by Barbara Goss
“Let him go once he sobers. That way we won’t have to feed him breakfast. John's coming over to give him supper, by the way.”
Dan stood in front of the new house with his arm around Leila. He knew she loved the house—what was not to like? It was a well-built house with plenty of charm. It just needed a bit of fixing up. The two-story house was graced with a front porch and an upstairs balcony, with the same dimensions. Vines had grown wildly up the support posts of the lower porch. The balcony had a large window on each side of the doorway leading to the master bedroom.
The structure of the rest of the home was fairly simple: square, a stable, and a barn behind that. The clapboards were a faded gray.
“What color would you like to paint the house?” Dan asked.
“Yellow, I think,” Leila answered. “We can paint the shutters black.”
“I like it,” Dan said, giving her shoulder a squeeze. “Shall we go in and make a list?”
Once inside, Dan jotted down the things that needed to be fixed immediately. When he'd finished, Dan folded the paper, placed it in his pocket, and drew Leila into his arms. “First kiss in the new home?”
“Oh, Dan!” she exclaimed. “I think we need a first kiss in every room.”
“You’re absolutely right.” He bent down and kissed her. She threw her arms around his neck and returned the kiss with such enthusiasm, that Dan felt his heart pounding nearly out of his chest.
The sound of a gunshot nearby caused their kiss to end abruptly. They both ran to the front window where Leila gasped and Dan grabbed his gun.
“Come on out here, Dan McCall,” Joe Austin yelled. “You took my bride, and now I’m taking your life.”
Chapter 17
Dan knew he had to finally face Joe Austin, even though it seemed Austin had the advantage of a surprise attack.
Dan moved toward the front door, but Leila pulled him back and yelled, “No!”
“I have to go out there, sweetheart,” he said as he removed her hands from his shirt and kissed her forehead.
Once again, Dan moved to the door and Leila clung to his shirt. “Please don’t go out there. He’ll kill you, Dan. The minute you open the door you’re a dead man!”
He pulled her hands from his shirt again and said, “Do you really expect me to cower inside like a lily-livered chicken?”
“There has to be another way, Dan,” Leila cried, tears streaming down her face. “Please don’t walk out the front door.”
“You’re right,” Dan said, thoughtfully. “I’ll go out the back door and circle around. Maybe I can get the first shot in.”
“And if you don’t?” Leila asked, horrified.
“I’ll die like a man, Leila. Just remember, I love you.” He kissed her passionately on the lips before running to the back of the house.
Leila knelt down and prayed.
Jack had just taken a bath and was drying his hair with a towel when he heard a frantic knocking on his hotel door and wondered if Dan had forgotten his key again.
“Be right there,” he called out. He slipped into his robe, walked to the door, unlocked it, and swung it open. “John!” he exclaimed when he saw John Rothchild standing there.
John breathlessly announced, “I just heard something I think you should know: Austin's riding out to McCall’s new house to kill him.”
“How do you know that?”
“Leo overheard where the house is located while he was in the cell. When Eustace let him go, he ran to my saloon to tell Joe.” John swallowed hard and continued, “Joe’s been drinking most of the day. He said he was going out there to kill McCall, once and for all.”
“How long ago was this?” Jack asked, continuing to slip into his clothes as he talked.
“About ten minutes.”
“I’m going out there.” Jack put his gun belt on and left John standing in the doorway.
Dan knew Joe was standing just five feet from the front door. He’d slipped out the back door, crept around to the side of the house, crouched down, and peeked at him through the latticework of the porch. Joe seemed to be a bit tipsy. Could he be drunk? He couldn’t shoot a drunken man unless the man shot first, so taking him by surprise was out of the question.
Dan stood up, clutched his gun, used the porch railing to support his arm, and aimed at Joe.
“Here I am, Joe," he said. "Now, who shoots first?”
Joe swung his body around, almost falling over in the process. He squinted as he gazed around and finally zeroed in on Dan’s location.
“Drop the gun, Joe!” Dan said.
Joe squeezed the trigger, and the gun went off, hitting the porch's support pole.
“You missed! Try again, Joe. Maybe the next time you want to kill someone you shouldn’t go drinking first.”
Joe staggered closer to the house and aimed at Dan’s head.
“Put the gun down!” Jack called from behind Joe.
Joe swung around to look at Jack and then turned back to Dan who’d straightened, thinking Jack had him. Joe fired at Dan again. Dan flinched and grabbed his upper arm.
Seconds after Joe had fired at Dan, Jack fired at Joe, knocking the gun from his hand. The surprise blow knocked Joe to the ground.
“You okay, Dan?” Jack called out, keeping his gun aimed at Joe.
“He just nicked me…I think.”
“I’m taking him back to town and locking him up,” Jack said. “You'd better get that wound looked at.”
Fear gripped Leila, but she continued to pray. She shuddered when she heard the shots, and tears streamed down her face. When it grew quiet outside, she got to her feet, ran out the back door, and into Dan’s arms. “You’re still alive!” She clung to him, sobbing with relief. “Thank God! I didn’t know what I’d find out here after hearing those shots.”
Dan rubbed her back with his good hand. “Of course I’m alive. I think I could’ve taken him, even if Jack hadn’t shown up. Once he fired he almost fell over, he was so drunk. I’d have shot him back, but I’m glad I didn’t have to—it wouldn't have felt right to shoot a drunken man.”
Leila pulled away, looked up at him, and noticed his shoulder. “Dan! You’re bleeding!”
“Just a little. It’s nothing, really,” he said.
“Can you make it to the Walker place?”
“Of course. I told you it’s nothing more than a scrape,” he said.
Leila led him down the lane to the main road and walked with him toward Kate and Jeremy’s. Dan swayed at times, and Leila worried she wouldn't be able to hold him up if he passed out. His face was pale, despite his reassurance that he was all right.
“Are you still okay?” she asked after Dan leaned into her.
“Of course,” he said, straightening.
When he swayed again, she knew he wasn't being completely truthful. “Hang on," she said, trying hard to support him. "We’re almost there.”
When she got him to the front of Kate and Jeremy’s, Kate was out on the porch. “I heard shooting,” she said. “What’s happened?”
“Joe shot Dan,” Leila said. “Can you help me?”
Dan swayed again, and it took the both of them to get him into the house.
“We’ll never get him up the stairs,” Kate said. “Let’s take him to the sofa in Jeremy’s office.”
Leila glanced at Dan’s wounded shoulder and felt her stomach turn. He’d lost so much blood. She couldn't bear it if he died. All the while they were leading him to the office, she prayed, thankful Kate had taught her how. If not for God and prayer, she’d have nothing and no one to turn to for help.
Once he was flat on his back, Kate ran to get Geraldine and her aunt Bertha. Leila bent down and smoothed Dan’s hair. “How do you feel?”
“I’m fine. It’s not a bad wound, just a bloody one. I’ll be fine.” Dan stroked Leila’s cheek. “It feels so good to have someone care if you live or die.”
“I care more than you’ll ever know, Dan,” she said, teary-eyed again. �
��I love you so much.”
“If you think this little scratch will keep me from marrying you in two days, think again, little one,” he said.
“If you’re fine, why were you swaying while we were walking?”
“Because I’ve lost a lot of blood and because even though it’s a slight wound, it put my body into a somewhat of a survival mode which took a lot of my strength away. My body was telling me to lie down and get the wound fixed,” Dan said.
Bertha came in carrying a pan of hot water, and Geraldine followed with rags and a bottle of whiskey.
Kate came in last. “I’ve sent Jeb into town for one of the doctors.”
Bertha ripped Dan’s sleeve off and washed out his wound. “You got a tidy hole there, Mr. McCall. The doc won’t need to fish inside for a bullet since it went clear through your upper arm”
“That’s a relief.” Dan grunted in pain. “The last time I had a bullet taken out it near killed me.”
Leila squeezed his hand and looked up at Bertha. “Is that a good sign?”
“Depends,” she said. “He’ll be fine unless the bullet hit a bone or nerve.”
“Did it?” Leila asked, wide-eyed with concern.
“Only the doctor can tell you that. I’m just cleaning it and trying to stop the bleeding,” Bertha said.
“Stop worrying, Leila,” Dan said. “If it hit a bone or nerve I think it would be a lot more painful than it is.”
Leila hated to see Dan in pain and pale—it just wasn’t Dan. She laid her head on his good shoulder and continued to pray. This was all her fault.
When Doc Smith arrived, he examined the wound and then winked at Leila. He must have read the fear in her eyes for he said, “He’ll be fine, miss. It’s not as bad as it looks.”
“He’ll be all right, then?” she asked.
“In a few days,” Doc said. “He needs to rest his arm some and keep the wound clean. His body will replace the blood he’s lost and he’ll be himself again in no time.”
“You’ll never get him to lay low,” Jeremy said from the doorway.
“He will this time,” Doc Smith said. “His little lady will see to that, won’t you miss?”
Leila nodded.
“Can you help me carry him upstairs, Doc?” Jeremy asked.
“As soon as I finish with him, we’ll take him up,” Doc said.
When Dan woke up, it felt like his arm had been run over by a herd of cattle. How could such a small bullet hole hurt so much? It ached more now than it had right after he’d gotten shot. He thought it must be morning, since he was able to see the sun through the window as it crested the horizon. He heard a sound, looked to his right, and saw Leila curled up in a chair, sleeping. She was still wearing the dress she’d worn the day before.
Leila shifted a bit in the chair as she slept. She looked so lovely, even with her hair half out of its bun and strands of it covering her face. It suddenly dawned on him that tomorrow would be their wedding day! He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to have a wife, especially one as beautiful as Leila, with her long, dark hair and big, brown eyes. He worried about his wedding night, since she was so tiny and he was so big and he could easily crush her. A horrible thought hit him when as he thought about Leila’s size: how old was she? If she was still a teenager, he’d feel like he was robbing the cradle and he just couldn’t consummate marriage to a child.
“Leila!” he called, unable to wait another moment to find out her age.
She sat up quickly. “Are you okay?” she brushed the hair from her face with her hand and rushed to his bedside. “Do you need something?”
“I need to know how old you are. I never did ask, but since we’re to be married, I thought I should know,” he said. He waited for her answer with both anticipation and dread. The more he looked at her, the more he thought she looked like a schoolgirl.
“I was born on July the sixth, eighteen sixty-five. I’ll be twenty-one in just a few weeks,” she said.
Dan let out the breath he’d been holding. He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. “Tomorrow’s our big day.”
Leila put both hands on his shoulders. “Where do you think you’re going, Dan McCall?”
“I’m getting up. I have things to do.”
“No, you need to rest. The doctor said so.”
“Leila, I’m fine. If we’re to get married tomorrow, I have some important plans to make.”
“Like what?” she asked.
“I don’t want to spend our wedding night here. I want privacy.” He winked at her. “I have to arrange a few things.”
Leila smiled. “All right, I guess, but don’t do anything strenuous. If you hurt your arm more than it is now, we’ll have to cancel—”
“No!” Dan interrupted. “There will be no cancelling.” He smiled, put both of his hands around her waist, and pulled her to him. “I want to marry you before you change your mind and realize what a big oaf you’re getting.”
“That may be smart,” she answered.
He pulled her onto the bed with him, laid her beside him, and ran his fingers through her hair, removing any strands of it still in the bun. “I can’t wait,” he whispered.
Leila rolled onto her side and put her head on his chest. “Me either.” She closed her eyes and smiled dreamily. “When I first saw you, I was a bit frightened. You seemed so big and strong and I wasn’t sure if you were friend or foe. Then I looked into your eyes and I knew you were kind and considerate. You were there for me the whole time I was recuperating, and you cared enough to take me to Hays with you. I fell in love with you on the ride to Hays. At least, that was when I knew it for sure. Then it seemed like I wasn’t going to attract your attention, and that's when I went to your room.” She looked up at him. “I was prepared to give myself to you that night, so you'd be bound to me. I never wanted to be without you.”
“But then you were betrothed to Joe,” he said.
“Only because he threatened to kill you if I didn’t,” she said. “Remember the day you and Jack went to Rosie’s and he and I were sitting across the room? I tried not to keep looking at you, but I just couldn’t stop. Joe saw me and knew I was in love with you. On the way home is when he told me that if I didn’t marry him, he’d kill you,”
“You loved me so much, you were willing to sacrifice the rest of your life to spend it with Joe to save my life?” he asked, stroking her cheek lightly.
“You saved my life, so, yes, I was going to, but at the last minute, I just couldn’t. He forced a kiss on me, and it was awful. Then he tried to make other advances. I’m sorry, Dan. I just couldn’t, and that’s why he shot you. It’s all my fault that you got shot,” she said with tears running down her face.
“Hey, don’t you dare cry on the eve of our wedding. I won’t have it! Do you hear? Stop at once.” He kissed her forehead. “Look at me, Leila. It’s not your fault. He’s in jail and can’t hurt us now, so smile and be ready for tomorrow night.” He raised his eyebrows up and down and she laughed.
Chapter 18
Jack greeted the Walkers, Dan and Leila, as they ate breakfast. “How’s the arm?”
“Useable, if I’m careful. What brings you out so early?” Dan asked, taking a bite of his jelly-laden toast.
“News.” Jack sat in the chair Jeremy had pulled out for him and Bertha filled a cup of coffee for him.
“Joe’s no longer in jail. The judge said we couldn’t hold him. If he’d have killed you, then they could've charged him with murder, but because he only shot you in the arm, he was charged with disturbing the peace and given a fine, and I was ordered to let him go.”
“What about the stolen cattle?” Dan asked.
“I’m still working on proving he was in on it.”
“I doubt he’ll be any trouble—at least for a while, then,” Dan said.
“After Leila becomes your wife in a few hours,” Kate said, “he’ll give up and find himself another mail order bride.”
“I h
ope so,” Leila murmured.
When they all stood and moved toward the front door, Dan winked at Leila. “I’ll see you in…” he took out his pocket watch, “two and a half hours.”
Dan stopped for a quick haircut, bathed, and then slipped into the best suit he owned. His thoughts were all over the place. He recalled how many times he’d sworn he’d never marry, and here he was, doing just that. He was happy about it, but he still had a few jitters about whether or not they should have waited and courted longer. His job was dangerous, he never knew from one day to the next if he’d be around another day or not. He’d make sure Leila was taken care of, should something happen to him. He’d put aside a bit out of each pay and bank it for her.
He stood in front of the small, scratched mirror and smiled, thinking about his wedding night. Just a few more hours and she’d be his, totally.
If that train hadn’t been robbed, if she hadn’t been taken hostage…if, if, if—he didn’t, for one moment, think that his finding Leila had been an accident. She was God’s gift to him, he was sure of it.
Kate slipped the dress of fine, light green lace over Leila’s head. As she adjusted the folds, she sighed. “You look fantastic, Leila.”
“Thank you. I owe it all to you,” Leila said. “You made the dress and you put my hair up and wound daisies into the braid. I couldn’t have accomplished half of what you’ve done for me—” Leila looked Kate in the eyes and squeezed her hand, “in more ways than just today, Kate, thank you.”
“No thank you needed. We’re friends. The four of us will continue to have good times together. Maybe we’ll even have babies at the same time.” Kate winked.
“Are you?” Leila asked.
“No, not yet, but we’re hoping,” Kate said, wistfully.
“I haven’t even consummated my marriage yet, so I dare not even think about increasing yet, but Dan and I do want children.”