by Barbara Goss
Zoe quieted. She’d be home soon, and relief calmed her.
The man continued running with her until he came to his horse tied to a tree on the other side of the woods. He placed Zoe onto the saddle and jumped up behind her. “You’ll be home in a minute.”
He rode down several dusty lanes before reining in at the front of a run-down building that Zoe thought looked like a big outhouse. He slid off the horse and pulled Zoe down to the ground, but he kept her hand tightly in his.
“This is your new home, at least for now. Come inside. I have some sweets for you,” he said.
“I don’t want sweets. I want to go back to my own home! I want to see my Papa and Mama,” she said, tears streaming down her face, “and Alfie and Joanna.” She tried to pull away, but he picked her up and carried her inside, despite her kicking and screaming. It was dark and dreary inside, and Zoe became even more frightened. She cried, screamed and kicked her feet. “Take me home. I don’t like you,” she said, beating him on the chest.
Samson set her on the bed and sat down beside her. “See my skin? It’s brown like yours. Your skin is a bit lighter because your real mama was white, but I’m your father.”
“No! No! No! I want to go home!” she cried. “I don’t want you to be my father.”
“You’ll come to like me in time,” he said gently.
After Jonas and every worker in the stables searched a one-mile radius from the house, Ivy suggested they get the constable involved.
“I know who took her,” Jonas said, “It was Samson.”
“At least we know he won’t harm her. Do you think he means to steal her from us, or do you think he’ll ask for money to get her back?” Ivy asked.
“I don’t know.” Jonas sat on the porch with his head in his hands. “Poor Alfie is in his room crying. He thinks it was all his fault.”
“I’ll talk to him while you go and report this to the constable,” Ivy said.
“All right.” Jonas stood. “I’ll be right back.” He hugged Ivy. “Please pray for our little girl, Ivy.”
“I will, Jonas. I will.”
Ivy sat down on Alfie’s bed where he lay with his eyes open, staring at the wall.
“It’s not your fault, Alfie,” she said, patting his shoulder.
He turned his head toward her. “I took my eyes off her to run after the ball.”
“Well, that’s normal when playing ball.”
“It’s not, because before Jonas went into the stables to work he told me to keep my eye on her, and I didn’t. It’s my fault,” he sobbed.
“Keep your eye on her, is an expression, Alfie. It doesn’t mean you can’t turn to retrieve a ball. It just means, to generally make sure she’s all right.”
“I didn’t do that, either.”
“It’s not your fault, Alfie. We’ll get her back. We’re all praying for it.”
“I’m praying, too,” he said.
Zoe refused any food that Samson offered her. She lay on the bed and stared at the ceiling with her arms crossed over her chest. She had stopped crying, and was now angry. She told herself she’d wait until he was asleep and sneak out and go home.
When night came, she watched Samson lock the door. He had a lock near the doorknob, and another, new, shiny one, up high, out of Zoe’s reach. Zoe sighed to herself, when he locked that one, too. Her eyes flew to the window. Yes, she could reach it. She only hoped it would open.
Probably due to her fright, Samson had left a small candle lit, inside a glass jar, on the floor, between her bed and where Samson had bedded down on the floor.
When she heard Samson snoring, she got up, tiptoed to the window, and tried to push it open, but it wouldn’t budge. She looked around for something to climb up on so she could reach the lock on the door. There wasn’t even a chair in the one room house, just a bed, and a floor-to-ceiling cabinet. Zoe went back to the bed and tried to think of another way to escape.
She decided to try and reach the lock on the door. She gathered together all the blankets and pillows and bunched them up by the door. She stood on the top of the pile, but was short by about an inch. She sighed, and looked around.
See noticed something sticking out from under the bed. She silently dropped to her knees on the wooden floor and bent down to look. It was a satchel, probably Samson’s. She started to drag it out, but when she pulled it, a scraping noise caused her to stop. It would not do to have Samson wake up now.
She grabbed the sheet from the bed, she stuck it under the satchel, and then dragged it from under the bed. Then she tiptoed to the door, rearranged the linen pile so that the satchel was on the bottom, under the sheet, and the bedclothes were on the top. She climbed up on top, but the whole pile wobbled back and forth. She steadied herself by grabbing hold of the doorknob. When she felt steady enough, she reached up and unlocked the lock. Before easing herself down to the floor, she had to steady herself again.
She shoved the pile aside and opened the door, taking the time to close it silently behind her. She looked around, but it was dark out, and she had no idea where she might be. She gave her eyes time adjust to the darkness, but she had no idea what to do next. She listened to the crickets and other nighttime sounds. She even thought she might have heard an owl. Then she heard a soft snort from Samson’s horse, so she walked to where it was tied.
Never having ridden a full-sized horse before, she was thwarted by not being able to reach the saddle horn that she needed to hoist herself up. Though she was eight years old, she was still small for her age, and once again, she looked around for something to stand on. Zoe felt frustrated at having come so far, only to find herself still unable to escape. She started to walk around the house to look for something to stand on. Should she chance going back inside to grab the satchel?
Zoe moved toward the back of the house, stumbled over something in the dark and fell to the ground. At first she was annoyed by the fall, but then she noticed what she’d fallen over—a huge rock. It took her a while but she managed to get the rock to the horse by pushing and pulling.
She was able to get onto the horse, but now wondered what she should do next. Where would she go?
Zoe wandered around on the horse for hours until finally the sun started to peek through the horizon, but she still had no idea where she was. She kept wandering around with the hope of seeing a familiar landmark, or a person who might help her find her way home. Finally, due to exhaustion, she let go of the reins, and laid her head down on the horse’s neck, holding onto the mane.
Chapter 7
Pearl Iverson put her knitting aside when Peggy sat down next to her on the front porch. “What’s up with you and Miles Croft?” Pearl asked. “The whole town is buzzing about you two, and here I am, your mother, and I don’t know a thing about it.”
“I like him—a lot,” she said.
“I heard he was still grieving over his breakup with Violet?”
“Is getting over it.” Peggy said.
“Is Violet mad? Miles is a fantastic catch,” Pearl said, picking up her knitting again.
“I know,” Peggy said with a mischievous smile. “Are you knitting another sweater for little Joshua?”
“Yes. I just love being a grandmother. I truly enjoyed our visit to Texas to see Eliza and her children, didn’t you?”
“It was all right. It would have been better if Quinn had gone along,” Peggy said.
“Well, he put that time to good use, I’d say. Now I have a grandchild just a few miles down the road.” Pearl smiled. “And I get to see him whenever I want, and I just love Rose.”
“Wait a minute,” Pearl said, giving Peggy a suspicious look. “Why did you change the subject? If you’re up to something, you’d better tell me. Rose is my daughter-in-law and I don’t want anyone in our family doing anything to upset her or her sister.”
“She tossed him away!” Peggy exclaimed. “He’s fair game.”
Pearl tilted her head in thought. “Just make sure it’s fair, then,
Peggy. I know how mischievous you can be. What happened to Henry Bannister? He’s called on you twice,” Pearl said. “I thought he was extremely pleasant.”
“He was nice enough, but he’s away at college, and he was only home for a few weeks,” Peggy answered. “I’m not into long distance romances. Besides, when I heard about what happened between Miles and Violet, I had to at least try.”
“I think you should talk to Violet and make sure she doesn’t mind you being courted by him,” Pearl said.
“Mother, Violet broke it off with Miles! He’s free to court anyone he chooses to.”
“Well, I’m surprised he agreed to court you. From what I hear, he was devastated when she broke it off. I thought it would take him longer to recover from it than that.”
“Mother, right now we’re just friends and I’m helping him get over her.”
“Just be sure that things between you and Violet stay friendly.”
The constable formed a posse including Jonas, Caleb and Quinn, and they combed roads all over Abilene looking for Zoe or Samson. They searched until it became too dark, to search any more, before the constable called a halt to the search.
“What do you mean, stop for today?” Jonas asked. “We haven’t found Zoe yet. We can’t stop.”
“Jonas,” the constable said. “We could ride right by her and not see her in the dark. We’ll continue at dawn.” He turned to his posse. “We’ll start again at seven in the morning.”
The posse rode away, leaving Jonas with Caleb and Quinn.
“C’mon Jonas. Go home and get some sleep,” Caleb said.
“You won’t be sharp for tomorrow’s search if you don’t,” Quinn said.
Sadly, Jonas headed his horse toward home. He felt empty and filled with hopelessness. His baby girl was out there somewhere, and probably frightened. He felt so helpless.
Quinn stopped at his livery to give orders to his foreman, Jed, before heading to the constable’s office to continue the search. Jed had relieved the night foreman, so Quinn could leave the livery without worry. As he headed to his horse, Randy McMullin called to him.
Quinn frowned, and wondered what Randy could possibly want. Randy owned the other livery in town and they were competitors, and sometimes, intense rivals. Quinn figured he’d purchased a new buggy, or something else he wanted to brag about.
He nodded, “Morn’n, Randy.”
“You need to come to my livery, quick!” he said.
“Why? You got another new buggy to show off?” Quinn said.
“No, I’ve found the little girl,” he said.
“What?”
“C’mon!” Randy called and they both ran down the street toward Randy’s Livery.
Once inside, an employee of Randy’s, held a horse by the reins, and there on top of the horse, sat Zoe.
“How did she get here?” Quinn said as he held his arms out for Zoe.
Zoe went to him and held him tightly around his neck. “Take me to Papa and Mama, Uncle Quinn.”
“Papa will be here any moment for you, sweetie. We’re so glad you’re all right.”
“Samson rented the horse from me, and it came wandering in around dawn with this little elf on top of him,” Randy said. “My horses know where the food is when they’re hungry, so he came straight back here,” Randy said.
Quinn hugged Zoe. “We’ve been so worried.” He turned to Randy. “Why didn’t you tell someone Samson rented one of your horses? We’ve been hunting for him.”
Randy shrugged. “I heard the little girl was missing, and we were all told by the constable to keep our eyes out for her, but no one mentioned Samson.”
Zoe laid her head on Quinn’s shoulder.
“I see. Well, thank you, Randy,” Quinn said. He shook his hand and then headed for the constable’s office across the street.
Jonas, Caleb, the constable, and several other men, sat on their horses in front of the constables office, awaiting the rest of the posse. At first, all they could do was stare, as Quinn approached carrying Zoe.
“Jonas,” Quinn said, “I think I have something that belongs to you.”
“Zoe!” Jonas slid off his horse and ran to her. She leaped from Quinn’s arms and into Jonas’s. She held him so tightly she nearly choked him. Jonas thanked God, out loud.
Violet marveled at the progress made at the camp. Tents were set up in a half-circle, and a big wooden shelter had been built for the crafts and Bible studies. In the center stood a big brick fireplace for cooking meals.
“Next week at this time there will be about fifty children here, learning about God,” Gavin said. “I’m pleased with the results.”
“Why does the camp need a financial person like Miles?” Violet asked.
“We’ve have donations, and expenditures. Each child’s family will also pay a fee for their child to attend. We don’t intend on making a profit; we just hope to break even,” Gavin said. “The knowledge about God that the children learn here will be our profit.”
“I see,” she said. “My niece, Zoe, won’t be coming. Her family hasn’t gotten over the recent kidnapping scare, and they aren’t letting the child out of their sight—at least until the culprit who did it is caught.”
“Can’t say as I blame them,” he said. “Would you excuse me while I check with Miles Croft about our financial status?”
“Of course,” she said. She watched him walk to where Miles stood with Peggy. When Gavin approached, Peggy moved and walked toward Violet.
“Hi, Violet,” she said.
Violet nodded. “Peggy.”
“Isn’t this camp going to be great?” Peggy asked.
“Yes, I’m quite impressed,” Violet said. She was still staring at Miles and Gavin, head to head as they went over figures.
Peggy gazed to see what held Violet’s attention. “Violet, you aren’t upset because I’m being courted by Miles, are you?”
“No, of course not.” Violet switched her gaze to Peggy. “Whatever gave you that idea?”
“I don’t know. You haven’t been too friendly lately, I guess.”
“I’m a bit upset that Miles doesn’t speak to me whenever we run into each other, is all. We agreed to stay friends, after all.”
“He doesn’t? I didn’t know that,” Peggy said.
“Well, I’ll be going home,” Peggy said. “Miles will be here for a while. He’s bogged down with numbers, but maybe we’ll see you at Pete’s later?”
“Yes, we’ll be there,” Violet said. She didn’t know why, but suddenly she didn’t care for Peggy, who’d been Ivy’s best friend, but whom she's never considered more than an acquaintance. Now she felt uncomfortable around her, and she wished she knew why. It couldn’t be because Miles was courting her, because she had already come to the conclusion that she didn’t really love Miles. So what could her prickly feeling for Peggy stem from?
Violet sat on a bench to wait for Gavin, still wondering how she might react to Gavin’s cold proposal. It really was odd. She couldn’t accept—not without at least a kiss or something. What if he was a horrible kisser? Everyone who courted these days kissed a bit, and even hugged. Back in the olden days, maybe they didn’t kiss before marriage, but she couldn’t believe Gavin was so old fashioned—or—what was it he had said about not kissing? Something like, ‘especially not with someone who has been married?’ She wondered what difference that would make. Quinn had been married before he’d courted her sister, Rose, and they didn’t even consummate their union until long after the wedding.
She recalled Cynthia, her friend from school, who had been kissed by a boy on a straw ride, and she said he kissed like a fish, and that her face was wet and slimy when he was finished. How could you possibly stand being married to a man who kissed like a fish?
She supposed they'd need a heart to heart talk, but it was so difficult getting Gavin to open up and talk about these things. Miles had been so easy to talk to—then again, she’d best not think about Miles. She’d ended it with
him. That tomb was sealed. There could be no going back. She wondered if she hadn't made a mistake.
She looked up to see Gavin heading her way and Miles still bending over papers.
“How about a walk?” Gavin said.
“I’d love a walk. Where should we walk?” Violet asked.
“On the other side of those trees is an interesting beach along the river. There are rock piles that form a cave. The locals have rumored for years that the cave was where pirates had hidden their loot, but of course I doubt there were pirates on the Smoky Hill River.”
“I’d love to see it,” she said.
He took her hand—for the first time ever, and they walked through the short copse of trees to the beach. To her surprise it wasn’t a beach with sand for swimming, but a flat area by the river and up a bit higher were the rocks and the cave.
The ground was uneven and Violet stumbled. Gavin reached out and grabbed her, and in doing so touched her bosom. He then dropped his hand so quickly Violet knew it wasn’t intentional. It was an accident and Violet intended to ignore it, but Gavin started acting a bit strange after that. He looked as if he were sweating and frowning, and as if he was fighting something. Did he think she might berate him for it?
She smiled at him and tried to change the subject. “Now, where is the cave?”
He pulled her to the cave opening and led her inside. They hadn’t been there but a few moments when he grabbed her and kissed her passionately.
Violet was shocked, but she returned his kiss, which wasn’t at all slimy, but actually rather nice. Then he grabbed her bosom and started to press his body against hers. She tried to push him away, but he was stronger than she was.
“Stop, Gavin!” she cried, pushing at his chest in an effort to put some space between them.
“Isn’t this what you wanted, dear Violet?” he growled. “I warned you.”
He pulled her down onto the ground and lay on top of her. She could feel he was aroused and it scared her. In all the time she been courted by Miles, they’d never gone this far. Kisses and hugs were all they'd needed. She didn’t know how to stop him. He seemed to be going wild. What was wrong with him?
