E
arly the following morning they all climbed into the buckboard and headed for Napa. Jed told them he needed a few items, not mentioning that a horse for Garrett was among them. It would only start an argument with Caroline. But this was a serious issue with Jed. Garrett would soon be nine years old, and it wasn’t right that he had never sat a saddle. By the time he and his brothers were that age, they could leap short fences and ford shallow streams on horseback, and he only had less than two weeks to teach Garrett how to ride.
When they reached Napa, they separated. Caroline wanted to shop for a new dress, Nathan had business at the bank, and Garrett chose to accompany Jed.
“Where are we going, Dad?” he asked.
“To the livery. It’s the best place to start for what I have in mind.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“I’ll tell you when I’m sure I can get what I want.”
Burt Thomas, the livery owner, told him of a nearby farmer who had the very size horse he was looking for.
“Name’s Bill Callahan,” Burt said. “Saw him pass by this morning. If he’s still in town, you’ll most likely find him at the grain store.”
“Thanks, Burt.”
“Congratulations on your marriage, Mr. Fraser. Miz Collins is a mighty fine lady. You’re a lucky man.”
“I think so, too. And the name’s Jed.”
“So will you be living here, or somewhere else?”
“I’m a sailor. My ship will be sailing in a couple of weeks.”
“Heard tell the whole family was moving out.”
“Who started that rumor?” Jed asked.
Burt shrugged. “I heard it from Tony, the barber. He claimed Vincent Calhoun was bragging about it last time he came in for a haircut. Said he was buying up Nathan’s property.”
“Mr. Calhoun is mistaken. In fact, I’m told that it’s Calhoun who is leaving Napa. Nathan Collins is not selling out, and Caroline and Garrett will remain with him while I’m at sea. Now I’d better try and find this Bill Callahan. Nice talking to you, Burt.”
“If you have any luck, I’ve got an old saddle that would be perfect for what you have in mind. Knew if I held on to it long enough, it would come to some good.”
Jed joined Garrett and Buffer outside. “Garrett, do you know who Bill Callahan is?”
“Sure. That’s him loading that wagon in front of the grain store.”
“I have to talk to him a minute, so don’t wander off.” Jed went over to the tall, thin man, and introduced himself.
“So you’re the fella what married Miz Caroline,” Callahan said.
“Yes, I am. And I’m told that you have a pony for sale.”
“He’s not really a pony, just the runt of the litter. By now he oughta be full grown, but he ain’t.”
“Is he sickly?” Jed asked.
“Don’t seem to be. He’s frisky and eats good. Just don’t grow very much.”
“He sounds like the very thing I’m looking for. I want to get Garrett started on riding. Is the horse gentle?”
“Oh, yeah. And he don’t shy away from folks at all.”
“How much are you asking for him?”
“Well, since he don’t seem to be growing much bigger, I’m only asking twenty-five dollars. I always figured he wouldn’t be good for much more than pulling a plow.”
“Then you’ve got yourself a sale, Mr. Callahan.”
“If we’re gonna be neighbors, my name’s Bill.”
“And mine’s Jed.” The two men shook hands.
“Well, Jed, my farm’s just a couple miles south of town.”
“We’ll swing by your place as soon as we finish here in town.”
Callahan climbed up on the wagon. “Nathan knows where it is. I’ll be expectin’ you.”
Jed was elated. He went back and bought the saddle and necessary reins from Burt and carried them to the buckboard.
“What’s the saddle for, Dad?” Garrett asked. “Don’t you like the one we have?”
“I think we could use another one. Should we see what your mother’s up to?”
They went to the small boutique in town. When they entered, Caroline was in front of a mirror studying the pale-green dress she had on. His gaze clung to her as the dress tightened across the curve of her breasts as she turned and stretched in an effort to see her back.
“It looks great from where I’m standing,” he said.
She swung around in surprise, then with outstretched arms, she twirled around and laughed gaily. “What do you think of it?”
“Gorgeous, Cinderella,” he said.
Caroline blushed at the glow of desire in his eyes.
She felt heated blood surge through her and knew it was part of the hold he had on her.
After all the past lonely years, she liked being openly desirable in his eyes. She was discovering the excitement of being desired by an attractive man, one who made her tremble just by the way he looked at her.
She shook her head. “I really don’t need a new dress.”
“Caroline, buy it,” Jed said.
“But I really…”
Their gazes clung in an unspoken message, the way they had done at Fraser Keep the night she was playing the piano.
“Buy the dress, Caroline,” he said softly.
“All right,” she said to the woman, “I’ll take it.”
By the time she changed her clothes and went to pay for the gown, Celeste told her that Jed had already paid for it.
“You are most fortunate to have such a handsome husband, Caroline, and a generous one, too. Ooh, la, la! I should be that lucky.” She started to wrap up a pair of jeweled pumps that matched the dress.
“I’m not buying the shoes, Celeste.”
“Your husband bought them,” Celeste said. “And these elbow-length gloves. He has impeccable taste.” She glanced at the ring on Caroline’s finger. “Yes, indeed,
chérie
. Impeccable taste.”
“If you don’t mind, Celeste, I’ll pick up the packages when we’re ready to leave town.”
Once outside, there was no sign of Jed and Garrett. She saw her father just leaving the bank and hurried over to him.
“Have you seen Jed and Garrett?”
“Yes, he asked to borrow the buckboard because he had an important errand to run and told me we should finish our shopping and wait for him at the diner.”
“Are you sure that Garrett’s with him?”
“Yes, they rode out of here about ten minutes ago. I had to give him directions to Bill Callahan’s farm.”
“What in the world would he be going there for?”
“He didn’t volunteer, so I didn’t ask. I try to stay out of people’s personal business.”
“Since when, you old meddler?” She slipped her arm through his. “We might as well go have a cup of coffee until they get back.”
An hour later, still waiting at the diner, Caroline wondered, “Why do you suppose they went to Bill Callahan’s farm?”
“My dear, I haven’t the faintest idea. But I suspect we’ll find out soon, because they’re back.” Nathan nodded toward the door that Garrett had just burst through with his usual enthusiasm.
Caroline couldn’t help smiling at his trying to contain himself.
“What is it, honey?” she asked, hugging him when he sat down beside her.
“Mama, I’m ’bout the luckiest kid in the world. I bet no kid is happier than me.”
“Aren’t you going to make us happy, too, by telling us what’s making you so happy?”
“Can’t right now. I promised Dad I wouldn’t say a word ’til after we eat.”
Caroline looked at Jed, who said, “I bought him a going-away gift. Something to remind him of me while I’m gone.”
“How sweet. Is that dress you bought me for the same reason?”
“Just the opposite. The dress is something to remind me of you while I’m gone.”
“Well, thank you. It was very generous of you.”
“I hope I have the chance to see you in it again before I leave.” The cocky look in his eyes said more than any words could.
“Let’s order our lunch and get out of here,” Nathan declared. “I’ve sat here so long in this wooden booth that my rear end is getting sore, and I can’t wait to see what all the mystery is about.
“It seems like we’ve all been busy this morning. I filled out papers to have the ownership of my property and sawmill transferred into your name, Caroline, with the provision it will pass on to Garrett at your discretion.”
“Father, why? It’s yours. There was no need for you to do that.”
“There’s too much talk,” Garrett declared. “Let’s hurry up and eat so we can get out of here.”
“Too much talk—coming from the world’s greatest nonstop talker?” Caroline teased. “But you’re right, Father, I’m just as curious to find out about this big surprise, so let’s hurry up and finish our meal.”
Later, as Caroline approached their buckboard, she stared at the buckskin horse tied to the rear of it.
“What is that?” she asked.
“That’s Runt,” Garrett exclaimed. “Dad bought him for me.”
“What do we need him for?” she asked.
“To teach Garrett how to ride a horse, of course.”
Her annoyed glance reflected her feelings as she climbed into the carriage. “I think you should have discussed it with me before you made such a decision.”
“It would appear, Jed, my daughter is ready to leave,” Nathan said and sat down beside her.
“Caroline, where are the packages from the boutique?” Jed asked.
“I told Celeste we would pick them up when we left town.”
“I thought I would tie them to Runt’s saddle so they wouldn’t get crushed.”
“You consider just about everything, Mr. Fraser—except what you
should
be considering,” she added.
“Granddad, are they having another fight again?” Garrett asked.
“We are merely disagreeing. Isn’t that right, Jed?”
“Seems like a fight to me, if you’re going to sit there looking uppish with your arms folded across your chest all the way back to the house.”
He climbed in and took the reins, and Garrett sat down next to Jed. Buffer squeezed into the front at Garrett’s feet.
“Are you sure you feel up to driving?” Nathan asked. “How do your ribs feel?”
“They’re fine, just a little sore. That hot spring did wonders. I’m glad you thought of it.”
After a quick stop at the boutique, they headed for home.
“Will you teach me how to ride right away?” Garrett asked.
“You have to learn how to take care of a horse before you start thinking about riding one,” Jed advised him. “You begin by being the only one who does anything for him. That will gain his trust. You must see that he’s fed and that there’s water in his trough. You muck out his stall, hose him down, and curry his mane. And you talk to him while you do it.”
“You mean he’ll understand what I say, just like Buffer does?”
“Not really. It gets him used to the sound of your voice. A horse isn’t as smart as a dog, Garrett. I don’t think any domesticated animal is, when it comes to being sensitive to human moods and routines.
“With a horse, it’s total trust. Once that’s established between you, they’ll run until they drop dead if you’re riding them. That’s why it’s essential that you learn the extent of their strength and endurance, so that you don’t abuse that trust.
“Runt may not be the size of a full-grown horse, but he’ll have the power and heart of one. He’ll want to run, so you have to teach him signals he’ll respond to, Garrett.”
“What kind of signals?”
“How to veer right, or left, or straight ahead. When you want him to stop, to go. When you want him to gallop or just trot. It’s all done with the right pressure of your legs and the tension on the reins. That’s the way you talk to them when you’re in the saddle.”
Awestruck, Garrett asked, “Where’d you learn so much about horses, Dad?”
“Growing up in Virginia, we had a stable of horses. My parents had seven children and we all rode—your aunt Lissy can handle a horse as well as a man. There were a couple of horses that were used just for plowing, and we’d often race our horses at county fairs.”
“Did you ever win?”
“A time or two.”
“Which one of my uncles is the best rider?” Garrett asked.
Jed thought for a few moments, then said, “They’re all pretty good, but I guess I’d have to say your uncle Garth. There’s nothing that crazy brother of mine can’t do on a horse. And your uncle Colt was in General Stuart’s cavalry during the war. There wasn’t a cavalry unit on either side of the war that could equal them.”
Garrett reached over and patted Jed’s leg. “Bet you can ride as good as any of them, Dad.”
That’s what he’s always needed,
Caroline thought. The anger had slowly eased from her as she’d listened and watched them together. As close as her father and her son were, Jed was bringing to Garrett’s life the precious shared moments between a father and young son. Teaching him skills that a mother would never think to do, would never know how to do.
And Garrett was absorbing them like they were sustenance.
She smiled. He had even started to copy Jed’s stance, the way Jed leaned his head when he was engrossed in a conversation. Every day, he absorbed something from Jed that became part of his growth toward manhood.
He needed the balance of a man’s forthright answers and observations of life, as opposed to her nuanced answers that avoided unpleasantness and hurt feelings. Jed was teaching Garrett how to be a man.
“I
bet this feels good on such a hot day, Runt,” Garrett said as he wet down his horse.
After several days of higher than normal temperatures, they had all come to the river to cool off.
Nathan grinned as he listened to the young boy talking to the horse. For the past few days, Garrett had cared diligently and devotedly for the horse. Whenever he was missing, they knew he and Buffer could be found in the barn.
After a refreshing swim, the men lay down to dry off in the sunshine and gave Caroline a chance to protect her modesty while splashing in the water.
“Dad, I’ve been thinking ’bout something since we came back home,” Garrett said.
“Uh-huh,” Jed murmured, on the border of dozing off.
“It’s about Rico.”
“Uh-huh.”
“If he’s your cousin, how come he’s a different color than the rest of us?”
“My aunt Elena, who is Rico’s mother, is Spanish, so Rico is a mixture of Spanish and white blood. That’s why he’s darker than us.”
“Is he my cousin, too, like my other cousins?”
“He’s actually my cousin, and my brothers’ and Lissy’s cousin.”
“Well, how come he’s a cousin to all of you, but not mine?”
“He is, in a way. You understand that Lissy’s and my brothers’ children are your cousins, right?”
“Right.”
Jed nodded. “Good. That makes them your first cousins.”
“But there’s a lot of them. How can they all be the first one?”
“That’s what it’s called if it’s a child of your aunt or uncle.”
“Which uncle?” Garrett asked.
“Any of your uncles.” From the blank look on the boy’s face, Jed knew he’d just confused him. “I guess we’ll have to back up a bit. My father had a brother, my uncle Henry. And Uncle Henry had a son named Rico. That makes Rico my cousin, because he’s the son of my uncle.”
“Your
first
cousin.”
“Absolutely right! My first cousin. And just like Rico is my cousin, because he is the son of
my
uncle Henry, you are a cousin to all the children of
your
father’s sister and brothers: Jake, Clint, and Cody; Jeb and Sam; Danny; Ted, Sarah, and Rachel.”
“You forgot Baby Hope, Dad,” Garrett said.
“Of course, Baby Hope,” Jed replied, trying to keep a hold on his patience. “They’re all your
first
cousins. But since Rico is
my
first cousin, he’s your
second
cousin.”
Garrett reflected for a long moment. “I don’t understand. Rico’s older than my other cousins. Right? So how come he’s not my
first
cousin, if he’s the oldest one?”
Jed closed his eyes. He wasn’t sure he was ready for fatherhood. Maybe fatherhood was something a man had to be gradually conditioned to rather than having it thrust upon him.
“No, Garrett. It has nothing to do with age. It’s about generations.” He sighed deeply. “Let’s start over. Your grandfather was born before your father. Your father was born before you. And then you were born. So that’s three generations. Right?”
“Okay,” Garrett agreed. “What’s a generation?”
“What are the two of you talking about so seriously?” Caroline asked, sitting down and joining them.
“Caroline! I’m glad you’re here.” Jed got to his feet. “I have to go and hitch up the buckboard. Garrett has a question he wants you to explain.”
He hurried away.
The day finally arrived when Jed felt it was time to introduce Garrett to a saddle. Fortunately the horse was already saddle broken so there was only the need to do the same to the intended rider.
Caroline and Nathan stood back and watched. Trembling with excitement, Garrett waited as Jed led out Liberty and Runt.
“Now, Garrett, the first thing you have to know about mounting a horse is that you always do it from the left side of the horse. You gather both reins together loosely in your left hand, grasp the saddle horn with the same hand, then raise your left leg and put your foot into the stirrup. Then you swing your right leg over the horse and slip your foot into that stirrup. But you don’t hesitate between these steps; it’s all done in the same movement.
“I’ll demonstrate what I just said. The only difference will be that I’ll do it slowly.” He went over to Liberty and gathered the reins, then grasped the saddle horn. “Do you see what I did?” he asked. Garrett nodded. “I’ll do it one more time.”
When he finished, he said, “Now let me see you do that with Runt. At first you might need to grab the saddle horn with both hands; that will give you a stronger lift to pull yourself up.”
Caroline held her breath as Garrett followed Jed’s instructions. He looked so small, even next to the little horse.
A half hour later, Garrett had succeeded in swinging himself on and off the horse without mishap.
With Jed astride Liberty and Garrett on Runt, she watched nervously as Jed demonstrated how to hold the reins and coordinate leg movements with them to indicate direction and speed to the horse.
When Jed was satisfied with Garrett’s progress, he dismounted, leaving Garrett on his own. “Let’s see you ride down to that pine clump and back again.”
“Are you sure he’s ready to ride alone?” Caroline asked worriedly.
“Of course. Frasers are born knowing how to ride.”
Garrett passed the test with flying colors to the applause of his mother and grandfather. Dismounting, he rushed into her open arms and flung his arms around her neck.
“I did it, Mama! I rode Runt all alone. I can ride a horse!”
Hugging him, she glanced up and saw Jed grinning as he watched them, unaware of the tears of happiness sliding down her cheeks.
Garrett scrambled away and remounted Runt. “Come on, Buffer,” he shouted.
“Keep it slow, son,” Jed shouted to the departing rider.
“And stay in sight,” Caroline called out.
Nathan came over and shook Jed’s hand. “Well done, Jed. You’re a good instructor.”
“I had a good student.” He glanced at the distant rider wheeling his horse around to return and smiled with pride. “He’s a Fraser, all right.”
Caroline could feel his sense of pride in her own heart. She slipped away and returned to the house. Seeing how thrilled Garrett was warmed her heart, but riding a horse was also dangerous. He could be seriously injured if he fell off it.
Why did Jed have to do this so close to the time he was leaving? Had he discussed it with her, she could have explained her reservations and recommendations. Garrett would be a year older by the time Jed returned, and at the speed he was growing, it would have made a big difference in his size and maturity.
Her father came into the room and sat down at the table. “He did well, didn’t he, honey?”
She looked up and smiled. “Yes, he did, but it’s another thing I have to worry about. Now that he can ride, it could be opening up a Pandora’s box if Garrett starts disobeying the rules Jed established.”
“Aren’t you being pessimistic, honey? There’s no reason to think that he’ll do that. Garrett usually obeys what he’s told to do.”
“I hope you’re right. I just wish Jed had discussed his intentions with me. ‘Frasers are born knowing how to ride.’ Does he actually believe that? It’s ludicrous.”
Nathan reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “Caroline, from the beginning you’ve convinced yourself Jed is a threat in some way. It goes deeper than that, doesn’t it, honey? What’s wrong, Caroline?”
“I’m afraid of losing Garrett, Father. He worships Jed.”
“Do you resent that?”
“No, I’m…I’m hurt by it. He once came to me for answers, but now he seeks advice from Jed.”
“Because right now Jed is a novelty to him, honey. In time he’ll turn back to you, and you’ll be able to scoff at these fears.”
Caroline leaned on her elbow and cupped her head in her hands. “I’m not sure, Father. One minute I’m grateful he’s around, and the next he does an impulsive thing like this and I want to curse the day he came into our lives.”
“Are you in love with Jed, Caroline?” Nathan asked gently.
She raised her head, her expression tortured. “I wish I knew. I feel something for him, but can I call it love?”
“Well, I think you should decide soon, because he’ll be gone in another week. If you love him, you’re wasting precious time when you could be together.”
Caroline got to her feet. “I’m going to take the buggy and ride over to the mill. I’ve neglected my bookwork.”
“You’re riding over alone?”
“I’ve done it plenty of times before, and the ride there and back will give me time to think about my situation with Jed. Where are they now?”
“They rode off to the river to go swimming.”
“I guess it didn’t occur to either of them to ask me to go along.” She walked to the door. “I’ll be back in time for supper.”
“Where’s Caroline?” Jed asked when they returned home.
“She rode over to the mill to catch up on some of her ledger work,” Nathan said.
Jed glanced up at the darkened clouds overhead. “How long has she been gone? It looks like we’re in for quite a storm.”
“Caroline said she’d be home for dinner.”
An hour later, when the distant rumbling had grown more severe, Jed had begun to pace the floor. “I’d have thought she’d be home by now.”
“Frankly, I did, too. Caroline’s got more common sense than to let herself be caught in a downpour,” Nathan said.
“Maybe I’ll ride out and meet her. Is there any possibility she’d take a shortcut home?”
“The trail is the shortest route home,” Nathan said.
“Maybe she’s run into a problem with the buggy. I’m going to saddle up Liberty and check it out.”
“There’s a couple of rain slickers in the barn. It might be wise to take them with you in case you don’t make it back before the rain hits.”
“Thanks. Hopefully we’ll meet up on the trail.”
Jed quickly saddled Liberty, stuffed the slickers into the saddlebags, and took off on a gallop.
Absorbed in her work, Caroline let the hours slip by. Now, as the rumble of thunder announced the approaching storm, she went to the window and saw she had better leave if she intended to get home before the storm struck.
She closed the ledger books and gathered them up to take home to finish them, then carried them outside and tucked them away in the carriage where they would remain dry. Then she quickly reharnessed Belle to the buggy.
The skeleton crew at the mill waved to her as they hurried to the comfort of the bunkhouse for the evening.
Caroline ran back inside to get some papers she needed and reached to extinguish the oil lamp. She jumped back as a rifle blast shattered the window glass, and the oil lamp at her fingertips fell over. A narrow stream of oil and flame slithered across the desktop, then raced down a table leg to the floor and began to consume a wooden chair.
The smoke that was swiftly filling the small cabin stung her eyes, and she tripped on a chair and fell to the floor. She began to crawl on her hands and knees toward the door, when a pair of strong arms suddenly snatched her up and carried her outside.
“Caroline, were you shot?” Jed asked.
“No,” she managed to gasp through her coughs.
Several of the men had come outside when they heard the gun blast, and they ran over to the cabin at the sight of the flames.
“Let’s get that hose working before this spreads,” the foreman, Pete Dodge, shouted.
A couple of the men came running with buckets in hand and began to throw water on the burning building, while several others strung a hose into the river and began to pump water onto the roof and walls of the mill to wet it down.
“It’s too late to save the office,” Dodge shouted. “Some of you men spread a fire break with dirt to keep the fire from spreading to the trees.”
Jed was struggling to move the buggy, but Belle, who had smelled the smoke, was rearing in a frenzy to break lose. He finally managed to control her enough to get to the river, away from the burning building.
He grabbed a scarf of Caroline’s lying on the seat and dunked it in the water, then raced back to the compound and handed the scarf to her. “Tie this over your nose and mouth.”
The air was thick with smoke, but fortunately there was no wind to scatter the sparks into the trees. Despite the valiant effort of the limited men, though, patches of fire had crept to the shrub and brush near several trees and their bark had begun to burn.
Caroline felt near to exhaustion when, like an answered prayer, the sky opened up with a downpour. Within minutes the fires all fizzled out, and the men tossed shovels of dirt and mud over the ashes that fought to survive.
Despite the downpour, they formed teams and sawed down the trees that had been burning in case any sparks remained. As lumbermen, they knew what a few sparks fanned by the wind could do to a forest.
When they were finally confident that all was secure, they looked around at the damage. Only sodden ashes remained of the office and nearby privy, but the two main structures, the mill and bunkhouse, were unscathed.
Suddenly a rifle cracked, and Jed shoved Caroline to the ground and threw his body across her as a bullet whizzed by from some nearby foliage. Pete Dodge drew his Colt and returned the shot. The bullet found its mark, and they heard the sound of the concealed shooter falling to the ground.
They approached cautiously.
“It’s Bomber!” Caroline exclaimed. “Oh, my God! We shot an innocent man?”
Pete Dodge knelt down and examined his gun, then shook his head.
“Bomber, did you fire the shot?”
The man nodded. “But why did you try to kill me?” Caroline asked, stunned.
“Your fault,” he managed to gasp. “Yours and your Reb husband’s. All this would be mine. Calhoun promised…if I’d help drive you out.”
“Did you tamper with the axle of the buggy, too?” Jed asked.
“Yeah. Meant to scare the boss.”
“What about the accident when you were blowing stumps?” Jed asked, trying to tie up all the loose ends.
“Did that on purpose. Didn’t put up warning flag, and knew when to light the fuse so the kid wouldn’t get hurt.”
The dying man’s voice was fading, and Caroline had to lean over to hear him.