by Linda Ford
She could think of only one way to do that and she shivered at the risk it involved. But she’d prayed for a chance and here it was.
She sucked in three deep breaths, then sneezed as hard as she could, swinging her head back until it connected with Vic’s face.
He let out a ragged breath and loosened his grasp on her. At the same time she threw herself from the back of the horse.
The ground rushed up with alarming speed. She fell on her knees and elbows, sending a jolt clear through her body, then her head smacked the ground.
“You little fool,” Vic spat out as he reined about and faced her.
Run, her brain said. But her body wouldn’t obey.
*
Nate and Colonel Macleod marched over to the dining hall, now full of men in and out of uniform. The men in the dining hall scrambled to their feet and snapped to attention at the colonel’s entrance.
“At ease, men.”
After a slight shifting, the men remained standing.
“Nate Hawkins here is missing a wife and baby.”
Nate expected the barely contained grins from a couple of men who were brave enough to risk the colonel’s reprimand, which came swiftly, then the colonel explained how Nate had gone to assist with the fire and Louise had disappeared. “Has anyone seen a woman and child? Anything suspicious?”
When no man spoke up, the colonel pointed at three men. “You, you and you. Start looking.” The three men saluted and hurried from the building.
Nate followed Colonel Macleod as his men fanned out to search the fort. He stood in the middle of the windswept yard and shivered. The temperatures were falling as night descended. Where were Louise and the baby?
He looked about. “Louise,” he bellowed. “Louise, where are you?”
“Be calm,” Colonel Macleod said.
Calm? Nate had abandoned that emotion about the time he met the colonel outside his headquarters. It wasn’t possible to be as cool as the man at his side with Louise and the baby missing. Colonel Macleod stood with his arms at his sides, unruffled as he watched his men search every nook and cranny.
One of the constables signaled for them to come. “Over here.”
Nate rushed so fast he would have passed the colonel, but Macleod put out a hand to restrain him. “I’d better see what he’s found before you go rushing in.”
Nate had no intention of waiting, but the young Mountie barred his way.
“Listen,” the man said. “Do you hear that?”
A baby crying. “Chloe! Where is she?”
“I can’t say. I called as soon as I heard it.”
They followed the sound into a storage shed and he saw the bundle on the table.
“Chloe!” He dashed to her perch and opened the blankets to reveal a squalling, red-faced baby. He picked her up and rocked her until she settled.
“Louise must be nearby. She’d never leave the baby.”
The men searched every inch of the building, but there was no sign of her. Nate even looked for himself. His heart pushed hot blood through his veins. “Where is she?”
Colonel Macleod drew him aside. “Has she been acting at all strangely?”
“No, of course not. How could you suggest such a thing?”
“I mean no offense, but occasionally women, after they give birth, aren’t quite right for a time.”
Nate narrowed his eyes and studied the man with a huge dose of dislike. “You’re suggesting she left the baby here and did what? Disappeared into the air? Flew the coop? Even if she did wander off, surely your men can find her.” He was angry enough to take on the whole force.
A young constable trotted in. “Colonel, you better come. We have a situation at the gate.”
Colonel Macleod left.
Nate curled his fists and gave a feral growl. Surely the situation could wait until Louise had been found.
Unless it was Louise!
Chloe in his arms, he raced after Colonel Macleod, practically tromping on his heels.
Two mounted men were at the gate. One held a body. He recognized the coat and shawl.
Louise! A spasm gripped his body so hard that he couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.
Couldn’t imagine life without her.
“Sir, this woman is injured.”
Louise squirmed. “Put me down. I can walk.”
Life came back to Nate’s limbs. He leaped across the remaining six feet. “I’ll take her.” He didn’t give the man a chance to say yes or no. He shifted the baby into one arm and lifted his free arm as Louise slid from the horse and landed at his feet, her hands resting on his shoulders.
She looked into his face, her eyes dark and full of both fear and relief. Blood ran down her forehead.
“You’re hurt.”
“You have Chloe. I knew you’d find her.” Sobbing, she fell against his chest, one arm around the baby, the other clutching the front of his coat.
Colonel Macleod stepped forward. “She needs to go to the hospital. Ma’am, perhaps you should let someone carry you.”
“No, thank you.” At least that’s what Nate thought she said. Her words were muffled by her sobs against his chest. She shook as if battered by a fierce wind.
“One of you take the baby,” he said.
Sure hands came out and lifted Chloe from his grasp. Nate scooped Louise into his arms despite her protests and followed the colonel to the hospital.
Mrs. Noble and a man, whom Nate took to be her husband, met them at the door.
“Bring her in.” Mrs. Noble showed the way. “Put her there.”
Nate set Louise on the bed indicated, but he did not leave her side. Not that he could have. She had his hand in a grip he didn’t mean to test. He smoothed her hair. There were so many things he wanted to say. But this was not the time or the place. Nor could he force a word from his tight throat.
“You men wait outside while I examine her,” Doc Noble said.
Nate didn’t move. After all, this was his wife.
“Sir, if you please.” The doctor indicated the door.
Louise’s hand slowly uncurled. “I’m okay. Go see to Chloe.”
Mention of the baby enabled him to step back. But only Colonel Macleod’s hand on his back made him step toward the door.
Once the door closed behind him, someone put the baby in his arms and he kissed her tiny face. What would he do if anything took her or Louise from him?
“Let’s hear what happened,” Colonel Macleod said to the two Mounties who stood nearby.
“Sir, we were returning from our patrol and as we approached the gate, a man rode out. He had a woman on the horse in front of him. We noted it but didn’t give it much consideration.” The pair looked at each other. “We figured it was a homesteader come for mail or some supplies and on his way home. But then the woman—Mrs. Hawkins—seemed to leap from the horse.”
Nate gasped. “She might have been killed.” Would his heart ever stop stabbing him with every beat?
Not until he was certain Louise was okay and not going to disappear again.
The Mounties continued, “We, of course, turned aside to see if they needed assistance. The man saw us approach and rode away. That’s when we got suspicious that all was not right.” Colonel Macleod waited for the spokesman to continue.
“We went immediately to Mrs. Hawkins. She was struggling to get to her feet. Blood ran down her forehead. We offered assistance, which she accepted reluctantly. She was breathless, barely able to speak. When she could get her words out, she informed us the man who rode away had tried to kidnap her. Constable Brown rode after him, fired off two shots. He abandoned the chase because his horse was already spent.”
“Did the bullets meet their target?”
“I can’t say, sir.”
Colonel Macleod thanked the man and signaled to a Mountie standing at attention nearby. “Stewart, mount up and go after the man. Brown, give him a description. Be sure you take a sturdy horse. The trails will
be clogged with snow.”
“Sir.” The men saluted and then trotted away to do their superior’s bidding.
“We’ll get him,” the colonel assured Nate.
“Very good.” But what was taking the doctor so long? Nate shuddered as he thought of Louise falling from a running horse.
She said she was okay, but Louise would say that if every bone in her body was broken and blood poured from each limb.
Nate looked at Chloe, sleeping in his arms.
If something happens to your mama, he silently promised, I will take care of you.
Chapter Seventeen
“You are a blessed young woman,” Dr. Noble said after checking Louise. “You could have been seriously hurt by that fall. As it is, you are going to be very sore for a few days. I’d like you to stay here overnight so I can keep an eye on you.”
“Thank you, Doctor, but I’m sure that’s not necessary. I must get to my baby. She’ll want to eat soon.” She tried to slip from the examining table gracefully, but as the doctor warned, she hurt all over. She managed to straighten without groaning, but when she took a step, her insides twisted and she bent over with a moan.
Mrs. Noble rushed forward. “You’re in no condition to be moving about.”
“I’m fine.”
The older woman tsked. “You know you aren’t.” She gently guided Louise toward a bed.
Louise wished she had the strength to resist, but it took every ounce of her willpower just to remain upright. Oh, please don’t let there be anything wrong. She couldn’t be responsible for another delay in their trip, though there was no reason she couldn’t let Nate go on ahead and make the rest of the journey on her own. No reason but her own reluctance.
Somehow she could not imagine carrying on without him.
“My baby,” she managed to protest before Mrs. Noble eased her down on the bed and lifted her legs to the covers where she casually removed Louise’s shoes.
“I’ll get your husband to bring in the baby.” She spread a quilt over Louise and strode away with firm, purposeful steps, leaving Louise alone with the doctor.
“My advice is for you to take it very easy. Get as much rest as possible.” Dr. Noble proceeded to itemize all the things that could happen if she didn’t.
“I’ll be fine.” Louise saw no reason to tell him she hoped to continue her journey as soon as Nate could arrange it.
A few minutes later, Nate followed Mrs. Noble into the room.
Louise tried to smile, but at the worry in Nate’s face she found it impossible. “Is Chloe okay?”
With one foot, Nate dragged a chair to the side of the bed and sat. “She wasn’t happy about being left on a surface that didn’t move, but as soon as I rocked her, she settled down.” He lowered the baby into Louise’s arms and folded back the blanket to reveal Chloe’s face. The baby blinked at the light and puckered her mouth.
Louise laughed though it choked off with a sob. “I thought I might never see her again.”
Nate touched the dressing the doctor had put over the cut on Louise’s forehead. His fingers trailed along her hairline as he examined her for any further sign of damage. His eyes met hers, full of so many things she couldn’t be sure what she saw. Relief and worry? Surprise and regret? Though she could think of no reason for either of the latter two.
“You gave me an awful fright, Louise. When I couldn’t find you—” He swallowed hard and seemed unable to continue. “Then I found Chloe. I knew you would never leave her. Not unless something awful had happened.” Again he choked off.
He bent closer and kissed her forehead. “Louise Hawkins, what am I going to do with you?”
I like what you’re doing just fine. But she couldn’t make the words leave her mouth.
He lifted his head enough to look into her face, searching deep into her thoughts. He trailed his thumb along her cheek and smiled. “I might never again let you out of my sight. That way I can make sure you’re safe.”
The smile she gave him came from an unfamiliar place in the depths of her heart, a place where her dreams and wishes resided in secrecy. “I might like that,” she whispered.
His gaze went on and on, then shifted to her lips.
Her mouth dried as if she’d been lost on the barren prairie in the heat of summer as she realized he wanted to kiss her.
And she wanted him to.
She closed her eyes and tipped her face to welcome his kiss.
“Louise, don’t ever scare me like that again.” His words whispered across her skin and then his lips met hers as he claimed her promise.
Then he withdrew, a bemused smile upon his mouth.
One, she imagined, that matched her own.
Chloe fussed, drawing their attention to her.
“It’s time to feed her.” Louise’s voice sounded husky in her own ears.
“Poor baby has been more than patient.” Nate grabbed pillows from the nearby bed and propped Louise up. He turned his back as she arranged Chloe in her arms. As soon as she was covered, Louise told him, “You can sit down again.”
Nate swung the chair around and straddled it, leaning on the back as he studied Louise.
His intensity made her look away. “What are you thinking?” she asked, not really wanting to know. Before he could answer, she rushed on, “I know you’re in a hurry to get to Edendale. You can leave us here—Missy and me and the baby. No need to let us delay you.”
He chuckled, pulling her gaze back to his. “Didn’t you hear me say I don’t intend to let you out of my sight? Especially with Vic out there somewhere?”
“The Mounties will soon capture him.” She forced confidence into her voice even though terror forged a cruel trail through her insides. What if Vic circled around and came back?
“Until they do, I don’t intend to leave you alone.” Every word was a firm promise.
She wanted to believe him, wanted it to be true. Oh, how she wanted it to be real. “But what about your ranch? The man you need to see?”
His jaw clenched. “It’s not Christmas yet. We’re only two days away.”
She nodded. “Did you find the driver for the stage to Edendale?”
“Petey. Yes, I did.”
“Is he ready to leave tomorrow?”
Nate sat back and stared at her as the meaning of her words registered. “You won’t be up to travel.”
“I’m fine. Just a few bruises.”
“The doctor warned me you need to take it easy or there could be complications.”
He’d warned her, too. “I had a baby and traveled the next day. I fell off a horse and only bruised a few muscles. I think I can ride a stagecoach.” Finished defending herself, she pressed her lips into a firm line. She would finish this journey. And she would not be responsible for delaying Nate any longer. How could she live with herself if she cost him his dream?
“You’re tough as shoe leather, that’s for sure.” His smile didn’t reach his eyes.
“You can tell Petey we’ll leave in the morning.” She would be ready for travel one way or another. Two more days until they reached Eden Valley Ranch and she could rest. Her body cried out for that day.
But her heart cried out for it to never arrive because once it did, the agreement between her and Nate would end.
How could she face the future without the man who meant so much to her and had since she was thirteen years old? She remembered one day in particular back then, him challenging Gordie to jump over mud puddles, then later playing ball with his friend, Missy sitting in the grass nearby while Mr. and Mrs. Porter watched them from the back porch.
She’d been welcomed by the Porters, but it wasn’t only them, she realized with a deep sense of acknowledgment, that had filled a spot in her empty, hurting heart. It was Nate.
“Do you remember when I walked up to you and Gordie playing ball?” She hadn’t meant to speak of the occasion, but the words came without forethought. It was the first time she had made herself known to him. “You missed
a catch and the ball tumbled to my feet. I picked it up and tossed it to you.” A smile rounded her words as she recalled those sweeter, more innocent times.
“I remember.” Did his grin seem a little self-conscious?
“You didn’t even try and catch it. Why?”
His grin grew lopsided. “I had never seen such a pretty girl and I guess I stared like the silly boy I was.”
It was her turn to stare, unable to move a muscle. “All this time I thought you were angry because a girl threw you a ball.”
He shook his head back and forth, reached out his hand and pressed his fingers to her cheek. “You were never just a girl.”
She tried to think beyond his fingers on her skin. Tried to think what he meant. Finally she forced words to her mind. “What was I?”
“You were always Louise. A friend. Almost family. I guess I thought you, Gordie and I would always be friends.” He lifted one shoulder in resignation. Or perhaps confusion. “But things changed.”
She nodded. “The Porters died.”
“Vic showed up,” he added.
“You left.”
“You stayed and married Gordie.” Their gazes locked, full of regrets and accusations.
“I wanted to keep the Porter home together and that was the only way I knew how,” she said by way of explanation. “It didn’t change things.”
“When I left, I’d hoped Gordie would decide to leave, too. Leave Vic and the life that he’d fallen into.” He drew in a deep breath. “It didn’t make a difference.”
They reached for each other at the same time. She held his hand and he held hers as a thousand regrets filled her heart.
“I wish things hadn’t changed so much,” she whispered.
“But change is inevitable. Time moves on and we must move with it.” He grew thoughtful. “God has given us a chance to start over. We don’t need to be held back by our regrets and failures. Perhaps we can now build the very thing we wanted all along.”
Her heart hammered with anticipation. She could see the future and it looked bright and welcoming. She couldn’t help being dazzled by it. But first she had to be sure. What exactly did he mean by we? “What is it we’ve wanted all along?”
“Home. Family. Security. Getting the ranch will enable me to have that.”