Chapter 6
December 1887
Riley came in later that day. He held a
covered tray in his hands. “Your mother made you a dandy supper,” he said,
forcing cheerfulness into his voice. “She told me to keep you company and make
sure you eat at least a little.”
Andi shook her head. “I’m not
hungry.” Her stomach was tied in knots. Her fingers played with the coverlet.
“Don’t make me eat anything, Riley, please.”
“Oh, c’mon, now.” Riley sat
down in the overstuffed bedside chair. “Do as the doctor says—rest, eat, and
stay strong.”
Yes, so
if I do get sick, I can fight it off? Andi thought. Dr. Weaver doesn’t believe I’ll be spared. She cringed and looked
up. “What’d Mother make?”
“A nice, stick-to-the-ribs kind of meal,”
Riley returned. He grinned and pulled back the cloth. “Potato soup and fresh
bread with butter. How about being a good girl for this husband of yours and
taking a bite or two? You wouldn’t want me to go back to your mother and say I
failed in my mission, would you?”
Andi gave a small smile. “I reckon not.” She
sat up and took the tray onto her lap. “Thanks.”
“No problem.” Riley snitched a slice of bread
and sat back in his seat. For a few minutes, the two ate in silence. Then Riley
popped the question: “How you feelin’?”
Andi shrugged. “Fine.” Almost too scared to
ask, she murmured, “Any change in Tucker?”
Riley
fiddled with his slice of bread. “None. I checked. All he wants is to be
released from the barn—and his rope.”
“I bet.” Andi dropped her spoon into her
bowl. “I wish I could get out of this bed.”
Riley laughed, but it sounded forced. “You’ve
only been in bed for a few hours, Andi.”
“What I don’t understand is why I have to
stay in bed. If I’m gonna get sick, I’m gonna get sick. Might as well enjoy a
healthy life while I can. I want to bake some more, and decorate the fireplace,
and—”
“You’ll do no such thing,” Riley admonished.
“You’ll stay in bed.”
“But Christmas is this Sunday, Riley!” she
cried out. “Surely I can get out of bed for that?”
“Absolutely not,” a new voice joined in.
Mother came into the room, a fussy Jared in her arms. “You’ll stay in bed until
the doctor says you can get up. Not one day less.”
Turning to Riley and ignoring Andi’s sigh of
complaint, she asked, “Did you convince her to eat?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“Good.” Mother took the tray and laid Jared
on Andi’s lap. “He’s hungry. C’mon, Riley,” she said, gesturing, “help me with
these dishes. We’ll let Andrea feed her baby in peace.”
“Yes, ma’am,” Riley said again. He stood and
kissed Andi’s forehead. “Call me if you need anything.”
Andi
nodded, and Riley and Mother left.
Tears
unexpectedly came to her eyes. What if I
really get sick? And…die? I’ve never realized just how much I take Jared, and
Riley, and the house…all for granted. God, I’m sorry. Please, keep us all safe.
Andi
laid back against the pillows and cuddled the baby close. “I love you, Jared.”
***
Thursday
and Friday crawled by at a snail’s pace, even though Andi’s family did their
best to help keep her mind off of the current predicament.
Mitch
rode up and dropped off a stack of brand-new dime novels. Chad came and filled
Andi’s ears with news on the Circle C Ranch’s happenings. Lucy left Gracie and
Sammy with Justin for an evening, so she could spend time chatting with Andi.
Riley
left for only a few hours each day to get some work done. Most of the time,
however, he was at Andi’s bedside, sharing stories and keeping her spirits up.
Finally, there was Mother, who never once stepped foot from the ranch. She did
all of the housework and cared for Jared whenever need be.
Saturday
came. It was Christmas Eve.
“Please,
Riley,” Andi begged. “I feel fine. Absolutely fine. Let me go into town for the
Christmas Eve service at the church.”
Riley
shook his head and grabbed her hand. “We’ll have a service right here at home,
all right? Your mother is all for it. She’s already prepared the candles and
opened up the Bible to Luke chapter one.”
They knew I was going to ask. And heaved a sigh. “All right.”
Riley
squeezed her hand. “I think I’ll go see if your mother plans to make some hot
chocolate for tonight’s service.” He then rose and winked. “Love you.”
“Love
you too.”
***
As darkness fell and the moon went up, the
house at Memory Creek Ranch was a beautiful sight.
In Andi and Riley’s bedroom, there was not
much light. Three candles burned, but otherwise it was pitch black. The door
was shut and the window shutters closed. But the candles were light enough to
read by, and that’s what Riley did. Strongly and clearly, he read aloud Luke 1
and afterwards lifted a heartfelt prayer.
Just as he said, “Amen,” frantic barking from
outside erupted. Panic settled over Riley’s face. Mother’s hand tightened its
grip on Andi’s shoulder.
Riley set his candle down and opened the
shutters. The occupants of the bedroom had a clear view of Tucker.
The
collie-type dog was growling. He yipped and jumped. His paws flailed.
“Oh, no.” Mother lowered her head. Her
knuckles were white from holding onto Andi’s shoulder. “Please, God, no.”
“It’s been almost eight days,” Riley said.
His voice was choked. He looked as if he was fighting back tears. “It’s been
almost eight days.”
Andi could hardly breathe. Her fingers closed
tight around her baby. She held him close.
“He can’t have rabies!” Riley cried out. He
raked his fingers though his hair. “He can’t.”
Yet, the dog continued his strange antics.
“He never acts this way,” Riley murmured. “He’s been calm over the past few
days.” He glanced at Mother, who nodded and squeezed her eyes shut. “It is,”
she barely whispered.
Riley left the room.
“Mother!” Andi exclaimed, scared, “What’s he
doing?”
Mother shook her head, but her face said she
knew. Andi had a funny feeling that she knew too.
Tucker
really has rabies. Riley is going out to shoot him.
“No, Mother!” Andi grabbed her mother’s
arm. “Don’t let him shoot Tucker! Don’t let him! He loves Tucker—”
“He loves you, too,” Mother answered. She was
crying. “There’s no cure for rabies in the animals. If Tucker lives, he’ll only
spread the disease. There’s no cure for him…or for you.”
“No, Mother, no!” Andi burst into tears.
“This is all my fault! All my fault!”
“No, sweetheart.” Mother pulled her daughter
into a strong hug. “It was an accident. That’s all it was. An accident.”
Andi buried her face into Mother’s shoulder
and sobbed. Jared bawled, and no wonder. Andi was clutching him to her chest as
if her life depended upon it.
Is this
my last Christmas with Riley and Jared? Am I rabies’ next victim? Andi’s
stomach clenched. She felt sick. Oh,
please! Let this all be a horrid nightmare that I’ll wake from at any moment. But
even she knew—this was all too real.
Suddenly, hurried footsteps sounded from
outside the bedroom. Riley entered and flung himself down on the bed beside
Andi and her mother. Tears were pouring from his eyes, and he threw his arms
around both Andi and his mother-in-law.
“It’s all right! It’s all right!” he cried.
“It really is.”
“What?” Mother demanded. “What—?”
“There was two raccoons,”
Riley blurted. He held his wife close. “The rabid one was not Gingerbread. When I went out there, the familiar sight of a
raccoon standing on his hind legs and covering his eyes made relief wash over
me in huge waves. Tucker had caught the raccoon’s scent, and that is why he was barking. Neither one
of them are rabid.”
“You mean—?” Andi couldn’t go on.
“Yes, yes.” Riley nodded. “I do mean. Gingerbread is back, and he’s
fine. Tucker is fine. I’m fine. You’re fine.”
“Oh, Riley!”
“Praise God!” Mother murmured. She clasped
her hands and blinked back tears. “He is good. This is truly a miracle, Andrea.”
“Truly, it is!” Andi agreed. She didn’t even
try to hold back her own tears of joy. They coursed down her cheeks in steady
rivers. “Thank you, God.”
***
Andi sat beside Riley in the front pew. Her
heart was singing. Her face was aglow. Jared sat in her lap, looking about with
wide hazel eyes.
It was Christmas morning, and the Prescotts
were attending the morning service. Andi couldn’t think of a better way to
spend that Christmas Day. In the hymns that led up to the sermon, her voice
rang the loudest. Is it any wonder, considering all God had done for her?
When Reverend Harris opened his Bible and
read aloud Luke 2, Andi listened attentively. She drank in every word. But it
was only then that it finally hit her.
Riley
read the first chapter of Luke yesterday, right before Gingerbread showed up.
Nine years before, Andi had recited Mary’s
“Song of Praise” in a play. After a dreadful bout of scarlet fever, she had
been able to put true feeling into her words as she repeated The Magnificat.
Now, it again entered her mind…right along with a fresh rush of gratitude:
“…’My
soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has
looked on the humble state of his servant…for he who is mighty has done great
things for me, and holy is his name.’”
(Luke 1:46-47, 49)
I decided to update the prizes for the 2019 story-writing contest. I added a T-shirt to Second Place, and I added audio books to all places. First prize receives the entire Circle C Adventures audio book collection (or Circle C Beginnings for the younger age category, if desired). I also added a $$ value for each prize. Check it out!
Ellen S. published/printed a book this past December called In His Hands. Now she is putting it up, chapter by chapter, on her brand-new blog, Ellen's Musings. (Her blog is on the right sidebar with all of yours). Read along as she posts chapters from her new book. I have the links for chapters 1 and 2, but you'll just have to check back on Ellen's Musings for more. She specifically would like feedback on how to improve, or any thoughts on her chapters. (I heard a rumor that she gifted this first book to her mother for Christmas.)
Two winners will receive Mrs. M's new Writers Roundup writing workbook. Click over to the giveaway page on the Circle C website to learn more about the book, to download sample pages, and to enter the giveaway. Enjoy!
And the countdown begins . . .
The buggy was a breeze
to drive. Ranger acted like he was pulling nothing heavier than a two-wheeled
cart. The springs were well-made and gave the baby and me a pleasant ride. “I
like this buggy,” I told Jared, who lay sleeping in the wicker basket beside
me. 
I
am also wondering if I could give a prayer request for my family and
me. I was recently diagnosed with cancer, and I just lost all my hair.
I'm bald now and struggling with my looks and such, and I am scared.
Cancer is frightening and chemotherapy makes me feel awful. I was
wondering if I could ask for prayers of strength for my family and me,
especially for my sister Myla who is struggling with it almost as much
as I am. 
Mrs. M cannot keep track of what stories she has posted and which ones are new. So, forgive me if I've already posted this, but here is the 2018 Andi Christmas short story that went out to my email list and also went up on Facebook. I would not want to forget you!
