On the Wings of a Winter Heart (Miracle Express, #5)

by Rebecca Lovell

  “Thank you, Henry.”

  “I’ll be getting outside, then. The feed for the goats’ll be delivered soon and I want to get it inside before it starts raining.” This made Joy stand up straight.

  “Rain? It’s going to rain today?” She hurried to the door behind Henry and looked out. There were certainly clouds in the sky but they didn’t seem any darker than usual. “I’d better get out there and take care of the goats just in case it does.” Joy went inside and picked up the muffler she had tossed on the counter. She put it around her neck and went to the coat rack to bundle up for the weather.

  On her way out to the barn she thought about what Henry had said. She had always said she was thinking of Serenity when she refused to sell the land, but now it seemed like she was only thinking about herself. Maybe it wasn’t fair to keep Serenity out here, watching her home slowly disappear piece by piece. It couldn’t be good for her, just like her fear of rain wasn’t good for her. In wanting to protect her daughter, it seemed like she had been doing the opposite the whole time.

  Joy led one of the goats to the inside wall of the barn and sat on her milking stool. She pulled a bucket off the wall and set it underneath the nanny goat, then grabbed a teat in each hand. While she was milking, she thought about talking to Franklin again. It would be hard to admit she was wrong, almost as hard as giving up the land. If it was better for Serenity, though, she would have to swallow her pride and do it. She was so deep in thought that when she heard the knock on the barn door she nearly jumped out of her skin.

  “Mrs. Everly?” Franklin stood just outside the door, poking his head into the barn. “Sorry to bother you. Your farm hand told me you were in the barn.”

  “You’re not bothering me at all,” Joy said with a smile, waving him inside. “Come on in, it’s a little bit warmer in here. At the very least, the wind won’t be blowing on you.”

  “Thank you. It’s definitely colder out there than it was the other day.” When he stepped into the barn, Joy noticed that his shoes were nicer than most people’s that she’d seen. She wondered if he had ever actually set foot in a barn in his entire life. “What are you doing?”

  “Milking the goats,” Joy replied. She laughed when she saw that he was keeping his distance and shook her head. “You can come closer if you like. She’s not going to bite you.”

  The hesitant way that Franklin came toward her and the goat made her want to laugh again but she didn’t want to scare him away. He crept closer until he was standing beside her, then looked down at the goat.

  “I’ve never been this close to a farm animal,” he said. The goat shifted slightly and Franklin looked as if he was about to run out of the barn.

  “I can tell.” Joy reached down and took one of the teats in each hand. “I’ll be at this a while if you want to come back.”

  “No, I’d like to stay and watch, if you don’t mind. It will be interesting to see how you milk a goat.” He squatted down to watch Joy squeeze the milk out of the goat, who didn’t seem to notice they were there. After a while, he turned to Joy. “That’s all it is?”

  “You expected it to be more dramatic?” She stood up from her stool and motioned to it. “If it looks so simple, why don’t you try it?”

  “That’s not what I meant.” Franklin held up his hands and shook his head. “I’m sure I wouldn’t be able to do it properly.”

  “Go ahead and try,” Joy said, smiling broadly at him. “Everyone should know how to do things like this, just in case something happens to me.” Like my farm hand quitting in the spring, she thought as she watched Franklin sit uncertainly on the stool.

  “And I just grab one of these and pull?”

  “Sometimes it’s easier to take two but starting with one will be fine.” Joy knelt down beside him and reached over his arm. “Here, like this.” She squeezed one of the teats firmly and a stream of milk shot into the bucket. “Now you try.”

  It didn’t take Joy long to realize that things weren’t going as planned. No matter how hard or carefully he pulled, he could only get a dribble of milk here and there. Franklin’s face was turning red with frustration and Joy knelt down again. This time when she reached over him, she put her hand around his and helped him coax milk out of the teat. She didn’t realize exactly what she’d done until she couldn’t let go. His hand was warm in spite of the cold, and when she laced her gloveless fingers through his, she wasn’t surprised to find that it was soft as well. This was probably the first and only time in his life that he would do farm work.

  Franklin looked up at her and she blushed, wondering if he could tell what she was thinking. She hadn’t been this close to a man since George died, and she could feel the warmth coming off him through his coat. He smelled nice too, like he was wearing some kind of fancy cologne, and Joy wanted to breathe deeply of it. She was so busy fighting the urge to just lean over and smell him that she didn’t realize how close their faces were to one another. If either one of them moved an inch closer to the other, their lips would almost certainly brush. Joy was trying to make up her mind whether she wanted to be the one to kiss him when Franklin spoke softly.

  “Mrs. Everly, perhaps we shouldn’t—-” Before he could finish, the door to the barn banged open loudly and startled them apart.

  “Are you in here, Mama?”

  “I’m milking the goats,” Joy called, hoping her daughter wouldn’t hear the uneven way she was speaking. When she turned around, Joy saw that her daughter wasn’t wearing a coat and her teeth were chattering. “What brings you home so early from school? And why aren’t you wearing your coat? You’re going to catch your death out there.”

  “There was a fire at school,” Serenity said matter-of-factly. “It burned up the back of the classroom so they said for the students to leave.”

  “A fire?” Joy stood up straight. “What kind of fire?”

  “Just a little one. Thomas was playing with a little bit of flint and started it by accident. It got bigger though. It ate my coat.” She shrugged as if it was just a fact of life, then went inside, presumably to change her clothes.

  “A coat,” Joy groaned as soon as she was gone. “How am I going to pay for a new coat on top of everything else? I can’t just give her a coat for her birthday. There’s nothing else I can do, though.” She covered her face with her hands. “There’s always something. A new coat or part of a roof, and I have to tell people that I can’t afford it. I can scarcely afford food.”

  “Why don’t we go into the house and warm up for a little while. Could your man milk the goats for you?” Franklin’s voice was kind but Joy shook her head.

  “His knees are too bad to sit down here for long.” She wiped her eyes with the back of one hand and smiled. “It shouldn’t be too much longer, I only have three goats.”

  “Is there anything I can do to help you?” Getting up from the stool, Franklin dusted off his hands and put his gloves back on.

  For a split second, Joy wanted to blurt out that he could take the entire place if he wanted, just make her life go back to the way it had been before George died. She wanted to have the family that she’d always dreamed of, a place to live that they weren’t in danger of losing, and no bill collectors coming to her door. Instead she shook her head.

  “No, but thank you.” A soft cluck came from the other side of the barn and she looked over to see one of her hens picking through the hay. “What are you doing in here?” She went to the chicken and scooped it up, then glanced back over her shoulder at Franklin. “If you’d like, you can help me take this one back to the coop.”

  “Of course.” The smile he’d had when he first walked in reappeared and he walked out of the barn with her. “How many chickens do you have?”

  “Seven hens and a rooster who doesn’t seem interested in breeding with them.” Joy led him over to the chicken coop that was just beside the barn. “Having so few of them makes it harder when I have to eat one of them.”

  “You don’t just collect thei
r eggs, you eat them too?” Franklin looked at her in surprise as she opened the door to the coop.

  “We have to,” Joy said with a nod. “If they quit laying, there’s no point in keeping them around. Chicken feed isn’t cheap. I can’t waste it on them if they’re not producing.” After Franklin walked in, she pulled the door tight behind them. There was a gas lamp hanging in the corner of the coop that provided plenty of light and a little warmth to the chickens that were scattered around the little room. When she looked along the back wall, she saw a hole just big enough for a chicken to squeeze out of. “There’s where you got out, naughty thing.” Joy put the chicken on one of the shelves that held nests, then pushed a bucket in front of the hole.

  “What are you going to do now?”

  “I’ll have Henry patch it up. We should have some scrap wood around here, it won’t take him long to take care of it.” A thought came to Joy and she smiled. “I have an idea of how you can help. If you don’t mind, could you gather the eggs in here?”

  “Eggs?” Franklin looked around at the chickens. “Of course. It can’t be that hard, can it?”

  “Not particularly. Just take the eggs out of the nests and put them in a box.” There were a few small wooden boxes on the same wall that the bucket had been on and Joy handed one to Franklin. “After you take them out, hold each one up to the light over here. The eggs should have clear insides. If you see anything dark, put that one back under the chicken.”

  “What does it mean when something’s dark?” Franklin took the box from her and she shook her head with a sigh.

  “It means my rooster is finally doing his job,” Joy said. “You likely won’t find any of them, but if there’s a dark spot it means there’s a chick growing in it.” There was a look of alarm on Franklin’s face and Joy laughed a little as she patted him on the arm. “Don’t worry, you’ll do fine.”

  The chicken coop door flew open and Serenity came in wearing a coat that was clearly too small for her. Joy couldn’t suppress a chuckle but her daughter didn’t seem to notice. Her eyes were focused on the box in Franklin’s hands. She put her hands on her hips and gave him a dubious look.

  “Do you even know what you’re doing?”

  “Why don’t you show him how to do it? You two can collect the eggs while I finish milking the goats, then we can all go inside and have lunch.” She smiled at Serenity and put a hand on her head. “Make sure you teach him right.”

  “I will, Mama!”

  As Joy walked out of the coop, she could already hear Serenity bossing Franklin around. She smiled as she went in search of Henry to tell him about the hole. Having both Franklin and Serenity there to eat lunch was going to strain her budget slightly, but she was happy to have to adjust it if they could have a nice meal together.

  She couldn’t believe she’d let herself be so vulnerable in front of him in the barn. All her frustrations seemed to spill out in spite of her desire to keep them inside so she didn’t worry anyone else. Franklin hadn’t backed away, though, instead he’d asked how he could help.

  If he was really only after my land, I doubt he would have done that, she thought. Against her better judgment, she was allowing him further into her heart but it felt good. She hadn’t realized how lonely she was until he’d come along but now that she’d found him, it would only be a matter of time before he left too. Unless...no, I just can’t. A dark cloud of indecision was gathering in her head and she quickened her step toward Henry, ready to be rid of all of these thoughts.

  Chapter Ten

  “This was wonderful, Mrs. Everly,” Franklin said, taking his plate into the kitchen. “Thank you for inviting me to stay.”

  “You’re quite welcome, sir.” She took his plate and set it in the washbasin with her and Serenity’s plates. Her daughter had disappeared into her room for the time being and it was almost odd to be in the house without her chattering. “You’re also welcome to stay longer if you like.”

  “I really should go into town and see how the office is coming.” He didn’t particularly want to go back to town but he did have work to do.

  “Would you like another cup of cocoa before you go? It’s cold out there.” Before he could answer, there was a small knock at the door. Joy went to the door and he noticed the way she picked up her gun before she answered. It was the same shotgun she’d pointed at him the day they’d met and he wondered what had happened to make her so wary of visitors.

  “Good afternoon, Mrs. Everly.” Whoever was at the door was very polite, especially for a child. At least he assumed it was a child. It certainly sounded like a little girl. He saw the way Joy slid the gun out of sight, so it wasn’t hard to guess that the girl was someone she knew.

  “Hello, Eleanor.” Joy leaned out the door and Franklin wondered if he was about to come face-to-face with Everett Ames. He’d been avoiding the man for a few days and didn’t think it would make much of an impression if he was found here. “Come inside and warm up.”

  “No thank you. I’m here to see Serenity.” There was a surprisingly professional tone to her voice in spite of her accent and it made Franklin want to stand up straighter.

  “Of course you are.” Just as Joy turned around to call for her daughter, Serenity came running into the living room wearing her too-small coat.

  “Bye, Mama, I’m going to play with Eleanor!”

  “Hold on just a minute,” Joy said, grabbing the back of her coat. “Where exactly do you think you’re going?”

  “Eleanor invited me to play with the puppies at her house since we got out of school early,” Serenity explained as quickly as possible. “She said she was going to come after lunch and I forgot to tell you.” She grinned at her mother. “Can I?”

  “I suppose you can, since Eleanor brought the buggy all the way out from the ranch.” Both girls cheered and Serenity shrugged out of Joy’s grasp, as if she was trying to get outside before her mother changed her mind. “Wait a minute! Don’t go out there without—-” Serenity was running to the buggy sitting in the drive before Joy could finish what she was saying and her mother sighed, putting her hands on her hips. “I was going to tell her to wear my coat. Now she’s going to go play at the richest man in town’s ranch looking like I can’t afford her a coat that fits.”

  “I’m sure Eleanor told her father about the fire.” Franklin watched Joy shut the door, shaking her head. He started for the door himself, intending to retrieve his coat and go back into Mayfly, but was stopped when Joy put her hand on his arm.

  “Could you stay a bit longer? There’s something I want to speak to you about in private.” Her eyes were serious, and Franklin nodded. “Thank you. Come on over into the living room?”

  “Of course.” He followed her to the couch and sat alongside her, waiting to hear what was so important to her. Joy was looking into her hands as if she was trying to figure out what she was going to say. They were small, and looked chapped from the wind. Without thinking, he reached out and took one, folding her slender fingers into his palm. “What’s the matter?”

  “What happens if I sell you my land, Mr. York?” It seemed as if it was taking every bit of her strength to ask him this and he smiled in what he hoped was a comforting way.

  “If you accept the terms the railroad has set forth, you’ll be well compensated for your land. You can stay in Mayfly with Serenity, or the two of you can move elsewhere, whichever suits you.” He rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb.

  “And if I don’t sell?”

  “It depends. Do you own your house outright?” She shook her head in reply and Franklin frowned slightly. “You don’t?”

  “I own the land it’s sitting on, but George had a new house built for us just before he died and Serenity was born. The farm was doing fine then, and we both assumed he would be around forever to help take care of it. The bank has been good about letting me work out the payments but that’s why I’ve been selling my land and stock off bit by bit, to pay for it.” She put her free hand o
n Franklin’s so that his was sandwiched between hers. “The problem is that I have nothing left to sell.”

  “If that’s the case then it’s possible that the bank could foreclose on it, and you’d be forced to move. I don’t know how much point there would be in having the land and paying taxes on it if you’re not able to live here.” A tear ran down her cheek and Franklin took a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to her. “I might be able to get AT&SF to give me some money to pay off your house if I tell them you’re reluctant to sell because of it.”

  “I just can’t,” Joy said softly. “You don’t understand. I can’t give this house up.” She covered her face with Franklin’s handkerchief and started to cry in earnest.

  Unwilling to see her cry but unable to think of anything to say that wouldn’t make it worse, Franklin put his arms around her and pulled her into his chest. Joy curled herself into him and cried as if her heart was breaking. Franklin didn’t speak, just held her until her tears slowed. When she sat up again, he smiled at her, hoping to get her to do the same.

  “There’s no way you could know this, but Serenity was born in this house.” Joy’s voice was thick with tears and Franklin shook his head. “When I was carrying her, George and I came back from a picnic to find there was an intruder in the house. He shot George and left him bleeding on the kitchen floor while he stole our savings, and when I came inside and saw my husband dead I went into labor.” One of her hands crept toward her now-flat abdomen. “I gave birth to her on the floor next to her father’s body, and she was early. If it hadn’t been for Clara all three of us could have died.”

  “My God,” Franklin breathed. “I had no idea.”

  “You see why I can’t sell now, don’t you?” She wiped her eyes with the handkerchief. “It was all in the middle of a huge storm, too. Now it’s all I can think of when it starts raining. But I never meant to make Serenity afraid of the rain too.”