Beneath a Dakota Cross (17 page)

“About like this one,” Louise broke in.

“ . . . late in the afternoon,” Dacee June continued.

Thelma tried to brush her mostly blonde, curly hair out of her eyes. “And you'll never guess who was waiting for us in the rocks.”

“A gang of holdup men?” Brazos offered.

“My, how did you know?”

“It's an old trick,” Brazos said.

“So they robbed us of all our valuables,” Dacee June reported.

“Not exactly all our valuables!” Thelma raised her eyebrows. “A woman has a few places to hide most of her wealth.”

“And some have more hiding places than others,” Louise chided.

“Anyway, they took Mamma's rings, Daddy.” Dacee began to sniffle.

“It's all right, darlin',” Brazos comforted her. “They left you alone, right?”

Dacee June nodded her head in his chest.

“They took two gold eagles from me and the same from Thelma,” Louise reported. “But I think Miss Milan lost almost one hundred dollars.”

“Then they told us to go back to Fort Pierre and be happy
they
robbed us, instead of the Sioux. Then they rode off.”

“Which direction?” he asked.

“To the west, I think,” Dacee June informed.

“What about the Indians?”

Dacee June stood and turned her back to the fire. “That was this morning,” she reported. “It was so late by the time they rode out of sight, we camped at some rocks for the night and slept under the buckboard.”

“Some slept,” Louise reported. “I didn't.”

Dacee June waltzed around the fire as she talked. “Miss Milan knows a lot about horses, and she hitched the team the next morning and volunteered to drive us back.”

“But it was extremely cold and raining this morning,” Thelma added, “and we were disoriented.”

“So I said we should just keep on a straight course until we hit a river, then follow it downstream to the Missouri,” Dacee June explained.

“Which we did. But by then it was raining hard so we stopped and built a fire.” Louise let the cape hood drop off her straight, black hair. “That's when the Indians rode up.”

“They wanted us to feed them,” Dacee June declared. “But we didn't have anything to eat.”

“They became quite indignant,” Louise added. “They said they would take us back to their camp peacefully or they would scalp us.”

“But they were easy to read,” Dacee June replied. “They weren't going to scalp us.”

“I must honestly report that only Dacee June believed that,” Thelma declared.

“Yes,” Louise bubbled, “then your dear Dacee June showed her true colors and saved us all.”

“What did she do?” Brazos challenged.

“She threatened to shoot us,” Thelma announced.

“What?” he gasped.

“She grabbed her shotgun and said if the Indians came any closer she would shoot Jamie Sue, Thelma, and myself,” Louise explained. “She was quite convincing.”

“You were going to shoot them?”

“I hoped I didn't have to do it. Anyway, they took our horses and rode off mumbling about a bunch of crazy women.”

“Is it true they leave crazy women alone?” Thelma asked.

“Doesn't everyone?” Brazos countered.

“Yes, quite right,” Louise nodded.

“So we picked up our satchels and decided to hike back to Fort Pierre.”

“But,” Louise continued, “when it started to snow we sought some protection in a shallow cave back in these rocks.”

“And that's when you came along!” Dacee June triumphed.

“Except we thought it might be that rascal, Luke John Jamison,” Thelma said.

“So, Jamie Sue clobbered the first rider?”

Louise's smile was wide and easy. “Precisely.”

Brazos pulled off his hat and shook the melted snow out of his hair. “Well, the Lord's been mighty good to you gals.”

“Good?” Louise choked. “We've been robbed twice and left to die on the prairie!”

“But you weren't beaten, shot, stabbed, assaulted, raped, scalped, or killed,” he reminded them.

“Yes, that does give it some perspective,” Thelma mused.

Brazos and the ladies spent the next half hour rotating their position around the fire, drying out their clothing. Then Dacee June climbed the highest rock and shouted. “Here comes the buckboard.”

“Are they both in it?” Brazos called.

“Yes.”

“Good. That means one of 'em didn't kill the other.”

“They are sitting on the same seat,” Dacee June called out.

Brazos hiked over to where she was perched. “That's good.”

“Close together.”

“How close?” Thelma questioned.

“Real close,” Dacee June exclaimed, jumping down from the rock into her father's arms.

That's not good.
Brazos's mind flashed to Grass Edwards and his folded handbill written by his ‘sweet' Jamie Sue.
That's not good at all.

When the excitement of the reunion on the prairie finally subsided, it was determined since everyone was tired, cold, grouchy, and hungry, they would head back toward Fort Pierre and keep going no matter how late it was when they arrived.

Because neither saddle horse enjoyed being under a harness, Robert volunteered to straddle the lead horse and keep him honest. Brazos drove the rig, Dacee June hovered at his side, Jamie Sue Milan next to her. In the middle seat, under every available blanket and bedroll, were the March sisters.

The sky never cleared completely, but the scattered clouds sailed across without losing any precipitation. About dark, the sky cleared and the air cooled. Brazos drove on a northeast angle until they cut across the main trail east out of Fort Pierre. It was the route patrolled by the army, the one they all had avoided when they left town. But the troops were not about to halt people coming into Fort Pierre from the west, only those who tried to exit that way.

The muddy road was frozen by the time they reached it. The wagon rolled along without nearly as much effort as earlier in the day. Sometime before midnight, Brazos stopped the buckboard in a rocky campsite, and they built a fire.

Brazos, Dacee June, Robert, and Jamie Sue huddled around the billowing white smoke and blazing red flames.

The March sisters refused to leave their wool blanket cocoon in the wagon.

“The horses are mindin' better now that we're on the road to town. You better come back and crawl under some blankets so you don't up and freeze,” Brazos cautioned his youngest son.

“Yes,” Jamie Sue encouraged, “we have plenty of blankets.”

“I don't want to disturb the sisters,” Robert shrugged.

“No,” Jamie Sue continued, “I mean in the front seat. We can make room for another, can't we, Dacee June?”

Dacee June leaned on her father's shoulder, his arm around her. “Sure, but it will be kind of crowded,” she said.

“That's how we can warm up . . . sitting close like that.” Jamie Sue scooted over to Robert and flopped a corner of her blanket around his shoulders.

Brazos sipped his coffee and studied the slightly embarrassed grin on young Fortune's face, then glanced at Jamie Sue. She said something to Robert that Brazos couldn't hear over the crackling of the campfire.

That Jamie Sue is not exactly a shy girl. Robert's always been hesitant around the women. Not like Samuel. He's not even like Todd. Robert's been too busy. There was studies, and training horses, and then the cavalry. I always figured him to marry some general's daughter.

She's a cute girl. Black hair, brown eyes, full eyebrows, large, almost pouting lips. She'll turn heads in any western town. In Deadwood, she'd be elected queen!

But I don't know anything about her.

What's her background? What's her family like? Her brother is a scoundrel . . . what about her? Where's her faith?

The boys know what my standards are.

And Robert's the one who wouldn't vary from those standards, no matter what.

I think.

She is awful cute.

They make a handsome couple. With his discipline, her outgoing nature . . . he could be Governor some day. The Honorable Robert S. Fortune, Governor of Dakota, and his lovely wife Jamie Sue.

Talk about handsome grandchildren. If they looked like mamma and daddy, they'd be stunning.

Of course, they could always turn out to look like their grandpa. Poor things. Lord, it might be better if they didn't look like me.

Brazos realized that he had been staring into an empty coffee cup.

Sarah Ruth, look at me. I've only known this girl for a few hours, and I'm marrying them off already. I sound just like you. When Robert was six years old you had him paired up with that neighbor girl . . . what was her name? Natalie . . . or Naomi . . . or was it Odelia? You know, the one with bright red hair who punched Robert in the nose and made it bleed when he was too embarrassed to dance with her?

I remember you said that some day, he would regret . . .

Brazos set his coffee cup down and gave the dozing Dacee June another hug. He could feel tears flood the corners of his eyes.

Lord, how I miss you Sarah Ruth.

But I've got my girl back. I thought I might have lost her.

For a while this morning, I thought I was losing everything.

They arrived in Fort Pierre just before daylight and convinced the owner of the Wild Goose Cafe to open a little early for breakfast. The conversation around the table started lively as they repeated to each other the exploits and adventure of the previous day.

Brazos gave them all a report from Deadwood City.

By the time they had stuffed themselves on sausage, ham, biscuits, grits, bacon, eggs, coffee, hot chocolate, and dried figs, and allowed the heat of the cafe to warm their bones, the entire gang looked drowsy.

A party of about a dozen men vacated their rooms at the Muddy River Hotel about daylight to take a small boat upstream. That allowed them to find two hotel rooms at 8:00 A.M. in a crowded town. Brazos, Robert, and Dacee June shared one room. The March sisters and Jamie Sue took the other.

Lying three to a bed, with Dacee June in the middle, Brazos did not intend to sleep. He lay down on top of the comforter just to rest.

The sun was low on the cold, western Dakota horizon, and Brazos was alone on the bed when he finally opened his eyes. He was surprised that his back did not ache. Nor did his legs cramp. Nor did his neck stiffen. Only his wrists throbbed a little.

He searched the room with his eyes to locate his Sharps carbine. He tried to remember where he was.

He suddenly found himself staring into two blue eyes and a soft, wide smile from a young girl sitting on a chair next to the bed.

“Hi, Daddy! You've been sleeping!”

He swung his legs out of bed, his socked feet hitting the hardwood floor with a thud. “Darlin', I reckon that was the best night's sleep I've had since I left Texas.”

“Day,” she corrected. “It's daytime, remember?”

He opened his arms and she hopped into his lap, giving him a hug. “You mean to tell me all of that out on the frozen prairie was true? I was hopin' it was just a bad dream.”

“The March sisters said it was the most exciting adventure of their entire lives.”

“Have you seen Mrs. Speaker and Mrs. Driver since we came to the hotel?”

“Oh, yes, we all had lunch together.”

“When?”

“About two hours ago.”

“Two hours? What time is it?”

“Almost 4:00 P.M.”

“In the afternoon?”

Dacee June pushed away and strolled around the room, her long, yellow dress only inches above the floor. Her neatly combed light brown hair flowed out behind her and halfway down her back. “Daddy, how many 4:00 P.M.'s are there?” she giggled.

“Who had lunch?”

“Me, the March sisters, Robert, and Miss Milan.”

“And you left me here to sleep?”

“Robert tried to wake you up, but he couldn't. Is it true that you need more sleep when you get old?”

“Who told you that?” he quizzed.

“Louise Driver.”

“I wouldn't have any idea,” he huffed. “I'll tell you in twenty years.” Brazos strolled over to a small basin of mostly clean water and splashed some on his face. “Did you see Mr. Edwards?”

“No, but Robert and Jamie Sue went looking for him.”

Brazos spun around, water dripping from his beard. “They did? Why?”

“Because you said Mr. Edwards had some information about Jamie Sue's brother.”

“Oh, yes . . . but I . . . well, I needed to talk to Grass before they . . . I mean, maybe I should go for a little hike and see if I can find them.” Brazos sat on the edge of the bed and tugged on his boots. “You wait here, darlin', and I'll go see if I can . . .”

“I'm coming with you,” Dacee June announced.

“This is a busy place, and you ought to . . .”

“Daddy, I'm not letting you out of my sight.”

“Now, li'l sis, I want you to . . .”

“Daddy, I just spent the past three weeks thinking I might never see you again in my whole life. Please, Daddy, I don't want to sit in this room alone.”

Brazos jammed his hat on his head. “You're right. Come on.” He snatched up his carbine, propped against the head of the bed. “From now on, it's you and me.”

Dacee June sprinted across the room and grabbed her cloak.

“Now, girl, you know it's sort of a man's world up here in Dakota. In order for you to make it, you'll have to pack a gun and shoot straight. I expect you'll be wantin' to chew tobacco. Make sure you hit the spittoon and not the floor.”

“Daddy!” she squealed, then slipped her warm hand in his. “I'll do none of that and you know it!” They strolled out of the room into the hotel hallway. “But I did learn some very interesting words on the riverboat!”