Chapter 17
Theda walked alongside Phineas. It was one of the rare mornings when they took the time to walk together for a little while before the wagon train started moving. As they passed the Wesley wagon, both Mr. and Mrs. Wesley waved at them.
“People really love you, you know? You remind me of Pa, before everything happened.” Phineas’ tone was warm.
Theda blushed.
“Thank you.”
"He would have been proud of you if he'd been here to see everything you can do." Phineas looked over at her warmly as they turned the corner of one of the wagons. They'd reached the spot where they kept the animals, and someone's voice caught Theda's attention.
She stopped walking for a moment, focusing on Jem as Phineas slowed beside her.”
Jem's voice was low and steady as he spoke with Oren.
Oren Crenshaw stood beside one of the bays with a saddle half-secured and a stubborn look on his face. His jaw was tight with concentration. He may have been seventeen, but he longed for an older role model, someone who would treat him as a father would have. Jem stood nearby, watching.
He didn't reach over to fix whatever Oren was working on. He simply waited.
Oren frowned at the buckle, adjusted it, and tried again.
“Oren wants to come scouting with us,” Phineas explained, his eyes watching the scene in front of them.
“Oh?” Theda looked up at him.
“I said it would be fine if Jem agreed to keep an eye on him, and he did.” Phineas chuckled. “Looks like the two of them are getting along well.”
Phineas shifted for a moment.
“I have a few different stops I need to make before we get started. I’ll find you by your wagon later, all right?”
“Of course. I can make it back from here.” She offered him a warm smile. Sometimes it struck her just how much Phineas looked like their late father. He had the same curls, the same intense look in his eye. Like their father, he always looked like he was carrying too much.
After Phineas left, she watched Jem on her own for a few seconds longer. She liked seeing him with Oren and with others around camp. She'd seen how he spoke with others, how more and more people were coming to accept him.
There was something about him that drew people in, including her. She drew in a sharp breath and turned away, deciding to head back toward her wagon.
As she rounded the Garfield wagon, she nearly collided with Tolliver.
"Oh!" He stepped back immediately. His hat tumbled to the ground, and he bent to retrieve it.
"Miss Calloway." He settled the hat back on his head. "My apologies. I didn’t see you there.”
"No harm done." Theda adjusted her apron over her skirt.
Tolliver smiled. There was nothing improper about it, yet something about the way he looked at her made her uneasy. She couldn't explain why.
"Are you heading to your wagon? I’m going the same way." He gestured ahead. "Mind if I walk with you?"
Theda opened and closed her mouth, searching for a way to turn him down.
"Come along, we can go now." Tolliver started forward, and she reluctantly fell in step with him. She didn't want to be walking anywhere with Tolliver.
"Rough crossing back there at the Platte," Tolliver said, breaking the awkward silence between them. "I've seen men lose whole wagons on that stretch."
"We managed well enough."
"You did. Calloway runs a tight company." He said it approvingly, like it was his to approve. "Country west of here opens up some. I trapped through it, oh, eight, nine years ago now. Different in summer. You'll like it."
"Have you been through it in winter?" Theda felt like she was supposed to ask a question.
"Once." He smiled at the road ahead. "Once was enough."
She nodded and said nothing more, and Tolliver, to his credit, didn't seem to require much from her end of it.
He talked about the trail, about a pass he knew that cut two days off the standard route, about the quality of the grass once they cleared the next river.
She listened with half her attention and kept the rest on the distance between them.
To her surprise, Leland was waiting near her wagon. Theda quickened her pace, eager to be out of Toliver’s company.
“Leland, just the man I needed to see,” Toliver said before Theda could get anything out. “Do you know where I can find Phineas?”
"Yes, he's near the front of the wagon." Leland's tone was tight and dismissive. Toliver looked between them, then nodded.
“All right, I’ll go find him.”
As Toliver finally left, Leland took a step closer. Theda was no longer focused on getting away from Toliver and was completely focused on what she was supposed to say to Leland.
He’d avoided her since she’d turned him down, and she couldn’t blame him.
"How are you?" he asked.
"Well. You?" Theda studied him. He looked a little different than the last time she’d seen him, a little more haggard.
"Fine."
For a moment, he looked past her shoulder before meeting her eyes again. Her stomach clenched. Whatever had been misunderstood between them, she didn't want to think about it. She didn't want to lose the friendship, the familiar relationship that had been a constant for her whole life.
Theda cleared her throat. "I don't want things to be different between us." She gestured between them. "I meant what I said, and I don't regret saying it. But I'd hate to lose our friendship." Her gaze flickered from his face to the ground. She felt suddenly shy.
She wasn’t used to discussing things so openly.
Leland was quiet for a moment.
Then he let out a long breath, and some of the tension left his shoulders.
"You won't. I am both your friend and your brother’s friend for as long as I live. That’s not going to change. I just need some time to…accept things.”
"Good," she whispered.
Leland smiled faintly. "I'm glad we settled that."
"So am I. What can I help you with?”
"Martha, Mrs. Lekowski's daughter, is in the wagon next to last. Her mother is feeling ill, and she wants you to take a look. I was nearby, so Martha asked if I could get you."
“Oh, of course. I’ll go take care of it now.” Theda’s cheeks burned red. She should have figured that he’d come to discuss something professional. She’d done everything she could to keep things between them professional.
"All right. I'll see you around, Theda." Leland sounded sad as he said goodbye. She was tempted to stop him, to ask him to come back and stay for a while, but she didn't want to give him the wrong idea. Instead, she gathered her things and headed out to Mrs. Lekowski's wagon.
---*---
For the next four days, Theda didn’t see Leland except for a few times from a distance, talking with her brother.
Someone shouting at the top of his lungs made Theda freeze.
For a moment, she thought she'd imagined it. Then another shout followed, louder than the first.
Theda set down the breakfast rag she was wringing out and hurried around the back of the wagon. Men argued all the time on the trail. There were disagreements over routes, grazing land, supplies, and a dozen other things. But this sounded different. Angrier.
By the time she reached the road between the wagons, people were already gathering. A crowd had formed around Walt Aldrich and one of the Pruitt brothers, Joe, she was pretty sure his name was. Both men were red-faced and shouting over each other while half the camp tried to see what was happening.
"You took it right off my wagon!" Walt barked. "Don't stand there and lie to me."
"I didn't take anything." Joe shrugged.
"The bucket's been hanging off your wagon since yesterday!" Walt took a step forward.
"Maybe because it's my bucket."
"You’re wrong!” Walt’s face was so red, and his eyes were bulging from his face, as if he’d pass out if he continued with his accusations.
Several men stepped closer.
"Easy now," someone said. "Let's settle down."
Neither man appeared interested in settling down. Walt jabbed a finger into Joe’s chest. Joe slapped the hand away.
The crowd groaned.
"Oh, here we go."
"Somebody separate them."
"You calling me a thief?" Joe demanded.
"If the boot fits." Walt smirked.
Joe lunged.
Walt shoved him hard enough that he stumbled backward. For a second, it looked as though that might be the end of it. Then Joe came back swinging. Theda sucked in a breath.
Before the punch could land, Jem pushed through the crowd. She hadn't even seen him approach.
"Enough." Several people fell silent. Even Walt hesitated.
Then Joe swung anyway. Everything happened so fast that she almost missed it.
Joe’s fist came around. Jem's hand shot up and caught his wrist. There was a quick twist of movement. A sharp cry escaped Joe. Then suddenly, he was face down in the dirt. His arm was pinned behind his back. Jem's knee pressed into the small of it, holding him there.
The entire camp fell silent.
Walt looked as stunned as the man he'd been fighting. Someone near the back of the crowd let out a low whistle. Joe struggled once, then froze. The whole thing had taken less than two seconds. Then Jem seemed to realize what he'd done.
He released Joe immediately and stepped back. Walt scrambled to his feet, rubbing his shoulder.
"What in blazes was that?" somebody muttered.
"I don't know."
"I've never seen anything like it."
Neither had Theda. Her gaze never left Jem.
He wasn't standing there looking pleased with himself. He was staring down at his own hands. The expression on his face unsettled her. He looked confused. Almost alarmed.
"That's not how a farmer fights." Leland's voice carried clearly through the silence.
Theda glanced toward him. His words settled heavily over the crowd.
Several people exchanged uneasy looks. No one argued. Because everyone was thinking the same thing. Phineas stepped forward.
"Jem."
Jem looked up.
"Walk with me."
Theda recognized the tone immediately. Jem hesitated briefly before nodding.
"All right."
Around them, the crowd slowly began to break apart. People drifted back toward their chores, though many kept glancing over their shoulders. The fight was over, but the questions it had raised were not.
Theda remained where she was.
She watched Phineas lead Jem away from the wagons and stop near the edge of camp. Her brother folded his arms and said something. Jem answered. Then shook his head. Phineas spoke again.
Even from a distance, Theda could see the patience in his posture. He wasn't angry. He was trying to understand.
Jem rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. He said something else.
Then shook his head again. Theda's chest tightened. Jem hadn't expected it any more than the rest of them had. She kept replaying the fight in her head.
He’d moved so fast, with practiced precision, as if he had been ready for that fight before it even started.
She watched him glance down at his hands again. Now, everyone was looking at them differently. Including him. Phineas asked another question.
Jem's shoulders sagged.
"I don't know." Theda heard him say, as the two of them headed her way. The words carried farther than he probably intended, "I just... did it."
Something twisted painfully in her chest. He sounded frustrated. Movement at the edge of the camp caught her attention. Tolliver.
He stood apart from everyone else with his hat pulled low over his brow. Unlike the others, he hadn't gone back to work. He was still watching.
Watching Jem. Theda frowned. Something about the look on his face made her uneasy. A moment later, Jem glanced up.
His eyes met Tolliver's across the distance. Neither man moved. The look lasted only a second. Then Tolliver turned away and adjusted his hat.
Theda followed him with her eyes until he disappeared between the wagons. When she looked back, Phineas was still speaking to Jem. Jem stood with his hands at his sides, listening.