Looking for Trouble . . . or Followed by It?

by Abbi G. and Chantae W.

Andrea Carter shaded her eyes as she searched the faces at the train station. She knew she would recognize her friend by her bright red hair as soon as she got off the train. Sure enough a bright red head emerged onto the platform and sparkling green eyes met hers. 

    “Jenny!” Andi’s shout brought several disapproving looks from others nearby, but she couldn’t care less. Within minutes, her friend embraced her while prattling on nonstop about her trip. Chad urged the girls into the buggy before the station became even more crowded. Andi couldn't believe that Jenny had finally come to visit again. She squealed with excitement and hugged her friend.

"These three weeks are going to be quiet and relaxing, right?" Chad's stern voice brought both girls' eyes to the driver of the buggy.

Both nodded emphatically.

"Of course!" Jenny's eyes widened as she spoke. "We don't want no more trouble like what happened last time. I may not even leave the house!"

Andi giggled at her friend’s earnest expression. She knew Jenny always meant the best, but rarely was able to stay out of trouble–which Andi related to quite well. 

They finally arrived at the two story sprawling ranch house, and the girls jumped from the buggy as it rolled near the house. Chad climbed down to help with the luggage. 

    “Jennifer, so lovely to see you again, dear,” Mother smiled as she greeted the girl from the porch. 

    “Thanks, Mrs. Carter! I’m sure excited, but you know, I’ve been thinking, and since I’m going to be here for practically a month; I might as well call you ‘Mother,’ is that alright?”

Mother laughed at her enthusiasm and nodded. “Of course, sweetheart. I wouldn’t have it any other way! You girls better get settled. We only have about an hour until dinner.” 

“You should have told them thirty minutes Mother,” Chad teased, “you know they’ve never managed to be on time to a meal in their life.” 

“Oh, Mother!” Andi lamented, “We really wanted to have time to ride up to the creek before dinner. Can we please unpack this evening?”

Before Mother could respond, Chad interrupted, “I thought you girls were sticking to the house?” He shook his head. “Always looking for trouble.” 

“Not this time, Chad!” Jenny assured him, “I gave up on looking for trouble after I ended up arrested the last time I came to visit.”

Mother broke in before the banter could continue, “While you girls surely want to get out in the fresh air, I’m afraid you’re going to have to stick around here for tonight. Don't worry, Jenny will be here for three weeks so you girls will have plenty of time to explore.”

Andi wanted to argue but knew by the look in her mother’s eyes that she would get nowhere. Resigned to their fate, the girls trudged into the house and up to Andi’s room. They made it to the dinner table only a shocking seven minutes late.

While no one said anything, Chad smirked over his glass and Andi felt her cheeks grow red as she took her place. Dinner was a lively affair with Jenny giving a very colorful description of her life at Miss Whitaker’s academy since her first visit a year ago. Finally, it was time to retire and the girls talked into the wee hours of the morning before sleep finally claimed them. 

*****************
     The next morning dawned bright and early. Andi wasn’t quite sure what had awakened her until the incessant pounding on her door resumed. “What?” She called in annoyance as she struggled to open her eyes.

The door opened and Mitch stuck his head in, eyebrow cocked as he regarded her. 

“Not the best way to talk to the guy who just did half your chores so you and Jenny could have a good time, Sis. I even got up an hour earlier than usual.”

Andi immediately felt sorry for snapping at her brother and gave him a sheepish grin. “Sorry, Mitch! Thank you so much, you’re the best big brother.” 

“Wow! You sure are, Mitch! Eli wouldn’t be caught dead doing my work,” Jenny sat up beside Andi and grinned. “I’m awful glad to be here.”

“Remember that, sis,” Mitch mock glared, “I am the best big brother so next time I need a favor, you’d better not give me lip. Now you girls get ready and better be to the table in ten minutes.” With that, he left the room and closed the door.

The girls hurried to get dressed and braid their hair. When they reached the stairs, Andi held out a hand to stop Jenny as she craned her neck around the banister to make sure Mother was not in sight. 

“The coast is clear,” Andi said, her eyes sparkling. She mounted the banister and pushed off, sailing down the railing. She turned as she heard Jenny muffle a squeal. She failed to see the end of the banister and crashed to the floor in an unladylike heap. Before she could get to her feet, Jenny landed on top of her with a grunt. As both girls struggled to breathe, a shout caught their attention.

“What in the blue blazes!” Chad stood with arms crossed leaning in the doorway of the dining room. Jenny groaned as she struggled to her feet. As Chad took in the situation he began to laugh. The girls glared at him as they composed themselves and walked to the table. 

“Stuff a sock in it, Chad,” Jenny grumbled. 

“Hey, if I'm not telling Mother about your shenanigans, I reserve the right to laugh!” Unable to come up with a retort, the girls took their seats and scarfed their breakfast. 

After the meal, Andi and Jenny hurried through the remaining chores. As they were leaving the barn, Cory rode up and greeted them with a grin. “Howdy, Andi! Want to go fishing? Hey, Jenny! I didn’t know you were here. You want to come too?” 

“Woah, Cory!” Andi interrupted, “Slow down a little bit. First, Jenny came to visit just yesterday, and I’m glad you’re here. We’d love to head to the creek as soon as I ask Mother.”

Jenny grabbed Cory’s hand and pumped it rapidly. “Oh! It’s sure great to see you again, Cory! I’m looking forward to goin’ to the creek! Fishing sounds like great fun! I don’t ever get to go fishing at old Miss Whitakers, it's always boring there.”

Cory grinned at the deluge. “Glad to see you ain’t changed, Jenny!”

Andi left the two to catch up and ran into the house to find Mother. “Mother!” She called looking in the doorway of the kitchen. 

“Justin took Mother to town while you girls were finishing the chores.” Chad spoke from his seat in the living room browsing over a stack of papers. “He left me to deal with all of these cattle drive papers and they just don’t make sense. This business needs his lawyer brain. I can’t make heads or tales of these prices!” 

“That stinks, but Cory, Jenny, and I are going to head to the creek to do some fishing. So if Mother gets back before we do, please tell her where we are.” Andi turned to go, but Chad stopped her. 

“Whoa, little sister, you finish your chores? And don’t think I didn’t see Mitch sneakin’ around doing chores that you were supposed to be doing.” 

“The chores are done, Chad, and Mitch was just helping out. Can we please go?”

“Yeah, sis, but you better bring back a mess of trout for dinner.”

Andi grinned and slammed out the door to where her friends were already packed up and mounted. Cory had saddled Taffy for her, and Andi smoothly mounted. 

“Wait, Senorita Andrea! You and your compadres may get hungry. I packed you a small lunch.” Andi grinned as she lifted the huge basket to her lap. 

“Thanks, Luisa. We sure appreciate it!” 

Two hours later found Jenny stretched out sound asleep on her back while Cory added another trout to the full string.

Andi was lowering her pole back into the water when a flash of red caught her eye. “Hey!” She hollered, “What are you doing on Carter land?”

Cory jumped as she shouted and nearly dropped his trout before he was fully strung. He tied it quickly and jumped up. “Good gracious, Andi! You about gave me a heart attack! Who did you see?”

“He’s behind that tree, pretendin’ to hide.”

Jenny sat up and rubbed her eyes as a boy emerged from the tree Andi was pointing to. He was wearing dark overalls and a bright red shirt. He was barefoot and his face was mud streaked and bruised. “Who are you?” Jenny squinted at the newcomer. “And what happened to your face?” 

 “I didn’t mean no trouble, Miss. Please don’t tell nobody, I won't bother you none. My face is alright, I just had a run in with a man who was none to happy with me.”

 “Are you an orphan?” Jenny asked, her eyes full of compassion. “We won’t tell no one if you are. I have a friend back home who’s an orphan, and she was awful abused. Can we help you?” 

    “No I ain’t no orphan, but it was my Pa who beat me so I would appreciate it if you’d just let me be here for a while until I figure out where to go.” 

    “I don’t know, my brothers would be awful mad if they found out that there was somebody livin up here and I hadn’t told them.” 

 “Oh, come on Andi,” Jenny pleaded, “remember Lin Mei? You wouldn’t leave that one alone even though we were gettin in trouble. This won’t cause no trouble and it’ll help out our new friend. What’s your name by the way?” 

 “William, but I go by Will.” Andi hesitated and turned to Cory. 

 “What do you think? I want to help him,” She whispered.

 “Yeah, I think we should help him. I don’t see it causing any issues cause we ain’t lyin, just not telling everything that happened.” Andi sighed and turned to the boy. 

“Alright, we won’t tell, and I suppose I’ll have to bring you food at night. How old are you?” 

 “I’m fourteen, and I really appreciate it. I won’t stick around too long, but I just need to be somewhere with water and shelter, and these trees are perfect.” 

“Where are you from?” Cory butted in, eyeing Will. 

 “I’m from a place about twenty miles from Fresno. It’s backcountry there. My Pa’s name is Johnny Winthrop, but he’s a low-down-no-account man from up north near Nevada. We ain’t been here but a few months.”

The group talked late into the afternoon, and Andi grew fond of their new friend. He had a Ma and sister in back in Nevada, but his Pa had dragged him on a fruitless search for gold after not bein’ able to hold down a job and gambling away what little savings they had.

Andi was grateful for Luisa’s huge lunch as they all had a snack and leftovers for William that night. Finally, when Andi knew they’d be late for dinner, the group packed up and headed home.

A rider on the path headed their way stopped the three. Andi cringed as she recognized the hat of the approaching rider. “It’s Chad,” She hissed. Two groans were her reply. Why couldn’t it have been Mitch sent to fetch them? Chad looked none too happy as he rode up. 

    “You’re late.” 

    “Yes, sir,” Cory responded, “Sorry about that, but look at all these trout. They were biting so good that we just lost track of time.” Andi felt her face growing hot as Chad’s gaze settled on her. 

    “Those are some nice trout for sure, but they would’ve been better if they’d been back in time to cook tonight. Alright, let’s get home before Mother sends out a search party.”

Andi sighed inwardly in relief as she glanced at Jenny. She almost giggled as she saw her friend’s face matched her hair and she was staring intently at the ground. Chad looked at each of them suspiciously. 

 “How was the fishing, Jenny?” 

 “Oh, it was great. There was a lot of fish. It was fun.”

Andi wanted to slap her friend as she stammered through a less than convincing response. 

The next week past with the girls living in fear of being found out. Every night they snuck out and every morning they overslept. The whole family was suspicious as the girls skipping breakfast became more frequent.

Sunday morning came and the family readied themselves for church. Andi and Jenny filed into the row the Carter family typically occupied. As the sermon progressed, Andi strained to keep her eyes open. She glanced over at her friend whose head rested on her chest, her eyes closed.

Andi elbowed her hard, and Jenny yelped.

Justin raised an eyebrow sternly from his position on the other side of Andi. Jenny’s face flamed as many people turned to see the source of the interruption.

Andi sat up taller and forced herself to be as uncomfortable as possible. Jenny eventually began to drift off once again, but Mitch leaned in and whispered to her. Jenny sat up straight and fixed her eyes on Pastor Johnson.

When the service was over, Andi and Jenny went to wait at the buggy instead of sticking around to visit with the rest of the family. Cory jogged over. “I take it y’all are getting along with Will?” 

    “Getting along great,” Andi muttered, “But I haven’t gotten a good night's sleep since we met him. I usually get out with the food around one thirty in the morning and I don’t get back until close to three. Then I’ve got Chad or Mitch bangin’ on the door at six for me to do my chores. It’s miserable.” 

    “I agree. It’s been awful here lately. I fall asleep if I sit still for more than five minutes. I fell asleep twice in church until Mitch told me Justin would quiz us on the sermon on the way home.”    

“No!” Andi cried as rubbed her face. “I don’t even begin to know what the sermon was about.”

Cory gave them a quick rundown that got them through most of the questions on the way home. Since it was Sunday, the girls managed a short nap after the noon meal before the evening routine that ended with them sneaking through the kitchen and out to the creek. 

“Will?” Andi called softly as she dismounted. A hand snatched her braid and yanked her into the trees. She gave a choked scream as she came face to face with a large, bearded man. “Who are you?” 

“I’m Johnny Winthrop, and I hear you’ve been helping my son hide out. I don’t appreciate that.” 

“You’ve been abusing your son and you expect him to stick around?” Jenny’s spunk was in full force as she tossed her head and glared at the man. He struck like a rattlesnake, smacking Jenny across the cheek. 

“What a coward,” Andi spat as a limp form on the ground caught her attention. She raised her lantern to see Will with a large lump forming on the back of his head. 

 “We’re leaving now!” The man growled as he threw Will over Taffy’s saddle. 

 “You can’t take my horse!” Andi hollered. 

 “Shut up! I’m taking more than your horse, you’re coming too! I can’t have you telling the sheriff about me, not after I just robbed that bank in town. He held the girls at gunpoint and bound their hands in front of them. He forced them to ride double on Patches as he mounted up behind Will’s limp form. 

 “We’re headed to get that money I stored at the shack up the way, and then I’ll take care of the two of you. Then me and Will are headed back to Nevada.”

Andi tried to grab Patched lead rope to run, but Johnny noticed and gripped Andi’s wrist tightly with one hand, slapping her hard with the other. Andi tasted blood. Johnny gripped the lead rope and urged Taffy forward. 

“I ought to just take care of you here.” He cocked his pistol and leveled it at Andi’s head.

As his finger tightened on the trigger, Andi threw herself off of Patches back and into the creek, dragging Jenny with her. Johnny pulled up and dismounted quickly, aiming his gun at the girls once again. 

 “Hold it right there!” A deep voice barked in the darkness.

Johnny froze and turned as Chad, Mitch, Justin, the sheriff, and several ranch hands rode into the clearing. Andi’s knees went weak with relief and tears flooded her eyes. Her brothers, her heroes, had once again come to save the day. 

A few days later, Andi sat in the living room with the rest of her family as Jenny retold their story from the beginning. As she finished, Justin nodded. 

    “Now Will is on his way to meet his mother and sister in Nevada, and Johnny Winthrop is off to jail. The Sheriff came pounding on the door Sunday night and said he’d tracked a bank robber onto our land. When you girls never showed at the commotion, Chad checked your room and found it empty. We figured y’all had left and tracked you to the creek. Just in time too, it seems.” 

    “See? I told you girls at the beginning you couldn’t stay out of trouble. You two are always looking for trouble,” Chad teased. 

    “No, Chad, I don’t go looking for it, it just seems to follow me everywhere I go,” Jenny lamented and the whole family broke into laughter.

Andi looked around with a smile, she truly had the best friends and family. She was thankful to be warm, dry, and safe in the presence of the people she loved most.