Chapter 10
Leif was almost home. Yes, it felt right to think the word, and if things went right, he’d have his own ready-made family living with him in their own home soon.
He was riding behind their small herd of cattle and horses, following them to what was the former Sam Larson homestead which his parents bought when they were here last May. His fader was leading the way, with Beller trotting right beside his horse. The two cow dogs trotted on either side of the herd, knowing to keep the animals in line.
A few miles from the little town of Clear Creek, the homestead was set between his sisters’ two homes. Hilda and Noah’s homestead was on the west border and Rania and Jacob’s on the east. Dagmar and Cora’s Bar E Ranch was north of them.
Before they headed to the new homestead though, they drove the herd into the Ellsworth stockyards to sort. Some of the cattle were going on to Miles Wagner’s family ranch, some sold to be shipped to the Chicago Union Stockyards, and their animals, which were staying in the area. After a day of sorting, he and his father were driving their herd to their permanent home.
Some of the hired hands, Jules, Buck and Thad, were going to work at the Wagner ranch. Others would rest in Ellsworth, then head off on their next adventure.
His mother had driven the chuck wagon on to the homestead instead of stopping at Ellsworth. Tina, the kids and Samson had stayed with her and were already looking over their new home.
Now he understood what his parents and siblings felt like when they decided to settle down on their own spreads. No more traveling every day, always thinking of the herd’s needs first. Where to camp where there was food and water, always alert to danger, weather and stampedes. It’s a wonder his family hadn’t settled down before now, but they needed to make enough money to afford it first.
Never, when growing up in a coal mining area of Sweden, did he dream he’d be a rancher in America someday. Well, today it was happening and he had a woman and three children to enjoy this new life with.
He’d talked to his parents about his dreams now that he and Tina were going to marry. For now, Leif’s new family would stay with his parents in their house, until Leif found a homestead of their own.
Leif wanted his family to be at the happy occasion of his and Tina’s marriage, so they hadn’t married at any town along the trail. Tina and the children needed the love and support that his family could give them. They deserved to be happy, and he did, too.
They’d get the livestock settled in their pens and pasture, then spread the news they were here. Leif couldn’t wait to see his family this evening when they all came to the house.
“Leif!” He had just a second of warning before his sister, Hilda, swung her arms around his neck and gave him a tight hug. “I’m so glad you’re here!” Leif had just walked out of the house on his way to the barn when his sister, Hilda, jumped off her horse and practically attacked him with her affections.
Leif laughed at his spunky sister. “It’s good to be here, too, Sis. I missed you.” He gave her a tight squeeze before setting her down. A high pitched bark came from behind them, and Leif turned to see Hilda’s tiny dog packed in the saddle bag on her horse.
“Still have Holy Terror, huh?”
“She rarely leaves home without that dog. Hello, I’m Noah Wilerson. Glad to finally meet you, Leif.” Hilda’s husband had thrown their two horses’ reins over the hitching rail, and strolled over with his hand outstretched to meet Leif. Noah was traveling when Leif was in Kansas in May. Hilda bought Noah’s homestead while he was gone because it had been considered abandoned. Leif looked forward to hear how his headstrong sister hogtied this man to marry her, and put up with her little dog and all the animal menagerie she collected.
Rania and her husband, Jacob had arrived when Leif was talking to her twin. He was surprised to see the shape his sister was in when Jacob helped her down from their buggy.
“Rania! Jacob! Congratulations!” Leif glanced at his other sister’s bulging middle before looking back at her glowing face. He gently hugged her, wishing her his best wishes. “When are you and Jacob adding a new baby to the family?”
Rania stepped back and reached for her husband’s hand. She was so quiet compared to Hilda, but it looked like she and Jacob were well suited to each other by the way they made eye contact and smiled at each other
“Should be around the middle of December,” Jacob answered, pulling Rania to his side. Rania was very tall, matching her husband’s six foot height. Their child was destined to be tall like his, or her, parents.
“Hey!” Everyone turned to see their brother, Dagmar, jumping out of the buggy, and running around to lift a girl—no, a woman—off the seat of their vehicle.
Dagmar jogged over to Leif with his arms wide open. “Good to have you back with us, Leif!” his brother grabbed him into a quick hug and slapped Leif’s back twice. Leif felt a tug at his heart. He’d never been apart from his brother, or any of his family so long as a few days, let alone six months before this time.
Then Dagmar looked around for the person who’d been in the buggy with him. “And this lovely, Boston-bred, short little woman is my best friend and wife, Cora,” Dagmar smiled teasingly as he introduced his wife to Leif.
“It’s so nice to meet you, Leif,” Cora said, apparently not minding his brother’s introduction, which was a good thing since Dag was a jolly, but teasing person. But then his wife didn’t reach his armpits, so she was very short compared to all the Hamner family.
“And we’re going to have our own first little one next spring!” Dag proudly exclaimed.
“Congratulations to both of you. I’m glad I’ll be here to meet your newborn.”
Since all his siblings and their spouses had arrived around the same time, they still stood outside the house.
“So, you going to stay in Kansas this time?” Dagmar seriously asked. Leif was touched by his brother’s concern.
“Yes, we’re staying here with the folks until we can find our own place. Moder assured me we’ve all been together on the trail for the last two months, so the house would be too quiet without the kids underfoot.”
“We? Kids?” Dagmar asked as everyone looked around, trying to figure out what he was talking about.
Leif blushed and shrugged his shoulders. “I met a widow and we’re getting married as soon as we talk to the preacher in town. Her name is Tina Martin and she has three little ones, Robbie, Emma and Oliver.”
“Really? That’s great!” Dag slapped his shoulder again, before the rest of his family gave him another round of handshakes and hugs.
“Well, let’s go inside to meet them!” Hilda turned to stroll to the house.
“Stop a minute. I need to explain something first,” Leif said so Hilda turned back to him.
“What is it, Leif?”
“Do you remember hearing about a train wreck by Austin, Texas back a while?”
“Yeah. It was about the time your drive started north, wasn’t it?” Dag asked.
Leif nodded and continued to explain. “Tina’s family was on that train when it rolled down the embankment, so they have visible injuries.” He stopped to let his words soak in.
“Oh my stars! What happened to them?” Rania gasped.
“Tina was buried in the twisted debris, and was unconscious when rescued. Besides being almost nine months pregnant, she had a bad cut to her face, and a severely injured back. There were so many injured people they were putting them wherever they had room. Tina ended up being taken care of in a brothel.
“The dead were mass buried if they couldn’t be identified or had no known survivors. When Tina became aware of what had happened, well, she had lost two children.”
Both Rania and Cora touched their middles, thinking of the loss poor Tina had suffered.
“A week after the accident, Tina gave birth to her infant in the brothel. The baby boy was tiny and Tina was in bad shape after the birth. A woman from the brothel took the infant to the orphanage h
oping they’d take the baby. But they refused, because they were over crowded with the orphans caused by the train wreck.
“I had left the cattle drive, turned back to Austin and had stopped to get supplies at a store that day. So, the woman from the brothel put the newborn in the back of my wagon, hoping the owner would give it a good home, instead of taking it back to the brothel.”
“So how did you find Tina?” Hilda asked.
“I took the baby to the orphanage when I found him, and she told me who had been there with him first. I tracked the woman to a brothel and took Tina and the baby back to the Ferguson Ranch with me.”
“Did you work for the ranch again?” Dagmar asked.
“No, and someone have moved into my old cabin, so Fergusson let us stay in the pasture cabin for a week.”
“But you said she has two children and the baby here now? Did she have four children on the train with her?” Jacob questioned.
“No. After Tina told me about her family and the wreck, I realized there were two children in the orphanage who matched Robby’s and Emma’s descriptions.”
“The two she thought had died?”
“Yes.”
“Were they hurt?” Rania worriedly rubbed her tummy.
“Robby’s right arm was burned when his clothes caught fire. Emma’s leg was broken, and she’s still having problems walking.” It still hurt Leif every time he saw the children’s injuries.
“Tina was on the train to travel to Kansas to meet her brother, so I offered to bring her because I decided I missed you all. It was slow catching up to the cattle drive, but once there, Moder helped with the children.”
Leif smiled as the door of the house opened and Robby came running out, plowing into his knees. Their fader followed, looking like he was trying to catch the boy before he jumped off the porch, but Robby was too quick to let that happen. His moder followed with Emma in her arms, coming out to greet her adult children. Tina came out the door last, timidly, with the baby cradled against her shoulder.
Leif took a deep breath, excited for Tina to meet everyone, but also apprehensive of what they would think of his ready-made family.
“I’d like you to meet Tina, holding Oliver, and Robby and Emma,” Leif said as he lifted and tucked Robby against his side while turning to address Tina. He took a deep breath, taking a second to scan his family’s faces for their reactions.
“Tina, this is my family,” and he went on to make formal introductions around the circle surrounding them.
“So they my new aunts and uncles, Poppa?” Robby asked. The boy’s arms were wrapped around Leif’s neck and his face close to his own. Leif looked into the bright eyes of the youngster, and felt glad he could nod yes.
“I was afraid you’d stay in Texas so I’m glad you met someone to change your mind,” Dagmar said, trying to soothe over the shocked look on their sisters’ faces.
“I’m a widow, and I and the children were traveling to Kansas when the train wrecked near Austin. Leif came to our rescue, and offered to escort us to our destination.” Tina squeezed his hand as she spoke to his siblings. “You have a wonderful brother, and parents, I should add since I’ve gotten to know them so well on the trail.”
“And we’ve loved having you with us, Tina,” Annalina added before kissing the top of Emma’s head. “Tina and her children have become very dear to us and we’re glad she’s joining our family. It’s been interesting keeping track of two little ones on the trail. Reminded me of when you four children were little—and I was younger,” their mother chuckled.
“Tina was traveling to Kansas to live with her brother after her husband passed. Her brother left Texas on a trail drive last spring, and, when Tina and I were talking about it, I realized he was with our group,” Annalina continued.
“Who?” Dagmar questioned.
“Sidney Narker,” Tina replied.
Hilda sucked in her breath. “No! Surely not!” Her eyes darted between Rania and Tina.
“Sid Narker?!” Hilda screeched incredulously.
“Yes, Hilda,” their mother agreed, “but remember his actions are no reflection on Tina and her children.”
Hilda pointed a finger at Tina and hissed. “Moder, you do not know what her brother did to Rania?!”
“Hilda, please don’t bring this up here and now,” Rania pleaded.
Leif looked between his siblings and his mother. Something was really wrong here.
“Moder, you think Sid just tried to kiss Rania on the trail, but he did a lot more that. She’s carrying his baby.”
“What?” Their mother’s face turned white.
“Then he followed her up here, and kidnapped her! If it hadn’t been for Jacob, we could have lost her!”
“When?!”
“After you went back to Texas. Sid surprised Rania—right in this very house—and made her leave with him. When they tried to cross the flooded river by horseback they got separated by floating debris. Luckily Jacob was able to pull Rania from the water,” Hilda retorted, pointing to the front door his family had just walked out of to emphasize where it all started.
Silence filled the air as the accusations sunk in. Tina’s brother hurt his sister? Leif looked down at Tina’s pained face. She didn’t need another blow against her family after all she’d been through.
“Then later,” Hilda continued, “Sid started raising ruckus on my ranch, shooting my cat and dog, and setting buildings on fire!”
“Where’s my brother now?” Tina asked with dread in her words.
“Luckily he’s dead! He tried to kidnap me next, but his horse bucked him off and kicked him in the chest, throwing him against a rock wall to finish him off!” Hilda wildly threw her words at Tina.
Leif grabbed Tina with one arm as she started to slide to the ground. Robby started crying, upset with the accusations and the graphic description Hilda had just put in his mind.
“Håll käften!” Leif roared in Swedish at his sister. Never had he been so mad at his sister in his life!
“Don’t you dare to tell me to ‘shut up’, Leif,” Hilda warned, her mouth tight and her hands clinched.
“Var tyst! Be quiet,” their mother intervened.
“Noah, how about we take Robby and Emma, and move your horses into the barn. I bet they’d like to play with Hilda’s little dog,” Cora said as she took Emma from her mother-in-law’s arms, and motioned Noah to take Robby out of his arms. Leif was glad to see one woman in the group was level-headed.
He kissed Robby’s cheek trying to reassure him. “It’s okay to go with him. You’ll be fine.”
Leif stared at his sister but didn’t say a word until Cora and Noah were almost to the barn. Yes it was horrible what Sid Narker did to Rania and Hilda, but it was not Tina’s fault, and she’d been through worse trauma lately.
“I can’t believe it! He’s dead?” Tina cried out before Leif could speak. “My last letter from him said he had a new job at a ranch and was seeing a special woman he wanted me to meet.” Leif pulled Tina’s back against his front and wrapped his arms around her and Oliver. She needed to talk and hear what had happened to her brother, but she’d do it in the support of his arms.
Hilda finally looked at Tina’s tear-stained face and realized the pain her words caused another.
“I’m…sorry…but your brother did horrible things.”
“Are you sure it was my brother, not someone with the same name, or using his?”
“After studying your face, I’m sure it was your brother. You’ve noticed there’s a lot of sandstone rock formations in the hills around here?”
Hilda waited until Tina nodded.
“After Sid’s attack on Rania, we found a knapsack in one of the caves in the hills. It had a photo of you and Sid at a younger age.”
Leif felt Tina’s tears drip onto his forearms. Hadn’t this poor woman had enough misery in the last few months?
“I know the picture. I had a copy too, until…everything was lost.”
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br /> Everything was lost. Tina now counted her brother in the things she’d lost, too.
Leif realized his parents hadn’t said a word. He looked around to find them sitting on the porch steps, holding hands, his mother’s head against his father’s shoulder, considering himself a parent now, he knew how they ached for their daughter, wishing they could have protected her, and knowing it was beyond their grasp.
“I’m sorry, I should go…somewhere,” Tina sobbed as she tried to pull away from Leif.
“Wait, Tina,” Leif held firm on her shoulders and looked at his siblings. “I’m going to only say this once more. What Sid did was not Tina’s fault, and she’s had enough tragedy in her life lately without you rubbing his salt in her wounds.”
“But it hurts to see her, thinking what…” Hilda continued, hanging on to the subject like her dang dog did a bone.
Rania walked up to Tina and put her hand on Tina’s forearm. He felt Tina stiffen against him a second before consciously easing her shoulders down.
“I’m so sorry for the loss of your husband, and also your brother,” Rania said with compassion. “I do not hold you accountable for your brother’s past. Please try to remember the good years you and Sid had as children rather than how it ended.”
Tina wiped the tears from her eyes and looked up at Rania. “Thank you for saying that. I just can’t believe he’d do something like that…”
Rania sighed. “But he did, but that’s in our past now. Jacob and I plan to raise this child as Jacob’s, not Sid’s. We thought there would never be a reason to tell our child of his origin.”
Rania moved back to catch Jacob’s hand. “But what do we do now that he or she has cousins?”
“The children will all be cousins anyway because they are family. Leif will be their father when he marries Tina,” Annalina joined the group again. “I know facts can surface later, but think what is best in the long run. Jacob will always be Rania’s baby’s father, because Sid is gone.”
Leif watched Hilda glance at him and Tina before turning her stare back at the ground. His headstrong sister had been hurt by Tina’s brother, too, although she wouldn’t admit how much it had affected her. How were they going to get over this hurdle?
Tina Tracks a Trail Boss: A Historical Western Romance (Brides with Grit Book 8) Page 10