A Simple Love Story

So...I shot myself in the foot. And the worst part is that I did it with my eyes wide open.  I posted a challenge without any ideas what I was going to write, no inspiration, and hardly any time to get it done. Thus I had to force, hurriedly, write. ( I almost didn't write anything but I had posted the challenge and I figured that would be bad form.) That always turns out my worst stories--and yes, this is one of them. Go ahead, click the "Bad" button.

A Simple Love Story

Ecarg sat on her back porch steps, her strait black hair falling over her shoulders and sticking to her wet face. Her eyes were wondering all along the Montana horizon but they weren’t seeing anything. Hearing a step behind her in the house she jumped up and quickly brushed away the signs of her weakness. The door opened and she found herself facing a middle age man wearing a black suit and carrying a black leather bag.

“Lizzy?” she reached for the corner of the house to steady herself, the doctor’s face was averted.

“Your name is Ecarg right?” He spoke gently almost pityingly.

“Yes.”

“Your mother wanted to see you.”

“She’s not my—“ Ecarg let the words trail off. Right now that didn’t matter. “Thanks.” She mumbled and opened the door as the doctor headed towards his wagon.

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The door slammed behind Ecarg and she grabbed the wall and held on to her aching side.

“Ecarg! You’re a sight! Go get washed up this minute!” Then looking around her, “Where’s my Lizzy! What have you done with her?” her questions started in a shocked tone and ended in a terrified shriek.

“Where is Pa? I need to find him now!” Ecarg gasped between gulping for air.

For once she didn’t tell her that “Pa” was vulgar; she should call him “Father”, like her Lizzy did.

“He’s out in the barn. Ecarg, tell me what is going on right this minute. What have you done to my baby!?”

“No time!” Ecarg dashed back out the door, her bare feet hurt from her long run but she hardly noticed. “Pa! Pa! Come quickly!”

Her father appeared almost immediately outside the barn door. “Ecarg what is it?”

“Lizzy, Pa! I need you to come quick, she’s hurt real bad.” Ecarg motioned widely towards the creek.

She heard a scream from her who had followed her out the back door. Weak woman! What good did that do?

“Take me now!”  Her father grabbed her hand and they began running with him pulling her faster than her tiered feet could go.

When they arrived home, with him carrying Lizzy’s limp body, Ecarg waited outside their bedroom well aware she didn’t want her anywhere near.

“Ecarg! Go get the doctor!” Her Pa’s voice was worried and she didn’t even bother to let down the corral gate she simply jumped her pony over it.

 The doctor’s house was a full two miles away but Ecarg had always loved riding bareback and she was very good at it. She supposed that was because that was the way her mother had taught her.

She could remember her mother saying, “It’s natural for you Ecarg, because that’s the way your ancestors always rode. They didn’t understand the white man’s need for a saddle. Your Grandfather, White Feather, didn’t even bother to use a blanket most of the time and at his last battle he had to flee from the white soldiers. He always told me he was able to get away because their heavy saddles weighed them down. Always remember that Ecarg. If you want to ride fast, go bareback.”

Her mother had been the smartest woman she knew. She taught Ecarg how to care for a garden, how to tend wounds, and many other things the Indian women had taught her as a little girl.

“I always tease your father that he married me only for my skills.” She told Ecarg once and they had both laughed because her father was most certainly in love with her mother and wouldn’t have cared if she could tan a buffalo hide or not.

Ecarg shook her head to clear the memories and was not surprised to feel tears running down her face. She always cried when she thought of her mother, especially when she thought of her as compared to the woman her father had come home with one day and informed her was her “new” mother. Her new mother was a pale, prim window from the east who had a four year old daughter, Lizzy. Ecarg  soon learned to love the shy, blonde little baby but the mother was her most bitter enemy. The very first day she had taken over the kitchen and thrown away all the beautiful clay dishes Ecarg’s mother had made. She insisted Ecarg’s father by them a decent set of dishes; they turned out to be china which Ecarg was forever making her mad with by accidently shattering one of the impractical things.

Ecarg shook her head again, harder this time. The doctors house loomed up towards she and she started worry about what he would think of her. Her family was new to this area and she had never met the doctor. A bareheaded, barefoot, half Indian girl would be something new for him she was sure.

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“Ecarg! Is that you?” she heard her Pa’s voice call sternly from the front room. “Were have you been it almost time for us to be going.”

“Yes Pa. I’ll be there in a minute.” Ecarg quickly ran her hands through her long black hair to comb it and then began hurriedly braiding it. “Arg!” she grumped as she dropped her black ribbon. Bending over to pick it up she stood on the back of her long black dress and heard a small ripping sound. “Umph!” she struggled to her feet right as she appeared in the doorway.

“Are you okay Ecarg?”

Ecarg looked at her out of the corners of her eyes. Surprised, she realized for the first time how pretty this woman was. Her golden hair was tucked neatly back under a small black straw hat and her black dress created a nice contrast to her pearl colored skin.

“You look nice Ecarg. Lizzy-“ here she choked a little but went on, “Lizzy would have called you “ “Bootiful Cargy! “ “  and I agree.”

Ecarg starred at her in open mouthed surprise. Here they were, getting ready to go to Lizzy’s funeral and Lizzy’s mother could talk about Lizzy without breaking down. That was more than Ecarg could do. Besides that, she had paid Ecarg a complement for the first time!

“I’m sorry Ecarg I wasn’t very nice to you when I first came. I so terribly wanted to make a good impression on your father that I over did it and pushed his daughter away in the process. Will you forgive me and allow me to be your mother and love you since I just lost my other daughter?”

Ecarg hesitated for only a moment and then flung herself into the others arms.

“Oh yes! Yes! I’m so sorry I wasn’t nicer to you either and I’m so sorry about Lizzy—“ Ecarg burst into tears but continued through her loud sobs, “ I really did love her. I shouldn’t have gone looking for that plant but my mother, I mean my other mother, told me that it makes good tea and I wanted to try some. It’s my fault that Lizzy d-died. I should have—“

The black gloved hand covered Ecarg’s mouth.

“No its my fault. I didn’t treat you like I should have and meanwhile I was treating Lizzy to well. God took Lizzy away from me so that I would see what I had done to you and fix it.”

“Girls! The horses are waiting. It’s time to go!” Ecarg’s Pa called from the other room.

“Now dry your tears Ecarg, dear, and lets go.”

Ecarg looked up into the gentle face. “Yes Mother.”