“Where are you gonna stay?”
“I’ll go to a hotel.” She saw a puzzled look wash over the man’s face. “There isn’t a hotel, is there?”
“No ma’am. You a relative of the Hartmans? You kin?”
“Not really. I’m actually here to marry Frank Hartman.”
Max’s eyes flew open wide. “God’s honest truth?” Ellie nodded. “Well, then,” he said putting his hat on top of his head and standing. “I’ll just take you out there myself. Flat River ain’t had any excitement since Randall went after Weston.”
“What do you mean excitement?”
Max gave a chuckle as he opened the door. “Just wait until you meet Ma Hartman.”
Ellie felt her face grow hot as the Hartman family congregated on the porch to look at her. Frank wasn’t kidding. He did have four older brothers. If Frank was anything like them, he surely must be one of the most handsome men in the world.
Ellie could tell who was the oldest as he stood there with his arms crossed looking down at her. He had dark hair and even darker eyes. Whitney was the youngest, so he was easy to pick out. The other two – she wasn’t sure who was who. Both were lean and very muscular. Very, very muscular.
Behind them stood a man and a young girl, probably no more than nineteen. She had a dirty face and her hair was dull from the dirt blowing in the air.
Ellie assumed the man was Mr. Hartman. He was dressed in a pair of dirty overalls and was barefoot. He wouldn’t even make eye contact. But Ma Hartman… Oh, Ma Hartman was something else.
She was a petite woman, at least two heads shorter than her husband and sons. Her graying hair was pulled tight into a bun, which gave her eyes an almond shape. Her jaw was clenched, and she exhaled loudly through pursed lips. If Ellie was any closer, she thought she could count the individual wrinkles around Ma Hartman’s mouth. Finally, Ma Hartman spoke, breaking the awkward silence that filled the air once Max introduced Ellie to the family.
“You the hussy that filled my Frank’s head with all that nonsense?”
“Ma…,” one of the boys said, placing his hand on her arm. Ma Hartman shrugged off his arm.
“Answer me, girlie. Did you fill my Frank’s head with nonsense about getting married and moving away?”
“I – I – I -” Ellie couldn’t respond. She took a deep breath trying to think of something to say that might endear her to this family that was most certainly fuming. “Frank put an advertisement in the paper looking for a wife. I responded. We’ve been corresponding for over a year.”
“Lies! It’s all lies.”
Ellie noticed the brother in the back. He had moved to lean against the wall as if he was responsible for keeping the house steady. He wore a loose cotton shirt tucked into a pair of rough woven dark colored pants. He was looking at her with a pained expression on his face. Perhaps she might have better luck appealing to him.
“I swear it is true,” Ellie said. “I have the letters in my bag if you want me to get them. May I get them, Chatten?”
“How do you know his name?” one of the other men asked.
“Shut your mouth, Rex,” Chat said moving forward. “She probably knows all of our names if Frank was writing to her.” He turned to stand in front of Ellie and stabbed the air in her direction. “No one calls me Chatten. No one. Got it?”
“I do. I mean I do know all of your names.” Ellie took a step back. She felt ridiculously small and frightened as he towered over her. “You’re Chet… I mean Chat.” She turned to the younger man and woman on the side of the porch and pointed to each as she identified them by name. “You’re Annamae. You are Whitney.”
“Whit,” the man said, sticking his thumbs in his pockets and tapping his fingers against his pants. Ellie swallowed and nodded. “Alright. Whit. Then you must be Rex,” she said pointing to the brother Chat addressed. “And that leaves Baxter. Frank told me all about you. He even mentioned your sister that passed.”
“We ain’t got no other daughter but Annamae.”
“What’s our dog’s name?” Baxter said moving forward.
“Excuse me?”
“If Frank was to tellin’ you all about us, what’s our dog’s name.”
Ellie scanned her memories to recall what Frank said in the letter. She took a deep breath and smiled. “Buckshot.”
Baxter nodded and moved back, closer to his mother. “Well, Frank ain’t here.”
“He’s not?” Ellie blinked rapidly.
“Been gone for a few days on account of you,” Ma Hartman said, shaking her finger at Ellie. “You go and get off my property.”
“I have nowhere to go. Frank said…”
“T’ain’t my problem. He ran off after he told us you were comin’.”
“So, you do know about me.”
The sound of hooves interrupted their conversation as two men raced across the field and stopped right before the porch. Ellie caught her breath as she recognized the man that brushed by her in town.
Ma Hartman stepped off her porch and moved in front of the man with the star on his vest. “Marshal Briggs, you get this trollop off my land right now.”
“Who is she?” Orrin asked.
Ellie stepped forward. “I am here to marry Frank. He didn’t meet me in town.” She threw a glance at the man she had seen earlier. “Max was kind enough to bring me out here. These folks say Frank isn’t here. Do you know where he is, Marshal?”
Orrin walked closer to the porch and took off his hat, looking down at Ma.
“Mrs. Hartman,” the lawman said, twisting his hat in his hands. “I don’t know how to say this.”
“Just spit it out,” Ma hissed. “Then you can get her outta here.”
The marshal paused. Ellie saw his eyes scan every member of the Hartman family before returning to Ma. He released a sigh. “Ma, Frank is dead. Appears he drowned in the river. I am so sorry.”
Ellie watched the older woman fall to the ground and put her face in her hands and sob. Ellie didn’t know what to do. Should she try to console Frank’s mother? As she moved forward, Frank’s father stepped in between her and his wife.
“I think you should go,” he said softly, but the veiled threat could be heard.
“T’ain’t nowhere to take her, Randall,” Max said, moving up behind them.
“Take her to Miss Marcy’s for all I care. I’m sure that strumpet will have a room for the likes of her.”
The air felt thick. Ellie put two fingers beneath her collar trying to stretch it so she could breathe. The ground was starting to spin. Frank was dead. She came all this way and her intended was dead.
She heard the talking in the background, but the words made no sense. Frank. Drowning. Saddle. Bank. She wanted to retch. Instead, she closed her eyes and allowed the darkness to consume her.
Chapter Seven
Owen watched as the woman he saw earlier in town fell to the ground. He jumped off his horse and ran to her.
He wanted to make sure she hadn’t hurt herself in the fall, but her hat appeared glued to her head. He lifted the brim up to see if she would open her eyes.
“Miss?”
She didn’t respond. He wondered what relation she was to the Hartmans. His eyes scanned over her face. She had porcelain skin, which told him she had never been in the sun. There was a smattering of freckles over her nose. Angel kisses, Marmee would call them.
He called to her once more. The Hartman boys began to gather around. Owen tugged on the hat. It must be secured with a pin. He felt around until he found a pearl hatpin embedded into the fabric of the hat.
After he removed the pin, he gave her hat another tug. It was looser now, but still not free. Fumbling with her hat, he found three more and removed them, tossing them on the ground. He gently removed her hat and used it to cradle her head. Who wore four hatpins? he thought.
Owen ran his fingers over the back of her head before lowering her back to the ground. “Doesn’t appear she did anything more than faint,” Owen
said. A shadow fell over him, he looked up to see Chat leaning forward.
“Why are you here, Chapman?” Chat said through clenched teeth.
Owen smirked. “I thought it only fitting, given you paid an unexpected visit to my home earlier this week.” Owen looked at Ma, who wailed louder.
“My boy,” she cried. “My boy.”
Ma Hartman held her knees and rocked back and forth. The sound was like a knife to Owen’s chest. He remembered Marmee reacting the same way when word of Michael’s death reached Flat River.
“Stop it, Chat,” the marshal said, stepping closer to Ma. “He was the one that came to get me.”
“Get you? Why would he need to get you?”
“Frank was found in the river that goes through the south field.”
Owen saw the man he didn’t recognize when the Hartmans’ visited the ranch earlier in the week, move closer, clenching and unclenching his fists. “It was probably one of those blasted Chapmans or their ranch hands that killed him.”
Owen jumped to his feet. “I don’t know who you are, so you better be careful with your words, mister.”
“Frank was my brother.” Owen’s eyes flew open wide. He didn’t know there was a fifth brother. The man’s eyes thinned as he looked at Owen. “I’ve heard enough about you Chapmans to know that if my kin have a problem, I have a problem.”
“Why you…”
Baxter moved between this new brother and Owen. “Whit. Settle,” Baxter said waving his hand as if he was addressing a dog. “So, which one of you did it? We should string you up from the nearest tree.”
Owen reached his arm back to connect his fist with Baxter’s jaw. “I told you my brothers did no such thing.” He felt Orrin tug on his arm. Annamae screamed and ran inside the house, slamming the door behind her.
“How do we know that?” Baxter spat on the ground, it just missing the toe of Owen’s boot.
“We have no argument with you. We were just kids.” Owen gave a pointed look to Randall. “Weren’t we?”
“You were enough of a man,” Randall said through clenched teeth. “You knew better.”
Before Owen could respond, Randall scooped up his sobbing wife. He kicked the door and disappeared into the house. The sound of sobs could still be heard on the porch.
Owen turned back to the brothers. He tried to put the words Randall said out of his mind. He’d have to ask his father about it later. “When you visited earlier this week, you said something about Frank leaving in a hurry. What happened?”
“T’ain’t none of your business,” Rex said. Owen noticed he sent a glare to the woman on the hard ground.
“Did it have something to do with her?”
Rex moved forward, and Orrin moved between Owen and Rex.
“Stop it, you two.” Orrin turned to the Hartman brothers. “Your brother’s body was found in the river. We’ve not located his saddle yet, so it was probably some vagrant or he fell into the water. He was found at the south portion of the ranch, so he probably fell in further north. I’ll start a search in the morning.”
“What time?” Rex asked. “We want to join you.” He glared at Owen. “Will they let us up there to look?”
“I will talk to Weston Chapman and escort you on the property. There isn’t anything we can do tonight. Take care of your Ma and try to console her. I’ll be back at sunup.”
“What about the girl?” Chat asked.
Orrin scratched his head. “Yeah. The girl. I don’t rightly know, but we’ll figure it out. You boys go take care of your ma.”
Owen watched as the Hartmans retreated into their house. When the door closed, Owen turned to Max.
“You brought her out?” Max nodded. “Is that her luggage in there?”
“Yes. Brought it from the stage drop.”
Owen turned to the marshal. “What are you thinking?”
The Marshal rubbed his neck. “It’s gonna get dark soon. I can go around and see if there is a family that can take her in until the next stage comes through. Stages only run twice a month unless there is a need. Guess I could send a telegram.”
“You know if Marmee were to hear about this she’d have my hide. Might as well take her there.”
The marshal looked at Owen. “You sure?”
“She’s used to Marianne and Alice bringing home strays and lost folks. I might as well bring home one too.”
Owen scooped up the woman and pulled her close to him. She didn’t weigh more than a newborn colt. The scent of flowers filled his nose and he wanted to bury his head in her curls as he held her.
He walked her to the back of the wagon where her trunk sat. It appeared she was planning on staying a while with a trunk that size. The door opened again, and Chat slipped out.
“I brought a blanket,” he said softly, handing it to Max. “She traveled quite a distance; it appears. No need for her to be uncomfortable in the back of the wagon.
Max laid the blanket down and Owen placed the lovely lady on top of it.
“Thanks. Do you know her name?” Owen asked. At one time he and Chat were close friends. He missed those days when he, Oliver, and Chat would race up onto Mustang Hill and play cowboys.
“I remember Frank saying, Elenore.”
Owen had many more questions, but he didn’t think this was the time to ask. He gave Chat a curt nod. “Thanks for the blanket. I’ll make sure it gets back. Max, just head over to the house and I’ll be right behind you.”
Max climbed into the wagon and flicked the reins. The horses jolted and pulled the wagon forward.
“Don’t judge Ma too harshly,” Chat said.
“She threw a young woman out in the streets, Hartman. I don’t know how I’m not supposed to feel harsh about that.”
“She didn’t react well when Frank told her he had sent for a wife. I think it came as such a shock, she said some things she shouldn’t have.”
Owen looked down the flat grassland towards his own home. Finally, he turned his eyes back to Chat. “That’s why Frank left, wasn’t it? It wasn’t to look for horses. It was to get away from this.” Owen lifted his chin towards the house.
“Ma told him to send her back, but by that time it was too late.”
“Bitterness is an evil root, Hartman,” Owen said softly. “It tears you apart from the inside. ‘Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.’ I pray for you to find some peace.”
“You too, Chapman.”
Owen didn’t respond. He strode over to Winchester and quickly mounted him, yanking the reins to turn the horse towards home.
Owen looked at the young woman sobbing on the couch. As soon as he brought her in, Marmee whisked the hysterical woman into the sitting room. The woman couldn’t speak, so Owen tried to fill in as many details as he could.
“The only thing I know is her name is Elenore and she came here to marry Frank Hartman.” Owen ran his fingers through his hair. It was getting longer. Perhaps Penny could cut it before she left to return to Denver and her husband.
“Oh, my land,” Marmee said, taking Elenore in her arms and rubbing her back. “What a terrible ordeal.”
Owen watched the young woman sob as Marmee tried to console her. His brothers were extremely interested in finding out about Elenore when Max arrived with her in the wagon. He had never seen them move as quickly as they did to help her into the house and unload her trunks from the wagon.
Owen pinched the bridge of his nose. He needed to check on the horses and close the barn for the night. It wouldn’t do to have coyotes spook the horses, or a hungry cougar come down in search of an easy meal. The entire afternoon had been spent dealing with Frank. And now this.
He looked at Elenore clinging to Marmee’s arm. He wasn’t any good at consoling a woman. He could barely handle his sisters when they got upset over something.
He looked around, but it appeared his brothers had quickly vacated the room w
hen the crying started. Thinking of his horses, Owen turned to follow.
“Don’t leave,” Marmee demanded, pointing to a vacant chair.
“I need to go…”
“You are the only one she knows. Now sit.”
Owen paused and looked at his mother. Her lips were pursed, and her curls bobbed from underneath her cap. When she demanded something, everyone listened. There was going to be no break for him.
“I’ll be right back,” he said. He went to the door and gave a sharp whistle, followed by two short ones. Oliver poked his head around the corner. “Can you and Everett water the horses and make sure they are set for the night?”
Oliver shrugged. “I guess so. What are you doing?”
Owen flicked his head toward the room. He watched Oliver make a silent “O” with his mouth and then turn away. He heard his brother call for Everett and the door opened, slamming as his brothers headed out.
As he turned back into the room he nearly fell to the floor, his feet tripping underneath him as Penny and Alice pushed him into the room to see their visitor.
“Caleb told us that a woman claiming to be Frank’s fiancé is here,” Penny said sitting in the chair before Owen had a chance to sit down. At Penny’s words, the woman cried harder.
“Shhh, shhh, now,” Marmee said patting Elenore’s hair. “She’s been through a terrible ordeal.”
Alice snorted. “Not as bad as old Frank.” Elenore wailed louder.
“Alice Louise Chapman!” Marmee said. “You stop that right now.” Alice had the grace to look sheepish. “Go make a pot of tea.”
“But Penelope…”
“I asked you, Alice.” Marmee leaned Elenore back, as Alice huffed out of the room. “We’ll have some tea and a chat. You must be exhausted from all that traveling.” Elenore nodded. “Owen,” Marmee called.
Owen dug into his pocket and produced a handkerchief. It wasn’t much, but it was the only thing he had to offer. He handed it to Elenore, and she blew her nose.
“Thank you,” she said softly, crumpling the cloth in her hand.
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