by Nan O'Berry
“Well,” Lou continued. “We saved our money.”
Slowly, the story began to emerge from the borrowing of the books to the pains taken hand written notes.
“But how did Max get involved?” Bethany demanded.
Teddy moved to the bars and grabbing one on each side, he pressed his face up against the cold metal to speak. “That’s an easy answer. Max finished school. He had them books by that man, Shakespeare.”
Callie went still. “No wonder some of those lines sounded familiar. You-you copied them from his poems.”
“Yes ma’am,” Teddy admitted. “I’m awful sorry. We didn’t mean no harm.”
“But harm was done,” Callie confronted him. “I have been embarrassed in front of the town.”
Teddy hung his head. “I’m sorry, truly I am.”
“Who came up with the idea of sending her with Max?” McCullough asked.
“I did.” Lou sighed. “She came and the boss done got hitched.” He glanced at Ida. “No offense ma’am. We’re glad the boss found someone, but it sure made a pickle for us to figure out. By the time she got here, we didn’t have a place for her to go. Max…” He glanced at the man in question. “Max here got put in the middle. We – well we knew that Mrs. Barringer and Miss Melinda would be at the ranch. It was sure safer than having her alone in town.”
“Safer for you or for Miss McBride?” the sheriff demanded.
All three hung their heads.
“Both,” Teddy replied.
“You should be flogged,” Mrs. Brown piped up. “Nursed back to health and flogged again. The gall of these men, trifling with a woman’s affection. Poetry, from men who can’t even recite scripture.”
“Now, Mrs. Brown, their hearts were in a good spot,” the sheriff mused.
“Poetry couldn’t do Callie justice,” Max murmured.
His soft voice caused Callie raised her head.
Slowly, Max began to cross toward her. “Callie is the strongest woman I know. She’d let her own happiness take second place.” He smiled. “Did you know Seth, she said she’d made a promise to marry you and she wouldn’t go back on that promise, even when I sort of asked her.”
“Is that right?” Seth grinned as he moved toward his own wife and took her hand.
Callie nodded.
“Then I’m blessed to know two wonderful women. Callie McBride, I release you from your promise to marry me and I hope you can find someone who loves you as deeply as I love my Ida.”
Relief flowed through her. Callie gave a shy glance to the sheriff, then shifted her gaze to the man standing next to her. “So what am I supposed to do now?” she whispered.
Max smiled as he walked forward and slipped the handkerchief from her hand. Reaching up, he wiped away the trail of tears that ran down her cheeks. “Did anyone tell you, your eyes are like the lupine blossoms and rival the Nevada sky itself?”
She stared into his eyes and shook her head.
“Or that your laughter rivals the sweetest song of any bird in the meadow.”
“No.”
“Callie, there’s no barrier to keep us apart now. Seth has released you. Lou and his buddies have confessed. I’ll ask you in front of these folks and my mother, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”
Her smile trembled.
For a moment, everyone held their collective breaths.
Then Callie nodded.
“Yes, yes I’ll marry you Maxwell Barringer. I came here to begin a new life and there’s no place I’d want to be other than on the Barringer ranch.”
A sigh of relief went through the gathered assembly as Max took her into his arms and bestowed a shy kiss upon her lips.
“I love you, Caledonia McBride,” Max whispered, as he held her close.
“And I love you,” she murmured against his cheek.
Max let her go and slipped his hand over hers.“Reverend Brown, would you be willing to do the honors?”
“Aye son, it will be my pleasure.”
“Seth, you’ll be my best man?”
“I’d be honored, Max.”
“Max,” Callie called softly.
“Yes, my dear?”
“You have a cabin to finish.”
His grin widened. “So I do.”
“Gentleman, there appears to be an urgent need for a house raising up in the foothills of the ranch. I need it done before I walk down the aisle and I’m not waiting more than a week.”
“I think that can be arranged.” McCullough grinned. “Teddy, Dill, Lou, looks like you found a way to pay off your debt.”
“We’ll do it, Sheriff, just let us out of here.”
McCullough tossed the keys to Seth, who grabbed them and moved to open the cell.
“Oh,” McCullough gave a nod to the door. “There’s a newspaper man outside that would love to get the scoop on this. I bet if you tell him, you can get a whole lot more people to help with that cabin. You might even have it finished before the week is out.”
“That sounds even better.” Max grinned as he swung Callie into another hug.
“I came riding from Richmond and into the arms of love,” Callie replied taking hold of his face and kissing him wantonly. “This is the best adventure I could ask for.”
Epilogue
Callie stood outside of the white clapboard church and waited for Barbara to begin Mendelssohn’s tune. The white dress she’d brought all the way from Richmond flowed perfectly. Instead of a full veil, Mrs. Handley at the General Store had given her some lace. With the help of Max’s mother, she fashioned a short veil that pinned to her hair and hung only down the back. She didn’t want to miss a minute of walking down the aisle under Max’s gaze.
“Are you nervous?” Melinda asked.
“No. I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life.”
“We’re almost ready,” Bethany said as she hurried from the front of the church. “But you need something.” Reaching down to the bouquet of flowers, picked from the meadow, she pulled two sprigs of lupine. Pulling two hair pins from her own bun, she secured them in place on either side of the veil. “There.” Stepping back, Bethany smiled at Callie. “I’m so thrilled to have you as my daughter-in-law. I already love you, like one of my own.”
“And I love you,” Callie murmured as they embraced.
“Mother,” Augustus called.
“Coming.” She blew Callie a kissed and then took Augustus’ arm. Head held high, they walked into the church.
Melinda stepped forward. “I’ll get the back of your dress.”
Callie nodded. Together, they walked to the front doors as the notes from the piano filled the air. She looked down the aisle to see Max standing, waiting. Her journey had come to an end. Callie found the love and dreams that would last her a lifetime.
What’s Next?
Read the first chapter of TRAVELING FROM TEXAS, book 5 of the Pioneer Brides of Rattlesnake Ridge…
Tess Cooper stared at her father’s scrawled writing. According to the date, he’d written the letter yesterday. She glanced out the door to their small cabin. He’d left early this morning, and the envelope must have fallen out of his pocket. It had not yet been sealed, and not able to resist her curiosity, she’d opened it and read the unsettling words.
She hadn’t seen their Uncle Bartholomew in years. Why would Father want to send them away? Nothing made sense. Yet, Father had been acting strangely. Coming home early. Going through Mother’s box. What was wrong with him?
Feeling unsteady, she sat down at the table and reread the letter. Why were they in danger? She wished Joe was home so she could ask him. But he was past wild and hadn’t come home last night. She stuffed the letter in her pocket, grabbed her shawl, and hurried out the door.
Father was going to have to explain why he would want to send them away. If he was in trouble, they would handle it together. Like they always had.
Halfway into town, she ran into Mattie Quiggins. The old woman gave her a toothles
s grin and narrowed her eyes. “Lots of folks falling on hard times. Lots of folks leaving Texas.”
"Well, I won't. I'll never leave my home. I'm Texas born."
"Yes, you are missy. But most Texans come from somewhere else, and more are leaving to go somewhere else.” Mattie grabbed her hand. “I’m old. People talk in front of me because they think I don’t matter. But I hear things.”
The old woman looked around them and then tugged on Tess’s arm. “I saw them yesterday. They were talking. Men that I don’t know said they were going to rob the bank.”
“When?”
“This morning. Be careful, Missy. I saw the young one ride up to them. He talked, but I couldn’t hear him. You know the one. Carl. Don’t trust him.”
Cold dread worked its way down Tess’s spine. Carl? He was her intended. The man she dreamed about and thought she would marry. “That can’t be right. Carl wouldn’t—”
Old Maggie put a finger to her lips. “They are up to something. I took my money out of the bank, yesterday. Go, quick and tell your father.”
Tess pulled away from the old woman.
Maggie wagged her finger. “Better keep an eye on that brother of yours. Saw him going into Kit’s saloon. No good can come out of your fast-talking, fast-draw brother, and whiskey.”
“I’ll speak to Father about him. I’m not his mother.” She walked away and wished they still had the horse and carriage. Father kept saying times would get better. So far, they hadn’t improved an inch.
Joseph was another story and worry. While Father was gone to war, he’d grown up wild. Mother had tried her best, but he’d become more than she could handle. Then after Mother died, the duty had fallen to her. She’d been no match for her brother.
Father worked hard at the bank, but his wages weren’t enough. Little by little, they’d sold off the ranch she knew as home. First the livestock. Then acreage. The house would go next. She would worry, but Father had told her he had it under control.
She was almost to town when she heard her name shouted. Tess turned and saw Joe galloping on a horse toward her.
Joe yanked the horse to a stop and held his arm out to her. “Get on. It’s Father.”
The fear in her brother's eyes stopped her questions. Tess grabbed hold of Joe's hand and swung up on the back of the prancing horse. She cringed to ask whose animal it was.
Once she had her arms around his waist, he spurred the horse and charged back to town.
“What’s wrong?”
“Father’s sick.”
“What happened?”
“Doc said it’s his heart.” Joe ran the horse hard all the way back to town and finally stopped him, lathered and blowing, in front of the bank. People were lined up and crowding around the window.
Joe helped her down. “Hurry.”
They ran inside the bank where Mr. Harvey, the bank owner, waved them to the back. Tess followed and saw her father on the floor. A jacket under his head.
Doc Baker looked up. He shook his head and stood. "Your father was fighting with someone. He called out, and by the time Mr. Harvey came in, your father was on the floor. The only thing keeping him alive was wanting to talk to you. Better make it quick.” The doc took Mr. Harvey, and they left the room.
Her father’s face was pale and gray. Tears blurred her vision. “Father—”
“Shh.” He put a finger to her lips. “You and Joe, go to Nevada to Uncle Bartholomew. Hurry. Don’t wait. Take Joe and leave now.”
“Father, you’re sick—”
“I’m dying, lass. In Mother’s box,” He winced and coughed. “Danger. Don’t stop for no one.”
Tess shook her head and stared at him. “Where—”
“Uncle, Rattlesnake Ridge, Nevada. Joe take her.” Father closed his eyes, coughed again, and stopped breathing.
Tess threw herself onto him. “No.”
Joe grabbed her. “We better go.” He pulled her up. Holding her close, he helped her out of the bank. “We need to get home and leave.”
She looked back. “But Father—”
“We have to go.” Joe put her on the horse and climbed up behind her. “I barely remember Uncle Bartholomew.”
She leaned against him. “Father had said he was a prominent citizen in the town. I guess he can help us get started again.” Tears wetted her cheeks. “Why do you think Father wanted us—”
“Don’t ask. We’ll just do what he said.” Joe spoke as a man and not the wild boy she knew. Quiet and in their own thoughts, they rode home.
Joe kept a hand on his pistol and looked around. “We better hurry.”
Tess followed him into the house. Nevada. Just where was that anyway? West was all she knew.
Joe pulled the box down and opened it. He gasped and held up a bag. “Gold coins and hundred-dollar bills. Must be five thousand dollars in here.”
“How did Father get that kind of money?” She tried to answer the question and still think of her father as the honorable man she’d always known.
Joe stared at it. “Think he stole it?”
“Father isn’t a thief.”
“No. But he didn’t have this kind of money either, and Mr. Harvey said someone had come in and had cross words with him right before his heart gave out.”
She looked through the box, but everything else was as it should be. Mother's ring. Her brooch. Locks of hair from her and Joe.
Joe stood and grabbed the rifle and cartridges. “Pack a few things. We have to go.”
“Who would want to hurt us?”
He stopped at the door. “I saw some men in the saloon. Heard words and mention of Father’s name. We don’t want to be around when they come looking for this money.”
Fear shadowed her as she went into her room and pulled the satchel from under her bed. What had Father done? Tess glanced around her room. So many memories lingered in the small cabin they called home. After packing, she sat on her bed and listened. It was a game she played late at night. She could imagine her mother calling out, Father answering, and Joe laughing. Life in the Cooper home was often loud and full of laughter. Used to be, anyway.
Tess frowned. But no more. Mother was gone. Now Father.
“Tess, we need to go.”
She went out and saw Joe standing by the door. Rifle in one hand, knapsack in the other. He’d changed. No longer the wild boy, he looked the part of a man with responsibility. Something very new to her brother.
Joe gave her a grim smile. “I’ll saddle Father’s horse for you. He must have walked into town today. I’ll turn the cow loose.”
“Do you think we have to go?”
He nodded and watched outside. “Father said it for a reason. Said we were in danger. Watch for me. When I bring the horse out, you come outside.” He handed her the rifle. “I don’t know what danger we’re looking for, but we better be ready.”
Tess took the gun and stayed in the doorway. Growing up in Texas had made her wary and ready. There’d been a time that they had to watch for Indians. Now, it was the lawless men who’d been ruined by the war and hard times.
She wondered about Father. Is that what had happened to him? They'd struggled ever since the war. If it wasn't the Yankees, it was the carpetbaggers. Add high taxes and a ruined economy, and so many were struggling to survive.
“Oh, Father. What did you do?”
Joe walked up with Brandywine behind him. “He’s ready for you.” He helped her mount and then jumped on his horse. “I figure we ride to Dallas. There’s bound to be trains we can take. We’ll sell the horses.”
She rubbed Brandywine’s neck. The horse was a beauty with a dark red coat and black mane and tail. He was also Father's source of pride. "Do we have to get rid of him, too?"
“We can buy new ones in Nevada.”
“I’d like to say goodbye to Carl.” Just the last month, she’d begun to think there might be more than friendship between them. He worked at the bank with her father and would soon know of her father’s dea
th. In fact, she found it strange that he hadn’t been at the bank this morning. Then again, there was Maggie’s odd warning.
Joe shook his head. “No. Not until we know what we’re up against. Father wouldn’t have said we had to leave now if he hadn’t meant it. I’m responsible to look after you.”
“But I owe Carl a goodbye.” She was beginning to come out of the shock of the events and get angry.
“Father told me to take care of you, and that’s what I’m going to do. Once I deliver you to Uncle Bartholomew, then you can do what you want.” He glanced around.
She noticed how uneasy her brother had become. “You don’t think someone is out to kill us?”
Joe stared at her. “Carl and Father had cross words this morning. I think Carl caused his heart attack, and then he ran out of the bank. I’m not taking a chance. Father made me responsible for you.”
“Carl? But we were talking marriage.”
Joe patted his pocket. “We might not have broken the law, but I’m not so sure about Father, and really not sure about Carl.”
“Father wouldn’t do anything wrong. He wouldn’t.”
Joe just shrugged. “That money came from somewhere, and Carl argued with Father enough to make his heart give out. We do what Father wanted.”
Seeing her brother wasn’t going to budge, she nodded. “Let’s go. Your horse is tired though. We better just walk.”
He grinned. “You always watch out for the animals, don’t you? Yeah, I already thought of it. I’ll buy another one soon as we come to a place.”
“With what? We don’t have but ten dollars between us.”
Joe glanced at her with a wry grin. “I’d say we about five thousand dollars.”
“We are not bank robbers.”
“No, but we aren’t going to sit around here and get killed over this money either.”
Tess knew to argue further was pointless. Later, they’d come to an agreement about what to do with Father’s money.
Joe took her north away from the main road and led her through fields green from spring rains. Tears threatened as she thought of her father dying. Now to lose their home, too. And be threatened by some unknown danger.
