Carla Kelly
Authors: Enduring Light
© 2012 Carla Kelly
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form whatsoever, whether by graphic, visual, electronic, film, microfilm, tape recording, or any other means, without prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief passages embodied in critical reviews and articles.
This is a work of fiction. The characters, names, incidents, places, and dialogue are products of the author's imagination and are not to be construed as real. The views expressed within this work are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Cedar Fort, Inc., or any other entity.
ISBN 13: 978-1-59955-984-1
Published by Bonneville Books, an imprint of Cedar Fort, Inc.
2373 W. 700 S., Springville, UT, 84663
Distributed by Cedar Fort, Inc.,
www.cedarfort.com
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
Kelly, Carla, author.
Enduring light / Carla Kelly.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary: A newlywed couple struggles with the hardships of maintaining a ranch in Wyoming in the early 1900s.
ISBN 978-1-59955-984-1 (alk. paper)
1. Mormons--Wyoming--Fiction. 2. Ranching--Wyoming--Fiction. 3. Domestic fiction. I. Title.
PS3561.E3928E53 2012
813’.54--dc23
2011040691
Cover design by Angela D. Olsen
Cover design © 2012 by Lyle Mortimer
Edited and typeset by Melissa J. Caldwell
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Contents
Part One
Part Two
O
THER BOOKS BY
C
ARLA
K
ELLY
F
ICTION
Daughter of Fortune
Summer Campaign
Miss Chartley's Guided Tour
Marian's Christmas Wish
Mrs. McVinnie's London Season
Libby's London Merchant
Miss Grimsley's Oxford Career
Miss Billings Treads the Boards
Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand
Reforming Lord Ragsdale
Miss Whittier Makes a List
The Lady's Companion
With This Ring
Miss Milton Speaks Her Mind
One Good Turn
The Wedding Journey
Here's to the Ladies: Stories of the Frontier Army
Beau Crusoe
Marrying the Captain
The Surgeon's Lady
Marrying the Royal Marine
The Admiral's Penniless Bride
Borrowed Light
Coming Home for Christmas: Three Holiday Stories
N
ON-FICTION
On the Upper Missouri: The Journal of Rudolph Friedrich Kurz
Fort Buford: Sentinel at the Confluence
Julia Darling decided after one week at home in Salt Lake City that she preferred her newspaper-covered walls on the Double Tipi. That first night—after the neighbors, the bishop, and the doctor had finally left her in peace—she had closed her eyes in utter exhaustion and wished herself back on the ranch, or even in Cheyenne, just holding Paul Otto's hand.
The reality that he was far away and the ranch house burned to ashes only made her weep. She tried to be quiet, but her tears brought Papa to her side, who sat on her bed and asked so gently, “Where does it hurt, honey?”
It's my heart
, she wanted to tell him.
It's breaking because Paul is so far away
. All she could do was turn away and make herself as small as she could, almost as though she were trying to crowd herself back into the puny protection of the cut bank, where she had prayed so hard and waited out the firestorm. She stared at her calendar: September 22, 1910. Had the fire only been one week ago? Why did she feel so old?
Mama understood. She came in the room next and knelt beside her bed. “It's not your shoulder, is it?” Mama had said.
“I need Paul,” was all Julia could say.
She started to cough, and Mama carefully wiped away the ash that the doctor had said Julia would be coughing up for a few more days. She heard her parents whispering together, and then Papa left the room. Mama climbed in bed with her, much as Julia had comforted her last Christmas, after Iris's death.
“I know you need him,” she agreed. “I would too if I were you.”
Julia's hand went to her closely cropped hair. “Except I'm a freak.”
She felt Mama's chuckle rather than heard it. “That's a bit dramatic, my dearest! The rest of your hair was just too burned and brittle, or I wouldn't have cut it so close. It'll grow back, sooner than you think.”
Julia felt the pressure of Mama's arms, gentle around her shoulder. “We nearly lost you.” Mama's voice faltered. “I can't bring myself to think about it.” She kissed her. “Just rest now. You're home and safe. Paul will keep.”
Mama stayed with Julia until she pretended to sleep, then kissed her again, and left the room. When Julia heard her footsteps fade down the hall, she turned onto her back, gritting her teeth from the dull throb in her shoulder. She touched her fingers to her neck, wincing at the pain from the burn. Her hand moved lower to her breast and then to her ribs, where the burn finally stopped. Too bad she couldn't have crowded her whole body into the cut bank. She closed her eyes against the memory of the flaming branch crashing on her.
She sighed and opened her eyes to stare at the ceiling. “Paul, what must you think of me now?” she asked herself.