Bertie (Pendleton Petticoats Book 6) Read online

  Pendleton Petticoats, Book 6

  A Sweet Historical Western Romance

  by

  USA Today Bestselling Author

  SHANNA HATFIELD

  Bertie

  Copyright © 2016 by Shanna Hatfield

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. Please purchase only authorized editions.

  For permission requests, please contact the author, with a subject line of "permission request” at the email address below or through her website.

  Shanna Hatfield

  [email protected]

  shannahatfield.com

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Bertie(Pendleton Petticoats, Book 6) is a sweet western historical romance set in the town of Pendleton, Oregon at the turn of the century. Cowboys and Indians, outlaws and lawmen, strong women, painted ladies, orphans, and Chinese immigrants comprise the colorful cast of characters.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Recipe

  Author’s Note

  To the broken

  who find a way to mend…

  Chapter One

  Pendleton, Oregon

  1906

  The stench of pickled herring clung to the clammy, spongy hand that clamped over Bertie Hawkins’ mouth. An arm wrapped around her waist with such speed and force, it knocked the air out of her in a whoosh.

  Dragged into the darkness beyond her front porch, Bertie struggled against her assailant. However, he held the advantage of surprise as well as being several inches taller and many pounds heavier.

  His hand slid off her lips but before she mustered a scream, a foul-tasting rag filled her mouth. When she tried to spit it out, he slapped her so hard, a kaleidoscope of colors exploded inside her head.

  “If you don’t hold still, girl, this will go much worse for you,” a voice hissed in her ear.

  The man’s rancid breath caused her nose to wrinkle involuntarily as he tugged her into the bushes behind her home.

  Desperate to escape, Bertie threw her weight against the man, knocking them both off balance. Skirts tangled around her legs, trapping her as she fell to the ground with a whimper.

  Sharp pain shot through her side as he viciously kicked her. “I told you to hold still, girl. You should have heeded my warning.”

  In preparation of escape, Bertie coiled her muscles, ready to jump to her feet and run despite the pain arcing across her ribs. Before she took flight, the attacker delivered one more blow that left her unable to move through the blinding agony.

  He leaned over her, voice dripping with hatred. “Tell your friend Lacy she’s next.”

  Screams rent the darkness, drawing Bertie from her tormented slumber.

  “Bertie! Bertie!” A gentle hand shook her shoulder. “Wake up, Bertie!”

  Wracked with fear, Bertie opened her eyes and stared into the concerned face of her brother, Bobby.

  He placed the lamp he carried on the nightstand next to the bed and sat down beside her, taking her hand in his. “It’s okay, Bert. You’re safe. He’s not here.”

  Bertie inhaled a shuddering breath, then another. Poor Bobby hadn’t had a decent night’s sleep for weeks. Nearly every night, she relived the nightmare of Richard Kent’s brutal attack. Even though the man was dead, he continued to haunt Bertie’s dreams and shred her normally undaunted confidence.

  “I don’t think I’ll ever feel safe again, Bobby. Not ever.” Tears leaked out of Bertie’s eyes and she sniffled, wiping her eyes on the edge of her sheet.

  “Aw, Bert.” Bobby wrapped his arms around her and comfortingly patted her back. “It’s natural for you to have nightmares. I’m sorry I wasn’t here to keep you safe. If I’d never gone to Portland for that class, you wouldn’t have…”

  Bertie interrupted her brother. “You needed that class for your business, Bobby. Besides, that awful man might have done the same thing even if you’d been here. It most likely wouldn’t have made a difference one way or another.”

  The siblings had variations of the same conversation almost daily. Plagued with guilt for not being home to keep Bertie safe, Bobby blamed himself for Kent’s attack that left his sister with broken ribs, a bruised kidney, and multiple cuts. Fortunately, that was all the damage he inflicted.

  While her body healed with the speed of youth, Bertie’s spirit remained wounded and fragile. Prior to the attack, she was a fun-loving girl full of adventure and spunk. Now, she struggled to hold herself together and make it through one day at a time. Fear lurked around every corner and horror lingered in each sudden, unexpected sound.

  Bertie’s happy existence disappeared one May night as suddenly as the flood that washed through town a few weeks later and destroyed multiple buildings. Thankfully, the only life lost in the flood was that of Richard Kent.

  Although he no longer posed a threat, Bertie couldn’t get past her feelings of dread, loss, and fear.

  At home, every creak made her draw in a frightened breath and dart her eyes around, anticipating an attack that didn’t materialize.

  Work at the telephone office as an operator had become a form of torture. The hours she spent with her back to the door tested every bit of fortitude she possessed. Each time someone walked into the office, it startled her, leaving Bertie with hands shaking and heart pounding.

  She didn’t go anywhere or do anything unless Bobby or one of her friends accompanied her. Even after her parents died when she was fourteen and left her and Bobby alone in the world, she still felt sheltered and secure.

  The current sense of loss and fright she experienced was unlike anything she could have imagined and it threatened to leave her undone.

  The sweet, carefree world she’d known no longer existed. Nothing would ever be the same again.

  The soft murmurings of a morning breeze gently rustled through a field of ripening wheat and blended with the warning chirps of a bird in a splendid summer serenade.

  Killdeer. Killdeer.

  Aundy Nash grinned at the bird’s song and patted the neck of the filly she rode. “Don’t worry mama bird. We won’t disturb you or your nest, will we, Ella?”

  The horse blew out a puff of air and shook her black and cream mane.

  Aundy gave the filly another pat. “You’re such a good girl, aren’t you, Ella? You take after your mother.”

  When her favorite mount began to show signs of aging, Aundy’s husband, Garrett, suggested she ride one of Bell’s offspring. With his help, she’d trained Ella since the day she
was born, getting the filly accustomed to her scent, touch, and direction. She’d started her under the saddle a few months ago and Ella had quickly taken to the training.

  The beautiful dun carried a solid black line down her back while stripes around her socks bore the markings of her mustang ancestry. Lively and feisty, Ella was fun to ride, especially on a warm summer day with nothing but blue sky overhead and fresh air filling Aundy’s lungs.

  Although she’d grown up in the city with no rural experience, she knew without a doubt she belonged at Nash’s Folly.

  She and Garrett worked the ranch with his parents and their hired hands. This morning, Aundy volunteered to ride the fence line west of the home place to make sure all was well with the cattle and the fence didn’t require any repairs.

  “It’s a gorgeous day, isn’t it, Ella?” Aundy asked as they topped a rise in the expansive pasture that butted against the wheat field. She shifted in the saddle and turned her attention to look over the cattle lingering in a corner of the pasture.

  Movement out of the corner of her eye drew her gaze to a large bullsnake soaking up the sun. Stretched along the length of a pole on the fence, the reptile could have slithered right into the top of her cowboy boot since she’d ridden so close to it.

  A forked tongue darted out and flicked at her. Startled by the sight of it, a shriek escaped her before she could hold it back and she yanked on the reins.

  Fully sensing Aundy’s fear, Ella reared and came down hard then bolted forward. Unprepared for the horse’s reaction, Aundy tumbled off the saddle and thrust out her arm in hopes of breaking the fall.

  As she landed on the flat of her hand with her arm extended, the impact caused unrelenting pain to sear from wrist to shoulder. A loud pop confirmed she’d damaged something. The first day she’d arrived in Pendleton more than seven years ago, she’d broken the same arm in a wagon accident. She just hoped she hadn’t broken it again. The weeks of misery spent wearing a cast wasn’t an experience she wanted to repeat.

  Ella stopped nearby, clearly frightened as her nostrils flared and ears stiffened.

  Concerned for the horse more than herself, Aundy groaned as she got to her feet and took a careful step toward the filly. Bruised and jarred, at least nothing else was damaged beyond her arm.

  “Everything is just fine, sweetheart. No need to fret.” Aundy spoke in the gentle tone Garrett had taught her to use around the horses. Holding her throbbing arm against her side, she glanced around to make sure the snake was long gone before taking another step closer to the horse. Snakes and mice were two things she couldn’t abide.

  Ella shied away and sidestepped, tossing her head.

  “Come on, baby. Everything is fine. You’re fine. Don’t be scared.”

  If Ella took off, Aundy would have a very long, painful walk home. Unhurried, she reached out and snatched the reins. The horse jerked against them, but Aundy kept up a soothing dialogue as she contemplated the best way to mount.

  Tenderly, she ran a hand along Ella’s neck, patting her as she endeavored to instill a sense of calm. Eventually, the filly began to breathe normally, relaxing under Aundy’s assurances and attentive care.

  “Ella, girl, I need to get back to the house, so you’re just going to have to cooperate.” Aundy led the horse over to the pole fence. Ella pulled back, but Aundy moved her around until she could climb up on the fence rail and slide a foot into the stirrup. Swiftly swinging on the back of the horse, she guided her along the fence line.

  Two hours later, she arrived at the barn, exhausted. After checking the remainder of the fence, she chased in two strays then stopped to fill in a big hole most likely dug by a badger. It hadn’t been easy, but she got the job done. Once she mounted Ella and headed toward the house, her energy flagged.

  Aundy sighed in relief when Dent, the ranch foreman, walked out to greet her. The man had worked on the place long before she arrived and had been like a grandfather to her in the years since she’d lived there.

  Covered in dust from the golden braid wound around the top of her head to the toes of her boots, Aundy looked like she’d ridden through a twister.

  “Missy! What in thunderation happened to you?” Dent took Ella’s reins and reached out to help Aundy dismount. When his hand connected with her elbow, she sucked in a gulp of air and bit back a moan.

  Beneath bushy eyebrows, Dent’s kind eyes held concern and questions. “Missy?”

  “A snake spooked me and Ella on the upper end of the pasture. Don’t you dare tell any of the men, but I fell off and landed on my arm.” Aundy suppressed another groan as she swung her leg over the saddle and dismounted.

  “Garrett! Get out here, boss!” Dent bellowed as he looked toward the machine shed where Garrett fiddled with his new kerosene powered tractor.

  Garrett stepped out of the shed, took one look at his wife’s pale face, and dropped the greasy rag in his hand.

  His long legs ate up the ground to the barn in a few frantic steps. “What happened, Aundy?” He reached for her elbows in a familiar gesture but she backed away from him.

  “Ella dumped her and she hurt her arm,” Dent tattled. He patted the horse on the neck and led her into the barn.

  Aundy glared at her blabber-mouthed foreman’s retreating back. “I’m fine, Garrett. It’s nothing.” She turned to walk toward the house, but he gently took her arm in his hand, effectively stopping her departure.

  If her arm hadn’t hurt so much, she would have squirmed away. Before she could protest, Garrett ripped the fabric of her sleeve up past her elbow and assessed the damage with a grim set to his mouth.

  “Dent! Hitch up the buggy. I need to take Aundy to Doc Reed’s.” Garrett gingerly touched her elbow. Despite her determination not to, she winced.

  “It’s fine, Garrett. I just need to put a little ice on it. Nothing to worry about.” Slightly woozy, Aundy felt lightheaded as her husband probed around her elbow.

  He brushed his thumb over the injured spot. “It’s not fine, honey. The bone is poking past where it should be. If it isn’t broken, you’ve at least knocked it out of joint.” Aundy swallowed hard, trying to keep the queasiness swelling in her throat from erupting. When she swayed on her feet, Garrett swept her into his arms and carried her to the buggy. Dent finished harnessing the horse and looked up as Aundy’s face turned white.

  “Garrett…” Aundy clamped her lips together as another wave of nausea washed over her.

  “Hush up, wife, and enjoy the ride because we’re heading to town.” Garrett stepped into the buggy, sat down next to her then snapped the reins over the horse’s rump. As the buggy rolled forward, he glanced over his shoulder at Dent. “Keep everyone out of trouble while we’re gone.”

  Dent snorted and waved his hand at them. “Shouldn’t be too hard since you’re taking trouble to town with you.”

  Aundy would have offered a stinging rebuttal if she could have spoken around her pain. Instead, she leaned back into the soft leather of the seat and held her arm against her side.

  “Here…” Garrett whipped off the neckerchief he wore and handed it to Aundy. “Use this as a sling. It will help support your arm.” He helped her tie it around her neck. Once she had her arm resting inside it, he pulled her closer to him. “You do know you’re the most stubborn and obstinate woman I’ve ever met, don’t you?”

  Aundy nodded her head. “And you’re bullheaded and bossy.”

  Garrett chuckled. “Maybe I am, but that’s why you love me so much.”

  “Humph.” If she possessed the energy to huff indignantly, Aundy would have done it. Instead, she closed her eyes and mentally urged the horse to go faster.

  Sooner than she would have deemed possible, the buggy rocked to a stop. She opened her eyes and took a deep breath. Afraid Garrett would make a scene by carrying her inside the doctor’s office, she stepped out of the buggy before he had a chance to walk around to help her down.

  She glared at him as he wrapped a hand around her waist a
nd guided her across the boardwalk. “If you’re going to force me to see Doc Reed, let’s get it over with.”

  Garrett grinned and opened the door to the doctor’s office. “Yes, ma’am.”

  After the doctor pulled Aundy’s dislocated elbow back into place and gave her a dose of pain medication that made her sleepy, Garrett left her at the doctor’s office to rest while he ran a few errands.

  He opened the door to the mercantile, but before he could step inside, his sister-in-law breezed out carrying a box with her purchases.

  “Garrett! What are you doing in town this morning?” Ilsa smiled as Garrett tipped his hat to her.

  “Aundy took a spill off Ella and I brought her in to see…”

  Ilsa shoved the box at him, lifted her embellished skirts, and raced off in the direction of Doc Reed’s place. Garrett stared at the box in his hands and released a sigh. He turned away from the mercantile and headed in the direction of Ilsa’s home. Instead of going to the front door, he walked around to the back entry and tapped on the screen door. Tony, Ilsa’s husband, pushed it open with a broad smile.

  “Hi, Garrett. What brings you into town today?” Tony held the door and motioned his brother-in-law inside.

  Garrett held out the box in his hands. “I ran into Ilsa at the mercantile. When I mentioned that Aundy was at Doc Reed’s she handed me the box and took off. So here are your groceries.”

  “Aundy’s at Doc Reed’s? What’s wrong?” Tony took the box and set it on the counter then turned back to Garrett with a worried look.

  “She and Ella had a little trouble this morning and she landed wrong on her arm. It’s just a dislocated elbow, but Doc gave her some pain medication that made her sleepy.” Garrett accepted the cup of coffee Tony held out to him. “While she’s resting, I thought I’d see to a few errands since we’re in town.”

  The telephone on the wall jangled and Tony answered. His one-sided conversation gave Garrett a moment of pause. When Tony hung up, he grinned at Garrett.