“So it is with a great sense of personal humility that I ask Major Roberts to come up and receive this commendation on behalf of all the participants of this extraordinary mission.”
At the burst of heartfelt applause, Theodora thought she would never know such joy again. She watched through misty eyes as her husband received the bronze plaque and shook hands with the president. Her heart was bursting with pride for the man who had brought them all safely across countless miles of unmapped prairies, deserts, and mountains.
Van Buren lifted his hand, and everyone in the room quieted once again. “Before I let Major Roberts resume his seat, I want to present another commendation—one that has been kept a secret until this evening. Would you please come up and join your husband, Mrs. Roberts?”
Astounded, Theodora rose and stood before her chair in blank surprise. Her husband’s wide, mischievous grin drew her to him, and she moved on shaky legs to the front of the audience, where Blade slipped his hand beneath her elbow, steadying her. She turned to face the crowded room. All of the members of the expedition were beaming at her with unreserved pride.
Van Buren smiled warmly and bowed to her. “It is my great pleasure, Theodora Gordon Roberts, to place in your hands this presidential commendation, awarded to you, and posthumously to your brother, Thomas Algernon Gordon, for the incredible wealth of cartography with which this expedition has returned. Through the service both you and your brother have rendered so courageously to this country—at the cost of his life and very nearly your own—thousands of men and women will emigrate into the wilderness in the years ahead, safer and with a smaller loss of life.”
Theodora took the heavy plaque, engraved with the presidential seal, in her trembling hands. She looked out on the shining faces before her, astonished to see the audience rise to its feet, applauding in sincere appreciation for her and Tom, and for the achievement of all they’d set out to do.
Shortly afterwards, Theodora and Blade walked upstairs toward the State Dining Room, where a banquet was to be served in their honor. As they reached the center hall, Blade pulled her apart from the other guests. He slipped his arms around her and gently kissed her forehead.
“I told you I’d get a presidential commendation for carting you across the plains with that God-awful mud smeared all over you,” he teased, his black eyes glowing with laughter.
She pursed her lips, struggling to keep from bursting into unsophisticated giggles. Gaily, she reached up and flicked his barbaric gold earring with one fingernail. “Mary Kearny told me that her husband has already given you our next assignment. Where do we travel from here?”
He grinned at her. “How would you like to explore the Arizona Territory with your half-breed husband and map a southern route into California?”
“I’d love it,” she exclaimed, and hugged him in delight. As he moved to escort her into the dining room, she tugged on his elbow. “Wait a minute, nahyam, before we go in. Your epaulet is all askew.”
While he waited patiently, she straightened the gold fringe with wifely care, then met his smoldering gaze with all the love in her heart. Shaking her head at him, she smothered the smile that tugged at the corners of her mouth. “Big Cheyenne warrior much trouble,” she told him solemnly, lowering her voice to imitate his baritone. “But worth it.”
Cherish the Dream Page 44