Pony Express Hero

by Rhonda Gibson

  Jacob found them both munching on grass just inside the tree line. He heard Daisy giggle and looked back to see Lilly tickling the little girl. His heart tugged in his chest at the sight.

  If someone was going to hurt Daisy, they’d have to go through him. He’d vowed to watch over the little girl and he’d do just that. No man, or woman for that matter, was going to hurt that sweet child.

  Lilly looked up and met his gaze. Her eyes were gentle and contemplative. He felt a curious swooping pull at his innards.

  Jacob realized then that his promise included Lilly. If anyone hurt Daisy, they’d also be hurting Lilly. His instincts told him that she was a kind person. Her sympathy for him when he’d told her about his upbringing had been sincere. And Jacob knew he’d not let either of them be hurt.

  He just prayed he’d not lose his heart in his desire to protect them both. Jacob had no intention of falling in love, like Seth and Rebecca had. Women couldn’t be trusted not to abandon those they claimed to love the most. His mother had proven that. No, he’d harden that part of his heart and still keep his promise.

  He ignored the tiny voice that whispered to him that his adopted mother, Rebecca, had been a woman of integrity. She’d not abandoned her duties even though she was very young. Lilly was also young and she’d managed to take the care of her sister seriously. Jacob pushed the last thought aside. He didn’t want to admire Lilly in any way or fashion.

  * * *

  Lilly waited as Jacob lifted Daisy onto her horse, then she mounted up behind her. Jacob paused while she settled into the saddle then climbed onto his horse, shifting until he was comfortable. He treated her like a gentleman treated a lady. It was hard not to be impressed when his manners toward her and Daisy were so thoughtful. There wasn’t a lot of gallantry found this far west of the Mississippi so Jacob’s actions were like a warm summer’s rain during the hottest part of the day. Lilly realized she wanted to trust him. Could she afford to?

  He’d opened his life up for her to view. Had he expected her to do the same? Tell him about her childhood? How her father had married a woman who was supposed to love her but had only despised her? Share how they’d both died and how Daisy had been her responsibility since she was born? Loneliness and confusion mingled together in one huge surge of yearning. How she longed for someone to share her life with—the joys, sorrows, even the mundane everyday living. Right now her future looked vague and shadowy. Lord, please, she thought in silent prayer. Send my other half, my partner. Someone I can trust to love me for myself and not for the ranch. I’m tired of doing this alone.

  As they returned to the house, she listened to Daisy chatter about the birds, flowers, tall grass and other things that flitted through her young mind. Jacob laughed at her funny expressions and words. Almost without a second thought, Lilly decided to trust him, and to do so she’d need to share a part of their life, too.

  Caleb met them as they arrived at the barn. “Miss Daisy, the cat had her kittens. Would you like to see them?”

  Daisy squealed and leaped into the boy’s arms. “Oh, yes!” She waited for him to lower her to the ground and then clasped his hand. “Where are they?”

  He kneeled down beside her. “In the back stall but you can’t go running in there. She’s a new mama and might be nervous. We have to go in quietly and not talk too loudly. Also, don’t touch the babies today. We’ll hold them when they are a little older and their mama isn’t as skittish as she is today. All right?”

  Her blond head bobbed her agreement.

  Caleb stood. “Miss Lilly, would you like to see them, too?”

  Lilly smiled. “Not right now.” She watched them walk hand in hand to the barn. Was Caleb trustworthy? Had the young man taken her sister into the ravine? As she climbed down from her horse, she gnawed at her bottom lip.

  Jacob took the reins from her hands and smiled. “Can you believe that boy threatened me this morning?”

  Her face went from worry to shock.

  An easy laugh spilled from Jacob. “Oh, not how you’re thinking. But in his own way. Caleb told me that anyone who hurt Daisy would answer to him. In other words, don’t hurt her because I love her like a little sister.”

  Lilly felt the emotions drain from her body. She’d gone from confusion, to worry, to shock in just a matter of minutes. At this rate she’d be emotionally exhausted by nightfall.

  He pulled the horses over to the large water trough beside the barn, his shoulders hunched and powerful. They were broad and maybe strong enough to support the dread and fears that filled her heart as she worried about Daisy.

  “Thank you for sharing your past with me.” She rubbed her horse’s neck as it drank from the fresh water. “I grew up on this ranch. It’s all I know and all I want to know.” Lilly thought about her little sister in the barn.

  Jacob leaned against the barn and smiled. “Sounds like a nice childhood.”

  She grinned. “It was. Mama died when I was about Daisy’s age. I remember her soft smile, warm smell and gentle hugs.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss.” Jacob had crossed his legs and now rubbed the toe of his boot against the other. She wondered if he looked at the boots to avoid seeing sorrow in her eyes.

  “Thank you. Then when I was ten, Papa decided I needed a mother’s touch and married my stepmother.” She laughed and heard the bitterness in it. “I know he meant well, but she was not mother material.”

  “And now, your childhood isn’t sounding so nice.” His warm brown eyes, gentle and contemplative, looked into hers, inviting her to continue.

  “Oh, it was nice. But, I grew up at the age of ten. Gertrude made sure of that. When Pa was away, I cooked, cleaned and was treated like the hired help.” Lilly fell silent as the memories took over. She hated those years of her life.

  His silence reminded her that Jacob still listened patiently. “But five years ago, all that changed. Gertrude had Daisy. She died shortly after that but left Papa and me with a beautiful baby. Daisy has been my life ever since. I love her as if she was my child instead of my sister.” She realized how silly that must sound to him and giggled. “Well, you know what I mean.” Lilly felt heat fill her face.

  Jacob remained silent; his hat shadowed his face so Lilly wasn’t sure of his expression. Had her story made him think that she’d been too silly in her love for Daisy?

  He must have sensed her watching him because Jacob looked up again. A spark of some indefinable emotion crossed his features, but he spoke in a gentle, soft voice. “I’m sorry. Did your father leave after your stepmother died?”

  Lilly realized he must have assumed that he’d abandoned her and Daisy like his mother had him. “No, he had a riding accident that broke his neck and killed him instantly.” Sorrow filled her heart. Even after four years she still felt her loss cut through her like a two-edged sword.

  “So you’ve been taking care of Daisy and running this ranch on your own?” He pushed away from the barn.

  Lilly nodded. “Yes, with Sam’s and Papa’s lawyer’s help.” Did knowing her father was dead change his view of her? Would he, like so many others before him, now see her as wife material? Making himself a ranch owner in the process?

  Apparently unaware of her thoughts, Jacob tugged his horse around and walked toward the barn. Lilly followed with her own mount. He stopped just inside the barn door. He placed a hand against the barn, his demeanor stiff and tense. His jaw clenched as if he was holding raw emotion in check. She placed her hand on his forearm.

  “What is it, Jacob?”

  “Did I mention earlier that my mother’s name is Gertrude?”

  Lilly’s breath caught in her lungs. Her fingers clenched around the fabric of his sleeve. She swallowed hard and tried to think of something to say. He seemed to have the same problem. Lilly’s heart told her Gertrude was the same woman. She walked past Ja
cob toward her horse’s stall. “Gertrude is a common name for women born during that time.”

  Lilly began to remove the saddle from the horse. Trying not to sound strange, she asked, “Jacob, what is your last name?”

  He looked at her as if she were dense. “Young.”

  She swallowed. “I mean before you were adopted.”

  Jacob grunted as he pulled the saddle from his horse’s back. He carried it to the tack room and placed it on a sawhorse. He adjusted it three or four times, finally latching on the saddle horn in a tight-fisted grip. “My birth name is Fisher.”

  Lilly felt as if her knees might give out from under her. Her stepmother, Gertrude Fisher, was Jacob’s mother. That made him Daisy’s half brother. Strange and disquieting thoughts raced through her mind. Would he want to take Daisy away from her? Or would knowing she was his own flesh and blood make him want to protect her more? And, would he think he could protect her better by taking her away? Icy fear wrapped its ugly fingers around her spine.

  She could tell him that half the ranch belonged to Daisy, but should she? New fears and questions twisted her insides. Would that make him less inclined to take Daisy away? Or would it make him want to take the ranch? Was he the type of man who would woo her to get his sister and the ranch?

  Did he somehow already know all this? Had he secretly been checking things out, with plans already formed? And she had let her guard down. Her emotions had ruled that Jacob could be trusted, but what had emotions always proven to her? That they certainly could not be trusted. She had eagerly accepted Gertrude, longing for a mother’s touch and love, but that had led to years of loneliness and disappointment.

  Chapter Four

  Over the next few days, Jacob got to know his new home better. He now knew the barn and everything in it as if he’d lived there all his life. He met the other men of the ranch and took his meals with them. Rode the fence lines and learned where the ravines were located.

  Since the ranch wasn’t a Pony Express home station, but a way station where the riders exchanged horses to deliver the mail, there was no station manager. Jacob was free to come and go as he pleased as long as he was ready when a new rider came in needing a fresh horse.

  He helped out where he could and kept an eye out for the Johnson women. Lilly and Daisy were never apart. He’d watched them puttering around the house, in the garden, washing clothes out by the well and playing tag on the side of the house. Lilly always seemed alert to their surroundings and had even waved to him a few times when she caught him looking in her direction.

  However, since the day she’d told him about her past, Lilly had stayed away from the barn. According to Caleb it wasn’t like her not to take her horse out for a ride at least once a day. Jacob assumed it was because of her worry over Daisy that kept her close to home. Still, he didn’t think it was good for her or her horse.

  As he put the recently returned Pony Express horse into a stall, Jacob realized that the last time she’d spoken to him had been after their short ride to the river. She’d asked him his last name and then hurried from the barn as if her biscuits were burning in the kitchen. Had he said something wrong? Something that had disturbed her? Made her think he was a danger to them? Or had she simply decided to be cautious? He knew now that Daisy was her only living relative. He could understand Lilly’s strong desire to want to protect the little girl.

  He closed his eyes and inhaled the warm scent of hay from the barn. Jacob had to admit that he missed his family. His adoptive mother, Rebecca, would be calling them all in for lunch about now. His rowdy brothers would be pushing and shoving to be the first inside. He missed the way Joy, his sister, ran to him and begged to be swung about in the air.

  “Jacob? Is now a bad time?”

  Lilly’s soft voice broke through the memories and his eyes snapped open. She stood to the side with her hands buried in a long skirt that touched the straw-covered floor of the barn. Since he’d arrived he’d never seen her in a dress or skirt, and the sight took him by surprise. To cover it, he cleared his voice. “Not at all. I was just...putting the horse away.”

  She grinned a knowing smile. “Good. I was wondering, since the Pony Express rider just left, if you’d have time to go with Daisy and I to Mud Springs?”

  Daisy stood behind Lilly. She peaked around her sister. “Pleeeease.”

  Jacob nodded. “Mud Springs?” He’d not heard of that town when he’d come through so perhaps it was a small town between the ranch and Sacramento.

  “That’s the old name. About five years ago the town folks renamed it El Dorado. We’re still used to it being Mud Springs.” She pulled her braid around to her left shoulder and played with the band at the end. Her blue eyes looked up at him inquisitively.

  Jacob recognized the town name El Dorado. “I’d be happy to go. Let me tell Cook so he doesn’t expect me for lunch.”

  Caleb stood up from where he’d been kneeling in the back stall. “I’ll tell him for you,” he offered. Caleb grinned at Daisy. “Want to see the kittens while Jacob gets the wagon ready?” He shot a mischievous grin at Jacob.

  Daisy’s blond braid bobbed as she nodded. She looked up at Lilly. “Can I, Lilly?” Weariness laced the little girl’s voice as if she feared her sister would say no.

  “Yes, just remember they are still very little.”

  “I will.” Daisy skipped the short distance to Caleb.

  Jacob had missed the little girl’s voice and happy nature. He grinned. “I better get the wagon.” He started to leave the barn but stopped when he heard Lilly call out.

  “Caleb?”

  The young man popped his head up. “Yes, Miss Lilly?”

  “Will you keep an eye on Daisy? I’d like to go fix a picnic lunch for the trip.” She nibbled at her bottom lip.

  Jacob’s eyes met Caleb’s. He nodded to the young man.

  “I’ll watch out for her,” Caleb agreed. “Don’t worry, we’ll stay here in the barn and watch the mama cat and kittens.”

  She nodded. “I’ll be quick.” Lilly turned and saw Jacob. “Do you need help with the wagon?” she asked, tugging at her braid.

  “No, I can take care of it,” he answered.

  Lilly walked toward him. When she was at the door he said, “Caleb will take good care of her and I’ll be right outside.”

  “I know.” Still she worried the tip of her braid. Then she turned toward the house and marched smartly away.

  Jacob moved to the side of the barn where the wagon sat.

  A heavy Irish accent drifted to Jacob. “Need help with getting that pulled to the front of the barn?” Asher asked.

  Jacob glanced over his shoulder at the broad-shouldered man. Asher seemed good-natured. His red hair and green eyes made him very recognizable. He answered, “That would be nice.”

  The big man grabbed the tongue of the wagon while Jacob pushed from behind. Within a minute they had the wagon standing in front of the big barn. The two men continued to work together until the horse was hitched up and ready to go.

  “I could have gotten the wagon pulled around but your help made it much easier. Thanks.” He grinned at the Irishman.

  “Happy to help. I suppose I should feed the hogs. I can hear their squeals from here.” He walked away.

  The hog pens were farther away from the house. Asher scooped up two slop buckets as he passed the bunkhouse and then disappeared around the corner.

  Jacob grinned. He liked Asher and couldn’t imagine that he’d harm man or beast. Still, he’d get to know him better before he trusted him or anyone else on the ranch other than Caleb. He walked back into the barn, where Caleb sat with Daisy on a bale of hay. “What are you two doing?” he asked. Then he saw the small fur ball in Caleb’s hands.

  “Looking at the kitty,” Daisy whispered. “This is the one I want to kee
p.”

  The kitten was still small and its yellow fur wasn’t very thick. “Aren’t you going to keep them all?” Jacob asked as he sat down across from them on a large bucket.

  She shook her head. “No, Lilly only keeps two kitties on the ranch at a time.”

  Caleb grinned. “The other two will go to the Lawrences, they own the farm to our right.”

  The mother cat chose that moment to let her disapproval come through. She meowed loudly. “Sounds like you better put that baby back,” Jacob said as he stood and stretched.

  He looked forward to this trip to town. Even though he’d come through it on his way to the Johnson ranch, Jacob planned to ask again about his mother. The sooner he found her, the sooner he’d have answers to his questions and get on with his life.

  * * *

  Knots filled Lilly’s stomach as she hurried back to the barn. The wagon looked ready to go. She placed the basket full of food and a couple of Daisy’s favorite toys behind the seat. Lilly inhaled deeply. Anticipation of Jacob’s reaction ate at her. Lilly tried to ignore the feeling, knowing she was doing the right thing.

  She’d prayed earnestly, asking God what to do with the new knowledge that Jacob’s mother and her stepmother were one and the same. Lilly didn’t want to tell him because she feared he’d want to take over Daisy’s upbringing. She also feared he’d think the ranch belonged to him, too. But, after much prayer, Lilly felt it wouldn’t be right to keep the truth from Jacob.

  The thought of him continuing his search for his deceased mother saddened her. Knowing would be better for him than not knowing. This was something she had to do. She released the pent-up air.

  Lilly walked the short distance to the barn and stepped into the doorway. Jacob stood. He stretched out his back and flexed his wide shoulders. She quaked at what his reaction might be to the news she’d been holding onto for the last few days.

  Jacob had given her no reason to fear him and yet she did. Lilly knew the fear wasn’t for herself but for Daisy. Not that he’d hurt her, but that he’d take her away.