Time Tantrums (2 page)

"All right, you two."
Mariah rolled her eyes. "That’s enough. As I was saying, Jacob, after you’re done with your room,
get
the chickens fed before your pa takes a switch to your backside. And don’t dawdle!
 
We’re already getting a late start on our trip to town.”

Mariah left the children eating and went upstairs to her room. While she straightened the bedcovers and fluffed the pillows, she pondered the three-hour trip by wagon. Although a long, bumpy ride, the trek offered the children uninterrupted time with their father. It seemed the ranch occupied him most days.

While making a mental list of things to pick up at the mercantile, thoughts of the upcoming May Mixer drifted to mind. Every spring, all the families from the surrounding areas gathered to celebrate the end of winter, and she needed material for a new dress and perhaps some matching ribbon. Callie had mentioned looking forward to seeing the handsome, new mercantile clerk who’d caught her fancy on the last trip. He definitely was a good-looking young man, but Mariah worried that at fifteen, her daughter seemed far too young to be interested in boys.

Mariah peered at her reflection in the mirror. “Have you forgotten that you were only a year older when you promised to marry Frank?”
 

She grimaced, wondering how her daughter had grown up so quickly. Girls her age married everyday. Her own courtship came to mind. It seemed ages ago that Frank had proposed. Her feelings for him hadn’t dimmed despite the passage of time. If anything, she loved him more.

She pinched her cheeks to add some color, then dipped her fingers into the washbowl and dampened a wisp of hair that refused to stay in her bun. The natural curl she inherited from her mother wasn’t her favorite attribute, but then neither were the occasional gray strands she promptly plucked.
 
With a final check of her appearance, she picked up the porcelain bowl and gingerly carried it downstairs.

Mariah emptied the used water, set the container aside and began preparing sandwiches for the trip. When she finished and stashed them in a basket, she poured a second cup of coffee and stepped outside to steal a relaxing moment on the porch. Frank had built the stylish overhang to cover the entire front of the house, making this her favorite place to spend time. Standing at the honeysuckle-trimmed railing, she inhaled the wonderful aroma swept up by the mild May breeze. The gentle northern wind transported the ranch’s earthy smells and rippled the sea of green grass beyond the barn.

Looking out over their vast acreage warmed her. She and Frank had worked hard to build their legacy, and she counted marrying him was as one of life’s biggest blessings. She’d grown up never feeling connected to any place for very long, and having roots was wonderful. Her father, always a dreamer, had dragged his family from town-to-town, always searching for something better. Mariah met Frank at a church social, and after a short courting period, they married. He was a hometown boy with no desire to travel, and for the first time in her life, she knew security.

 
“Hey sleepyhead.”
Frank interrupted her thoughts.
 
Somehow, he'd crept up without her notice, even while leading his horse.

Her cheeks warmed. “I feel guilty getting up so late.”

“I decided to give everyone a break and let ya’ll sleep later than usual. I ate with the boys in the bunkhouse. It wasn’t as good as your cookin’, but it was fillin’. I wanted to get some the horses moved before we left.”

She smiled. That was her husband, always working. Together, they’d built the Rocking C—a two-story home with a whitewashed barn and corral fences—on land Frank had inherited from his father. A large herd of Longhorn cattle grazed the open range with the several head of horses they also owned. She took a last sip of coffee, smiling at the thought that someday everything would belong to their children and grandchildren.

Frank leaned into her line of vision. “Where are you?
 
Seems like your mind’s a hundred miles away.”

 
“Sorry. I was day-dreaming.”
 
She placed her cup on the railing and massaged the small of her back. “I fed the children, and there’s some bacon left over. Can I get you something?
Coffee?”

“Nah, I’m fine food wise… but I might be interested in something else.” He winked a heavy-lashed lid at her.

She gave a dismissing wave. “Oh, Frank, hush. The children will hear you.”
 

He grinned and scuffed his boot in the dirt, but when he looked up, his blue eyes showed a hint of sadness. “Well, if you aren’t gonna take me up on my offer then we might as well get ready and go to town. I’ll stable my horse and hitch up the wagon.”

“While you do that, I’ll round up the children and the basket of sandwiches I made this morning.”
 

Before going back inside, she watched him saunter toward the barn, leading his stallion. Her Frank… tall, tanned with an incredible mane of dark hair always fighting against the confines of his cowboy hat. His normally short, curly hair, overdue for a haircut, now framed the nape of his muscular neck. For some reason, she always found him more attractive that way. A smile curved her lips, recalling their previous night’s passion. How she loved the security of those massive arms that had grown solid from hard labor.

Her gaze assessed his well-defined upper body. Strong shoulders tapered down to a slim waistline… and those firm buttocks encased in tight blue jeans—her stomach fluttered recalling him naked. If only she felt as free with nudity as he did.

 
She turned her thoughts back to their upcoming trip, praying that how she felt now wasn’t the way Callie reacted to seeing the young clerk at the mercantile.

* * * *

Frank pulled the buckboard up to the porch and reined in the horses. He jumped down and helped Mariah up to her seat while Jacob and Callie clambered aboard. In one agile move, Frank was back in the wagon, snapping leather to stir the horses. The rig lurched forward and, immediately, the children started picking at one another.

Mariah turned. “Listen to me!” Sternness edged her voice. “We’ve a long way to go and
I
 
don’t
want to hear bickering all the way.”

“Sorry, Ma,” came the chorus from the rear, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jacob stick his tongue out at his sister for the second time that day. Mariah chuckled to herself. What a little hellion she had on her hands. She leaned back to enjoy the silence she knew wouldn’t last.

 
The warm, refreshing air caressed her face, but she tied a bow snugly under her chin and gave thanks for the bonnet that protected her delicate skin from the sun’s harsh rays. Cuddling up to her husband, she snaked her arm through his and leaned on his shoulder. “Frank, sweetheart,” she cooed. “I need some material for a new dress. You know… for the May Mixer.”

He tossed his head back and laughed, then turned to her, still grinning but his brow
raised .
“You’ve got to be joshin’. You have a dress for every day of the week.”

He had never denied her anything, always said that one look into her big green eyes turned him soft. Frank patted her knee.
“Oh, what the heck.
If you want to sew up something new and fancy, you go right ahead. Buy some material.”

 
Looking over his shoulder, he said, “What about you, Callie? You have any plans for spendin' my money?”

“Well, Pa, it would be nice to get a new pair of shoes. I’m about to outgrow the ones I have.” Callie probably crossed her fingers for telling a fib. She wanted an opportunity to talk to the young man at the mercantile.

“Well then, I guess we’d better hurry and get there so you girls can get to shoppin’.”
 
Frank laughed again and cracked the reins against the team’s hindquarters. “Jacob and I will tend to
buyin’
the things we need for the ranch.”

For a few moments, the only sounds came from the rapid clip-clop of the horses’ hooves and the rumble of the wheels against the hardened earth. The children appeared occupied, watching the tall prairie grass alongside the trail and laughing when an occasional jackrabbit darted from its hiding place. Frank stared quietly ahead.

The once fresh air smelled faintly of moisture, and the air grew remarkably still. Although only wispy clouds appeared in the crystal blue sky, something caused the hair on Mariah's arms to stand erect. She rubbed her skin to soothe the strange sensation and wondered why no one else mentioned the subtle change in weather. A cluster of wild flowers in a myriad of colors caught her attention and she pushed her uneasy thoughts to the back of her mind.

The well-traveled road held deep furrows. Frank maneuvered the wagon around the biggest ruts and bumps, but at the fast pace the ride became much more jarring. Mariah shifted in her seat, wishing for a cushion.

 
“Pa, can we stop please? I need to pee real
bad
.” Jacob’s voice held an urgent tone.

Frank reined the horses next to a boulder. “Here ya go, son, this should give you some privacy.

Jacob scurried behind the large rock and reappeared, moments later, fastening his pants and smiling. “Thanks, Pa, I feel better now.”

 
When Jacob was back in his seat, Frank flicked the reins. “Giddyap,” he yelled.

The horses failed to respond. Instead, they whinnied, snorted and reared back on their hind legs. One animal turned its face, displaying eyes wide with fear. The distinct rattle of more than one snake came from nearby,
and
 
Mariah
instinctively knew
 
Jacob had disturbed their nest.

“Rattlesnakes!”
Frank had heard it, too. “Hold on, everyone.”
 
He leaned back and yanked the reins. “C’mon, girls, calm down.
Whoa... whoa.”

The wagon rolled backwards and jostled from side to side on the uneven ground. The frightened animals bolted into a dead run through deep grass and thistles off the beaten path. Mariah grasped the side and bottom of the seat so tightly that splinters pierced her fingers. Concerned with the safety of her children, she sucked her bottom lip between her teeth and
glanced
 
over
her shoulder. Callie and Jacob clung to each other, their eyes saucer-like.

 
“Hold on, children. Hold on!” Mariah repeated her husband’s warning.

Frank struggled to stop the frightened animals, but no matter how hard he pulled the reins, the horses wouldn’t slow. “Hold on tight,” he yelled. “The ground gets really rocky here.”
 
No sooner had Frank made the statement than the wheels hit a stony ledge, and the wagon pitched upward
,
 
before
tipping and sending Mariah careening through the air like a rag doll. Her panicked heartbeat sounded in her head until everything fell silent.

Badly shaken but uninjured, Frank stood and looked around for his family. Callie, looking dazed and dirty, yet fine, sat next to a still-spinning wheel
..
Jacob rose from the other side of the wagon, strands of grass dangling from his unruly locks. He brushed himself off and glanced around.

 
“Is everyone all right?”
 
Frank almost released a sigh of relief, but he didn’t see his wife. His breath hitched in his throat.

“Mariah... Mariah? Where are you?”
  

He scanned the area, wide eyes searching for her. “Mariah, Mariah. Answer me please!”
 
His panicked tone reflected in the faces of his children.

He waited.
Silence.
His stomach felt as if a giant fist clamped around it.

Suddenly, an intense rumbling sound shook the prairie stillness. From an almost cloudless sky, thunder cast down a single bolt of lightning, striking the ground with energy enough to propel dirt through the air and set fire to a small patch of grass. Immediately, calm prevailed; only a single column of smoke, billowing skyward, remained as evidence.

The strange occurrence gave him pause, but fueled by the need to find his wife, Frank hurried in the direction of the fading smoke. “Mariah, Mariah, please answer me.”
 
His boots cut a path through the heavy brush.

In the far grass, beyond the wagon, he rushed
toward
 
the
visible brim of her yellow bonnet and found Mariah in an oddly contorted position. Her head rested against a large rock, and rivulets of red oozed from beneath her head-covering. Frank’s throat constricted. “Oh my God, are you all right? Mariah, answer me, please.”
 
His words were little more than a whisper over his choking fear.

He gently removed her bonnet and inspected the crimson-stained gash on her temple. His heart quickened. “Callie,” he yelled, “Get the tablecloth from the picnic basket. I have to stop this bleeding. Quickly, Jacob, bring me the water jug.”

After cleaning Mariah’s wound, Frank wrapped a makeshift bandage around her head, but she remained unconscious. Why didn't she wake up? He brushed
away
 
the
tear trickling down his cheek and choked back his fear. His sobbing children needed to see his strength.

Frank continued to bathe his wife’s face with cool water. “Mariah, please darlin’…”
  
He looked to the sky. “Lord this can’t be happening.”