A Time of Testing

 by Leah Joy Jensen (ages 10-13) Nairobi, Kenya

San Francisco, California

August, 1898

   As Andi Prescott walked out of the stuffy church, her  eight-year-old son began to tug on the black, heavy, cotton skirt she wore.

  “Ma, I want a horse,” he whined.

  “Sorry, Jared, you’re just not old enough for one yet,” she told him, yet again.

  Andi and her children were just coming out of a funeral service. Andi’s Aunt Rebekah had died, leaving Andi’s small family a large amount of money.

Andi, Riley, Jared, and Rachel walked to where they were staying, the children debating about what color horse they wanted if they ever got one.

                                                  * * *

 Memory Creek Ranch

August, 1898

   Out in the fields, Riley Prescott was working with the cattle.

  All of a sudden horses came racing through the fields and skidded to a stop in front of Riley.

  “Are you Riley Prescott?” one of the four men demanded.        “Yes, I am,” Riley replied, uncertainly.

  “Well, ya better tell us where the cash be,” said another roughly.

  “Yeah, tell us where ya live,” another yelled.

  Riley could tell he was in a difficult situation, but he didn’t want the men to steal the money or hurt his wife and children.

  “I won’t tell you where the money is or where I live,” he said.

  But before he had even finished speaking there was a loud BANG! and Riley cried out in pain. The men turned their horses and galloped away in the direction of the Prescott’s house.

                                                * * *

 Memory Creek Ranch

August, 1898

  BANG! BANG! BANG!

  Andi jumped, dropping the laundry she had been folding. She hurried over to the door and peered out.

  Four rough-looking men were standing outside.

  One of the men stared at Andi and growled, “Git on out here, with your young’uns.

  Andi glowered at the men and called, “Jared, Rachel, come here.”

  The children scurried over to their mother and followed her outside. As soon as they had stepped out the door, they were grabbed by two of the men, tied up, and tossed on horses stolen from the barn.

  The other two men rushed into the house, ransacked it, and came out with the money.  They stuffed it in their saddlebags, kicked the horses into a gallop, and started for the mountains.

                                                  * * *

 Memory Creek Ranch

August, 1898

 

  It was almost night when Chad and Mitch Carter rode into the field and discovered Riley. He was unconscious and he had been shot in the arm below the elbow. They hoisted him up on his horse and took him home.

  When they got to the house they didn’t find Andi or her children there. 

  “Looks like someone stole the money, kidnapped Andi and the kids, and ransacked the house.” Mitch sat down in a chair after a thorough search. 

  “I’ll  send someone for the doctor, you get the sheriff, and I’ll  stay with Riley.” Chad went outside after a moment’s thought.

  “Sounds good,” Mitch agreed. 

                                                        * * *

 Somewhere in the California mountains…

August, 1898

 

  After riding for four hours Andi was exhausted. 

  “When are we going to stop for the night?” she wearily asked.

  “Soon enough, Missie,” one of the men replied.

  They rode for ten more minutes before they came to a clearing with a large cabin in it. The men dismounted and shoved Andi and her children into the cabin. They put the kids next to Andi, then gave them some dried meat and hard biscuits.

  After eating the kidnappers gave Andi a few blankets and the men sat down to talk.

  “Ma,” whispered Andi’s three-year-old daughter Rachel, “when are we going home? I want my teddy.”

  “Not so soon, little Missy,”the leader of the group of men answered her question, “nobody’s gonna find us here.”

  “Don’t be so sure,” replied Andi in a defiant tone, “my husband and brothers are excellent trackers.”

  “Well we won’t be worryin’ ‘bout your husband,” said another man,“’Cause he ain’t gonna be trackin’ us for a long time.”

  “What did you do to him?” Andi cried, in a panic.

  “Oh, I just shot ’im, ” the leader answered, calmly.

  “Why would you do that?” Andi demanded.

  “’Cause ’e wouldn’ tell us where the money was,” a tall thin man growled before locking Andi and the kids in a cold room for the night.

  “Ma, where’s Pa?” Jared wanted to know.

  “Don’t worry about Daddy and go to sleep,” Andi told him.

  Andi put her children to bed and then lay down, wondering if she would ever see her husband and family again.

                                               * * *

 Memory Creek Ranch

August, 1898

 

  “Well, he won’t be going very far,” the doctor remarked, as he bandaged Riley’s arm and left the room.

  “I guess I’ll send Ellie over to look after him, and then we’ll go after Andi.” Chad turned to look at Mitch. 

  “It’s a good thing it rained the day before yesterday.” Mitch looked out the window at the fresh hoof prints.

  “Yes, it is,” Chad replied. “We’ll be able to see the hoof prints clearly. It seems the thieves didn’t think of that.”

  “Let’s start out in the morning. We’ll be able to see better anyway,” Mitch suggested, glancing over at Chad. 

                                           * * *

 Somewhere in the mountains of California…

August, 1898

  When Andi woke up the next morning, she could see frost on the windows of the room they had been locked in.

  “I hope Chad and Mitch find us soon,” she couldn’t help thinking.

  After a measly breakfast of burned bacon and sticky oatmeal, the thieves sent Jared out to gather wood. Then, they started to count the money. Little did they know, Jared had matches in his pocket and had set the woodpile on fire. Soon he had a blazing fire going.

  Just then there was a whiff of smoke and one of the thieves shouted,

  “Fire!”

  They all raced outside and started to fight the fire. They soon realized that they couldn’t stop it.

                                                     * * *

 Somewhere in the California mountains...

August, 1898

 

  Chad and Mitch started out early in the morning, as soon as they could. They quickly saddled up their horses, gathered up a group of men and started down the road, following the tracks. They rode for several hours, always sending a scout ahead of them.

  Then, without warning rain started pouring down.

  “Head under the trees.” Chad yelled. “ It won’t be as bad under there!”

  The men quickly headed under the trees, out of the pouring rain.

  Finally, the rain stopped. But, as they soon found out, the rain had washed the tracks away. They sat on their horses for a minute until the scout yelled out something.

  “What was that, Jake?” shouted Chad.

  “I smell smoke,” Jake replied, as he came to a stop beside Chad.

 “Okay, give me a second,”  Chad said to Jake and then to the other men, he shouted, “Jake and I are going to investigate the target of some smoke. We’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  “Let’s go, Jake.” Chad cantered off on Sky.

  A few minutes later they were looking into the clearing where Andi and her kidnappers were. The cabin was burnt to the ground.

  “We’ll have to surround them,” Chad whispered to Jake.  

  Jake nodded, and they galloped back to the other men, told them what they had seen, and informed them of the plan to surround the clearing.

                                         * * *

Near a cabin in the California mountains…

August, 1898

 

  Soon Andi heard hoofbeats and Chad’s voice.

  “We’ve got you surrounded, so you’d better surrender.”

  “We ain’t gonna believe ya until ya come out ’o them woods,” the leader of Andi’s kidnappers hollered back.

  Chad motioned for the men to come out of the woods.

  Andi noticed the look of surprise on the thieves’ faces as they saw the other men step out of the woods with the sheriff. They men started to sputter as the sheriff handcuffed them.

  Andi, who was now free, ran to Chad and Mitch and hugged them.

  “I’m so glad you found us,” Andi said, happily.

                                               * * *

Memory Creek Ranch

September, 1898

   After being happily reunited together with Riley a couple weeks later, Andi received a note from the bank saying:

 Your money has been returned and taken to the bank. You are now able to get it out whenever you please.

   Then, three weeks after receiving the note, when Riley’s arm had healed, Andi saw Riley leading a three-year-old gelding by the halter up to the house. 

  Andi called Jared outside and told him to close his eyes. Andrew did so and when Andi told him to open them she could see the look of surprise and delight on his face.

  “Oh, Ma, Pa, is he for me?” he begged.

  “I think so,”  Andi said, jokingly. “You wanted a horse didn’t you?”

  After taking Comet, the new young horse to the barn, they all sat down to supper; happily and peacefully, and glad they could all be together again.

4 comments:

Encourage these young authors!