The Outrider (Redbourne Series #5 - Will's Story) (10 page)

From the look on his mother’s face, wonderful was
not the word he would use to describe it.

“Mama,” he started.

Leah picked up her plate and with a half-hearted
smile headed over to the sink.

Will followed.

“Mama,” he tried again.

Leah turned to him, her head held high, and
placed a hand on his cheek. “I always knew you were meant for great things. You
are smart, and kind, and maybe a little more adventurous than a mother would
hope, but you have so much to give.” She dropped her hand and turned away from
him.

“It won’t be forever.”

“We’ve raised you to be your own man, William,”
she said as she placed both hands down on the counter as if to prop herself up.
“You’ll be a wonderful teacher.”

Will opted not to tell his mother about the other
opportunities that came with the job. She seemed to be taking this news better
than he’d expected and didn’t want to spoil it.

“How long do we have before you must leave?”

“It’s still a bit off.”

She looked up at him with a raised brow.

“Three weeks.”

“Very well, then. Let’s make the best of it,
shall we?” Leah reached down, captured Will’s hand in hers, and squeezed.

He bent down and kissed the top of her head. “I
love you, Mama.”

She closed her eyes and slipped an arm around his
waist. “I love you, my not-so-little William.”

Friday

“Come on, lazy bones. Don’t you have a stage to
catch today?” Will threw a folded pair of socks at his friend’s head with a
laugh. He sat on the edge of his bed and pulled on his own boots. The man in
the other bed did not stir. “Sven!” he called loudly.

Still nothing.

Will stood up and crossed the room. He placed a
hand on Sven’s shoulder and turned him over. The man’s skin was pallid and damp,
his mouth was surrounded in a gum-like film, and his head was hot to the touch.

Cough. Cough. “Is it time to get up?” he asked
wearily, attempting to sit.

“Not yet, my friend,” Will said, concern working
its way through his mind as he casually brushed the back of his hand against
his friend’s face. “Go back to sleep for a few more minutes.”

Sven closed his eyes and sleepily nodded his
consent.

“Mama!” Will called as he ran from the room and
down the stairs. He found her in the kitchen peeling the shells off some
hard-boiled eggs. “Mama, something is wrong with Sven. He’s pale and weak, and
his skin is really hot to the touch.”

Leah dried her hands in her skirt as she ran into
the washroom.

“Sounds like a fever,” she told Will as she threw
open cupboards and closed them, searching for something. “Tag and Cole should
both be pretty close to home. Find them. Have them chip up a block of ice as
quickly as they can. Then, fill the tub in the washroom and make it as cold as
you can get it.”

Will waited for further instructions, but they
didn’t come.

“Go!” she urged as she made her way up the stairs
toward the twins’ room where he and Sven had slept last night.

He didn’t waste any more time. He hadn’t seen
many people who’d gotten sick so quickly, but it didn’t bode well. Tag was in
the corral with one of the new horses they had picked up on the drive. His
ability to tame a horse was parallel to none.

Cole, his youngest brother, rode into the yard as
if he suspected his help was needed. Will quickly explained the situation to
both of them and without hesitation they dropped what they were doing and
headed out to the shed where the ice box was kept.

When Will returned to the twins’ room, Leah sat
on the edge of the bed where Sven had been sleeping. Cool wet cloths had been
strewn across his forehead.

“Will, we need to get him down to the washroom.”
Leah stood up and moved to the side.

Will strode over to the bed and leaned down to
pick up his friend. Sven was not a small man, but with more than a little
effort, Will was able to heave him up and into his arms.

Leah held open the door as wide as it would go,
to allow him more space to maneuver. Once down the stairs, he laid his friend,
clothes and all, into the freezing cold water of the washbasin. Sven only
stirred a little with several low-seated groans at the brisk change in
temperature.

“Here is the ice,” Cole said as he opened the
door to the washroom and stepped inside with a large bucket full of the frozen
chips.

“Dump it over the top of him,” Leah directed.

Cole did as he was told, then headed back out for
another load. After several trips, the tub overflowed with ice chunks.

Will shivered as he watched the skin on Sven’s
arm pucker into gooseflesh.

“Tag’s gone to fetch the doc,” Cole called back
as he headed out the door.

Will sat in the chair next to the tub, his elbows
on his knees, and his hands cradling his face.

“There’s nothing more you can do for your friend right
now, son.” Leah placed a hand on his back.

“He’s supposed to be one of the outriders guarding
the stage today. Someone should tell the new stagecoach driver that they will
be down one outrider.”

“It is a shame that there isn’t anyone experienced
enough and available to take his place.”

Will looked at his mother, his brows meeting
together above his nose.

“I mean,” she said as she picked up a towel and
started to fold it, “there
are
three innocent women who are travelling
across the country, unaware of the bankroll that will be loaded in the back of
their stage. It could be quite dangerous without anyone to protect them.”

“You think I should go in his stead,” Will
surmised. He stood up, shoving his hands through his hair as he contemplated
his options. He hated the thought of those women being left vulnerable on a
stage carrying such a prized cargo.

Outlaws like Kelton McElvoy and his gang would be
lying in wait around every corner if the word got out about the monies being
transported and Will wondered why on earth the company would endanger the lives
of these young mail-order-brides. It wasn’t like there was only one stage that
came through town.

“I think you are a protector. It comes naturally
for you,” his mother told him as she set the towels down and turned to him, raising
her hands to his face. “You’ve always had the heart of a lion and skills to
match. I know you well enough to understand that you need to feel useful. Needed.
I have a feeling that it wouldn’t matter what I said, you would do what you
felt was right…whatever needed to be done.” She dropped her arms down and
captured his hands in her own.

“It’s nice to know you have faith in me,” he
said, appreciating every word she’d spoken.

“I do and I always will. You are a smart man,
William. No matter what you decide, I know you will find the best solution to
this unfortunate dilemma.” She squeezed his hands, stood up on her tip-toes,
kissed his face, then turned and left the room.

“Just like her to leave me with my thoughts,” he
said loud enough she’d probably heard him. He waited, but there was no
response. “What am I supposed to do now?” His voice softened, but he still
spoke aloud. “Three weeks,” he said as he paced the washroom, kicking at some
stray towels that had fallen to the floor. “Three weeks, and then I’ll be
gone.”

Will knew himself all too well to believe that
this would be a one-time deal.

“I can’t leave. How can I leave? I’m sure they
can find someone else,” he said with a satisfied nod. “I’m not going. Besides,
Jem will be passing through town sometime today, or tomorrow, on his way down
to New Orleans to fight for the heavyweight title,” his short monologue
continued. “That man taught me everything I know about boxing and was there for
me at a time when I was far away from home and needed someone for support. I
can’t miss him.”

“Well then…”

Will jerked around to see his friend slipping the
rag from his forehead.

“…you’d better help me up.” Sven’s voice was
weak. “Or, I’m going to miss the stage. I can’t imagine that would be too good
for those brides-to-be, or for my chances with any of them, for the stage to be
down one trained guard.” He tried to laugh, but coughed instead.

“Welcome back.” Will rushed to the side of the
tub as Sven attempted to sit himself up straight.

“I guess you really thought I needed another
bath,” he said with some semblance of a strained smile. “My clothes and all. It
might just be me, but this one is quite colder than the last.” He shivered.

Will’s laugh accompanied a relived sigh. “I’d
thought I’d lost you there for a bit, mate.”

“You’re not going to get rid of me that easily.” Sven
placed his hands on the side of the tub and tried to push himself up. “Just get
me something dry to wear and my pack.” The effort was too much for him and he
plopped back down into the icy water.

Will jerked forward to try to catch him.

Sweat beaded thickly on Sven’s forehead and Will
recalled something Rafe had told him years ago, while he was on break from Harvard
Medical School, about sweat being a good indicator that a fever had broken.

“Mama!” he called loudly, but rather than wait
for her to return, he reached down and helped the large man to his feet. His
clothes were drenched and dripping all over the floor as he stepped from the
tub. Luckily, the washroom was full of towels. He carefully lowered Sven down
onto one of the chairs. The Norwegian slumped against the back rest, his hands
dangling at his side. He was weak and Will was worried.

“Where is he?” a man called from somewhere near
the front of the house.

The doctor had arrived.

His mother opened the door, followed by the tall,
robust man who’d been called out to the ranch more often than he’d probably
liked.

“Mr. Anderson,” the doc said, “I understand
you’ve been feeling a little under the weather.”

“You could say that, Doc, but I just need a few
minutes and I’ll be fine.”

“I’m sure you will, but why don’t you let me have
a look at you anyway.”

“Will,” his mother said, “run up and get him
something dry to wear.”

He glanced over at Sven, and with a nod, darted
from the room and up the stairs. All of the Redbourne boys were tall and
slender, but Sven’s shoulders nearly doubled the width of his own. Rafe was the
closest in size and so he headed into his older brother’s room. It had not
changed a bit since the day he’d left. His mother hadn’t touched a thing. Will
reckoned that she’d left it alone out of hope that Rafe would come back home sooner
rather than later.

Sven’s predicament weighed on Will’s mind.

His friend was in no condition to accompany the
stage to the train depot in Kansas City, let alone all the way to Colorado. Guilt
tugged at Will’s gut. He certainly had the capability to step in and take over,
and under normal circumstances he would welcome the adventure, but between Jem
coming and Will wanting to spend time with his family before he left, taking
Sven’s place on this job would be a sacrifice he wasn’t sure he was willing to
make. He owed a lot to the Englishman. If it hadn’t been for Jem and his
countless fighting lessons, Will didn’t know if he would have made it back to
his family in one piece.

With an exasperated sigh, Will grabbed the
necessary clothing from Rafe’s wardrobe and headed back downstairs.

“He’s going to need rest. And lots of it,” the
doc said as Will pushed his way back into the room. A red-faced Sven was covered
in towels, his wet clothes hanging from the rafters over the tub.

Will handed the dry clothes to his mother.

“Go ask Lottie to warm some of the chicken broth
she used for the pot-pies, will you?” Leah smiled reassuringly. “And bring some
of my willow-bark tea,” she called after him.

When he walked into the kitchen, Raine sat at the
table eating his late breakfast. A waft of savory aroma wove around Will and he
glanced at the stove where a pot of broth had already been set to warm. He
walked over to the cupboard above the sink and grabbed a tin full of his
mother’s special herbal tea.

“Querida,” the little Spanish cook said as she
walked into the kitchen. “This sopa will do your friend some good.” Lottie
picked up a ladle, spooned some into a bowl, and passed him on her way out the
door. “I will take to him.”

“Gracias, Lottie,” he called after her. He pumped
the kettle full of water and set it on the stove to warm, then pulled out a
chair and sat down at the table next to his brother.

“Where have you been?” Will asked playfully, now
able to relax for the first time this morning.

“The Hamilton’s well caved in last night. Mrs.
Hamilton has had to cart in all of her water from the river while her husband
and a few of the neighbors have been working to clear the well. And with their
four little ones, they needed someone to help out.”

“So, Raine Redbourne came to the rescue and
cleared out the well in no time at all, right?”

“Actually, I helped the oldest two children with
their schoolwork and played with the others until their ma had finished making
dinner and had gotten the youngest to bed.” He took another bite of his eggs.

Will laughed loudly.

“And then, of course, I helped them clear the
well.” A grin spread across his face, but he didn’t look up from his food.

Will watched his oldest brother for a moment. How
could he ever live up to the standard that Raine had set for all of his younger
siblings? He was proud of everything he’d been able to accomplish with his
life—especially amidst the hardships that he’d seen. Losing his wife, Sarah,
had been a real black moment in his life. In all of their lives.