by Petit, C. J.
John grinned and said loudly, “I’m back.”
With his announcement, everyone stood as Kate and John walked back into the main room, still clutching each other around their waists, neither prepared to let the other go.
It was a hubbub of chatter, congratulations and questions for almost twenty minutes before John said he had to take care of Cross and he’d be back in a few minutes. Kate wasn’t about to let him go, so she took his arm and the two left the house to take care of John’s horse. No one dared to follow.
Once they were free of the crowd, as John walked with Cross’s reins in one hand and Kate’s hand in the other, they could finally talk privately.
“John, when your mother told me what ‘Tá mo chroí agat’ really meant I was overjoyed, but I was confused, too. Why didn’t you just tell me what it meant when you first said it? It would have made me very happy.”
“You have to remember the circumstances were when I told you. You had asked me to say something in Gaelic, and I had been wanting to tell you how I felt about you, but I was worried, Kate. You had been through so much, I was afraid that if I said something that made you believe that I was just another man who wanted you, that you’d get angry at me again and this time, it would be permanent.”
Kate exhaled and replied, “Kind of what happened to me when I thought I was pregnant.”
“Yes, just like that. When I saw you leave me and your eyes looked right through me, it was exactly what I feared would happen to you when we were on the trail.”
They reached the barn, and John began unsaddling Cross.
Kate sat on a nearby hay bale, thinking of what they had just said.
“John, do you think it will happen again, the withdrawal into myself?” she asked, her eyes focused on the ground near his feet.
John was worried again. Kate had been so ecstatic just moments ago, and was now sliding back to an understandable, yet very private, fearful place. He knew they both were on dangerous ground.
He set his saddle on the ground and sat next to Kate and put his arm around her shoulder.
“Kate, I really don’t know. I don’t think so. With the worry of pregnancy gone you can put it all behind you now. I know it will hurt sometimes and I’ll do everything I can to keep that hurt away. The best way I can think of is to keep you happy and for you to know that I’ll always be here to protect and to love you.”
Kate lifted her head, smiled at John and asked in a tremulous voice, “So, do you want to take a chance on this mixed up, emotional female?”
John laughed softly and replied, “Maybe a bit mixed up, but you are still worth the chance, and now, can I safely say that you are one of the prettiest and best formed females I’ve ever seen?”
Kate asked quietly, “Including Melissa?”
John then picked her up and sat her on his lap. Kate was startled, but then put her arm around his neck and was able to look into his eyes at her own eye level from just six inches away.
“Catherine Mary Walsh, when I was with Melissa before I came west, I didn’t know you. This time, after Jack was gone, I spent the night in her house. Do you know what we did for almost an hour when I got back after taking care of Jack?”
Kate didn’t believe he was going to say what others might have guessed, so she just asked innocently, “What did you do?”
“Melissa sat there for almost an hour listening to me talk about you. When I finished, she just said that I must love you very much. Remember too that I never told Melissa I loved her because the words mean so much to me. The only woman besides my mother who has heard those words from me is you, and that’s the way it will always be.”
“Then, can you tell me again? Please?”
“In English or Gaelic?” John asked with a grin.
“English this time, if you don’t mind.”
John reached across and touched her face with his fingertips, fell into those joyous blue eyes, and said softly, “I love you, Kate.”
Kate slid forward ever slightly, kissed John softly, then slid her lips next to his ears and whispered, "Tá mo chroí agat.”
She leaned back and asked, “John, what happened to Jack?”
“Believe it or not, I found him at Melissa’s house about to do to her what he did to you and Ida Mitchell. For the second time in my life, I was angry. He had his pistol out, but was so afraid, he forgot to cock the hammer. He threw it at me and then I grabbed him and carried him out of the house kicking and screaming. When I got him outside, I just let him go. He started running, and I chased him. He turned toward the Missouri River, but kept looking at me rather than where he was going. I saw the river coming up fast, so I stopped, and he shouted once more, admitting what he had done to you and Ida, then ran right off the high bank, shot out over the river and plunged in. I watched him sink and float away downstream. The current was pretty fast.”
“Do you think he could have reached the shore?”
“I suppose it’s remotely possible, but I don’t think so. He never learned to swim when we were kids, and he sure didn’t look like he had learned since then when he hit the water. I just turned and walked away.”
“Thank you, John. I know that was hard.”
“Chasing him into the river wasn’t hard. He did everything to himself. What was hard was knowing that because I hadn’t shot him when he and the Handy Lewis crowd attacked the farm, he almost hurt Melissa. If he had done that, I don’t know if I could have lived with myself. Just like the situation with Kevin Murphy, knowing I had it in my power to prevent that evil man from hurting someone, is a dreadful responsibility. With Murphy, it wasn’t as terrible as it was with Jack because he was my brother. I just couldn’t shoot him.”
“I keep trying to understand, but I know it’s really impossible until you’re put into that dilemma.”
“I’ve been offered the position of sheriff in North Platte, and I’m leaning toward taking it. But, now that you’re back, I want your opinion.”
Kate thought for about thirty seconds before replying, “You could help a lot more people, John.”
“I know, that’s why I’m thinking of accepting it. I just want to know if you’d be happy living in town. I could always buy a lot further out from town, about halfway and build a house for us.”
Kate smiled and asked, “Are you asking me to marry you, Slow John Flynn?”
John smiled back and answered, “If you’ll have me, Catherine Mary Walsh.”
Kate answered with a deep passionate kiss that created a problem for John with her perched on his lap and his hands having few places to go without discovering Kate.
She leaned back and asked, “Where can we get married, John? There isn’t a priest in a hundred miles and we can’t do all of the bans and other things.”
“We can be married here, Kate. I’ll send a telegram to the bishop in Omaha and tell him we’ll pay for the passage of the priest to come to North Platte on the train, so he can marry us and perform some baptisms as well while he’s here.”
“Do you think they’d do that.”
John smiled and replied, “I’m pretty sure they will. They’ve been losing Catholics who want to marry Indians or Protestants for years and even Catholics who want to marry other Catholics, but are told they have to wait. If they can dispense with the dispensations by sending a priest at no cost to them, I’m sure they’ll agree. So, will that be acceptable to you, Miss Walsh?”
Kate kissed him again, so John assumed that was a ‘yes’.
“Well, Ma’am, if you’d slide off my lap, and if it’s possible for me to stand again, I’ll finish stripping off Cross, so we can go back into the house and stop those Irish tongues from wagging.”
“Cross?”
“I had to come up with something that worked with your Bow.”
Kate just smiled and before she slid from his lap, she leaned forward and whispered, “It’s all right now, John. You can treat me like a woman, not a fragile doll.”
When she slid off,
he reached over and tapped her behind to let her know he appreciated the release of the unstated prohibition. Then he stood up uncomfortably while Kate watched and giggled at his discomfort.
“Laugh now, Miss Walsh, but you’ll make other noises when I get you alone.”
John quickly finished taking care of the gelding, then he and Kate walked back to the house holding hands and talking about what they’d need to do over the next few weeks.
When they entered the house, the unrehearsed welcoming began as John had to explain what had happened in Bellevue and specifically what had happened to Jack. Then, the discussion headed to the plans of the couple and both sets of parents were pleased with their decision to be married locally and have a priest come from Omaha. The only question was one of dates. John also told them of his decision to accept the sheriff position in North Platte and that he and Kate would be building a house east of the city, so John could work in town and still be close to the families.
The rest of the evening and night was spent in eating and talking until they all had to finally turn in. John still made his bed in the loft in the barn, so he walked out into the chilly night, climbed up into the loft and began to strip. He was exhausted by the time he crawled into his bedroll and fell quickly asleep.
_____
The next morning, after breakfast had been eaten, John said he had to take care of one more loose end concerning Jack, so he left the house and saddled Cross.
He rode west about a mile until he spotted a farm with a sod cabin, but a wooden barn. He pulled up to the house and was going to announce his presence when a woman appeared at the door. She wasn’t pretty, but she seemed pleasant.
“What can I do for you, mister?” she asked.
“My name is John Flynn, is Mr. Mitchell around?”
“He’s out in the fields.”
“Thank you, Ma’am. I’ll go and talk to him for a little while.”
She nodded and returned inside, where a little boy waited.
John turned Cross slightly to the north and rode around the house and quickly saw Mr. Mitchell working out in the fields. John didn’t want to damage any of his work, so he left Cross untied and stepped down.
James Mitchell saw John heading his way and leaned against his hoe as he drew closer. He had the look of a Flynn, but had never seen him before. He wasn’t too fond of the Flynns, and was ready to tell him to get off his property, but held off out of curiosity. Besides, this Flynn was wearing a pistol.
When John was close, he said, “Mr. Mitchell? I’m John Flynn.”
Mitchell’s mouth dropped open and he asked, “The dead one?”
John smiled and said, “That’s what the army told my parents, but they were a bit premature.”
“What do you want?”
“Mr. Mitchell, to make a very long story as short as possible, when I was mustered out of the army, I started riding west to find my family. I found a young woman being held hostage by four loathsome men and rescued her. Her name is Kate Walsh.”
Mitchell’s eyes grew wide. “You found Kate Walsh alive?”
“I did, and I returned her to her family. She told me that she had been raped and thrown into the river to die, but she survived. She named the man who had done it. It was my brother Jack.”
James Mitchell’s eyes grew dark. “I knew it must have been him, but no one listened.”
“When I returned Kate to her family, her sisters told me about what had happened to your wife, and it was obvious that Jack had committed that crime as well. When I got home, my brother knew that I would have to kill him for what he had done, and he ran. He joined up with Handy Lewis and his crowd and attacked the farm. I have no idea why, but he was the only one who escaped, and it was my fault. I could have shot him easily, but I didn’t. But he ran back east where we grew up and I chased him and now he’s dead. He drowned in the Missouri. Before he died, as I was chasing him, he admitted to what he did to Kate and your wife. I know it’s poor solace for what he did, but I just wanted to let you know that he’ll never harm another woman.”
Mitchell’s eyes were damp when he replied, “That’s something, I suppose. I thank you for telling me this. A lot of folk would try to protect their families.”
He and John shook hands, then he turned and began to chop some weeds out of the furrows.
John returned to Cross and stepped up, having fulfilled what he saw as his obligation.
After his meeting with Mr. Mitchell, he rode into North Platte and met with Mayor Harvey Wright, who owned the feed and grain store. He was a happy man when Slow John told him he’d accept the position of sheriff and was sworn in and given the badge. His pay would be $50 a month, which was enough to take care of his wife. They would pay for any ammunition and any horses and weapons that were confiscated from miscreants were his to dispose of as he saw fit.
John trotted over to the sheriff’s office and went inside. It was in sad shape, so he spent the rest of the morning cleaning and organizing. The gun rack was empty, but he had plenty at the farm, so he’d handle that later. He planned on giving the hole-in-the-stock Winchester the prime display spot to let anyone who entered know that the sheriff wasn’t some inexperienced yahoo.
The office had a heat stove that could double as a cook stove for the coffee pot. There was a bunk in the back for those late nights, and he was surprised to find two cells rather than one.
He finally had it up to snuff and returned to the family farm to tell Kate and the others of his new job.
_____
The next day, he and Kate rode to the land office to find some land to build their house, and it proved to be a bit of a surprise. Lots inside the town were running about $50, but just outside of town, the land was open to homesteading, and that was what made it interesting.
It seems that homesteaders didn’t want to be close to town, probably because of the rough nature of many of the men that inhabited frontier towns. They wanted a buffer so they could see anyone coming their way.
As a result, John and Kate had picked out a house location just east of town that had good water and even a stand of cottonwoods and oaks. Rather than homestead the land, John paid the $1.25 an acre so it would be theirs after six months rather than five years, and it also removed some of the other requirements for homesteading. So, for $200 of their large stash, John and Kate acquired a quarter section of land that was some of the nicest they’d seen.
He and Kate then stopped at Ford’s Hardware and looked through the house plans, found one they liked, and ordered the material for the house, barn and large corral from Omaha. The load would take almost three full flatbed rail cars and a boxcar for the other things necessary for a new house like the cookstove, two heat stoves, a tub, three pumps, and all the hardware. Three weeks later, another boxcar would bring all their ordered furniture, kitchenware and other accessories, giving the workers the time they needed to complete the house. The barn and corral would be built after they furniture was brought in.
The cost wasn’t bad at all. Including the labor, the house, barn and corral cost $1320, and the furniture was another $568, and both were only that high because John had told Kate that this was going to be their home and not to scrimp. The plan that they had chosen was for a four-bedroom house with a large kitchen, cold room, and main room. It had a bathroom and John added an office that would also serve as a gunroom. Because they would still have three empty bedrooms, Kate would be able to use one as her sewing room because John had insisted that she buy herself a sewing machine, not that Kate objected very strongly, if at all. It would be the first in town and Kate had assured all the other Flynn and Walsh women that they could stop by and use it whenever they wished. She offered to show Slow John how to use the machine, but he declined the offer.
John and Kate also offered to buy the materials for Patrick and Dennis, so they could finish their houses earlier. They protested, but when their wives heard of the offer, the brothers changed their minds. John said he’d even pay for the
workers to help them after his place was ready. So, it was back to Ford’s and the order was placed, and would arrive in early June.
With the house and barn all arranged, the next item on the agenda was setting a date for the wedding. After much discussion, it was set for May 28th, and took a series of telegrams to arrange with the diocese of Omaha, but apparently, they appreciated the willingness of the young couple to pay for the priest’s trip, so they were very cooperative, which was highly unusual for any bureaucratic institution, of which the Roman Catholic Church was the oldest and most set in its ways.
Father Sean Patrick Ryan would be arriving on May 26th to do all the paperwork, the required instruction, and prepare the couple for marriage. He’d be staying at the new house with John and Kate would be staying with Eliza and John’s parents.
On May 6th, Eliza received a telegram that her husband’s body had been found near Plattsmouth and that a death certificate was being mailed. The telegram not only closed that chapter in Kate’s life, but also provided relief for Eliza, who secretly suspected that Jack would suddenly appear at the door.
Over the next three weeks, Kate and John had spent as much time together as possible, even spending hours in his office, as they became more familiar with each other and believed with each passing hour that they had truly been meant for each other, and that John’s appearance hadn’t been coincidental at all. They meshed as smoothly as the gears on a fine timepiece.
For Kate, the three weeks also gave her the time to trust herself more, and to just relax and be herself. This was the Kate that her sisters missed so badly. John found he could kid her about things he never would have dared to say earlier. Kate herself was surprised how much fun she had with John as they traded gentle barbs and whispered lascivious suggestions. Each day, she found that she was increasingly anticipating her wedding night, and suggested to John that she was that way as much as he was. He begged to differ, he said, and would prove it on the night of the 28th of May, if he lasted until the sun went down.