Chapter Twelve
Blinding rain pelted the ring of wagons, punctuated only by white streaks of lightning.
The droplets beat a heavy rhythm against the canopy, which had torn at one end despite bravely attempting to withstand the hail and rain.
Grace’s father had managed to hastily patch the area, but water still dripped into the wagon at a steady pace.
The wagon train had traveled like this for days until the weather had become too dangerous for them to continue.
In fact, the entire road ahead had washed away, so Amos had ordered that they all stop.
That had been three days ago. Grace’s family and their group had managed to find some shelter along a cliff dotted with caves, but the rain still poured mercilessly, and the harsh gusts of wind still found their way into the caves.
Grace retrieved her damp sewing kit from the wagon and hurried back into the feeble shelter provided by the cave.
Her boots made a squishing sound as she crossed the muddy ground studded with rocks.
She shivered, water soaking through her dress from the few seconds she’d spent at the cave entrance.
Their group, led by Ethan, had crammed as many wagons as they could along the cave’s entrance as both a barricade and an attempt to block the wind, and had brought all the livestock and people inside.
So many bodies in such close quarters provided a damp, stifling warmth that never seemed to fully dry out. As Grace joined Hannah by the fire, she reflected on the fact that a damp warmth was better than none at all. Hannah gave her a feeble smile and leaned closer.
“We lost one of the wagons,” she whispered, her brow pinched with worry. “It was carrying supplies—most of our flour, water, and linens. Apparently some of Dr. Holloway’s medicines and bandages were in there, too.”
Grace’s eyes widened. “Were we able to retrieve anything?”
“Kate said they were able to bring back a little bit,” Hannah replied.
“Kate?”
Aside from Hannah, Grace hadn’t interacted much with the other women. She had remained close to her father and his wagon, mostly out of concern that the other women might perceive her the same way that the men did, as someone who didn’t belong on the trail.
Hannah gestured to a young blonde woman who was attempting to light a fire. Two boys ran around her, screaming and chasing one another. They seemed entirely oblivious to the struggle of the woman who must be their mother.
“It must be difficult to be a child and so restricted in this cave,” Grace mused.
“Undoubtedly,” Hannah said.
Grace then searched the cave for Ethan. At last, she found him standing some distance away, speaking with Amos and Derek.
Grace knew that Amos and Derek were in charge of the other groups, which had also taken shelter somewhere near the cliffside.
She supposed the men were discussing how their groups had fared, as well as trying to decide the best course of action.
“Was it Derek’s group?” Grace asked. “That lost the wagon?”
Hannah nodded. “I’m sure that Ethan is giving him an earful over it, but it could have happened to any of the groups.”
Grace wasn’t entirely sure that was true. Sure, accidents could happen to anyone, but it wasn’t like Derek had just made a little mistake. He’d lost an entire wagon. And it was very possible that it was due to carelessness.
“You care a lot about Derek,” Grace observed.
“I think Derek needs…” Hannah trailed off. “I think he needs someone to believe in him. If no one else will be that person, then I will.”
Grace saw Ethan run his hand through his hair, his frustration evident even from a distance. Grace then glanced to Emily, who played happily with her doll just a few feet away.
“Will we have enough supplies to last us the full journey now?” Grace asked, keeping her voice low so Emily wouldn’t overhear.
Hannah shrugged. “I hope so, though I imagine it’s already a problem. I know Amos didn’t plan on us having to take shelter for a few days. Kate overheard him saying that we’ll have to leave soon, no matter what the weather does.”
Grace rubbed her hands together, forcing some warmth into her fingers before attempting to thread a needle. With a sigh, Hannah spread out yet another mangled canopy.
Although nearly all of Grace’s possessions were soaked with rainwater, her family hadn’t fared too badly.
Her beloved books had suffered the worst damage, but she had been more fortunate than many; some of the wagons had been completely devastated by the hail.
Bags of flour and crates of produce were wet and broken, and some of the animals had bolted in terror.
Thomas had lost a horse and kept stomping about like a thundercloud, complaining about it to anyone who’d listen.
Several of the travelers, including Kate, Zachariah, Luke, and Jonathan, were clustered around the physician’s wagon, where Dr. Holloway was tending to their bruises and cuts.
As far as Grace had heard, the injuries were all thankfully minor.
“I don’t know if this is even salvageable,” Hannah said as she swept a skeptical eye over the canopy, then looked at the stack of damaged ones still left. Grace knew what Hannah had to be wondering; with their limited resources, should they sacrifice this canopy in the hopes of patching the others?
“Were they able to salvage the top from that wagon, at least?” Grace asked.
“I don’t know.” Usually, Hannah was cheerful when she sewed and eager to talk, but a new somberness had settled over her.
Grace said nothing more, focusing all her energy on trying to keep her fingers from trembling as she stitched together the torn material.
There was something comforting in the familiarity of sewing.
If she kept at it, she might almost be able to convince herself that she was back in her father’s house in Lexington.
She could pretend that she was seated beside a large, roaring fire rather than this pitiful, flickering thing that barely provided enough heat to even feel.
Grace began to feel a bit queasy. This was her chance for a new life, a better life, but she wondered…
Her eyes darted to Emily, who was still playing, then to her father, who was inspecting one of the horse’s hooves. The light of the nearest fire barely reached him, and the shadows cast his face into stark contrast. Her father looked tired. Old.
He hadn’t wanted to leave Lexington, and he probably would’ve preferred going anywhere other than to the West. Father had always favored cities. Grace could only pray that Oregon would be worth all this. It had to be.
***
After an hour or so, Derek happened to walk past. He gave Hannah a hesitant smile. “I’ll see you later.”
Hannah frowned. “Stay safe.”
Derek nodded. For the first time Grace had seen, he did not look like a playful, carefree young man. A cold wave of foreboding swept over her. Just how desperate was their situation?
Grace watched as he walked heavily to the cave entrance and hesitated before disappearing into the heavy rain. Hannah sighed, her eyes taking on a faraway look.
“He’ll be fine,” Grace tried to reassure her.
“I hope so,” murmured Hannah, her expression doubtful.
A while later, Amos walked past them. His face looked grim.
Grace turned her head, looking for Ethan again, though it was a struggle to find him when the men were clustered so close together within the cave.
“He’ll come to us soon,” Hannah said. “Then, we’ll know how…how things are looking. I’m sure everything is fine.”
Hannah’s voice quivered when she spoke, but Grace did not comment on it. Maybe Hannah would be proven right. Grace silently prayed that the loss of a single wagon wasn’t the catastrophe that she thought it might be.
“Now, listen here!” A raised voice echoed through the cave before it was quickly swallowed up by a cacophony of shouts from several men who had clustered around Ethan. He stood firm, his hands raised in a placating gesture as they barraged him with complaints.
Hannah bolted to her feet, her eyes wide. Some of the other women and children turned to watch, wariness filling their already exhausted eyes.
The shouting continued, and Hannah took a step forward, watching the crowd around her brother anxiously.
“Wait,” Grace said. Hannah turned to look at her with a pale, drawn face.
“Let Ethan handle it,” Grace said. “He can calm them down.”
A strange jolt of awareness sparked inside her. She didn’t think she’d ever praised Ethan before, and something about the admission that he was a capable man (which he was) left her feeling unmoored.
Hannah bit her lip, looking indecisive.
“Besides,” Grace continued. “They may think less of Ethan if his sister swoops in to try and save him.”
That was true enough, but what Grace truly feared was the possibility the men might start fighting one another. Hannah didn’t need to get caught up in something like that.
“What’s wrong?” Emily whispered, sitting beside Grace and curling into her side.
“Nothing, sweetheart,” Grace said, wrapping an arm around her daughter. “Everyone is just a little anxious and grumpy with each other because of the weather.”
“Yelling is scary.”
Grace thought about Charles at that. In the last days, he’d always yelled, and Grace hadn’t known how to respond to his visible anger. Her own father seldom raised his voice at all.
“You’ll be fine, sweetheart. I promise, Emily.”
With a heavy sigh, Hannah sat back down, pulling her knees up and letting her forehead rest on top of them. Grace hesitantly reached out and squeezed Hannah’s shoulder.
“It will turn out all right, Hannah, I’m sure of it. Ethan is capable.”
And for all his faults, he really was. Other than Grace, people seemed to like Ethan.
At least, Grace hadn’t heard anyone say anything bad about him.
He helped with the animals and pulled his weight when it came to the chores.
He did the scouting and repaired wagons and generally agreed to help if he was asked.
Plenty of the men currently involved in the shouting match seemed to like and respect Ethan under normal circumstances, so she saw no reason he wouldn’t be able to win them over again.
“He is. You’re right,” Hannah said, lifting her head at last. The worry in her eyes was clear, and Grace could guess at what she must have been thinking: ‘But things must be very bad if everyone is so angry.’
It took some time, but the shouts slowly dissipated as some of the men stormed away from Ethan. A few rejoined their wives, while others clustered together as they sent Ethan vicious looks, until the crowd eventually dispersed entirely.
Grace looked over her finished portion of the canvas. Poor Hannah had been too distracted to work on it much at all, and she visibly relaxed as Ethan joined them.
“What’s wrong?” Hannah asked. “You seem upset.”
Ethan dropped to the ground beside them, looking defeated. “We’re running low on supplies. We lost a lot of food and medicine.”
“How low?” Grace asked.
“Are we in trouble?” Emily whispered, curling her hands into Grace’s skirts.
“Not yet,” Ethan said, offering a clearly forced smile.
“We’ll manage fine. People are just a little upset, but we can start rationing supplies.
We’re going to be trapped here for a while longer, and it’s too dangerous right now to go out and scavenge for anything.
It would be too easy to lose sight of the cave.
You don’t need to worry, Emily. We’re going to figure it out. I promise.”
“Amos and Derek made it here,” Grace pointed out.
“Sure,” Ethan said. “But they did so by following along the cliffside. Their groups are in other caves just a few feet away. There’s nothing else helpful here. If someone were to go any farther, they’d probably get disoriented quickly.”
“Oh,” Grace said.
Ethan sighed. “At least we still have drinking water.”
“I’m sick of water. All this rain is simply unbelievable,” said Grace.
Ethan’s lips twitched into a small, amused smile. Grace swallowed hard, trying to recall if he’d ever smiled directly at her before. It was an expression that suited Ethan well.
“We all are,” he said
“Is that why some of the men are angry?” Hannah asked. “Having to ration?”
Ethan nodded.
Hannah scowled. “Ridiculous. They knew that the trail would require sacrifices, yet at the first hint of discomfort—”
“More than the first,” Ethan said. “But you know as well as I how men are. A lot of them believe they’re ready to conquer the world, but saying you’re going to do something and actually doing it are two entirely different animals.”
“That’s no reason for them to take it out on you!” Hannah exclaimed.
Ethan snorted. “Would you prefer they take it out on Derek?”
“He didn’t do anything wrong either,” Hannah said.
Ethan sighed. The fire popped feebly, and he nudged a tiny piece of wood further into the flames with his boot. “You’re right. It sounds like the ground gave way beneath that family’s wagon. No one could’ve predicted that.”
“Maybe there is something we can do,” Grace said slowly, a thought forming in her mind.
“We are doing something,” Ethan said wearily. “Rationing.”
“Right,” Grace agreed. “But what if we—maybe we should at least take proper stock of the supplies? Perhaps we can organize them differently somehow to make everything go further. Even if that’s not possible, it will at least lift people’s spirits to see that some kind of action is being taken.”
Ethan rubbed his chin, but didn’t shoot her idea down immediately. “Do we want to risk wasting our energy on that? We don’t know how long we‘ll be here, Grace.”
“I think it will be worth it,” she said, recognizing that this was a chance for her to be useful and prove herself to him and anyone else who might doubt her. “I’m happy to do it myself, actually. I am—I am good at this sort of thing.”
He raised an eyebrow. “At organizing rations?”
“Of course,” she replied, lifting her chin defiantly. “Do you have any idea how many menus I have managed? How many luncheons and dinners I have planned for my father’s business partners when they came to visit? I might not know everything about—about the trail, but I can organize.”
For a moment, Ethan stared at her like she had lost her mind. “Dinners for your father’s business partners,” he echoed, sounding incredulous. Grace didn’t budge, though, refusing to be cowed.
“Yes.”
Ethan shook his head, still clearly skeptical. “Well, I suppose I could let you try.”
It wasn’t the glowing endorsement that Grace had hoped for, but Ethan seldom agreed with her on anything, so she decided to accept his answer for the victory that it was.
“I will do more than try,” she said. “I will do splendidly.”