By Anna Murphy
The tiny whimpers that always come before a full fledged cry were what woke Lou up the next morning. She had managed to sleep through Rose's loud cries the night before because she had been so exhausted. That morning though, she was up as soon as the first noise came out of the baby's cradle.
"Oh, come here sweetie. You don't want to wake up your Daddy," Lou whispered lifting up her daughter. "You haven't eaten since yesterday, have you? Is that why you're crying?"
Lou settled herself on the bed and holding Rose in one arm began to undo the top of her nightgown. It was a trick she had mastered while Abby was an infant. The Kid usually slept through Abby's night time feedings, so Lou was on her own to figure out how to get things in order. She didn't mind though, she enjoyed being alone with her babies to get to know them. This time around it was much easier. Rose was not as big as Abby had been and Lou had more practice so the hungry baby was feeding very quickly. A few minutes later Lou looked up from her daughter and saw her husband watching them.
"What are you looking at?" Lou teased, smiling broadly when she noticed the Kid watching with a kind of half smile, very interested in what was going on a few feet away from him.
"Nothing. I just never saw you do that before," Kid said catching himself, trying to explain.
"What are you talking about? You saw me nurse Abby a hundred times."
"No, I'd remember something like this," Kid said a little flustered.
"Well, there's not a whole lot to it."
"I think I'll just leave you alone," Kid said rising from the rocking chair.
"Why?"
"Don't you need some privacy to do that?" Kid asked looking for any excuse he could find to leave the room.
"Kid, I'm just feeding her. It's nothing new. Just come over here and you'll see," Lou offered, hoping the Kid would come sit next to her. He didn't respond, but did pull the chair to the bedside and wrap Rose's hand around his finger.
"Does it hurt?" Kid asked out of nowhere still trying to keep his eyes away from what was going on in front of him.
"No. It's really kind of nice," Lou said, but seeing the confusion on the Kid's face, she just smiled and didn't explain further. "Kid, every mother does it. Don't look so worried!"
"I'm starting to think I was better off not knowing," Kid said trying to get out of the chair.
"Oh, come on. Stay. She's finished," Lou said laughing at him and lifting up Rose. "Do you want to burp her?"
Kid took his daughter wordlessly and attempted to burp her. Since he'd never been around for Abby's feedings, he had no idea what he was doing. Once Lou had fixed her nightgown she noticed the trouble her husband was having.
"Boy, I really did do everything with Abby, didn't I? I thought I at least showed you how to do this. It's easy," Lou said showing him how to burp the baby.
"How did you learn to do all this?" Kid asked fascinated by how easily Lou took care of Rose.
"Well, Rachel taught me a whole lot and the rest I figured out for myself. I couldn't go running to her every time I didn't know how to do something. I would have driven her crazy. It's not hard to learn. With Abby I figured if something made her stop crying, I had done it right. If she didn't, I needed to do something else," Lou said as she gently laid Rose into her cradle.
"I guess I missed a lot with Abby, huh? Well, it's going to be different now. Yesterday taught me a couple things. One is that I should know how to do stuff like this and the other is that I should never listen when you tell me it's all right to go somewhere while you're still expecting a baby," Kid said hugging Lou.
"I don't think you need to go that far, though it would be nice having you around here more often. And as long as you want to help with Rose, the next time she's hungry, you can take care of her," Lou said seriously. But when Kid's eyes widened and his eyebrows shot up she knew the next thing he said would be, "How?" so she let him off the hook. "I'm only joking! Just change her and pick her up when she's crying, OK? It's not as hard as you think, you did just fine with Abby. Rose won't break if you touch her you know. She's just small, not glass."
"I know," Kid said relieved that Lou had read the biggest worry on his mind at the moment. Abby had been a chubby, happy baby; Rose was looked so small and fragile it made him think if he did something wrong he might hurt her.
Lou and Kid dressed after that, unaware of what had been going on downstairs. Rachel had been up for almost an hour with Abby. She had been woken up by her niece asking if she could see Rose, as though she were a Christmas present. Once Rachel had convinced Abby it was a better idea to let everyone sleep a little longer she was wide awake herself.
That led to making Abby breakfast and since Teaspoon never missed a meal in his life, he was up as soon as they were in the kitchen. Abby was full of questions about the baby and what had gone on the day before. Her aunt and grandfather tried to explain things as simply as they could, but Abby's curiosity was insatiable. She asked everything she could think of about what life would be like now that the baby had arrived. Lou and Kid had attempted to prepare her for the changes that accompanied a baby. Of course, there was no substitute for the actual experience of a new baby in a household.
As soon as breakfast was over Rachel heard what sounded like a horse approaching. She assumed it was the doctor coming back to check on Lou and Rose, but it was someone nobody had expected to see. Rachel stepped out the door and stood on the porch to watch the rider coming in the distance. Teaspoon and Abby followed her out and watched whoever was approaching. Teaspoon was the first to recognize the rider, but wasn't sure it was who he thought it was.
"Rachel, don't that rider look familiar?"
"I was about to say the same thing. But, it couldn't be. He isn't supposed to be here for another week. Lou and Kid don't even know he's coming," Rachel said, squinting in the morning sun to get a better look.
"Then somebody better tell him that."
"Mornin' Rachel, Teaspoon," the rider greeted them happily as he dismounted.
"Uncle Cody!" Abby cried running up to her uncle and wrapping herself around his leg.
"Hey Abby! You still makin' trouble around here?" Cody asked picking her up.
"Yup. What did you bring me?"
"Now, what makes you think I brought you something?" Cody asked taking his saddle bag in his other arm, still holding Abby.
"You always bring me something. Last time you brought me an arrow head and the time before you brought me a stuffed bear," Abby stated matter-of-factly.
"Well, it just so happens that I do have a present for you, but I have to give it to you inside."
"Cody, you're early. For the first time in your life, you're early!" Rachel exclaimed hugging him when he reached the porch.
"That's what being with the Army will do to you. They made a responsible man out of me, so to speak. I stopped by your place first, Rachel. But, since you weren't there I figured I'd see if you were out here," Cody said. "Hey Teaspoon. You still spongin' off Lou and the Kid?"
"Cody, if you weren't holding my granddaughter I'd take you out back and teach you a lesson you wouldn't forget. But since you are, I'll let it go. How've you been?"
"I've been real good. I'm not sure if I'll be stayin' with the army for too much longer, but I've got plenty of time to decide. I'm not in any hurry to make any choices yet. Right now I want to enjoy my time off and visit with you all. Where's Lou? I missed seeing her get big with Abby, I don't want to miss it this time around," Cody said laughing at the thought of Lou being eight months pregnant. The Army had moved on with Cody in tow while Lou was only about five months along with Abby. This was going to be entirely new to him.
"You're a little too late for that," Rachel said.
"What are you talking about?" Cody asked while everyone settled down inside.
"Lou had the baby yesterday, about a month early. They're both fine," Rachel said quickly, making Cody sit back down after he had jumped out of his chair. "It was a girl."
"I named her Rose," Abby interrupted.
"Well, her first name is Mary, but everyone calls her Rose," Rachel said as she began to explain what had gone on the day before.
After that Cody figured he may as well give Abby her present since Rachel was not about to wake up anyone even if he was there. He gave her a series of children's books and a doll. She immediately climbed onto her grandfather's lap and opened up one of the books. They were both engrossed in the book quickly and Rachel went upstairs when she heard Kid and Lou stirring.
"I've got a surprise for you," Rachel said grinning after Kid opened the door.
"Oh, Rachel, after yesterday I don't think I can handle any more surprises," Lou groaned.
"It's a good one. Besides, I can't make him leave until he sees you," Rachel said mysteriously.
Lou and Kid looked at each other wondering what she was talking about. The last they had heard from their friends none of them would able to come back to Rock Creek for another couple of weeks. They were both shocked to find Cody sitting on the couch reading with Abby and Teaspoon.
"Cody! What are you doing here?" Lou exclaimed.
"Hey Lou!" Cody said hugging her tightly and lifting her off the floor.
"Cody! Put me down! I just had a baby."
"Sorry, Lou. I forgot about that. How are you?"
"I'm all right. You still haven't told me what you're doing here."
"I got some time off and Rachel told me that you were expecting another baby, so I decided to come see you. Of course, I missed the big event. But you two will be having another one before you know it. Right Kid?"
"Cody, that's not something you want to joke about," Kid said shaking his old friend's hand.
"Well, do I at least get to see the girl who made such a fuss yesterday?"
"Yeah, but you need to quiet. She's asleep and gets very loud when she's awake," Kid told him as they headed upstairs.
"What do you mean loud? You were still asleep when she woke up this morning," Lou asked.
"She cried a couple of times last night. That's all."
"What? I didn't hear her."
"You slept through it."
Lou was about to get upset with the Kid for not waking her up and at herself for sleeping through it, but they had already reached the room. Lou quietly pushed open the door and led Cody over to the cradle where her tiny daughter lay.
"I guess there's no question about who her father is," Cody commented taking his first look at his new niece.
"Cody!" Lou said hitting him in arm.
"Sorry. I guess giving birth makes people sensitive," Cody said more to the Kid than to Lou.
"You better watch it, Cody. Saying something like that is like trying to take a cub away from it's mother. You know it's not a good idea and when you do it it's even worse than you thought," Kid advised him.
"Good point."
The rest of the day was spent with Cody relaying tales of army mishaps. He was full of exciting things to tell them about what he had done during the war and was even more excited to tell them about things he'd been swore to secrecy over. Of course, he enjoyed making himself sound important and everyone let him. Abby was so impressed with her uncle that no one wanted to try and get the truth out of him. It could all wait until later.
Lou spent most of her time that afternoon taking care of Rose. She didn't want to leave her alone for too long. The idea that she had missed her crying the night before worried her. She didn't even think about the fact that it had been because she had given birth prematurely or that she couldn't be alert all the time. It seemed as though the rules of raising a child had suddenly changed on her in a matter of hours.
After dinner the sleeping arrangements had to be decided. Rachel has wanted to stay with for a few more days to help keep things under control and everyone insisted that Cody should stay with them. Teaspoon gave Rachel his room, leaving Cody and Teaspoon sleeping in the living room. Cody took the floor, he figured that since he'd been with the army for so long he was more used to sleeping on hard surfaces.
A week passed and Cody was still there, though he did get to sleep on the couch after a couple of days. Lou talked Rachel into going back to the way station, telling her she could handle things on her own. Teaspoon went back to his room and everything seemed to have calmed down. Rose was still a very vocal girl and Kid was more comfortable with the idea of seeing Lou nurse Rose and helping to take care of her. Abby was still fascinated with the baby who she rarely got to see. Lou kept telling her that once Rose was bigger she wouldn't need to sleep as much and she would be downstairs more often. Cody managed to keep Abby's mind off her sister though. He picked up on her riding lessons a couple of days after he arrived.
Almost two weeks after Abby was born Buck came to visit. He told them he had gotten a letter from Rachel telling him about what was then the impending birth a month before. News didn't reach him too often, but as soon as he heard about the second baby in his friends lives he left to see them.
"Hey stranger," Cody said as soon as Buck rode up to the corral where Cody had placed Abby on her father's horse.
"Hey yourself. What are you doing here? I thought you were supposed to be some big shot in the army now," Buck said mostly serious.
"Well, they let me off for a few weeks. After all the work I did for them, I earned it. I think they gave me some kind of rank a while ago, but I don't remember what it was."
"Only important when it comes time to get paid, huh?"
"Abby, you remember your Uncle Buck, don't you? He's that really annoying fellow who comes and visits you once in a while," Cody said drawing the girl's attention to Buck, who was standing next to the horse.
"Hi Uncle Buck!" Abby said, nearly falling off the horse trying to hug him.
"Hi there Abby. You excited about becoming a big sister?"
"I already am a big sister."
"Huh?"
"Lou had the baby two weeks ago," Cody informed his friend.
"What are you talking about? I thought it wasn't due until next month."
"Well, she came early. I showed up the day after. She's a cute little thing though. But not as cute as her big sister," Cody said, always a gentleman when it came to compliments.
"How's Lou? Is the baby OK?"
"Yeah. They're both fine. Rose was a sick for a few days last week, but the doctor says she'll be fine."
Buck replaced Abby on top of the horse and headed inside to see his family. Everyone was elated to see him. None of them had expected to see him so soon. It usually took Buck a couple of months to respond to letters once he got them. After Cody showed up so early, Rachel came clean and explained she had written to everyone to tell them Rose was coming. Of course, Lou and Kid had tried to tell them themselves, but Rachel had always been more effective at getting a response. Cody and Buck had never gotten a chance to write back to Lou and Kid, but told Rachel they were coming. They had heard from her first and had made plans to come by the time Lou and Kid had thought of telling them. Rachel decided to make it a big surprise for them to have everyone return in time for the baby to be born.
"If this is the kind of greeting I get when I visit maybe I should stay away longer next time," Buck commented when he entered the kitchen, seeing no one was around.
"Buck! I didn't hear you come in!" Lou exclaimed walking into the kitchen.
"Well, that's a talent I've always had. I heard you had a baby. Couldn't wait for me to show up?"
"If it had been up to me that girl wouldn't have been here for another two weeks," Lou said hugging her old friend.
"Are you two all right?"
"Oh, yeah, we'll be fine. I'd feel a lot better if she could hurry up and get bigger, but as far as we can tell she's healthy. How have you been?"
Buck and Lou talked for a while about what had gone on in his life in the last year. Buck hadn't been able to see them for nearly that long, and it was always good to catch up on everything he had missed. He told Lou about the struggles his people had been through and what life was like for him. Nothing had come easy for Buck either in the Indian world or the white one. There were times when he told Lou he really wondered whether he could survive attempting to live in places he knew he'd be regarded with suspicion.
Lou offered for him to come back to Rock Creek and stay with them as she did every time he came to visit. And, as always, he refused. He knew there were people in Rock Creek who would look on him as nothing more than a half-breed and they may not care that Lou and the Kid considered him family. Buck knew it was safer to keep him as a friend, not as someone they shared their home with. He didn't want to cause them any trouble or disrupt things.
Every time they had ridden into danger with the Pony Express everyone prayed one member of them would survive. Buck knew now that it was going to be Lou and the Kid and their daughters. They would have the kind of family life they had all started in Sweetwater so long ago. A real, loving family nothing could destroy. As much as Buck knew he was a part of that family, there was something different about having a spouse and children. He couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew when or if he had a family of his own that feeling would be complete in him too.
"This is your niece, Rose," Kid said, beaming down on his daughter, who was awake but not crying for what seemed like the only time she had been born.
"Well, she looks pretty happy. Poor thing, looks just like her father, though," Buck said grinning when he noticed just how much Rose looked like the Kid.
"That's not funny, Buck."
"Yes it is," Lou said giggling at her husband.
"You didn't say that about Abby," Kid pointed out.
"That's because Abby looks like her ma, there's quite a difference."
Cody left the house about a week later. His time off was done and he needed to report back and find out what his next assignment would be. Everyone was disappointed when he left, but he promised to return as soon as he could. He really missed seeing Teaspoon and Rachel and the rest of the family on a regular basis. Every time Cody said good-bye to them all he would regret having left the bunk house and the Pony Express before it was all really over. The choices he'd made back then were ones that made the most sense at the time made, but there was still a feeling of regret that had never left him. Even so, he did have to leave and return to the life he'd known for so long with the army.
Buck stayed with Lou and the Kid for almost a month. He was so captivated with Rose and loved seeing how Abby had grown, that he nearly forgot about the life he had waiting for him. He had been working as a type of liaison between his people and the army in the hope that some kind of agreement could be reached over land and rights.
While Buck was effective in speaking on behalf of the Lakota, it did little good. The army wanted things it's way and the Lakota did not want to be pushed further away from their own land. When Buck left for Rock Creek things had been going well and he felt that he could leave things in the hands of his friend, Little Bear. Over the course of a month though, things could change dramatically and Buck needed to get back to where he was needed most. So, it was with a heavy heart he said good-bye to his family. They had learned better than to try and elicit a promise from him about when he would return. No one could predict when he would be able to come back and they didn't want to remind him of how hard leaving was.
TO BE CONTINUED...Chapter IV
Copyright 1998-This work is not to be reproduced without the permission of the author