A Long Journey Full of Peril – Extended Epilogue

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Megan was walking gingerly, moving around the desks with the little ones clamoring for her attention. She took a moment to catch her breath, her hand on the wall. It was as if she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.

She looked down to see the spitting image of his father looking back at her. John did have distinguishing features. Jesse was going to be a heartbreaker when he grew up, but at least he would have role models to teach them how to respect women.

Her little boy wasn’t ready to go to school, but he attended, often becoming her assistant. He was holding several pencils. It made her smile to see his bright and cheery face every morning when she woke up and every night when she went to bed.

“Megan, you better come here and look at this,” Sarah said excitedly, her finger pointing to the window.

Megan wasn’t the only one curious. 

The kids followed until their little faces were plastered up against the glass, their dirty fingerprints streaking the pane.

A stagecoach carrying a man with wild black hair flew by, almost knocking down one of the deputies. It was followed by Robert on a horse, looking determined.

She noticed John across the street, talking with the sheriff. They both looked at one another and she instinctively knew nothing was going to stop him from helping his friend.

John sprinted across the street to meet Megan at the schoolhouse door. He was a little breathless.

Another man on a horse stopped short and leaned down with a whisper that had John’s eyes widening.

“It seems somebody has stolen a wagon full of wood from the sawmill. It’s not surprising that Robert is in hot pursuit. I guess our dinner date is going to have to wait until I get back. I’m sorry to do this, but he’s my best friend. I can’t let anything happen to him,” John said.

He backed away with a shrug of his shoulders before taking the horse the young man had been riding into town to warn everybody. He slapped the reins, the horse responding until it was picking up speed on his way out of town.

Megan sighed with relief when she noticed the sheriff and two of his deputies joining the chase. It wasn’t like John couldn’t take care of himself, but his family demanded he come back in one piece. 

The sheriff and John had become friends, despite a rocky beginning. He became a regular at the sheriff’s poker game, along with Robert and Wyatt.

Wyatt had come out of his shell after information about his father came to light. Megan was pleased to see that the town didn’t ostracize him. There were a few tense moments, but they were finally coming around.

It helped that Megan had become his biggest supporter. She was instrumental in getting the townspeople to listen to her. She reminded them of their own shortcomings. Many knew of what had been going on with Wyatt’s father and didn’t come forward at the risk of incurring his wrath. 

It was a slow progression but finally, they were no longer judging him by his father’s actions.

Megan felt a little lightheaded. Her body was rebelling against her. The little one inside was kicking up a storm, obviously worried about his father. Nine months was a long time to carry his progeny. It was a blessing and a curse to be the one to carry on his family name.

“I know you’re worried, but it’s not good for the baby. Sit down and relax. Try those breathing exercises the midwife gave you. I’m here to help you in whatever way you need. Let me do some of the heavy lifting,” Sarah said.

Megan was holding her belly with both hands. She felt the kid going crazy. It was agitated by the commotion and the sound of his father’s voice. It had been like that since she had conceived.

John took every opportunity to speak to his child while it was still in the womb. She often woke up to find him regaling the little ones about his adventures when he was away from the only home he knew.

Jesse was always up at the crack of dawn with a lot of energy to burn. Megan couldn’t move around as swiftly as she could nine months ago. It did make her smile to know that she was responsible for having John’s child again. 

“This one doesn’t like loud voices. There is no particularly good time when I am this close to having the baby. I should’ve heeded the doctor’s warning about limiting my interaction at school. I just can’t stay away. This is my life, and these will always be my children. This isn’t the first time and it won’t be the last John will heroically follow his heart. I’m just glad he has Robert to rein him in,” Megan said before sitting down with a deep breath.

She was barely able to find a comfortable position.

“You’re not going to do yourself and the baby any good by wringing your hands with worry. Just think positive thoughts and everything will turn out the way that it should,” Sarah suggested. 

“I know I’m supposed to be this strong independent woman, but I can’t live without him. I’m not the only one that needs him to stick around. I have two to take care of with his same temperament and curiosity. Jesse is fearless. He truly does take after his father. That is terrifying and exciting at the same time,” Megan said.

Wyatt came in then, with his new bride Cecilia. She was a recent addition to the town, working as a seamstress. Megan had never seen Wyatt so happy. He was no longer dominated by his guilt regarding his father’s actions.

“I heard what happened. I’ll make sure that he comes home to you,” Wyatt promised.

He turned and cupped his young bride’s face with her hand on his shoulder. They had a moment with their foreheads touching and eyes closed before he went out and retrieved a horse from the stables.

Wyatt had lived in the area for his entire life, never venturing too far off the beaten track. He had found a woman to understand him. She stood by him through thick and thin with plans to start a family of their own. The wedding had been quite something, though only a select few had attended on his family farm.

Those acres had turned into a profitable venture. He’d sold off several parcels of land cheaply to families looking to start their own version of the American dream. It made him feel good to give back to a community that hadn’t turned its back on him.

Megan had talked to him about his feelings several times over the past couple of years. She was pleased to see him magnanimously giving to those less fortunate. He still had plenty of land with cattle brought to market every season.

***

Several hours went by and there was no sign of John or the party of individuals that had joined the chase. Megan was increasingly worried, wondering if she was ever going to see him again.

The school day had finished but she was reluctant to leave without word that John had returned safely. It felt selfish to think of him and nobody else, but he was her life. They had built something special — she didn’t want it taken away from her in the blink of an eye.

She was getting angry, but she really couldn’t control her whirlwind of emotions during this crucial time of her pregnancy. Sometimes she would cry for no reason or laugh out loud when there was nothing funny.

The same thing had happened when she was carrying Jesse to term. There were some unusual cravings, including peanut butter in the middle of the night. It was a good thing they were friends with the owner of the store. 

Stephen wasn’t very happy about having to open up at midnight, but he couldn’t exactly say no when his wife would have shown her displeasure.

“What is taking them so long to get back to town?” Megan inquired.

She waddled outside and leaned against the wall. It felt like forever since she had seen his smiling face. He was always coming to look in on her while she was working. She would’ve given anything to hear his voice.

“He knows to be careful. Just remember all the other times he has gone off to help somebody and returned to your side. It’s going to be no different this time. I envy you. A man like that doesn’t come around too often. I’ve been waiting for my own hero. Robert is a work in progress,” Sarah sighed.

“I don’t know what’s taking him so long. Robert’s completely oblivious to the way that you look at him. But then, every man is like that. We practically have to hit them over the head with a hammer to make them realize we are interested,” Megan said.

“He does have the most amazing smile. One of these days, I will make that man mine. You can mark my words on that,” Sarah said.

“Do my ears deceive me? I believe I just heard you mention Robert’s name. It’s about time somebody wrangles that stallion. Maybe if he had a woman holding him back, he wouldn’t think it was a good idea to run off after someone that might be a danger. I get so upset when I see these idiots thinking with their hearts instead of their heads,” Mary said.

“I don’t want you to play matchmaker for me. I know you like to think you have all the answers, but he’s going to have to come to his own conclusions. I don’t want you influencing his decision,” Sarah said slowly, enunciating her words.

“I understand what you’re saying,” Mary said with a wink.

Megan couldn’t fault her for wanting the best for her friends. She was always getting into everybody’s business and trying to manipulate, but sometimes she made things worse instead of better.

“Don’t do anything to scare him off. He’s like a little bird. You sneak up on him and he’s going to fly away. I’m making progress but I’m doing it slowly,” Sarah said.

“I just think he needs a good kick in the pants. I’m very good at that,” Mary said.

“I can attest to that,” Stephen agreed with a smile.

Mary turned and punched him playfully against his shoulder.

Stephen feigned being the injured party by making it appear her attempt to punish him for speaking out of turn hurt him deeply.

“Don’t listen to him. If I didn’t initiate things, we probably wouldn’t be married today. Men are notorious for not being able to read between the lines. Just know that I am here to help you — I won’t do anything without you first asking me to intervene on your behalf,” Mary said.

“You really do like to meddle. I know your heart is in the right place, I’m just not sure that I need your kind of help. I appreciate the sentiment behind it, though,” Sarah said.

Megan wanted to speak up for her friend, but she was having a hard time breathing. There was intermittent pain centralized in her abdomen. She hadn’t said anything to warrant concern, but she was starting to think she was going into labor early.

She hoped it would be a textbook delivery like Jesse had been. The doctor had warned her not to stay on her feet for long, but she was stubborn and decided that she knew her body best.

“I can go a little overboard, but I mean well. Just look at Cecilia and Wyatt. Anybody with two good eyes could see that she was smitten. I might have put a bug in his ear, and look at what happened with my interference. They’re married and thinking about having a child. I could conceivably do the same for you,” Mary said.

“The best I can do is think about it. That’s all I’m going to say for the moment. It is getting frustrating; he should be able to recognize what is in front of him,” Sarah said.

Megan was listening intently, but she was also fighting the urge to scream. Her face had suddenly turned white and her legs felt like they were going to collapse out from underneath her.

She needed to lie down when everything around her was spinning clockwise. She stumbled and almost fell but Stephen was there to break her fall with his hand on her elbow for support.

“Something is wrong. It’s too early for me to go into labor. It should be another couple of weeks, but try telling that to this kid,” Megan said.

“Kids have a mind of their own. You can’t do this alone. It’s too bad your father and family had to go back East after visiting for almost six months. I’m glad you were able to fix what was broken between you and your father,” Mary said.

Megan remembered with vivid clarity the tension in the air when she’d sat down with her father. He had been speechless when she’d presented him with the watch. It had brought a tear to the old man’s eyes.

“I’m losing my mind worrying about John. Someone had better go fetch the midwife. I don’t think this kid is going to wait any longer,” Megan said.

Sarah sprinted across the road, holding onto her dress. The plan was enacted. Everybody had a job to do. They had gone through the drills to make sure nothing was going to fall through the cracks.

Nobody could have predicted that John would run off moments before she was about to bring his little boy into the world. Megan was well aware of how plans didn’t go the way they should. There was always something that wasn’t accounted for. 

Premature delivery was one of those things.

Stephen and Mary had her arms over each of their shoulders, helping her to walk very slowly across the street.

Megan perked at the sound of horses approaching. It was definitely more than one by the sound of it. She turned abruptly to see the formation of dust following by a stampede of horses, including the stagecoach that was stolen.

John was leading the charge when he spotted Megan in a vulnerable position. He jumped down and ran to her side, pleading with her for the baby to be okay.

The sheriff was the next to follow with Robert side-by-side looking a little smug. The criminal was being pulled along tied at the wrists. He was walking beside the horses with a scowl on his face.

“Let’s get you home. Everything will be perfectly fine. I promised you I wouldn’t miss the birth of our babies and I’ve always been a man of my word. You can take that to the bank,” John professed.

They loaded her up on the wagon with John and Robert sitting on top, guiding the horse to their final destination just outside of town. They were accompanied by a congregation of their friends.

Mary was inside with Megan, holding her hand. “There’s nothing to worry about. I will give you all the strength you need to bring this child safely into this world. Lay your head on my shoulder and think about the future you wouldn’t have had without me,” Mary said.

Megan lifted her head. “I know you take responsibility for what happened with me and John. I appreciate your words of wisdom, but we would have gotten there eventually without you. It was meant to be. It was written in the stars.”

They rode the rest of the way in silence until they got back to John’s family farm. They had made a home where he had grown up smiling and happy most of the time.

Megan still found him once in a while in a fog of confusion, thinking about the past. She was there with a comforting word and a hand on his shoulder to bring him back to the present.

She screamed in pain when they attempted to bring her into the house. The midwife came right along, holding onto Sarah while she was riding into the wind to get there in time for the birth that everybody was waiting for.

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to move her in her delicate condition. We’re just going to have to bring this little one into the world right here in the stagecoach. Bring me water and something for her to bite down on,” Midwife Joan commanded with everybody jumping to attention.

John came down from the top of the stagecoach to sit by his wife, giving her the emotional support she needed.

A piece of wood was provided but Megan was shaking her head vehemently. “I don’t need that. The only thing I need is my husband by my side where he should be,” she said with a squeeze of her fingers.

John grimaced but he didn’t complain.

Following instructions, Megan pushed whenever the midwife told her to. It went on like that for almost an hour but finally, the scream of a healthy baby was heard coming from within the stagecoach.

“That was a nail-biter. She has 10 fingers and 10 toes.”

Megan looked out the window to see Mary and Stephen with her little boy Jesse running around in circles. It finally dawned on her what the midwife had said.

“I could’ve sworn it was a boy. I’m guessing this won’t be the last time she tries to pull the wool over my eyes,” Megan said.

“I’m always going to protect my children. She might not know it yet, but she will always be my little girl. God help any man that courts her. They will have to go through me first,” John said.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Megan said with a sigh.

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