A Lady in Defiance Read Free Page A

lingering blank stare. McIntyre
concluded that the boy was neither in a hurry to accept his fate nor leave the
saloon.
    Unwilling to be held up by the gloom in the air, he reached
for the deed sitting forlornly in the middle of the table. “Let yourself out,
Whicker, and have a safe trip back to…” Kansas, was it? He waived his hand
dismissively. “Wherever you’re from.” Then he added generously, “You’re an
enterprising young man. I’m sure you’ll be able to start over again.”
    McIntyre was almost surprised at himself for offering the
words of encouragement and raked his hand through his black, wavy hair as if
that would clear these dark thoughts. He supposed it was that accursed Southern
upbringing which equated rudeness with horse stealing. In the cold light of
reality, though, Whicker was nothing to him but an obstacle. And now an
obstacle removed.
    Well, nearly. The boy still hadn’t moved. Sighing, McIntyre
tucked the deed into his breast pocket and headed upstairs to his room. He
paused ever-so-briefly at the top of the stairs to again flick away that crumb
of compassion. After all, it had been a truly fair game. McIntyre hadn’t
cheated. He hadn’t forced the boy to drink, nor had he forced him to bet the
store.
    Slapping the rail twice as if dismissing Whicker from his
conscience, McIntyre strode across the hall to his room. Imagining a bath and
Rose’s heady kisses, he turned the brass door knob and entered his room. From
below, and barely above the soft thump of rain drops, he heard the boy mutter
miserably, “Missouri. Hannibal, Missouri.”
    But the words were lost. McIntyre eyed the voluptuous Rose
seductively draped in his silk sheets and, undoing his tie, closed the door on
Whicker.
    ~~~
     
     
    In the dream, Naomi sat alone at the campfire waiting for her
guest. She tended to the fish in the skillet and kept a watchful eye. Shortly,
Jesus joined her. He sat down on the other side of the fire and offered her a
tender smile.
    “Naomi, do you trust me more than these?” She was surprised
to see that Rebecca and Hannah had joined them, too, though they acted unaware
of her or Jesus.
    “Yes, Lord, you know I trust you.”
    “Then go where I send you.” She put the fork down on the rock
next to the fire and looked at him, puzzled by his statement. Again he asked,
“Naomi, do you trust me?”
    Her brow furrowed. “Yes, Lord, you know I trust you.”
    “Then go where I send you.” She sat back and crossed her
legs, puzzled, but sure there was more. Staring at her with dark, intent eyes,
Jesus asked again, “Naomi, do you trust me?”
    She sighed, frustrated with him. “You know everything; you
know my heart. So you should know that I trust you.”
    “Then go where I send you. There are those around you living
in defiance. Take to them the Good News.” And then he pleaded softly, “Love
them as I do.”
    “I will go where you send me, Lord.” Her heart ached to ask
one question of him, though. “But can’t you please tell me why you took
Jo−”
    Jesus put a finger to his lips, cutting off the question. His
countenance and voice were gentle when he replied, “You’ll have your answer in
time. I have children lost in darkness. Take to them the Light…and don’t stand
on eighteen.”
     
     
    Naomi opened her eyes and looked up at the bottom of the
wagon. A gray light crept stealthily upon them and she knew it was time to get
moving. Slowly, gingerly, she climbed over her sleeping sisters and crawled out
from underneath a home she now despised.
    A lonely apprehension seized her as she wandered over to the
dead fire. As she moved to sit on a fallen tree, she stopped short. Either
Rebecca or Hannah had left John’s map out, folded to reveal a small section.
She picked it up and studied the lines and topographical details. John’s
accident had happened on what he’d called the Million Dollar Highway, the way
most of the gold and silver was taken out of the valley. She let her