by Zoe Matthews
“We could fix the roof and clean it up,” Alex suggested, still with a grin on his face. Katrina tried to figure out what he thought was so funny. She was relieved when Anna shook her head.
“No, let’s let her live in one of the bedrooms in the main ranch house. No one else is living there since we are all in our own cabins, so it will be perfectly acceptable. Would that be okay with you?” Anna looked at Katrina.
“Yes, I am fine with staying in the ranch house.” Katrina felt very relieved at this new plan. She did not really want to live alone.
“You can walk with me to school,” Sage announced, sounding delighted at this new change of plans.
“You can both ride horses to school. That way it won’t take as long to get here,” Alex suggested.
“I don’t know how to ride,” Katrina admitted, noting that Sage briefly looked distressed at her words.
“I can teach you. It is easy,” Sage offered.
“Thank you, but…”
Alex interrupted. “I think one of the adults will teach her, if she wants to learn. Then she can ride with you after she feels comfortable.”
Katrina wanted to turn Alex’s offer down, but knew that since she was now living on a ranch, she would need to learn how to be comfortable around horses. “That is a good idea.”
Alex spent a few minutes looking over the shack as if searching for something, then turned to Katrina and Anna. “We had better get back to the ranch. It is starting to get dark and it will soon be time for dinner. Sage, why don’t you go let your Pa know we are leaving?” Luke had not returned to the group after he finished inspecting the cabin.
Soon they were all in the wagon heading back to the ranch. Katrina was starting to get very tired, but knew that the day was not over yet. When they arrived back at the ranch house, Katrina followed Anna inside to start a late dinner. Anna explained that they would have a beef stew with vegetables that she had left simmering on the back of the stove all day. Katrina was slicing apples when Serena came into the room with Paul right behind her. She could see Serena was happy and she was glad they had had some time to themselves.
During dinner, Katrina learned that Paul would be leaving in a few days on a cattle drive that happened yearly and Serena wanted to accompany her new husband. She quietly listened as Paul and Luke argued whether Serena should be allowed to go. Luke was very insistent that women should not go on cattle drives. Paul stood up to his brother, insisting he wanted Serena to go with him and Luke left the dinner table angry. Katrina noted that Luke was not a happy man and seemed to anger easily. She vowed to herself she would do her best to avoid him when possible.
She looked over at Sage, who had a worried look on her face, and she wondered if Luke realized what his anger was doing to his daughter. She reached over and squeezed the little girl’s hand to reassure her. Sage gave her a big smile, and then continued to eat her dinner. Katrina was becoming very fond of the young girl.
Katrina actually agreed with Luke in this matter. Why would Serena want to go on the cattle drive? She understood that Serena wanted to be with her new husband, but Katrina felt it would be better if Serena stayed on the ranch, and spend time with her new husband when he returned. He supposedly would only be gone a few weeks. She promised herself she would talk Serena into staying. Maybe Serena would be willing to help her set up the schoolhouse and go with her to visit all the children who would be attending her school.
After dinner, Katrina was relieved when Anna suggested she go to bed. She had not slept very much on the train and was feeling very tired.
CHAPTER 8
Katrina spent the next few days helping Serena get ready for her trip with Paul. She had briefly tried to talk Serena into staying, but her friend was adamant that she go, and in the end Katrina stopped talking, knowing nothing was going to change Serena’s mind.
On the morning Serena and Paul left, along with all the cattle they were driving to be sold and a number of ranch hands, Katrina waved as she inwardly sighed with relief. She had so much to do to get ready for school to start and not very many days to do it all if she wanted to start on the following Monday as she had committed.
Anna agreed to walk with her to meet Sage’s friend, Aida, and her family, much to Sage’s excitement, and they were soon walking towards one of the small cabins that were located behind the barn.
Katrina enjoyed meeting Aida and her mother, Sally. She smiled as Sage and Aida hugged each other while jumping up and down. The two girls immediately started chattering as if they had so much to say and a short amount of time to say it. Aida’s mother finally sent them outside to play, along with Aida’s little brother, William, and then offered Katrina and Anna some refreshments.
“I just made an egg cake that will go great with some tea,” Sally offered as she invited them to sit around the kitchen table.
Katrina enjoyed the visit with Sally. She learned that Sally had become one of Anna’s first friends in Montana and had taken care of Sage before Anna arrived when the latest housekeeper had quit. Sally was also expecting another child, although she was not as far along as Anna was.
Sally asked Katrina many questions about her life in Texas and her experience as a teacher in Maple Grove. At first, Katrina thought she was asking to make sure she would be a good teacher for her daughter, but she soon wondered if Sally had wanted to be a teacher when she was younger, before she married her husband. Katrina learned that her husband, Red, was Luke’s head foreman on the ranch. He had not gone on the cattle drive, but stayed on the ranch to help with the care of the cattle that had been left behind.
Anna soon indicated they should leave, but they left Sage behind to play with Aida for the rest of the morning. On the way back to the ranch house, Anna started to ask questions about the people back in Maple Grove.
“So how were things when you left?” Anna asked. “I have often wondered how Mr. and Mrs. Davis handled things when they learned I was gone.”
“To be honest, I am not sure how they handled it,” Katrina admitted. “You know that Mrs. Porter would not allow me to associate with them. I was hardly ever allowed to go shopping at their store, and when I was allowed to, Mrs. Porter was always with me.”
Anna nodded her understanding. “I figured as much. I have just been wondering.”
“You seem happy here,” Katrina smiled at her as she slipped her arm through Anna’s.
“I am happy. Marrying Alex was the best thing that ever happened to me. I will never regret coming here, even though I was supposed to marry Luke.”
“What is going on with him?” Katrina asked. “He seems so angry, he almost scares me.
“Don’t let him scare you,” Anna advised. “He is a good man. He has just had to deal with a lot of things.”
“Can you tell me what he has had to deal with?”
Anna hesitated, and then shook her head. “I better not. If he wants you to know, he should be the one who tells you.”
Katrina was not surprised Anna refused to tell her. “He seems to be a good father.”
“He is a good father. Sage is probably the best thing that has happened to him.”
“She is a darling girl.”
“She loves her father. I have become very close to her, at least as much as Luke will allow me to be. Maybe you will have better luck with Luke allowing you to get close to Sage, seeing as you will be her teacher.”
“Maybe,” Katrina agreed, but deep down she doubted it. If Luke stopped Anna from being close to Sage, she doubted he would allow her to get close to his daughter, but she vowed to herself she would do her best to help Sage and give her the love she needed, as much as Luke would allow her to, anyway.
“I thought you didn’t want to come and teach, and then you changed your mind and came with Serena. What happened? Can you tell me?”
“Yes, I suppose I can,” Katrina agreed. “I’m surprised you haven’t asked before now,” she teased.
Anna smiled. “Let’s sit on those chairs
under that shade tree.” She pointed towards a large cottonwood tree that was near the main ranch house. “Since Sage is busy with Aida and the men are somewhere on the ranch, we can talk undisturbed.”
When they had settled on the chairs, Katrina gave Anna a quick version of the nightmare she had experienced the last few months. She explained how the Porters had introduced Joshua to her and how the man had scared her from the very beginning. She described how the scene unfolded when she learned she was being forced to marry Joshua so the money Katrina was supposed to inherit would stay in the family. Marrying Katrina would also help Joshua so he would have a better chance to become the new mayor when Mr. Porter retired. She then told Anna how she was able to convince the Porters and Joshua to wait until her coming birthday in October to publically announce the engagement and how she planned to be gone by then.
Katrina noted that Anna had tears in her eyes and stopped her story. “I am so sorry you have had to go through all this,” Anna told her.
“Things worked out for the best,” Katrina was quick to reassure her. “Mrs. Coleman realized what was going on and helped me get to the train station and leave. I turn 21 next month and then no one will be able to force me to marry someone I don’t want to marry.”
“I am so glad you were able to leave. I knew things weren’t quite right in your home, but I had no idea you would be forced to marry someone like that and for those reasons.”
“Well, I have learned that some people will do anything for money,” Katrina commented dryly. “I am worried what will happen if they figure out where I am. I am sure it will be quite easy for them to guess, especially since Serena left the same time I did, and they knew she was coming here to marry Paul. They would just need to put the pieces together.”
“With your permission, I will let Alex know what is going on. You should be safe here. I don’t think they will come and continue to try and force you to marry someone you don’t want to marry.”
Katrina nodded her agreement. “I am hoping that they won’t like the negative attention they will get if they come after me and try to force me to come back, with Mr. Porter having the position he does in Maple Grove.”
Anna grasped Katrina’s hand in comfort and support. “I have a question. Do you regret coming on the train when we were younger? Do you wish you hadn’t come and been taken in by the Porters?”
Katrina shook her head. “Things weren’t too bad living there, especially when I was younger. You know that Mrs. Porter liked showing me off, especially because I looked similar to her. Sometimes she would give the impression that I was her real daughter to people who didn’t know my history. At first, I liked the idea of pretending to be her real daughter. It has just been since I came back from getting my teacher’s certificate that things have gotten bad. Mrs. Porter was not happy that I wanted to get the certificate. I know now that Mr. Porter allowed me to go to keep me ‘busy’ until I was old enough to marry his nephew. He didn’t want me to be in a position to meet anyone else.”
Anna listened to her silently, nodding her head periodically at her words.
“Anyway, going on that train, we accomplished what we wanted. All three of us were able to stay together. I don’t regret the decision mainly for that reason,” Katrina said.
“I feel the same way,” Anna said, nodding her head in agreement to Katrina’s words. “You and Serena are my sisters, as if we were born to be. I am so thankful we are together again.”
“I am, too,” Katrina agreed. “Although I hope I will do well as a teacher at the school Luke built. If that doesn’t work out…”
“Oh, don’t worry about that,” Anna waved her arm as if brushing her concerns away. “Luke knows no one else would likely want to come live here in these circumstances and be a teacher to so few students. I realize you are not going to be paid very much and…’”
“I don’t care about that,” Katrina interrupted her with a smile. “I am just grateful I was able to get away from the Porters and Joshua. I don’t care about the money.”
****
The next day, Anna hinted at breakfast that Katrina might enjoy a tour of the ranch. Katrina shifted uncomfortably as she avoided Luke’s eyes at Anna’s comment. She had gotten the definite impression since she arrived that Luke did not like her for some reason. She was so happy that she was away from the Porters and Joshua and that she was reunited with Anna. She did not want anything to ruin things. She wondered if he thought she was not going to stay. She hoped as she started teaching, Luke would change his mind and realize she was a good teacher and would keep her agreement.
After a moment of silence, Alex spoke up. “That’s a good idea. I can show you around after lunch today, if you would like.”
Katrina opened her mouth to refuse his offer when Luke joined the conversation. “I can show you around right after breakfast if you are willing to ride horseback.”
“I don’t know how to ride a horse,” Katrina admitted reluctantly.
“The family who adopted Katrina refused to let her have anything to do with horses,” Anna jumped into the conversation. Katrina knew she was remembering a few months after they had arrived in Maple Grove, when a classmate had offered the use of her horse to the three girls whenever they wanted. Anna and Serena were able to take advantage of her offer, but Mrs. Porter refused to let Katrina learn to ride. She stated that riding on smelly farm animals were beneath their station, along with associating with those who wanted to ride.
This situation also made Katrina realize the Porters tended to hold themselves above almost everyone else. She promised herself she would never allow herself to act like the Porters did to others.
Katrina was relieved when Luke did not show any negative emotion to Anna’s statement.
“I can teach you the basics today and then maybe we can go on at least a short tour of the ranch. You will need to learn how to ride anyway since you will be riding to the schoolhouse every day.”
“I would like that,” Katrina accepted his offer, trying to not show too much excitement. For some reason, the thought of spending a few hours with Luke made her heart skip a beat.
Katrina made arrangements to meet Luke at the large horse barn as soon as she helped Anna clear up breakfast. Even though Anna tried to insist that Katrina go ahead and not worry about the dishes, Katrina felt she needed to help Anna as much as she could. Anna was looking tired that morning.
The dishes were quickly washed and the kitchen straightened. When she left the kitchen to dress for her riding lesson, Anna followed her. She gave her a pair of small men’s pants.
“Put these pants on under your dress,” Anna advised her. “It is difficult to ride astride a horse in a dress. The pants will keep you modest.”
At first, Katrina wanted to argue with Anna. She felt the dress she was going to wear was full enough to keep her modest and it just was not proper to be wearing men’s pants, but something told her she needed to trust Anna. Her friend had been living on the ranch for over a year and she would know what would be proper on the ranch.
She thanked Anna, and quickly slipped the pants on under her dress. It felt different having clothing tight against her legs. The pants were a bit big for her and she needed to use a length of rope to keep them up around her waist.
Before Katrina left the ranch house, she encouraged Anna to rest for a while. When Katrina entered the barn, she was immediately hit with the smell of horse which suprisingly did not bother her considering her upbringing. The barn was clean and well kept. There were a number of stalls that held horses, while a few were empty. Along one wall, bridles and saddles hung. There were large piles of hay and bins with horse feed under the horse equipment. She looked around for Luke and saw him leading a large black horse out of a stall. It was huge. She hoped it was not the one he intended for her to ride. She would prefer to learn to ride on a much smaller horse.
“We can start the lesson as soon as I get Black saddled,” Luke informed her after he greeted her.
“Is this horse the one I am to ride?” Katrina questioned, trying to keep her voice from shaking.
“Nah,” Luke looked directly at her for probably the first time since she had arrived on the ranch. Katrina could swear he knew her thoughts when he looked at her and she was not sure how she felt about that.
“I am the only one who rides Black. He’s a one-man horse. You get to ride Stormy. She’s outside, already saddled.”
Katrina just nodded and watched as Luke led the horse to the wall where the saddles were kept. He quickly and expertly saddled the large animal and then led the horse out of the barn to stand next to a much smaller horse. Katrina sighed with relief at her size. She felt she would be able to handle this one just fine.
