Wild Heart on the Prairie (A Prairie Heritage, Book 2) by Vikki Kestell Read Free Book Online Page A

items in them as tightly as they
could.
    Two iron bedsteads. Yards of ticking and burlap. A dozen
spools of thick, cotton thread. Waterproof canvas tarpaulins and yards of oilcloth.
Lengths of rope, twine, and wire.
    Buckets and tin pails. Boxes of jars and paraffin. Another
strong lock and key. Oats, seed corn, and hard wheat seed.
    “Will you not plant a green garden? It is not yet June,”
Rehnquist suggested, pointing to his selection of seeds.
    “ Ja , we will,” Karl answered. “We have brought many
seeds from home with us.”
    Chicken wire. A bag of feed. A dozen chicks.
    Sauli lined a box with flannel and lifted the chicks in one
at a time. He tacked on a slatted lid, but lightly so it could be easily
removed.
    As they packed the items and loaded them into the middle
wagon, Mr. Rehnquist listed them and their cost on a piece of paper. “Your
wives, will they wish to buy dishes also?” he asked.
    “ Nei ,” Karl replied. “We have brought much of that
with us. Even my sister-in-law’s cookstove! But we will need a second stove
since we will build and live in our barn first. One for heating. And some stove
blacking.”
    He and Jan looked over the stoves. “This one, I think.” Karl
pointed to a square one with a large burn box. Jan agreed. Mr. Rehnquist
selected pipe for it while Jan and Karl started to break down the stove.
    “Do you have a gun?” Mr. Rehnquist asked. “Do you need
shells?”
    Karl and Jan looked curiously at the hardware man’s
selection of guns and at each other. “Our father has guns we hunted with, but we
did not bring any,” Karl answered.
    Rehnquist raised his brows. “Ach! You cannot be without guns
out on the prairie! You both must have one—perhaps even one for the boy. To
hunt, yes, but also for protection.”
    “So? Protection from what? Indians?” Karl and Jan both
frowned. They had not anticipated this need.
    “No, no, that is not likely, but you will surely have
coyotes and wolves sniffing around your animals. Those you must shoot.
Foxes and weasels, too, although you might trap them and rabbits.”
    “And you will want to shoot antelope and quail for meat. You
might even see buffalo! Good meat and a very good hide.”
    After a long discussion between the two brothers, they
selected a shotgun and a rifle. Mr. Rehnquist added bullets and shells for the
guns.
    Karl pulled at his bottom lip. The costs were piling up—even
after eliminating some items on their list. Things were more expensive than
they had thought they would be.
    Then Jan and Karl began on the lumber. They told Mr. Rehnquist
how much of each type of board they wanted and how much black tar paper. After Mr.
Rehnquist wrote the order down, Sauli started pulling the lengths. Jan and Karl
stacked and carried them out the yard’s gate and laid them into the last wagon
in the row.
    The lumber wagon was full. The front wagon was nearly so. Karl
studied Mr. Rehnquist’s numbers and told the total to Jan.
    “And still we need to buy food supplies, eh?” Jan remarked
wryly.
    “Ah! We almost forgot!” Karl tsked. He turned to Mr.
Rehnquist. “Can you recommend a good grocer to us?”
    “Surely. Go around that corner two blocks. You will see the
sign. It is owned by a German, Evard Koehler. An honest man. You will like
him.”
    Karl paid the man and thanked him for his excellent service.
Jan and Karl took turns shaking hands with Sauli and his father.
    Jan cleared his throat. “Your sønn has been a
blessing to us, Herr Rehnquist. He is a good boy, a good man already.”
Jan said this in front of Sauli because he wanted the young man to hear what he
said.
    Jan turned to Sauli. “You have earned a good wage today.”
Jan placed a quarter in Sauli’s hand. “We thank you.”
    The boy glowed under Jan’s praise and clasped the coin
eagerly. His father smiled with pride.
    “Come, Søren!” Jan called. “We’ll take all this to the train
now, eh?”
    Søren was glad to get underway. He had spent two