Chapter 4

"Liz, what are you doing sitting here on the front porch?" asked Stacey that afternoon when he returned from mending the fence on the north range. "I thought you were taking Mrs Hardwicke over to see the Wilsons."

"Grandad took her instead. I didn't feel up to it."

"You're not sickening for something are you?" he asked with concern, and touched her forehead gently. "You haven't got a temperature."

"No, I'm not ill. I'm just a bit tired, that's all. I thought I'd sit here and read for a while. But I'm finding it difficult to keep my eyes open."

"What are you reading?"

"Sarah's diary. Mrs Hardwicke lent it to me."

"Her diary! That's a strange thing to give you."

"Not really. It's about the time when Sarah knew Dad, when they were growing up together. It's rather lovely, really. They got on so well. It reminds me of us growing up in Texas with Bill and Annie and all the fun the four of us had together."

"I still think it's a bit odd. Why has she got it with her? Does she carry it round with her all the time?"

"I don't know. But I thought it was nice of her to share it to me. It gives an insight into our father's life. We hardly knew him, Stace. We lost him when we were so young. The diary brings him alive again."

Stacey was quiet for a moment, wondering if the diary might open painful memories for him and his sister. Their parents' lives had been tragically cut short by the Indian raid on their home in Texas. It had taken a long time for him and Liz and their grandfather to come to terms with their deaths. What purpose could be served by reminding them of what they had lost? But he saw the joy in Elizabeth's eyes and couldn't bring himself to dampen it.

"What does she say about him, then?" he asked, sitting down beside her on the bench.

"Listen, I'll read a bit to you:

Today Robert and I rode out to have a picnic by the lake. It was lovely to be alone with him. He talked a little about what he wanted to do with his life. He wants to run his own ranch, to work outdoors and feel the wind in his hair and the warmth of the sun on his back as he rides across the open range. He wants to ride up to the hills and look down on his own herd grazing in the valley below. He has such wonderful dreams for the future. I just love to hear him talking about them."

Elizabeth looked up from the diary and smiled. "It's beautiful, isn't it? But it's sad too, of course. He never got the chance to fulfill all his dreams."

"No, Liz. He didn't. But Grandad has and he's given us the opportunity to share them. If Dad could see us now at Shiloh, he would be very happy."

Elizabeth nodded. "Yes, you're right. And aren't you glad that Mrs Hardwicke showed me the diary?"

"Yes, Liz. It was very kind of her."