Her Prairie Knight

by Kit Morgan

  Except...

  She sighed. Men were wonderful creatures, really they were. But what Sadie wouldn’t give for some female companionship. She was so much younger than most of the farmer’s wives in the area, as well as what few women were in town. The few women close to her age were so busy with their husbands and children, they hadn’t much time for socializing with her. Of course she adored Grandma Waller, the doctor’s wife, but she was just that. A grandma. To everyone in town in fact, and it just wasn’t the same as having someone her own age to talk to. Especially about certain ... things. Things between a man and a woman for example. Things she was still trying to learn and just didn’t want to discuss with Grandma. For some things, she just wanted to talk to another girl.

  “What’s for supper, princess?”

  Sadie looked up as Harrison walked into the kitchen. She smiled and winked at him. “Something special.”

  He went to her and took her in his arms. “I have something special right here.” He kissed her then, gently. Slowly. The serving spoon in her hand slipped from her fingers and fell to the floor with a clatter.

  “I hope this doesn’t mean supper will be late again.” Colin commented as he entered the kitchen.

  Harrison broke the kiss and glared at him. “No, but you can fetch your own dessert.”

  “Tsk, tsk, break the kiss and look at how you .... hmmm ... can’t quite think of a rhyme for that.”

  Sadie laughed. “Do you always try to make up a rhyme for everything?”

  “No,” Colin began. “Not everything. Only when it amuses me or irritates my brothers.”

  “He used to do it all the time as a child. It drove Duncan positively mad.”

  “Oh I wouldn’t say that. He rather enjoyed them while we were unduly incarcerated. They did, after all, help to pass the time.”

  Duncan entered the kitchen and grimaced at Colin’s calm recollection. “They had you flogged.”

  Sadie gasped.

  Duncan waved a dismissive hand in the air. “Just a few strokes. One for each rhyme. Seemed several of the guards didn’t care for Colin’s poetic rendition of them. Especially when he recited his prose to our fellow prisoners.”

  “I merely sought to entertain.”

  Duncan put a hand on his shoulder. “Let us hope you never recite to such an audience again, dear brother.”

  “As I was not asked to return I think it safe to say it was a limited engagement.”

  “Like a bad opera in London?” Harrison tossed in.

  Duncan and Colin exchanged a quick look. “Something like that.” Colin said.

  The two brothers didn’t speak much of their time spent in prison. Falsely accused of cattle rustling, they had been locked away for almost two years. They were newly released and had only been back a little over a month. But in that time they endeared themselves to Sadie and her father. Horatio Jones was a good judge of character and had taken all three brothers under wing.

  “Supper is ready if you would help get these things to the table.” Sadie said as she removed biscuits from the oven. The three men went to work and carried food into the dining room. The ranch house had a dining room, sitting room, parlor and kitchen. There was also a small office off the sitting room. Upstairs were four bedrooms. It was the biggest house in the area and the town folk had helped immensely with its construction. The raising of the new barn last month was the talk of the town and Sadie felt Clear Creek had truly become her new home after the event. She now knew almost everyone in the area by name.

  “The Dunnigans have a house guest.” Colin calmly informed them after the blessing.

  Duncan dished himself up some mashed potatoes. “Someone is visiting the Dunnigans on purpose?”

  “Stop. Even Mrs. Dunnigan must have some relatives and friends.” Sadie scolded.

  “It’s a young lady,” Colin began. “I’d say about your age, Sadie.”

  Sadie’s head snapped up. The action caught all three men’s attention. She looked at each one and shrugged. “How nice. Is she staying long?”

  “I really couldn’t say. I didn’t have a chance to ask. I needed to get to the corral and help with the sale. Perhaps you should call on the Dunnigans tomorrow and introduce yourself.”

  Sadie did her best to suppress her excitement at the mention of another woman in town. “Maybe I’ll do that. If I have the time of course.”

  Colin took a couple pieces of fried chicken then passed the platter to Duncan. “Oh but you must go pay the woman a visit. She might feel rather out of place with no other young ladies to talk to.”

  Sadie noted the hopeful gleam in his eye. Hmmm. “Perhaps I shall. In fact, it would be nice if you drove me into town, Colin. I need to pick up a few things and I’m still not quite used to driving the wagon by myself.”

  “Why, I can’t think of anything I’d like to do more.”

  “I could drive you.” Harrison offered.

  Colin almost dropped his chicken leg. Sadie watched as his neck began to turn pink. Ah ha! He already had an eye for the girl. “Oh I think Colin should drive me. I’m sure he’d love to help get what I need from the mercantile”

  Colin took a generous bite of chicken and gave a casual nod.

  “She must be pretty.” Duncan stated.

  Colin stopped his chewing and eyed his brother.

  “I thought so. Otherwise you’d not be so eager to put yourself in harm’s way.”

  Sadie looked from Colin to Duncan. “What is that supposed to mean?”

  “It means Colin usually avoids any possibility of doing battle with Mrs. Dunnigan. But he doesn’t seem to mind taking you to the mercantile tomorrow.”

  Colin swallowed, hard. “I’ve simply come to the conclusion that Mrs. Dunnigan and I should start out on the right foot as they say. Let bygones be bygones.”

  Sadie raised a curious brow. “Do I want to hear this?”

  “Oh yes! You must hear this!” Harrison laughed.

  The pink crept up Colin’s neck to his face. Even his ears had turned a glaring shade of red. Harrison took in the sight and laughed again. “Shall you tell her or shall I?”

  Colin tossed his chicken onto his plate. He wiped his mouth with his napkin, sighed, and looked Sadie in the eye. “You might as well know I am the most disreputable scoundrel you could ever meet.”

  “What?” She asked as her brow rose in confusion.

  “Shall I list off my crimes and vices? Robbery, kidnapping, forgery, ah let me think...” he paused, his face contorted slightly as he feigned concentration.

  “Liar of the worst possible sort,” Duncan added between mouthfuls.

  “Ah yes, we mustn’t forget that.” Colin agreed. “Oh, and a vandal. There, I think that about covers it, don’t you?”

  Harrison and Duncan nodded enthusiastically.

  Sadie could only stare. “And who may I ask were your victims?”

  “Only one. Mrs. Dunnigan.”

  A smile curved Sadie’s mouth. “So am I to understand you robbed, kidnapped, forged, lied to and vandalized Mrs. Dunnigan?”

  “Absolutely, though not in that particular order.” Colin agreed and reached for his chicken.

  Sadie sat back in her chair. “Oh, do tell. I can’t wait to hear it.”

  Duncan and Harrison began to laugh. Colin ignored them and waved his chicken about as he talked. “Let me see, this all took place shortly after we settled here. There were few families. Doc and Grandma, the Dunnigans, Mulligans, Whites, Figs, Browns and Turners. I think after our arrival it brought the population up to twenty!”

  “Just tell me what happened.”

  Colin chuckled. “I broke the same window in the back of the mercantile at least three times. Duncan and I used to raise a ruckus and toss stones behind the building when we came to town with our parents. But that pales in comparison to the kidnapping.”

  Sadie listened and laughed as they each took turns and gave their own rendition of Colin’s antics. The horrid kidnapping incident
was nothing more than Colin taking Mrs. Dunnigan’s cat to help Mrs. Mulligan catch a rat in the saloon. His robbery consisted of knocking over a container of candy in the mercantile after which Mrs. Dunnigan accused Colin of stealing several pieces, when in reality she miscounted the candy while cleaning up the mess. (She never did own up to that one). Then there was the time he wrote Mrs. Dunnigan’s name on a receipt he found on the counter. It was nothing short of forgery in her eyes when in reality he was terribly bored waiting for his mother to pick out cloth for a new dress. And of course after the previous incidents, Mrs. Dunnigan saw fit to blame Colin for anything that went wrong, even if someone else did it.

  “So as you can see, Mrs. Dunnigan and I go way back, and have a long history of... encounters.”

  “Well, that certainly explains a lot. I wonder how happy she would be to know you’d like to meet her guest.”

  “Who ever said I wanted to meet her guest? I’m far too busy.”

  “Not so busy you can’t volunteer to take Sadie to town tomorrow!” Harrison laughed.

  “You take her then. I’ve got plenty of work to do around here.”

  “And deprive Mrs. Dunnigan of yet another encounter with you? Oh I think not.” Harrison teased.

  “Well, it doesn’t matter to me. But do inform me of your plans before I retire so I know when to make myself available.”

  “Make yourself presentable you mean.” Duncan mumbled between mouthfuls.

  Sadie laughed at the three men. She had indeed married into a happy family. One would never know Duncan and Colin had just come home from prison nor that Harrison handled the farm and the death of their mother after Jefferson Cooke took to drinking. Speaking of which. “Shall I take a plate up to your step father?”

  The three men sobered. Duncan set down his fork. “I’ll do it. He needs to learn to come eat with us. Not stay hidden away in that cabin all day and night.”

  “I’ll fix him a dinner plate along with some dessert.”

  “Dessert?” Duncan’s eyes lit up at the word. He had the worst sweet tooth of the three. “What’s for dessert?”

  “Chocolate cake. I made it early this morning.”

  The brothers glanced at one another. Harrison looked at his wife in shock. “How did you manage to bake a chocolate cake and none of us discover it? You know it’s our favorite!”

  “I have my secrets, gentlemen.”

  They laughed. To them the statement was a challenge to ferret out any secrets she may have. The meal over, Duncan, Harrison, and Colin got up from the table and glanced to the front door each with the same thought in mind. None of which had to do with chocolate cake.

  They stepped out onto the front porch, as was their new habit after dinner, while Sadie prepared the dinner plate. Each man eventually looked to the small cabin that now housed Jefferson Cooke. The old ranch house was hardly fit to be lived in any more so they’d torn it down. But Jefferson refused to live in the main ranch house with the rest of them which of course often made the Cooke brothers wonder. What secrets did their stepfather have that would make him hide away in his new little cabin for weeks on end? Perhaps it was time to find out.

  * * *

  Jefferson Cooke poured himself another drink. He held the whiskey bottle over the glass until the last of his precious elixir trickled down and plopped drop by drop into it. He stared at the empty bottle in his hand, still upside down, and pondered how he was going to obtain another. This was his last.

  “Just my luck,” he grumbled. Actually, Jefferson could use a bit of luck. He hadn’t had any in quite awhile and wondered which would be easier to get his hands on. In his case, it would undoubtedly be the whiskey. Because in short, Jefferson’s luck ran out the day Honoria died. He’d been drunk ever since.

  He threw the bottle into the stone fireplace and watched it shatter. No luck, no whiskey, and no way to get any of either. At least not until morning. And that meant he’d have to go to town. It had been a long time since he’d been to Clear Creek. Nearly a year if he really thought on it. But it took too much effort to think so he fell into his chair by the fireplace instead.

  He stared at the shards of glass amidst the ashes from the morning fire. He liked the early morning, even when he had a splitting headache from the night before. Honoria had liked the early morning too. There were a lot of things she liked. Sunflowers, afternoon tea. A habit he could never get into. He was often out working. But Honoria liked to stop her work for a few brief moments and have a cup. When she could get it that is. It didn’t take long to run out and it took plenty long to get more. Wilfred would have to order it from Oregon City and it could take months for it to get to Clear Creek. But when it did, Honoria was in Heaven. Soon Mrs. Dunnigan started stocking it.

  Jefferson closed his eyes a moment and snarled. He then looked at the drink in his hand. Being it was his last he wasn’t ready to see it go quite yet. It was his version of tea. Only he had taken to having his tea through out the day and into the night. Except now it was gone. But thankfully, unlike Honoria, he wouldn’t have to wait months to get more. Come morning he’d have to ask Sadie if she was going to town and could she get him a bottle. Or maybe he could send one of the boys.

  The boys. His lower lip quivered. Those three weren’t his boys. They were Honoria’s. His boys, Jack and Sam, had been locked up. He’d been so drunk since the trial, he didn’t even know where they’d gone to serve out their sentence. But he’d find out. Oh you can bet he would. And he’d find a way to make those other boys pay for sending Jack and Sam away. They at least had looked after him. Made sure he had plenty of whiskey to help him cope with Honoria’s death. Worked the farm for him while that worthless whelp Harrison ran wild. Jack and Sam kept him well informed of his stepson’s misdeeds. He should have been sent to rot in prison with the other two but somehow managed to escape any blame. And now he done and got himself married to an heiress. An incredibly wealthy heiress. How was Jefferson going to compete with that? Everything he was, everything he had, his stepsons stole from him. His wife, his farm. Now his own flesh and blood.

  But he’d make them pay. He’d make them pay with everything they had. Including their lives.

  Jefferson smiled at the thought, and slugged back his drink.

  Three

  Four days.

  It had been four days since Colin saw his angel. Cattle ranching took up more time than he and his brothers had anticipated. Sadie had warned them of the work involved, but stubborn as they were, Colin, Duncan and Harrison had to find out for themselves.

  They found out rather quickly.

  “Do you think your father can spare a few of his cowhands until we hire some help?” Colin asked Sadie as they drove to town.

  “I can write him and ask but it might be faster to send someone if you think you need the help immediately.”

  “Sending someone would be quicker but we have no one to send.”

  “I don’t suppose I could volunteer for the job?”

  “Absolutely not! How can you even consider such a thing? Why, the suggestion alone would be enough to send Harrison into his cups! And he’s never had a drink in his life!”

  Sadie smiled. She knew how protective her husband was. In fact all three of the Cooke men were incredibly protective. The thought of riding across the prairie by herself was ludicrous. But the offer was genuine nonetheless. “It could take a couple of weeks to get in touch with papa and possibly another week before he sends someone. Can you hold out until then?”

  “We’ll certainly try. It means a lot of hard work but we’ll manage. If any of us had actual brains, present company excluded of course, we would have asked some of the drovers to stay on until we found other help.”

  Sadie hid a smile. “I’ll ask Papa to send Logan. He’s one of the Big J’s foremen and a good teacher. He can help out until you hire on more hands not to mention show you how to do a few things.”

  “I hate to admit defeat in this endeavor, but we do need help and a
good teacher would be most welcome in my book.”

  “Logan Kincaid is one of the best in the business. You’ll like him, I’m sure.”

  “I look forward to making his acquaint ...” Colin stopped in mid sentence and took in the sight before them.

  Men. Lots of men. In fact, it looked like every unmarried man within ten miles of Clear Creek was lined up outside Dunnigans to get supplies. Colin gripped the reins so hard his knuckles turned white.

  “Oh my! What are all these people doing here?” Sadie gasped.

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Colin asked through gritted teeth.

  Sadie looked to the men lined up. Then to Colin’s tight-lipped expression and suddenly remembered what it was like when she stayed with Doc and Grandma Waller. Men had come to be tended by Doc Waller for the smallest scrape or scratch. Grandma had sent more than a few off with a hard swat of her broom.

  “Oh my,” Sadie repeated rather flatly.

  “Indeed.”

  Colin guided the horses and wagon to the other side of the street. He set the brake, jumped off, and helped Sadie down. She grabbed her basket out of the wagon and they crossed the street to the mercantile. Or at least to the middle of the street where the line ended.

  “Is Mrs. Dunnigan giving something away?” Sadie asked innocently.

  “No ma’am!” Tommy Turner, the eldest son of Mabel and Frank Turner exclaimed with excitement.

  “Then why is everyone in town?” Colin asked as he took in the gangly youth’s eager expression.

  Tommy took off his hat and turned it in his hands. “Ah ... er ... well, it’s on account of Miss Dunnigan.”

  “Miss Dunnigan?” Colin repeated, feigning ignorance.