After getting the children situated in the back of the buckboards, Melinda thanked Gilbert for coming. She whipped the reins and down the mountain they went.
Gilbert stood beside his horse and watched her leave. He had definitely noticed the effect he’d had on her, and it made him grin. It had been a long time since he had made a woman blush. Perhaps he still had what it took after all these years!
He shook his head and puffed out a breath of air and muttered, “Darn that woman. She can get under a man’s skin.”
Then he climbed onto his horse and headed home.
Chapter 8
A SELF-WILLED WOMAN
The following day, the students were all abuzz with the adventure they’d had at the mountains. Melinda wrote a thank-you note to Gilbert for helping with the children. Then she passed it around to let the class sign it.
After class was over, she freshened up and borrowed the carriage so she could take the note to Gilbert. Melinda could have given it to Jenny, but for some reason she preferred to take it herself. Perhaps, she thought, it was because she had been so stubborn about having Jenny come on the excursion and she wanted to personally thank him for letting her go. Or there could have been another reason.
It could have been because she was simply attracted to him. However, the idea of being attracted to this rugged rancher was nonsense. He simply was not her type. Quickly she shook the notion out of her mind.
Melinda knocked on Gilbert’s door and Jenny answered with a broom in her hand. She was surprised to see her teacher and her eyes lit up.
“Hello, Jenny. May I see your father? I wanted to give him this thank-you note from the class.”
Jenny smiled. “Pa’s down yonder fixin’ the fence. The cattle started gettin’ loose yesterday but he found the place they got out and he’s fixin’ it.” Jenny pointed in the direction for her to go.
Gilbert had one of the choicest pieces of land for cattle to graze and it was a beautiful sight with groves of trees and a stream flowing gently through his pasture. He had worked hard and had saved enough money to buy this property and the cattle. It took hard work and a lot of time to make this ranch what it was. He had bought it six years earlier and had put up every inch of fence around it for his cattle to graze.
When the house was sufficiently cleaned, Gilbert would allow Jenny to join him on the ranch. He had taught his daughter to ride a horse and shoot a rifle. Gilbert and Jenny were very close and had a bond that most fathers did not have with their daughters. The only thing he was guilty of was being overprotective of her. But, he was an only parent and he did the best he could.
As Melinda walked down the pasture, she came upon the stream that she had waded in before school had started. When she stopped to admire the view, she heard a deep warm voice ask, “Are you lost or are you looking for me?”
Melinda quickly turned around and saw Gilbert standing next to a maple tree, looking at her with his thumbs tucked behind his belt. When their eyes met, Melinda felt nervous and tried to search for the right words to say.
“Did you need to talk?” he asked.
“Uhm…no.” Melinda took a deep breath and continued. “I just came to give you this.” She showed him the note in her hand. “It’s from the class. It’s a thank-you note for helping us yesterday.”
Gilbert took the note from her hand and looked at it. Then he folded it and put it in his pocket.
“You could’ve given it to Jenny to deliver to me,” Gilbert said soberly as he gazed into her green eyes.
“But I wanted to thank you personally.”
“Personally, eh?” A restrained smile flickered across Gilbert’s face.
Melinda blushed and averted her eyes. She looked at the ground, a little flustered because she felt so clumsy. “Well, you took time off work just to come with Jenny so she could go on the outing with the class and that meant a lot to me…” She hesitated. “That is, it meant a lot to Jenny. I had never heard her laugh until yesterday and it was like music to my ears. Thank you for putting Jenny before your work this time.”
Gilbert became sober once again. “I always put my Jenny first. All I do here on this ranch is for her and for her comfort.” As he spoke, his tone was a little defensive and she noticed it.
Feeling embarrassed, she tried to apologize for her insinuation. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that you neglect her, sir. I just meant that sometimes you put your work before Jenny. That’s all. Work should always come second to a child.”
“You don’t know the sacrifice I make for my daughter.” Gilbert said with exasperation. “How can you judge me?”
Gilbert had an edge in his voice and sounded a little irritated, which flustered Melinda even more.
“I’m sure you sacrifice, but many times we can forget the little things that really matter to a young girl. And at Jenny’s age, her needs are very important.”
“For example?” Gilbert said curtly.
Melinda felt nervous. This was not going well at all. She had stuck her foot in her mouth and she did not know how to get it out. How could she avoid the answer to this question? She had no idea, so she decided to just say what was on her mind.
“Such as having a pet.”
Gilbert frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. With an indignant tone, he said, “So, you’re referring to the kitten she wanted, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I am,” she said firmly.
Melinda did not like his tone at all. She probably should not have mentioned the kitten, but he had asked and she did not know how to answer without offending him. She was getting into this discussion further than she wanted and could not seem to get out.
Gilbert’s jaw became firm as he raised his voice. “The day Jenny wanted to go look at the kittens, a cow was having a calf. I couldn’t leave. The cow was having complications and I needed to be here to help. I would have lost both of them if I’d left.” Looking down at his feet and back up at Melinda, he said, “And why is any of this your concern, anyway?”
Melinda felt embarrassed. She had prejudged him without even thinking. She lowered her eyes to the ground and replied in a soft tone. “I’m sorry, Mr. Roberts. My tongue is too quick. I shouldn’t have said anything. It wasn’t my place…or my business.” She looked up into his eyes with dismay. “But why are you so ornery with me? Why didn’t you just explain? You know I really love Jenny. That’s why I tell you how I feel and that’s why I’m concerned about her.”
Frustrated, Gilbert shook his head. “You wouldn’t understand.”
“Give me a chance.”
Gilbert took a deep breath and said, “I do my best for Jenny. I take care of her and don’t neglect her for work. I take her along with me wherever I go. She rides her own horse alongside me. But when I decided to take work off yesterday to go to the mountains because you insisted, I came home to find half my cattle loose. It took the rest of the day and most of the evening to round them up. If I’d been here, I could have stopped them before too many escaped. As it was, I had to hunt all over for the weak spot in the fence after rounding up my cattle.”
As Melinda listened, her heart sank and she felt terrible. She should have been more understanding. She had drawn a conclusion without any facts.
“I…I didn’t know. I’m sorry, Mr. Roberts. Please forgive me for being so bold. But you seem to think it’s my fault.”
Gilbert’s frustration gradually left and his eyes softened when he heard the humility in her voice. Shaking his head, he answered, “No, I don’t. I don’t blame you. I just took it out on you and I didn’t mean to. You seemed to be the perfect scapegoat for my frustrations.”
Melinda grinned. “It seems every time we meet, we argue about something.”
Gilbert laughed in a low pleasant tone. “You’re quite refreshing.”
“I take that as a compliment.”
“It was given as one, Miss Gamble. As I think about it, I’ve never met a woman who’s so darned stubborn and self-willed as you are.”
Melinda frowned. “Self-willed?”
Gilbert grinned and nodded. “Yes. If you hadn’t persisted, I wouldn’t have gone to the mountains. And I did have a good time, too.”
“I’m not self-willed,” she defended herself. “Determined, maybe, but not self-willed. You’ve misjudged me altogether. There’s a difference between determination and being headstrong.”
Gilbert laughed. “A difference?”
“Mr. Roberts, how can you say that I’m self-willed when you don’t even know me?”
Gilbert chuckled. It did not take much to set her anger aflame.
When she saw him grin, the blood rushed to her face and she was not in the mood for any more talk. “Mr. Roberts, thank you and good-bye. I have more productive things to do than to stand around here and be insulted by you.”
Melinda picked up her skirts and quickly walked toward the carriage. Self-willed! How she hated that word! Her mother would call Melinda self-willed when she had an idea in her mind and would not give up. Melinda knew that she was stubborn, but not self-willed. She hated it when others reminded her of the fact. She knew her faults and weaknesses and she did not need to be reminded of them.
As she walked toward the carriage, Gilbert watched with interest. What an intriguing woman! She had such grace, even when she was angry, and for some reason that attracted him to her. She was not afraid to speak her mind at all. He burst out into laughter.
“Well, I now know to never tell her that she’s self-willed ever again.”
Chapter 9
THE GRIZZLY BEAR
The week passed into October and Melinda wondered if she had done any good or made a difference in the lives of anyone yet. As she sat on the bank of the creek at the edge of the mountains, she noticed the leaves had turned orange, yellow, and red from the cool nights, and the beauty of it was breathtaking. It appeared as if paints had been spilled upon a canvas and there were blotches of color everywhere. What beauty there was in these mountains!
As she gazed at the colorful leaves, Melinda felt at peace. The river shimmered as the sun shone upon the water. The days were already chilly and she wore a light wrap around her shoulders. Melinda found herself taking a walk almost every day. She found comfort being among nature, where she could think without interruption.
Wispy clouds were floating in the breeze as Melinda walked. Her spirits rose as she journeyed along the hillside. She strolled to a grove of quaking aspen near the river and sat on a log. The bubbling brook was a soothing sound that filled her solitude with pleasant, fanciful thoughts.
As Melinda sat quietly thinking, something disturbed her reverie. The few birds that were twittering stopped suddenly and flew away. She looked toward a marshy area and saw something moving. She stood and slowly walked toward it. To her amazement, she saw a grizzly bear digging and eating roots in the marshy ground near the river. She smiled and was amused at how wild the West really was. But she was not acquainted with the nature of these animals and she was very curious. Melinda stood quietly watching the bear as it dug for roots. She was about two hundred yards away—a safe distance, she thought to herself.
As she watched contentedly, Melinda heard an irritated grunt as the grizzly raised its head and saw her standing off in the distance. The bear snarled with anger as if warning her to leave. Then it let out a hideous growl and leapt clumsily toward her. Its enormous jaws were spread wide and its eyes were flashing fire. Melinda had never seen anything so frightening in her life.
Fear overtook her and Melinda could not maintain adequate presence of mind. Her chest tightened and her face drained as she tried to catch her breath. She panicked and quickly turned and ran as fast as she could go. Her heart was pounding rapidly with each step she took. She felt as if she were running in slow motion. Surely this was a dream. No, it was more like a nightmare. Suddenly, to her horror, she lost her balance as she tripped over a rock and fell face down on the ground in a cushion of soft weeds and mud.
In the distance, she heard a deafening shot and immediately the bear growled as if in pain. Someone had shot at the bear and it was furious. Terror filled her soul as she scrambled to her feet. She noticed the bear had lunged to the right, heading toward the man with the rifle. When Melinda turned, she saw Gilbert standing with a rifle in his hand, aiming at the grizzly.
As the bear bounded toward Gilbert, he quickly reloaded his Remington 45-70. Gilbert’s heart beat rapidly as he watched the bear run clumsily toward him. When it came within twelve feet of Gilbert, it suddenly stopped and raised its massive body erect, its mouth wide open, showing its enormous teeth. The grizzly stared at him with fire in its eyes and it gave a blood-curdling roar. With its mouth agape, the grizzly was a savage-looking beast.
Melinda started screaming. She had never seen such a hideous sight before and she became paralyzed with fear. The feeling of terror that rose in her throat made it hard to breathe and Melinda shook uncontrollably.
The grizzly started walking on its hind legs toward Gilbert. It was an enormous animal, between eight to nine feet tall. Gilbert carefully aimed his rifle at the grizzly’s heart and waited. He hated to kill this remarkable animal but he had no choice. The grizzly came within six feet of Gilbert before he pulled the trigger. As the bullet pierced its heart, the bear gave a deathly roar and fell dead at Gilbert’s feet.
As Melinda stood shivering, she cried uncontrollably from the fear that had built up inside her.
Immediately Gilbert ran toward her, dropped his rifle, and held her in his arms as she wept. He tried to soothe her, but it was to no avail. As she wept, he rubbed her back and shoulders, trying to calm her down and relieve her tension. Then he took his handkerchief out of his pocket and wiped the mud from her face.
With tenderness, he asked, “Shall I take you home?”
Melinda could not answer. She could not even speak. Gilbert knew she was in shock. When he tried to encourage her to leave with him, she did not respond. He looked into her beautiful green eyes and his heart went out to her as he saw the fear that was still in them. So he swung his rifle over his shoulder and picked her up in his arms and carried her toward his home.
When he felt her head resting against his shoulder, warmth filled his heart and he realized that he had not felt the softness of a woman for eight years. He had not courted or even been interested in any woman because he had devoted all his time to Jenny and his ranch.
When he arrived home, he sent Jenny to get a doctor. Then he laid Melinda on the sofa, got a wet rag from the kitchen, and wiped the rest of the mud from her face. Then he gently rubbed her arms and shoulders, hoping it would relieve her anxiety, but she did not respond to his touch. Gilbert became worried as he observed the blank look on her face.
He noticed that she was still shivering, so he put a blanket over her and tucked it around her body. Then he got a pillow and gently placed it under her head. Gilbert did not leave her side. He was so worried that he pulled up a chair and watched her intently. The concern he felt deepened the lines between his eyes.
“May I get you some water?” he asked.
When Melinda did not answer, he decided to talk to her and tell her any kind of news that came to his mind. Maybe if she thought of something else, she would not think of the bear attack. Gilbert rubbed her soft hands between his to warm them up as he spoke.
“Did you know they caught Meeks for the bank robbery? They didn’t catch Cassidy or Lay, though. I understand that you had to give a description of the bank robbers to Sheriff Davis and give an account of what happened.”
Melinda looked up into his face but did not say a word. She shivered for half an hour, but she listened gratefully to the soft deep tones of his voice. After a while, she began to calm down.
“Do you want a drink now?” Gilbert asked.
Melinda nodded and he quickly got up and brought her a glass of cool water. Then he sat down beside her.
After drinking the water, she looked at Gilbert and with a shaky voice
said, “I’ve never seen such a sight in my whole life. It was the scariest experience I’ve ever had. What did I do to make him so mad?”
Gilbert rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Well, it could be a variety of reasons. First, you might have startled him, which probably was the reason. If one comes upon a bear, you just quietly walk away. But there are a number of other reasons, too. Such as coming too close to a mother bear’s home when she has little cubs. She feels the need to protect her home and family, but I doubt that was the reason.”
“Why?”
“Well, grizzlies usually make their home in the mountains and not in the valleys where people are. I doubt she would have any cubs down this far among civilization.” Then he grinned from ear to ear with a mischievous look in his eyes. “And this bear couldn’t possibly have cubs since it was a male,” Gilbert said in a teasing tone, hoping she would get his little joke.
Melinda got the joke all right and she groaned good-naturedly. “You think you’re funny, don’t you?”
“Sure do. I need to make this situation light so you’ll recover. Talking about recovering, I sent Jenny for the doctor. He should be here anytime.”
“I don’t need a doctor. I’m not ill.”
“Not sick, but mentally stressed and maybe he can give you something to relax you. That wasn’t some trivial experience that happened out there. It was a frightful experience for you. It might take a few days to get back to normal.”
“Mr. Roberts…”
“Please call me Gilbert.”
“Was it your first time shooting a bear?”
“No.” He scratched his head, remembering. “One time a bear moved into our area and killed a few sheep and a few calves. A bunch of us had to go after it. Once they begin to kill our animals and get the taste of blood in their mouths, they don’t usually stop. So, a few of us had to go out and find the culprit. It’s such a shame to kill such a magnificent beast, though. But our cattle and sheep are what we live on and if we let a grizzly get away with it, it won’t stop killing.”
Melinda and the Wild West Page 5
