One True Love (17 page)

The horse slowed and Willow turned to look back. “What's wrong?”

“Henry Martin is trying to catch us.” The women waited until the man caught up.

When he rode alongside he was grinning ear to ear. “Thank goodness I finally caught your attention.”

“What's wrong?”

He waved a letter in Copper's face. “This just came!”

Her heart shot to her throat. She snatched the envelope, her eye going to the return address.
Adele.

“Is it from Josh?” Copper asked.

“No. Adele.” She ripped into the letter and began to read.

Josh took off for Dallas practically the minute we rolled into town.
The words stood out on the page as though they were made of fire.

“What does it say? How come they haven't written? Is Josh okay?”

Wadding the letter into a tight ball, Copper threw it aside. “They're there. Everyone's fine. Josh took off for Dallas almost the moment they got there.”

A hush fell over the group. Finally Henry spoke. “Well, guess that means he'll be coming back real soon.”

Copper turned away. “Don't get your hopes up.”

 

The surrey rolled into Beeder's Cove around the noon hour. The children were playing behind the small house that had
been turned into a temporary school, dressed in coats and mittens, kicking a ball around the yard.

Helping Copper out of the buggy, Willow smiled. “Does your heart good, doesn't it, to see all these young children at play.” She sighed. “How I miss the schoolroom.”

“I share your feelings. Now that everything is back to normal, I plan to start Thunder Ridge classes next week,” Audrey said. She turned to Willow. “Are you sure you won't change your mind and decide to step back into the position? The job is really yours, and I'm certain I can secure work in Blackberry Hill, if need be.”

Willow's clear laugh rang out. “I am most certain. Tucker wants children just as soon as I gain enough strength to be a mother. I can hardly teach and take care of a new baby at the same time.”

“Well.” Audrey worried her lower lip. “Eli would like children soon once we marry.” The women turned to focus on Copper.

She shook her head. “I told you. I don't have any plans.”

“But you must,” Audrey accused. “You can't just shrivel up and die. Josh will come back, and if he doesn't…” She glanced at Willow. “The Lord has something or
someone
better in store for you.” Audrey's tone held the first hint of disapproval.

“Please. This was supposed to be a heartening outing.” Copper limped ahead of her friends and maneuvered the two wooden steps leading into the temporary schoolhouse. A young woman turned her head as the front door opened and Copper entered, trailed by Willow and Audrey.

Laying an apple aside, Carrie Wyman sat at the desk, smiling. “May I help you?”

Introductions followed and the teacher seemed delighted to finally meet the “wonderful Miss Wilson” that the children had been asking about so often.

Copper's eyes roamed the room. The last time she'd been here the building had been an empty house. “I suppose they'll rebuild the schoolhouse?”

Carrie turned to trace her gaze. “Yes, I believe they plan to start work this summer.” She turned back to face Copper. “You are as lovely as the children said you were. I trust your injury is healing properly?”

“Thank you. The ankle is healing.” Moving past the new teacher, Copper stepped over to read the writing on the chalkboard, leaving Audrey and Willow to explain. She'd told the story so many times she couldn't bear to repeat it. She was crippled. End of subject.

The women spoke in hushed, benevolent tones and Copper blocked out their voices. Her eyes skimmed the arithmetic problems written in chalk. One child thought 4 + 1 made 6. Carrie Wyman looked young, maybe sixteen, seventeen. She was fresh and bubbly, everything Copper wasn't. At the moment Copper felt as old as Asa Jeeters, who'd helped fight off the Yankees in Timber Creek. To his credit, Asa had gone down fighting; Copper had gone down like a wounded hummingbird.

Carrie checked her timepiece, excused herself, and stepped outside to ring the bell. Children poured into the schoolhouse. When Mackey and Emily spotted Copper, the two former pupils rushed into her arms.

She held the small, cold bodies close, drinking in the scent of fresh air and the unique smell of little boys and girls.

“We miss you, Miss Wilson.” Mackey stood back, grinning.
“Look!” He displayed a mouth with a multitude of missing teeth.

“You've lost your front teeth, Mackey!”

“Yes, ma'am. And this one”—he bent closer—“and this one and this one.”

“My goodness. Aren't you the fortunate one?”

“Yes, ma'am.” The child beamed. “Only it's going to be real tough eating corn on the cob if they don't come back in.”

Others gathered around and Copper caught up on their lives since the fire. Every child wanted a personal look at the injured ankle, and Copper obediently held her right boot up for inspection. “There's nothing to see with my boot on, only a little swelling.”

“Oh.” Little Stella frowned. “Does it hurt?”

“Not anymore.” Copper smiled. “I'll be just fine, Stella. Are you keeping up on your reading?”

“Uh-huh.” The child grinned. “I've read three books since school started.”

“Very good. I'm proud of you.” She patted the child and then impulsively drew her close for a protective hug. If only she could shield these children from life's uncertainties. Copper realized what she must do. She missed this part of her life, missed it so badly. She must leave for a while, gain a new perspective about her life. Perhaps the thought had been buried in her mind before this moment, but now it was clear. Somehow holding Stella helped her focus through all the anger, confusion, and disappointment that had been rolling around in her mind. From somewhere came a resolve she didn't know she had. No matter how much she'd like to bury her head in the sand, she knew she couldn't do it. She still had feelings. She didn't necessarily want them or like them,
but nature had a way of overcoming reluctance, and as much as she denied it, she still loved teaching. Still ached with disappointment over Josh and her injury, but still reveled in the warmth of a child's embrace. Perhaps her life wasn't over; altered to be certain, different from her expectations, but not over. In time she could make a new life. While Audrey and Willow had babies and kept houses for their doting husbands, she could be the best “auntie” in the whole world.

Rising, she released Stella. “May I have a brief word with you, Miss Wyman?”

“Certainly.” Carrie turned to address the class. “I shall allow talking, but no hitting or shouting.”

Stepping outside and pulling the door closed behind her, the young schoolteacher wrapped her shawl tighter against a north wind. “You wished to speak to me?”

“Yes.” Copper glanced at Willow and Audrey. “May we have a word in private?”

“Oh…of course.” Audrey drew Willow off the step and they walked to the waiting surrey.

 

“She's so horribly down,” Audrey murmured. “Don't you think we should tell her that Josh was the man who bought Judge Madison's home?”

“Goodness no!” Willow exclaimed. “He made us promise not to breathe a word, and what if this woman in Dallas is a suitor? Perhaps he bought the home for her.”

“I can't bear to see her this way. So hateful. So despondent. That isn't Copper. She was always strong, relied on herself but never forgot the Lord was her source of strength.”

“I know, and I have tried everything to pull her out of this phase but nothing works. If Josh doesn't come back…”

“If he's alive he will come back.”

“But if this mysterious Susan means more to him than Copper does—”

“She doesn't. We can't permit ourselves to think anything but honorable thoughts of Josh Redlin, regardless of our limited knowledge. We know that he plans to settle in Thunder Ridge or he wouldn't have purchased the judge's home. We promised to keep his secret.”

“What if he's bought the house for Susan?”

“Oh my.” Audrey shook her head. “How much more can she bear?”

“Not a word, Audrey.”

“All right. I won't say a word, but I hate keeping this from her.”

“So do I, but we gave our word.”

 

Copper watched as the women got into the carriage before she spoke. “Carrie—may I call you Carrie?”

“Please do.”

“You seem very settled, even content here.”

A smile broke across her youthful features. “Oh yes. I've always wanted to teach. I love children.”

“And it shows.” Copper forced a smile. “I'm considering visiting my aunt in Kansas and I was wondering if you would be willing to accept the teaching position on a permanent basis?”

A soft gasp escaped the schoolmarm and her face lit up with excitement. “Oh, Miss Wilson, I would love it, but…”

“No buts.” This time Copper didn't have to force a smile. “I'm going to leave the area shortly, and I don't plan to return for a while. I'd like to keep my options open.” She reached
out and touched the young woman's arm, a young woman who had so much ahead of her. “The children seem very content. You're doing a marvelous job. I know I'm leaving my students in capable hands.”

“Thank you.” Carrie returned the affectionate gesture. “And I will pray that you find true happiness. You've surely given me a great gift.”

“I'll submit my resignation to Mr. Fowler before I leave today. I'm sure he'll be delighted to keep you on.”

“Again, thank you.” The new teacher's eyes sparkled with gratitude. And why not? She was young, healthy, and given the gift to shape young minds. In time Copper would teach again, but not now. Right now all she wanted or needed was a fresh start, to find meaning for her life. The only absolute at the moment was the need to flee, to seek sanctuary from an existence that confused her.

And she was not going to breathe a word of her plans to either Audrey or Willow until she was ready to leave. She would inform Benjamin Fowler of her resignation, pay an obligatory visit to Mackey and Emily's grandfather, and then pay Aunt Nancy and Ester, in Kansas, a long overdue visit. Who knew? Maybe she'd take to Nancy's Ellsworth, the rough-and-tumble cattle town, and just stay there.

C
opper's hands jerked when a gun went off just outside. She had moved close to the window so she could have better light for her sewing, but it made the noises from outside even more distracting. She was getting used to the sound of gunfire, but this one was much closer than most. She set her jaw and stitched the last of the lace trim.

She glanced up at Aunt Nancy, a sparrowlike woman with thick snow-white hair braided and secured tightly on the top of her head by a hair pick. Ageless, the spirited bundle tottered on a ladder to dust a top shelf. Copper eyed the teetering stance and sucked in a breath. It was useless to scold; Aunt Nancy went where she pleased and did what she wanted. Any mention to her of “Be careful” or “Aren't you a little too old to be…” got you a look that plainly said, “No, I'm not” and suggested that you not broach the subject again.

She glanced out the window that read
Glessner's Alterations
, but paid scant attention to three young cowboys spur
ring their horses to a dead run side-by-side down the dusty street. More gunshots rang out.

Cackling, Aunt Nancy dusted away. “Ain't this 'bout the most excitin' town you've ever been in?”

Exciting? For sure. But Copper's opinion of the place didn't include the admiration that Aunt Nancy felt. Copper thanked God for her life when she safely reached her room each night.

Ellsworth, Kansas, offered haven to notorious gunmen, bull whackers, soldiers, army scouts, buffalo hunters, not to mention Cheyenne and, sometimes, pro-slavery raiders. Copper soon learned that the community had a reputation for being a violent place.

Climbing down off the ladder, Nancy stood back to survey her work. Outside the window two young cowhands were wrestling on the board sidewalk. People walking by simply went around them, paying them little heed.

Copper shook her head in disgust. “Seems a little loud today, don't you think, considering it's only Monday?”

Auntie's eyes sparkled. “Don't you just love a little excitement?”

“I've enjoyed all the excitement I can stand, thank you.” Copper finished the row of lace, and her left foot paused on the treadle. “You seem to actually enjoy this violence.” She still had not been able to get accustomed to the shootings, fistfights, and nightly brawls in front of the scandalous saloons where wanton women beckoned men inside.

“Honey, you know Mondays don't hold a candle to Saturday nights. A little fight now and again is a Sunday school meeting compared to Saturday night.” Nancy hooted. “That's when this town gets exciting. When those cowpokes hit town with a month's pay, have a bath and a fifty-cent steak, why,
that's when the fun begins. Once those boys get liquored up there's no tellin' what they'll do.” She flicked a speck of dust off a lampshade. “That's what I call excitement.”

Shaking the dress free of wrinkles, Copper wondered why she ever thought she could find respite here. Ellsworth was nothing like she'd anticipated. She'd yet to find anything to endear her to the raucous atmosphere. There was nothing attractive in the stench of cattle pens, the dust that turned to mud with the slightest shower, the sight of men sleeping off a drink in the alleys and loud piano playing coming from the saloons. The town was nothing like Thunder Ridge or Beeder's Cove.

There wasn't a moment when memories of Josh didn't weigh on her mind. She was sure that at this moment he was living happily in Dallas with Susan and she'd wager he never gave her a thought. Or did he?

She shook the notion away. He didn't want her. And why would he? The limp was worse than she feared, she was alone and lonely, and she had precious few prospects beyond being in a strange town with this strange little woman. Nancy was her mother's sister, and they were nothing at all alike. While her mother had been fiery and spirited, Nancy was a loose cannon, going off at the most unnerving times. She had always been a bit quaint, but it hadn't taken Copper long to discover that her beloved auntie was the town loon. When Copper arrived, Nancy had latched on to her, and there wasn't a spare moment that she didn't have the wiry woman by her side. The first night she had settled into a fitful slumber. When she stretched her toes in search of the warm hot water bottle, her feet touched another foot. Aunt Nancy had crawled in the bed beside her. When she'd asked why, the old
woman said she hated to sleep alone, that Copper was a gift from God. She never intended to sleep alone again.

Every night Copper teetered on a thin sliver of mattress, keeping to her side. But before the night was over the woman who smelled of musk and liniment would crowd her to the point that she'd be forced to sleep in the chair, where she would remain most of the night.

Her heart ached. She missed Audrey and Willow. She'd been a fool to leave Thunder Ridge. She'd only replaced thunder with gunshots, and her depression was as deep and dark as ever. She'd locatd her friend Ester, who had fought battles with her. She'd found her some ten miles from Ellsworth, then discovered the woman had completely lost her mind. She couldn't remember the time of day, so their visits were short and pointless. She recalled last Sunday's visit while sitting on Ester's front porch.

“Lovely day, isn't it, Ester?”

The woman turned tolerant eyes on her. “Have we met?”

Copper repeated the same information she'd given each visit. “Yes, we fought together in Timber Creek. My name is Copper Wilson.”

“Oh.” Ester rocked, and then she turned to look at her. “Who'd I fight?”

“The Yankees…remember. You, me, Willow, Audrey, Asa Jeeters…”

“The town drunk?”

“Yes, you remember Asa.”

She pulled her shawl closer. “Of course I remember Asa. Do you think I'm senile?”

“Not at all.”

After a moment she looked back. “Have we met?”

Copper's life consisted of her new job at Mr. Glessner's
establishment, sewing alterations and ladies' gowns, and wallowing in a chair at night. It probably didn't matter if she was in the bed or not, since Nancy's snoring was usually loud enough to rattle china. She failed to see how she'd helped herself. She ought to go to Dallas, find Josh Redlin, and give him a piece of her mind. She glanced up, frowning.

“Aunt Nancy, please don't eat paste.”

The woman looked up, her fingertip buried in a jar. “I like the taste.”

“Doesn't matter. The vile habit is going to make you sick.”

“Hasn't yet, and I've been eating it for years.” She took a lick. “Doctor said I was going to die if I didn't quit snuff.”

“So you've taken to eating paste?”

She nodded, extending the jar. “Have a bite.”

“I don't want a bite.”

She moved closer and shoved the jar beneath Copper's nose. “Come on, you'll like it. What's folks got against paste?”

Copper pushed the container aside. “I don't want any.”

“Well.” Nancy took a final swipe. “Suit yourself, but you don't know what you're missing.” She smacked her lips, looking thoughtful now. “You know your problem, darling. You're like your mother. You try to run your life and forget there's a higher source in charge.”

Copper pushed the treadle, hemming a skirt now, trying to ignore her. Where had that come from? Aunt Nancy didn't know her “problems.” She hadn't mentioned a word about Josh Redlin or how desperately she missed him.

“Yep.” Nancy wiped paste off her finger. “Just like your mother.” She replaced the lid. “If you don't need me, guess I'll go on down to Suttler's Store and see what's going on. Usually one good shootin' a day down there.”

“That's fine, Aunt Nancy.” Copper slipped the dress on a hanger. Mr. Glessner was kind enough to let Nancy hang around, but Copper knew she made him nervous. When she appeared, he disappeared to the back room and worked on men's tailoring. “I'll be home a little after five.”

Home? For her, neither Ellsworth nor the small room in Aunt Nancy's house qualified as a home. Truth was, she longed for Thunder Ridge where weather was the only real threat to one's sanity. Changing a spool of thread, she wondered why she had stayed this long. Six weeks wasn't an eternity, and yet today it felt like it. She drew a deep breath and admitted to herself that she still hoped the visit would erase memories. It hadn't yet, and she was losing hope that she would ever eradicate Josh Redlin's time in her life. Yes, he was a cad of the worst sort, and he had misled her into thinking that he would be back. Yet her feelings for him hadn't changed. She loved the lout, imperfect as he might be. She must learn to face life without him.

Aunt Nancy started out the door when Copper suddenly called, “Auntie?”

The woman turned. “Eh?”

“Am I really like Mother?” Copper had never thought of the comparison, but Mother, though a dear, was stubborn, loving. Kind. She was everything Copper thought herself to be.

“Honey.” Aunt Nancy pulled up a chair and sat down. “You're the spittin' image of Luanna, God love her. Oh, she was a pistol, that one. Good as they come, but you get her dander up and you had yourself a peck of trouble. Now your daddy knew how to deal with her. I always said the good Lord picked the one man with the patience of Job to marry Luanna. She had a heart of gold; do just about anything anyone ask of her but behave.”

Copper bit back a grin. Funny how she'd forgotten Mama's temperament. Her “stubborn streaks,” Father would say. Sometimes the household was in turmoil as Mama flew through the house like fury. She had the faith of a stewing hen, yet she loved the Lord and wouldn't stand for heathenish talk. She'd speak of trust and yet she rarely practiced it. Always fretted about nothing, stewed until she made herself sick with worry.

And yet she was Mother, and Papa and Copper loved the woman to pieces.

“You know, honey.” Aunt Nancy leaned in closer. “I may appear a bit strange but I'm smarter than you think. Your mother got Pa's nature; I got my ma's common sense. There's not much in this old life that you can't overcome, with the help of our Maker. And that man you're pining away for—”

“I never said I was pining…”

Nancy held up a restraining hand. “You didn't have to say a word. It's written all over you, and what woman hasn't loved a man and feared that she'd lose him.”

Defense crumbling, Copper buried her face in her hands. “But I have lost him, Aunt Nancy.”

“That's a fact?”

“As close as I can tell.”

“Close? But not a fact. Yet.” The old woman reached out and put her hand on Copper's heaving shoulders. “Until it's a square hit, you haven't got a fact. You got a theory. And theories are known to be proven wrong.”

Good heavens. Aunt Nancy knew the word
theory
and used it properly? What was this world coming to?

“Well, got to be going. They've probably already shot someone down at Suttler's and I've missed it.”

The door closed behind her, and Copper settled back in her chair.

Outside, two men shouted and cursed at each other, and she recognized the buildup to another fight. This time, for some reason, a crowd was gathering to watch. This was the final straw. She swallowed hard to control the nausea that rose up in her stomach. She had to get out of this place. She had to go home. Beeder's Cove. Thunder Ridge. It didn't matter; she had to leave this insanity.

“Better the devils I know back there than the ones waiting around every corner here in Ellsworth,” she said aloud.

Theory. Maybe Aunt Nancy was wiser than she thought.

 

The stage rolled into Thunder Ridge toward evening. It had taken a pretty penny to convince the driver to detour the few miles in order to drop her off, but she'd made a pretty penny over the past few weeks so she could afford the luxury.

She stepped from the coach beneath a leaden sky. Tom was sweeping the mercantile porch as she paid the driver and added a handsome tip. The stage rolled away and she turned and picked up her two bags.
Home
. Now Audrey and Eli would surely marry. The feeling seeped through her bones like the familiarity of one's own bed.

Nodding to the curious mercantile owner, she walked toward the ugly green house that towered above the smaller buildings, only…Her steps faltered. The house was no longer green. It was white, with pretty brown shutters and a new porch, a very large porch encircling the now striking exterior.

“I'd like to know how you accomplished that.”

She turned to see that Tom had followed her. “Pardon?”

He scratched his head. “How in the cat hair did you get a stage line to bring you here?”

“Oh, that.” She sighed. “Tom, I've discovered that given enough money you can get anyone to do almost anything.” She turned back to stare at the house. “I see much has changed in the brief time I've been gone.” Tucker managed money well, but she hardly thought he could scrape together enough to accomplish this amazing transformation.

“Oh yes, the house.” The mercantile owner crossed his arms and stared at the renovation. “Downright attractive, isn't it.”

“Tucker did this?”

“Tucker? He wouldn't have the money to do this. The new owner did it.”

“Oh yes, the new owner. Then he must be planning to live here soon.”

“Yep, that's what he claims. He, his wife, and their young'uns.”

“He has children?” Her thoughts shifted to the school. Audrey would have additional pupils.

“Not yet.” Tom walked off, wiping his hands on his apron.

Picking up her bags, Copper continued to the newly renovated house, picturing the surprise that awaited Audrey and Willow. Their last letter had been brimming with excitement about the upcoming wedding. The sawmill was running smoothly now, and Eli could take the time to enjoy a honeymoon. The wedding was set for the end of the month, and Copper was expected to be in attendance. The black shroud that had been covering her finally started to lift. She was deeply ashamed of her lack of faith. Nothing had changed other than the fact she knew she had succumbed to her fears and allowed them to dominate her. Biting her lower lip, she willed back
tears. If she was going to live in Thunder Ridge she would have to shake this melancholy and truly celebrate Eli and Audrey's love. No one deserved happiness more than those two.