Woman of Courage (Four Full length Historical Christian Romances in One Volume): Woman of Courage Series

by Cynthia Hickey

  “I won’t leave you here.”

  “You have to. Cover me with your coat and go find your uncle.” She felt him lay his coat over her and heard the leaves rustle as he put her rifle within her reach. Darkness pressed in. “Hurry.”

  21

  “Uncle Zeke!”

  Zeke whirled toward the voice. “Junior?”

  The boy burst from the trees and bent over, struggling to breathe. “You’ve…got…to come. Now.”

  Zeke grabbed his shoulders and stared into his eyes. “Where’s your’s ma? We’ve been looking for you for half an hour.”

  His nephew pointed. “Back there. She’s…hurt bad. A bear got her.”

  Zeke’s blood ran cold. Adrenaline prickled his skin. He yanked his rifle from its saddle holster. “Show me. Luke, I might need you. Hiram, watch the train.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  They set off at a sprint, heading farther up the mountain.

  Tears trailed down Junior’s face. “She told me not to move. But I did. It’s my…fault. I never listen to her. She’s bleeding an awful lot.”

  Zeke increased his pace. Please, God, don’t let me be too late. He faltered at the sight of the fallen bear, then rushed to Delly’s side. Blood soaked into the ground beneath her. He laid his ear to her chest. Unconscious, but alive. He wrapped Junior’s coat more snugly around her and lifted her into his arms.

  “Luke, you and Junior take care of the bear. There’s good meat to be used.” They nodded and he took off as quick as he could. Delly groaned, spurring him faster.

  Sadie met them at camp, one hand clasped to her bosom. “What happened?”

  “A bear.” Zeke laid Delly in the back of the wagon. He climbed in after her and rummaged through their things until he found the chest that held their dwindling medical supplies. Dorcas’s face appeared in the bonnet opening.

  “Dorcas, boil water and send Sadie to help me. Keep the little ones out of here.”

  Using his Bowie knife, he sliced through Delly’s pant leg. Where the fabric stuck to the wound, he pulled it free. Blood soaked the quilt beneath her. He choked back a sob at the sight of her ripped flesh. The scrape on her shoulder wasn’t bad, but the weight of the bear had torn some of the flesh from her thigh, leaving a wide gash. With a speed born of fear, he ripped a petticoat into long bandages.

  “Hurry with that water! And find me some whiskey.”

  Sadie set the pot next to him. “Here. We’d already started boiling for coffee. Tell me what to do.”

  Dorcas tossed him an amber colored bottle. “Got it from Tucker. I told him you wouldn’t be mad, ‘cause you need it. That’s right, ain’t it?” She glanced at Delly. “Will Ma be all right?”

  “I don’t know. Go outside. Luke and the others will want dinner.”

  “But…”

  “Now. You don’t need to be here for this.” He hated being curt with the girl, but he didn’t have time to coddle a child when Delly’s life held in the balance. “Hold her down, Sadie. I’m going to pour this whiskey into her wounds. She’ll most likely wake from the pain.”

  He gritted his teeth and poured. Delly’s screams pierced his eardrums. He fought against a desire to release his fear in a primal yell of his own. “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I’m sorry.” He soaked a strip of cloth with more of the whiskey and tied it tight around her leg. Her gaze locked with his. Her eyes wide and glassy. Zeke forced himself to smile, and knew he failed the meager attempt at putting on a good face. Instead, he concentrated on doctoring her shoulder.

  By the time he finished, she’d fallen asleep. He sat back on his haunches and rubbed his hands across his face. “We have to watch for infection. I couldn’t stitch her. I don’t know how to stitch gouges. She’ll have a nasty scar, and maybe a limp. She’s in God’s hands now.”

  Sadie knelt beside him and wrapped him in her thin arms. “That’s the best place to be. The best place. You go rest. I’ll watch her awhile.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “I’m not leaving her.”

  “You need to talk to your nephew. That boy’s out there crying his heart out ‘cause he thinks this is his fault. It ain’t. Neither one of them listen worth a hoot when someone says to stay put. Junior’s figured that out. Go easy on him.” She took a deep breath. “You go help him. I’ll watch her real close. I promise.”

  “Okay, but come get me if she wakes.” He pulled another quilt over Delly’s motionless body and climbed from the wagon.

  Junior stood beside the fire. Zeke squared his shoulders, then moved to stand in front of him. What could he say to ease the boy’s mind? How would Junior handle the guilt if his stepmother died? “We’ve got her patched up. She’s sleeping. Wasn’t your fault, son.”

  “She told me not to move.” Junior didn’t bother wiping away his tears. “I got scared and ran. She pushed me out of the way and took up the rifle. You should’ve seen her. She stepped in front of me. Like she was my real ma.” He threw his arms around Zeke’s neck. “I should’ve been protecting her. Not the other way around.”

  He patted the boy’s back. “That’s the way she is.” Putting his hands on Junior’s arms, he held him away and stared into his eyes. “She’d do it again, in a heartbeat, because she loves you.”

  “But I’m still playing cards.”

  “Her love is unconditional, like God loves us. Do you understand what I’m saying?” He released Junior then pulled the other children into his arms, planting a kiss on the baby Sarah’s chubby cheek. “Now, we pray. What were y’all doing in the woods anyway?”

  “We went looking for the dogs and Mabel,” Junior said, his words sounding muffled as he kept his face buried in Zeke’s chest. “Did you get the other animals back?”

  “All but one oxen. They’d already butchered it, and the dogs showed up soon after. We got the goats too.” He wanted to tell the boy how foolish they’d been, heading off because of a couple of animals, but held his tongue. Wounding the boy’s feelings further wouldn’t accomplish anything.

  “Mr. Williams,” Sadie called. “She’s awake.”

  He tussled Junior’s hair then sprang into the wagon bed and kneeled beside Delly. As quiet as a wraith, Sadie slipped outside. Zeke brushed the damp tendrils from Delly’s hair. She smiled weakly at him.

  “You hurt me.” She teased, her words barely above a whisper.

  “I’m sorry. But you ought to be blaming the bear.”

  “I want a rug made from its fur.”

  He grinned. “Anything. You should sleep now.”

  “I can’t sleep. It hurts too much.” She closed her eyes. “Sorry to cause you more trouble. The grey hairs on your head ought to be too numerous to count with all me and the children put you through.” Tears fell from her eyes, wetting her pillow.

  Zeke shoved his head through the canvas opening. “We need laudanum.”

  “There ought to be some in the chest,” Sadie told him.

  “Alice has it,” Delly said. “She wanted it for Seth.”

  “Check the Johnsons’.” Zeke clenched his fists as Delly whimpered.

  After what seemed an eternity, Junior appeared with a small blue bottle. Zeke clapped him on the shoulder then turned back to Delly. “Here, sweetheart. Take a swallow of this.” He propped her against his arm and dribbled the liquid between her lips. She grimaced and laid back, closing her eyes.

  The night loomed before him. Zeke leaned against a crate and stretched his legs in front of him, keeping an eye on Delly. His anxiety grew as her temperature rose, and she tossed beneath the covers. He’d lose her, just as he’d lost Becky. “Sadie!”

  She entered the wagon, a shawl thrown over her cotton nightgown. “She’s doing poorly?”

  “She’s hot as an iron. I need snow to wash her.”

  “I’ll get it. “ Luke yelled. “It’s too cold for Sadie. Don’t want her catching a chill.”

  Sadie smiled. “That man dumps snow over my head one minute, then says it’s too cold the next.”
/>   “He’s a good man.”

  “Yes, he is. So are you, Mr. Williams.”

  Together they packed snow around Delly, keeping a steady stream of buckets coming into the wagon. Zeke didn’t care how many things got wet. All he cared about was the beautiful woman in front of him.

  “You ought to let me care for her, Mr. Williams.” Sadie removed a sodden towel. “It ain’t proper, with y’all not being married and all.”

  “I won’t leave her.” He reached for another bucket. “I’ll worry about convention later.”

  “But Miss Sophia is still grumbling…”

  “Enough!” Sophia be hanged. If the woman couldn’t get it through her mind after months that Zeke had no interest, then she’d reach Oregon a disappointed woman. She should’ve turned back after the death of her father.

  They camped for two days. Despite the complaints of a couple of the wagoneers, Zeke refused to move until Delly’s fever broke. Instead, he left Hiram in charge. A couple of impatient pioneers headed on without them.

  Zeke rubbed a chin rough with whiskers. His eyes felt full of dirt from lack of sleep. With Sadie’s help, he’d kept Delly cool with melted snow, while Luke and the other men hunted and searched for wild roots and berries. He couldn’t remember having been this tired in his life. He closed his eyes.

  “Zeke?”

  “Delly!” His eye lids popped open. “Praise God!” He pulled her into his arms. “You’re awake.”

  “How long have I been ill?”

  “Too long.” He ran his hands over her face and arms. “How are you feeling?”

  “Sore, but I want to go outside and see my children.”

  “Are you sure?”

  She nodded, and he swooped her into his arms. When he emerged from the wagon, Junior burst into tears, wiping his nose on his sleeve. “I’m so sorry, Ma.”

  “Put me down, Zeke.”

  “Delly…”

  “Please.” She looked imploringly at him. “I need to stand. If only for a moment.”

  He nodded. She needed to show her son she’d be all right. He let her down, keeping an arm around her for support.

  “I’m going to be fine, Junior. See.” She tried taking a step and Zeke reached for her before she fell. “It’ll take a few days, but I’ll get there, and we’ll have a fine rug to grace the floor of our new home.”

  Junior threw his arms around her and stooped, laying his head on her shoulder. “I thought I’d lost you.”

  “Miss Delly?” Luke stepped beside her holding a crutch carved from a small tree. “This will have you walking in no time.”

  “How thoughtful, Luke.”

  Zeke lifted her. “She won’t be using it for a few days, though. She’s going back in the wagon.” He turned toward the rest of the train. “We’re pulling out tomorrow, folks.”

  A cheer rose above the camp, echoing through the trees and sending woodland birds into flight.

  22

  They pulled out the next morning, Sadie driving, and Delly bundled in the back of the wagon with Dorcas and the little ones sitting beside her—chattering non-stop. Baby Sarah slept on a pile of quilts, a drop of drool beside her lip. The other children ran beside the wagon.

  Full of curiosity over Delly’s encounter with the bear, Dorcas bounced with questions. “Were you scared? ‘Cause Junior said he was.”

  Delly fiddled with the fringe on the red shawl she wore. “I didn’t really think about it until I lay on the ground with the bear on top of me. Then I was terrified. I thought for sure I’d be meeting Jesus that day.”

  The little girl sidled closer to her, smelling of dirt and mountain air. “More like the devil according to Junior. He said that bear roared and huffed, slapping the ground with his big old feet.” She shivered. “I think I would’ve sat down and cried and let it eat me. Did you cry?”

  “No.” She tucked a quilt around the two of them.

  “Did it smell bad? The bear breath. Like rotten meat? ‘Cause I heard once that they stink real bad. Did you play dead?”

  Delly closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the few crates they carried in the wagon. She recalled the rancid odor as the animal breathed on her. The terror as it stood over her and roared. She sighed. “Yes, it smelled very bad.”

  “You’re lucky to be alive, Ma.”

  “Yes, I am.”

  “Junior hasn’t gambled once since you’ve been sick.”

  “Then something good has come of all this.” She opened her eyes and watched as pine trees moved past them. The squawk of a crow echoed above the creak of the wagon. Her leg pained her with each jolt of the wagon.

  But the physical pain didn’t hurt nearly as much as the emotional one. More and more she questioned the wisdom of her undertaking the journey with children in tow. Fearing every day that an accident would leave a person helpless or dead, was quickly becoming more than she could bear.

  She’d always considered herself strong. Now, with a leg that would most likely never be the same, what kind of a pioneer would she make? She’d walk with a limp like a broken-winged bird.

  Zeke’s ministrations during her time of fever had kept him away from the other emigrants, adding to Delly’s sense of guilt and failure. The man’s heart was too big to comprehend. Now, with Delly crippled, there’s be one more burden he felt he needed to take on. Delly couldn’t let that happen. There had to be another way.

  She rubbed her stomach, barely feeling the just emerging bump. Somehow, she’d find a way to raise this baby, and the other children, without imposing on Zeke.

  The wagon lurched going uphill, and Delly grappled to hold on as she slid toward the backboard. Another jolt slammed her against the wood. She yelped at the shooting pain through her shoulder.

  Dorcas stood to help her and pitched head-first to the ground outside.

  “Dorcas!” Delly peered out. The little girl lay on her back, eyes wide, mouth open, staring at the sky. “Sadie, stop the wagon.”

  “I can’t. Mr. Williams said we had to keep the team moving forward or we’d slide down the hill. Once we start, we wouldn’t be able to stop and we’d crash into the wagon behind us.”

  The Johnson’s wagon rounded the bend, and Dorcas still didn’t move. Heart in her throat, Delly pulled herself painfully to her feet and climbed out of the wagon. The jump to the road jarred her leg and she cried out, falling to her knees. She crawled over and ran her hands over Dorcas’s arms and knees. Finding nothing broken, she shook her. Dorcas opened her eyes. “Come on, we’ve got to get off this road. Can you walk?”

  “Yes, I just had the wind knocked out of me.” She touched her head. “And I hit my head.”

  Ben Johnson yelled a warning for them to move. The oxen bellowed.

  Dorcas leaped to her feet and scampered to the rock face, pressing her body as close to the granite wall as possible. Delly crawled. Rocks dug into her knees. The ground vibrated beneath her hands, and she whimpered with each movement by the time she reached her stepdaughter.

  The Johnson wagon moved past. Alice craned her neck toward them as they passed. “I’ll tell the wagon master!”

  “Thank you.” More proof that traveling west had been a fool’s errand. She couldn’t even prevent her daughter from falling out of the wagon when she sat right next to her.

  “You’re bleeding.” Dorcas pointed to her leg.

  Blood soaked through her pant leg. Her thigh throbbed. Perspiration beaded on her brow. “I’ll be fine. Run ahead and get your uncle.” She noticed the bump on Dorcas’s forehead. “Have Sadie put something on that first chance.”

  Dorcas nodded, hiked Seth’s pants up, and darted away.

  ###

  “Uncle Zeke!” He pulled roughly on his horse’s reins, turning the animal. Dorcas sprinted toward him. “Ma’s bleeding again. I fell out of the wagon, and she came after me. Banged up her leg again.”

  “Catch up to Sadie.” He set his horse to a gallop and dismounted before coming to a complete halt.
Delly slumped against the rock face with her eyes closed. Would he manage to get her to Oregon in one piece? If trouble could be found, she was in the middle of it.

  “Delicious?” His gaze traveled from her head to her feet.

  “I’m fine. I hurt my leg again getting out of the wagon. I just need to rest for a minute.”

  Luke and Sadie’s wagon, driven by the oldest Oglesby boy rattled past them. The braying of mules and bellowing of oxen reached his ears. He pulled her to her feet. “I’ve got to get you on my horse. The stock is coming, and we’re in the way.”

  Her eyes widened as the animals came into sight. “Hurry.”

  Gunshots from the drovers rang over the herds’ heads, pushing the animals faster. Luke appeared around the bend, took one look at them, then darted in front of the herd, waving his arms and yelling. The animals continued, and he dove into the bushes to avoid being trampled.

  Zeke swept Delly into his arms and dashed for his horse. “Come on, honey. Put your foot in the stirrup.”

  “I can’t. I don’t have enough strength in my leg.” She glanced over his shoulder. “They’re coming right for us. There’s no time for you to seat me. We’re going to be trampled.”

  Zeke slapped his horse on the rump, causing it to jerk and gallop ahead. He positioned Delly against the cliff wall and plastered himself against her back. She squirmed beneath him. “Be still.”

  Frustration against their helplessness rose. He pressed closer until he felt he’d crush her. Her breath whooshed against his wrist. The animals thundered closer. He closed his eyes, knowing the space between his back and the surging animals wasn’t wide enough. Better him, than her. A whole man had a better chance of surviving than a wounded woman.

  Dust filled the air and clogged his throat. An oxen’s horn caught in the hem of his shirt and pulled Zeke with him. Previous years of wrangling cows gave him the skill he needed to wrap an arm around the beast’s neck. He kicked against the ground until he regained his feet. Fire burned through his side. The animal dragged him, Zeke’s boots leaving ruts in the dirt. Getting his feet under him, he ripped free of the horn, leaving behind a scrap of his shirt, and fought his way back to Delly.