Liberty Ranch

by Temperance Johnson

  Cole nodded, taking a sip of sweet tea. His eyes twinkled. "You made this?"

  "Actually, Gloria did." She grinned. "I just added more sugar for you."

  Looking deeply at her, Cole leaned over and whispered, "I only need you, sugar."

  Julia blushed.

  The other ladies reacted by playfully groaning.

  Cole leaned back, chuckling at them. He always tried to flirt and tease Julia when he could. Being newlyweds with six children could take alone time away from them, but he wouldn't let that happen. Julia said she loved him all the more for it. "I forgot to go to the general store today.” He hit his knee. “I'll go in a couple of days unless you need one of the brothers to get something."

  Julia walked to the kitchen, grabbed a knife, and started cutting bread for supper. She knew she would have to choose her words carefully. "Well, Susan wanted us to come see her new home, and I thought I would go shoppin’.

  Cole turned his attention to her. "Are you sure you want to?" He didn't want her bullied by the very town he protected.

  Julia smiled. "I do. I wanted to take the girls to buy some new clothes."

  "You know I can pick up clothes for them." When Julia’s blue eyes pleaded with him, Cole added, "I just don't want the people in town to hurt you and the children."

  Julia frowned. "You can't protect me from everything." Julia had dark blond curly hair and bright blue eyes, but she often wondered what others would think if anyone knew how white his wife was. Though her skin tanned in the sun, it still didn't have the tint Cole or Izzy had. She loved her family. It was just what others might think that made her afraid. She should be used to it by now. She looked down at her hands. "Will they judge me for being married to a Mexican or for being a Starry?" Out of the corner of her eye she saw Gloria and Susan go outside.

  Cole got up and pulled her against his chest, using her nickname, "Julia-rose, I am so sorry. You knew marryin’ me would bring you more judgment that you don’t deserve. I am sorry." He kissed her on the top of her head. "If I could change it, I would."

  Julia turned in his arms, facing him. "I wouldn't change a thing about you. No matter what anyone says. I just want to experience goin’ shopping." She winked at him. "With the girls."

  Cole sighed. " All right, Julia-rose, but stay away from Molly Adams. If you need me, I will be at the office, and your brothers will be around."

  Julia kissed him to silence him. "I will be fine." She did a little jump in his arms. "I can't wait to tell our daughters.”

  Cole laughed at her childlike joy. He shook his head, not understanding her childhood humor.

  Chapter 2

  With many rooms and windows, the one-story house was like a huge ranch house. The front side of the house opened up to a wide porch that in the summer held flower pots and chairs where neighbors could sit to visit. Charles and Mabel Alexander owned the ranch house and anticipated helping Andrew and Katrina run Liberty Ranch. Katrina had often dreamed about having kind, friendly neighbors. As Katrina and Andrew walked on the porch, her heart was ready to beat out of her chest, so she tightened her hands into a fist to relieve her nervousness.

  Before Andrew and Katrina knocked on the front door, he stopped Katrina and signed, "If you get overwhelmed, tell me."

  Katrina nodded, having no choice since Andrew would notice, anyway.

  "Good," he said with amusement. He signed, "Have fun tonight."

  Katrina cocked her head mockingly. "Yes, sir," she whispered. She felt him playfully poke her side while she fell into his big form.

  A woman with brown eyes, bright and clear like she didn't miss much, opened the door. Her graying brown hair was in a tight bun, while her jaw seemed hard and square with thin lips always ready for a smile. Anybody could see in her eyes she looked like a woman who had been through hell and made it out stronger. She was one of the many women that made the West tame. "Hi, it's so nice to meet you. You must be Andrew.” She shook his hand. “I am Mabel Alexander.” She gave Katrina a genuine smile. “And you must be Katrina. I feel like I know you from Izzy, always telling us about your family.” She hugged Katrina.

  Katrina stood in surprise. She was unfamiliar with being hugged by anyone beyond her family; however, this lady didn’t feel like a stranger. Mabel’s hug felt comforting, like the touch of a mother. Katrina hadn't felt that in a long time. Something in her heart softened. “It’s nice to meet you too.”

  "Come on in." Mabel took them into the large parlor as a man walked in. He was of a big build with kind eyes. He reminded Katrina of Andrew — big and as gentle as a lamb. “Andrew and Katrina, this is my husband, Dr. Charles.” She gestured to them. “Dear, this is Andrew and Katrina Starry.”

  Charles shook their hands. “It’s nice to meet you. I look forward to getting to know you both.”

  Andrew nodded. “Same here.”

  After Charles asked Andrew for some work to do in the barn, Katrina asked, "What can I do?"

  Katrina and Mabel both got to work. Mabel's youngest daughter, Lucy, helped as well. She set the dining room table as Mabel told her to be careful since they were using the good dishes.

  As they worked side by side, Mabel talked to Katrina, and she was glad Mabel was facing her so she could read her lips. The Starrys always remembered to face her when talking. "I am so excited about Liberty Ranch; it gives me hope for the future. See, we adopted five of my children.”

  “How old is Lucy?" Katrina asked.

  "Twelve. She came to us as a baby," Mabel explained. "She has never known the evils of life except for a few scoundrels who live in town. Since we had her for so long, not many people see a difference. See, she is slower."

  Katrina had noticed. Again, she had never met a touched or slow person before Dear Trail. "She is so happy with y’all."

  Mabel smiled. "Yes, she is our joy, our little miracle. Her tummy ma lived here a few months before returning to her old life."

  Katrina's eyes widened. "That is what my mama, Ellen, called our mothers that gave birth to us."

  Mabel raised an eyebrow and then shrugged. "It's true. Most of my children have two mamas, one gave them life, and the other gets to love them."

  Katrina looked at her carrots as she cut them. "Ellen taught us to care for ourselves and others. She also taught us how to love God. Ben, our pa, taught our boys how to get along and not kill each other. See, my younger siblings and I came to the Starrys as teenagers."

  “Was Ben Ellen's husband?” Mabel asked.

  Katrina shook her head. A shadow covering her face. “No, Ben was married to Missy. They were both ex slaves and lived on the plantation. Owen was Ellen’s husband.” Her last words had a bite to them, but she gave a sad smile to cover the truth about him, adding, "Ellen and we were an actual family and in the blink of an eye, Ellen was gone." Katrina rinsed her hands. "It was Ellen's dream to come here." Trying to remain strong, she had not cried since coming to the West, but now she let her tears fall. Soon she felt strong arms go around her; it was Mabel. Leaning her head against Mabel’s shoulder, she continued to sob. Eventually, Katrina pulled herself together. She wiped her eyes. "I am sorry."

  Mabel shook her head. "There is no reason to be. Sometimes we just need a good cry. How long ago did she pass?"

  "A month ago," Katrina told her as she put a cold washcloth to her flushed face.

  Mabel gave her a sympathetic look. "I am so sorry. You are still in mourning."

  Katrina nodded. "I would wear black but before I left, a few months back, my clothes got burned in a fire."

  "Your ma sounds like a wonderful woman."

  Katrina brushed away a loose red curl. "She really was. We didn’t call her mama often, it was always Ellen. She loved us so much and led us spiritually," she mumbled as they got back to the supper table. Changing the subject, she said, "I can't wait to go to church tomorrow. I dreamed of goin’ for years. We've never been to church."

  Mabel raised an eyebrow. "I have never met a person who hasn't be
en to church."

  The statement didn't bother Katrina; she just explained, "Well, as children we did, but as we got older, it was too difficult. We had a man after us for over five years so it was too hard to leave Silkwood.”

  Mabel looked shocked, “That must have affected how you looked at people.”

  Katrina had never thought it about that way. And she just shrugged. “We weren't welcomed at church or anywhere in town.” She sighed a little bit. “See, we didn’t look alike, and most of us were rejects from the orphanage. When the war was almost over, my brothers joined the last few battles.” She gave her a side grin. “Except they joined the wrong side so we just had church by ourselves on our plantation, Silkwood."

  "I'm sorry about that. They were a bunch of hypocrites." Mabel shook her head. "I've also seen it before in God-fearing churches."

  "I haven’t rejected God because of the hypocrites. I believe a person will go meet God on what he or she has done, not on what others made you think. The ultimate choice to believe is yours and yours alone. My older brother rejects God because of it." Katrina paused, remembering not too long ago. "The words and actions still hurt, but in the long run, you can't tell Jesus that because of His so-called people rejected Him. It has to be your choice to follow Him." Katrina reached for another carrot when her sleeve came up enough to show her scars. She quickly pulled her hand back to cover it.

  Mabel didn't miss a thing but chose not to speak of it. "Those are wise words, my dear.

  SUPPER WITH THE ALEXANDER family was similar to how dinner was at Silkwood with Katrina’s family. Everyone would talk at once, but no one seemed to be listening to the next person. Oddly enough, they all heard every word spoken. It was fun, and it made Katrina miss her family a little less. She found herself relaxed around Charles and Mabel, which she often didn't feel with others. As Katrina and Andrew's eyes met at different moments of the evening, they quietly shared the same warm thoughts about this family.

  Katrina, Andrew, Charles, Mabel and their son Timmy all sat in the parlor while Mabel was telling them a story about one of her sons. "It was the middle of January and my older son wanted to join the club in the treehouse. The only problem was that in order to get into the club you had to lick the metal gate."

  Everyone laughed besides Andrew and Katrina, who looked at her to finish the funny part.

  Mabel finally asked, "You don't see that as funny?"

  "What makes licking a gate funny?" Andrew asked. "I've done it and nothing funny happened."

  "Your tongue didn't get stuck on it?" Timmy asked. He was the oldest son that lived at home and he reminded Katrina of her little brothers. He looked like he had Mexican heritage or Italian. There was a dark scar on the right side of his face, but because of his outgoing personality, no one noticed his facial looks.

  He spoke slowly due to his stutter, but clear enough to understand.

  "No." Andrew shook his head. "Why would it do that?"

  "It's in the middle of winter, that's why the metal sticks to your tongue and rips off the first layer of skin." It shocked Timmy. "Oh, no, that sounds painful," Katrina said as everyone laughed.

  "So, you have never had your tongue frozen to a gate?" Timmy asked in disbelief.

  Andrew laughed. "No, we got snow like twice where we lived, and I would never have thought to do that, but my brothers would."

  Everyone laughed this time, including Katrina.

  "Sometimes the tongue would get so frozen you would have to wait for it to warm up," Mabel told them.

  Katrina and Andrew dropped their mouths open in shock.

  Meeting Andrew's eyes, Katrina signed, "Mav would do that in a heartbeat." For a moment, she forgot that she was sitting around Mabel’s family.

  Andrew also forgot and chuckled. Trying to hide his hands, he sighed, Yeah, remember the time he wouldn't let us join his club before we rode his horse.

  Katrina laughed softly and signed back, not hiding it this time. Yes, we must do that when they get here.

  Andrew laughed, forgetting it all. Yup. Izzy should have told us about the metal. She spent enough winters here.

  Katrina nodded. She did. Knowing her, she probably dared her friends to do it.

  Andrew laughed softly. She probably did.

  Mabel’s children ran into the living room, and Katrina looked around, feeling embarrassed. She signed the words sorry out of habit and went to the kitchen without a word.

  Katrina found a knife in the drawer to cut out a slice of pie. She felt a hand on her shoulder and knew it wasn't Andrew; Andrew’s hand was rough and larger. She turned around to face Mabel and signed “sorry” again, then put her hands down in despair. She was very emotional at this point. Katrina began speaking faster, which made her lisp and voice louder. "I'm sorry. I forgot for a moment where I was. I sign all the time with Andrew or one of his siblings. " She frowned. “I've never been to another person's house so I don't know how to act. It was terribly rude of me."

  Mabel grasped Katrina’s chin and made Katrina look at her. "I am glad you can relax here enough to forget. And honey, I knew the moment you spoke you were hard of hearing. Don't worry about how you behaved. It was nothing." She put her hands down.

  "How did you know?" Katrina was calming, though still feeling vulnerable.

  "I knew by your voice and how you always look at my lips." She paused. "My sister is deaf and can't read lips as you can, but she can sign."

  "So you knew everything we signed?" Katrina blushed, knowing the answer.

  She nodded. "I haven't signed in years but it came back to me." She smiled. “Who is Mav?”

  Katrina laughed. Having someone know wasn't so bad. "Maverick, he is the oldest brother and the protector of all of us. Andrew and Maverick are known as the brothers, Andrew being the muscles, while Maverick is the brain."

  Sandra, Mabel's daughter-in-law, walked in and started dishing the pie out. As Sandra passed Katrina with a piece of pie, she winked. "If you think that was a scene, you should see how my boys behave in one day."

  Katrina didn't feel completely relaxed, but she went back out knowing Andrew had told them the truth. The rest of the evening was fun, but she felt like once they found out how she became deaf they would reject her. Katrina remembered what happened back at Silkwood. It was just a matter of time till Deer Trail did the same and rejected her. Her new friends couldn’t know her as the burned, deaf, orphan slave girl.

  IZZY RODE FOR HOURS towards the mountains with a silent Jesse. Who said Jesse was worth it? Indeed, it was not her. She encouraged him to speak, but he was still in his mood. She was exhausted and emotionally drained from trying to talk with him.

  Katrina had seemed to know a relationship with Jesse would be hard. She’d tried to warn Izzy. Giving her a hug before leaving the ranch, she’d whispered, “Give Jesse some time. I will pray for you both.” Izzy was embarrassed that people knew she and Jesse were fighting, but she had lived with much worse.

  They stopped for lunch before Izzy headed to Liberty House near Denver. She picked a place alongside a flowing river, the water ran from the side of the mountain and made a spectacular waterfall. Jesse would camp here for the night. Sitting there, Izzy took in the beauty of the Colorado terrain that surrounded her.

  Izzy dismounted, then went to the pack horses. She and Jesse had brought six horses, two for pack horses, and four for switching on the mountains. She took the tack off of the gelding. She felt Jesse come up behind her but she ignored him.

  He put his hand on hers and gave her a bucket. "Get the water, I'll do this." His voice was light. His eyes narrowed at her in a flirty look.

  Izzy obeyed silently, but Jesse became accommodating and talkative. When she came back with the bucket of water, Jesse had her horse almost done. He was trying to win her over by unsaddling Phoenix, but it would not work.

  Lighting a fire beneath several pieces of wood, Izzy began cooking dried fish, apples, and beans. Izzy had nearly finished preparing the food when Jesse
came over and sat next to her. "I am sorry for the way I acted yesterday."

  Izzy wanted answers. "Why did you?"

  "I get jealous sometimes. I don't know why, but I do." He took her hand. "Are we friends again?"

  Izzy nodded. "But you're not getting’ off that easy." She accepted his hand. "I want to know the real you, Jesse!"

  "I want to know you, too. I am working on it, I just need time." He drew her close and kissed her.

  Izzy put her hand around his neck and kissed him back. She leaned into it and wanted to put her trust in him, but her heart held her back. There were emotional walls Izzy had to cut down just like Jesse, but no one would get in those walls. He pulled her closer to him. She was enjoying his touch but didn't want him like that. Finally pulling back, she leaned her head on his shoulder and looked into his eyes. But did she love him? How could she be sure? Her heart wouldn't let her show it. Would she ever feel love for a man again?

  Jesse grinned. "Wow, you never cease to surprise me."

  She smiled as she smelled the food. "I think the food is burnin’."

  He laughed. "I don't care."

  She giggled. "Neither do I." Pulling back, she dished out their plates. "But we need to keep up our strength." It was only a little charred. She doubted Jesse would care about it with the way he was acting.

  He hadn't taken his eyes off her as she passed him a plate. "Looks great,” he said as he winked.

  She smiled. He was funny and sweet but sometimes overly jealous. She took a bite of their food. It wasn't too bad, concerning how much she had wanted to ram it down his throat a few seconds before. She was a girl who knew how to control her emotions and allow people to think what they wanted about her. Her emotions were the one thing she could manage in her life after being raised with an overbearing father and an indifferent mother. She just hoped Jesse wanted her after finding out the truth about her. All she knew was that she had to leave for her friends soon.

  Chapter 3