Bran (Prairie Grooms, Book Six)

by Morgan, Kit

  Bran closed his eyes and rubbed a hand over his face a few times. What kind of a skunk indeed?

  “Are you sure there ain’t nothin’ wrong, son?” Sheriff Hughes asked again.

  “Yes, no …” Bran said with a sigh. “But it's nothing I can't fix.”

  The sheriff looked him up and down in the dim lantern light that shone forth from inside the Sheriff's office. “Well then, son, you'd better take care of it.” With that he stepped off the boardwalk and crossed the street to the saloon. It was still early enough to grab a game of checkers with Paddy Mulligan or Wilfred.

  Bran blew out a long breath and sat back down. What was he going to do? On the one hand, he knew he needed to forgive her—no—make that; he knew she needed him to forgive her. But on the other hand, a part of him was still very angry at what the little scamp had done. After all, she’d almost killed him! If it hadn't been for Doc Drake having the unseemly talent of being able to crack open a safe, he'd be dead. “Thank you Lord, for looking out for me. But now what do I do? That woman just makes me so angry!”

  But it didn't matter how angry she made him, he knew that eventually he was going to have to forgive her for his sake, and hers. But maybe he'd just wait a day or two before he got around to it. Yes… that's what he’d do. Besides, he probably wouldn't see her for a few days anyway, if at all. He knew she’d probably be at her sister's place for a couple of days, and if he just happened to not be around when she came through town, well… wouldn't that be just too bad?

  “Oh for heaven's sakes man, what are ye thinking?” Bran muttered as he ran a hand over his face again. “Ye can't do that to the lass, yer not that mean. It’s not as if yer like yer da.” Bran sat back in the chair and stared across the street at the saloon. “Da…” He whispered. His gut coiled and his mouth formed a frown. His da was the last thing he wanted to think about right now. Or ever.

  * * *

  Apple awoke the next morning feeling drained and confused. She'd not slept well, a direct result of fretting over her new-found discovery. She wanted to talk about it with someone but knew they'd think her foolish. Well, except for maybe her sisters who knew about the curse, but like many, didn't want to acknowledge that it really did exist. But exist it did, Apple was proof of that, and now she was going to have to live with it.

  “Apple?” Fina called through the bedroom door. “Are you awake?”

  “Yes, come in.”

  Fina opened the door and entered. “I have breakfast ready, are you hungry?”

  Apple nodded. “Let me get dressed, and I'll be down.”

  “What's the matter?” asked Fina. “Are you okay?”

  Apple gave her a weak smile and nodded. “I'll be fine. It's just that yesterday was so… disturbing.”

  “I understand. It had to be horrible not knowing if Deputy O'Hare was alive or dead.”

  “I didn't know it was Deputy O'Hare until he told me. I still thought it was an outlaw, not someone that everyone knows. Speaking of which, I’m sure that by now, everybody in town does know.”

  Fina shrugged. “It's hard to tell, maybe nobody knows.”

  “Thank you, sister. But by now everyone in Clear Creek is aware that I almost killed the man.”

  “Apple,” Fina began as she sat on the bed. “What are you so worried about? Do you think that because of what happened people are going to think any less of you?”

  “Maybe they won't think less of me, but they'll certainly think different of me.”

  Fina put an arm around her. “So what if they do? They'll get past it, just like you will.”

  “But will Deputy O’Hare?”

  “He'll get over it in time. After all, you have to understand, it must've been horrifying for him being locked in that safe… suffocating…”

  Apple shook in Fina's arms. “No! Don't tell me that! I can't bear to hear it!”

  Fina held her tighter. “I'm sorry Apple, I didn't mean to put it that way, but…”

  “But you're right! That’s exactly how it must have been for him! Terrible, horrible, oh my goodness!”

  “Apple, stop it! Don't do this to yourself!”

  Apple couldn't help it. The tears fell. She'd been so wrapped up in her own feelings and self-pity that she didn't take into full consideration the horror of what she put the man through. “Please, leave me alone,” she pleaded.

  Fina hugged her again then sat back from her. “I could bring you up some coffee?”

  Apple sniffed back her tears and nodded. “Thank you.”

  Fina smiled and patted her on the back. “I'll go get you some. Would you like anything to eat?”

  Apple shook her head. “I'm sorry but I haven't any appetite.”

  Fina stood. “I understand, but trust me. It will get better, for both of you.” She turned and left the room.

  Apple wiped away her tears and stared at the quilts. What had it been like for Bran O'Hare to be locked in that suffocating, closed space, his life ebbing away with each passing second? And it was all because of her!

  But, Fina was right. She would get past this in time. The problem was, making sure it didn't happen again, and that meant she'd have to avoid Bran O'Hare at all costs, and any other man who might try to court her.

  Depressed, Apple got up from the bed, and sought her clothes. She dressed in silence, her melancholy growing with the thought that she would be forever alone. And to think that yesterday when she got up, she’d been so excited to solve the mystery of Levi's trunk and help her sister out. But instead, she made a horrible and almost fatal mistake. One she vowed right then and there to never make again. From now on, she'd mind her own business and stay out of other people's affairs.

  It was with renewed determination that she opened the bedroom door to find Fina on the other side, a cup of coffee in her hand. “Oh! You're up and dressed already? I thought you might like to stay in bed for a while and drink your coffee,” Fina said with a smile. “But I'm glad you're up. I'm going to attempt to bake bread this morning and not burn it.”

  “I can help you,” said Apple. “But I don't know about the not burning part.”

  “You're probably getting more practice than any of us being out at the Triple C.” Fina smiled again. “You feel better now?”

  Apple nodded, then said, “Sadie and Belle taught me how to bake a few things, but like you, I'm not very good at it. But I suppose it doesn't matter anyway.”

  “Don't worry, you'll learn right along with the rest of us no matter where you're living. You at least have Colin and Harrison to practice on before you get married.”

  Apple took the coffee from her and said nothing. How was she going to explain to her sister that she could never marry? Or that doing so would invoke the curse upon her intended just as it had already done so with Mr. Jamieson and Deputy O'Hare?

  “Apple? What's wrong?”

  Apple shook herself out of her stupor. Was Deputy O’Hare the man she was meant to be with? Was that why he almost died? What other explanation was there? And if that were the case, then what if he tried to court her? Oh no! She couldn't allow him to do that! He'd be a dead man for sure!

  “Apple! What is wrong with you?” asked Fina with concern. “You look like you're going to be sick.”

  Apple felt pale and probably looked so too. “I'll be fine. I just need to sit down and drink this,” she said weakly. She took the cup, returned to the bed and sat. “Don't worry, I'll be all right. You go down and start the bread. I'll join you in a moment.”

  “Take all the time you need, I understand. In fact, if you want, you can stay up here all day. Levi won't mind either, I'm sure he understands what you've been through.”

  Apple smiled and held the cup of coffee with both hands. Though the warmth felt good and she welcomed it, it wasn't enough to chase away the cold, dark feeling in the pit of her stomach. “Thank you, but I’ll come down in a little while.”

  Fina smiled, nodded, then left, closing the door behind her. Apple took a sip of coff
ee and sighed. She then sat on the bed for the next hour and tried to imagine her life avoiding every man that came to call. How on earth was she going to convince everyone she'd be better off a spinster? “I’ll just tell everyone that I shall never marry. Of course, why didn’t I think of that before?”

  Happy there was such a simple solution to her problem, Apple finished her coffee, fixed her hair, and went downstairs to help her sister bake the bread.

  * * *

  The morning wore on, and after two failed attempts at bread baking and one success, the women had had enough, and went on to prepare lunch. “This isn't bad,” said Fina as she popped the last piece of half-burnt bread in her mouth.

  “Especially when it's got some butter and jam on it,” added Apple.

  “I think I'm going to get the hang of this,” said Fina as she chewed.

  “Me too,” added Apple with a smile. “I can have all the bread I want and won't have to wash it down with a gallon of water or milk.”

  “I'm sure your husband will be happy. By the time you get married, you'll be able to make all sorts of things, and he won't have to suffer a one of them.”

  Apple stiffened in her chair and forced a smile. Should she tell her sister now, or wait?

  She didn't get the chance to say anything, as Levi came into the house, a basket of eggs in his hand. He set it on the table and smiled at them. “What's for lunch beautiful?”

  “We were just about to fix something,” said Fina. “Did you have anything in mind?”

  He looked at the basket of eggs on the table. “Well… it depends on the bread making. Was it a success?”

  She pointed to the two disastrous looking black loaves, and one semi-burnt one. “You be the judge.”

  He picked up the semi-burnt one. “Fried egg sandwiches it is then! Success is yours!” He exclaimed and waved one hand in the air. He set the loaf back down. “Does it taste okay?”

  “Yes,” Fina assured him. “We both had a slice. You thought it was okay, didn't you Apple?”

  Apple nodded. “Quite so, it was very good, even if it was a little burnt.”

  “Perfect!” Levi said with a smile. “I shall leave lunch in your capable hands, wife. I've still got a couple more chores to do, but they'll only take a minute.” With that he spun on his heel and strode out the door again.

  Apple watched him go and sighed. “What's it like being married?”

  Fina put a frying pan on the stove, and then reached for the crock of butter. “It's the most wonderful thing in the world.”

  Apple now watched as Fina put some butter in the pan and waited for it to melt. “Oh.”

  “Oh? That's all you have to say? Would you like me to elaborate?”

  “No!” Apple said as she waved her hands in front of her. “I don't want to know what makes it wonderful.”

  “You mean, you don't want to know what you have to look forward to?”

  “No, I don't.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because I'm… well you know me, I'm just silly.”

  Fina cracked the eggs and put them in the pan. “It's only natural you would be curious. I know a part of me was. How can a woman not wonder what it's like?”

  Apple cocked her head to one side. “It was easy enough to know what it was like. All we had to do was watch mother and father.”

  Fina rolled her eyes. “I'm not talking about just being married, Apple. I'm talking about the… well…the marriage part.”

  “What?” Apple asked, her head cocked to one side.

  “You know, what happens between a man and a woman after they’re married?”

  Apple blanched. “Fina!”

  “And I'll tell you something, sister, it's beyond wonderful!”

  “No! Not listening! No, no, no! Don't talk about such things to me!”

  Fina laughed and turned the eggs. “Slice the rest of that bread up, will you” And don't worry, once you're married, you'll find out what I'm talking about. And I promise, you'll love it!”

  Apple reached for the knife and bread plate. Without saying another word, she started to slice the loaf up for the sandwiches. Seems she forgot about that one particular aspect of marriage and all that went along with it. Namely, children. If she wasn't gong to marry, then she would never have children. A high price to pay to keep a man alive. She grimaced at the thought, and continued to slice.

  Five

  The rest of the afternoon was uneventful, a fact for which Apple was thankful. She'd had enough excitement yesterday to last her the rest of her life, and didn't want any more added to it during her stay at Levi and Fina's. But when a distraction did come, it was a happy one.

  A knock sounded on the front door right before supper. “I wonder who that could be?” Fina said as she went to answer it. She stopped at a window and peeked through the lace curtains. “It's Penelope!”

  Apple, who’d been sitting at the kitchen table spreading jam on a biscuit (one that was not burned.) stood and smiled as Penelope walked into the house. “Fina! Apple, it's so good to see you both here!”

  Fina grabbed her cousin and pulled her into a fierce hug. “At last you came to visit! Where's August?”

  “He's out in the barn with Levi talking about chickens.”

  “Chickens?” asked Apple. “How much talk can there be about a chicken?”

  Penelope laughed. “I'm not sure, but I do hope August isn't trying to talk Levi into taking Clyde from us. I’ve grown quite fond of that rooster.”

  “The crazy one?” asked Fina. “The one that attacked your… well, attacker?”

  “That's the one,” affirmed Penelope. “He is an ornery thing, so I suppose I can’t blame August if he did try to wheedle Levi into taking him off our hands.”

  “You have a crazy rooster?” asked Apple.

  “I 'm afraid Apple hasn't been filled in on Clyde’s heroics,” explained Fina.

  “Oh, I suppose not. I believe I’ve told you but haven't had a chance to tell Apple and Lena about Clyde,” said Penelope. “Suffice to say, even though he's ornery and drives my husband crazy, I still love him. He saved my life.”

  “Your life was saved by a chicken?” asked Apple with a shake of her head.

  “What can I say?” said Penelope. “Heroes come in all shapes and sizes. But he has a nasty habit of pecking at the bedroom window at the most in opportune times.”

  Fina laughed. “So I've heard. Sadie told me!”

  “Why have I never heard about this?” asked Apple, feeling a bit put out. But that was okay, at least their talk of a life-saving chicken would keep her mind off of her own troubles.

  “Probably because you've been out at the Triple C so much,” suggested Fina.

  “Far too much,” sighed Apple. “But I'm glad I get to visit you, and now Penelope!” She sat back down and took a bite of her biscuit.

  “Have you eaten supper?” Fina asked Penelope.

  “No, have you had yours?”

  “No we haven't. I'm sure Levi and August will come into the house soon. I'm trying my hand at soup today.”

  “She hasn't burned it yet,” said Apple with a smile. “And her biscuits aren't burnt either!”

  “You stopped burning your biscuits?” asked Penelope, her tone envious.

  “Yes, at long last! What about you?”

  “I've got mine to a dark brown-not-quite-black on the bottom,” Penelope told her with a smile. “But clearly, you’ve already mastered yours.”

  Fina sighed as she took Penelope's hand and led her to the kitchen table. “Yes, but I'm still working on my bread.”

  “Good Heavens!” Penelope exclaimed. “That's not all you've been working on! Look at that table!”

  “Yes, it's a start,” said Fina with pride.

  Penelope laughed. “What does Levi think of your painting?”

  “He's… adjusting.”

  Penelope laughed then took in the rest of her surroundings. “I love it, Fina. Your home is lovely.”

&nb
sp; “Thank you. Lena’s is nice too, I finally got to see it the other day.”

  “Do like being so close to your sister?” asked Penelope.

  “Yes, I love it. There's a trail that connects the two properties and we can see each other whenever we want.”

  “How wonderful! I do wish I could say the same, especially when it comes to Constance, but she's happy with Ryder and where they live.” She turned to Apple. “And what about you Apple? Are you hoping to marry someone who lives close to town?”

  Apple gaped at them, then slowly shook her head. “I don't think it's going to matter.”

  Penelope and Fina exchanged a quick look. “It will once you're finally married,” said Fina. “Personally, I hope it's someone who lives close by, and we can see each other whenever we want just as Lena and I are able to. Wouldn't that be wonderful?”

  Apple smiled then looked away and feigned interest in another biscuit. “Yes, of course it would.”

  Fina went to the stove and stirred a pot of soup. “Any thing new with you and August?” she asked her cousin.

  Penelope sat at the table. “No news of anything other than a cranky rooster.”

  Fina laughed. “Of course you heard about what happened yesterday?” She turned and looked at Apple. “Penelope is going to find out anyway, we might as well tell her.”

  Apple cringed and nodded. She then looked at her cousin across the table. “Did you hear?”

  “Hear what?”

  Apple grimaced. “I accidentally shoved Deputy O'Hare into the safe at the bank, and locked him inside.”

  Penelope gasped. “You did what?!”

  “I almost killed him,” Apple said with a shrug.

  “Killed him?” Penelope screeched. “Apple, what you talking about?”

  Apple let out a sigh. Did she really want to talk about this? No, but now that it was out of the bag, her cousin would want to know everything. She might as well get used to it. “I was in the bank… er… when I really shouldn't have been… and Deputy O'Hare came in to put money in the safe for some folks. I mistook him for an outlaw.”