Dorothy Garlock - [Annie Lash 03]

by Almost Eden

  “Don’t die an’ leave me, Light. I can’t go through them years all by myself. Ya promised to take me to our mountain. We’ll have our babies there, an’ grow old like ya said. When we die, it’ll be t’gether on our mountain. Yo’re my heart, Light. Wake up an’ tell me I’m yore . . . treasure. I love ya. Ya always come t’ save me when I call. I’m callin’ ya now. Please come back t’ me.”

  Her soft words droned on and on, pleading, telling Light she loved him. Paul discovered tears in his eyes.

  “We’ll have a cabin an’ a root cellar an’ a well. Ya said in the wintertime we’d stay in our blankets an’ love each other all day if we wanted to. Wake up, my heart . . . wake up, my love. Yore Maggie’s here.”

  When Maggie stopped talking for a while, Paul thought she might have fallen asleep. The only light in the room came from the fire. He lit one of the candles Aee had left on the table beside the bunk. She lifted her head and looked at him, her green eyes bleak.

  “Miz Mac said Light was shot with a pistol. Indians use bows or rifles. They don’t have pistols. Eli does. Did Eli shoot Light?”

  “It was an accident, chérie. He—”

  “Don’t call me that. Light calls me chérie.”

  “I’m sorry, Maggie. When the Delaware attacked, Eli saw a rifle come out of the bush and he shot. He didn’t know it was Light.”

  “Eli doesn’t like Light. He said me and Light wasn’t married to each other.”

  “He didn’t shoot him on purpose.”

  Maggie shook her head. “How do ya know that?”

  “I know the kind of man Eli is.”

  Paul had no more than said Eli’s name when Eli came in carrying Light’s packs. Maggie flew up out of the chair and attacked him with her fists.

  Paul tried to hold her.

  “Let her be, Paul.” The packs fell to the floor. Eli stood there, taking every blow from her small fists, making no attempt to shield his face.

  “Don’t touch Light’s packs!”

  “I thought you might . . . need something in them.”

  “Get out! Get away from him! Ya shot him with that . . . old pistol!”

  “I didn’t mean to. Believe me. I had no idea he was anywhere near.”

  “Yo’re a . . . liar! A pissant! A wart-hog! Aee said ya ain’t worth . . . shootin’. An’ ya ain’t—”

  “I’d give anything if it hadn’t happened. I swear it.”

  “He saved ya when ya almost drowned and . . . thumped water out of ya! Ya’d a died if not for Light! Why did ya hurt him?”

  She continued to call him every name she could think of and to flay at him with her fists. Finally exhausted, she threw herself into the chair beside the bunk, buried her face in her hands and burst into a storm of weeping.

  “How is he?” Eli asked Paul.

  “It’s hard to tell.” Paul lifted his shoulders and shook his head.

  “I’ll stay. You go eat.”

  “She don’t want you, mon ami. Being here will upset her more.”

  “I’ve got to make her understand I didn’t mean to shoot him.”

  “She’s not in the mood to understand. Perhaps later.”

  “Did Miz Mac say anything? Does she think he’ll . . . come out of this?”

  “She said the shot went in under his collarbone and out under the shoulder blade. She doused it good with vinegar and put her Indian medicine on it. It’s all she can do.”

  “His head? Is it bad?”

  “She won’t know until he wakes up.”

  After Paul left, Eli put more wood on the fire and sat down. Maggie didn’t seem to realize he was there. She caressed Light’s face with her fingers, and whispered in his ear.

  “Yore treasure is here, Light. I’m stayin’ right by ya. Nobody is goin’ t’ hurt ya. Ya want me t’ sing to ya? Ya always smile when I sing.”

  Maggie placed her cheek on the pillow beside his head, and with her lips close to his ear, began to sing softly.

  Life’s morn will soon be waning,

  And its evenin’ bells be tolled.

  But my heart shall know no sadness,

  If you’ll love me when I’m old.

  “That’s our song. Ya said ya’d love me when we’re old. Ya want me to sing ‘Brave Wolfe’ for ya? I know all the verses.” She continued to stroke his cheeks with her fingers.

  In a soft musical voice, she sang verse after verse of the ballad of James Wolfe, hero of the French and Indian War. The lyrics told of his love for his English sweetheart whom he called “his dear jewel.”

  As soon as she finished one song, she started another. The quietness of her grief was the hardest of all for Eli to endure. How could he have thought she could be parted from Light? He was her heart, her soul.

  Deep down inside Eli was a hollow place that longed to be filled. He had had grandparents when he was very young. His mother had provided lodging and food for the first ten years of his life, but not love. Then came Paul.

  Baptiste Lightbody had everything that mattered.

  Would anyone ever love him as much?

  Aee came in with a plate of food. She stood just inside the door and listened to Maggie sing. Finally she moved and placed the plate on the table beside the bed. Flickering candlelight fell on Light’s still face. Maggie appeared to be oblivious to anything but the man on the bed.

  “Ma told me t’ stay the night an’ watch he don’t go wild an’ break open that hole,” Aee whispered and sat down on the bench beside Eli.

  “Maggie would rather have you here than anyone.”

  “It’ll kill ’er if he don’t . . . make it.”

  “He’s lucky to have someone who loves him so much.”

  “Does she know ya did it?”

  “Paul told her. Light saved my life, dived under the boat until he got my leg free of the sawyer, then thumped the water out of me. She wishes I’d died.”

  “What’d ya expect from her? A thanky?”

  “Don’t give me any sass, Aee. I’ve had a bellyful today.”

  “Ya really feel bad, don’t ya?”

  “I’d give my right arm to undo what I did.”

  “Have ya had any supper?”

  “I’m not hungry. Will he wake up soon?”

  “I don’t know. Last year a riverman with a knock on the head lay here three days. When he woke up he couldn’t see. Died two days after that. Buried him up on the knoll.”

  “Is this your way of cheering me up?”

  “I ain’t tryin’ to cheer ya up. Ya ain’t got no cause to be so . . . cranky. Yo’re sitting here with a hang-down face like it was ya that got shot.”

  Eli looked at her for a long while. “Leave it to you to put things in the right order.”

  Aee grinned at him. “Glad I can do somethin’ right.”

  They sat quietly. The room was cozy and warm. The only sound was Maggie’s singing. Eli was grateful for Aee’s presence. He would have liked to hold her hand but feared she would jump up and leave if he made a move.

  “Ya don’t have to stay,” Aee whispered. “Ain’t nothin’ ya can do.”

  “I can keep the fire going.”

  They sat in companionable silence, each glad the other was there. A low moaning wind swept around the corners and up under the eaves of the cabin. The candle burned down and Aee lit another.

  When Maggie’s singing stopped, they both thought she had fallen asleep until she lifted her head and put her face close to Light’s.

  “I’m here. Maggie’s here.”

  Aee and Eli stood to look over Maggie’s shoulder. Light’s lips were moving.

  “Mag . . . gie—”

  “Here I am. Are ya wakin’ up, Light?”

  “You were sing . . . ing—”

  “I’ll sing all night long, if ya want me to.”

  His eyelids flickered, then partly opened and closed again.

  “Don’t go back to sleep,” Maggie begged. “Stay awake a little while.”

  “Am I . . . hu
rt bad?”

  “Miz Mac took good care of ya. She’s good at doctorin’.”

  “I got to know—” His eyes opened wider and focused on Eli standing above Maggie. “Maggie. If I . . . if I don’t make it. Take Maggie . . . home.”

  “Don’t worry.” Eli put his arm across Aee’s shoulder and drew her close to him. “Aee and I will take care of Maggie.”

  Light closed his eyes wearily.

  “I ain’t goin’ home, Light.” Maggie’s voice rose in alarm. “We’re goin’ to yore mountain like ya said.”

  “Chérie, my . . . treasure, I would like a drink of water.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Light was awake, alert, and worried about Maggie. He had slept through the night and most of the day. The first thing he saw when he awoke was Maggie’s haggard little face hovering over him.

  “Chérie. You have not slept.”

  “Ya feelin’ better, Light? Miz Mac said yore t’ eat if ya can. I’ll feed ya. All ya got t’ do is open yore mouth.”

  “When did you eat, mon amour?”

  Tears filled Maggie eyes. “I don’t know. Yo’re better, ain’t ya?”

  “I am better, my pet.” Light brought her hand to his lips.

  “Tell me . . . I’m yore treasure, Light. I want so bad t’ hear ya say it.” Tears rolled down her cheeks.

  “Don’t cry, ma petite. In my dreams I heard my sweet treasure singing.”

  “I was singin’. I sung all the songs ya like.”

  “You’ve worn yourself out. You’ll be sick.”

  “I won’t be sick, Light. I promise. Will ya eat now?”

  “My stomach is growling.” Light rolled his head to the side and winced. “Did someone hit me on the head?”

  “Paul said ya hit a stone when ya fell. I don’t want t’ leave ya, but I got t’ tell Aee yore awake an’ get ya somethin’ t’ eat.” She started to the door and turned back. “Ya won’t go back t’ sleep?” She bent over him and her soft lips moved over his face.

  “No, amour. Don’t worry so.”

  “I hurt so bad, I almost died. I would’ve if I’d lost ya.”

  “I’ll be all right.”

  “And in the spring we’ll go to our mountain?”

  “In the spring, mon coeur.”

  * * *

  Eli was finding it difficult to get Aee alone so he could talk to her. Since two nights ago when he had put his arm around her and assured Light that they would take care of Maggie, she had avoided him. Every time she saw him coming she took off in another direction. She stayed so close to her mother she was almost her shadow. The feelings he had for her had been building. He wanted to know if she had feelings for him. At times he thought she did, and at other times he was sure that she disliked him intensely.

  It had not snowed enough to hinder the work on the cabin Paul and Eli would occupy. In a few days they could move out of Bodkin’s cabin and into one of their own. Bodkin was beginning to irritate Eli. He mooned over Aee and Dixon mooned over Bee. Bodkin was a good sort, but not the right man to hitch with Aee or take care of her properly. And the thought of him putting his hands on her raised Eli’s temper to the boiling point.

  It was mid-afternoon, and Eli and Paul were notching small three-foot logs for a “cat and clay” chimney for their cabin. A hole had been cut in the wall. The firebox, lined with river clay, had been moved up to it. The chimney was to be built up around the firebox and fastened to the side of the cabin.

  Eli saw Aee leave the house with Eee’s chicken under her arm and head for the shed where the laying hens were kept. He dropped his adze and leisurely walked down the path past the cow pen to the open shed door.

  Paul leaned on his axe and grinned openly as he watched his friend glance around to see if anyone were watching before he stepped inside.

  It was gloomy inside the shed and smelled of hay and animals. In a far corner Aee was struggling to open the top of a stick coop with one hand while holding the chicken with the other.

  “Damn ya! Don’t ya do-do till I get ya in the pen. Ya already did it in the house and Ma’s fit t’ be tied. Eee’s bawling woke up Frank. It’s all yore fault, ya dang-blasted little pissant.”

  “Now, now, now, Aee. You shouldn’t swear.”

  So startled she almost dropped the chicken, Aee spun around. Blood rushed to her face and her legs began to tremble. How did that damn Swede know she was here?

  “What’er ya doin’ in here?”

  “I followed you.” Eli grinned unabashedly and unhooked the wire holding the top of the coop. “You better put Chicken in there before she do-dos on you.”

  Aee dropped the chicken inside and took off for the door. Eli closed the lid, hurried after her and caught her before she reached it.

  “Wait a minute.” He held onto her arm. “What’s the matter with you? Why do you run every time I come near?”

  “Run? Why’d I run from you, Mister Town-man Nielson? Ya don’t scare me.”

  “I think I do. Are you mad because I told Light that you and I would take care of Maggie? Or is it because I put my arm around you?”

  “That didn’t mean nothin’. But ya lied to Light when ya said ‘me and Aee.’ You’d be the one to take her. Ya’d sure not want me taggin’ along.”

  “You and me,” Eli insisted. “I said it to put his mind at ease, but I also said it, you stubborn little bunghead, because I meant it.”

  “Did ya foller me out here jist to tell me that twaddle?”

  “Yes. Paul saw me come in here, and I don’t doubt that Mac’s eagle-eye was on me too. I wasn’t trying to hide it.”

  Aee’s heart was thumping as if it were trying to get out of her chest. She didn’t want to look at Eli, but she couldn’t help herself. Her eyes kept going back to his lips, his beard, his nose, his eyes. Her silly stomach was quivering like a dish of jelly.

  “Now that you’ve said it, I got t’ go.” She tried to dart around him, but he caught her and pulled her into his arms.

  “Not till I kiss you.”

  “Ya can’t—”

  “Why not?”

  “’Cause . . . ’cause—” Her face was so close to his that all she could see was his mouth.

  Lordy! A man was about to kiss her. Not any man, the wonderful, beautiful man she dreamed about every night.

  The kiss was far from what Aee expected a kiss to be. His lips were soft and gently seeking. His beard against her face was a silken caress. He pulled her closer, lifting her as he kissed her. She breathed in the fresh, masculine scent of his body. The taste of his mouth was in hers. A tingling heat built within her. Aee felt the throbbing beat of her pulse, high in her throat, fluttering to her very ears, as she slowly drew her mouth from his so that she could look at him.

  Eli made a kind of a groaning sound, unable for the moment to do or say anything. He could only look at her. His heated gaze took in her smooth golden skin, sweetly curved mouth and her eyes, large soft brown eyes that looked back at him in puzzlement.

  “That was sweet. You’re sweet,” he said huskily. When she said nothing, he whispered, “I want to kiss you again.” She still said nothing, and he lowered his lips to hers again.

  Slowly, deliberately, his mouth covered hers, pressing gently at first while he guided her arms up and around his neck, then wrapped her in his. His kiss deepened when he realized she was leaning into it. Everything was softly given and softly received. Caught in the throes of desire, she pressed herself against him.

  “Do you like kissin’ me?” he asked, moving his lips a fraction away from her.

  “I didn’t think it’d be like this.”

  “What did you think it would be like?”

  “Not . . . nice, like this.”

  “Two people have to like each other for kisses to be nice . . . like this.”

  “Then, ya like me?”

  “Damn right, I like you.”

  “Ya don’t act like it . . . sometimes.”

  He chuckled, hug
ged her tight and kissed her again.

  “Don’t pick a fight with me now, sweet thing. I want to make the most of being here alone with you.”

  “Ya can kiss me again . . . if ya want to.”

  “If I want to? Christ-a-mighty! I’ve been dying to kiss you for days and days and days—”

  The soft utterance that came from her throat was a purr of pure pleasure as their lips met again. She leaned into him, oblivious to everything but the feel of his arms encircling her, the hard strength of his hands that lay flat on the taut swell of her hips, pressing her to him with urgent force. Her heart hammered crazily against his chest.

  It was the most wonderful, exciting moment of her life.

  “Aee! What the hell ya doin’?” MacMillan’s harsh voice blasted the silence.

  Aee jumped when she heard her father’s voice. She would have run from the shed, but Eli’s hand tightened on hers and held her beside him. What she felt was total embarrassment. Blood rushed to her face. She couldn’t look at her father or Eli. She tried again to tug her hand from Eli’s, but he wouldn’t let go of it.

  “Pa . . . I—”

  “Go to the house!”

  “Mac, wait. I grabbed her and kissed her. Aee didn’t do anything.”

  “I ain’t blind. I could see it. She warn’t fightin’ ya off, that’s certain.”

  “I’ve been going to talk to you—was as soon as I knew how Aee felt about me. With your permission, I’d like to . . . walk out with her. Court her.”

  “Ya want to court her? Why didn’t ya come right out an’ ask like a man? Hidin’ out in the shed a-huggin an’ a-kissin’ ain’t no decent way a courtin’ to my way a thinkin’.”

  “We wasn’t hidin’ out, Pa.” Aee had found her tongue at last.

  “That’s what I’d call it.” MacMillan’s eyes stayed for a while on his daughter’s red face, then went back to Eli. “Ya got a notion t’ take my girl to wife?”