“C’mon.”
Frankie blinked away her thoughts. Mark was offering his hand to her. She grasped his fingers and jumped from the back, turning just in time to see Seth swing Violet from the front seat.
“Be careful,” Violet scolded, smoothing the tucks on the sides of her dress. “I didn’t get all dressed up for you just to have it spoiled.”
Seth laughed. “This is a picnic,” he said, reaching behind the seat and grabbing the basket. “You have to expect a little dirt when you’re outside.”
“Precisely why I mostly stay inside,” Violet answered, her eyes glancing around the meadow.
Mark raised his eyebrows and grinned at Frankie. She smiled and looked away, discouraging the laugh that threatened to escape.
“Where are we?” Violet asked.
“This is the back meadow of the place. There’s a real pretty view from up on the hill,” he pointed.
Frankie glanced in the direction he was indicating. If not for another grove of pecans, the house Seth was building would be in sight. She would like to hear Violet’s opinion of the place, but Seth was making sure to keep it secret from her.
“The best views are of pretty shops in downtown, Austin,” Violet countered with a laugh. She avoided stepping on a large stick as she headed closer to Seth. “I just wish that Chance could be a town like Austin. I could spend all day there just browsing around the shops and having lunch at one of the nice restaurants.”
She turned to Frankie, a slight smile on her face. “I don’t suppose you’ve ever been there, have you?”
Frankie shook her head. Spending all day shopping for dresses sounded like a dull way to spend time. But of course, she couldn’t afford the kind of wardrobe that Violet wore. Money probably made a difference in what one might enjoy.
Frankie unpacked the picnic basket while Violet watched. Missy had included a stoneware platter for the fried chicken. Frankie arranged it carefully, then took out the biscuits and small bowl of pickles.
“Oh dear. I’ll have grease all over my white gloves,” Violet said, dismay covering her expression as she gazed at the chicken.
“So take them off,” Seth suggested. “You can wash your hands down in the creek before you put them back on.”
She sighed and stared at her hands. “Well, I suppose I’ll have to.”
Frankie rolled her eyes. Violet’s Georgia accent was definitely back. “Or you could just have a biscuit,” Frankie offered. Anyone silly enough to wear a tea gown and slippers on a picnic would just have to learn the hard way. Frankie glanced down at the dark blue riding skirt that Missy had insisted she keep. At least it was practical.
Mark, beside her on the quilt, shifted and cleared his throat. Frankie smiled. She was sure he was covering a laugh.
She watched as he leaned forward and reached inside the basket, removing a small tin pitcher. “I’ll just hike down to the water and get something for us to drink.”
“No, we’ll do that,” Seth said, snatching the container from his brother’s hands. “C’mon Violet,” he held out his hand and helped her from the quilt. “We’ll be back soon,” he grinned to Mark and Frankie.
“Not too long,” Mark warned after them.
***
“Goodness, this is rocky!” Violet complained.
Seth laughed. “Well you’ve hardly got on the right shoes for this sort of ground.” But she sure looked pretty. And those satin slippers that peeked out from the hem of her dress were probably the very latest in women’s fashions.
“I hardly thought I’d be forced to go on a long walk, Seth Murphy,” she said, grabbing for his hand as she almost tripped on a small branch in the path.
He balked at the irritation in her voice. He’d planned this picnic especially for her. “I just thought you’d like a little time to ourselves. That’s why I suggested we get the water.”
Her tone softened. “Well, I suppose. . .ouch! Something scratched me. . .oh no, my hem is caught! Do something.”
Seth handed the pitcher to her and leaned down. Sure enough, the soft fabric of her dress was stuck in a piece of briar. “Be still and I’ll get it out.”
“Is it torn? I don’t know what I’ll do if it’s already ruined.” Her voice was tearful.
Seth shook his head as he knelt on the rock strewn ground. Pebbles dug into his knees. “I don’t think it is. Just be still and I’ll get you loose.” Why had she worn such an expensive dress on a picnic? Of course. It must be to impress him. She was just trying to look beautiful for him. A warmth spread across his chest. “I’ve almost got it.” He stood and took her hand. “Let’s get that water.”
The water in the creek ran swift and cold, splashing over the rocks and boulders that bordered the bank.
“You stand back while I get the water,” he said, letting go of her hand.
Violet sighed. “I don’t know why you have to be so bossy. I think I can decide where to stand,” she said, taking a few steps closer to the bank. “You’d think I’d never been out–”
Her foot slipped on a mossy rock. “Seth!” She screamed as she lost her balance. She tried to right herself, but ended by pitching forward. She landed on her knees in a muddy patch near the water’s edge.
He moaned inwardly as he stepped forward to help her. “It’s OK, Violet. Let me help you up. You aren’t hurt are you?” Standing in front of her, he grabbed her elbows and pulled her to her feet.
“My dress! Look at my dress! And my hands. . .get me some water,” She wailed.
He sighed. She was right. Mud clung half-way up the skirt. And a slight rip showed where she had landed on a small pointed bit of limestone. “Violet, I’m so sorry. I never–”
“Just get me some water,” she demanded through clenched teeth.
***
Frankie rearranged her hat, letting her fingers creep inside the band, pushing under the pins that held her hair, now damp with perspiration. She longed to jerk it off of her head and let the hot wind dry her wet locks. Why were there such stupid rules for women? Seth and Mark could go douse their hot heads in the creek and be cool. Society dictated that she and Violet stay hot. Well not for long. Once she was free of being obligated to Uncle Wally, she would let the wind dry her hair anytime she pleased.
“What are you thinking about, Frankie?”
Mark’s voice startled her and pulled her back to reality. She smiled. “Not much. Just that it’s hot out here.”
Mark nodded and glanced at the couple in the front of the buckboard. “Mighty quiet, too,” he grinned.
Frankie suppressed a smile. Violet hadn’t had much to say since the trip to the creek with Seth. Frankie had done her best to clean the muck from Violet’s frock, but it was fairly hopeless. The dress was ruined.
Chapter 16
Frankie sighed when the ranch house came in sight. In a moment, Charlie would be in the wagon and have a conversation going in no time.
As they drew near the Murphy’s home, the front door of the house opened and Charlie appeared on the porch. He ran down the stairs and headed toward the wagon at a rapid pace. Seth quickened the horses and pulled up beside the child.
“Hurry! Hurry!” Charlie waved. “Isaac’s mama is real sick!”
Frankie’s heart stopped at the panic in his voice. She scooted toward the back of the wagon and jumped off herself before the wagon came to a stop. Mark was right behind her and Seth had already left the front seat.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Violet’s jaw agape, her eyes on Seth as he ran ahead. He managed to beat Frankie to the door.
The cabin was dark, the curtains pulled over the glass to help block the heat. Missy was on the floor near her rocker.
Frankie knelt beside her and pushed the mass of blond hair back from her face. Small beads of perspiration lined her mouth.
“I think. . .I think it’s time,” Missy said, her voice strained.
“Let’s get her into the other room,” Seth said, carefully putting his arm aroun
d her back. Frankie helped him pull her up.
Mark grabbed Isaac as he made a run for his mother. “Not now, kid.”
“But I want Ma,” Isaac wailed, his arms reaching toward Missy.
“You do like your uncle says,” Missy admonished, her voice weak with pain.
Inside the bedroom, Frankie smoothed back the sheets as Seth lowered his sister in-law to the bed.
“You go on out and I’ll help her for a minute,” Frankie advised. “And put some water on to boil.” She caught site of Violet standing just inside the doorway, her eyes wide with fear. “Violet, bring me a basin of cool water. Now.”
Violet shook her head, rolled her eyes back and landed in a heap on the wood floor.
“Violet!” Seth started toward her.
“She’s alright. Just get her out of here,” Frankie ordered, not bothering to spare his feelings. If he wanted to marry such a stupid, helpless girl, it was his own business. But she certainly couldn’t be coddling her right now. “Maybe she can watch the boys while Mark goes for the doctor.”
Seth stopped halfway across the room. “But I was going to go get the doctor.”
She shook her head and ignored the fright in his eyes. “Send Mark. I’ll need somebody here to help me. You can start by bringing me that basin of water, some extra sheets, and maybe some rags that I can tear up.”
***
Missy gave a weak smile as Frankie smoothed and adjusted the pillow beneath her head. “Have you ever delivered a baby, Frankie?”
Frankie nodded and concentrated on squeezing the cool water from the cloth in the basin. No need to think about the row of small graves next to her mother’s. Missy needed all the encouragement she could get. “Quite a few.” Surely three could be considered a good number.
The lines on the expectant mother’s face softened. “I’m glad to hear that. But I’m afraid this baby is coming a little early.” Her voice wheezed as she sucked in another breath.
Frankie grabbed her hand and squeezed until the pain passed. She renewed the water on the rag again and pressed it onto Missy’s forehead. “Most babies seem to have a timetable of their own.” She managed a small smile. “Probably nothing to worry about.”
“That’s. . .that’s what my grandpa always said,” Missy managed before another pain seized her. “He. . .he was a doctor. Delivered lots of babies,” she gasped.
Frankie concentrated on keeping the cooling cloths on the woman’s forehead. She pressed firmly, trying to cover the shaking of her own hands. If only Mark could get back with the doctor before this baby was born. But that probably wouldn’t be possible.
***
Seth delivered another pot of boiled water to the room, averting his eyes from Missy’s strained face. “I’ll be bringing some more in a minute,” he said, pouring the contents of the pan into a basin arranged on a table across the room.
Frankie nodded and smiled. “Thank you.”
He smiled back, drawing a bit of comfort from her expression. Surely she wouldn’t be smiling if things weren’t going well. He glanced out the window and willed Mark to appear with the doctor, but the horizon remained vacant, except for the horses grazing peacefully on the new spring grasses. The best thing to see would be Jared and Aunt Della. But they weren’t due back from New Braunfels until tomorrow.
Escaping from the room just as another cry of pain issued from Missy’s mouth, he saw that Violet was sitting in one of the rockers now, Charlie handing her a cup of water.
He went to her side and knelt beside the chair. Her face was still pale. “How are you feeling?” She was such a delicate thing. The strain of the day had almost been too much for her.
Her smiled wavered as she handed the cup back to Charlie. “I suppose I’m alright. It was just such a shock, Seth. I’m not used to this sort of thing.” She fanned her face with the handkerchief that she’d pulled from her sleeve.
Seth patted her hand. “Everything is going to be alright. Frankie’s doing a good job.”
Violet pursed her lips and nodded. “Of course she is. From what I understand she’s a very efficient kind of girl. I guess you just think I’m all weak. . .and useless,” she said, a tear rolling down her cheek.
“Of course not.” Seth sat in the chair next to her and put his arm around her, drawing her against his shoulder. “Don’t cry, Violet. I never expected you to. . .to. . .” he paused and let go of her. What had he expected her to do? Frankie hadn’t hesitated for a second to help Missy. She had taken charge at once.
He ignored the confusion that was starting to pool in his mind. He stood and gave her a comforting smile. “Guess I’d better get some more water on the stove.”
Violet sniffed and pressed the handkerchief to her delicate nose. “Of course. I suppose she needs you more than I do.”
***
Frankie pushed the damp bangs from Missy’s forehead. Glancing at the clock on the shelf, she could see that it had been three hours. Not much progress. Just a lot of pain for Missy.
Please help her Lord. Tell me what I can do for her, too. I need You. All those babies of Mama’s keep floating through my head. Please let this baby live. Please let it live.
The door of the room creaked open and she turned to see Seth, his eyes wide with alarm. “Anything?”
She shook her head and turned back to her patient. “I’ll be right back,” she said, drawing her fingers from Missy’s hand.
“Don’t leave,” Missy begged.
“I’m not,” Frankie assured her, standing. “I’m just going to talk to Seth a minute. He needs to get us some more water. Alright?”
Missy nodded and closed her eyes.
“How is she?” Seth asked as Frankie stepped through the door.
She glanced at the curious eyes of Violet and Charlie. Isaac had fallen asleep on a quilt spread on the floor. He was blissfully unaware of his mother’s pain.
She swallowed back the fear in her voice. “I. . .I’m not sure. Shouldn’t Mark be back with the doctor?”
Seth shrugged. “If he can find him. Sometimes Doc Hilton goes over to Miller’s Valley to help folks over there.”
Panic swelled in her chest. “Miller’s Valley? Isn’t that a long way away?”
He nodded. “About fifteen miles. It’ll take Mark a while to get over there. Frankie. . .she’s going to be alright, isn’t she?”
Frankie pressed her hand into the wooden door frame behind her. Everyone is counting on me, Lord. Please, please…
“Frankie?” Missy’s voice sounded from the bedroom.
“I have to go. And you’re going to have to heat more water. The other is cold, now” she said, stepping in the room and closing the door behind her.
***
“She’s beautiful,” Missy proclaimed, taking the blanketed bundle from Frankie’s arms and cradling the infant against her. “Jared will be so happy. He was hoping for a girl. And look at all this blond hair.”
Frankie nodded. “She really is a pretty thing. And she has strong lungs,” she laughed. It had been such a blessing to hear the tiny girl scream with such force.
Missy kissed the forehead of her pink, bawling infant. “She’s perfect. How can I ever thank you, Frankie? You were wonderful. I was so scared and you were steady and confident.”
Frankie patted her arm. “It wasn’t me that had much to do with it. I was praying the whole time.” No need to mention how terrified she had been.
The door opened and Seth stuck his head inside. “OK for us to come in? I think Isaac wants to see his new sister.”
Frankie glanced at Missy’s tired face. “Only for a moment. She and the little one need some rest.”
***
Frankie held Charlie against her as the wagon jerked and shuddered over the holes in the road. Despite all heaving and pulling of the wagon, the child slept peacefully, worn out from the day’s excitement.
Frankie stared at the awkward shadows that danced on the road, cast by the lantern Seth had attached to the sid
e of the wagon. Violet moaned with every hole they hit. Frankie could see that she grabbed tighter to Seth with each bump.
“Everybody alright back there?” he asked.
Frankie cleared her throat. “We’re fine.” Relief had flooded through her the moment Mark walked in with the doctor. Missy was in good hands, now.
“You keeping awake, Frankie? I don’t want you falling off the wagon,” Seth teased.
His questions were probably an effort to keep her from dozing, she realized. And maybe one she needed. Every bone in her body ached and longed for the bed waiting at home. If they didn’t get there soon, she would be sleeping as hard as Charlie.
Violet gave a sharp cry as the wagon hit another bump. “Oh, Seth, can’t you make the trip more comfortable? I can’t stand much more of this horrid ride!”
Frankie smiled into the darkness. If nothing else, Violets whining would keep her awake.
***
Seth stopped at Violet’s house first. Frankie avoided listening to their conversation as he walked the other girl to her door. She could hear the air of apology in his voice, though, and something about it made her grit her teeth.
But her disgust didn’t matter. He was in love with Violet and that was just the way it was. The girl was pretty and feminine and delicate. If only he would hurry and finish the house and marry the girl.
Chance Creek Brides (Volumes 1-3 & the Stagecoach Bride) Page 16