My Heart Will Find Yours
Page 27
“I’m glad you were able to keep the boy who shot you out of prison, though if I’d been here at the time I’d probably have voted to hang him.”
Royce chuckled. “It’s over. Put it from your mind.”
“Oh Royce, I’m the luckiest woman on earth.”
“No, sweetheart, we’re the luckiest three people on earth.” He lifted her in his arms and carried her back to their bed. With his big hands, he rubbed her feet and legs to warm them, then crawled in beside her and pulled her close. “And since you said your diary revealed there are supposed to be six of us in this family, I think we need to be working on those additions.”
“You don’t want to work yourself to death.”
He chuckled against her neck. “If I do, I’ll die a happy man.”
“Actually, no need to worry about the growth of our family.” She carried his hand to her belly. “Meet your daughter, Rosie.”
Epilogue
Houston, Texas, December 2008
Andrew Keith sat in the library of a prestigious home in an old section of Houston. It once belonged to Rosie’s son, Joseph Crocker, but now belonged to Rosie’s granddaughter, Julianne Evans, and her husband Nathan.
“Can I get you some more coffee?”
He looked up at the middle-aged woman who was his daughter’s great-grandchild.
“No, but thank you. I can’t tell you how much I appreciate you allowing me to go through these things.”
Slim, her dark hair attractively streaked with gray, Julianne bent to lift the tray that held the remains of the refreshments she’d provided. “Well, it’s an honor to share them. Grammy would be pleased someone was interested in her keepsakes. Take all the time you want.” With the heels of her dressy slides clicking against the marble tile, she left the room.
He’d read the pages of Texanna’s journal after her arrival in 1880 Waco. She described Royce’s joy at her return and his delight about the baby. Andrew smiled at the passage, but it all seemed so unreal—time-travel, fate, and God’s grand plan.
An old photo album lay in the bottom of the small trunk. He carefully removed it and placed it on his knees. Fingers trembling, he opened the leather-bound book and gasped. In black and white, Texanna smiled out at him. There was no denying it was his daughter. The saucy smile was the one she’d given him as a child when he’d tried to correct her.
She was seated in a chair under an oak tree, Royce in one drawn up close to hers, his right arm across the back of her chair. His hand held the locket as if he’d just draped it across her knee as he smiled at the camera. Andrew looked closely to see if the wedding ring Texanna wore resembled the one she had on her finger when she left. It was too small to see. Then he noticed her other hand. She’d lifted the skirt of her long dress just enough for the toe of her tennis shoe to peek out.
A guffaw ripped from his throat. Leave it to his girl to leave no room for doubt. Laughter and relief lifted the heaviness from his heart and shoulders, and for the first time in over a week, he felt everything would be all right. He continued through the album and studied the faces of his grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Moisture filled his eyes. Oh, how he’d have loved them.
At the very back, he found an old newspaper article. It was dated June of 1955. He scanned the article. In the 1940’s Joseph Crocker, Texanna’s grandson, developed an important procedure needed for Salk to perfect his polio vaccine. At the bottom of the page, Texanna had written.
Hi Daddy. See, it was all God’s plan.
The books used for reference are as follows:
A Pictorial History of Waco, revised edition, Roger N. Conger, 1964, Texian Press.
The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in the Wild West from 1840-1900, Candy Moulton, 1999, Writer’s Digest Books.
Everyday Life in the 1880’s, A Guide for Writers, Students & Historians, Marc McCutcheon, 1993, Writer’s Digest Books.
A History of Costume, Carl Kohler, 1963, Dover Publications.
The History of Colt Firearms, Dean K. Boorman, 2000, Salamander Books Ltd.
Online references are as follows:
The Handbook of Texas Online.
Waco Convention & Visitors Bureau, History of Waco, Texas, USA.
“Standing Stones, Stone Circles and Ley Lines, Unique Research into the Mystery of the Ley Line System,” David Ro. Cowan.
“Pregnancy and Childbirth for the Historical Author,” Elena Greene.
“Winchester Rifle,” Wikipedia, www.answers.com/topic/ winchester-rifle.
“73 Winchester Rifle By Cimarron Firearms Co.,” www.cimarron-firearms.com/win73R.htm.
A word about the author…
Linda LaRoque is a retired teacher who loves West Texas, its flora and fauna, and its people. Her stories paint pictures of life, love, and learning set against the raw landscape of ranches and rural communities in Texas. Linda is a member of RWA, her local chapter of HOTRWA where she serves as president, NTRWA and Davis Mountain Trail Writers. She makes her home in Central Texas. Watch for Linda’s second book in The Turquoise Legacy, Flames on the Sky, coming soon from The Wild Rose Press.
Visit Linda at www.lindalaroque.com
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