Her mother had shooed the dog off on more than one occasion, but Emilia always fed him some special treat when she had the chance. She loved animals; they were so much kinder than people.
“Come along, let’s get inside. The boys will join us when they’re done.” Carolyn had one of Emilia’s suitcases and Lily had the other.
Emilia followed them across the yard to the cabin. The heat was beginning to get to her. It was musty and ever-present, not allowing a single moment of respite.
Her dress itched and she was starting to sweat.
“You look most uncomfortable, my dear. We’ll have to make you some cool summer dresses. The heat never lets up here.” Her aunt was giving her a sympathetic look while shaking her head.
“It is a lot warmer than Ohio.”
Emilia wondered what Christmas would be like. There wouldn’t be any snow. That would be the biggest difference, she supposed. What was Christmas without snow?
As she stepped into the cabin, the smell of pine wood and baked bread greeted her. It was every smell that embodied a home.
The parlor was small but tastefully decorated. The overstuffed chairs looked inviting and comfortable, and a small fire was dying down in the hearth.
“This way, I’ll show you your room.” As Carolyn began to lead Emilia toward the hallway, Eddy and Eli burst into the room.
“Did you show her already?” Eli yelled, his voice reverberating against the cabin walls.
“We want to show her, we got it ready,” Eddy added, a little softer than his brother.
The two pushed their way through the room until they were in the front. “Come on, we’ll show you,” Eli instructed with a huge grin and proud, glowing eyes.
Emilia couldn’t help but give a little giggle. Her cousins were certainly charming, if nothing else. So far, that had made this just that much better. Maybe living with them wouldn’t be so terrible. Maybe she could get used to Texas.
Off to the left through the hallway was the kitchen, but Emilia only got a quick glance before Eddy was pulling her further down the hall toward the bedrooms.
They pushed through the first one, which housed two single beds, one on each side of the room, with a narrow aisle between them.
“This is where Lily sleeps, and you’ll sleep right next to her,” Eli said, waving his hands dramatically. “We helped Derek build the bed for you, didn’t we, Ma?”
Carolyn smiled down at them, “Yes, they certainly did. For being ten years old, they certainly have a knack for wood-working.”
“I picked the flowers.” Eddy’s voice was soft and shy. Emilia spotted a small crystal vase that held about six wilting wildflowers and felt certain the gesture was the sweetest she had ever seen.
“I made the bed.” Eli puffed his chest out.
“Everything is truly wonderful,” Emilia exclaimed, giving the boys a grateful smile. They exchanged a glance, looking as if they were waiting for her to crown a winner. Emilia knew better. There was no winner, their efforts were both perfect in their own ways. “You both did a wonderful job.”
“Come on, children, let’s give Emilia a little time to freshen up. Dinner should be ready in about half an hour.” Carolyn began to show everyone out. “There’s a pitcher of water and a bowl here, and a towel on the hook. You can rest for a bit if you like. The children will wear you out.”
As she passed, Lily squeezed Emilia’s arm. “I’ll be back later, and we can talk about all the things we’ll do together. I can’t wait!”
Emilia wanted to ask her what things and ask why she was so excited, but she didn’t have a chance. Before she knew it, she was standing alone in the tiny room, feeling more wilted than the flowers on the bedside table.
She sat down on the side of her bed with a big sigh. So, this was her new life. Pulling one of her suitcases onto the bed, Emilia undid the clasp. She needed to change her dress for dinner. She had been in her current one since leaving Ohio and she felt very dirty and hot.
On top of the folded clothes inside the suitcase, there was a yellowish envelope. Scrawled across it, in her mother’s handwriting, was Emilia’s name.
Emilia picked it up lovingly. She didn’t know what it said yet, but even the thought of it being there was enough. With eager hands, she opened it and unfolded the paper within. A small photograph, no larger than the palm of her hand, fell into her lap.
It was of a stern man with a woman on his arm. The woman had a slight smile as if she was hiding a secret.
Emilia stared intently at the photograph for several moments before she recognized the people in it. It was her mother and father. Her father was so much younger than she remembered him. The fuzzy image of him in her brain remade itself, filling itself in with the information on the faded bit of paper in Emilia’s hand.
Emilia turned to the letter, hoping for an explanation for this precious find.
My dearest Emilia,
By the time you are reading this, I’m sure you are safe and sound with your aunt Carolyn. This photograph is one of the last I have of your father. I only have one other. But I wanted you to have it, because I know how much you miss him and how important he was to you.
I was carrying you in this photograph, so this picture had all three of us in it although you were still in hiding. I was so excited, so in love! I will always remember that day. I hope you know that no matter what anyone says about your father, he was a good man. I couldn’t have asked for a better husband or father for you girls. I honestly don’t know when he began to change.
There was a time when I no longer knew who he was, but I always chose to honor who I fell in love with. What happened to him was a tragedy.
I like to think of him like this. He looks extra stern, because he was doing his best not to smile. Everyone knows that you have to look your best for photographs. Of course, I always thought your father did look his best when he was smiling.
I hope this brings you some comfort. I hope we will see each other again, my sweet daughter.
Be safe.
With all the love in the world,
Your mother.
Emilia read the letter twice over again as tears streamed down her face. She stared at that photograph of her parents, so in love, so happy. If only the clocks could be turned back.
She sighed, wishing she knew exactly what had happened to her father. Why had he gone crazy? Or had he gone crazy at all? Maybe he had simply been ill.
“Emilia! Are you coming?” Eli’s eager voice carried into the room and Emilia hurriedly wiped her tears.
Right now, she had to pull herself together and have dinner with her new family, but she had one more piece of her past, now, to hang onto.
She tucked the little photograph into the side of her suitcase and quickly washed and changed. Someday, she was going to find out what had happened to her father. Maybe, she would even find out why he had passed away.
Chapter 6
“I see your friend is at it again.” The man behind the counter in the saloon was watching George with an almost jealous glint in his eyes.
Derek followed his gaze and shook his head. George was sitting at a table, talking to a young woman.
She was laughing at whatever he was saying and looked as if she was having a wonderful time. She was hanging on his every word.
Derek crossed the space between them with long strides until he stood directly behind the young woman, then sent a meaningful glare in George’s direction.
“Come on, George, we should go,” he said.
“Ahh, you heard the boss. I guess I have to go. But maybe I’ll see you around some other time and then we can continue our little conversation. Okay, hun?”
Derek could see that the girl was visibly disappointed, but he didn’t care. She would thank him later if she had the slightest idea of who George was.
George was Derek’s best friend and while he loved George, the man’s choices when it came to women were less than admirable.
“When are you
going to stop doing that?” Derek struggled not to groan as they walked out of the saloon and into the cool night.
“Stop doing what?” George gave him an innocent look and shrugged his shoulders.
“You know what. Giving young women hope and then ignoring them and moving on to a different woman.”
“Hey, it’s not ‘hope’ if I just have a simple conversation with them. It’s not my fault they read much too much into it.”
“Come on, George. You know what they think when you talk to them the way you do.”
“The way I do? Now you’re starting to get a little bit insulting.”
“Don’t call me insulting. I’m merely stating the facts. You’ve had two fiancées in the last two years, and I don’t know how many other young women you’ve called on at least twice during that time.”
“You know what your problem is?” George was giving him one of those serious looks that made Derek uncomfortable.
“No, apparently I don’t know, and I have a feeling you’re about to tell me so that I will.”
“You need to loosen up. You need to let your guard down and let someone else in. Everyone isn’t like—”
“That’s enough. We don’t need to talk about her, and I don’t need to hear you say it. Maybe everyone isn’t like she was, but most people are and I don’t have the patience to waste my time finding that one person who isn’t.”
George was shaking his head as he mounted his horse. “One day, she’s going to find you and you’ll have to open up. It’s the only way you’ll ever settle down.”
“Don’t talk to me about getting married or settling down. You are the one who is afraid of commitment. I actually had a real reason that I didn’t get married. Your only reason is because you’re afraid.”
George shrugged. “I’ve learned a few things in the last few years. One of those things is that there are men that are meant to get married and there are others who are just here to enjoy the gifts life has to offer. I am of the latter type.”
Derek gaffed and pushed his horse a bit faster than George’s. “That sounds like an excuse, if I ever heard of one.”
“What about the Carsons? Lily is about your age, isn’t she?” George rose his eyebrows twice in rapid succession.
“No, no. She’s too young for me by about three or four years. Besides, I don’t see her like that. You know the Carsons are like my second family. Lily is more like a sister to me than anything.”
“Well, they’re not mine.” George gave a mischievous grin.
“Don’t hurt Lily. You know that—”
“Calm down, I have no intention of going after Lily. I doubt she’d have me, anyway.” George shrugged.
“Speaking of which, Mrs. Carson invited us to dinner tomorrow night.”
“Really? Why?”
Derek turned down the long road that would take him to his ranch. It was quite the ride, and dusk was already falling. “Well, first of all, she hardly needs to invite us since we usually have dinner there more than once a week, anyway. Secondly, her niece is coming to live with them.”
“Really? What’s wrong with her?”
Derek laughed. “Why would something be wrong with her?”
“Why else would a young woman come alone to Texas?”
Derek shrugged. “Maybe she wanted to come and spend time with her aunt? I don’t know. I’m sure we will have plenty of time to ask tomorrow.”
“Maybe she’s pretty.” George was doing the funny thing with his eyebrows again and if he’d been close enough, Derek would have given him a shove.
“Nonsense. Cut it out, would you? You know I’m not interested in finding myself a woman, and the Carsons are off-limits to your antics. You promised.”
The rest of the ride, they kept to themselves. Derek wasn’t interested in speculation about Mrs. Carson’s niece. Mrs. Carson had become a big part of his life after her husband died.
He’d started helping her around the place and helping her with the boys. Eddy and Eli were a handful. He loved them like little brothers, though, and often spent the afternoon at their house.
Life out west was hard in the best of times. He didn’t need to be told how difficult it was as a widow with three children. Eddy and Eli were getting big enough to be a real help, and he found that little by little they were taking over the chores.
He still managed a lot of the bigger stuff. Sometimes, Mrs. Carson paid him, but most of the time, she’d just offer him a hot homemade meal. He appreciated this just as much or even more. He never expected compensation and, many times, he had refused it when she had tried to pay him.
He had never helped Mrs. Carson because he wanted to get something. He only wanted to make sure the family was okay.
When they got to the ranch, they put the horses into their stalls and then went about doing the evening chores.
George had a homestead of his own, but he often stayed at Derek’s since he hadn’t yet built a proper cabin on his land. Their properties ran parallel. Derek couldn’t have asked for a better neighbor.
“So, tell me, have you heard from back home?” George’s question caught him off-guard.
“No, I haven’t. Why do you ask?”
“I saw a story about your folks the other day in the paper.” George suddenly sounded unsure of himself, as if he were afraid that he was going to step on the wrong topic and send Derek into a mood.
“They’re still writing about us?” Derek hissed through his teeth. It had been years since his family had reason to be in the paper and yet, every once in a while, a story would be written, dredging up things from the past that were best forgotten.
“It was just something about your father’s bank doing the best it has since it’s been in his care.”
“Oh.” Derek had expected something else. His father’s bank certainly wasn’t the worst thing that could be in the newspaper.
“You know, maybe you should write to them sometime. Despite the mistakes they’ve made, they are still family, after all.”
Derek shook his head. “I don’t need family like them.”
“Everyone needs someone.”
“Who do you need?” Derek had never heard George talk much about his family. In fact, now that he thought about it, he didn’t know much of anything about his friend’s family except that George’s grandmother lived in Wisconsin.
“Don’t have much family to need. Granny died nearly three months ago.” George’s voice was laden with sadness.
“She died? Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I knew you were busy and didn’t want to worry you over it. I hadn’t seen her in nearly twelve years but still… she’d send me a letter every once and a while.”
“It’s never easy to lose people you love,” Derek said, giving his friend a pat on the back.
He wasn’t used to dealing with situations like these. To be honest, he didn’t have the slightest idea what to do.
“It feels like she’s still out there. Sometimes I go by the post office just to make sure that I didn’t miss a letter from her. And I actually got one after I received news that she had passed away. It must have gotten delayed in the mail.” George ran a hand through his hair. “It was the strangest thing; do you know what I mean?”
An Enduring Love to Heal Her: A Historical Western Romance Book Page 5