* * *
Abigail followed the scent of food and coffee into the kitchen. “Morning, Emily. Hope you had a good and quiet night.”
“Actually I did. Young Niall’s teeth have broken through and I had nearly a full night of sleep. Sadly I then woke up to a man.”
“Oh yes, waking up to a man can be a sore trial.” Abbie poured herself some coffee and set it on the table then looked for something to eat.
“I know. I was in a good, playful mood and now it has flown.”
“As was I, and it is also gone, because they will then spoil that mood by talking.”
“Exactly. Or even worse, attempt to make a joke, at that time of the day.”
“The sheer effrontery of it leaves one speechless.”
Abbie heard a giggle by the stove and peeked behind her to see Mrs. O’Neal making eggs and chortling away to herself. “Perhaps it flew to her.”
“Well, then, she will have a very, very good day.”
“I should say so.”
Mrs. O’Neal ran out of the kitchen and stood on the back porch laughing heartily. Emily and Abbie just smiled at each other and began to help themselves to oatmeal and some fruit. Abbie stood up to deal with the eggs and Emily got some cream to put on the fruit. By the time they sat back down to eat Mrs. O’Neal was back at the stove cooking bacon.
“I thought I might wander into town today,” said Emily.
“I thought it was nearly deserted because of all the troubles?”
“No. People have been carefully slipping back and trying to have normal lives for a year or so now. The general store has reopened. It is next to the saloon, which was utterly ruined last year. I thought it would be enjoyable to go see what they are carrying, if anything. I was rather hoping some of the trading routes had opened up again. Do you wish to come along? You too, Mrs. O’Neal?”
“Very nice of you to ask, Emily, but I have several things I need to bake and store, others to just store. Just picked a lot of the first berries of the spring and need to make them into jam.”
“Perhaps we should stay and help,” said Abbie.
“No. I don’t need help so badly you two cannot go do a little shopping. You can lend a hand before you go and after you come back if you want. I have been doing these things for so many years, it is barely work at all.”
“I doubt we will be in town all that long anyway. Even if a store is open it must be having a difficult time getting supplies or stock to sell. I just like to go in every now and then so I can see what is changing, what is coming back, and what is truly gone.”
“That is a very good idea. We need to know that to know if where we go now is still the best choice or if we may soon have a proper place to get our supplies closer at hand. Just be careful. There are still a lot of rough men about who seem to be eager to kill anyone and steal anything.”
“I will take my rifle with us,” said Abbie.
“Can you shoot it well?” asked Mrs. O’Neal.
“Better than me,” said Matthew as he walked into the kitchen, a yawning Iain right behind him.
“Who’s getting shot?” asked Iain as he sat down next to Emily and swiftly kissed her cheek.
“I was just talking about Abbie’s skill with a rifle.” Matthew poured himself some coffee and took a seat next to her. “Her da said she had a good eye.”
“Huh.”
“Why huh?” asked Emily.
“Because it is not often a skill a woman has. They can use the gun, maybe wound something, but a good eye and a good shot is just not something you often find in a woman.” He narrowed his eyes at his wife. “And ye will let me keep rambling until I say something ye can start a fight about, aye?”
“Aye,” Emily said cheerfully then finished her coffee. “You were doing very well. It would have been a fine argument if you had not caught on and shut your mouth.” She winked at Matthew who was having a quiet laugh. “We are planning a trip to town.”
“If ye take your rifle and plenty of ammunition and dinnae stay too long, it should be all right,” said Matthew “After all, they have hit the town so often it emptied out and a lot of the Confederates are running after the battles, which means heading down Virginia way. I would say we could take a ride round the town to do a wee bit of scouting but I am nay allowed to ride until my wounds close.”
