Chapter 4
The noise of all
seven Tyson’s getting around the dinner table was quite the racket. Mrs.
Tyson,
with Lizzie by her side, was busy getting the hot stew and biscuits ready to be
set on the table. The other two Tyson ladies, Emma and Betsy, were setting the
table with forks, plates, cups and napkins.
Pa and
the two Tyson boys, Ben and James, were washing up from a day full of chores
and talking about a stubborn cow or the upcoming community round-up.
“Alright, ya’ll, supper is on the table.” Mrs.
Tyson said as she laid a big bowl of steaming stew on the table.
The
boys moved from the wash basin, on a small table beside the door, to the table.
Lizzie sat the biscuits on the table as Emma grabbed some butter from the
counter.
In a
few seconds they were all seated.
“Ben,
why don’t you pray over the food tonight?” Pa, seated at the head of the table,
said over the noise and everyone hushed to reverence God.
“Jesus,
thank you for this food and thank you for all your blessings. Thank you for
helping us with all our chores today and please help us with the community
round-up coming up soon. Bless the food and our health. Amen.”
Amen’s
echoed around the table and Pa reached for the stew bowl to put some on
momma’s, who was seated to his left, plate.
Emma,
who was 15 with brown hair like momma’s and seated to Pa’s right, was first to
start conversation. “I had the best time today working with Mrs. Kemp. I’m glad
I offered to help her clean out her attic; boy, you wouldn’t believe the treasures
she had stored up in there!”
Pa
handed Emma’s plate to her and nodded for her to pass, Betsy’s-who was seated beside
her-plate.
“That’s
a nice thing you and your sister are doing to help out Mrs. Kemp. Especially
since she is ninety and her children don’t live near here.” Momma said as
Lizzie passed her a biscuit.
Betsy
flashed a fourteen year old grin. “I like helping her, momma. And she makes the
best cookies and lemonade.” Her light blonde hair made her reflected her blue
eyes beautifully.
“Hey,
you should bring some home sometime.” Eleven year old James said with a grin as
Betsy gave him his plate of stew.
Betsy
looked over to her brother seated beside her on the kitchen table bench. “Well,
James, you just might have the chance to have some. Mrs. Kemp needs some heavy
things moved that we can’t manage and I told her that maybe you boys would want
to help. I told her I’d ask.” Betsy passed Ben’s plate up to Emma.
“I don’t’ mind. Do you know when she needs
us?” Ben said from his place at the end of the table.
“Well, tomorrow is Thursday, so we should be
ready for your help by Friday.” Emma answered as she passed Ben’s plate down.
After serving Lizzie’s plate, pa heaped some
stew on his own plate. “Maybe you boys could give Lizzie a hand with her bronco
tomorrow.” He said with a tease expression.
Thirteen year old Ben grinned. “Having trouble
again today, Lizzie?” He joked before taking his first bite of stew. Ben was
the only one in the family to inherit pa’s black hair. James hair was a sandy color.
Lizzie glared around the table at her family’s
mocking grins. “Tomorrow’s the day. Tomorrow I hope to break ‘em.”
James snickered and Lizzie raised an eyebrow
at him. “You don’t think I can, huh?
“Oh, sure you can. You should have heard what
the ranch hands were saying before I came in to supper.”
Lizzie dropped her fork. “What were they
saying?”
“Oohh, just talking about you and that horse.
Charlie was talking about watching you today while he was taking a break from
fixing tack.”
Lizzie closed her eyes for a brief moment.
“And he told all the hands about that horse throwing me like a ball?”
“Uhhh… Yeah.” James quickly took a bite of his
food.
Lizzie stared at James a moment before
laughter erupted around the table. Personally, Lizzie didn’t see what was so
funny.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
2 Weeks later.
Lexie sat in a
rocker on the front porch of their cabin.
Trees.
Trees and woods are everywhere. She thought to herself as she looked around
their wooded enclosed property.
Lexie shook her head. It wasn’t even their property;
they had just found this convenient hideout two months ago.
Lexie was so bored these days she thought she
might bust. Having nothing to do but stare at the scenery at their place was
devastating. She had already cleaned their cabin and barn until she couldn’t
stand it anymore. She visited ma some but those visit’s usually resorted in her
falling asleep on her ma’s grave.
Everything in Lexie screamed for some life to
happen.
“Hey, I’m back.” Jack announced as he walked
into the porch. Lexie had been so bored she didn’t even notice him ride in.
“I see that.” She snapped.
Jake sat squatted down in front of her, regret
written in his green eyes. “Sorry I’ve been gone so much; I know I haven’t been
the best company for you. What, with pa and the boys on lookout and drinking
an’ all.”
Lexie blew out a huff. “I’m sorry I was
snappy. I just can’t stand being so bored.”
Jake patted her hand. “I know. Maybe I
can-Well, I’ll be thinking of something.”
Lexie nodded. “Okay.”
Jake stood up to stretched.
Lexie cocked her head as she studied Jake. He
was quite dirty and smelled of hard work. Lexie frowned as she found herself
really wondering where her brother went all day, everyday.
“Hey, Jake. Where do you go all day? What do
you do?”
Jake stared at her a moment before answering. “I-um-well-you
can’t say anything to pa-but-uh-I have a job near here.”
Lexie’s jaw dropped and she stopped rocking.
“A job?”
“Yeah, I work for a ranch near here; I got the
job about a month ago.”
Lexie smiled. “I’m happy fer ya!” Truly she
was. She was proud Jake had the nerve to half-way get out of this stupid place
and start working on making a life for himself. Lexie wished she had the
courage.
Jake slightly smiled. “Thanks, Lex. Means a
lot.” He smiled bigger. “Now, I gotta rub down my horse and stable him.”
He turned and walked down the stairs of the
porch and headed off to the corral where his horse was tied up.
About that time pa and Clyde came
strolling out of the barn. Pa was in front, holding a bottle in his left hand. Clyde
clumsily shouldered a rifle, his face scruffy from not shaving regularly.
“Hey, Lexie, sitting again, I see.” Pa greeted
as the duo mounted the porch stairs.
Lexie chose to ignore the remark.
Pa sighed deeply as he came to a stop in front
of her. Clyde leaned up against the right side porch railing; he laid his rifle
to the side, up against on old chair.
“Hun, breaks my heart to see you just sittin’
around like this. Nothin’ to keep you occupied. At least when your’n ma was around
ya had her to keep ya company.” Pa’s blonde hair was dirty. His brown eyes
dazed from drinking.
Lexie glanced at Clyde, his face held a small
grin. Lexie knew the two were up to something. Pa didn’t give the time of day
to Lexie and could care less if she was bored or not. Clyde only loved to
meanly tease her so he certainly was up to no good.
Lexie felt her stomach tightening.
Clyde spit his tobacco spit straight ahead. It
landed to the side of Lexie’s rocker.
Pa went on. “So th’ boys and me been talkin’
and we thought ya may like to come inta town with us tonight.
Lexie shifted uneasily and glanced in the
direction of the corral. Jake was paused and looking her way.
“Why would I come into town with ya?”
Pa glanced over his shoulder at Jake before
leaning in a little closer. “Now listen. I thought you could help us with
something.” His voice was a whisper. “Now us boys are goin’ to pull a job tonight,
the town is just about twenty miles from here. You don’t have to do anything
but just stay with the horses and keep a look out. That’s all. It’d sure enough
give you somethin’ to do.”
Lexie's heartbeat quickened, half from anger, the
other half from surprise. Pa had never tried to involve her in their jobs
before. Never. Why did he care now? And why did he think that she would even
consider going on a stealing adventure with them?
“What makes you think I’d want to do that?”
Lexie, her face red from anger, was whispering too.
“Well, you don’t have anything better to do.
And it’s not like you’d be doing anythin’ wrong. You’d just be helpin’ your pa
and th' boys out.”
Lexie squinted her eyes at her pa; her
breathing had increased with every word her pa spoke.
Clyde took a few steps closer and pulled of
his old hat. His light brown hair was greasy from not being washed; he had ma’s
green eyes; only his held mischief. “Look, Lexie. I can see you’re inchin’ with
boredom. Now this here won’t hurt your good pride none.”
Clyde pointed at her. “You think about it.
Just think about it. We’re leaving at 8 o’clock tonight, if you’re coming, be
at the corral at that time.”
Lexie stared him straight in the eyes for a
moment before Clyde retrieved his riffle, and the two turned and walked back
towards the barn.
Lexie watched as the barn door closed behind
them and she slowly started calming her breathing.
How dare they ask her to go steal with them,
even if it was just staying with the horses. What did they think she was? A
common thief like themselves?
She would rather sit here staring at their
drab homestead than go keep company with some stinking horses with her pa and
brothers.
Lexie's stomach turned at that thought. Would
she really? Would she really rather stay here then have a chance to go riding
into a town? Even if it was aiding her pa and brothers in stealing?
Lexie stopped rocking as tears welled up in
her eyes. What did seem like the better option? Aiding them or having a little
something to do? She couldn’t even believe the thoughts going through her mind
right then.
“Lex, what’d pa want?”
Lexie looked up to Jake, who was standing in front of her. Concern written on his face.
“Come on, Lexie. You’re crying.”
Lexie swallowed hard. “Nothing, nothing at
all.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The
night was dark. The town quiet. Horses were tied behind a bank. One lone girl stood
with the horses. Anxiety written on her face. But her face… It looked almost
like hers…it looked like Lizzie’s.
Lizzie
jerked awake with a start. She stared at the ceiling, breathing deeply. Sweet
dotted her face.
Lizzie took a deep breath, closing her eyes
while she calmed her breathing. After a minute she slipped from beneath the
covers and sat on the edge of her bed. Her eyes stared at the dark night's view
from her bedroom window.
The girl in the dream… That girl looked so
much like her. Her eyes so much like her own. The girl was familiar in a
distant way. The girl just had to be… She just had…
Lizzie's breath caught her throat.
Lexie. The girl had to be Lexie.
Lizzie ran her right hand through her unruly
hair, her hand was shaking.
She hadn’t dreamed of Lexie in awhile. And
every dream she had ever had of her lost sister was always her being little.
Like Lizzie remember her. Lexie was never her age in her dreams.
A terrible nervous feeling came over Lizzie.
Butterflies took over her stomach. Something wasn’t right about tonight.
Something wasn’t right about her sister.
Lizzie had no idea where she was, who she was
with, or what she was doing, but she did know that she was in trouble. She felt
that in her spirit. She felt God telling her she needed to pray for her sister.
“Dear God.” She started after kneeling beside
her bed. She ignored the knots in her stomach making her want to throw up. “I
don’t know where Lexie is tonight. I don’t know what trouble she may be in. You
know how hard it is for me to even talk about her but I’ve got to pray for her
tonight. God, I may not know what’s going on, but You do. So please be with her.
Please help her with whatever may being going on.” Memories of the bank flashed in her mind.
“And if she’s doing something she shouldn’t, move on her, God, to stop in the only way You can. Amen.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The
night was very dark. It seemed darker than usual but maybe what she was doing
made everything seem darker.
The town was very quiet tonight. Everyone in Cape Square must have gone to bed early.
The horses moved from behind the bank, causing
her to jump.
Lexie took several deep breaths, anxiety
building inside her.
She couldn’t believe she was waiting with the
horses outside a back where her family was robbing it.
Something deep in her in told her to mount her
horse and get out of here. To get out of the mess she was getting herself into.
But the thought of going back to that dark cabin before she had to, compelled
her to ignore that deep Voice inside telling her to go back.
She rung her hands together and tried to focus
on keeping a look out for unexpected people stumbling across their bank job.
The night was still and her surrounding view
held trees, grass, and backs of buildings. To her left she could see a dirt
lane that led from town. That lane is where they had road into town and would
ride more than likely ride out of.
She glanced at the back window to the bank.
Through the green blind she could see the small light her brother Robbie was holding. A small sound from the bank caused her to jump again.
Lexie turned form the window and took in the
wooded area behind the bank. It was hard for her to keep her mind on keeping a
look out. So many thoughts swirled through her head.
She still wondered why pa would ask her to
come on this job. He never had asked before and the boys and him had always
handled the jobs just fine, it seemed like. So why did he need her?
Lexie paused. Wait a minute. Pa didn’t need
her. They had done just fine without
her. This didn’t have anything to do with pa needing her. He was for sure up to something else. But what? What
could pa be up to?
“Lexie.”
Lexie spun around at Tim’s whisper. His misty
blue eyes shone in the dark night.
“They're fixing to blow the safe. We can’t crack it. So be on your horse and ready to go. That’ll sure draw the sheriff and maybe some other pesky folks.” Tim removed his hat, reviling a full head of dark, brown hair.
“They're fixing to blow the safe. We can’t crack it. So be on your horse and ready to go. That’ll sure draw the sheriff and maybe some other pesky folks.” Tim removed his hat, reviling a full head of dark, brown hair.
Lexie swallowed hard. “Okay.” She stumbled
over to her horse.
Tim gathered up the reins of pa and the boys
horses and mounted his own horse. He clutched their reins tightly in his hands.
Lexie felt like she could empty her supper.
The nerves in her stomach were increasing.
A dynamite explosion sounded from the bank,
causing her stomach to lurch and her horse to snort and get fidgety.
Tim was controlling the other horses too.
Lexie heard the sound of a door opening further
up the street.
The tension increased and she mentally chanted
for her family to hurry out of that bank.
Within seconds the trio bounded from the bank
and mounted their horses. Robbie held the sack of money.
Pa led the way as they turned left and rounded
the bank. As they came around a shot was fired in their direction. Lexie gasped
from behind the line.
The group kept on their route, going up a hill
lane leading away from town. More shots were fired from the sheriff as they sped away.
Lexie leaned down over her horse’s neck right
as bullet flew past her ear.
But, to her own surprise, Lexie wasn’t as
scared as she was thrilled. This was the first action she had ever really had
in her entire life. The first anything
she had done in weeks.
But now, as she galloped away, having just been
somewhat apart of a bank job, bullets being shot in their direction, her family
on a race to get away, she found that she was…excited and super thrilled.
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
Luke 4:18 KJV
