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The Delivery

Page 14

by James Edwin Branch


  Miss June gave a jolly laugh and began to open up even more to Uriah.

  “Molly planned to leave after the war. She waited here for you for about a month, and then some fellow from down in Alabama came riding through and filled her head with stories of what he was going to do and places he was going to see.”

  “So she left with him?” Uriah asked.

  “Lordy, no!” Miss June exclaimed. “She gave him the one thing he wanted, and he left soon after that.”

  Uriah’s eyes opened wider. He was pretty sure he understood what Miss June was telling him.

  “She had her first baby from that fellow from Alabama about nine months later.”

  “Her first?” Uriah questioned.

  Miss June nodded, and then she smiled and began to explain some more.

  “She was good at child rearing.” Miss June continued, “She had four more babies in as many years.”

  “So she has five children?” Uriah asked.

  “No, she’s got nine children and a no account husband that ain’t done a good day’s work since Grant was president.”

  “Oh, but she’s okay?”

  “Yes sir, Uriah, she’s okay, she lives not more than two miles from here down that old road we used to travel to the south field.”

  Uriah seemed relieved as he listened to her talk.

  “You look like you been freed up,” Miss June exclaimed.

  “I just always thought that I left her here waiting for me, and I never came back for her.”

  “You thought she was waiting for you, Uriah, but that girl was never the waiting kind. It’s a wonder you don’t have those nine children to feed now with the way you two used to carry on.”

  With that, Miss June erupted in laughter and the whole discussion hit Uriah with a little self-exploration.

  Uriah seemed a little embarrassed by her remark. Despite his dark complexion, Millicent could see his face take on a red cast. Millicent acted as though it didn’t faze her at all. She tried hard not to grin, but the corners of her mouth turned up slightly anyway.

  After eating and more conversation, Uriah watered their horses and they got ready to ride on.

  “You sure you folks can’t stay awhile?” Miss June asked as Millicent slipped her foot into the stirrup.

  ” No, Miss June,” Uriah smiled, “we’ve got to get this lady on the way to meet her mail order husband.”

  “You mean you’re about to marry a man you’ve never met?”

  Millicent smiled at the question and tried to show some confidence, but she really wasn’t sure what was in store for her.

  Just before they got ready to ride out, Miss June told them to wait. She ran back inside the shanty and came back out with something small rolled up in a cloth with a string tied tightly around it.

  “What’s this?” Uriah asked as she handed it to him. Uriah was already mounted.

  “It ain’t much, but it’s a set of pot holders knitted by your mother’s own hands.”

  Uriah untied the bow, looked at the two potholders, and held them close.

  “I told you it wasn’t much, but we were pretty good friends and she gave them to me just before the Lord came and took her and your father.”

  Uriah looked down at the potholders one more time while Miss June composed herself. It was obvious that the memory was making her get teary eyed.

  “The year the influenza came through here was a bad year. It took both your ma and your paw before you could hardly walk. I always meant to tell you about them but the years have not been kind with my memories of such things. I suppose what’s most important is that you know that they both loved you and were proud of what a strapping big boy you were. They planned to marry in the spring and your mom was all excited about you taking your fathers God given name before you began to walk.”

  “What was his name?” Uriah asked.

  “Why it was Parsons,” June replied, “I thought you knew that.”

  Uriah had tears in his eyes but he managed a smile.

  “Thank you, Miss June, you made this trip worthwhile for me.”

  She grinned, touched his boot and smiled as he wrapped the pot holders back up and stowed them away in his saddlebags.

  “You stop by if you ever come this way again, ya hear?” she said as they started to ride off.

  “I will, Miss June,” Uriah waved, “I’ll see you again someday.”

  Millicent moved her lips and silently said “Thank you” to Miss June. For that moment, the two women shared the friendship they had for Uriah.

  Millicent followed him as they turned yet further south down a road near the plantation. It was the road to the south fields that Miss June had mentioned. Uriah couldn’t leave without getting at least one look at Molly.

  They rode for about half an hour until they came to a small house along the way. In the distance, there was a large woman sitting out front on the porch, separating peas. As Uriah and Millicent rode nearer, Uriah stopped and looked at her from a distance.

  Millicent watched as Uriah sat on his horse and looked at the woman on the porch. From that distance, he couldn’t really make out her face, so he had no way of knowing whether it was Molly or not. A strange little grin seemed to come over his face.

  It was clear to Millicent that Uriah was thinking about what might have been.

  He turned and smiled at Millicent and looked to the north and the road leading back towards Atlanta.

  “Are you ready to go catch the next train?”

  “Aren’t we going to speak to her?” Millicent asked.

  “No, I don’t think so,” Uriah replied. “Some memories are better left alone. I think I’d just as soon remember her the way she was the last time I saw her.”

  Millicent smiled as they turned north back towards Atlanta. Uriah had not only found his past, but already knew that this place wasn’t his home. Without a place to go or any particular purpose, he felt inclined to do the only thing left on his plate, and that was to get Miss Millicent where she belonged. She was his closest friend now and he wanted to make sure she found happiness.

  They rode north stopping to camp only once before making it back to Atlanta. When they rode into town, Millicent was hopeful that the telegraph office might have some word for her.

  She wasn’t wrong in her assumption. There was a telegram from Jason Taylor. It gave her strength and even caused a tear in her eye. Uriah listened as she read it, and even he began to believe that the man in west Texas she’d been trying so hard to get to might be a good man. The telegram read:

  To: Miss Millicent Anders

  C/O Atlanta Georgia

  From: Justin Taylor

  C/O Sweetwater Texas

  Don’t worry; I’m here waiting for you. If it takes you a week, a month or a year I’ll wait.

  Justin

  It was late in the evening, so Uriah made sure Millicent got a room at the hotel. When he left, he promised to meet her in the morning when she would arrange the rest of her trip to meet Justin.

  She hardly slept that night. Her head was filled with worry about how she’d look to Justin and how hard it would be to finally say goodbye to Uriah. His friendship had come to mean so much to her.

  With everything weighing on her mind, she tossed and turned until early light.

  CHAPTER 14

  On the Western Freight!

  After she got dressed and arranged herself the next morning, she went downstairs and started towards the train station. On the way, she saw Uriah coming up the walk to meet her. He had a big smile on his face and seemed truly pleased to see her.

  “I thought about you all night long,” he said.

  “And what was on that bullheaded stubborn mind of yours?” She asked with a smile.

  “I’ve decided to travel along until I make sure you get to this Justin fellow of yours.”

  “You mean it, Uriah,” she exclaimed, “You’d come all the way to west Texas with me?”

  “I just want to see that yo
u get there okay,” he shot back.

  Her grin seemed to fill her entire face, and for a moment, he saw the innocent young woman that he’d met such a short time ago.

  “I guess from that silly grin on your face, you’d be okay with that.”

  “I sure would,” she answered back quickly.

  “They’ll most likely require I ride in a stock car but at least you’d know I wasn’t far away in case something was to happen,” Uriah reasoned.

  Millicent nodded and together they walked into the train station. She approached the ticket counter, and while Uriah looked around the room, she began to talk to the agent.

  “I spoke with you the other day about my trip to west Texas.”

  The agent looked at her curiously then smiled.

  “Yes, ma’am, I do remember you. You were in that robbery up north.”

  “My friend here was too,” she said.

  The agent looked at Uriah, but not with the same zeal that he’d taken with Miss Millicent. His look was more a look of disdain and disgust.

  Rather than field questions, she spoke up immediately so he’d know what she wanted.

  “He’s going to travel along with me to west Texas to make sure I get there okay.”

  The agent just shook his head for a second and then seemed to question what she was saying.

  “I think considering what happened before on your line, he might be concerned for my safety,” she continued

  The remark was not enough to put everything in perspective for the agent. He’d wondered if they were romantic partners, and then thought about her relating to him as a friend. Now that she’d talked about her safety, he was even more confused. With the changes that the south had been going through, he even wondered if maybe at one point, Uriah might have been the property of this young woman.

  “I’m traveling there to marry a rancher,” she added and then grinned proudly.

  At that, the agent finally began to partially understand. He looked over at Uriah and nodded.

  “I’m certain that we can get you there safe, and if the ordeal up north put fear in you, I can understand why you’d need to have someone make sure you get there.”

  Millicent smiled and turned towards Uriah.

  “I’d certainly appreciate it if you’d make some arrangements for Uriah here.”

  “I told you the other day that there wasn’t another passenger train out that way for a week, Miss Anders,” the agent spouted, “The only way to get you there any faster is by freight.”

  Millicent nearly jumped for joy.

  “Freight, can we take our tickets on the freight?” she questioned.

  “Well, sure, ma’am, but there ain’t no Pullman cars on this train only box cars and flat beds.”

  Millicent looked back at Uriah and smiled before she turned to the agent.

  “After what we’ve been through, we’d be happy to ride that way if it will get me to west Texas faster.”

  “Very well, miss, but I’d recommend you store up a few supplies for the trip, they won’t be serving any meals along the way.”

  Millicent nodded and the agent gave her two tickets to present to the brakeman aboard the afternoon westbound freight.

  She crossed the ticket office and handed Uriah his ticket.

  “No hiding or avoiding the railroad agents this time, Uriah” she said as she passed him his ticket.

  “No ma’am, nothing but first class with you.”

  She laughed and looked down at her ticket that was clearly marked “Freight Passage.” There was a sense of security for her when Uriah was around. After the way he’d protected her, she was the one traveling first class, and solely because he was there beside her.

  They walked down to the dry goods store. As Uriah followed behind Millicent, she took what money they had between them and shopped carefully to buy enough supplies for their trip. She managed a few canned goods and some dried beef along with a couple of niceties for the ride.

  Uriah seemed pleased when she showed him her purchases, but if the truth were known, he wouldn’t have cared what she bought.

  He had no other place to go, and no one was any closer to family than she was at that moment. He knew he was traveling with her to give her away. He knew he was not likely to ever see her again after safely delivering her to Justin; but he intended to enjoy the last of their travels together.

  It was a lot more enjoyable traveling with her like this than when they’d had the McGintys after them.

  They arrived back at the station at around 4 p.m., and waited for nearly an hour before the freight rolled in. There were several cars to couple and lots of commotion around the station as the men worked the trains.

  Railroad security men would walk by and look at the two of them, but they never flinched. They merely stood side by side waiting for them to prepare the train.

  The two of them waited patiently until it was time for the train to pull out. Just before it was time to leave the station, the agent that gave her their tickets came out and spoke to the brakeman personally. He pointed at Miss Millicent and Uriah as he spoke. They couldn’t hear the conversation but after they’d spoken the brakeman waved his hand for the two of them to come over to him.

  When they reached him, he looked at them curiously and shook his head.

  “The agent says you two will be riding this train to Sweetwater, Texas.”

  “Yes, sir,” Millicent responded. Uriah was still a little unsure about how the railroad men might perceive him, so he let her do the talking.

  “Well, you should know that we’ve got a car that goes as far as Abilene, and you’re welcome to ride in it. After that, you’ll have to change cars in the Abilene station and ride on to Sweetwater. It ain’t but forty miles, so it won’t be but a few hours after the car change when you’ve made it to your destination.”

  “That would be fine with us, sir,” Millicent agreed.

  Uriah stood back as he had many times while he was a slave and appeared to be subservient, but this time he was only observing and taking the place by choice.

  He liked watching her show her independence. She’d need it in west Texas, and he knew it.

  They put their food supplies and a couple of bedrolls inside the car and left the door open so they could see the sights and get some air as they rode.

  Around 5:30 p.m., the freight left the Atlanta station with Uriah and Miss Millicent Anders onboard. As dusk hit, they traveled west out of the state of Georgia and continued on the next leg of Millicent’s journey to her new home.

  The freight would stop from time to time during the night, and they could see the lanterns of the switchmen as they directed the engineer to either back or pull the train forward.

  They would leave cars along the way at different sidings and take full ones that contained goods for larger communities.

  Uriah and Millicent could only imagine what some of the cars held as they watched the North American countryside roll by on their way westward.

  It was a vast sprawling country and had beauty to behold. Several times Millicent related how she’d never thought of traveling this way but now she was amazed by it.

  Uriah, though he was somewhat more traveled than her, was just as amazed at some of the sights they saw.

  A few days later, they crossed a giant trestle bridge that spanned the Mississippi River. As they passed over the river, a long magnificent riverboat paddled upstream nearby. It had bright red paddles and steam flowed from two stacks, one each side of its cabin.

  They joked and laughed about what it would be like to be a passenger on the riverboat or a gambler trying to make a living that way. Their imaginations soared, making up stories together and eventually ending up with them sharing their laughter together.

  When they entered Louisiana, Millicent told Uriah stories from books she’d read about Lafayette and New Orleans. He sat listening with his eyes wide open, soaking in her stories. He would occasionally shake his head in disbelief, but she reass
ured him that she was telling him the truth, and what she was relating to him was actually the history of the nation.

  They laughed and watched as the world passed by their doorway. Miles and miles whisked by as the train traveled westward across the great land.

  The days turned into the better part of a week as they continued on their way across Texas. The countryside changed again as Uriah watched in amazement. Lush greenery gave way to cactus and brush and a dry dusty countryside.

  He’d seen the changes, and he knew that where she was going was mostly desert. When the scenery started showing the signs of cactus and red clay, he knew that they were almost there.

  Sadness began to fill his eyes, but he tried not to show it. He’d grown to love her, but not as her lover. She was more like a little sister to him. He’d grown to care for and feel responsible for her. It was a feeling they both shared. There were no colors or background differences between them. All that remained was a common interest in making sure they each had their needs met.

  With the end of the trip drawing near, everything was about to change. They both knew it, and there was nothing they could do about it. It was nearly time for Miss Millicent to get on with her life. It was something that Uriah wanted for her nearly as much as she wanted it for herself.

  Uriah wondered what he’d do now. He was done being a buffalo soldier, and it didn’t seem like there was anything back east for him. He thought about going to California, but even that seemed far-fetched to him. As he considered his future, the train came to a stop in Abilene.

  They gathered their things and left the car that they’d traveled half way across the country in and asked the station agent which car would be taking them to Sweetwater. He pointed at one, and they moved their belongings over to it.

  In Sweetwater, the ticket agent checked his watch and walked across the street to the café. He found Justin Taylor sitting there sipping a cup of coffee.

  “Mister Taylor, you asked me to tell you when any trains from back east came in,” the agent said.

  “Is there a train arriving today?”

 

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