Brazen (19 page)

Rosalie mistook John's lust for love. Sometimes he was
violent with her, but she'd come to expect that from him.
She gave him the pleasure he sought. She believed that
one day soon he would propose and then she would have
the life she'd always wanted. She would be John's wife.

Casey was quiet that evening as she sat at the dinner table
with her father.

"Are you all right?" Jack asked.

"I was just thinking about everything that happened in
town today. It's so hard to believe that in less than a
month I'll be married and gone."

Jack still felt guilty, but he knew they'd made the best
of a difficult situation. There had been no other way to
save the ranch and protect Casey. He'd needed that much
peace of mind to face his own uncertain future.

"I'm sorry I didn't feel well enough to go with you today. Did Michael go?"

"No. Only his mother."

"When are you going to see him again?"

"At the wedding will be soon enough for me."

"Don't you want to get to know him better?"

"I'm sure once we're married, I'll get to know Michael
real well. I won't have much choice."

"I'm sorry things turned out this way."

"It isn't your fault, Pa. You didn't force me. I made the
choice to marry Michael."

"Did Elizabeth say anything about how your house is
coming along?"

"The only thing she said was that Michael and some of
the men started working on it today."

"We'll take a ride over in the next day or two and see
what they're doing. If it's going to be your house, you
should probably be there as much as you can, to help
arrange things the way you want them."

"All right. There was something else I was thinking
about, too, Pa."

"What's that?"

"Elizabeth was telling me what a rough time her husband is having."

"I thought Frank was getting better." Jack was surprised
by her statement.

"Oh, she said he is getting stronger, but no matter what,
he's never going to walk again. Elizabeth said he's having
a real hard time accepting it."

"What man wouldn't?"

"Exactly. That's what got me to thinking. I saw a picture
somewhere of a chair with wheels attached to it, so peo ple who couldn't walk could still get around. Do you
think Dr. Murray would know how to get one of those?"

"I don't know. We can ask the next time we're in town."

"Or I could try to build one myself. I feel sorry for Elizabeth. If he could start getting around on his own a little,
maybe he wouldn't feel like such a burden to everyone."

"Why don't you go talk to Pete? He's real good at fixing
things. Maybe he can come up with an idea that would
work."

"Thanks, Pa. I think I will."

Casey hurriedly finish eating, then went to look for
Pete.

"Is something wrong?" the ranch hand asked when he
came out of the bunkhouse to speak with her.

"Nothing's wrong, but if you've got time, I do need your
help with something."

"Sure, Casey. What is it?" It wasn't often she asked for
help doing anything, so Pete knew the request had to be
important.

She quickly explained what she wanted to do, and
when she finished she found Pete was smiling at her.

"You're smiling."

"Yeah, I was just thinking-a few months ago you
wouldn't have given the Donovans the time of day, and
now you're about to marry Michael and you want to help
his father. Things are definitely changing around here."

"They sure are, and for the better, I hope."

"Let's see what we can come up with."

Pete led the way to the stable to rummage through their cast-off items. They found two large wheels they thought
might work for bearing most of the weight, but they still
needed smaller ones for balance in front. They would
also need a small platform in the front for Frank to rest
his feet on.

"What chair did you plan to use?" he asked. "Whatever
you pick, it's got to be a sturdy one. Frank Donovan is a
big man."

"We've got one up at the house that should work. I
don't think Pa will mind if I take it."

"Let's get it and see what we can put together."

"Do you think it will take us long?"

"We want to make sure we do this right, but with any
luck, maybe we can be finished by tomorrow. How soon
did you plan to give it to him?"

"I haven't thought that far ahead," she admitted. "I don't
even know if he'll want to see me. The last time I was
there, he stayed upstairs in his bedroom the whole time."

"Once he realizes what you've brought him, Frank Donovan will be real glad to see you. Let's get to work."

They went to get the chair from the house and brought
it down to the stable. Then they set to work.

Casey silently prayed that they would be successful.
She wanted to find a way to make life better for Elizabeth.
Elizabeth had been so kind to her. Now she wanted to
return the gesture. She prayed the chair would work.

"All right, let's by this out," Pete directed, sitting down in
the wheelchair they'd just finished building. They'd labored over the creation long into the night and had gone
back to work on it right after breakfast the following
morning. It was nearly noon now, and they hoped their
hard work was about to pay off.

"Should I push you?" Casey asked as she came to stand
behind him.

"Yes, let's see if this works."

Casey gripped the back of the chair and started to push
it forward. To their delight, the chair moved with relative
ease.

"We did it," she said excitedly, thrilled that she would
be helping Frank and Elizabeth. "It works."

"Yes, it does. Now let's see if I can make it roll on my
own."

Casey moved away to watch Pete shove the wheels
forward by hand. It was awkward for him, but he did
manage to wheel himself around the stable.

Pete looked up at her as he stopped before her. "I think
Frank Donovan's going to be real happy with this chair."

"I hope so. Thanks, Pete. I couldn't have done it without you."

"I'm just glad we had everything we needed to make it
right. Do you want me to load it up in the buckboard for
you?"

"Yes. I'll go find Pa while you do that, to see if he wants
to ride to the Circle D with me."

A short time later, Casey and Jack were on their way
to the Donovan ranch.

"Elizabeth," Frank called out from his chair by the window in the parlor. "Someone's coming."

Elizabeth came down from upstairs at his call.

"I wonder who it is." As she came into the parlor to
look out the window, she smiled in delight. "Why, it's
Cassandra and her father. I wonder what they're doing
here."

"Just what I didn't need, another visit from Jack
Turner," Frank growled. Though they had called a truce,
he still didn't like appearing weak before Jack. Jack could
hide his infirmity, but there was no disguising Frank's useless legs.

"You might as well get used to it. Once Casey and Michael are married, I'm sure we'll be seeing a lot more of
him."

Frank only mumbled to himself as she went outside to
welcome them.

"Hello, Cassandra, Jack. What brings you to the Circle
D?" Elizabeth asked.

"I have something for you," Casey began, smiling as she
jumped down from the driver's bench and walked around
to the back of the buckboard. "A present."

"Oh? What is it?" Elizabeth asked, curious. She couldn't
imagine what Cassandra could be bringing her in a buckboard. Her first good look at the wheelchair stunned her.
"Where did you get it?"

"We made it. Pete, our foreman, worked with me on it.
I remembered what you told me about your husband not
being able to get around anymore. Pete's real good at
building things, so I talked to him, and we decided to
make the wheelchair for you."

Elizabeth stared in awe as Cassandra climbed up in the
back of the buckboard and pushed the chair toward her.

"It actually moves," she breathed. Tears burned in her
eyes and deep emotion filled her.

"That's right. You can push it, or your husband can
wheel it around by himself."

Jack came and lifted the chair down for them. Casey
hopped down from the back of the buckboard.

"Shall we give it to him now?" Casey asked

"Oh, yes. This is wonderful, Cassandra Jack. Thank
you." Her words were heartfelt. "Let's go inside. Frank is
downstairs in the parlor today."

Casey was a little nervous about seeing her future
father-in-law. Frank Donovan had always been an intim idating man, and her encounter with him on the night
she'd agreed to marry his son hadn't changed her opinion.

Elizabeth ushered Cassandra into the house, and Jack
followed carrying the wheelchair.

"Frank Cassandra's come to see you and she's
brought you something," Elizabeth announced as they entered the parlor.

Frank looked over from his chair by the window.

"Mr. Donovan-" Casey began.

He gave her a stem look. "If you're marrying my son in
a few weeks, it's time for you to start calling me Frank."

Jack appeared behind her and set the wheelchair
down.

"What's that?" Frank demanded.

"A present. Cassandra made it for you," Elizabeth explained, taking charge.

"What the hell kind of present is that?"

Elizabeth pushed the chair forward so he could get a
good look at it.

Frank glared at the chair, then looked up at Casey. "You
made it?"

She nodded. "Our foreman helped me. Do you want to
sit in it?"

"No," he snapped, not wanting to be seen as an invalid.
As long as he sat still, he could pretend to himself that no
one knew he was a useless shell of a man.

"Oh, well. Maybe you'll want to try it out later." Casey
realized it was not easy for him to admit he needed it.

"Or maybe I won't!" Frank snarled.

Jack was irritated by Frank's reaction and immediately
came to his daughter's defense.

"Frank, I always thought you were a stupid ass, and
you've just proved it." He wanted to use worse language,
but he controlled himself because Elizabeth was present.
"My daughter worked hard to make you this gift. She was
only trying to help."

Michael entered the house just then, to hear the very
end of Jack's remarks.

"What's wrong?" Michael asked, coming into the parlor.
He'd ridden in from the building site to get more supplies
and had seen the buckboard out front.

"Nothing is wrong," Elizabeth said. "Cassandra brought
your father a present, and now that you're here to help,
everything is fine." She hadn't approved of her husband's
reaction, but she'd understood it.

As Elizabeth spoke, Frank and Jack glared at each
other.

"Where did you find this?" Michael asked Casey.

"She made it for me," Frank answered.

"You did?" He was impressed.

"I thought your pa might want to get around on his
own."

"I'm sure he does," Michael said, looking at his father.
"Casey, why don't you wait out on the porch with your
father for a minute while I help him change seats?"

"That's a good idea," Elizabeth agreed, thankful that
Michael had shown up and was taking charge. She'd
been embarrassed by Frank's reaction to Cassandra's gift. She led the way outside to give her husband the privacy
he needed.

Michael rolled the wheelchair next to his father's chair.

"I think you're going to like this."

"We'll see." Frank refused to allow himself to feel hopeful.

"Put your arms around my neck, and I'll shift you over,"
Michael directed.

Frank did as he was told. Michael lifted him into the
waiting wheelchair and got him settled in.

"There," Michael said in satisfaction as he handed
Frank the blanket he liked to keep tucked over his legs.
"Give the chair a try. Let's see if you can get it moving."

Frank reached down and gave the two big wheels a
push.

The chair moved.

"It works." He looked up at his son, his eyes brimming
with emotion.

"That's right." Michael saw the look on his father's face
and swallowed tightly against his own powerful reaction.
It wasn't the same as seeing him get up and walk again,
but at least his father could move on his own.

"There's somebody I need to thank." Frank was having
a little trouble trying to figure out how to maneuver, but
he finally managed to negotiate the parlor and wheel himself down the front hall. He had some difficulty opening
the front door, but at last he got it open enough to call
out to Casey. "Casey"

Elizabeth, Jack and Casey had been standing in the shade at the far end of the porch. At his call, they walked
to meet him.

"Casey," Frank said, meeting her gaze. "Thank you."

His words were from the heart, and for the first time
since he was shot, he smiled.

Casey returned his smile, delighted that he was
pleased. "You're welcome. I hope it helps you."