Heart of the Sandhills (8 page)

Daniel followed the wagon behind the barn. While he and Robert unloaded the lumber, Abner clomped up to the house and disappeared inside. By the time he came back, Daniel and Robert had nearly finished unloading the wood.

“Had the missus get this for you,” Abner grunted, tossing a shirt at Daniel. “Won’t do to have my girls watchin’ a half-dressed Indian work on the place.” At Daniel’s look of surprise, Abner shrugged. “Fool girls seem to think you two men are a subject to be studied.”

Daniel was shirtless for only a brief second, but it was long enough for Abner to notice the scars. He grabbed Daniel’s left hand and inspected the old wounds across Daniel’s left shoulder and down his forearm. “Didn’t think the scouts did much fightin’,” he said, peering into Daniel’s eyes. “Thought you boys said you were on the peace-keepin’ side of things back in ‘62. Jeb Grant vouched for you.” He pointed at Daniel’s shoulder. “But that’s a bullet hole if I ever saw one.”

Daniel pulled his hand away. While he buttoned Abner’s gigantic shirt he said quietly, “I owe my earthly life to a white woman who took care of a foolish boy who got hurt. I owe my eternal life to white missionaries who told that same fool about God.” He stared up at Marsh. “I am no longer a fool, Mr. Marsh. I only want a peaceful life.”

“
Abner! Abner!
”

Marsh spat tobacco juice and looked away. “You want a peaceful life, boys, don’t marry a woman with a voice like a coyote howlin’ at the moon.” He sent another stream of brown liquid at the barn wall and stomped away. “You boys go on home. There’s not enough daylight left to accomplish much.” He paused and looked back at Daniel. “That shirt makes you look like a scare-crow flappin’ in the wind. If your missus can make it fit, you can have it. Otherwise bring ‘er back tomorrow.” With a nod at Robert, Abner headed for the house.

“I can’t come back here,” Daniel said. “He’s going to recognize me sooner or later.”

“I’ll tell him Jeb Grant needed you to plow a new field,” Robert said, slapping the reins against his team’s rumps and heading them up the road toward home. “That’s the truth. Jeb is trying to help us by letting us work for Marsh, but he’s measuring new fields in his head all the time we’re here. I heard him tell Mrs. Grant he about has Quinn talked into selling him some more land.” He paused. “Don’t worry about it. It’s been five years since you were a horse thief.” He forced himself to laugh. “Come to think of it, you never actually
were
a horse thief. Didn’t you tell me Marsh got all three animals back?”

Daniel nodded. “But if he decides I was the one who tried to take them, I don’t think that will matter very much.” He gripped the side of the wagon seat. “Tell me again what you know about the new reservation in Nebraska.”

Sally Marsh was dreaming of inviting Marjorie Grant to tea in a brick house with a carved mahogany staircase when her husband Abner sat straight up in bed and began to curse. The string of epithets flying around the darkened bedroom was like nothing Sally had ever heard before. So vile were the things Abner was saying that Sally was momentarily silenced—until Abner jumped out of bed and his oaths were slowed as he clutched his foot in a vain attempt to make his stubbed toe stop hurting.

“Abner Marsh!” Sally hissed. “What on earth is the matter with you?”

“I can’t believe it,” Abner muttered. “I can’t believe I was so stupid.” He pulled on his pants. “When I get finished with them—”

“With who, Abner? When you get finished with who?”

“Robert Lawrence. Daniel Two Stars. Jeb Grant. He was probably in on it, too. Probably laughing his beard off thinking how he put one over on Abner Marsh.”

Sally slipped out of bed and pulled on her duster. “What’s this about Robert and Daniel? What have they done? Their work is beautiful. The porch is coming along fine. I certainly don’t have any complaints. Why, Eulalie Gibbons was up today while you were in town, and she is just green with envy to see how the place is coming along.”

Abner appeared not to have heard his wife. “I knew I’d seen ‘im somewhere before,” he muttered. “I knew it.” He pulled on his shirt. “Those scars.” He snorted angrily. “And all he could say was how much he loves white people.” Abner swore again. “I’ll show him love!”

Sally shook her husband by the shoulder. “If you don’t tell me what you’re talking about, Abner Marsh, I’m going to assume you’re having a nightmare and wake you up with one of my iron skillets!”

Marsh stood up and pulled his suspenders over his broad shoulders. Finally, he answered his wife. “Daniel Two Stars is one of the young bucks that stole our horses up at Acton. Maybe Robert Lawrence, too, although I don’t think so.”

“Don’t be ridiculous, Abner,” Sally retorted. “That was years ago. Whoever did that is either dead or out West with the other hostiles.” She shook her head. “Let it go, Abner. All these years you’ve never let it go. It eats at you all the time.”

Abner stood up. “When I think what might have happened to you and the girls . . .” Abner clenched his fists and stared down at his wife, suddenly more precious to him than she had been in months.

“They were after the horses, Abner. That’s all,” Sally said sensibly. “If they had been after us we wouldn’t be standing here having this ridiculous conversation. And maybe Two Stars looks like one of them, but you can’t prove he is one of them. And besides,” her voice dropped, “they both do wonderful work.”

“Wonderful work,” Abner repeated. He grasped his wife’s shoulder. “Can’t you see, Sally, what they’re doin’? Just gainin’ our trust. All of us. Waitin’ until we think they are law-abidin’ citizens like the rest of us and they can call their friends from the West to come back home and do it all over again. And when they do, you know what they’ll do to the Abner Marshes and the Jeb Grants?”

“Stop it,” Sally said, twisting away from him. “You’re frightening me.”

“Good,” Abner said. “We been too complacent, lettin’ them live right here among us.” He charged out of the bedroom with Sally following close behind. Snatching up the rifle stored over the back door, he ordered Sally to “stay put” and headed outside. By dawn he had rounded up several of his neighbors, terrifying them with prophecies of midnight attacks and scalpings.

Blessed are the peacemakers . . .

—Matthew 5:9

The scrawny man behind the counter at Ludlow’s Variety Store in New Ulm, Minnesota, chewed on his cigar while he eyed the newcomer suspiciously. Things had been slow all day. Here was news. There wasn’t a man in town who wouldn’t be interested to know about a white boy from the East looking for the Injuns down on Jeb Grant’s place.

The front door creaked, a bell rang, and a lanky man with a thick black beard ducked inside. “Quinn,” the clerk nodded.

“Maybe you can help me, sir,” Aaron said, abandoning the clerk. He offered a handshake to the man named Quinn. “I’m trying to locate Jeb Grant’s farm. Actually,” Aaron said quickly, “I’m trying to locate Daniel and Genevieve Two Stars. They live on the Grant place.”

Thomas Quinn grasped Aaron’s hand. “And just how do you know them—if you don’t mind my asking?”

“Genevieve Two Stars is my stepmother,” Aaron said, “and Daniel is a good friend.”

The clerk behind the counter nearly swallowed his cigar.

“Your stepmother?” Quinn said. He looked Aaron up and down. Then, with a sideways glance at the clerk; he thrust out his hand and smiled warmly. “Then you’d be Aaron Dane.”

Aaron’s blue eyes smiled. “Yes.” He grabbed Quinn’s hand and shook it again. “Yes. You know them?”

Quinn nodded, then shrugged. “Can’t say as I know them real well, but my missus has been quiltin’ with Mrs. Two Stars and Mrs. Lawrence, and we’ve tried to be neighborly.” Quinn smiled. “My Lydia says, Mrs. Two Stars talks about you and your sisters a lot. She said you’d be comin’ to visit.” He cleared his throat. “We were right sorry to hear about your sister. I hope she’s doing better.”

“Thank you,” Aaron said, “she is. Just not ready to travel. I promised her we’d come again next summer when she’s stronger.”

“You don’t mind waiting while I do a little shopping, I’ll take you out to their place. I go right by it on my way home.” He nodded toward the door. “My team’s dapple gray.”

“Great,” Aaron said, “that’s great. Thank you.” He headed for the door.

Quinn handed the clerk his list.

Reaching behind him to retrieve a spool of thread, the clerk said, “Ain’t that somethin’. A white boy calling a squaw his mama. Bet his real mama don’t like that one bit.”

Quinn turned away. Walking to the back of the store, he rummaged for a box of nails. When the clerk made another reference to Aaron’s blond hair and Genevieve Two Stars’s blue eyes, Quinn cleared his throat. “Just fill the order, Harley,” he said abruptly. “I got to get home.”

“Now calm down, Abner,” Jeb pleaded. He rubbed the back of his neck, looking nervously at the half-dozen men gathered on his front porch, rifles in hand. “Let me set my coffee cup down,” he said. “I’ll be out. We’ll talk things over.”

“Nothin’ to talk about,” Abner said loudly. “You’re getting rid of those thievin’ field hands of yours today—or we’re doing it for you.” He raised his rifle in the air and was only prevented from firing by Jeb’s grabbing the barrel.

“No reason to be scaring my boys, is there?”

“All right then,” one of the other farmers answered. “But get out here quick. We got business.”

Jeb backed inside and closed the door in his neighbors’ faces with a trembling hand. He took a deep breath and headed upstairs where Marjorie was putting the twins down for a nap. “There’s trouble,” he said. “Bad trouble, I’m afraid. Abner’s convinced himself Daniel is some kind of horse thief.”

Marjorie snorted indignantly. “What nonsense.” She started to laugh. “I’ll make them all my special coffee cake. They’ll settle down soon enough.”

Jeb shook his head. “I don’t know, Ma. They’re awful riled up about this.” He took his wife’s hand. “I’m going to herd them all into the barn for a meetin’. The minute we’re all inside, you run down and warn Daniel and Robert. I hate to say it, but it might be good for them to make use of the trader’s place up near the old Redwood Agency. Tell ‘em I’ll come for ‘em soon as it’s safe.”

Marjorie’s chin trembled and her eyes filled with tears. “But Nancy’s about to have the baby, Jeb. They can’t just be running off somewhere. Not now.”

Jeb paused at the doorway and looked back over his shoulder. “You get down there as soon as you see we’re all in the barn, you hear?” With a glance toward the other bedroom he said, “We’ll just have to hope the boys sleep through it.” He hurried down the stairs.

“But Abner,” Jeb Grant protested, “be reasonable. That Fetterman thing happened way out West. And we don’t even know how much of what you read is true. The only thing published in our papers is what the Indian does to the white man. We rarely hear what the white man does to the Indian.” He looked at the half-dozen men gathered in the barn and vaguely registered the absence of Thomas Quinn and Ed Baxter. Then he plunged ahead. “You don’t even know those bones you found are white. It could just as easy be some Chippewa killed a long time ago. Or some trader that got lost in a blizzard. It could be anything. Anybody.” Jeb pleaded, “I trust Daniel and Robert like they was kin.”

“We trusted some of them back in ‘62, and you know what happened,” one of the farmers retorted.

A young man with flaming red hair and a hint of a moustache spoke up. “Look, Jeb. We’re not saying they’re all bad. There’s exceptions to every rule. What we are saying is we should learn from experience. We didn’t come to Minnesota to live near Indians. They’re getting a good reservation in Nebraska. They should go there.”

“Government’s givin’ ‘em everything they need. They even drove a herd of horses up from Kansas so’s they could all have one. Can’t see why they don’t just move on,” another one said.

“Because this is their home,” Jeb said. He swallowed hard. “Listen. This is the exact homestead these two men had before the uprising.” While he waited for the men to absorb the news, Jeb paused. When they were quiet, he continued. “Fact is, after what happened last spring when those hostiles broke through the border and killed those homesteaders, I sleep better knowing Robert and Daniel are on the place. It never hurts to have an extra pair of eyes keeping a lookout, and they’ve proved themselves to me.”

“Fool,” Abner muttered.

Jeb drew himself up and challenged Abner. “You think I’m such a fool I’d let them stay on if I thought my boys and my wife were in danger?”

“I didn’t say that,” Marsh said quickly.

“Well, fact is, Abner, you did,” Jeb said. Sensing a glimmer of weakening in the onlookers, he hammered his argument. “I know most of you feel nothing but hatred for everything in the form of an Indian,” Jeb said. He eyed the faces in the small gathering, once more relieved that Quinn and Baxter were absent. He cleared his throat. “But I’ve known Daniel and Robert for nigh on two years now. I’ve seem them work hard and look the other way when they was called names and their women was treated poorly. You have any doubts about Daniel Two Stars and Robert Lawrence, you just take yourself on up to Fort Ridgely and ask Captain John Willets what he thinks of his two Indian scouts. He’ll tell you a thing or two about those men.” Jeb thrust his chin out and stared into the eyes of the six men surrounding him. ‘And I’ll tell you this. The day hasn’t dawned yet when somebody can ride onto the place I’m sweating to build and pouring my lifeblood into and tell me I got to tell two families I count as friends to git.”

“Never picked you for a Injun-lover, Jeb,” Abner Marsh said. He added a few other choice terms to the moniker, stopping only when Marjorie appeared at the barn door.

“I’ll have fresh coffee and cake for you men directly,” she called out cheerily. “You’ll all stay, won’t you?”

“Got no time for socializin’ today,” Marsh replied.

“I didn’t say anything about socializing, Mr. Marsh,” Marjorie teased. “I just don’t want you going home hungry, that’s all. My reputation’s at stake.” She looked at her husband. “I checked in with the Lawrences for you, Jeb. Robert said to tell you he’d get to plowing that new field today.” She glanced over the crowd of men. “Now you men don’t forget to stop up at the house for coffee when your meeting’s done.”

When Marjorie had disappeared inside the house, Jeb took a deep breath and glared up at Abner. “We don’t see things the same, Abner. But I always respected you. I know you’ve had some run-ins with the Dakota. I don’t blame you for being suspicious. But I take it personal when you don’t believe what I know to be true.” Jeb eyed the other men, who looked away nervously.

“I won’t have Injuns livin’ nearby,” Abner said stubbornly.

“Well then,” Jeb said with a wicked smile. “I guess your place’ll be for sale. I’ll pay you a fair price.”

When the other men snickered, Marsh’s face reddened and he let out another stream of profanities. He snatched up his rifle and headed outside. “You keep yer Injuns if ya like, Jeb. Just see they stay close to home.”

Jeb followed him. “What’s your Sally going to say when she finds out her porch railing’s not going to get finished?”

“I’ll handle Sally,” Abner shot back. Snatching up his horse’s reins, he mounted up. Looking past Jeb to where the other men stood watching he said loudly, “Just see they stay close to home. A man never knows when some varmint’ll come out of the dark and blow him away. Be a shame if your blood brothers or their women got kilt by accident.” He wheeled his horse around and with a savage kick to its ribs, charged off toward home.

“Uh-oh.” Thomas Quinn turned to watch Abner Marsh retreat into the distance. Marsh had come flying toward them at such a furious pace, Thomas had pulled his team over on the side of the dirt road to let him pass. Now Abner was gone, but neither Quinn nor Aaron had missed the rage on the man’s face as he whipped his horse past them.

“Who was that?” Aaron asked.

“Marsh. Abner Marsh.” Quinn guided his team back onto the road. “Guess we’d better see what’s going on.” He urged the team to a trot. They had gone nearly a quarter of a mile before Quinn said, “Guess I ought to tell you that Marsh doesn’t take to the idea of Daniel and Mrs. Two Stars and the Lawrences living so close.”

He pulled his team into a narrow lane leading to an attractive two-story house. From his vantage point on the wagon seat, Aaron looked away from the house into the valley below. Two log cabins were visible in the distance, but there was no sign of activity near either one, and no smoke rose from the chimneys. He wanted to jump down and tear off down the hill, but hesitated when a crowd of men emerged from the barn. A woman appeared on the front porch of the house. She rested her hand on the ornate railing and called out, “Now who wants coffee before they head home?” When no one answered, she said, “Coffee cake’s just about done, too.”

One by one, the men declined the woman’s invitation, tipping their hats and thanking her in a tone of voice at once polite and, Aaron thought, a little embarrassed.

Quinn approached a short man with a grizzled beard and extended his hand. They exchanged a few words before the man limped over to where Aaron waited. He reached up to shake hands. “Jeb Grant,” he said. “Glad to meet you, Aaron. Call me Jeb.” He called up to the woman on the porch, “Marjorie, this here’s Aaron Dane.”

At mention of Aaron’s name, Marjorie hurried down off the porch. “Aaron! Praise the Lord, it’s good to see you—Genevieve has just been—” she broke off, looking down the hill and then at her husband.