Shattered Lives (Flynn Family Saga Book 1) (14 page)

Miller snorted.  “What good is a girl on a farm?”

“Harvey Miller, she can ride and follow the plow and
drive a team better than your boy any day.”

Miller shook his head.  “I’d love to see that.”

James smiled.  “You will.  At the fair.”

Maggie gasped.

James winked at her.

Maggie said nothing until they were out of earshot. 
“Did you mean that, Grandfather?”

James nodded.  “I was going to surprise you, but
yes.  I want you to compete in the county fair.  Would you like that?”

Maggie nodded eagerly.  Then, she chewed her lip. 
“But will you be terribly disappointed if I don’t beat Tommy Miller?”

“No, Maggie.  Just do your best, and I’ll always be
proud of you.”

Maggie smiled.

*  *  *

The night before the competition, Maggie had a hard
time sleeping.  She went out to the barn.  Rosalind whickered softly when she
smelled Maggie.  Maggie gave her a lump of sugar and rubbed her nose.  “I’m
scared, Rosie.  I want to win so badly.”  Rosalind tossed her head as if to
say, “I’d like to see
any
horse beat me.”  Laughing, Maggie patted her
flank and went back to bed.

In the morning, they ate before it was light. 
Maggie went out to the barn.  She hitched up the team and tied Rosalind’s lead
to the back of the wagon.  She picked up the reins, but James shook his head. 
“Not today, Maggie-my-girl.  Save it for the competition.”

Maggie nodded.  Her stomach fluttered as if those
locusts from the Bible had nested inside of her.

The fairground was a broad meadow encircled by
booths:  pies and cakes, saddles and tack, ropes and spurs and farm equipment
were on display for sale.  James paid one dollar and fifty cents to register
her for all three competitions.  Then, he sent her off to look at the booths.

One booth in particular caught her eyes.  A row of
sawhorses displayed a variety of saddles from plain, unadorned leather to
tooled leather.  Maggie traced the intricate scrollwork lovingly.  “How much is
it?”

The salesman shook his head.  “It’s not for sale. 
It’s the grand prize.  If someone wins all three events, they win this saddle.”

Maggie drew a deep breath.  Hope stung her like a
wasp.  She walked away, trembling with eagerness.

She went to the paddock and started to exercise the
horses.  The horserace was first.  Maggie’s stomach ached, and she began to
wish that she hadn’t eaten any breakfast.  She saddled Rosalind and swung up
onto the saddle.  She rode her filly to the starting line.  Tommy Miller rode
up on a large gray stallion.  Rosalind sidled away from him, and Tommy
laughed.  “This is going to be like taking candy from a baby.”

Maggie frowned, but she concentrated on soothing
Rosalind.

The rest of the horses came into line.  The starting
gun went off with a loud retort.

Rosalind reared, costing them several seconds, but
Maggie simply urged her on.  Rosalind stretched out her long neck, and the
ground flowed away from them.  Maggie forgot about the saddle.  She forgot
about Tommy Miller or even that there was a race.  She simply rode her horse
for the sheer joy of it.  Rosalind moved like the wind, passing the pack on the
outside of the rough oval.  Briefly, Maggie noticed that Tommy Miller glared at
her as they passed him.

Then, Rosalind broke through the tape at the finish
line.

The hooting and hollering from the spectators
startled Rosalind, and she reared again.  Maggie patted her neck.  The little
filly settled down and walked with her head high to the winner’s circle.  The
judge handed her the blue ribbon.

Tears filled Maggie’s eyes.  “Thank you.”

After lunch, Maggie harnessed Caesar.  He nuzzled
her reassuringly, and she scratched him between his ears.  She led him up to
the field.  Tommy’s plow horse was huge, at least eighteen hands and broad
across the chest.

Maggie’s heart sank.

James squeezed her shoulder.  “Maggie, you already
won this contest.  You plowed the ground and planted the corn and helped me
harvest it. 
That’s
the plowing contest that really counts.”

Maggie smiled at him and nodded.  She pulled on her
gloves and waited for the starting gun.

The retort cracked across the open field.

“Git up, Caesar.”  She slapped the reins, and Caesar
started forward, slow and steady and straight.  This time, Maggie didn’t even
look at Tommy Miller.  She focused on plowing as if she were plowing her
grandfather’s field.  She reached the end of the row and turned Caesar
smoothly.  They began the second furrow.  Three more times, they came to the
end and turned.

Then, the gun sounded again.

Maggie turned and looked at her rows, as neat and
straight as arrows.  She smiled proudly and patted Caesar’s flank.  “Good boy!”

The judges argued a few moments.  Then, they brought
out a surveyor’s rod.  Finally, Jason Hunt turned to the crowd.  “We have a
tie, folks:  Tommy Miller and Maggie O’Brien.”

There were a few catcalls, but there was also
applause.

Maggie smiled at James, and he smiled back.

Bull-riding came next.  Maggie walked Caesar
to cool him down and threw an old blanket over his back.  Then, she climbed the
corral fence.  She watched as the cowboys risked their lives for twenty-five
dollars and shook her head.  “Are they crazy?”

Tess shrugged.  “They’re cowboys.”

Maggie laughed.  She harnessed the team to her
grandfather’s weathered wagon and led them to the starting line.  Tommy Miller
started to laugh.  He drove a carriage with a pair of perfectly matched horses,
black with identical white blazes.  “You’re going to drive
that
?”

Maggie ignored him.  She spoke softly to the
horses.  “Don’t you pay him any mind.  I know how good you are.”

Caesar tossed his head, and Calpurnia looked back at
her sagely.

The starter’s gun fired, and Maggie slapped the
reins on the horses’ backs.  “Git up!”  The horses moved forward, and the wagon
lurched behind them.  Tommy’s carriage moved smoothly over the ground.  Within
seconds, he had outdistanced the rest of the pack.

Caesar and Cal tried hard, but they came in fifth.

Tears stung Maggie’s eyes.  She walked them back to
the paddock.

James was waiting for her.  He squeezed her
shoulder.  “Good job, Maggie.”

Maggie shook her head.  “But we came in fifth,
Grandfather.  There’s no prize for that.”

James regarded her solemnly.  “There will come a
time in your life when no one else even sees what you do.  There will be no
crowd, no judges, no prize.  Just you and the Almighty.  When that day comes,
all He will ask of you is that you do your best.  Remember that, Maggie-my-girl.”

Maggie nodded.  “I’m sorry, Grandfather.”

“Nothing to be sorry for.”  He grinned.  “I was kinda
hoping you’d win, too.”

Maggie laughed.

*  *  *

A week later, Maggie was in the milking shed when
she heard the rattle of wheels.  She ran outside and saw Edna Philips drive up
the road to the farmhouse.  Her usually cheerful expression was missing.  Instead,
she looked pale and frightened.

Tess came out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on
her apron.  “What’s wrong, Edna?”

“It’s cholera, Tess.  It has stricken the entire
Bryant family.”

Maggie’s heart stopped.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

The stench was first thing that struck Maggie when
they entered the Bryant house.  It smelled like an outhouse.  Maggie swallowed
hard.

“Breathe through your mouth, Maggie.”  Tess spoke
calmly.

Maggie’s heart pounded with fear.

Tess led the way up the stairs.  Mr. and Mrs. Bryant
lay in their bed, pale and wan.  Tim Bryant thrashed back and forth in the
filthy sheets, while his wife lay so still and pale that Maggie was afraid that
they were already too late.  Tess showed her where to feel for a pulse.  Emily
Bryant’s pulse was rapid and shallow, but she was still alive.  “Go down stairs
and boil water, lots of it.  And don’t drink any of it, not until it’s been
boiling for an hour.  And wash your hands with strong lye soap as soon as the
water is hot.  Whenever you touch them or the soiled linen, wash your hands.”

“Yes, Grandmother.”  Maggie ran down the stairs and
started the water boiling.  Tess came down the stairs with the soiled linen and
put it in a tub outside.  Maggie brought the boiling water and shaved soap into
the tub.  She poured the water over the soiled linen and stirred it with a
stick.

“When you’re done, rinse the sheets three times with
boiled water.  And don’t forget to do the same with the tub and the stick.”

Maggie nodded.  She followed Tess’s instructions to
the letter.  When she was done, Tess had broth ready.  “You feed the children,
and I’ll see to Mr. and Mrs. Bryant.”

Maggie nodded.  Tess had already changed the linen
in the room where Edie and Emily Bryant slept.  The children looked so pale and
thin that Maggie had to blink back her tears.  She held Edie up and spooned hot
broth into her mouth.  She had to rub Edie’s throat to get her to swallow. 
Eileen was able to swallow on her own.  Maggie took the dishes down the stairs
and washed them in strong soap and rinsed them three times with boiling water.

“Stay with them, Maggie.  Talk to them, just as if
they were horses.”
Maggie nodded.  She climbed the stairs again and went into the girls’ bedroom. 
Edie was barely breathing, but her sister was awake.  Eileen grabbed Maggie’s
hand.  “I’m scared, Maggie, so scared.”

“There’s nothing to be afraid of.  Why by the end of
the week, you’ll be running around like nothing had happened.”  Maggie wasn’t
sure she was telling Eileen the truth, but with horses, the tone of her voice
was more important than what she said.  She hoped the same was true of little
girls.

Eileen relaxed.  A little while later, she fell
asleep.

Edie’s breathing grew shallower and shallower. 
Maggie bit her lip.  She went into the Bryant’s bedroom.  Tess looked up at
her.  She put her finger to her lips and took Maggie into the hall.  “What is
it?”

“Edie’s breathing doesn’t sound right.”

Tess nodded.  She followed Maggie into the girls’
room.  She put her hand on Edie’s forehead and felt her pulse.  She sighed.  “Hold
her hand, Maggie.  She’s very weak, and sometimes it helps to feel the touch of
a hand.”

Maggie nodded.

Tess smiled at her and went back to the grownups.

Maggie took Edie’s hand in her own.  She was keenly
aware of how delicate her hand was, how hot her skin was to the touch.

Edie opened her eyes.  “Maggie?”

Maggie nodded.

Edie’s eyes opened.  “I’m sorry I didn't stick up
for you with Miss Pruett.  I wanted to be friends, Maggie.  I wanted you to
come to school.  Honest, I did.”

“Hush, Edie.  It’s all right.”  She smoothed Edie’s
hair back from her forehead.  Edie made a sound like a sigh, and there was a
change in the feel of her hand.  Maggie looked at the friend’s face.

Edie looked...different.  It was as if the cholera
had left her.

Maggie waited, but Edie did not breathe again. 
Maggie’s tears slid silently down her face.  She went into the Bryant’s
bedroom.

Tess took one look at Maggie’s face and nodded.  She
came with her to the girls’ room.  She picked up Edie and carried her
downstairs to the kitchen and began to clean the body for burial.

Maggie hesitated.  Then, with a strangled sob, she
picked up a clean cloth and helped her grandmother clean the child’s body.

Maggie and Tess stayed with the Bryant’s for three
days.  Emily and Tim survived.  So did Eileen.  When Emily learned of Edie’s
death, she wept bitterly, and Tess took Maggie out of the room so the family
could mourn in private.  They went out onto the porch.  Tess drew a deep breath
of clean air.  “I lose one in twenty, Maggie.  That’s the way of it with
cholera.  And you never know who it’s going to be.”

Maggie nodded.  She felt empty and drained.

Then, they rode on to the next afflicted home.

*  *  *

Eight families were stricken, and Tess tended them
all.  And Maggie went with her.  Her hands grew red and rough from washing them
in lye soap.  She was tired and her back ached from lifting the sick.

Three weeks later, Tess and Maggie rode home in the
MacMillan’s old wagon.  Maggie looked at the valley, really looked at it, for
the first time.  Over a dozen homes dotted the landscape.

Tess was the only one willing to tend the sick.

Maggie’s hands curled into fists.  “It isn’t fair! 
Why doesn’t anyone else help?!”

Tess sighed.  “They’re frightened, Maggie.”

“I was scared, too, but
I
came.”

Tess was silent a long time.  “The Lord gives each
of us different gifts.  He gave Mr. Miller a gift for making money.  He gave
James a gift for loving.  I think the Lord gave you courage, Maggie, because he
knew you were going to need it.  So don’t look down on those who have other
gifts.”

“I’m sorry, Grandma.”

Tess patted her shoulder.  “That’s all right.”  She
hesitated.  “I’m proud of you, Maggie.”

Maggie smiled.  “Thank you, Grandma.”

They rode the rest of the way in silence.

*  *  *

The day after they returned, Maggie turned fourteen. 
It was a cool, crisp September morning.  When she came down to help with
breakfast, there was a long red ribbon tied to her chair.  She touched the
elaborate bow.

James grinned.  “Untie it, Maggie.”

Maggie nodded.  She untied the bow.

“Now, follow the ribbon.”  His grin broadened.

Maggie looked at Tess.  “Go on, child.  I can handle
breakfast alone for one morning.”

Maggie nodded.  She followed the red ribbon out of the
kitchen and across the yard to the stable.

There, resting on the wall of Rosalind’s stall, was
the saddle with the tooled leather cantle.

Maggie’s breath caught.  “Grandfather, how did
you—where did you—?”

James laughed.  “Nobody won three events this year,
Maggie.  The young man didn’t want to carry it all the way back to Philadelphia,
so I bought it.”

Maggie touched the intricate design.  “You shouldn’t
have, Grandfather.  It must have cost a fortune.”

James grinned.  “I got a very good bargain.  And even
if he had charged me a hundred dollars, it would have been worth it.  Because
you’re
worth it.”

Maggie hugged him, hard.  Then, they mucked out the
stable and washed up.  By the time they got back to the kitchen, Tess had
breakfast ready.  Maggie sat down to a plate of pancakes and bacon.  She smiled
at Tess.  “Thank you, Grandmother.”

Tess tousled her hair.  “It’s the least I can do for
your birthday, Maggie.”

Maggie ate hurriedly and ran back out to the stable. 
She saddled Rosalind and rode across the meadow.  The new saddle fit her as if
it were made for her.  She smiled happily.

Then, she shaded her eyes against the sun.  She saw
a fancy carriage coming up the road.  The carriage turned into the drive
leading to the farmhouse.

Michael and Lucy sat side by side in driver’s seat.

“Mama!”  Maggie ran up to the carriage as soon as it
stopped.  She tried to hug her mother.

“Careful, Maggie.  Your hands are dirty.”  Lucy
folded her parasol.  Michael came around the carriage and held out his hand. 
Lucy descended from the carriage daintily.

James eyed the expensive gig suspiciously.  “Where
did you get that?”

Michael grinned.  “I won it in a card game.”

Lucy laid her hand on his arm and smiled at him. 
“Michael is very good at cards.”

“When he’s sober,” James muttered.

“Father!  He hasn’t had a drink since Christmas.”

James rubbed his chin.  “That’s pretty impressive.”

Michael turned to Maggie.  “Well, Maggie?  What do
you say?  Would you like to live in St. Joseph?”

“Missouri?”  Maggie blinked.  “That’s so far away.”

Michael’s grin broadened.  “And that’s just the
first step.  As soon as we have enough money, we’re going to California.”

“California?”  Her eyes blurred with tears.  “But
that’s on the other side of the world.”

Michael laughed.  “Not quite.  Come on, Maggie. 
We’ll talk about it over lunch.”  He held out his hand.

Cautiously, Maggie took her father’s hand.  It felt
soft compared to her grandfather’s work-hardened ones.  They went into
the house.

Michael talked about the land he was going to buy and
the crops he was going to raise.

James listened in silence.  Finally, he spoke. 
“What crops?”

Michael looked away.  “Well, I haven’t decided yet. 
It depends on the land, you see.”

“Yes, it does.”

“So anyway, we’ve come for Maggie.”

“No!”  Maggie stood up so fast that she knocked over
her chair.

“Sit down, young lady,” James said quietly.

Scowling, Maggie picked up her chair and sat down.

James turned back to Michael.  “But she’s right.  It
might be a good idea to leave her here—just until you get settled.”

Michael shook his head stubbornly.  “It’s time I
supported my family myself.”

James looked away.  “Yes.  Well.”  He wiped his
mouth and stood up.  “If you’ll excuse me, I have some business in town.”  He
turned and left the kitchen.

Maggie stared out of the kitchen window at the empty
cornfield.  The dry husks rattled forlornly in the hot, dry September wind. 
She went to the corral and worked with the horses, but she kept listening for
the sound of the wagon, rattling up the lane.  The sun began to set, and Maggie
went into the house to help Tess with supper.

Tess was clearing the dishes just as the wagon
pulled into the stable yard.  The pump squeaked as James washed his hands. 
Maggie ran to the door—and stopped before she threw her arms around his waist. 
James looked older, and the lines in his face cut deep.  He laid his hand on
Maggie’s shoulder and walked her out to the barn.  “I went to see my attorney. 
I asked him if we could keep you.  He said that it was rare for a court to take
a child away from their natural parents.”

Maggie’s mouth opened and shut.  “You would have
taken them to court?”

James nodded.  “But it would have gotten ugly, and
we would have lost.  So I decided not to.  Do you understand?”

Maggie shook her head.  Her lower lip trembled and
tears filled her eyes.  “Did I do something wrong?  Is that why you don’t want
me?”

“Oh, Maggie.  We want you.  We want you more than
almost anything.  But you would have to stay with your parents during the
trial, and you know what Michael is like.  He would probably take it out on
you.”

“I could run away.”  Maggie tilted her chin up.

James met her gaze steadily and nodded.  “Yes, you
could.  Whenever you have a problem, Maggie, you can always run away from it. 
But problems have a tendency to follow you, no matter how far you run.”

Maggie pushed away from him.  Her hand shook as she
picked up Rosalind’s brush.  She started to groom the little filly.  Rosalind’s
feet shifted restlessly, as if she sensed Maggie’s distress.  Maggie continued
to brush her horse.  She heard the scratch of a match and smelled her
grandfather’s pipe tobacco.  Otherwise, the barn was silent.  Maggie stopped
brushing Rosalind and shut her eyes. 
There will come a time in your life
when no one else even sees what you do.  There will be no crowd, no judges, no
prize.  Just you and the Almighty.  When that day comes, all He will ask of you
is that you do your best.  Remember that, Maggie-my-girl
.  The
memory of her grandfather’s words came back to her.  She drew a deep breath and
turned to face her grandfather.  “All right, Grandfather.  I’ll go with them.”

James wrapped his long arms around her and held her
tightly.  “I will miss you so, Maggie-my-girl.  But I’m proud of you, too.”

Maggie nodded.  Her throat was too tight to speak.

The next morning, Tess accompanied Maggie upstairs
to her room.  Maggie cried openly as she packed her things.  Tess folded her
clothes neatly and put them into her carpetbag.

Maggie turned and threw her arms around her
grandmother’s waist.  “I don’t want to go!”

“I know, child.  I know.  We will miss you terribly,
too.”  She kissed the top of Maggie’s head.  “But you’re smart and you’re
strong.  You’ll be all right—here or in Missouri or California.”

Maggie shut her eyes.  “Please don’t make me do this,
Grandmother.”

“Oh, child.  If it was up to me, you’d stay with us
forever.  But it isn’t.”  She pulled her lace handkerchief out of her sleeve
and handed it to Maggie.  “Now, wipe your eyes.”

Maggie obeyed.  The handkerchief smelled of
lavender.  Her hand trembled as she held out to Tess.

Tess shook her head.  “Keep it, Maggie.”

Maggie smiled a little and stuffed the handkerchief
into the carpetbag.  She picked up Martha from her place on the bed.  She
hesitated.

“You’re never too old for dolls, Maggie,” her
grandmother said softly.

Maggie nodded.  She placed the old rag doll tenderly
in the carpetbag.

Tess hugged her for a long time before she let
Maggie go.  Then, she held out her hand.  Maggie took it.  Side by side, they
descended the stairs.