A noise drew her attention, and Carissa opened her eyes to find Tyler watching her from the doorway. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb your rest. You looked . . . well . . . you looked comfortable,” he said, setting down the two trunks he carried.
“I was just enjoying the quiet.” She got to her feet. “I had hoped to talk to you for a minute.”
He straightened and smiled. “I’ve always got time for a pretty lady.”
She frowned. “This is serious.”
“Is something wrong?” His tone took on an edge, suggesting he was all business.
“It’s just this . . . well . . . this whole Indian thing. I didn’t want to say anything to Brandon or Laura, for I know it’s already hard enough for Brandon to leave my sister in her condition.”
“So what is it that has you worried?”
Carissa drew a deep breath and squared her shoulders. “I want you . . . I mean, I wonder if you would be willing to teach me to shoot. You mentioned it once before.”
His stance immediately relaxed. “Is that all?”
“I know you men plan to leave in the next two days, so that doesn’t afford us much time, but I want you to teach me what to look out for . . . what kind of signs we’d see if the Indians were going to attack.”
“You probably wouldn’t see any signs,” he replied. “They’re crafty that way. They know the land and how to survive on it. I’ve seen bands pick up in the middle of the night and slip right past the army. If they decide to attack this ranch, you probably won’t see it comin’.”
“Then how are we supposed to protect ourselves?” she asked.
Tyler considered the question for a moment. “I’ll take you out to shoot this afternoon. We can get a lot of practice in before I have to leave. Chances are you won’t need to worry. Like I said before, Hannah has earned the respect of the Comanche. Word among the tribes is that she’s a friend to the people.”
“And so they’ve never attacked this ranch?”
“No. They’ve taken things from time to time. Mostly a few steers and some horses. Will lets them, however. He feels that if he shows a willingness to overlook small thefts, the Indians won’t be inclined to make trouble.”
His words gave Carissa little comfort. “You will be gone for a very long time.”
“There will still be men here. Will’s got a good right-hand man in Juanita’s husband, Berto. And there will be others. You’ll be well looked after.”
“I couldn’t bear to lose Gloria.” Carissa’s words were choked as she fought her emotions. “I couldn’t bear to lose Laura or Daniel.”
Tyler stepped rather awkwardly toward her and started to put his hand to Carissa’s shoulder before pulling back. “I know, but don’t go borrowing trouble. Things have been peaceful here for a good while. With the war over and the army forts resupplied, the days of the Indian wars will soon come to a close.”
She trembled. “Do you really believe that?”
“I do. The Indians will either give up and go to live on the reservations, or the army will kill them. I don’t see that there will be much in the way of compromise.”
Tyler tried not to dwell on his earlier words to Carissa as he showed her how to handle the Henry repeating rifle. “Hold it tight against your shoulder,” he instructed. “It’s got a recoil to it.”
Carissa looked at him in confusion. “Recoil? Will it hurt?”
He looked at the petite woman trying hard to hold the rifle up and shook his head. “This is crazy. That rifle is almost bigger than you.”
“I can handle it,” she told him. He reached out to snug the rifle tighter against her shoulder.
“I’ve no doubt you can, but after a shot or two, you’re gonna be black and blue if you don’t keep that thing tight. Maybe it’d be better to teach you to fire a revolver.”
She relaxed the rifle at her side and narrowed her eyes. “I thought you said the range is shorter on the revolvers. If I am to be useful, I ought to be able to shoot a rifle.”
He laughed. “Honey, you’d stop any Indian in his tracks just by givin’ him that look.”
His comment obviously took her by surprise. Carissa’s mouth dropped open, and she giggled. “My father always said I could freeze a man in his steps with that look. Maybe it will come in handy.”
Hoisting the rifle back to her shoulder, Carissa nodded toward the cans Tyler had set up. “So now what?”
He came to stand behind her. “Sight in your target. Remember what I told you about this particular Henry.”
“Pulls to the right,” she said.
“So lean into it.” He steadied her arm. “Squeeze the trigger.”
To Tyler’s surprise, she wasted no time. The rifle discharged and she held her ground. He grinned. The shot missed the mark, but she was still standing. Better yet, she was looking at him with a smile to match his own, despite the cloud of gun smoke that rose between them.
“Can I do it again?”
Tyler thought that if he hadn’t already had feelings for Carissa, that simple statement would have won him over. “We can stay out here as long as you like.”
After another few shots, Carissa commented on the heat of the barrel. “It’s really warming up.”
He nodded. “It’ll do that. Some of the fellas in the war said they’d fire it in battle until it all but glowed red. Why don’t we rest for a few minutes and let it cool down?”
Carissa handed him the gun. “It isn’t as hard as I thought it’d be.”
Tyler laughed. “You haven’t hit the target yet.”
“I will.” She moved away to the shade of a sycamore and leaned against the trunk. “I’ll do what I have to in order to protect my daughter.”
He could hear the determination in her voice. How different she was from the flighty young girl he’d first met in Corpus Christi. It was sad, he thought. She had gone from one extreme to another.
“You know, there are other ways.” He crossed to where she stood fanning herself with a straw bonnet. The air was heavy, and Tyler figured they were due another storm before the day was out.
“Other ways of protecting? Don’t you think I know that?” She sounded offended. “I came to be with Laura instead of staying in Corpus. I could just as easily have remained there, but I knew it would be safer for Gloria here. At least I had hoped it would be. I had thought about how calm and peaceful it would be away from the city. Now I have to worry about whether or not we’re going to be attacked by Indians while you and the other men are off on some fool cattle drive.”
Tyler was surprised at the comment. “You think this drive is foolish?”
She met his gaze and nodded. “I didn’t at first, but once I started hearing about all the risks I changed my mind.”
“We didn’t make this decision lightly,” Tyler said, trying to choose his words carefully. “When William first talked to Mr. Terry, neither was convinced this was the best plan. Then they talked to other folks who had made the same trip. They considered other routes, as well. You really have no idea all the planning that went into this.”
“I suppose I don’t,” she said, her voice softening. She pointed to the sky. “It’s starting to cloud up. We’d better get back to my lessons.”
She started to walk past him, but Tyler reached out and took hold of her arm. “Carissa, you don’t have to put that wall between us. I don’t fault you for your fears, but I do want to help if I can.”
“I know, but . . .” She fell silent, and though Tyler waited for several minutes, she didn’t finish her thought. Instead she smiled. “Come on, I need to hit that target.”
That afternoon, Carissa sat with Hannah, Juanita, and Laura to discuss the distribution of chores. They had barely started when Juanita’s eighteen-year-old daughter, Pepita, joined them. She was quite the beauty, with long silky black hair and dark eyes.
“I’m sorry to be late,” she announced, taking her seat. “Andy, he wanted to show me the new foal.” She smiled and nodded to Ha
nnah.
“That’s all right. We just settled down to business,” Hannah replied. “I took Mrs. Terry’s advice when she was last here.” Hannah handed a piece of paper to each woman. “She said we women would get along a whole lot better if we had a plan.” She paused. “I know this is difficult, and I’m not fooling myself to believe it won’t be hard without our fellas. The ranch is never the same with the men gone. However, there will be plenty of work, and we need to see to it that we benefit each and every family.”
Carissa took the paper offered her and looked at the schedule. It seemed simple enough. Each day was listed out and the chores were given with one or two names beside each duty.
“As the gardens flourish we will have more work to manage, with weeding and canning and such,” Hannah said, looking at her list. “But for now these are the main things we need to focus on. Juanita is in charge of the kitchen, but since we will still have some thirteen people to keep fed, what with us and our children and the remaining hands, she’ll need help. So each day I’ve assigned one of us to work with her. Carissa, I remember you saying you liked cooking, so I hope you don’t mind that I put you on cooking twice in the week. Pepita will double up as well and Sundays are less work because we try to prepare most everything on Saturday, so Juanita says she is good to work alone.”
Carissa nodded, looking at the paper. She was assigned to Mondays and Fridays. “Looks good.”
“Laura, you mentioned that you were quite handy with a needle, so I put you and Pepita on mending and sewing twice. Is that acceptable?”
“Absolutely,” Laura replied. “I’m impressed that you’ve managed this so neatly. I think it looks quite orderly.” Pepita nodded her approval.
Carissa studied the list for a moment. There were all the regular chores of milking, gathering eggs, gardening, washing and hanging out clothes, ironing, cleaning, cooking, and seeing to the children. But along with this were a few of the other tasks that normally would be assigned to the men, such as bringing in wood and water. She wondered why the remaining men on the ranch couldn’t handle those jobs.
“Berto and his men will be busy with the livestock, keeping watch of the place, and other jobs that keep the ranch running in a smooth fashion,” Hannah continued, as if reading Carissa’s mind. “The men have been working hard to put up enough wood that we shouldn’t have to worry about ordering any in or cutting it ourselves. However, we may find it necessary to split some of the wood from time to time.”
“Berto say he would keep the wood split,” Juanita offered. “He will see to it each night before bed.”
Hannah nodded. “I really appreciate that.” She flipped her paper over. “You’ll see on the back that we will also have some of those chores that aren’t done daily. We have soap to make, and I remember you saying that you were working on curtains and rugs for your new place, Laura.”
“Well, I hardly expect you to help with that,” Laura replied.
“We’ll work together. You’re helping me keep my ranch running, and in turn we will help you keep your farm running. I have arranged with Berto to have a detail of men go over to the farm once a week to check on everything. The important thing will be to ensure that no one has broken in or caused mischief. They will tend the garden, as well, although they weren’t too happy with that assignment.” She laughed and shrugged. “Will promised them a nice bonus, and that softened the blow.”
“I had thought maybe we could accompany them when they went to check on the place,” Laura said.
Hannah shook her head. “I don’t think that would be wise for several reasons. First of all, most of the folks in the area are going to know the men have gone on this drive. That’s why it was important for us to come together for protection. There are often renegades other than Indians who would seek to cause problems. This is the wild frontier, and you have to keep in mind that the laws and restrictions that might be observed in the city are often overlooked out here. Not only that, but the war has changed folks. It’s made criminals out of men who might otherwise have been upstanding citizens. William doesn’t even want us driving into town. He thinks we’ll be safer to just sit tight.”
“For three months?” Carissa asked. “That seems a bit much. Why would we not be safe enough with some of the men accompanying us to town?”
“We could, but it is just more prudent to remain here.” Hannah drew a deep breath. “It wasn’t really to my liking either, but it puts our men’s minds at ease to know we’ll be safe here. Giving the men one less thing to worry about on the trail makes staying here seem a small sacrifice.”
“She’s right,” Laura said. “Besides, in my condition, I’m going to feel less and less inclined to travel very far. It’s just not that comfortable.”
Juanita spoke up. “The men will go to town once every two weeks for news and supplies, but if we need the doctor or the sheriff, they will ride for them.”
Carissa looked around the room. So this was to become her prison in a sense. Maybe it would have been better to remain in Corpus Christi. She felt her sister’s gaze on her and forced a smile. There was no sense starting this with complaints.
“What shall we do about church?” Laura asked.
Hannah was ready for this, as well. “We will hold our own service. Marietta Terry said she might even join us. I love to hear her stories about how the Lord has worked in her life.”
“Well, it would seem that you’ve thought of everything,” Laura said, nodding at the list. “I think we can accomplish a great deal working together like this.”
“I think so, too,” Hannah replied. “Like I mentioned before, as the gardens produce more and more, we will cook and can. We will share the bounty so that when the men return, you will take home food for your family.”
Carissa had never known women to work together like this. In the city, her family and their friends had servants for such things. Joining Laura at the farm had given Carissa quite a shock at the amount of work that was required just to keep up with daily operations. She was glad that Hannah Barnett seemed to have a good understanding of what was expected of each of them. Her admiration of the woman continued to grow, and she couldn’t help but hope that in time, Hannah would become a good friend. God knew that Carissa needed one.
“So if we’re all agreed,” Hannah said, interrupting her thoughts, “I’d like to pray and ask God’s blessings on our time together and on the travels our men will soon endure.”
Carissa watched as the other women bowed their heads, then lowered her own. God, she prayed silently, please keep us safe. Please keep Tyler and the others safe. She paused for a moment to hear the words Hannah prayed, and then continued with her own prayer.
And, Father, help us both to learn to forgive and let go of the past. There’s a lot that hurts me still, and I know it won’t go away without your help.
8
Guess we’re headin’ out tomorrow,” Tyler told Osage.
The older man nodded. “’Bout time.”
Tyler leaned back against the fence rail. “I agree.” But his heart wasn’t nearly so fixed on the idea as it had been before Carissa Lowe had come to the area.
“You have everything ready?”
Osage gave him a look of disgust. “Have you ever known me not to be ready for a job? Your pa always knew he could count on me to have my work under control.”
“I wasn’t really questionin’ your abilities, Osage—just makin’ conversation.”
The old man grinned. “I knowed it. Couldn’t help givin’ you a bad time of it since your pa ain’t here to do the job.”
“I miss him,” Tyler said, looking off across the ranch. “I know he would have wanted to go on this drive. He always dreamed of bein’ a big Texas rancher.”
“You can carry on that dream.”
Tyler looked at the older man. “I’d like to, but that’s hard to do without a ranch. Doesn’t look too favorable, either. Will’s doin’ all he can, but you know how folks feel about us Re
bels.”
“What I know is that folks are wrong. You deserve to have your land back. The boys and me are behind you on that. In fact, I’ll do what I can to help you. I didn’t bear arms against anyone, so maybe I can help you get the ranch back.”
“Will says the same thing, but in truth it ain’t the same. I shouldn’t have to rely on someone else to get back what is rightfully mine.”
“Oh, so now you’re too good to have help, is that it?”
Tyler shook his head. “That’s not it at all. I just . . . well . . . I want to have what’s mine returned. I shouldn’t need anyone’s help to have that happen. It’s Atherton land. It ought to be returned to an Atherton.”
“Say, ain’t that the judge hisself?” Osage asked, pointing.
Tyler’s attention was drawn to the men coming from around the house. William was crossing the yard with a man that Tyler knew to be Judge Peevy from Dallas. “It is. Maybe he has news.” Tyler pushed off the fence to go meet them.
“I’ll get back to work, but you let me know what you find out, ya hear?”
“I will,” Tyler said over his shoulder. He kept walking toward the two men. “Have you had some word about my claim to the ranch?”
“It’s not good news, I’m afraid.” Peevy rubbed his white beard. “I’ve met with resistance from every direction. Your service for the Confederacy is the biggest obstacle we’re up against. The Republicans are not easily swayed to do anything that resembles aiding the enemy.”
“The enemy, eh?” Tyler shook his head. “I could have figured that’d be the way of it. My grandfather might have wanted me to serve in support of the South, but my father didn’t fight against the Union.”
“Well, we aren’t giving up just yet,” William interjected. “Judge Peevy is working to tie this up as long as possible. He thought he might be able to work out something to at least get the property returned to your mother.”
Tracie Peterson - [Land of the Lone Star 03] Page 7