Looking into the face that was a lined, harder version than mine, I did the same thing, offering an instant prayer of thankfulness he had come home. His nut-brown hair was the same color everyone but Ma and I had. Pa's hair now had strands of gray running through it, but life on the frontier was hard. It was all I heard whenever I thought about making a complaint.
“Where did you get all that yellow hair?” he asked, teasing me with a wide smile.
“Must have kissed the sun,” I teased back, knowing it came from Ma, as hers looked as bright as mine did.
“What kind of pies did you make?” he asked.
“Dried peach and apple with just enough sugar to make you sweet!”
It was an old joke between us, and lightened tension in the air when my brothers laughed.
“Did the Paiute follow you home?” I asked.
“Nothing for you to worry about,” Pa said. “Your brothers and I would never let them hurt our women. Come on, boys. Those Indians will just have to wait.”
On the trip back to the house, Peter and Paul bragged about how much they had done, until the chickens clucked.
“Move it, you two. Looks like you forgot at least one of your chores,” Pa said. “Knowing your mother, she'll want eggs for flapjacks in the morning.”
Peter and Paul trotted over to the coop and were soon flinging dried corn in all directions. Pa took the rest of the boys to the wash shed to clean up. Ma and I pulled the napkins off the food and had everything ready when the men took their places.
“Coming through,” Paul bellowed.
He and Peter raced through the door, each holding a basket brimming with eggs. Both looked as if they'd chased every chicken halfway across the state, what with all the poop spattered on their hands and the sweaty dirt on their faces. Ma pointed at the counter.
“Best you hurry and clean up,” she said. “We're about to say our prayer.”
Water splashed from the lean to outside the front door. The boys returned with red faces and droplets splattering in all directions from their hair. When they took their seats, Pa bowed his head.
“Lord, thank you for bringing us together once again as a family. Thank you for the good health of my wife, sons, and daughter. Bless this food our women have provided and guide us as we work to overcome the obstacle we've discovered in our path.”
“Amen,” Ma said.
Quiet reigned as they served. After the boys dug in, and made the appropriate thankful noises, I ate my meal. For the first time ever, I felt satisfaction about all the time I spent in the kitchen.
“What happened, Michael?” she asked.
“Indians, Louisa,” Pa commented. “We need to find out what the Pony wants done with the horses I rescued. Adam and Bart will stay here when I go to Carson City.” He glanced at everyone. “Peter and Paul will make this trip. It's time they took on more responsibility.”
“Abigail and I can take care of the chores around here if you need to take Adam and Bart with you,” she said.
Her voice sounded very scared. That surprised me more than anything else did. She was never afraid of anything.
“We're very isolated,” he said. “I'd rather the older boys stayed home.”
None of my brothers offered an opinion, not even Peter and Paul who squirmed on the bench beside me as if they had ants in their pants. Something was very wrong if Pa wanted two of my older brothers to stay home instead of going up to the Pony Station.
Chapter Six
After removing the supper dishes from the table, I placed a pile of smaller plates beside Pa, moved the pies in front of him, and sat back down to wait for dessert. I always got last choice and ended up with whatever no one else wanted, the smallest piece.
“What kind of pie would you like, Abigail?” he asked.
Everyone's jaws dropped open. I thought I heard a gigantic thud as my brothers' chins hit the table.
“Peach,” I said. “Thank you, Pa.”
He cut me a huge slice of pie and set it on a plate. Pa passed the pie to Adam, who leaned past Peter and set the plate in front of me. It was almost too much to bear, but I waited until everyone else had their dessert before digging my fork into the peaches. A piece of pie had never tasted so good, not even when I had to do all the supper dishes while Ma took Peter and Paul to the barn to do their chores.
When I finished, I sat on a chair in the parlor and worked on a doily, my newest idle time activity, as Ma had called it. She had handed me a crochet hook and announced last month I had to start helping her with the pretties she kept in the house, since I was now old enough to learn how to do it. My crocheting never looked as nice as hers, and I had to concentrate as I wove the hook in and out of the thin yarn. Hopefully, this doily would have an oil lamp on top of it, so no one would ever see all the mistakes I'd made.
Pa sat across from me and read from the Bible. Hearing him telling the story of the fishes and the loaves helped me focus.
Mark balanced a thick pad of paper against his knees from his position on the floor. Wrinkles appeared in his forehead as he sketched. I stopped working to look at him.
“Don't move,” he said.
“Huh?”
He showed me his latest drawing. Mark was very good at sketching our lives. Right about now, I wanted to burn every picture he had ever done. This one showed me with my tongue peeking from between my lips as I tried to shove the hook into the doily.
“Do it again.” He grinned. “I like how you try to do girl stuff.”
I almost threw my crocheting at him, but Ma walked into the parlor with Adam and Bart at that moment. She picked up her knitting and started on a sock hanging from the needles. She was so good she made a new pair for all the men every two weeks.
I wish I were as good as Ma. She makes it look so easy.
Adam and Bart crouched in a corner and pulled out their knives. After selecting thin pieces of wood from the container near the stove, they whittled until shapes of a star and a bell became recognizable. They always started early making the ornaments we hung off the fireplace mantle since Christmas trees were as rare as hen's teeth in the desert.
The sound of a harmonica on the front porch made me smile. Charles played right before we went to bed, to calm the animals.
“No smiling,” Mark said. “I'm not done.”
I looked down at my crocheting, which wiped the smile right off my face, and went back to work. He grunted, and I figured I had made him happy but didn't dare look up, even when the door thudded against the wall.
“Don't move,” he said.
While I wanted to find out what new excitement had come into our lives, I kept on crocheting.
“We found something the runt will like,” Peter hollered.
“Here it is,” Paul shouted.
Charles stopped playing his harmonica. Adam and Bart's knives clattered against the floor. Ma gasped. Tiny, needle-like claws climbed my legs, piercing my skin through the stockings. Shrieking, I jumped to my feet and flapped my skirt. Those claws skidded downward and then began climbing again. One hand on my shoulder to keep me from bouncing around, Ma reached under my dress and pulled out a frightened kitten.
We had what seemed like dozens of cats in the barn. They loved the sweet smelling hay and begged for a squirt of milk when we took care of the cows. This one had mottled black, white, and gold fluffed up fur. His poor body trembled as he meowed pitifully.
“You two get in the bunkhouse now,” Pa said in the angriest voice I'd ever heard. “How is Abigail, Louisa?”
I was only Abby whenever Ma wasn't around to object. She believed parents gave a good Christian name to a child for a reason and objected to us shortening ours. She turned to Pa, and I took the cat from her, stroking the animal until it calmed down and purred.
“I'll let you know as soon as I clean up her legs.” She headed for the kitchen. “Abigail, get ready for bed.”
Still holding the kitten, I walked into the hallway. The desire to beg my parents to
let me keep it raced through me. I loved just about any kind of animal. Charles looked at my face and shook his head.
“Sorry, Abby,” he said. “I know you want to keep the kitten, but you know the rules.”
Rules made my life miserable. Everything I loved was against them.
“I know.” I handed him the bundle of purring fur, went into my bedroom, and changed into my nightgown.
Ma came in and checked my legs. Angry, red scratches up the right one led to my knee, and they hurt a lot. She cleaned the open wounds with carbolic while I bit my lip to keep from yelling.
“That should keep those scratches from getting infected.” She went out and closed the door.
A bit of warmth squirmed through me. Ma never comforted my brothers after tending their injuries. I smiled and began to think about how to handle training the horses, but my pleasant interlude ended when Paul and Peter squalled from the bunkhouse. I listened as the others said goodnight, not one bit tired.
After the house quieted, I lay awake. Things had looked so good when the man from The Pony Express asked us to provide mustangs. What would we do now?
Chapter Seven
Only two days had passed since the awful news about the Pony Express turned our lives upside down. I still woke before everyone else and spent time with the horses. But I had to be very, very careful and make it back inside before the sun rose. This morning felt different, in a way I couldn't figure out. I looked in all directions as I walked to the corral, but I didn't see anything wrong.
Nickers filled the air, driving me forward at a fast pace. Once I reached the corral, I focused on nothing but the horses.
“Hey, Blaze.” I climbed the fence and stroked his nose. “I can't ride you anymore now that Pa's back.”
An ache rose within me, and I found it impossible to ignore. After making sure no one was in sight, I climbed onto his back and threaded my fingers through his mane.
The most wonderful feeling in the world rushed through me as he trotted in circles. This was the best sensation the whole world. The wind chapped my cheeks, but I no longer cared about acting like a lady. I had found the only place where I felt like I contributed something important to my family.
Shadows lengthened in front of me. Blaze's even, strong gait lulled me into a sense of safety, of believing no one would catch me breaking the rule of not going into the corral.
Then the most horrible noise in the world broke through my happiness. A door slammed. I looked around and realized the sun had risen.
“Oh no!” I touched Blaze's flanks with my heels. “Hurry. I have to get inside before someone notices I'm not in my bed.”
He stopped at the same spot where I had mounted him, but I remained on his back. The second worst thing in the world had happened.
“Ma and Pa told you to stay away from the corral for a very good reason,” Adam said. His voice was very low, not a good sign. “Get off that horse. Now!”
Shaking in every muscle, I slid off Blaze's back. Once on the ground, I stretched up as far as I could to whisper in his ear.
“It's not your fault. I wasn't supposed to ride you.”
Certain I faced not only a scolding but also a spanking, I crawled under the middle rail while stepping over the bottom one of the fence.
“Walk with me,” Adam said. “I don't want what we say upsetting the horses.”
Too scared to say anything, I nodded. He took off for the trail Pa used to drive the ponies to the stations and stopped when we were a good distance from the house.
“Those horses aren't safe for you to ride,” Adam said. “All the Pony Express wants is saddle broke. You know that.”
“Uh-huh.” I scuffed a foot back and forth.
“Why?”
He had asked the one question I never wanted to hear. I had started doing this as a way to make sure Pa never found out Peter and Paul had disobeyed him. But training the horses had blown up into a major problem.
“Abby.” Adam crouched in front of me. “I know you wouldn't ignore Ma and Pa just because you wanted to ride.”
I shook my head.
“Talk to me,” he said. “Make me understand why you snuck out so early.”
“It was the only time I could do it,” I said. “I know I should have told Ma about how Peter and Paul slept instead of training the horses, but I hate tattling all the time. They always get even.”
“Oh.” He shook his head. “I should have known. Well, you won't have that problem anymore. Pa has figured out a way to fix Peter and Paul's attitude.”
All well and good, but I was still in a peck of trouble with no way out.
“So, I guess you're gonna tell Pa you caught me on a horse,” I said.
My heart fell out of my body and sank through the sandy grit on the ground. I had run into the worst problem I'd ever faced and could think of no way out of it. If I couldn't ride a horse, I would just die.
“Not if you promise you'll never do it again.” Adam stood up and took my hand. “Come get me if you can't stay away from the corral.”
It sure sounded like he would let me ride the horses, if he was around. I tried to keep back a grin but failed miserably.
“Ma won't like that.”
“I'll explain to Ma and Pa.” He looked at the house. “I reckon we ought to go back. She'll have breakfast ready soon.”
We hurried back to the house. Ma pelted me with questions as soon as I stepped through the door. Adam talked to her while I set the table. They glanced at me as I put platters of flapjacks and sausages on either side of a large jar of molasses.
“Smells good,” Pa said as he came in from the hallway. “Sit, everyone.”
“I need to speak to you,” Ma said. “You children don't touch a thing until we sit down.”
They went onto the porch and came back a few minutes later. I twisted my fingers together under the table and nibbled my lip at the expressions of disappointment on their faces.
“What did the runt do?” Peter asked.
“Not a thing.” Adam thumped his head with a finger and thumb. “I'm gonna make sure Pa has me looking after you and the other monster from now on.”
Our parents sat down, and we prayed. I tried to eat, but thinking about Adam catching me on a horse, and the Pony Express shutting down left a huge lump in my throat.
How will the mail get through?
Not that letters hadn't arrived before The Pony Express started, but it took months instead of days.
Tin cups clinked against the tabletop. Flatware scraped plates. I stared at my food.
The Pony didn't end. It's not true.
I stuffed a piece of sausage into my mouth and chewed. It hurt when I swallowed, but I forced myself to do it.
The Army will fix this. Everyone knows the Paiute don't stand a chance against a whole cavalry troop.
Pa grunted, and I looked up. My brothers had all frozen with forks holding flapjacks dripping molasses in midair. Ma sat serenely at her place, taking small bites of her food.
“Peter and Paul, I'm aware of how little you did during my absence,” he said. “Your lack of responsibility shows me you don't care to join the rest of us on our station runs. It seems your baby sister actually kept the horses exercised from what your ma just told me.”
I stared openmouthed at Pa, until Charles tipped his finger against my chin.
“You'll catch a load of flies that way,” he said.
Adam winked at me, and I realized he'd dropped a few hints to Ma. She must have explained the whole thing to Pa. I stuffed a flapjack into my mouth, chewed, and swallowed without a problem.
Chapter Eight
Breakfast continued, and I even managed to eat another whole stack of flapjacks. Of course, I had to fight off Mark and Charles, who were determined to gobble down every bit of food on the table.
“Louisa, I feel as if this contract with Russell, Majors & Waddel has put our family in a bad position,” Pa said, his words making everyone stop eating again. “
I've failed in my duty to my youngest sons. From now on, I'll take at least one of them when we make deliveries. The other will have one of his older brothers here to ensure he does his work.”
“Pa!” Peter wailed.
As the younger twin, he had more to lose. Everything happened by age in our house. He deserved such a punishment for giving me a hard time, and getting me in trouble.
“I'll still take both of you when I go to Carson City. We have to deliver those horses, but we can't until we figure out where to take them,” Pa said. “I expect you to obey every order I give you without question. Do you understand?”
“Yes, sir,” Peter and Paul said.
“Charles and Mark will go with us. Adam, use Abigail's help to break the ponies when she has time,” Pa said. “The stationmaster mentioned the lighter the person breaking the horses, the better. Their riders don't weigh all that much. She's much closer to them in weight than you boys.”
Excitement raced through me. Even though I couldn't help The Pony Express by riding between stations, he had given me a way to make sure the mail got from San Francisco to St. Joseph. I glanced at Adam. His wide smile increased my happiness. Only my oldest brother understood my special method of training the horses by talking to them. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't do it.
“I'll do my best,” I said.
“Baby.” Pa's voice softened. “I realize I'm asking a lot of you.” He glanced at Ma. “Louisa, I believe the boys should take on more responsibilities around the house. Perhaps they can handle the wash?”
“That's a woman's job,” she said.
“We don't mind,” Charles said.
“It will help your sister if you boys clean up your room,” she said.
Oh yes! My grin grew wider and wider. Cleaning the bunkroom where the boys slept was the worst chore in the world. She had just released me from that torture. I'll never have to scrounge under their beds for dirty clothes, or shake nasty dried snakeskins out of their blankets again!
Pony Dreams Page 4