The Shotgun Proposal

by Barbara Goss

  He pulled her onto his lap and kissed her, lightly at first, but then…she nearly fainted from the feelings his passionate kiss had aroused within her body. That was when she knew she'd loved him.

  She definitely loved the man. She basked in his company, his very touch sending waves of warmth through her body. She’d hadn't looked forward to the wedding night‒she’d been prepared to simply endure it‒but at that moment, she felt excitement when she thought about what they'd eventually do together. She wished they could do it right then and there. She knew Rance was taking it slow, and she finally knew, that he'd desired her, too. Even the look in his eyes had told her volumes.

  Now, he’d been shot, and it was all because of her.

  If only there were a way to get word to Emil. If she could, she’d tell him she wouldn’t have him, even if her husband had died. That had to be what he'd planned to do‒kill Rance, thinking she’d turn to him, but she never would. How could she marry a man who would be able to kill another person, especially one she loved?

  When they heard Clara driving back with the buggy, Rance let Elsa up from his lap.

  Clara walked into the kitchen with a doctor, and the two of them helped Rance to his bed, where he was examined. Clara and Elsa stood outside Rance’s bedroom door, waiting.

  Finally, the doctor came out and said, “I have to remove the bullet. It shouldn’t be too difficult, since I can see it inside the wound. I’ll just need someone to help hold him down while I dig it out and sew it up,” the doctor said. “Do you have any whiskey?”

  “I think there's a bottle in the medicine chest,” Clara said. “I’ll fetch it.”

  All Elsa could do while Clara was getting the whiskey was to stand there. She wanted to ask if her husband would be all right, so badly. She tried to think of all the English words, but she was too nervous. When she was able to recall a few of the words, she said, “Husband will live?” She knew he’d live‒live wasn’t the exact word she wanted, but she felt it would get her the answer she was looking for.

  “He’ll be fine,” the doctor said with a smile. “Good as new. He’ll have to do light work for a few days, but it doesn’t look too bad—as long as it doesn’t get infected.”

  She was glad Clara had come back with the whiskey so she could interpret what the doctor had just said. She was too upset to try to figure it out, but the doctor had smiled, and that had relieved some of her tension.

  The doctor took the whiskey and asked Clara to come and help him.

  “I’ll be right there,” she told him. She turned to Elsa and said, “He’ll be sore for a few days, but he’ll be fine,” and she turned, went back into the room, and closed the door.

  That night, Rance slept peacefully. The doctor had told Clara , he probably would since he’d given him some laudanum for the pain. Elsa knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep, so she sat at his bedside, knitting. If he awoke and needed something, she’d be there for him—she was his wife, after all.

  Just as the sun had begun to rise, Rance stirred. He stretched, moaned, called out, “Anna!” struggled a bit in his bed, and then went back to sleep.

  Elsa wondered who Anna was. When her father had planned to trick Rance into marrying her, it had never occurred to her that he might already be in love with someone, like this Anna.

  Her knitting speed slowed as her thoughts deepened. Her father had forced her into the marriage, and now Emil had shot Rance, and Rance must've given up the woman he loved. It was all her fault, all because she feared another beating. She’d had so many beatings, what harm would several more have done? She'd ruined the life of the man she now loved. Why had she ever gone along with the plan?

  What about the look in Rance’s eyes when he'd held her close? She’d thought he was beginning to care for her, but he might just be making do with what he’d been saddled with. She felt ashamed to have upset the life of such a wonderful man. What could she possibly do about it? She owed it to him to go back home and have the marriage annulled, so he could build a life with this Anna, and be safe.

  She bent, kissed his forehead, and left the room. She dressed in the clothes she’d arrived in, packed the few plain dresses, aprons, and accessories she’d brought with her, and snuck out the back door before anyone had awakened.

  When Rance woke, he felt like the blacksmith’s anvil were laying on his arm. Then he remembered being shot. He sat up, grimaced at the pain, and swung his legs over the side of the bed. He felt a bit dizzy at first, but he persisted; there was work to be done.

  The next thought he had was of Elsa and their kiss. He smiled, despite his pain. He was sure they’d be consummating their marriage as soon as he had two arms with which to do it properly.

  He dressed and walked out to the kitchen where Clara was frying ham.

  “What are you doing up already?” she asked.

  “Did you think I’d stay in bed all day? I have a ranch to run,” he said. “Is Elsa up yet?”

  “No. She sat up with you all night, so I supposed she finally got tired enough to go to bed.” Clara put the ham on a plate, set it on the table, and pulled out a black cloth.

  “This is a sling. The doctor wants you to wear it for a few days to support that arm.”

  “If you insist,” he said, but he was grateful as the arm hurt more just hanging down. He put the contraption on and sat down to eat.

  “Elsa sat up with me all night?” he asked.

  “She did. She was so worried about you.”

  Rance smiled. “I’ll thank her when I see her later.”

  “You aren’t going to do anything too strenuous today, are you?” Clara asked.

  “I don’t think I can yet. I’ve got enough paperwork to keep me busy. Thank goodness I have a foreman. I’m also going to send some of the workers out to survey the property this morning, just in case the shooter wants to try again.”

  “Oh, dear,” Clara said.

  “Please keep Elsa indoors today,” he ordered. “If it gets too hot in here, she can sit in the back, I suppose.”

  Clara slid two eggs onto his plate. “She’s such a sweet girl, Rance. I hope you two can move into the same room one day,” she looked up at him quickly, as if knowing she’d overstepped her boundaries, “if only to save on laundry.”

  Rance ordered one man from each of the stables to search the property for signs of a stranger’s presence. One of them came back with a shell casing from a shotgun that had been found behind the barn.

  A shotgun! Most men in the area had pistols and used shotguns mostly for hunting. He supposed it could have been an accident, but he warned everyone to be on the lookout for a stranger hanging around, just in case.

  When he went in for lunch and Elsa still wasn’t there, he was surprised. “Clara, is Elsa still asleep?” he asked.

  Clara set some sandwiches on the table. “I think I’ll check on her,” she said, turning and heading for the stairs.

  Rance grabbed a sandwich, nearly choking on a huge bite when Clara came running back to the kitchen and said, “She’s gone! Her bed hasn't been slept in!” Clara gave Rance an accusing look. “What have you done to her?”

  “Me? I haven’t seen her since the doctor dosed me with laudanum,” Rance said. “Are you certain she didn’t make her bed and go outside to sit?”

  “I checked‒she’s gone and the things she came with are gone as well.”

  Rance got up from the table and walked back to her room to look for himself. When she wasn't there, he thought maybe she'd moved back into his room, and the idea thrilled him.

  He was disappointed to discover that wasn’t the case.

  Where could she be?

  Chapter 8

  Elsa had borrowed one of Rance’s horses, but being an inexperienced rider, she had to trot slowly. By the time she'd arrived it was nearly noon. She entered her family's home and headed immediately to her father’s study. Even if he beat her for leaving Rance, it was worth it to save his life. She found him sitting behind his desk
, writing. He glanced up, and did a double-take when he saw who’d entered.

  “Elsa,” he said. “At first I thought it was Marta. What are you doing here? Visiting?”

  “I’ve left Rance Balcomb. I'd like to begin the process of an annulment,” she said, setting down her valise and preparing herself for a beating. He surprised her by speaking calmly.

  “Was the marriage consummated?” he asked.

  “No, it was not.”

  “I’m not surprised,” he said. “Any man that would refuse to allow his wife’s father into his home must be an impossible man to live with,” he said, his voice raising in volume. “You will not get an annulment. You will go back and make that marriage work.”

  “I’m afraid my presence has put my husband in danger. Someone shot Rance as we returned from church and I think it was Emil. He snuck in to see me one day and wanted me back.”

  Ernst waved her words away as being foolish.

  “Here’s what you need to do,” he said, his voice becoming even louder. “You will go back and persuade him to help your family financially.”

  “I think he’s in love with someone named Anna,” she said. “Why do you need help financially, Father?”

  “Because…have you noticed we’re having another drought?” he said, his voice rising even more than before. “That’s three years in a row without a good crop. Do you know what that means? We’ll be broke. I had hoped Rance Balcomb would befriend your family, but instead, he wants nothing to do with me. He was a bad choice on my part, but all is not lost. You are still legally his wife. You will go back.”

  “You owe it to your family to do whatever you can in order to help us survive. Think of your sisters!”

  “You still have your cattle to sell, don’t you?” she asked.

  “They’re dropping like flies,” he spat. “Dehydration, heat strokes…our creek has long dried up and there’s no water for them.”

  Elsa realized he was right: she had to help her family She was sure Rance would never let her mother or sisters come to harm.

  She sighed. “I agree,” she said. “Can I stay the night? It’s a two hour ride and it’s already getting dark.”

  “One night and tomorrow you will go back.” Ernst leaned back in his chair as if thinking. “On second thought, you haven’t seen your sisters in a while, so you can stay here tomorrow and go back the next day, as long as you agree to persuade your husband to help your family.”

  Elsa had a happy reunion with her sisters, but she felt an emptiness inside that wouldn’t go away, no matter how glad she was to be back home with her loved ones. Something was missing and she felt alone, even while surrounded by her family.

  In bed that night, she thought about everything her father had said. If she stayed with Rance, would he be safe? What about Anna, whoever she might be?

  The thought that the shooter might have been her father entered her mind. If Rance had died, he’d have everything Rance had owned through her. Goosebumps formed on her arms. Was her father capable of murder? She thought he might be.

  Elsa helped her mother and sisters with the daily chores, but her mind was still on Rance and if her father were capable of murder. Now that the seed had been planted in her mind, she couldn’t stop thinking about her father as a murderer. Emil was a meek man‒she doubted he’d ever fired a gun in his life. Her father, however, hunted often. What she needed to know was if something happened to Rance, would everything still go to her despite the fact she’d left him? If so, his life was still in danger—even if she was no longer living as his wife. That was when she decided she'd somehow find a way to ride into Hays and talk to the lawyer there.

  She waited until her father had gone out into the fields to check on what cattle they had left before she went down the street looking for Alois Berger, the other interpreter, as she no longer trusted Henry. She’d ask Alois to take her to see the lawyer in Hays. He’d be discreet, especially since she planned to give him the gold locket her maternal grandmother had given her as payment.

  At first, Rance was furious at Elsa for leaving him without so much as a goodbye, or a reason for walking out on him. The anger soon turned to sadness and confusion. What had he done wrong? Had he moved too fast and frightened her? He had thought she'd enjoyed their romancing as much as he had.

  Should he ride to her family home and beg to see her? He decided he wouldn’t do that. Hadn’t he been tricked into marrying her in the first place? She was probably in on the whole scam and once things had moved closer to consummation, she'd decided she’d played the game long enough. What reason could she have possibly had to want to marry him in the first place? She’d gotten nothing from him but clothing, which she’d left with him.

  It was puzzling to him that she’d stayed with him the whole night after he’d been shot. She'd done that out of concern for him, but by morning, she was gone. What had happened between that time she'd sat with him and morning?

  He was sure she’d seek out a quick annulment, and perhaps marry Emil, which brought him to the question of who’d taken a shot at him. Who had the most to gain if something happened to him?

  After he'd married Elsa, he’d made out a will, leaving everything to his wife.

  No! Elsa wouldn’t have someone try to kill him for his ranch and money, would she? He dropped that notion quickly when he recalled the fear and caring she’d showed him after the shooting.

  He was sure it had been either Emil or Ernst who had shot him.

  He resolved to see his lawyer to change the will before someone had the chance to take another shot at him.

  His plans for riding into town to see his lawyer were delayed when Manny burst into his office, practically pushing Emil Oberman through the door.

  “I found him snooping around the house again,” Manny said.

  Rance pointed to the chair beside his desk. “Sit!” he instructed Emil. Rance looked back at Manny. “Did he have a gun on him?”

  Manny shook his head. “He was standing by the gate, peering into the yard. He didn’t have anything with him.”

  “Would you go into the house and bring Clara out here to interpret?”

  “On my way,” Manny said, running from the office.

  While he was gone, Rance stared Emil down. Emil refused eye contact with him after several seconds, which made Rance laugh‒the man definitely had something to hide.

  Clara came in and said, “What’s up?”

  “Have a seat.” He pointed to the chair next to Emil. “Ask Emil why he was snooping around our house.”

  Clara relayed the message. Emil shrugged his answer. Clara looked at Rance and said, “He won’t answer.”

  “Tell him I’m taking him to the constable’s office for trespassing on private property and for assaulting my…wife,” Rance said. He hated using that term now that he no longer had one.

  Clara told him exactly what she’d been instructed to, and a frightened look appeared on Emil’s face.

  Emil began talking to Clara excitedly. Rance couldn’t wait to hear what he had to say. Emil just kept talking and talking‒would he never finish? Was he telling her his life story?

  Finally, he stopped, and Clara turned to Rance. “It seems he’s in love with Elsa and approached her father to ask if he could court her and he was refused—several times. He followed her to America from Russia in order to make her his wife. Her father wants her to marry a rich man, and so he chose you over him. He’d felt hurt and angry. He came here to apply for the job to be near her, hoping for a chance to speak to her, but she spurned his every advance. The one day she’d allowed him to speak, he’d tried to force a kiss from her and Manny caught him. He ran away, and after that hasn’t been back until today. He had to find out if she was happy. If she were unhappy, he’d try again to persuade her go back to Russia with him.”

  “Ask him if he took a shot at me on Sunday,” Rance said.

  Clara relayed the question.

  Rance watched Emil's face for a react
ion and a sincerely surprised look crossed his face. His eyes widened and he looked scared. He gave Clara an answer using a lot of hand gestures.

  Clara told Rance, “He's never owned a gun in his life. He had no reason to shoot you if Elsa was happy with you, and she’d told him she was.”

  “Whatever you do, don’t tell him she’s left me‒please.” Rance stood. “Tell him he may go, but he is never to come back or he’ll be arrested.”

  Clara told him and then walked him from the stable.

  Rance ran his hand through his hair. If it hadn't been Emil, who had shot at him and why? Who else but Elsa had anything to gain? He closed his eyes and imagined what Elsa would do if he'd died. He slapped the desk with his hand. Her family—at least, her father—he’d bully her and take everything. Her father had shot at him, he knew it. Could that be why she’d left him? Either she was in on it, or she’d thought that by leaving she’d be protecting him. But which was it?

  Elsa and Alois sat before Judd Banner, one of two lawyers in Hays.

  “How may I help you, miss?”

  Elsa had relayed everything to Alois before they'd arrived, so he did the talking.

  “Mrs. Balcomb, would like to know if her husband Rance, changed his will right after he married.”

  “Yes, he did, and that’s about all I can say,” the lawyer said.

  Alois asked, “Has he changed it again, recently?”

  “No,” Banner said.

  Alois told Elsa this and she frowned. She needed Rance to change it. He had to or else his life would be in danger. If he changed it, she’d make sure her father knew he had nothing to gain by killing Rance. She thanked the lawyer and left his office, leaving his fee on the desk.

  Elsa missed Rance, Clara, and her English lessons. Where else could she learn English? If she were to survive in Kansas she needed to speak the language. Who in Victoria spoke English? Then she remembered: Lydia Grandville! Lydia and Geoffrey were the only English- speaking farmers left in Victoria.