It doesn’t matter anymore, Sarah thought. I’m leaving and I’m never coming back here. Ever. Ever. Ever.
Bruce beat on the door with one closed fist. She could tell because it was so hard, it was like he was made of stone and was about to break through the wood without any help.
“Sarah Donner, you open this door right this minute!” he yelled out.
Sarah tensed up and jumped to her feet. She crossed the room as slowly as she could, but it wasn’t far and she was unlocking the door before she knew it.
She only pulled the door open enough to see him through the crack. “I don’t want to talk to you. Leave me alone.”
Bruce reached out with one hand and shoved the door, knocking it into Sarah. A sharp pain split through her head and she put her hand up to feel blood coming from her forehead. She cried out and rushed past Bruce to get to the washroom, where there was running water and a cloth. The pain was ebbing down into her eye. She was going to have a black eye, most likely. How would she explain that to Bobby? She would be seeing him for the first time tomorrow night or the day after. It wasn’t soon enough for her.
Dismay washed over her as she tended to her wound. Bruce had followed her, bellowing like a monkey that she should have been more careful. She wouldn’t have gotten hurt if she was more careful and had more respect for him.
She was barely listening. She didn’t care what he had to say. He was a horrible man, and she didn’t know what her mother could have seen in him. He’d been a monster for as long as Sarah could remember, so it wasn’t like he was still mourning the death of her mother. For all Sarah knew, he could have killed her mother. She wouldn’t have been all that surprised to find out it was the truth.
Once she had cleaned up most of the blood, she spun around and hissed at her father, “You leave me alone, you horrible man! I hate you! I’ve always hated you! I’m not going to listen to you anymore.”
“You got two choices, little lady,” Bruce snarked, lifting one corner of his lip. “Stay where yer safe or get out!” He held up one arm and pointed outward in a general direction. Sarah was positive he would get Bart and Danny and they’d chase after her and drag her back if she even tried to leave. They’d probably lock her up in the cellar or the attic or—God forbid—a shed outside. She didn’t want to be locked in a shed like that. They’d done that to her as a prank when she was seven. It scared her almost to death.
But she was no man’s slave and never would be. She detested her father and brothers. She was more than happy to take him up on his offer. He just couldn’t know about it until she was long gone. Sarah was delighted for the opportunity to get away from him.
“You don’t have control over me anymore,” she hissed. “I’m twenty years old. It was time for me to leave a long time ago. Well, congratulations, Papa. I’m going. I’m leaving.” She watched his face to see his reaction. If he really wanted her to go, he would help her carry her luggage. The only way to know was to test him.
He scowled at her but said nothing, which meant to Sarah she had confused him. She couldn’t help it when a little grin came to her lips.
“Don’t like that, do you, Papa? But I’m going. And you can’t stop me.”
“You have nowhere to go!” Bruce yelled, outraged that she might actually leave.
She nodded. “I do now. And you’ll never know where I’m going. I have everything I need. What I don’t need anymore, and haven’t for a long time, is you. Goodbye, Papa.”
She pushed past him, satisfied with herself, but the fear of them following and the darkness of the shed lingered in her mind.
If they came for her, she would fight to the death for her freedom.
Chapter 2
Bobby Huggins lifted his hat from his head and wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his sleeve. It was hot that Oklahoma spring day, but he didn’t mind it. He was used to working in the hot sun, caring for his horses and working around the ranch with his crew.
He wasn’t one of the wealthiest ranchers in Comstock, but he had all he needed and felt blessed he could afford to pay four ranch hands and one foreman to help him out.
“You about ready?” His foreman, a big, burly man named Steven Dyer, was holding a large fence post up in the air, ready to drop it in the hole Bobby was digging.
Bobby narrowed his eyes at him. “You know you ain’t havin’ no trouble holding up that pole, Steven,” he said wryly. “Just hold yer horses.”
Steven laughed, his big body making a loud sound like thunder rumbling. “You’re right. I was thinkin’ about your welfare. You lookin’ peaked. You might want to get out of the sun.”
Bobby snorted. Steven didn’t mind teasing him and he let it slide off his shoulders.
He stabbed the shovel into the ground and twisted it to get the last of the dirt from the bottom. “About ready,” he mumbled.
There was a moment of quiet as Steven waited. When Bobby stepped back, he dropped the big round pole into the hole and they both proceeded to pack it in.
“You goin’ to get your lady friend today, right?” Steven asked.
Bobby was a little surprised his foreman even remembered him mentioning it. “Yeah, sure am.”
“You still need us to watch Sam?”
Bobby nodded. The image of his five-year-old daughter ran through his mind. Samantha looked just like her mother. She would be the spitting image of her when she was older, which meant Bobby would have to keep a good eye on every man she was ever around.
“Yeah, I don’t think I should take her to the train station. I don’t know how she would handle that.”
“She’s gonna have to meet the woman anyway, Bobby. Better sooner than later. But it’s up to you. Ya know we’ll watch her for ya. That’s where she’s at right now.” Steven grinned as he stomped on the pile of dirt he’d just pressed into the ground around the base of the fence post.
“I know. Yeah, I’m just gonna leave her at your house till I pick up Sarah.”
“Sarah. Always thought that was a pretty name. If we have another girl, we might name her that.”
Bobby stared at Steven for a moment while the man was peering at the ground, examining the work he’d done. It wasn’t like him to express such a sentiment. He was gruff but endearing, and the women flocked to him simply because he represented such strength.
Bobby was blessed to have him as a foreman. He kept the crew in line, immediately gaining their respect the first day they worked for him.
Taking advantage of the man’s current mood, Bobby pulled Sarah’s most recent letter from his back pocket and unfolded it while leaning on the shovel, the blade piercing the soft ground below his feet. “She’s like a poet in some of her letters,” he said. “She says here that she has been longing to see new places and get to know new people. She has nice handwriting and sounds real smart.”
“That will be good for Sam,” Steven said. “She needs a momma. Five is too young to be raised by a papa.”
“Too young for a little girl, I agree,” Bobby replied, nodding as he stepped away from the post. “I think we did a good job with this,” he added, studying the fence post, which was straight up and down. “Let’s get some lunch.”
“You know, you don’t have to run into marriage real fast,” Steven said as they walked away from the post. “You can just have her around as a companion, make sure the two of you work well together.”
Bobby nodded. He’d been thinking the same thing. He recalled the first time he mentioned his plan to Steven, who’d said Bobby should be careful. Sometimes, those situations didn’t turn out well, in his opinion.
But, based on the letters, he was sure she was honest and trustworthy. She seemed perfect for him and his daughter.
Bobby suspected Sam would need some help when she reached her formative years, when she would be changing into a woman before his eyes. He wouldn’t know how to deal with that. He very much doubted Samantha’s mother would have known what to do. She wasn’t the smartest woman
in the world. Beautiful, but nothing between her ears, nothing filling her brain.
He hadn’t loved her. He’d hoped he would grow to have feelings for her, but she was not only stupid, she was spoiled and bratty. She flirted with every man she was around, even after they were married, even when she was very obviously pregnant.
He hadn’t felt relief when she’d died giving birth to Samantha. But he hadn’t mourned her for long, either.
Bobby didn’t bother looking for anyone to take care of Sam while he worked. After Rebecca died, Steven’s wife, Clara, had offered to take the baby in her care. She had a one-year-old little boy at the time but swore she could handle it. She also had her older daughter, who had just celebrated her eleventh birthday.
Four months ago, Steven told Bobby they were going to have another baby. He was worried about Clara because she hadn’t been feeling well. It made him nervous to think she would go through childbirth again.
At that moment, Bobby decided it was time to move on. There were no women in Comstock that caught his attention. But he made it his goal to find another woman to help him with Sam because Clara didn’t need the extra burden.
“I’m glad you’re sure about this, boss,” Steven was saying as he pulled a sack from one of his saddlebags. He reached in and grabbed an apple, bringing it to his mouth and taking a large, loud bite. He chewed, giving Bobby a thoughtful look.
Bobby shook his head, walking to his own horse and getting out the lunch he’d prepared for himself. “Don’t know what you’re talking about, Steven.”
Steven snorted softly. “Ya know darn well what I’m talking about. How do you know this woman will be good for Sam? Good for you?” He shook his head. “She’s a stranger. I don’t know how I’d feel letting a stranger watch my children.”
“She’s not a stranger to me,” Bobby said. “She’s written me a lot about helping other people and how much she wishes she had a loving family of her own. She’s an orphan, she’s never known what it was like to have a family.”
“And you have one ready for her right here, don’t you?” Steven nodded, looking like he might understand what Bobby was saying. He was a compassionate man. It was one of the things Bobby liked about him.
“Yeah, that’s right. Not many women I know could write the words she writes. It’s… eloquent.”
“Ten-dollar word,” Steven teased. “Nice.”
“I don’t want Sam to be disappointed. But I really think this is what’s best for her, and Sarah is the right one. I prayed for guidance and… well, I just had that feeling about Sarah’s letters, even from the first one. I’ve got the justice of the peace lined up. And if Sarah isn’t on the train… well, I sure don’t want Samantha to be disappointed further. She’s too curious. She’ll know we were there for a reason.”
“Plus, her pa will be pretty angry. That would mean she took your money, probably cashed in the ticket.”
Bobby shook his head. “She’s not going to do that. She wouldn’t have answered my ad and kept writing if she wasn’t serious.”
Steven looked skeptical. “You sure?”
Bobby nodded. “I’m sure.”
“Well, I’m wishing you the best of luck with that, you know. Sam has grown close to our hearts. We love her as much as our own children. I know Clara is going to be at least a little protective at first.”
Bobby gave him a narrow look. “She’s not going to judge me, is she? I don’t want Sarah feeling bad the minute she arrives. I’m sure this is already a traumatic enough thing for her. All alone in the world and suddenly in a new place?”
Steven looked down at the dried jerky in his hand. “You want some?” He held several pieces out to his boss but Bobby shook his head.
“Nah. You put too much pepper on that for my taste. Gonna make sure Sarah doesn’t do that. Ruins it.”
Steven huffed and looked offended, though Bobby knew he wasn’t. “More for me,” he grunted, sticking one in his mouth, taking off a big bite and chewing visibly but not audibly. Bobby chuckled, shaking his head. “That’s my wife that made that, you know.”
Bobby let his laugh out. “You gonna tell on me? I don’t know if I want to experience the wrath of Clara.”
Both men joined together to laugh. Clara was a small woman, petite even after two children, with the look of a pixie or a fairy. She was surprisingly strong and extremely resilient, but in a physical fight, she wouldn’t last longer than a second or two. Truth be told, Bobby didn’t even want to think about Clara getting in a fistfight. She had the temperament of an angel and the look of one, too. It would take a monster to hit a woman as small as she.
Bobby and Steven had grown close over the past seven years. Bobby was there for the births of Steven and Clara’s children, Bianca and Billy. Steven was there for the birth of Samantha. Bobby had helped with his own hands, as well as enlisting three of his ranch hands, when Steven needed a new roof on his house. When Rebecca died, Clara had immediately stepped in to help with the newborn. He felt like part of their family, instead of Steve’s boss.
Bobby was just as likely to come to Clara’s defense as Steven if the big man wasn’t around to defend his wife.
“When she supposed to arrive?” Steven asked. “You got a time?”
“The afternoon train,” Bobby replied, uncapping his canteen and dumping cool water down his throat. He was instantly refreshed and smacked his lips in appreciation. He stopped when he saw Steven giving him an odd look.
“What?”
“Afternoon train should be here pretty soon. Why you still here?”
Bobby frowned, thinking for a moment. Had he lost track of time?
“Thought it came around three.”
Steven shook his head. “Nope, been gettin’ here about one for a couple months now.”
Bobby scoffed humorously. “Well, why didn’t anyone consult with me about that? I sure hope she doesn’t get there before me and have to stand around. She might get scared.”
“If she’s even on it,” Steven said skeptically.
“Stop that, Steven,” Bobby said in an insistent voice. “You gotta be supporting me or I won’t know what to do. You’re old and wise and can advise me.”
“Hey!” Steven spat at him indignantly and followed it with a big smile. “I ain’t old, but I am wise, so I guess I’ll take the second half of that and ignore the first.”
Bobby lifted both eyebrows and looked his foreman over from head to toe. He was wide and much bigger than Bobby, who often felt dwarfed next to the large man, even though he was of average height and build himself. Bobby wasn’t small. He could only imagine how a tiny little woman like Clara could handle a giant like Steven. He was probably pretty overpowering.
The thought made him chuckle.
“Yeah, well, I’m counting on ya,” Bobby said, lifting his hat and shaking his sweaty head back and forth. “I guess I oughta at least go clean up before I meet her. And she is going to be there, so don’t be puttin’ no negative thoughts in my head.”
“You got it, boss. I’m gonna help Jack with the feed.”
“Thanks.”
“And, boss.” Steven stopped him before he could mount his horse. Bobby looked at him. “Good luck. I mean that. I want ya to be happy. Have for a long time. You weren’t happy with Becky. I hope Sarah is the one.”
Bobby smiled at his friend. “Thanks, Steven. I appreciate that.”
He pulled himself up in the saddle and settled in comfortably, turning Gabriel around to go down the gently sloping hillside to the ranch house below.
Daring to Start Again: An Inspirational Historical Romance Book Page 2
