Chapter 3
Marta had never seen such a beautiful cabin as the one at Grady’s home.
It was two stories high, with a huge porch in front and a smaller one behind.
He had left large trees to grow in the front and the backyards to give them shade in the summer.
Kyra had planted flowers all around the house over the years and flowering bushes and plants were blooming as if the house sat in a wooded glen.
She also saw a very healthy garden, several barns, corrals, fields of wheat, corn, and oats were seen past the cabin.
The corn was waist high, with the wheat and oats past their knees.
She saw valleys of grass with more cattle than she had ever seen at one time in her life.
She was impressed and a little intimidated with all she saw.
These people were well off…all she and Mattie had were the clothes on their backs that Grady had bought so they had clean clothes to wear and the dirty ones they had taken off when they bathed.
Marta wanted to wash them as soon as she could.
Standing in front of the cabin was an Indian woman.
She wasn’t very large. She was dressed in buckskins, and she had a very soft smile on her face and tears were running down her cheeks.
Marta knew that she was glad to see Grady even before they pulled up in the wagon.
She was startled when he called the Indian ‘Ma’.
“Ma, if you aren’t a sight for sore eyes, and you haven’t changed at all.” In one arm he picked her up and kissed her cheek, giving her a hug and swinging her around.
The woman laughed and kept her arms around Grady so that she wouldn’t fall. “You didn’t tell us that you had been injured. How bad is it? Bullet wound? In the thigh?” She asked him with quick questions, and she expected him to answer them.
“When Tim and I captured the Gambelli Gang, Tim caught a graze on the shoulder, and I caught a bullet in my leg. It’s been taken out and I’ve been told to take it easy for the next three weeks.
I thought I might as well recover here at home as anywhere else.
Do you mind?” Grady asked her with his eyes twinkling.
“Course not, you’d better be home when you get hurt or I’d come and drag you home.
Now enough about you, introduce me to this lovely young lady and her little brother.
Cooper it’s good to see you, how’s Marley doing with the three babies?
” Kyra asked her with a smile. “I swear they grow every time I see them.”
“Marley’s doing great and the babies are growing by leaps and bounds.
I don’t know how she does it, but she can feed all three at the same time.
She also is getting the canning done on the garden, cooking, washing all the diapers, and making all of us happy.
I do pick all the fresh vegetables before I leave each morning and bring up enough clean jars from the cellar and put them on the porch for her to use each morning.
I clean the barn and gather the eggs. I do still scrub the floor, but she’s doing everything else.
Even Doctor Flyn can’t believe all she’s up and doing.
” Cooper jumped down helped Marta down and lifted Mattie down, then he lifted their luggage down.
“I hate to arrive and leave again, but I do want to get back before it gets too dark. I brought Chaa with me to lead me back home again even in the dark. Love you, Kyra. If you need us, be sure to let us know. Good luck Grady, it was sure nice to meet you Marta and Mattie.” And with that, Cooper left in the wagon at a good trot to get home in good time.
“Ma, this is Marta and Mattie Romero. They were held hostage by the same criminals that Tim and I were chasing. Their parents have been killed and their home burned down. I’d sure appreciate it if they could stay here for a while to get their bearings and decide what and where they want to go. ” Grady told her.
Kyra didn’t wait, she opened up her arms and went to hug Mattie and then Marta.
“Our home is yours to enjoy for as long as you want or need. Consider it yours, but I will warn you that while you’re here, I’ll probably ask you to help me with my garden and to help gather the eggs while I milk the cow.
I may ask you to help give milk to the kittens in the loft, or feed the chickens… would you mind doing any of that?”
Mattie’s head was about to nod off his shoulders.
Everything she said sounded so nice, he wanted to do it all.
He couldn’t wait to see the kittens and the chickens.
He kept trying to pet the dog/wolf, but he wouldn’t let him get near him.
He had always wanted a dog, but they never got one.
All the animals he heard about made him antsy to go and see them.
“Mrs. Harper, Mattie and I would love to help you with everything you mentioned. Mattie loves animals and I can see him trying to pet your dog already. Is he friendly to strangers?” Marta asked them.
“Cisco does not like strangers. He is a great watch dog. As soon as he knows that you are friends and not strangers out to do us harm, he’ll let Mattie pet him.
” Kyra told her and smiled. “Cisco…friends.” She told the huge dog/wolf.
“He is a good watchdog and saved our lives more times than I can count, even when he was a puppy. I don’t know what we would do without him.
Now let’s get you settled in your rooms.” Kyra led them inside.
She and Marta carried the trunk until Nimrod appeared to welcome them too.
“Son, it’s good to see you home for a while.
I can see that you hurt your leg…did you catch a bullet?
” Nimrod asked him as he easily picked up the trunk.
He carried it upstairs and put it in the room that used to be Marley’s.
The trunk didn’t weigh very much; they only had their old clothes in the trunk.
“Marta, I’ve put you in Marley’s old room, and Nimrod made a small bed here for Mattie.
Grady will go to his old room on your right, and Brody still has his room on your left.
Nimrod and I sleep downstairs. There’s also the kitchen and Nimrod’s office.
Three rooms up, and three rooms down. We also have a water closet.
I never thought I’d be glad to have one, but not to go outside to do our business in three feet of snow is a blessing I’ll gladly use.
Make yourself at home, I’ll put dinner on the table.
” Kyra told them all and turned to go downstairs.
“Ma, the only clothes that Mattie and Marta have are the ones they wear and the dirty ones they were wearing when I found them. We did stop at a resale store for a few things, but it was late and I wanted to have them sleep in a good bed and out here as soon as I could. I was also in bad shape. My leg has been throbbing as if it has a heart of its own. I need to get in a hot bath or better yet in a hot spring to soak it. But I wanted to let you know about the deficiency of clothes for both of the Romero’s.
” Grady told her quietly when Marta and Mattie had gone into their room and closed the door.
He didn’t want to embarrass them, but he did want his mother to know about the scarcity of clothing for both of them.
“Well, of course with their house burning down and then being abducted…they wouldn’t have much. I should have known that. I’ll start sewing as soon as dinner is over.” Kyra told him and finished going to get supper on the table.
Grady put his saddle bags in his room and then went back down the stairs himself. He washed up and turned to see his younger brother standing there to welcome him home.
“Good to see you, Grady. I hate to see you on crutches…how bad is it?” Brody asked him giving him a hug. Grady was surprised to find Brody as tall as he was and the hug he gave was every bit as strong as the one he gave his brother back.
“They caught me in my thigh. Hurts like a son-of-a-bitch, but nothing serious. More nuisance than anything else. I hate having to use these crutches and can’t wait to go and soak in a hot spring as soon as I can.
I can’t believe how tall you are or as strong as you are.
You’re as big as I am, and what’s this I hear about you helping to deliver Marley’s triplets?
Did you really?” Grady asked him in awe.
“Not really, I did have to go and get Doctor Flynn and Nicole, and they made me clean up the mess when her water broke. Then, the doc told me to wash up when everybody else was washing up. It’s a good thing I did.
You should have seen his face when after he delivered two babies another one started coming out.
He about flipped out and dropped it! But he called me to come and get it.
Nicole had taken the first one, Cooper the second one, and now I had to take the third one…
Grady it was the tiniest thing I had ever held in my life, and they wanted me to give it a bath.
It was like holding a greased pig. I did my best, but I was afraid that I was going to break those tiny fingers and toes.
Thankfully, Nicole was done with her baby and she switched with me.
It was a lot easier holding a baby all wrapped up in a blanket than trying to give one a bath.
On top of that, they were all three crying.
It sounded like bedlam. Marley was laughing at having three babies instead of two, but they were all here safe and sound and healthy from the sound of their crying.
Cooper was three shades lighter just thinking about three babies instead of two to take care of, and Nicole kept saying ‘Triplets, as I live and breathe!’ I tell you, I wish you had been there.
” Brody told him and they all laughed with him.
By then, Nimrod, Marta, and Mattie had joined them for dinner, and they all sat down to eat.
Marta couldn’t believe all that Kyra had put on the table.
She had cooked a venison roast that was huge, and there were enough potatoes, carrots, and onions for an army.
She also had green beans with bits of bacon with it.
Fresh bread and butter and there were two cobblers on the counter for dessert.
Mattie’s eyes got huge and his mouth watered at the delicious meal before him.
Kyra folded her hands and said ‘grace’ before they started eating.
Then, they all started passing the food around the table.
“Brody was just telling me about helping out on Marley’s delivery of the triplets. Were you as surprised as the doctor that she gave birth to three babies as opposed to just twins?” Grady asked his parents.
“I was, I had no idea that she was going to surprise us like that, but not your father. Believe it or not, he had made a third cradle, highchair, and crib in his workshop.” Kyra told him and grinned at everyone at the table.
“You’ve got to be kidding me. Pa what made you make an extra cradle, highchair, and crib? Did you think that she was having triplets?” Grady asked him in surprise.
Nimrod blushed. “I don’t know why I did what I did.
I had no premonition that Marley was going to have three little babies…
I do know that Brody and I had a lot of fun making the cradles, highchair, cribs, and dresser for the twins we knew were coming.
We fought over who was going to make the rocking horses, toy box, blocks, little wagon, whittled animals, and everything else we did for the babies.
We delivered them to her and put them in the second bedroom.
Marley was thrilled. She already looked pretty big.
Kyra had even made little mattresses for the cradles and cribs.
” He told them. “I came home and had extra wood; I just made another cradle, highchair, and crib. I don’t know why…
I just did. After she delivered the third baby, Brody and I just looked at each other and laughed.
We loaded up the third cradle, highchair, and crib and brought them into Marley and Cooper.
They couldn’t believe that I had made them that fast. I told them I already had them made.
Marley couldn’t believe I had them made already…
almost as a premonition. I don’t either.
It was just one of those things. I’m just glad it all worked out. ”
“Unbelievable. I couldn’t believe how small they were…and Marley told me they were growing like weeds. How small were they when they were born?” Grady asked his mother.
“Small, but not too small to survive. Doctor Flynn said they each weighed about five pounds…the two boys about five and a half pounds, and Lyra about five pounds. She was smaller than the two boys. If they had been smaller than five pounds, they probably would not have survived. It’s amazing that Marley could carry sixteen pounds of baby inside of her.
No wonder she looked like a butterball.” Kyra told them and they all laughed.
“I still can’t imagine Marley pregnant.” Grady told them.
“Believe it. When we planted the garden, she got on her hands and knees to help us and then couldn’t get back up again.
It took Cooper and me to get her up again.
Pa wouldn’t let her weed her garden again.
He told her that he’d send me in once a week to get it done.
He imagined her getting down to weed and not being able to get up again because Cooper or me wouldn’t be around to help her up!
” Brody told him and they all laughed, but it wasn’t a laughing matter.