He smiled softly. “Then this God of yours has great wisdom and great powers.”
“He’s the same God as your Wakan Tanka, I’m sure,” she answered, snuggling against him. They lay there quietly before she spoke again. “Gabe, I’ve never let…I mean, no man has ever…done to me what you just did. I…I never felt like that.”
“It pleased you?”
She felt herself blushing. “It pleased me greatly.”
“There are many ways to enjoy each other.”
The thought that he might have learned some of those things lying with whores when he rode with outlaws brought forth a fierce jealousy, and she reached around his neck, kissing him vigorously. “I want to know all the ways,” she said, kissing at his neck then. “I want to please you as much as you please me.”
He laughed lightly and sat up. “First we will wash. Then I will teach you more.” He poured some water left heating over the fire into a bowl and added some cooler water to temper it. He made her lie still and washed her himself, the mere act of allowing him to do so bringing on more heated desire for Faith. She decided this was going to be the most glorious night of her life. Although she’d already been married once and had a baby, Gabe made her feel so special, almost as though this were her first time.
A wolf howled somewhere in the surrounding hills, but she was not afraid. Gabe Beaumont was as much a part of this wild land as those wolves, and God meant for this night to be one of wondrous love and ecstasy. The wolves would not bother them tonight.
Chapter Twenty-four
August 1868…
Faith felt elated, little realizing until now just how far removed from civilization and social amenities she had been for much too long. Cheyenne was wild and dusty, but it bustled with excitement, a growing city with people from every walk of life crowding its boardwalks, horses, buggies, and wagons clattering up and down the streets. The ever-present Wyoming wind chased the dust everywhere, bringing with it the odor of horse dung and smells from cattle pens outside of town, but those were smells to which she had become accustomed long ago. She enjoyed the movement, the people, the many shops. The Union Pacific now reached Cheyenne, and it was obvious the town was experiencing a sudden burst of growth because of it. That meant that someday Sommers Station just might grow as big. Work on the railroad loop to be built into Sommers Station was already in progress.
Buck had already decided to quit Wells Fargo and had come to Sommers Station to stay—a grand population now of four! Because Buck could watch things, including little Johnny, Faith and Gabe had their chance to come to Cheyenne, and right now she felt like crying with joy as she sampled gold wedding bands. Gabe had promised her a ring, and now he was making good on that promise. The man who ran this jewelry store and clock shop didn’t seem too pleased selling a wedding ring to an Indian man who had married a white woman, but his displeasure showed only in his eyes. He said nothing, only nervously showed both of them a variety of bands, extolling the wonderful value of each one.
Faith finally decided on a plain gold band that was not the cheapest, but certainly not the most expensive. “We have to be careful with our money, Gabe. We have so much building to do now, things to do to get ready for the railroad.” Already crew leaders and more railroad executives had begun stopping at the depot for a good meal and to scope out the area. Her dream of a real town was becoming a reality, and much as she hated to admit it, Tod Harding was greatly responsible for that.
To her relief, during all these last few weeks that tracks had been laid through the area south of Sommers Station, the hellish settlement of prostitution and gambling that followed the railroad crews had stayed a mile southwest of construction, which kept it over two miles from Sommers Station. Buck had been there, and his description of the decadence that went on there gave Faith the chills. Soon the “dens of iniquity” would move even farther west as the railroad progressed several miles a day. Gabe had joked about going to see for himself what went on in what some railroaders called Hellsville, but Faith knew he would not really go. He had led such a life once, but only for a short, unhappy time. He was happy now; both of them were happier than at any time in their lives.
Gabe slipped the ring she had chosen onto her finger. “I want you to be happy with whatever you choose.”
She studied his eyes lovingly. “I am happy with the husband I chose. The ring is only a symbol of my love for you.”
They kissed lightly and Gabe paid for the ring, then picked up Johnny, who had been standing at a grandfather clock, watching the pendulum swing back and forth, “Let’s go, son. We have more shopping to do.” He held the boy in one arm and put the other around Faith. They walked out and headed for the land office, only to be stopped by none other than Tod Harding, who had a man with him who wore a badge.
“Well, Mrs. Sommers!” Harding spoke up, putting on a smile Faith could tell he thought was charming.
“It is Mrs. Beaumont now, Mr. Harding.”
His eyebrows shot up in surprise, and there was no mistaking the anger and jealousy in his eyes. “Oh? So you did find a preacher willing to marry a white woman to a half-breed.”
Faith bristled, and she could feel Gabe’s anger rising. “We found a preacher who believes in the Christian principle of loving all men the same, Mr. Harding. If you will excuse us now, I am going to the land office to put my claim on that railroad land you told me about, as well as even more land under the Homestead Act.”
The man glanced at the jewelry store from which they had just emerged. “Buying a wedding ring, I presume?” He glanced at her hand, and the man with him stood with his legs apart in a threatening stance.
“My personal life is none of your business, Mr. Harding,” Faith told him, irritated at the way he had of intruding when she still hardly knew him.
“I suppose not. I must say, though, that you are much too beautiful for such a plain gold band. You deserve much better.”
“What the hell do you want, other than to try to insult me, Harding?” Gabe spoke up, handing Johnny to Faith.
Harding shrugged. “Just to say hello and let you both know I’ll be staying in Cheyenne for a while, opening two new stores for my father, keeping an eye on the progress of the railroad.”
“Good for you,” Gabe answered with obvious sarcasm. He took Faith’s arm to urge her off the boardwalk so they could walk around the two men, but the one wearing a badge grabbed Gabe’s arm.
“I’m Sheriff Joe Keller,” he told Gabe.
“Get your hand off me,” Gabe warned him. He towered over the slender man.
“Gabe, keep your temper,” Faith warned. She knew how he felt about this kind of white man, who looked at him with such derision.
Keller let go, but he took a deep breath and raised his chin as though to pretend he was not afraid. “Just thought I’d warn you most folks in this town are not too fond of anyone with Sioux blood. A lot of people around here have had some bad experiences, and they’ve got no tolerance for breeds who go around pretendin’ they’re civilized white men when in fact they’re nothin’ more than murderin’ savages.”
Gabe leaned closer. “Maybe I should accommodate your suspicions by slicing off your scalp, but I really couldn’t do that in front of my wife and son, now, could I?”
“What is this?” Faith demanded, glaring at Harding. “You are deliberately trying to start trouble! Why? What has either one of us ever done to you?”
Harding put up his hands defensively. “My deepest apologies to both of you. I just happened to be walking with Sheriff Keller here when the two of you came out of the store.” He looked at Keller chidingly. “Joe, you really ought to apologize for insulting Mr. Beaumont.”
Keller looked at Harding angrily. “I don’t make apologies to renegades.” He looked back at Gabe. “And that’s exactly what I think you are, Beaumont. My job is to keep the peace in this town, and men like you have a way of causin’ trouble. I’m just warnin’ you to mind your business and stay out of town
as much as possible.”
Gabe fought a need to hit the man. “I will mind my business, Sheriff. You just be sure to do the same.”
The two men eyed each other a moment longer before Keller finally tipped his hat to Faith and walked around them.
“I truly am sorry for that man’s behavior,” Harding told them.
“And what about your own?” Faith asked.
“Oh, well, it was just the jealous man talking,” he said, putting on a smile again. He’d hoped Faith had changed her mind about marrying, but now he supposed he would have to go through with his more recent idea—a way to get rid of Gabe Beaumont and leave Faith alone and vulnerable again.
“I must admit that I had an eye for you, ma’am. I have a great appreciation for your endurance and determination.” He looked at Gabe. “You can’t blame a man for admiring such a lovely and brave woman. I’m sure that is part of the reason you love her.”
Gabe forced back an urge to land a fist in the man’s face. “The reason a man marries shouldn’t be another man’s concern.”
“Oh, I agree, but you have to understand that when I met Faith a year ago, I had every intention of getting to know her better as soon as the railroad reached Sommers Station. I never expected to come there a few weeks ago and find her ready to marry someone else. I ask your forgiveness for allowing my own envy make me insult you. I truly am sorry.” He put out his hand. “Congratulations, Mr. Beaumont, on marrying the best woman this end of the Union Pacific.” He flashed his most charming smile again.
Gabe did not shake his hand.
Harding’s smile faded, and he dropped his hand. “By the way, Beaumont, whom did you scout for in the army?”
Gabe felt a new alarm. “How do you know I scouted for the army?”
“Oh, I have my sources.”
Gabe thought about the soldier who had shown up at the station several weeks ago the same time Harding had—remembered the way the soldier had stared at him. “It makes no difference now,” he told Harding. “That is long past and should be of no interest to you.”
“Tall Bear, right? Were you called Tall Bear?”
Gabe did not reply. He took Faith’s arm and led her past Harding, walking with such a determined pace that Faith practically tripped over her skirts to keep up. “Bastard!” Gabe mumbled.
“Gabe, there will always be men like Tod Harding to deal with. Once we’re home, it won’t matter. And we’ll run Sommers Station however we want. There won’t be men like Harding and Keller to answer to. I’m just sorry about their insults.”
“You do not need to be apologizing. Never do it again. I know men like that very well, and they are beneath you!”
“And you!” Faith stopped walking and faced him. “I love you, Gabe. Let’s go put our claim on that railroad land and then some. We’ll get our supplies and go home.” She grasped his hand. “Home. That’s what we have now, together. Men like Tod Harding can’t take that from us. You’ve got to get used to men like that if you’re going to be Gabriel Beaumont and not Tall Bear.”
Gabe took a deep breath to control his anger. “I would like to show both of them how a true warrior defends his honor!”
Faith shivered at the thought of just how wild and fierce her husband could be, and yet she felt only pride. “I know it’s hard, Gabe. But the way you handled yourself just now—you’ve proved you’re no savage who will kill at the drop of a hat. They tried to rile you, but you held your own. Please try to put it out of your mind.”
Gabe glanced to where the men had been standing. Keller was gone, but Harding was leaning against a storefront watching them. “I do not trust that man. Why did he ask me about scouting for the army?”
“There is nothing he can do to us. We’re legally married, and soon we’ll lay legal claim to Sommers Station. Your days as an Indian are long behind you, and why would someone like Harding possibly care about your Indian side? He’s just trying to upset you, to remind you you’re part Indian and try to make you feel the lesser man for it.”
“White men like him—those with money—have much power.”
“Nothing is as powerful as our love for each other.”
He met her eyes, his own bright with anger and determination. “I will not let anything or anyone take you from me.”
She squeezed his hand. “If you believe in my love for you, you will know there is nothing and no one who could possibly come between us.”
He sighed in resignation, taking Johnny back from her. “Your mother is not a woman to argue with, Johnny. You remember that.”
He began walking again, and Faith followed beside him, feeling uneasy about Harding’s insults and Keller’s threats. They did not frighten her. They only angered her and made her more determined to realize her own dreams. Those dreams now included Gabe Beaumont, and they had damned well better understand that and not try to get in her way!
Johnny came running to Faith as she hung some clothes out to dry in the clear autumn air.
“Mommy! Mommy! Buck says Daddy’s coming!”
Faith finished pinning a shirt to the line, then turned and picked up her son. “Well, let’s go watch!” She could already hear the thundering hooves of the wild horses. Finding them and herding them to where he wanted them to go was as natural to a man like Gabe as breathing. He was shirtless because of the heat, and because he was a man who liked to feel the sun on his back. She could hear him yipping and shouting at the horses, the Indian in him coming alive when he rode free like that, the wind in his face.
He had decided that if Sommers Station was going to grow, he would be ready with his own means of income. He would catch and break wild horses, open a livery, sell and trade horses. Buck had suggested they could also sell saddles and bridle and all the other gear needed for horses.
Sommers Station was finally beginning to blossom. A blacksmith had answered one of Faith’s ads, and two more men had replied and would be coming soon to see about settling there. Already a carpenter had joined them. His name was Henry Baker, a middle-aged man who had come west to homestead but who had lost his entire family to cholera on the way. They had been too poor to travel by train or stagecoach, had taken covered wagon. After his family’s death Baker had wandered rather aimlessly, following the new railroad line until landing at Sommers Station, a heartbroken man with no idea what he was going to do with his life. Faith’s offer that he stay and help build her town had given him something to do, and after building a one-room cabin for himself and Buck, he was now building a home for Faith and Gabe. He was working as fast as possible, since winter would soon settle in the mountains.
Things looked bright. They had heard that the Sioux had signed a treaty with the government that everyone hoped would mean peace and no more danger of Indian attack. They’d had only one encounter with Indians since Gabe had come to stay, when a band of Sioux had decided to camp near the station. Because Gabe was so much a part of them, he had been able to converse with them and keep the peace, convincing them not to try to take any of his or the stage line’s horses when they finally headed to the new reservation farther northeast of the area.
Two weeks ago three men had ridden in bearing threatening looks and even more threatening weapons. Faith had had enough experience out there to know what they were after, but this time she had not had to barricade herself in the depot and try to shoot it out with them. One look at Gabe standing on the porch with a rifle in his hand had made them think twice. One had gone for his gun, and he now lay buried in the distance with Clete Brown and the other outlaws who had tried to make trouble at Sommers Station. The other two had left with no further argument, and Faith had no doubt that completion of the railroad and the growth of Sommers Station would end future Indian and outlaw troubles.
The railroad was still not finished, but already trains were coming as far west as the tracks allowed, some just bringing supplies to finish the building, others bringing more people to settle there. Already they often heard the echoing sound of a
train whistle as locomotives headed for the end of the track. The sound of the whistles carried over the land as though to signal the coming of a new era, and it was like music to Faith’s ears.
Soon many more people would come when the railroad was complete, men and women traveling beyond Cheyenne onward to California, with stops along the way, including Sommers Station. She and Gabe and Johnny had gone to watch some of the track crews once, and it was a sight to behold, crews working in rhythmic, determined steps—preparing the railroad bed, laying the ties and the iron rails, pounding in the spikes. It was amazing how fast they had come through; the tracks would meet by next spring, somewhere in Utah.
Faith’s own next project was to add on to the depot and enlarge it into a rooming house. Maybe after that she would build a restaurant. Then she would be well prepared for the first travelers who came to Sommers Station by train. Her claim to railroad land was filed and valid now. Once the railroad was finished, she would be able to buy the land for $2.50 an acre, which meant she would own most of Sommers Station. She had claimed another one hundred adjoining acres under the Homestead Act, sure Sommers Station would grow beyond the railroad land. Those extra acres would be very valuable someday. She could sell them as town lots.
“Daddy,” three-year-old Johnny said, pointing to the approaching herd, and to Gabe, who rode behind them, turning his Appaloosa first one way, then another, the animal obeying his every command as man and horse forced the wild herd to run toward a new corral Gabe and Buck had built for them.
Faith carried Johnny closer to watch Buck help force the horses into the corral. He shouted and whistled, waving his hat, chasing some strays back into the herd, while Gabe did the same from behind. It took several minutes to maneuver all sixteen horses through the gate, and Gabe let out a victorious war cry when the last horse was through and the gate closed. “Thanks, Buck!”
Tame the Wild Wind Page 29
