Cole knew she was crying. He could understand the feeling of failure when you had come so far, only to have your dreams snatched away. He had been ready to purchase his own bit of land when the news of his father’s death had found him. He would not be building his own dreams. He would be growing and developing his father’s lifetime goals.
“Everything will be fine, Elizabeth. I will get you to my home and you can rest up. We’ll develop a game plan from there, okay?” he said encouragingly. He felt her nod and moved the horse into a quicker pace. He was returning to his own loss. He wasn’t sure how well he would handle returning home now that it was looming miles away ahead of him.
It was one thing to be able to return home and be proud to say you had made it on your own… it was entirely another to have it forced upon you. Cole could only hope that things were better at the small ranch than when he left it.
It was worse.
Not only was it bad, it was horrific. Cole had a sinking feeling as he rode gently down the winding road towards the timber gate that marked the entry to the long path back towards the small ranch house his father had built years ago. The cactus that lined the barbed fences looked as if it had taken over. His mother had loved the bright flowers that had decorated the greenery in the spring and cursed how they pulled at her skirts when she walked too close. Cole had made note of a few repairs that needed to be done to the wire fence as he rode along, observing the area and noticing the changes.
The cedars had grown and the mesquite scrub brush had filled out quite a bit. It was so different from the tall evergreen trees he had seen in his travels. The landscape here was designed by God to survive the harshest conditions and blossom under the best. It could survive a harsh ice storm or a drought and when it rained and the temperature was gentle, it was breathtaking.
Cole looked up once again, as he had done so many times in the past as a boy, at the markings on the timbers announcing the Hale farmstead. The memories blinded him and he thought of how proud his father was when the branding irons had been made and the symbol had been hammered out to hang from a chain from the gate. The irons were rusted and creaked as they swung in the breeze. The wood was cracked and splintered in several sections and would need to be either filled with chink or tarred to keep it from splitting further. It looked hazardous already and Cole decided he may have to replace it rather than repair it before it cracked and fell, injuring someone.
It had taken quite a bit of time to get to the property and they had ridden in silence. Cole was lost in thought and he assumed Elizabeth was as well. Looking up, he could see the outline of the house as the sun was getting ready to set behind it. His father’s house had been abandoned.
He would look over the land in the morning and get a fresh start. He would need to take stock of what was remaining at the house, what needed repair and how many head of cattle were present. He was not sure how long it had sat empty or if it was inhabited by the foreman that had worked the stock with his father. It looked bereft of anyone living anywhere nearby.
Cole regretted not communicating more or being more involved with his dad. He felt selfish and childish looking back over his past, thinking how he wanted to “do something important” and how he left. This property had been important to his father, his legacy to his son, and he had tossed it all away only to have it handed back upon his father’s passing. Cole felt so many emotions but guilt was at the forefront of them all.
He looked out towards the sunset and the small outcropping of buildings with a groan. The house looked to be in decent condition but he could also see signs that it needed a large amount of work. He was surprised to see the wooden shutters were hanging off of one of the windows. He remembered his mother opening them to let a breeze through to remedy the stifling heat in the summertime. The house looked as if it had not been inhabited in quite some time… much longer than what he had assumed. His father had only been gone a month. How could the house have fallen into such disrepair? He could see a spot on the roof that would need repairing and knew that meant there was going to be water damage inside if it had been leaking.
Elizabeth had not said a word but looked around wide eyed as the sun was setting on the small house in front of them. It looked to be in pretty poor condition and while she did not want to sound ungrateful, she was concerned that it might be uninhabitable.
She had spent the last several hours just listening to Cole as she had rested her head against his back. She had felt such a sense of peace come across her as she let the sounds roll over her. His heartbeat, his breath, the clopping of the horse hooves and the breeze.
Occasionally she would hear a cow in the distance or birds, but the rhythmic beat from him was soothing. Her initial worry about her misfortune was soon replaced with a feeling of rightness. She had enjoyed riding with Cole much more than she ever wanted to admit, even if her bottom was sore from the horseback ride. He had told her it would be all right and she had believed him willingly… until now.
Now, she had a few doubts as she looked over the uninhabited small house ahead of them. Compared to her home in Indianapolis, it was rough to say the very least. She knew she had left a comfortable life and was open to change, but this might be pushing a line she had not expected to cross. Elizabeth felt like an ungrateful, spoiled brat even thinking that the house ahead of her was dilapidated. Cole had generously offered her shelter and here she was judging it. She would not say a word otherwise and would be more than willing to help him right the situation since he had been so willing to help her correct her own situation.
Elizabeth plastered a cheerful smile across her face and took a deep breath as the horse came to a stop in front of the darkening house. “Is this your home?” she inquired cheerfully.
“I bet it’s so nice to be home once again, isn’t it?” she questioned. She watched as he slid off the horse with ease and told her to stay put. Elizabeth wanted to get down, but when she saw him pull his gun, she froze. Elizabeth stared as she watched him open the front door with the gun drawn and disappear inside, silently.
“What is going on?” she whispered to herself, surprised by his actions.
Cole had honestly expected someone to be at the house or in the barn not far from here. Seeing the lack of habitation, he could only assume that the property had been completely abandoned for more than the month he expected. There was no smoke on the breeze indicating food cooking or wood being burned for the cool nights. There were also no sounds issuing from the barn nearby, which meant that his father’s horses were gone. No chickens, no dogs, nothing in the area. Cole did not want to find any surprises inside of the house and wanted Elizabeth safe outside if there was something awaiting them.
Cole had drawn his gun and entered the dark house expecting problems. You never knew if there would be a squatter that had taken possession or if the home was now inhabited by wildlife. It was not unusual for snakes, varmints or any other creatures to have made an empty shell of a house their new home. He quietly moved through the dark house, his heart pounding until he realized it was completely uninhabited and clear of animals.
He threw a few logs into the fireplace and prayed the chimney was clear of debris as he lit it. He struck the flint and watched a small glow fill the room as he moved to get Elizabeth and put the horse in the barn. Cole walked through the door and spotted Elizabeth’s anxious face in the setting sunlight on the horse. It would be pitch-black shortly outside and he would prefer to be safely inside.
“Are you okay? I smell smoke,” Elizabeth nervously said as she saw Cole exit the small house. He had been gone for some time and she had stayed perched on the horse in front of the house, listening for any sounds of a scuffle. She fidgeted, hearing a few sounds of wildlife in the distance and had tucked her feet up just a bit higher in her skirt as if that would help her if some wild animal attacked. She felt so out of place as she waited on the horse for him.
Cole grinned at her. “You smell smoke because I started a fire,” he said wryly. “I am hungry, aren’t you?” he asked as he moved to help her off the back of his horse. He noticed how firm her waist was in the corset and marveled at how his hands fit around her easily. She seemed so delicate and tiny.
“Are you okay after all that traveling?” he questioned, knowing she had to be sore. He doubted that she had spent a lot of time in the saddle like he had and it was rough on the body.
Elizabeth caught herself from collapsing. Her knees almost gave out as he helped her from the horse. Her bum was aching and her legs screamed in protest when she tried to stand up. She hurt from head to toe, but would never admit it. She just smiled up at him and stood still for a moment, trying not to flinch as her body stretched.
“Just a bit stiff, but I am okay. Thank you,” she replied trying to keep herself from groaning aloud as she moved to walk behind him into the house.
Cole watched her and admired her tenacity. She would need it out here if she was starting anew. Life could be hard on a ranch and it was not for everyone. He did not say a word as he led her indoors. Cole was glad to see that the smoke was exiting the chimney and not filling the house. That was a good sign that maybe things would not be as bad as he feared. If the chimney was blocked by soot or a bird’s nest, that would be a tough problem to fix in the dark.
Cole found a few oil lamps on the mantel and lit them, moving the glass into place and adjusting the wicks to set more light into the room. He glanced around and was glad to see the furniture was still present and in good condition, just dusty. He took a lamp and checked his father’s room, noting that the bed was still made. Nothing had been touched in months apparently or so it seemed. His father had been gone one month, had he stopped sleeping here prior to that? He wondered if the larder had anything worth keeping inside or if everything had gone rancid.
He gathered up the dust-covered bedding off his father’s bed and moved to the cedar chest to change out the linens. Cole would give Elizabeth this room. It was the nicest and most comfortable. It would be closer to what she had been used to, he assumed, from her home back in Indianapolis. Cole turned and saw Elizabeth watching him carefully. He straightened and muttered, “You’re safe here, okay? I am just fixing up the room for you.” He gathered up the stale blankets and carried them out, walking brusquely past her.
Elizabeth had been watching him since they had entered the house. She watched, fascinated at the expression on his face and relief in his eyes. She caught herself admiring the way he looked in the dim light and how he filled the room up with his presence. When she saw him yanking the linens off of a bed, she felt a pang of desire in her abdomen that alarmed her. She shooed it down, attributing it to a hunger pain, instead. She watched him spread the linens over the bed and he smoothed them into place with his tanned hands, thinking how capable he seemed to be and how incapable she suddenly was. She had never really made a bed in her life, her maid had always done so.
Elizabeth felt embarrassed when she saw him looking at her and even more so when he told her she was safe from him. Elizabeth didn’t know which bothered her more, the fact that she was mortified at how she was unprepared for her new life and how she had so much to learn…or the fact that she felt insulted that he would even think she was not desirable and he would not touch her.
Cole walked past her standing in the doorway watching him. He could not believe that she would look so unsure of his intentions when he had been nothing but polite to her. She had heard much worse from others along the trip. He offered her a home and protection. He had helped her in the past and given advice only to be looked upon like he would attack her.
He was more than frustrated by her wariness as he snatched up the linens and stormed down the short hallway toward the other room. He found it was in the same condition as the other. This had been his room and it had not changed much. His small bed still sat in the corner like before with a chest of drawers nearby.
He took a deep breath as his mind reeled at the small mementos around the room. His father had kept his letters and they were tied together on the nightstand. He had also kept his bow he had practiced with as a young man. The bow lay propped in the corner, untouched. Cole wondered what else his father had kept and had never realized how sentimental he had been. Cole sighed again, feeling guilty that he had left and had not been here for him.
He stripped the linens once again and remade the bed so that he could get some rest tonight after they had finally eaten something. His stomach took that moment to give a loud rumble and Cole looked around, noting that the wash basket his mother kept in each room was missing.
Strange
, he thought. He dropped the linens in the corner and would see that they were cleaned tomorrow in case they were needed again.
Cole strode down the small hallway towards the front door. The front door had opened into a large living space that had a massive fireplace with a hearth. His mother had insisted upon a fireplace as well as a cooktop stove. He had grown accustomed to cooking on a fire pit and did not think to attempt to light the stove when he lit the fireplace. He noticed that Elizabeth still watched him from the doorway and had made no move to enter her own room as of yet.
Elizabeth felt out of place. She did not know the house or the layout. In addition, after his cold rebuttal earlier, she felt a bit unwelcomed. Like he had made a mistake offering her shelter. She was truly relieved she had a place to stay and, by the looks of it, he was trying to make the best of the situation or so she assumed.