One True Love

by Lori Copeland

  Josh took off for Dallas practically the minute we rolled into town. Said he had business, but I feel like we didn’t have decent enough time to say good-bye.

  I’m sure by now you’re bouncing all over the place with two good ankles. Feels real good, doesn’t it? The trip was a long one, but meeting up with Dr. Dyson was a real blessing.

  I’ll write more later.

  Your good friend, Adele

  P.S. Sadie says howdy. Soon as she gets the money for a stamp she will write too.

  Josh took off for Dallas practically the minute we rolled into town. The words stood out on the page as though they were made of fire.

  “What does it say? How come they haven’t written? Is Josh okay?”

  Wadding the letter into a tight ball, Copper threw it aside. “They’re there. Everyone’s fine. Josh took off for Dallas almost the moment they got there.”

  A hush fell over the group. Finally Henry spoke. “Well, guess that means he’ll be coming back real soon.”

  Copper turned away. “Don’t get your hopes up.”

  The surrey rolled into Beeder’s Cove around the noon hour. The children were playing behind the small house that had been turned into a temporary school, dressed in coats and mittens, kicking a ball around the yard.

  Helping Copper out of the buggy, Willow smiled. “Does your heart good, doesn’t it, to see all these young children at play.” She sighed. “How I miss the schoolroom.”

  “I share your feelings. Now that everything is back to normal, I plan to start Thunder Ridge classes next week,” Audrey said. She turned to Willow. “Are you sure you won’t change your mind and decide to step back into the position? The job is really yours, and I’m certain I can secure work in Blackberry Hill, if need be.”

  Willow’s clear laugh rang out. “I am most certain. Tucker wants children just as soon as I gain enough strength to be a mother. I can hardly teach and take care of a new baby at the same time.”

  “Well.” Audrey worried her lower lip. “Eli would like children soon once we marry.” The women turned to focus on Copper.

  She shook her head. “I told you. I don’t have any plans.”

  “But you must,” Audrey accused. “You can’t just shrivel up and die. Josh will come back, and if he doesn’t…” She glanced at Willow. “The Lord has something or someone better in store for you.” Audrey’s tone held the first hint of disapproval.

  “Please. This was supposed to be a heartening outing.” Copper limped ahead of her friends and maneuvered the two wooden steps leading into the temporary schoolhouse. A young woman turned her head as the front door opened and Copper entered, trailed by Willow and Audrey.

  Laying an apple aside, Carrie Wyman sat at the desk, smiling. “May I help you?”

  Introductions followed and the teacher seemed delighted to finally meet the “wonderful Miss Wilson” that the children had been asking about so often.

  Copper’s eyes roamed the room. The last time she’d been here the building had been an empty house. “I suppose they’ll rebuild the schoolhouse?”

  Carrie turned to trace her gaze. “Yes, I believe they plan to start work this summer.” She turned back to face Copper. “You are as lovely as the children said you were. I trust your injury is healing properly?”

  “Thank you. The ankle is healing.” Moving past the new teacher, Copper stepped over to read the writing on the chalkboard, leaving Audrey and Willow to explain. She’d told the story so many times she couldn’t bear to repeat it. She was crippled. End of subject.

  The women spoke in hushed, benevolent tones and Copper blocked out their voices. Her eyes skimmed the arithmetic problems written in chalk. One child thought 4 + 1 made 6. Carrie Wyman looked young, maybe sixteen, seventeen. She was fresh and bubbly, everything Copper wasn’t. At the moment Copper felt as old as Asa Jeeters, who’d helped fight off the Yankees in Timber Creek. To his credit, Asa had gone down fighting; Copper had gone down like a wounded hummingbird.

  Carrie checked her timepiece, excused herself, and stepped outside to ring the bell. Children poured into the schoolhouse. When Mackey and Emily spotted Copper, the two former pupils rushed into her arms.

  She held the small, cold bodies close, drinking in the scent of fresh air and the unique smell of little boys and girls.

  “We miss you, Miss Wilson.” Mackey stood back, grinning. “Look!” He displayed a mouth with a multitude of missing teeth.

  “You’ve lost your front teeth, Mackey!”

  “Yes, ma’am. And this one”—he bent closer—“and this one and this one.”

  “My goodness. Aren’t you the fortunate one?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” The child beamed. “Only it’s going to be real tough eating corn on the cob if they don’t come back in.”

  Others gathered around and Copper caught up on their lives since the fire. Every child wanted a personal look at the injured ankle, and Copper obediently held her right boot up for inspection. “There’s nothing to see with my boot on, only a little swelling.”

  “Oh.” Little Stella frowned. “Does it hurt?”

  “Not anymore.” Copper smiled. “I’ll be just fine, Stella. Are you keeping up on your reading?”

  “Uh-huh.” The child grinned. “I’ve read three books since school started.”

  “Very good. I’m proud of you.” She patted the child and then impulsively drew her close for a protective hug. If only she could shield these children from life’s uncertainties. Copper realized what she must do. She missed this part of her life, missed it so badly. She must leave for a while, gain a new perspective about her life. Perhaps the thought had been buried in her mind before this moment, but now it was clear. Somehow holding Stella helped her focus through all the anger, confusion, and disappointment that had been rolling around in her mind. From somewhere came a resolve she didn’t know she had. No matter how much she’d like to bury her head in the sand, she knew she couldn’t do it. She still had feelings. She didn’t necessarily want them or like them, but nature had a way of overcoming reluctance, and as much as she denied it, she still loved teaching. Still ached with disappointment over Josh and her injury, but still reveled in the warmth of a child’s embrace. Perhaps her life wasn’t over; altered to be certain, different from her expectations, but not over. In time she could make a new life. While Audrey and Willow had babies and kept houses for their doting husbands, she could be the best “auntie” in the whole world.

  Rising, she released Stella. “May I have a brief word with you, Miss Wyman?”

  “Certainly.” Carrie turned to address the class. “I shall allow talking, but no hitting or shouting.”

  Stepping outside and pulling the door closed behind her, the young schoolteacher wrapped her shawl tighter against a north wind. “You wished to speak to me?”

  “Yes.” Copper glanced at Willow and Audrey. “May we have a word in private?”

  “Oh…of course.” Audrey drew Willow off the step and they walked to the waiting surrey.

  “She’s so horribly down,” Audrey murmured. “Don’t you think we should tell her that Josh was the man who bought Judge Madison’s home?”

  “Goodness no!” Willow exclaimed. “He made us promise not to breathe a word, and what if this woman in Dallas is a suitor? Perhaps he bought the home for her.”

  “I can’t bear to see her this way. So hateful. So despondent. That isn’t Copper. She was always strong, relied on herself but never forgot the Lord was her source of strength.”

  “I know, and I have tried everything to pull her out of this phase but nothing works. If Josh doesn’t come back…”

  “If he’s alive he will come back.”

  “But if this mysterious Susan means more to him than Copper does—”

  “She doesn’t. We can’t permit ourselves to think anything but honorable thoughts of Josh Redlin, regardless of our limited knowledge. We know that he plans to settle in Thunder Ridge or he wouldn’t have purchased the judge’s home. We
promised to keep his secret.”

  “What if he’s bought the house for Susan?”

  “Oh my.” Audrey shook her head. “How much more can she bear?”

  “Not a word, Audrey.”

  “All right. I won’t say a word, but I hate keeping this from her.”

  “So do I, but we gave our word.”

  Copper watched as the women got into the carriage before she spoke. “Carrie—may I call you Carrie?”

  “Please do.”

  “You seem very settled, even content here.”

  A smile broke across her youthful features. “Oh yes. I’ve always wanted to teach. I love children.”

  “And it shows.” Copper forced a smile. “I’m considering visiting my aunt in Kansas and I was wondering if you would be willing to accept the teaching position on a permanent basis?”

  A soft gasp escaped the schoolmarm and her face lit up with excitement. “Oh, Miss Wilson, I would love it, but…”

  “No buts.” This time Copper didn’t have to force a smile. “I’m going to leave the area shortly, and I don’t plan to return for a while. I’d like to keep my options open.” She reached out and touched the young woman’s arm, a young woman who had so much ahead of her. “The children seem very content. You’re doing a marvelous job. I know I’m leaving my students in capable hands.”

  “Thank you.” Carrie returned the affectionate gesture. “And I will pray that you find true happiness. You’ve surely given me a great gift.”

  “I’ll submit my resignation to Mr. Fowler before I leave today. I’m sure he’ll be delighted to keep you on.”

  “Again, thank you.” The new teacher’s eyes sparkled with gratitude. And why not? She was young, healthy, and given the gift to shape young minds. In time Copper would teach again, but not now. Right now all she wanted or needed was a fresh start, to find meaning for her life. The only absolute at the moment was the need to flee, to seek sanctuary from an existence that confused her.

  And she was not going to breathe a word of her plans to either Audrey or Willow until she was ready to leave. She would inform Benjamin Fowler of her resignation, pay an obligatory visit to Mackey and Emily’s grandfather, and then pay Aunt Nancy and Ester, in Kansas, a long overdue visit. Who knew? Maybe she’d take to Nancy’s Ellsworth, the rough-and-tumble cattle town, and just stay there.

  Chapter 23

  Copper’s hands jerked when a gun went off just outside. She had moved close to the window so she could have better light for her sewing, but it made the noises from outside even more distracting. She was getting used to the sound of gunfire, but this one was much closer than most. She set her jaw and stitched the last of the lace trim.

  She glanced up at Aunt Nancy, a sparrowlike woman with thick snow-white hair braided and secured tightly on the top of her head by a hair pick. Ageless, the spirited bundle tottered on a ladder to dust a top shelf. Copper eyed the teetering stance and sucked in a breath. It was useless to scold; Aunt Nancy went where she pleased and did what she wanted. Any mention to her of “Be careful” or “Aren’t you a little too old to be…” got you a look that plainly said, “No, I’m not” and suggested that you not broach the subject again.

  She glanced out the window that read Glessner’s Alterations, but paid scant attention to three young cowboys spurring their horses to a dead run side-by-side down the dusty street. More gunshots rang out.

  Cackling, Aunt Nancy dusted away. “Ain’t this ’bout the most excitin’ town you’ve ever been in?”

  Exciting? For sure. But Copper’s opinion of the place didn’t include the admiration that Aunt Nancy felt. Copper thanked God for her life when she safely reached her room each night.

  Ellsworth, Kansas, offered haven to notorious gunmen, bull whackers, soldiers, army scouts, buffalo hunters, not to mention Cheyenne and, sometimes, pro-slavery raiders. Copper soon learned that the community had a reputation for being a violent place.

  Climbing down off the ladder, Nancy stood back to survey her work. Outside the window two young cowhands were wrestling on the board sidewalk. People walking by simply went around them, paying them little heed.

  Copper shook her head in disgust. “Seems a little loud today, don’t you think, considering it’s only Monday?”

  Auntie’s eyes sparkled. “Don’t you just love a little excitement?”

  “I’ve enjoyed all the excitement I can stand, thank you.” Copper finished the row of lace, and her left foot paused on the treadle. “You seem to actually enjoy this violence.” She still had not been able to get accustomed to the shootings, fistfights, and nightly brawls in front of the scandalous saloons where wanton women beckoned men inside.

  “Honey, you know Mondays don’t hold a candle to Saturday nights. A little fight now and again is a Sunday school meeting compared to Saturday night.” Nancy hooted. “That’s when this town gets exciting. When those cowpokes hit town with a month’s pay, have a bath and a fifty-cent steak, why, that’s when the fun begins. Once those boys get liquored up there’s no tellin’ what they’ll do.” She flicked a speck of dust off a lampshade. “That’s what I call excitement.”

  Shaking the dress free of wrinkles, Copper wondered why she ever thought she could find respite here. Ellsworth was nothing like she’d anticipated. She’d yet to find anything to endear her to the raucous atmosphere. There was nothing attractive in the stench of cattle pens, the dust that turned to mud with the slightest shower, the sight of men sleeping off a drink in the alleys and loud piano playing coming from the saloons. The town was nothing like Thunder Ridge or Beeder’s Cove.

  There wasn’t a moment when memories of Josh didn’t weigh on her mind. She was sure that at this moment he was living happily in Dallas with Susan and she’d wager he never gave her a thought. Or did he?

  She shook the notion away. He didn’t want her. And why would he? The limp was worse than she feared, she was alone and lonely, and she had precious few prospects beyond being in a strange town with this strange little woman. Nancy was her mother’s sister, and they were nothing at all alike. While her mother had been fiery and spirited, Nancy was a loose cannon, going off at the most unnerving times. She had always been a bit quaint, but it hadn’t taken Copper long to discover that her beloved auntie was the town loon. When Copper arrived, Nancy had latched on to her, and there wasn’t a spare moment that she didn’t have the wiry woman by her side. The first night she had settled into a fitful slumber. When she stretched her toes in search of the warm hot water bottle, her feet touched another foot. Aunt Nancy had crawled in the bed beside her. When she’d asked why, the old woman said she hated to sleep alone, that Copper was a gift from God. She never intended to sleep alone again.

  Every night Copper teetered on a thin sliver of mattress, keeping to her side. But before the night was over the woman who smelled of musk and liniment would crowd her to the point that she’d be forced to sleep in the chair, where she would remain most of the night.

  Her heart ached. She missed Audrey and Willow. She’d been a fool to leave Thunder Ridge. She’d only replaced thunder with gunshots, and her depression was as deep and dark as ever. She’d locatd her friend Ester, who had fought battles with her. She’d found her some ten miles from Ellsworth, then discovered the woman had completely lost her mind. She couldn’t remember the time of day, so their visits were short and pointless. She recalled last Sunday’s visit while sitting on Ester’s front porch.

  “Lovely day, isn’t it, Ester?”

  The woman turned tolerant eyes on her. “Have we met?”

  Copper repeated the same information she’d given each visit. “Yes, we fought together in Timber Creek. My name is Copper Wilson.”

  “Oh.” Ester rocked, and then she turned to look at her. “Who’d I fight?”

  “The Yankees…remember. You, me, Willow, Audrey, Asa Jeeters…”

  “The town drunk?”

  “Yes, you remember Asa.”

  She pulled her shawl closer. “Of cour
se I remember Asa. Do you think I’m senile?”

  “Not at all.”

  After a moment she looked back. “Have we met?”

  Copper’s life consisted of her new job at Mr. Glessner’s establishment, sewing alterations and ladies’ gowns, and wallowing in a chair at night. It probably didn’t matter if she was in the bed or not, since Nancy’s snoring was usually loud enough to rattle china. She failed to see how she’d helped herself. She ought to go to Dallas, find Josh Redlin, and give him a piece of her mind. She glanced up, frowning.

  “Aunt Nancy, please don’t eat paste.”

  The woman looked up, her fingertip buried in a jar. “I like the taste.”

  “Doesn’t matter. The vile habit is going to make you sick.”

  “Hasn’t yet, and I’ve been eating it for years.” She took a lick. “Doctor said I was going to die if I didn’t quit snuff.”

  “So you’ve taken to eating paste?”

  She nodded, extending the jar. “Have a bite.”

  “I don’t want a bite.”

  She moved closer and shoved the jar beneath Copper’s nose. “Come on, you’ll like it. What’s folks got against paste?”

  Copper pushed the container aside. “I don’t want any.”

  “Well.” Nancy took a final swipe. “Suit yourself, but you don’t know what you’re missing.” She smacked her lips, looking thoughtful now. “You know your problem, darling. You’re like your mother. You try to run your life and forget there’s a higher source in charge.”

  Copper pushed the treadle, hemming a skirt now, trying to ignore her. Where had that come from? Aunt Nancy didn’t know her “problems.” She hadn’t mentioned a word about Josh Redlin or how desperately she missed him.