Sarah's Heart (30 page)

“Hurry, girls. Close
the door. You’ll let out what little heat we have.” She stifled a chuckle at
the bundled trio as they obliged, disappearing into the cloakroom.

The latch had barely
clicked when another handful of students hustled in, their noses and cheeks red
as strawberries.

Sarah walked to her
desk, sat, and began organizing her books and study list in preparation for the
morning lessons. She heard more students arriving, but was too busy to glance
up from her tasks. When she finally did, her gaze rested on Horace and Henry
Givens. The pencil in her hand trembled but she squared her shoulders and
refused to show fear.

“Curtis,” she called
to one of the older boys. “Would you please add some more wood to the stove?”

“Yes, Miss Collins.”
Curtis slid out of his seat.

From the corner of
her eye, Sarah saw Horace rise and move in the direction of the old iron
potbelly. As soon as Curtis had picked up a large log from the stack next to
the stove, Horace stripped it from his hands. “I’ll do it, fatty.”

Sarah leapt to her
feet as Curtis yowled in pain and stared through teary eyes at his palms. “You…
you made me get splinters.”

“Horace Givens!” She
rounded her desk and walked toward him, her jaw tight and her face suddenly too
warm. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Helpin’
pig boy out.
It looks
like he eats as much as the animals his pa raises.” Horace sneered at Curtis.

A chorus of titters
rang out around the room. Sarah silenced them with her glare. She took the log
from Horace. “If I had wanted you to do this, I would have asked. Instead of
being helpful, you’ve hurt Curtis. I want you to apologize right now.”

“What if I don’t
want to?” Horace pulled himself to his full height and cocked his head
defiantly.

Sarah tensed inside,
determined to remain firm. “Either you apologize or….”

Knocking the wood to
the floor, he pushed her up against the wall and held her there with a hand on
each shoulder. His eyes turned steely.
“Or what?”

He stood so close
Sarah felt his stale breath on her face. She hadn’t realized his height and
weight until this moment, and now he controlled her. A lump formed in her throat
as she looked past him into the frightened faces of the other children. She had
to stand up to him or lose the respect of her class. “Or I will report you to
the school board and you’ll never be allowed back here again.”

He laughed, deep and
throaty, his fingers biting through the cottony material of her dress. “You
don’t scare me. I could squash you like a bug.”

Sarah’s stomach
lurched. When he raised a fist, she turned her face and squeezed her lids
closed, anticipating his strike. At the sound of a hearty thud, she opened her
eyes.

Her breath caught in
her throat as her mouth fell open.

Wolf stood over
Horace’s sprawled form, glaring down at him. “Can you squash
me
like a
bug?”

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Sarah took a deep
breath and sagged in relief. “Wolf, I’m so glad to see you.”He wore buckskins,
with his long hair pulled back and secured at the nape of his neck. Her gaze
rested on the pulsing spot in the hollow his throat; her heart immediately
matched his rhythm. She fought the urge to run into his arms.

“Looks like I got
here at the right time.
This one been giving you trouble?”
He nodded toward Horace.

Sarah composed
herself and glanced down. The bully cowered on the ground like a mistreated
puppy, and for a moment, she almost felt sorry for him. “This is the second
time, but….” She raised her gaze to Wolf.

“It’ll be the last.”
He yanked Horace up by his arm. “What’s your name?”

“Hor...Horace.” The
man-sized boy quivered. His eyes looked wide as saucers.

“Well,
Horace
.
I think you owe Miss Sarah an apology. You might be almost grown, but a real
man never threatens a lady. I plan to keep watch on you, and if you as much as
think of putting your hands on her again, you’ll answer to me. Understand?”

Horace stared at the
floor. “Sorry, Miss Collins,” he muttered in a tone not at all convincing.

“Apology accepted,
Horace. Please take your seat… and the rest of you children, too.”While Horace
lumbered over and slumped down next to his brother, the other children
skittered to their desks. She doubted Horace’s sincerity but hoped the scare
had cured his bad behavior. At least for the moment, she felt safe.

Sarah turned her
attention to Wolf, and her heart warmed at the sight of him. For the first time
she noticed he had someone with him. “Who’s this young man?”

She hoped her cheeks
didn’t display the heat she felt at having him and the other children witness
her in such a helpless situation.

“Seems
I found myself a companion while scouting.
Little Bear’s family died during one tribe’s raid on another, and since
he and I seem to be on our own, I invited him to come live with me.”

Sarah’s jaw dropped,
but she managed to smile at the Indian boy who looked to be no older than
eleven or twelve. “It’s very nice to meet you, Little Bear.”

The youngster
flashed a quick grin before his lips stretched into a thin line once again.

Wolf put his arm
around the lad. “Little Bear speaks pretty good English and I wondered if you
might have room for him in your class.”

“Of
course.
I’d be pleased to
have him join the rest of the children.” She pointed to an empty chair.
“There’s an unoccupied space right there.”

Little Bear looked
first to Wolf and then to Sarah. Although he stood straight with shoulders
squared, fear shone in his ebony eyes. Sarah took his arm and escorted him to
his desk. “Children, please welcome your new classmate.”

“Hello, Little
Bear.” A chorus of voices blended into a greeting.

“We don’t want
no
redskins in our class.” Horace’s voice spoiled the
warmth. “I ain’t sharin’ space with
no
heathens.” He
grabbed his brother’s arm, yanked him from his chair and dragged him from the
room. The sad look on Henry’s face tore at Sarah’s heart but she didn’t try to
stop them.

She glanced at
Little Bear and shook her head. “I assure you that your other classmates don’t
share Horace’s sentiment.” She turned and whispered to Wolf. “I hope those two
don’t come back. It’s clear to me Horace only wants to cause trouble.”

“I doubt he’ll
threaten you again.” Wolf’s hand merely grazed her shoulder, but it flamed a
path of fire that traveled down her arm.

Didn’t he know the
affect of his touch?

She cleared the
catch in her throat. “Thank you for coming to my rescue, again.”As much as she
wanted to tarry and feast on his attractive face, enjoy the timbre of his
voice, she had children to teach. She walked back to her desk, turned and
smiled at Wolf. “Class is over at three o’clock if you plan to pick up Little
Bear.”

“I’ll be here.” Wolf
patted his charge on the top of his head and walked to the door, where he
paused.

 
“Emily, please pass out the primers to those
using them, and the rest of you please take out your slates and practice
writing your letters.” Sarah tried not to notice his lingering as she spread
out papers from the previous week to review. Her shoulders slumped when she
heard the door open and shut.

Sarah wondered if
she’d ever get used to him leaving. Each time he did she sensed a hollow
feeling in the pit of her stomach. She watched him disappear beyond the door
then followed his path until she no longer saw him through the window. With a
deep breath, she turned and gazed into all the faces that peered up at her.

* * *

Wolf stood and
counted out more than enough for his loan payment. “I believe this leaves me
with a balance of fifty dollars left to pay.” He couldn’t keep a smile from
blossoming, thinking about finally owning a piece of land.

The clerk’s lips
pulled into a thin line as he recounted the stack of bills. “I’ll make a
notation of your transaction. Feel free to leave.” His heavy eyebrows meshed
into one as he shot Wolf an icy glare.

Clutching his
remaining cash, Wolf sought refuge from the unfriendly atmosphere on the
walkway outside. He’d long ago gotten over wanting to smash his fist into the
faces of those who looked down on him. People liked him or they didn’t; he had
no control over that and could care less. Only one person meant anything to
him: Sarah
Collins,
and he seemed to have even less
control over those feelings.

He stuffed his money
into his pocket and gazed toward the school. He’d thought long and hard about
seeing her again, and if it hadn’t been for enrolling Little Bear in school,
Wolf would have stayed away.
Seeing her brought back too many
memories and stirred up the pain of his decision to let her go.
He
wanted her; God how he wanted her, but things between them would never work. He
flashed back on how he’d just been treated by the bank clerk and knew that
wasn’t what Sarah deserved. They’d just have to learn to co-exist in the same
town, but it was clear they had no future together no matter how much he loved
her.

* * *

The children
shuffled in from recess, filling the classroom with the smell that only
children engaged in play created. Little Bear and some other boys had become
fast friends in just a matter of hours. He slid into his seat, looking far more
relaxed than he had earlier. Sarah had stood at the window and watched he and
Johnny Carter play together with no trace of racial barriers between them.

Sarah rose and
leaned on her desk, preparing to call class to order. A tall man in overalls
stomped into the room. “I’m Ezrah Carter and I come for my boy.”

“It’s nice to meet
you, Mr. Carter.” She glanced at his son, sharing the puzzled look on his
freckled face. “Johnny, get your things together.” She glanced back to his
father, wondering why he scowled so. “I do hope everything is all right.”

Ezrah Carter roughly
grabbed Johnny’s arm. “It will be soon as I git my son away from here.”

Sarah had just
opened her mouth to question his meaning when three more men and a woman rushed
through the door, all demanding their children. She held up her hand to halt
the noise. “Wait a minute. Can someone please explain what’s going on here?”

“Ol’ man Givens said
you got an Injun here.” One man shouted. “We don’t aim to have our young’uns
exposed to the likes of no redskin.”

“Surely, you aren’t
threatened by one young boy?” Sarah quivered with anger. “Little Bear has a
right to an education just as your children do. Our government has treaties
with the Indian people.”

“Then let the
government send them to their own school.” Emily’s mother gathered her
daughter’s belongings and urged her toward the door. “Emily won’t be back until
the problem is remedied, and I expect that will be soon. The school board has
already been informed.”

Nothing Sarah could
say or do made a difference. She stood by helplessly as one-by-one the parents
came and took their children. Only she and Little Bear were left when the
exodus ended. She knelt next to him, gazed into his questioning eyes, and
struggled to find words of explanation
..
“This wasn’t
your fault, sweetheart. I’m so sorry the people of this town are so
small-minded. Don’t you worry though; I’ll talk to Judge Lawson. He’s the one
who hired me to teach here, and I’m sure he’ll set things right.” Sarah prayed
her trust wasn’t misplaced.

She glanced at the
time. Wolf wouldn’t be coming for another hour, and as much as she wanted to
hurry over to the judge’s chambers, she couldn’t abandon Little Bear. She dared
not take him with her out in public. He’d been exposed to enough hatred in one
day. Sarah wished everyone would be struck colorblind when it came to skin
tones.

She pulled a chair
up next to him and sat, hoping that reading together would take his mind off
what had happened. He struggled with some words, but amazed Sarah with his
knowledge of English. The questions she expected from him about the earlier
ruckus were never asked.

Her nerves frayed,
Sarah jumped up when the door opened. She squared her shoulders,
then
released a pent-up breath at seeing Wolf. He scanned
the empty room. “Am I late?”

She shook her head
and whispered.
“Only if you wanted to be part of the angry
crowd that passed through here.”

“What happened?”

“Can we step outside
and discuss it? Little Bear can read another chapter while we talk.”

Wolf followed her
out onto the small stoop. “So?”

“I brought you out
here because Little Bear has been through enough today. He doesn’t need to hear
this…”

“What happened?”
Wolf’s eyes
narrowed,
his tone insistent.