Tag: cattling

Water in the Wilderness

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excerpt

Rachael didn’t answer. Maybe if she kept quiet Mrs. Milligan would keep quiet, too. Didn’t the woman know she didn’t want to talk?
“Rachael? Did you hear me, honey?”
It was too much. She turned an angry face up to Auntie Tyne’s mother and shouted, “I don’t want a candy bar, an’ I don’t want to walk with you. Why don’t you just leave me alone?”
Turning abruptly, she took off at a run, slipping and sliding on the snowy sidewalk as she ran back to the house.
She had seen the hurt, shocked look on Mrs. Milligan’s face but she didn’t care. She didn’t want anyone to feel sorry for her. She didn’t want anyone to be nice to her, because she didn’t deserve it. What she should do is go back to Harrison’s and take her beatings, and work herself to death for Aunt Ruby. Why should anyone care about her, anyway? She wasn’t worth it. She never deserved a Shirley Temple doll in the first place, so what did it matter if Lyssa had gouged its eyes out? Lyssa should have got the doll – or Lark should have. They were both better girls than she was. They didn’t drag their young brother around in a blizzard. In fact, they didn’t do any of the bad things she had done.
Reaching the back door of the house, Rachael looked around. Mrs. Milligan was coming behind her, walking so fast that she was sliding on the path, almost losing her footing. Rachael hurried to get inside. Without removing her heavy coat and boots, she ran to her bedroom, slammed the door behind her, and fell face down on the bed.

https://draft2digital.com/book/3562884

https://www.amazon.com/dp/192676319X

Fury of the Wind

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excerpt

“She’d better not be Alan’s girlfriend,” said a raunchy male voice,
“because she’s Ben Fielding’s broad.” The speaker began to laugh
again but his mirth was cut short by an arm that reached out and
thrust him roughly aside.
“Here, what do you think you’re doing?” the speaker demanded,
glaring down at the short man with the furrowed forehead elbowing
his way, none too gently, through the crowd.
“Mind your tongue, Gus, and your own business,” Will snarled
through clenched teeth, “and everybody get the blazes out of my
way, or I’ll call the Constable over.”
The gawkers quieted and moved aside, their mouths agape. Some
of them raised their eyebrows and looked at each other as if to say,
What’s eating the station agent?
Will felt both relief and alarm when he saw Sarah – relief because
she was sitting up and did not appear to be badly hurt, but alarm
because of her obvious distress. All concerns about the Agricultural
Association’s involvement were forgotten, Sarah’s welfare uppermost
in his mind.
On reaching her side he took her hand. “I don’t think there’s a
doctor here, Sarah, but I’ll get you to the Bradshaw hospital right
away.” He thrust his clip board at Charlie Draper. “Here, Charlie,
find Arnold Johnson will you, and tell him he’ll have to take
over. And tell him he’d better damn well do something about these
bleachers or I’ll know the reason why not.”
Alan put a hand on Will’s arm. “No need for you to leave, Will,
I’ll take Sarah in Dave’s car.”
Will hesitated while he considered Alan’s offer. “Well, all right
then,” he said at last. “But you’d better go and find Penny and take
her with you.”
Sarah looked up at Will with eyes full of gratitude. Not only had
he ensured there would be no cause for gossip, but he was getting
her out of this crowd who seemed to be enjoying the spectacle of
Ben Fielding’s wife’s misfortune more than they were enjoying the
ball game.
“Just wait ’til Ben gets her home,” said a woman in the stands,
“he’ll kill her.”
“More likely he’ll kill Will Andrews for not seeing to the bleachers
afore they got in this condition,” a man answered her.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981073530

Wellspring of Love

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excerpt

The early morning sun shone into Tyne’s eyes as she steered her
Chevrolet at unlawful speed through the town of Emblem, and headed
east up the hospital hill. The cloudless sky foretold a spectacular June
day, but Tyne paid no heed. Impatiently, she yanked the visor down
to shield her eyes, and through her rearview mirror, caught sight of a
police cruiser bearing down on her, its lights flashing.
“Oh no,” she moaned aloud, “I’ve no time for this.”
She pulled to the curb and stopped, and the police car pulled up
behind her. With both hands grasping the steering wheel, she lay her
head on it in resignation. In moments, there was a tap on her window.
She looked up and cranked it open to face the young police officer.
“Could I see your license and registration, please, ma’am?”
Tyne produced both with shaking hands and waited while he
examined them. Without looking up he said, “Do you know why I
stopped you?”
She sighed. “Yes, I was speeding.”
“Fifteen miles over the speed limit, ma’am. Not good.”
“I know that, Officer, but I’m on my way to the hospital. My aunt
has just been admitted and I don’t know what’s wrong, and I’m very
worried, and ….” Tyne stopped when she realized she sounded silly,
as if begging for mercy, when all she really wanted was for him to give
her the inevitable ticket and let her go.
“I’m sorry to hear that, Mrs. Cresswell,” he said as he handed the
documents back to her. “I’ll let you be on your way, but please be more
attentive to your driving. It isn’t going to do your aunt any good if you
end up in the bed next to her.”
Tyne saw a fleeting look of compassion on his face, and she smiled
in gratitude. “Thank you,” she murmured as he backed away from …

https://draft2digital.com/book/3562917

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763327

Fury of the Wind

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excerpt

He stopped abruptly as a male voice from amongst a group of
men near the door hailed him. Looking decidedly relieved, he excused
himself to Sarah and hurried away.
She stood in the middle of the room, unaware of the people moving
around her. The day was not going at all as she expected. She
wished she hadn’t come. Perhaps Ben had been smart, after all, to
stay at home. Whatever he had done to alienate the people of Nimkus
had obviously cut deeply. But she could not understand why
they should take it out on her.
She became aware of people staring at her so she walked away,
and eventually made her way outside to the fair grounds. No one,
except a little oriental-looking man, spoke to her. Struggling to
manoeuvre a table through the door into the agricultural hall, he
flashed Sarah a huge smile. “How do, missy.”
Sarah vaguely remembered the sign on a shack at the end of the
main street, declaring the presence of Pong’s Laundry. She felt the
urge to run after the man whom she knew must be Pong, and offer
to help him with the table. After all, apart from Will, no one else
had shown any friendliness towards her this morning.
With nothing better to do she decided to go back to the livestock
area and watch Dave show his animals. Picking her way through
the people gathered on the fairgrounds, she noticed a group at the
grandstand near the ball diamond. She walked over to have a look.
Young men, some in their late teens and others a little older, had
already begun a game of baseball. They wore no uniforms, and the
few baseball caps amongst them did not display any team logo so
Sarah could not tell which districts they represented.
A man leaning on the end of a bleacher seat smiled and moved
aside to let her get a better look. Sarah, interpreting his move as
a friendly gesture, dared to speak to him. “Can you tell me what
teams are playing?”
“Colson and Ryerson districts,” he said, turning to look at her.
“You not from round here then?”
“Yes, I live in the Colson district, but I haven’t been there long.
I doubt if I’d know anyone on the team. Are they the ones at bat
now?”
“No, the ones in the field. They have a pretty fair team…

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981073530

Prairie Roots

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…after chores and supper, for a few hours of fun. When
the moon illuminated the snow on crisp, clear nights we would
run and play and wrestle on the snow banks, or in the straw piles
created by the threshing crew. After getting our fill of the night
air it would be time to thaw out with hot chocolate and finish the
evening off with a game of cards. And then the walk home to be
in by ten o’clock and to bed.
This too was an experience in the winter. After our second
house was built our bedroom was the attic itself, unheated except
for whatever warmth found its way up the narrow stairway. So
the first one in warmed up the bed and resisted sharing the heat
with whoever was to share that bed.We slept in pairs, compatibility
being established by various methods including by dictates
from the parents—when all else failed. And it failed often. Scraps
broke out on minimum provocation and disagreements could last
an hour, a day or weeks.
Piling into a cold bed with a brother who was after your hide was
risky business. You were as likely as not welcomed by a smelly fart
which stopped you from getting your face under the covers to take
advantage of body heat. Instead it was necessary to tuck the feather
tick tightly under the chin to prevent any vapours from escaping
upward, at the same time to gently lift the edge of the tick with a
foot to provide an outlet for the smell. And no touching or bedlam
would break loose and one or the other would be downstairs pleading
his case in long johns before the court of last resort, mother, to
be specific.Mother’s justice was gentle enough and, by comparison
with Pop’s justice, downright benevolent. Pop would resolve our
disagreements by following a policy of no-fault resolution or, to put
it more accurately, all fault resolution whereby we were all equally
guilty and therefore all received equal punishment. It worked. We
usually went to mother to be the mediator. At least with her we
were given a chance to develop our case.
There were many things one could not do in our attic bedroom.
One could not take a glass of water up to the bedside; it froze by
morning.One could not kick off the covers; one froze by morning.

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https://www.amazon.com/dp/0980897920

Wellspring of Love

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excerpt

…moment to gaze at the peaceful faces. Susie’s light brown hair lay
entangled, partly over the pillow and partly over her freckled nose.
Just like when she’s awake, a little wild even in sleep.
Katie lay face up, her lips parted slightly as though a pleasant
dream had made her smile. Darker hair than her sister’s framed the
doll-like features in smooth waves that would probably be just as
unruffled when she awakened in the morning. Tyne shook her head
in wonder at this serene child of hers and, as she turned to leave, marvelled
anew at the difference in these children who had been formed
together in her body.
At Bobby’s door she hesitated a moment, not wanting to intrude
without knocking in case he was still awake. But when she heard his
gentle snore, she looked in. He lay, as he always did, with arms over
his head. From the light coming in from the hallway, she satisfied
herself that he was covered and sound asleep, no doubt to remain that
way until his alarm clock told him another school day had arrived.
Down the hall, Tyne heard a radio playing softly – if the songs
the Beatles belted out could be described that way. Now, now, Tyne,
don’t be old fashioned. Old fashioned or not, she thought, as she quietly
pushed open the door to Rachael’s room, I still prefer Sinatra and
Como and Pat Boone, and oh yes, Elvis is pretty good, too.
Tyne quietly crossed to the bed and looked down on her sleeping
daughter. Rachael lay face up, her arms akimbo, her smooth cheeks
smeared with traces of tears. Tyne sighed, her throat filling as she
recalled another night almost ten years ago when Rachael lay just like
this with tears drying on her face. The day that she and Morley had
to tell Rachael and Bobby their mother would not be coming home
from hospital had seared itself into Tyne’s memory forever.
But what could be distressing the girl so much at this time in
her life that she had cried herself to sleep? What had happened on
Saturday night that had made Rachael so troubled and morose as she
had been since then?

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https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763327

Fury of the Wind

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…housewives and excited children. After checking off the names of
volunteers who manned each booth, he moved on to the next. Few
of the women had time for more than a glance and a nod in his
direction, but preparations appeared to be progressing well.
As he approached the bake sale table, an annual endeavour of the
Anglican Church ladies group, he spotted his wife working at the
table with Mrs. Carson and Mrs. McKinnon. But before he could
greet them he heard his name called. Will turned to see Mrs. Draper,
a director’s wife, hurrying towards him.
“Oh, Mr. Andrews,” she said breathlessly, “I’ve been looking all
over for you. Janet Peterson was supposed to be helping me with
the preserves booth but her husband just told me she’s sick and
won’t be here.” Beads of perspiration from her forehead were sliding
down each side of her moon-shaped face. “I can’t handle it on
my own, there’s so much coming in, and that judge from Bradshaw
doesn’t know what she’s doing.”
“All right,” Will said, “you go back to the booth and I’ll send
someone over.”
Muriel Draper extracted a crumpled handkerchief from the
puffed sleeve of her cotton dress. She mopped her face, muttering
as she turned away, “And it’s already so hot. I don’t know how we’ll
survive in this building all day.”
Will thought if Mrs. Draper calmed down she wouldn’t feel the
heat so much. As he turned back to the bake table, he wondered
idly how poor Charlie Draper could stand his wife’s whining day
after day.
“Molly,” he said, after nodding briefly to his wife’s companions,
“will you go over to the preserves section and help Mrs. Draper?
Her partner isn’t coming and she’s snowed under. You know how
excited she gets.”
Molly gave him a sour look. “Really, Will, can’t you find someone
else? You know I’m needed at this table to help with pricing and
sales.”
“I’ll find someone else to come here then,” Will said firmly, “but
there’s no one else who knows how to arrange exhibits like you
do.”
Mrs. Andrews, not in the least mollified by his compliment,
shrugged her shoulders irritably, picked up her purse from under…

https://www.amazon.com/dp/0981073530

Still Waters

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excerpt

As they sauntered, and Morley talked, Tyne breathed in the pleasing
aroma of new lumber and tried to imagine walls, furniture, cheerful
draperies at windows, and white curtains surrounding and separating
beds. Morley walked her through what would be the maternity
wing, its rooms consisting of four-bed wards, one semi-private and
one private room. There was a labour room, and the delivery room
with a workroom across from it.
He pointed out the tiny laboratory and the x-ray with the dark
room for developing films. She wondered how he could remember
so precisely the location of every service. Apart from the large space
for the kitchen, it all looked much the same to her. They passed a
recessed area where he said the nurses’ station and chart room would
be, then led her down another wing which corresponded to the maternity
wing on the other end of the building. At a framed-in doorway,
he stopped and turned to her.
“Now this, Miss Milligan,” he said with formality, “is where your
interest will certainly lie. Allow me to show you around the surgical
suite.”
“Oh, my land,” Tyne said, amazed. “It’s … it’s so ….”
“Small,” Morley finished for her.
“Well … but it’s right for the size of the hospital, of course.”
A fairly large room with framed-in windows was, he said, the
main operating room. Across from it a much roomier space would
contain the workroom and clean-up area. A linen and supply cupboard,
a doctor’s change room and a small operating room, which
would double as an emergency and outpatient area, made up the
remainder of the space.
“But the windows in the operating room?” Tyne said, a question
in her voice, “I’m surprised at that. It doesn’t seem sanitary. Will they
be made to open?”
“Yes, apparently they will.” He grinned. “An air-conditioned operating
room, of course.”
Tyne grimaced and turned away. So be it. She didn’t know if she
would ever have to work in a small country hospital, but one thing
she was sure of – it would certainly take some getting used to.
They parted beside his pickup, standing on the frozen rough
ground that would one day be the ambulance entrance to a side…

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763068

He Rode Tall

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…flashy little palomino filly, she finished in second. Tanya was
beaten by young Cody whose grey stallion left everyone in awe.
Cody and the stallion put together a run that many a horseman
would remember years later. To say that it was flawless may be
an overstatement, but it certainly was as good as they get. “Hey,
nothing wrong with second place,” Joel thought as he heard
Cody’s score being announced. Reserve World Champion
sounded good to him.
The pretty little palomino filly had done it all. She had shown
the world what she could do, and so had her rider.
Twenty horses and riders entered the ring for the presentation
ceremonies. As they were called forward to receive their awards,
Joel kept waiting to hear his name. Sitting side by side, astride
their horses, Joel and Tanya kept looking at each other every time
someone’s name was called. Finally, the announcer called the
fourth place finisher, and it wasn’t Joel. He knew that the buckskin
had a good run, but he obviously didn’t know exactly how
good it was. And then, there was only the three of them. Joel,
Tanya, and Cody. When Joel was called forward to receive his
third-place ribbon he couldn’t help but cry with excitement, but
no more so than when his young friend Tanya was called to be
awarded the title of Reserve World Champion. As they watched
Cody receive the World Championship title and start a victory
lap of the arena astride his handsome grey stallion, Joel and
Tanya directed their horses for the gate and to the holding area.
With Cody celebrating his success, Joel leaned over to Tanya and
said, “You did a great job with the little filly.”
“Thank you Joel. I appreciate that.”
Cody exited the arena and walked the grey towards Tanya.
Turning the buckskin to meet up with Cindy, Joel whispered two
words to Tanya, “She’s yours.”
Joel acknowledged plenty of congratulatory words as he
approached Cindy. Leaning forward in the saddle, he gave her a
big kiss as she wrapped her arms around him. Dismounting to
stand next to her, he looked Cindy deep in the eyes and said…

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https://www.amazon.com/dp/0980897955

Wellspring of Love

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She bent her back to the task again, covering the seeds she had just
planted with the rich loose loam. As she worked she let her thoughts
drift. As usual they returned, like a dog gnawing on a bone, to both
Rachael and Millie Harper. Tyne had tried, over and over, to leave
them in God’s hands. But time after time, she had taken them back
to worry over them herself, as if she could do better than God could
in making things right for them.
She felt a sudden longing to talk to the one friend who had been
her closest confidante since the day they entered nurses’ training
almost twenty years earlier. Maureen Hall, better known as Moe to
her classmates, continued to be a constant in Tyne’s life, although the
years had separated them in distance. Moe and her husband Ken lived
in the city of Calgary, where they operated their own thriving plumbing
business. Moe had left her work in the pediatric department of
the Holy Cross Hospital before giving birth to her first child. Now
Ken and Moe had two – Elizabeth and Brian – and Tyne wished the
families could get together more often.
She decided she would call Moe tonight when the kids had gone
to bed, and the house was quiet. By that time, she suspected, the Hall
household would have settled down as well.
Again she glanced at her watch. It was almost half past three and
the girls should be coming down the lane at any moment. She had
expected Rachael to hurry the twins on their way when they saw the
threatening sky. The older girl was as aware as anyone of the fury of a
prairie storm, and Tyne trusted her to be responsible.
Gathering her tools, she threw them in the wheelbarrow just as
the sky lit up with a fork of lightning. As she hurried to the garden
shed, she looked towards the lane. Relief flooded over her when she
saw Susie and Katie streaking towards the house almost as fast as the
lightning bolt. A thunderous roar overhead put even more wings to
their small feet.

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https://www.amazon.com/dp/1926763327