The Outlaws: Sam

by Ten Talents Press

  "Sounds good to me," Sam said. He turned to Lacey. "Can you abide another long stagecoach ride?"

  "If Meg can do it, so can I," Lacey maintained.

  Meg patted her stomach. "I think this babe can settle down for another ride. At least won't be as long as the one from Deadwood. But I'm warning you, he's anxious to see the light of day."

  "Then it's settled," Rafe enthused.

  The stagecoach was only an hour late. The Gentrys vied for seat space with two other passengers. Unaccustomed to mountains, Lacey closed her eyes and prayed during most of the trip, while Meg appeared oblivious to the breathtaking scenery. A small smile tugged at Meg's lips as she rested her hands on her burgeoning middle, her thoughts apparently turned inward.

  Jess was troubled. He'd delivered too many babes not to know that Meg's body was preparing itself for the birthing process. Unfortunately she was still a month or so shy of her due date. He wished he could examine her but that was impossible until they reached Rafe's ranch. All he could do was worry.

  They arrived in Canon City on a glorious, sunny day. Rafe was anxious as he arranged for a pair of buggies and a wagon to carry his guests and their baggage to the ranch. His anxiety had persisted throughout the trip down from Denver. He worried excessively about Lacey, alone on the ranch but for Bessie and the hired hands. He knew the ranch wasn't far from town, and that the doctor had promised to keep an eye on Angel, but he'd feel better once he was home.

  The family crowded into the buggies while Rafe followed behind with the baggage wagon. The moment the ranch came into sight his apprehensive escalated. Something was wrong. He sensed it the moment he rode through the gate sporting a sign proclaiming it Angel Acres. The two buggies had arrived before him and its occupants were gathered before the front door, waiting for him.

  "This is some spread," Sam enthused. "Imagine, both of us ranchers. The only difference is that you raise horses and I raise cattle."

  Rafe heard nothing above the pounding of his heart. He reached for the doorknob and flung open the door.

  "Angel! Bessie!"

  Bessie appeared at the top of the stairs, wringing her hands. "Thank God you're home, Mr. Gentry!"

  Rafe paled. "What is it, Bessie? Is it Angel? Is she all right?"

  "She's in trouble and I don't know how to help her. She's having the baby but it won't come out," Bessie wailed.

  "Did you send for the doctor?"

  "Two days ago, but he's laid up with a broken leg and can't come. I thought I could do this myself, but I lack the skill."

  Rafe took the stairs two at a time. Jess was hard on his heels.

  "If anything happens to Angel I don't know what I'll do," Rafe exclaimed.

  Jess caught up with him. "I'm a doctor, Rafe. Let me handle this. Just show me the way."

  Rafe burst into the bedroom, fearful of what he'd find. When he saw Angel lying pale and writhing in pain against a mound of pillows, he rushed to her bedside.

  "Forgive me, Angel, I shouldn't have left you," he said, raising her hand to his lips.

  "I'll...be fine, Rafe. It's just taking longer than I expected. Did you meet your brothers? Are they well?"

  "Better yet, I brought them and their wives with me. Sam has a five year old son and both Jess and Sam's wives are expecting."

  Angel cried out as a painful contraction ravaged her body. Rafe felt a hand on his shoulder and moved aside to make room for Jess.

  "This is my brother Jess, sweetheart. He's a doctor. Will you trust him to help you?"

  "I'll need to examine you, Angel, but I'll try to be gentle."

  Angel appeared too lost in pain to answer, but she did nod.

  "Go downstairs and tell the others what's happening," Jess advised his brother. "I'll know more once I examine your wife. You know I'll do my very best, Rafe."

  "I know, Jess, it's just that...God, why can't anything be simple?"

  Angel stifled another cry and Jess turned back to his patient. "Give me a few minutes alone with Angel before you return, Rafe, and I'd appreciate it if you saw that Meg is made comfortable. I wouldn't be surprised if she delivers early."

  Rafe appeared reluctant to leave. "Go on, Rafe," Angel said, giving him a wobbly smile. "Make our guests comfortable, I'm in good hands. You once bragged about Jess's doctoring skills, so trust him to deliver our babe."

  Rafe kissed her forehead. "I'll be back shortly."

  "Send Bessie up with plenty of hot water, strong lye soap and clean towels," Jess called after Rafe.

  Reluctantly Rafe left his Angel in Jess's capable hands and went downstairs. Sam, Meg and Lacey were gathered in the parlor, waiting for a report on Angel's progress. Bessie was in the room, serving refreshments.

  "How is she?" Lacey asked anxiously.

  "Jess is examining her now. The baby should have been born by now."

  "What can do?" Bessier asked.

  "Bring plenty of hot water, strong lye soap and clean towels."

  "Right away, Mr. Gentry," Bessie said, hurrying off.

  "I'll help Bessie," Lacey offered. "I've already had a child and know what to do."

  "I'll join you," Meg said.

  "No, stay here, Meg," Lacey urged. "Unless you want Jess running back and forth between rooms delivering babies. I know you haven't said anything, but I can tell you're close to delivery."

  Rafe gave Meg a startled look. "Is that true, Meg?"

  Meg flushed. "I don't know. I've had some pain off and on for a couple days, but I'm not sure what that means."

  "It means you're going to bed...now. I'll show you to the room you and Jess will share."

  "I'll take Andy to the kitchen and get him something to eat, then lend Bessie a hand," Lacey said as she took Andy's hand and hurried off to the kitchen while Rafe and Sam helped Meg up the staircase.

  "Ah, here's the hot water," Jess said as Bessie and Lacey entered the room carrying the items Jess had asked for.

  He poured hot water into the basin and scrubbed his hands. "Would you ladies kindly step outside the door for a moment while I examine my patient? I'll call you in when I'm ready for you to assist me with the birth."

  Lacey and Bessie went into the hall and closed the door behind them. Rafe joined them a few minutes later.

  "What's going on in there?"

  "Jess is examining Angel. How's Meg?"

  "I think you're right. She may be in the early stages of labor."

  "Don't tell Jess," Lacey advised. "Meg has hours to go yet and Angel needs all his attention."

  Suddenly an agonized scream came from behind the closed door. Rafe started violently, an agonized expression contorting his face. "What is that!"

  "I'm sure everything is just fine," Lacey said in a tone that suggested just the opposite. There had been no complications when she delivered Andy.

  "Hell and damnation! I'm going in," Rafe said as he barged into the room.

  Jess looked up and gave him an exasperated look. "Take it easy, Rafe. You look like a man at the end of his tether."

  "What's going on in here? I heard Angel scream."

  "The babe was turned wrong. The child could not have been born in the position it was in. I turned it. Everything should progress normally now."

  Rafe knelt at Angel's side, concern wrinkling his brow. She was too pale; her lovely eyes were deeply shadowed and filled with pain. "Are you all right, love? Jess said it won't be long now." He glanced up at Jess. "What can I do?"

  "Exactly what you're doing now. Let her squeeze your hand and brace her when she pushes."

  "How can I help?" Lacey asked, stepping forward.

  "Prepare a basin of warm water and have blankets ready."

  Lacey moved with alacrity while Jess turned back to Angel. "Do you feel like pushing, Angel?"

  "Tired, so tired," Angel murmured. Then she stiffened as a violent contraction ripped through her body.

  "Push, Angel!" Jess urged. "You want this babe, don't you?"

  "Please, Angel, help Jess," Raf
e begged. "It's almost over."

  "I'll...try..."

  Jess placed his hand on Angel's stomach. "Another contraction. Come on, Angel, you can do it."

  Rafe watched helplessly as Angel's face contorted with the effort, and he braced her back like Jess suggested. Suddenly Jess gave a whoop.

  "He's crowning! The babe has blond fuzz on its head. Just one more push, Angel, and you can hold your babe in your arms."

  Rafe was astounded at the effort Angel was expending and the pain she was experiencing and vowed that this would be their last child.

  "Here he comes!" Jess shouted as the babe slipped into his waiting hands. "It's a boy, Rafe, and a good sized one at that."

  A son. He had a son.

  Jess cleared the mucus from the babe's mouth, held him by the feet and gave him a light slap upon his tiny bottom. Everyone in the room held their breath until the babe filled his lungs with air and gave a healthy cry. Jess handed the babe to Lacey and returned his attention to his patient. A short time later he delivered the afterbirth and Bessie carried it away in a basin.

  "Can I see my baby?" Angel asked weakly. "Is he all right?"

  Rafe took the babe from Lacey, opened the blanket and counted his fingers and toes. Then he placed him in Angel's arms. "Here he is, love. Every pink, wrinkled inch of him. He has all the right number of fingers and toes and he's beautiful."

  Angel hugged the babe to her breast, too exhausted to do more than cuddle him close. She fell asleep while Lacey was bathing her. Rafe took the babe from her arms and placed him in the cradle that he had carved with his own hands.

  "They'll both sleep for awhile," Jess said as he gathered up his things.

  "I'll sit with her," Rafe said. "The rest of you go and get some rest. Lacey looks ready to drop, and I don't know what I would have done if you weren't here, Jess. You saved the lives of Angel and my son."

  "What are brothers for if they can't help one another when they need it?" Jess said. "I'd best go look in on Meg now."

  Rafe meant to tell him that Meg might be in labor but it had slipped his mind during the traumatic birth of his own son.

  Jess heard Meg's moans before he opened the door to their room. He began shaking like a leaf as he approached the bed. It was one thing to deliver his sister-in-law's baby, but this was his wife, his baby.

  Meg was sitting on the edge of the bed, her face pale, her pupils dilated. Jess knew immediately that she was in pain. "How long have you been like this?"

  "The pains started last night," Meg whispered. "I didn't want to say anything until I was certain." She offered him a wobbly smile. "Jess...I'm...certain."

  Jess bit out a curse and ran to the door. "Bessie! More hot water, soap and towels!"

  Lacey opened the door to her room and peered out. "Jess, is it Meg?"

  "She's ready to deliver," Jess said. "I won't know how far along she is until I examine her."

  "I'll be right there."

  "I don't know if Bessie heard me," Jess answered. "I need more water, soap and towels."

  "I'll take care of it," Lacey said.

  Sam appeared in the doorway. "What can I do?"

  "Keep Andy occupied," Lacey said. "He's feeling somewhat abandoned right now. Take him out to look at the horses."

  Jess waited impatiently for the hot water so he could scrub and examine Meg. When it arrived, he washed his hands thoroughly and began the examination.

  "My God, Meg, you're almost there!"

  "I knew it was going fast," Meg said, panting.

  "Let me help you undress," Lacey offered, moving to assist Jess.

  Lacey had no sooner gotten Meg into a nightgown when she announced in a strangled voice, "The babe's coming!"

  "Push, sweetheart," Jess urged. "You're doing magnificently. I wish all women delivered as easily as you."

  "It's...not...so easy," Meg contradicted as she bore down.

  "I have it!" Jess crowed. "It's a boy, love. We have a son."

  For the second time that day the wail of a newborn filled the air. It was music to Jess's ears. Two new Gentry's in the same day! He glanced at Lacey, a smile hovering over his lips as he gazed pointedly at her bulging middle.

  "I hope you're not thinking of making it three in one day."

  "Not on your life," Lacey laughed.

  All the Gentrys, except for Angel and Meg, gathered in the parlor after supper that evening. Exhausted but jubilant, they toasted the new mothers and their babes.

  "I reckon you're going to have me and Meg on your hands longer than you expected, Rafe," Jess ventured. "Meg and our son won't be ready to travel for a month or two."

  "That couldn't please me more," Rafe acknowledged. "What have you named your son?"

  "We're going to call him Justin. What about your boy? Have you and Angel settled on a name yet?"

  "Angel picked out Gabriel, and that suits me just fine. We'll probably call him Gabe."

  "I'm going to have a girl," Lacey announced with utter confidence. "And I'm naming her Emily Ann."

  'I've got two months to change her mind," Sam laughed, "but all joking aside, if we have a girl, I think Emily Ann is a fine name for our daughter. We'd planned to be back in Texas for the delivery, but we can stick around a couple weeks longer, if it's all right with you, Rafe."

  "You're welcome to stay as long as you like," Rafe beamed. "This is going to be a family reunion none of us will ever forget."

  Epilogue

  Six Weeks Later

  "I knew we should have returned home two weeks ago," Sam lamented as he watched his wife struggling through the last stages of labor.

  "I'm sorry, Sam, Emily Ann just wouldn't wait," Lacey panted.

  "It won't be long now," Jess encouraged. "Support her back, Sam."

  Meg and Angel stood beside the bed, offering encouragement, but Lacey was concentrating too hard to pay heed to what was going on in the room as she bore down with the each consecutive contraction.

  "Now, Lacey," Jess cried. "Bear down with the next contraction."

  Lacey felt a tremendous pressure, then relief as the babe slid in Jess's capable hands.

  "She's small," Jess said as he cleared the babe's air passages. Suddenly the tiny mite gave out outraged wail. Sam smiled hugely. "Her lungs certainly are healthy."

  "Emily Ann," Sam said, awed by the miracle of birth. "Our daughter is beautiful, Lacey. Nearly as beautiful as her mother."

  Meg took the babe and wrapped her in a blanket. "There's a little boy outside the door who can't wait to greet his new sibling."

  "Let Andy see his sister, Sam," Jess said. "I'm still busy with Lacey so he can't come in yet." Meg handed the babe to Sam.

  Holding Emily Ann gingerly in his arms, Sam's opened the door and stepped into the hallway. Andy and Rafe were waiting just outside the door.

  "Do I have a sister or brother?" Andy asked, jumping up and down.

  "A sister," Sam said, holding the babe out for Andy's inspection. "Meet Emily Ann."

  Andy gave a squeal of delight. "She has dark hair. But she's all wrinkled. That's all right, Papa, I'll love her anyway. Can I see Mama now?"

  "Not yet, son, but soon. I'm going to put Emily Ann in her bed now. We'll call you in to see Mama as soon as she's ready for visitors."

  Sam reentered the bedroom. Angel took the babe from his arms and carried her to her cradle. Then she and Meg tiptoed from the room.

  "She's beautiful," Angel said as she joined Rafe and Andy in the hallway. "I hope we have a daughter next."

  "There won't be a next time," Rafe assured her. "I couldn't bear to see you suffer like that again."

  "Famous last words," Meg said, grinning. "Besides, look at the easy time Lacey and I had. Each time is different, and Angel isn't likely to have a difficult time next time."

  "I said..." Rafe began.

  "I know what you said, darling," Angel said archly, "but let's wait and see what happens in a year or two."

  The bedroom door opened and Sam and Jess wal
ked out into the hall. "They're both sleeping," Sam said. "How about a toast to the newest Gentry?"

  They all trooped down to the parlor. Rafe dug out a bottle of vintage wine and they toasted Emily Ann and Lacey.

  A month later, the entire family gathered in the dining room for a celebratory dinner before Sam, Lacey, Andy, Jess, Meg and the babies departed for their separate homes.

  "Sam raised his glass in a toast. "Lacey and I expect you all at the B&G ranch one year from today."

  "And the year after that, you're all invited to Deadwood. But, please, if any more babies are expected," Jess said with a long suffering sigh, "plan them so that I won't have to deliver two in one day."

  A round of laughter followed as they toasted the next gathering of the clan.

  About the Author

  Connie Mason is the bestselling author of 60 books and novellas and counting. Her tales of passion and adventure are set in exotic as well as in American locales. Connie has won awards from Romantic Times and has been listed in Who's Who of American Women for several years. Connie makes her home in Tarpon Springs, Florida.

  Connie is a world traveler. She has visited every country in Western and Eastern Europe, Greece, Asia and Northern Africa. Also, countless islands in the Mediterranean and Caribbean Seas. Connie enjoys spending time with her three children, nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.