Lord of Misrule

B Glad Judith

Description

Luke and Katie Savage, newly married and at the end of a danger-filled and arduous journey, finally reach Boise City, where her family awaits them. They both are tired and ready to rest. Katie is excited because Christmas is next week and they'll spend it with her family. Luke isn't sure he's ready for a family celebration, especially when everyone--perhaps even Katie--is a stranger to him. Holidays should be happy events, but when you're odd man out, it's hard to get into the spirit of the season. But Katie loves him, so Luke will do his best.

Sujets

• Westerns
• Historical romance
• Western (genre)
• Short story
• Western

Informations

• Publié par: Uncial Press
• Date de parution: 18 novembre 2011
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781601741264
• Langue: English

Extrait

LORD OF MISRULE
A Behind the Ranges Novel Byte
 
By
Judith B. Glad
 
Something hidden. Go and find it. Go and look behind the ranges-- Something lost behindthe Ranges. Lost and waiting for you. Go.
Rudyard Kipling: The Explorer
 
Uncial Press       Aloha, Oregon 2011
 
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and events described herein areproducts of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real.Any resemblance to actual events, locations, organizations, or persons, living or dead, is entirelycoincidental.
ISBN 13: 978-1-60174-127-1 ISBN 10: 1-60174-127-8
Lord of Misrule Copyright © 2003, 2011 by Judith B.Glad
Cover art and design Copyright © 2011 by Judith B. Glad
Previously published by AweStruck eBooks, 2003; Fictionwise 2005
All rights reserved. Except for use in review, the reproduction or utilization of this workin whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means now known orhereafter invented, is forbidden without the written permission of the author or publisher.
Published by Uncial Press, an imprint of GCT, Inc.
Visit us at http://www.uncialpress.com
Chapter One
"I'm ready to be home." Katie slid off Salome's back and leaned against her warmshoulder. The donkey lipped her collar, snuffled. "Now don't you bite me, darn you," Katie toldher, "or I'll ride your sister."
Salome caught the collar with strong yellow teeth and pulled.
Laughing, Katie swatted at her cheek. "You ornery little dickens! Turn loose!"
Luke reached past her and gave the donkey a harder swat. "You're too easy on her. Shethinks it's a game."
When Salome let go of her collar, Katie stepped closer to her husband. Husband!What a nice ring that has to it! "Luke, she saved my life because she likes to bite. I'll bedoggoned if I'll try to break her of it." She wrapped her arms around him, enjoying the feel of hishard body, even through the layers of heavy clothing they both wore.
He hugged her back. "How much farther?"
Katie pointed. "Down the trail there, and along the river for about six miles. Our firsthouse was a little east of the fort. The new place is farther out, but in her last letter Ma said it's alot closer in than it used to be. The town's growing by leaps and bounds."
"Well, let's get moving, then. I'd like to be there before sundown." He mounted Idjit, thebig, rawboned hinny that had been the only riding animal they could find in Evanston, andtugged on the leadline to the pack mule. "Move it, Lafayette. We're almost home, the ladysays."
The tone of his voice told Katie he was still fretting about his reception at her parents'home. She hadn't been able to convince him that Pa wouldn't have gone home and told everyonehow he'd seduced Katie. If she knew her Pa, the only person he'd ever tell about the entirecircumstances of their wedding was Ma. And she wouldn't tell a soul.
Ma had a fine sense of what was proper. She would lambaste Katie proper for givingherself to a man before they were wed, but she'd never, never say a word to Luke. Ma wouldfigure that was Pa's place, and she'd simply make him welcome as she would any familymember.
"I hope everyone will be here for Christmas," Katie said, once they were at the bottomof the rocky trail. It was deeply rutted from the hundreds of wagons that traveled it each summer,and slippery from melting snow. Angular rocks that had fallen from the rimrock above litteredthe ruts and made footing chancy for man and beast. "I want you to meet the whole family."
"I thought your brother was in Europe." Luke didn't sound too excited about meeting theLachlan clan all at once.
"Well, he is, but everybody else could be here. Silas almost always comes home forChristmas, and Ma said she'd try to persuade William and Flower to come down."
"You're sure about us staying at your folks' place? They've got room?"
"Oh, Luke, stop fretting. Ma says there are eight bedrooms in the house, and her sewingroom has a daybed in it. And the littles can always double up if need be."
"I ain't fretting. I just want to make sure of our welcome."
"This is my home, you suspicious man. I grew up here. Of course we'll bewelcome."
"I thought you said you grew up in a cabin in the mountains."
Katie knew him well enough now to know that he was trying to start an argument. Well,this was one topic she wasn't about to argue on. "You know good and well we moved to townwhen I was fifteen. I was speaking figuratively."
"Well, say what you mean, then. How am I to know what you mean?"
"He's just tired," Katie told Salome. "Pay him no mind. When we get home, he can havea hot bath and relax. Then he'll see just how welcome we'll be."
The trees along the river had mostly been cut, Katie saw, as they got close to town. Onlyshrubby willows and cottonwood saplings lined the banks now. The light skiff of snow made thetorn new earth stand out in dark contrast. "Ma says the new house is the first one you see fromthe river, but I don't really know where--"
"There," Luke said, pointing. "Is it that one?"
Katie could only stare. Ma hadn't told her they were building a castle.
Luke hadn't expected a log cabin. The Lachlan's new house was in a town, after all, evenif that town was a long ways from anywhere. He'd seen grand stone houses in frontier towns inKansas, so he knew that Boise City would have its share of impressive homes. But somehow hehad expected the Lachlans to have something...well, homey.
Almost everything Katie had told him was about her childhood in a mountain valleywith only one other family within a day's ride. Folks who'd chosen to live like that wouldn'tworry about putting on the dog. He'd sort of expected their new house to be a big, ramblingplace, with a wide, welcoming front porch. Like the house his pa had wanted to build inKansas.
This house came as close to a mansion as anything he'd seen since Chicago. Or it lookedthat way from here. He couldn't see a lot of it, because the barn was in the way, but what hecould see was impressive.
As they rode up the narrow, rutted road from the river, he got a better look. Threestories, with a square turret on one corner, built of red brick and dark wood. Mullioned windowssparked in the pale winter sun. Lines of young trees, bare of leaf and spindly, bordered theproperty on all sides. He reckoned there was about five acres thus enclosed, half of it a fencedpasture. Off in one corner of the lot was a small cottage, its siding looking fresh from thesawmill.
Prime land. Just like he wanted for himself.
"Oh, my," Katie said.
"What?" He was shorter with her than he'd intended, simply because he was stillspeechless.
"Ma told me they were building a place big enough for us all to have bedrooms of ourown, but I never expected..." Her gesture took in the big yard, the rows of young trees, the threesmall evergreens on what might be a lawn in the summer.
Feeling like he'd rather turn tail and run than face her family, Luke waved her ahead ofhim toward the barn. "Let's take care of the stock first."
The back half of the barn's interior was lined with horse stalls. No folks were about, butthe big buckskin Emmet Lachlan had been riding in Evanston poked his head over a stall doorand whuffled a welcome. As Luke dismounted, a door opened at the back. "About time you gothere," a raspy voice called. "The missus has been waiting for them...oh, can I help youfolks?"
Before Luke could answer, his wife did. "I'm Katie Lachlan...ah, Katie Savage," She slidoff of Salome's back, stumbled, and caught herself with a handful of mane. "This is the Lachlanplace, isn't it?"
"You must be the sister. They've been expecting you for a couple of days. I'm AbelGreene, hostler, gardener, and all 'round man of work." He held out his left hand, and Luke sawthat his right arm ended just below the elbow. The man's accent was familiar to Luke. It placedhim from somewhere in the Confederacy.
"Pleased to meet you, Mr. Greene." Katie took his left hand as if she'd been shakinghands that way all her life. Luke was proud of her. He'd seen too many battle-scarred veteranstreated like dirt because they didn't have a full complement of hands and feet.
"Luke Savage." He held out his own left hand. "Late of the Seventh KansasCavalry."
"I was with the 14th Mississippi, but I don't reckon that matters much any more. Not outhere."
Having dismounted, Luke pulled the saddle from Idjit and swung it across a saddlehorse. He led the big hinny into a stall. I'll be back, old lady," he said, giving her a gentle swat onthe rump. Let me get everyone settled."
Abel and Katie were just emerging from two other stalls, where, Luke surmised, they'dput the asses. Luke went to Lafayette, who was standing patiently.
The big mule looked gaunt, as well he should. He'd walked halfway across the West inthe last couple of months, and had carried a good load most of the time. Scratching under Lafe'schin, Luke said, "Time to rest, fella. We ain't going much of anywhere for awhile."
Lafe nodded vigorously, as if in understanding. He let his head droop while Luke rubbedhim down, and then followed Luke into the stall Abel pointed out. Luke made sure there was anample supply of grain, before he gave Lafe one last pat. "You got us here, fella. Now rest."
"You treat that mule like he was your best friend," Katie teased. She was groomingSalome, dodging the ass's teeth with the ease of two months' practice.
"At least I don't spoil him with sugar," he said. "And he never tries to take a piece out ofme, either."
Abel helped Katie groom the asses while Luke took care of Idjit. When they were done,they sorted through their belongings and took only the fiddle case and Luke's bedroll to thehouse.
"Abel says they all took off early today," Katie said, as if in answer to Luke's curiosityabout why no one had come to meet them. "Ma's in a tizzy, with all the folks coming forChristmas, and she's off to the grocer and the butcher and whatever. Pa