Change of Heart (7 page)

“More than she needs you?”

“Well, sure.”

“But why? You both love the filly, don’t
you?”

“I guess, but the mare is the filly’s
family.”

Jase nodded his head slowly. “Oh, I see. So,
even though you love the little horse and you need her, you’re
willing to let her go so she can be with her family?”

“I have to. I wouldn’t want the filly to be
away from her family.”

Jase picked up Zack and walked over to the
mare. The two of them stroked the horse’s hide for a minute or two
before they moved on to the baby. They gave her the same attention
they’d given the mother. When they left the barn, Jase set the boy
on the post of a hitching rail.

“I’m sorry I made you feel bad a little while
ago, Zack. I do need you, son, and I love you very much. You know
that. Ever since you were a baby, we’ve been real close friends,
haven’t we?”

Zack nodded. “But, if you need me and love
me, Jase, why can’t I stay with you?”

“For the same reasons you wouldn’t let that
filly in there stay here without her mother. Just as that baby
horse needs to be with her family, you need to be with your aunt.
It’s what your mother and father wanted, Zack. They wrote it down
on a piece of paper I found when I cleaned out their house. Your
folks left word that if anything ever happened to them, they wanted
your Aunt Marietta to take care of you. She’s your family.”

“Is it hard for you to let me go with Aunt
Marietta like it’s hard for me to let go of that filly?”

Jase cupped the boy’s cheek with his palm.
“It’s the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in all my life, but
it’s the right thing, Zack. You belong with your aunt.”

Zack threw his arms around him. “I love you,
Jase. No matter how far away I am from you, I’ll always love you.
I’ll try to be happy staying with Aunt Marietta. I do like her, but
I don’t want to leave you, Jase.”

The boy might as well have gone into the
barn, picked up a pitch fork, and run it through Jase’s heart. He’d
found the right words to say to Zack, but Zack had some pretty
powerful words of his own, words that could be as lethal as any
deadly weapon. “We’ve each got our own lives, Zack. Yours is with
Miss Randolf, and mine is here.”

Jase lifted the boy from the hitching post
and carried him out into an open area of the compound where he set
him down again. “Now, how about a foot race?”

Zack looked up at him. “You can stay and play
for a while?”

“We have the whole afternoon,” Jase said,
smiling.

Zack let out a cheer. “Then let’s go riding.
I miss Beaumont almost as much as I miss you, Jase.”

“All right.” He inclined his head toward
Zack. “I’ll race you to Beaumont. The first one there gets to sit
up front.”

~ * ~

Two days after Jase visited the fort, a
stranger stopped by the Carson home. The man introduced himself as
James Richards. Marietta was in the middle of baking a large batch
of sweet rolls and had little time to talk to the man. But when he
said he needed to speak to Jase on a business matter, she invited
him inside.

She gave him a cup of coffee and sat with him
in the parlor for a few minutes. She explained to him that he
needed to see Lt. Carson or Col. Harrison to get directions to
Jase’s ranch.

When she returned to the kitchen after Mr.
Richards left, Marietta found Zack stuffing his fingers into the
sweet roll dough and pulling out handfuls of the mixture which he
promptly placed into his mouth.

“Zack! Don’t eat the dough like that. It’s
much better after it’s baked.”

“I like it this way,” he said, wiping his
wrist over his mouth.

Marietta shook her head and smiled before she
leaned over and kissed his cheek. The boy had gone back to moping
when Jase left, but he seemed to enjoy being in the kitchen while
she baked rolls. Understandable, considering how he loved eating
them before and after they were baked.

“What did that man want?” Zack asked.

“Mr. Richards needs to see Mr. Kent on
business.”

“He’s going over to Jase’s?”

“Yes. He went to get directions from Lt.
Carson or Col. Harrison.”

“I could’ve given him directions. It’s easy.
You just ride a ways that way,” he said, pointing west, “until you
come to this big tree that fell over. Then you turn toward the
butte and go until you see a patch of wild roses. After that, you
turn toward the Indian burial mound. Once you get to the burial
mound, you can see Jase’s place. See? Easy.” He took another piece
of raw dough, put it in his mouth and wiped his hands on his pants.
“I’m going to find Gus to see if he wants to arm wrestle.”

“Okay.” Marietta’s heart lightened by ten
pounds thanks to Zack’s being in a happier mood. She was glad she’d
let him help her with the rolls. “Button up your coat, and don’t
forget your hat.”

“I will, Aunt Marietta.”

Zack slammed the door on his way out, and
Marietta hoped his noisy exit hadn’t disturbed Amy. She’d lain down
with a headache.

Roll baking was a time-consuming task, and,
before Marietta knew it, twilight had descended on the fragrant
kitchen. Hours had passed, and Zack hadn’t returned. Where could
the child be?

Marietta went to Amy’s room and asked her to
watch the last pan of rolls baking in the oven while she went to
find Zack. Once Amy agreed, she put on her coat and hat and went
out to search the compound. She began to panic when she couldn’t
find her little boy. She located Col. Harrison and asked for the
assistance of some of his men.

Three hours later, Zack was still missing.
The boy had simply disappeared.

Jase hadn’t had a visit from a stranger for
quite some time, let alone a stranger on a buckboard. He finished
brushing down his horse while the buckboard covered the last mile
to his ranch. One thing good about the Nebraska territory landscape
was that a man could see for miles and miles. By the time the
stranger had reached his house, Jase was inside washing up. Mrs.
Whipple greeted the caller and asked him to wait on the porch while
she went to get Jase.

“He says he has business with you,” Mrs.
Whipple said in her warm, grandmotherly voice. “His name is James
Richards, and he has news from the Red Rock Junction meeting.”

Jase could have picked up the white-haired,
sixty-something-year-old woman and spun her around the room in a
Virginia Reel.

“Invite him in, Mabel! Seat him in the
library and give him coffee or pie or whatever he wants. I’ll be
with him shortly.”

Her silver eyes twinkled. “It’s good to see
some life in your smile again, Jase. Things have been too sad
around here since Zack left.”

He couldn’t argue with that. While this good
news couldn’t relieve him of his heartache over losing Zack,
starting a new project that would consume time otherwise spent
grieving would help his healing. He’d already spent too much time
hurting over the loss of Kathy, Clint, and Zack. Having feelings
for Marietta without being able to do anything about them hurt as
much as losing his best friends. He needed diversion.

“Things have been sad here for a long time,”
he said, drying his hands.

“Indeed they have,” Mabel said, unable to
keep a disheartened tone out of her voice. “I’ll make Mr. Richards
comfortable at once.”

Jase went to his bedroom and put on a clean
shirt and fresh trousers. He found Mr. Richards sitting in a
high-backed red chair when he entered the library. The tall, lean
man dressed in dark clothes stood as Jase stepped next to him.

“Mr. Kent?”

“Yes, I’m Jason Kent, Mr. Richards. It’s a
pleasure to know you.”

“Likewise.” Richards looked around the
library. “Impressive room, Mr. Kent. You have quite a collection of
books within its modest size.”

“I like to have as much knowledge as possible
at hand.”

“A rancher and businessman needs all sorts of
informative tomes, but you seem to enjoy fiction, plays, and
poetry--Shakespeare, Hawthorne, Dickens, Greek classics and myths,
even the bewitching Washington Irving and James Fennimore
Cooper.”

“You’re familiar with American authors, Mr.
Richards?”

“I prefer English writers, but then, there
are far more of them. We’re too young a country to have spawned
many great writers.”

“A man could disagree with that,” Jase said,
“but you aren’t here to discuss literature.”

“No, indeed. We have something great of our
own to talk about, an opportunity to be a part of the expansion of
this growing country, to make our own place in history.”

“What news do you have from Red Rock
Junction?”

The gangly man returned to his seat in the
high-backed chair as Jase sat in the matching chair next to him in
front of the fireplace.

“You’re still interested in being a part of
our consortium, Mr. Kent?”

“Absolutely.”

“Good. Then you and I shall be partners.”
Richards leaned back in his chair and sipped his coffee.

“Partners? Just the two of us? Aren’t there
any other investors interested?”

Richards waved a hand. “Of course, of course,
Mr. Kent. Ten of us all together. We’re breaking into groups of
two. We each have specific areas of the Oregon Trail to explore.
We’ll gather as much information as we can, then we’ll meet to
choose the location that will be best to serve our immediate
purposes as well as our hopes when and if the railroad is extended
through the Nebraska territory.”

Jase’s eager heart thrummed at the news.
“When do you want to get started?”

“The consortium agreed to begin our search in
the spring.” Richards sipped more coffee. “This unseasonably warm
weather isn’t likely to last, or we could begin immediately. A man
wouldn’t want to be caught out in the elements in winter. We hope
to make a choice by late May or early June next year, and we’ll
start constructing our town in June or July. Our businesses should
have their first patrons by August.”

Jase slapped the arm of his chair. “I can’t
tell you how much I appreciate your coming here, Mr. Richards.”

Richards stood as Jase got up from his chair.
“Please call me James. If we’re going to be partners, Jase, we need
not be so formal.”

“Agreed. Can you stay for supper, James? My
housekeeper is an excellent cook.”

“I don’t doubt that. I ate a piece of her
apple pie while I waited for you, and it was delicious. You’re a
lucky man. However, I want to head back to the fort.”

“But it’ll be dark soon, and it’s not easy to
find your way around in the dark on the prairie.”

James reached for his coat and slipped it on.
“I don’t plan to make it all the way back to the fort tonight. Col.
Harrison told me he and his men were going out on maneuvers this
evening since the weather is so warm. He likes to keep his troops
in shape and ready for action. I’m going to join them.”

“All right, then.” Jase led James to the door
and shook his hand. “Thanks so much for bringing me the news. I’ll
look forward to working with you in the spring.”

“I’ll contact you through the fort or the
post with further information.”

“That will be fine.”

They exchanged a few more details and said
their goodbyes. Jase was happy enough to dance a jig. This new
start would balance out a small bit of the losses in his life, and,
if the speculation was as successful as he hoped, Jase would have
the ability to set up a nice trust fund for Zack. After all, Clint
had wanted to be a part of the consortium, so Zack was entitled to
share in its success.

Jase went into the kitchen and found Mabel
setting dinner on the table. When he smelled the fragrance of fried
chicken filling the air, he wondered how James had torn himself
away from such a heavenly scent to face soldier stew around a
campfire.

“Sit down, Jase,” she said. “Everything is
ready.”

“This looks great, Mabel,” he said as he sat
down. “You know how much I love potatoes with cheese next to my
fried chicken.”

“Me too.”

The little voice Jase heard certainly wasn’t
Mabel’s. He left the table and went to the back porch to confirm
his suspicions.

Zack stood next to the wash stand. “I like
cheese on my potatoes and fried chicken too.”

“What are you doing here, Zack? How did you
get here?”

“I had to come, Jase. I belong here until
it’s time for me to leave with Aunt Marietta.” Zack stated his
opinion as firmly and decisively as any man had ever done.

“Zack,” Jase said in his most demanding
voice, “how did you get here?”

“I hid under a canvas in Mr. Richards’
buckboard.”

Jase swept the boy into his arms and stalked
back to the kitchen. “I’m taking you straight to Fort Kearney.”

“But, Jase,” Mabel said gently, “it’s getting
dark. As much as the boy needs to be returned to his aunt, it
really isn’t worth risking his life taking him home in the
dark.”

“She’s right, Jase.” Zack latched onto
Mabel’s words quicker than a mosquito bites a man walking through a
slough.

Jase’s stomach rolled around his entire
torso. He knew Marietta must be sick with worry. He wanted to
throttle Zack for what he’d done, but that wouldn’t make Marietta
feel any better.

“Zack, sit down,” he said. “We’re going to
eat then we’re going to bed. We’ll be on the road to Fort Kearney
when day breaks.”

Zack’s eyes said he wanted to protest, but he
kept his lips quiet. The only things that passed through his mouth
the rest of the evening were two drumsticks, a chicken thigh, half
a plate of potatoes, and a big piece of apple pie.

Mabel and Jase cleaned up the kitchen after
supper then Jase went to Zack’s room to tuck the boy in.

“Did you wash up good, Zack?” Jase sat on the
edge of the bed and brushed his hand over the boy’s head. How he’d
missed being close to him--so much he could hardly stand the
thought of taking him back to the fort in the morning.