Caleb

by Christine Sterling

  “I’m sorry you were hurt,” he croaked.

  “I’m alive. That’s all that matters.”

  “I’m glad you survived.”

  Lydia turned and looked at him. She held the towel against her, ensuring it didn’t slip.

  “You are?” she asked him. His deep eyes were soft as they looked at her. He nodded. “Me too,” Lydia whispered.

  Caleb leaned forward and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Let’s get your hair rinsed and you can finish washing up. I need to run out.”

  Panic filled Lydia. Was he going to leave her?

  “Where are you going?”

  “I need to see a man about a horse, and I thought I’d get us something to eat.”

  “Promise me you’ll be back.”

  “I promise.”

  “I don’t want to be alone.”

  “You won’t be. I’ll be back. I promise.” Lydia stared at his face, trying to draw every line and feature to memory. “I promise,” he repeated.

  Lydia nodded and turned her back to him. She leaned her head back as he poured the bucket of warm water over her head. When the water disappeared, she lifted her head and moved her neck back and forth. “All done?”

  “All done. You get yourself washed and I’ll get you a new towel. That one is all wet.”

  He left the room and returned a few minutes later with a fresh set of towels. He pulled over a wooden chair and placed the towels on it before going to the bed.

  “I don’t have any clean clothes.”

  “I thought of that too. Well, Hart thought of it.” Caleb lifted a brown paper package tied with string to show her. “Would you prefer a dress or a skirt and blouse?”

  Lydia never had a man buy her clothes before. The thought secretly thrilled her that Caleb would have picked out something for her to wear.

  “Skirt please.”

  She heard the crumpling of paper. Taking the moment while Caleb had his back to her, she quickly stepped out of the bathtub and wrapped herself with the towel. She used the second one to dry her arms and legs, before sitting on the wooden chair. She was rubbing her hair when Caleb turned and held up a simple brown skirt.

  “The shopkeeper’s wife picked it out. There is also a burgundy one. I figured these wouldn’t show dirt on the trail.”

  “They are lovely. I’ve not had anything new in …” She put her finger to her lips and bit the nail. “I honestly don’t remember.”

  “She also picked out undergarments and it looks like a nightshirt.”

  “I think I’d like to take a nap.” She watched as he set the nightshirt on the bed and moved the paper packages over to the dresser. “Will you wait until I’m asleep before you leave?”

  “If that is what you want.”

  Lydia nodded. “And promise me you’ll stay here tonight and not go back to the wagon.”

  “Lydia, honey…”

  “Promise me, Caleb.”

  She saw him swallow and he eventually nodded. “I promise. I’ll be in the room when you wake up.”

  He looked out the window again as Lydia finished drying off and put on the nightshirt. She crawled into bed and pulled the covers up to her chin. The mattress cradled her and she could barely keep her eyes open. She forced herself to open her eyes and look at Caleb standing at the window.

  His shoulders were broad, and she could see how muscular his arms were beneath the linen shirt he wore. She thought it incredible that someone with such large arms, could be so gentle as he was when he washed her hair.

  “I’m so tired,” she said, closing her eyes and pulling the pillow close to her. She heard his boots come up to the side of the bed. His large hand pushed back her hair and she felt him lightly kiss her forehead. She mumbled something and snuggled deeper under the covers.

  She heard the door creak open and the sound of his footsteps walking down the hall. Lydia was too tired to open her eyes, but just as he promised, Caleb was asleep at the foot of the bed when she woke up.

  Chapter 11

  “You are going too soft.”

  Caleb looked at Tot. “I have no idea what you mean.”

  Caleb kept pace with the chuckwagon. They were nearing the Nebraska border and should be entering Owl Canyon the following day. Caleb sent a telegram to Archie letting him know that he wouldn’t be coming by Denver. He needed to keep heading northeast towards Nebraska.

  The trip had already taken longer than planned. He should make Flat River by the first week of October.

  “You come back with a brass tub that takes up half the wagon and then you send two men out to find an old nag.”

  “That isn’t an old nag. It’s Hart’s horse.” Caleb rubbed the back of his neck. Maybe Tot was right. Since keeping Lydia and Hart with them on the trail, he was making decisions that he normally wouldn’t make.

  Caleb didn’t recognize the man Hart saw in town, and it didn’t look like one of the Richards brothers. It had been years since he had seen any of the thieving family. He knew prison changed a man, and if that was the case, Brodie Richards had done a lot of changing while he was locked up.

  Unfortunately, the man had disappeared by the time Caleb slipped out to find him. He spent most of the night walking through town and inside the saloons looking to see if he could catch a glimpse of the man dressed in black and silver.

  He did ask Goodie to take two men and see if they could find out where the horses might be hiding. He wondered if they were the same horses he saw by the river when they first arrived in Pueblo. Goodie started at the livery and then expanded out to the nearby ranches to see if they noticed anything peculiar.

  They found a rancher that did recall seeing a small group passing by his ranch. They needed water, so they filled their canteens from his well. He thought it was odd that they didn’t have a barrel on the wagon or anything that they would need for a long trip.

  When Goodie asked where they were headed, the rancher said that the group mentioned heading north to sell off the horses. The rancher offered to buy them on the spot, but the men declined.

  “Right nasty looking men,” the rancher told Goodie. “Pure evil.”

  Caleb didn’t know as he didn’t get a good look at the group by the river.

  His head hurt just thinking about it.

  It didn’t make sense. Why would a group of about four men take a dozen horses and four oxen up north to sell? There were plenty of ranchers that would have paid top dollar for those horses. Unless it was because the horses were stolen.

  That was the only reason Caleb could come up with.

  “You have many horses on the ranch. Why not give him one of those?”

  Caleb rubbed his hand down his face in frustration. “Because I’m hoping the horse will help Lydia get her memory back.”

  “Ah!” Tot said as if he had unearthed some secret. “It isn’t for the boy. It is for the woman.”

  “Tot…,” Caleb warned.

  “Let me tell you this, boy, you get a woman in your head, and you can toss your plans right out the window.”

  “You speakin’ from experience?”

  “You fixin’ to marry her?”

  “She thinks we are already married.”

  “But you ain’t. Everyone knows that you spent the night at the hotel.”

  “Nothing happened. I was gone most of the night looking for that man.”

  “But you went back. Lady like that has a reputation to protect. You don’t want those boys carrying tales to your Pa.”

  “I’m a grown man, Tot.” He felt the anger start to rise. He had been nothing but a perfect gentleman.

  “I was too. But I threw my chance away.”

  “I don’t follow.”

  “I’ve made some mistakes in my past. One involving a woman, the most beautiful woman I ever saw. Clouded my judgment, I must say.”

  “What happened to her?”

  “She got married. Had a bunch of kids.”

  “You never did get married, did you?”


  “No. I felt everything needed to be exactly right before I could propose to her. When I finally realized what I wanted, I went back to get her, but she was already married to someone else.”

  “Have you seen her since?”

  “Now and then our paths cross. She doesn’t recognize me. Better that she doesn’t. But the years haven’t been kind to her. She went from vibrant and carefree to a bitter old woman. But we ain’t talking about me, boy, we are talking about you.” Tot shook his finger towards Caleb. “You better stop thinking about that woman and her boy. Get them to where they need to go and be done with it.”

  “If I recall it was just a few weeks ago you said that the boy needed a father-figure. If it weren’t me, it would be someone else.”

  “That was when I thought you were going to make an honest woman of her. Before I knew there was a murderin’, thieving, sons o…”

  “Tot. What would Marmee say about your language?”

  Tot mumbled under his breath. “… looking for someone.”

  “I still don’t know why the Richards gang is interested in Lydia. She doesn’t have cattle. She doesn’t own any horses. She sold her ranch and everything in it to go on a wagon train north. It doesn’t add up.”

  “She does have one thing.”

  “What?”

  “Think about it, boy.” Tot slapped the reins and the horses picked up speed. “Now, get out of my way, I need to circle the wagons. I see a spot up there with water and shade.”

  Caleb pulled Blaze to the side to let Tot speed forward. He turned around and looked at Lydia. Her bruises were fading, and her cheeks glowed where the sun colored them. He could see a few freckles bridging her nose.

  Angel kisses, Marmee would call them.

  Something shifted with Lydia that night after her episode in the hotel room.

  She refused to stay in the back of the wagon. She either rode on the front bench or walked alongside the wagon. Caleb insisted that she stay in the wagon bed, but she had a mind of her own. Beautiful and stubborn.

  She didn’t complain once.

  He waited for the wagon to catch up to him and then nudged Blaze to keep time with the moving wheels. Hart was holding the reins and singing. Caleb recognized it as one of the lullabies the cowboys would sing to the herd at night.

  “Hart. Tot is going to circle the wagons, so get ready.”

  “Yes, sir,” he said. He gave a loud whistle and tapped the mule on the rear. Hart had been practicing the whistles for the cattle drive and he was pleased he could talk to the cowboys using the sharp sounds.

  “How are you holding up, Lydia?”

  “I think being in the sun is getting to me. I feel like an overbaked crust from a loaf of bread.”

  “Crusty on the outside? Light and airy inside?”

  Lydia laughed. The sound went straight to his heart. “Something like that. Are we stopping for the evening?”

  “Yes. There is an aquifer up ahead. It will be a good place to rest.”

  “How much longer until we are in Owl Canyon?”

  “Should arrive by tomorrow evening.”

  Lydia nodded.

  “We gotta turn,” Hart called.

  Caleb moved Blaze out of the way so Hart could put the wagon in position. When he saw the wagons were set, he headed back to the herd. He needed a run. His energy was palpable. He didn’t have a clue what was wrong with him, but he was feeling restless. Blaze must have picked up on it too, as he didn’t object when Caleb spurred him into a run.

  Man, and beast, were winded by the time they reached Slim leading the herd.

  “About three miles up there is a small lake.”

  “Is that where we are stopping?”

  “Yes. Enough daylight left if everyone wants to cool off.”

  “You don’t have to ask me twice. I like it when we stop early.”

  “Why’s that?”

  “It means Tot doesn’t have time to cook beans.”

  Caleb laughed. “What are you looking forward to when we get home?”

  “Other than not eating beans?” Slim thought for a moment. “I think I’m looking forward to sleeping in my bunk. Having fresh coffee that isn’t made from stale water. Seeing my girl. I think those are the things I’m looking forward to the most.

  “I didn’t realize you had a girl.”

  “She’s new in town. Came to stay with her aunt and uncle.”

  “Have you been seeing her long?”

  Slim shrugged. “Long enough. I was going to propose to her before we left for Texas, but I thought I’d wait until I get back.”

  “Will she still be there?” Slim nodded. “How do you know?”

  “You know. When it is the right one, you know. You’ll want to spend all your days making sure that they don’t have to worry about anything. You want to find all their worries and make them right. You know.”

  Caleb looked back across the lush landscape. Is that what he was feeling about Lydia?

  How would she feel when her memory returned, and she realized Caleb wasn’t her husband?

  He kept pace with the herd, letting Blaze guide him so he could be lost in his thoughts.

  When they arrived at the chuckwagon the men whooped and hollered when they caught sight of the pool of crystal blue water. It was a ground fed spring that fed the pond. Many of the men didn’t even wait until after supper, instead they quickly stripped and jumped in the pool in their underwear.

  When Hart saw the commotion, he raced to the water. Caleb saw him hopping as he tried to pull off his boots and toss them in the pile with all the other clothes.

  “Slim!” Caleb called.

  The cowboy saw Hart running and gave Caleb a wave. Slim waited until Hart caught up and then they both jumped in the pond and disappeared under the water.

  Caleb hoped Lydia was alright waiting for a turn to cool off. He would take her down as the sun was setting and watch to make sure the cowboys stayed away. He found her standing over the fire stirring a pot. Tot was sitting on one of the empty barrels and watching.

  “Aren’t you supposed to be cooking?” he asked Tot.

  “Sit down and have a cup of coffee. The woman wanted to work.”

  Caleb fetched a cup. Lydia used her skirt to hold the coffee pot and she filled his cup.

  “Thank you, honey,” he said and went to sit on a second barrel. Tot raised his eyebrow as Caleb took a seat. Caleb ignored him and watched Lydia stirring whatever was in the Dutch oven. “What are you cooking?”

  She gave it one more stir, then put the lid on the pot. “Beef stew.”

  “It smells wonderful.”

  Lydia gave him a little smile. He watched her mix flour, water and salt in a bowl. When the stew was bubbling, she dropped spoonsful of dough in the hot mixture. It didn’t take long for the hungry cowboys to get in line.

  Caleb watched as every cowboy took off his hat and held out his plate for Lydia to place dinner on their plates. They thanked her and teased Tot as he poured hot coffee in their mugs.

  “She’s better on the eyes than you, old man,” Goodie said, holding out his cup.

  The other cowboys followed, teasing Tot as they passed. Caleb chuckled as Tot took the ribbing in stride.

  When the last cowboy was served, Lydia turned to Caleb. Her face was glowing with the fire. He could see the perspiration dotting her cheeks and forehead.

  “Are you ready to eat?”

  “Only if you eat with me?”

  Lydia took three plates from the back of the wagon and filled one, handing it to Tot. She filled the other two and handed one to Caleb.

  “Let’s go sit by the pond. There are some large rocks there.”

  Lydia followed Caleb to the side of the pond. The cowboys were already starting to settle down for the night. Someone pulled out a guitar and the sounds of strumming filled the air. There were two large rocks where they sat. A gurgling sound came from the center of the water.

  “What are those bubbles there
?” Lydia asked, pointing to the middle of the pond with her fork.

  “That is just air that has been caught in the spring. We have the same thing in Nebraska.”

  “So, the water comes from underground?”

  Caleb nodded and speared a piece of beef. “There is an underground spring that feeds the pond. That is why the water is so clear. It is pretty cold too.”

  “I don’t care, I just want to wash off the trail dust.”

  Caleb ate the tender beef in gravy. “This is really good.”

  “Thank you. I must have enjoyed cooking at some point.”

  “You are good at it. I know Tot appreciated the break.”

  “I’ve been helping him a bit more each day.”

  “You don’t need to help Tot.”

  “It’s alright. I just needed something to occupy my mind. Too much thinkin’ isn’t good for anyone.”

  “You have a lot of time to think out here on the trail.” Lydia finished her dinner and put her plate aside on the rock. “If you want to bathe, I’ll keep watch and make sure you aren’t disturbed.”

  “I’ll take these dishes up and get a clean dress.”

  Caleb laughed. “Have you been hiding clean clothes?” Caleb looked down at his linen shirt. What was once a light gray was now a dull brown. He patted his belly and a small dust cloud emanated from the fabric.

  “I washed my clothes at the last stop. Hart’s too.”

  “And you didn’t tell anyone?”

  Lydia laughed. “I wasn’t prepared to be a washerwoman for a bunch of dirty cowboys.”

  “Have you remembered anything?”

  “Just bits and pieces.”

  “Want to talk about it?”

  Lydia shook her head. “Not right now. I just remember there was a sense of danger. And I recall a woman. But I don’t remember her name.”

  “Do you remember anything about Hart?”

  “No. And that breaks my heart. That boy thinks I’m his momma.”

  Caleb recalled what the doctor said. Lydia had never given birth. Perhaps Hart was an orphan. After the war, it wasn’t unusual for children from overcrowded cities to be put on a western-bound train. Most went to farms to be raised as farmhands.