Wagon Train Cinderella

by Kennedy, Shirley

  Weak with relief, Callie watched every animal in the train join in the stampede. The humans followed not far behind. She never felt anything so wonderful in her life as that moment when she, along with everyone in the company, arrived at the banks of the Truckee River and plunged in. “We made it!” She joyfully splashed around in the cool, crystal clear water.

  “We’re practically there.” Lydia dipped her whole self in the stream.

  Callie didn’t think so. They still had a long way to go, but she wasn’t going to spoil the moment.

  Magnus and the captains decided they’d stay two days in order to recover from their exhausting trek through the desert. That night, they camped at a beautiful spot by the river, surrounded by a thick forest of pine and fir trees, the snow-capped Sierras towering above. For the first time in weeks, the members gathered around a bonfire. Most were too tired to dance, but they all rejoiced their journey was almost over. Only a few mountains to cross and they’d be in the land of gold.

  The next morning, Callie, Lydia, and Ma washed bedding, clothes, themselves, and everything in sight in the gloriously sparkling clear waters of the Truckee River. Only one thing marred the cheerful mood that prevailed among the campers. The leaders were bickering. The cause was the same as before, a disagreement over what route they should take. Magnus’s complacent attitude had changed. Now anxious to reach their goal before the snow fell, he favored a less-traveled tributary of the Truckee River called the Little Truckee. From what little they’d heard, this route would take them through deep valleys and over steep cliffs but would get them there the fastest. Now it was the captains, led by Jack Gowdy, who wanted to stick with the main trail, a longer route but easier and considered much safer.

  The bickering continued. By the second night, they still hadn’t reached a decision. Callie and Lydia were returning from the campfire when Callie felt something soft and cold brush her face. She held out her hand. “Look, a snowflake.”

  Lydia’s face lit. “Snow! What fun. In the morning we’ll build a snowman.”

  Callie didn’t share her stepsister’s enthusiasm, especially the next morning when she awoke to find several inches of snow on the ground and much colder weather. Any plans to build a snowman were forgotten when Florida stopped by their wagon with her news. “Magnus is out and Jack Gowdy is in. They decided late last night. I’ve never heard such cussing and arguing.”

  Callie could scarcely believe it. “You mean Magnus isn’t leading the train anymore?”

  “Praise the Lord, they threw him out. The leaders were mad about a lot of things, but mostly about the shortcut.” Florida broke into a broad grin. “Thank goodness, we’ll be taking the safer route. I wasn’t looking forward to hauling our wagons up and down steep cliffs with ropes and winches.”

  “That makes two of us.” What a relief! Callie hadn’t realized how much she’d detested following the leadership of a vengeful man who meant to do her harm. Maybe she wouldn’t have to see him again. “Will Magnus come with us now, or will he take the shortcut anyway?”

  “Who knows? I don’t care if he comes with us or not. All I care about is we’re going the safer way.” Florida poked the toe of her boot into the snow. “Guess we’d better hurry, though. Wouldn’t it be awful to get stuck in the snow and have to spend the winter here?”

  Callie couldn’t even imagine how terrible that might be.

  * * * *

  The oxen were hitched and the wagon packed. Callie sat on the seat, reins in hand. They were about to take their place in what would now be called the Gowdy wagon train when Magnus Ferguson rode up. He appeared tired and haggard, as if he hadn’t slept for days. “Good morning, Callie. I’ve come to speak to your pa.”

  “We are about to leave, Mr. Ferguson.” What could he possibly have to say?

  He gave her a hard, cold-eyed smile. “My business is with the head of this family, not you.”

  She was so taken aback, she was speechless. Before she could think of an answer, Pa stuck his head through the canvas flaps. “If you wish to speak to me, Colonel, I’ll be right there.”

  Slowly and painfully, Pa climbed down from the wagon. He and Magnus walked a distance through the pine trees until they were out of earshot. Callie couldn’t imagine what Magnus wanted and neither could Ma or Lydia. The wagons began to move out. With growing impatience, they watched Pa talk with Magnus in what appeared to be a lively discussion, until finally Magnus walked away and Pa limped back to the wagon, a slight grin on his face. It looked like a smile of triumph, but what could he possibly feel victorious about?

  Ma addressed him. “Hurry up, Caleb, they’re moving out.”

  “We’re not going with Jack Gowdy.”

  After a moment of stunned silence, Callie was the first to speak. “What do you mean?”

  “Magnus will be following the Little Truckee. We’re going with him. Two other families have stayed loyal. Everyone else has lost their minds.” Pa gave Callie a look full of scorn and hatred. “You took advantage, girl. For too long I’ve let you run things around here. Not anymore. From now on, this family will do as I say.”

  Ma stepped forward. “Caleb, that’s not true. Callie has gone out of her way to help us. If it hadn’t been for her—”

  “I won’t hear another word. I’ve let you women bully me around long enough. If it hadn’t been for Magnus just now… Thank God he made me see how you’ve all taken advantage of my accident. No more. Those days are over. I’m back in charge. Callie, get your things. You’re not welcome here. Go with that skunk, Jack Gowdy. Maybe Florida will take you in.”

  Ma placed her hand on his forearm. “But, Caleb—”

  “Shut your mouth, woman.” He shook her hand off and looked toward Callie, who still sat on the wagon seat, reins in hand. “Get down from there. I’m driving.”

  Up to that moment, Callie had merely stared, tongue-tied, at her raving stepfather, too astounded to utter a word. But now reason and logic were returning. “Wait a minute, Pa. Are you saying you can manage this wagon and the oxen by yourself?”

  “That’s what I’m saying.”

  Over the past weeks, she’d observed Pa crawling with agonizing slowness in and out of the back of the wagon, grunting with pain each time. “You can hardly get yourself in and out of the back of the wagon, so how on earth are you going to climb way up here to the seat, let alone take the reins and drive all day?”

  Pa glowered at her. “That’s not your business. Get down from there.”

  She flung aside the reins and climbed down. Standing in several inches of snow, she faced him and glowered back. “I’m not leaving until I see you climb up there.”

  Pa threw her a look of disgust, gripped the side of the wagon, placed his foot on the hub of the wheel and painfully hauled himself up. She waited for him to step farther up to the footboard then onto the seat. Twice he tried to climb from the hub to the footboard, but he hadn’t the strength. It was almost pitiful to watch. He tried a third time and failed. Muttering curses, he slowly climbed down. After he paused to catch his breath, he gave her a withering stare. “It doesn’t matter. One of Magnus’s men will help me drive. I don’t want you here.” He looked toward the last wagon of the Gowdy train, now disappearing into the trees. “Better hurry or you’ll get left in the middle of nowhere.”

  Had she allowed herself to dwell on Pa’s cruel words, she would have been deeply hurt, but she couldn’t afford the luxury of wallowing in wounded feelings. All she knew was, her family needed her, whether Pa thought so or not. She considered the possibility of climbing back into the driver’s seat and joining Gowdy’s wagon train whether Pa liked it or not, but no, that wouldn’t work. Men were the leaders, women the followers. No man on the Gowdy train would favor her, a mere woman, over her stepfather, no matter how disliked he was. So there was only one answer. She tilted her head back and looked him square in the eye. “I can’t leave you, Pa. You need me to help. You can’t do it by yoursel
f.”

  Magnus appeared. “What’s going on here?”

  When Pa said he needed a man to drive the wagon, Magnus shook his head. “You’ve got to let her stay, Caleb. I don’t have a man to spare.”

  Thank you, Magnus. Although she loathed that he took her side, she needed all the help she could get to convince her stubborn stepfather. “So it’s settled, Pa. I’m coming with you. Later, when we get to California, I’ll go my own way, but I can’t do it now. I hope you understand. I hope—”

  “Suit yourself.” Pa fairly spit the words out. He turned his back and limped away.

  “So, my dear, you’re coming with me.” Magnus raised an eyebrow in amused contempt. “You’ve made the right decision. We’ll get to California long before Gowdy and those other idiots. And meanwhile…” A slow, calculating smile spread over his face. “I’d like to think you and I could be friends again.”

  She could think of a dozen scathing replies but couldn’t bring herself to use one. Maybe she’d used up the last of her boldness with Pa, at least for the moment. “All I want is to get my family and me to California, Mr. Ferguson.”

  “So you shall.” He laughed and tipped his hat. “Mark my words, we’ll be great friends before we get there.”

  After he walked away, Lydia, who’d heard everything, stared at her with speechless wonder. “I can’t believe the way you stood up to Pa.”

  “I can’t believe it either.”

  “Oh, this is awful.” An anguished expression settled on Lydia’s face.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “It’s Colton. He’s going one way, and I’m going another. I’ll never see him again.” Lydia gazed after the last wagon of the Gowdy train as it rolled out of sight. “Colton’s the only man in the world I will ever love. He probably doesn’t even know we’ve stayed behind.”

  Callie gave her a hug. “Don’t worry. We’ll find him again when we get to California.” She never thought she’d feel any sympathy for her stepsister, but nothing was the same anymore. Lydia wasn’t the scatterbrained, shallow girl she used to be. I’ve changed a lot, and so has she, and all for the better.

  Snow began to fall again. Ahead, Magnus’s wagons started moving.

  Taking a shortcut like this was crazy. How could Magnus think they would not come to grief? If Luke were here, he’d know what to do. He’s not. He’s gone. He’s dead. Whether she liked it or not, she must do this by herself. The horses. Despite the rough going, so far they’d survived. How long would they last in the cold and heavy snow? She couldn’t bear the thought she might lose Duke, Pearl, and her beloved Jaide. “Lydia, climb up and take the reins. I’m taking the horses to Florida. Go ahead, I’ll catch up.”

  Lydia climbed to the wagon seat and took the reins, a frown on her face. “Are you sure you should, Callie? Pa will be furious when he finds Duke missing.”

  “I don’t care what Pa says. What can he do to me he hasn’t done already?”

  Riding Duke bareback, leading Pearl and Jaide, she quickly caught up with the Gowdy train. Florida was more than happy to take the horses. “I wish you were coming with us, Callie. I’ll leave word where we’re going when we get to Sutter Fort. When you get there, you can follow.” She gave Callie a tearful hug. “I won’t rest until I know you’re all right.”

  Losing Luke was bad enough, not this wonderful friend, too. Callie vowed that somehow, someway, she’d find Florida and her family when she got to California. With a heavy heart, she stood watching until the last of the Gowdy train disappeared from view. No time to waste or she really would get left behind. She turned and started to jog, anxious to get back to her family. If ever they were going to need her, it was now.

  Chapter 16

  Josiah Morgan and Lilburn Boggs and their families had also chosen to follow Magnus, so at least they weren’t entirely alone. Callie didn’t think much of Josiah, a meek sort of fellow who idolized Magnus and agreed with everything he said. His wife, Margaret, was the strong, outspoken one in the family. Callie admired the competent way she managed her weak-spined husband and three small children. She was obviously the one in charge.

  Callie didn’t know Lilburn and his shy wife, Hannah, very well, except they had a baby and a two-year-old, and Lilburn, an ambitious young man, was eager to make his fortune in the gold fields. Maybe that was why he chose to stay with Magnus, so he could get there a little faster.

  By the end of the first day, the five wagons, all that was left of the Ferguson wagon train, had made good progress over fairly easy terrain. The snow had stopped, but the low-hanging clouds promised not for long. That night they camped in a broad meadow beside an old log cabin, probably built by a trapper. Callie felt a pang of sorrow when she saw it. Luke must have lived in such a cabin. He was never far from her mind.

  When Callie and Lydia went looking for wood, Lydia gazed at the high, snow-swathed peaks looming above them. “How will we ever get across?”

  “Don’t worry. We’ll make it.” Callie spoke with a conviction she didn’t feel. It was clear they were in a desperate race against time, but why upset her stepsister before she had to?

  When they got back, Pa was waiting with fire in his eyes. “Where’s Duke? Where are Pearl and Jaide?”

  Since morning, Callie had been waiting for her stepfather to notice his horses were missing. He’d spent the day in the wagon but was bound to come out sooner or later. She dreaded the moment when he did, but now it was here, she was surprised at how her heartbeat remained normal and she could reply in a fearless voice. “They’re with Florida.”

  She told him how she’d worried the horses wouldn’t survive on such a harsh and dangerous trek and Florida agreed to take them in. “She’ll leave word at Sutter Fort. Don’t worry. We’ll get our horses back when we get to California.”

  Pa gave her a frigid stare. He opened his mouth to speak but shut it again. With a resigned shake of his head, he hobbled away. She was sad, yet pleased at the same time. She no longer feared her stepfather. His strength was gone. The terrible injuries he’d suffered made him a stoop-shouldered, feeble old man. He’d never be the same. Considering the awful way he’d treated her, she should be glad to see him get what he deserved, but somehow she wasn’t. Why couldn’t he forgive her? Even now, she longed for his smile, or even an approving nod. It wasn’t likely. Pa would go to his grave unrelenting and unforgiving, and that hurt, but nothing she could do.

  Before they set out the next morning, Magnus, who by now had regained his confidence, gathered his followers together. He struck a pose and, with a grand sweep of his arm, pointed to the peaks above them. “My friends, beyond those last few mountains lies the golden land. A little hard work and we’ll be there in no time.”

  Josiah Morgan stepped forward. “Are you sure, Colonel? We’ve hauled the wagons up some pretty steep hills, but those mountains look like the worst ever.”

  Magnus appeared annoyed anyone could even ask such a question. “I know whereof I speak. You must trust me.”

  “I hope he’s right,” Ma muttered, “or we’ll starve to death.”

  No wonder Ma was worried. They’d used up the last of their coffee and bacon. They were nearly out of flour, nearly out of everything. Everyone in the train was running low on food supplies, so the danger of starving to death was very real. Callie wished she could give her stepmother a positive answer but couldn’t. She, too, was worried sick they might run completely out of food.

  They began the day’s trek under a slate gray sky that threatened snow at any moment. The temperature had dropped considerably. The hand-me-down wool coat Callie had brought from home wasn’t enough. She wrapped herself in a blanket but still shivered as she drove the wagon. Because the oxen were so weak now, only Pa stayed in the back. Ma, Lydia, and Tommy, dressed in their warmest clothes, walked alongside. They spent the morning traveling upward through a thick forest, over ever-steeper slopes, sometimes having to push the wagons from behind. As they travel
ed ever higher, they encountered deep snowdrifts in which both humans and animals floundered. It started to snow, lightly at first, then heavier as the hours ticked by.

  They struggled on. Magnus shouted his reassurance. They had only to get over that top peak and their troubles would be over. The growth of trees grew thinner as they approached the tree line. Gusts of wind nearly blew them over. It was harder to breathe in the higher altitude, and at times, Callie had to gasp for breath. They were barely moving when they came to a slope so steep it appeared impossible they could get their wagons to the top. Except for Magnus, they all wanted to turn back. He refused to listen. “We’ll get the wagons to the top one at a time. We can do it! We’ll be headed down the other side in no time.”

  They reluctantly agreed to keep going. By now Callie was so cold she couldn’t feel her fingers or toes. Her family suffered, too. She especially worried about Tommy. Such a frail little boy, not an extra ounce of fat on him. So far he seemed fine, but he wouldn’t last long without enough food in this horrible, cold weather.

  With the exception of the Gregg family’s three small children and the Brown’s baby and two-year-old, everyone, even Tommy, joined in the all-out effort to push the first wagon to the top. Pa also climbed down to give what meager assistance he could. Teams were doubled up. Humans and beasts struggled together. They blocked wheels with stones dug from beneath the snow. They heaved and strained at ropes. For hours they struggled, but in vain. As the day went by, the snow fell harder and the drifts grew deeper, making progress nearly impossible.

  One by one, the oxen floundered. Clearly this was the end. The exhausted animals could not go on.

  “We can’t do it,” Magnus finally announced in a grudging voice. “Take what you need from the wagons. We’ll leave the animals here and walk back down to that cabin we saw in the meadow. It’ll be warmer there. Less snow.”

  “What about the oxen?” Callie asked.

  Magnus shrugged with indifference. “Shoot ‘em. They’re done for.”