ROMANCE: Mail Order Bride: A Sheriff's Bride (A Clean Christian Inspirational Historical Western Romance) (New Adult Short Stories) (68 page)

“Oh, the baby.” She smiled nervously. “It’s a long story, one I’d love to share with you. It has to do with the train and the cowboys, and unfortunately, it’s still not over,” she said mysteriously.

“What do you mean?” He was perplexed. “Is the baby yours?”

“Oh, heavens, no!” She laughed for the first time in what felt like a decade. “This little sweetheart isn’t mine. I guess you could say I’m keeping an eye on her until we find her mother.”

“We?”

“I was hoping you’d help me, Ambrose. Her mother is somewhere out there, lost. I have some ideas on how to get in touch with her, but I need your help.” Her eyes pleaded.

“Of course I’ll help,” he said reassuringly. “But for the time being, let’s get you home.” He took her by the hand and escorted her to his carriage. Not long afterwards they were sitting inside his big house drinking tea while a special dinner was being prepared.

“So you say this woman, Ruth, or whatever her real name is, would be at one of the surrounding hospitals?” he asked as Eliza was finishing her story about how she met Ruth and ended up with Ruth’s baby.

“Exactly. I know it’s a short time to get to know someone, but I felt a real connection to Ruth. Whoever she is, I know she is a good, kind person who, right now, is missing her daughter terribly, not knowing what happened to her or where she is.”

“Yes, of course. It is our duty as Christians, after all, to help one another out,” He said.

“Oh, Ambrose!” Suddenly, Eliza started crying.

“What on earth is the matter, sweet girl?” he asked, confounded.

“Oh, nothing.” She sniveled, and he offered her his monogrammed handkerchief. “I just feel so fortunate to have found you. And what’s more, the first time when you see me, I’m bearing a child. You have no idea how afraid I was. She hid her face in her hands.

“Afraid of what, Eliza? You haven’t done anything wrong to be afraid of.” He caressed her cheek gently as he tried to console her.

“I was afraid you wouldn’t believe me that the baby isn’t really mine,” she replied shyly.

“Why on earth would I do that?” He seemed surprised. “You have left everything for me: your home, your family, all those who love you. What kind of a man would I be if I had treated you like a liar from the first time I saw you?” His words soothed her. He knew exactly what to say to make her feel better, to reassure her that everything was all right with the world.

He took her hands in his. “I don’t know how strongly you feel about me,” he started a little nervous, “and I don’t wish to rush things between us. But, for my part, I am yours. You have won me over with your sweet kindness and generosity that I was able to feel even from your sweet words. You are exactly the kind of woman I wish to have by my side, a woman who honors the word of God and who, in turn, is blessed by him. You, my dear,” he cupped her chin and lifted her gaze towards his, “are truly blessed. And I hope to be so, too, by your side.”

His words made her blush, and if not before, at that moment she knew that her heart belonged to Ambrose Wershing. This was the reason why God kept her away from all other suitors back home. Just as she had suspected, he had a very special plan for her, and it was to introduce her to this wonderful caring man who was expressing his undying love for her.

“You know,” she smiled at him, “I thought my life was boring and that I needed to look for adventure. But I had forgotten that, with the good Lord, every day is an adventure. It came looking for me and found me at exactly the right moment. The nightmare that I survived during my journey wasn’t meant to break me. On the contrary, my dear, Ambrose, it was meant to strengthen me, to empower my faith in God, so that in your arms I could come alive in the truest sense of the word.” 

The following morning, Eliza was in the kitchen feeding the baby when Ambrose joined her.

“Good morning,” his voice greeted her cheerfully.

“Good morning,” she replied with a smile on her face. “You know,” she added, looking out the window, “I think it’s going to be a wonderful day.”

“With you here, every day is going to be wonderful.” He laid a sweet kiss on her forehead.

“I was thinking … ,” she started. He looked at her expectantly. “What if we don’t find Ruth?” she asked, afraid.

He took some time to think about it and then finally offered his answer.

“I don’t think it’ll be that hard to find her, Eliza,” he stated matter-of-factly. “The sheriff assured you there were no casualties and only a few wounded women who were immediately taken to nearby hospitals. That, of course, means that there are only a few places where Ruth could be. So I don’t see why we wouldn’t find her, return her child to her and then focus on our own lives.” She could sense what he meant. He referred to them having their own baby once they were married, and the very thought made her blush. Having a baby with this wonderful man would be a dream come true!

But before her own dream could come true, she needed to help a friend in need.

“I know that Ruth and I spent only a short amount of time together, but please trust me when I say this, Ambrose, she is a kind-hearted, generous person. No matter how much she was wronged in this life, I just know that she will pull through and create a new life for her and this little sweetheart here.”

“I’m sure that every word of what you’re saying is God’s honest truth, Eliza. I’m going to do my best to help you. I know a few doctors who work in neighboring hospitals. I’ll see what would be the fastest way of sending word to them regarding this whole affair, and we’ll take it from there. What do you say?” He smiled.

“Will you, Ambrose?” Eliza jumped with joy and hugged him with all her might. Somehow, someway she knew that with his help, everything would be all right in the end.

A few days later, upon returning from town after doing some grocery shopping, Eliza found a strange man in her home, sitting comfortably on a sofa in the parlor. Carrying Ruth’s baby in one hand and a bag of groceries in the other. Eliza was more than a little startled.

However, she immediately relaxed upon seeing Ambrose in the other corner of the room, looking for a specific book in his huge library. He turned around and saw her.

“Ah, Eliza, we’re so happy you’re finally home.” He greeted her, and at the same time, the man rose from the chair he was sitting in and approached her with an outstretched hand.

“This is a very dear friend of mine, Lucius, Lucius Copperfield,” Ambrose introduced the man who bowed down courteously and placed a soft kiss upon Eliza’s hand, which had just been freed off the grocery bag.

“Lovely to make your acquaintance, Mr. Copperfield,” she replied sweetly.

“Please, call me Lucius,” he smiled.

“Lucius,” she returned his smile.

“Lucius here,” Ambrose continued, “has some very interesting information to share.”

“Oh?” Eliza didn’t know what this whole meeting was about. But the two men sure did.

“Tell her, Lucius,” Ambrose urged.

“It’s about your friend. The one you know under the name Ruth Rigdon, if I’m not mistaken.”

“Ruth?” Eliza jumped. “You know something about Ruth? Is she all right? Where is she? What happened to her?” She showered him with questions.

“I assure you the lady is perfectly safe, though I’m sorry to say not perfectly fine.” He hesitated to continue.

“What do you mean?” Eliza was shocked. “What happened to Ruth?”

“Miss Rigdon, the name we’ll call her by, though her real name is apparently Alice Brookley, is lying in a hospital in Oakley Bridge, just a few miles out of town,” he stated formally.

“So, why don’t we go get her?” Eliza was eager to act immediately.

“Well, things aren’t that simple.” Lucius looked at Ambrose, as if he wasn’t sure how to proceed. Ambrose simply nodded. “The thing is Miss Rigdon has lost her memory.”

“She what?” Eliza couldn’t believe her ears. That wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be.

“We recognized her from a photo of her and the baby she had on her. Their names were written on the back. After Ambrose contacted me to let me know that you were looking for a woman of a similar physical description, I knew there was a possibility that we were dealing with one and the same woman.”

“She doesn’t remember anything?” Eliza asked, sadly. “What about her baby?”

“Unfortunately, she doesn’t seem to know who she is, let alone anyone else. We were actually hoping that perhaps if she sees someone she knows, someone who is dear to her, her memory might be triggered and might return to her. Otherwise, our hands are tied.” 

“Ambrose, we have to go.” Eliza approached him quickly, placing her hand firmly on his shoulder. “We have to.”

“Calm down, Eliza. We’ll go,” he said. “But you need to brace yourself. There is a possibility that her memory never returns.”

“What happened to her?” Eliza turned back to Lucius.

“Well, from what we gathered, one of the ruffians used her as a human shield as he was trying to ride away on his horse. She was sitting behind him. The horse was startled by all the gunshots and propped itself up, throwing off both Miss Rigdon and the ruffian. She seemed to have gotten the worse end of the stick because as she fell, her head landed on a sharp rock, and she was left unconscious for several days at the hospital. Upon waking up, she had no idea who she was or where she was going.”

“Poor Ruth!” Eliza started crying.

“There, there, dearie.” Ambrose tried to console her. “We’ll go immediately and see what we can do for her. Go get ready. I’ll keep an eye on the little one in the meantime.”

Eliza quickly packed the bare necessities she would need for this short journey, and within the next hour, the threesome was traveling to Oakley Bridge. There wasn’t much talking going on. Both Eliza and Ambrose seemed to be lost in their own thoughts. The only calm person was Ruth’s little baby, who seemed at ease knowing that she would get to see her mother again.

Eliza was thinking about the possibility of Ruth not remembering her own child. What would happen then to Ruth and to the baby? Ambrose, on the other hand, was afraid that such a tragedy could mar their future happiness, but he dared not voice his fears. He just kept looking at Eliza every once in a while, admiring her beautiful face, which appeared calm even though he knew that there was a storm of emotion brewing underneath.

Upon their arrival at Oakley Bridge Hospital, the nurse led them to a big room that housed several patients, all of whom were bandaged severely. Ruth, who seemed to be the only one with a bandage on her head, was calmly lying in her hospital bed looking at one blank point across from where she was reclining.

“Hold the baby,” Eliza told Ambrose at the doorway. “I’ll go first, and see how she’s doing. When I call you, then come and bring the baby with you.” Ambrose nodded in agreement.

Eliza approached Ruth’s bed slowly. The smell of chloroform was heavy, permeating the air. The other patients were talking, but they were not too loud. Before finally reaching Ruth’s bed, Eliza said a quick prayer.

“Ruth?” she addressed the reclining woman. There was no sign that she understood or even heard her.

That was silly, Eliza thought to herself. Maybe I was supposed to call her by her real name? Maybe she forgot that she had introduced herself to me under a pseudonym?

“Alice?” A slight stir. Did she hear her?

“Alice, it’s me, Eliza. Remember?” Alice moved her head a little toward Eliza, but she still wasn’t looking at her.

“We met on the train. Remember?” She spoke softly, afraid to speak up.

“Train?” Alice finally spoke up.

“Yes! Yes, in the train. I’m Eliza,” Eliza repeated.

“Eliza?” Alice turned to her. Her eyes didn’t show any signs of recognition but rather of curiosity. “Eliza.”

“Yes, Eliza. Do you remember me, Alice?”

Alice shook her head.

“We were attacked on the train, remember?” Eliza hoped that drawing specific images in Alice’s mind would trigger her memory.

“Attacked?” Alice echoed.

“Yes, by a cowboy gang. You were taken as a hostage.”

“Taken?” Alice was simply echoing. It didn’t seem like the two were having an actual conversation at all.

No, this isn’t working, Eliza thought to herself. She turned around to Ambrose and gestured him to bring the little one. Taking her from him, Eliza tried to place the baby gently in Alice’s arms.

At first, Alice seemed shocked. She didn’t move, she simply allowed her arms and hands to be positioned in the best way possible to receive a sleeping baby. Her eyes revealed shock and confusion.

“It’s your baby, Alice. Do you remember?” Eliza was hoping that this would be it. Otherwise, there would be nothing else left to try. They would have to give up and return home.

Alice was quiet, even with a baby in her arms. She was motionless, her eyes frantically traveling from the baby to Eliza and then back to the baby.

Then, in an effort to return the slumbering little bundle to Eliza, Alice moved too quickly, and the baby started crying. Suddenly, Eliza noticed what she had come all this way to see: a spark of recognition. It wasn’t the sight of her child that triggered Alice’s memory but rather her cry, the baby letting her know how much she was missed and how much she needed her back.