A Chuckwagon Ride to Safety

Charity was shaking worse then ever and she was having trouble talking.

"I--I--I don't know. I n-never d-did anything l-like this be-before. Do you have any bandages?"

Jake touched Charity on the arm with his left hand.

"Back in the chuck box is a bottle of whiskey. Go get it and some of the towels there. Use the whiskey to clean out where the bullet went through and use the towels to make a bandage."

When Charity came back she helped Jake take off his shirt. When she looked at the wound, it was a hole, but it was just through the muscle on the outside of his shoulder. It wasn't even bleeding all that bad.

Charity pulled the cork on the bottle, but before she did anything else, she put the bottle to her lips. Jake saw her swallow twice before she put the bottle down and then coughed three times. Then, she said, "This would be easier if we changed seats, so I'll stand up and you move over."

Jake groaned when Charity poured the whiskey into the wound, but was surprised at what she did next. He'd expected Charity to scrub at the wound like the Union surgeons had, but she was very gentle. It took her a long time, but it didn't hurt as bad as he thought it would.

Jake was still bleeding a little so it was hard for Charity to tell when the wound was clean enough. She stopped from time to time and pressed a clean part of a towel over the hole on each side. When all she saw on the towel was a little fresh blood, she poured a little more whiskey into the wound and started ripping a towel into strips.

With two strips, she made a pad that she soaked with whiskey and put over the holes. She then tied several strips together and used them to bind the pad in place. When she finished, she tried moving the bandage, but it stayed in place.

"I think this is about all I can do until we can get you to a doctor."

Jake grimaced when he laughed.

"Charity, you're the closest thing to a doctor in at least a three day ride. You did good, as good as the Union surgeons did when I got shot before. Now, we need to get as far away from here as we can. I don't want anybody finding these four and tracking us down. We're still three days from the ranch and there won't be anybody to help us until we get there."

They didn't talk for the rest of the day except for Charity asking him if he felt all right about every fifteen minutes. Jake drove the team until it was almost dark and he didn't unharness the team. His shoulder hurt bad enough he wasn't sure he could get the harness back on them the next morning. He'd have to check them in the morning to make sure they hadn't developed any sore places, but they hadn't been working hard so they'd probably be all right.

He didn't build a fire that night either, partly because of his shoulder but mostly so there wouldn't be any smoke or fire to give away their location. Supper was some canned sardines he'd bought in Abilene and water.

Jake seemed to fall asleep quickly. Charity didn't. She kept thinking about Jake. It wasn't so much that she was worried about him. The bullet wound had looked clean and had almost stopped bleeding by the time she put on the bandage.

It was the way Jake had looked without his shirt and the way it had felt when she touched him. She'd felt that way a little with Justin, but with Jake it was different. He wasn't a really big man, but he looked strong. When he moved, the muscles rippled under his skin, and when she touched him, she felt the tight muscles of his shoulder. That feeling had stirred something inside her that she thought she'd never feel again. When she finally fell asleep, she was still thinking about that feeling.

Jake was up before the sun the next morning, and after a few strips of beef jerky washed down with water, he and Charity started south again. When they stopped after two hours to rest the horses, Charity took off the bandage, cleaned out the wound again, and then put on a fresh bandage.

When Jake asked her, Charity said his shoulder didn't feel hot, and though it still hurt some Jake figured it wasn't going to start oozing the yellow pus that meant it was infected. Once they started traveling again, he asked Charity to tell him why those men had been after her.

"Charity, I know you had your reasons for lying before, but now's the time to tell me everything. I can't help you if I don't know what's really going on."

Charity looked at Jake and frowned.

"It's not something you're going to like. If I tell you, you'll probably throw me off this wagon."

Jake shook his head.

"Charity, I didn't think you were telling me the truth back at the soddy, but I figured those men were up to no good and I couldn't just leave you there to face any more. I'm not going to change my mind, not after the last four."

Charity took a deep breath.

"Yes, I lied. I just wanted to get away because I was sure more men would come after me. I'm not proud of what I've done, but I haven't done murder like they said.

"I didn't grow up in a little town in Arkansas. I grew up in Kansas City, Missouri. I did marry a man named Justin when I was just eighteen. We lived on his father's farm outside Kansas City. We'd only been married for about six months when a bunch of Jayhawkers from Kansas came to the farm. We didn't have any slaves, but they didn't believe Justin's father when he told them that. I was out in the woods a little ways picking blackberries when I heard the shots. I saw what was happening, so I started running into the woods and I didn't stop until it was almost dark.

"The next morning, I found Justin and his mother and father laying dead beside the house and the house was burned to the ground. Our horses were gone and all the chickens and milk cow were gone too. I buried them as best I could beside an oak tree in the yard and then started walking to Kansas City.

"You probably think I'm a pretty cold woman for doing that, but Justin and I weren't really very close. I married him because I thought he was a good man and he'd take care of me. Justin treated me like a wife, but he wasn't what you'd call in love with me. I was just the woman who fixed his meals and warmed his bed of a night.

"His mother and father didn't like me much either. I was a city girl and they thought Justin should have married the girl who lived on the next farm south of theirs. Mostly, I stayed away from them as much as I could.

"I was half way to Kansas City when a man driving a carriage stopped and asked me why I was walking. I made up a story that I'd run away from a man I didn't want to marry and was going to Kansas City to find work. He said his name was Richard Deeds, and if I needed a ride he'd take me to Kansas City and put me up for the night in a hotel.

"Normally, I'd have said no, but I was really tired. I got into his carriage and he took me the rest of the way into Kansas City. On the way, he said he had a job I could do for him. When I said I wasn't that kind of woman, he said he didn't mean be a saloon woman. Then he told me what the job was.

"He said he was going to Abilene because that's where all the cowhands from Texas came with their cattle. He said I was a pretty woman, and it would be easy to get some drunk cowhand to follow me back to my hotel room. I was supposed to tell the cowhand I was taking a short cut and walk down an alley. When we did, Richard would come out and rob the cowhand. He'd be wearing a mask and old clothes so nobody could identify him later. He said nobody would think I had anything to do with it because all I'd have to say was I was taking the cowhand to my room. They'd think I was just a saloon woman.

"I knew it wasn't legal and that it wasn't right, but I didn't have any money for food or a place to stay, so I said I'd try it. Looking back, it was the dumbest thing I've ever done in my life, but I wasn't thinking very straight back then.

"It actually worked the first two times. I walked a drunk cowhand down the alley and when we were half way, Richard would come out and take the cowhand's money. He gave me half of what he took.

"I made a mistake on the third. This man came into the saloon where I was waiting for some cowhand to take me home. He was dressed in a suit and he was spending money like he had money to burn. I figured we'd be rich after we robbed him and I could stop doing that and go back to Kansas City.

"He said his name was Thomas Derrick, like I should have known who he was. I didn't but I smiled and asked him if there was anything I could do for him. He just grinned and said if I had a room, he was sure we could think of something to do.

"I thought he was drunk, but he wasn't. When Richard jumped out to rob him, Thomas fought back. Richard ended up shooting Thomas and killing him. They found Thomas the next day, and that's when I found out who he was. Thomas was the only son of Horace Derrick, a rich man who buys cattle in Abilene and then ships them to Chicago and New York City. He's so rich his house is bigger than any hotel in Abilene.

"When Richard found out who he'd killed, he said we had to leave Abilene. We started going back to Kansas City because Richard thought Kansas City was big enough nobody could find us there. Well, a man who worked for Thomas' father did. We were on the road just outside of Abilene when the man rode up beside the carriage. He took one look at Richard and then pulled out his revolver and told Richard to stop the carriage and get out.

"Richard did, and as soon as he was on the ground, the man shot him in the chest. Then he got off his horse and started walking toward the carriage.

"Richard always kept his revolver on the seat beside him. I picked it up and was holding it when the man got to the carriage. When he got close enough, I shot him, but I missed and hit him in the arm instead of the chest. He dropped his revolver and fell down so I got out of the carriage and kicked his revolver over to the side of the road so he couldn't get to it.

"I didn't want to kill him but I didn't want him to follow me, so I made him get down on the ground under the carriage. Then, I got on his horse and started riding toward Kansas City as fast as the horse would run. I only went that way until I couldn't see the carriage anymore. After that, I turned off the road and started going south. I figured anybody else looking for me would go to Kansas City.

"I rode south until I found the soddy. I thought maybe there would be people living there who could help me, but nobody had lived there for a while. I have no idea where the people who built it went, but there was one grave behind the house. The stake on the grave just said Charles. I figure it was probably a man and his wife and the man had died and the wife went back to her family. I found a little food, but nothing else except the man's clothes I have on and that shotgun and a box of shells. I put on the clothes so if anybody saw me from a distance, they'd think I was a man.

"It was two more days before those two men came to the soddy. I saw them through the window and I didn't need anybody to tell me who they were. I'd seen them in Abilene.

"You know the rest of what happened."

Jake nodded.

"Now I think you're telling me the truth. You think those four men worked for this Derrick too?"

"Yes, and there will be more. Horace Derrick has enough money to send a whole army to look for me, and he doesn't want me to go back to Abilene and stand trial. He wants me dead."

Jake stroked his chin for a while, then looked at Charity.

"Charity, I think once we get to the ranch, the owner might be able to help you out if you tell him the truth. Everybody says he's a good man. I know he likes women and he treats them real good."

Charity didn't feel much better.

"You said I'd be safe once we got to Texas. Well, we're in Texas and those men still found me. Now you say I'll be safe when we get to the ranch. I don't see how that changes anything. Yesterday you said it would be three days before we got there. A lot can happen in three days."

Jake chuckled.

"We're already there, kind of. Remember that creek we crossed about an hour back? That was Big Creek and it's the north border of the ranch."

Charity's mouth fell open.

"We're already there but it will take us another two days? How can that be?"

"Well, it's a pretty big ranch as ranches go. About five hundred thousand acres if I remember right. Goes from Big Creek south to Puck Creek, and from the Brazos River on the west to the Navasola River on the east. It's a two day ride north and south, and about a days ride from east to west."

Charity couldn't comprehend something that huge, but she knew it meant the owner must have money.

"The owner must be a very rich man then."

Jake shrugged.

"I think he does all right. From what I hear, he pays better than most of the other ranches in Texas. That's what the other cowhands in Abilene said anyway."

"And you think he'll help me?"

Jake nodded.

"Yes, if you decide to stay on the ranch. If you decide to leave, he probably can't do much for you. I'll let him know what you did for me back there, and if he's still looking for a cook, maybe he'll hire you. Think you'd like being he cook for the main house?"

Charity sighed.

"All I want is to feel safe again, and I'll do about anything to make that happen."

It was actually a day and a half before Jake drove the wagon through the gate of the fence around the ranch house, bunkhouse, and barns. On an arch over the gate were the words "JD RANCH". Charity gasped when she saw how huge the house was.

"One man built that big house and he lives there alone?"

Jake smiled.

"Well, I think he built it that big because he figures on having a big family. You'll have to ask him yourself to be sure."

As he drove up to the main house, a young Negro man ran up and grabbed the bridle of the off horse of the team, then looked up a Jake and Charity.

"Mister Donaldson, we expected you yesterday. We were fixing to send out a couple men to find you."

Jake smiled.

"I just got held up a couple times, Seth, that's all. Any of the men make it back yet?"

Seth nodded.

"Two came in yesterday and said the rest are a few days behind them. You take your lady inside and I'll see to the horses."

When Jake helped Charity down from the wagon seat, she stopped and turned to face him.

"I thought all the slaves had been freed. How is it the owner of this ranch still has one?"

Jake frowned.

"Seth isn't a slave. He joined the Union Army after we freed the slaves in Tennessee. He was in my company when we were sent to Texas after the war and he was a good soldier and a good friend. We mustered out at the same time, and he came to the ranch with me."

"Then why did he call you Mister Donaldson instead of Jake?"

Jake looked at the ground.

"Well, I guess it's because I kinda own this ranch and he kinda works for me. I must have told him a thousand times that I'm just Jake, but he won't change."

"So you lied to me about who you are?"

Jake smiled.

"Well, I didn't really lie. I just didn't tell you all the truth. I try to look like any other cowhand when I make the drive. There are people, like your former partner, who would think they could get a lot of money from me if I dressed up and acted like a ranch owner. Since I didn't know you, I figured I'd better just stay a cowhand until I did.

"What I said about the owner needing a cook and helping you if you decided to take the job was true though. I also know Horace Derrick, and I have no doubt he'll try to do just what you say he will. I have some connections here and in Abilene that I can maybe use to get Derrick to leave you alone. It all depends on what you want to do. Will you stay?"

Charity looked Jake in the eyes then.

"Are you sure all you're looking for is a cook? I told you before, I'm not a woman who would go with a man just because he paid her."

Jake shook his head.

"No, nothing like that. I do need a cook and I thought you needed some help. That's all there is."

Charity moved into the main house in a room by the kitchen that afternoon. She didn't have much to move, but she didn't need much. The room had a bed, a chair, and a dresser for the few clothes she'd brought along. She leaned the shotgun in the corner by the bed. She wasn't sure why, but knowing it was there made her feel safer.

Before looking at the kitchen, she changed into a dress she thought was nice without being provocative like most of the dresses she had. Richard had wanted her to attract men, and most of her dresses were designed to do just that. This dress was one she'd had before she went to Abilene.

When she went to the kitchen, she found a young girl sitting on a chair there. The girl had long black hair and her skin tone was slightly dark. Charity figured she was either Mexican or Indian.

The girl smiled.

"I'm Maria. Mister Donaldson hired me to help the old cook. Now that you're going to be the cook, I'll be helping you too."

Charity figured the girl was maybe twelve at most. She asked the girl to make sure.

"Maria, how old are you?"

"I think I'm eleven, but I don't know for sure."

"Where are your mother and father?"

The girl shook her head.

"I don't know, but I think they're both dead."

"You don't know where your mother and father are? Why do you think they're dead?"

Maria frowned.

"We lived in a little house beside a creek. One morning I went outside to play by the creek because mother and father were busy working. There were some flowers there and I picked some to give to Mother. When I came back, Mother and Father were gone, but Mister Donaldson was there.

"He said Mother and Father had gone away and they wouldn't be coming back, but that they said they wanted me to come live with him. He said I could help his cook. Without Mother and Father, I didn't know what else to do, so I got behind him on his horse and he brought me here. I've been here since then. The other cook taught me to speak English and taught me how to cook.

The girl smiled then.

"The other cook said I make really good tortillas. She said Mister Donaldson liked my tortillas better than hers. If you don't know how to make tortillas I can teach you."

Charity made a mental note to ask Jake about Maria, and then asked Maria to show her around the kitchen. The girl seemed to be proud that she could do that.

Together, they made dinner for Jake. Maria said they should eat in the kitchen, so after Charity took the steak and potatoes to the dining room, she came back and ate with Maria. When they finished, Maria said if Charity would get Mister Donaldson's plate and tableware, she'd wash them and the pans they'd used.

When Charity went back to the dining room, Jake asked her what she thought of Maria. Charity said she had a lot of questions, and Jake smiled.

"I figured you would. Maria will go to bed as soon as she washes up. When she does, come back and I'll tell you about her."

Just as Jake had said, as soon as Maria finished washing the plates and pans, she told Charity she was going to her room.

"I need to go to sleep now. I'll wake you up in the morning so we can make breakfast. Mister Donaldson likes his breakfast early."

With that, Maria left Charity alone in the kitchen. Charity made sure the fire in the stove was banked for the night, and then went back to the dining room. Jake was waiting for her, and said they'd be more comfortable in his office.

Once they were there, Jake waved at the couch and when Charity sat down, he walked to a bar at the side of the room.

"You took a big pull on that whiskey bottle before you doctored me. You want a drink? I have some pretty good whiskey, a little rum, and a few bottles of wine."

Charity blushed.

"I drank a little when I was in Abilene because of what I was doing there, but I don't really like it. I just needed something to steady my nerves when you got shot. Thank you though."