“We had the wagon, of course, and my father bought a large tent. We lived in that all summer, and by winter we had a very small cabin. It wasn’t much, as I recall, but it suited and got us through. Those early years were pretty hard.”
“I can’t imagine bringing my family to such a wild, open place.” Colton shifted in the seat beside her but kept his focus on handling the team of horses they’d rented for the carriage.
He’d said very little up until now. Rosie had been so excited to talk to him about her studies and all that Mrs. Olson was teaching her that no one else could quite get a word in. Emma noticed that as he listened, he seemed almost in disbelief. A couple of times he had muttered under his breath, but Emma wasn’t sure what he’d said.
“It was certainly wild. There were still problems with the Indians, and my mother feared for our lives. Not just because of that, but snakes were plentiful, and wild animals too. Mama worried terribly about rabies.”
“What is that?” Rosie asked.
“It’s a disease that animals can get and pass on to people,” Emma explained. “It’s deadly, although now they have a treatment that helps if you get it quickly enough.”
“Did you ever see Indians?”
“I saw Indians in town, but never here at the ranch. I think they were as afraid of us as we were of them.”
“Why were you afraid of them? Were they bad?”
“Some were very aggressive and didn’t like us coming to buy up the land. Land that they had been hunting and living on for years before our arrival in the west. There was a very bad war between the Indians and soldiers several hundredmiles from here just a little over ten years ago, so people are still rather fearful of what might come.
“Just pull over there, Colton,” Emma directed. She barely waited until he stopped before she jumped down unassisted.
Just then, her father came from the house. “I saw the dust and knew someone was heading our way but never imagined it was you. What are you doing here?” He gave her a powerful hug.
“Rosie wanted to see horses and chickens, and I could think of no better place to bring her than the ranch. I hope you don’t mind us showing up unannounced, but I could hardly telephone to let you know.”
Her father laughed and left her side to help Rosie down from the wagon. “You’re all very welcome here. Colton, good to see you again.”
“Thank you, Mr. Johnson. Good to see you too.”
“Emma!” Lucille called as she came from the house. “What a wonderful surprise.” She quickly joined them and hugged Emma and Rosie at the same time. “Are you hungry? Your father has just come in for lunch. I do hope you’ll join us.”
“Do you have plenty? We did bring a cake that Rosie helped to make. Mrs. Olson assured me that this is one of her finest recipes. It’s a spice cake.”
“With frosting,” Rosie added.
Lucille gave Rosie’s face a gentle touch. “How wonderful. Dessert is always welcome.”
Her father joined in at this. “I’ll say. My sweet tooth would just as soon have dessert and nothing else. However, Lucille made some corn bread and ham steaks that might make me reconsider.”
Lucille laughed. “I fried potatoes, as well, and baked some beans with molasses. It’s Rich’s favorite. There’s plenty of food. Come on inside and wash up.”
“Colton and I will unhitch these horses and be right in,” Emma’s father said, already getting to work.
Emma made her way toward the house with her stepmother, linking arms with her and Rosie. “It’s just so good to have you here. I’ve hoped you’d come out sometime. Even prayed for it.” Lucille seemed genuinely delighted by the turn of events. Emma hadn’t really thought of their visit being all that special.
“Look! Chickens!” Rosie left Lucille’s side and headed toward the cottonwoods, where a few dozen chickens were pecking at the earth.
“She’s taken on a strange fascination for poultry,” Emma said, laughing. “I told her we would see if you could spare a few for us. I’ll still need to build a coop for them, but Rosie is quite excited to take on their care and harvest their eggs.”
“Of course we can spare some. I think that would be a wonderful thing for Rosie. She can learn to watch over another living thing. It’s the best thing for a person to do.”
“She’s doing so well, Lucille. She’s learning so much so fast. It brought tears to my eyes to see how eager she was to read. When I think of all the lost years, it breaks my heart.” Emma knew she meant it for more than just Rosie. Her own wasted time weighed heavy on her.
“Then don’t think on that. The past is the past, and mistakes were made, but you’re helping to right them now.” It was as if Lucille understood perfectly that Emma spoke for herself as well as her friend. “Rosie is going to be just fine. You’ve opened a whole new world to her.”
Emma watched as Rosie approached the chickens, laughing as they skittered away from her. It didn’t stop her from continuing to seek their company.
Lucille put her hand to her mouth. “Rosie, come on to the house. Later we’ll take them some feed, and they’ll soon enough be your friends.”
