Chase the Wind (45 page)

“I made it for Jamie a long time ago,” Jenny said as she held it to her breast.

Grace came over and took the shirt, admiring the fine stitches. “It’s a fine shirt, and I know the only reason Jamie gave it up is because he outgrew it.”

“He’s even bigger now?”

“He’s pretty big.” Grace smiled at the thought of him.

Jenny shook her head as she tried to envision what he must be like now. “Would you mind if I worked on the mending?” she asked as Grace refolded the shirt. “That is the one thing I know I can do best.”

“Honey, you just help yourself,” Grace said as she handed her the sewing basket. Jenny carried the basket and clothing outside to the porch swing and began mending, content to have work to keep her busy, and knowing she was giving something back to the people who were being so generous to her.

The next few days passed in much the same way. Jenny slept in the big house but spent her days with Grace, helping her with the
meals and the laundry, then working on the mending. When she
had worked her way through the stack, Grace brought out a length of soft blue calico and asked Jenny’s advice on making a dress out of it. They went through some patterns, and Grace selected the one
that Jenny kept going back to. She soon had Jenny cutting away,
thinking she was making the dress for Grace, who intended it to
be for Jenny. They were similar in build, with Grace a bit fuller in
the bust, but Jenny needed extra length, which Grace made sure she provided for when she cut out the skirt. Jason had conspired with her to get the fabric, making a special trip to town to pick it
out, and choosing a shade that matched the blue of Jenny’s eyes.

The boys became accustomed to seeing Jenny sitting in the
swing, sewing away, and she soon settled into the routine of
the ranch, each day bringing her closer to her reunion with Jamie.

Sunday soon came, and with it rain and a day of rest for the
hands. Jason and Cat went to church, along with Ty and Caleb.
Grace stayed behind, self-conscious of her scars when she went out
in public. Zane and Jake chose to spend the day sleeping after spending Saturday evening at the saloon in town. Jenny became sleepy as she sewed in the cabin with Grace and decided to take the laundry over to the bunkhouse, hoping the quick dash through
the rain would wake her up.

Zane and Jake were lying in their bunks, involved in a never-ending argument about something, when she came in. It was her first time in the bunkhouse, and she was amazed at how cozy it
was, with its pot-bellied stove and beds stacked one above the
other. One in particular drew her attention, it was a top bunk, with
an extension on the end.

“His feet were always sticking out, so we put him up top and
added on,” Zane explained.

Jenny climbed up and looked at the blanket, which had been
pieced at the bottom to give her tall brother extra coverage. She
lay down on the bunk, surrounding herself with the scent of her
brother, and her mind wandered back to the days of sharing the
loft at home, and their whispered conversations after they’d been tucked in for the night. The rain was pounding on the roof overhead and she soon drifted off to sleep. She rolled over facing the
wall, and her braid hung over the side of the bunk, shining brightly
in the dim light that came in from the window.

Caleb noticed her when he came in from church and he took
out his sketchpad, his imagination transforming her surroundings
to something more luxurious, as Zane added his own ideas in Caleb’s ear. Ty looked on in disgust as he read in his bunk, and
Jake went back to his own slumber.

Chapter Twenty-one

The rain was pouring off their slickers as Jamie and Chase herded
the last of the strays into the pen. They had been struggling to make it home before the rain came, but a rock slide had turned
them around, causing them to lose time. They stabled their horses
and slopped through the deserted yard, knowing everyone else was
warm and dry. They were both starved, so they went to Grace’s cabin first, hoping to find a bite to tide them over until dinner was ready. Grace met them at the door with a dazzling smile.

“Where have you been?” she asked as they stood dripping on
the porch.

“Doing our job, and now we’re hungry. Let us in, Grace,” Jamie
begged. His hair was soaking and rivers were running down his
neck.

“Oh, no, you are not coming in here until you get out of those
wet clothes.”

“Grace, we are starved. Give us a biscuit or something,” Chase
begged.

Grace shook her head, afraid to say anything more. Jamie looked
at her as if she had lost her mind, but she just slammed the door in their faces. They stood looking at the closed portal in shock,
then turned to go to the bunkhouse. Grace cracked the door when they had got off the porch, then quietly followed, pulling a shawl
over her head to protect herself from the rain. Zane pulled open the door to the bunkhouse before they even got to the porch and
put his finger over his mouth to hush Jamie and Chase’s grumbling
that had started as soon as they stepped off Grace’s porch.

“Has everyone around here lost their minds?” Jamie whispered
angrily at Zane as he pulled off his slicker. The rest of the boys
were looking at him with big grins on their faces, and Jamie turned
to Chase, who was looking at Jamie’s bunk.

A golden braid was dangling over the edge of the bunk, and
above it was a gracefully curved back, and long, lean legs. Jamie
took a step towards the bunk, his eyes wide and staring. Chase
caught the eyes of the boys, who all nodded, and he looked toward
the bunk in eager anticipation.

Jamie reached out and took the braid in his hand, rubbing the
silken strands between his fingers before he gave it a gentle tug. A
hand reached back to grab the braid, and he jerked on it harder, pulling the head around so that he was looking into a pair of deep
blue eyes. Recognition hit her like a shot, and Jenny propelled
herself out of the bunk, launching herself into Jamie’s arms with such force that they hit the floor with a crash, becoming a tangled pile of long leg and arms and flying hair. Grace came through the
door and looked on in tearful joy as the rest of the boys laughed
at the whirling mass before them.

Jenny and Jamie were both talking at once as they untangled
themselves and stood. Both were wiping tears away, from them
selves and each other. “When?” one said, “Where?” the other asked,
and both of them were saying, “I looked for you.”

“Both of you, sit down,” Grace finally said as the confusion went
on. They looked at her; then Jamie led Jenny to the table and they
sat, still holding on to each other’s hands. “Everyone else, out!”
Grace commanded, and the boys filed out, slapping Jamie on the
back, wanting to share in his joy.

“Chase, wait,” Jamie said as Chase started out the door.

“No, I’ll catch you later.” Jenny looked up into Chase’s dark eyes
and saw that they were shining as if he, too, had been crying. His face held a sweet smile as he looked at her. That last morning they
had been together, when she had spun around the room in joy,
flashed through her mind.

“Chase, thank you,” she said softly.

“For what?”

“Being there for Jamie.”

Jamie grinned at his friend.

“It wasn’t easy, believe me.” Chase grinned back and left.

“Oh, Jamie, you look just like Dad,” Jenny cried when they were alone.

Jamie smoothed back the wild hairs that had escaped her braid. “And you are so beautiful.”

“I am?”

“Jenny where did you go? We followed your trail up into the mountains. We found a burned-out wagon and the bodies of the folks that took you, but there was no sign of you. I was so afraid you were dead, too.”

“The Millers—they’re dead?”

“Yes, we found them in Indian territory. Looked like they’d been attacked. I didn’t know where to look after that.”

“I was in Texas.”

“Texas! How in the world did you get to Texas?”

“I was picked up by a fellow who thought I’d make a nice addition to his whorehouse,” Jenny explained with a hard look in her eye. “I didn’t hang around there too long, I can tell you. Once I escaped, I started making my way back to St. Jo.”

“If only I had gone back to St. Jo,” Jamie said. “But when the trail turned cold, we kept looking further west.”

“There is no way you could have known, and you still might have missed me. I don’t know how long I was wandering before Storm found me.”

“Storm?”

“Yes, Storm found me, out on the plains. I’d been shot—it’s a long story—and I’d lost a lot of blood. I got on his back, and he took me to Gray Horse.”

“Chase and I went to him, too, but that was at the beginning of our search.” He put his arm around her. “God, I hate to think what you’ve been through just to survive. It isn’t easy, being on your own, and I know it had to be harder for you than for Chase and me because you’re a woman.”

“That’s why I cut my hair, so I could pass as a boy. It seems every man I came across wanted to make me into a whore.”

“But they didn’t.”

“No, I managed to survive intact, if that’s what you mean.”

“That’s not what I mean, and you know it. I knew you would find a way to get away from the Millers, but I never dreamed that someone else would be waiting there to snatch you up.”

“You and Chase have been together the entire time?”

Jamie showed her the faint scar across his palm. “We’re blood brothers. He is the one who kept me going; he knew we were going to see you again when I thought you were dead. He never gave up on you, and he was always there for me. I don’t know what I would have done without him.”

“I’m glad he was there for you.”

“You should tell him that.”

“I will.” The sound of Jamie’s stomach growling brought them back to the present.

“I am starving,” he said as he rubbed the sound away.

“I’m glad to see that hasn’t changed any.”

He grinned at her and shoved his hair back off his forehead.

“Let’s go get something to eat, if there’s anything left over there.” He stood up and held out his hand. Jenny stood, and looked up, grinning. She had always been a few inches shorter than he, but now the difference was greater.

“I don’t think I can wear your hand-me-downs anymore.”

“I gave them all to Chase anyway. By the way, what happened to Storm?”

“Go out to the stable and see for yourself.”

“He’s here?”

“Yep, and Jason already wants to use him for stud.” Jamie’s face nearly split as he grinned at that prospect, and the two of them made their way to Grace’s cabin.

Several sets of curious, smiling faces greeted them, and Chase moved down so Jamie could take his customary place next to him on the bench. Jamie made room for Jenny to slide between them, and she suddenly felt very safe with the two sets of broad shoulders on either side of her. She gave Chase a quick glance, then looked back when she saw that his hair was the same length as hers.

“You’ve changed a bit since the last time I saw you,” she said as his dark eyes caught her look.

“You have become more beautiful.”

Jenny blushed at the softly spoken words.

Grace hastily set a heaping plate before Jamie, who dug in with
his usual gusto, and Jenny joined him, until the questions from the
others became more than they could handle while eating.

“Will you guys let me eat in peace!” Jamie finally exclaimed.

“Yeah, we know better than to get between you and food,” Zane
said.

“Everyone run along and leave these two alone,” Grace com
manded, and chairs began to scrape the floor as the gang dispersed
to their favorite Sunday afternoon pursuits. The rain had finally
stopped, and a glimmer of sun was breaking through the clouds
as they went outside. Jenny got up to follow Chase out to the porch.

Chase was standing with his arm wrapped around the comer post, leaning out to see what the skies had in store for the rest of
the day. He had wanted to take a long nap, but the excitement of
Jenny’s return had put an end to that. He knew he could use a bath, and had decided to walk to the shed they used for a bath
house when he heard Jenny call his name.