“I love you, Minnie. It will be okay in time.”
“I love you, too, mama.” She didn’t really believe her. But she was glad to have her comforting arms around her. She lifted one hand and wrapped it around one of her mother’s arms, letting her hold her. She pulled her tears in and did her best to stop crying. It was going to take a long time. A very long time.
Two months later, Minnie was sitting in the same place, feeling as lost as she ever had. She didn’t feel strong. She didn’t feel recovered. Time had not healed her heart. Her little boy was almost two now. He was smiling all the time, still saying “dada”, even though dada wasn’t around. It broke her heart every time she thought about it. Every time she heard it.
She sat waiting for Liz, her best friend in town. Liz was encouraging and helpful but nothing seemed to take away her pain. She stared out the window next to the table, watching the road for Liz to be dropped off. She felt a little impatient and pushed the feeling down. She didn’t want to feel that way. She was struggling with being overwhelmed by her strong emotions. Her crying hadn’t stopped. Billy was starting to notice and it made her feel even worse.
Now, she was not only crying for the loss of her husband, she was joining the nation in mourning the loss of President Lincoln. She couldn’t figure out why good men had to die like that. It didn’t make sense to her at all.
She saw a cloud of dust and realized she’d been staring out the window not even seeing that Liz was stepping down from a wagon and would be at the door in moments.
She stood up and went to let her friend in.
“Good morning, Mins!” Liz threw her arms around her as soon as she opened the door, making her take a step back. She couldn’t help smiling and hugging her friend back.
“Good morning, Lizzie. How are you doing today?”
Liz released her from the hug and held her at arm’s length, her hands gripping Minnie’s arms gently. “I am fine, as usual, honeypot. The question is, ‘are you feeling any better’?”
They linked arms and took a few steps to turn into the kitchen, where they usually sat to talk.
“Have you been eating?” Liz asked. “I know you were having trouble there for a long time. How are you now?”
Minnie shrugged, resuming the seat she’d been in before. Liz sat across from her and leaned over to hold one of her hands. “I am eating as normal, I suppose. I don’t have much of an appetite.”
Liz shook her head, lifting her fabric hand bag and placing it on the table in front of her. She put her other hand over the Minnie’s so that she was clasping it tightly. “I can’t continue to see you in this state, my dear. You have been such a good friend to me for all these years and you’ve gotten me through some pretty tough times. I have been blessed to have you as a friend to me.”
Minnie felt a warm sensation slide through her chest. She smiled at Liz. “Thank you, Lizzie. That really does mean so much to me.”
Liz nodded. “I would never do anything to hurt you, you know that don’t you?”
Minnie nodded. “I do know that, Lizzie. I surely do.”
Liz smiled warmly and squeezed her hand.
****
Chapter Two
Joseph lifted the sack, attaching it neatly to the side of the saddle before pulling himself up on the tall Mustang. He patted her side and whispered in her ear, enjoying the brush of the horse’s ear on his lips when she twitched it. There were few things left for him to feel good about, so he relished in it. He lifted back up in the saddle and pressed Sally’s sides with his heels to get her moving.
They slowly made their way over several hills, crossing a field and following the stream on his property as he inspected it. There had been some wandering thieves in town recently and he needed to make sure they hadn’t been camping out anywhere on his land. He liked to keep his property secure but there was little way to do that without the biggest fence in the world and a lot of patrolling time. The land he and his father had purchased here – the land that was now his since his father died – was several hundred acres. There was no way for him to cover all the land and keep it safe.