Prairie Song

by Cheryl Anne Porter

  “And you have no way of getting it.”

  Sudden vexation—Why is everyone so all-fired determined to point that out to me?—caused her to burst out, “Mr. Youngblood, I don’t see how any of this is your bus—”

  “I’ve made it my business, Miss Chandler.” Then his eyes narrowed as he looked her up and down consideringly. “How old are you? You don’t look like much more than a schoolgirl.”

  Kate bristled. “My age has nothing to do with—”

  “It does. The Homestead Act states you have to be twenty-one to claim land. And you have to sign that it’s so. Are you twenty-one?”

  Shock widened her eyes. “That’s not true. I would have heard that by now. You’re making that up, Mr. Youngblood.”

  His features set in hard lines. “I don’t make things up, Miss Chandler. If you’d gone to the land office today to register for the run, anyone there would have told you the same. You have to be married, if you’re not of legal age. Or the head of a household. Now, are you any of those?”

  Again, Kate thought of her fatherless child, of her unmarried state. And of her youth. But still, pride had her wanting to lie to this man, although she realized that it would make no difference. He had nothing to do with the truths of her life. Or the death of her dream of freedom, her salvation. Sudden despair tugged her mouth down at the corners. What was she going to do now? What could she do? “No,” she heard herself say around a sniff of gathering emotion. “I’m none of those things.”

  “I didn’t think so.” His quiet words and his soothing tone of voice lulled Kate, softened her into not resisting when he tucked a finger under her chin and raised her head until she peered into his eyes. Some emotion she couldn’t name edged his dark gaze as he said, “I’ll make the run for you.”

  Chapter Three

  The merest gust of wind could have knocked Kate over. Her heart stumbled, as did her feet when he let go of her chin and stepped back. She clutched at her knapsack as she righted herself. “You’ll make the run for me? Why would you do that?”

  He shrugged, all business now. “Because you’re a woman. And there’s something I want in return from you.”

  Outrage combined with abject shame—yes, she knew she’d been used cruelly and unfairly by Mr. Talmidge, and in her heart … there was that shame … and the fear that others could see on her the dirt of her degradation—burst through Kate like a liquid fire and had her lashing out, aiming for his hateful face with her open palm.

  With lightning-quick reflexes, Cole Youngblood caught her wrist in a grip so strong that the shock of contact rocked Kate’s shoulder joint and ricocheted through her body. From the corner of her eye, she could see the dog come to its feet. A low growl rumbled from the depths of its chest.

  “Whoa there, ma’am. Not that,” the gunslinger assured her. “You’ve no cause to hit me. Maybe I said it wrong. Because what I’m proposing is a business arrangement between me and you, regarding my sister’s kids. And nothing else. Are you hearing me?”

  Her heart hammering, the tears only moments away, Kate was still able to nod that she had heard him. A couple of men passing by only glanced curiously their way before going on about their business.

  Cole Youngblood eyed the men, too, and then looked down at her, keeping his voice low. “I’m going to let go of your hand now. Don’t try that again. You understand?”

  Kate locked gazes with him. The hard, black glitter of his eyes reinforced his words. He meant what he said. Again, she nodded that she understood.

  Finally, he released her arm. Swallowing hard, Kate found she couldn’t look away from the gunslinger’s set jaw and dark eyes, even as she rubbed at her aching wrist. The stray dog chose that moment to sit down again at her feet. Finally Kate found her voice. “I’m sorry if I misunderstood. What … what about your sister’s kids?”

  The man’s expression shadowed, as if due to a passing pain. Then Kate remembered … earlier he’d said his sister had passed on. Despite herself, Kate felt bad for speaking so abruptly. After all, he’d suffered a loss, too, same as the children. But when he spoke, no apparent emotion tinged his voice. “The kids lost both their folks in the last two weeks. And now, they … well, they need something more than I can offer them. A home, I suppose.”

  Kate nodded. “Yes. Children do need a home.” She knew that feeling. This wasn’t the first time in her life that she’d been adrift. In her mind’s eye, she saw herself at the age of twelve, saw her parents being robbed and killed by street thugs. Even now the fear and helplessness she’d felt then as she’d hidden in an alley unsettled her. It was then, alone and vulnerable, that she’d gone to work for the Talmidges.

  Returning to the present, Kate said, “My heart goes out to those children, Mr. Youngblood. But what exactly is it you want from me? This … business arrangement you spoke of?”

  His expression never changed. “I’m getting to that. It’s a proposal of sorts, I suppose you’d call it.”

  “A … proposal?” Kate gulped out. “Of sorts?” Surely this feared and respected gunslinger wasn’t asking her to marry him on the first day he met her. Then she remembered what he’d said only a minute ago. About the kids needing a home. She put her fingers to her mouth and stared at him. Oh, no. Lowering her hand, she ventured, “And you think that in this home those kids need … that I should be their mother?”

  He frowned as he looked her up and down. Kate had the distinct impression that she’d been judged and found lacking. He quickly confirmed that for her with a terse, “No.”

  Stung despite herself, and acutely aware of her own state of impending motherhood, she stiffened. “Then just what is it you’re asking of me, Mr. Youngblood?”

  Looking suddenly unsure of himself—to Kate’s surprise—he looked everywhere but at her, even going so far as to nod at a group of older women who spoke respectfully to him as they passed by. Finally he met Kate’s eyes. “I’ve got a cousin. A female cousin with a family of her own. She lives close by here in Kansas. I need to find her and get her to take my sister’s kids. But I can’t do that in any timely manner with the three of them tagging along.”

  Kate nodded, not seeing a proposal in his words. “I guess not.”

  He nodded back at her and went on. “My final aim is to settle them permanently with her. But for now, until I find her—”

  “Wait,” Kate blurted out, holding up a hand to stop him. She was surprised that she’d dared to interrupt him. But somehow, since he needed a favor from her and they were talking about kids and family, he didn’t seem so fearsome. Maybe that had given her courage. “You said find your cousin. You don’t know where in Kansas she is?”

  His expression hardened. “No. Had no need to until now. But until I do find her, Miss Chandler—and I will—I need you.”

  His statement prompted Kate to take a step back. “I see.” But she didn’t. “You need me to do what, Mr. Youngblood?”

  Mr. Youngblood swiped a hand over his mouth … and mumbled something under his breath. Finally, he said, “To keep the kids with you out at your claim.”

  Kate stiffened, shook her head. “Oh, no. I couldn’t possibly—”

  It was his turn to hold a hand up, to stop her protest. “Only for as long as it takes me to find my cousin. In exchange, remember, I’m offering to make the run for you. And after that, the kids would be with you only until I find … her.”

  The way he said her caused Kate to have misgivings. “You do know her name, this cousin of yours, don’t you, Mr. Youngblood?”

  The look he gave her was probably the same one he’d have on his face if he slipped in manure. “It’ll come to me.”

  He didn’t know her name. Kate put a hand to her chest. “Dear heavens, Mr. Youngblood.”

  “I said it’ll come to me. And I will find her. And you won’t have the kids for long.”

  Kate nodded, more than willing to agree. “I believe you. But … how do you know she’ll take them?”

  Still frowning
, he put his hands to his waist. “You’re just full of questions, aren’t you?”

  Kate straightened up to her full height, still woefully short of his. “I believe I have every right to be, Mr. Youngblood. After all, I’ll be the one with the children in my keep once you ride off.”

  Something sparked in his eyes. Kate thought about her words. Had she just agreed to his proposal? Her eyes widened … she must have. Because he went right on talking.

  “They’re not bad kids. Hardly any trouble at all. And I’d pay you in advance for your time and your trouble. I’ll even throw in a wagon, two mule teams, and enough lumber and tools to build yourself a decent cabin.”

  A cabin? Kate’s eyes widened.

  A chuckle from the gunslinger told her he’d correctly interpreted her expression. “You hadn’t thought about that, had you? Once you get the land, Miss Chandler, you still need a home on it.”

  “I know that, Mr. Youngblood,” she fussed, having no idea at all how to go about building a cabin. But still, her heart leapt with joy. If she said yes to this man, he’d make the run for her, and her dream of life on her own would come true. And if she said no? Well, she’d get her wooden box back, and nothing more. Put like that, the decision seemed obvious.

  But Kate thought she needed to know a bit more before committing herself. “Even as desperate as you know I am, Mr. Youngblood, tell me why I should say yes. Because it seems to me that … in your line of work … you, um, could get yourself killed. And then where would I be?”

  His eyebrows slowly rose, his gaze seemed to penetrate hers. “In my line of work, Miss Chandler? Then you’ve heard my name before, and know what my reputation is?”

  Realizing what she’d just revealed, Kate’s mouth dried, her throat threatened to close. There it was. The one reason she should say no to him. But if she did have his sister’s children with her … wouldn’t he be more inclined to see that she was safe? To see that no gunman hired by Mr. Talmidge would be successful? Pleased with her cleverness, Kate admitted a piece of her truth. “Yes, I do know your reputation. But I suspect just about everyone else around here does, too.”

  His slash of a grin did nothing to settle Kate’s stomach.

  “You’re right. So where you would be … if I got myself killed. First off, I won’t get myself killed. I’ve been tracking men for fourteen years and I’m still here. But let’s say I did, Miss Chandler. You’d be sitting pretty on your own land. In your own cabin. With mules, a wagon, and a lot of money. That’s where.”

  “True.” Protectively, she folded her arms under her bosom. “But I’d also have three children to raise. That’s a big undertaking for a woman alone, Mr. Youngblood. Now, I love children. But I—”

  “Then, knowing my reputation, how I make my living, would you be the first to agree that I have no business with three kids, Miss Chandler?”

  He had her there. “Well, yes. I suppose. But—”

  “So all you’d be out is a little bit of your time. Because after I find my cousin, I’ll be back for the kids. And then we’ll all be gone. Forever. And you’ll still have your land.”

  “That I would.” But there was another thing Kate wanted clarified. And she didn’t quite know how to ask … without getting herself shot. Screwing up her courage, she decided to forge ahead with it. But as she spoke, her gaze insisted on skittering away from his. “I need to know, Mr. Youngblood, purely for accounting purposes, just, um, how much money we’re talking about. For me to keep the children.”

  A muscle tic in the man’s jaw worked furiously. “Enough so that you’d not want for anything. For a long time.”

  Kate’s breath left her in a rush. His offer was so tempting. She bit her bottom lip, wanting to accept, yet hesitating. She peered down at the rawboned hound still sitting there. Absently, she rubbed his velvety ears and got a big sloppy grin from him for her efforts. And found herself grinning right back.

  Just then, the gunslinger spoke again, capturing Kate’s attention away from the dog. “For someone with no means of fixing herself a bed for the night, ma’am, I’d think you’d jump at the chance of such help as I’m offering you.”

  Well, there it was. “You’re right. All right. I’m listening.”

  “That’s more like it.” Then he looked all around them, at the folks fixing their suppers, at the dog—eyed it critically—and finally settled his gaze on her. “I stopped us here because I don’t want the kids to—well, they don’t know my thoughts yet.”

  Kate frowned. “Your thoughts?”

  “My aim to leave.”

  “I see. Is there a reason why you haven’t told them?”

  He shrugged. “I didn’t see any need to, until I found you.”

  “You mean until I agreed, don’t you?”

  He grinned at her … probably the same one he had on his face a second before he pulled the trigger. “Both. And have you agreed? Because the kids are over at the wagon by themselves.”

  A sudden rush of concern had Kate’s hand to her bosom. “By themselves? No one’s looking after them?” She did recall seeing children in his wagon this afternoon when his horses had reared and startled her.

  Mr. Youngblood scowled at her. “I’m not a fool, Miss Chandler. I’ve asked some people to peek in on them. But mostly, Joey is seeing after them.”

  Wanting that scowl off the man’s face, Kate resorted to pleasantries. “I see. Who’s Joey?”

  The gunslinger’s expression smoothed out, relieving Kate greatly. “He’s my nephew. And the oldest of the three.”

  “Oh.” Kate nodded, a tentative smile on her face. “How old is he?”

  “Seven.”

  Her smile fled. She couldn’t believe this. And told him so. “Joey is the oldest at seven, and he’s watching two younger children—alone, in the dark, in a strange camp with all sorts of folks wandering the area? Mr. Youngblood, don’t you realize that anything could happen to them?”

  Mr. Youngblood’s face darkened more quickly than the falling night. “I said other folks are looking in on them. People around there know who I am, and no one is going to mess with those kids. Besides, Joey’s nearly a man. He’ll see to his brother and sister.”

  Unconvinced—especially about any seven-year-old boy being almost a man—Kate frowned, but wisely chose to say nothing further. Because she really didn’t relish the thought of pushing this man any farther. Just thinking about who he was set her knees to knocking and her heart to hammering. Why, she wasn’t even sure she’d have the courage to tell him no … if that was her answer.

  “Do we have a deal, Miss Chandler?”

  Kate’s heart thumped dully in her chest. “I just don’t know, Mr. Youngblood. This is an awfully big step. I mean, three little children. Why, anything could happen to one of them. Something awful. And then when you came back, and found out, you’d shoot me.”

  He stiffened, looking insulted. “I wouldn’t shoot a—” He cut off his own words, clamped his lips together, and stared down at her, looking her up and down. Finally he said, “I wouldn’t shoot you, Miss Chandler.”

  Kate didn’t believe him for a minute. But she kept that to herself. “I’m sorry if I spoke in haste. I just … well, I just don’t know what to say. About any of this, Mr. Youngblood. I can’t see how—”

  “Let me tell you how I see it. I leave the kids here with you, go make the run, stake your claim, register it, and then come back here to get all of you. Then, we’ll—”

  “Wait. That means the land will be registered in your name. Not mine. And another thing, how do I know you’ll even bother to make the run? How do I know you won’t just ride off, never to be seen again?”

  Kate watched in fearful wonderment the effects of her apparently ill-advised words. Cole Youngblood drew up like he was getting ready to retreat from his own words about not shooting a woman. The dog drew up, too, standing and eyeing the gunslinger, flattening its floppy ears against its scruffy head.

  When Cole Youngblood spoke, i
t was in the clipped, quiet tones that bespoke an underlying honor and decency. “I can’t do anything about the land laws. But I know myself, Miss Chandler. I’ll come back for those kids. They’re the only thing in my life I care about, and I’m trying to do what’s right by them.”

  Chastised, and rightly so, with her face heating up considerably, Kate again looked at her booted feet and then back up at him, seeing him now as a human being with emotions and not just a killer with a gun. “I apologize, Mr. Youngblood. Go on with what you were saying.”

  But he didn’t. The dog sat down and perked his ears up, looking from Kate to Cole Youngblood and back to her, as if he were having trouble following along. When the hired gun still didn’t say anything, Kate felt worse for her unthinking remarks and prompted, “You were coming back to me and the kids.”

  His eyebrows rose. But finally, he said, “Right. You and the kids. I’ll come back here after the run to get all of you, and—”

  “Why can’t we just go with you in your wagon to make the run? I didn’t come this far, Mr. Youngblood, to sit back now and watch. And besides, you don’t know what I’m looking for in a claim.”

  His brow furrowed. “You’re staying here, like I said. The run’ll be too dangerous for a woman and kids, even in a wagon. You can just tell me what and where you’re hoping to settle, and—”

  “Too dangerous? Plenty of whole families are making the run together.”

  “Yeah, and plenty of whole families will be too slow to get a claim. And they may even get themselves rattled to death in those heavy wagons, for all their effort. Besides, even if that wasn’t so, it’d be too rough on Lydia. She’s only three.”

  Kate’s mouth opened, she stiffened. “Lydia’s only three?” she all but whispered, so appalled was she. “Sakes alive, Mr. Youngblood, we’ve been standing here talking while there are babies out there somewhere alone? You show me to them right now.”

  The dog came to his feet again and barked his agreement.