Katherine didn't stay long after that. She kept remarking about the heat, and patting at her face with a handkerchief. Charlie noticed that
the red rouge Katherine applied to her cheeks was beginning to show up on that handkerchief.
"I should be getting back to the hotel," Katherine was saying, as they walked slowly back across the yard.
"Do you plan to spend the night?" Murdoch asked, making conversation. For a long, wretched moment, Charlie thought that Murdoch meant
to invite Katherine to spend the night here, at Lancer.
"Yes. I thought I would, and take the stage back to Stockton in the morning, when it's not so hot," Katherine said.
"Would you like a cool drink before you go?" Murdoch offered. "Lemonade?"
"That would be very nice," Katherine said.
"We'll see if Teresa has some made," Murdoch said, and ushered Katherine into the door.
Charlie hung back a bit. "Can I go?" she asked Murdoch in a whisper. She felt she'd done her share, been polite and helped to
entertain Katherine. She wanted to go out to the barn, or to the creek.
"You can go and see about the lemonade," Murdoch said.
With a quiet sigh, Charlie went to the kitchen. Teresa was not there, and Charlie searched for the pitcher of lemonade that was
usually available on hot days like this. There is was, in the icebox, and Charlie took down a glass, then another, and poured lemonade
into the glasses.
The back door opened, and Scott came in. He was pulling off his gloves, the work gloves he wore when doing fencing work or such.
"Back from your walk?" Scott asked.
Charlie nodded. "She says she's leaving soon. She wants a drink first."
"Lemonade looks good."
"Do you want some, too?" Charlie asked him, reaching for another glass, and pouring a third glass. She handed it off to Scott,
who thanked her and then took a long drink.
"What were you doing?" Charlie asked him.
"Helping sort some calves."
"Are you going back out later?" Charlie asked.
"I will after I drive Katherine back to town."
"Oh," Charlie said. She was going to ask Scott if she could go along with him when he did go back out to work with the cows, but before she could, Scott set his own glass down, and gestured to the two that Charlie had filled.
"Those what you're taking in to them?" he asked.
At Charlie's nod, Scott reached out for one of the glasses, and let Charlie take the other one, and they walked without talking to the library.
It was cooler there, and Charlie handed Murdoch the glass she carried, leaving Scott to offer Katherine hers.
She did so with purpose, meaning to, and it gave Charlie a small jolt of satisfaction. Even though it was really nothing, it still made her
feel more powerful, somehow.
Even though Katherine had mentioned leaving earlier, it seemed to Charlie that now she had no desire to do so. The afternoon seemed
to tick away, seeming like forever, yet Charlie could see from the grandfather clock that time was passing rapidly. So rapidly that
there wouldn't be any time at all to do anything the rest of the day.
Charlie sighed heavily. Something that didn't go unnoticed by Scott. Or Murdoch, either. Murdoch looked disapprovingly at Charlie, and
Scott gave her a long, meaningful glance. Murdoch's face was discomforting, but Scott's-Charlie felt that to the tips of her toes. It nearly
said more than words.
She subsided, stopping her wriggling, and trying to tamp down her irritation. Until another half hour went by, and Charlie was nearly
desperate to escape outside into the sunshine.
Teresa, like Johnny, had made herself scarce, and that made Charlie even more irritated.
Why, she thought to herself, was it alright for them to escape the gratingness of Katherine's personality, yet she had to sit here,
behaving, and polite?
Was gratingness even a real word? Charlie thought she would have to look it up later, in Murdoch's big dictionary.
"That lemonade surely was tasty," Katherine said.
"Would you care for more?" Murdoch asked her.
"Yes, perhaps I will, before I have to make the drive back to town," she said.
Charlie, seeing her chance to escape, even only for a few moments, stood abruptly. and said, "I'll get it."
Even Katherine looked startled at Charlie's swiftness to take her glass and leave the library. Charlie went straight to the kitchen,
and set the glass on the table.
She went to stand and look out the back door. She could see Jelly, outside with his pig, and some of the other hands, in the
pastures on horseback. Gurth was visible, too, grazing with the other horses.
She had the door open, thinking she would slip out, just for a few moments. Just like enough to pet Gurth, or talk to Jelly for a minute.
Then she'd come back and refill Katherine's glass.
"Making a getaway?" Scott's voice came from behind her.
Charlie turned so swiftly that her fingernail caught on the wood frame of the door. She immediately put it into her mouth, trying to
dull the quick pain.
"No," Charlie said, right off, in denial.
Scott raised an eyebrow, looking skeptically at her.
"I was just looking outside for a minute," Charlie defended. "Getting a breath of air."
"Hmm," Scott said, still looking doubtful. He came over closer, looking over the top of her head into the activity outside.
"It's a nice day outside to get a breath of air, alright," Scott said.
Charlie looked up at him swiftly, still sucking on her finger. Charlie thought he sounded strange, not angry, exactly, but still-sort of
strange.
"I was going to step out, just for a few minutes," Charlie said, in honesty.
"Uh huh," Scott said, not surprised.
"I'm sorry, Scott, but I feel like I'm gonna burst if I don't get outside!" Charlie said.
Scott's blue-grey eyes settled on her for a long moment, and then he said, "Alright. Go in and say your goodbyes to Katherine, and then
you can go."
Charlie was so surprised that she stared back for another long moment. Then, in gratefulness she gave Scott one of her full-blown smiles. The
sort that made all her dimples appear, and her face seem to be alight.
"Take Katherine her lemonade when you go," Scott said.
"Yes. Okay," Charlie said, pouring more lemonade into the empty glass so fast that she sloshed some onto the table.
She went to grab a cloth to sop of the spilled liquid, but only succeeded in spreading it around.
Scott took the cloth from her hand, and said, "I'll do it. Go."
"Thank you, Scott," Charlie said, and made her way quickly back to the library. Teresa had rejoined Murdoch and Katherine by now,
and Charlie handed off the lemonade to her aunt.
Charlie started to speak, but then wondered what Murdoch would say if she just started saying goodbye and all of that-so she
looked first at the older man and said, "Scott says I can be excused."
Murdoch gave a brief nod, and Charlie turned to Katherine. "Goodbye."
"Charlotte. We'll see each other again soon," Katherine said.
Since Charlie wasn't anxious for that to occur, she only bobbed her head, and then said, pleasantly, "I hope you have a
nice trip back."
"On those dusty roads?" Katherine said, with doubt, and laughed her society tinkling laugh.
Charlie looked at Murdoch who gave her a nod, and she made her way hurriedly out of the room, nearly knocking into Scott
as he made his way back in.
"Slow down, kiddo," Scott said, quietly.
"Yes. I will," Charlie said, flashing him another grin as she went.
L
Charlie ran with both of the dogs, Burl and Lettie, too, across the pastures. She fed Gurth an apple, and then skipped and ran
for longer. She saw Johnny in the distance, and stood, getting back her breath, until he rode up near her.
"Hey, pequeno," he greeted her.
"Hi!"
"All finished entertainin' at the house?" he asked.
Charlie pulled a face. "Well, I am," she said. "Scott said I could go."
"Ah," Johnny said. "Is the guest stayin' for supper?"
"No." Charlie hesitated. "Well, I don't think so. I hope not."
"Pretty awful, huh?" Johnny asked, in question, referring, Charlie knew, to how the day had gone.
She shrugged. "It's never good with her. But, I guess it wasn't all that awful, either. At least, today it wasn't. She can be really
mean, though. She doesn't show that around Murdoch, though."
Johnny was watching her, looking thoughtful, taking in her words, from where he sat, atop his horse.
"She's good at pretending to be nice. Especially around men," Charlie said, some bitterness seeping into her tone from all the past
hurts.
For a moment, Johnny's eyes crinkled with what seemed to be amusement, but then he seemed more somber.
"I wouldn't count the old man out, pequeno," Johnny said. "He's smart about seein' the truth inside people."
"I hope so," Charlie said, fervently, and then looked up at Johnny in somewhat embarrassment. "I mean, I don't want all the family,
or Mr. Val, or anybody, to think that I'm not telling the truth, or that I'm exaggerating, about what all happened in Stockton-"
"Whoa there, little bit," Johnny said, and Charlie paused, taking a breath. "None of us, or Val, either, think those things," Johnny said, firmly.
Charlie smiled at him gratefully.
"You want a ride?" Johnny offered, and when Charlie nodded, Johnny took one foot from the stirrup, and held out a hand to
lift her up.
L