The next morning, before Charlie set out for school, and just as she was pushing in her chair at the breakfast table,
Scott paused, and told her that she could go on the river fishing outing the next afternoon.
Charlie's face immediately lit up, and she gave him a dimpled grin. "Thank you!" she told him.
"As long as you agree to a couple of things," he added, and Charlie lost a bit of her smile.
"What things?" she asked, looking up at him.
"Nothing unreasonable," he said. "First, no swimming, even if the other kids decide to do it. Then, find out the general location
on the river where you'll be at. So we know where you are, in case something happens. And, be home by six."
None of that sounded too awfully terrible to Charlie. So, when Scott said, "We have an agreement?" she nodded.
"Yes, agreed."
"Okay," he said, and then, before he turned to go on his way, Charlie gave him a quick, impulsive hug around
his waist.
When Friday morning came, Charlie took Maria's carefully prepared and wrapped churros, that had been tucked into her lunch pail,
and headed outside to where Jelly had Gurth saddled for her.
"Thank you, Jelly," she told him. The old man only made a 'humph' sound at her, and Charlie wondered what he
was irritated about.
Scott came out of the barn then, and asked, "Ready for your day?"
Charlie nodded, and said, "I'm excited, but I'm sort of sad, too, about not seeing Miss Susan anymore."
"It's unfortunate, for sure," he agreed.
"I thought I might stop at the mercantile before school-to get her a goodbye present. I have my allowance from
last week and part from the week before. Do you think that would be alright?"
"I think it's a nice idea," Scott said, and smiled at her.
"Okay. I will, then," Charlie said.
"Don't take long choosing something," he warned. "No being late to school."
"I won't," Charlie said.
When she'd mounted her horse, Scott handed her book bag and lunch pail up to her, and Charlie hooked them over
the saddle horn. Keeping his hand on Gurth's neck, Scott said, "Remember-no swimming, and home by six."
"Okay."
"And, you need to be careful. It's not the place to be fooling around."
"I'll be careful," Charlie told him.
When she was finally on her way, Charlie let out a deep breath. Sometimes, it seemed like Scott nearly wished
she could be wrapped up somehow, so that nothing could ever happen, or hurt her. It touched Charlie, it really did, how
protective he got about things. Riding along, right at that moment, Charlie clutched the thought of it close, and it made her feel
good inside. It was just that Scott worried. She knew that. Sometimes he seemed to forget that she had practically raised
herself when she was in Stockton, though. Of course, Charlie knew full well that she'd made some mistakes back then-like running
with the street kids. But, she wouldn't do those things now-she knew better.
Charlie, once she got to town, dropped Gurth off at the stables, and hurried to the mercantile. Looking for a present for Miss Susan,
Charlie spent as much time as she dared, without being tardy. She couldn't seem to find just the right thing as a gift, though.
Finally, she chose a nice ink pen, using the majority of the money she had.
The school morning passed swiftly, and shortly after the lunch break Miss Susan announced that there would a
prolonged period of recess, so that she could call in a child at a time, to have a private and individual talk with them.
A rowdy game of Red Rover took over, as children were called in. When it was Charlie's turn to go inside,
Miss Susan smiled, and motioned for her to come and sit near her up front.
Charlie took a chair that had been set near to the teacher's desk and own chair. She'd passed by her own desk and retrieved
the gift she'd purchased that morning. Charlie held it out to Miss Susan.
"I got you something," she said, as the teacher took the pen and exclaimed over it.
"That's so nice, Charlie, thank you so much," Miss Susan said, with enthusiasm. "I'll get good use out of this."
She smiled at Charlie. "I'll use it to write you a letter. How's that?"
"That would be nice," Charlie said.
"I wanted to tell you that I've enjoyed getting to know you, and that I'm very proud of the progress you've made
while you've been attending here."
"Thank you," Charlie said, gratefully.
"I've seen a difference in you in other ways, as well," Miss Susan continued.
Curiously, Charlie waited to hear what she said, hoping that it wasn't going to be anything that she didn't want to
hear.
"You've become more settled, less flighty. You've matured, Charlie. Grown up a good bit."
"Thank you," Charlie said, again, feeling warm inside with pride.
"I'm very glad that you and the Lancers found each other," Miss Susan said. "I know how much you are cared
for by all of them. It was a fortunate thing for you all that you met."
Charlie nodded in agreement. She knew how fortunate that she was.
"You have the ability to be an excellent student, but it will take hard work on your part, not to get distracted. If you can do
that, I think you can accomplish great things, Charlie."
"Yes, ma'm," Charlie said.
"Alright," Miss Susan said, smiling and standing up. "Can you send Rebecca in next, please?"
"Yes." Charlie hesitated. "I've enjoyed having you as a teacher," she said. "I hope your mother gets better."
"Thank you, Charlie."
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After school, it was a large group of children that headed to the lucky fishing spot on the river. Nine of them, altogether.
They were a rowdy, cheerful bunch as they walked there, Charlie and Tommy leading their horses.
Since she didn't have her own fishing pole, and was set to borrow
one of Jason's, Charlie carried, instead, a can filled with worms for bait.
Once they were at the destination, Charlie tied Gurth to a tree, and looked around with great interest. She'd never been to any part of the
river at all, and this part was particularly pretty, it seemed to her.
There was a path worn, from the frequent foot traffic, and down a ways someone had hung a rope swing.
Charlie pointed to it, and asked Jason, "Doesn't it scare the fish away if somebody swings off of that, and stirs up the
water?"
"Sure. Nobody does it while we're fishin'," Jason told her. He went about getting Charlie set up to fish, beginning to
bait her hook.
"I can do that," Charlie told him.
"Yeah?" Jason asked, looking at her in surprise.
Charlie nodded. "Johnny showed me."
Jason gave her an approving grin. "That's good. Most girls can't. Or won't."
"I'm not most girls," Charlie told him, grinning right back.
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The next couple of hours were spent casting, and reeling in, and a large number of catfish were caught. When there was
an abundant amount of fish on the stringer, some of the other kids said they were hot and wanted to swim to cool off.
The fishing tackle began to be put away, and Charlie went to whisper to Rebecca.
"Are you going to swim?"
"Are you?" Rebecca countered, seeing the look on Charlie's face.
"I'm not a very good swimmer," Charlie admitted. "And, also, Scott said not to-"
"Well, then, I won't either," Rebecca assured her.
"Are they going to wear their clothes in?" Charlie asked, watching the others, five boys, and two girls as they began
to dispense with their shoes and stockings.
"The boys will. They do it all the time," Rebecca said.
"What about Sue and Ellen?" Charlie asked, nodding at the two girls, who were giggling as the boys splashed them
with the muddy river water.
"They'll probably just wade for awhile," Rebecca said.
Charlie considered. "I could wade at the edge-"
"It drops really quickly, though, and far," Rebecca warned.
"Oh," Charlie said, and considered again.
Their names were being called by the boys, urged to come and join in, and Charlie exchanged a look with Rebecca.
"Let's just sit at the edge," Rebecca suggested.
"That's no fun for you," Charlie said.
Rebecca squeezed her hand. "I have fun with you no matter what we do."
They found a spot near enough to where the other kids were playing, and sat down, taking off their shoes and stockings to
rub their feet in the cool mud.
"Come in!" one of the boys called out again. Sue and Ellen had gotten in deeper until they were nearly swimming.
"Sue likes all the boys," Rebecca said, in a whisper to Charlie.
It seemed to Charlie that Sue was sort of silly, always trying to impress the boys. She hadn't baited her own book earlier,
but had squealed at the sight of the wiggling worm, until Jason had done it for her.
The boys began to take turns shimmying up the tree ladder and grasping the rope and then swinging out over the water and
dropping in. Charlie wished that she could do it, swing out and drop in, and be a strong enough swimmer to do so.
One of the boys came splashing out of the water, Tommy Carmichael, and flung handfuls of water at Charlie and Rebecca.
Both girls laughed, and scooted closer, splashing him back.
Charlie was having such a good time, that she was caught off-guard, when more splashing and shoving began, and she fell
backward, into the water. She felt her balance slip, and the brown water rose up, and she nearly went under, panicking when
she couldn't touch her feet on the bottom. Of anything.
She screamed, and got a mouthful of river water, and then felt an arm grabbing at her, and pulling her back in, and to the edge
of the water.
"You okay?" Jason said, depositing her on the riverbank, and peering into her face.
Charlie nodded, coughing out the water she'd swallowed.
"Give her some room," Jason was telling the others. "Let her breathe."
Charlie could hear Tommy telling her sorry for pushing her so hard, and Charlie spoke up enough to tell
him that it was alright, and she wasn't harmed.
After that, the boys swam some more, and Charlie sat on the bank, hoping her clothes would dry in the sunshine.
She found she was still shaky. Every time she thought of how it had been-feeling helpless and not being able to touch the
bottom, and how it had felt as though a vacuum of some sort was pulling her down-well, it made her shiver.
"Are you cold?" Rebecca asked, concerned.
Charlie shook her head in denial. "I'm alright. It was just-" she hesitated.
"Scary," Rebecca said, softly, in understanding.
"Yeah."
Charlie cast a look down at her dress, covered with mud and still dripping in spots. "I hope this dries before I get home."
"You can explain, can't ya? About how you didn't go in on purpose?" Rebecca said.
"I will, but he's not gonna be happy-he said not to do any messing around so I wouldn't fall in."
"He's kind, though," Rebecca said. "He'll listen to you first-my pa, he's not like that. He hollers first, and then if he finds
out he was wrong, he never says so." Her face turned red. "I shouldn't talk about him like that."
"It's okay, you can tell me things," Charlie assured her. "I won't tell anybody."
When Charlie found that it was heading onto six o'clock, when one of the boys checked the pocket watch he'd left on the
bank of the river, most of the kids decided to leave at the same time.
Collecting Gurth from his shady spot where he'd been tied alongside Tommy's horse, Charlie gave him a pat and
said her goodbyes, exchanging her wishes with Rebecca that they would see one another soon.
Charlie rode home, still barefoot, with her shoes tied over the saddle horn. She felt clammy, and uncomfortable. It seemed
to be taking a long time for her clothes to dry.
Once she'd reached the barn at home, she saw that there were no ranch hands about. They were probably having their
supper in the bunkhouse by now. At the thought of supper, Charlie felt her stomach rumbling with hunger. She hoped that
Maria or Teresa had heaped a plateful of food and put it back for her.
She dismounted, and began to unsaddle Gurth, when she heard the back door flapping shut, and turned to see
Scott walking towards her. He looked not like his usual self. But, instead, he looked disheveled, and worn.
At first, his gaze was welcoming. "How was fishing?" he asked, before he'd reached her.
Then he took in her still sodden appearance, and his expression changed to surprise, and then worry.
"You're wet," he observed, and began to frown.
"The boys were splashing us," Charlie said. The swift lie by omission sprung to her lips without any effort on her part.
Scott's forehead furrowed as he looked her up and down.
"You're completely soaked, Charlie," he said, looking as though he didn't believe what she was saying.
"They were just playing," she said.
Scott got quiet, as Charlie pulled the saddle off, and then he took it from her, carrying it to the tack shed. Charlie followed him,
going to get a brush, and then went back to begin brushing Gurth down.
Scott came over to stand near her again, and, though he was quiet, he was studying Charlie with an intentness that
made her uncomfortable.
Charlie paused in her brushing, to look at Scott in question, at his expression.
"Did you go swimming, Charlie?" he asked, and there was an edge to his tone.
Charlie shook her head so hard that her braid flipped back and forth. "No, Scott," she said, with vehemence.
Still he studied her, not looking convinced.
Charlie felt her face flame. In nerves, and also in pique.
"I didn't go swimming," Charlie said, in insistence.
"Alright," Scott said, quietly, in apparent acceptance, but his eyes stayed on her face, and Charlie felt a wave of heat rush over her face
again.
"You don't believe me," Charlie said, flatly, feeling her anger simmering.
"I didn't say that," Scott said, quietly.
"Well, I didn't go swimming," Charlie maintained, feeling stubborn.
"Charlie. Alright. That's enough." After a few moment's pause of unease, he said, "I'll put your horse away for you. You
should go in and change out of those clothes. Your plate's keeping warm in the oven."
Scott took the brush from her hand, and nodded towards the house. "Go on."
Charlie, still feeling piqued, swept her eyes up to his, and then walked to the house, carrying her shoes. She opened the heavy
front door, and dropped the shoes. Nearly to the foot of the staircase, she heard Murdoch's booming voice.
"Hello, sweetheart."
Charlie paused, her hand on the stair banister. "Hello."
"How was your afternoon?"
"It was good. Fun."
"That's fine," he said, and then, standing near, he added, "Goodness, but you're muddy and wet."
"Scott's mad about it," Charlie said, without thinking.
Murdoch's eyebrow rose slightly. "Over mud on a dress?" he asked, sounding surprised.
Charlie regretted her quick words, and shrugged, her eyes meeting his. Murdoch reached out to cup his hand around her
face. "I'm sure he's not angry about something like that," Murdoch said.
They could hear the front door opening, and then closing, and Charlie said, "I've got to change," and sped upstairs.
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