Chapter 16
Standing out on her verandah watching the moon rise, Alanza was enjoying being Mrs. Maxwell Rudd, especially at night. She was now more experienced in the sensual arts of marriage and just thinking about some of the paces they’d taken each other through was enough to make her blush. It was the end of another day and all was well in her world. The ranch continued to prosper, her sons and their wives were happy, as were her two grandchildren. The only missing piece of the puzzle was Noah. She worried about him and had done so since the day he’d returned from being shanghaied all those years ago. Something had obviously happened during the time he was away to change him from the bright artistic boy she’d raised to the brooding silent shadow he’d become, but she had no idea what it might be. At first, she’d pressed him to talk about it, but getting no response, she’d given up.
Earlier, she’d received a telegram from him that read:
Found pirate.
Married.
Traveling by train.
Home soon.
The news threw her for a loop. Whom had he married—the pirate? She dearly wished he’d been more forthcoming, but there was nothing for her to do but wait until he arrived.
Max came up behind her, put his arms around her waist and grazed his lips softly against her neck. She loved him so much.
“You coming to bed?”
“Yes, my impatient querido.”
“Still brooding over the telegram from Noah?”
She turned to him and nodded.
“You’ll get the full story when he gets back.”
“Do you think he married the pirate who took his boat?”
“Who knows, but Logan married a rock thrower, Drew married a lady of the evening and now, your youngest may have married a lady pirate. Have to admit, your boys have got them some real interesting wives.”
She agreed.
“But I have the most interesting one, so how about you come to bed and let me show you.”
“You are so scandalous.”
“You wouldn’t want me any other way.”
He was right of course and because he was, she wrapped her arm around his waist and they went inside.
The train to Denver did not segregate the races, so Pilar had a chance to actually see the countryside from her seat by a window. She was again awed by the sheer size and scope of America. They passed wide-open areas—Noah called them prairies—and there was nothing like them in her old home of Cuba. Her thoughts went back to her family and she wondered how her mother and sister Doneta were faring and if they were missing her as much as she missed them. She hoped they would be able to take the train out to visit her in her new home on Noah’s ranch as soon as possible, because she dearly wished to see them again. For her own part, she was happier than she had ever imagined she would be when Noah Yates demanded her hand. Back then she had no idea how charming he could be. Since their truce on the train ride he’d been attentive, concerned, and delightful to be with—not to mention extraordinary in bed. Maybe, just maybe their marriage would be a success. Her monthly courses came the day they left St. Louis, so there was no baby on the way and she had mixed feelings about that. On one hand, she did want a child but on the other, not too soon. She wanted to learn the ins and outs of Noah first before turning her attention to a baby. As far as she knew, he’d not been visited by the nightmares that were at the root of their initial rift but she couldn’t help wondering just what the dreams were about. Rather than pester him about it though, she kept her questions unasked, with the hope the matter would resolve itself in a manner that satisfied them both.
“Penny for your thoughts,” he asked her as the train chugged them towards Denver.
“Just marveling over how large this country is. You could probably fit a hundred Cubas just in the land we’ve passed in the last day.”
“It is a big place and once we get to Denver, we have two more days of travel before we reach San Francisco.”
“I’m enjoying the sights but tired of traveling.”
“So am I.” He rubbed a gentle hand over her back. “How are you feeling?”
“I’ll be better once my courses are done, but I’m not too uncomfortable.” She’d had no idea the subject was something women discussed with their husbands, but since first becoming aware of her condition he’d been nothing but concerned and attentive, going so far as to ask her if there was anything he could do or provide to help her along. His regard was endearing. “What’s the first thing you want to do when you get home?”
“Besides make love to my wife?”
She shook her head at his ribald ways. “Yes, besides that.”
“Sleep off all this travel, then go to San Francisco and see about a new boat.”
Guilt swept over her. “I’m sorry about the Alanza.”
“Water under the bridge. Besides had that not happened, we’d not be man and wife.”
She was grateful for his generous attitude. “What kind of boat are you wanting?”
“I’m undecided.”
For the next little while they discussed the advantages and disadvantages of sloops over cutters, and how ships fed by steam were making those powered by the wind-fed sails all but obsolete.
Their conversation was interrupted by the appearance of the conductor, who announced, “We’ll be stopping to take on water for the boiler in about thirty minutes. You folks can get off and stretch your legs if you like. Lady has a stand that sells sandwiches at the depot, too.”
He moved on to the next car.
“Are you hungry?” Noah asked her.
“I am.”
“When we stop, we’ll get something to eat.”
The stop didn’t last very long but it was enough time for them to buy two fat sandwiches stuffed with ham that they washed down with tumblers of sweet chilled lemonade. By the time they retook their seats, they were refreshed and ready for the remaining journey to Denver.
The first thing Pilar noticed when they stepped off the train at the Denver depot was the chill in the air. “Why is it so cold?”
He laughed. “It isn’t cold.”
“Yes it is. I’m shivering.”
“You’re Cuban.”
“You’re my husband. Do something,” she said, hugging herself.
“Let’s see if there’s a place nearby that sells coats.”
“Thank you.”
She had to settle for a cloak, but it helped. The train for San Francisco wouldn’t depart until the next morning, so they found a boardinghouse and after dinner, the exhausted Pilar crawled into bed. “I’m sorry we can’t make love.”
“Nothing to apologize for, querida. You just rest. I’ll come join you in a bit.”
She nodded, covered herself with the blankets and drifted off.
While she slept, Noah took a seat in the small room’s lone chair. He was exhausted as well. The past month had taken him from the ranch to Cuba to Florida, and now back to California in the company of a small spitfire by the name of Pilar. He adored everything about her, from her lyrical Spanish-tinged English to her beauty, to the way she’d accepted his apology for hurting her so badly after their wedding night. Although she hadn’t said anything about it since, he could tell the incident still lingered. He’d looked up a couple of times during their journey to find her watching him as if trying to determine his true measure. And until yesterday in the cab, the open playfulness that he’d found so endearing had not been on display. It was as if she was keeping parts of herself locked away and out of his reach and he didn’t blame her, but he could no longer imagine his life without her presence in it. For the past decade he’d sailed the world, mostly in an attempt to escape it. Fueled by the memories of the island’s horror, he’d eschewed ties to everything save his music, family, and the solitude to be found on the deck of a ship. And now, a different Noah Yates was taking shape, one who could envision raising a family and all it entailed, one who didn’t have to separate himself from happiness or joy, one who could look forward to the future instead of being mired in the past, if he could just find a way to rid himself of it permanently. He owed her that.
And because he did, he also needed to figure out what he wanted his immediate future with her to be. He doubted he’d ever give up his ties to the sea, but having a wife meant he could no longer justify spending months and months aboard a ship thousands of miles from home. Although finding a vessel to replace the sunken Alanza was a priority, sailing it as a way of life wasn’t, and that admission surprised him because it wasn’t something he’d ever thought about before. It never occurred to him that he might willingly come to such a conclusion. Since being shanghaied all he’d ever wanted was to be on the sea. He glanced over at her, sleeping in the shadows on the far side of the room. From the moment they’d crossed swords he knew she could change his life, and she had, not in large ways but in ways as small and as powerful as she.
Rising from the chair, he stretched in response to the weariness of the past few days. He then undressed and doused the lamps. Carefully, so as not to wake her, he slid beneath the bedding. She roused for a moment to voice a sleepy good night. He pulled her close, placed a tender kiss on the top of her hair and closed his eyes.
An hour out of Denver the train was winding its way through the mountains when Pilar asked, “What is that white color on top of those peaks?”
“Snow.”
Her mouth dropped and she quickly turned back to the window.
Noah chuckled softly. “You’ve never seen snow, I take it.”
“No, it doesn’t snow in Cuba. Does it snow in California?”
“Where we’re going, only occasionally, but places north of us get quite a bit.” He found her reactions captivating.
“So what do you do when it does happen?”
“We throw extra wood on the fire and dress warmly.”
“Dios,” she whispered.
“I’ll keep you warm. I promise.”
“Snow, riding with animals, belt leather pork. What am I doing here? I vote we go back to Florida.”
“Too late. The votes have already been counted.”
She playfully elbowed him in the ribs and returned to the sights outside her window, while Noah went back to the newspaper he’d picked up at the Denver depot that morning. One of the most interesting items was an article about German inventor Karl Benz and his unveiling of something called the Benz Patent Motorwagon. It was billed as the first gas-burning automobile designed to generate its own power. The report went on to speculate that in the years to come the new engine could be applied to all modes of transportation, thus making coal- and steam-fueled engines on trains and sailing vessels a thing of the past. Noah wasn’t sure he believed that, but planned to keep an eye out for further articles in the future. Another article had to do with the army and their futile attempts to capture the Apache chief Geronimo, who reigned as the last major Indian leader not penned in a reservation. Noah hoped the wily old chief continued to make them chase their tails.
“Any news in there about Cuba?” she asked him.
He glanced through the pages ahead. “Not so far. Oh, wait. As a matter of fact there is. It seems Spain is considering outlawing slavery there.”
“It’s about time. Cuba and Brazil are the only two places left in the world that still practice it, but I won’t believe them until it happens. Anything about General Maceo or the rebels?”
He read the article. “No.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
Her sadness touched his heart, but since he had no way of making her feel better short of letting her return to the island so she could take up arms against Spain, he solemnly went back to his newspaper.
Pilar’s sense of homesickness returned tenfold. Cuba was going on without her and she wasn’t sure how to reconcile that fact. Since the age of fifteen, fighting for her country’s future had been her entire life and now she was in a land several thousand miles away where snow fell, for saints’ sake, unable offer her aid. Learning that Spain might be considering abolishing slavery was good news though, and although it was unwise for her to return, she dearly wished she were there.
As if reading her mind, he said softly, “I’m sorry, Pilar.”
She turned and lied, “It’s okay, Noah,” but added truthfully, “My life is with you now. Hopefully I’ll learn to love your home as much as I loved my own.”
“I’ll do my best to make sure you do.”
“I’m holding you to that.”
By the time, they reached San Francisco, Pilar didn’t want to see another train for at least five years. Her back hurt from not only from the prolonged sitting but from having to sleep in her seat as well. The food choices had been limited and baths had been out of the question. Her courses were done, however, and that pleased her if nothing else.
“We’ve one more train to catch, querida, then we can both fall over from relief.”
They were walking away through the bustling station.
“Is it a long ride?”
“No. Just a few hours.”
“Then I’m sure I can survive.”
“Noah!”
The feminine scream of joy was followed by a fashionably dressed woman in green who launched herself at Noah like a dog greeting the long-awaited return of its beloved master. Pilar looked on coolly as her husband did his best to disentangle himself from the arms around his neck.
“Hello, Lavinia. What are you doing here?”
“I just arrived from Los Angeles. Where have you been, you naughty man?”
Pilar arched an eyebrow.
“’Vinia, I want you to meet my wife, Pilar. Pilar, this is Lavinia Douglas.”
The woman’s eyes went so wide, Pilar thought they might pop out and roll around on the floor of the station.
“Your wife?”
“Pleased to meet you,” Pilar offered. She could see herself being critically assessed and apparently found lacking.
“Same here,” came her indifferent reply before she immediately returned to Noah and showed a false smile. “Married. What a surprise. How long?”
He draped an arm around Pilar’s waist. “Not very. Took us by surprise, I must admit.” His smile earned one from her in reply.
“And you met her where?”
“Cuba. I was immediately captured.”
Pilar was amused by his play on words.
“I must say, I never expected you to be captured by someone so—foreign, shall we say.”
Pilar immediately took offense, but tempered it with the realization that she was Mrs. Noah Yates, and this vaquilla in the pert green hat was not. Taking in Noah’s tightly set jaw, it was apparent that he hadn’t appreciated the verbal slight either, and that further buoyed Pilar’s spirits.
“Are you on your way to the ranch?” Lavinia asked.
“Yes. This is Pilar’s first time in the States. I’m anxious for her to meet the family.”
“I see. Be sure to let me know the next time you’re in San Francisco so we can have dinner. Papa would love to meet her as well. And please wear that quaint little dress, Pilar. You’ll be all the rage.”
Pilar’s eyes flashed angrily. Seeing how Lavinia and the other women in the depot were attired, her gingham dress and men’s boots made her look like a ragamuffin in comparison. She might need to learn to dress like an American, but Lavinia needed a lesson in manners, so Pilar thought them even.
“Nice seeing you, Noah.” And without a word to Pilar she took her leave.
As she walked away, Pilar asked, “That’s the vaquilla you’ve been keeping company with?”
He laughed loud and long and tightened his arm around her waist. “Oh, Pilar. You’re so wonderful. She’d have a fit hearing herself called a heifer.”
“I’m not sure why. It probably wouldn’t be the first time.”
“Thank you for marrying me.”
“I didn’t have much choice, as I remember.”
“No, you didn’t but I’m so pleased.”
Still laughing he led her through the station to catch the final train to his home. Pilar was too exhausted to quiz him further about the rude Lavinia Douglas but planned to do so in the near future.