“Thanks Dad.” Kale agreed. “Heavenly Father, this family comes before you today to ask that you bless the food we’re about to partake of. Thank you always for abundance, for your constant provision. Thank you for helping us see the treasure we have right in front of us. Thank you, as always, for family, friendship, and the future. We’re forever in your debt and please help us to manage our time wiser so that we may better serve the less fortunate. May this coming year bring even more blessings.”
Everyone gave a resounding “Amen.”
The table became silent as everyone helped themselves to the multiple offerings spread over the table. Mercy filled her plate and smiled as everyone began eating and smiling at each other as they enjoyed the delicious food. She truly felt blessed.
Mercy watched as Kale stood up and scooched his chair out of the way and lifted his glass. She lifted her glass to his and smiled. “To family, faith, and friendship. And to Miss Mercy Thompson, who changed my life from the moment she stepped off the train.”
Mercy watched in awe and surprise as Kale made eye contact with her and slowly slid down to one bent knee in front of her. Her heartrate started beating a lot faster. The small box he pulled out made from his inside coat pocket made tears prick her eyes and she couldn’t keep the watery smile off her face. “I’ve never been surer of anything in my life than I am that God brought you to me. I prayed for his provision in my personal life and he delivered on the best woman possible. If you’ll have me Mercy Thompson, I promise to work every day to fulfill my promises to you. I promise to cherish you. To lavish attention on you and to share this wonderful life God has blessed us with. Will you marry me Mercy Thompson?”
Mercy watched Kale open the box in near slow motion. A wedding set winked out at her, the simple gold band and its matching engagement ring. It was a gold ring with a large opal set in the center. Around it were tiny, deep blue lapis lazuli stones. “It was my grandmother’s ring,” Kale said when Mercy still hadn’t answered.
“I’ve never been so honored in my life,” Mercy whispered, choking back the tears that threatened to keep her from speaking. “God has seen fit to bless me beyond any of my imagining’s. I will gladly marry you Kale Preston. I’ll work every day to be worthy of you, of this ranch, of the love we have between us.”
***
Kale and Mercy married two weeks later with Kale’s parents, younger brothers, and many friends attending to wish them well as their married life began. Marc stayed at the ranch and watched the cattle for Kale, while he and Mercy enjoyed their honeymoon. He took his new bride to the Rio Grande and shared with her the story of The Alamo. They toured San Antonio, where the battle took place, and Kale enjoyed watching Mercy soak in the rich history of the birth of the Lone Star State.
As they returned home to the ranch, Kale asked. “Any regrets?”
“None.” Mercy smiled. “I’ll work hard to make sure I never regret anything about the blessings God has surely given to me… I love you Kale Preston.”
“I love you too, Mrs. Mercy Elizabeth Preston.”
Neither of them knew what life had in store for them, but with their family by their side and their deep, abiding faith, Kale and Mercy would meet and defeat any challenge that came their way.
THE END
Bonus Story 4 of 20
Stealing My Heart
Chasing the Dream
Every day in the desert is a harsh and unforgiving one. That was the first lesson Bruce learned in his travels. That’s why he always preferred to travel early in the morning, while the day was still young and the air still cool. Today, however, was a rather peculiar day, He’d woken up late. He never woke up late in the desert.
Aside from that, Bruce noticed several other concerns that morning. First, he was running out of water. I must be getting tired and light-headed. You know it Bruce, this is the first rule of the desert; you’re never supposed to have no water.
Second, there was a lack of long shades. Since he was almost out of water, he knew he would have to seek shade from the cacti and the tall rocks along the way. However, the sun was already high in the sky by the time he woke up. The shadows were getting shorter, and his covered wagon was doing half its job protecting him from the scorching sun. Another misfortune. Me, Bruce Jackson, the man who never wakes up late, to do just that. The guys back home are sure to have a laugh at me when I tell them this.
The third sign was a flock of crows that insisted at following him. It wasn’t that he was afraid of the black devils, but he knew that he was running out of luck faster than he was running out of water, and the crows seemed to know it. His father always told him: ‘there are many things that you can change son, but luck is not one of them.’ And he’s now six feet in the ground back in the village; a game of poker turned bad they said. May God rest his soul.
Bruce was a man in his late thirties with short black hair. He had the look of the poor farmer. He was still unmarried, and still looking for a suitable bride. Bruce wasn’t picky in his jobs, nor his food, but when it came to women he was the most picky of them all. None of the girls back home were of his liking, though many of them seemed to fancy him. From a very young age, Bruce seemed to have that effect on women. But he was never the one to make the first move, and he generally considered himself unlucky in the matters of heart.
Before setting off on this journey, though, his old mother gave him a pretty clear order: Find a woman and get married. Bruce had to agree. He thought about that; maybe that’s what kept him up last night. It’s time to marry and stop the talks around the village. I’m 36 now, and every girl suitable for me is way past the marring age. I can’t keep ma worrying though. If her last wish is to see me with a woman on my side, then so be it. Easier said than done, though, especially in the desert!
When he was younger, Bruce boasted that he had never fallen in love. He told his friends that he would never marry a woman whom he did not have his heart set on. But years passed. He was older now. He had to choose. Even if his heart wouldn’t agree with the women he chose to marry, he thought, he would have all the time in the world to make it follow.
Aridna, his horse, suddenly slowed down. Bruce had his hat lowered for the most part of the day, trying to protect his eyes from the sun and sand. “What’s going on girl? We have to keep on moving if you don’t want the crows to think we’re dead.”
As soon as he raised his head, his heart skirted from relief. A town. A small town on our way. “Good girl Aridna. You’re a good girl. Finally we can rest a bit. It’s almost time for our lunch too. It seems that our luck has turned.”
Mindy’s horse was a nag. It was too old and slow, and this hot day wasn’t doing it any good. See if I can’t find another way to get out of here, she thought.
There was a bank in the town. It was a former gold mining town. It was originally built when the town was established and the mine were profitable. But, when the gold veins got exhausted, and people ran out of reasons for staying in the middle of nowhere. The bank was no longer bustling and busy. Now all that remained was a quiet, dusty building, reminding everyone the glory of days passed.
Even so, for the people still staying there, it was a place of safety, a place where someone could put his money and feel certain. Even though the bank building was not much different from the other buildings on town, no sturdier or new, the residents of the town were convinced that their money was safer in the bank than in their homes.
Mindy Rowe, the woman with the auburn hair, knew of the power residing in these buildings.
Oh my, they’re ignorant, she thought. Times have changed everywhere, but this town is still living in the past. It’s almost a ghost town. The perfect target. Her gloating eyes were hidden under the black, elaborate hat she was wearing. Curiously, she was also wearing a velvet red evening gown, which matched her long hair. She was a strange sight, a woman so richly dressed so far from the civilized world—strange enough for the people of that town to stare her uncomfortably.
>
But Mindy didn’t mind. She was used at people staring her, amazed by her unique clothing. She loved to wear such clothes, but the main reason for dressing that way for a heist was so witnesses would remember the clothes, not her face. A foxy smile appeared on her face as she walked inside the old bank. There, a female bank teller matching the age of the old bank, was counting a pile of gold coins behind the counter.
There it is. Sweet, oh sweet, gold. Soon, it’ll be mine. Mindy rushed in front of the counter, her modest purse dangling from her shoulder. She lowered her head and grabbed it in her hands, looking like she was searching for something. The old woman had noticed her presence from the moment she set a foot inside the bank, but she was keeping an indifferent stance towards her.
“Excuse me, can I help you miss?” said the teller.
“Oh, I’m so sorry. I got lost again. Is this the bank?” Mindy had now moved closer to the counter. The old lady took a cautious look at her clothes with a distinct frown.
“Yes. Do you want to make a deposit, or…a withdrawal?”
Mindy sensed a hint of doubt in the woman’s voice. She was right to feel cautious with foreigners, especially a beautiful young lady like Mindy.
“I think that I’d like to withdraw. I believe that everything in your safe will be enough. Some change until I get to the next town!” She pulled a small revolver from her purse.
Quickly, the teller got on her feet with her hands in the air, ready to start screaming.
“No, no. I don’t want you creating a ruckus,” said Mindy. “Here, take this handkerchief and tie it around your mouth.” The old woman was now standing still, white as a paper, shivering behind the counter. “You can’t, right? Oh, please. It’s been a long day already and I want to get out of here before your sheriff notices me. Turn your back and I’ll tie you.”
After quenching both his and Aridna’s thirst and restocking his wagon with water and Bruce headed for the local saloon for a late lunch. However, before he was able to get off the covered wagon, he heard a woman shouting.
“Help! Help!!! After her. She’s a thief. Help! Call the Sheriff!” called the bank teller.
“That drunk?!” said another voice. “He’s probably sleeping!”
A woman in a deep red, heavy dress, was running towards him with a bag on her shoulder.
What is going on here? I should probably help them stop her. But, as soon as the woman drew closer, Bruce saw she was pointing a small gun at him. Beads of cold sweat started running on his back. He raised his hands in the air and waited for the woman to climb on the back of his wagon.
During her climb her black hat fell, revealing her face and a shout of pure red hair. Oh my...she’s...beautiful. The lonely farmer was staring at her oval face, unable to talk, or even think anything else but how pretty she was. Soon, the woman realized Bruce’s interest. She moved closer to the driver’s seat, getting closer to him.
She touched the point of her small gun in his back and whispered to his ear. “Get me out of here if you want me to spare your life.”
Bruce, even with the threat of a gun on his back, burst into laughter. “What’s wrong with you? Do you want me to shoot you?” The woman tried making her voice rough, dangerous, but still it wasn’t able to frighten him.
“It’s a fake. Anyone can see that it’s a fake.”
The woman now got a puzzled look on her face, unable to understand how Bruce was able to figure it out so fast. The teller was calling for other people to help catch the thief.
Quickly, Mindy said, “Okay, you’re right. But, if you help me escape, I’ll make it worth your time in a big way. I can give you gold coins, enough to get a room in the most expensive saloon back in town, with a couple young ladies for company. What do you think?”
“Nah, I’m not interested. I don’t want to be your accomplice ma’am, the accomplice of a thief. Rather stay poor and innocent, than rich and guilty. No, thank you.”
People were peering at wagon, waiting for their sheriff to arrive on his brown horse. No sign of him yet. Mindy started panicking.
“Dammit. What do you want? Everyone has a price. Ask anything and I’ll give it to you. As long as you get me out of here.”
Bruce’s mind was unusually active today. Maybe I can kill two birds with one stone with this thief. “Anything?”
She nodded. “Yes. Anything. Just pull those reins.”
Bruce let a loud cry, frightening Aridna and the red-haired thief inside the covered wagon. He pulled the reins and steered the old horse out of the town. He could hear the sheriff calling for him to stop, but Bruce knew that if he stopped now, he risked going to jail as an accessory to her crime.
The creaking covered wagon was shaking uncontrollably, sometimes making Bruce believe it would snap in two. If we get out of here safely, I’m going to spend the following days sleeping inside my covered wagon. Even so, he could hear the lady thief laughing behind him, looking like she was having fun with the havoc that she started.
What a strange woman, laughing while our lives are in danger. Her laugh though was contagious, making even Bruce crack a smile.
Mindy was trying to hold on from anything inside the covered wagon, unable to control herself from laughing out loud. Their faces. Oh my God, they were priceless. But, after a while, she suddenly stopped. Did I just agree fulfilling a man’s wish? Any of his wishes? Damn. What have I done?
****
A Night in the Desert
After an hour on the run, Bruce decided that it was time for Aridna to rest. The poor animal was ready to faint from pulling the covered wagon for so long, and at top speed to say the least. He couldn’t stand watching it suffer for its owner’s caprice. What was I thinking rescuing a thief? What’s wrong with me?
He pulled the reins once again, this time gently. Soon, the covered wagon stopped. Bruce quickly got off his seat and ran on Aridna’s side. He loosened her ties and started grooming her mane. “There, there girl. It’s alright. Good work. You can rest from now on.”
Suddenly, a shout of red hair appeared from inside the covered wagon. The female thief observed him with a rather puzzled expression, unable to understand what was going on. “Excuse me, why did we stop? The next town is just a three hours ride with a horse.”
Bruce snorted and decided to stay silent. After all, desert, in his opinion, is a place that not too many words fit.
“What’s wrong with you?” said Mindy. “The cat ate your tongue?”
She clumsily tried to get off the covered wagon, while at the same time trying to keep her dress clean from the brown dust. Bruce shook his head and grinned.
“At some time you have to accept that your dress is going to turn into a rag before we reach the next town,” he said. “Also, we are camping out here today. Aridna is tired and she’s the only horse I’ve got. I don’t want to make her die from exhaustion so that you can escape prison.”
The woman swaggered towards him, ready to put up a fight. “What if the sheriff gets here in the meantime? What good will it do to us if she catches us after we just escaped?”
“What good did it do you to rob a bank in the middle of nowhere?”
She stared him angrily, ready to burst, when she just snorted and walked away. “I don’t need you. I’m going to walk there. So long.” She swayed her hand and started walking towards the town they just left.
“If you go that way, you’re going to end up in prison,” he said. She stopped, hunched her back and stared at the ground, her fists clenched.
Then, she just turned her back and leaned against the covered wagon. Bruce was ready to burst into a laughter when she saw her sulking face, utterly surrendered. When he finished combing Aridna’s mane, he returned to his seat and started searching for something inside the covered wagon.
I HATE YOU! Mindy was shouting inside her head. However, she clearly knew that her life was depending on this strange, black-haired farmer. You’re just a brute, that’s all. Why do I always have to deal w
ith brutes? She sighed and tried to move closer to the covered wagon.
Up until today, she was never too far from a cool shade at any time. Even from a very young age, her parents always took great care of her. But for some reason the sun out here, in the middle of nowhere, felt hotter than back in town.
Maybe it’s in my head, she thought. Maybe if I wander a bit to get used to the heat. And so she did. With her hat lying on the ground back in the town, and her heavy dress weighing her down, she soon found out that it was a bad idea walking around in the wasteland with an evening gown—a very, very bad idea. However, her spare clothes were lying in the next town’s saloon.
Twenty times. Twenty times I’ve robbed banks in remote settlements and never once, not even ONCE, did I end up like this. She sighed again. With beads of sweat running on her forehead, it was difficult to think anything else but a cold glass of water. However, stubborn as she was, she didn’t dare even ask the boor for water. She would manage her own.
Circling around the covered wagon she started searching for ways to better accommodate herself. Mindy was a smart woman after all, one that was able to rob a bank in an evening gown and a hat enough times for her name to appear in the wanted lists around the towns. She noticed that Bruce was not an observant man, not enough to make him dangerous that is.
If I could find where he keeps his resources, his saddle, and maybe, just maybe, his money, I could escape with his horse tonight. But, how to do that without waking him up?
The sun continued to sink in the afternoon sky. A gentle breeze helped Bruce cool down a bit. He thought about the position he was. Oh, who am I kidding? I can’t hold a grudge against a lady, especially not one as beautiful as she. But, how do I approach her?
Sunlight and Shadows Page 13