PART TWO

The next few weeks were the most joyous Melanie had known since arriving in Sweetwater. In Louise she found a kindred spirit with whom she had an immediate rapport. At first she had been content with staying at home in her new house, but since meeting the Morgan family her world opened up. Melanie did not want to make herself unwelcome, but the days spent away from her new friends were long and empty, and she waited impatiently until her upbringing and sense of politeness allowed her to return for another visit. This behavior did not last long however, as Lou was always pleased to see her and questioned her as to why she had stayed away so long. The gesture was one that Melanie cherished, and she secretly vowed to ensure Louise Morgan remained her friend for life.

The promised riding lessons were forthcoming as soon as Melanie could convince Howard to take her the ranch each morning on his way to work. At first he grumbled about the extra traveling time on his daily journey, but after a few well chosen words and cajoling looks from his wife, he acquiesced. Melanie knew exactly how to act to get what she wanted, and Howard did not complain when her good humor continued as she spent more time with her friend. She was far more agreeable when in a good mood, and he was quite happy to enjoy it while it lasted. She was even more accepting of his amorous advances towards her too, so it did not take long for him to comply to her daily visits to the ranch.

On the first day of her riding lessons, Melanie waited nervously in the parlor while Louise was looking for something upstairs. She had not told Howard of her plans as she knew he would probably forbid her to ride horses. For a young man who had dreamed of adventure in the West, Howard had traditional, parochial views when it came to women and how they should behave. He expected her to keep house, have babies, and generally fulfill his every desire, but he never considered she might not feel the same way. He relied upon her upbringing and the expectations instilled in her from birth. He did not ask if she thought otherwise, nor did he care. Melanie understood her husband even if he did not understand her. She would never tell him of her riding lessons. It was something which belonged to her and her alone.

"Found them!" said Louise and she stomped down the stairs. Melanie glanced up from her reverie, her eyes widening ever so slightly when she saw that her friend was dressed in men's pants and a shirt, her hair fastened securely under an old hat. Lou dumped a small pile of clothes on the chair in front of Melanie and grinned.

"Here you are, you'd better put these on. I have to see to the baby."

Melanie was puzzled at her mischievous tone and bent to pick up the garments. She was shocked to find they were men's clothes too - thick, coarse pants and a blue button-up shirt. She laughed in spite of herself and looked at Lou incredulously.

"You're not serious surely… I can't wear these!"

"Of course you can, I'm sure they'll fit," she replied over her shoulder as she walked out of the room. "You can't go riding in that pretty outfit of yours, you'll get all tangled up astride a horse."

Melanie stood there in the empty parlor and smiled shyly to herself. First riding and now men's clothes… As if reading her thoughts, Louise popped her head suddenly around the corner.

"Besides, I'm sure Howard wouldn't approve!"

"Where can I change?" Melanie grinned.

After several months of her clandestine rides with Louise, Melanie could not think of a time when she had enjoyed herself more or when she had felt so alive. There was something inexplicably freeing about flying across the open plains, losing oneself in the thrill of the ride, the speed blurring together the trees, the grass and the sky into one glorious canvas of color. She had taken to riding so quickly and so well that Louise pronounced her a natural horsewoman and gave Melanie her own saddle and riding clothes to be kept for her at the ranch.

She was a familiar face around the place now, and everyone grew to love her, especially the children. She had such a way with Jamie and Adam that Louise thought it was a shame she had no children of her own. But then, she and Howard had not been married that long, it might take time. Louise did not complain either, because having Melanie around allowed her more time to work the ranch with Kid - something which she had not realized she missed until then. She was thankful every day that Howard and Melanie Brooks had made Sweetwater their home.

When the long Summer days began to drift into cooler Autumn afternoons, Melanie grew more lax in her wariness of Howard finding out about her new pastime. She spent more time at the ranch, only returning home just before he did, making no apologies for the hastily prepared meals she served him. There was a time when she had carefully monitored his moods and her own behavior, lest he find out how she spent her days, but as the months passed she grew weary of it. The independence that had grown within her could not be silenced, and she began to say what was on her mind rather than what she knew Howard would like to hear. She could tell this annoyed him, but then his annoyance was of no consequence to her. Not any more. Howard might be her husband but Melanie was her own person for the first time in her life. Not a daughter or a sister or a wife, she could just be herself. She had never known such freedom.

She did not deny that she was happy. Howard been spending more time at the bank of late. He would sit and tell her about his working day as she worked in the kitchen – about the incompetency of Lucius Johnson's accountancy skills he had uncovered, or a newly arrived merchant whose business he was trying to woo – but Melanie had stopped listening long ago. Instead she would gaze longingly out of the window of her small kitchen at the grassy plains beyond and count the minutes until she could gallop across them once more. Howard's voice would continue to drone in the background.

One day in September Melanie stayed out later than she ever had before. Usually she would make sure she was home before she could expect Howard, but the longer he stayed at the bank each day the more reticent she was to leave the ranch before dusk. He had started leaving for work so early that he now refused to drive her to Louise's of a morning, preferring to believe that the Morgan woman came to fetch her each day in her own wagon. Howard did not know that instead of this arrangement Melanie would saddle up the spare horse they owned and rode there and back herself.

The sun was dipping below the hills as Melanie loped along the old path she used between their property and the ranch, keeping well clear of the road in case someone saw her. She was filthy, she knew - the horse she had borrowed from Kid for her daily ride had been spooked by a snake and had thrown her into the dirt. She was not hurt, but her was ego bruised a little when Louise had enjoyed a good laugh at her disheveled appearance. Melanie had not been thrown since her first riding lessons and she was more embarrassed than anything, especially in front of Lou. Once they arrived back at the ranch, she realized how late it was becoming and she told Louise abruptly that she was leaving, limping away to retrieve her own horse. Melanie did not stop to change back into her dress or clean herself up a little, sure in the knowledge that Howard would still be at the bank.

When she trotted into the yard of her house however the first thing she spotted was Howard's buggy. Her heart thumped painfully at the shock of it, she had never expected him so early. Panicked, Melanie was immediately furious with herself for being so careless, before she regained her wits and tried to think what she would do. If she could make it to the barn without him hearing her… then she realized that her own clothes were still in Lou's spare bedroom where she had changed that morning. She had nothing to wear but the men's clothes she rode in everyday, and she could not let Howard see her like that.

She was about to turn the horse and bolt back to the ranch when the door of the house opened with a bang and Howard emerged with another man. Melanie sat frozen astride the horse as he took in her appearance without a word. Howard's face grew pale with anger as he saw her tangled hair and dirty face, not to mention the dusty pants and shirt she wore, opened brazenly at the neck. His stony visage did not change as she slowly dismounted, her eyes wide with fright at his expression and her cheeks red with shame at the sight of the unknown gray-haired man, who stood in the doorway looking rather embarrassed himself.

"Melanie, my dear," said Howard mechanically after the excruciating silence. "This is Mr. Evans, the new owner of the Mercantile. Mr. Evans… my wife…"

Howard swallowed with difficulty before he spoke the last two words, as if they were distasteful to him. Melanie did her best to speak evenly as she shook the man's hand, raising her chin with as much dignity as she could muster.

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Mr. Evans. I apologize for not being here to greet you when you arrived, Howard did not tell me we were expecting a visitor."

"Obviously," Evans mumbled gruffly into his beard, and looked away from the young woman. "Well, Brooks, I must be getting back to town. Dinner seems to be out of the question and I have work to do. I'm a busy man, you know."

Without waiting for a reply the merchant took his seat in the buggy and waited for Howard to join him. Her husband glared at her a moment longer, forcing her to drop her gaze. He strode past her coldly and pulled himself into the driver's seat.

"I must apologize for my wife, Mr. Evans," Howard began immediately as he took up the reins, but Evans waved his hand to silence him.

"Drive."

Melanie's hands shook as she changed out of her riding clothes and bathed her dirty body. She had never seen Howard angry before, not like this. His eyes were cold with fury when he had looked at her - she had not known he had such hatred with in him. Choosing the prettiest dress she knew he preferred, she fixed her hair carefully before she set about making dinner. Her mind was racing as she prepared the meal, and she strained to hear the first sound of the buggy as it approached the house. She heard nothing.

With the food warming in the oven, the table set, the small house immaculate, Melanie sat and waited for Howard to return. The clock over the fire place ticked loudly throughout the silent rooms as the hours passed but still he did not come. Melanie's heart was heavy with dread, she didn't know what to think. Maybe he wouldn't come back at all, maybe he would stay at the bank all night to punish her. She knew she had embarrassed him in front of a prospective client. She was supposed to play the dutiful wife and lady of the house and instead she had returned home late clad in men's clothes and sitting astride a horse. Howard had probably never imagined she was capable of such an outrage, proving again how poorly he understood her. Melanie had not meant to embarrass him of course and she felt bad about it, but she would not apologize for it. Not when he had not even bothered to come home.

It was nearly midnight when he finally did show up. Melanie had made up her mind to go to bed when she heard the buggy trot up to the house. She paused in the doorway to the living room and waited for Howard to enter, steeling herself for the shouting match that was sure to follow. Her freedom was something she was willing to fight for, even if disturbed their placid domestic life.

Despite herself, she jumped with fright when Howard slammed the door open without warning. The house seemed to shudder with the force of it and unwittingly she clamped her hand to her chest. Her eyes shocked but her fear drained rapidly into anger when Howard took a few uncertain steps forward and she realized he was drunk. Her husband never touched alcohol she knew, but now he reeked of whiskey like a one of the sots who frequented the many saloons in town. He laughed when he saw her expression, amused that she should be annoyed with him. That she should be the one angry with him.

"Melanie, my dear," he slurred, his voice hollow. "My dear wife."

He laughed again to himself and wiped a watery eye, as if he had made a huge joke.

"You're drunk," Melanie said coolly. She had no patience with him now if this was how he was to behave. "Your dinner is drying out in the oven if you're hungry. I'm going to bed."

She turned to walk away but with unexpected speed and agility, Howard crossed the space between them and closed his long fingers around the flesh of her upper arm. His grip was so hard she cried out in pain.

"You're not going anywhere," Howard said menacingly through gritted teeth. His eyes were dark and fearful, his breath pungent with alcohol. She shrank away as best she could, protesting, but he would not let go of her arm. "Do you think you can shame me like that and get away with it? Do you think I will stand for that behavior?"

"Let me go, Howard, please." Melanie tried not to make her voice sound so pleading but she was truly frightened now. He was dangerous in his present state, she couldn't deny it. "I'm sorry, I didn't know you were going to bring someone home tonight."

"John Evans is the richest merchant in Sweetwater," he said, relaxing his grip on her arm slightly. "I invited him home to meet my charming wife and share a home cooked meal in order to secure his business, but what did I find? An empty house and a filthy creature dressed like a man! You disgust me, you hear me? You disgust John Evans! He won't be placing his money in my bank any time soon thanks to you! It's your fault!"

As Howard's tirade grew more animated his fingers pressed into her bruised flesh once again.

"Please, Howard, I'm sorry…"

"You're sorry?" he echoed, vaguely amused. He glanced away briefly then with lightening speed he drew back his hand and punched her, his fist connecting hard with the side of her face. The shock of the blow startled her and for an instant she felt nothing. Then the pain made her dizzy and white spots swam before her eyes. Her cheek burned where he had hit her and Melanie tasted blood in her mouth. Instinctively she laid a protective hand on her face and cowered before him on her knees, not daring to meet his eyes. In the silence that followed she heard the eerie ticking of the clock in the darkened room, her head still spinning.

Howard seemed somewhat sobered by his actions and he took an awkward step away from her. He ran a nervous hand through his hair and reached into his jacket pocket for a bottle that was not there. Clutching his forehead, he stumbled away into the kitchen and splashed water on his face.

In the living room, Melanie waited until she heard a chair scraping on the floor before he sat down at the kitchen table to eat the meal she had prepared for him. Slowly and silently she tiptoed to the bedroom in case he heard her and came after her again. Once she had reached the sanctuary of the room she locked the door with trembling hands. Only then did she allow a shaky sob to escape her lips as she slid down the back of the door to the floor where she crouched, shaking uncontrollably. She covered her mouth with both hands as she cried so Howard could not hear her.