“Uncle Hayes, what are you saying?” I pleaded.
“Niece, I’m saying that the only way we’re going to live is if we go down in the tunnels. Now, if I remember correctly, one of them tunnels leads out into the light of day…I just have to be sure I remember which one because if I forget, well, we’re likely to never see the light of day ever again.”
Simon studied the storm. “Hank Norris and his sons intend on gunning us down. I’d rather take my chances with the tunnels,” he said. “Ma’am, what are your thoughts on this matter?”
I glanced at the dark tunnel with terrified eyes. All I saw was…death. “Why we can’t even see down into the tunnel and we don’t have a lantern with us. There’s no way we can survive in that awful darkness.”
Uncle Hayes rubbed his beard again. “I haven’t thought that far ahead yet, but my niece does make a good point. We’re going to need light. A man can’t see his thoughts in the dark.”
Simon spotted a man ease out from behind a boulder, aim his rifle at the cave, and fire. The bullet flew past Uncle Hayes face, missing him by a mere inch, and splattered down the tunnel. “We can’t stay here much longer. Norris is getting his men into position,” he said. “He’ll have four men hold us down with their rifles while they sneak around and come at us from the side.”
“Please, Jesus, we need a miracle,” I begged as tears began to fall from my scared eyes. My parent’s farm in Tennessee seemed like a blissful haven compared to the nightmare I was trapped in. Suddenly Boston no longer appealed to my heart. All I wanted was to be back home in Tennessee, sitting on my front porch, watching a beautiful sunset caress the open fields with loving hands. “Please…help us….please…oh please!” I prayed with all my heart.
And then…something began to happen. A dim light appeared behind me. I spun around, spotted the dim light, and nearly fainted. The light stood very still for a second and then floated into the tunnel like a powerful storm cloud. “Uncle Hayes…do you see…the light?” I asked in a shivering voice.
Uncle Hayes stood in awe and shock. “I see it, Niece.”
The light stood very still and slowly grew brighter; not extremely bright, but bright enough to light up the tunnel just enough to offer safe passage. “A cloud of light led them by night,” Simon whispered.
“I…well, amen to that,” Uncle Hayes said staring at the light. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!” Uncle Hayes grabbed his mule and walked it into the tunnel. The light slowly moved down the tunnel and stopped. “Niece, let’s go!”
“I…yes, okay,” I said feeling hope explode into my heart. “Thank you, Jesus,” I whispered and ran over to Uncle Hayes. Simon joined me. He looked into my eyes, and for the first time the poor man smiled. “Ready?” I asked him.
Simon put away his gun and nodded his head. “I wasn’t…but now I reckon I’m more than ready,” he told me stared at the light. “I feel at peace all of sudden.”
“Me too,” I whispered. Simon smiled again. “Let’s go Uncle Hayes.”
Uncle Hayes got his mule moving and began following the light. The light moved deeper into the tunnel as Hank Norris and his men began firing into the cave.
Chapter Seven: Home
Uncle Hayes walked out of a tunnel and into early morning light. He stepped into a silent, white, wonderland. The snow had stopped falling and the winds had hushed. “The light of day,” he grinned from ear to ear. “Ain’t it good to see the light of day, old friend,” he told the mule and patted its face.
Simon helped me out of the tunnel and looked around. “Wonder where we are?” he asked.
I turned and looked back at the cave. “Look!” I exclaimed. Uncle Hayes and Simon spun around and spotted the light slowly change into the form of a man…and then…vanish right before our very eyes.
“Well, I’ll be,” Uncle Hayes smiled. He rubbed his beard and let out a sweet laugh. “If we didn’t have an Angel watching us.”
Simon smiled. “I reckon we did. And I reckon Hank Norris and his boys must be seeing red right now too.”
What Simon didn’t know at the time was that Hank Norris, his sons, and the four men who had arrived to help him kill us, were all lost in the tunnels and would never come out alive. The end of Hank Norris and his darkness came without a single bullet being fired at him. “Uncle Hayes, I want to go home,” I said and fought back a yawn. “I’m not interested in Boston or fairy tales anymore. All I want to do is go home and watch the sunset after a soft rain. All I want to do is sit on my front porch and eat my mother’s apple pie on a soft summer evening. All I want to do is watch the stars come out over my father’s cornfields.”
Uncle Hayes walked over to me and patted my shoulder. “Now you’re talking about real gold,” he told me. “You’re talking about gold that can’t be found in mines or fancy books. Seems to me like you’re doing a whole lot of growing up in a very short span of time and learned where to find real gold.” Uncle Hayes nodded at my heart. “Sometimes digging gold out of hearts is a lot harder than digging it out of the earth.”
I no longer felt like a failure. “Mother knew what she was going when she sent me to you.”
“Oh, if she had known the trouble that was waiting I’m sure she would have kept you home,” Uncle Hayes smiled. “But the Good Lord is always in control.” Uncle Hayes looked at Simon. “What are your plans?”
Simon locked his eyes on the cave. “I spent every second we were in the tunnels being guided by the…Angel…praying.” Simon slowly unlatched his gun belt and let it fall to the snow. “My days of fighting are over. I want…peace,” he said in a desperate voice. “Ma’am, do you reckon your folks might need a farm hand? I’m going to sell my ranch and leave this part of the land and start over someplace new. The way you talk about Tennessee…well, that seems mighty good to me.”
Uncle Hayes rubbed his chin. “Say, instead of being hired on as a farmhand, why don’t you just buy you a farm?” he asked.
“I don’t know much about farming,” Simon confessed. He watched Uncle Hayes sit down on a rock. “Do you?”
“Enough…enough…” Uncle Hayes said and continued to rub his chin. He looked up at me. “But I don’t think farming is going to be right. No sir. I think…” Uncle Hayes smiled, “my niece needs to fill her dream.”
“Uncle Hayes?” I asked.
Uncle Hayes smiled. “I’m plum give out right now, Niece. I’ll explain when my mind gets some rest and my belly gets some food.” Uncle Hayes pointed up at a tall pine tree. “That’s the old fire tree…see how the right side of her is burned?”
I looked at the pine tree. “Why yes, I see it,” I said.
Uncle Hayes walked his mule over to the tree and looked around. “I’ve walked past this tree a good man times but never knew a cave tunnel was around.” Uncle Hayes studied the snow-covered land. “I’d say we’re about four miles from Hayville. Hayville is a fine little town too.”
“I’ll be,” Simon said. He walked up to the pine tree and rubbed the burned bark. “I remember this tree. I was no longer taller than a baby calf when my folks stop and made camp near this tree. My Pa had taken my mother to Texas to see her family and we were traveling back. It was raining awful hard and Pa decided to bunk down for the night.” I watched Simon continue to rub the burned bark. A tear dropped from his eye. “My brother and me…we played under this tree in the rain.”
“Are…you okay?” I asked Simon feeling my heart break for him.
Simon bowed his head and…then….he just began crying. He cried for a very long time, allowing his tears to fall into the snow. I walked over to him and put my arms around him. “It’s okay,” I whispered.
“I’m tired of fighting,” Simon whispered back. “I know I need to go back and kill Norris and his sons…but my heart…it’s tired of fighting. I want peace…but my brother, he deserves better.” Simon looked at his guns lying in the snow. “I can’t leave knowing Hank Norris and his sons are alive…but I swear it,” he said and
wiped at his tears, “I’m sure tired of the killing. That light that guided us out…I never felt such a peace coming from a light before.”
“Well,” Uncle Hayes said in a warm voice, “I wouldn’t worry so much about Hank Norris or his boys.” Uncle Hayes walked over to Simon and out a kind hand down on his shoulder. “I don’t know how I know, but I reckon your ears need to hear the words I need to say.”
Simon looked up at Uncle Hayes. “What do you need to say?”
Uncle Hayes tossed a thumb back at the tunnel. “I got a funny feeling that Hank Norris, his sons, and those four men who arrived to help them kill us, are mighty lost right now in them there tunnels. My gut is telling me they’ll never see the light of day again too. Yes sir,” Uncle Hayes told Simon and smiled brightly, “I’d say, Hank Norris, his sons, and those men with him will die in them there tunnels and never be heard from again.”
“How…do you know that?” Simon begged.
Uncle Hayes reached out and gently put his hand on my shoulder. “That light…that angel…well, let’s just say he never spoke a word but somehow he talked to every one of us. Now,” Uncle Hayes said, “let’s get our feet moving and get into Hayville. I want a warm meal and a bed.”
Simon stood in shock. He shifted his eyes to the tunnel. And then a peaceful expression washed over his face. “Hank Norris and his sons will never see the light of day again,” he whispered and wiped away the last of his tears. “Did you hear that brother…it’s all over. You can rest now.”
“And so can you,” I told Simon and softly took his hand. “Come on, let’s go.”
Simon looked down into my beautiful face. “You came here a girl and now you’re a woman,” he told me and gently kissed my forehead. And without saying another word he held my hand and walked me away from the tunnel. We walked side by side until we reached a warm little town covered with snow. Uncle Hayes immediately put his mule in a livery stable and hurried to a welcoming hotel. “Oh, it’s so warm in here,” I said sitting down at a table resting next to a window covered with a pretty blue curtain.
“It sure is,” Uncle Hayes smiled. He waved his hand at a pleasant woman and ordered a great breakfast. “We’ll eat, sleep, and then start working out way east.” Uncle Hayes looked at Simon. “You’re still coming east, right?”
Simon looked into my eyes. “I don’t have any reason to stay here anymore. My folks moved away. My wife is dead. My brother is dead. It’s empty land to me now. Starting a new life in the east seems right to me.” Simon continued to stare into my eyes. “Ma’am, would you mind if I came back east with you?”
“I would love for you to come back to Tennessee with me,” I beamed. I squeezed Simon’s hand.
Uncle Hayes rubbed his beard and leaned back in his chair. “Yeah, I reckon it just might work.”
“What might work, Uncle Hayes?” I asked confused.
Uncle Hayes studied Simon. “I reckon if we can get this man into a suit he might look mighty proper up there in Boston.”
“Boston?” I asked.
“Boston?” Simon asked. “Now wait a minute. I’m not a city person. I was—”
“Now, hush your jaws and listen to me,” Uncle Hayes fussed. “My niece had her heart set on moving to Boston. It’s no secret that her folks are simple farmers who can’t afford the fancy life. But I think my niece has proven that she’s capable of…conquering the world.” Uncle Hayes tipped me a loving wink. “I have enough gold to send you two off in a mighty nice way and still leave me a little to live a comfortable life.”
“Uncle Hayes, what are you saying?” I asked. I felt my heart begin to race.
Uncle Hayes leaned forward and took my hand. “You’ve been a mighty brave young woman. You’ve held yourself up in a good way, Niece. I’m sure proud of you too. You arrived in this part of the land only to be tossed into a hot fire, but you held your feet stable. I think it’s only fair that you get rewarded. Now, your folks are going to have to give you their blessings, of course, but I think they will after I tell them how well you held your horse in a bad storm.” Uncle Hayes smiled into my face. “You sure are a lovely princess,” he smiled. “And you deserve to have a chance at living in one of your fairy tales. Oh, in time you’ll come back home and have your sunsets over the cornfields…but wouldn’t it be nice to have those sunsets filled with sweet memories?”
Tears began to fall from my eyes. “Oh, Uncle Hayes,” I cried and hugged him as tight as I could. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Niece,” Uncle Hayes told me and nodded his head at Simon. “You better treat my niece right and proper, or I’ll come gunning for you myself.”
“I…” Simon struggled to speak. “Of course,” he finally said and took a sip of hot coffee.
I let go of Uncle Hayes and looked at Simon. “You’ll come to Boston with me, then?” I asked and wiped my tears.
“I’m not much for wearing a suit, but I’ll do my best,” Simon told me and kissed me with his eyes. “I reckon it’s time to seek peace and leave my guns behind.”
“Good,” Uncle Hayes said and yawned, “then it’s settled. Now let’s eat.”
Outside a gentle snow began to fall.
Chapter Eight: Boston
Simon walked up to me wearing a gray suit. He put his hands down on my shoulder and watched me play a beautiful piano. He admired the way my soft hair complimented the lovely pink evening gown I was wearing. “The music matches your beauty,” he told me.
I stopped playing my piano and walked my eyes around a cozy room with dark burgundy walls. A warm fire was playing in a stone fireplace throwing a friendly glow on two green sitting chairs; the smell of pipe tobacco and peppermint roamed the air. “Oh, Simon, this house is everything I dreamed of.”
Simon bent down and gently kissed my lips. “Uncle Hayes has been very kind to us.”
“Now, none of that stuff,” Uncle Hayes fussed. He leaned up from one of the sitting chairs wearing his desert mining clothes. “I didn’t come to visit all the way from Tennessee to see you two holding hands.”
I smile touched my lips. “Uncle Hayes, it’s so wonderful that you’ve come to visit.” I stood up from my piano, caress the lid, took Simon’s hand, and walked over to Uncle Hayes. “The baby is due any day now. It’s such a blessing to know you’re going to be here when the baby is born.”
Uncle Hayes tossed a thumb at the ceiling. “Your folks will be here too. As soon as they rest up from the trip we’ll all go out for supper. Yes sir,” Uncle Hayes smiled, “I’m looking forward to eating at one of these fancy places you’ve been writing me about.”
Simon sighed. “I would rather stay in and have supper.”
“You can want that until your face turns blue,” Uncle Hayes told Simon. “I didn’t travel all this way to miss out on some fancy food. No sir, my mouth wants to eat some food that cost more than that suit you’re wearing.”
A giggle escaped my lips. “Uncle Hayes, speaking of suit, you can’t go out dressed in your old mining clothes. We’re going to need—”
“Oh, stop you’re worrying,” Uncle Hayes told me. “I have a suit packed in my bags for goodness sakes. I just don’t like traveling in clothes that make me feel like I’m a stuffed turkey.” Uncle Hayes folded his hands over his chest. “It’s a mighty cold day outside. The snow is falling and the wind is mighty strong. Good day to eat some fancy food. Yes sir, it sure is.”
Simon put his arm around my waist. “I reckon we’re eating out tonight,” he smiled.
“I guess so,” I beamed. I touched my belly and felt my unborn child give off a little kick. “Don’t be in such a rush, little baby,” I smiled, “momma will always be here when you’re ready.” I walked back to the piano, sat down, and began playing a soft lullaby. Simon walked to the fireplace, took out his pipe, lit it, and listened to me play. The music filled the air and began telling the story of a silly young girl that always dreamed of becoming a princess. “And now I am a princess,” I whispered and looked a
t Simon. “I have my prince and together we’ll conquer the world, one heartbeat at time. And when we’re old we’ll go back to Tennessee and watch the sunset over the cornfields. But for now, while we’re young and able, we’ll dream until every dream comes true.”
“Niece?” Uncle Hayes asked me.
“Yes, Uncle Hayes?” I asked and continued to play my piano.
“What’s that song you’re playing? It’s mighty pretty.”
“Oh,” I smiled and looked at my Simon, “it’s a song about the two very special men making the dreams of a lost princess come true,” I explained and let my fingers continue telling the story as the music drifted out into the soft falling snow—a snow that was falling on a stubborn mule that was resting in the small backyard standing behind my home. After all, what is a happy ending without a noble steed?
The End
The Surprise Baby (Sample)
Chapter One
The pounding on her door meant that it was time to wake up and get dressed. Lexi Winter hated corsets, high button collars and she wasn’t fond of the way her mother insisted she wear her hair. Lexi was made to produce ringlet curls with a hot iron, which was torture to her long chestnut locks. At 18 years old, she was expected to be married within a couple of years and begin a family. Maura and Helen were her older siblings who had found suitable husbands and had two children each before 25. Mr. and Mrs. Winter had girls only and they insisted each of them marry up in order to secure their financial future. However, in Lexi they had a bit of a problem because although she was the most stunning, she was also the most willful. She had the spirit of an unbroken stallion. There was mischief behind her wide blue eyes and Lexi didn’t take well to being told what to do.
“Lexi, I know you can hear me.” Mrs. Winter said from behind the door. “Breakfast is only good while it’s hot and today we’re going to Mrs. Flynn’s for tea. I expect your clean smiling face at the table in 5 minutes.” Mrs. Winter waited and then pounded on the door again to make sure Lexi was awake.
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