Rush

by Jayme Mansfield

  Lucy screeched, and Lila let out a cry, making us both laugh.

  “I was hoping you’d ask. I’d be honored.”

  *****

  Trains seem to take a long time to arrive when you’re waiting for someone special. When the three o’clock train pulled alongside the platform a half hour late, my breathing resumed a regular pace. I had been worried about Mother traveling alone from Adair and prayed her travel would go smoothly.

  When she stepped off the train, I was a child again—one who had found her mother after being separated in a crowd.

  “Mother!” One hand waved frantically as the other held tightly to Wesley. When she saw us and waved back, we ran to her. The three of us huddled together and held each other as if the train would pluck one of us away as it rumbled and lunged on to its next destination.

  “Wesley, my boy.” Mother kissed him cheek to cheek. “You’re so big—practically turned into a young man. And my dear Mary …” She held my hands, and her eyes searched mine. “You seem so happy. It was evident from the telegraph.” She touched my splinted arm. “Your arm. Is it almost healed?”

  “Only another week. Adahy says the splint can come off before the wedding.”

  “Adahy?”

  “We have a lot to talk about. But we’ll have plenty of time for all that. For now, it’s so wonderful you decided to come. It means everything to me that you’re here.” I lifted her bag. “How was the travel?”

  “Besides being a little tired from the long ride, it was actually quite an adventure. Met several interesting people.” If even possible, her hair appeared whiter than before, but her eyes remained sharp and clear. “Reminded me we live in a big world with plenty to see and do. Adair is nice, but it’s only a speck of the country.”

  “Mother, as always, you amaze me.”

  Wesley could hardly keep his boyish excitement under control as he helped load her bags into the back of the wagon. With a little effort, we helped Mother pull herself onto the seat and headed home.

  *****

  My soon-to-be family felt complete when, two days later, Ben brought Daniel home once again.

  “Nearly three weeks was too long to be away from you.” Daniel scooped me into his arms and spun in a circle.

  “I hope you don’t plan to go away again anytime soon.” I kissed him quickly, anticipating when we could embrace for hours once we were husband and wife.

  “Not a chance.” He turned his attention toward the soddy. “And this must be your lovely mother.”

  Mother stepped from the doorway. “I see you are intelligent as well as handsome.”

  “Mother, this is Daniel McKenzie. Daniel, meet my mother, Louisa Johnston.”

  “Ma’am. It’s more than a pleasure to meet the woman Mary speaks so highly of. You’ve raised a lovely, delightful daughter who will soon be my wife.”

  “And I’m sure you will make a fine husband. Love her like she deserves to be loved, and be a good father to my grandson.” Mother took Daniel’s hand and seemed to study him. “There’s something about you I already feel good about. Hmm? Must be those eyes.”

  Daniel, Ben, and Wesley unloaded an odd assortment of items from the back of the wagon. When it was time to close his apartment, Daniel couldn’t bring himself to leave his easel. The unassembled pieces were bound together with rope until we could find a place in the small soddy or barn for him to paint. He brought a case filled with clothing, including a coat and tie to wear for the wedding. A few household items clanged around in one wooden crate. Another contained art supplies, and the last held books—favorites he planned to share with me and Wesley during the long winter months.

  After harvesting the last of the summer food from the garden and enjoying an early supper, Daniel kissed the tip of my nose before bridling Jim. “I’ll be staying at the ranch house until the wedding to give you time with your mother and … whatever it is women do before they get married.” He lifted the saddle onto Jim’s back and tightened the cinch. “Two days from now, we’ll get to share a home.” Daniel motioned to Wesley to join us. “Son, thank you for letting Jim come along with me. The Cooleys are bringing the three of you to the church in a larger coach—only proper and fitting for the bride.”

  *****

  Even though the church was a speck in the middle of the open plain west of town, in my eyes it was a castle, awaiting its queen. The skirts of the wedding gown filled most of the space in the coach, and the puffy sleeves made it difficult for anyone to share my seat. I giggled along with Mother and Wesley as the three of us did our best to squish together as we bounced along on our way to the church.

  It didn’t take many of our friends to fill the tiny building. From the back, I glanced along the pews and smiled at my schoolchildren and their families. William Hill, looking even more like a young man, was seated with his father. Roy and his wife sat beside Thomas, who was trying his best to hold Lila so Lucy could be at my side.

  My mother sat in the front row, her hair pulled into a tight bun. In her favorite yellow outfit, she looked like a delicate songbird.

  To my right, seated in the back of the church, were Adahy and a woman. Her hair was white like cotton and her skin tanned and leathery. His wife. He looked at me and patted his chest—a sign I took to symbolize love.

  Ben, Nate, and Stanley whispered among themselves until the piano played. The minister, a slight and aged man, gestured to Daniel to take his position at the altar. Bartholomew Reid stood to his side, beaming at his appointment as the best man.

  Like a fairy dancing in the forest, Anna went before me, scattering pink and purple wildflower petals on the wooden floor, their scent lingering like perfume. Wesley was her caboose, a piece of folded velvet across his palms in which the rings rested. Mine would be a long-held treasure that belonged to Daniel’s mother. For Daniel, I had purchased a simple gold band at the only jeweler in town and had it inscribed with our wedding date.

  The minister gave a slight nod, motioning to me to walk down the aisle. With a deep breath and a heart full of hope, I stepped forward.

  I had heard the words before—long ago when I was young and innocent, ignorant about the challenges, hardships, and heartbreaks life brings. Though nearly the same words were shared—words meant to forge an everlasting bond—they held new meaning.

  “I, Daniel James, take you, Mary Louisa, to be my wife, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish until death do us part. I promise to love you forever and a day.”

  The minister raised his eyebrows as Daniel spoke the additional sentence. Then he grinned and nodded at me to speak.

  “I, Mary Louisa, take you, Daniel James, to be my husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish until death do us part.”

  I glanced at the minister who gave a quick wink.

  “And I promise to love you forever and a day.”

  When the minister pronounced us husband and wife, Daniel and I kissed to the applause of our friends and family. We turned and started out the door to begin our new life together.

  CHAPTER 43

  Mary ~ Apparition, September 28, 1894

  For someone who had kept a private and lifeless home for many years, Stanley was the perfect host. “Good thing I insisted the reception be at the ranch,” he told me. Holding another tray of food, he pushed the screen door open with his foot. “It’s about time we wake the place up. It will be good to hear a fiddle and kick up the dirt with some dancing.”

  Children chased each other around the yard as the guests chatted about the weather and the work that needed to be done on the farms. Congratulations were offered through mouthfuls of food and laughter. Even the chickens—a much-appreciated gift from Stewart, Seth, and little Elizabeth’s family—clucked along with the excitement and merriment of the party.

  When William and h
is father presented not one, but two mahogany rocking chairs, I was at a loss for words—overwhelmed with the love and generosity of the community.

  Adahy’s wife stood quietly at his side as her husband talked with Stanley, Daniel, and Bart. When I joined them, she pulled a shiny object from beneath the scarf that draped over her blouse and extended her arms toward me.

  “For the new couple,” Adahy said. “My wife make for you.”

  It was a silver bowl, inlaid with turquoise stones, surrounded by intricate etchings. I had never held something so intricate, and I cupped it in my palms like a robin’s nest.

  “Thank you.” Her dark eyes smiled at my words. “It will always have a special place in our home.”

  “Another guest is here, Pa.” Ben jerked his head toward the path leading into the yard. “But I don’t recognize him. Is he a new hand?”

  “No one I know. Haven’t hired anyone lately,” Stanley said. “A friend of yours, Mary?” I stepped to the side of our gathering to get a better look at the man walking into the yard. His shirt hung loosely, and his pants were worn at the knees. Drooping on one side, his hat covered part of his face.

  Not wanting anyone to feel unwelcome at our celebration, I decided to greet him. “Welcome. Have we met?”

  When the man removed his hat, curls fell around his face. He brushed them aside and stared at me with hollow brown eyes.

  “Tuck!” I felt the blood drain from my face.

  Daniel ran to my side. “What’s wrong? Who is this?” He looked at me and then at the shadow of a man standing with his hat dangling at his side. “Sir, I don’t believe we know you. Please state your business here.”

  When I lost my focus and began to sway, Daniel steadied me. My head shook in disbelief and shock.

  “What’s happening? Do you two know each other?” Daniel’s voice became stern.

  Could it be that my eyes betray me from the exhaustion of the day, or perhaps being overheated? I asked myself. No, it was Tuck in the flesh. And although the past year had obviously not been kind—and he looked several years older than when I last saw him—he was most certainly alive.

  “Sir, you’re upsetting my wife. I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

  “No, Daniel.” My voice quivered. “It’s … it’s Tuck. My … husband.”

  Daniel’s face contorted as if he had been punched in the gut. “Your husband? Unless I’m mistaken, you and I just got married, and your first husband is dead.”

  Stanley strode up, demanding to know what was going on. “Mister, I don’t believe you’re invited to this affair.” He looked at Daniel’s pale face. “What in the … what’s going on here? Do my boys need to remove this man from my property?”

  Daniel looked at me with sad eyes that longed for an explanation. “Ask Mary. I have no idea what’s going on.”

  He started to walk away, but I grabbed his arm with surprising strength. “Daniel, wait. I’m as surprised as you. He must be a ghost.” But as Tuck stood yards away, surrounded by the three Cooleys, he was just as real as Daniel who stood by my side. My mind whirled with the possibilities. “He can’t be here. He was killed over a year ago.”

  “Did you ever see his body? Was there a funeral, or at least a burial?” Daniel ran a shaky hand through his hair.

  Suddenly, I was struck with a sickening realization that all I knew was what Sheriff Murphy had told me. How Tuck had gotten into a drunken brawl with another man at a bar somewhere in Colorado, drew a knife, and was shot in the chest.

  “That filthy man lied to me.” Nausea roiled as reality set in. With my hand to my mouth, I ran into the house and locked myself in the water closet. Inside the dim room, my horrified reflection stared at me from the small mirror on the wall. Only minutes before, I was the happiest woman on earth. Now, the woman looking back at me was terrified and confused. If he hadn’t been killed, and Sheriff Murphy went so far as to lie to me for his own selfish reasons, why had Tuck come back now? Then another thought struck me with brute force.

  Wesley! Oh, my God, has he seen his father?

  I bolted out of the house, knocking into Lucy and another woman tending to the food. “Where’s Wesley? I have to find him.”

  “Mary, what—” Lucy put out her hand, but I didn’t stop. “The children are riding the pony in the field.”

  I lifted my dress the best I could and dashed down the path toward the open area, nearly collapsing when I spotted Tuck kneeling in front of Wesley in the middle of the field. Daniel and Stanley stood to the side of them, keeping a close look but allowing a conversation to take place.

  “Wesley?” I halted a few yards away.

  The corners of his mouth drooped, and his face was stained with tears. “Mama?” His voice shook along with his body. “It’s my daddy.”

  More than anything, I wanted to be on the other side of the world from this man yet desperately needed to be with my son. As if I were ten feet taller than my true height, the instinct to do anything to protect Wesley swelled inside of me.

  With a swift movement, I stepped forward and pulled my son close. From somewhere long ago, a proverb surfaced in my mind. Let a bear robbed of her whelps meet a man, rather than a fool in his folly. Recalling the strange image the verse had conjured when I first heard it, now it made sense. In Tuck’s case, it would be worse for him to meet his own fool’s folly. This mother bear would kill to protect her child.

  Part of me wanted to tear Tuck to pieces, instill the same fear and pain in him that had taunted me even before his supposed death. Another part seethed at the notion of what the man who hid his evilness behind a shiny badge had been capable of doing—destroying our lives and ultimately losing his own.

  Anger, confusion, fear, and hatred boiled inside me like a poisonous venom waiting to be unleashed—ready to spew its wrath upon this man who could ruin everything true, honest, just, pure, lovely, of good report …

  Unexpectedly, like a welcome visitor, the rest of the words of one of my mother’s favorite Scriptures slipped from my mouth, allowing me to pause. “If there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.”

  Here in front of me, Tuck knelt in the grass like a wounded animal. The poisonous brew still bubbled in my gut, but it was sprinkled with an odd sense of compassion, mixed with remorse.

  “Wesley, go play with the other children for a bit.” I prodded him in the direction of the others who, by now, had made their way to the table filled with desserts. “Get some pie before it’s all gone.”

  “But, Mama, you said he was dead.” Wesley dug his hands into the skirt of my dress, his eyes locked on the man in front of him.

  “Evidently, I was mistaken.” My lips brushed the top of his head.

  Tuck stood on wobbly legs. “We’ll talk more, Son. Let me have a few minutes with your mother.” He nodded in the direction of the other children. “Be sure to cut me a slice of apple pie.” He gave the weary grin of a man who didn’t have an ounce of happiness in his life.

  Wesley backed away, never taking his eyes off his father, and then turned and ran up the hill to the house.

  I glanced at Daniel, then moved closer to Tuck. Just as before, the smell of whiskey was evident. “What are you doing here? I’ve believed all this time you were murdered in a fight, far away in Colorado.”

  “By the filthy son of a—” He wiped the sweat from his face with a dirty shirtsleeve. “It wasn’t enough for Murphy to falsely accuse me of stealing a horse. You remember that, don’t you, Mary?”

  He was innocent after all, just like I suspected.

  “It’s true. There was a fight. Got beat up pretty bad and wondered if that was the end.” He pulled aside his collar. “Took a bullet just below my shoulder. Can’t use my right arm much anymore, but it didn’t kill me. Living proof, ain’t I?”

  “Then why didn’t you come home? Why did you leave your son without a father?”

  Daniel stepped closer. “Yes, why show up now … find her all the wa
y out here?” Daniel towered over Tuck and could easily overpower him. Not to mention, Stanley stood nearby with his hand close to his revolver. I put my hand on Daniel’s arm, hoping to assure him Tuck wasn’t here to hurt anyone.

  “Had to stay clear, far away from Adair. At least until I heard Murphy was dead. He swore if I came back, they’d find me floating in the river face down.”

  My hands knotted into fists. “He threatened to kill you?”

  “Pretty much. Said plenty of others had it in for me, and if I wanted to keep on breathing, I’d better stay away.” Tuck scratched at his dirty hair. “I wouldn’t put it past him to have shot me himself. He was that crazy over you.”

  “You knew that?” Another surge of anger rose, and I wanted to slap this man who had made a vow to love and protect me. “And you ran away to save yourself?”

  Daniel paced behind me.

  “Mary, I loved you. Not expecting you to believe me, but I still do.” He winced as if the thought was painful. “I was a coward—a drunken coward.”

  “Your pathetic excuse is too late.” Daniel placed his arm around me. “In case you were too dense to notice, you arrived in time to celebrate our marriage. Your widow became my wife this morning.”

  Stanley placed a firm hand on Tuck’s back. “It was a nice reunion, but it’s time you be on your way.”

  Tuck twisted out of Stanley’s reach. “Mary and I have unfinished business.”

  “And just what would that be?” Stanley’s words were brusque.

  “When I got to Adair, I went to pay a visit to my dear mother-in-law. The neighbors said she had left for her daughter’s wedding. Told me Mary had met a man in the new territory where she and I had planned to homestead.” As he spoke, Bart escorted Mother across the field to where we were gathered.

  “Well, lookie who’s here?” Tuck stretched out his arms. “It’s a family reunion.”

  “Tuck Roberts, if you weren’t standing right in front of me, I’d never believe it.” She held tightly to Bart’s arm. Her porcelain skin was even more pale than usual.