Burt touched her lightly on the arm. “I’m enjoying our walk. It’s not up to them. The only two involved are you and me, and I’d like to walk a bit more. You?”
Relief rushed through her. He certainly was a gentleman. “Yes, thank you.” They walked in silence as she once again searched for something to say.
“Relax. Think of me as an old friend. We can talk about the different flowers. Flowers are always good for soothing the nerves. We have many that are native to Texas.”
“How’d you know I was nervous?” She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.
“As a judge I’ve had to learn to read people. People who come into my courtroom aren’t always truthful, and it’s up to me to figure it out. After a while it gets easier.” He gave her a smile. “Now see that field of blue flowers? Those are Texas blue bonnets. The orange and yellow flowers are Indian paint brushes. There are times when Texas is brown and dried up, and then it puts on a magnificent show like this.”
“It is beautiful. I love how you can see from one horizon to the other. In New York I was surrounded by tall buildings. I never saw how beautiful the sunrise could be. We did go up to the roof at times but it wasn’t anything like this.”
“I love living here. I was born in Texas. We’ve had our share of wars but we’re a tough lot. Takes a hardy person to survive here. And for the record, I think you’re as hardy as they come.”
Ilene’s lips twitched.
“What? Is something funny?” he asked.
She chuckled. “Hardy and sturdy remind me of a big woman able to take on the world. I like to think I’m a bit more feminine than that.”
They stopped walking and turned toward each other. “Hardy in a good, sweet, feminine way of course.” He reached out and gently pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear. They stared at each other for a moment but the pounding of horse's’ hooves interrupted them.
Quickly they each took a step back. Ilene put her hands on her hips are she watched Tramp ride toward them.
“I just wanted to check and make sure you two were fine.” He swung down from his horse and stood between Ilene and the judge.
Her eyes grew wide as she shook her head. “The house is still in view. You could have looked out from the front porch of the main house and seen us.”
Tramp stared at the ground for a moment, and then looked up. “You were taking so long I thought one of you might have twisted an ankle or something.”
The mirth she saw in Burt’s eyes had her laughing in no time. “You are an odd one, Tramp.”
Tramp shrugged his shoulders and skillfully got them all turned back toward the house while maintaining his position in the middle. He had the horse’s reins in his hand the whole time.
“We were talking about Texas flowers, Tramp. Which do you like?” Judge Gleason inquired. His lips twitched as though he was trying not to laugh.
“Flowers? I never gave it much thought. Some are blue, some orange. We have white ones and yellow ones. A flower is a flower I suppose.”
“Ilene and I were discussing the names of them.” He gestured toward a field of flowers. “Most of the flowers we see here are native to Texas.”
“Did you know Ilene trains horses? She even breaks them. She has these pants she wears while riding.” Tramp’s rushed words made her cringe.
Ilene was tempted to kick Tramp. What was he trying to do? Drive Burt away? Inwardly seething, she bit her tongue and kept in step with the two men. Wait until she got him alone. She’d bite her tongue no longer.
“So, what do you think, Ilene? Do you want to make Texas your home?” Burt asked.
Tramp’s eyes grew wide as he turned in her direction. “Were you planning to leave?”
“You’d like that wouldn’t you?” She’d had enough of Tramp. She quickened her step until she reached her house, and then she waited. She ignored Tramp and smiled at Burt. “Thank you for a lovely walk. I enjoyed it.”
Burt tipped his white hat at her and nodded. “The pleasure was all mine. I’d like to see you again. That is, if you’re agreeable.”
“I would like that very much.”
“Good. Well, good day. I need to get back.”
“Good bye.”
“Nice to see you, Judge Gleason,” Tramp said. He stayed in front of the house, not moving while the judge got into his carriage and drove away.
Ilene crossed her arms in front of her and glared at Tramp. “You insufferable polecat. You go to all the trouble of setting me up and then you intrude on us. Neither was appropriate, nor was it necessary. I don’t need you to find men to court me. I don’t need you to keep an eye on me, and I don’t need you to play chaperone. Have I missed anything or do you understand what I’m saying?” Her voice grew louder with each word but she couldn’t help herself.
“I was doing nothing of the sort. Married, unmarried, makes no difference to me. You just need to find a new place to live. Your stubbornness is just going to leave you without a husband. I’m really trying to help. I have your best interests at heart.”
She took a step closer and poked his chest with each word. “You only have one thing on your mind and it’s you. You, you, you!”
“Is everything alright out here?” Cookie asked as he ambled toward them.
Ilene became aware of her surroundings and instantly grew ashamed of her actions. It seemed as though every person on the ranch was outside staring at them. It was too much. Biting her lip, she lifted her skirts off the ground and ran into her house, closing the door with a firm thud. Leaning her back against it, she took a deep breath and tears began to fall.
She’d have to leave. It didn’t really matter where she went. What she longed for most, she’d never find; a place of acceptance where she could feel comfortable being herself. Maybe there wasn’t such a place for her.
Tramp was a nosey busybody, and right now she wanted to poke him some more. Her finger hurt and she hoped she’d hurt him. Maybe he’d have a few bruises to show for it. One could only hope. Her anger died as she thought of him in pain. He deserved no less.
The next morning, Tramp skipped breakfast and rode out instead. There’d been a sighting of horses near the north ridge. He rode for a bit before he spotted squatters on his land. He approached slowly, not wanting to get shot. Most that ended up as squatters were in dire straits and at the end of their rope. Their dream of making a good life in Texas hadn’t panned out for one reason or another, and they were desperate to provide for their families. He felt for them but he didn’t want to encourage such behavior. He’d give them a warning to get off the land.
Just as he’d expected, a rifle was trained on him as he rode closer to the covered wagon. They had set up a camp of sorts. He scanned the area trying to gage how many people he was dealing with. Back in the trees he saw another wagon and groaned.
“Howdy, folks. Stopping for the night?” He hoped they said yes but his hope wasn’t high.
An older man stepped out in front of his wagon. “A night, maybe more. Why do you ask?” His voice was gruff but he swayed a bit.
“It’s my land. I don’t mind a night or two, but anything longer is considered squatting, and I don’t cotton that. I’ve fought for this land. I’ve worked this land. I’m sure you understand.” Tramp had his hand on his side arm.
“Please, mister,” a small woman pleaded. She looked deathly white and none to stable either.
“When’s the last time you folks ate?”
“A nice woman left us some food a few days ago.”
Tramp’s blood began to boil. Ilene. It had to be. Ilene had no right to make such decisions. Didn’t she know squatters were dangerous? Most times they were sick. Darn her!
“Are any of you sick? I’m including the wagon you have hidden behind the trees.”
The man and woman glanced at each other and that was answer enough for him. “How many people do you have total?”
The man took a wobbly step forward. “We’re nine all told. We ran
out of food and bullets. So hunting has been hard. We’ve set traps but not much comes this way it seems.”
“Any other sickness I need to know about?”
“No sir. We’re just weak and hungry. One woman is having a baby. It’s not a sickness mind you, but I’m worried she won’t have the strength. Listen, mister we’re good God-fearing people. I’m Pastor Joseph Plunkett. I had a church and position all lined up, but the town was burned down when we got there. We’d already left the wagon train and…” He gestured to their surroundings. “Well, here we are.” Despite his weakness, he had great inner strength.
“Tell you what. I’m going to get the doctor and some food. If you aren’t carrying a sickness, I’ll see about getting you folks moved closer to the house. You need to be well to make a new plan.”
The woman’s eyes teared. “Bless you, Mister. What did you say your name was?”
“I’m Tramp Hart, ma’am. Just call me Tramp. I’ll be back in a while.” He tipped his hat to her and then turned his horse. “Come on, Jack, we have a job to do.”
He rode to town to get the doctor first and to alert the town Sheriff, Shane O’Connor. Sometimes desperate men got itchy trigger fingers. Then he rode for the ranch. Cinders needed to be part of the decision. Why Ilene never said a word was beyond him. She shouldn’t have gone near them. Dagnabbit, the woman could have gotten herself in a heap of trouble. Why didn’t she use the sense God gave her?
The main house came into sight, and the first person he saw was Ilene. He skirted Jack around her and went on to the house. If he talked to her now, he’d end up saying things he’d regret, so he jumped down and strode into the house.
“Morning, Shannon. How’s the little one?” She was the picture of motherhood, rocking Olivia in her arms. Her face was serene, and he’d never seen her look so beautiful before.
“It was a long night. She was fussy most of it.” It amazed him how she could smile at him, even after he’d tried to get her out of Cinders’ life. He hadn’t thought her good enough for his friend. He’d been so wrong.
“Cinders around?”
“He’s chopping wood out back. Is something wrong?”
“No, just some squatters. They’re near starved and sick. I got the doc to agree to go out there. If they aren’t contagious I’d like to move them closer to the homestead for a bit and get them well.” He shifted his weight from one foot to the other.
Shannon tilted her head and took his measure. “You know you’ve changed. Before you’d have sent them on their way, sick or not. I like the change.”
His heart warmed at her words. “I’ll go find Cinders. See you later.” He tipped his hat and left. Helping others did give one a good feeling. He’d never really known that before.
Cinders swung his axe like a man with something on his mind. He stopped when he caught sight of Tramp. “What’s going on?”
“Squatters. They’re real bad off. I sent the doc out, but I think we should be there to cover him. They seemed nice enough, just down on their luck, but you never know.”
Cinders grabbed his shirt and shrugged it on. “Let me get Strike saddled and we can be off.”
They walked to the barn, and Tramp waited outside watching Ilene tend the garden. She did do more than her share around the ranch. He needed to curb his tongue around her. He was only making a fool of himself. He hoped she’d look in his direction so he could nod at her, but she acted as though he wasn’t even there. It was disheartening, and he wasn’t exactly sure why. He still needed to talk to her about the dangers of giving strangers food. He sighed as he heard movement from the barn signaling Cinders was about ready. A talk with Ilene would have to wait.
Soon he and Cinders were riding side by side to the north end of the property. On the way, they intercepted Doctor Martin and Sheriff O’Connor. The four of them continued on until they came to the wagon.
They approached slowly and cautiously. Tramp took the lead. He rode up to the wagon that was in the open and got down. “Howdy folks. I brought the doctor like I said I would.”
The old man had his rifle but it seemed too heavy for him to lift.
“What’s the law doing here?” the older woman asked, glaring at Tramp.
“I just wanted to be sure Doctor Martin would be safe out here. I don’t know you folks. It would be foolhardy to trust you just yet.” He gestured to the men on horseback. “This is Cinders. He owns half the ranch. This is Doctor Martin, and the one with his rifle drawn is Sheriff O’Connor. Let’s get you folks checked out and then we can go from there.”
The couple both nodded. “I’m Pastor Joseph Plunkett, and this is my wife Estelle. We have two other wagons. One has my daughters in it, Ava, Isabelle and Mia. The other one belongs to my brother Peter and his wife Ella. They have two girls, Audrey and Sadie. Like I told Tramp here, the town I was supposed to be pastor of burned down before we got there. We decided to keep going, ended up lost and low on supplies. We stopped here and didn’t know what to do. Thank goodness for your gal Ilene for bringing us food.”
Cinders turned his head and arched his brow as he looked at Shane. Shane just shrugged. “She never said a word.”
Cinders nodded and turned back to the task at hand. “How about we get the doc here busy looking at your family.”
Estelle smiled. “That would be real nice. I think we’re just mostly weak. Though Audrey and Sadie have a cough. I tried mustard plasters but it didn’t work.”
“I’ll see what I can do,” Doc Martin said as he sat the pastor down on a crate.
The pastor kept his eye on the Sheriff the whole time. “You’re not going to take us in for trespassing, are you Sheriff?”
Shane O’Connor returned the man’s stare. “Not if I can help it.”
“You married?” The pastor asked.
“Yes, I have a wife, Cecily. We’re newly wed.”
The man nodded. “That’s a shame. I have three daughters looking for husbands. My nieces too are going to need to find themselves some fine men too.”
Shane smiled. “Tramp is single. The rest of us are married.”
Both Estelle and Joseph turned their attention to Tramp. “I didn’t know you were a single fella. My daughters are a sight to behold,” Estelle said with pride.
Shane wanted to groan. They probably resembled wet cats. Besides, marriage wasn’t for him.
Doctor Martin went from wagon to wagon and came back. “Nothing contagious. They could use some good food and a lot of rest, though.”
“The plan is to take them to the homestead and let them camp there for a while. We have more than enough food. They can plan their next move from there,” Cinders said.
The pastor stepped forward. “That is mighty kind of you. I’m wondering if you might drive the wagons for us. I know I can’t handle the oxen right now.”
Tramp nodded. “Sure. Doc would you mind riding ahead and asking Ilene and Shannon to have some food ready?” He waited for the Doc to nod before he got on his horse and rode off. “I’ll drive your wagon, Pastor,” Tramp offered.
Estelle stepped forward. “I think it would be better if you drive my girls’ wagon. I think they’d be comfortable with you.”
He glanced over at Cinders and then at Shane shaking his head at their knowing smiles. Estelle wanted him to marry one of her girls. Well, there was no help for it now. He needed to get them home. “Let’s get going.”
Chapter Four
As soon as she heard the news about the squatters moving to the homestead, Ilene went into her house and made several loaves of bread and cornbread. She’d checked with Shannon to see if she needed help but Cookie was one step ahead of her and took over the kitchen. She put the warm loaves into two baskets and carried the bread and cornbread over to the main house.
“Slice up the bread and divvy up the cornbread,” Cookie told her without even turning around. “I’m making my famous stew, but I’m watering it down a bit. They need to eat slow or they’ll be sick. Shannon, did you
put milk on the table?”
Shannon exchanged an amused look with Ilene. “Yes, you already asked me.”
“Did you answer? I would have remembered if you answered. Motherhood can be tricky you know. You think you remember doing something but you never done did it in the first place.”
Shannon placed her hands over her mouth to keep from laughing.
“I’m right aren’t I, Doc?”
Doctor Martin’s eyes widened in surprise. “Well, um, you see. Well, I suppose it’s possible.” He winked at Shannon.
“So, the milk is on the table?”
Both Shannon and Ilene started laughing.
“I’ll check myself,” grumbled Cookie. He turned from his stew and checked the table. “Good, milk, bread and butter.” He nodded and went back to stirring his pot.
Cookie sure was a character and Ilene envied Shannon’s easy going manner with both him and Doctor Martin.
Soon enough the creaky sounds of wagons being driven filled the air. They all hurried outside. Ilene had already met them and it warmed her that Tramp had brought them home. Perhaps he had a good heart after all.
Cinders drove the first wagon, Shane the second, and Tramp the third. Somehow, Tramp had five females with him, all chattering at him, trying to catch his attention. He smiled like a cat who’d just stolen milk from the milking pail.
Ilene’s heart squeezed as she watched, and she didn’t know why. She didn’t care what he did. Except he did say he’d never marry. Maybe he had said it to warn her off. He didn’t want to marry her, just her. Most of her joy ebbed away as she watched him lift each girl down. Perhaps there was a bright side. He wouldn’t be bothering her anymore. Her heart and head were at odds.
Shannon stepped forward and met each of the guests and made them feel welcome. She didn’t seem as self-conscious of the scar on her face when she was on the ranch. It was nice to see. Ilene was happy for her friend.
“Ilene, would you show them to the kitchen?” Shannon asked.
“Of course. Right this way folks.” She led them into the house and had them all seated at the table. She wished she’d have taken the initiative to get them inside without having to be told.
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