Chasing After A Wild Heart – Extended Epilogue

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Stepping out of the cabin, Elodie set down her basket to pause for a moment. She’d been moving about since sunrise and had yet to catch her breath.

She wiped her brow and looked around. The Coyote Valley Ranch had been her home for the last two years since she first made it to the Santa Clara valley where Maxine resided. When she had first arrived, Elodie had known instantaneously that this was meant to be home.

The first of five cabins was right behind her from where she had exited onto the creaky but sturdy porch. Ahead of her up the path was the large ranch house. It took half a mile to reach the road and another three miles to reach another’s property, which just so happened to be the ranch owned by Robert, Maxine, and their budding family.

All Elodie had to do was take a step to the left to see the repainted red barn. And to her right was the white pebbled path leading to the gates of the ranch where she lived.

Green hills that went on forever. Towering canyons in the distance. Clear blue skies overhead and warm summer days where she loved stealing a second to splash in the nearby river.

It was a little piece of paradise that Elodie hoped to remain on forever. While her work wasn’t the most exciting as a maid on the ranch––though Greta was planning to settle with her family in two months which meant Elodie would take her place as housekeeper––it allowed her to have a life on this beautiful property.

Besides, she only managed this work three times a week. She also had Sundays where she helped in the kitchens or spent time with her sister and the twins that had been born eight months ago. And the other three days of the week were spent in town at the recently built school where she was helping to teach the children like she had always wished to do.

Every morning, Elodie woke up wondering if this was a dream. There were hard days and difficult moments. Plenty of responsibilities and a tiny cabin where she constantly elbowed her husband. But it was comfortable. It was home.

A whistle pulled her from her thoughts. “El!”

The smile was on her face before she even turned around. Though she meant to grab the basket at her feet, Elodie wound up in Noah’s arms before she knew which way was up.

His arms wrapped around her, one hand gracing the back of her neck. As his fingertips brushed the sensitive skin, she couldn’t help letting a giggle escape. “What are you doing here?” she asked. “I didn’t expect you until after nightfall.”

Only after he had stolen a quick kiss did Noah pull back enough so they could look at each other. “I know. But Old Red said he wanted to talk before supper.” He nodded his head toward the ranch house.

She furrowed her brow. “Talk about what?”

Noah shrugged. “I don’t know. Work, I suppose. Rupert is invited as well. Maybe it’s about the horses he wants to purchase to train for the army.”

As he spoke, she buried her hands into his hair. It was still cropped short but just thick enough to wind her fingers in. The texture was coarse as it was dark. But she loved it. She loved every part of this man.

“And you.”

Her gaze returned to his. “Me? I’m invited?”

That made little sense then. She glanced toward the ranch house with suspicion. Just like everyone knew she and Noah were happily wed, they also knew that Rupert was their closest friend. The trio had asked for work on this ranch upon their arrival but had made the guarantee that it was all of them or none of them.

Those early days had been so nerve-wracking. 

Elodie had allowed her sister to convince her to wait a month or two to be certain she wanted to marry Noah. But there were still cold nights where she woke in terror and mornings where she felt so lonely she could cry. 

It had been after church their first Sunday in town, staying at her sister’s place, when Elodie had grabbed Noah and gone to the pastor.

“Lovely sermon,” she told the older man.

Noah had squeezed her hand, saying nothing of her rashness as he smiled. “We’re new to the area. This is Elodie, and I’m Noah. It’s a pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

“Can you please marry us now?” she had asked promptly.

Those in the nearby vicinity had turned to stare at her just like the pastor and Noah did. But soon Noah was grinning. And the bewildered pastor had done as requested.

Elodie had learned her lesson not to wait for life. She asked and demanded what she wanted, living every day as much as she could. Sometimes it meant to be quiet and sometimes she was loud. No matter what happened, she could come to Noah at the end of the day and know that all was well.

As she considered what Noah was telling her, Elodie tilted her head. “Why would he want to talk to the three of us? That makes no sense.”

He shrugged before loosening his grip to help her grab the basket. They started toward the ranch house with their arms around each other. “I don’t know, Elodie. He didn’t say.”

“Nor did you ask,” she guessed.

Time had changed them both. There were moments when they still expected danger. Noah still stayed back from the fire. Once in a while, they each had their share of an awful nightmare. But he was learning to trust, and she was learning that the world was so much more than she had ever expected.

“What about Georgia? Is she coming? Is she here?”

Shaking his head, Noah chuckled. “No, but I can tell you Rupert is mightily disappointed. He nearly ran off to go see her once Old Red left us in the fields. Those two are thick as thieves. It’s been months, hasn’t it? They have to marry soon.”

She giggled. Georgia was the mayor’s daughter and the teacher who was showing Elodie the ropes. As of the spring dance in the town hall, Georgia was also being sweetly courted by Rupert.

Then Elodie stopped. “You don’t think it’s about your past, is it? Did you tell him everything? It’s been so long, but what if he learned something new?” She inhaled sharply. “Oh dear. Maybe he brought the sheriff here. That man doesn’t like me ever since I taught his two boys how to catch frogs. What do we do?”

“That was a lot,” Noah said after a moment. “Is that what you did?”

She sent him a stern look. “They’re boys, and I didn’t want them hurting the poor creatures. I knew they wouldn’t stop, so I thought they should do it right.”

“I can’t argue with that,” he agreed.

“But Noah,” Elodie continued, “what more could this be about? He might be trying to get you arrested even though the case has been over for a year now. He can’t do anything about that, can he?”

A whole year. It had taken the marshals that long to gather everything they needed for a solid case against the Pracht gang. 

Every man there had gone down, all but Noah and Rupert. The pair had left for a week to share their testimonies in a Sacramento court. Although Elodie had begged not to be left alone, Noah had convinced her it was for the best. She had spent eight days pacing at Maxine’s enough to nearly make herself sick.

But it was over. Noah had told her it was over, and she believed him.

“He can’t,” he reassured her now. “And he knows everything, Elodie. You know I care about the truth. I told him all about our past before we accepted the jobs here. The gang is gone, and it won’t be about this. Maybe he just wants to talk about the horses. Or a new shed. We need a bigger one.”

She rolled her eyes with an exaggerated groan. “That wouldn’t warrant such a conversation, Noah, that’s ridiculous.”

They offered and teased ideas on the way to the large house. She adored the place though she tried not to come too often, worried she’d get caught admiring it more than a reasonable amount. 

Old Red, the owner of the ranch, and his father had built the large house with two floors and a large porch many years back. It was a family house, she liked to think. Yet it was rarely filled now since Old Red’s wife had passed ten years ago and his four daughters had all moved out to have families of their own. On Sundays, everyone gathered together to feast in the evenings. Elodie loved Sundays because of the good company.

After Noah helped her wrap up her chores for the day, folding the last of the laundry, they went to find Old Red, who was already talking with Rupert in the kitchen. A light supper made by Greta had been laid out. Elodie filled her plate more than usual, her nerves getting to her, as she listened to the men talk.

A tall, thin man with wispy graying hair, Old Red glanced at Noah and Rupert before he brought out a folder of papers. It remained closed as he spoke.

“My eldest, Lenora, has invited me to come live with her in ’Frisco. Since my knees aren’t what they used to be, I’ve decided to accept,” he announced.

She stopped her fork between her plate and mouth. Even Noah and Rupert were stunned; Old Red was a stubborn man who had claimed time and time again that he wouldn’t ever leave this ranch. It was his home.

“Truly?” Noah asked carefully. “You’ve built a brilliant place here.”

Nodding, Old Red sighed. “Yes, I have. I pray it will last for years after we are all gone. But every day I miss my family a little more.” He glanced at Elodie, and she realized she understood the pain. It was hard to live without her loved ones. “It’s time I left. Sure, it’ll be a few months, but I need to do something about this place before I go.”

Her mouth turned dry as she tried to comprehend his words. They made sense logistically. However, they brought forth a wave of questions without answers. 

Not sure of what to say, Elodie took another roll.

“Thank you for letting us know,” Rupert said after a pause. “I am sure I can speak for all of us when I say we will do whatever we can to help you.”

“Good.” Old Red flashed a wide grin, showing off his two gold teeth. “Because that is exactly where all of you come in. I know you three have only been here two years, but that is a lifetime in a place like this. You’ve lasted longer than everyone except Harry the foreman. All of you have been good workers and good-hearted.”

Noah glanced at Elodie with a warm smile, filling her heart with comfort. This ranch meant the world to them. It had given them the chance to start over and build a life together.

“Which is why I’m gifting the ranch to all three of you.”

Upon hearing this, Elodie nearly choked on her roll. She coughed as she heard Rupert and Noah force out gratitude born in disbelief, all of them looking at each other in amazement.

“Thank you,” Elodie added once she had her breath. “This ranch means everything to us. We love what you have built. We’ll do everything we can to keep it just the way you made it.”

“Or perhaps improve it.” Winking at her, Old Red tapped the papers. “We can talk over the details tomorrow. I just wanted to make sure the two of you were aware. I’ve already started discussing this with Harry. He’s happy for you lot. By the time the harvest comes, I’ll be out of your hair, and this will all belong to you.”

There was no holding back the tears. Elodie sniffed, hurrying to her feet to go around and hug the man. “Thank you! You’re the best boss in all the world; I’m certain of it.”

“I hope so,” he joked. He patted her back until they stepped apart. “Read over the agreement and let me know what you think sometime this week. Rupert, I’m sure you can expect more than enough detail about the horses here.”

Chuckling, Rupert nodded. “I was hoping to hear that.” He glanced at Elodie and Noah. “Old Red, how about we discuss some of it now? I wanted to show you what I’ve been doing to improve the corral.”

It was only a few minutes later when the two men were out the door, leaving Elodie and Noah together. She moved swiftly to his side where his arms were already outstretched to take her.

“It’s a miracle,” she said while sniffling.

He brought out a handkerchief. “Don’t cry, darling. We should be celebrating. It’s a blessing for certain. I can’t believe this. I didn’t think we’d have a place of our own for ten years. Maybe twenty. Thirty.”

“Hopefully sooner than that,” Elodie told him. Then, though she had been waiting until his birthday next week to deliver the news, she knew the truth had to come out now. “We’ll need a bigger cabin than our current place if we’re to have a home for our children.”

“Well, yes, I suppose. When Old Red leaves, he …” Noah trailed off as he returned his gaze to her. “Our children.”

A furrow appeared on his dark brow. Then it faded while she gently brushed it with a soft smile growing on her lips. Already she could picture the perfect little child in her arms. Born into a life of freedom and love, he or she would have dark hair and beautiful skin and a love of the world around them.

“Our children,” she confirmed in a whisper.

He wrapped his arms around her before pulling her onto his lap. It only took a heartbeat for her to lower her head and bring their lips together. “How long?” he asked between kisses. “How long have you known? When will she be born?”

“He or she,” she reminded him. “And before Christmas. I can tell you that much. Perhaps even during the harvest. Are you happy?”

“Happy? I am thrilled. I am the luckiest man alive,” Noah added.

Elodie saw the truth in his eyes as she melted into him, relief and joy relaxing her weary bones from a long day. She kissed her husband once more––not the first time and certainly not the last––and knew that wonderful things were coming their way. 

The future had never been more promising for them. Held in her husband’s comforting embrace, Elodie could hardly wait for all the days to come.

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