A Man for Temperance (Wagon Wheel) (20 page)

“What’s he saying about me?” Rena asked.

Black Eagle looked at her, his eyes dark. They had traveled hard on the second day, but he showed no sign of fatigue. “He says he wants you for his squaw.”

Rena was frozen and could not break her gaze away from Black Eagle’s. She tried to think of some way to protest, but his gaze had the hardness of stone.

“I will not give you to him,” Black Eagle said. “Maybe not now anyway. He has no horses to pay for you.”

“What are you going to do with us?” Bent said in an unsteady voice.

Black Eagle rose and came to stand in front of the two. “You will be Cheyenne.”

“I won’t be no Indian,” Bent cried out.

Black Eagle stared at the boy. He liked his spirit and said, “You will become Cheyenne or you will die.” He gestured toward Rena. “And you will be a squaw to one of my warriors.”

Black Eagle waited for them to reply, but neither of them did. He left and walked past the fire where the others were feasting on buffalo meat. They had killed a buffalo, which had slowed them. Rena watched as Black Eagle paced around the camp, always alert as a cat.

“I ain’t gonna be no Cheyenne,” Bent said. “Thad will come and get us.”

“No, he won’t,” Rena said, her voice dead. “He won’t do it.”

“Sure he will. He likes me.”

“He doesn’t like anybody but himself. Well, I’ll kill myself before I let any of these Indians touch me.”

Bent stared at her, fear showing in his face, but he held on to his one hope. “Thad will come! I know he will!”

“No, he won’t. He’s nothing but a drunk, and he don’t care about nobody but himself!”

* * *

THAD MOVED CAREFULLY THE second day of the pursuit. He seemed to be two men. One was the relentless hunter on the trail of his enemies, and the other was the man he did not know, for in his mind was the strong memory of calling on God and promising he would be a servant, that he would follow God. Several times that day he paused and tried to pray, but his prayers seemed a failure.
God, I don’t see You or feel You, but I’m
just believing You’re there and what happened last night was real.
I’m asking You to help me get these kids back. That’s the only kind
of prayer I can pray right now.

He followed the trail relentlessly and finally in midafternoon he became wary. A warning seemed to sound, and it was
a familiar feeling. He had often had it when he and Quaid were fighting the Indians in their trapping days. He could never explain it, but immediately before trouble started, somehow, he felt a tingling along his spine. The sensation was mental as well as physical, and he was aware of it as the sun began to drift below the horizon.

“They can’t be far ahead,” he muttered. “I’d better take it easy.” Dismounting, he led Judas forward for the next hour. The horses of the hostiles, he saw, were moving even slower.

“They’ll be camping for the night,” he said. “Black Eagle won’t be looking for me to be coming this soon, so he might be careless.”

He kept moving forward until finally it was dusk. There was still enough light to see by, but the tingling that warned him of enemies close by was stronger. He tied Judas securely to a tree, fed him, watered him from his canteen, then moved ahead. He could not go as quietly as the Indians, but he had no choice.

After he had walked no more than twenty minutes, suddenly he stopped. A sound had reached his ears. It was not the sound of a wolf or a coyote or a night bird, and as he stood there, straining every nerve, he recognized voices.

“Got ’em,” he said exultantly. He looked up.
Thank You,
Lord. You found them for me. Now help me to get those kids.

He moved stealthily until the voices became plainer and he saw the orange dot of the fire. His nerves were alive, for he knew that Black Eagle would usually station a sentry, but he saw no one. The voices became louder and the fire larger. Finally he began crawling through the brush. He got within a hundred yards of the band, and with a shock he saw Bent and Rena sitting alone, unbound, and the Indians gathered around the fire. They had been drinking, he realized instantly.

He had to think what to do. He studied the situation and counted all six Indians. Black Eagle was sitting by himself. The others were laughing, and their voices were loud and slurred.

“They’re all drunk. Good.” He pulled his Colt from the holster and checked the loads. “Six shots,” he muttered. “Six of them. If I miss, they’ll get me.” He considered returning to his horse for his rifle, but if he fired from a long-distance rifle range, they would know he was coming. He knew it had to be a sudden surprise attack and that he could not miss.

Give me a steady hand, Lord,
he asked. Then he rose into a crouch. He advanced until finally he was only twenty yards from the Indians. He could see their eyes clearly and, with a wash of relief, noticed that Black Eagle had joined the others. Slowly he raised the revolver and steadied it on the Indian farthest from him. There was no turning back now. He put his left hand under his wrist and pulled the trigger. The Indian fell backward, driven by the shot, and instantly Brennan fired at the Indian who had turned to face him, stunned by the sound and the death of his companion.

The air was full of the Colt’s roaring, and Thad shot three of them before they could regroup. Black Eagle jumped to his feet and scrambled for a weapon. He grabbed his knife and he must have seen the flashes for he ran straight at Brennan. Brennan then missed a shot but got the last two Indians. However, he had no time to face Black Eagle’s charge.

Black Eagle crashed into Thad with a wild cry, and Brennan caught his wrist holding the knife. He pulled his own knife out, and the two rolled around the ground, slashing at each other. Brennan felt the keen blade of Black Eagle, slashing into his chest, and knew that he had to finish it quickly. He stabbed at Black Eagle and felt the knife enter. He pushed it farther, and
Black Eagle uttered a guttural cry and made one final cut that caught Brennan on the side and raked his ribs. Brennan pushed the knife still farther and held on. He felt the body of Black Eagle begin to tremble and then grow still.

Brennan rolled over and called, “Rena—Bent! You OK?”

Then the two were there and Bent was holding on to him. “I knew you’d come, Thad! I knew you would!”

Rena’s eyes were big. She could not say a word for a time, then she said, “I didn’t think you’d come, Thad.”

“You didn’t think I’d let that devil have my kids, did you?”

“Thad, you’re cut-up bad,” Rena cried.

“I guess you’re right about that. We’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got to stop this bleeding.”

By using some of their clothing, they managed to stop the bleeding, and Thad got to his feet. “Let’s get out of here.” The horses were tied out, and he put Bent and Rena on the two that seemed the most broken. He got on behind Bent and said, “Let’s go get Judas. And then let’s go home.”

* * *

“WELL, I’LL BE—” QUAID said. “Will you look at that?”

“What is it, Quaid?”

“Look who’s come home.”

Shocked, Temperance saw three horses. The two children were riding on each side of Thad, and her heart gave a lurch when she saw that the big man was hardly able to keep his saddle.

“He’s been hurt pretty bad,” Quaid said. “Come on.”

“Well, you done it, partner. You beat the whole Cheyenne nation,” Quaid said. “It looks like they got their licks in too.”

Brennan was pale and sallow, but he managed a grin. “You wasn’t there to mess it up.”

Rena and Bent reached Temperance. Bent’s eyes were shining as he gasped, “You should have seen him, Temperance! He came charging in and he killed them all, and he beat Black Eagle in a knife fight all by himself! Just him!”

Bent was holding Thad’s limp hand. “I knew he’d come. I prayed he would. Rena didn’t think so.”

Rena’s eyes were shining too. “I was wrong. He came for us.”

“Always nice to have a hero around,” Quaid said. “Now, let me get you off of that hoss. We have to get you patched up right.”

Thad turned and said, “Hello, Temperance.”

“I’m glad you’re back. I’ve been praying for you.”

“I’ve got something to tell you.” Thad swayed in the saddle and licked his lips. “Out there on the prairie, God finally caught up with me.”

A glad cry came to Temperance’s lips. “Thaddeus!”

“Yep, I hit the glory trail,” he said, a faint smile turning the corners of his broad lips upward. “Preach all you want at me now. I reckon I’m ready.”

Temperance took his hand and laid it against her cheek. “I’m so glad, Thaddeus,” she whispered and saw that, indeed, he was a changed man, and her cry went out in a prayer of thanksgiving to God.

TEMPERANCE PULLED OUT THE wooden box marked “Ajax Soap Company” and placed it on the ground. Turning to Thaddeus, who was sitting with his back against the wagon wheel and watching her with bleary eyes, she said firmly, “Here, Thaddeus, sit on this box.”

“What for?” Thad’s tone was surly and his voice slurred, for Temperance had dosed him liberally with laudanum thirty minutes earlier. “I don’t wanna sit on no dumb box!”

Temperance did not answer but took him by the arm. “I don’t care what you want,” she said. “I’ve got to clean that wound of yours.” Thaddeus shot a baleful look at her, then struggled to his feet, pain shooting through his chest. Moving painfully, he made his way to the box and sat down. “Well, that shirt’s ruined,” she said and began unbuttoning it. Thad protested, “What are you doing?”

“Why, I can’t see your wound with your shirt on, can I?”

“I didn’t know you was supposed to be a doctor.”

Ignoring his protests, Temperance carefully removed the shirt, which was caked with blood and slashed to ribbons. She tossed it to the ground, and Thad protested, “Hey, that’s my good shirt!”

“It’s filthy! It hasn’t been washed since we left Walla Walla. Besides that, it’s cut all to pieces.”

Sitting there before her, Brennan felt naked and exposed. He watched her as she moved to the wagon, and when she returned with another small wooden box, he was aware a crowd had collected. Belle had appeared, and beside her were Bent and Rena, who was holding Bess. Rose stood next to her, and Billy was sitting on the ground, playing with a block of wood, his favorite toy. Timothy was on a blanket, sound asleep. Brennan looked around at the children staring at him and said, “Get out of here! Go somewhere else and play.”

No one moved a muscle, and at that moment Gus walked slowly over to Brennan, reared up, and put his big paws on Brennan’s leg. The two stared at each other, and Brennan snapped, “Well, what do
you
want?”

Gus said, “Wow!” and, dropping to all fours, walked away, his head in the air.

“You kids go somewhere! This ain’t no sideshow,” Thad snapped. Not a one of them answered him, but he could see Belle was grinning. By that time Temperance had found a pair of scissors and was cutting the rough bandages that covered his chest. “This is going to hurt,” she said. “Maybe I ought to soak it off.”

Thad shook his head. “Go on and pull it off.”

“No, I’m going to soak it.”

The soaking took considerable time. She took fresh water and slowly poured it over his chest. The blood had dried to a thick, brown crust, and it took the better part of twenty minutes until finally she had removed the last.

“Gosh, look at that!” Bent whispered. “That injun really chopped you, didn’t he?”

Thad looked down at his chest. There were two major cuts, one down his side and another across his chest. Both of them
were seeping blood, and he muttered, “Well, ain’t that a pretty come-off! That’s worse than I thought.”

“It’ll have to be sewed up,” Temperance said firmly. “I’ll get my needle and thread.”

Thad stared at her with apprehension. “Did you ever sew anybody up before?”

Temperance’s mouth pursed. “Just Suzy.”

“Who was she, a relative?”

“No, she was our pig. Cut herself pretty bad on barbed wire, and I had to sew her up.”

“Well, I ain’t no pig! I don’t want no amateur practicing on me.”

Belle suddenly laughed. “That’s what doctors do, Thad. They study awhile at school, then they
practice
on their patients until they learn something. Some of them never do, of course.”

Temperance had walked to the wagon. She returned with a jug of whiskey, and Thad’s eyes brightened. “That’ll help deaden the pain.”

“Laudanum’s for that.” She set the jug down, pulled the dark brown bottle of painkiller out, and said, “Here, take a couple more swigs of this.”

“It tastes awful.”

“You’re going to need it,” Temperance said grimly. “This is going to hurt.”

Thad drank three healthy swallows of the laudanum and handed it back. He watched as she capped the bottle and then said, “What’s that whiskey for?”

“To clean you up. I’m going to wash the wounds with it.”

“That’s a dadgummed waste of good whiskey!”

“Well, you don’t drink anymore,” Temperance said, her eyes suddenly showing humor. “Christians don’t drink whiskey.”

“Some of them do,” Belle said. “They just don’t let people find out about it.”

Ignoring Belle, Temperance poured whiskey into a cup. She took a rag and began applying the alcohol to Thad’s wound. His eyes widened, and he said, “Woman, that hurts!”

“I know it hurts, but it has to be done. Now be still.”

The next half hour was about as painful as anything Thaddeus Brennan could remember. The laudanum helped, but still he was well aware of the needle poking his flesh. He tried not to look, but it was fascinating the way Temperance could stitch the skin together.

“Why, you sew better than anybody I ever saw, Temperance,” Rena said. “You want me to try it?”

“You keep your grubby hands off me, Rena,” Thad snapped. “Peabody’s doing fine.”

Belle watched for a time and moved closer. “You’re going to have some scars there. You can tell your grandchildren about how you fought the whole Cheyenne nation.”

“I don’t have no grandchildren.”

“Well, you’re a young man. You’ll have some sooner or later.” She smiled and added, “You know, there’s lots of things you’re going to have to give up now, Brennan. Drinking, wild women like me, and gambling. Just about anything that’s fun.”

Temperance looked up and said, “Stop teasing him, Belle. I’m happy that he’s found the Lord, and he should be too.”

Finally the task was done, and she said, “I’m going to have to tear up a sheet to make bandages. Then we’ll have to wash them out before we change them.”

“Why don’t you use some of that fancy underwear?” Rena grinned.

“That’s a good idea, but it’s too thin for that.”

“What underwear is that?” Belle asked curiously.

“Thad won a bunch of fancy underwear, playing poker, but Temperance won’t wear it. Says it’s unseemly.”

“I like unseemly things,” Belle said at once. “Let me see them.”

“No!” Temperance snapped. “Now, here. You have to have another shirt.”

“I bet Quaid’s got one,” Bent said. “He’s got lots of pretty clothes.”

“That’s probably true. You can just sit there until he gets back.”

* * *

QUAID RODE IN THIRTY minutes later, and Temperance met him at once. “Quaid, do you have a shirt that Thad can wear? His is too far gone.”

“Sure, but I’m bigger than he is.”

“Are not!” Thad snapped.

“Am too,” Quaid grinned.

“You ain’t either, and I don’t need your old shirt!”

“Get a shirt, Quaid,” Temperance said.

“All right. After that, I’ll tell you how to fix breakfast the way I like it.”

Quaid brought a fancy shirt and said, “Here, the best shirt you’ve ever had on, Thaddeus.”

Thad moved so abruptly he hurt his wounds, but he put the shirt on and buttoned it up. “There’s something wrong with a man that wears fancy shirts like this. Like that man in the Bible.”

“What man?” Quaid demanded.

“The one named Lazarus that went to hell. He had fancy shirts, I’ll bet.”

“Nothing wrong with a believer having nice clothes. Now, I’m going over and help Miss Temperance Peabody cook breakfast.”

Brennan watched Quaid as he joined Temperance. Rena sat down beside him and pestered him with questions. Bent moved to his other side so that Thad was framed like a book with living bookends. Brennan watched as Quaid carried on a running conversation with Temperance, and more than once she laughed aloud at his words.

“I don’t like the way Peabody’s acting.”

“Why not?” Rena said.

“You wouldn’t understand.”

Rena reached over and pulled the back of his hair. “You need a haircut,” she said. “I’ll cut it for you. And I understand, all right.”

“You keep your hands off of me. What is it you understand?”

Rena was grinning mischievously. “I understand you’re jealous of Mr. Quaid.”

“You’re—you’re crazy! Why would I be jealous of him?”

“Because Temperance likes him.”

“I don’t see why.”

“Well, I don’t either. Maybe it’s because he’s rich and the best-looking man I ever saw and he’s got good manners.”

“I’ve got good manners.”

“You don’t have
any
manners at all.”

“Well, when you get older, Rena, you’ll find out that men with lots of manners shouldn’t be trusted by women and especially dudes who wear foppish attire like Quaid Mitchell.”

“Oh, I see. You think men who are dirty and need a shave and have bad manners are better for women.”

“I told you you wouldn’t understand.”

Rena was quiet only for a few seconds, then she said, as if she had been preparing a speech, “I got to tell you something, Thad. When the Indians had us, I never thought you’d come after us.”

“I did,” Bent said eagerly.

“Yes, he did,” Rena nodded, “but I didn’t believe it.”

A wonder had come into her face as she sat cross-legged. She looked at Thad and her voice was soft. “Nobody ever done nothing like that for me. I won’t never forget it. It was noble, Thad.” She got up and walked away quickly before Brennan could answer.

“What’s the matter with her?”

“Aw, it’s just that nobody was ever good to her before, or to me either. I think she’s stuck on you.”

“She’s twelve years old!”

Bent ignored this. “When you get to feeling better, will you take me hunting again?”

“Sure I will, partner.”

Brennan’s reply warmed Bent. He said, “I ain’t never had a friend like you.” His countenance darkened. “What’ll I do when you leave us?”

“Your people will be good to you.”

“No, they won’t.”

At that moment Belle brought a plate of food and a brimming cup of coffee. She sat down and held his coffee as he balanced the plate on his knees. “Here,” she said. “They’re having so much fun over there that Temperance burned the bacon. I guess she’s not used to a good-looking man fawning over her.”

Brennan was ravenous. He quickly ate the bacon, freshly made biscuits, and the grits.

Belle watched him, then tapped her chin thoughtfully. “You know, I had pretty big plans for us, Brennan.”

“What kind of plans?”

“Doesn’t matter. They’ll never happen now.”

Brennan turned to watch her. She was still an attractive woman although hard living marked her features. “Why not?”

“I’m a pretty earthy type, Thad. You were just what I wanted. You and I could have had some good times. But you got a thing with God now.” She studied him for a moment and asked abruptly, “You wouldn’t sleep with me now, would you?”

Brennan stared at her, unable to answer, somewhat shocked although he was accustomed to her ribald teasing. “I don’t know about that.”

Belle laughed and squeezed his arm. “No, you wouldn’t. Well, it’s just as well. Rena would shoot me. You made a conquest there.”

“Don’t be foolish.”

“She never takes her eyes off of you. She can’t stop talking about how you came charging in and wiped out a whole set of Indians.”

“She’s just a kid.”

“She’s older than her years. She never had a father, and she sees that in you. If you let her down, Thad, it’ll break her heart. You’re the only man she ever knew that she can trust. I’m glad she found one. I never did.”

Brennan was unhappy with her words. “She ought not to be that trusting with a stranger.”

“By the time I was twelve years old, I’d fallen in love a dozen times.”

“That’s just the way with kids.”

“I know it is. That’s what I’m telling you.” She suddenly met his eyes, and there was pain in her expression. “I wish somebody had been good to me when I was her age. Don’t you hurt that child.”

“Why, I wouldn’t think of it.”

Belle watched him and noted that he was thinking deeply. “You know, I was worried about you and that preacher woman. I think Temperance had as bad a case on you as Rena, but I’m not worried now.”

“Why not?”

“Why, she’s got an admirer. A gentleman friend. Look at them, Thaddeus.”

Thad involuntarily put his eyes on the pair. They had finished the meal and were sitting together. He noticed that Quaid was wearing fine clothes, even on the trail, and he was close-shaven. His face glowed with health, and his eyes were bright as he spoke with enthusiasm.

He saw also that Temperance was looking at Quaid in a way he could not quite define. It had something of admiration in it, but it was more than that.

“They just look kind of like husband and wife,” Belle said.