Will O Wisp (6 page)

After the well wishes, Miss Molly
admonished they should be careful and come back healthy and safe.
Through it all, Gracie pushed Shana and Melinda to the front door
and down the sidewalk. Before she let up she had them started
toward the livery stable.

“
Sure and it's a pleasant
surprise that you're comin' with us, Aunt Melinda,” Shana babbled,
trying to make amends for worrying Melinda with the jar of fake
bugs.

“
I'm glad you think so,
dear. We will have a good time at Gracie's farm. You wait and see.
I just know it,” Melinda said. “Aren't we going to have a good
time, Gracie?”

“
Yip,” Gracie said shortly
as she looked up and down the street. “Head across the street to
the livery. Hustle before Old Man Krumble gets too close. He never
can whoa that team of horses when he's coming at pedestrians.
Sometimes I think he doesn't want to.”

“
Why? Did you do something
to make him out of sorts?” Shana asked. The old man's long beard
flopped in the breeze as he rushed down the middle of the
street.

“
Nope, I don't have
anything atall to do with that crabby old man. Never have,” Gracie
assured her. “He thinks he owns the street, and he has the right
way when he's using it.”

They hustled across the street and
felt the breeze from Mr. Krumble's passing team of horses and
buggy. Melinda and Shana stood by the building's large open doors
to wait. Gracie went inside the livery stable to make arrangements
for renting a buggy.

Shana spotted a poster on the livery
wall. “Tis fer sure and certain, we will be back in a month, Aunt
Melinda?”

“
Yes, we only have to stay
until the Sawyers come home from Ottumwa. Why, dear?”

“
Read this poster. A circus
is comin' to town the end of June. I would sure like to go to that.
I have never been, and there will be wild animals. An elephant
even,” Shana said excitedly.

“
Matter of fact, I'd like
to see the circus myself. I love clowns. Of course, we'll be back
in time so don't worry. Now we have something to look forward to,”
Melinda said cheerfully.

Shana gave her a hug. “Aunt Melinda, I
confess I sure am glad you're comin' along.”

“
Well, I was beginning to
wonder. You won't play any more pranks on me, will you? I wouldn't
like that,” Melinda said.

“
No, ma'am, I will not do
that to you ever again,” Shana vowed.

As a second thought, Melinda said,
“And you promise not to trick Gracie, either. That isn't a nice
thing to do. I warn you, for sure, Gracie wouldn't take a trick
played on her well at all.”

“
No, I wouldn't have done
that to Miss Gracie in the first place. She isn't a good sport
about such things,” Shana declared.

“
I see. Just so you know,
I'm not a good sport, either. So why are you glad I'm going with
you to the farm?” Melinda asked.

“
You're happy all the time.
Miss Gracie isn't happy much any of the time,” Shana said
honestly.

“
Oh, Gracie is happy
sometimes. It's just harder for her to show it than it is for us.
We need to make an effort this month while we're with her on the
farm to show her how to smile and be happy. What do you
say?”

“
Sure and tis a thought,
but I suspect that is going to be one hard task,” Shana
said.

“
That farm is her home. All
her good memories are wrapped up in that place when she was a child
growing up with her parents. She lived there all her life, taking
care of her animals. I'm sure she smiled a lot back then before she
moved to Locked Rock. She will like being home so much I think we
should be able to get her to smile for us,” Melinda
surmised.

She grinned at Shana, and Shana
returned the grin. They looked so much like they were planning a
conspiracy that Gracie grew suspicious right way when she drove the
buggy out of the livery stable. She might just have to ask what
they were up to later. Right now she had to get those two slow
pokes moving before Thad gave up on her ever showing up. Besides,
she was eager to be home for a while.

“
Throw our bags in the back
and hop up here with me. It might be a tight fit on this seat. Good
thing Shana isn't as wide as you and me, Melinda,” Gracie
said.

“
Thank you, Gracie,”
Melinda said defensively.

Gracie ignored Melinda's frown as she
took her hand and tugged until the woman was on the buggy seat.
Shana scrambled up by herself.

They were off with Gracie walking the
horse out of town. “Now this is the pace to move in town. No need
to run over anyone. Plenty of time to get the horse moving once
we're out in the country where there ain't any traffic.”

“
That's right, Gracie,”
Melinda agreed.

“
How far is the farm from
town?” Shana asked.

“
Ten miles give or take a
few feet,” Gracie said.

Shana frowned. “That's a long ways
from Locked Rock and me friends.”

Melinda winked at Shana, hoping to
reassure her. “It doesn't take any time at all to get to the farm
I'll bet. I remember when we went to your parents' wedding barn
dance at Mr. Orie's farm. We were there in no time. Gracie, your
farm is just past that, isn't it?”

“
Yip,” Gracie
said.

Once they left the city limits, they
went past pastures containing grazing cows, timbers looming up to
shadow the road and farmsteads with corn and hay fields.

“
Just look around you,
Shana. Isn't everything so colorful in the country?” Melinda asked,
trying to keep the girl's mind on scenery rather than the time of
travel.

“
Mostly green,” Shana said
dully.

“
That's because that's the
color God likes,” Gracie said simply.

“
Now how would you know a
thing like that?” Melinda asked.

“
I got the idea on a buggy
ride with Millard Sokal. We both decided the same thing. There
wouldn't be so much of the color green in the country if it weren't
so that God liked that color best,” Gracie declared.

“
Oh, Gracie! I reckon
that's a good way to think about the country. Whether it's true or
not,” Melinda said, with a giggle. But what I have always suspected
must be true. Mr. Sokal and you think a lot alike.”

Gracie narrowed her eyes and grimaced
at Melinda. Shana giggled. Melinda smiled back at Gracie, knowing
she had hit a nerve.

For a while, they listened to the
rhythmic clip clop of the horse's hooves and the wheel groans and
creaks on the loose rocks.

Every so often, they bounced into each
other when a wheel fell into a pot hole. Mostly, the ladies didn't
mind. They were too busy watching the country sights go
past.

About a mile from the Three Oaks farm
lane, Gracie said, “Look over there. That's Mr. Orie's
farm.”

“
Oh yes, just the way I
remember it with that nice big barn we had the wedding dance in,”
Melinda said.

“
I have been here many
times with me father. Look! Isn't that a deer?” Shana asked
excitedly, leaning over Melinda's lap to point.

“
Where?” Gracie asked,
trying to follow the pointing finger under her nose.

“
At the edge of the
cornfield behind the barn,” Shana said, shaking her finger in that
direction.

Melinda and Gracie spotted the doe at
the same time.

“
Oh, how beautiful she is,”
Melinda said admirably.

The deer was frozen in place like a
statue, staring at them until the buggy came closer. Suddenly, the
deer raced in a hopping stride toward them. She jumped the barbed
wire fence, intending to dart in front of them and cross the
road.

“
That deer is coming right
at us,” Gracie shouted and snapped the lines over the horse's back
to speed him up. She was too late. The deer rammed her head into
the canvas on Gracie's side of the buggy. At impact, they heard a
loud ripping sound as the buggy slid sideways. That was just before
the deer's head broke through the canvas and came to rest in
Gracie's lap.

Melinda screamed.

Shana gasped. Her eyes grew
wide.

The horse's ears went back at the
sudden loud, strange noises. He took off, racing down the road.
Gracie pulled back on the lines and yelled, “Whoa.”

Shana held on to her side of the seat
for dear life. For once, she was speechless as they bounced in and
out of the potholes hard enough to propel them from the seat and
plop them back down.

“
Oh my, can't you get the
horse to stop or at least slow down?” Melinda gasped.

Gracie sawed back and forth on the
line. “I'm working on it.”

“
I thought you said we
should go slow and not race like Mr. Krumble,” Shana reminded
her.

“
If Melinda and you hadn't
screamed, the horse wouldn't have taken off in the first place,”
Gracie barked.

“
I didn't scream,” Shana
complained.

“
I did, and
I'm sorry,” Melinda said contritely as she eyed
the deer's head on Gracie's lap.

The doe's mouth was open as she
panted. The exertion of keeping up with the fast moving buggy and
her fright had the deer bug eyed. Her tongue flopped in and out of
her mouth on Gracie's lap.

“
That poor deer is having a
hard time keeping up with the horse. You have to help her, Gracie,”
Melinda ordered.

“
Right now, she's
slobbering all over my skirt, soaking through to my leg. I want her
off my lap worse than you do. Just let me get this horse stopped
first, and I'll get shut of the deer somehow,” Gracie shouted. Her
barking voice made the horse speed up.

Shana pointed ahead of them. “I see
someone comin'. Maybe he will help slow down the horse.”

A buggy pulled over to the side of the
road. The driver climbed out. He walked in the middle of the road,
waving his hands in the air as he shouted, “Whoa. Whoa.”

“
Oh, how nice. That's Mr.
Sokal,” Melinda said, sounding relieved.

“
Great Scott! What's so
nice about it? Just what we need is that man to help us and gloat
about it later,” Gracie spit out.

“
That's just what we need,
his help. Matter a fact, any man's help would do right now. I'm not
choosy, and you shouldn't be, either. We could be thrown from this
buggy and badly hurt. We were just lucky enough to get Mr. Sokal
coming by us right now,” Melinda said, patting her
chest.

The horse slow down at the
sight of Millard and tried to dart around him. The round faced
man's faded brown eyes narrowed as he reached out and grabbed the
lathered horse's collar. Millard hollered whoa again and tromped
along side the horse, trying to brace his feet. Finally, the horse
skidded to a sliding stop, causing Shana to lean forward. Melinda
put out her arm to keep the girl on the seat.

Millard rubbed the panting
horse's face to calm him. The horse shuttered and trembled,
stomping his feet.
“
Settle down, boy.” Crows feet crinkled up the side of his face
as he smiled. “Morning, ladies. What's yer hurry, Miss Gracie?”
Before she could answer, he walked around beside the horse on Miss
Gracie's side of the buggy. Millard did a double take at the deer's
back end swishing sideways one way then the other. He chuckled.
“Taking that deer along for a ride, are you?”

“
Don't try to be funny,
Millard. You won't succeed. If you want to do something to help us
out, get the deer's head out of this buggy so we can go on,” Gracie
barked.

“
Howdy, Miss Melinda.”
Millard put two fingers to the tip of his straw hat brim. “And what
a nice surprise. Why, if it isn't Miss Shana over there on the
other end of seat.” Millard touched his hat brim to her.

“
Good morning, Mr. Sokal,”
Melinda said politely as she smoothed her skirt back down over her
high topped shoes.

“
Top of the mornin', Sir,”
Shana greeted. “Thank ye for stoppin' the horse. Miss Gracie wasn't
havin' a mite of luck at it.”

Gracie's glare told Shana she
shouldn't criticize her elders. She leaned back in the seat and
folded her arms over her chest.

“
Well, are you going to get
rid of this deer for us or stand around passing the time of day?
This ain't no social call you know,” Gracie barked.

“
If you insist, I'll see
what I can do.” Millard grabbed the deer around the neck and pulled
back. The deer bucked and pressed forward onto Gracie's lap.
Millard held on tight to the deer's neck. When his feet hit the
ground, he jerked back again. The deer's head slipped out. She
whirled to leave and bumped into Millard, sending him flying
backward. He fell flat on the ground and expelled a loud
oof.

Gracie smiled at him. “Just like a man
to do a little work and have to sit down on the job
afterward.”

“
Gracie, you be nice. Mr.
Sokal didn't have to help us,” Melinda scolded. She leaned over to
look down past the horse's rump at the man. “Are you hurt, Mr.
Millard?”