Cora's Deception (9781476398280) (3 page)

“It’s too cold over there. I like it by the
fire better.”

“Why? So you can get in the way?” She
smacked his hand as he reached for the bacon she’d put on a
plate.

“Ow.” He jerked away.

“Wait until it’s time to eat. We aren’t
heathens just because we’re living like it.” She put more bacon in
the pan, moving quickly to keep from getting splattered by hot
grease. Lenny’s jaws moved as if he chewed. “Did you take some
bacon off the plate?”

“Uhn-uh.”

“You did too. You’ve got grease by your
mouth.” Cora grabbed the plate. “Mother, Lenny’s eating the bacon
as fast as I can take it up.”

“Leonard Jackson, you wait until we’ve all
been served. You know better than that.” Mother lifted a large iron
skillet of fried potatoes from the bed of coals she’d pulled to one
side of the campfire. “I think everything’s ready. Let’s eat.”

~*~

Cora helped Eliza wash, dry, and put away
the dishes. Everyone else unloaded the Jackson’s wagon. They placed
everything in a huge pile with the two mattresses on top. Then
Father and Ben took off the canvas cover and stretched it over the
large pile of boxes and barrels, securing it down against the
weather. The rocking chair, small dining table, and Mother’s
cooking stove sat to one side. Finally, Father, Ben, and John
lifted the wagon box from the frame and set it upside down on the
ground.

Cora paused with a dish in her hand.
“Father, why can’t we put the mattresses on that for tonight?”

He grinned at her. “I think you’re right.
It’ll be our floor. When you finish what you’re doing, dig out the
mattresses and set them up. We’ll build a shelter around it. We’ll
be sleeping in style tonight.”

He walked around the platform. “We’ll need
more room than that, though. See if you can pull or cut some of
this grass. Enough to make room for the stove and chair.”

Cora grabbed a handful of grass beside her
and pulled. It was dry and brittle but sharp where it broke. Her
hands would probably be a mess by evening. Was there no end to this
work?

~*~

Cora grunted and shoved her side of the
second mattress, letting it fall to the platform. If the position
of the sun, now a bright spot in the clouds, was any indication,
they’d been working half the morning already.

“That’s good.” Mother stepped back. “Let’s
get Vickie’s wagon unloaded now.”

After helping lift several boxes and barrels
out and stowing them under the wagon, Cora groaned at the sight of
a large, heavy trunk. She stretched her back and looked at her
mother.

Mother leaned against the wagon, breathing
hard. “Cora, take this corner. Eliza, you go there opposite Vickie.
With each of us at a corner, I think we can lower it to the
ground”

She looked at Vickie. “We may have to leave
this one where it falls. We’ll be doing good to get it out as heavy
as it is.”

“I don’t care what we do with it.” Dark hair
escaped Vickie’s bonnet, framing her pretty face. “I just want
Nicholas off the ground.”

Mother nodded. “Are you ready? All together
now, let’s pull and lower.”

Cora strained on her corner and the trunk
began to move. There was little she could hold to—only some
ornamental scrollwork and part of a leather strap. As the heavy
trunk slid away from the wagon floor, Cora slipped her right hand
to the bottom, getting a better grip. The trunk fell, pinning her
fingers to the ground.

“My hand.” She cried out. “It’s on my
hand.”

“Oh, my lands, girls, lift.” Mother called
out.

Cora pulled her hand free as quickly as she
could, and Mother hurried to her. “Wiggle your fingers. Does that
hurt?”

Cora shook her head and scowled. “Mother, my
hand isn’t broken.” She held it palm up. The imprint of the trunk
was visible across the middle of her fingers. “It’s just bent in a
few places.”

Mother rubbed her thumb across the
indentation. “All right, but maybe you’d better do something else.
Why don’t you keep an eye on Nicholas and Lenny while we finish?
Maybe you could pull more grass for the shelter. You’ll need only
one hand for that.”

Cora glanced at the two boys playing tag
among the boxes that had already been set out. Her hand did hurt.
She moved toward the improvised floor and began pulling grass with
her right hand. When Lenny ran close, she caught him, holding him
until Nicholas was firmly in her grasp too.

“You two will use this shelter as much as I
will, so you’re going to help me.”

“Me help?” Nicholas’s large brown eyes
widened.

“Yes.” She hugged his soft, little body
before letting him go. “You and Lenny can work just like the big
men. While they cut down trees, we’ll break down grass. Let’s see
if we can finish before they get back.”

She kept the boys working for several
minutes before they ran off. She straightened and stretched her
back. How much should she clear? Maybe twice the width of the
sleeping platform? She went back to work. Eliza soon joined her. In
spite of being a real nuisance, Eliza never seemed to mind
working.

When they finished, Cora climbed on the
platform and sat on one of the mattresses. From her perch, she
could see the boys as they played. There had to be something more
interesting to do in this awful place than watch two little boys
play. She looked toward the woods in the distance as the crashing
sound of a falling tree reached her ears. Ben was lucky. Cutting
down trees would be better than this. Boys always got to do the fun
jobs. And worthwhile—like building a shelter. Once the job ended,
it didn’t have to be repeated. But washing dishes had to be done
over and over. Babysitting, too, was never ending. There was no
satisfaction in doing something that would have to be done again
almost as soon as it was finished.

The early morning frost had almost dried by
noon, and the men weren’t back from the woods yet. She climbed down
and moved to the campfire. Mother had beans cooking. Cora lifted
the lid to peek inside. “Mother, where’s the meat?”

Mother set a box down and arched her back.
“There is none.”

“Don’t we have any side meat left? I thought
I’d put some in these beans for seasoning.”

“What you cooked this morning was all we
had.”

Vickie set a small box with the others and
stretched. “Maybe the men will shoot something while they’re in the
woods.”

Eliza laughed. “Not with all the noise
they’ve been making. Any animal with sense would be far from here
by now. Why can’t we eat beans without seasoning? They’re just as
good that way.”

The wagon emerged from the cover of the
trees in the distance, and mother sent an approving look toward her
youngest daughter. “That’s exactly what we’re going to do. Let’s
give Cora a hand with the meal. If those men are as hungry as I am,
they’ll want plenty.”

No one seemed to notice the lack of
seasoning as they dug into their meal until Ben looked up. “Where’s
the meat?”

Mother shook her head. “We’ve eaten it
all.”

“Don’t we have any meat at all?”

“No.”

“What about tonight? What are we eating for
supper?”

Mother shrugged. “We could have beans
again.”

Ben turned to Father. “I could take the gun
and scare up something for supper. If you don’t need me this
afternoon, that is.”

Father slanted a look toward John. “We could
get along by ourselves, couldn’t we?”

John grinned at Ben. “Sure, wouldn’t even
miss the runt.”

Ben frowned. “Hey, watch what you say about
me. Who cut down the most trees?”

John laughed. “Your father did.”

“All right, but he doesn’t count.” Ben
grinned toward Father before turning back to John. “I mean between
the two of us.”

John held his head up and crossed his arms.
“Hey, I finally got that one tree down.”

“Yeah, and it almost got you too.”

Vickie’s head jerked up. “What do you mean
by that?”

“Nothing.” Father sent a frown to the other
men. “No damage done. John’s tree got caught in another tree when
it fell. It twisted and came toward him, but he got out of the way
in plenty of time.”

It sounded exciting to Cora. Her morning had
been dreadfully dull. She stood when Ben did. “Ben, I’m going with
you.”

“Cordella Jane Jackson. You’ll do no such
thing.” Mother’s brows drew together.

“Why not?”

“Young ladies do not go traipsing off in the
woods with a gun.”

“Why would you even want to?” Eliza stared
at Cora.

Cora almost answered the truth—she was bored
beyond endurance—but she stopped in time. Mother said idle hands
were the devil’s workshop. She’d be sure to find something horribly
dull for her to do.

“To spend time with Ben and see Father’s
land. Maybe I can find some wild greens or nuts.” She turned toward
Father, knowing his weakness for nuts. “Didn’t you say pecans grow
around here?”

His eyes twinkled as if he understood. “Yes,
there’s a chance you may find pecans on the ground now.”

“But a young lady—”

“I’ll take care of her, Mother.” Ben stood
back watching. “A pecan pie or something baked with walnuts sounds
good.”

Father grinned and patted his stomach.

Mother sighed. “I still don’t think a young
lady should go on a hunting trip.”

“Please, Mother. This isn’t Boston. Surely
you can see it’s different here. It isn’t even Saint Louis. If
we’re going to survive in this wilderness, we’ll have to go out and
look for food. It isn’t as if the neighbors will see me.” Cora
tried to keep the sarcasm from her voice. “Please, let me go with
Ben.”

Again, Mother sighed. “All right. I suppose
you’re right. Stay close to Ben and be sure you’re home before
dark. As cloudy as it is, you won’t be able to tell time so start
back early.”

Cora hugged Mother. “Thank you, and don’t
worry. We’ll be back before you know it. You won’t be sorry. I’ll
go get something to carry the nuts.”

Cora ran to find a basket while her heart
lifted in song. A walk through the woods with Ben would be
wonderful. She lifted her eyes to the line of trees at the edge of
the woods. Surely they held many exciting secrets. She smiled in
anticipation.

Chapter 3

“Y
ou’ll have to be quiet if you want any meat for supper.”
Ben’s voice carried in the forest.

Cora nodded.

“There might be some pecans over that way.”
Ben pointed. “They like water. The creek is just beyond. We cut
trees over there.”

Cora turned the direction he pointed and saw
stumps poking from the ground. Again she nodded and headed toward
the creek. Ben’s voice followed her. “Don’t get out of my sight.
Make sure you can always see me.”

She waved and continued through the thick
bed of dried leaves until she was several yards from her brother.
At the sharp report of his rifle, she turned quickly. Had he
already shot something? Surely not. They’d have to go back to camp
if he had, and she hadn’t seen anything interesting yet.

Ben stood several yards away. He turned
toward her and shook his head. He must have missed. She laughed and
clamped a hand over her mouth to stop the sound. Freedom from duty
and work lifted the burden she’d carried since they’d started this
horrible move. Eliza wouldn’t be calling her to do something for
Mother. Not in the woods. An exciting afternoon of adventure lay
ahead.

If only George were here with her. Most of
their outings in the last year had been to the courthouse. Every
trial or hearing open to the public found George there, an absorbed
spectator. Just weeks before they left St. Louis, he’d become a
junior clerk with Gosset and Smith, two of the best attorneys in
Missouri, according to George.

A low branch brought Cora up short. She
dodged it, then looked for her brother. He stood beside a large
tree some distance away. With a sigh of relief, she checked out her
surroundings. Nothing but trees as far as she could see. If she
didn’t move, the silence became a living thing, heavy and pressing
against her ears. Then a bird chirped. Something scratched in the
underbrush to her right. Sounds of the forest crept in with birds
singing and rustling noises. How had she thought the forest was
quiet?

A puff of air winding its way through the
trees circled her before moving on. She shivered, tucking her bare
hands into her coat pockets, letting the basket handle slide up her
arm. She stomped her feet to warm her toes as she looked around. It
hadn’t been so cold before. Satisfied there were no pecan trees in
sight, she moved on.

Cora began zigzagging around trees with
leaves and broken sticks crunching under her feet. So she wasn’t as
quiet as she’d promised. But she was cold. She tugged her coat
closer around her and kept moving. When it seemed she’d walked
forever, with only an occasional shot from Ben’s gun, she spotted a
small grove of pecan trees by the edge of the creek. She ran the
last few steps and sank to the ground to fill her basket. She
picked up every pecan within reach, scooted over, and started
again. Father would be glad to see her full basket. Even if Ben
didn’t get any meat, they would have pecans.

Pecans reached almost to the top of her
basket when a twig snapped. Her heart jumped, and she turned.

“It’s only me.” Ben squatted beside her.
“Looks like you’re doing better than I am.”

“You didn’t get anything?”

He shook his head. “I shot at several, but
nothing stood still long enough. I’m slow reloading. The animals
watch me and disappear about the time I’m ready for them.”

Cora giggled. “Smart animals.”

He nodded and tossed some pecans into the
basket. “I think we ought to start back. It’s beginning to
snow.”

A large snowflake fell on her dark woolen
skirt. It slowly melted, but was followed by others landing several
inches apart. Cora looked up at her brother. “I think you’re right.
Mother will be worried. I hope you know the way.”