Chapter 28
The sound of knocks at the door resounded in the hut, interrupting the moment between the two women, and as Ari turned to look, she saw Kid's head pop out. "Come inside, young man," the woman said. "Don't stand there."
Kid stepped inside, and straightway he noticed in surprise his wife holding his housekeeper's hand. "I wanted to know how you were doing, Ari," Kid asked.
Lou smiled, aware that Kid had actually come to check on her, and how things were going on. Yet, she kept her opinion for herself. "Much better now," Ari replied, sharing a knowing look with Louise. "I had a very pleasant surprise just now." Kid frowned quizzingly, and Ari added, "Seems your wife and I knew each other years before I met you."
"Dana used to live next door to my parents' when I was just a child," Louise explained, pointing at her portrait in her hands.
"Dana?" Kid asked, confused.
"Back then I went by my full name, Ariadna. Your wife, then a tiny tot, was starting to speak, but couldn't say my very long name, and called me something like Dana. That stuck, and for many years many people called me just Dana."
Kid was looking at the photograph that was guilty of the two women getting reacquainted after so many years. "You were a pretty little thing, Lou, but that's hardly surprising," he muttered, thinking that if one day they had a baby girl, she would look like Lou in this picture.
"Dana and my ma were good friends. This woman," Lou continued, tapping Ari's hand, "helped us so much when things were nasty with my father. She opened her home to us when we… when my pa was in an irritable mood, and was dangerous to be around. The day my mother decided to leave him for good, we could escape from his claws thanks to Dana. My ma always regretted losing contact with her since she couldn't risk us being found by my father, and naturally she never stopped talking highly of her very good friend."
"I just did what any good Christian would have done. Mary was like a sister to me," Ari said in disregard.
Kid glanced at the housekeeper with renewed admiration. "Give yourself some credit, Ari. Think that thanks to you, Lou's now my wife." The housekeeper stared at the young man with a frown, and Kid added, "Who knows where Lou would be now if you hadn't helped her mother escape Boggs? She might not be here with us, and there is a great chance she and I would have never met."
Kid stooped and placed a soft kiss on his wife's cheek, as his own words and the possibility of that happening scared him. Lou smiled at his attention, and said, "Kid's right. We owe you a lot, Dana."
Ari shook her head, feeling she had not done so much to deserve their thankfulness. John Boggs had been a tyrannical, cold, cruel man with everybody, including his family, and the satisfaction of helping Mary Louise and her children away from him was enough reward for her. It was very disappointing, though, to learn that despite all they had to do for Mary to make her escapade, freedom and relief had lasted too little as she had died shortly afterwards. "If you want to repay me, then stay together happily, and bring a baby to this house I can spoil."
Louise blushed and giggled at the woman's comment while Kid said, "Believe me, Ari. We're trying…every night."
"Kid!" Lou exclaimed, smacking him on the leg as her cheeks flamed with embarrassment.
"Honey, there's no reason to turn all shy. Ari already knows we're married, and has a certain idea what married folks do in the bedroom at night," Kid replied teasingly.
"And if you don't behave, those nights are gonna be veeeeery lonely," Lou continued the jest, emphasizing her words and sticking her tongue out at him.
Ari started laughing, and soon the couple also joined in her mirth. Conversation continued as Kid asked question after question, obviously curious about the common past of the two women, and Ari kept reminiscing countless moments from that time, many of which Lou had no recollection of.
An hour later the married couple was walking back to the house. Kid had his arm around her shoulders and Lou wrapped hers around his waist. She glanced up and noticed his faraway look, and wondered what he was thinking about. "Where is that mind of yours right now, Kid? Not here with me, I know as much."
"I was just thinking that some things are meant to be," Kid replied. "Look what happened today, Lou. You were completely distraught about the incident in town a while ago, and see where all this has led you… to discover that sweet link with Ari."
"Are you saying that it is a good thing I ran her over?"
Kid smiled. "No, but something good did come out of it. Had it not been for what happened today, you might never have gone to Ari's hut and found that photograph that led you to know who she was to you. Life is really full of surprises, and what we call coincidence is the way we are guided on the road we should follow. Call it destiny, fate, or predestination. Some things are just meant to happen." Kid paused, and then added, "Did you see Ari's beaming face tonight, Lou? I don't think I've ever seen her smile so much and look as radiant as just now. It's as if she's gained part of her life back, and her heart ain't so empty now."
Lou sighed. "She told me about her son. So horrible."
"Yes, I know. That must have broken her completely."
"Kid," Louise called, and stopped to turn to him and look into his eyes. "Please promise me you would never let yourself fall so deep… so desperately deep."
The young man frowned at his wife's request. "You don't plan on leaving me, do you?"
At his words a chill coursed all over her body, and once again fear shook her whole body. "When I heard Dana talk about her son and her daughter-in-law, I thought about us… about me and our past. It scared me to death to think their story could have been ours. You couldn't do that… what Tommy did. Tell me you couldn't."
Kid took her hands. "I don't think their story is like ours, Lou. Don't think about it. Life is too beautiful with you in it to think about death. We've survived the worst, haven't we? And I still think some things are meant to be. Maybe we needed that to grow strong."
"I… I hope so," Lou muttered hesitantly.
"We're fine, honey, and now that things are settled with Ari, which was the only thing that worried you; everything's bound to be better. Please don't think about the rain when there are no clouds in the sky."
"Yes, you're right," Lou admitted. "I'm sorry for being so negative."
"Maybe we need a bit of cheering up, Mrs. McCloud. What do you say if we mind Ari and try to fill this house with children? You said it yourself, we owe her big, and that's what she wants."
Lou chuckled, fear fading little by little, and her mind feeling more relaxed. "I don't recall her saying anything about a house full of babies. She just mentioned one."
"One, two, a dozen, who cares? We'll start with one, and then play as we go," Kid remarked lightheartedly. Louise's shining eyes stared at him, mesmerized and beaming, and as she remained silent, Kid added, "So Mrs. McCloud, shall we try or not?"
Louise hooked her arm through his, hinting he should lead the way. "We haven't even had dinner yet," she remarked as they resumed walking towards the house.
"That's why I'm so hungry for you," he whispered in her ear. "When you're around, I don't need anything else… just you."
Lou blushed with pleasure, feeling very lucky and proud of the man who was her husband. How she had been able to be without him for so long, she did not know. Now she was full of dreams of a long life next to him, of a house full of children, like he had said, and of love and passion. Could she dare to dream that could be possible? That was all she wished for, but a little voice in her mind kept whispering to be careful, that danger was on its way, and their dreams could crumble down and be turned into nothing sooner than she might think. Another shiver shook her body, and she steeled her hold onto him as they walked into the house. She did not want to hear those whispers inside her head; she just wanted to be deaf and blind, and hear his voice and look through his eyes. Then why didn't that darn voice keep quiet?
"We'll be back in a few weeks," Lou said as she placed her carpet bag in the back of the wagon. "I just need to pick up my things in Seneca, and sort out my business there."
"I'm gonna miss you two. These weeks are going to feel endless," Ari added.
Lou smiled and squeezed her shoulder fondly. In the last couple of weeks the two women had become closer than Louise ever fathomed. She and Dana, like Lou still called the older woman, had lain good ground for their further relationship, and Louise felt she had found the closest thing to her mother. Not only had Dana known her as a child, but she had been like a sister to her ma, and loved her dearly.
In this time the two women had the chance to talk, and Louise had gained back memories and mementos she had lost in the immensity of time. She enjoyed being around Ari, and the woman was even showing her way around the kitchen. Lou had always wanted to improve her cooking skills long ago, but it had just been her fault she had not fulfilled her aim. When she had first married, she had intended to learn from Rachel, and actually, she had got together with the former station mistress on several occasions to pick up a thing or two from her. Yet, when Kid had gone to war and later she had thought he had been killed, Lou had been too upset to care for her cooking skills or for anything else. Back then she and her siblings spent a great deal of time at Rachel's, and even when they received the good news that Kid was alive, they continued with the same routine. And of course when she had moved to Seneca, there was nobody that could teach her, and Lou made do the best she could. Now she enjoyed learning from Dana, who was as good a cook as Emma or Rachel. With Dana, Lou might not need to set a foot in the kitchen, but she needed to feel useful and help around the house as much as she could. Naturally she knew she was not a good housewife, but she intended for that to change.
"Why don't you meet us in Seneca like I told you?" Lou suggested.
Ari shook her head. "I'd really love to see your sister even though I'm aware she doesn't know who I am. It'd please me to see her as a fully grown woman; she was a baby the last time I saw her. However, I'm too old to travel."
Louise narrowed her eyes skeptically, and rested her hands on her hips in a challenging stance. "Oh come on, Dana! You ain't old. I haven't seen anybody as energetic as you are. You really work your fingers to the bone around here. How can you call that old?"
"It's my job," Ari just said, and as Lou was about to protest, she added, "I'd rather stay here… honestly, Louise."
Lou finally relented. "All right, as you wish. But if you change your mind in this week, know you're welcome there. In any case, Tessie will have to visit me sometime here, so you'll have your chance to see her then."
Kid then appeared out of the stables, carrying his saddlebags, blankets, and bedrolls they might use while on the trail. Their plans included spending a week together somewhere they chose before heading for Seneca.
"Are you ready?" he asked once he left everything on the back of the wagon.
Lou nodded, and Kid turned to his housekeeper. "Take care of yourself while we're gone, Ari. You know, Mr. Moore's son will be coming every day to muck out the stables and feed the horses. He knows where everything is, so don't worry about him." He paused, and added, "We'll be back soon anyway."
"Take care of yourself and your wife, young man," Ari said, pressing his hands between hers.
"You know I will."
Louise came forward, and hugged the woman warmly. "Thanks for everything, Dana."
"Give your sister my love," Ari said. "See you and Kid when you return."
The tone in her voice sounded to Lou's ears like a question, and she stared back at the woman agape, totally confused. Louise was not sure if that pseudo-question implied that Dana wondered if she and Kid would remain together in this time, or maybe she was questioning whether Lou would be coming back at all. Her body suddenly shuddered with a strange cold sensation, and her heart started thumping. She did not like what she was feeling, and once again her whole spirit was dominated by deep fears she could not control.
"Let's go, Lou," Kid said, oblivious of her inner sensations. Louise nodded, and almost by inertia she followed him to the front of the carriage, and got onto the seat with his help.
"Goodbye, Ari!" Kid exclaimed as he slapped the reins on the horses' back and set the wagon into motion. Louise turned on the seat to look back, and saw Ari waving at them. Lou copied the gesture, and energetically swayed her hand to and fro in goodbye. When Ari could hardly be made out in the distance, Louise turned her eyes back ahead, and she realized she was crying. Kid had noticed her tears too, and reached out for her had. "Don't be sad. We'll be back before we realize it."
"I know," she replied in a low tone as she wiped her tears. The same nagging voice from days before resounded in her mind with a clear question: "Do you really know?" The words kept repeating over and over again, and to her shock she realized that she was absolutely scared of the answer.
Tongues of fire roared in the heart, casting its shadows on the walls and ceiling of the darkened room. Moans and grunts of pleasure could be heard, alternated by soft whispers and murmured words of love. A passionate cry went up in the night as the lovers reached the climax, and silence then ensued, just broken by the pants of the couple, breathless and beaming after joining their bodies and souls in an ultimate act of love.
Wrapped arms and legs around each other, Kid and Louise snuggled up as close as possible. The Southerner brought his hand to caress her face and kissed her on the lips. "I love you," he breathed against her mouth while his hand wandered from her neck to the softness of her naked back.
Lou sighed. "I think I could easily get used to leading this kind of life every day."
"Me too," Kid confessed.
They had been traveling quite a lot in the last week. Kid had given his wife the option to choose where she wished they spent their outstanding honeymoon. Louise had wanted to re-live their past moments and memories, and go back to the places that marked milestones in their relationship. Therefore, they had ridden to all those towns that they remembered with great fondness. They started in Sweetwater where they spent a couple of days, then they had ridden to Redfern, where they had first made love, and Lou had even insisted they drop by the hut where Kid had found out her true gender. The hut had been turned into a shelter for shepherds, hunters or even just drifters, and being empty at the time, the couple had enjoyed a passionate night, which added a new memory to the place. Yesterday they had arrived in Davenport, the town where Lou had accepted his marriage proposal, and this would be their last night of freedom, since tomorrow they would be heading for Seneca.
"Everything good has to finish some time," Lou muttered wistfully.
"It doesn't mean we can't do this again," Kid replied.
Lou nodded, and kept thoughtful for a while. "I wonder what my sister will say when she sees you," she mused as her fingers ran over his chest.
"Do you think she might not like us being back together?"
"Tessie has always been quite discreet about what happened between us. Before I left, she told me she hoped I could find a good man and be happy. And I've done that, haven't I?" Kid smiled, but the awkwardness he showed in his face did not go unnoticed by Lou. "Don't worry, Kid. Tessie's always liked you."
"You should have written to her to explain our situation," Kid pointed out. Lou shrugged her shoulders, and he added, "What about her husband?"
"Albert? Hard to tell. He's sometimes a peculiar character. I ain't even sure if he knows I'm married."
Kid frowned. "How's that so?"
"Well, since I've always shared our surname with my siblings, everybody assumed I was a Miss, not a Mrs. Back then I didn't feel like correcting that when… well, you know. I imagine our marriage is gonna surprise a few people."
"Does that worry you?"
"Course not," Lou replied promptly. "I'm sure you and Albert will get along. In any case, what he says or even what Tessie says shouldn't concern us too much. We don't need anybody's permission."
"Lou, let me ask you this again. Are you sure you want to take apart the life you built in Seneca? You know, we can talk about all our options."
"I've never been so sure of anything in my life. I want to be with you, and make the ranch our home. I'm already happy there."
Kid smiled at her words. His mouth demanded her lips once again. He knew he could never get enough of her. Maybe the long years of absence and emptiness made him long for her with greater passion and yearning. This was a dream. Having Lou was a fantasy for many years, and now that it had come true, he often had to pinch himself to make sure he was not dreaming. A long road lay before them, and he could envision a full life of dreams and plans waiting for them. They had barely started walking together, and he could hardly wait to take and experience every step with the woman that meant everything to him.