Chapter 9

I tied Bob to the back of the wagon, loaded the supplies I would need for the trip and set off for Eden. If everything went well I would be back in a month and a half. I was glad that I didn't need to go to town but about once a year.

I hugged and kissed my family good bye and left for town.

By the end of the day I was a little down from missing my girls and George. I camped out under the wagon, and cooked over an open fire.

I got an early start every day, and pushed hard. Rocky and Sis were able to pull the light load easily so we moved along quickly.

During the second week I saw a wagon that was sitting on the prairie. I went to it and found that it had been attacked and the driver had tried to fight off the attackers, but had been killed. I found an arrow that had the marks of a Commanche warrior.

Everything of value, including the livestock had been taken. I found a book that had been left behind.

It was the journal of a man named Clarence Harrison. I assumed that Harrison was the corpse that I had found. In the book were the daily meanderings of Mr. Harrison, who was a miner. He told of finding a deposit of gold ore, and also finding some silver ore only about twelve miles from the gold strike. There were directions to both sites, and the mention of samples of the ore that were in the wagon. I knew that the Comanches had no use for metal ores, so I looked around and found a false bottom in the wagon.

There were four bags of ore. Some of the ore looked very pure and had veins of what looked like pure gold in it.

The wagon was still in good shape. I was surprised the wagon was not burned making it useless. I figured that I would buy a mule or horse in town and pick it up on the way back using Bob and the new animal and leading them tied behind my wagon.

I buried Harrison, and moved the ore into my wagon.

When I got to Eden, I was tired and hungry from eating my own cooking.

I did my business, buying staples, canned fruit, caps, powder, shot, and lead for bullets. I also bought some horseshoes and other hardware, as well as some new tools and knives. I also bought three bolts of cloth, needles and thread, as well as some heavy cloth for making pillows and mattress ticking.

I bought seed for wheat and some apple and pear seeds. The store had some pepper seeds, so I bought some.

I found a man who had two horses for sale. They were both mares, and both bred. I paid him sixty-five dollars for the pair. I guess I was feeling flush from the gold ore I had, but I still had forty dollars in gold left.

The mares were a good match for each other and for Bob. I named them Blue and Star. I bought some harness for them, and several bags of feed grain.

I had them pull the wagon for part of the day every day and by the time I got back to the wagon (still untouched) they were a good working pair.

I hitched up the horses to Harrison's wagon, tied them up to the back of mine and we led off. It was ungainly, and probably dangerous, but the stock was not skittish and we moved at a pace that I felt was safe enough.

After a day or two, I stopped for a half day and greased up the wagons and inspected them to make sure they were okay. They were in good shape.

I moved the cargo around so both teams were pulling a load, and we moved on home.

When I got home, my family all came running out to see me except Nita. "Who is that man," I heard Naomi say to Breeze. "My man doesn't have a beard and is not that thin."

Breeze answered, "Naomi, I have missed him so bad, I can't even wait for him to bathe to hold him close to me."

I hugged and kissed them all, a bunch. "Where is Nita?" I asked, concerned.

"She asked us to send you right in so see her," Naomi told me.

I walked into the house and saw Nita lying down nursing a baby. I ran to her and kissed her. "Nita are you two alright? You weren't supposed to deliver yet." I was very excited and Nita could tell and was grinning very big.

"James, your daughter wanted to come a little early," Nita answered me. The baby was tiny, but seemed to be healthy and happy. Her eyes were as blue as the sky, and she was looking at everything while she nursed.

"Nita, she is very beautiful. Thank you so much for this child."

"James, what will you name her?"

"I would like to name her after my grandmother, Juliette."

"Oh, James, that is a beautiful name."

Juliette stopped nursing and looked around. "May I hold her?" I asked.

"Of course you may. She is yours, like we all are."

I held my tiny girl and was very pleased with my life.

After a few minutes, I handed my sleeping daughter to her momma and said, "I need to unload our things."

I went back outside and found that Naomi, Breeze and George had moved the wagons around to the barn and had begun unloading them. I pitched in and got the heavy things.

I told them about finding the wagon and the book on the trail. I also told them about the mines and the ore.

"I am worried about the Comanches," Breeze told us. "They are very strong and warlike."

"Aren't we on Arapaho land here?" I asked Breeze.

"Yes, James, but the Comanche are trying to increase their lands by taking the lands of the Arapaho."

We finished up the unloading.

"I like the new horses, James," Naomi said.

"They are both bred, so I hope we will have new foals in a couple of months."

That evening my wives bathed me, and shaved me. "I want you to feel and smell good while we make love," Naomi told me.

I had a very good meal that night. Nita said, "James, you need to eat enough for a while, you have lost weight."

"I know. I have missed my sweet family for more than one reason," I answered.

That night I held Nita close for a long time and told her how much I loved her and our daughter. A few minutes later Nita said, "James you need to make love to Naomi and Breeze now, they need you."

I rolled over in between my two sweet and loving wives and held them close to me. They both sighed and Breeze said, "James, I have missed you so. You need to spend some extra time loving us up for a week or so."