Grooms with Honor Series, Books 4-6

by Linda K. Hubalek

  It was nice to see this auctioneer wasn’t on Hardesty’s illegal payroll.

  “Buyer forty-two. Do you want to buy this mare at the last bid?”

  “No, sir,” Seth clearly stated as he watched Hardesty’s face turn red before he pushed his way back through the crowd. The auctioneer pointed to one of his helpers to follow Hardesty out, hopefully, clear out of the stockyards.

  “Okay, let’s start the bidding on this mare again at twenty-five dollars.”

  After a few seconds, Seth raised his card again. Even though the auctioneer would be losing a commission on this sale, he tipped his hat to Seth, knowing Seth was a true horseman and would give this mare a loving home.

  “Sold to buyer forty-two at twenty-five dollars. Next horse is a….”

  Seth turned to Lily, ignoring the auctioneer now. “Mrs. Reagan, you now own your own horse.”

  “You bought her for the Straight Arrow, didn’t you?”

  “No, this is your wedding present from me, to you.”

  “Really? No! Really? I have my very own horse?” Lily was bouncing on her heels with excitement, apparently not worried about her ribs.

  “Yes, she’s your horse,” Seth felt pleasure in seeing the pure joy on Lily’s face.

  “Thank you! Thank you! I’ve never…” she stopped talking and wrapped her arms around his middle, mindless of the crowd around them.

  “You’ll have to think of a name for her.” Seth lowered his head to look at Lily, but she turned her head to keep from showing her eyes were tearing up. “Lily, something wrong?”

  “I’m so overwhelmed with your kindness,” she whispered softly. “Thank you so much, Seth.”

  “You’re welcome, Lily. Your horse has to stay in the pen with the others for now, so shall we go over and give her the good news that she’s moving to Kansas with you?”

  “Yes, but let’s hurry,” Lily grabbed his hand and pulled him toward the pen to meet her new horse. “The auctioneer is almost finished with this aisle of pens, so we need to move over to the stallions you were looking to buy. They’re in the next row of pens which will be sold.”

  Seth let his wife pull him over to talk to her new horse. His wife. He was starting to like that word.

  Over the next two hours, Seth bought four Morgan stallions and another mare. He was pleased with the new horses which would improve the bloodlines of the current herd. Lily stayed by his side, giving her opinion about the horses he was considering. She really did have a good eye for their body structure and their temperament.

  They argued about one stallion. Seth liked its look, but Lily firmly stated she didn’t like the stallion’s attitude. Seth bid on the stud anyway, but the price went too high, which turned out to be lucky. The stallion threw a fit while walking back down the aisle to his pen, and spectators were climbing over the pen fences to get away from the maniac. Three men on foot were injured by the horse before two other men on horseback roped and got the bad-tempered horse into a pen by itself.

  When Lily pointed out the fourth stallion to bid on, he did, getting it at a low price because Lily saw something in the horse the other buyers didn’t.

  By the end of the day, their horses were penned near each other and ready to load on the rail car first thing in the morning.

  It unnerved Seth knowing Hardesty knew where they were, so he was on constant lookout for Hardesty and his men. Seth prayed they’d get out of town without another incident due to the obsessed man.

  Snow was falling when they trudged back to the hotel. Both were tired, but Lily stayed warm with the long johns, wool socks, and boots they bought before going to the auction.

  He came to Chicago with one carpet bag and was leaving with two carpet bags, a large bag of purchases which didn’t fit in the two bags, seven horses, and one short-term wife. Seth was going to be the talk of Clear Creek when he returned home.

  They ate supper downstairs, Lily took a bath to warm up, everything possible was packed to leave early in the morning…and now it was time to go to bed. Seth was bone tired from the week, plus he hadn’t gotten much sleep lying on the floor thinking about the woman sleeping in the bed a few feet away.

  What to do…sleep on the hard floor again, or sleep in a comfortable bed with his wife?

  He knew Lily was lying in bed watching his weary mind battling his tired body. The room light was out, but he’d stood by the bed long enough their eyes had adjusted to the dim light coming in through the window. He shouldn’t be in bed with her if their marriage were going to be annulled, but, dang, he needed sleep before the next three days of travel.

  “Seth, we are both tired, and both need a good night’s sleep. Just get in the bed and go to sleep!”

  Well, …it is the logical thing to do.

  Seth took the pillow off the floor and placed it on “his” side of the bed. He lay on top of the quilt, next to Lily who lay under the quilt, covering himself with the blanket he had used on the floor. It was so different to see her at this angle in the dim light of the room. She reached to brush his hair away from his forehead, then her fingers trailed down to touch his lips. “Good night, Seth. Thank you for my horse and the wonderful day together.” She leaned closer to give him a soft kiss on his lips, then rolled away from him.

  Seth stared at Lily’s back. He’d brushed and braided her hair again tonight, and the ribbon-tied tip of her braid had flipped to lie on his pillow. He put his hand on it to connect to Lily. Why did he want to pull Lily against himself and sleep with his arms wrapped around her?

  Am I falling in love with my wife?

  Chapter 10

  The horses’ breaths clouded the air as the morning dawned very cold and crisp. Seth checked the car to be sure the water troughs worked, and the hay boxes were filled in each stall. The horses would be in this car for three days. This livestock train would travel straight through to the Kansas City Stockyards, only stopping for water and coal when the train engines needed it.

  He’d gotten the first stallion up the ramp into the car and locked securely in his stall without any problems. Lily handed Seth the second stallion’s halter rope to load him next. She wished it was later in the morning so the horses could see where they were headed instead of walking into a dark car, but they needed to get the horses loaded to be ready when the train pulled out. Yesterday, and again this morning, they’d watched the horses to determine who got along, and who didn’t, so Seth knew which horses to put beside each other in the stalls.

  The loud noises of several cars being loaded at once, horses neighing, and people yelling was making one of the stallions still in the pen nervous. Lily walked over to it, softly singing a Swedish lullaby she used to sing when she worked with the horses at the manor farm. The horse’s ears perked forward listening to Lily’s soft voice. When he settled down, she rubbed his neck and untied his halter rope which had been tied to the fence.

  A few minutes later Seth walked down the ramp. “Okay, I’m ready for the next horse.”

  As soon as Seth reached for the rope though, the stallion jerked his head, his ears back, and sounded a warning grunt. Seth tried again, and the horse backed up more, pulling against the rope Lily was holding firmly in her right hand.

  “Seth, let me load him. He’s all right with me.”

  “No, Lily, he’s acting up and could hurt you.”

  “He was fine until you tried to take him. Stand back so we can get past you. Get the next one ready to load.” She was serious and hoped Seth would do as she asked because she knew how to load horses.

  Seth reached again, and the stallion reared, so Lily had to let go of part of the rope and stand out of the way. Instead of wrapping the rope around her hand she’d been taught to fold the rope accordion style, so if necessary, she could let go of most of the rope but still have a hold on the knotted end.

  Lily patiently calmed the horse while folding the rope again, then she turned to Seth. “Move out of our way, please.”

  He shook his head but mo
ved far enough away to be out of the animal’s stress zone. Lily talked Swedish to the horse as she led him out of the pen and quietly up the ramp. She locked the gate before walking back down the ramp.

  “Check to see if the stall gate is secure while I bring the next horse up to you,” Lily suggested.

  She saw Seth blow out a crisp frozen breath, but he nodded indicating he’d do as she asked.

  Working in tandem, Lily brought the horses up the ramp, then Seth locked them in their individual stalls. The four stallions were on one end, the three mares on the other with a spare stall left in the middle. Lily brought her horse up last so she would be next to the empty stall. They would check on the horses during the train’s stops, and Lily wanted to talk and pet her mare whenever she got the chance.

  Seth made sure the railcar door was secure, then picked up their luggage, two carpet bags in one hand, and the extra in his other hand, while Lily picked up her reticule and hat box.

  “Thank you for your help. You know how to handle horses, don’t you?” Seth asked, probably waiting for her to tell him why she was so good with them.

  “You’re welcome. Thank you for trusting me with them, too. It means a lot to me.” Lily smiled up at Seth, but she wasn’t going to say anything else at this moment.

  Seth nodded at her acceptance of his thanks. “Time to board the passenger car, but it shouldn’t be full since it’s traveling with the livestock train. The passengers will be mostly buyers and livestock handlers. I doubt you’ll have many women to visit with if any,” Seth told her as they walked side by side.

  “What a change. After working in a factory with all women, now I’ve been around mostly men since I arrived in Chicago,” Lily laughed and shook her head. “And except for you, I haven’t met a man I liked either.”

  ***

  The passenger car wasn’t a third full, so people had room to spread out. People slept, played cards, or read a book or newspaper. The main conversations between passengers were about the Union Stockyards, the livestock show many attended, or the cattle or horses they bought and were transporting home. Two men asked Seth about his ranch and said they’d like to stop by sometime to see his stock.

  There were two older wives with their husbands on this leg to Kansas City, giving Lily someone else to talk to besides him. Seth enjoyed hearing Lily’s laughter and occasional giggles when the three put their heads together. She’d quickly make friends in Clear Creek—or wherever she ended up living. Although they’d known each other less than a week, he’d started to assume she’d be in his life forever.

  Now they sat together watching the scenery roll by as dusk began to take over the sky. They were going through Missouri now and would be pulling into Kansas City Stockyards tomorrow morning. This would be their second night of sleeping on these bench seats.

  When they arrived in Kansas City, Seth hoped to get the horse car switched onto the next train heading to Denver tomorrow. It might be the next day, though, before it could happen.

  He wouldn’t be surprised if they had to transfer the horses to another car, but that would be all right because the horses could use the exercise and fresh air. If the horses ended up staying in the car another day, he’d be sure the stalls were cleaned out and new straw provided. And if they needed to spend the night, he’d find a hotel nearby for him and Lily. Seth was ready to get home to his own bed.

  But then he looked over at Lily. When did she leave Boston? Seth guessed she missed her bed every night since then and was looking forward to a new permanent place to sleep.

  Seth and Lily talked about a variety of subjects the past two days, but she still hadn’t talked about her life in Sweden. She’d slipped once saying something about being forced to come to America, as though she didn’t have a choice?

  Lily’s knowledge of horses astounded him. Not only did she know how to handle strong stallions, but her choice of words also showed she was very familiar with breeding and showing of pedigreed stock. She did more than chores at that manor farm. Why didn’t she tell him?

  Maybe he needed to ask her point blank.

  “Lily, we’ll be pulling into Clear Creek the next day or two. People you’ll meet—be it my family, every Swede in town, or the storekeepers—will ask you all kinds of questions. A few will be downright nosy, but the majority will want to welcome you and get to know you better.”

  She looked at him, then down at her hands in her lap. She knew what he was asking, and it was making her nervous. He could tell because she was rubbing her right thumb and forefinger together. Seth was learning her mannerisms, as she was probably learning his, too.

  “Hopefully, by now you know I’m trustworthy, and I won’t think badly of you for anything you’ve done in the past. Could you please share with me about your life in Sweden?”

  Lily turned to look out the window as if she didn’t hear his question.

  “If there is anything you want to keep private—between us only—I promise I won’t tell another soul unless I need to tell it for your safety.”

  She continued to stare at the horizon another long moment, then looked around at the people sitting around the car. Finally, she nodded her head and glanced at Seth.

  “My life in Sweden might have been typical for the social classes in Sweden. My parents were sharecroppers for a landlord, who…was not always fair in his dealings. Sweden had a bad drought in the late 60s, problems with the church, the government…

  “When people heard about the free land in America after the Civil War they left Sweden en mass. Families were in church one Sunday and the next Sunday they weren’t. The majority leaving were single young people because there were no jobs to be had, or their family farm had been divided so many times it couldn’t support another family.”

  Lily stopped and stared out the window again. Seth knew everything Lily told him because it was common knowledge. The reasons she mentioned were why there was a significant Swedish population in central Kansas.

  “Moder had three children before me, but only one brother survived. After Johan served his time in the military, he took off to the nearest harbor and signed on to work on a ship. I’m not sure if he’s still in contact with my parents.

  “After I was born, my moder had my sisters, Stina, Abela, and Nadia. There are about two years of age between us.

  “Fader continued to have problems growing his share of crops to give to the landowner or to sell to pay taxes, let alone feed his growing family. So, as payment one year, I moved to the manor farm to help with the landowner’s younger children, along with doing chores.”

  “You were young to be taking care of younger children.”

  “By age ten, a peasant’s daughter can do about anything an adult can do except where strength is needed.”

  “Was the farm close enough so you could live at home, or did you move into the manor house?”

  “I slept in the barn, Seth. And as you probably guessed, I never had enough to eat.”

  Seth moved his arm to wrap it around her shoulders and gave her a squeeze. “But you have enough food now, and your lovely face is filling out to make you even prettier than you were when I met you. Please continue your story.”

  “As the children grew older and didn’t need me as much, I spent more time with the horses. Their breeding stock was exceptional and sold well to other big farms. Local farmers couldn’t afford them.

  “I spent a great deal of time with the eldest son, Mans, as he exercised the horses and I took care of their stalls and grooming. We…became close friends.”

  “How old were you when you fell in love with him?”

  Lily sharply turned to look at Seth. He’d guessed right.

  “Probably when I was fifteen, and he was eighteen. But it was five years later before he started paying attention to me. For two years we met daily in the barns, never out in public of course, and planned our future. In another year Mans would receive a considerable sum of money as part of his inheritance.”

  Set
h slowly rubbed circles on the top of her shoulder, showing he was there for her, whenever she wanted to finish her story.

  “When Mans announced in the church that we planned to marry, Mans’ father…he…told me he would give my parents the land they farmed—and forgive all their debts to him—if I’d move to America instead of marrying Mans.”

  He knew Lily made her decision to protect her family. “Why didn’t Mans stand up to his father?”

  “His father said Mans would be disowned, and he’d be as poor as me. Mans decided I’d go to America, then my parents could own their land. Mans would follow me to America a year later after he got his inheritance.”

  “What happened to Mans since you aren’t with him now?” Seth sadly assumed he had died, either in Sweden or shortly after getting to America.

  “After I arrived in Boston, I mailed a letter to my sister to pass on to Mans. Mans mailed back to me…um, professing his love, promising he’d follow me to Boston in a year. Rather than travel to Illinois where several of my shipmates were headed for housemaid jobs, I stayed in the area to meet his ship.

  “Mans wrote two more times, but then nothing else. I wasn’t getting any letters from my family either, so I was anxious about what might have happened in our village. Had there been a serious outbreak of a disease, a fire? Why wasn’t I getting any letters from my loved ones?”

  Lily opened her reticule, pulled out her handkerchief and blew her nose in it.

  “I wrote to a friend asking what was going on since I wasn’t hearing from anyone. Six weeks later I heard back from her that Mans had married my sister, Stina.”

  Seth was floored. After all, Lily had done for her family, this happened?

  “Are you sure she was telling the truth?”

  “About six months ago my sister finally sent me a letter and a studio portrait of her and Mans in their wedding clothes. Before I left for Chicago, I got a letter from a friend, saying Stina had a baby boy now.”