The Coming Storm

by Tracie Peterson

  But Corinne and the railroad were a very long ways away.

  Dianne wondered seriously if there might be wisdom in selling off everything and moving away from Montana and its difficult life, but even as the thought came, she pushed it aside. Her uncle had loved this land. He’d lived here for a long time—even before there were towns to offer him more comforts. Surely she could endure whatever hardships befell them, in order to honor him and provide for Koko, Jamie, and Susannah. They’d never be accepted in eastern society. Dianne would be hard-pressed to find any place back East where they could settle and be allowed to live in peace. Besides, Dianne knew they’d never leave the territory—not even if she sold off every inch of land and every animal. Koko would never leave the land where her husband had lived and died.

  Settling into her hotel room, Dianne thought of Koko and the children as she prepared for bed. Koko had pretty much sequestered herself away with her little family after Bram’s death. Dianne tried to respect and honor her aunt’s need for privacy, but in some ways it only served to remind Dianne that everyone had someone—except her.

  She crawled into the small bed, pulled the covers up under her chin, and stared at the darkened ceiling. “I don’t know what to do, Lord. I don’t know where Cole has gone. I don’t know how to keep the ranch running. I don’t know how to comfort Koko—especially when I can’t seem to comfort myself. I wish Cole were here.”

  There’d been no mail—no letters. Not from Cole nor anyone else. Dianne longed to know what had happened, but even as rumors had abounded in town about stagecoaches and wagon trains being attacked and destroyed by warring Indians, there were no solid answers.

  Two doors down the hall, Levi and Gabe shared a room. Dianne smiled at the memory of Levi suggesting they should be closer. He worried over her as if they were an old married couple, and if he had his way about it, they would be just that.

  Dianne wished Levi would find someone to love, other than herself. He was a good man, despite having the lowly job of cowhand. Yet he was a permanent hand, not just a drifter looking for seasonal work on roundups or cattle drives. Now with Ben and Charity thinking about staying on in the valley, there was a possibility Levi might even move back in with them, and then the idea of settling down and finding a wife might become an even greater possibility.

  Dianne had already decided to offer Ben and Charity the old homestead cabin. There was plenty of room, even if Levi decided to move in with them. Dianne liked the idea of the preacher and his wife being so close. Bram had talked about building them a church and encouraging the community ranchers to gather with their families, but at this point Dianne didn’t have the energy for such things. There were too many other needs to be considered. Ben and Charity could just as easily hold services in the cabin, and the area folks could drive the extra distance to the Diamond V if they longed for Christian fellowship.

  Still, the church was a dream of Uncle Bram’s. Maybe there would be a way to work it all out.

  Morning came much too quickly. Sunlight burst through the open curtains, warming Dianne and forcing her into a conscious state. She tried not to think of the loneliness she felt at waking alone. There was no reason to feel so overwhelmed. She’d awakened alone most every day of her life—this day was no different.

  She quickly washed up and dressed in her wrinkled riding outfit. She was hungry and there was work to do. The men would no doubt be half starved. There was a small cafe down the street where they’d eaten a delicious supper the night before. The owner promised breakfast would be just as grand an affair. Even though Levi had just packed away a steak, two portions of fried potatoes, creamed peas and onions, five dinner rolls, and two pieces of apple pie, he had suggested eating breakfast there three times before they’d even reached their hotel room the night before. Dianne wouldn’t dare suggest they eat anywhere else.

  Stepping into the hall, Dianne found Gabe and Levi already waiting for her. Levi took up her small bag and offered her his arm. “I’m so empty, my stomach is keeping company with my backbone for fear of being forgotten.”

  Dianne laughed. “How about it, Gabe? Could you manage to put away a little breakfast?”

  The young man nodded. “I reckon I’m just about as hungry as Levi. But maybe not quite as much.”

  “Then we’d best make our way to the cafe and resolve this situation.” Dianne noted they all looked as if they’d slept in their clothes. “I just hope they don’t refuse us service for our dowdy looks.”

  “You look beautiful, Miz Dianne. No doubt about that. Ain’t no one gonna be kicking you out of any place,” Levi declared, then blushed red at his boldness.

  “Why, thank you, Levi. It’s kind of you to offer reassurance.” Dianne smiled, taking pity on both men. “If they declare me to be too messy, I’ll pay for you two to eat and simply wait for you at the livery until you’ve had your fill.”

  Gabe laughed and punched Levi in the arm. “See, Miz Dianne cares more about you than you figure. She ain’t about to let you starve.”

  Levi’s hue deepened. “Shut up, Gabe. You don’t know nothin’.”

  “I know that you can eat enough for ten men when it suits you. I just hope Miz Dianne brought enough money to pay for your meal.”

  Dianne laughed and hurried down the hall to avoid causing Levi any further embarrassment.

  Breakfast was a grand affair, just as the owner had promised. They ordered the special and grew wide-eyed when the waitress returned with huge plates, each filled with a ham steak some two inches thick, four eggs, and a mound of fried potatoes. She also brought a platter heaped with a pile of biscuits as well as a bowl of steaming redeye gravy.

  “This oughta get us started,” Levi teased the young redheaded woman. She blushed.

  “There’s enough food here to see you satisfied, I’m thinkin’,” she replied with a quirky, teasing tone. She left them quickly and retrieved a pot of coffee.

  Levi held his cup up as if offering her a gift. “Best coffee I’ve ever had. Drank at least two potfuls last night.”

  She smiled and filled his cup. “Glad you like it.” She batted her eyelashes, then moved on to Gabe and did likewise. Both men seemed completely smitten.

  Dianne would have laughed out loud at the spectacle but didn’t want to embarrass Gabe and Levi. Instead, she waited for the girl to fill her own coffee cup, then suggested they offer thanks for the food and dig in.

  Gabe offered a short prayer, thanking God for their safety and blessings. Dianne couldn’t fault him for his simplicity; she knew both men were anxious to dig in.

  “There’s a couple horses you’re gonna want to look at before we head home,” Levi said between bites. “A good solid Arabian mare, about seven years old. She’s a beauty—some fourteen-and-a-half hands high. Prettiest white I’ve ever laid eyes on.”

  “Sounds like she has real possibilities,” Dianne said, nodding.

  “What else?”

  “A young buckskin. He’s just two years old. He’d need a lot of work, but he’s a feisty Spanish Barb, and I’m thinkin’ he’d make a great ranch horse—probably a good breeder too.”

  “Well, I’d like to see them both,” Dianne admitted. “It can’t ever hurt to improve the stock. What else do we need to take care of?”

  “Shouldn’t be too much. Me and Levi took the wagon over to the feed store first thing this morning. They’re packing our supplies, and we can pick up the rest of the stuff at the mercantile on the way out of town.”

  Dianne nodded, making a mental note to look for any items that might have escaped their notice on previous trips. “So do you fellas have any requests? Anything special you need that you don’t already have?”

  “A chessboard would be nice,” Gabe said, then acted as if he’d spoken out of turn. “But that’s just a luxury and we can do without it.”

  “Nonsense. You boys will be cooped up all winter on the ranch. You might as well have something you enjoy. I’ll look around and see if there’s a che
ssboard to be had in this town.”

  “Bradley’s has one,” Gabe offered, looking rather sheepish.

  “Good. You go pick it up. Use some of the supply money,” Dianne instructed.

  “Thanks a bunch, Miz Dianne,” Gabe said in such an animated tone that Dianne was reminded of a child at Christmas.

  “What about you, Levi? Anything Ben or Charity could use Maybe something they didn’t think to tell me about?”

  Levi shook his head. “Can’t think of a thing.”

  He continued wolfing down his food at an alarming rate. Dianne seriously wondered how he could ever manage to eat everything set before him. Already she was slowing down to her final bites, and there was well over three-quarters of the food still sitting on her plate.

  Levi motioned at her ham steak. “You gonna eat that?”

  Dianne shook her head. “You want it?” The words were scarcely out of her mouth before Levi forked the steak and had it on his plate. Dianne’s mouth dropped open and Gabe laughed at Levi’s antics.

  “You learn fast in the bunkhouse to keep your arm out of the range of Levi’s fork,” Gabe said, helping himself to more biscuits and gravy.

  The waitress returned, made small talk with the boys, then took Dianne’s money for the meal. When Dianne saw that Levi had cleared his plate for a second time, she took the opportunity to stand. “You boys needn’t hurry on my account.” Both men stood quickly, however.

  “We’re ready, Miz Dianne. I’ll go on down to the livery and have those two horses waiting for your inspection,” Levi said, grabbing up his hat. “I’ll have our horses saddled too.”

  “And I’ll head over to Bradley’s and then the feed store,” Gabe offered, taking up his brown felt. “I’ll drive the wagon on over to the mercantile.”

  “Good. I’ll meet you at the livery, Levi,” Dianne instructed. “I just want to see about some fabric for a new dress for Susannah first. Oh, and Gabe, you might pick up a pound of peppermints. That long ride home gets pretty dusty and I’m thinking the treat might just come in handy.”

  “Yes, ma’am!” Gabe said with noted enthusiasm. Dianne knew he had a sweet tooth and would appreciate the candy.

  With the men heading in different directions, Dianne walked slowly down the boardwalk, taking in the sights. There was a lot of bustle and activity. Freighters moved up and down the wide main street at a surprisingly steady pace. All around her folks were preparing for winter and the coming snow.

  “Well, if it ain’t Dianne Chadwick,” a thick female voice sounded from behind her.

  Dianne turned around to find Griselda Showalter, an annoying woman she’d met on the wagon train.

  “Hello, Mrs. Showalter. How are you?” Dianne asked politely. She had no desire to make small talk with the obnoxious woman—the woman Dianne still held partly responsible for the destruction and death of her mother. In fact, it wasn’t until that exact moment, seeing the rotund woman with her graying hair pulled back in its tight little bun, that Dianne realized just how angry she was with Griselda.

  “Don’t look like the years have been as cruel to you as they have to me,” Griselda replied. “Guess some of us are tougher than others. We can take the hard life—while others are meant to have it easy.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Dianne asked without thinking.

  “I heard you have a pretty good life now. Living on a fine ranch with servants and plenty,” Griselda stated, lifting her chin in a defiant stance. “Some of us ain’t had it that easy.”

  Dianne thought of all the pain and misery she’d known since coming to Montana. She thought about losing her sisters and mother—about losing Bram and not knowing what had happened to Cole. She even thought of her brothers all going their separate ways and of the emptiness their absence had left in her heart. Then memories of the hard work came to mind. Thoughts of all the times she’d worked fifteen-hour days to get things accomplished. Long hours with cold winds and snow in the winter and searing sun and heat in the summer.

  “We all heard about the big house being built. Some say your uncle is spending upwards of ten thousand dollars to build that house.”

  “I suppose you haven’t heard that my uncle passed on a few days back. He was attacked by a grizzly bear while enjoying the easy life you speak of,” Dianne said sarcastically.

  “No need to take that tone with me, girlie. You ain’t had to live in the shanties or work with your hands just to eat. You ain’t suffered through what the rest of us have.”

  “You’re absolutely right,” Dianne said, barely controlling her temper, “and neither have you any knowledge of the life I’m leading or living. Folks really oughtn’t talk about what they know nothing about.”

  “Percy’s dead,” Griselda said without fanfare or warning.

  Dianne bit her lip and calmed her angry nerves. “I’m sorry for that. When did he pass?”

  Griselda showed no emotion. “Last winter. He was always a sickly man. Couldn’t manage farm life. Couldn’t manage much of anything but bookwork. I figured when we came west it would do him in.”

  “Then why did you force him to come?” Dianne blurted out, realizing too late how cruel her words were.

  Griselda shrugged her shoulders. “Hoped it would make a man of him. Instead, it killed him. No surprise there.”

  Dianne was shocked by her lack of feeling. “So are you and the children still managing the farm?”

  “Hardly. We moved back to town. Can’t run a farm without a man.”

  Dianne noted that Gabe was heading back from Bradley’s. “I’m sorry, Griselda, but one of our ranch hands is heading to pick up the last of the supplies and I need to help with this. You have my condolences regarding Percy.”

  She didn’t wait for Griselda to say anything more, but the older woman called after her. “Maybe the children and I will ride out to see you sometime. Catch up on old times.”

  Dianne refused to reply. If she opened her mouth, she knew the only thing that would come out would be harsh and ugly. “Gabe!” she called instead, hurrying to catch up. “Wait for me.”

  It had been a strange experience to revisit the past with Griselda. The woman didn’t look a bit healthy. Her once ruddy peach complexion was rather ashen and drawn. Dianne knew life in Montana had taken its toll on the woman who was used to being in charge. No doubt she was unnerved by so much being out of her control—the weather, the land—even Percy’s death.

  “I’m glad you decided to ride with me a ways,” Levi said as he drove the mules down the road. “I have a couple of things I want to talk to you about.”

  Dianne pushed aside her thoughts and met Levi’s sweet boyish expression. He seemed eternally young; even the hard ranch life hadn’t robbed him of his joyful expression and charm. “I’m surprised Gabe let you have the wagon. He usually prefers to drive rather than ride.” She looked ahead to where Gabe rode.

  “I told him it was important, that I needed to talk with you,” Levi said, then cleared his throat nervously. “I hope you don’t mind.”

  “Not at all. What did you want to discuss?”

  “I’m wondering if you’d thought about what you’d do if Cole doesn’t come back.”

  The comment took her so off guard that Dianne was actually left speechless for several moments. Levi took advantage of the situation to continue.

  “I mean, if he doesn’t return—if the worst has happened, well . . . what do you think you’ll do? You own the ranch now. Everyone knows that and no doubt there are gonna be men come a-courtin’ to try and steal the Diamond V from you.”

  “I have no intention of letting anyone steal anything from me,” Dianne replied rather curtly.

  “Didn’t mean to make you mad, Miz Dianne. It’s just that . . well, I want you to know that I’m here. That I’ll see to you and if Cole doesn’t come back . . . I’d like you to consider me as a suitor.”

  Dianne grimaced and looked away. She didn’t want to hurt Levi’s feelings, but she also h
ad no desire to have this conversation. “Look, Levi. I appreciate your concern, and I thank you for it. I’m not ready, however, to think about the possibility that Cole might not return. I’m not yet ready to believe him . . gone.”

  “But there’s always that possibility, Miz Dianne.”

  “Yes,” she said, looking past Gabe to the snow-covered mountains. “Yes, there’s always that possibility.”

  The next day, after they’d returned to the ranch, Dianne found herself having a similar conversation with Charity Hammond. Dianne had delivered some of the supplies she’d picked up for the couple and found Charity a welcoming friend.

  “You’ll never guess who I saw yesterday,” Dianne said, sitting down to share company with her friend.

  “Well, let’s see,” Charity said, looking upward as if pondering the matter. “No, I suppose I haven’t a clue.”

  “Griselda Showalter.”

  “Mercy, I wouldn’t have guessed it for all the gold,” Charity declared. “How was she? Did you also see Percy?”

  “No, Mr. Showalter died last winter—at least that’s what Griselda told me. I found myself feeling so angry at her that I could scarcely listen to what she had to say.”

  “Why are you feeling so angry toward her?”

  Dianne lowered her gaze. “I still blame her for the role she played in my mother’s death—in her dependence on laudanum.

  I didn’t realize how mad I was about the whole thing until I came face-to-face with her. She was still her harsh, bitter self, and her attitude toward me was that I was nothing more than a snippet of a girl who wasn’t entitled to even have an opinion.”

  “Griselda Showalter doesn’t think anyone’s entitled to an opinion, except for herself,” Charity replied. She put sugar and cups on the table, then went back to the counter for the teapot.

  “She said she and the children are living in town. I can’t imagine how they’re getting by, and frankly I don’t really care.

  They can all sit there and . . . well, they can all sit there.”