Ribbons of Steel (4 page)

“Charles,” she whispered. He took her into his arms, nuzzled her neck. She was hot to the touch with fever.

“You should be in bed, not standing out here in the damp night air, Em.”

But by God, holding her was heaven, and he was pleased she had met him at the door. From the first day they were married, she’d never missed standing in the doorway, greeting him with outstretched arms whenever he came home. And he had the whole weekend to soak in this warmth. This woman made his miserable life worthwhile. If anyone or anything could take away his worries and carry him through the coming days ahead, it was his Emily.

Emily made life worth living.

Charley picked her up and carried her inside, out of the storm, and into the shelter of the sweet fragrance of yeast bread rising on the back of the stove, and the sun-kissed bedding in their small bedroom down the hall. Concerns of trains and the threat of a strike no longer existed.

He was home.

Chapter Three

The spot where Emily had lain next to him during the night was empty. Charley rolled over and breathed in her sweet, womanly scent that lingered on the bedding. Mingled with the fragrance of her favorite lemon verbena soap and the fresh smell of sheets that had flapped in the clean country breeze on a warm sunny day was all so seductive.

While he worked the rails alongside grease and grime and the odor of soiled, worn bodies all day, he craved this intoxicating woman.

Emily.

Her image made Charley smile. Emily was nobody’s fool. She had the guts to stand up to him. And he loved her all the more for it.

He’d met Emily when she had come to Philadelphia to visit her cousin, Marybelle, who had been about to embark on an overland trip with her new husband, William Landon. They were headed to the California goldmines to make their fortune. Charley had been there when Emily had disembarked from the train at Union Station. He couldn’t take his eyes off her and had fallen in love at first sight.

But now, Emily was real sick. Still, she hadn’t let her illness get in the way of their lovemaking last night. He’d just wanted to hold her. But she wouldn’t listen, and their usual heated passion had taken over. Her loving arms had circled his body as she’d snuggled close after their bout of passion. He’d tugged her into the protection of his embrace and leaned his cheek on top of her head, then tucked her into his shoulder. He’d placed a tender kiss on her forehead and sighed in contentment. They had both fallen asleep, exhausted in each other’s arms.

She shouldn’t even be out of bed now. She should be the one sleeping in, not him.

“Damned trains,” he mumbled as he slid from the bed, bumping his knees against the wall. “Damned walls.”

He rubbed his knees, stretched, then put on the clean pair of trousers and crisp ironed shirt Emily had lain out for him. They smelled of country sunshine. He held the collar to his face and drank in the freshness.

A far cry from oil, coal, and smoke.

In the half-light of day, he dressed quickly in the cramped room and was reminded of the hardships Emily endured. Their room was only big enough for a bed, a set of drawers, and a commode. But during the night, with just the two of them, the tight space didn’t matter. In the light of day, it reminded him of the cramped quarters of the tenements in Philadelphia.

He’d only transferred her from one cramped quarter to another.

At least here she had the expanse of the outdoors, he reasoned, not the mobs of families living on top of each other.

Charley opened the bedroom door and made his way to the kitchen, buttoning his shirtsleeves along the way. Emily stepped in from the outdoors, the screen door banging shut behind her.

“You shouldn’t have gone out this morning. You’ve a fever.” He took her in his arms, rubbing her back. “Your fever is getting worse. You should have called on the doctor by now.”

“One of the horses was acting up. Seth needed a gentle hand. Don’t worry so, Charles. I’ll be fine.”

Emily laid her cheek on his chest and leaned into him. He tightened his hold. She was weaker this morning. He put his hands on her shoulders and set her away from him so he could look down into her eyes. They were dull and filled with pain.

“You aren’t fine. You had a fever last time I was home. You have a fever now. Why haven’t you called for the doctor, woman? I must have been crazy to think you’d be better off here in the country to manage all on your own after your mother passed on.”

“I have Catherine and the boys, Charles. We’re doing fine.”

Emily tried to hide her pain with a smile, but he was wise to her discomfort. She’d never recovered her strength after she’d given birth to baby Sarah nine months ago.

“Don’t lie to me, Em,” he grumbled over her head. “I have eyes. I can see. You’ve been getting sicker and sicker. You need to take care of yourself. The kids need a mother.”

“Charles, don’t yell.” Emily raised her face, her eyes pleading, her voice smooth, but weak. “You’ll wake Sarah. She didn’t sleep well last night. She needs her rest.”

“I’m not yelling, damn it. And you need
your
rest, too.”

“Shhhh.”

“Don’t shush me. You were more than likely up with our babe all night, weren’t you? You should have woken me up, Em. I would have helped out.”

“Now hush. Go outside and breathe the fresh air. I’ve got to help Catherine with breakfast. The boys will be here in a minute.”

“You need to go to bed.
Now.
Catherine can do breakfast.”

“Morning, Pa,” Catherine called from the other side of the kitchen, a tentative smile on her face. She slid a pan of biscuits in the oven. “Breakfast will be ready soon.”

“Your ma’s gonna need a tray in bed this morning. Make sure she gets fed before the boys sit down to eat,” he ordered.

“Yes, Pa.”

Charley picked Emily up and headed toward their bedroom.

“Charles. Put me down,” she protested.

“You’re going nowhere but bed.”

Emily gave in and laid her head on his shoulder. He could feel her weakness and cussed himself for last night. He should have been more gentle. He laid her on the bed, kissed her forehead, and then drew the old quilt her grandmother had made for their wedding up around her shoulders.

“I’ll get you a cup of cold water from the well. You’re burning up.” He stood over her and pointed his finger at her as if she were a child. “And don’t get up ’til I tell you. Understand?”

Charley didn’t wait for Emily’s reply. Instead, he headed to the barn to find the boys.

Foolish woman. Didn’t she know being near her took the edge off? Didn’t she know he worried about her? Right after breakfast he would take her into town to see old Doc Wooster. Kicking and screaming if he had to.

Stubborn woman.

****

The torrential rains had ceased during the night, but the ground was still soaked. A fair breeze blew across the hilltop. Charley breathed in the heavy scent of damp hay spilling out into the early morning mist. He walked to the barn and caught the stench of animal scents—even that was far headier then the coal and grease from the rails. The barn was big enough to hold the extra milk cows Seth had accumulated since he’d taken over the running of the farm from Emily’s family.

Emily’s father had been killed when a hay wagon rolled over and crushed him underneath. Her mother had taken ill shortly after, and died. Emily said it was from a broken heart. Charley hadn’t taken to that nonsense at the time, but if anything happened to Emily, he could very well imagine he would die of a broken heart, too.

Charley walked through the open barn doors. Seth sat on a three-legged stool milking one of the goats.

“How’s those tin-eaters, boy?” Charley asked.

“Got five cents a pound this week on the cheese. Mrs. Johnson says it’s a delicacy, and people will pay more if they can get it.”

“That so? Then guess you’d better keep supplying it.”

Those goats sure could smell up a place. Worse than a cow any day. But goat cheese was a good sale at the Ithaca markets according to Seth, and the income helped out with the expenses on the farm.

“What about the main dairy?”

“Holding steady. No complaints.”

Seth kept milking the brown speckled goat. The kid could milk a goat as well as he did a cow, plow the fields, and handle a team of horses. A reliable kid, he deserved better. He deserved his own family.

“Where’s Timothy and Robert? Ma needs fresh water from the well to help cool her fever.”

“Gathering eggs. The hens have been laying real good lately.”

Charley circled the side of the barn just as Robert and Timothy rounded the corner.

“Timothy, give those eggs to Robert, and fetch a jug of fresh water from the well for your mother. She’s down with fever.”

“Yes, Pa.” They both bobbed in unison and did as they were told.

Charley stood a moment before going back inside the barn where he surveyed the clean interior. Yes sir, some woman was surely missing out on not latching onto Seth Carmichael.

“I see you built a corral for the horses on the back side of the barn,” Charley said. He scanned the rest of the interior of the mid-size building to see what else Seth had accomplished.

“I have one for the goats with an overhang on the south side of the barn, too. Put the pigs next to them in a separate pen so we don’t have to chase them all over the farm. Keeps the smell away from the house when the wind blows up here on the hill.”

“What about those chickens?”

“Mostly run loose for now. Come fall, I plan to build them a separate coop so they don’t freeze to death.”

“Catherine was in the kitchen making breakfast when I left the house. As soon as we finish eating, I want you to get the wagon ready. I aim to take your ma to visit Doc Wooster. So best hurry up with the milking and get washed up.”

“Yes, sir.”

The sky remained overcast from the night before, but the sun filtered through the spotty holes in the clouds. He took his time walking back to the farmhouse. He hoped the rain would hold off ’til he got Emily to town. The old reprobate better be in; he was the only doctor for miles.

After breakfast, Charley met Seth out front.

“The buckboard’s ready,” Seth said. “I’ll drive you in.”

Charley wanted to argue with Seth, but the boy could handle the reins better. He rationalized he could take better care of Emily if he didn’t have to control the team at the same time. He strode back inside to get her.

He met Catherine in the kitchen.

“I don’t know when we’ll be back, so you’re to take care of things while we’re gone. Seth is going with me, so make sure the boys get the rest of the chores done.”

Catherine nodded. Her lips clamped shut, then twitched to the side. Hell, maybe she’d been a bigger help to Emily than he’d figured. “Right,” he mumbled. He proceeded to the back of the house to get Emily.

She was bent over Sarah’s cradle, tucking a hand-stitched blanket around the sleeping baby with such loving hands; he almost didn’t want to disturb her. She looked up at him with flushed, feverish eyes and smiled. He caught the fragrance of her lemon soap. And sunshine.

“This isn’t necessary. I’ll be okay with a few days of bed rest.”

“Don’t argue with me. Seth has the horses ready.” He wrapped a quilt around her shoulders, lifted her into his arms, and carried her down the hall and out to the waiting wagon.

“I’m too heavy. Put me down. I can walk.”

“You’re light as a feather.” He lifted her up onto the seat, then jumped up and settled in beside her.

Seth yanked the wooden brake away from the wagon wheel, then hopped aboard. He took the reins, gave them a jerk with his wrist, and the horses gingerly stepped forward.

Emily’s face was even more drawn and pale than when he’d put her to bed a short while ago. He wrapped his arm around her and hugged her tight. Couldn’t nothing happen to Emily. He didn’t want to think about his life without her.

Instead, he concentrated on how Seth would manage the horses down from the rain-gutted hillside without ending up at the bottom of the cliff in a heap. The narrow road barely passed for an excuse of a road. But it was the only way off the hill. Even though Seth drove the team slowly, the jarring had an effect on Emily.

“You’re a brave woman, Em, but a foolish one to try to hide your pain. We’ve been through too much over the years for you to start keeping things to yourself. You should’ve told me you were getting worse.”

He rubbed his calloused hand over her arm. The thinness of her bones through the quilt shook him to the core. Her breathing labored, Charley clung tighter.

The hill leveled off, the ruts not as deep; the wagon ride became less bumpy. Thankful the horses did what was expected of them, Charley breathed a sigh of relief as they reached the bottom of the hill without incident. The steady clomping of the horses’ hooves evened out as they trotted onto the turnpike.

But sweat was on Emily’s brow now, and they had at least another hour before they would arrive in Candor Center. With any luck the doctor wouldn’t be out on a call to some hillside farm, taking God-only-knew how long to get back to town. Damned doctors should stay put and not run all over God’s creation tracking down the sick. They should keep to one place where they would always be on hand for the sick to come to them.

Almost to Candor village limits, Charley craved a smoke in the worst way. Wanting a cigarette reminded him of the train ride home, which made him think about the pending cut in wages. It was sure to trigger a strike. He was glad he hadn’t mentioned anything about the strike to his family. They had enough to worry about without adding to their load. But he’d have to fill Seth in before he left tomorrow night. But not now. Right now Emily needed him.

By the time they arrived at Candor Center, Charley was ready to scream from wanting that smoke. Emily’s head bobbed across his chest like Sarah’s ragdoll. He lifted her chin only to discover her eyes were closed.

Dear Lord, she’d up and fainted.

“Get this wagon moving, son. Your ma’s passed out.”