Chapter 37
"Ma, I'm bored," Joseph complained for the umpteenth time as he stared through the window. The rain kept falling non-stop. It was the third week in a row that the sky poured all the water they had lacked the rest of the year, so it was natural that a lively boy like Joseph would feel sick and tired of being cooped inside the house all day.
"Why don't you play something, honey?" Lou offered.
Joseph turned towards his mother, who was feeding Alice her purée, and exclaimed, "Play what, Ma? If only Pa was here…"
Kid and Paul had left a few days ago to deliver some horses to an important customer and Joseph missed his father terribly. The men should have been back by now, but the bad weather was surely delaying them.
Louise gave Alice the last spoonful of her food and after wiping her mouth with her bib, Lou scooped the baby up in her arms to let her burp and came closer to her son. From behind the boy, she looked at the same scene as for the last three weeks, rain and rain and more rain. Across the yard, Kid's house remained untouched. A large scrap of waterproof material covered the unfinished roof, protecting the inside of the house. "Honey, why don't we play that puzzle game your father bought you?" Lou said after a few seconds.
"Oh yes!" the boy exclaimed happily, and ran to find the game right away.
Louise and Joseph played together for the rest of the evening while the rain kept drumming above them. They had dinner and when it was time to sleep, Lou helped her son to get settled in bed and read him a tale until he fell asleep. Joseph was growing up very quickly, reflected Lou. A month ago he had turned nine, but he was still a young child in many aspects. Lately he did anything to draw attention to himself. Lou knew her son was simply suffering some fraternal jealousy. Naturally, being just a baby, Alice required extra care. Joseph's mischief and relapse to old habits was simply a call for attention. Lou had to admit that she found her son's attitude endearing but at the same time she was trying her hardest to show him that he was her special boy and had nothing to be jealous about.
Louise quietly walked out of his bedroom and her eyes opened in shock when she saw water spreading through half her living room as it seeped from under the front door. Hurriedly she opened it and to her horror she realized all the yard had become a lake and as far as she could see in the dark, the level of the water was rising quickly. Some people had been saying for the last days that the River James ran the risk of overflowing with the abundant precipitations of late. Christine had offered to let Lou stay at her place when Kid left, but Louise had declined. Her cottage wasn't so close to the river and she liked to be in peace and quiet in her own place. Apparently, she had made the wrong decision and now she regretted refusing Christine's invitation.
Louise walked back to her son's bedroom, and sitting on the bed, she swept her hand over his face and called him, "Joseph! Honey, wake up!"
The boy sat up and rubbed his eyes with his small fist. "Is it day already?" he asked in a husky voice.
"No, honey. But we need to get out of here. There's a flood and we have to leave the house," Lou said nervously as she removed the bedding and helped him into his trousers, shirt and jacket. They were not safe in the house. If the water kept rising, the cottage was in danger of being overflowed.
Sleepy, Joseph followed his mother into the living room. Lou tied a rope around her waist and turned to her son. "Listen to me, Joseph. We're going out of here and I want you to hold the rope very, very tightly and stay close to me, understood? It's very dark outside and we need to be very careful."
"Why can't we wait till tomorrow, Ma?" Joseph asked while Lou tied the rope around his waist. "Maybe Pa will be back tomorrow."
"There's no time, honey," Lou replied as she picked up the baby. She placed her on her right hip while she took a lamp in her other hand. "Let's just get going."
As they ventured out of the house, Joseph did as Lou had instructed him and held the rope fearfully as his eyes stared at the blackness before him. They carefully descended the already submerged porch steps; the water reached Lou's thighs and Joseph's waist and the boy said, "Ma, it's too cold."
"I know, my love. It won't take us long, I promise," Lou replied, hoping that they could get to the stables safely. Trying to get out of the property would be crazy, since she wasn't sure if they would get into worse conditions. All Lou knew was that they needed to stay somewhere high where the water couldn't reach. The only place around was the hayloft, so if they managed to get there, they would be safe. It was a long way especially since they couldn't see where their feet stepped. The only good thing was that it had stopped raining, at least momentarily.
"Ma, I'm scared," Joseph said, his teeth chattering with cold.
"I know, honey, I know," Lou muttered sadly. Her arms hurt from holding the baby and the lamp, and she was afraid she would stumble and fall. "Let me tell you your favorite fairy tale and then you won't be so scared, all right, my love?" Lou started the tale of the three little pigs, which Joseph loved so much, as she kept walking with very slow steps. It was hard to concentrate on the tale, the terrain her feet touched and holding Alice and the lamp at the same time.
Suddenly, Lou felt a strong tug in her waist, followed by a splashing sound. "Joseph!" she cried in horror and without thinking about it twice, she let go of the lamp that fell into the water and with a trembling hand, she pulled at the rope around her waist. Joseph appeared from under the water and Louise brought her hand around her dear son eagerly. "Oh Joseph! Oh Joseph!" Louise repeated over and over again, as tears of terror trickled down her cheeks. The boy hugged her tightly as he kept coughing and his eyes also moistened. "Everything's gonna be all right, my love," Lou kept saying over and over again like a mantra as she held her two children against her in the middle of the darkest night of her life, praying to God that He guide them because now more than ever, she couldn't see.
"I can't wait to get home and see Lou and the children," Kid exclaimed as he and Paul saw the first buildings of Richmond raise in the distance.
"I thought you still had no home," Paul replied jokingly.
"You know what they say. Home is where the heart is," Kid carried on with a smile.
"Yeah… I can imagine where your heart is… and not only that part of your body," Paul continued the teasing.
Kid chuckled in agreement. "In any case, I'm glad the rain seems to have stopped. I want to finish my house once and for all. Isn't it the most beautiful sky you've ever seen?" Kid exclaimed, looking upwards. After days of nothing but overcast skies, that morning's clear landscape above them was really a sight for sore eyes.
"You know what I think, Kid?" Paul added. "All you need to do is to marry her and move to the cottage. Then you can finish that mansion you've been building for your lady."
Kid laughed. Paul could always read what was behind his intentions. It was true that it was taking him longer to build his new house because he wanted to have the best for Lou and the children. He was sparing no expense, and if the rain hadn't stopped him, he'd have finished it by now. "I need to take things with Lou slowly. Marriage is a delicate matter between us, but who knows? I might give her a surprise one of these days."
When they entered the town, they noticed that there was something strange in the atmosphere. People were rushing around, carts and carriages flocked before the stores, and everybody's sullen expressions showed an unusual perspective.
"Something's happened," Paul said, voicing his friend's own feelings.
"Kid!" a voice called urgently above the sounds of the crowd of horses and carriages in the street. Then they saw Christine dash towards them, avoiding the obstacles on her eager run. Kid and Paul stopped their horses and as the woman reached them, she exclaimed, "Oh Kid! Thank God! I'm so glad you're here!"
"What's going on, Chris?" Kid asked.
"The river overflowed last night and flooded all the properties in the north," Christine exclaimed.
Kid knew that her reference included his place. "How bad?"
"We don't know. Malcolm tried to get there this morning, but it's impossible to ride further than the Millers' farm. Everything looks like a huge lake, dead animals and rubble floating around."
"Where are Lou and the children?" Kid asked again.
"I… I don't know."
Kid swallowed as worry got hold of his soul. "Are you saying that she's out there with two small children and nobody else?"
"Malcolm is trying to get hold of a boat from Mr. Chapman. It's the only way to reach the place."
As soon as Christine finished, Paul and Kid galloped away. As they rode outside the town, they realized how true Christine's words were. They had to change the direction several times when they reached a dead end that water had created. It took them almost double time to get to Mr. Chapman's boathouse. There was a small crowd there as everybody tried to reach their properties and dear ones trapped because of the flood.
Malcolm waved at the two men when he noticed them. Paul and Kid dismounted and approached him. "This is the boat," Malcolm explained, pointing at it. "I had to wait for almost an hour to get one. No wonder, everybody's desperate."
"Thanks, Malcolm. Let us handle this now. Go to Christine and tell her not to worry," Kid explained in a serious voice.
"Are you sure you don't need my help?" Malcolm asked. Kid simply nodded and noticing his expression, Malcolm added, "Kid, I'm sure they're fine."
"Yes," Kid replied, forcing a fake smile on his lips. He was worried beyond comprehension despite his own words. He knew that this wasn't the first time the river had flooded and he had heard of people who have drowned on those occasions. Kid had no clue how deep the consequences this time were and his ignorance was making him have all kinds of scary thoughts. He wouldn't have his peace until he saw Lou and the children, and made sure they were safe and sound.
Kid and Paul got on the small boat and started off. The ranch was about five miles away, which would take them longer than usual to cover. Paul took charge of the oars while Kid tried to remove all the objects, trunks and dead animals floating on their way. With each minute Kid felt his heart thump in terror more and more powerfully as he thought about what might have happened to his family. He was terrified and cursed himself for being away when Lou had been surprised with this new incident.
When they sailed into the place, Kid blanched when he saw the condition the cottage was. It was almost covered in water, except for the top part and the roof. Everything else had been invaded by the river and as they looked around, the ranch didn't look anything like the place they had left a few days before. The area was eerily silent in clear contrast to the normal activity that had been the usual routine. "Kid… I… maybe she managed to get out," Paul tried, breaking the silence, as he noticed Kid's petrified expression as he stared at the underwater cottage with total horror.
"Lou!" Kid suddenly cried at the top of his lungs as tears pricked his eyes. "Lou!"
Paul joined his friend's desperate summons and they kept calling Lou's name over and over again while pushing the boat forward. The seconds seemed endless and as only silence responded their calls, Kid felt a terrible pain take a grip of his self. Suddenly, they made out a little voice in the distance. The two men kept quite and the weak voice was heard again. "Daddy!"
"Joseph! Joseph! Where are you?" Kid called as the pressure he had been feeling softened. The relief was so immense that he felt the urge to jump off the boat and swim to wherever Joseph was. Yet, his peace of mind wouldn't be complete until he saw Lou and the children were all right.
"Here in the hayloft," the boy responded. It took the two men three tries to understand what Joseph was saying. When they managed to make out his words, Kid turned his eyes towards the stable and saw his son's figure standing on the big opening in the hayloft. The men steered the boat towards the place right away. What used to be his yard was covered and different objects floated on its surface. The water reached half the height of the stables and Kid realized with great regret that all his animals had drowned in the flood.
"Where are your mother and sister?" Kid asked as Paul tied a rope round a high post to secure the boat.
The boy automatically flashed his eyes inside and then looked back towards Kid, "They're sleeping. Ma hurt her leg with a wire and can't walk very well. But she's fine," the boy explained and after a short pause, he added, "Pa, I've been so scared."
"Joseph, listen to me," Kid replied, looking up at the boy. "I'm gonna help you out of here, all right?"
Joseph nodded and kept staring at his father with big eyes. Without delay, the two men got down to action. Kid rested his left foot on Paul's hands, joined as if they were a stirrup. When Paul pushed him upwards, he managed to reach the entrance of the hayloft. As Kid finally scrambled to his feet, he quickly threw his arms around his son, hugging him tightly. "Where's Ma?" he asked when he let go of the child.
"There," Joseph replied, pointing out at the far end. As the boy had previously said, a sleeping Lou sat up, leaning her back against one of the walls and Alice was also asleep in her arms.
Followed by Joseph, Kid marched towards Lou decidedly and knelt in the hay in front of her. For a moment he simply looked at her, staring at her peaceful face. The child sent his father a strange look, which prompted him to act. Kid then caressed her face and called her name. "Lou…"
Louise's eyes fluttered and opened slowly to find Kid's blue pools looking at her. For a few seconds she felt totally disoriented, but when she remembered the previous night's events, she cried, "Oh Kid!"
"Sh! It's all right, honey! I'm here," he replied. "Tell me, how are you?"
"My right leg…" Lou said and as she slid the material of her skirt off, he saw her calf was covered in blood and the flesh around the ugly gash was turning into a bluish color.
"A doctor needs to see that before it gets infected."
Louise nodded. "Before coming up here, I opened the stall doors, but I'm not sure if the horses managed to get out."
"Don't worry about that, Lou. What matters now is that you and the children are all right," Kid replied. "We'll worry about the rest later."
Louise nodded and very carefully Kid scooped her up in his arms. Lou held the baby securely against her chest, and smiled at Joseph even though her leg hurt unbearably. It had been a horrible night. Never before had she been so scared and not because of what might have happened to her but her children. They had taken refuge in the hayloft even though she was not sure they'd be safe there. All night long Louise had been terrified, wondering how or when they'd be able to get out of the place. They had no food, no means to escape and the wound in her leg prevented her from moving. Thankfully, they had survived. Kid had come to their rescue and right now all her fears vanished because they were all together again. And having Kid with her, she had nothing to worry about.