“Please forgive me for the wrong I’ve done—for the lies and deceit, for taking what didn’t belong to me—for taking lives.” She prayed the words for Takes Many Horses, hoping he would make them his own. The warrior said nothing, but his breathing evened and became less labored.
Dianne couldn’t help but open her eyes, fearful that he was passing from the earth even as she prayed. But instead of finding him nearly dead, she was encouraged by his more peaceful, rhythmic breathing.
Oh, Father, please heal him, she prayed. He’s so important to this family. It would hurt so much to lose him. Please restore his strength and give him the ability to recover from this sickness.
An hour or two later, Dr. Bufford listened to the warrior’s heartbeat. “I actually think he’s doing better. He may have turned a corner on this.”
Dianne tried not to get her hopes up. “What about Koko?”
“I’m afraid she’s contracted the disease,” he said, shaking his head. “All we can do is wait it out and hope for the best. If no one else comes down sick, we’re still looking at a few more weeks of quarantine.”
She sat down hard, still unable to imagine living even longer without her husband, brother, and the others. “Were you able to get Runs Too Far buried?”
“Yes. I managed it. I buried him near the others. As I mentioned, we’ll need to burn all the linens—the mattresses too.”
Dianne nodded. “That’s fine. Whatever we must do to keep this from spreading.” She got to her feet and readjusted her apron. “I’ll care for my aunt. There’s no sense in both of us losing sleep. I can check in here as well.”
Dr. Bufford rubbed his bearded chin and nodded. “Very well. Come get me if things get worse.”
Dianne sighed. “Things are already worse,” she murmured, thinking of Koko.
She went to her aunt and was surprised to find her awake. The fever was already causing her to feel chilled and achy. Dianne tried to compensate with a fresh blanket.
“Are the children still sleeping? Are they well?”
Dianne nodded. “Yes. They seem fine. No fevers. I sent them with Charity and Ben. They’ll keep them at the cabin.”
“Good,” Koko said in relief. “I hoped you would move them to another place. I don’t want them near me while I’m sick.”
“It’s already been seen to,” Dianne said, hoping this thought would offer comfort. “Takes Many Horses is doing better. Dr. Bufford said he may actually recover.”
“Can I be moved to his room? I’d like to be near him.”
Dianne could see no reason why this wouldn’t be acceptable. Since Koko already had the pox, it wasn’t as if they would risk spreading it further. “Let me see if Dr. Bufford has destroyed the mattress yet. If he has, I’ll need to move this one to that room. You’ll have to sit on a chair in the sickroom while I work. All right?”
“That’s fine. I’m strong enough to sit. I can even walk to the room with your help.”
“All right.” Dianne got to her feet. “Let me go check the bed first.”
“Wait, please.” Koko’s voice sounded urgent.
Dianne turned. She could see the fear in Koko’s eyes. Reaching out, she took hold of her aunt’s hand. “What is it? Are you in pain?”
“No, it’s the children.”
“They’re fine. I already told you.”
“No,” Koko said, shaking her head from side to side. “If I die—” “You won’t,” Dianne asserted, not wanting to hear anything more on the matter.
“Please,” Koko whispered. “Please hear me.”
Dianne braced herself and sat down beside the sick woman. “All right. I’m listening.”
“I know how this sickness can be. Remember, I watched the others die. You must promise me that if I die, you’ll take care of Jamie and Susannah.”
Dianne would never have considered doing things any other way. “But of course I will.”
“I just need to know that they’ll be safe—that they won’t have to go to the reservation.”
“Oh, Koko, I would never let Jamie and Susannah be taken from us. They belong here. This is their land—their home. I will fight for them every step of the way.”
Koko’s expression softened as relief spread to her features. “Thank you. I knew what you would say, but I needed to hear it. I needed to know.”
Dianne could well understand. If the roles were reversed and she were the sick one instead of Koko, Dianne would want to know that Luke was well cared for.
“You rest now. We’re going to need you to be strong in order to fight this illness.”
Dianne left Koko, her thoughts traveling in a hundred different directions. There seemed no end in sight for ridding themselves of smallpox, and now Dianne was taking on the job of nursing the sick—leaving herself vulnerable to catching the disease as well.
“Oh, God,” she prayed, leaning against the back door of the kitchen, “please help us. Please deliver us.”
Gus, Cole, and Trenton headed back to the ranch from Virginia City. Cole wasn’t at all happy with the information he’d picked up in town, but it was hard to know what was merely rumor and what was truth.
“I heard that three ranches to the east, down on the Yellowstone, were burned out, but no one has any confirmation of this,” Cole said, trying to figure out what was to be done about the news. “The man I talked to said it was done by Sioux raiding parties.”
“Could be,” Gus replied. “Hard to tell if it’s true or not.”
“The man at the newspaper said that since they moved the capital to Helena, their information isn’t as reliable as it had been,” Trenton said. “I’m guessin’ there’s a lot of speculation going around. Fear spreads like wildfire.”
Cole nodded. “I know that well enough. I just can’t figure out what we need to do. I’d load up the family and take them to safety if I knew where safety was.”
“You’ll probably just have to ride this one out,” Gus said, sounding fatherly in his manner. “You’ll have to do what you can to make your own place as safe as possible.”
“I’d gladly do that if we weren’t restricted by the quarantine,” Cole replied.
“We’ve got a good perimeter watch going,” Trenton threw in. “I think we’re doing the best we can. There haven’t been any signs of Indians, so I think we’re pretty safe.”
Cole sighed. “I suppose so. I just feel like there oughta be something more we should do.”
“Guess we could pray,” Gus said off-handedly. “Seems like the thing to do, anyhow.”
“I’ve been praying, Gus. I’ve been praying my boots off,” Cole replied. “I’ve been praying for healing from the sickness, for safety from rampaging Indians, and for the general protection of all the folks I love and care about. I don’t know what else to pray for.”
“Patience,” Trenton said with a grin. “I think we all need patience.”
CHAPTER 34
KOKO SUFFERED ONLY A MILD CASE OF THE POX. SHE WASN’T nearly as sick or covered with pustules as her brother and his friends had been. Dr. Bufford said this was a very good sign, and he believed she would mend very quickly.
Takes Many Horses’ recovery was slow but steady. His oncesmooth brown skin now bore the mark of his disease, but he’d started to fill out again and didn’t look nearly as bad as he had.
“I’ll leave here soon,” Takes Many Horses told the women as Dianne helped Koko pull a shawl around her shoulders. She paused and looked to where he stood by the window.
“Where will you go?” Dianne asked.
“North. I will go north. You probably won’t see me again.”
“George, sit down and speak with me. I want to talk about this,” Koko admonished.
Dianne straightened and took up a few articles of clothing that she intended to wash. “I’ll be outside at the washtub,” she said, leaving them to their discussion. She had no idea if Koko would be any more successful in convincing her brother to stay on the Diamond V than she h
ad been. She knew Koko’s brother was restless. Knew, too, that his heart was torn. His companions were gone and his own health was so newly recovered that his body was still weak. He didn’t feel like a man at this point. It would probably take leaving—heading off on his own—to help him regain his confidence and peace of mind.
Dr. Bufford crossed from the barn to where Dianne had set up her washing. “Well, I think we can safely say that no one else need worry about the pox. Your aunt’s case was very mild, and she’s nearly recovered. I’d say in another week we can lift the quarantine.”
“I’m so glad.” She felt her shoulders slump as the relief overtook her. “I’ve prayed so hard for this day.”
“Your strength saw you through, Mrs. Selby. No doubt about it.”
“God saw me through, Dr. Bufford. He brought you to come help. He kept the sickness from spreading, and He saved the people I love.”
Bufford took off his hat and scratched his chin. “I suppose it would be appropriate to credit Him at least with the latter.”
She smiled. “It would be right to credit Him with all. Remember, God sees even when a sparrow falls. He’s been with us all along.”
Bufford cleared his throat and looked away. “I’ll be leaving as soon as we lift the quarantine. It’s nearly May, and it would do me good to air out the cabin and bring in some supplies.”
“I plan to pay you a good sum,” Dianne said, putting one of Bufford’s shirts to the washboard. “You’ve gone above and beyond neighborly kindness or even good doctoring. You’ve been a blessing to us, and I plan to bless you in return.”
“You needn’t worry about that. I told you before that it wasn’t my intention to continue practicing as a doctor.”
“Yes, but you also mentioned that your sorrow and loss during the war kept you from feeling that you were accomplishing anything good with your medical skills. That’s not the case anymore, and I think it’s time you reconsidered. This valley could use another doctor. There are hundreds of new families in the areas surrounding us. They aren’t going to just go away, but they will get sick and need treatment. I’d like it very much if you would think about this.”
Bufford toyed with his hat. “I’ll consider it, but don’t get your hopes up.”
Dianne didn’t want to embarrass the man, but she couldn’t help adding, “I appreciate that you put aside your personal feelings toward the Indians. I know my aunt would probably be dead—her brother too—had it not been for your training and wisdom.”
“I suppose my mind, while not completely altered in its thinking, has come to accept that we’re facing a new day. I don’t know that I can deal with people of different colors and not feel strange about the situation, but you have taught me something of tolerance.”
She met his eyes and smiled. “I’m so glad. These are good people. I’m certain they would be happy to be your friend.”
Bufford motioned to the house. “I need to go check on my patients.”
She let him go, noting his face had reddened somewhat at her suggestion. Most people made changes a little at a time. At least that was her observance. Of course, there were those like her family who pulled up stakes to come west—who endured a great deal of change in a short while. She supposed it was just a matter of personalities and needs.
“I need to say something to you.”
Dianne straightened and found Takes Many Horses standing at the corner of the house. He’d apparently come from the back door and followed the smoke to where she stood working with the laundry.
“Are you feeling well enough to be out here?” she asked, leaving her scrubbing momentarily to retrieve wood. She wanted to keep the water hot in order to assure that all the disease was cooked out of the clothing she washed. Throwing more wood into the fire under her caldron, Dianne straightened and met the man’s fixed gaze. “What did you want to say?”
“I want to apologize.”
“For what?”
“For speaking of my love for you,” he replied. “It was wrong of me and dishonoring to your husband.”
Dianne nodded. “I accept your apology. You are a man of honor.”
“My apology doesn’t mean that my words weren’t true, but I know you are happy with Cole, and that makes my heart sing. If you are happy, then I can leave and live out my days without regret.”
She was rather taken aback by his statement. “Do you remember when we prayed?”
Takes Many Horses nodded. He continued staring at her. “Did you pray? Did you understand about God’s mercy for you? His love of you?”
“I understood,” he replied, his voice low and husky. “Why do you ask?”
“I want to go my way and live my days without regret as well,” Dianne said firmly. “I want to know that I did everything I could to convince you that God’s love for you was more powerful than anything you could do or had already done.”
He came closer, stopping only inches away. For a moment, she thought he might try to embrace her, but again he held himself in restraint. “I am grateful for that night and the prayers you offered. My soul is at peace. I do not pretend to understand everything about God and His mercy. In fact, at times He does not seem very merciful.”
Dianne nodded. “I know,” she managed with some difficulty, then bit her lower lip as if to keep from saying something more.
“I will travel with the one true God,” he stated softly. “I will trust Him for my days. Does that make you happy, Stands Tall Woman?”
She nodded, unable to pretend it didn’t. “I’m glad to know that I’ll see you again. If not in this world, then in the next. You are my friend, and you will always be my friend—from now until the end of time.”
He smiled and it warmed her heart. “I give you my pledge of friendship,” he said. “I will honor it always.”
The day after the quarantine was lifted, Hezekiah Bufford headed back to his cabin. His pockets were a bit better lined, thanks to Dianne’s generosity, and he had smoked hams slung on both sides of his mount—an extra thank-you from Koko.
Takes Many Horses left the same morning. He hadn’t said a word to anyone. Without so much as a farewell, he simply vanished— taking his companions’ weapons. Dianne was rather hurt by his disappearance.
“He could have at least said good-bye,” she told Koko as she cleaned the kitchen.
Her aunt looked at her sympathetically. “It hurt him to go— to leave you.”
“To leave me? What about you and the children? I’ve never seen a man so happy to play with little ones.”
Koko smiled, but there was a bittersweet tone to her voice. “Jamie wanted to go with him—to be Blackfoot like his uncle. But my brother spoke with him and then Jamie seemed happy to stay behind.”
“What did George say to him?”
“He told him that he was now the man of our family. That he had a responsibility to take care of me and his sister. That he had two women in his lodge, and that required much bravery and great strength.”
“I can well imagine Jamie is just about to bust a button regarding such matters.”
“He was very proud and even more excited when George gave him his Blackfoot name.”
Dianne finished wiping the counter and turned. “What name did he give him?”
“The translation is Little Man Waits,” Koko said with a smile. “Jamie was very pleased.”
“I can well imagine.” Dianne tried the name on for herself. “Little Man Waits.” She nodded. “Yes, I like it very much. We’ll have to celebrate.”
That night, after the last of the bedding had been burned or washed, Dianne allowed herself the luxury of a hot bath. Cole had helped her by carrying gallons of hot water to the tub upstairs.
“Stay as long as you want,” he told her. “I’ll see to Luke.”
Dianne barely breathed words of thanks before her husband pulled the door closed. Shedding her dressing gown, Dianne sank into the hot water and sighed as it came up over her shoulders. She edged down farther
and let her hair soak up water. She felt as though she were washing away the last couple of months and all its misery.
“Mmm,” she sighed. Nothing had ever felt better.
Dianne lost track of the time. She let her mind wander, remembering times when she’d been a girl—back before the war had come and her family had split apart. She remembered a picnic they’d all shared by some pond. The day had been warm and lovely. Trenton and the twins had splashed around in the river, but Dianne had been too afraid to set foot into the water.
“Don’t be a goose, Dianne,” Morgan had teased. “You won’t drown. We won’t let you.”
Dianne had been about eight or nine. She couldn’t even remember for sure where they’d been. It might have been on one of the visits to her grandparents; then again, it might have been near the house where they lived before moving to New Madrid.
“You’ll splash water in my eyes,” she had declared to her brothers, “and then I won’t be able to see. I’ll get lost.”
“You won’t get lost,” Trenton had assured her. She trusted Trenton because he always took good care of her. When he’d reached for her hand that day, Dianne had hesitated only a moment.
“You won’t forget me? You won’t leave me by myself?”
He led her to the water, assuring her all the time that he would never let her get any farther away than he could reach. The memory warmed her. Trenton had been true to his word, just as God had been true to His.
He, too, had promised He’d never leave her.
Opening her eyes, Dianne felt the same blessed assurance she’d known as a child wash over her anew. God truly had her safely in His care. He wouldn’t leave her nor forsake her. The momentary worries about tomorrow faded in light of this truth.
With her bath finished, Dianne slipped into her bedroom. The baby slept soundly and Cole relaxed in bed, reading from one of the books he’d picked up in Virginia City. The sight of such a scene filled her with great warmth and pride.
“My husband and baby—this is the finest sight I’ve ever known.”
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