A Love So Bold
by Anon Allsop

The story continues - Hope you enjoy!

-Thirty Nine-

In deep slumber, Hannah lay near Gideon, soaking his warmth as the air had cooled overnight. Her dreams that night were enveloped in warm sunshine as she walked across a sea of beautiful blue flowers, with her long red hair drifting in a gentle breeze.

She stood upon a small knoll overlooking the wagon train. Her feet were comfortably bare. Below she could see Gideon and Cade hitching their mules for the day's ride. She didn’t know where Emma was, but assumed she was safely tucked away inside the wagon.

Like an ancient goddess of Greek lore, she stood like a sentinel on that knoll. As still as a statue, the long yellow skirt drifting in the breeze, her fiery tendrils seemed to have a life all their own. The stark white bodice she wore seemed to carve out the sky, its bow with the long ribbons floating just off her shoulder. Next to her beauty, the landscape around her appeared barren and desolate.

A voice called to her softly, and she turned her head. Her emerald eyes fell upon a young man; she immediately knew who this was.

Suddenly, the dream shifted view and she was Ezrah looking upwards toward Hannah, once again in her old body from when she was Ezrah. He looked down at his humble clothing as the woman’s gaze on him held true. There was no hatred or condemnation in her expression.

"You have found Gideon," she softly spoke, her voice echoed lightly in his ear, yet all other sounds ceased.

"I have," Ezrah replied. "I remained to help Gideon with the childer..."

She interrupted, "I know why you have remained." She reached out and caressed the young man's face lovingly. "You show a love for him in your expression... a loving kindness in your words to him."

"You heard our talk?" He looked down. She cupped his chin and lifted his head.

"You speak to him as I never had." She thoughtfully looked toward the wagons, "I had my chance and let it slip through my fingers. I don't fault you, Ezrah..."

"Y… You don't?" he stammered.

"No, Ezrah, your tender soul seems to have been made for being Gideon's bride; somehow you have captured his heart. If I should feel anything, it would be envy, for my chance is now over and yours has just begun. You are able to show Cade and Emma a love that I cannot."

"I never had thought of it like that..." he replied tenderly.

She lightly placed her palm upon Ezrah's chest, "When next you take Emma to your bosom, please let her know that her momma loves her." She gradually turned back toward the wagons, tears clinging to her long lashes. "Cade will be a fine young man, and you will see to it. Shower him with the love I never really showed him."

She turned back toward Ezrah, "I have something I want to give to you and Gideon."

Ezrah smiled, "A gift for us?" He looked at her hands but was puzzled; she held nothing physical that he could see.

Slowly she raised one hand up, and then lightly laid it on his stomach. In a blink of an eye, he once again was Hannah, only facing a mirror-like image of her. "My gift to you... my gift to you..." The words echoed as her image slowly faded from sight.

Her eyes opened, and she was facing one of the wagons wheels, the shroud still upon the side. She rolled over and looked toward Gideon, but he was not there. Slowly she rose upon an elbow, "Gideon?" she whispered. There was no answer.

She sat up and slipped on her dressing robe and slowly crawled out. Once outside she stood squinting in the bright sunlight as it was breaking the horizon. “Gideon?” she called out.

“Over here. I was wondering when you was planning on getting up this morning.”

Hannah followed the voice around the corner of the wagon. Gideon sat on a log by the fire, with Emma balanced on his knee. Cade sat on the other end of the log, eating. “Breakfast is ready.”

“Oh! What are we having?” She walked closer and looked down as he removed the lid from her cast iron skillet.

He smiled and fanned some of the smell toward her with his hand. Fish and potatoes were offered. “Smells good, doesn’t it?”

“Honestly?” she hesitated, smiling.

He gave her a sideways glance, laughing as he did so. “Be nice.”

“I was going to say, ‘it is heavenly!” She sat beside Cade and waited until he dished a small portion for her. “What time did you get up?”

He smiled and handed her the plate he prepared, “Cade and I were up long before sunup, weren’t we, son?” The boy nodded, and pushed the remainder of his food into his mouth.

“Manners.” Gideon scolded the boy, “If you’re done you may be excused, leave your plate and go get the bucket from the wagon so your momma and I can clean up the dishes.”

She took a few bites and savored what she was eating as she watched Cade head off toward the wagon. Hannah began to push her fork around on her plate, “I taste onion in here!”

“I found some wild onion by the water.” He said proudly, “See, you’re not the only one who can cook.”

Hannah took a tiny piece of her fish and offered it to Emma. She ate it and made a face as she chewed, but eventually swallowed it anyway. “Apparently it’s an acquired taste.” He said laughing.

He smiled and took a bite of his own meal, “Did you enjoy sleeping in?”

“I did actually.”

Gideon smiled, “You looked so peaceful lying there, that I didn’t want to wake you.”

She sat quietly for several long minutes, enjoying her meal. Finally, she looked toward him and spoke, “I had a dream about Hannah last night.”

“Interesting…” he replied as he poured cups of coffee for both of them.

“I was on a hill, and then I was Ezrah standing beside Hannah…” He suddenly stared at her; his expression was of confusion as she continued. “She was telling me that she was okay with me being her…and that she wanted me to make sure both children knew that she had loved them.”

He slowly set the pot back beside their fire, and then stared into the flames as she had spoken. “That’s the craziest damn thing…I had a dream I was hitching the team up and you and that Ezrah fella was standing on a hill talking.” He shook his head as he took a drink of the hot brew, “Thing was, I could hear what you was saying, as if I was standing right there beside you.”

“You’re scaring me,” she replied as she sat the cup down to keep from spilling it. “This is all so frightening to me…but I’m sure she meant no harm, because in the dream when it ended, she said she had a gift for us, but it was over before she said what it was.”

“She-it!” Gideon cursed under his breath, “If that don’t beat all…that we’d have the same dream and all!”

He smiled as he sat there, “One thing is for sure, you were breathtakingly beautiful standing there in the dream…” He glanced toward her and winked, “When I woke up, I almost wanted to forgo the fishing and take up a bit of dear hunting…the two legged variety.”

Hannah’s face reddened, but she giggled. It was at that moment Cade returned with the bucket and stood looking toward his father, “I ain’t old enough to go deer hunting, you told me that earlier.”

Gideon smiled, “Not the same creature, son, not the same at all. I’m sure you’ll figure it out when you’ve grown a man-sized body.”

Cade slowly shook his head and laughed at his father’s odd comment. Often his parents talked in a strange code that he most likely would never fathom until he was much older, and it was probably a good thing too.

-Forty-

Just before sunset, Gideon went fishing again. Cade was off playing with the Bloom girls and, Hannah was trying to get Emma to lay down for a nap. The fish were not biting as well as they had been in the early morning, but it was a time for the young father to enjoy being alone.

He sat staring in the reflection of the water, when his eye caught movement on the opposite shore. It was Hannah; yet as his gaze lifted off the reflection, she was gone. A slow creeping chill climbed up his spine, but not one to let specters frighten him he assumed it was just a bird.

"Catching anything?" A soft voice he could recognize in the late evening sun.

Even though he recognized her voice she still gave him a start. "Jesus, Hannah!"

She giggled, "Sorry I startled you." Slowly she swept her skirt under her and settled into the thick grass beside him. "You looked deep in thought."

Without looking, he sighed and shook his head, drawing the line and homemade float in. "What were you doing sneaking along the shoreline... were you purposefully trying to scare me?"

"I just walked up here and sat down. Besides, only minutes ago was I still trying to get Emma to sleep,"

Gideon glanced toward her; she was wearing her blue print dress. Quickly his eyes turned toward the opposite bank. "Well, I'll be dipped."

The beauty giggled, "What's wrong - are you seeing things?"

Gideon laughed and nodded, "I must be. I could have sworn that you were on the opposite shore." He again looked at her, it would have been impossible for her to change so quickly.

"So Emma is napping?"

She again laughed; her voice to him reminded him of tiny chimes on a summer day. "Hardly, she fought me the whole time." She lay down in the grass, her face toward the setting sun. "It was me that wanted to keep falling asleep."

"Am I keeping you up too late?" he asked as he baited his hook with bread and threw it out into the water. "So where is Emma?"

"Arden has her… and no you aren't keeping me up too late," she said while yawning.

Gideon laughed, then stretched out beside her, laying so he could keep an eye on his fishing. She lay on her back in the grass, her red hair splayed around her head like the rays of the sun. "You know that you are a sight?"

"That's a pretty mean thing to say, Mr. Shepherd," she said, opening an eye as she responded.

"I didn't mean it that way." He slowly drew in his line and placed it in the grass not far away. Hannah watched him as he scooted closer, and then tenderly kissed her soft lips.

"Did you give up fishing already?"

"No, not really," he replied softly as he kissed her again.

"Oh, I see... just trying different bait?" she said laughing.

He slid his hand across her narrow waist and pulled himself to her even closer. "Why is it that when I see you, I can't help but want to love you?"

She shrugged, "In my dream, Hannah had said that I had a way with you that she never had."

As Gideon kissed her, he pulled away slightly and just took in the loveliness of the vision in front of him. Her emerald eyes twinkling back, a hint of mischief in them. Fiery red hair, fanning out beneath her head, her curvaceous body lying just beside his own, almost tempting him to love her.

She lifted a slender hand; her fingers ran along the dark hair on the side of his head. He closed his eyes and smiled. "Does that feel good?"

"Anything you do to me feels good," he replied lovingly. She responded by slowly drawing his face down, lips touching, their lust powerful and honest. There in the soft grasses, beside the lake, Gideon made love to Hannah, with a passion that bespoke of two young lovers, and not just a husband and wife.

Her transformation over time had made her quite submissive to his dominance, but being female had brought with it a way to control her lover in ways that no man could fathom, let alone Gideon... and Hannah used that control to get from him what she wanted.

And what she wanted, all women wanted... yet for her it would come easier. Whether it was Gideon's experience as a lover or some sort of combined souls of Hannah and Ezrah, she didn't know. What she did know that each time they made love; she was catapulted into an orgasm that was so powerful that she scarcely could breathe, just as this one had.

Lying beside each other, their breath coming laboriously, they laughed. Yet for Hannah, the little splashes of pure unadulterated energy she felt coursing through her body left her trembling as wave after wave seemingly crashed against her very soul.

Gideon slowly sat up and looked back toward the sleepy wagon train. "Come on, love, we should probably be getting back."

She sighed deeply, not wanting to lose the feeling she was having. "Do we really have to?" she kidded.

"Arden will be wondering where we are."

She rolled onto her stomach, her unfettered breasts creating a huge amount of cleavage for him to view. She had learned well, and knew what it would take to prolong their play. She reached out and lightly touched his penis; just the effort caused it to twitch.

"I can't do it so soon, Hannah, even if I wanted to."

She looked up; there was a devilish twinkle in her eyes, "Why don't you just let me worry about that." She scooted closer and pushed aside his knee.

He slowly lowered back into the grasses as she rose above him, and gently took hold of the stiffening organ. As her red hair lowered down, tickling his stomach and upper thighs he shuddered.

Her hair fell over him like a flaming curtain, but what she was doing behind it would keep him desperate for more. His hands sought out her head, gently guiding her as she desired to fulfill his needs. He couldn't tell what she was doing, but whatever it was, seemed to be pushing him closer to a precipice that he had no hope of recovering from.

She felt the organ in her hands slightly tighten; it trembled down low and then began to pulsate until she could feel the substance jet within her mouth. Knowing that any male that she had ever heard of, including her former self, loved this act... it was her wish to keep him happy and she would endure anything as long as it fulfilled his desire and want for her and her alone.

In her mind she remembered a saying that her father always used about Ezrah's mother. "A happy wife makes for a happy life." Only for Hannah, she realized that there were two sides to every coin, and she wanted to make sure Gideon knew to what lengths she would go to maintain his happiness!

-Forty One-

The following evening, two more wagons had joined up with the Fort Bridger-bound train. Taking their places within the column, the train set off early just as the sun broke the horizon. Cade and Emma went back to sleep as the seven wagons slowly began the next leg of their arduous journey.

"So, what should we expect when we see Fort Bridger?" Hannah sighed, already tired of riding after only being in the wagon for a half hour. She had folded up several of the wagon's curtains so their seat wouldn't be as hard as the unpadded board.

"The last I had heard, it wasn't much more than a couple of log-cabins with a corral set up between them." He shrugged as he spoke, "I heard the Army was a fixing to make it a regular post, if they hadn't already."

"Cade would like to see the soldiers. I suppose we could purchase a few supplies if we needed them."

"I'd like to avoid spending money if I can. We're going to need whatever money we have to get down the Colorado River when we get there."

"Vaughn was telling Charles and me that he wanted to go together and try and hire us an Indian to show us a way across the Green when we get there to the Fort," Gideon said, picking his hat up from behind the seat and placing it on his head.

“I thought we had already crossed the Green River back a ways?” she replied in confusion.

“We did, but the Green River winds itself back and forth like a snake. Up here is where we can finally put it behind us for good.” He smiled, “That is if we can hire us someone to safely show us across!”

Hannah sat quietly, and then offered, "I guess, with all of us pitching in, it shouldn't come to too much."

"I figure on throwing in the hides I've kept from the hunting we've been doing. There are a couple of deer, an antelope and one buffalo." He smiled, "Those ought to amount to something to whoever we get to guide us."

"You're pretty clever," she said proudly at his suggestion.

Gideon laughed, "Even a blind pig finds an acorn once in awhile."

"Oh you..." she scolded.

-Forty Two-

As the wagons rolled toward Fort Bridger, the land seemed to become slightly green. Here and there were clumps of tiny trees, young and wispy. It was apparent to her that much of the older trees had been sacrificed to travelers on the trail. Vast open valleys spread out before them, and game was slightly better than the region they had left. That is, if you could get close enough to shoot. There were still several spots that were difficult to travel, yet this land seemed to remind Hannah more of her Indiana home than had any that she passed after the Mississippi.

There had been Indians sighted recently, but these seemed harmless compared to those who claimed the lives of her parents and the original Hannah. The few they did meet were more interested in the color of her red hair than of doing any harm.

On one occasion though, a young brave tried to barter with Gideon for the big black horse tied behind the wagon. When he finally was able to make the brave understand that it was Hannah's horse, he stood perplexed. He had never heard of a woman in the possession of such a fine horse.

Through an interpreter, he told her that she must have strong medicine to own such a fine animal. Hannah was barely able to control her emotions due to how her parents had died. Even though she knew that the Indian who had been talking to her was not of the same tribe as those who murdered Ezrah's parents, they did look similar and that was making her extremely anxious.

Thankfully though, they rolled into Fort Bridger on the evening of the sixth day since passing up on the Green River crossing. The wagon train stopped just outside of the fort and as a family they walked through the stone walls that protected the fort from the outside.

Gideon walked into the supply store; Hannah's Walker Colt was pushed into his waistband. He didn't want trouble, but always wanted to be prepared. Hannah carried Emma, and Cade walked between Gideon and her.

Gideon began to slowly examine the room. Their mercantile supplies were running low, and what they did have was pathetic at best. Hannah had walked over to peruse through bolts of cloth, as Cade stood close to his father.

Feeling eyes upon her, she glanced up. Three scruffy men, two of whom were playing checkers, were looking at her. Feeling uncomfortable, she slipped outside and stood on their porch. Gideon noticed and shot a stern look their way, making sure they knew that she was with him.

He stood at the counter and sat Hannah's pistol down in front of him, "I need powder and lead for this Walker-Colt."

The storekeeper crouched down and sat a little wooden barrel of powder on the counter, not much larger than a man's head. He followed it by setting a small box of ready-made balls beside it. "Will you be needin’ caps too?"

Gideon nodded, "Also need some lead for my 1855 Springfield, and a decent length of new rope."

The man glanced toward the doorway, where Hannah stood just outside. "Mister, if I had a handsome little red-headed filly like that one yonder to go home to, I'd have never left Texas."

Gideon smiled, "I'll take that as a complement."

He smiled, and then handed a peppermint stick to Cade. "It was meant to be." He smiled as the boy took the stick, "Is there anything else I can get for you, young fella?"

"There may be; our wagon train is looking for someone to show us a safe ford to get across the Green. Do you know of anyone?" Gideon watched as Cade received the stick and promptly began to enjoy it.

"The only one who knows this country that well is Charlie Two-Shoes. You'll find him down by the blacksmith shop; he helps them out from time to time." The man began to tally up Gideon's bill. "That'll be six dollars and twelve cents."

Gideon sighed deeply, then fished the money from his pocket and laid it on the counter. As he turned and started to walk, he nodded at the storekeeper, "Thanks, mister, have a good day."

"Oh I will, young man... I will." He laughed appreciatively as he dropped the coins into his register.

Once outside, he took Hannah's hand and walked her back to the wagons so she could get supper started, then Cade and he strolled toward the blacksmith's shop to see if they could locate the Indian.

By the time Gideon returned, Hannah had a fire going and a stew was simmering in the hanging pot. He walked up as she was stirring, and took a seat on the wagon's bench that had been removed so they wouldn't have to sit on the ground.

"Well? Will the man help us?" she asked, holding her spoon out so Gideon could taste the stew she had been working on.

"He wants the buffalo and deer hides as pay for showing us. The others will be kicking in items too," he replied as he blew over the steaming contents of the spoon. "Say, that's pretty good stew!"

"We have a few biscuits that we can have with supper," she said as she began to dish up the children's tins, wanting to give them time to cool.

She handed one tin to Gideon, “Blow on this so Cade can eat.” He took it and began to blow across the steaming stew; he then alternated between stirring and blowing. After a few minutes he handed the tin to his son. Hannah gathered Emma, and then sat down to begin feeding her the stew as well.

Cade sat on the wagon bench with Hannah, who was holding Emma; Gideon had moved to give Hannah room and seated himself down on a sawn log. In the flickering light from their fire, they sat quietly and enjoyed their supper.

"This soup is really good!" Cade commented between mouthfuls.

"Thank you Cade," she replied smiling.

Hannah had set her portion aside and was feeding Emma. It was easier to hold her with one arm, and work the spoon with the other. It also gave her food time to cool. Using the back of the spoon, she would crush the softened vegetables, mix it with some of the warm broth and give that to her daughter.

Gideon laughed as he watched Hannah feed Emma, "She sure seems to like what you're feeding her."

"She should. It has to be more filling than breast milk," Hanna grinned.

"You mash it up so much that it looks like a wet paste." He observed, "It doesn't look all that appetizing to me."

"It still has the exact same good food in it as what you're enjoying... well, except for the meat."

"Why is that, ma?" Cade asked as he realized she didn't have the chunks of meat like he had in his tin. As he looked at the spoonful of stew he held, "I like the look of mine much better."

Hannah laughed, “Emma has no teeth…well, not much of them anyway.”

As Gideon chewed the savory stew, he watched Hannah intently as she held out a spoonful, each time she moved it close to the child, she would open her mouth in an attempt to get Emma to open hers.

After several times of watching this, Gideon chuckled to himself. "What's so funny?" Hannah asked.

He just smiled and continued to watch her even more. Finally, he leaned forward, "Does it actually help if you open your mouth to feed her?"

Hannah shrugged, not realizing that she had been doing it. "I'm not sure - perhaps it may help."

"It's cute," he replied innocently opening his mouth as she was doing, copying her movement. "She's probably seeing you do it and just mimicking the action." He grinned again as Emma accepted another tiny spoonful.

After each bite she took, Hannah would drag the spoon lightly across Emma's tiny mouth and attempt to gather what she pushed out while chewing. It was a learning process that the young mother had adapted to very well.

Cade set his empty plate aside and walked to his father, "Can I have a cup of water, please?"

"Sure, son." He stood and walked him to the bucket that was strapped to the side of their wagon and took a ladle and filled a blue tin cup, and then handed it to the boy.

As Cade drank, Gideon sighed and stretched, then patted the boy on his head. "I'm figuring that you and I should be heading out to the weeds, yonder and be taking care of business.”

Cade handed the tin cup back to his father, and then slowly followed him out into the inky darkness where he could take a much needed pee. Hannah smiled as the two disappeared, once they walked beyond the campfire light.

By the time they had finished, Hannah was readying Emma for bed. She gathered her up and carried her to Gideon, "It's time for bed, so let’s give Papa a kiss."

She gave her father an open mouth, sloppy kiss. It caused him to laugh. "I'm not sure if I didn't just get a bath with that kiss!"

He kissed her forehead and jostled her red curls, "Good night, punkin’, sleep tight!"

As Hannah was carrying her into the wagon, Cade began to help his father place the shroud around the wagon. They had finished, as Hannah was climbing out of the wagon.

"Good night, Ma." The boy chirped.

She hugged him, kissing his forehead. "Good night, Cade." She watched as he climbed into the wagon and settled underneath the blanket that she had prepared. Hannah slowly walked back to the fire where Gideon was pouring himself a cup of coffee.

While Hannah settled onto the wagon bench, Gideon sat down on the ground resting his head upon her slender thigh. "You are one amazing woman! Have I ever told you that?"

"Not since yesterday," she laughed. Her right hand was resting on his shoulder; she was lightly running her fingers through his hair. He closed his eyes and smiled. "You like that?" she asked him, seeing how much he was enjoying her loving massage.

"I'd give you a week to stop." He softly whispered as he sat his cup on the ground and leaned even more against her thigh. She continued to lightly run her fingertips against his scalp, then began to trace along the outside of his ear. He began to relax, his head growing heavy, and his breathing deep.

"Are you asleep?" she whispered, and she giggled when he didn't answer. After sitting with his head resting upon her thigh, she slowly ran her fingers along his jaw, and then turned his face to hers. Bending low, she kissed his cheek deeply. She smiled as his eyes fluttered open.

"Come on, honey, it's time for us to go to bed too." Her voice was soft and loving, like a mother reluctant to wake her child.

He slowly sat up and rubbed his face. "I guess I didn't realize I was that tired." He yawned.

She stood and flexed her back; the toll of travel was making itself known. "I'm going to go... well, you know."

Gideon followed her until they reached the edge of the darkness, there he gave her the privacy she needed and stood watch. Finally she walked back to him and they returned to their wagon. After another quick peek in on the children they crawled under their blanket shroud and readied themselves for bed.