Brides of Prairie Gold

by Maggie Osborne

  He bolstered a sudden flag of confidence by remembering the shine in her huge cinnamon eyes when she had gazed up at him.

  The women lingered at Perrin's wagon, talking about the skirmish and their victory, and asking what had happened during the time Quinton's gang held her prisoner. Eventually Mem pointed out that the snow had stopped and weak sunlight poked through the clouds. Sarah hustled everyone away to break camp.

  Perrin watched them go in their ruined wedding dresses, her heart filled to overflowing. Words seemed inadequate. How did one thank people for saving one's life? Or for being true friends? Mere words couldn't express the depth of emotion involved.

  While she put water on to heat for washing the blood out of her hair, she thought about how far they had traveled from Chastity, Missouri. Alliances had formed along the way, broken, and reformed in new groupings. Old animosities had mellowed, love had blossomed. People had died. Bonds had been forged that would endure for a lifetime.

  Hilda touched her arm, then embraced her. "I am so glad you are back and not badly injured," she said, lightly brushing the bruise on Perrin's temple with her fingertips. "You are a good woman, Perrin Waverly. I am ashamed that I let others influence me for a while." A blush lit her cheeks. "I will not let someone else decide my opinion again. If you will forgive me, you and I will be neighbors and friends for the rest of our lives." She smiled. "I will teach your children in my school."

  Tears reflected the light in Perrin's eyes. "I'll tell them how fortunate they are to have you for their teacher."

  "But now"Hilda gave her a look of apology"this damned dysentery lucky for me we aren't still on the desert. Lots of bushes here." Leaving Perrin with a weak smile, she dashed toward the forest.

  "I think we have laudanum in the wagon. I'll look," Perrin called. Conventional wisdom advised laudanum to treat dysentery although it wasn't noticeably effective. Walking to the back of the wagon, she lowered the tailgate and prepared to climb inside.

  A dark form flew out of the wagon bed and knocked Perrin to the ground. Instinctively, she fought to protect herself. She managed to grip Ona Norris's wrist in time to halt the descent of a paring knife that would have plunged into her throat.

  But Perrin was weak from the day's ordeal. And Ona was imbued with the strength of the insane. Slowly, but certainly, Ona overpowered her.

  It was Sarah who reached him first, with Hilda running right behind her. "One at a time," Cody ordered them. "I can't understand what either of you is saying."

  "Thea found Smokey Joe trussed up behind her wagon," Sarah said, gasping to catch her breath. "Smokey's been stabbed. He's lost so much blood, at first we thought he was dead, but he isn't. He'll live."

  "And Ona was gone," Hilda added, wringing her hands.

  "We found Ona at Perrin's wagon," Sarah gripped his sleeve. "Cody, she's got Perrin on the ground, a knife at her throat. Oh, God! Ona says she wants you to watch her slice Perrin's throat so you'll know that she loves you."

  He didn't wait to hear more. He and Webb raced through the forest. When they arrived at Perrin's wagon, he skidded to a halt, then pushed through the white-faced women, absorbing the scene at a glance.

  Ona sat braced against a tree trunk, holding Perrin against her chest. One arm looped around Perrin's body, pressing a paring knife against her throat. As Cody watched, a tiny red droplet welled at the tip of the knife, caught the frail sunlight for an instant, then trickled down into Perrin's collar. Perrin fastened huge dark eyes on him, but she didn't attempt to speak.

  "I finally understood," Ona said eagerly. She smiled at him. "You're angry because I only wounded her. I didn't kill her like you wanted me to."

  Lifting his hands, Cody advanced a step. He spoke in a calm expressionless voice. "You're wrong, Ona. I don't want you to harm Perrin Waverly or anyone else."

  She nodded at the group watching in horrified disbelief. The movement caused another red drop to swell at the tip of the knife and Perrin winced. "You have to say that because they're listening, I understand. But I know you want her punished for coming between us. I want to punish her too."

  Cody saw the muscles tighten along her thin arm. "Wait!" Sweat broke over his brow. "Perrin has learned her lesson. You don't have to punish her now. There's nothing standing between you and me."

  "I warn you. Don't come any closer until it's done. I don't want you saying later that I couldn't kill her or that you had to do it for me."

  Perrin's eyes flickered, then steadied. She gazed at him with absolute trust, gazed at him with eyes that confirmed she loved him, eyes that said good-bye.

  He wiped sweat from his brow and advanced another step. "Ona, you must listen to me. You can't do this."

  "Oh, yes, I can!" She seemed to think he doubted her ability and fortitude to draw the knife across Perrin's throat. "I've done it before. I killed Ellen because she betrayed you. When I learned Ellen's baby couldn't be yours, I knew that was God's signal that I should kill the whore so we could be together." She nodded and another red drop appeared. Perrin pressed her lips together and closed her eyes.

  "It was easy. I held the pillow over Ellen's face. I punished her for whoring like I knew you'd want me to." A frown puckered her brow and she gave him a puzzled, sad look. "I will be very angry if you continue to let whores distract you. I hope I never have to punish you for bringing another whore into our lives. That would break my heart."

  Her arms remained tight, poised and ready to rip the blade across Perrin's throat. Suddenly Cody knew there was nothing he could say to stop her. He couldn't reach his pistol faster than she could jerk back the knife. And he didn't have a shot anyway, as she held Perrin against her body as a shield. Rage shook his body and frustration blacked his mind.

  "Let her go," he snarled.

  Instead Ona smiled and tightened her grip on the knife, digging the point into Perrin's throat. In horror, he realized she wanted to do it slowly.

  A shot exploded from Cody's right. Ona's head jerked to the left and the knife dropped from her fingers, falling into Perrin's lap. In an instant Perrin was on her feet and running toward him, then she was in his arms. Screams rang in his ears. Someone jumped forward to press a handkerchief against the wound dripping blood on Perrin's collar and bodice.

  Until Augusta walked around the wagon and lowered her carbine, Cody believed it was Webb who had killed Ona. But Webb emerged from the forest in the opposite direction. He shook his head when Cody stared at him. "The angle was wrong."

  Tightening his arms around Perrin's shaking body, Cody swung his gaze to Augusta. "That was one hell of a shot. But you might have hit Perrin!"

  She dismissed the suggestion with an airily superior smile that exposed her missing teeth, but which would have made dozens of Boyds proud. There was almost a swagger in her step as she walked toward Perrin. "This makes us even. I don't owe you and you don't owe me. We start over from here."

  Perrin flew out of his arms and embraced Augusta, both of them trembling. Cora took the carbine from Augusta's suddenly boneless fingers and Perrin and Augusta held each other tightly, weeping and speaking in voices Cody could not hear.

  Shaking his head over the mysteries of women, he walked away from them, removing his coat, then gazing down at Ona Norris before he covered her. She had murdered Ellen. And she would have murdered Perrin. For an instant guilt slammed across his chest, it required several minutes to convince himself that the seeds of madness had been planted long before he met Ona Norris. He told himself that he was not responsible for Ellen's death. Perhaps he had not been responsible for Ellen's life or how she chose to live it either.

  Kneeling, he placed his coat over Ona's body.

  And finally he let Ellen go. Whatever crimes she had committed against him and their marriage, she had paid a terrible price for them. Ellen's image slowly receded into the past.

  Standing, he turned toward the woman who would be his future. She met his eyes over Augusta's shoulder, then gently disengaged herself. Almos
t running, she came to him.

  Whatever she sought in his gaze, she must have found it, because she smiled, then slipped her arm around his waist and leaned into his body when he dropped an arm around her shoulder.

  His chest lifted in a deep breath. He was never going to let this woman go. After signaling Miles and Heck to begin digging Ona's grave, he waved his hat in the air.

  "We've got ninety hard miles left to travel, and we can cover at least three of them yet today. Waaaagon's hoooo!"

  "We should get some sleep. It's going to be a long, hard day tomorrow," Cody murmured. They sat on a log, Perrin's back nestled against his chest, his arms around her waist. The flames had long since died to embers.

  "Hmmm," she said drowsily, burrowing deeper in his arms.

  For the last hour, they had been trying to say good night to each other, but couldn't bear to part. Farther down the line of wagons he heard the soft murmur of the night watch, playing cards and talking quietly near the arms wagon. The rest of the camp had been asleep for hours.

  Neither of them stirred, though the sun would rise soon. They had talked the night away, opening their hearts. Never again would they mention Ellen or Joseph Boyd. From now on, they would look forward, toward the future and each other.

  "Cody?" She kissed his jaw, then looked back at the faint orange glow in the fire pit. "I'm eager for us to begin our life together, but part of me will be sorry when we roll into Clampet Falls. Can you understand that?"

  "Perhaps."

  "While I was in Quinton's cave, I thought about all of it. How it began Lucy Hastings, Winnie Larson, Jane Munger, and those boys we buried. I thought about Mem and Augusta, and all of us. I thought about the Great Whiskey Debacle and the poison oak and everything we've ail endured together."

  "Are you crying?"

  "I love you, Cody Snow. Someday, I'm going to tell our grandchildren how I crossed a continent and found you."

  Gently turning her in his arms, he kissed her, deeply, tenderly, trying to tell her with lips and body that which words were not powerful enough to convey. "You're trembling," he said softly against her mouth.

  Perrin gazed into the blue eyes she loved so much. "I'm cold."

  He kissed her forehead, then her eyelids. "It's probably warmer in my tent. But of course I wouldn't suggest anything improper, Mrs. Waverly."

  "It's probably even warmer in your bedroll, Mr. Snow," she whispered, smiling.

  Pulling back, he blinked at her. "Perrin, I was jesting. I don't want to do anything that would embarrass you before the others or lead them to"

  She placed a finger across his lips. "I have friends now," she said softly, her huge dark eyes glowing with love for him and with affection for the women with whom she had forged lifelong bonds. "And I think my friends would understand." The truth of what she said made her smile through a shine of happy tears.

  "If they catch us, that is," he said in a thick teasing voice before he stood and swept her up in his arms. "Which I'll make sure they don't."

  It was only a few steps to his tent.

  As one journey drew to an end, another began.

  * * *

  The Brides

  Perrin Waverly married Cody Snow in Clampet Falls, Oregon, on September 23, 1852. The Snows settled on a one-hundred-and-twenty-acre horse farm in the Willamette Valley and eventually had five children, one of whom was elected governor of Oregon. Perrin Snow was respected and much loved for her generosity and work in the community. Cody Snow died in 1881 while assisting in the rescue of travelers stranded in the Cascade Mountains. Mrs. Snow did not remarry. She died of natural causes in 1894.

  Mem Grant and Webb Coate, Lord Albany, repeated their marriage vows on June 12,1853, in Devonshire, England. Lord and Lady Albany and their four children traveled extensively during the 1800s. Between jaunts to Africa, Brazil, and the Orient, Lady Albany founded the Devonshire School for Curious Young Ladies. Lord Albany was shot and killed by an outlaw during a return trip to the American West in 1880. Lady Albany lived to celebrate the turn of the century.

  Augusta Boyd married Owen Clampet, mill owner, in Clampet Falls, Oregon, on September 23, 1852. No children resulted from the marriage. Until the end of her life, Mrs. Clampet maintained a close friendship with Perrin Snow (nee Waverly), Cora White (nee Thorp), and Hilda Hacket (nee Clum). Mrs. Clampet died of a self-inflicted gunshot in 1868 after her husband's mill burned to the ground, leaving the Clampets in financial ruin.

  Hilda Chun married Orry Hacket, a farmer, in Clampet Falls, Oregon, on September 23, 1852. Mrs. Hacket was the second schoolteacher in the Willamette Valley and taught for twenty-nine years, her students including her own six children. One of her daughters published an account of Mrs. Hacket's journey from Chastity, Missouri, to Clampet Falls, Oregon. Mrs. Hacket died of natural causes in 1882, following the death of her husband shortly before.

  Bootie Glover accompanied her sister, Lady Albany, to England, where she married Sir Eugene Wickett in December 1855. Lady Eugene was lauded for her soirees and her whist tournaments. The Wicketts had one daughter. Lady Wickett died in 1871 as a result of a carriage accident.

  Sarah Jennings married Frederick Pirn, a baker, in Qampet Falls, Oregon, on September 23,1852. The Pirns moved to San Francisco, California, in 1854, where they established a boardinghouse and later a prosperous hotel. The hotel, under the ownership of the Pirns' eldest son, was destroyed in the 1906 earthquake. Mrs. Pirn died of pneumonia in 1892.

  Cora Thorp married Willard White, a farmer, in Clampet Falls, Oregon, on September 23, 1852. The Whites had three children. After Mr. White's death in 1860, Mrs. White married Albert Sparrow, with whom she had four children, one of whom served in the United States Senate. Mrs. Sparrow was a lifelong advocate for women's education. She died of tuberculosis in 1879.

  Thea Reeves married Luther Frost, a furniture maker, in Clampet Falls, Oregon, on September 23, 1852. In 1853, the Frosts returned to St. Joseph, Missouri, where Mrs. Frost became a local celebrity after publishing a book of drawings depicting scenes along the Oregon Trail. Mrs. Frost died in childbirth in 1858.

  Jane Munger , a.k.a. Alice Berringer, never remarried. Mrs. Berringer drifted through the West, never settling into a permanent home. Legend suggests she had a daughter with Kid Johnny, an outlaw living in Fort Worth, Texas, but this information cannot be confirmed. Mrs. Berringer died from a gunshot wound in 1862 after a brawl erupted in the saloon where she was working.

  Winnie Larson died of an opiate overdose following a miscarriage that occurred ten days out of Chastity, Missouri, on her return trip.

  The remarkable women of the Oregon Trail are not forgotten. Their names can be found carved on the Chimney Rock and Independence Rock, on old grave markers along fading wheel ruts. Their courage, their spirit, and their stories survive to inspire and lift the hearts of all women toward valor, determination, and pride. That is their legacy to those who continue to follow them west.