Go West Serial Novel – Page 6

Go West~Chapter 37

Go West

by DiVoran Lites

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Family Comes to Visit

Ellie

It was almost the end of summer — round-up time when Ellie drove to the station to meet her mother and grandparents off the Chicago train. The mountains, as yet, had no snow on them, but she knew from the talk around the table that Aldon was planning to bring the cattle down this week in order to avoid bad weather for the trek.

That afternoon, when she hugged the members of her small family in their elegant department store suits, she felt tall — tall and protective. When Granddad removed his hat she saw him in a way she hadn’t seen him before. Was his hair always pure white? Had his shoulders drooped slightly the last time she saw him? Mother looked as if she were Grandmother’s sister instead of her daughter, and Grandmother was looking downright frail. Had they changed or had she developed a more mature way of looking at them? She would need to watch and listen in order to understand whether they had problems now that they hadn’t had before or whether they were the same as always and it was she who had changed.

At the ranch, Aldon, Molly, Kate and Seraphina, everyone except the Solanos, came out to welcome them and usher them inside. Ellie, Kate, and Seraphina had moved to the third floor so that the guests would only need to climb one set of stairs. Aldon lugged their Alexander Clark Co. Ltd. luggage to their rooms right away they might change into more comfortable clothing.

It wasn’t quite suppertime when they came downstairs so Molly asked Ellie and Aldon to show them around. At the corral, they stood and watched Sunrise leap and mince around Summer. Ellie’s mother, Vera, laughing at the colt’s feistiness, thanked Aldon for giving the mustangs to Ellie.

“She’s a good horse. Did she write about how well she and Summer placed in the rodeo race?” Aldon asked.

At bedtime, Vera came up to her room carrying a brown-paper wrapped package. She handed it to her daughter and Ellie tore it open.

“That’s beautiful,” she said, running her hand around the smooth silver frame. She glanced into her reflection, though, and thought her face looked drawn and shadows under her eyes spoke of poor sleep.

“Thank you, it’s just right. I hope he’ll accept it from me.” Ellie said putting it on the desk.

“Why would he not?” Vera asked. “What’s going on between you and that handsome young cowboy?” Vera sat on the bed, and patted the spot beside her. Ellie sat down too. These bedrooms were smaller than the one on the second floor and had even less space for a private visit.

“I don’t think anything is going on between us. Not anymore,” Ellie sighed.

“Are you fond of him?” Vera lifted Ellie’s chin and turned her head so the young woman would look at her. Ellie nodded.

“Does he love you?” Vera’s voice held a poignancy her daughter had rarely heard.

“I thought he did.” Ellie wiped away a tear, hoping her mother hadn’t noticed that she was crying.

“But you’re afraid of something?” Vera seemed genuinely interested. Suddenly, Ellie realized that all her life she and her mother had been nearly strangers. Vera was only sixteen years older and they could have been friends, but something had kept them apart. She did know that Vera was always busy keeping house and entertaining for Grandmother while she was either away at school or working at the store. She would love to know something about her own father – anything would do. She had made up stories and fantasies about a handsome young man who carried a three-year-old on his shoulders, but no one at home had ever mentioned him.

“Are you afraid Aldon will leave you as you believe your father left us?” Vera asked.

“Did you love my dad before he abandoned us?” Ellie sensed a possibility of finally learning what had happened between her parents.

“No,” Vera said taking a deep breath. “I didn’t know him very well?”

“You didn’t know…him?” Ellie gasped. “How else could you have had a child…? Ellie stared at Vera who now refused to meet her eyes.

“You had the best possible father in your Granddad, why don’t we leave it at that?”

“Because, I want to know, I’ve always wanted to know.”

“Oh, Honey, I love you, isn’t that enough?” Vera lightly touched Ellie’s knee.

“I know you love me. You’ve shown it in many ways. I’m so grateful for the work you’ve done to take care of us all. Living with Grandmother and Granddad instead of getting out on your own couldn’t have been easy. Even though we didn’t have much time together, you kept me clean, fed, and dressed. I now realize there were times when you wanted to talk and I was too busy, and I’m sorry. Please, Mother, tell me the whole story.”

DiVoran’s Promise Posters, Paintings from Go West as well as other art can be purchased as note cards and framable art

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Go West~Chapter 36

Go West

by DiVoran Lites

Chapter Thirty-Six

More Nancy and Ellie

Nancy’s voice had become full of controlled groans and sighs. She sounded so burdened with the memory of her husband’s death that Ellie didn’t know what to say.

“Aldon was still gone, Bill had left for California, so I woke Molly who was living with us and she saddled Ribbons and rode for help. While she was gone, I sat with Robert and said goodbye. My brothers came and built a coffin from lumber we had on hand to repair the barn. Molly and I washed and dressed him in clean clothes. Then we buried him on the ridge in the spot where he liked to sit on his horse and look out over the valley.”

“You just buried him, you didn’t have a coroner or an undertaker? There was no death certificate?” Having come from a large city Ellie had never heard of folks dealing with their dead in this way.

“At the time we didn’t have a doctor or even a courthouse nearby.” Nancy fingered a quilt knot.

“Did Aldon come home then?”

“By then, the war was over, and they let him muster out. He was so war-weary I feared for his health. He’d lost Paul and many of his young friends and now his father was gone. He did the outside work, and Molly and I helped while keeping up the cooking, laundry, and house work. You can’t let things go or they’ll get into such messes that you’ll never get them straightened out. We raised whatever vegetables we could. Several years later, Trudy asked me to live with her in town because her husband had died and she was lonely. It was okay with Bill and Aldon. Aldon leased the ranch to the Solanos, and Bill headed west. Molly stayed on enjoying the excitement of the foreigners when they came.” She smiled when she mentioned Molly and Ellie wondered whether she was thinking about the wonderful time they’d had taking Molly to dinner and the moving picture show.

The next thing Ellie was aware of was light streaming through the lace curtains. Someone had spread another quilt over the bed and, oh, there was Nancy. When she realized she had missed coffee time with Aldon, regret caught her by the throat. She coughed lightly, which woke Nancy. Remembering the conversation from the night before Ellie suddenly recalled her anger with Aldon.

“Good morning,” said Nancy.

Ellie got out of bed so Nancy could come from out from her side which was against the wall.

“What’s wrong?” Nancy asked.

“I remembered how mad I am at Aldon.” Ellie picked up the robe hanging over the desk chair.

“Last night was completely unlike him. He would have protected any girl, but I’ve never seen him so mad. What’s going on between you two?” Nancy’s began making the bed. “Maybe if you’d talk to him…” she said softly.

“We’d better start getting ready for church. Hopefully the chores got done without me. Aldon and I usually do the milking together, but I don’t suppose he really needs me. He could milk both cows in the time it takes me to get the stool under one of them.” Ellie had never been so disheartened.

“Does Betsy still stick her foot in the pail?” Nancy’s question followed Ellie’s hint to talk about something else.

“I thought I was the only one she did that to. She got so good at tormenting me that Aldon traded milkers. Spot didn’t like me either. Aldon is the one who has a way with animals.”

“He’s a good man,” said Aldon’s mother.

“Yes, he is, but now that he’s been fighting over me, I’m afraid I’ll be considered a floozy by everyone in the valley. I understand they already thought I was a flapper. Now they’ll think I’ve been leading Enrico and Aldon on,” Ellie hated that her anger with Aldon was making her sharp with Nancy.

“Aldon will be sorry that you’re angry with him, but he may not be sorry he dealt with the other young man the way he did. Please talk to him my dear, he’s never cared for a woman as he does for you and I think you’re in love with him too. It’s not always easy for a man and a woman to communicate. Wouldn’t you be sorry if a quarrel kept you apart for the rest of your lives?”

Ellie, seeing the truth in what Nancy said, nodded thoughtfully, got up, and pulled the blue suit from its hanger in the trunk.

DiVoran’s Promise Posters, Paintings from Go West as well as other art can be purchased as note cards and framable art

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Go West~Chapter 35

Go West

by DiVoran Lites

Chapter Thirty-five

Ellie

“Where were you born? “ Ellie sat with her back against the head of the bed while Nancy lay flat.

“My people came from Germany in 1876 and built this ranch,” said Nancy, so I was born on a neighboring ranch.

“My mother and her sister were born here in Colorado, but the stork dropped me in Chicago.” Ellie settled in for a short chat with Aldon’s mother. “Was Trudy your only sister?” Ellie wanted to know about Aldon’s family whether she stayed at the ranch or not. It would be something to think about when she was alone.

“Yes, Trudy was the eldest. After me, Papa got what the ranch needed, which was a passel of boys.”

“How many is a passel?” Amazed at how much better she felt talking to Nancy, Ellie began to relax.

“For us it was four. Karl died of the Spanish Influenza in 1918.” Nancy’s voice faltered.

“I’m so sorry. Your brothers are quite the gentlemen. I danced with them, you know.” Ellie smiled to herself thinking of the gallant older men who each in his own way reminded her of a giant.”

“Those big old fellows are as easy-going as they come, but they’ve had a great deal of hardship in their lives. They told me you were a sweet little thing. You received their blessing.” Nancy said.

“A sweet little thing?” Ellie sat up fully awake staring at Nancy. “That’s not how I want to be thought of.”

“Oh, no? How do you want them to think of you?” Nancy touched Ellie’s elbow as if to console her.

“As a good, strong, capable woman like you.” Ellie felt the anger simmering again as she recalled Aldon’s embarrassing and unnecessary rescue.

“You are strong and capable.” Nancy reached up and laid her warm hand against Ellie’s cheek. “And beautiful, too, no wonder Aldon is enraptured by you.”

“He’s what?” Ellie jerked her head back.

“Are you attracted to him? “Nancy asked.

“Well, I was, but…”

“His temper worries you.” Nancy nodded.

“I don’t like the idea of men fighting over me. That doesn’t do a woman’s reputation any good, does it?” Ellie started to get up, but when her feet hit the cold floor, she changed her mind. Ready now to talk in earnest she rested her back against a pillow and the iron rungs of the bedstead.

“I have never seen him jealous before. Maybe he’s going to have to learn not to be, but he has always been protective and that will stay with him.” Nancy pulled herself into a sitting position like Ellie’s.

Chapter 35 Robert “He hasn’t said much about his father,” Ellie glanced at Nancy to gauge her expression in reaction to the question.

“Robert had a rough upbringing, but he was a good man. He believed in discipline for children and horses, all our people did.”

“When did you know you loved Robert?” Ellie asked. Both pair of legs stretched toward the foot of the bed and Ellie pulled up the quilt.

“Being neighbors, our families worked the ranches together. On joint workdays, Robert kept my brothers from teasing me too much. They had a lot of respect for him. At haying time one year, when I was about eight, I was wearing a blue-print flour sack dress and running in the meadow with my hair flying. Robert caught me up under the arms and turned in circles with me. It made me dizzy, but when he set me down, he said I was as pretty as a Mountain Bluebird. It always makes me happy to think about that time. Eleven-year-old boys don’t usually speak kindly to small girls let alone protect them from their brothers. I knew he must have thought a lot of me to call me after a Mountain Bluebird. They are one of the prettiest things you ever saw.” She sighed. “They get their color from the sky.”

“Robert was small and dark-headed. Men sometimes called him Shorty and sometimes Pee Wee. He always resented it, but once he proved he was a fighter, they stopped. When I got my growth, I was taller than he was, and when we started stepping out we took some teasing. Inside, though, he was the biggest man I ever knew.”

“What happened to your Robert?” Ellie scooted down in the bed taking her pillow with her.

“After the war — after Paul…” Nancy sighed and drew her knees up under the cover with a low moan. “He got so sad he’d barely speak. It broke my heart, and I tried everything to cheer him. I grieved for Paul, too, but I knew I would see him again. It was awful to lose my husband to bitterness, but I still had two that needed me.

“When you lose your best friend and want to tell somebody about it, it would be your best friend whom you would tell, it’s the loneliest feeling in the world.” Ellie wondered if that made sense as she closed her eyes for a moment. In her imagination she saw Aldon’s face looking surprised and hurt. Biting her lower lip, she willed herself not to cry.

“You’re right, Robert always did his work, but he couldn’t find any peace, so he took to sitting at the kitchen table late into the night drinking beer. At first, I tried to stay and visit, but I couldn’t stay awake all night and do chores the next day, so I started coming upstairs without him. One morning in the wee hours, I realized he hadn’t come to bed, so I went downstairs and he was still at the table. I thought he had just laid his head down, but when I touched him, I knew he was gone.” Nancy dabbed at her eyes with the sheet.

Go West~Chapter 34

Go West

by DiVoran Lites

Chapter thirty-four

Ellie

In her room at the ranch, Ellie picked up the hog’s-hair brush from her dressing table, yanked it through her hair one hundred times, and threw it back on the table. Maybe I should go out to the barn and try to make Aldon understand how I feel, she thought. She dug her fingers into a jar of cold cream and slathered it onto her face while she pictured herself telling Aldon off. I can take care of myself. Don’t you know that if people see men fighting over me, they’ll think I’m a hussy? What business is it of yours who I dance with?

She touched the corner of her eye and felt moisture but knew she wasn’t crying. She had cream in her eye. She wiped it all off with a towel, grabbed her nail file, and sawed away at the nail on the index finger of her right hand.

“May I come in?” Someone knocked gently on the frame of the open door. Glancing up, Ellie saw Aldon’s mother, Nancy, smiling at her.

Forcing a smile Ellie invited Nancy to sit on the bed while she did the calisthenics she was taught in gymnasium at school.

As Nancy walked across the floor her bedroom slippers made a soft padding sound on the linoleum. Ellie noticed that Aldon’s mother was almost as tall as her son and that her hair was the same champagne color as his. A long braid hung down her back and a nimbus of curls framed her face, reminding Ellie of one of the Gish sisters in the moving pictures. Was it Dorothy or Lillian? She couldn’t decide. Ellie’s smile began to feel more genuine because Nancy had come to visit. She was, of course, still furious with Aldon, but now, Nancy’s quiet spirit began to calm her.

“I admire you young girls. You take such good care of your figures. I hope you won’t mind if I rest my back. I thought maybe we could talk while the house is quiet. I don’t plan to stay long.” She watched from the bed as Ellie jumped up and down flapping her arms. After she had done twenty-five jumping jacks, she touched her toes without bending her knees for the same number of times.

“This has been a long day,” Ellie said, throwing herself on the bed next to Aldon’s mother. She propped herself up on her elbow so she could look into Nancy’s face.

“The boys slept in this room,” Nancy said looking at the ceiling. “They had two beds, but like puppies in a nest, all piled into the same one. By the time they were seven, nine, and ten, they were horsing around so much that we gave each of them his own room. It didn’t do any good, though. Every night, Paul and Bill sneaked into bed with Aldon as soon as he fell asleep, which was immediately.”

“You really love your boys, don’t you?” Ellie lay back on the pillow.

“Aldon was always their hero, especially Paul’s.” Nancy paused and Ellie knew she was thinking about the son that had not returned from the war. If only Ellie could load him into her ambulance and bring him back. But, in war days, bringing anyone back for a complete cure was rare. It was so sad, but many of the lads had already died by the time the medics arrived on the battle field.

“Aldon blames himself for setting an example for him by enlisting.” Nancy seemed transfixed by the light bulb above the bed. “It’s not Aldon’s fault, Paul would have gone anyway if only to prove to himself he was a man.” Nancy spoke without emotion as if her grief had become a dull, but familiar ache. “It was always one of his dreams to become a soldier.”

“But Bill didn’t go to war.” Ellie said.

“No, they thought he had a heart murmur, so they classified him 4-F. We had no idea, except that he never had the stamina the others had. He was built small and never gained weight; which made him an excellent jockey. After the army rejected him he received quite a few white feathers in the mail. That made him feel as if people thought he was a coward.

“What did he do about that?” Ellie asked.

“He’s still trying to prove himself out there in Hollywoodland by taking on the most daring stunts they have,” Nancy answered.

“Lots of boys and men had heart conditions and other problems too.”

“Not one of my boys was ever afraid of anything, though,” Nancy continued. “Paul was a daredevil. He decided one day that he and his brothers would play a game they called Icarus. Bill jumped off the barn first, but he wasn’t’ hurt, neither was Aldon, but Paul broke his leg and was on crutches for weeks.”

“I hate for any man to have to go to war.” Ellie said, covering a yawn. The mattress felt just right, and she liked hearing about Aldon and his brothers even though in some parts it was heartbreaking.

“We gals sometimes don’t understand the things men have to do.” Nancy’s voice grew softer. “They are willing to fight for their country and we’re grateful for that.”

“I don’t understand any man except my granddad,” Ellie said.

“Tell me about your family,” Nancy raised up to fluff her pillow then lay back down again. “Your opa makes his living from cattle too?”

“Not now, he did before I was born. He helps Grandmother run the department store.” Sudden gratitude for Nancy’s gentle company filled Ellie, but she reminded herself that she still had reason to resent the lovely woman’s son.

DiVoran’s Promise Posters, Paintings from Go West as well as other art can be purchased as note cards and framable art

Creative Arts