Chapter 15
Finally, the weather started getting better.
It couldn’t come any too soon for Travis.
He wanted to marry Angie as soon as possible.
He was finding it almost impossible to say goodnight to her every evening.
Their passion was almost out of control.
Angie was having as much trouble as he was.
She told him that it would be all right to sleep together…
she wasn’t a virgin, but Travis told her that he wouldn’t dishonor her before they were married.
But they damn well better not be having snowstorms into March or his willpower was going to be sorely pressed. Angie had laughed, but she understood.
Spring had cooperated on them, and in the middle of February, they had their last snowstorm.
The weather started getting warmer and the snow started to melt.
Travis took that as a sign of spring, and they went to the minister and were married.
He had decided that his patience was being rewarded for holding out this long.
Lynn stood up for Angie, and Tate stood up for Travis.
They had to stay on the minister’s porch because of all the people and children that came to see them getting married.
Henry gave Angie away. He approved of her marrying Travis.
He was a good man and would do right by his sister and her boys.
As a wedding present for his bride, Travis was having Cal putting in a water closet in her little house.
She was thrilled with the gift. She only wished she had it all winter long.
Sam had a wedding feast prepared to feed everyone in their warehouse, so they could be out of the cold.
She and Jill helped serve everyone. It wasn’t fancy, but there was more than enough to feed them all.
Baked ham, with sweet potatoes, corn, sweet rolls, and a three-layer wedding cake…
one layer of chocolate cake, one layer of white cake, and one layer of yellow cake.
It was a work of art. Angie and Travis with Will and Bobby thought it was a wonderful wedding.
Will and Bobby loved getting a new father as long as it was Travis.
They also loved his wolf, Zeus, who was still just a pup.
They carried all his belongings back to their home and helped him put his things away and hang them up on the nails on the wall.
Then, they played with Zeus. Travis had to go to work as a deputy that day, but Red was going to cover him working for the night.
Travis kissed Angie several times and went out to cover the boardwalk with a big smile on his face.
People went out of their way to congratulate him on his marrying Angie. He tipped his hat and took it all in. He paid Cal for his new water closet and thanked him for how quickly he put it in. Cal told him that it was no problem and congratulated him on his marriage and then went to his next job.
The day seemed to last forever. He wanted to get home to see Angie and make love to her.
He thought about it all day as he broke up fights in the saloons, helped carry out groceries for older ladies, stopped young men from throwing snowballs at horses in wagons, and helped anyone up that fell on the thawing snow on the boardwalk.
He stopped to see Red in the jail at noon to make sure there were no new incidents that he should be aware off.
Red was glad to see him. “Travis, nice wedding this morning. Good to see you shackled with the rest of the men in this town. Angie is sure a nice woman. We got two telegrams that need our attention. One is that Nash Bridger that Sam had a run-in with a few years ago had broken out of the territorial prison with a few of his original men. The U. S. Marshals say he’s heading straight for Angel Falls and to quote them, ‘the bitch who sent them to hell’.
I’m afraid that they mean to cause trouble for Sam.
The second telegram is from your friend in the army about the gent who was recovering.
It seems that he’s due to arrive in about ten days.
Can you get that cabin ready for him then? ”
Travis was silent for a few seconds. “Sam is my first priority. I won’t let anything happen to her or her family.
I will put her and Tate on alert about Nash, and I will also alert some U.S.
Marshals to head here to help us take the Nash Bridger Gang back into custody.
Secondly, if Abe is coming in ten days, then we have about a week to finish getting his cabin ready.
If we go out for two, maybe three good days, I think we can finish getting it ready.
The women can clean; Tate and I can put in pumps, clean the flues, and take care of the cleaning the barn and lofts.
We’ll bring in the supplies he needs from the livery, mercantile, and resale store.
The women can work their magic and make the cabin into a home.
It’ll take some elbow grease, but I think we’re up to it.
I’m a little worried about Nash Bridger showing up while we’re out at the cabin, but if we’re there, he won’t be able to find us.
I don’t want you to tackle him on your own. ”
“Trust me, neither do I. I’m going to hang a bell on the jail house door.
If you’re out at the cabin working and I see Nash, I’ll ring the bell.
You hightail it back to town to help me out.
It wouldn’t hurt to bring Sam back with you, too.
She’s really good with those guns of hers.
I’d like to have her as a backup against him and his men.
I just don’t want anyone to get hurt.” Red told him as he thought about it.
“I’ll talk to Tate and Sam about it. Sam might come up with a plan to help us outwit them.
Wasn’t she the one who came up with the marbles before?
” Travis asked him and they both grinned.
He left to go and talk to Tate and Sam. He needed to put them on high alert about Nash and about getting the cabin ready for Abe.
Then he headed to see Angie. He wanted to let her know what was going on, too.
Sam didn’t bat an eye about Nash. She just put some extra ammunition into her pockets.
“Nash will play hell getting anywhere near my family or husband. Last time I was eight months pregnant with twins. This time I am not. If I see the slimy bastard, I’m shooting him right between the eyes, no questions asked.
” She told Travis and held Tate’s hand as she spoke.
“We’ll tell Jill and Mike to be ready in the store, too.
Now when do we go and get the cabin ready for Abe? ”
Travis just smiled. He loved his sister-in-law.
Nothing ever got her down. She met life head on.
“If we can get organized, I’d like to go out the day after tomorrow.
That will give us time to get things taken care of here, people to watch the little ones, gather what we need to take with us, and make sure that no one has sighted the Nash Gang anyone near Angel Falls.
Does that sound all right with you and Tate? ”
“It does. We can get things squared away in the store with Jill and Mike, and make arrangements for Cassie, Charlie, and Cara. We think we’ll take Chris and Cam with us.
Chris is getting pretty good with chopping firewood and Cam can gather kindling and act as a gopher for all of us.
” Tate told him and put his arm around Sam as he talked.
He would guard his woman no matter who came looking for her.
She was his entire world and the center of his family.
“Red’s going to put a bell on the jailhouse door.
If any sightings of Nash in town are seen, he’s going to ring that bell and shoot off enough shots so that we can hear him from where we are in the cabin.
We can come back into town and help him with Nash and his gang.
I don’t want him facing Nash by himself, but I still want to get things ready for Abe too.
I’ll get things ready with everyone else for day after tomorrow.
Thanks Tate, and you, too, Sam. I don’t know what I’d do without you two beside me and Angie.
I also don’t want anything to happen to either one of you. ” Travis told them solemnly.
“We know and feel the same way about you. We have your back. We want to make sure that nothing happens to any one of us.” Sam told him and winked at him as she stayed in the safety of Tate’s arms.
Travis left to go and talk to Mavis about when they would need the items from her store for Abe’s cabin, and Henry, too.
He also went to talk to Angie. He stayed there the longest. She sure didn’t like hearing that a dangerous gang was heading to Angel Falls.
Even as Travis was talking she went and got the shotgun over the fireplace and was loading it.
If danger was coming, she was going to be ready for it.
“Can we be ready for working in Abe’s cabin the day after tomorrow?
I thought you and Sam can scrub floors, tables, counter and such; Tate and I will put in a pump, tub and sink that will drain easily, clean the flues of the fireplace and cookstove, and work on cleaning the lofts of the house and barn.
Mavis, Henry, and even Tate will be bringing out the supplies we will need for Abe that afternoon.
I think Tate will have Mike bring out a wagon for him.
I hate that Jill will be all by herself in the store then with Nash coming.
Maybe we can hire someone to bring it out, so that she won’t be all by herself.
We’ll come up with something. Tate is going to have Chris and Cam come with them to chop up firewood and gather kindling while we work.
Red is going to put a bell on the jailhouse door.
If he sees any sign of Nash, he’ll ring the bell and start firing shots in the air to warn us to come in and help him out.
I don’t want him to face Nash and his gang by himself.
This way we can get things ready for Abe and take care of the Nash at the same time.
What do you think?” He asked his new wife.
“I think I’ll ask Lynn to watch Will and Bobby while we work on the cabin.
They’re really too young to do much to help us.
I think I’ll ask Martha to drive the wagon with the supplies from the mercantile to the cabin, leaving Mike to stay with Jill, and Mary to stay at the store.
That should solve that problem. I’ll also bring several loaves of bread with me to make sandwiches for all of us to eat for lunch with some of the ham we’ll slice from the meat Tate is bringing to Abe.
Have them bring some lime for the outhouse and some paper, too.
No one ever remembers that the outhouse will need both for Abe to use it.
It might need some fine mesh to help air it out with some holes cut into the door and back wall.
Let’s get a load of lumber delivered out there, too.
No telling us what we’ll have to build or remake when we arrive, plus it will be nice for Abe to have some lumber to work with when he arrives.
You did say he was good with his hands.” Angie suggested as she listened to her new husband.
“I love being able to talk things over with you, Angie. Two heads are definitely better than one. I’m going to tell Tate about the lime right now, and paper, too.
I’ll also order the lumber and ask Mavis about Martha driving the second wagon out to the cabin.
It will make Tate feel better to have Mike and Jill at the store instead of leaving Jill all alone.
” He kissed her and grabbed the sandwiches she had ready for him to eat and left to continue on his rounds.
Angie laughed. She loved Travis and couldn’t wait for tonight so she could love him all night long.
She had washed all the bedding on their bed when they came home from being married and hung it outside even though it was cold.
She wanted it to smell good when they went to bed tonight for the first time and made love.
She blushed at the thought, but she also looked forward to loving Travis.
He had been so patient to making love to her, even though just kissing each other was sending them both almost over the edge.
The spark she had been seeking was definitely there between them…
hell, it was more than a spark! It was like a stick of dynamite about to go off!
She also smiled as she cleaned the house and made a special dinner for tonight when they ate as a family for the first time.
The boys were loving having a dog, and Zeus were running them all over the house, including the loft.
He had no trouble running up and down the stairs of the loft.
She told the boys that the cellar was off limits and closed the door to the cellar so they couldn’t be tempted.
In the wind, it didn’t take long for the sheets, blankets, and even the quilt to dry and she brought them all in and remade the bed.
She even blushed as she lovingly made the bed for Travis and herself.
It was as she made the bed and went to the door that she saw strangers riding into town. There were three of them. She didn’t like the look of them. They were dirty with long beards and the look in their eyes said they were looking for trouble. She feared that Nash Bridger had come to town.