She pulled the covers back on Dan’s bed and lay down hoping to feel his warmth, but she was disappointed. The bed was cold.
* * *
When Edie and Venie arrived at the restaurant for breakfast, Rhoda’s eyes were questioning. “You got there too late didn’t you?”
“How did you know?” Edie asked even more confused.
“Sergeant Hoxly saw Dan riding west this morning. We, in the military, get up early.” Then turning to Edie’s daughter, Rhoda asked, “Are you ready for breakfast, Venie?”
“I want to go home and have breakfast with Dan. Mommy said Dan had gone home, and I wonder why he didn’t take me with him. I like Dan, and Dan likes me. I can tell. Mommy, when is Dan coming back?”
“I don’t know, Venie. Dan said he would come back if we ever need him.”
“Well, I need him, so tell him to come back,” Venie pleaded.
“We’ll have breakfast with Mrs. Mabry and her brother. Maybe the colonel will join us.”
“Edie, Lieutenant Brien asked to have breakfast with us. He has also asked for leave, so he can stay here until after the trial. He seemed almost pleased that Dan won’t be here. He has the highest regard for Dan, but with Dan out of the way, I think he’s hoping to see more of you,” Rhoda commented. “The lieutenant has taken quite a shine to you.”
Edie didn’t know how to respond; she didn’t even know if she should smile. She avoided Rhoda’s eyes as she fussed with Venie’s collar and took a seat.
Rhoda smiled a knowing smile and sat beside Edie.
The three men came to the table. The colonel kissed his wife on the cheek and sat across the table. Eaton sat beside his sister, and the lieutenant kissed both Rhoda and Edie’s hands and sat beside Edie.
“Where’s Dan?” the colonel asked. He and Eaton were the only ones who didn’t know that Dan had already gone back to the ranch, so Edie explained.
“He sure is a loyal employee,” Eaton observed, “but I don’t think we’ll need him. Banker Bartle has an attorney who will represent both him and the sheriff. I talked with the judge last night, and the judge said we could conduct the trial in a matter of days. The judge never said as much, but I think he’s been expecting someone to challenge the banker for some time now.”
“Do you think the trial will last long?” Rhoda asked.
“If all goes as I expect,” Eaton responded to his sister, “the trial will start in a matter of days, be over in not more than three days, and when it is over Edie will own the bank.”
“What would I do with a bank?” Edie exclaimed, her astonishment overcoming her reticence to deny a boss-and-help relationship with Daniel Duncan.
“If you like, I’ll hire someone to manage the bank for you. I know a man who would fill the bill,” Eaton replied. “And you can hire someone to run your ranch. Then you’ll buy a nice house here in this town or in another town of your choosing. Venie needs other children to play with, and a school to go to, and neither of those things are available on your ranch. Or perhaps Dan would run the ranch. He sure seems capable. Of course, it would have to be after he has gone back to Indian Territory and cleared his name. He and I discussed this, and I hoped he would give me his address so that I can find him. Indian Territory is a big place.”
“His address is on the note he left me. You may read the note,” Edie said as she passed the note to the attorney. “It isn’t personal, and I think he would like for you to know that he will make himself available should you need him as a witness in the trial here in Lone Hill.”
Eaton read the note, copied Dan’s address, handed it back to Edie, and commented, “For a cowboy on the run, Daniel Duncan is a very perceptive man. It will be a privilege to clear his name. This note indicates that he will be leaving for home as soon as he is relieved. So once your case is finalized, I will follow him to the Choctaw Nation. I’ve been there before. It’s in a pretty part of Indian Territory, with forests of oak, elm, and pecan trees; low rolling hills, lakes, and streams. I understand why he would want to go home.”
Dan had never said much about his home to Edie, only about the sheriff who had burned his mother and father. She had never thought of him other than the man who ambled into her life and changed everything from despair to hope, from endless toil to moments of leisure, from loneliness to love. Now, he was gone, and she had no idea how to get him back. She looked at Rhoda. Rhoda looked back, then looked down, and slowly shook her head.
With Dan gone, Lieutenant Brien spent every moment with Edie that she would allow. He attended to her every need, attentive to a fault, and pursued her with a persistence that would warm the heart of any woman. Brien was also a handsome man, and Edie responded. On a few occasions, he filled her lonely nights.
As expected, the trial went smoothly. Sheriff Taggert would hang, Banker Herman Bartle would spend many years in prison and, as Attorney Eaton had predicted, Edie was given ownership of the bank and was also awarded a large cash settlement, a percentage of which paid attorney fees. She immediately renewed the loans on her neighbors’ ranches. The ranchers and the town’s people wanted Dan to take the job of sheriff, but he was gone, and they didn’t even get a chance to say thank you.
Chapter 11
A week passed at the ranch, and Dan wanted to go home to Indian Territory. Then one day around noon, a man, his wife and baby showed up.
“Mrs. Edith Calem sent us and asked us to relieve you,” the man said. “Where should we put our things, and where do we sleep?”
The woman was the girl Dan had seen with Winnie Mae when Lieutenant Brien and his military buddy were walking up the saloon stairs. Dan pretended not to recognize her; the woman noted that and said thank you with her eyes.
Not wanting to turn Edie’s ranch over to just any stranger, Dan asked, “How did you meet Mrs. Calem?”
“Cloe, my wife, and I met her by the river. She was having a picnic with a Lieutenant Brien. I think we caught them at an off-guard moment, but they got to their feet and straightened themselves up a bit, and lo-and-behold, the lieutenant was a long-time friend of Cloe’s. When Cloe told Brien that we were looking for work, his lady friend, Mrs. Calem, that is, spoke right up. Mrs. Calem said she won her case against the bank, and now she owns it, and asked me if I could run a ranch. I told her that I had been a cowboy for years and knew about cows and doing odd jobs around a ranch, so I could probably do about anything that needed doing. She, Mrs. Calem, that is, asked if we would work for her. She said that if ya said I’d do, then ya’d hep us get settled in. Ya think I’d do? I sure hope so, ‘cause we’ve been traveling for days.”
“Step down off your wagon, clean up a bit in the water trough, feed and water your horses, and we’ll have lunch and talk. Cloe, there’s a shed behind the barn with a bed in it. Why don’t you rest up a bit while your husband and I tend to the animals?” Then, extending his hand for a shake, Dan asked, “What did you say your name is?”
“My name is Pickinpa, Sam Pickinpa.”
“Sam, this barn door is sagging a bit. The hinges are worn out. How do you suggest we fix it?”
“Have you got any old worn-out harness? Heavy leather will do for hinges until we can get new hinges. I’ll fix it for you after lunch.”
“One of the calves has flies bothering a burn from branding. Do you know a remedy for flies?”
“Axel grease. Just put some axel grease on the burn. The grease will help the burn to heal, and it’ll keep the flies away.” Sam peered at Dan. “Y’all are testin’ me, aintcha? That’s pretty smart. I can tell by lookin’ around that ya know the answers to everythin’ ya askin’. Ya got this place lookin’ pretty good, and if ya give me the job, I’ll keep it that way. I ain’t got no
education, but Cloe is a learnin’ me. I can already read a little, and I do numbers pretty good. In a year or so, I’ll be pretty smart. I gotta, ‘cause I gotta do right by Cloe. She’s a better woman than I thought I’d ever get, ya know what I mean?”
“I do know what
you mean, Sam, and you’ve got the job. I’ll fix lunch while you take a look at the shed behind the barn because that’s where you and Cloe will be living until you can build something better. There’s plenty of lumber. I sleep in the barn because I like sleeping in the hay, and that way I can keep an eye on the animals. I eat in the big house, because it has a kitchen. The house needs someone to keep it clean. Do you think Cloe could do that? Cloe could cook in the kitchen until you make other arrangements. Should I make lunch right away, or give Cloe time to rest?”
“Right away would be best. Cloe’s hungry, and since we’ll be staying, she can rest after lunch, and I’m sure ya wanna be goin’, so jes’ show me around after lunch, and I’ll take over, or if ya prefer, ya could stick around to see that I’m doin’ it right.”
“I’ll sleep in the barn tonight, and then leave tomorrow morning, Sam. Come on in for lunch whenever you’re ready. I hope you like ham hocks and beans with biscuits, because that’s what I’ve got.”
Sam and Cloe were tired from traveling and went to bed early. Dan sat in the swing remembering his time with Edie. Lieutenant Brien might be a little slow on the draw, but he was fast with women. Dan was disappointed that Brien had won the love of Edie, but it was a case of being at the right place at the right time. The killers of Edie’s husband had been brought to justice, her ranch is secure, therefore she was free to love again, and the lieutenant was there.
Dan had breakfast with the new caretakers, and left before the sun was halfway in the sky. He went east avoiding Hill View. He was glad he didn’t have to say good-bye to Edie and Venie.
He was alone on the prairie again, but he followed the Canadian River, because towns were built alongside rivers, and this time he wasn’t hiding. He had the two hundred dollars that he got from selling the gunmen’s horses to Colonel Mabry, so he had money for food and lodging. He was uncomfortable sitting in the saddle that Ed Camden had sat in, so at the first town he came to, he traded the piebald roan for a palomino stallion that walked proud.
Following the Canadian River took Dan to Oklahoma Territory. The Canadian was a wide, shallow river with a narrow alluvial plain. Cottonwood and willows grew profusely, and the river bottom was made of clean, yellow sand that made the water run clear; in the deeper ponds, sunfish thrived in abundance and were easy to catch. Dan fried them on an open fire and enjoyed them to the last bite.
He had to be careful about watering his horse though, because in places, quicksand lurked, silently waiting for the unwary man or animal to venture into its deadly grasp.
After following the Canadian to the eastern side of the Chickasaw Nation, Dan dropped down to the Washita River and followed it to the Choctaw Nation. The Washita was narrow and deep, with a wide alluvial plain that was choked with large trees and brush. Traveling along the Washita was slow and difficult, and the water ran dark and murky. Plenty of fish lived in the mud-polluted water, but so did poisonous snakes. To avoid them, Dan followed the low-lying hills.
After following the Washita past the Arbuckle Mountains into the Choctaw Nation, Village Videl was just around the bend. Dan’s home used to be up the creek a little farther, but he wasn’t ready to look at the burned shambles of what had been his home, so his first stop was at Myrtle’s restaurant.
Myrtle was there, and the food smelled good. She didn’t recognize him sitting at the counter, but when she came to take his order, she took one look and started to cry. She hurried around the counter, hugged him, and sniffled.
“Dan, where have you been? You’ve been vindicated. We wanted to tell you, but no one could find you. Everybody knew something had gone wrong, but we couldn’t prove anything until Abram Almus, one of the sheriff’s deputies, told us what really happened. He wouldn’t have told us unless he had been on his death bed and wanted to clear his conscious.
“The people of Videl were outraged and insisted that the charges against you be dropped and your name cleared. The territorial governor pardoned you, and your land has been restored.” Myrtle blew her nose on her apron and looked lovingly at Dan. “What would you like to eat?”
Dan gave her a big hug. “I can’t eat now, Myrtle. I’ve got to get to the post office. Do you have a piece of paper? I have to mail a letter to Attorney Eaton. He was going to come here to defend me in court, but I don’t need him anymore, so I’ve got to stop him from making the long trip unnecessarily. Keep the food hot, though, I’ll be right back.”
When Dan got back, the restaurant was full of people. They gave him a hero’s welcome, and the clerk from the records office gave him a title to his family farm that was free of all encumbrances. Dan was hungry, but he was so busy shaking hands that he couldn’t eat.
A girl, pretty, and a little timid, tiptoed to Dan’s table. She was the girl who warned him of the posse, and he remembered her as Doe. Because of her timidity, everybody called her Doe, but her real name was Doreen Wampler.
“May I sit with you?” Doe spoke in a soft tone. “I remember you from our high school days. You were almost as shy as I was. You graduated when I was in the tenth grade, and I missed you when you left. I was sure that you had been wrongly accused, and I told everyone, but only a few listened until that deputy’s deathbed confession. Myrtle shared my opinion, and that’s why after I graduated from high school, she gave me a job as waitress. . . . Have you been out to your farm?”
“No, this is the first place I stopped. I came here because Myrtle was my mother’s friend. I expected to be arrested and thrown in jail, but now that I won’t have the jail to sleep in, I’ll have to rent a room at the hotel. After I get checked in, I’ll be going out to the house although I’m kind of dreading it because seeing it will bring back memories I would rather forget.”
“Don’t you have any good memories? You were born there, they say, and everybody liked both you and your parents. Our farm borders yours, and our house is just up the creek. I used to walk by your house everyday on my way to and from school, and you used to carry my books. Don’t you remember? I remember you didn’t like to play team games, but you were a good boxer, and you could shoot better than anyone. That’s why no one wanted to catch you when you ran away. They didn’t want to face you with a gun in your hand, and they knew you had one.” Doe paused for a second and then asked, “May I go with you when you go out to your house?”
“I don’t know, Doe. I’d like to have your company, but I don’t think I can see where my parents were burned to death, and then look at their grave without crying, and it isn’t manly to cry.”
“I don’t agree,” Doe said. “I think a man who can cry is the best kind of a man.” Her facial expression showed her sincerity. “Everybody who came to welcome you has gone, so the restaurant isn’t busy. I’ll tidy up while you check into the hotel, if you’ll let me go with you. I don’t have a horse to ride, but we can ride double.”
“You can’t ride a horse while wearing a dress,” Dan noted. “Perhaps we should rent a buggy—people will talk.”
“I’d rather ride on the horse behind you, and I don’t care what people say. I’ll be twenty on my next birthday, and it’s time people saw me as a woman. My parents won’t mind. They like you almost as much as I do. Will you come to my house for dinner? My parents would like to greet you also. Father was busy at the farm and couldn’t get away to greet you with all of the other townspeople.”
“Doe,” Dan smiled, “you’re not like a doe anymore. You used to be shy, but no man who ever looks at you today would doubt that you’re a woman. I would enjoy your company, but don’t you think you should give your mother a little warning that you’re bringing a guest home for dinner? And yes, I’ll be glad to have dinner with you if you’re sure it won’t be an imposition. This sure is different from what I was expecting as I rode into town.”
Chapter 12
After checking into the hotel, Dan rode back to the restaurant and gave Doe a hand to sit behind him on his horse. Her skirt was loose fitting and when she straddled the saddle, th
e skirt pulled up a bit exposing very shapely legs. Doe wrapped her arms around Dan’s waist a little tighter than Dan thought was necessary, but he liked the way her breast felt against his back.
Dan and Doe surveyed what was left of his home. Even though it had been five years since the fire, the odor of burned wood was still there. An oak sapling growing in the ashes reminded Dan of the phoenix. In Greek mythology, the phoenix was a bird resembling an eagle that arose to life from ashes. Dan was wondering, Will my life spring anew from these ashes? Only time will tell. He stood examining the still-standing stone fireplace and wondered if he should use the same stones when he rebuilt, if he could rebuild. The trees that had shaded the yard were singed by the flames, but they had recovered and stood in splendor, their branches overreaching the stream that ran alongside the house.
The wooden cross that Dan had erected from partially burned wood to mark the resting place of his parents had been replaced with a granite memorial, and the inscription that Dan had carved on the wood had been duplicated in the headstone.
“Who did this wonderful thing?” Dan asked Doe.
“The friends and neighbors of the ones buried here, and I think the memorial was erected more to their son, who had been so grievously wronged, than to Dell and Dotty themselves. That is why everyone came out en masse. They wanted to say, ‘I’m sorry.’”
“Would you sit with me for a while, Doe? I need to put my anger aside and figure out what to do with my life.”
“May I hold your hand?” Doe responded. “Perhaps the future events of my life are being decided also.”
Dan knew her meaning and took her hand without otherwise responding, but as he had predicted, he wept. It seemed to release the tension that had built inside him.
* * *
The sun was still four fingers above the horizon when they got to the Wampler home. Doreen slid nimbly off the back of the palomino and ran into the house, while Dan waited holding the reins. To tie the horse to the hitching rail before he was invited would be a supposition. He remembered Doe’s parents well. Her father’s name was Alan, a friendly man with a stern manner. Doe’s mother’s name was Lorene, a kindly, cheerful woman about forty, a little plump, but very pretty.
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