A Bride’s Unyielding Heart: A Historical Western Romance Novel

by Etta Foster

  He heard a few shots whizz past his horse, his firm hold on the horse the only thing stopping it from bucking him. He fired shots back in the direction he thought they came from and heard a loud grunt in the distance. That brought him a little bit of satisfaction as he guided his horse to the pens. He lit one of the lanterns, illuminating a part of the yard and revealing four men in clear light.

  Gavin rode past more bullets, keeping his head low on his horse as he rode to each of the lanterns and lit them one by one, adding more and more light to the scene with each passing moment.

  He could see more and more men he didn't recognize with guns glinting in the light, his own gun firing shots toward each of them, though many of his shots missed.

  He cursed the constant bouncing of the horse beneath him but didn't think that dismounting just yet would be a good idea. It would make him an easier target. At least on his horse he could move swiftly.

  More shots rang out, though none of them seemed to reach him. He aimed his own gun and fired two shots, striking each of the men he'd aimed at in their shooting hands. He watched them drop their guns and smirked, glancing around for some of the other rustlers. He caught sight of a few of them coming around on horseback, aiming his gun toward them with the plan of firing off a few more shots.

  “You aren't going to be able to make it out of this alive, Woodworth! The boss has given us free rein to take your life as we please! There will be nothing to stop him from buying the land if we wipe out your family!” shouted one of the rustlers, the bandana covering his face preventing Gavin from recognizing him.

  “You won't get this place until you pry it from our cold dead hands!” Isaac shouted from beside him. The old man centered his gun and fired a shot in the direction of the rustler who had just spoken.

  “That's what we plan to do, old man,” shouted another one of the rustlers, who began running toward them with his gun raised. Gavin made short work of firing a blast right into the man's leg, wincing at the howl of pain that followed.

  A few of the other men shot back, and Jude let out a shout as he leapt off his horse a moment before it slumped forward. A bullet had struck it right in the heart. Jude rolled briefly on the ground and rose quickly to his feet, firing a shot back in the direction of the rustlers.

  They heard the shouts of some more men, and for an instant Gavin was worried that more rustlers had arrived. He did a quick head count of his father and sibling, noting that Jude had fallen back behind the barn. He was currently firing shots around the side of it.

  The whizzing of bullets and the banging of guns discharging filled the air with a cacophony of noise. He couldn't even hear his own thoughts over the noise, a sudden silence soon following.

  They must be taking this time to reload. We should do the same. Where is Harland with the other ranch hands? If he shows up and makes enough of a racket, maybe he'll drive them off before they get a chance to get gutsy.

  He heard Harland let out a whoop of delight from behind him that was echoed by six other voices. The rustlers turned their heads in time to see a line of men rushing toward them with rifles and pistols in hand. The cowhands began shouting to one another, whooping and hollering as they let off a few more warning shots in the air.

  Gavin watched a couple of the rustlers balk, a few turning on their heels right then and there, trying to get away.

  He heard a whinny of surprise come from one of the horses behind him, turning in time to watch his father's horse rear up onto its hind legs. Isaac let out a holler as he gripped the reins tighter while the horse threw its head from side to side.

  “Pop, hold on!” Gavin turned his horse to try and make his way to his father. The whole world seemed to be moving in slow motion. He could see that his father was putting all his strength into keeping his grip on the reins, but his illness had obviously taken its toll. The steel-like grasp that he had once possessed was gone now, and he proved unable to keep his hold.

  “No!” Jude's voice echoed from beside him. It seemed that his brother understood what was about to happen, and there was nothing that either of them could do.

  The horse whinnied one more time and then bucked forward violently, jumping upward at the same time. Isaac's grip must have slackened briefly, because Gavin soon saw his father rocketing up into the air. “Pop, no!” Gavin screamed, urging his horse on faster.

  Isaac's body was prone in the air, the rest of the commotion around them all seeming to fade away. Gavin's focus was entirely on his father, but the sinking realization that there would be no helping him in time made him feel utterly helpless.

  His father hit the ground with an audible thud, his entire body bouncing once from the impact before he fell still. Gavin choked out a cry that was lost in the noise of the fight going on around them. The ranch hands were busy driving the last of the rustlers away, so none of them were going to be much help. He looked around for Jude and caught sight of his elder brother limping toward his father.

  Jude seemed to have been shot in his right leg. At the very least he'd probably been grazed, but he seemed otherwise unharmed. Gavin felt thankful for that and stopped his horse a few yards away from them.

  Quickly dismounting, Gavin rushed over toward his father. He couldn't see whether his father's chest was moving or not, due to the lack of light this far away from the pen.

  Please don't let him be dead. Not like this; don't let it happen like this.

  “Gavin, this is bad. I don't know if his back is broken or not. It will be a miracle if it isn't, after that fall!” Jude said, gently going to move his father. Gavin touched his father's back gently to make sure that nothing seemed out of place. There was no groan or movement from him.

  “Jude, we need to get him in the house. Someone needs to ride into town and fetch a doctor immediately!” Gavin turned away from him, shouting toward Harland. “Harland, send the fastest rider and horse to town. We need the doctor here as fast as possible!”

  Chapter 37

  Coralee was woken by the sound of gunfire in the distance. She didn't immediately realize what it was, her half-asleep state convincing her it was merely thunder.

  As she continued to listen, she didn't hear the rain that usually accompanied such a noise. She immediately knew something was wrong.

  She slid out of bed and quickly pulled a dress over her head. She made sure to slip on her shoes before making her way out into the hallway. There she was met by Viola, who was in a panic. Her eyes were wide and bloodshot, like she'd been crying for a while.

  “Viola, what is going on? What's making all this noise?” Coralee asked, the sound of the vase shattering next to her causing her to scream. Viola ducked down onto her knees, Coralee doing the same a few moments afterward. “Are we being shot at?”

  “Isaac said that cow rustlers were here and that he was going to go with the men to drive them away. They've been gone for thirty minutes now and I'm greatly worried. My husband is in no condition to be riding around dealing with hired thugs. If they brought guns, then who knows if he's even still alive,” Viola wailed, pulling a handkerchief from her pocket and burying her face in it.

  “Come on, Viola. You know the men are much tougher than that. They’re fighters, and they know that they’re protecting your home. They'll be as rabid as wolves on those rustlers, you'll see.” Coralee did her best to sound more confident than she felt.

  Coralee felt her stomach knot and bit her bottom lip as she gazed toward the window. She hoped that they were all safe. She didn't know what she would do if she never got the chance to talk to Gavin again. I’ll just have to hope for the best.

  No sooner had the thought crossed Coralee's mind and she'd moved toward the front door when the door banged open. Gavin came in first, followed by Jude. They were carrying Isaac between them, and Coralee could immediately tell that something was wrong.

  Both men were completely silent, moving to carry Isaac over to the couch and laying him down as gently as they could. They propped Isaac's head u
p on a nearby pillow, Viola kneeling next to him and gently stroking his face with her hand.

  She didn't seem to hear Gavin or Jude when they tried to talk to her, and the two men finally stepped out of the room to leave Coralee and Viola alone with Isaac. The only sound for a while was Viola sobbing softly.

  “Viola, let's do this right. I’m going to go grab some hot water and washcloths so we can get him cleaned up. Gavin said that someone is on the way to fetch a doctor, so he should be here relatively soon. We'll get through this, Viola, don't worry,” Coralee said, touching Viola's shoulder gently.

  Viola nodded numbly, her hand reaching up to gently grip Coralee's. “Thank you, Coralee. I don't know what I would do without you here right now.”

  “I'll be right back,” Coralee said, exiting the room and making her way into the kitchen. She was surprised to find Gavin standing at the hearth with a kettle, boiling water, and Jude had already grabbed a pile of scraps of linen from Viola's sewing room.

  “We figured you would need this stuff,” Jude said gently, motioning toward the other room with his chin. “And we aren't the best at helping Mother deal with her emotions. I don't think we are doing much better than she is, to be honest.”

  “He shouldn't have insisted on coming,” Gavin said from the stove, his voice thick with emotion. “He should have just stayed here in the house with Mama and kept her safe.”

  “He probably figured that if we drove them off, they wouldn't have the courage to try and come for the house. Virgil might be a piece of garbage, but I don't think he would have ordered his men to do something like that,” Jude said softly, wringing his hands agitatedly.

  “At the end of the day, we are the ones who let him come with us,” Gavin said softly, taking a deep breath before clearing his throat. “We'll have to live with that. No taking it back now.”

  “We just have to hope that whoever rode to get the doctor has the common sense to go straight to his house,” Jude said, his jaw set with agitation. The front door soon opened once more, revealing Claudia. Jude immediately rose and rushed over to her. “I was just about to come check on you. Are you alright?”

  “I thought I heard gunshots,” Claudia said, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face in his chest. “I looked around and you were suddenly gone. I panicked, but I didn't want to leave the cabin. I just locked the door and waited till it sounded like it was safe to come out.”

  “Honestly, you women folk probably had the most sense tonight,” Gavin said, laughing mirthlessly. “We just ran out and almost got ourselves shot. And for what?”

  “You did it to protect the ranch,” Coralee said softly, moving up behind Gavin and hugging him gently. “You did what you thought you had to do.”

  “Yup, and now Pop is paying for it,” Gavin said, gently pulling away from her and storming out of the room without another word.

  Coralee watched him leave with a sinking feeling in her chest. She wanted to run after him, but she knew that Isaac needed to be tended to first. With a heavy heart, Coralee made her way back to Isaac with the warm water and washcloths in hand.

  She found Viola right where she had left her. The older woman was sitting with Isaac's hand in hers, and she looked like she had only recently finished crying. “Any changes?” Coralee asked softly, pulling up a chair beside her.

  “He seems to be breathing, at the very least. We'll count ourselves lucky for that. He still hasn't come to, so I'm not sure if he's okay. We'll need to let the doctor take a look before we can be sure,” Viola said, sniffling gently.

  Coralee nodded, gently pushing her way past Viola so that she could set about wiping him down. He didn't seem overtly dirty, and she didn't see any blood anywhere like when Gavin had been injured. That’s a relief, at least. He should be just fine if our luck holds out.

  With a little help from Jude and one of the ranch hands, they managed to get Isaac upstairs into his and Viola's bedroom. When they set him on the bed he groaned gently, but otherwise he seemed unchanged. He had a nasty bruise on his shoulder blades, but nothing else seemed out of place.

  Shortly after they managed to relocate Isaac, the doctor arrived. It was the same doctor as before, his expression grave as he strode through the front door. “Where is he?”

  Coralee turned her head toward him from where she stood in front of the stove. “He's up in his bedroom with Viola. We moved him there and spread him out so you could examine his back.”

  “I appreciate the forethought, but we should be moving him as little as possible. I’ll make my way up there and examine him now. Excuse me, Miss Jessica,” the Doctor said pleasantly. Clutching his bag, he soon disappeared up the stairs.

  Once Coralee had a fresh batch of water and rags, she made her way back up to the bedroom as well. It was awfully cramped with the other three Woodworths and the doctor in there, but she managed to squeeze past everyone to Isaac's bedside.

  The doctor's hands were gently pressing along different parts of Isaac's back, the soft groaning of the man helping the doctor in his examination.

  “There doesn't seem to be any vertebrae out of place. That bruise was caused by the impact when he hit the ground, but he doesn't seem to have sustained much more damage than that. I want to do a few more tests, and we'll need to keep an eye on him for a couple weeks, but I think he will make a full recovery.”

  “You mean it, Doc?” Gavin spoke up from the corner of the room where he'd been leaning against the wall. “You think Pop will be able to walk and all that?”

  “I imagine he will be sore for a while, and he isn't going to want to do much prolonged walking, but his day-to-day activities should be okay. Just as long as he takes it easy, I mean.” The doctor smiled as he looked over at Viola. “He's as strong as a bull. You'll see that he'll bounce back in no time.”

  “Thank you, Malcolm,” Viola replied tearfully. “I'm sorry to have to call you out here in the middle of the night like this.”

  “You have no need to be sorry. I wouldn't have stayed away if I had heard something like this had happened. I'm just glad that Harland remembered where I lived. I may need to trouble you for a room for the night, though.” Malcolm smiled gently, snapping his medical bag closed.

  “You can borrow my room,” Coralee blurted out. The words left her mouth before she had a chance to think about it. “I would be more than happy to offer it to you after you rushed out here so quickly.”

  “That's very kind of you. I'll be happy to take you up on that,” Malcolm said, stifling a yawn with his right hand. “I have some other appointments that I'll need to deal with in the morning. Not to be rude, but I would like to get some rest.”

  “Of course, Doctor. If you follow me, we'll get you settled,” Viola replied, rising from her chair and squeezing past Gavin to get to the door. Gavin gave Coralee a gentle smile, reaching over and resting his hand lightly on her shoulder.

  Something passed between them. It was a silent understanding, one that didn't need words. She had planned on trying to leave with one of the early morning trains, but that didn't seem like it would be possible now.

  She couldn't leave at a time like this. It would make her seem far more heartless than she'd like. Not to mention her heart was still here with Gavin and his family. Try as she might to escape it, that fact was not changing.

  Things couldn't end like this… I have to stay, at least long enough to see if Isaac will recover. The surprising emotional fragility of the others astounded her, but she couldn't blame them. A tight-knit family would always take things like this hard. “You aren't going to have a bed for the night. Did you want to take mine?” Gavin asked softly, gazing down at her tenderly.

  “No, I’ll be alright. I can brave the discomfort of the couch for a night,” she said with a small laugh, looking over at where Isaac now lay on his back. “I just want to make sure he's okay before I go anywhere.”

  “Coralee,” Gavin began, stopping when he looked over at where Jude and Claudia stood. “Coul
d you give us some privacy, brother?”

  “Oh, definitely,” Jude said with a smile, tipping his hat in Coralee's direction before taking Claudia's hand. “Come along, dearest. Let us get back to bed.”

  Claudia looked like she was going to protest, but Jude simply tugged on her arm and led her firmly from the room. Coralee turned to look at Gavin, his face illuminated in the flickering flame of the nearby candle. “I'm serious about you using my bed if you want it.”

  “And I'm serious about letting you keep it. You have a much harder day’s work coming up than I do. I'll be able to manage for a night. I've slept in much less comfortable situations and somehow managed, so I'll be alright for this one night,” Coralee said, giving his hand a gentle squeeze.

  She still felt guilty, but a part of her felt like maybe they really did have a chance. Her feelings hadn't diminished for him at all, and as he gazed back into her eyes, she knew he felt the same way. “Alright, but only if you’re certain.”