The Heart of a Soiled Dove (4 page)

Aurora poured glasses of lemon water and focused on the sweaty and constant hard-working men, handing them each a drink. “We could not have done this without you. So much has been accomplished in your short time here. We’ll be sorry to see you go.”

Victor drank his down in one big gulp. “We got a week left. I think we’ll get it all done.”

Roman agreed. “It’ll get done. And don’t think we are looking forward to eating trail dust and beans when we go back to the ranch!”

Carrie Anne left them and walked about her dirt garden.

“She’s sensitive isn’t she?” Roman asked.

Emmy “hmmphed” and Aurora darted her with a look, which was supposed to read
be kind
.

“I like her that way, it suits her,” Aurora said and watched Roman as his eyes followed Carrie Anne’s movements. He’d have a challenge of a lifetime if he thought anything about courting Carrie Anne – she was skittish of men, even pleasant and non-threatening ones like Roman.

A lone rider came into the field and Jed swore, then amended his err quickly. “I apologize, ladies.”

Aurora ignored his blunder and stood to see who was arriving. “Who’s the rider?” When Jed didn’t answer she asked him again, “Who is it?”

Victor answered for him. “It’s Donovan Ramsey.”

Aurora looked at him with inquiry, wondering what he had to do with these men, and vice versa. “And?”

“He’s our trail boss and owner of the Double R Ranch. Adjacent to yours.”

Aurora stepped out to greet him. Then dawning revelation hit her. She’d not only taken his coveted, neighboring land away but unknowingly hired his very own men. This was no fault of her own – she couldn’t help it if no one communicated these things to her – and she would seek to right this misunderstanding. “Carrie Anne, please fetch Mr. Ramsey of the Double R Ranch some lemonade.”

Aurora watched his precise movements. The way he sat astride confidently and with great intimidation. The closer he came upon them she noticed how his eyes darkened and narrowed upon the scene before him. How it must look, his men sitting idle, doing nothing but gawking at young girls, drinking dainty lemon water of all things. Aurora approached him. He did not even have the grace to get down in greeting.

“Pleased to see you again, Mr. Ramsey.”

He barely glanced at her. Instead he marked them all with a raking gaze. “This is what you all took leave for? To sit on your arses and drink tea all day?”

Roman took on a tone meant to placate. “You know that ain’t true Donovan. We were taking five minutes of cooling off. It’s blazing hot out here.”

Aurora snapped, wondering why they should defend anything. It was she who was paying them. “It’s lemonade, and here’s some for you if you’ve a care to get down off of your high… horse.”

Victor smirked. Roman cast an amused sideways glance her way and Emmy – ever faithful to keep her in check – stepped nearer to her.

“I don’t drink lemonade. And I am not dismounting.” Donovan spoke with heavy condemnation. He pinned his men with another hard stare. “How much longer am I to live without your presence?”

“We’ll be finished in a week. I reckon we’ll be along when that time comes unless you need us sooner, Boss,” Luke answered.

“I could’ve used you last week, you well know.”

Roman interjected, “You gave us leave. You’ve plenty other hands until the drive starts. Besides, we couldn’t very well tell the Reverend no.”

Donovan took a second and perused the length of Aurora, finally coming up to meet her eyes. She was miffed, and refused to cower as he expected her to. “I can see why you’d all prefer to stay here.”

The icy tone of his voice cut her. He’d made her feel cheap, and it hit her where it hurt. Aurora was crushed. She’d wanted things to be different. Why did men have to assume the worst in women?

She felt the comfort of Emmy’s hand gently resting on her shoulder. She inhaled a calming breath and said as evenly as possible, “These men are working here and I’m paying them to. Look around at what they’ve --”

He turned the bridle of his horse and began to ride away from her. A fuming sensation took over until she boiled with indignation. She turned to the others, appalled. “Why did he even bother to come here? What an arrogant… mean….”

“Shhh, now settle down,” Emmy said, her voice smooth and silky. “Don’t let the man rile you.”

“He’ll always have the last word,” Roman said matter of fact.

“He isn’t the consortin’ kind. Prefers hard work to play,” echoed Victor.

Jed pushed himself from the fencepost. “Let’s get back to work. We’ve had enough idle time.”

Aurora was shaking, not from Donovan’s powerful presence, but from his words. They still stung. What would it take to be free from her oppressive past? She couldn’t live without dealing with men – although after today, it seemed a most appealing thing to do. She wanted the safe company of someone like Reverend John. Five more weeks couldn’t get there any faster.

She turned to see Emmy and Christopher teasing each other. They’d acted like children all day long. She sighed, wondering how Donovan would react had he ridden up to the scene before her – although she’d no clue what started their play this time. Emmy had filled a wooden bucket from the water trough and chased Christopher down, drenching him. He wiped his face off with his bandana and challenged her with a hot look.

“No! I apologize… I didn’t mean to….” She screamed in laughter and ran fast away. Catching her, Christopher spun her around and she became locked in his arms.

“Everyone – get back to work!” Aurora suddenly blurted.

Everyone moved back to the chores but a fear settled and trickled all throughout her. She couldn’t block out human nature. It was not following them, it was here. Always was and always will be. What could they do aside from isolating themselves like nuns? It sounded good to her, but one look at Emmy and the passion in her eyes for Christopher, made her realize it could not be tamped down for long. That girl had a wild streak in her and Aurora prayed with all of her heart that He would protect her. She eyed Carrie Anne and the way Roman helped her with things she didn’t need help with at all. Maybe if she just got the girls off and married she’d not have to worry. She would, of course, and could live here all by herself and would count it lucky to be an old maid. With her mind made up, Aurora got back to working the leather before the sun set in the clear blue and beautiful Montana sky.

Each day after for the next week had been the same – hard work, play, hard work and play. So it was with a heavy heart that Aurora, Emmy and Carrie Anne bid their company good-bye. Each man accepted generous pay and loaded up their saddlebags. If Aurora was not mistaken, Roman and Luke seemed as disappointed as she.

Jed, Victor and Christopher looked ready to be on the trail – true cowboys they were. Aurora – clearly standing as chaperone – watched unabashedly as Roman took Carrie Anne’s hand. She shied away from his intense scrutiny. But the poor man kept on. “I think I’ve come to like you, Carrie Anne. Maybe you’ll think of me while I’m gone?”

She blushed ten shades before looking at him. Aurora was hoping she didn’t bolt like a deer. Two words left her lips barely above a whisper. “I might.”

He released her then. “Good enough for me. I’ll be back before long. We’ll see how much you’ve been thinking of me then.”

She looked terrified that he was going to kiss her and squeezed shut her eyes.

Aurora tapped her. “It’s safe. You can open your eyes.”

She released her eyes open and saw that Roman was mounting his horse. He said his goodbye and winked at her.

He tipped his dusty hat to Aurora. “It’s been our pleasure working for you.”

“I can’t thank you enough for the transformation of this place. Take care of yourselves now.”

Before Aurora addressed the interaction between Roman and Carrie Anne, the girl had gone into the house.

“She’s a peculiar little thing,” Emmy said.

“Roman seems to like peculiar.” They giggled and went into the coolness of the finished house.

“How long does it take for a cattle drive?” Emmy asked.

Aurora shrugged her shoulders. Carrie Anne joined them and said dreamily, “I hope not long.”

“Aurora?”

“Yes, Emmy?”

“When am I going to begin to earn my keep?”

“What do you mean? We’re all working our hands to the bone to build this home. No one’s earning her keep, it’s just living.”

“I can’t live off you the rest of my days.”

“I don’t understand. There’s no need for us to do anything else. We’re family. We don’t
live
off of each other,” Aurora answered, wondering where this was going. Emmy became unreasonably agitated.

“We can’t do
nothing
forever.”

“What did you have in mind?”

Carrie Anne raised her brows with curiosity, and if Aurora saw correctly, she looked like she was going to cry. Aurora needed to calm Emmy down. She was upsetting Carrie Anne.

Emmy continued, “I would like to make some money for myself. I was hoping that we could start our business pretty soon.”

“Our business?”

“This house, Aurora. It’s finished. Now we can open up our brothel.”

Aurora felt like she had been slapped, stinging cheeks and all.

“A boardinghouse? You thought we were here to build a boardinghouse? Oh, Emmy, I thought you knew. I have money left from my benefactor.” How could she have been so blindsided? “We’re on our way to being self-sustaining. It’s for all of us and not one of you better think you need to pay me back.”

“You mean you’re not going to use us or this place for a brothel?” Emmy rounded on Aurora emphatically, swinging her arms wide. “Why the big house for the three of us if you weren’t planning on adding more
boarders
?” she flung a look at Carrie Anne who’d turned even paler than normal. “Why did you buy
her
?”

“Emmy!” A pinching nausea gripped her middle and Aurora looked at Carrie Anne. “Because I didn’t want her to become a prostitute. I didn’t want her to know what it was like to turn tricks, to sell yourself, to pretend you feel nothing and don’t care if a man covers your body with his.” Her breathing became erratic with passion and pleading. “I can’t believe you thought otherwise, Emmy. How could you think I would live like that ever again? How could
you
consider living like that?”

Aurora bounded up the stairs to her room where the air was hot and found it difficult to breathe in her distress. She went to the window and threw it open. It smelled of fresh paint. She took in the air and began to sob uncontrollably. Even though her mother had given her away to prostitution at fourteen, it had not been her choice. She couldn’t escape the condemnation that plagued her every day the sun came up. What little she knew about God is that – with the help of Leona – she’d asked Him to be in her life. She’d felt better when that happened and knew she needed to make some changes, but sometimes she wished He would come in and swoop away her memory, that He would come in and make her feel whole and pure. But after Emmy’s extremely wrong way of thinking, her past had been thrown in her face. “Oh, God, I just want to move on. Please, I need your help.”

She heard a shuffle near her door. Carrie Anne stood there obviously unsure of what to do. Aurora wiped her tears away by the length of her sleeve – most unladylike she was sure – and stretched out her arms to Carrie Anne. “Come here. It’s alright. Everything is going to be alright.”

The next morning Aurora came upon Emmy seated in a rocking chair beneath the restored window. She eased down to the floor and kneeled at her feet. “I don’t understand how you misunderstood, Em. I set out to purchase this house and land so we could take care of ourselves by its provisions. I chose this town because my past did not follow me here. That was the point.”

Emmy looked at her now and Aurora implored, “I thought we could make a home, you and I. And now with Carrie Anne, of course. We’ll farm, raise chickens, cattle or whatever else it is we want to do.” Aurora looked down a moment and picked a loose thread free from her skirt. “I want you to know that we have enough money left to see us through winter and beyond.”

“I can’t farm, Aurora. I have no desire for it. I really thought that we were going to set up our own bawdy house. I knew it would be different because you would be in charge and not Hazel Caruthers. I’ve decided to go into town and see about work. I must be able to support myself. I don’t want to be here all the time – it’s just not in me.”

Painfully, Aurora digested this. “I want you to know that if something doesn’t turn out right for you, we’ll work together until we find what does.” She had a horrible thought. “You didn’t think that I brought Roman and his men out here for
that
did you?”

“As a matter of fact, I did. They turned out to be fine men. Especially that Donovan Ramsey – I almost swooned when he rode up like that, all dangerous looking.”

Aurora slapped lightly at Emmy’s knees and stood up. “That man is nothing but trouble, coming through here all bossy. Arrogant is what he is and, as far as I’m concerned, he can stay on his side of the fence!”

“But you oughta admit, he’s handsome arrogant.”

“Fine, I’ll admit that. But that doesn’t mean I want to see him again.”

Feeling as though she’d done all she could for Emmy at the moment, Aurora sought out Carrie Anne, who was most likely in the garden. If she wasn’t toiling soil around or plucking this or planting that, she was at the kitchen table with Aurora, who was teaching her how to read. Sure enough, she found her knee deep in dirt. “Emmy and I are going to town. Why don’t you come for a ride with us? We’d love your company.”

Carrie Anne removed her gardening gloves and shook them out. She sat upright, stretching out her back as she considered. “I reckon I will, seeing how I turned eighteen today.”

When the girls arrived in town they separated for different reasons – Aurora to the bank, Emmy to find work and Carrie Anne to the mercantile for more seed. An hour passed and when Aurora met up with Emmy, she found her to be in a furious mood.

“There is either no work, or there ain’t no work for a colored person.”

“I have just the right something for you, girl.”

Out of nowhere someone had joined the conversation. Aurora turned to see Kate Philips looking over Emmy like she was a sweet treat in a candy store. She peeled her lingering self off the livery wall and spoke again. “She’s an eccentric beauty. Too bad she works for you.” She turned her gaze to Emmy. “Doesn’t sound like you’re too happy out there on the
farm
.”

Aurora noted Kate moved with caution – a snake in the grass. She rustled up her fine silk skirts, flit open her matching parasol, and made her way to Emmy. “What would it take?”

With swiftness, Aurora had Emmy in her grasp and pulled her away in haste, turning enough to see the competitive glimmer in Kate’s piercing eyes.

Kate called out to their retreating backs. “What is it y’all are doing out there on your
farm
anyway?”

“We keep to ourselves, that’s what we do.” Aurora turned to Emmy. “Where’s Carrie Anne?”

Kate followed them and said to Emmy, with some respect, “No one will hire you. We don’t succumb to the prejudices others have for your kind down south, but we also don’t hanker on having you climbing higher than us neither. If you need a job,
Emmy
… yes, I know your name… I have one for you, one that pays very well.”

Aurora turned on Kate full circle, anger radiating through her. “She’d rather die than lie on her backside for you.”

“You might regret those words some day.”

“I assure you, I won’t.”

“Suit yourself then.” Kate retreated.

“I’ll do that.”

Aurora sighed. “I seem to stir up trouble every time I come to town.”

“You wouldn’t be Aurora Young if you didn’t,” said Emmy, whom Aurora side-squeezed. “I apologize for that woman, what she said.”

“Ain’t your fault. What she said is the truth. For now I guess I’ll be a farm hand.” She left Aurora’s side as they reached the mercantile and solemnly walked up the steps. She would need to deal with Emmy, but decided to let it settle for now. She had much shopping to do. It would be fall soon and she felt the need to stock up on supplies.

Once she’d finished shopping, Aurora announced to the girls, “Well, I did it. I ordered the store, even items from a catalog. Can you imagine? We’ll now have a new stove.” She peered at Carrie Anne. “Won’t that be grand? And I got us some –”

Aurora hushed abruptly and halted. Something wasn’t right. A loud, snapping noise pierced the air. They followed the echo, which was around the corner of the mercantile. Tucked between buildings, a man was taking a switch to a woman. Aurora stirred and swung her light weight to the scene. Another snap cracked. The whip made contact upon the woman’s torn clothes and bloodied back.

“Stop that!”

He turned at once, and she recognized him from the horrible bidding war where she acquired Carrie Anne. Thatcher Poe, with a crooked, non-repentant smile on his face, looked ready to attack whoever was interfering. Seeing Aurora, he relaxed lazily as if passing the time of day. “Good afternoon.”

“Leave her alone.”

With a dangerously calm voice he said, “You’re new here, I can see you are a gentle lady.” He raised his chin towards Carrie Anne, who cowered at the corner’s edge. “You even bought that twit from under my nose just so’s she could get away from us all, but as for this one here….” He raised his whip, threatening Aurora. “I’ll give you fair warning and I’ll only give it once. Turn your pretty little head away and mind your own business.” And for good measure, he smacked the whip again, but onto the girl covered with slashes of oozing blood. An agonizing scream and an unnatural silence followed. Unfortunately for him, he’d lost interest in Aurora so was more than shocked when his whip was snatched from his eager grasp.

“Run!” Aurora told the battered girl. Her red hair nearly blended into the blood stained skin. Emmy came up to Aurora. “Come on now. We need to leave.”

Thatcher rounded on them slow and methodical, his hand toying with the knife at his waist. “Josie here knows her place, as you will begin to as well. She ain’t going anywhere until I tell her she is. Give that back to me, or you’ll be more than sorry.”

“Aurora. Stop.
Now
,” Emmy whispered.

“I’d listen to your servant girl.”

Aurora was focused on the whimpering girl sliding to the dirty ground, weighing her actions. She looked at the whip in her hand then to her arm and dress, now smeared with bright crimson. Someone’s blood. A stranger’s blood. What was she doing? The wretched scene only renewed Aurora’s resolve. “What did she do to deserve this? What can anyone do to deserve a whipping?”

Thatcher’s laugh was inhumane and his eyes took on an unnatural shape as he sought the full length of Aurora’s body. “Get out of my way and give me back that whip.”

Emmy adjusted her stance, ever ready to defend.

“I’m not leaving her with you.”

“Please, do as he says, give it back to him,” Josie whispered. The pleading tone revolted Aurora.

“I reckon Josie’s had enough.” The sheriff, who Aurora knew to be Corbin Bradbury, pushed Carrie Anne aside and his voice broke through the high tension. Aurora turned to him. Finally, the law.

Thatcher Poe glared at him for several beats, yanked his whip from Aurora’s grasp and demanded, “You gonna obey me now, Josie?”

She pulled herself together as regally as one could with a torn dress and bloody welts covering her back. “Yes, Thatcher.”

They walked past Aurora, who was shaking inside and out, the palms of her hands opening and closing until Emmy reached out and took one of her hands.

“I apologize you had to see that,” the sheriff said.

Aurora heard his words but he seemed to lack much sincerity, and he neglected to acknowledge Emmy, who was witness just the same. “Are you going to do something about this?”

“Josie should do what her job requires, no complaints. What there was to be done about it – is done,” he answered with resolve.

What could she do? The victim was no longer present. She was defeated. Feeling the heat of being scrutinized, Aurora turned and saw a group of useless bystanders had gathered. Not one had stopped to help Josie, but they sure wanted to see what would happen to her through her interference. Because Josie was a nobody, because she was a whore, and whores chose their own paths, didn’t they? They chose to have their body purchased for pleasure, for beating, for whatever any man decides to do to them.

Aurora’s stomach hurt. What could she have done? Josie would be in more trouble had she continued to intervene. Yet what kind of human being could walk away from such a violent display? What kind of person was she to allow this injustice to go on? Had she failed somehow? Aurora wished Reverend John was not an itinerant preacher. She wanted his wisdom accessible. She wanted to be more like him and know when to do the Lord’s will and when not to act. She didn’t like being unsure in things. Allowing Josie to go back to Thatcher Poe didn’t seem right, yet she didn’t feel as if it were time to intervene. How was that possible? It should be time. Not another day should go by, if she could help it, of these prostitutes being in such bondage. Confusion and uncertainty did not set well and Aurora wanted to know His will, but it would not come in that moment.

The air became sultry and she felt lightheaded. Beads of perspiration filled her corset. Aurora rushed passed them all. Men treat horses better than that. She refused to believe that Josie did not want her help. What had she been planning to do with that whip anyway? She would have used it on Thatcher Poe is what! Then she would have to find herself repenting. She knew enough from Leona that that would not be a godly way to behave.

She gathered Emmy and Carrie Anne and did not look back. She had much to process and wanted to do it while looking out at her vast lands. She needed to reacquaint herself with His beautiful creation. She knew she had been sent here for a purpose. Regardless of what the girls said, or gave her credit for, Aurora would never believe
she’d
rescued them. She never felt as though she’d acted alone.