flanked a small stream, the first they’d seen in the last four days.
Ward came riding back once the wagons were circled. He was covered in dust, the brim of his hat soaked with sweat. “We are stopping a little early tonight You can get your washing done at the creek and hang your clothes out to dry.”
“That’s a good idea,” Brandy said.
“We are also having a hoedown after dinner so everyone come and gather around my wagon. We’ll have music, dancing, and games for the children.”
“Sounds like fun,” Brandy said and then finally asked the question she’d been dying to ask. “Have you seen Thunder?”
“No.” Ward smiled. “But don’t worry. He’ll show up.”
After Ward left, Brandy frowned. Evidently, he wasn’t too worried that something could have happened to Thunder. Maybe she shouldn’t worry, either.
She walked around to the other side of the wagon. “Girls, let’s go get the washing done. Ward said there would be a dance tonight and we can all go.”
“Hot diggetty!” Billy said as he and Scott came over to where the girls stood. “Something different for a change. I’m all for it.”
“Mary, why don’t you get Nettie’s laundry since she has been doing all the cooking.”
“That’s a good idea,” Mary said. “It will be nice to hear some music,” she added wistfully. She looked at Billy. “You going to dance with me?” She gave him a small smile.
Brandy watched the two of them. If Brandy had realized what a change could have come over that girl, she would have thrown her into the river a long time ago.
“You betcha.” Billy grinned at Mary. “Scott will, too.”
“I don’t know how to dance,” Scott said.
“Don’t worry. Dancing’s easy,” Billy said. “You just have to move to the music.” He held up his hands as if we were dancing with someone.
“Billy, can you heat us some water?” Brandy asked. “And Scott—”
“I know. I have to milk the cow,” he said with a frown.
Brandy laughed. “You took the words right out of my mouth.”
“We need a butler.” Scott giggled.
They carried their baskets of clothes to the river and found an empty spot. Brandy took out the scrub board and Mary and Ellen used big rocks to scrub the clothes with lye soap. With everyone helping, it didn’t take long, and soon they were hanging the clothing on ropes stretched between the wagons. As warm as it was tonight, the clothes would be dry by morning, Brandy thought as she clasped the last pin on a skirt.
After dinner, Mary and Ellen picked out two pretty calico dresses. Mary wore a plum-colored dress and Ellen wore apple-green.
“What are you going to wear?” Mary asked.
“I’m not sure,” Brandy said. “I’m going to go through the trunk and come up with something. You two run along so you don’t miss anything, and I’ll be there just as soon as I get dressed.”
When Brandy was by herself, she opened the trunk and looked at a couple of dress, but they were too similar to what she’d been wearing every day. Then she saw something wrapped in brown paper that she didn’t remember putting in the trunk. The girls had packed some of the things that had been delivered from the general store, so she had no idea what it could be.
She pulled out the package and tore open the paper. Brandy smiled with pleasure. It was the dress. The one she’d liked so much back in Independence. Mr. Gardner must have slipped it into the supplies she purchased. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d had a present.
She shook out the lavender-printed cotton fabric and the matching white apron. The top was a simple fitted bodice that opened at the front and was fastened with tiny white buttons. The dress had a round neck, with just a hint of white lace. The short sleeves were trimmed in the same lace.
Slipping the garment on, she noticed how much fuller the skirt was than her normal dresses. She smiled. It felt good to wear something new, and this dress would be perfect for dancing. Quickly, she brushed her hair, wishing she had a mirror to see herself, but knowing that it was vain to do so. She decided to leave her hair loose tonight instead of braided. As she started for the gathering, she had to admit feeling a little excitement. Too bad Thunder would miss all the fun. Then she wondered if he ever did anything for fun because he always seemed so serious.
Brandy heard the music before she got there. It was a good sound, so much different from the everyday sounds they had grown used to.
Mary and Ellen spotted Brandy immediately and came over to her.
“You look so pretty,” Ellen said.
Brandy smiled and blushed. “Thank you.” She wasn’t accustomed to getting compliments.
“That is a lovely dress,” Mary said. Brandy realized it was the first time that Mary had ever said anything nice to her other than thanking her by the river.
“Maybe you can wear the dress sometime,” Brandy suggested.
Mary broke into a wide smile. “I’d like that.”
“Go back to your friends and have fun. Look, there are people over there dancing. Everyone seems to be having a grand time. See all their smiles? Now shoo, go have fun. I’m just going to stand here and watch.”
There were several men playing instruments. She saw a fiddle, a harmonica, a washboard, and a guitar. And she had to admit they sounded good together. They very seldom had music at the parsonage, so it had been a long time since she had heard anything other than hymns. Before long, Brandy was tapping her toes with the rhythm and smiling at the couples dancing. She noted how happy the couples appeared and the special way they looked at each other. Would someone ever look at her like that?
Nettie came up beside her with Amy asleep on her shoulder. “ ’Tis a lovely sight ye be presenting tonight. Are ye having a good time?”
“I just got here, but it is wonderful,” Brandy said. Reaching over, she touched Amy’s head. “It appears she has had all the fun she can stand for one night.”
“Aye, I’m going back MacTavish will talk a couple more hours before he winds down.” Nettie chuckled. “Here comes Ward. Get him to dance with ye.”
Ward was dressed in a faded red shirt, and he wore a big grin as he stopped and offered his arm. “Would you care to dance?”
“I don’t know how,” Brandy admitted.
“Doesn’t matter. Neither do I.” Ward laughed.
He swung her up in his arms, and they whirled around and around, and soon Brandy was laughing and having a good time.
“Are you enjoying yourself?” Ward asked.
Brandy nodded “Yes, I am. It’s so nice to do something other than cooking and cleaning. And I haven’t had Thunder to yell at me in days.”
Now it was Ward’s turn to laugh. “So you’ve been doin’ all right without Thunder. He’s trained you well, but I do expect him back soon.”
“How did you meet Thunder?”
“He’s been a friend for a long time. He made the mistake of falling in love with my niece so I used to see him often.”
“Mistake?” Brandy asked wanting to learn more. “My niece professed to love Thunder. Then she found out he was part Cheyenne and she never spoke to him again. She never even bothered to tell him the reason why. Thunder kind of changed after that. He became harder on the inside.”
“That is terrible. It must have hurt a lot.”
“It did scare him. But we remained friends. He is a good man.”
“I think so, too,” Brandy admitted, but she wondered if Thunder would ever trust any woman again.
Thunder thought the sound of Brandy’s laughter was the most beautiful sound he’d ever heard. He stood back in the shadows and watched as Ward and Brandy danced. He’d made himself stay away a couple of days longer than he needed to, trying to put some distance between him and Brandy. He’d told himself over and over again that he couldn’t be bothered with thoughts of any woman. But somehow this little lady kept creeping into his thoughts. So he finally decided it was time to return. He didn’t want to think about how he’d punished his horse, urging him on at full speed to get back sooner.
Brandy looked like a spring flower in the midst of brown, dry dirt. In the glow of the campfire, her skin appeared soft and creamy-looking. The memory of a soft yet passionate kiss came back to him. His unexpected reaction to Brandy startled him and so did his next move as he started toward her and Ward.
When he reached them, he tapped Ward on the shoulder. “Do you mind if I have a dance?”
“About damned time you came back,” Ward grumbled. But his expression didn’t match his words. “Did you find any buffalo?”
“Yes. We will talk later,” Thunder said, his eyes fixed on Brandy’s face as he swung her into the circle of his arms.
“I can see your mind is elsewhere,” Ward said with a grin before he moved off to dance with someone else.
Thunder couldn’t believe how beautiful Brandy looked. The lavender color of her dress made her eyes a vivid purple, her cheeks were flushed, and her lips a soft pink. Perfect for kissing.
Stop it, he warned himself. “Have you been well, Brandy?”
She moistened her lips. “Yes, have you?”
“I have done much riding and scouting the trail.” He tightened his grip on her, pulling her a little closer to him. “But it is good to be back.”
“I’ve missed you,” she said softly.
He smiled and gazed into her eyes. Suddenly, it was as if they were the only two people in camp, and without thinking about what he was saying, he said, “I have missed you, too.”
The expression in her eyes told him just how much she cared for him. And knowing didn’t ease him one little bit.
It was like throwing gunpowder into a fire.
Brandy rolled and tumbled back and forth in her narrow bunk. How long had she been trying to go to sleep? It seemed so long, but it had probably only been a couple of hours since they had turned in.
Every time she shut her eyes, she could picture herself and Thunder dancing. He’d looked so handsome tonight, dressed all in black. His silver eyes had held her mesmerized.
She rolled to the other side.
All right, quit thinking about Thunder. And go to sleep.
She remained motionless as she willed herself to sleep, but after a few minutes her eyes flew open. It was too hot!
That was the problem.
Rising on her elbows, Brandy looked at the other two girls, who seemed to have no trouble sleeping at all. So maybe it was just she who was restless. She felt like everything was sticking to her, and she needed some relief. Maybe if she cooled off, she could then get some rest because morning would be here much too soon.
She eased out of bed, carefully making her way to the back of the wagon. She pulled up her gown so she wouldn’t step on the hem as she climbed outside.
Glancing around, she made sure no one else was moving around. Everything was so still and peaceful. But then it should be at this time of night. She was the only one who couldn’t sleep, she thought as she headed for the river.
She didn’t know the name of this river, but it was so different from the enormous Missouri. It was shallow in places and deep in other spots with rocky rapids here and there. She swished her foot in the edge of the water and thought about how wonderful it felt. A swim would cool her and make her feel better.
The river curved like a snake and was hard to see in some places because it was so dark, but the full moon provided enough light that she could see a small cove where she removed her gown and tossed it in the high grass.
Crickets chirped nearby as she waded into the water. After the first gasp, she adjusted to the chilly water and decided it was just the right temperature. She dove under the water and swam for a ways before she surfaced again. As she treaded water, snippets of childhood memories came to her, and she could picture herself and her mother swimming in a river. Brandy smiled. She didn’t have many memories of her mother, but this was a nice one. At least, she and her mother had been happy at one time.
She should be a little more modest, she thought, but who was to know? Everyone else was asleep. So being a little wicked wouldn’t hurt. The water worked its magic, swirling, caressing her body. She relaxed and floated in the water.
Then she heard a splash. Raising her head, she looked all around her, but saw nothing but a small ripple.
If it were a snake or animal, she would have seen it. Wouldn’t she?
She was just letting her imagination run wild. But the interruption had ended the mood. Maybe she should swim back to shore.
That’s when it struck.
Something slid around her waist and for a moment she couldn’t breathe. As cold fear swept over her body, she desperately tried to scream.
But no sound came out.