[Oregon Trail Time Travel 04.0] Angie and the Farmer

by Susan Leigh Carlton

  “So you can sneak up on people?”

  “Jeremy, don’t ask so many questions,” Chester said. “Miss Thornton, we’d better get you back to the wagons and let Clint know about this.”

  “Who is Clint?” she asked.

  “He’s the wagon master. He’s in charge of everything.”

  “Do you think someone could take me to Brevard? I want to try to find Mom and Dad.”

  “I tell you ma’am, I don’t recollect passing through no place named Breevardm,” Chester said. “I know he won’t send a wagon back. We’re three days out of Independence, and it would be too far to take you back. You can double up with Hiram there and we’ll go on back to our train.”

  “How far is it?” she asked.

  “It’s less than a mile,” Chester said.

  “I’ll walk then.”

  “Jeremy, you walk back with her and make sure she don’t get lost again.”

  “Yessir,” Jeremy replied. “It ain’t far,” he told her. He picked up a small stone and threw it at a tree.

  “You have a strong arm,” she said.

  “Yeah. I mean, yes ma’am.” he grinned as he said it.

  “How old are you,” she asked.

  “Eight going on nine. How old are you?”

  “I’m seventeen going on eighteen.”

  “You’re old. But not as old as Mama or Uncle Chester. They’re real old.”

  I wish my life was as uncomplicated as his. After what has happened, I will never be the same. I don’t know what is going on. How long was I in the tree? That Chester guy was right. There isn’t any sign of a flood. So what happened to Mom and Dad? Am I dreaming?

  She remembered the iPhone in her pocket. When she looked at it, it said ‘No Signal’. So much for that.

  “What’s ‘at?” Jeremy asked.

  She decided not to lie, but to dodge the question. “It’s just something my father gave me for Christmas.”

  “Oh.” And the subject was dropped. “There’s the train,” he said.

  Angie looked in the direction he pointed expecting to see the Amtrak California Zephyr. Instead, all she saw was covered wagons. A lot of covered wagons. In a circle.

  Oh dear God. What is happening to me? Is this a reenactment?

  “Our wagon is right there,” Jeremy told her. All of the wagons looked the same to her.

  “How can you tell which one is yours?” she asked.

  She could tell he thought it was a dumb question because of the expression on his face. “Because that’s Mama cooking.”

  “I should have known that,” she said.

  “Yeah.”

  * * *

  The wagon train…

  “Mama, this is the lady that was in the tree,” Jeremy said.

  “Mind your manners, Jeremy.”

  “What happened, dear?”

  “We were returning home from Lincoln, and there was a flash flood. My parents were swept away and I wound up in a tree, where Jeremy found me. I’m sure they both drowned, but I didn’t see them.” she answered, managing to keep her tears at bay.

  “Why that’s plumb terrible. I am sorry. I’m Hannah Scoggins. I believe you met my brother.”

  “Yes ma’am. I’m Angela Thornton.”

  “Were you hurt?”

  “My shoulder’s sore, but I don’t think I’m bleeding or anything.”

  “Let’s get in the wagon, away from all of these prying eyes,” Hannah said.

  “Your face and neck look fine. Let me see your arms.”

  Angie’s blouse had short sleeves, Mrs. Scoggins raised an eyebrow at what she saw, and then gasped. “Why your arms are all bruised up. It ain’t no wonder your shoulder hurts. It’s probably bruised up too.

  “If you don’t mind my saying so, you’re dressed funny.”

  “These are called jeans. My father bought them for me to wear when we travel.”

  “They look like they’re too small for you, but it sure would be nice not to have to worry about these long dresses and petticoats. People would sure talk about me though.”

  “Do you remember how you got in the tree?”

  “The limb that knocked mother in the water hit me in the stomach and the next thing I remember is Jeremy.”

  * * *

  The Wagon master…

  “I’m Clint Adams, Miss Thornton. I’m the wagon master of this outfit. Chester here tells me you got caught in a flood.”

  “Yes sir. It carried my parents away, and I was unlucky enough to get caught up on a tree limb.”

  “I’d say you were mighty lucky, myself.”

  “I lost everything. I don’t call that lucky. I should have let go and gone with them.” Her tears overflowed, streaking her face.

  “I haven’t seen any sign of a rain myself,” he said. In fact, we haven’t seen any since we left Independence.”

  “Feel my shoes,” she said. “They’re still damp. Look at my hair, and the bruises on my arms. What more do you need?”

  “Miss, don’t go getting all riled. I’m just telling you we haven’t had any rain near us. We weren’t no more than twelve or fifteen miles away.”

  “I don’t know what to tell you, Mr. Adams. Either you believe me or you don’t. Right now, I just don’t care. About anything.” She turned and started walking away from the Thornton wagon.

  “Where are you going?” he asked.

  “I’m going to Brevard to see if I can get some help finding my parents.”

  “I’ve been driving wagons on this trail for eight years, and I have never heard of a place called Brevard.”

  “All right then, I’m going to Independence.” She continued walking.

  “You’re going to die out there,” he told her.

  “I don’t care. I should have died with my parents.”

  “Miss, you could run into Indians out there,” the wagon master said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “You might run into a raiding or hunting party. Why do you think we are all circled up like this?”

  “The Indians have been on the rampage hereabouts since the wagon trains started coming through. There are five different tribes in Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana. None of them like the white man.”

  His last two sentences fell on deaf ears. Her eyes rolled back in her head as her knees buckled, and she fell to the ground.

  “Get some water, Miz Scoggins,” the wagon master directed. “Jeremy, see if you can find Jed Lewis. Tell him I’d for him to take someone and look for Miss Thornton’s parents.”

  “Yessir.”

  Chapter five

  Angie’s Decision

  The water from the wet neckerchief on her forehead ran down her face, leaving tracks in the dust on her face. Her eyes fluttered open. “What happened?” she asked.

  “You passed out,” Hannah Scoggins said. “You must have been hit on the head. How do you feel now?”

  “I don’t know. Nothing hurts. I’ve never fainted in my life. I don’t understand any of this.”

  “You lie down in the back of our wagon. I’ll bring you some stew in a little while. Keep that cloth on your head. We don’t have a doctor in the company. Miz Parnell helps look after anyone that gets sick. She might be able to give you a potion. I sent Jeremy for her after he got back from looking for the Lewis boy.”

  “Don’t do that. I’ll be okay in a little while.”

  “He’s already gone. She’ll be here in a minute.”

  Later…

  “I’m Ada Parnell. What’s your name, dear?”

  “Angela Thornton.”

  “You never had the vapors before?”

  “I don’t know what that is, but I don’t think so.”

  “Vapors is being dizzy or fainting,” Mrs. Parnell said.

  “No, I’ve never done that.”

  “You don’t know how you come to be in that tree?”

  “I told them, we were washed away in a flash flood. Both my parents were carried away. I wish I h
ad been instead of getting caught up by that limb.”

  “Child, there ain’t been no rain hereabouts in a long time.”

  “Then why were my shoes wet?”

  “You peed on them.”

  “I most certainly did not,” Angela said, indignantly.

  “Ain’t no cause to git riled. I’m just trying to hep you.”

  “No cause? My parents are gone, I don’t know where I am and no one believes anything I say. Why wouldn’t I be upset? Please, just leave me alone.”

  Mrs. Parnell climbed out of the wagon. Angela heard her tell the wagon master, “I think she’s just addled. Too much sun, maybe.”

  Angie heard Mrs. Parnell walk away, so she called out, “Mr. Adams, if you’re still there, may I talk to you for a minute, please?”

  He came to the back of the wagon. “I sent Jed Lewis and Clem looking for your parents. You wanted to talk to me?”

  “Yes sir. Thank you for sending someone to look, Mr. Adams. I heard what that lady told you. I am not crazy. I do not know what caused all of this, but I told you the truth. My shoes were wet when Jeremy found me. I have just finished high school and I was a good student. I was born January 27, 1998 in Brevard, Missouri. My parents and I had been to Lincoln, Nebraska to see if I might want to go to college there. It was June 10, 2015. We were returning home when the storm came up. I was in the back seat when Dad lost control of the car and we skidded into the water.

  “Why are you looking at me so funny?”

  “I think Mrs. Parnell might be right. You said you were born in 1998. Miss Thornton, today is June 10, 1866.”

  “Mr. Adams, have you ever seen any clothes like mine?”

  “No, and I have only seen two or three ladies wearing men’s clothes.”

  “These aren’t men’s clothes, these are girl’s jeans. Look at my shoes. You’ve never seen anything like them, have you?”

  “No.” He had a puzzled look on his face. “Can’t say as I have.”

  “That’s because they haven’t been invented yet. Wait. I just thought of something. I have something I had in my hands when we went in the water. I put it in my pocket before I climbed out of the car. Do you promise not to tell anyone if I show it to you?”

  His face reddened. “Now I don’t know that I can do that.”

  “Then I won’t show you.”

  “What is this thing?” he asked.

  “It was my Christmas present last year. It is called an iPhone and I promise you’ve never seen the likes of it, and never will in your lifetime.”

  “I give you my word. I’ll hold it to myself.”

  She stood as straight as she could within the confines of the wagon, and took her iPhone from her pocket. “This is it. I could listen to music, take pictures, and talk to any other phone in the whole world if I know their number. That part won’t work now, but the rest of it will.

  “It works off battery power, so I have to be careful with it so I don’t run it down. If I did, I might not be able to recharge it if my solar charger was damaged. She touched the Photo icon and pictures displayed. She touched one and it enlarged. These are my parents. You can see our car in the background. This was taken when we were at the college.”

  She held it up in front of her and touched another icon. There was a click and a flash. The wagon master jumped back. Angie laughed. “It’s all right. Look at this.”

  She held the camera up where he could see it. “I just took this picture of you. What do you think?”

  He was stunned. “I saw cameras before, but they put their head under a hood or something and held a little tray above their head. You didn’t see the pictures for several days either.”

  “You see why I asked you not to tell anyone about this?”

  “They wouldn’t believe it anyways,” he said. “I find it hard to believe myself.”

  “So do I, Mr. Adams, and I’m living it. I’ve never heard of like this before. I’ve heard of people saying they were abducted by aliens, but they are crossed off as being crazy, the same as Mrs. Parnell says I am.”

  “Obviously, you can’t go off walking to Independence, for several reasons,” Adams said. “One being it’s too far, another is I can’t send anyone with you. You wouldn’t know any more people there than you know here anyhow.

  “My suggestion would be to stay with us. You’re protected and we have some good people with us.”

  “I have to do something though. I can’t just take charity from people that don’t have much to start with.”

  “I don’t suppose you can drive a wagon, so that’s out. Miz Gilley is with child and is having a hard time of it. You could maybe help them in exchange for your chuck. I’ll talk to them. You might could marry up with one of the unattached men. You are right comely, so I imagine that wouldn’t be hard to do.”

  “Mr. Adams, I’m nowhere near ready to get married. I won’t even think about that.”

  “Like I said, you don’t have an awful lot of choices. An unattached woman with no means is not a good thing out here. She doesn’t have anyone to protect her.”

  “Protect from what?”

  “Men would be the main thing; the wives would be another.”

  “Why would I have trouble with wives?”

  “They’re going to be afraid you might steal their man and leave them in the same situation you find yourself.”

  “I would never do that,” Angie said, as her cheeks turned red at the thought of such a thing.

  “They don’t know that. You watch, over the next few days, you’re going to see what I mean.”

  “Would you introduce me to the woman who is expecting?”

  “I will. I’ll also see if I can scare up a change of clothes for you. What you’re wearing is not going to help your cause. You might also try to make yourself look as young as possible too.”

  Later…

  “Miss Thompson, Jed and Clem rode several miles downstream and didn’t see any signs of your parents or a flood. Miz Gilley said she would be thankful for the help. I’ll introduce you. I suggest you not tell them what you told me.”

  “No sir, but I have a question. What do I tell them when I don’t know how to do any of the things they do, like wash clothes, and stuff?”

  “Just tell them you were raised in town and your parents had a maid that did those kinds of things. You’ll just have to make things up as you go.”

  “Yes sir. I hate to lie, but I guess I have to stretch the truth. Mom did have a maid.”

  “Good. Mrs. Craig and Mrs. Whipple offered these two dresses for you.”

  “Thank you Mr. Adams. Everyone is being so kind. I don’t know what to say.”

  Chapter six

  Angela Meets Jed

  “Miz Gilley, this is Angela Thornton. She’s going to help you while she’s figuring things out.” Major Adams said.

  “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Gilley, Mr. Gilley. I appreciate you taking me in. I’ll help you all I can. I am an only child so I don’t know how much help I’ll be.”

  “I’m sure it’s going to be all right,” Seth Gilley said, “and I do appreciate whatever you can do to help Polly. We wouldn’t have come on this trip if we’d known she was with child.”

  Polly Gilley was an attractive woman, but she appeared pale and wan. She still greeted Angela with a smile. “It’s not your fault, Seth. You couldn’t have known I was going to be sick every morning.”

  “All the same…”

  “When is your baby due, Mrs. Gilley?” Angie asked.

  “Call me Polly. Mrs. Gilley makes me seem so old. I’m hoping it doesn’t come until we get to Oregon. I’d like for him or her to be born in our new home.”

  Supper was a basic beef stew. “Thank you for the dinner.” Angela said, “I’ll wash the dishes, Mr. Gilley.”

  “We don’t normally use water, but since the creek is close, we can this time,” he replied.

  “How would you wash them other times?”

  “Scrub them with
sand, and rinse the sand off,” he told her.

  “Oh, so you don’t use hot water?”

  “That would waste wood that we need to cook.”

  “I told you I didn’t know anything. I’m sorry.”

  “You’ll learn. Just ask.”

  “Yes sir. I will.”

  Angie had trouble falling asleep on the hard bed of the wagon. When she realized Mr. Gilley would normally sleep in the wagon with his wife, instead of on the ground beneath on a bedroll, it was too late to change. I’m not going to put them out any more than I have to. I’ll sleep under the wagon tomorrow night.

  The next morning…

  Polly was green from the morning sickness and did not eat. “I wish there was something I could do,” Angela told her.

  “So do I,” Polly replied.

  When the wagons began rolling, Angela was walking beside the wagon. “Why don’t you ride while you can?” Seth asked.

  “It wouldn’t be right. I’m okay. I’m used to a lot of exercise,” Angela answered. “No faster than we’re moving, I won’t have any trouble keeping up.”

  “They can hold this pace all day,” he told her.

  “Mr. Gilley, I can do whatever I have to, I’m in good physical condition.”

  “I’m sure you’ll do all right with us. I’m glad you’re here.”

  When the noon break was called, she tried to help Polly with lunch, but Polly told her to rest. She was leaning back against a wheel when Jeremy came up. “Ah, here’s my rescuer,” she said. “Good morning, Jeremy.

  “Are you gonna go to Orgen with us?”

  “You mean Or-re-gon.”

  “That’s what I said. Orgen.”

  I don’t know what I’m going to do,” she answered.

  “At man asked me your name.”

  “What man?” she asked.

  “Jed. On the next wagen.”

  “Did you tell him?”

  “Yes ma’am.”

  “You don’t have to say ma’am to me.”

  “Yes ma’am I do. I’ll get a whupping if’n I don’t.”

  “Where’s your wagon?”