Brides of Kansas

by Bateman, Tracey V. ;

  “I am. But I think prayer is in order right about now.” He looked sharply at Dell. “I wouldn’t want to ride off without His help if it were my wife and daughter out there in danger.”

  “You’re right. Pray as we ride.”

  They set off in the direction of the tracks made by the sleigh that carried the supplies Dell had brought back from Abilene. The doctor said a quick but fervent prayer.

  Dell had to admit he felt better after he echoed Simpson’s “amen.”

  “They can’t have gotten very far, with that sleigh loaded down with supplies,” he said, speaking more for his own comfort than to reassure the doctor.

  “We’ll be able to cover more ground on horseback than he will with the sleigh and two women,” the doctor said.

  Dell nodded. Oh God, let them be safe.

  Pain overwhelmed Cassidy as she came to. She tried to sit up but thought better of the idea as a wave of dizziness washed over her. She glanced up at the stars speeding by overhead.

  “Cassidy, thank God you’re awake.” Tarah’s tear-filled eyes gazed down at her.

  “What happened?”

  “Johnny knocked you out so you wouldn’t go tell Pa.”

  “And you still came with him?”

  “I wasn’t going to, but he pulled his gun on me.” Large tears rolled down her face.

  Cassidy placed her hand on Tarah’s arm. “I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

  “You were right about him all along.”

  A gasp escaped Cassidy’s mouth as a pain hit her back and crept around to the front.

  “What’s wrong?”

  “I–I’m not sure,” Cassidy said through gritted teeth as the pain held on, then gradually subsided. “I think I might be getting ready to have the baby.”

  The blood drained from Tarah’s face. “But it’s too early.”

  “I know.” She grimaced.

  “Johnny Cooper, you turn around and take us home right this minute,” Tarah called from the back of the sleigh where she sat with Cassidy’s head on her lap. “My ma is about to have her baby.”

  “Shut up,” he growled. “I don’t have time to worry about a baby. We’ll drop her off at the next town.”

  “If you think I’m going anywhere with you now, you have another thing coming!”

  “You’ll do as you’re told unless you want me to drop Cassidy off right now and let her freeze to death.”

  “I don’t know how I could have ever thought I was in love with you.”

  “Little girl, I don’t care if you’re in love with me or not, but you’re coming with me to make sure I get where I want to go.” He turned and eyed her sternly. “Now sit down and be quiet before I gag you.”

  She turned and looked back down at Cassidy, fear clouding her eyes.

  “God will take care of us,” Cassidy comforted.

  Tarah looked up, and a hand flew to her throat. “I think He just did,” she whispered.

  “What is it?” Cassidy asked.

  Tarah cast a furtive glance at Johnny’s back and dipped her head closer. “Pa’s coming.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “He’s behind us.”

  Relief flooded Cassidy’s heart. God was in control, and Dell was coming to rescue her. She closed her eyes as a defense against the pain that seized her.

  Hurry, Dell.

  Chapter 13

  Dell saw the sleigh speeding along the ice directly ahead of them. He drew his Colt pistol and kicked his horse to spur it on.

  “Johnny, stop!” he yelled.

  Johnny turned in the seat and whipped the reins hard. The horses sped up. Still, Dell and the doctor closed the distance easily, each going to one side of the sleigh. Dell leveled his pistol at Johnny’s head.

  “Stop the horses,” he ordered.

  “You wouldn’t shoot me,” Johnny hollered back over the pounding of the horses’ hooves. “Not with your wife and daughter in back.”

  “Pull over now,” Dell said through gritted teeth, “and I might not kill you.”

  Fear crossed Johnny’s features.

  “Look, I’m going to follow you wherever you’re headed,” Dell said. “And the longer you keep my wife and daughter in this freezing cold weather, the madder I’m going to get. I suggest you pull over right now.”

  Uncertainty flickered in Johnny’s eyes. Seeming to weigh the odds of getting away, he pulled on the reins, gradually slowing the horses to a walk, then a full stop. Dell slipped his Colt back into its holster and jumped from his horse before Johnny could unholster his own gun. He grabbed Johnny’s coat and dragged him from the sleigh, then drew back his fist.

  “Dell.” Cassidy’s quiet voice broke through his rage. “Don’t hurt him. Let him go.”

  “Let him go?” He blinked hard.

  The doctor glanced up from beside Cassidy. “Better do as she says, Dell. You’re about to be a father again.”

  Dell’s grip loosened, and Johnny tumbled to the ground.

  The baby was coming now? “It’s too early.” He groaned. “Just when I was starting to believe God wouldn’t do it, it’s about to happen again.”

  “What are you talking about?” the doctor asked, a frown furrowing his brow. “She’s a few weeks early, but if we get her to a warm place, everything should be fine.”

  Dell turned to Johnny. “Get out of here, and don’t show your face in these parts ever again. It’s a good thing for you that my wife is about to have that baby. Otherwise I’d tear you limb from limb.”

  “I won’t make it to the next town without a horse,” Johnny whined.

  “I don’t care,” Dell growled.

  Johnny shrank back.

  “You can’t leave him out here in this weather with no horse, Dell.” Again Cassidy’s pain-filled voice brought him to his senses.

  “Take mine and go.”

  Not waiting to be told twice, Johnny moved toward the horse, eyeing Dell warily as he walked past him.

  “Wait, Johnny!” called Tarah. “Give my pa his money.”

  Dell had forgotten about the money. Mentally he kicked himself for not thinking to bring the sheriff along. He fingered his Colt and stared hard at Johnny as the scoundrel hesitated.

  Finally he shrugged and reached into his coat. He grabbed the leather wallet and tossed it to the ground. Dell loosened his grip on his pistol.

  Tarah stomped forward and retrieved it from the snow. Glancing inside, she gave a grudging nod. “The money’s there, Pa.”

  “What’d you expect?” Johnny mounted the horse quickly and grabbed the reins. “I didn’t exactly have time to spend any of it.” He glanced down at Tarah with an insolent grin. “It’s too bad you didn’t want to come with me, hon. You and me would’ve had some good times together.”

  Dell clenched his fists and started toward him, but Johnny dug his spurs into the horse’s flanks and rode away at a gallop.

  From the sleigh, Cassidy moaned. Shaking himself from the anger still raging inside him, Dell went quickly to her side. “Is she all right, Doc?”

  “She has a nasty cut, but I can tend to that,” the man said, pressing a clean handkerchief to Cassidy’s head. “What concerns me most is that her pains are coming pretty close together. Let’s get her home before we have to deliver this baby in the cold.”

  Dell tied the doctor’s horse to the back of the sleigh and settled into the seat. Tarah climbed up beside him. He flapped the reins, turning toward home.

  “I’m sorry, Pa,” she said, laying her head against his shoulder.

  In spite of himself, Dell tensed at her touch. “I don’t understand how you could go behind my back like this.”

  Her shoulders shook as she wept against him. “I believed him when he said he loved me,” she said between large gulps of air. “Cassidy tried to warn me, but I wouldn’t listen.”

  “Cassidy knew and didn’t say anything?” He felt betrayed.

  “Don’t blame her. I promised I wouldn’t have anything more to do w
ith him, and she believed me.” She lifted her head from his shoulder and sobbed into her hands. “I couldn’t bear it if I cause more problems between you and Ma.”

  At the sound of “Ma” on his daughter’s lips, Dell’s heart softened. “It’s all right, sweetheart. I’m not angry with Cassidy.” He pulled a handkerchief from his breast pocket and offered it to the weeping girl. “I’m just relieved you’re both all right. Now let’s get her home.”

  Cassidy was barely aware that they’d arrived home, so intense was the pain.

  Dell lifted her gently into his arms and carried her inside.

  “How is she?” Ellen asked. Four pairs of anxious eyes peered at Cassidy, waiting for the answer.

  “I’m fine,” Cassidy said, not wanting to alarm any of the children.

  “The baby’s coming.” Dell’s answer was clipped. “Fill a basin with water and grab some clean linen.”

  Once inside the bedroom, he laid her gently on the bed and began to undress her.

  “How are you, darling?” he asked.

  Cassidy winced. “My head hurts.”

  Dell glanced down at the pillow, and a groan escaped his lips. “It’s bleeding.”

  “Johnny knocked me out.”

  Something akin to a roar emitted from deep inside Dell. “If I had known that, I would have killed him.”

  “I know.” Another contraction gripped her, and she squeezed Dell’s hand to ward off the pain.

  “Doc!” Dell yelled.

  “Wait. Get me into my nightgown first.” Modesty was too embedded in Cassidy for her to allow even a doctor to see her unclad.

  When she was wearing a fresh nightgown, he called the doctor in. Dell cleared his throat and backed toward the door. “Well, I, uh…”

  “Don’t leave me,” Cassidy implored, catching his hesitant gaze. She reached for him.

  “I—I don’t know if I can…”

  Cassidy knew what he meant. The memories of Anna’s death during childbirth were too deep, and he was consumed with fear. She couldn’t stop a moan as the next wave of pain seized her.

  Dell was back at her side in a flash.

  “You’re—staying—with—me,” she insisted through gritted teeth, digging her nails into his arm.

  “That okay, Doc?”

  “As long as you keep out of the way.”

  Dr. Simpson checked her contractions and pressed on her belly. “Everything seems to be right on track,” he announced. “Won’t be long now.”

  “Oh God. Oh God, please!” Dell said from her bedside.

  Irritation rose up inside of Cassidy. “Dell!” she bellowed through the pain. “Be quiet! And don’t you dare pass out on me like you did at the wedding!”

  The doctor’s eyebrows shot up, and a rumble of laughter shook his shoulders.

  “Don’t cross a woman in labor, Dell,” he said, moving to check the cut on Cassidy’s head. “It’s not bad,” he mumbled, as though to himself. “The bleeding’s stopped for the most part.”

  “Is it wrong for a man to worry about his wife?” Dell asked, looking to the doctor for affirmation.

  “Yes!” Cassidy exclaimed.

  “First you complain that I don’t give you enough attention, and now you want me to stop caring?” he growled.

  Dr. Simpson looked up from bandaging Cassidy’s head. “Uh, this might not be the proper time to—”

  “This is the perfect time,” Cassidy interjected. “It’s the only time I can get him still long enough to talk.”

  “Why is it wrong for a man to want his wife to live?” Dell directed the question to the doctor, but it was Cassidy who answered.

  “I don’t know why Anna was taken from you and the children,” she said, her voice still sharp from pain and frustration. “But I have no intention of dying. God willing, I’ll live to care for my children until I hold my grandchildren, and possibly my great-grandchildren, in my arms.”

  He winced as she squeezed his hand again. When the contraction was over, she continued as though she had never been interrupted. “You have to stop living your life in fear, dwelling on the past.”

  “My faith isn’t as strong as yours, Cass. I can’t bear the thought of losing you.”

  “Women have babies—they have all through the ages. Sometimes they die, and sometimes they don’t. Look at me, Dell.”

  His tortured gaze met hers, and her heart went out to him.

  “There are more ways to lose a person than for that person to die,” she said pointedly.

  His eyes narrowed. “You saying you’re going to leave me?”

  “Of course not! I could never hurt God and the children that way. Besides, I love you. But this unreasonable fear you have is causing a wedge between us whether you want it to or not.”

  Her body went rigid as another pain seized her. She clamped her lips tight, trying not to cry out. Would this pain ever stop?

  “It’s almost time for you to start pushing, Mrs. St. John. You might want to hold the rest of this fascinating conversation until your babies are delivered.”

  Did he say “babies”? Must be the pain affecting her hearing.

  “Dell, listen to me.”

  He leaned in closer, tears misting his eyes. “You—have—to—” She let out a deep groan, and tears stung her eyes. “You have to let go of your fear and trust God.”

  “Cassidy,” he moaned. “Please don’t try to talk, darling. Save your strength.”

  Cassidy shook her head. “You have to hear this. I have faith in God that He’ll watch me and keep me safe. And when it’s time for me to go to be with Him, He’ll take me. But I’ll tell you this much.” She was starting to get riled again. “Whether I live or die has nothing whatsoever to do with you and any silly bargain you made with God! Just how much power do you think you have over a person’s life?”

  “Okay, I see a head,” the doctor announced. “Push with the next contraction.”

  Another pain squeezed her body, and Cassidy bore down, pushing with all her might.

  “Rest a minute,” the doctor ordered.

  She lay back, exhausted. “If—I—can—trust—God—to—care—for—me—can’t—you?” she asked, panting between each word.

  He pressed her hand to his lips, wiping her sweat-soaked brow with his handkerchief. “I’ll try, my darling.”

  “Get ready to push again,” Dr. Simpson ordered.

  Summoning her strength, Cassidy pushed once more, the pain nearly overwhelming her senses. Again and again she obeyed the doctor’s orders, until at last, a small but healthy infant made its way into the world.

  Dell peeked over Cassidy to the baby. “It’s a girl,” he cried, tears streaming down his handsome face.

  Tears filled Cassidy’s eyes. “I told you it would be,” she said, managing a smug little smile.

  Their infant daughter let out a wail.

  “I was right, too. Didn’t I tell you she’d take after you?” Dell said with a teasing grin.

  Another pain gripped Cassidy’s body. “Something’s wrong.”

  “What do you mean?” A look of terror crossed Dell’s face.

  “I—I feel another pain coming.”

  “That would be baby number two.” Dr. Simpson placed the freshly wrapped infant in Dell’s arms.

  Cassidy would have laughed if the pain hadn’t been so intense. Twins. She’d asked God for a child, and He’d given her twins. The tears spilled over onto her cheeks. How good He was.

  “All right, Mrs. St. John, are you ready to do this again?” the doctor asked.

  “I’m ready,” she said through gritted teeth.

  Within moments their second baby arrived—a boy, crying lustily as he entered the world. Soon the doctor had him wrapped and placed in Dell’s other arm.

  Tears streamed down Dell’s face as he looked at Cassidy. “Do you want to see them?”

  “Of course. Sit on the bed next to me.”

  “Only for a moment,” the doctor warned. “We need to make su
re they stay warm.”

  Cassidy looked at her red, squalling babies and knew she had never seen or heard anything so beautiful in her life. “Oh Dell. Isn’t God wonderful?”

  His tearful gaze captured hers, and he nodded. A thrill passed over Cassidy’s heart. She knew her husband was a man who had just had a change of heart.

  They heard a quiet tap at the door.

  “Open the door,” Dell called. “My hands are full.”

  It was Ellen. “I thought I heard two babies crying.”

  “You did,” Dell replied.

  “Oh my. Do you need some help, Doctor?”

  “I could use someone to bathe the twins while I finish with their ma. Take them to the front room where the fire is. And make sure they’re wrapped tightly after their bath so they don’t lose any body heat.”

  Ellen nodded, then glanced at Dell. “Carry them into the sitting room for me. I’ll get Tarah to help.”

  By the time the doctor was finished tending to Cassidy and Ellen had changed the bedding, a beaming Dell had returned with the babies. He placed one on each side of her. She nuzzled first one, then the other, and sighed with contentment.

  “Well, I think my work here is done,” Dr. Simpson said. “I must say, this has been the most interesting birth of my career.” He looked pointedly at the new parents. “And the most enlightening.”

  “Sorry, Doc,” Dell muttered.

  The man placed a firm hand on Dell’s shoulder. “Your wife is a smart woman—and most definitely still alive. Do you both a favor and stop being a fool.”

  Cassidy giggled as Dell blinked in surprise at the candid remark.

  “Life and death are in the hand of the Almighty. Even we doctors, much as we’d like to take credit, can’t control what God ordains.” He zipped his leather bag and lifted it from the bureau. “Now I suggest you stop trying to control how He does His business and relax.”

  He turned, lifted the latch on the door, and opened it. “Besides,” he said with a grin, “your wife is a strong woman, most likely capable of bearing a dozen children.”

  A gasp escaped Cassidy’s lips. A dozen children.

  The doctor lifted his hand and exited the room.

  “Well, I guess he gave me what for, didn’t he?” Dell asked with a wry grin.