“You can’t be serious,” Mr. Daniels broke in. “What about the little ones and your condition?”
“I have discovered that my condition is not what I feared it was, and we can keep Joey and Shanny in the chuck wagon. Beth knows how to ride a horse, so she could easily drive the chuck wagon, and keep an eye on the babies. If she needs our help, she can call us. Connor, Ina, and Tommy are good riders. All they have to do is keep the cattle together and moving in the right direction. You can take the lead, and I will remain in the rear near the chuck wagon.”
“Women, not to mention children, don’t drive cattle,” Mr. Daniels complained.
“There is always the first time,” Callie insisted. “I have heard of other women who own cattle ranches.”
“Only they don’t go on cattle drives. They have their drovers do it.”
“How hard could it be? It is all about riding horses and camping out at night. Since all of us can ride, I don’t see a problem.”
“It’s not just about riding horses,” Mr. Daniels frowned. “There are all sorts of dangers, such as the cattle stampeding, for some unknown reason. There are snakes and wild animals that could spook the cattle. Sometimes stampeding buffalo run through the herd, and the cattle may get mixed in with them. Either you lose half your herd, or you ride for days, trying to fish them out of the buffalo herd. You could run into bad weather or marauding Indians. You think a band of Indians would think twice about taking you and your kids, along with the cattle, like they did before? There are too many risks involved. Do you even know how to handle a gun, in case some rogue ranchers decide to take over your herd? They would take one look at you and figure it was easy pickings.”
“I am sure there are all sorts of risks, but not to do it, would mean I would lose everything, not only what Chet has worked for, but what I have worked for, as well. This ranch is Connor’s future, and if I can’t get my cattle to market, I might as well just sell the ranch to Mr. Prichard and move back to Pennsylvania. I would have to take a big loss on the ranch, and the cattle since Mr. Prichard would have me over a barrel. The only other way is to marry him, and I refuse to do that.”
“You’ll be biting off more than you can chew,” Mr. Daniels predicted. “The cattle still need dipping, and I would have to give you and Connor a few lessons on shooting a gun. It won’t be easy riding for days on end, and getting little rest at night. It takes almost a month to get there, and then another month to get back. How are you going to manage that? Who are you gonna get to watch the ranch while you are away?”
“I’ll ask Mr. Prichard to have someone check on the ranch and the breeding cattle from time to time. Since he won’t help me drive my cattle, it’s the least he can do as a neighbor. Someone has to stay behind to watch his ranch when he drives his own cattle out. How hard would it be for them to check on my ranch once in a while?”
“I suppose that is between Mr. Prichard and you,” Mr. Daniels grumbled.
“I’ll ride over and ask him,” Callie said, going to her room to change her clothes. “Connor, you keep an eye on everything, while I am gone.”
“I’ll help him,” Mr. Daniels offered.
When Callie rode up through the gate to Mr. Prichard’s ranch, she was greeted by Hank, who was riding a steel-black horse. His face lightened up when he saw her.
“What a pleasant surprise,” he greeted. “I hadn’t expected you so soon. Have you changed your mind about my offer?”
“Not really,” Callie responded. “I wanted to ask a favor of you, though. Since you will not help me drive my cattle to market, I was wondering if you could send one of your men over to check on my ranch from time to time, while I drive them in myself?”
“Am I hearing you right? Surely you don’t intend to drive your cattle in yourself, in your condition. Besides, you have little children to be concerned about.”
“I have discovered I am not in the condition I thought I was in, so yes, I, along with my children and Mr. Daniels, will be driving my cattle in.”
“You want to end up dead? That is no kind of trek for a woman to make. Letting your children help will merely put them in danger. Apparently, you have no concern for your sister’s children, or yours, for that matter. You will not only lose your cattle, but you will most likely lose your life. Then what will happen to your family?”
“It is a risk, I am willing to take,” Callie insisted. “So I need an answer from you.”
“I will worry if you attempt to do such a thing, but I will make a deal with you. I will send one of my men to stay at your ranch and care for your breeding cattle, on one condition. If it turns out, you end up losing your cattle, or can’t finish the trek, for some reason, you will agree to forget about all this nonsense, and marry me. If you end up dying along the way, I want you to leave your ranch to me, and give me custody of your children, so they can be cared for, if they don’t end up dead or captured by the Indians. It will be the least I can do for you if you make such an unwise decision.”
“I appreciate the fact that you are concerned about my children, if something happens to me, so I will agree. Only you can forget about me marrying you because I am going to get my cattle to market, and the only thing that will prevent me from doing it would be if I did die.”
“We will see about that,” Hank half-smiled. “I don’t want anything to happen to you, but once you see what you are up against, you will be crawling back, and will have to marry me.”
“I’m stronger than you think I am,” Callie said stubbornly. “So let’s get to signing the agreement, cause I need to get back and start dipping my cattle.”
“You are one admirable woman, Callie. All the more reason I wish you would agree to become my wife.”
“I will agree, only on paper, but once I come back from the drive, we will be tearing that piece of paper up, because I am going to get those cattle to market, come hell or high water!”
As much as I admire your spunk, and wish you success, I fear you will be eating those words, and swallowing your pride. Then that paper will have to be honored.”
“I guess you will just have to wait and see,” Callie smiled, as she climbed down from her horse and followed Hank into his house.
Callie looked over the paper, Hank handed her, reading it carefully to make sure Hank hadn’t slipped anything into the agreement she did not agree to. When she was satisfied, she signed the paper and handed it back to Hank.
“I wish I could do more,” Hank mumbled. “But your reputation as an Indian lover is spreading through this whole valley. I think Cooper is making sure of it, so you can’t find any help to drive your cattle, or work your ranch, even if you do manage to get your cattle to market. He was hoping to have you as his wife, as we both know, and I am surprised you would rather be shunned by everyone, instead of agreeing to his request. He’s a nice-looking man, and has been helping at your ranch for years.”
“I already married one man I didn’t love. I am not going to make that mistake again. That is why I can’t marry you either, but I wonder that you would want to marry an Indian lover. Wouldn’t that make others shun you as well?”
Hank shrugged. “I think others would believe if I took you on as my wife, that there wouldn’t be any risk Indians coming around here for you to love,” he stated. “As long as you remain single, they fear the worst.”
“Chayton is an honorable person. He is worthy of my love,” she murmured.
“I suppose at one point in time, when the government has suppressed all the Indians, we will have to learn to get along with them, but until then, it is too big of a risk. You just can’t trust them, no matter how honorable you believe them to be.”
“I will take my own chances,” Callie shrugged. “When I return, I will pay you for letting one of your workers watch my ranch.”
“Consider it a favor, to indicate my fond feelings for you,” Hank mumbled. “There is no need for money to exchange hands, seeing as how when this is all over with, you will end up b
ecoming my wife.”
Callie gave a small laugh, while she vowed that would never happen. She was either going to get those cattle to market, or die giving it her best effort, she told herself.
Once Callie returned to the Double C Ranch, she started preparing for the long grueling chore of dipping the cattle. Mr. Daniels agreed to carefully pour the arsenic poison into the water, which was pumped into the dipping trough, and then she and the children would have to herd the cattle through a shoot, which led to the trough. She reminded the children to keep clear of the cattle after they came up out of the trough, so they wouldn’t get any of the dip on them. Once the cattle were dipped, they would be returned to the pasture, awaiting the main drive.
Most of the chuck wagon had already been prepared earlier, by Mr. Daniels, and Callie was glad the branding had been done by the drovers because she knew that was the kind of work that she and the children may not have been able to do on their own.
When the trough was filled, and ready, Callie told the children to start herding the cattle through the shoot. She had tied a length of rope to both Joey and Shanny’s ankles and then tied the separate ends of each rope to a fence post, a safe distance away, so the two could watch, without getting too close. Callie spread a quilt out on the ground for them to lie on, if they got tired, and put some of their favorite toys, which she had ordered by mail at the same time she ordered her furniture, on the quilt for them to play with.
Callie glanced over at the two little ones, as she swung up onto her horse, to join the others. Joey and Shanny were very attached to each other, and if they weren’t kept together, they would cry, until they knew their counterpart was near. She hoped that Chayton did not come and insist on taking Joey away because she feared it would be difficult for Shanny to adjust if Joey wasn’t there. She felt that Joey would miss Shanny too much, also.
Now, she pushed those worries from her mind and started helping the children, funnel the cattle into the shoot. She was so proud of the way, Connor took naturally to working with the cattle, and Ina, in her determination to compete, tried to keep up with him. Tommy was only nine, but she was a little big for her age, and seemed like a natural, the same as Connor, as he took up the rear, to bring the stray cattle closer to where they would be herded into the shoot. Beth rode beside Tommy, working as an extra barrier to keep the cattle going in the right direction.
Callie smiled to herself, as the girls and Connor whistled and yapped like the Indians had done when they were herding Chet’s cattle, a year earlier. It seemed so long ago, and yet was still fresh in her mind. Apparently, the children had not forgotten it either.
They stopped for lunch, and then started up again and worked until dusk. Callie was surprised at how many cattle they had been able to dip, and was certain they would be able to finish the job the next day.
“You have hard-working children,” Mr. Daniels smiled, as they headed up to the house where Callie would make them dinner, while Connor and the girls put the horses away.
“Chet was pretty strict with them, when they were little, and gave them all sorts of chores to do. At the time, I thought it was hard on the children, but I guess, in the end, it paid off.”
“Chet could be hard at times. I know he pushed the drovers pretty hard, and never took any nonsense from them. They weren’t that fond of him, but they needed the work. Cooper was the only one who got along with Chet better than the rest. That’s cause they knew each other for a lot of years, I guess.”
Mr. Daniels followed Callie into the kitchen and watched as she dumped some potatoes into the sink to wash.
“We didn’t have anything in common,” Callie admitted. “He did his ranch work, and I did the housework. Other than that, our only contact was when he wanted me to submit to him, which was more often than I desired.”
“Well you made a pretty little girl together,” Mr. Daniels pointed out.
“Chet would have hated her. He only wanted boys.”
“Yeah, I heard him complaining more than once about his wife, your sister, always having girls.”
“That is all behind me now,” Callie shrugged, as she started cutting up the potatoes, and putting them in a bowl.
“Let me help you with that, so we can get dinner on the table earlier,” Mr. Daniels offered.
“Thank you,” Callie smiled.
“What’s your plan, after the cattle drive, assuming, it goes well?” he asked, as he started cutting potatoes with Callie.
“Just to carry on,” I guess, Callie mumbled.
“You know it is going to be too hard for the kids to take over working the ranch until they are older. This one-time cattle drive is one thing, but you will work your children to death if they have to keep taking care of the ranch, once you return. They’re never going to be able to brand the cattle, and ride miles checking fences, not to mention all the other things that would need to be done. If Cooper spreads rumors about you, you aren’t going to get anyone to come on your ranch as hired hands.”
Callie stopped and wiped her wet hands on a dishtowel.
“I don’t want to think about that right now,” Callie insisted. “I’m just trying to live a day at a time.”
Callie dumped the potatoes into a pot of water and put them on the stove to boil. She took a chicken from the cooler and started slicing it up, to prepare to fry it. Mr. Daniels placed a cast-iron skillet on the burner next to the potatoes, and started melting lard in it, as Callie finished cutting up the chicken, and then filling half of a small cloth sack with flour and salt. She dropped the chicken pieces in the flour and shook the bag to coat the pieces before she plopped then into the hot lard.
“You may have to take Mr. Prichard up on his offer and agree to marry him,” Mr. Daniels murmured, as he watched the chicken start to sizzle. “He’s a decent man, and would do good by you.”
“Only I don’t love him, and he is old enough to be my father. I would just be going through the motions like I did with Chet if I agreed to marry him,” Callie said, turning to face him.
“What about selling him the ranch, and returning to your own people?” Mr. Daniels suggested.
“This ranch is supposed to go to Connor when he grows up. He would never forgive me if I sold it.
“Well, I suppose you are going to have to figure something out,” Mr. Daniels, replied, shaking his head. “I’ll stay on as long as you need me, so you don’t have to worry about me hightailing it off somewhere.”
“I appreciate that,” Callie murmured, and started mixing up dough to make biscuits with, using the left-over flour used for coating the chicken.
“I’ll shuck up some corn, and let the kids help me,” Mr. Daniels offered, as he took a basket of corn out to the back porch and called for the children.”
Callie finished the biscuits and put them in the oven. She looked around her brand new kitchen, knowing as she cooked the meal, the water would be heated for both cleaning up afterwards, and then taking a well-anticipated bath. She went to the dining room, removing her new china from the built-in china cabinet, and began setting the table.
She thought of the times she and Roletta had helped the maid set the table in their parent’s house. She had ordered a china set that resembled her mother’s set, to give her the sense of being home again. She felt sad that Roletta could not enjoy this house the way she was meant to.
Callie’s father had replied to her letter, giving his condolence concerning Chet’s death. She had not told her father how much she despised Chet because it wouldn’t accomplish anything. She simply told him she was going to have to run the ranch on her own, now that her husband had died. She did remind him how she had feared the Indians, while he had merely laughed at her about it, letting him know that her fears had been justified.
She spoke briefly about her being captured by Chayton, and how she was now responsible for his son, but did not go into any real detail. The less her father knew about her life, the better, she thought. She did not envision him ever co
ming to visit her on the ranch, so there was no reason to tell him anything beyond the fact that she was alive and doing well.
When Dinner was finally finished, Mr. Daniels went to the cabin, and Callie sent the children up to take their baths, and then get in bed, while she bathed Joey and Shanny in the kitchen sink, and put them in their own separate cribs. She had to put the two cribs up against each other, so neither would cry to be with the other since they had been used to sleeping in the same crib for so long.
Callie watched as Shanny reached her hand through the bars of the crib, so she could grab Joey’s hand. They were almost like twins, Callie thought, except that one was dark and the other was light. They belonged together, as sister and brother. Callie realized that she too belonged with Chayton, in the same way, only she didn’t think that would ever come to pass.
CHAPTER TWENTY
The day arrived, when Callie could put it off no longer. If she didn’t head the cattle out now, they would miss the stockyard sale. Mr. Prichard brought over one of his men, which had been one of the men who had come by to check on her until Cooper could return after she had been rescued from the Comanche.
“You know Calvin, here,” Hank said, as Callie greeted the two.
“Yes,” she murmured.
“He’ll take good care of your ranch while you are away,” Hank stated. “I just wish you would change your mind, and forget about this risky decision.”
“If it entails entering into a marriage I don’t wish to accept, I will never change my mind. You could always change your’s and let my cattle be driven with your herd,” she smiled sweetly.
“And have all my drovers quite out of protest? They are rightfully angry, after the trouble they went to, saving you from that savage, and then you welcome him into your home. They risked their lives for you, not to mention the time they spent tracking you down, leaving everything else behind. It took a lot of reasoning to talk Calvin into coming here. Even if you do succeed in getting your cattle to market, once you return, what are you going to do? No one in these parts will hire on to your ranch, and your children are too young to become cowhands. You are going to have to admit that my suggestion is the only one that will work unless you want to take Cooper up on his offer to marry you.”
Beyond the Heart Page 22