by Rye Hart
After all three were safely off of the carriage, Ben stepped forward to introduce them. “Boss, this is Miss Drusilla Montgomery, her brother Jake, and her housekeeper Miss Ellie Adams.”
“Welcome to our ranch my dear. I look forward to it becoming your new home,” Travis said warmly.
It was then that Silla noticed that he was in a wheel chair. She tried to hide her shock and disappointment. Now she understood the reason or the ad. Poor Travis needed someone to do all the work he couldn’t. What had she gotten them into? Maybe Ellie was right and it still wasn’t too late to go back home. Before she could speak her reluctance, Lance smiled and offered her his arm.
“Shall we go in for dinner?” he asked, in a deep rich voice.
Ben offered his arm to Ellie and they all followed Travis in the house. In the elegant dining room, Travis sat at the head of the table with Lance on his right side and he asked Silla to sit on his left. All through the meal Silla forced herself to eat, and tried to find a silver lining about this marriage to Travis. For God’s sake, he’s my father’s age, she thought to herself. What if he wanted children from her? Could he even perform the act necessary to have children?
Lance watched her during the meal and wondered what she was thinking. She didn’t say much and picked at her meal. Maybe she was just as hesitant about all of this as he was. He began to feel hopeful that his plan might just work. Half way though the meal Travis decided to put his cards on the table.
“Miss Montgomery I know you’ve only been here a few hours but what do you think of our little piece of heaven?” he asked.
“Well Mr. Boardman, I think it’s just beautiful; and your sunsets are like none I’ve ever seen before.”
He looked over to Lance. “She likes the sunsets just like your mama used to.”
Lance looked at her and blurted out, “Miss Montgomery, do you really find it satisfactory to travel all these miles to marry a man you don’t even know?”
Silla was caught off guard by his question, unsure of how to answer. “Well I wouldn’t have answered your father’s proposal if I didn’t find it satisfactory,” she answered carefully, not wanting to offend.
Lance slapped his large palm on the table and let out a hearty laugh, leaving Silla thoroughly confused.
“What is it that you find so funny?” she asked.
“Oh Miss Montgomery, you have it all wrong. You’re not to be my father’s wife, you are to be mine.”
“YOURS!” Silla nearly shouted. She stood up so abruptly that her chair tipped over and clattered to the floor. She waved her hands in a sign of embarrassment and quickly left the room.
“I suggest you go out there and apologize to that young lady,” Ben ordered Lance.
“But Ben she thought-”
“I don’t care what she thought you go out there and apologize. You’ve embarrassed her,” he said with a stern look.
Lance shook his head and went outside to look for Silla, down by the fence he saw her standing and looking at the moon. Slowly he walked up behind her, the shake of her shoulders told him she had been crying.
“I’m sorry for laughing, it was not my intention to embarrass you. I just didn’t thought that you knew that my father had planned this marriage for me.”
She turned toward him and Lance saw unshed tears glistening in her eyes. He can’t explain why but the sight of her so upset unnerved him.
“So your father thinks you need a wife,” she said on a shaky breath. “And I’m assuming that since he was the one that placed the ad, you don’t,” she finished. ”
“Well you see my father wants to give me the ranch and I need to be married in order to have the ranch signed over to me. It’s a clause in the deed of the property. You’ve seen that my father isn’t capable of running things in his condition, so it’s time for me to take over,” Lance answered. “And you couldn’t find someone in your own town to marry?”
“To be honest, I really wasn’t ready to get married and still I’m not. But I can’t get the ranch without a wife,” he said, tucking his hands in his pockets and kicking at the dirt.
Silla looked at him and suddenly she got an idea. He didn’t want to get married but he wanted the ranch. She didn’t’ want to get married but she needed a home for her and Jake and Ellie.
“I think I might have a way that this works out for all of us,” she started. “What if we agree to be married in name only? You get the ranch and I get a home for my brother and I.” She held her breath and waited for his response.
“How exactly would that work?”
“Well, in public I’d be your devoted wife, and in private we live separately.”
Lance pondered her words. He had to admit it wasn’t a bad idea.
“But, how do we fool my father?” he asked.
“You leave that to me, I assure you he’ll never know the difference,” she promised.
“It just might work,” he admitted. “Well I suppose we should make our way back to the house.”
Arm in arm, Silla and Lance walked back to the house, planning their great deception.
Chapter Five
For the next few weeks, Lance escorted Silla around the town and to Sunday services. He made it a point to introduce her as his fiancé and invited nearly everyone to the wedding at the ranch at the end of following month. Lance and Silla’s act was going according to plan and Travis couldn’t have been happier. They both briefly regretted fooling his father, but they knew it was the only way.
The more time that Silla and Lance spent together creating their illusion, the more Silla tried to push down the feelings she was developing for him. He was kind and incredibly handsome, he was honest and hard-working and truly everything she could have wanted for a husband. She tried to remind herself that this was a marriage of name only and that Lance did not want to be saddled with an actual wife. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a little excited as the wedding day approached.
The night before the wedding, Silla decided to take a walk in town to calm her nerves. Suddenly, shots rang out and three men on horseback tore out from the alley, striking her as they galloped past. A group of people in the saloon heard the commotion and came running outside to see what all the clamor was about. The barkeep, Bill, spotted Silla’s still form on the ground, blood pooling beneath her head. He gently lifted her and carried her to Dr. Novak’s office while word was sent to Lance on the ranch that his fiancé was gravely injured.
Silla lay unconscious for several four hours with a nasty gash on her head. When she came to, she felt someone by her side.
“Ellie? Ellie is that you?” she asked thickly, her tongue feeling like it was coated in syrup.
“Yes Miss Silla it’s me.”
“Ellie please turn a light on. It’s so dark in here.”
Ellie looked at Dr. Novak and the man moved closer to Silla.
“Miss Montgomery, I’m Dr. Novak. Can you see me?”
“I’m sure I will be able to as soon as you turn a light on,” she repeated..”
He looked at Ellie with some concern and excused himself. He walked out to the waiting area, where Lance and Ben were waiting
“How is she doc?” Lance asked, his brow furrowed in concern.
“She has no broken bones and a deep gash on her head which I’ve sewn up. At this point, my biggest concern is that she is unable to see.”
“She can’t see?” Lance whispered.
“It appears so, yes,” Dr. Novak said apologetically.”
“Well isn’t there something you can do?” he pleaded.
“Right now all we can do is wait. There is a chance that it could be temporary.”
It was Ellie who held Silla’s hand when Dr. Novak told her she couldn’t see.
“Now Miss Montgomery this doesn’t mean it’s permanent. You took a hard blow to the head and you might just need time to heal,” he offered.
“Tell me honestly doctor, do you really believe this is just temporary, or am I truly blind
?” she asked quietly
“Honestly Miss Montgomery, there is just no way of knowing,” Dr. Novak admitted.
Silla sat in stunned silence as Jake came in with Lance. Jake rushed to his sister and threw his arms around her.
“Silla it’s me Jake,” he said.
Silla smiled, trying not to let Jake see her fear. “I know Jake, I heard you coming in. You’re wearing the spurs Ben gave you.”
She put her hand on his cheek and felt a slight wetness.
“What’s this? Now we aren’t crying are we? This is just a temporary thing and when this is all over you’ll be ready to show me how well you ride. You’re still practicing aren’t you?”
“Yes Silla.”
Lance knew what she was doing, taking the boy’s worry on herself and letting him concentrate on something else. Ellie took Jake’s hand and led him to the waiting area.
“Come on Jake let’s let Lance sit a bit with Silla.”
Ellie and Jake made their way out of the room as Lance noted the tears rolling down Silla’s cheeks. He moved closer to her and took her hand.
“Silla, you know you’re going to see again,” he tried to reassure her.
“That’s kind of you to say so Lance, but there is no guarantee.” Silla shook her head and began to cry harder. “And now all of our plans are ruined,” she sobbed.
“What do you mean, ruined?” Lance asked, squeezing her hand in his.
“You can’t marry me Lance, not now. You can’t take care of me and the ranch, it’s just too much. I’m so sorry,” she sniffled.
Lance thought for a moment before speaking. What if she was right?
“Let’s not think about that right now Silla,” he said, wiping the tears from her cheeks. “We will postpone the wedding for a month or two until you are feeling better,” he offered.
She removed her hand from his and shook her head.
“That is very sweet if you Lance but what if I never recover? No, you should move on and try to find someone else,” she said.
Lance looked at her as tears continued to roll down her cheeks. How he wanted to tell her that in the short time they had been together he had come to grow very fond of her. If he was honest with himself, he was falling in love with her. He didn’t care about the ranch or his grandfather’s stupid clause anymore. He only cared about Silla and wanted to make her his wife. But what if she didn’t feel the same?
“Well I’m gonna let you rest a bit. I’ll be back in a while,” he said softly as he leaned down and kissed her forehead.
“Now don’t you go run off with some no account cowboy while I’m gone,” he said, trying to elicit a smile.
Silla offered a weak laugh and turned away from Lance a he left the room.
Once in the waiting area, Lance looked at Dr. Novak.
“You have to help her doc,” he said thickly.
“Lance, I wish I could, but there is nothing we can do but wait.”
“Well who can help her, and how can we get him here?” Lance demanded.
Doctor Novak understood Lance’s concern and telling him to wait a few weeks would be of no comfort to him today. It was clear that Lance was deeply in love with Silla and would do anything to help her.
“I can make some inquiries.”
“I don’t about the expense you just get them here,” Lance ordered.
With that, Lance turned on his heel and stalked out of the doctor’s office.
At Lance’s insistence Jake and Ellie were taken to the ranch and Ben was ordered to drive them into town whenever they wanted to see Silla. Ben did not mind the charge as he had become quite fond of the three. Each day he would take Ellie and Jake in to see Silla, and each evening Lance would come in to stay with her until dark. He would spend long hours with her on the porch just outside her room upstairs of the doctor’s office. It is on one of those evenings that Silla begins to realize that though her sight was still gone, she was beginning to develop her other senses. It is also on one of those evenings that she finally admitted to herself that she was in love with Lance. As they sat on the balcony one evening, she could hear music from the Silver Slipper on the other end of town.
“The music is so lovely Lance. Almost makes me want to get up and dance,” she said.
She turned her head in his direction and Lance saw the smile on her lips. It was the first time in weeks that he had seen her smile.
“Then, would you care to dance?” he asked.
The smile vanished from her lips and she began to play with the cuff of her sleeve.
“I’m afraid I’d do nothing but trip over myself and step all over your feet,” she said softly.
Lance stood up and took her hands in his, gently lifting her from the chair.
“You can dance, and I’m gonna show you that you can.”
“Lance, what on earth-”
He pulled her close to him and held her in his arms gently swaying to the music.
“See, nice and easy. You’re a wonderful dancer you’ll be dancing at our wedding in a few months.”
He twirled her around and her smiled returned. Silla gave herself over to the music and to Lance’s lead, feeling that as long as she was in his arms, she was safe. She attempted to step away from him a bit and felt herself falter. Lance grabbed her and pulled her closer to him.
“Hold on to me Silla. Don’t think of anything else but holding on to me. Can you feel my arm around your waist? Know that I am holding you and I’m never letting you go,” he whispered.
“Lance-”
“Shhh Silla, I will never let you go,” he repeated.
The music stopped and Lance still held her in his arms. The feel of her heart beating next to his was something he wanted to feel forever. He took her hand and put it on his heart.
“Can you feel that? That’s my heart Silla. It’s professing my love for you.”
Silla placed her head on his chest and smiled, “It beats the same as mine,” she said.
Lance led her back to her chair and helped her to sit.
“Thank you for the dance, my lady,” he said.
“The pleasure was mine, good sir,” she answered, smiling.
As Lance made his way back home that evening he knew that he would keep his promise to Silla and he would never let her go.
The next day, Doctor Novak had some news for Lance. He rode out to the ranch to tell Lance that a fine doctor from Denver had offered to come to Cheyenne to see Silla.
“You’ve heard of this doctor?” Lance asked, feeling hopeful.
“He’s excellent in this field and eager to meet Silla,” the doctor said.
Lance gave the go ahead to fund the specialist’s trip and made arrangements to get him to Cheyenne as soon as possible. That night as he knelt at the side of his bed, he prayed that this doctor would be albe to give Silla the most perfect wedding gift.
Chapter Six
It was only three days later that the specialist, Dr. Hunter, arrived in Cheyenne and was greeted at the train station by Doctor Novak. After a brief conversation to bring Dr. Hunter up to speed on Silla’s condition, Dr. Hunter asked to see the patient.
The two doctors walked into Silla’s room, where Ellie was sitting describing the happenings on the street below to Silla. “ Ellie, this Dr. Hunter. He’s a specialist and he’d like to examine Silla. So if you don’t mind we need you to leave the room,” he said.
“Oh of course no problem doctor,” Ellie squeezed Silla’s hand and promised to be right outside the door.
After Dr. Hunter completed his examination and conferred once more with Dr. Novak, he presented Silla with her options as he saw them. “Well Miss Montgomery, there are two choices. I can perform a rather new operation to try and relieve the swelling from your skull that is impairing your vision, or you can wait for a few more weeks and see if the injury heals itself.”
Silla asked the doctor a few questions about this new operation and its risks. When she was satisfied with his answers, she closed
her eyes and took a deep breath.
“Doctors, if you will give me some time to think this over, I’d appreciate it. Also can I please have my family come in, I’d like to tell them my decision.”
“Of course Silla,” Dr. Novak said. “I’ll send your brother and Ellie in.”
Before ushering Jake and Ellie into Silla’s room, Dr. Novak introduced Dr. Hunter to the family.
“Dr. Hunter these are Miss Montgomery’s Brother Jacob, her friend Ellie, her fiancé Lance Boardman, and Ben Jones.”
“Pleased to meet you all,” Dr. Hunter said.
“Dr. Hunter, do you think Silla will see again?” Lance asked eagerly.
“I do Mr. Boardman. I gave her two choices; one was to have me preform an operation that would relieve the swelling from her skull, or wait a few more weeks and to see if it comes back on its own,” He explained.
“Has Silla made her decision?” Ellie asked.
“She asked to speak with her family and I think she’s waiting for you to go in.”
Lance stayed behind as Jake, Ben, and Ellie went in to see Silla.
“Dr. Hunter, that woman in there is to be my wife and I don’t want any mistakes here,” he said to the doctor.
“I understand Mr. Boardman and I assure you that I am an excellent surgeon if that is the route she wishes to take,” Ellie and the others stepped out of Silla’s room and Ellie nodded to Lance. “She wants to talk to you Lance.”
Lance entered the room and walked over to Silla, placing a kiss on her forehead.
“Lance,” she started. “The doctor spoke to me and told me of my options and I told him I would tell him of my decision after I spoke to all of you.”
“Well what have you decided?” he asked.
“I have decided to have the operation Lance. I don’t want to wait another two or three weeks before I can see your face again.”
“So you want to see my face again, eh?” he said lightly.
“I most certainly do. I want to see your face when I say those vows that will make us forever man and wife.”
Lance picked her up from the chair and held her in his arms.
“You know I’m going to hold you to it now Miss Montgomery,” he said.