Redeeming Light

by Annette O'Hare

  “Com’on.” He said, whipping the rains of his horse.

  Reaching the downed animal, they dismounted and knelt beside her.

  “I was afraid this might happen. She was lookin’ a little iffy this morning.”

  “Then why didn’t you say something?” Sarah asked.

  Reinhardt grimaced. “Ain’t nothin’ we could’a done anyway. Calf’s gonna come when it gets good and ready.” He picked up the cow’s tail and took a closer look. “Yep, won’t be long now. We’re gonna have to stop here for the day.”

  “We can’t stop here…we need to get to the other side of Rollover Pass!”

  “Well, looks as if your cow has different plans because her calf is coming now.”

  Sarah groaned. Rollover Pass was a dangerous crossing if the timing wasn’t right. And this delay could be the thing that put them in the middle of a very bad situation.

  The cow bawled out, and her calf was born.

  Sarah rubbed the exhausted cow’s side. “Come on, girl. You need to get up and take care of your baby.”

  The little calf wiggled around, snorting to clear its nose and trying to rise.

  Rex pawed the baby and growled at her.

  Reinhardt scratched his chin and then lifted the cow’s tail again. “Yeah, I thought so.”

  “What is it?”

  “She ain’t done yet, that’s what.”

  “Twins?”

  “Yep.”

  “She’s having trouble.”

  “Yeah, she’s all tired out. We’ll give her a little time. If she still ain’t calved, I’ll pull it.”

  The first calf was a strong little heifer. In no time at all, she was up and bawling her complaints.

  Sarah took a piece of feedbag cloth from her saddlebag and rubbed the calf down.

  Each time the little heifer bawled the mama cow cried along with her. This seemed to help progress the birthing of the second calf.

  “Well, look at that. The calf’s coming on its own.”

  A few minutes later the cow gave one final cry and pushed out her second calf. Then she rolled over and got up. The first calf bawled for her mama, but her sister didn’t move.

  “She’s not breathing.” Sarah swatted the calf on the rear end, but still, no movement. “Come on girl, wake up.” In a last-ditch effort, Sarah picked up a piece of straw and swabbed it inside the calf’s nose. Nothing. She tried again, only this time she poked at the inside of her nose. The calf sneezed, and bloody snot flew everywhere.

  The mama cow came to her calf and nudged her with her snout. The smaller twin calf got up on her feet at her mother’s urging, bawling all the while.

  Sarah wiped her brow on her shirtsleeve. “Whew, didn’t think she was going to make it.”.

  “Well, we lost one cow, but added two more.”

  Another cow cried out from the herd.

  Reinhardt pushed his hat back on his head. “There goes another one. I thought we had more time with her.”

  “Dang it, Brutus!” Sarah cursed her father’s prize bull.

  The second cow gave birth with no need to intervene.

  “You did a good job back there.” Reinhardt spoke without looking her in the eye.

  “What do you mean?”

  “How you worked with that calf until she started breathing on her own. She might have died otherwise.”

  Sarah’s cheeks warmed. “Just doing what I had to do.”

  “Um-hm.” He walked away.

  As the sun began its slow descent into the West, the newborn calves romped and played. A trail of dust kicked up behind Pedro and Inez approaching in the wagon.

  The vaqueros cheered.

  The cooks worked quickly, unloading dishes and the delicious smelling food.

  In short order the vaqueros were in a line waiting to be served a heaping bowl of pinto beans. Each one of the vaqueros thanked Inez when she handed them their meal.

  Sarah accepted her food and thanked the cook.

  She joined Reinhardt next to the fire Pedro made and sat down, bowing her head

  Reinhardt stood. “All right, everyone, we have a lot to be thankful for, what with three calves being born healthy and all. And we got these good eats too. It only seems right that we should thank God.”

  Reinhardt was going to pray?

  He looked at her. “Go on now, start praying.”

  “Oh.” Sarah was caught off guard, but she worded a prayer of thanksgiving. Later, Sarah laid in her bedroll gazing at the stars. Thank You, Father, for allowing me to witness the miracle of those baby calves coming into the world, and for letting me be a part of it. Lord, I suppose You know what’s come over Reinhardt, even if I don’t. But I gotta admit, I sure do like the change.

  17

  “Let’s go! Let’s go!” The vaqueros moved slow, and all of Sarah’s coaxing did nothing to speed them up. “Ugh!”

  She scanned the herd, hoping and praying nothing would delay them today. They should already be on the other side of Rollover Pass. The tide would be coming in strong all day long. Why didn’t anyone listen to her? They didn’t understand how important it was to get the cattle across the pass.

  A twinge of hope filled Sarah’s heart when she saw one of Reinhardt’s men running.

  But he was running from another vaquero chasing him with a knife and screaming in Spanish.

  Oh, Lord, why is this happening to me? Five more miles, that’s all I ask, Lord. Five more miles and we’ll be at the pass.

  Reinhardt took off after the two wayward vaqueros, hollering. He pulled his lariat from his belt and began slinging it in a circle above his head. The looped rope flew through the air before coming down around the arms of the knife wielding man. With one mighty pull, Reinhardt brought the man to the ground. He gathered the slack rope and punched the vaquero in the jaw before removing the knife from his hand.

  A string of Spanish words came from Reinhardt’s mouth, none of which Sarah understood, which was probably a good thing.

  The other vaquero had put some distance between himself and the knife. The third vaquero was laughing so hard that coffee sloshed from his mug onto his britches.

  Pedro appeared by Sarah’s side.

  “Do you know what’s going on?”

  “Sí, Sí.” Pedro pointed toward the man who had been chased. “This man, he tell the other man that his sister is, is, how do you say, much beautiful. He also say that he want to...” Pedro’s tan cheeks blushed a shade of red. “He say he want to...I rather not tell you what he say, Miss Sarah.”

  “I think I understand.” Five more miles, Lord, just five more miles.

  Reinhardt stood over the downed vaquero, and gathered up the loops of rope. The younger man rubbed his jaw. Reinhardt glanced at Sarah, silently assuring her that he had things under control.

  “Can we get going now? We have to hurry. The tide will be coming in strong all day, and we need to get the herd to the other side of the pass.”

  “You know, you worry too much.”

  “Look, you don’t have any idea what lies ahead. Have you ever had to cross Rollover Pass?”

  “Nope. Never heard of it.”

  “Exactly. If we had crossed over yesterday, everything would be fine, but with the tide rising it’s a whole different story.”

  “What kind of woman keeps watch on the tides?” Reinhardt mumbled the words under his breath.

  “Someone who was born and raised on this peninsula, that’s who!”

  He shook his head and hollered at his men. “Vamos, hombres!”

  ~*~

  “H’ya, h’ya!” Sarah tried to push the cattle faster. It was dangerous moving the herd at high tide. Even the mighty longhorns were no match for the water rushing in from the Gulf of Mexico through Rollover Pass into Galveston Bay.

  Reinhardt rode up. “So tell me, what is this pass you’re so dern worried about?”

  “It’s a wallowed-out place in the middle of the road where water passes through from the Gulf to the
bay. It’s called Rollover Pass because way back when, pirates would roll big barrels full of booty over, instead of taking them into Galveston where they would have to pay customs on it.”

  “Sounds like a good idea to me.”

  “Well, you would, wouldn’t you?” Sarah snapped back at him.

  He laughed.

  Sarah couldn’t help but laugh along with him. Their light-hearted exchange gave Sarah the courage she needed to ask a question she’d been mulling over. “Say, Reinhardt, you mind me asking what brought on that speech you gave yesterday about being thankful? And why did you all of a sudden feel the need for me to say grace over the food? Seemed kind’a out of character for you.”

  The trail boss looked off into the distance and shrugged. “I don’t know. When I saw you helping birth them calves it reminded me of my mama. Mama raised me and my three brothers all on her lonesome. She was a strong woman who loved the Lord, but all her prayers couldn’t keep my pa out of the saloon. She’s gone on to her reward now.” Reinhardt glanced at her and grinned. “Pirates, huh? Guess I should have brought my saber. So what kind of booty are we talking about?”

  “Oh, I don’t know…whiskey, rum, weapons maybe. I’ve heard stories that smugglers are still doing it to this day. That’s why I don’t want to cross over at night.”

  “Sounds like a good enough reason to me. All right then, let’s get going.” He slapped his horse’s reigns and hollered, “H’ya!”

  18

  The rushing Gulf waters flowed through the pass into Galveston Bay.

  At Sarah’s urging, Pedro and Inez passed safely to the other side before the cattle.

  Ginger quivered and shook her head.

  Rex ran a back and forth pattern at the water’s edge barking in frustration.

  “Reinhardt!” Sarah held up a fist to stop the herd. She nudged Ginger’s flanks and pulled her reins toward the pass. The water moved quickly, but the tide hadn’t reached its full height. But if the howling wind was an indicator, high tide would be substantial.

  Reinhardt shouted over the din of the rising tide and restless cattle. “What do ya say, boss lady?”

  The three vaqueros draped the newborn calves across their horse’s backs. The two mama cows stayed close to their bawling babies.

  “All right, let’s do this.”

  Reinhardt signaled to his flank man, Ramon, and the other two vaqueros took his lead, whooping and hollering to coax the herd into the water. The cattle moved slowly, mooing their protests to the fast-moving current. Even Rex’s incessant barking couldn’t get them to move quicker.

  Come on go faster. You’re not going to make it!

  “They ain’t moving fast enough. You need to do something.” Reinhardt yelled.

  “What do you want me to do?”

  “Dang it, Sarah, use your head! Pick up that rifle and crack off a shot!”

  Rex’s hackles accentuated his deep throaty growl.

  Reinhardt raised his fist.

  Rex barked wildly at him.

  Sarah pointed to the opposite shore. “Rex, go!”

  The dog barked, jumped into the water, and swam across the expanse.

  I don’t know what’s going to happen if I fire my gun, Lord. She put her hand on the rifle and froze. Please…tell me what to do. Peace descended, despite the noise. She fired a shot.

  The cattle mooed frantically and moved faster, deeper into the pass. Panicked, some cows on the far edge cut away toward the bay instead of crossing.

  “Reinhardt!” Sarah screamed at her trail boss.

  “I see ‘em! H’ya!” He whipped the reins. The horse galloped to the stragglers. “Ramon, Benito, aqui!”

  The two men rode toward Reinhardt. The calves bawled. The vaqueros followed Reinhardt’s lead, riding out past the wayward cows. With their lassos, they whipped the water and hollered.

  Most of the stray cows returned to the herd.

  It’s working. “It’s working!” Sarah cried out.

  The cattle, her cattle, tromped past and into the rushing current.

  Reinhardt and the two vaqueros stayed at their heels, hitting the water with their lassos to keep the cows moving.

  The third vaquero made his way to the front of the herd to ride point.

  Sarah rode to the far side of the pass where Rex waited.

  Reinhardt and his two men were in the most danger of being sucked into the bay.

  And then Benito was caught by a rogue wave. The young vaquero held onto his horse for dear life. The newborn calf slipped out of the ropes into the Bay. The mama cow’s huge body acted as an anchor, saving Benito and his horse from toppling over. The new mama bit at the waves trying to rescue her calf. The water swirled, taking them both under.

  Sarah opened her mouth to scream, but nothing came out.

  Benito spurred his horse and followed the wet cattle out of the pass. By the time the men reached shore, the water had risen to their horses’ withers. Benito pulled off his hat and shook water from it.

  “Look, there’s four more! Get out there and save them!” Sarah hollered and pointed.

  Reinhardt rode to her and wiped his brow on his shirtsleeve.

  “What are you waiting for? Go!”

  “What do you want me to do, Sarah? Ride out there and drown?”

  “I want you to go get my daddy’s cattle, that’s what!”

  “It’s too late. We can’t save them now.”

  The four cows fought in water that had grown too deep for them to walk.

  “If you won’t get them, then I will!” She raised her hands to whip Ginger’s reins.

  “Oh, no, you don’t.” Reinhardt grabbed Ginger’s halter. He held tight as the big horse shook her head and whinnied.

  Sarah‘s chest heaved.

  One by one the four cows disappeared beneath the waters in Galveston Bay.

  There was no stopping the tears falling down her cheeks. She turned to Reinhardt, “How could you?”

  “I’m sorry, Sarah. I made you fire that shot. It didn’t work out quite the way I thought it would, and I apologize. But we had to do something to get the cattle across the pass.” His apologetic voice angered her more.

  “Listen to me, old man. I’ll make sure you never drive cattle again!” Her anger raged out of control at herself and at Reinhardt. She’d lost some of Daddy’s cattle.

  “Look at me, Sarah.” Reinhardt’s voice was rough. “If we hadn’t got them cattle moving we could have lost half the herd. It’s better to only lose a few. Now get ahold of yourself and let’s get these cattle moved out of here!”

  Ignoring him, Sarah pointed toward the trail and called out to the lead vaquero. “Vamos, Benito!” She spurred Ginger’s flanks and took off.

  “!Arre, arre! Whoop, whoop!”

  The two other vaqueros followed his lead.

  The herd began moving down the road, the pass fading behind them.

  19

  They stopped at Gilchrist for the rest of the day so they could make a fresh start in the morning.

  This drive had been the longest, hardest and most intense three days Sarah had ever experienced.

  Inez stood over a huge kettle and stirred.

  Sarah didn’t feel like eating, but her body needed food.

  Benito had one of the men rub down all their horses. The other was feeding and watering them. It wasn’t long before the crockery jug came out. They passed it around to each other and spoke loud and enthusiastically in Spanish.

  Reinhardt had disappeared in the darkness.

  Sarah just wanted a good night’s sleep. Tomorrow afternoon they would reach High Island. She could sell off the herd, get the money, and go home. No more cattle drives. No more Reinhardt…forever. She leaned her back against a large piece of driftwood. A long groan came from deep inside. It felt good to relax, with nothing but the salty air in her lungs, and the soft sound of waves crashing on the distant shore. She closed her eyes.

  A foreign noise blasted.

 
; “What was that?” She sat straight up.

  Rex barked.

  It sounded sort of like a foghorn, but they were miles away from the lighthouse. Sounds more like a goose. An engine? But no trains were coming.

  Rex’s barking didn’t help in the confusion.

  The cows became restless, their mooing and stamping of their hooves almost drowned out the other noises.

  In a cloud of sand and dust the source of the cacophony came into view. A gloved hand reached outside the rolling menace and squeezed a big black bulb. A loud honk sounded with each squeeze.

  Benito and his men ran around the herd trying to calm them.

  A few steers crashed their horns together and snorted, ready to fight or flee.

  “Who or what in tarnation is that?” Reinhardt yelled.

  “Well, I’m not expecting anyone. Are you?”

  “Oh, it’s one of them automobiles.” He released a long low whistle. “Ain’t never seen one of them before.”

  Pedro left Inez to finish cooking and joined them. “What’s going on, Miss Sarah?”

  “I don’t know. It’s some crazy fool, I’d say!”

  Sarah and Pedro waved their arms in the air to get the driver’s attention. “Stop, stop, you idiot!”

  The driver finally stopped honking. He drove up close to the herd, cut off the engine and jumped out.

  The herd rustled around but began to settle as Benito and the others crooned at them.

  The dust and dirt settled.

  Lord, I can’t take much more. Has this…this person come to rob us?

  The man wore a long, French riding coat, a tweed newsboy cap, goggles, and a smile the size of Texas. “Miss McKinney, I’ve found you.” Frederick Chessher exuded pride, shucking off the leather gloves.

  He pulled the goggles off, revealing those emerald-green eyes that haunted her dreams. She scowled at him. “Frederick Chessher! What were you thinking?”

  “Well, I…”

  “You scared the cattle out of their wits!”

  “I certainly didn’t…”

  “Were you trying to start a stampede? Do you have any idea how bad that could have been?” Sarah stepped closer, indignation making her movements stiff.