Free Gone West by Kathleen Karr Page A

present.
     
    “What?”
     
    “To get an adventurous book!”
     
    Exasperated, Maggie gave up the struggle. “Certainly, Jamie.”
     
    Maggie eased herself down near her husband to feed the baby. It would have been better if they’d been right up in front of the line like the Chandlers. There’d have been no waiting and worry all the day. What would her own mother think if she could see Maggie now, ready to endanger everything she held dear in this world, all for the fording of a river in flood? Her mother had never been farther than thirty miles from the farm, to camp meeting every autumn. She’d never understand, not even with the letters Maggie had been sending from Independence.
     
    The sounds of the rope winching down another groaning wagon broke into Maggie’s thoughts. The Kreller’s had made it across all right. So had everyone else. The two half-breed brothers seemed to know their business. They’d certainly had enough practice. She ought to just relax~
     
    “It’s swamped! Ma! Pa! They’ve lost a wagon!”
     
    Jamie’s book was in the dust and Charlotte clung to Maggie’s breast with an alarmed expression as Maggie and Johnny raced for the bank. Once there, Maggie’s eyes travelled unerringly to the spot where the white top was turned on its side, rushing irrevocably downstream with the currents. Slowly, too slowly, hands reached out from within to grasp at the canvas. One by one children, wife and husband were clinging to the top of the wagon, still tearing downstream.
     
    “Who are they?”
     
    “The Butlers,” whispered Jamie. “Ain’t had much to do with them so far. Guess I won’t, either.”
     
    “Haven’t,” corrected Johnny. His excitement over the flooding river was gone. He reached one arm around Maggie, the other around Jamie.
     
    “There’s nothing easy in this life. Remember. Pray for them. When we’re across we’ll track them down and see what aid we can give.”
     
    Too soon the ferrymen were back in business as if nothing had happened. It was the Stuarts’ turn.
     
    Johnny helped his family down the slope and slowly counted out four one dollar coins into the nearest Pappan’s hand. When he was finished the hand was still stretched out. Johnny looked up.
     
    “It be another twenty-five cents each animal, and ten cents each man. Throw in the papoose no charge.”
     
    Johnny counted out more coins.
     
    “Do we get our money back if we swamp like the Butlers?” Jamie asked, giving the ferrymen a shrewd look. The taller of the two men, stripped to the waist, coal-black hair wet and slicked back, stared at the boy and finally broke into a brown-stained smile.
     
    “For you, maybe we give half back. ‘Tother family ain’t had the sense to ask beforetimes. Told ‘em they was topheavy.”
     
    “We ain’t~aren’t~topheavy, are we Pa?” Jamie frowned at Johnny.
     
    Johnny turned to one of the brothers questioningly.
     
    The halfbreed spat out a stream of tobacco juice. “If’n you had problems I’d a said so. You be holdin’ up the line.”
     
    Johnny straightened his shoulders. “Go ahead with the children, Meg. I’ll come across with the books.” He gave them each a hug as he planted them firmly inside the canvas top. “See you before you know it.”
     
    Maggie sat on an edge of the dismantled Ramage printing press, grasping the little brass finial of its top piece like a talisman. It had been beneath the waters of a great river once before. Surely once was more than enough.
     
    Charlotte was firmly strapped to her back and blessedly napping. Jamie was sharing his mother’s perch, clinging to her free hand tightly. His face magnified her own fear. True adventure was better in books. She was afraid to look forward, afraid to look back. But she’d have to do something for the boy.
     
    “Can you unbutton that side flap, Jamie? Let in some river breeze. We can watch the Pappans pole us across. You wondered how they did it, after all. We