Chapter 10
Ellie let out a yell and dropped her wood, which clattered to the ground, giving her foot a resounding thump on the way. Ellie ducked and grabbed the first piece of wood she touched. Chest pounding as painfully as her foot, she straightened and swung the short limb up over her head, ready to hit the savage face as hard as she could.
The single eye widened, showing white all around the black iris. “Lord have mercy!” the Indian yelled before dropping to the ground, his lanky arms folded up over his head.
“Now, hold on there,“ said a voice smooth as warm molasses.
Ellie froze, her eyes darting up from the cowering Indian to Curtis Locken standing with his palms out toward her. “There’s no call to beat on M.J. when he's just coming to your rescue.”
“My rescue?“
“You were calling out like you needed help, so we came to assist you.”
Ellie lowered the stick. “What are you doing out here?“ She hated the tremor in her voice.
“I could ask the same of you, a young woman unaccompanied.” His eyebrow quirked up. “This could be viewed as a positively indecent situation. “
Ellie wasn’t sure what to say. Curtis had been as polite as a preacher at her house, but now he was making allusions to her character.
Ellie raised her stick again. “Don't you try anything.“ Mr. Curtis Locken was a fine looking man, and he had saved her life. Perhaps he sought after any unaccompanied girl with a pretty face who happened to be away from the safety of a town. Just now he’d gone straight to talk of indecency upon finding her alone. And did she really tear her sleeve so thoroughly? Her thoughts of the fall on the train tracks were unclear. Could Curtis Locken have had a hand in taking advantage of a small opening in her dress seam to make it larger? Perhaps he wasn’t the man she imagined him to be.
Ellie stood firm as the one-eyed man in the buckskin shirt slowly got to his feet. Thin as an aspen, M.J. stood a little taller than Curtis.
“You’d better take care,” Ellie warned. “My brother and his friend are out here. And they are armed.” They had axes and a saw, but if Curtis and M.J. thought they carried guns, so much the better. “You are no match for the two of them.”
“You needn't worry, Miss Ransom,” Curtis said in the most comforting tone Ellie had ever heard. She wanted to believe him. His gentle accent alone implied security. But wolves could wag their tails and cavort like friendly dogs, yet beneath their warm fur beat a wild heart. David had changed his demeanor in the wilderness. Had Mr. Curtis Locken changed out here away from civilization, too?
“I was merely having some fun as I’ve heard your brothers do when speaking with you. You are as safe with me and M.J. as if you were within the walls of your own home.“
Without thinking, Ellie muttered, “Does that include safety against sewing?”
“Well, ma’am,” M.J. said with a startlingly white smile. “If you have a problem wit’ sewing, I’m a good hand at it.”
Ellie took a sudden step back.
“By the way, my name is Moses, ma’am.” He cast a disparaging glance at Curtis. “Not M.J.”
“He is right,” Curtis said. “Moses grew up with me in Georgia, where he turned a willing hand toward any chore.”
“Not much choice, was there?” Moses said.
Curtis grinned and clapped a hand on Moses’s shoulder. “We got on well, spending many pleasant days fishing, walking fences, swimming, and working around the plantation together. I took to calling him M.J. the day we got into the mint juleps and he became rather tipsy.”
“That was not a good day,” Moses said solemnly. “Bes’ not remembered. I’m sworn off liquor, so call me Moses now.”
Curtis nodded. “As you wish.” He turned back to Ellie. “Then the war called me into service.” Curtis paused, making Ellie suspect that was leaving something out of his story. Before she could question him, he continued, “Then Moses disappeared, heading west on his own. When I found him again at last, he consented to meet me here in Rambling.”
“Oh,” Ellie said, realization suddenly dawning. “Is that who… at the station…when you waited for every train?”
“Yes, he is the one I waited for. Turns out he’d gotten himself deep in Indian territory, where he’d made himself popular with the red men.”
Moses turned to Curtis, “‘Excuse me, you’re gettin’ it wrong.” Moses’s mellow voice was nearly as cultured as Curtis’s. Moses glanced at Ellie, then dropped his gaze. “To put it plain, ma’am, it was the Indian women.” He brushed the leather sleeve of his shirt. “They lost mos’ of their men in battles with whites, so Indian women found new husbands by buying slaves.” Moses grinned and gave his chest a thump.
Ellie shifted, uncomfortable. “You’re a slave?”
“Used to be,” Curtis said.
“Used to be a white man’s slave,” Moses corrected him. “Now I’m the property of Sunning Sparrow.”
“He managed to get away,” Curtis said, “and now he’s a free man.”
Without another word, Moses stepped forward, bent, and picked up Ellie’s dropped wood.
“You don't have to,” Ellie protested, reaching for the bundle.
“Begging your pardon, ma’am, but take a look at me, and take a look at you,” Moses said, glancing at his buckskins, then skimming Ellie’s slender arm. “Which one of us is bes’ made for carrying these matchsticks?”
“But they’re not…” Ellie began, then realized that Moses was just having some fun.
Moses’ expression suddenly grew serious as he scanned Ellie’s face. “You ever been to Georgia, ma’am?”
Thinking it a strange question, she answered, “No. Why?”
Moses didn’t answer, but Curtis cocked his head to one side and studied Ellie as if she were a rare and valuable painting. She tried not to squirm under his penetrating gaze. “She look familiar to you, M.J?”
Moses gave him a stern look.
“Sorry. Moses. Old habits die hard.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Hm. Perhaps you saw her somewhere after you left home.”
With doubt plain in his eye, Moses replied, “That mus’ be it.”
“I’ve only ever lived here,” Ellie said.
“Is this your first time in Rambling?” Curtis asked.
“Firs’ time,” Moses admitted.
“Hm,” Curtis said. “That is strange, but I’ve no doubt it’ll come to you, by and by.”
Ellie stared at Moses with apprehension. Curtis hadn’t told her what they were doing out here, with night falling fast. Moses wasn’t one of those gypsies who told fortunes and found things growing out in the woods or graveyards by moonlight to use in casting spells, was he?
Curtis broke into her uneasy thoughts. “Now let’s go see if we can find your brother.” After a second’s hesitation, he added, “And David.”
Curtis led the way out of the trees with sure steps, seeming to know exactly where he was going. Ellie followed, feeling safe again. Although she could just make Curtis out in the darkness under the trees, she liked the way his broad, strong shoulders moved beneath his shirt.
When they broke from the woods, two horses looked up from where they waited in the light of a three quarter moon. Bronzed clouds crowded the western horizon. Curtis greeted the larger brown horse by rubbing his hand over its nose and up into its forelock. He moved close to the horse’s head and murmured something to the animal, that bobbed its brown head up and down as if agreeing.
Ellie found herself wondering what it would be like if Curtis spoke to her like that. What if he brought his face just as close to hers while whispering endearments in that voice of his that could melt a whole horse trough full of butter in January?
When he turned and caught Ellie staring at him, she quickly glanced away, her face growing so warm that she turned toward the sunset, hoping any color in her cheeks could be attributed to the last blush of the sunlight staining the clouds.
Moses moved past Ell
ie and took the reins of a big black horse. “Ma’am, your chariot awaits.”
Ellie was confused. Was he planning to walk while she rode? That didn’t seem right. She tugged at her ragged shawl, wondering what to do. She glanced at Curtis just as he mounted his horse. She’d seen men get on their horses plenty of times before, but the sight of Curtis’s long leg stepping into his horse’s stirrup before the other muscular leg swung out and over the saddle made her knees go weak.
As he settled into the saddle, his horse took a step back, adjusting to his weight. Sitting up there so high, Curtis’s square chin was highlighted by the last bits of russet light slipping from the western sky, making it appear as strong as steel. He was so appealing that she couldn’t stop staring. How would it feel to ride behind him with her arms around his waist, hands clasped over his hard, flat stomach?
As if he knew what she was thinking, Curtis cast a glance at Ellie before giving her a slow smile. Ellie’s heart beat so fast, she had a hard time drawing her next breath. He couldn't read her thoughts, could he? Was it possible he had enough experience with women that he was certain of his appeal, knowing that even the sight of him could create whirlwinds in their hearts?
“Wh… what… what should I do?” Ellie demanded, uncertainty making her voice sharp.
“Behind me,” Curtis said, stretching a long, muscular arm down toward Ellie.
“But…” Moses said.
“No, Moses, you’re not going to walk Miss Ellie on your horse. It would take too much time.”
“Yassuh.”
“None of that,” Curtis scolded, “or else I’ll call you M.J. for the rest of your life.” Moses laughed out loud. Then, with the grace of a panther, he managed to get on his horse without dropping a single piece of Ellie’s wood. His eye glinted in the moonlight before he turned and started walking his horse down through the trees.
What had happened to his eye? Ellie hated to imagine.
“What about my brother and my... David?” Ellie could have fainted for the way her words came out. It sounded like she was claiming David as her beau, but that wasn’t the case at all.
“Well, we’ll just go and see if we can round them up,” Curtis said. “Come on, now. If you’d rather I help you up onto the horse first…”
She stopped him by stepping forward with a hasty, “No, no.” The thought of Curtis’s hands on her waist as he hoisted her up onto his saddle made Ellie’s stomach flip over. She couldn’t imagine having him so close to the parts of her that should be shielded from men’s eyes at all times. Reaching out her hand, she tried to explain her hasty reaction with, “No need to get all unsettled just for me.”
His warm fingers gripped her wrist, and hers wrapped around his muscular arm in return. He pulled his foot out of the stirrup so that she could put her boot into it, then his biceps bulged as he hoisted her up onto the horse behind his saddle. His pull was so firm that she felt like she was flying through the air, about to fall backwards off the other side. As she grabbed him around the waist to keep from falling off, he released her hand, and she found herself gripping him as tightly as she might a greased pig at the Independence Day festivities.
Mortified at such sudden, close contact, she pushed herself back a little, struggling to keep her balance. What could Curtis possibly be thinking of her now?
With a heart-stopping grin, Curtis called, “Hold on,” over his shoulder. Then, sitting easy in the saddle, he urged his horse into a gentle trot, heading off after Moses in a strange landscape that was part moonlight bright enough to cast shadows, and part golden sunset fading in the west.
With the sudden increase in speed, Ellie pulled her attention away from the hair curling from beneath Curtis’s hat and held onto him more tightly so she wouldn’t bounce off. Was this really happening? Was she really riding with a man who’d saved her life not once, but twice? “Have you always ridden horses?” she asked.
“No, not always.”
“You do it so well.” Did that sound insincere? In spite of the unfortunate circumstances of their first meeting, she realized with surprise that she wanted him to think well of her.
Curtis reined his horse onto the trail and turned back toward town. “Where are you going?” Ellie asked.
“I’ll search this direction, and Moses will go that way,” Curtis said. “If we don’t meet up with your brother on the trail, then we’ll fan out into the trees. Don’t worry, we’ll find him.” Curtis’s calm assurance made Ellie feel as if everything really would turn out right. Content to leave matters in his hands for now, she let herself notice the pleasant vibration of his chest beneath her hands whenever he spoke.
They didn’t find Jesse on the road. They kept calling as they made their slow way into the trees, dodging branches, and found him there leading his bay, his voice so hoarse that they couldn’t hear his answering cries.
When he caught sight of Ellie, he hurried to Curtis’s horse and put his arms up. “Are you alright?” he asked as Ellie slid down into his embrace. It was hard to tell in the moonlight, but it seemed as if the last bit of fading light on the western edge of the darkening sky managed to make Jesse’s eyes appear to be rimmed with redness.
“Yes, I’m alright.”
“Where have you been?” Jesse demanded, pulling away to stare at his sister. “Why did you leave?”
“I”m sorry, I fell asleep.”
“We called and called.”
“I didn’t hear you. I really didn’t.” Ellie looked around. “Where’s David?”
“I sent him back to town to gather up a posse to come look for you. We thought you might have been taken.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cause all this trouble.”
Jesse pulled her in for another hug. Then he looked up at Curtis. “Thank you for finding my sister. My name’s Jesse.”
“My pleasure,” Curtis replied. “I am Curtis Locken. And this is Moses.”
Moses and Jesse nodded at one another.
“If you’ve got the time, I’d be pleased for you to come to the house to answer all our mother’s questions,” Jesse said.
“We will do so,” Curtis said.
Jesse tugged Ellie’s hand as he walked toward his horse. “You’re riding with me. We’ve got to get home before David turns the posse loose on you.”
Although she was glad to be safe, Ellie couldn’t help but notice that riding behind her brother was not the same as holding onto Curtis. With Jesse leading the way, it was disappointing that she couldn’t watch Curtis unless she twisted around on the bay’s rump. He was already carrying two people, although it was downhill, which was hopefully easier for him. Besides, she had no reason to turn and treat herself to the sight of Curtis riding his brown horse. Why did she want to look at him so badly anyway? Feeling unsettled, she gazed out at the landscape, which looked so different in moonlight. It was as if she was riding through a stranger world than the one she’d traveled earlier, almost like a dream. Jesse said that her seeing Papa in her room was just a dream, but this seemed as real to her as that had.
They were riding down the first street in town, which offered enough room that Curtis pulled his horse up to ride alongside them, when Curtis suddenly asked, “Do you hear something?”
Ellie tilted her head, listening
“It sounds like David’s wagon,” Jesse said. “I didn’t think he’d get everyone gathered up so fast.”
Ellie sat up straighter, trying to see around Jesse. A wagon approached them, but it wasn’t David’s. The driver sat near the center of the seat while a slender figure beside him clutched the side of the wagon seat, leaning over so far that Ellie feared whoever it was might bounce out. When they drew close enough, Ellie recognized Polly nearly falling onto the road while stern-faced Mr. Demar drove the horse.
“Polly!” Ellie called.
As Polly glanced up, moonlight shone on her face, revealing a deep shadow beneath one of her eyes. She didn’t smile, but a brief look of hopefulness c
rossed her face.
Mr. Demar flicked his whip at the passing riders, as if to say, “Move on.”
Curtis slowed and turned anyway, and Moses matched his pace, turning his black horse to walk along the other side of the wagon.
Jesse stopped and let his bay stand sideways as Curtis called over the rumble of wheels, “Is everything alright, sir?”
“And why wouldn’t it be?” Mr. Demar yelled back.
Ellie couldn’t take her eyes off Polly’s face. Was that dirt beneath her eye? Or was it a bruise? It was hard to tell.
“Are you alright, ma’am?” Curtis asked.
Polly didn’t answer right away, just stared up at him with frightened eyes.
“Answer when you’re asked a question!” Mr. Demar shouted.
“Yes, sir,” Polly said, whether to Mr. Demar or Curtis was unclear.
“On your way,” Mr. Demar called. “You’re crowding the road.”
Jessse moved his horse closer to the departing wagon. “What’s that under your eye?” he called in his worn-out voice.
“She’s clumsy,” Mr. Demar shouted. “And she doesn’t know how to wash properly, so she’s dirty, like an animal. Now get on with you!” He whipped his horse and rumbled faster down the street.
Jesse stared after them. “Something’s not right there.”
“I’ll go over and check on her tomorrow,” Ellie said.
Jesse’s gaze darkened. “Not without me, you won’t.” Then he turned and urged his horse onward. In a few minutes, their house came into view. Ellie was surprised to see it glowing with lights, as if it were a palace. This was not like Mama at all, who encouraged everyone to share just one lantern after dark.
Linnea rushed through the doorway, her hand covering her mouth as she hurried toward her daughter. Behind her, John Haun stopped on the top step and folded his arms.
Ellie suddenly started to cry.
Curtis slid off his horse and helped Ellie down just as her mother reached her. “Are you hurt?” Linnea asked as she wrapped an arm around Ellie’s waist and led her toward the house.
Curtis watched Ellie go, still feeling the welcome pressure of her warm arms gripping his waist. When she’d pulled back at the beginning of the ride, he found that making his horse move faster had proved a good strategy to get her to hold tighter again. When the ride finally ended and he was obliged to turn her over to her brother, he was disappointed.
David appeared with a lantern in his hand. “Who’s that?” he asked, pointing a suspicious finger at Moses. “You in league with them Indians?”
“No,” Curtis said, “that’s my friend, M.J., I mean, Moses.”
Moses grinned and waved a stick of wood. “He gets confused sometimes, ever since he drank too much mint julep.”
David scowled at him. “What’s mint julep, anyways?”
“It is an alcohol drink,” Moses said. “Very good to taste, very bad for heads.”
“Where did you find her?” David demanded. “Never mind, I’ll go ask her myself.” He turned and trotted toward the house.
Jesse turned toward Curtis. “What were you doing out there anyway?
“Too many people were staring at Moses in the hotel dining room, so we took a ride after supper. Saw some shed antlers by the way that could work for making things to export, like chair legs or lamps. We decided to go looking for more before the light was gone and found Ellie.”
Jack appeared from behind the house and moved toward them, casting uncertain glances over his shoulder. “Why is Ellie crying?”
“If you’d been here, you would know,” Jesse said with an edge in his raspy voice. “Where were you?”
Jack twisted up a corner of his mouth. “Why are you talking like that?”
“Because I’ve been calling for Ellie for so long,” Jesse said.
“Looks like you found her.”
“Stop changing the subject,” Jesse demanded, sounding like a querulous old man.
Jack stood straighter so that he towered over his brother. “On Mama’s business.”
“What kind of business?”
Jack replied patiently, “That’s not important. If Ellie’s found, why is she crying?”
“It’s good for women to cry at times,” Curtis said.
“Not if I have to listen to it,” Jesse grumbled.
“I expect she’s just letting out her fear of being lost,” Curtis said.
“Mama said she’d have biscuits ready for when I got back,” Jack said. “Why don’t we all have some?” He glanced at Moses. “You, too. The biscuits are likely cold.”
“Cold biscuits fill a belly every bit as good as hot ones,” Moses replied.
Curtis didn’t care about the food, but he definitely wanted to see Ellie again. “Much obliged.” Curtis said.
Jack and Jesse led the way, Jesse walking stiffly, casting suspicious glances at his brother as Curtis and Moses followed. “You saw her again, didn’t you?” Jesse finally asked.
Jack shrugged. “Mama needed measurements.”
Jesse stopped so suddenly that Curtis nearly ran into him. “You measured her?”
“No,” Jack said firmly. “I brought her here so Mama could.”
Jesse pushed his face close to Jack’s. “You rode with her both ways?”
Jack scoffed. “What else was I to do, have her walk home?”
“I thought we had a talk about this,” Jesse yelled. “You haven’t a claim on her.”
Tensing, Jack replied, “That’s what you think.”
“Excuse me,” Curtis said. “I believe the young lady in question should have a say in the matter.”
Jesse and Jack both turned to stare at him. Jesse’s eyes were narrowed, while Jack’s were wide with surprise, as if he’d forgotten that Curtis was there.
“He’s right,” Moses said, blinking his eye. “Women got minds of their own.”