AUTHOR'S NOTE:

I was too excited to wait until next week to post this chapter, so here it is!

Shoutouts to StoryMaker7, guest, MMM, and lovesgod12 for posting your thoughts about the previous chapter!

In the chapter below, Kai and Jay have already left Garmadon Ranch, and now Nya is also about to leave...


Chapter 29 - Autumn Scares

Three days later…

Right after breakfast, the residents of Garmadon Ranch bustled about in preparation for the carriage ride which Nya and Mr. Wu would shortly take to Ninjago Town. Once there, Mr. Wu planned to board his horse and rent space for the carriage before he and the auburn-haired cowboy's wife caught the stagecoach to Barrburg, in eastern Ninjago, where the mother-to-be would be living with Ed and Edna Walker during Jay's service in the Yellow Army.

Sam was dressed in Kai's work clothes, ready to head out to the pasture after the travelers' imminent departure so that she could join Bo in tending the cattle. In the meantime, she was helping with last-minute packing.

Miss Gayle finished packing the picnic basket and handed it to Nya. "These vittles'll be fillin' ye up as ye travel," she announced. "Don't forget ye be eatin' for two!" she smiled as she turned her back to attend to another last-minute detail.

Nya returned the smile, but Sam noticed it looked more like a grimace.

Nya doesn't seem too happy, Sam thought. Come to think of it, Nya's looking pale this morning and moving around extra slowly. Is she upset about leaving Garmadon Ranch?

Sam watched as Nya turned and began to walk to the carriage to put the food basket in it. About halfway, the raven-haired beauty suddenly dropped the basket and fell to her knees, doubling over with a loud cry of pain.

"Nya!" Sam yelled, running over to her friend. Miss Gayle dropped her dish towel in her rush to Nya's aid. Mr. Wu, who had just finished hitching his horse to the carriage, also hurried over.

"Yerra! What ails ye, lassie?" the housekeeper asked as she knelt down beside the younger woman.

"The baby!" Nya whimpered, holding her abdomen. "I started feeling pain last night and I hoped it would go away by this morning, but it's getting worse!" She moaned.

"Oh, lassie, ye should've said something -"

Miss Gayle was interrupted by a louder moan of agony. "Ohhhh!" Nya wailed as she clutched her abdomen tighter. "What's happening to me?!" the mother-to-be frantically cried out in panic.

The baby shouldn't be here for at least another two months! Sam worriedly thought to herself.

"Ladies, get Nya back inside while I go fetch Doc Julien!" Mr. Wu called as he ran to unhitch his horse from the carriage.

Miss Gayle grabbed the ailing woman's upper arm, and Sam grabbed her other arm, and together they gently lifted her to a standing position and guided her back into the house. In the meantime, Mr. Wu quickly unhitched his horse, mounted the animal, and galloped away toward Ninjago Town to seek help.


Three hours later…

"Ye can come in now, Mr. Wu," Miss Gayle advised the ranch owner as she opened Nya's bedroom door to let him in.

For the past hour, ever since Mr. Wu had arrived with Doc Julien, the door had been mainly closed while he waited in the hallway, except for the times when Miss Gayle had exited and reentered the room to fetch cloths, hot water, and various other supplies for the physician.

When the ranch owner took off his hat and entered the room, Doc was working on repacking his black bag. Miss Gayle circled the double bed and seated herself on the far side of Nya, then took her hand in comfort. No doubt Sam would be comforting the patient, too, if she were still here. When Doc Julien had arrived, she had left to tend the cattle.

Nya was awake. She looked tired, but Mr. Wu was happy to see she had some color in her cheeks again.

Doc looked up from his packing. "Nya will be fine," he assured Mr. Wu. "And so will the baby."

He then spoke to the group as a whole. "But the journey to Barrburg is hereby canceled. Nya, you need to stay in bed until the birth. The baby will be born right here on Garmadon Ranch."

"But -" Nya began, but the physician cut her off.

"It's too dangerous now for you and your little one to be jostled around in a stagecoach while you cross the country. We need to make sure the baby stays in your womb for a few more weeks, so that means complete bedrest for you," Doc explained as he finished packing his bag and closed it shut. "So stay off your feet, and I'll be back in a few days to check on you."

He turned to Mr. Wu. "When I get back to town, I'll be happy to send a telegram to Jay's parents - and one to Jay - to tell them the journey is off."

"Much obliged, Doc, but I reckon I'll go back to Ninjago Town with you, so I'll take care of sending the telegrams myself while I'm there," the ranch owner replied. "Now that Barrburg is off the table, I'll start making the arrangements to take the cattle to market. I need to pay a visit to my nephew to see if he can help."


The first week in October…

The autumn sun shone down from a brilliant blue sky as Sam and Miss Gayle tended to the laundry just outside the back door. The blonde-haired beauty appreciated the beautiful day, but it did not alleviate her feeling of tiredness. These days, performing the weekly Monday chore made Sam a bit sad, for the pile of dirty clothing, which was quite substantial back in the spring, was now rather small - a reminder that the cowboys and Brooke were not presently living at the ranch.

What also made her a bit sad was the empty pasture in the distance. Mr. Wu had left with Lloyd and Bo about twelve days ago, herding the cattle toward the market in eastern Ninjago. He and Bo were due back at Garmadon Ranch today.

Before they left, Mr. Wu had expressed relief that Lloyd was able to take time off from his sheriff duties so he could accompany them on the journey and leave Deputy Dareth in charge. The route to the cattle market ran through the village of Corbett, which was separated from the Purple Army by only three towns. As had occurred in other towns within reach of the Purples, the ordinary, law-abiding citizens of Corbett were fleeing, leaving the less savory characters more freedom to loot businesses and rob innocent people. Mr. Wu had been confident that Lloyd's sheriff badge would insure that their passages through Corbett were uneventful on the way to and from the cattle market.

Miss Gayle picked up a damp garment in order to pin it to the clothesline, but she paused to examine the horizon. "It be lookin' like Mr. Wu is on his way back now!"

Sam finished pinning a garment and gazed in the direction indicated by the housekeeper. "I only see one horse. I wonder where Bo is."

The ladies quickly hung up the rest of the freshly washed garments in preparation to greet the ranch owner. When he finally rode up on his horse, they expected he would be pleased to have arrived home, but instead his teeth were clenched, and he seemed to be in pain.

Dispensing with his customary polite greeting, he asked, "Ladies, could you please move one of the picnic benches away from the table?"

They quickly obliged him. They did not know why he made the request, but they soon found out when he guided his horse next to the table. He eased himself off the animal onto the raised platform but almost fell down in the process.

"Mr. Wu, what happened to your ankle?" Sam inquired. The ladies observed that he treated it gingerly while sliding himself down to a sitting position on the other picnic bench.

He began to remove his shoe. "Earlier today, we were just a few miles east of Ninjago Town when I dismounted my horse to check something, but as soon as I landed on the ground, I knew I was in a bad box when my ankle started hurting like the deuce."

"When we got to Ninjago Town, we stopped at Doc Julien's office, but Misako said Doc was tending to a sick little girl out near Hibiscus Falls, so I thought it'd be best if Bo went to fetch him while I headed back to the ranch and let him treat me here."

By this time, Mr. Wu had removed his shoe and sock, and to the three of them it was quite obvious that something was amiss, for his ankle was red and swollen.

Sam quietly sighed as she and the housekeeper helped the ranch owner into the house. Yet another calamity had befallen Garmadon Ranch. Certainly they had suffered through enough scares to last them for the rest of the year.

Hadn't they?