Dance with the Deacon

"Well that pan is heavy. The bacon grease would leave scars, if you got it on you." I thought standing with Edith would be a good idea. Partly because she was right and partly because I wanted to keep the peace which had formed between us. I couldn't help the stray thought which followed. If Jess turned out to be as defiant in everything else, she would be a perfect match for Edith. Maybe not one made in heaven but a match nonetheless.

Supper was not only filling as it had to be, it was also tasty. It would have been improved with the addition of honey or brown sugar to the oatmeal. I should have checked with the dry goods store. He might have had honey since it was late summer.

Jess ate from the one plate, Edith had her oatmeal from a coffee cup, as before I ate from the pan. Edith and I shared a cup of coffee in the second cup. I was forced to admit to myself at least that it was pleasant sitting around the fire with the little make believe family.

I was half through with my oatmeal when Edith spoke. "Deacon there is a rider coming in." Edith seemed worried. She didn't know or trust me. Even without a shirt I had replaced the shoulder holster. I might be playing a deacon, but I was a gunman for real.

I turned to look down the road. The cloud of dust rose high into the air. The rider was coming hard from the town at the end of the tracks. "Now who do you reckon that is?" I asked it knowing Edith had no answer. She might have a fear, but she couldn't have known for sure.

"I'm not sure but we should know real soon," she replied.

"Yep," I said it surprised at our seeming understanding. "Why don't you and Jess go upstream a ways to see if you can find some berries."

"Would you mind if I get something from my valise first?" Why she asked I had no idea. I am pretty sure she would have done it either way.

"Good idea, there might be rattlers up there." The small caliber revolver she removed was a lot like the British .36 caliber of mine. It was built on an even smaller frame. What they really shared was the necessity of being real close when you used it. I knew I could look a man in the eye as I killed him. I had no idea whether Edith could or not. Then again she did have Jess. That kind of responsibility could make a woman do things she would never do if she were alone.

"Are there really berries here?" Jess asked it as she allowed Edith to take her hand.

"We will have to look honey. I once saw a patch of wild strawberries growing beside a stream." She disappeared into the heavy brush holding onto Jess' little hand.

I leaned against the wagon to await the arrival of the traveler in such a hurry that he raised the cloud of dust. As Edith had predicted it didn't take long. The horse was tall which made the rider look tall. I really couldn't tell.

"You must be the preacher?" It was a question which he asked still seated atop the horse.

"I am. I got some coffee if you want. Sorry the foods all gone. You can use the fire to cook your own if you want."

"Didn't come to eat. I came to take the whore's whelp home." He looked real mean when he said it.

"Well you can see she ain't here right now. Even if she were you wouldn't be taking her anywhere. Her mamma and me made a deal. The woman I am traveling with is going to take care of her. You go on back and tell her ma that."

"Preacher.."

Before he could finish I interjected, "It's deacon. I am called Deacon Burke."

"Deacon, preacher it don't matter none." He said it with a sneer.

"Actually it does." I said it as I pulled the .36 from under my armpit. "A preacher would not blow your ass into next week. Now a mere deacon is something else again. So cowboy tell your friend to come to Sadie's Gulch and we will discuss this. Also tell her to never again send a man with a gun to negotiate with me." We both knew the next couple of minutes were critical. If he turned and rode away it was over or at least maybe it was over. If he tried to bluff it out, things were likely to escalate. If he went for his gun, he was going to die. I could see in his eyes he was debating it.

"Son, it you go for that hogleg, I am gonna kill you. Tell me, is making a couple of points with a whore worth dying over?" The logic of it must have worked.

He turned to ride away. For a few moments at least he rode quickly. He seemed to want to put a lot of distance between us. I walked to the wagon where I removed the Springfield. I slipped a round into the chamber then closed the rolling block. I didn't think he would stop to try the Winchester on me. I just wanted to make damned sure I had the biggest dog in the fight. I must have made a believer of him because he didn't even look back. He simply disappeared into the distance.

I continued to lean against the wagon as I rolled a cigarette. I lit the misshaped thing with a wooden match. I smoked it while I waited for the girls to return. Actually I finished it and was thinking about the money in my satchel when they returned. I had enough time to decide that I needed to spend at least six months as the deacon.

When I saw the girls appear from the brush I asked, "Well did you find any berries?"

"Not a one," Edith replied.

"I told Edith I didn't think there were any berries here." Jess was very serious as she spoke.

"Well I guess that proves you are a smart little girl," Edith replied. Edith looked at me with a question in her eye. I simply smiled at her. Edith then returned the smile. She even added a little warmth to hers.

That night it turned cold. Before morning we were piled up like a litter of puppies. Jess was between Edith and I. I am not sure what the reasoning was but our bodies kept her warm and she kept Edith and I apart more or less.

Morning found me up early. I built a larger than usual fire just to keep me warm. Edith left Jess under all the covers so that she could join me. She didn't bother to strain the coffee that morning.

"So, do you want to hitch the horse while I cook breakfast?" Edith smiled at me. It was a bright smile one I hadn't seen much of till Jess joined us.

"I should let you do it all you know. You are better with the gray than me. You sure as hell cook better." I smiled so she wouldn't think I was being critical.

"Well Deacon, you aren't much with animals or food." Edith actually made a chuckling sound.

"No I guess not," I replied.

"It is a good thing you are a man of God." Edith did not give me a clue as to whether she was being sarcastic or believed me.

The horse was hitched and the cornmeal mush ready before she woke Jess. The sleepy little girl was ready for breakfast a few minutes later. The mush was okay but not something I intended to get used to.

After Edith cleaned the one plate and other cooking gear we headed off for the days travels. I was surprised to find how close we had been to a farm road. I was tempted to go down it to try to buy some additional food. I didn't only because Edith assured me there would be others. Possibly one closer to lunch so that we could perhaps eat with a farm couple.

Edith's memory wasn't as good as she thought. The next road we saw was closer to mid afternoon. I took it for about ten minutes before we pulled into the yard of a farmhouse. Like the house where we had found Jess, it was made of adobe. Unlike Jess' house it was in good repair. There was also a few chickens moving about the yard. When I pulled the horse up I noticed a man move cautiously from the shadow of the house. He appeared to be a bit nervous until he saw the make up of the wagons passengers. After he recognized us he spoke.

"Welcome Reverend, why don't you and the misses step down." I watched as he put aside the shotgun he had hidden behind his leg.

"Thank you sir," I replied. "I really would like to water my horse. I would also like to buy some food, if you have any to spare."

"What kind of food? You know most of it comes from the store in town." He was a little hesitant.

"Not that kind sir. If you have any eggs or jam that sort of thing." He understood that I meant any food he or his wife had produced.

"Not much to make jam from here I am afraid. I got some honey though and a few eggs I can let you have."

"That would be just fine. Anything at all would be good." I looked around. He seemed to be farming but I didn't ask what he was growing.

"Why don't you ladies go on in. Me and the Reverend will take a walk to the store house." Edith looked at me before she left. She had a concerned look in her eyes. I simply smiled.

"So Reverend, you on your way west? Headed for California I reckon?" He asked it as he manoeuvered me to a slight hump in the earth. The slanted doors only a foot of so above the dry earth told me it was a cellar type storage area.

"Not really, I am headed for Sadie's Gulch to open a church there." I said it expecting about the reaction I got.

"Reverend you must be a little crazy. Nobody in Sadie's Gulch is interested in Church meetings. They are miners there Reverend."

"Surely there are a few families even in a mining town." It was a question I had been meaning to ask one of the skeptics. "It is my understanding that there was once a church there?"

"Yes there was Reverend. At least that is the rumor. Have you heard how it ended?" He asked it as he swung the doors to the cellar open.

"I have not." I spoke the words as I followed him down the stairs. The cellar was filled with baskets of vegetables and jars of canned goods.

The Farmer began moving potatoes from one basket to another. When it was almost empty he moved to add a few carrots to the basket. From there he moved to put a couple of scoops of dried beans into a paper bag. While he did those chores he spoke.

"Last preacher they had to stay any length of time at the gulch took up with one of the women of the church."

"That is a sad fact of church life." I said the words my mother had said when the same thing happened in her church. "Even so, God's work must continue.

"The woman was the wife of the biggest mine owner. They say he bought the land and church after the preacher left. He swore there would never be another church in Sadie's Gulch."

"Sir, he might have bought the building. He did not buy the church." I couldn't believe I said those words. I had just defined the fight that was most likely to come. Me, one of the worlds great sinners was going to fight to open a church in a town that didn't want one. I wondered if it was my way of doing penitence for the robbery. It could have even been for the men I had killed. Whatever the reason it appeared I was about to become a Christian soldier as my mother called the martyrs. There was one thing that made me smile. I was going to prove a damn sight harder to kill than those Christians who went to the lions in the coliseum.

The three of us left the small farm with more than enough food to make the journey. Not only was there enough but Edith relished her domestic role. I was sure it was Jess not me that brought out the woman in Edith. She cooked every meal. She even forced me to stop at noon so that she could cook. I guessed that there was just something about women and children.

Edith had me stopping so often I felt sure it was more to prolong the trip than to feed the child. The two of them made me stop to pick the sparse fall wild flowers. It was at that point that I knew Edith was in no hurry to arrive home.

On the last night after the three of us were rolled into our blankets Edith seemed to fall quickly to sleep. I was usually the one who drifted off first. For some reason Jess slept in a different spot she was on the outside of the blankets leaving Edith in the middle.

Whether in her sleep, half sleep, or pretend sleep Edith curled up against me. When I felt her body against mine I had a very undeaconlike reaction. It was almost painful in it's intensity. I supposed it was a good thing Jess had joined us.

Because the child was present I did no more than allow my hands to roam Edith's body. Her reaction at first was to turn away then without warning she turned back to me. I felt her body move rhythmically for a few moments. She suddenly shuddered before turning her back to me. It was some moments later before I fell asleep.

When three people sleep huddled for body warmth they tend to wake all at the same time. Edith moved from the bed to the shelter of a few scrub bushes. When she returned I was awake. Jess was drifting back to sleep with her small body pressed to me. I left the covers only after making sure she was covered with both blankets.

The only two differences between that day and the one before were minor. We ate better thanks to the farmer we had found along the way and we saw no one. Not even a stray cowboy crossed our path.

Edith had fixed dinner in the one pan somehow. When it was done she remarked. "Deacon, if you plan to do much traveling in the future buy a stew pot."

"I'll keep that in mind Edith. I think my first purchase for the road would be a shotgun though. It would have been possible to kill a rabbit or two had I possessed one before this trip."

"All right Deacon, a shotgun and a stew pot." Edith had begun to smile a lot since Jess joined us. I could only approve of the change.

On that final day I followed Edith's directions to her husbands ranch. The smaller road to his farm house was long. It seemed to take fifteen or twenty minutes to reach the house. It could well have been the fact that he was discouraging company.

The house was adobe like most of the others we had seen. The yard seemed to be filled with children. My god I thought these can't all be John Wilson's. I knew better they all looked alike save their height and sex. Wilson was a fertile man it seemed. A quick head count showed eight head of children. No telling how many more were out working on the ranch.

"How many children are there here?" I asked it with awe in my voice.

"Margaret my sister has eight. John's first wife who passed on had four. Those four are not in the yard they are probably out working with John.

"Seems John not only works all day, but he also works all night." I smiled to let her know it didn't matter to me.

"Too bad he sees it as work and not fun." Unlike me Edith was not smiling. She seemed bitter.

"If you and Jess will be okay, I might as well head on out." I was pulling the wagon to a spot beside a smaller house to the right of the main house. The house seemed to be older than the main house. The adobe was more brittle looking, if that were possible.

"No you don't. You are not going to leave until you have a decent meal and meet John. I expect you two will hit it off famously." Edith wasn't smiling at all.

"Edith, if I don't leave now I am going to have to travel in the dark." I said it making what I thought was perfect sense.

"You don't have to travel at all tonight. We have a guest house. I am sure John will invite you to stay. After all Deacon you are a man of God." She smiled a smile with a hidden meaning. It was a meaning I did not get. I was also sure I didn't want to get it. I did not want to face any problems at that moment.

"I will stay to meet your husband because it is the right thing to do." I looked Edith in the eye just so she would understand I had nothing of which to be ashamed. I had treated her honorably. Well all except for a small grope the night before.

"Good, I am sure you will not be sorry Deacon. You wait here I will find out where John is at the moment. I can ride out to find him if he is going to be very long." With those words she left Jess clinging to me. She walked to the larger house.

"Jess honey, wouldn't you like to play with the other Children?" I asked it to see if I could move the shy little girl.

"Yes, but I don't know them." She had almost moved to hide behind me.

"Well honey that is easy enough to fix. See they are all waiting for you to introduce yourself, but come on I will do it for you." I walked to where the other children stood watching me and Jess.

"Hi," I said it to the children staring down at them all in turn. "This is Jess. She would like to join you."

The tiniest of the children moved first. She walk to me then reached over to take Jess' hand. She actually led her to the other children. That little girl was going to be a heart breaker I decided. She was full of courage.

Edith returned shortly after Jess began to play with the other children. She was still holding back of course but it appeared she would do fine. Edith was followed by a woman who looked exactly like her but a few years older and a few pounds heavier.

"Deacon Burke, this is my sister Margaret." Edith seemed interested to see what my reaction would be to her sister.

I nodded my head then said, "Hello Margaret, Edith has mentioned you to me."

"I am sure she has Deacon. Would you like to come in? I have some lemonade."

"Well if it wouldn't be too much trouble. I do love lemonade." The lie should have choked me. I figured I should start acting like a deacon. Charm the ladies and kill the men. The idea brought a smile to my face.

"Stop smiling," Edith said it in a whisper only I could hear. We left Jess in the yard playing.

"Do you like cookies?" Margaret asked me as I took a seat at the kitchen table.

"Oh yes, I have a sweet tooth I am afraid. One of my minor sins." I smiled my most charming smile.

"Seeing as how you and my sister traveled together I hope it was your only sin." She obviously was trying to gain information.

"Don't forget we also traveled with a ten year old child. Even if we hadn't Margaret you need not trust me. You need only to know your sister to know what did not happen on the trip." I said it pleasantly but I stood to leave the table without my lemonade or cookie. I turned to Edith.

"Mrs. Wilson, it was our agreement that I deliver you here and I have. I will now take my leave." They both recognized the irritation in my voice.

"Margaret you are such a busybody." Edith said that as she stood. "As for you Deacon sit down. You and John have business and you are not going to leave here until it is completed. I do not intend for you to lose money because you helped me."

"It is not necessary Edith," I replied angrily.

"Deacon, sit down." Her voice was demanding. I did sit down but only because I did not want to argue in front of her sister. I felt it would be a hurtful thing for Edith. For some reason which I did not understand I did not want to see Edith hurt.

"Edith, let us finish this now. I do not need to wait for your husband to return." At the mention of John as her husband Margaret reddened. She was about to speak but seemed to think better of it at the last minute.

"Deacon, why don't you wait on the porch. I am sure Edith can find John she knows our ranch well." Margaret's words appeared to be a challenge of some sort. I did not understand the challenge but I understood the tone.

"Yes Deacon, wait on the porch since Margaret seems to be in a mood today." I followed her from the house. I seated myself on the porch as Edith walked into the dirt yard. She seemed to think a moment then return to the porch.

"Deacon give me your pistol," she demanded.

"Only if you promise not to shoot anyone," I smiled to let her no I was joking.

"I am not going to shoot anyone at the moment. It is the best promise you are going to get from me today." She was smiling.

"Close enough I guess." I handed her the small pistol from my shoulder holster. Edith walked into the yard then fired two shots waited a moment then fired a third.

"Indians?" I asked.

"No, just a message to come in immediately. John and the boys will be here shortly. In the meantime if you really want lemonade I will fix you some."

"No thanks, I really want a drink." I smiled as I said it.

"'Sorry Deacon, no alcohol allowed on the ranch." She didn't seem to mind that one.